Monstrous Monday

Rauch Boar 
No. Enc.: 1d4
Alignment: Neutral
Movement: 120’ (40’)
Armor Class: 6
Hit Dice: 4
Attacks: 1 (bite or Fireball)
Damage: 1d6
Save: F4
Morale: 6
Hoard Class: None
XP: 135

Rauch Boars exude a tremendous heat and skunk-like odor. Their coarse fur is constantly smoking from the excessive internal heat. Rauch Boars that are denied water for more than eight hours explode into a massive fireball. The fireball has a range of 20 feet. Burpees use Rauch Boar skins, which retain a high temperature for several months, as a cooking and alchemical heat source.

This is a monster I created for my fourth for-sale Labyrinth Lord adventure:  THE BLASPHEMOUS BREWERY OF PILZ:  EXTRA STOUT EDITION.  Be sure to check it out!

Stories From Shatensite: Part Five of Ninety

5.  Death and betting are both unfortunately common in the shadowed streets of Shatensite.  It was only a matter of time before these two intertwined like snake heads on the same body.  By now most bookies, in addition to more common wagers on sports, politics, and games, offer yet another way to separate man from money based on the more final separation of man from his mortal coil.  However, if the Shatensite authorities rule the cause of death murder, all money is returned to the original investors minus the agreed upon holding fee (usually between 10-15%).

All Shatensite bookies, however strange it may be, use the exact same payment odds; 1:162 for picking the correct day of the year, 1:9 for picking the correct month, 1:18 for picking the correct year.  Many bookies claim the odds were given to them in the course of a nightmare they are otherwise extremely reluctant to discuss.

Monday's Game & Fate Points

I played my regular game of Dark Heresy last night.  Er, excuse me, I meant Rogue Trader.  We continue with the adventure, The Light of Reason, in which we continue deeper into a developed asteroid in which a group of people are creating psuedo-navigators.  At least, I think so.  We encountered a few more of the wolf-like beasts I mentioned last week, in addition to a few nurgles and flying demons.  I'm a big fan of nurgles, by the way.

One of the mechanics of Dark Heresy is something called a fate point.  Basically, it gives me a re-roll on attacks.  It's a do-over of sorts.  There are other uses, but I use those far less frequently.  There are ways to permenantly loose fate points, but these occurances are rare.  The problem is, they reset after every session.  I like reward mechanics somewhat like this, and even used them with my Gencon games of Extra Stout, but the reset characteristics bugs me because it brings me out of the game.

I find myself hoarding fate points and watching the clock.  When I know there's only half an hour left, or if I suspect we won't have much more combat, I'll start to use my fate points.  In other words, I'm metagaming and even though it's the best strategy, it breaks any immersion I was developing.  I'd rather have a different trigger for resetting fate points such as time or location.

If you have any thoughts on the matter, feel free to share them.

Cheers.

Stories from Shatensite: Part Four of Ninety

The town of Shatensite and surrounding countryside exist where the line between perceived reality and nightmare dims. Those who enter, do so at their own risk to body, mind, and soul.

4.  A well-dressed noble (and possibly the Evil Being from #1) has set in motion a systematic re-occurrence of murder in the weird town of Shatensite.  He approaches individuals experiencing a difficulty and offers them a near-miraculous recovery as long as they agree to help him once sometime in the future whenever he asks.  If they agree, the problem, regardless if it is medical, financial, or magical in nature, becomes happily resolved sometime in the next week.  Within that same period of time, a family member or close friend is killed in what seems to be a natural and unrelated accident.  A crumbling building, runaway horse, bad inn food, or an accidental knock off a bridge may occur.

Within a few months, the nobleman revisits the person to collect on the promise.  Roll a dice to determine how many months elapse.  He asks them to kill an unknown person, and to make it look like an accident.  For example, if the person is a brick layer, they may drop a load of stone on to someone or if they are an inn-keeper, they may poison the food.  If they work in animal husbandry, they may agitate and release a horse, or they may simply bump a pedestrian on a tall bridge at an importunate moment.  It is unlikely the person will be caught or get punished by the authorities of Shatensite who are nonetheless confused by the seeming increase in innocent, but fatal accidents.  If the person refuses, their original difficulty returns threefold.

Cyberpunk News: Website Launch

As a long-time fan of Cyberpunk 2020, I'm excited to see that Projekt Red has released the official website to promote their upcoming video game, now titled Cyberpunk 2077.  Having written about Cyberpunk frequently since this blog's inception, I'm only too happy to follow this new development. 

Even though my interest in video games has declined in the past year, I happily acknowledge that a production of this size will certainly affect the role-playing realm as well.  My own blog has already experienced a traffic increase in "cyberpunk" hits.  If I'm seeing this, Zak and Noisms probably are as well because they often write cyberpunk-themed posts.

So, even if you're not into video games, this has ramifications for the tabletop industry.  Keep an eye on it.

Stories from Shatensite: Part Three of Ninety

The town of Shatensite and surrounding countryside exist where the line between perceived reality and nightmare dims. Those who enter, do so at their own risk to body, mind, and soul.

3.  Two old and selfish successful halfling merchants, Mr. Gier and Mr. Gewinn, having long outlived their ex-wives, occupy their remaining sunset years in fierce and increasingly valuable wagers.  The market, politics, and now even dark magics are all subject to their vicious competitions.  Most recently they have met a mysterious and eerie noble necromancer (Evil Being - see Stories from Shatensite #1) offering them ever higher stakes:  Their own and others souls.

Mr. Gier and Mr. Gewinn are unaware of the Evil Beings true nature.  Though they fear him greatly, their driving competition has come to overshadow even their speculative concerns as to who or what the Evil Being really is.

Convivial with one another, though brusque and hateful with others, they spend many evenings together in each other's homes despite their rivalry.  They live in opulent and well-staffed mansions close to one another in the expensive Old Merchant Quarter of Shatensite.  They are likely to appreciate any character suggesting a new subject or object for competition.

Part 1, Part 2

Stories from Shatensite: Part Two of Ninety

The town of Shatensite and surrounding countryside exist where the line between perceived reality and nightmare dims. Those who enter, do so at their own risk to body, mind, and soul.

2.  Alcohol in Shatensite, though every bit as ubiquitous as in the real world, has magical, unpredictable, and often dangerous properties.  Magical theorists speculate that the weird magic surrounding Shatensite changes the property of alcohol itself.  Others suggest that the magic of Shatensite, instead, changes the brain and body's ability to metabolize the alcohol.  This bifurcated topic enjoys enthusiastic discussion in and out of residences from the highest magic academies to the most humble bar.  The most common effects of alcohol in Shatensite, beyond normal inebriation, are intensity and memory dilation.  Roll 1d6 to randomize the effect of any alcohol consumed.

1d6:  Effect
1-4:  No Unusual Effect
5:  Intensity
6:  Memory Dilation

Intensity:  Alcohol has either no effect whatsoever, or nonuple (nine times) the effect.  Roll once, at the onset of drinking, to determine which.

Memory Dilation:  Major gaps of time pass in which the drinker has absolutely no working memory.  Invariably, bad things happen in this time.  Roll a dice to determine the number of days lost in such a manner.

Part 1

Who Moved Your Beer?

My new Labyrinth Lord adventure is now available at RPGNow, check out the commercial I made for it below.  Click HERE to see more details!

Monday's Game

I played in my regular Dark Heresy game session last night.  We're slowly working into Xenos territory on a weird meteorite-thing, which has apparently been converted into a base of operations for some people building pseudo navigators or somesuch thing.  The module is titled The Light of Reason, but after six-plus hours of play, we're still no closer to uncovering the source of our mystery.

Though, we did face down a few packs of wild dog-like creatures featuring odd collars that shut our Psyker down.  Good thing I'm fast with my blades and Mike is good with sniping, otherwise it might have been us melting into the floor at battle's end instead of the beasts you see above.

Extra Stout PDF Is HERE!

The PDF of my next adventure, The Blasphemous Brewery of Pilz:  Extra Stout Edition, is now available for purchase through RPGNow and its affiliates.  Because of the artwork and drinking rules, Extra Stout is only available to those 18 and over.  It is a complete Labyrinth Lord adventure ready to go out of the box!

What do you get for a mere $3.99?

• 33 Pages
• Over 25 Original Illustrations
• 11 New Monsters
• 5 Maps
• 3 Delicious Recipes

What are you waiting for?  Click HERE to purchase today!

Why else should you buy Extra Stout?  This game was written and illustrated by one proud member of the Old-School Renaissance   It was edited by the awesome guy who runs The Savage AfterWorld blog.  Also, all income generated by Extra Stout will be reinvested into the role-playing community.  

For less than the cost of a microbrew at your local pub, you can own 33 pages of beer and fantasy adventure ready for game night.

Cheers!

Oh So Close

Layout nearly done.  All art except one piece finished.  All editing done.  Excitement level high.

Extra Stout, the Labyrinth Lord adventure all about beer is coming soon to RPGNow.  Below is the second-to-last piece I just finished today.  Hang in there, folks!  In the meantime, you can click on my "Extra Stout" tag found on the right-hand side of this blog to see all my steps leading up to the present.

Cheers!

The most important room in the dungeon crawl?  Tasting room, of course!

There's A Monster In My Beer

My soon to be released module, Extra Stout, is a little different.  I've included recipes, drinking rules, and other weird bits to make it something more than the typical dungeon crawl.  Of course, you can treat it as a straightforward crawl if that is too your liking.  There are plenty of traps, secret doors, and new monsters for that!

However, I've also included poetry.  Below is my second D&D poem (you can find the first one here), which I also plan on including in Extra Stout.  You might not understand some of the references because they have specific meanings in the game, e.g., "Shattenberg 'slaw", "Tarf", and "mushroom brew".

There’s A Monster In My Beer

A Poem by Dylan Hartwell

Copyright Dylan Hartwell 2012

There’s a monster in my beer.  How he got there I don’t know,

But he drinks my mushroom brew, and therefore he must go.

He isn’t awfully big.  Just a little bitty imp,

And he is always good with barmaids for his massive tips.

Taken from my own coin purse, I must here assert,

And though he tells a fine-spun tail, I must now desert.

My warm spot by the fire and my Shattenberg ‘slaw,

Next to my clean-picked bones, yes he ate too them all.

Sober day by day I see him not, my time is unmolested,

‘Tis odd indeed, he leaves my view until a tankard’s lifted.

Then Katy bar the door and hold your purse strings tighter,

Than you hold your girlfriend dear when nestled by the fire.

‘Cause soon he comes and knows no slake nor inhibition either,

His beer to drink, at barmaids wink, and speak to all with blather.

By evening’s end, and daylight creeping oh so near,

At last he shuts his mouth and finishes my beer.

Some tavern barflies wave goodbye; from one drunk to another,

For things unsaid despite the talk is what had won them over.

At times I wake surprised to see his footprints on my floor,

Often filth and stomach contents also from meals the night before.

Bruised face and blackened eye often greet me with the sun,

For my imp knows not when ‘tis wise to hold his tongue.

And when I wash my face in nearby Tarf so pure,

I see my imp smiling back at me with thoughts anew impure.

Another tavern night awaits my rancor and my thirst.

I know my monster, imp, is me, but that is not the worst.

Monday's Game

Photograph by Dylan Hartwell.

Our Monday night Dark Heresy game last night went well.  We're continuing through the adventure named The Light of Reason.  Basically we're on a really big and developed asteroid trying to smuggle/steal a navigator off and back onto our ship.

There wasn't a lot of rolling, but considerable role-playing and strategics.  This is what our group tends to do the most.  Oh, and I drank some delicious IPA, too.

However, my character began to get antsy and after a couple of hours with no combat decided to take out my character sheet:

Photograph by Dylan Hartwell

Also, remember to please participate in my current poll:

In what size do you want your old-school adventure print products?

Poll: How Do You Want Your Old-School Adventure Print Products?

I've included a new poll in this post and on the upper right-hand side of this blog homepage.  I'd appreciate your taking a few seconds to log a response.  If you don't mind, also send a few fellow role-players this way as well.  If my respondant numbers aren't big enough I don't feel comfortable forming inferences, so the more results, the better understanding I can develop.  As with my past polls, I will be sure to share the results and my subsequant analsysis.

In what size do you want your old-school adventure print products?

One of the reasons I'm asking this question is because I'm currently debating between RPGNow's POD service versus printing and mailing it out myself. If I use the 8.5*11 POD service, I anticipate the cost will be around ten dollars, not including shipping. If I print it out and mail myself, I should be able to bring it down to about $4.50, including shipping.

 Even though my own print job will not be as flashy nor clear as the professionals, it is considerably cheaper.

Stories from Shatensite: Part One of Ninety

The town of Shatensite and surrounding countryside exist where the line between reality and magic is blurred.  Those who enter, do so at their own risk to body, mind, and soul.

1.  Mr. Leibgeld is the most powerful man in Shatensite, though few would think it from appearance.  Plainly dressed and perpetually working in his small store, he lives alone in a large home in the town's center.  Despite his humble exterior, he is the richest man in town and growing richer with each passing day.  He offers loans to any who ask, but never fails to collect what was stipulated in the agreement.  Despite his vast savings and connection with nearly half of all of Shatensite's inhabitants, he is rarely discussed openly or with anything but contempt and fear.

A condition of all his loans is the mysterious child equity clause.  Any family taking a loan from Mr. Leibgeld may send their firstborn child into his house at midnight.  If the child finds their IOU statement and leaves the house, the debt is forever clean.  In living memory, only one child has ever left the house with the IOU and he emerged at sunrise with unnaturally white hair, never to utter a word again.  Other children have emerged from the house after several minutes, screaming in terror that the house came alive.  Far more children have never returned at all.  Many thieves and grieving parents have broken into his house, also never to return.

Mr. Leibgeld is granted immortality from a demon-like creature living in his house.  In exchange, he provides the occasional child sacrifice and lair in the house cellar.  The evil being often has difficulty entering the physical realm except on certain portentous nights and for the first few days after he has fed.  When in the physical realm, it is capable of shape change and teleportation.  When not wholly in the physical realm, it can interact with physical objects with various levels of strength.

Declining Interest in Video Games

Your ponderous author contemplates the differences between books, gaming, and movies.

Something weird is going on with me:  I've lost interest in playing video games.  As a kid, my brothers and I played Atari in the basement for hours with Pole Position, Pitfall, and other similar titles.  Later, our habit became even more intense with the Nintendo Entertainment System.  While I found it difficult to stay awake all night with even the most engrossing novel, my brothers and I regularly pulled them with marathon sessions of Zelda, Castevania, and Ninja Gaiden.

Later, as I progressed through middle school, high school, and college, my time spent playing video games fluctuated very little little.  In other words, my Playstation, Nintendo 64, Dreamcast, and Playstation 2 saw weekly, if not more regular use.

About four years ago I bought an XBox 360 and, even though my little brother lives five hours to the south, often play with him online for many hours.  That is, I used to.  For reasons I can't fathom, the past six months have seen an unprecedented decline in my video game time.  It isn't for want of cheap games, because my friend and GM often lends me the latest releases for free.  It isn't for want of time, either.

My role-playing remains consistent.  I always play at least three hours as a player every Monday and often spend several hours each week in Referee mode.  Even if I don't feel like going on a tired Monday night, I don't want to let my GM down.  So, there is a strong social reinforcement to role-play that doesn't exist with my video gaming.  Even my brother has been playing video games less, otherwise I could claim a similar pressure for my regular Halo session.

I'm not sure what to make of it, but I'm concerned that my post-Gencon funk will return and even my role-playing will diminish.  See, not playing video games doesn't bother me as much as reducing role-playing because I believe role-playing is active and engaging in a beneficial way.  I think it's the same mechanic seen in movies versus books.  Sure, movies are fun and entertaining and still require an amount of thought, but they pale in comparison with the active process of building understanding from novels and increasing one's knowledge base with non-fiction texts.  Running role-playing games requires even more engagement than reading text.  Referees must build monsters, geographies, and networks of non-player characters.  This demanding and active process, I imagine, is far more developmental than movie-going or reading.

Extra Stout Update: It's Close!

I'm moving ever closer to publication.  Currently, I'm working on layout and begining to think how I want to offer a print product.  My first inclination was to do POD through RPGNow.  However, lately I've been entertaining thoughts of doing it booklet style and printing myself.  Regardless, by the end of the month you will be able to purchase Extra Stout in PDF or print format.

1. Brainstorm
2. Rough Draft
3. Print and Self Edit
4. Revise
5. External Edit (not me)
6. Revise
7. Layout
8. Print and Self Edit
9. Revise
10. External Edit
11. Revise
12. Publish

The monk, Espen.  Will you help him or drink his beer?

Artwork is coming along well.  I'm especially happy with "Espen" (see above).  Working on layout, I've realized I have too much artwork.  The pages are too busy and it looks sloppy, so I've removed a few player character images.  As you can see below, I only have three more pieces to complete.  So, I'm on track for a late October PDF release.

Cheers!

Foamy Beer
Pretty Barmaid
Bed & Boar Sign
Silver Squares
Theda (NPC)
Geruch (NPC)
Espen (NPC)
Nude Elf
Monastery Entrance
Warrior Tasting Beer
Stairwell w/Blood
Female Dwarf Necklace
Caverns
Mushrooms
Barricaded "Keep Out" Sign
Magic Book
Barrel Beast
Beer Elemental
Burpee
Cave Bats
Lady Lamprey
Rauch Boar
Ragnocchio
Durjaya
Rock Grub
Shining Salamander
Yeast Slime
Empty Glass
Cover

Monday's Game

I enjoyed another game of Dark Heresy last night.  It got a late start due to an hour-long argument about free will vs. determinism.  Yes, Dear Readers, not only do I enjoy gaming, but also tedious and vague arguments under the false guise of "philosophy".

Once underway, our GM began the slow process of changing from Dark Heresy to Rogue Trader.  For those of you who aren't overly familiar with Fantasy Flight's game, this marks a significant change.  We've now all basically changed from religious cops battling demons to Han Solo battling aliens.  This will require some getting used to, but I'm up for something a little different.  It has been three years of demons and I'm ready for a change.  Plus, that Nurgle adventure still creeps me out when I think about it.

Lots of new rules to think about.

My buddy makes an universe-shattering roll!

all photographs by Dylan Hartwell 2012

Coming Soon...

Artwork copyright Dylan Hartwell 2012

Artwork copyright Dylan Hartwell 2012.