Using Dragon Magazine Issue #68 - For Solo Astonishing Swordsmen & Sorcerers of Hyperborea Adventuring

To amuse myself after work today I began to think about old school solo Swords & Sorcery role playing. Yes I know all about Tunnels & Trolls solo dungeons . Instead I wanted to go in a completely different direction. So while swilling down a beer, I began the task of looking through my bountiful collection of Dragon magazines. Finally I spied it. Dragon issue #68 which according to Wayne's books site;  "Two weapon fighting; Dawn Patrol; Ice Age adventuring; Aquatic encounter tables; High-level magic user spells; Weather in the World of Greyhawk; more.

December 1982 ... 96 pages". In case your wondering get a hold of this issue its a classic for a reason. 

I was looking around for a solid resource for running some Ice Age adventures in Astonishing Swordsmen & Sorcerers of Hyperborea. While the game contains some really solid leads on creating & maintaining adventuring upon Hyperborea I've been looking into creating some actual on the ground content for adventurers. Fortunately I don't have to spend a whole lot of money in order to get the maximum outta of the game. Dragon issue #68 contains an article by Arthur Collins called 'Thrills & Chills'. It describes setting up a clan and how much time must be spent on survival alone. Suddenly,  you've got a great resource for playing at & going at it alone between adventures. Be sure to use the rule of AS&SH when creating your character!

 To me Hyperborea has always seemed like Ralph Bakshi Fire and Ice film . In fact this is my go to film to put me in the proper mind set to run the game.  In fact Arthur Collins article 'Thrills & Chills' plugs right into the sort of background that I see for AS&SH.  

The film 'Fire & Ice' has this Age of Giant Mammals & Prehistoric dinosaur survivals that mashes so well with the background elements of AS&SH. The film gets the blood pumping to run some AS&SH! Throw in a bit of Clark Ashton Smith & your ready to go! This is a classic issue that has some real gems of articles in it for both OSR & old school play. The card stock centerfold of the "Weather In The World Of Greyhawk" article  is the true gem  of this issue! It makes Greyhawk just that more dangerous! 

But back to AS&SH solo adventuring. I'm thinking of using the guidelines from  Arthur Collins article 'Thrills & Chills' to set up my clan, create some tribal support NPC's, & then expand into blackadder23's Hyperborean Encounter Tables II Bookmarked pdf that you can find on the OD&D proboard forums here. If you haven't grabbed these & your an AS&SH fan then I would! These are excellent & black adder 23 deserves an exalt! And your pretty much ready to go!

Keep track of experience points, check with your DM on using this method, & keep on moving & exploring for your clan until your party comes to get you! This method could have you go up a level or two in no time plus it familiarizes you with the AS&SH system.