The Beyond - A Modern Dimension of Supernatural Horror & Depravity For Your Old School Campaigns

I've been wrestling with my a Godbound/Cha'alt campaign set in Las Vegas especially how the undead lords & the underworld are gonna fit in into a modern occult setting. Funny thing is I've already done all of the heavy lifting with the public domain setting of the Beyond ages ago.

There are weird and modern realms of supernatural horror where Dark Forces can snare the living and adventurers might be forced to deal with the horrors and demonic fury of 'The Beyond'.

Bordering the realms of the Afterlife & the living is 'The Beyond' a place of supernatural horror where the forces of the Undeath and the Demonic draw the living into the cross hairs of this realm. 'The Beyond' can cross dimensions and can draw the living into its clutches. The ancient texts of wisdom define the Beyond thus: 

The Beyond was a mysterious plane of existence which occasionally encroached on the physical world. A shadowy limbo vaguely akin to the Afterlife, it served as the source of the many supernatural menaces which threatened the "Realm of the Living." In a number of cases, it was a gray, lifeless purgatory inhabited by rotting corpses; in others, a place of perpetual torment akin to hell (although rarely defined as such).

The Beyond was depicted as the abode of all of humanity's worst fears; vampires, ghosts and demons existed alongside ghouls, witches and harpies. All seemed generally hostile towards mankind, some periodically crossed over to prey on selected victims or to seek vengeance on former tormentors. The traffic appeared to flow in both directions; mortals could inadvertently find themselves trapped in the Beyond before the end of their natural lives.
The demonic forces of the Abyss & Hell are often recruited by the powers of the 'Beyond' in their machinations and efforts.  The forces of the Beyond often have cults and other organizations of occultists who are in the service of this realm.
The Beyond is a realm that can show up in any number of worlds from alternative Earths to post apocalyptic wastelands. The 'Beyond' is far more influenced by modern technologies and societies boasting demons and undead monsters who both familiar with these modern amenities and capable of using them. 
The Beyond is a supernatural limbo where the souls of the damned and dying are often sent to their final rewards but not before being tortured and demeaned by the  demonic forces that reside there. Often adventurers and outlaws journey to the beyond in efforts to bargain with these demonic monsters often for theses souls in an effort for occult rites of resurrection and a return to the world of the 'Living'. There are forces of ancient order and hellish law that keep such events from taking place. 
The forces of the Beyond have a number of locations within its confines that allow it to interact and yet remain unseen by the average man. These locations include the following : 

 Castle Valord  - A legendary ruin and  megadungeon of epic proportions that is under the dominion of the demonic ruler Countess Siroon who rules a small and ancient European kingdom that calls to adventurers and promises adventure. 

 Thirteen Long Road - The departure point for the haunted Last Express train that roars to life traveling between the worlds of the Living and the realms of the dead, this demonic express train is often caught by adventurers to enter the Beyond and some times the Abyss. Those who find this platform to haunted adventure rarely return to the worlds of the Living. The Last Express is often used as means of traveling from one world to another but because of the proto demonic staff of the train this into itself can be a dangerous and weird experience of a most harrowing nature. 

The Salem Bookstore - This legendary place is an exchange of powerful occult and forbidden knowledge where wizards and witches go trade swap and gain extreme insights into the nature of the worlds of Dark Forces. It is also under the control of the The_Shop_Keeper. To most it appears to be a burnt out vacant lot but to those with the 'sight' and the gift of occult observation it is a business of power and wisdom that calls to those of mystical power. The place moves across the planes and dimensions. 

City of the Fearful Night- This gray and strange urban location often lays itself over an existing city like a shroud, populated by the recently dead this place often acts as an intersection between the world of the living and the limbo of undead. Various demons and hellish forces lurk in the background read to snare the Living and drag them into the clutches of the Beyond. Many occult treasures are sometimes found here tempting and drawing in adventurers. 

The World of the Dead - This is one of the inner rings of the Beyond and the domain of the ghostly souls of the damned; this a grey depressing world within the dominion of the Courts of the Damned who lay claim to those who come under the call of the laws of the afterlife. Those who try to defy these esoteric and strange laws often find themselves at the mercy of these weird and powerful undead lich gods. Powerful undead bailiffs and bounty hunters often work for the The Judges of the Dead enforcing their wills and judges. 

Hell Level - The ultimate circle of torment for the Beyond this realm is under the dominion of  demonic powers of the Beyond.  Known as the 'World of the Evil Ones , this supernatural wilderness and wasteland has portals that lead to both the proper Hell and Abyss. And it is the zone of rulership for the gods of The Beyond.  This region is a place of perpetual torment for any mortal unfortunate cross its boundaries, regardless of their innocence or guilt. Hell appears to have a number of 'masters', including Mephisto Satan,Countess Siroon and The Shop Keeper. The ultimate power in this region appears to be Dr. Death, to whom all others must defer - even it seems, the devil himself.

The Beyond  is a dimension of horror, depravity, and functions as a sort of limbo dimension that menaces the world of the world of the Living. The ancient texts describe it thus : The Beyond was a mysterious plane of existence which occasionally encroached on the physical world. A shadowy limbo vaguely akin to the Afterlife, it served as the source of the many supernatural menaces which threatened the "Realm of the Living." In a number of cases, it was a grey, lifeless purgatory inhabited by rotting corpses; in others, a place of perpetual torment akin to hell (although it was never specifically defined as such).

But even the Beyond while a hellish realm of horror and depravity has its demonic god like rulers. Beings of power who can bring incredible supernatural power to bare on those of the world of the 'living'.

Doctor Death Living Embodiment of 'The Beyond'

 A the top of the pyramid of horror and undeath is Dr. Death himself, an incarnation and avatar of death and unlife. This being is both the embodiment of the concept of Death and its incarnation made unliving flesh. As the instrument of Death itself he has sovereign power over witches, demons, vampires and various other supernatural beings, which are charged to do his bidding. Dr. Death has the ability to assume the form of a human being and even in his human guise retains a good deal of his god like magical abilities and is a able to cow even pit fiends and arch devils  into submission. It is said that "Mephisto Satan") is described as his lieutenant. There is a rivalry between Doctor Death and the demon lord Orcus which has existed for thousands of years. Doctor Death travels between the world of the living and the dead with easy and influences the living in subtle and very dangerous ways. 

Cults : A number of modern Lovecraftian ghoul families, necromantic cults, wasteland wizards, and many other black magicians worship this being. Those in service to the Beyond chose from the Grey and Black schools of magic from the Fantastic Heroes and Witchery rule book. 

Areas of influence include: Death, Undeath, Demons, and all aspects of the Beyond plane of existence.
Once per day Doctor Death may a horde of 1d100 undead and damned souls from the Beyond. 

The Mummy

The mummy is thousands of  years old and while a contemporary of Dr. Death retains his independence and dececdantly dangerous sardonic wit. This being is a mummy and lich far out of his time. He is a minor power in the Beyond but is a very active. The mummy has the abilities of a tenth  level occultist and is able to call upon any spell of the black school of magic with easy. Anyone trying to engage the Mummy in hand to hand combat is likely to catch mummy rot with a 60% chance of contracting the disease for every round spent in hand to hand combat with this fiend. Once per hour the mummy can raise dead as soulless zombie warriors

. The mummy may grant 1d4 spells from the Black school of magic to a worthy agent of the Beyond.

 

Countess Siroon

The demi goddess of decadence and depravity, this demonic princess is the custodian of the megadungeon Castle Valord, she was guardian of the doorway to The Beyond and one of Dr. Death's many supernatural vassals. To the casual observer she appeared as an educated and strikingly beautiful woman, but beneath her enchanting facade lies the soul (and appetite) of a bloodthirsty demon. Feared as a vampire by the local population, she frequently lured young men to their doom, torturing her victims for days on end before finally draining their life-forces. She is one of her master's most trusted vassals and rules the Beyond in his absence. Countess Siroon has all of the powers of a succubus and is able to grant vast supernatural knowledge to those who sign a pact with her. She uses a rite of rejuvenation using the blood of the living to allow her agents to regain 1d20 years once they have murdered someone with blood ties to pact signer. The victim must retain close ties with the pact signer. The Princess is one of the Doctors agents who moves freely between our space time continuum and the Beyond. Once per day she is able to gate in 1d6 warrior demons. At the lowest levels of Castle Valord is a gateway between our world and the Beyond. 

The Judges of the Dead

The Judges of the Dead are the spectral and highly dangerous lich kings of an ancient and forgotten set of judges who enforce the ancient and highly esoteric laws of the Beyond and the Dead. They have all manner of agents working among the worlds of the living to ensure that the trust between the dead, the nearly dead, and the undead are not violated. They have a number of supernatural bailiffs and bounty hunters who carry out the will of their court. Not mention the fact that the Judges of the Dead, also retains the status of all souls within their purview for resurrection this includes PC's souls. The Judge's are all knowing as well and are able to see into the past and future. They will advise on all matters of the dead and living. Their agents are granted spells that carry out the will of the court in the world of the living. They may give an agent 1d6 spells and will keep close magical tabs on their agents. 

The Serpent Queen 

This vile villain of the highest order is a fallen goddess of the ancient Atlantis pantheon whose manipulations ensure the agendas of the Beyond in the world of the living continue. She has more then a mere shadow in the real world but is a demonic entity ruling a hidden kingdom within the cliffs of Mount Cudado.

She is a foul demonic princess and under her alluring disguise is a dangerous demonic hell spawned demon. Those who sub comb to her charms are found dead a few days later and from within her hidden kingdom she guards a very dangerous portal into the Beyond. She has influence over the worlds of the living and dead while offering bits and pieces of forbidden or demonic lore. She will grant 1d4 spells per day to her pact signers. Any minor undead will bow and scrap at her appearance and she is a goddess of many minor necrotic cults. 

The Shop Keeper

The patron of wizards, occultists, and other black magicians of all stripes. The shop keeper runs a chain of occult book shops and resource centers throughout the world. The shop keeper appears to be a man in his early sixties but is actually thousands of years old. He will always grant a wizard the proper book of forbidden or supernatural knowledge and is one of the most active of all of the Beyond demonic entities. He will appear to those who seek out his shop in his seemingly human guise and have a wide variety of occult artifacts or spell books of forbidden Lovevcraftian knowledge. The Shop keeper guards one of the many central gates to the 'Hell Level' of the Beyond. And is one most trusted of the demonic powers of the Beyond.
He is served by an army of faceless demonic doppelgangers whom he can gate in 1d6 every three hours. For his agents he will grant 1d8 1st and 2nd level spells. All minor demonic or undead monsters will submit to the Shop keeper and those who interferes with this entity will die within 1d4 days of an encounter with this fiend.He will always have 1d6 scrolls, minor magic items or spell books.

These entities are only the tip of the iceberg of the Beyond . These entities have all of the minor powers and immunities of demons from the Monster Manual 1st edition. In addition these minor demonic divinities have been known to actively have roles within the various alternative Earths especially where post apocalyptic wastelands occur. The souls of the dead and undead are especially prized by these entities and various forbidden or dangerous cults have truck with these beings. 

These entities are all public domain and appeared in the golden age of comics book 'This Magazine is Haunted' and are going straight into my campaign. 

Clark Ashton Smith's Gorgon & Some Monster Ecology For You Old School Campaigns

I'm a bit of a haunter after a strange precode horror comics especially when it comes one of my favorite OD&D & AD&D style monsters the Medusa.Well get to those comic books in a moment. Medusa in my campaigns are not simply dungeon lurkers.  These agents of chaos are a perfect monster to throw into a campaign mix as NPC's. I've used them them as harbingers, next workers, & agents working in the shadows between cults of chaos & Lovecraftian entities. Medusa can be thought of as the upper middle management of the supernatural to on the ground encounters with their own agendas.

But a Medusa's destruction doesn't necessarily mean the end of their evil at all. Clark Ashton Smith did an excellent tale called The Gorgon. This is a great sort of modern take on the legend of Perseus & the Gorgon with implications for use in, well any D&D style campaign world. Go read the tale to see what I mean & there's a great potential wizard NPC in the mix as well.  Since work has been really taking up giant swaths of time I've turned to the classic Horrors of It All blog for some classic Pre code comics old school gaming inspiration.

Rudy Palais is one of my favorite precode comic book artists, he had a style that made his creatures ooze off of the page quite literally. Mr. Palais was there from the beginnings of comic books.  He passed in 2004 but his work lives on & his classic story from The Head of Medusa.  This classic story of the precode era literally presents a perfect tale for use with a cult of Medusa that could be spread down through the centuries like an infection of chaos & corruption. The temple detailed in the story is a perfect adventure location to weave in the horror and depravity of a cult of Medusa from the Sword & Sorcery era right into modern times.  The Mask of Medusa is about a curious little shop of horrors, antiques, & curios to slip in a cursed item or two into your campaigns besides the main focus for this horror title.


Peter A. Morisi's Mask of Medusa appeared in the September 1953 issue of Weird Terror #7 & its an eerie take on the classic motif of the medusa mask. This particular item seems to me to belong to a lesser Medusa and has besides its save vs poison a very aggressive psychotic  personality as well as a taste for murder.

 
 The 'Lesser Masks of Medusa' is a cult item often given to chaos cults of  worshipers & cells made in horrid rites of murder, black magick, & depravity. Each 1d4 days the spirit of the mask will make a prophecy that will advance the agenda of the cult. Once per day the mask's countenance may animate & bite for 1d6 points of damage, the victim must save vs poison or fall down dead. The mask appears to be made of the purist jade or other valuable material worth at least 4000 gold pieces or better. These items are cursed and will pass from hand to hand in vile game of murder, intrigue, & betrayal.

Sunday Science Fantasy Free Download - Castle Frankenstien Issues 19,20,21

When my uncle's family in upstate New York babysat me as a kid, I'd get a chance to look into my adopted uncle's collection of Castle of Frankenstein magazines. These were a portal to old school sword & fantasy films ages before the easy access to Beta Max or VHS.

So I came across a particular issue of  Castle of Frankenstein that I've been looking for sometime last night. Castle of Frankenstein was a monster kid's dream, sure Famous Monsters of Filmland gets all of the top billing today. But Castle of Frankenstein had some very awesome cover artwork but it was hard to find growing up.

There were reasons for this;"

Castle of Frankenstein was an American horror, science fiction and fantasy film magazine, published between 1962^[1] and 1975 by Calvin Thomas Beck's Gothic Castle Publishing Company, distributed by Kable News. Larry Ivie - who also was cover artist for several early issues - and Ken Beale edited the first three issues. Writer-artist Bhob Stewart edited the magazine from 1963 into the early 1970s. Although promoted and sold as a "monster magazine," readers were aware that Castle of Frankenstein, at the time, was the only nationally distributed magazine devoted to a legitimate and serious coverage of B movies. In addition to its central focus on classic and current horror films, Castle of Frankenstein also devoted pages to amateur filmmakers and fanzines. Its advertising pages sold full-length silent feature films such as The Lost World and The Golem.

Following employment as an editor for publisher Joe Weider, Calvin Beck (1929–1989) entered the monster magazine arena in 1959 with his one-shot Journal of Frankenstein, which had only a small circulation. As an experiment, Beck printed part of the run on slick paper. After a hiatus and a title change, Beck returned with the debut issue of Castle of Frankenstein in 1962.

Beck claimed that since his magazine carried no outside advertising, a standardized schedule was unneeded. Issues were published whenever they were completed, leading to an erratic, irregular schedule. Distribution also varied; while many well-stocked periodical outlets did not carry the magazine, some less-likely outlets (such as grocery stores) did."

So issues number Nineteen, Twenty, & the infamous issue Twenty One of Castle of Frankenstein featured amazing covers by Maelo Cintron. Whose horror covers have graced comicbooks & horror magazines for decades such as Skywald as well as many others. Thanks to Monster Brains you can some fantastic scans of the wonderful covers of these vintage rarities.


So after many years of not having access to these treasures of the Seventies I finally came across these three treasured issues which contain a running interview with the master of  stop motion Ray Harryhausen. The wrap around covers are worth the price of admission but this interview covers many of his early film endeavors. Plus with the added bonus of these fantastic wrap around covers for old school adventure  inspiration.


You Can Grab  Castle of Frankenstein 019 Right From HERE

This issue has lots of key behind the scenes photos from on set stuff & more. Its some great stuff for a trip down memory lane and nostalgia alley. Plus there's a ton of good material for stimulating the imagination.
From there jump into issue #20 which continues the movie magic right here

The final issue of  Castle of Frankenstein 021 covers Sinbad and more of the Seventies leanings of Mr. Harryhausen plus a whole lot more monster movie magic!

Commentary On Adapting Necronomicon: Book of Dead (1993) As Old School Campaign

In the last two days I've walked about four miles to do a bit of grocery shopping, run some errands for my folks, & play catch up with work. Now this would be fine if I wasn't on the mend with the world's crapptastic head cold. So last night the head cold decided to comeback with a vengeance. So to console myself I sat down with an old VHS horror classic with Jeffery Combs. Not the Reanimator series but the seldom mentioned but often rented Necronomicon. Its one of those films that came out in the Nineties.  H.P. Lovecraft's: Necronomicon, always seems to have been out at the back alley hole in the wall video rental place I worked in. Its a weird beastie of an anthology film with an 'R' rating meaning plenty of Nineties T&A with a wrap around story starring Combs.

So what does this film have to do with old school gaming? There are loose connections & more that can be mined here so bare with me for a moment. First of all this film has a hell of a cast; "H.P. Lovecraft's: Necronomicon, original title Necronomicon, also called Necronomicon: Book of the Dead or Necronomicon: To Hell and Back is an American anthology horror film released in 1993. It was directed by Brian Yuzna, Christophe Gans and Shusuke Kaneko and was written by Gans, Yuzna, Brent V. Friedman, and Kazunori Itō. The film stars Bruce Payne as Edward De Lapoer, Richard Lynch as Jethro De Lapoer, Jeffrey Combs as H. P. Lovecraft, Belinda Bauer as Nancy Gallmore, and David Warner as Dr. Madden."
It sort of goes for a weird 'Bordello of Blood' meets 'Tales From the Darkside' in a back alley for a quickie with a side of  H.P. Lovecraft's Mythos thrown in as its framing device. Its sleazy, humorously dark, not PC at all, plays very fast & loose with the Mythos.
Its actually partially the framing device that allows the DM to draw on it for old school games but we'll get to that in a moment.
"The three stories in the film are based on three H. P. Lovecraft short stories: The Drowned is loosely based on The Rats in the Walls,^[1] The Cold is based on Cool Air,^[2] and Whispers is based on The Whisperer in Darkness.^[3]"
Yeah its actually the The Whisperer in Darkness that helps to move the entire anthology along & its the Mi Go who are actually the secondary antagonists in the film. They've set up a small monastery where Comb's Lovecraft goes to access the Necronomicon for research for his fiction. What he actually wants to do is steal the forbidden book & things don't quite go as planned or do they?
"In the wrap-around story of the film, H. P. Lovecraft (Jeffrey Combs) learns of a monastery where a copy of the Necronomicon is held. Having been a regular there for his research, he sets up an appointment, his cab driver told to wait outside. Taking insult when the head monk calls his work "fiction", Lovecraft insists that all his writings are true. Requesting to read the Alchemical Encyclopedia Vol. III, Lovecraft steals a key from another monk and flees to the cellar where the Necronomicon is being held. Unknown to him, a monk has seen him. Unlocking the vault where the book is held, the door closes behind Lovecraft unexpectedly, making him drop the key down a grating and into the water below. As that happens, one of the seals is opened.
Lovecraft sits to read and record what he is reading. It's not specified if he sees visions of the future through the book, or if the book contains future accounts. It's likely the stories will come to pass, and for the Necronomicon have already passed, alluding to the Necronomicon's timelessness, as all the stories take place well beyond the 1932. " "
So who the heck are the Ommati monks & why are they setting up shop as an occult society right in the middle of  Los Angeles? Simply put these Mi Go were part of the second wave of occultism that swept through America in the 30's. Note that this H.P. Lovecraft is more of an occultist then our 'real world' version. He's brave, conniving & the perfect media for the Lovecraftian gods to get their messages of insanity into the world.


Yeah its all a set up, the Necronomicon shows him stories & visions of its forbidden knowledge in the form of stories with snippets of its forbidden wisdom thrown into the mix. Not enough to really drive him mad per say but him insight into the dark recesses of its true potential. The film is great because it drives Lovecraft purists up a wall. Take for example the 'Drowned' which has figments of The Shadow Over Innesmouth

& the Rats In The Wall. Edward De LaPoer, a member of the De La Poer family is tracked down & given an envelop from which he learns of the tragic fate of his uncle. The creature featured  might be an avatar of Cthulhu with hints of its own very small remnants of a cult around it. 
Then you get into the 'Cold' with a twist of weird science gone very wrong & the twist of medical conditions gone very wrong. Cold is three parts boring, insane, & whole unique with some ideas that are so twisted that they could shock even the most jaded of palettes.


'Whispers' is the final installment taking place in modern day Philadelphia which is in the grip of "the Butcher" a dangerous serial killer. Its a really twisted tale of two police officers, Paul and Sarah of the Philadelphia Police Department who run afoul of a group of degenerate Mi Go who are using humans for reproduction. Its a really nasty Nineties gore fest with a twist of the usual VHS classic gore.



Then we flash back to Lovecraft whose had access to the Necronomicon this entire time & there are a wide variety of traps with various sigils that have been revealed within the 'vault' where the book was kept. There's a degenerate avatar of 'Dagon' down below the grate where Lovecraft was sitting but he rolls a 'twenty' with his sword cane. Then the final reveal as a child of the Outer gods comes to claim Lovecraft's soul & he manages to escape the 'monastery'. The 'Necronomicon' is in his possession & roll credits.
Surely there is no way that this film could be used as old school adventure fodder? Actually it could be & has by me several times. Right off of the top let me clear up why the
Ommati monks would let Lovecraft have access to the book. They were ordered to by Nyarlathotep in order to spread the madness of the Outer Gods. This version of the book of the dead would probably have 1d20 minor black magick spells with 1d6 major Lovecraftian spells.

 "The Black Man", artist Jens Heimdahl's rendition of Nyarlathotep,
according to H. P. Lovecraft's story "The Dreams in the Witch House".

As for why the Mi Go would be using the Twentieth century as jump point is because this is merely a beach front in a war that has been going on across space & time with other aliens such as the Great Race of Yith.



We have no idea where or when the Ommati monks got their copy of the Necronomicon nor where it came from making this a perfect set up for PC's to do a recovery job sometime in the past. While this book does seem like a potent artifact its certainly not up to the standards of the original book.  This makes me suspect that this might have been or is a fake copy that's been created as a prop to keep cultists of Nyarlathotep safe. The monsters, cultists,etc. all mentioned in the movie are dead ends to the Old Ones & Outer gods. So instead of merely destorying them outright they use them as fodder for others such as the Inquisition or other investigators of the Lovecraftian. While this is not a great film its a great piece of VHS weirdness from the golden age of horror of the Nineties. There are lots of angles to mine here and Combs Lovecraft makes a great occultist NPC & one that players don't expect. A man of action & some bravery instead of the usual sniveling depictions I've seen in several novels.


There are certainly several things I love about the film but this is one that devides both the horror comunity and the Lovecraft purists. There's lots of fodder in HP Lovecraft's Necronomicon Book of the Dead. But you've got to look around for a copy on the internet or VHS. Its never had a Blu Ray release. For the record this trailer drives me crazy, Clive Barker never took much inspiration from H.P. Lovecraft. He's always had his own imagination to pull from.

Please note that this blog post is not an attempt to violate the trademark or copyright of the film Necronomicon: Book of Dead (1993) This blog post is for entertainment,  informational, & educational purposes only.  All other ideas are  copyrighted to the original writer.

Six More Public Domain OSR Resources For Your Old School Campaigns

I've heard some friends  recently speaking about the OGL during a recent debate the other night at my house about the fact that 'all of the good magic items & treasures were taken' & there was nothing left to use. Well your uncle Eric is here to give you some shiny public domain treasures, artifacts, and relics that can kickstart your old school games into high gear. All of these are from wiki & easily sourced back to their original sources.



The first up is The List of mythological objects this includes all kinds of things;"a variety of items (e.g. weapons, armour, clothing) found in mythology, legend, folklore and religion from across the world. This list will be organized according to the category of object"
Then there's the grand list from the 'List of mythological objects (Hindu Mythology)' this includes (e.g. weapons, armor, clothing). There's some awesome treasures and relics that relates to many of the sagas & stories. Perfect fodder for all kinds of adventures & OSR setting material.



Then there's the 'Thirteen Treasures of the Island of Britain list' which is includes;"The Thirteen Treasures of the Island of Britain (Welsh: Tri Thlws ar Ddeg Ynys Prydain) are a series of items in late medieval Welsh tradition. Lists of the items appear in texts dating to the 15th and 16th centuries.^[2] Most of the items are placed in the Hen Ogledd or "Old North", the Brittonic-speaking parts of what is now southern Scotland and Northern England; some early manuscripts refer to the whole list specifically as treasures "that were in the North".^[2] The number of treasures is always given as thirteen, but some later versions list different items, replacing or combining entries to maintain the number" These are perfect fodder material to slide your OSR adventurers into a Celtic or Authurian game setting or adventure with little issue. These can slide right into the Four Treasures of The  Tuatha Dé Danann   as a sacred side note to slip into place right inside a dark Europe adventure.



There's also a slew of relics, items, and artifacts from the Bible perfect fodder for adventures with a historical spin.  The artifacts in biblical archaeology list is extensive and easily back fitted into the  Relics associated with Jesus 
 entry which is perfect to spin all kinds of adventures around. This could include things like Nazi occult hunters, a bit of time travel, and spinning this stuff into adventures like the Lamentations of the Flame Princess dark historical setting or even as possible fodder for Eighties style horror with overtones of the Keep.

This makes back to back adventures a snap, Mayfair games did a 'Keep'  adventure where you play adventurers in the past and their descendants in the future. Since then I've used this gimmick a few times and as long as the players are down with it. This seems to be a hit with some people who really enjoy this style of play.
I also came across this list of  10 Amazing Mythological Objects from listverse.

 In the end with a bit of research some time and energy plus google you can come across a vast array of artifacts and relics that will have your players wondering at the sources & game books your using.



Remember to keep those dice rolling.

Six Free Public Domain Resources Perfect For The Lamentations of the Flame Princess Rpg System or Your Old School Campaigns

I was doing some research earlier today and ran across six wonderful public domain review resources that are perfect for either Lamentations of the Flame Princess, Dark Albion or your old school campaigns. First up is Spectropia; or, Surprising Spectral Illusions (1865) "A book of Victorian hi-tech ghost conjuring which allows the reader to summon, as the sub-title proclaims, “ghosts everywhere and of any colour”. Accompanying the set of wonderfully gaudy images, are directions on how to use them, and a more detailed scientific description about how the illusion works" Just the thing to have your wizard or dark conjurer unleash upon an unsuspecting party of adventurers someplace in the Alps during the Hundred Years War or upon the forgotten plains of the Rose War.


Next up is the book From India to the Planet Mars (1900) which basically details a medium's contact with Mars and some of her other 'visitations' with other worldly entities. "She also claimed to have contact with people living on Mars and to be able to speak their language which she wrote down during her seances, as well as sketches of the landscape she witnessed" Perfect material for a star cult for Dark Albion or as a side project for a wizard in Lamentations of the Flame Princess's dark version of Europe. Much of the material here reminds me of Empire of the Petal Throne and other weird alien OSR landscapes.



Another piece of artwork is the wood cut from Japan about the legendary sea monster known as the sea monk. This is the sort of horror that would easily fit in with the Mad Monks of Kowtoon or Qelong according to the account from the piece;"This ukiyo-e woodblock print, by the late Edo period artist Utagawa Kuniyoshi (1798-1861), illustrates a story involving the “Sea Monk” or Umibōzu, a spirit in Japanese folklore. The ocean dwelling spirit — so called because of his smooth monk-like round head — is said to capsize the ship of anyone who dares speak to it. Kuniyoshi’s woodblock tells of a sailor Kawanaya Tokuzo who, despite it being considered unlucky in the world of seafaring, decides to go to sea on the last day of the year. A terrible storm breaks out, and the giant figure of the Umibōzu appears. Against the roar of the waves the apparition asks, “Name the most horrible thing you know!” Tokuzo yells in reply, “My profession is the most horrible thing I know!” The answer apparently satisfies the monster as he then disappears along with the storm." Maybe the thing could be used as a part of a funnel for DCC which the contact with the monster is enough to jump start the fighting spirit of a fighter, the evil of a thief, and the brush with the supernatural enough to cause a wizard to be birthed into the world.



Need some other worldly races or something different for PC races well  Marvels of Things Created and Miraculous Aspects of Things Existing  has you covered. "Images from an illustrated version of a 13th-century Arabic treatise by Zakariya al-Qazwini titled ‘Ajā’ib al-makhlūqāt wa-gharā’ib al-mawjūdāt (Marvels of Things Created and Miraculous Aspects of Things Existing). The text is probably the best known example of ‘ajā’ib or ‘jā’ib al-makhlūqāt literature, a genre of classical Islamic literature that was concerned with “mirabilia”: cosmographical and geographical topics that challenged understanding. Al-Qazwini’s treatise explored an eclectic mix of topics, from humans and their anatomy to strange mythical creatures; from plants and animals to constellations of stars and zodiacal signs"
This is a perfect resource to pull from for those weird occult items, monsters and people encountered. Bits and pieces of this book could also be printed out and used as player handouts for your games.



Along the same vein is the The Dream-God, or A Singular Evolvement of Thought in Sleep (1873) which is;"A short and curious work recounting an extremely vivid and elaborate vision while under the influence of morphine. The tale seems to be based on a true story, an experience of the author John Cunningham who explains in a “Letter to My Friends” that “Although requested by a number of you at various times to write this condensed narrative of an event in my life, associated with much misfortune, sadness and suffering which have continued for some years, it was not until during a lonely period of quietude at Brooklyn, N.Y., in the summer of 1872" This is perfect fodder for HP Lovecraft  dreamlands  or visionary OSR style adventures. "The morphine-addled “Sleeper”, as he is referred to throughout, then proceeds to accompany the “Spirit” on a long and winding flight witnessing a range of strange and marvellous natural phenomena – such as a window at the North-pole down into the fiery core, and 500 foot primordial lizards – as well as a whole host of spiritual and philosophical encounters with the likes of Confucius, Cleopatra, and Zoroaster." Talk about NPC random encounters and the idea of a party out to help awaken some poor soul trapped in the dream world would be a truly epic quest.


Finally what about a mysrterious real world occult book about the powers of Hell itself! Talk about your great player handouts and adventure hooks;"The Clavis Inferni (“The Key of Hell”) by Cyprianus, is a late-18th-century book on black magic. Written in a mixture of Latin, Hebrew, and a cipher alphabet (namely that of Cornelius Agrippa’s Transitus Fluvii or “Passing through the River” from the Third Book of Occult Philosophy written around 1510) the book has remained rather mysterious due to its unknown origin and context. It is said to be a textbook of the Black School at Wittenburg, a supposed school somewhere in Germany where one could learn the dark arts." This is a perfect book to find in the library of a wizard or black magician.


But apparently there wasn't only one author but a slew of wizards who used the title or name  Cyprianuses:" Benjamin Breen writes in The Appendix of how the existence throughout history of various magically-inclined Cyprianuses – from “a Dane […] who was so evil that Satan cast him out of hell” to the Greek wizard St. Cyprian of Antioch (who later converted to Christianity) – led to the name becoming a popular pseudonym for “people at the edges of society who were trying to do real black magic”." Just the tid bit to use as an adventure hook for either Lamentations or Dark Albion. Print out some of the pages and get rolling on seeking out the author or the black school of dark magick.  

Many of these resources would make perfect additions to England Upturn'ed especially in the libararies of some of the NPC wizards or scholars. I already did a complete review of England Upturn'd right over here and I think its a damn bloody good piece of thunderously nasty book for the Lamentations of the Flame Princess system.

Commentary On The Driftwood Verses Kickstarter & Some Free Resources For The Lamentations of the Flame Princess Rpg System

Well, first of all I just got home after a day of repair work and more so its time for me to unwind and begin to look at some of the OSR material coming across my desk. Let's start with the fact that Clint and Cassie Krause  plus the Red Moon Medicine Show folks just hit 11,301 for Driftwood Verses!
Congrats to another successful kickstarter and there's more rewards and such to unlock yet. So head over there and check it out! There's something damn well appealing about Driftwood Verses and as a Herman Melville fan this really hits the same spot as some of the haunted sea tales that I grew up with in Connecticut. Now Driftwood Verses is Melville meets David Cronenberg meets Gothic Literature spun through a fever dream and drenched in acid for the Lamentations of the Flame Princess system.
You Can Support It Here!

I have a tendency to think of the Lamentations of the Flame Princess rpg as a separate system completely from many of the other retroclone on the market. There are a variety of reasons for this one being that the add ons & adventures are system enclosed products unto themselves such as 'Better Then Any Man', two the system is modular so that it will work with, 'The Dungeons & Dragons Rules Cyclopedia' and the quality of LoFP titles have been consistently useful at my table. Which brings me to the Red Moon Medicine Show's LoFP material which is almost always of a slightly better quality then some of the OSR efforts that I've seen over the years. The Red Moon Medicine Show's Vacant Ritual Assembly LoFP zines are killer and so are they're adventures. I would expect that The Drift Wood Verses is going to be up too or exceed this standard.

Some other free resources that I ran across today on the Public Domain Review website also fit some of the themes, ideas, settings, and elements explored in  Vacant Ritual Assembly and with a bit of work could be used to blow open entire campaign venues into past or future histories for Lamentations of the Flame Princess. Let's start with some of the more obvious ones :

Living Lights: a Popular Account of Phosphorescent Animals and Vegetables (1887)

Want a hook for drawing your PC's into the world of Driftwood Verses, perhaps the account of a scientist whose barely able to understand the weird entities and creatures of Driftwood. With a bit of work there's tons that can be mined from this book on glowing fauna and flora. 

 

Shells and other Marine Life from Albertus Seba’s Cabinet of Natural Curiosities (1734)

Is the perfect collection of marine life to stick that odd item, mystical relic, or biological curiosity into the collection of the Dutch pharmacist and collector Albertus Seba (1665-1736) was an ardent collector of plants, insects, and animals, amassing a collection which in 1716 was bought by Peter the Great. Together with the collection of one of Seba’s countrymen, the anatomist Frederik Ruysch, the collections formed the base for the Kunstkammer in St Petersburg, the first museum in Russia. In 1734, Seba published his Thesaurus, titled Locupletissimi rerum naturalium thesauri accurata descriptio, translated as “Accurate description of the very rich thesaurus of the principal and rarest natural objects”, and consisted of four volumes of which two were published after Seba’s death.

Orbis Sensualium Pictus – or The World of Things Obvious to the Senses drawn in Pictures, as it was rendered in English.

"In the mid 17th-century John Comenius published what many consider to be the first picture book dedicated to the education of young children" and its a weird little affair of a book with lots of strange illustrations and more. The perfect thing to use as a hand out for PC's to find aboard a drifting wreck or ghost ship especially with other pictures drawn into the margins or blood stains on the sides of the book.

Need a conspiracy of vice and rich folks as villains for your LoFP campaign? Especially ones with ties down into modern times then go behind the scenes of Darkness Over All: John Robison and the Birth of the Illuminati Conspiracy

What about rumors and weird tales of sailors and legends of the  Driftwood Verses settings? Perhaps the tales might be found in one of the many hundreds of brothels and taverns talked about 17th-century London which saw an explosion of nocturnal activity in the capital, most of it centring around the selling of sex.The Nightwalker and the Nocturnal Picaresque is the perfect resource to get the tall tales going and the sex moving your plots along. 

"In On the Threshold of the Unseen (1917) he wrote that “it is not a very incredible thing to suppose that in the luminiferous ether (or in some other unseen material medium) life of some kind exists”. He imagined such beings to be “human-like, but not really human, intelligences — good or bad daimonia they may be, elementals as some have called them”. But where, then, did they dwell?" all of this comes from  Worlds Without End a look into the occult practices of the 19th century perfect fodder for Driftwood Verses and even more LoFP hi jinks.

 
  This is just a small sample of the wealth of information that's out there for old school games  with a bit of patience you can dig up some fantastic resources. I've got more material coming up soon.  But for now keep those dice rolling!