OSR Wasteland Weirdness Encounter - Old Friends - Actual Play Event With Commentary

In tonight's adventure the PC's found the wizard's laboratory and began to search it and that's when things got really weird. After getting taunted by an invisible telepathic presence the PC's found a Crystal Egg and an undead sorcerer under the influence and control of some evil strange psychic essence. They were able to free the sorcerer from the evil influence but the party was continue to be taunted from beyond. They discovered a magic ring was the control for the sorcerer, one of the mutant adventurers decided to destroy the ring and almost destroyed himself in the process. He barely escaped as the ring exploded in a fiery burst of deadly weird radioactive  energy.



A search of the lab in the ruins revealed lots of low level  weird radiation energy crystals, jeweler's vices, archaic weird science devices, alchemy equipment, and several weird seemingly alive red weed like plants under glass. I read the players a quick excerpt from the Crystal Egg by HG Wells;
"It occurred to Mr. Cave that this was not in accordance with the laws of optics as he had known them in his younger days. He could understand the rays being refracted by the crystal and coming to a focus in its interior, but this diffusion jarred with his physical conceptions. He approached the crystal nearly, peering into it and round it, with a transient revival of the scientific curiosity that in his youth had determined his choice of a calling. He was surprised to find the light not steady, but writhing within the substance of the egg, as though that object was a hollow sphere of some luminous vapour."


Orcs from Otherwordly Miniatures


They decided to dump the egg into the moat of lava just outside the ruinous dungeon after throwing a table cloth over it. The party managed to toss the thing into the lava just before a small cell of oak warriors showed up dragging a sack with someone in it behind them. They were armed with primitive laser weapons. And that's when the walkers and tripods showed up across in the tree line from the ruined fortress. The party got into it hot and heavy with the orcs and ultimately it was an over lorded energy cell in a laser rifle that turned the tide in the party's favor. But they've faced Marsvaders before and retreated back inside the ruins after the energy cell exploded like a grenade. What weird secrets do the Martian Tripods hold in store for our heroes? Only time will tell. Tune in next week for more old school fun.

1d20 Random Marsvaders War of The Worlds Finds Table

1. 1d6 Martian energy cells that will power a weapon or heat ray gun for 1d20 shots. Worth about 50 gold pieces. 
2. A piece of alien ground glass that can refract laser or energy weapon fire. Worth 70 gold pieces or more to the right collector. 
3. A black smoke grenade that causes targets within a 30 foot radius to save vs poison or start choking and coughing for 1d20 round. Exposure for more then four rounds causes 1d4 points of minor flesh dissolving damage. 
4. A broken tripod tendril that can be used as a the basis for a make shift cybernetic limb. Worth 300 gold pieces to the right collector or wizard. 
5. A Crystal Egg with a minor stand 
6. Martian blood draining equipment minor worth 100 gold pieces to the right collector 
7. Martian surgical instruments and alien medical kit worth 200 to 400 gold pieces to the right collector 
8. Weird Martian probe unit with multi phasic and dark vision unit built within its cyclopedia eye  set up. It floats four feet off of the ground and will be in telepathic rapture with certain wizards or psychic PC's a successful wisdom roll is needed to telepathically contact the thing.
9. A mini heat ray weapon with 1d10 charges in it capable of doing 2d6 points of damage to certain flesh types and metals within a 40 foot radius. Worth 300 gold pieces to the right collector 
10. A pack of 1d10 Martian energy cells worth 500 gold but sell them fast for they're highly unstable. They'll do 1d8 points of damage when they go off creating a minor radioactive hazard in addition to the damage. 
11. A giant artificially created ruby lens capable of taking a special charge from a Martian weapon. Worth 600 gold pieces. 
12. Minor tool set capable of being used by humans but more suitable for the tendrils of a Martian worth about 500 gold pieces for a scientist or wasteland technician that wants to work on Martian technology. 
13. A Martian Ether radio set up perfect for those wanting to follow and eavesdrop on Martian warrior army movements. Worth 1000 gold pieces to the right collector. 
14. A set of phasic lens that can be adapted to the human eye to see into the dark vision range of the Martian eye. Worth about 2000 gold pieces to the right collector. 
15. A set of telepathic helms capable of blocking the psychic weapons of the Martians. Worth 500 gold pieces if the receiver units are removed. Used by the Martians for herding certain prized slaves around. 
16. A minor Martian diamond blade +1 capable of slicing through bone and tendons with ease. Worth 700 gold pieces to the right collector. 
17. Slave collar with all of the circuits and guts removed perfect for a human spy or tech thief to move among certain levels of Martian society undetected. 
18. Light like device which is capable of showing the hidden symbols and writing of the aliens. Worth 800 gold pieces especially to wizards and the like. 
19. A telepathic device capable of reading Martian medical instruments and science storage units. Priceless to mad scientists and wasteland wizards. 
20. A Martian bio computer unit made from human brain and animal tissue.Capable of telepathically broad casting the totality of the alien omni mind. A save vs death is needed to avoid being put into a 1d20 day coma from the sheer volume of information. 

The players are unaware of the dangerous adventure location that is half buried in the nearby woodlands. A ship from the inter system war has been secretly buried there for centuries but a recent earthquake uncovered it. The Martians would love to get their tendrils on it.

Glynn from Monkey Blood Design did a map of the Iron Pigeon that's perfect for this adventure location coming up. Well this design and artwork from the  pen of +MonkeyBlood Design 
is going to be perfect and I can't wait to use it. 
http://osrtoday.com/2016/04/04/map-monday-iron-pigeon/

Meditations On Hacking West End Games Star Wars Strike Force Shantipole Adventure By Ken Rolston For Your Old School Campaigns

 Introduction 


Coming out in '88 this classic Star Wars Rpg adventure for the  first edition Star Wars rpg puts the PC's right into the classic era cross hairs for a daring mission into the lions den. The blurb on the back of the adventure takes the PC's right into heat of the Rebellion against the Empire;
"Battle Imperial starfighters in the vastness of space, chase deadly probots through asteroid storms, and go up against a heavily-armed escort frigate in this explosive full-length Star Wars adventure.
In the Roche Asteroid Field, a secret Rebel project nears completion. Headed by Commander Ackbar, the Shantipole project has developed a powerful new starfighter for the Alliance arsenal.
But first, Shantipole must be safely escorted back to Alliance High Command. That's where you and your team come in. With a borrowed freighter, sealed holodisc orders, and a good blaster at your side, your ship emerges from hyperspace -- right in the middle of a TIE/LN starfighter patrol!
And they told you this was going to be a routine mission..."
So I know what your thinking what the hell does this have to do with OSR gaming and why is taking a classic West End  Star Wars adventure and talking about hacking it. Well its not to what you might think. This classic adventure by Ken Rolston brings the action of the Star Wars game right to the players door step and goes that extra push over the edge. This classic adventure allows the PC's to meet an iconic Star Wars character as an NPC and play a critical off camera role in the midst of the background of the movies all of the while a key piece of the Rebellion Alliance military hard wear keeps flying and out of the Empire's clutches.
When we begin looking below the surface of the adventure into the story line, background of the adventure plus the way things begin to play out we begin to see a pattern in the adventure's foundation.




Background, Plugging In Elements, and Sword & Sorcery  Because of the military aspect of  Strike Force Shantipole it is very easy to take certain plot and adventure elements and transport these over to your favorite retroclone or old school adventure. The thing to remember is the PC's are playing a central roll in the continuation of one of the most iconic fighters in the Rebel Alliance



Take the action, the background elements, and other messy plot point details and transport this adventure over into your favorite retroclone or AD&D 1st edition sword and sorcery style campaigns and suddenly the utility of the adventure is extended by years. Certain adventures are iconic and easily recognized and work on a number of levels for science fantasy play. Take these adventure elements and transport the whole plot lock, stock and barrel into a sword and sorcery game or campaign and things can get very interesting.


Sealed orders, the fate of a kingdom,incredibly dangerous encounters on the enemies home territory, and other surprises make this style of hack easy and incredibly fun.Throw in some iconic NPC's for various encounters and you have a mini campaign going soon enough.



According to Wookiepedia:"Research Station Shantipole was an asteroid in the Roche system. It was primarily staffed by Verpine. After the Battle of Yavin, the asteroid was the site of the Shantipole Project, in which Slayn & Korpil worked with Commander Gial Ackbar to develop the B-wing/E starfighter." So here's how this might translate over to a sword and sorcery campaign setting:

1. The isolated island was the site of an ancient military ship yard within a hidden base. 
2. A special fast pirate ship is being used by renegade forces and only PC''s are aware of it after their aboard and on their way into the jaws of death. 
3. Add in some pulpy minor monsters, a subplot, a bit of magickal mythology and legend not to mention the HP Lovecraft or Robert Howard connection and your almost ready to go. 
4. A cult or other faction could help to move the plot along. 
5. Rival forces for opposition to the PC's could make for some much needed melee and combat. 
6. Many of the over the top aspects of the Empire are perfect for keeping PC's on their toes with warlord tactics and management ideas. The Empire becomes a world level power and faction with the added twist of the ancient dark magic/religion being behind the rise of the power in your world.
7. The added dungeon crawling aspects of this adventure give just that much more of a classic D&D style dungeon crawl. 
8. Many of the plot pieces feel as though they belong to a classic fantasy film or WW II war picture many of these exciting elements can be worked into other plots. Don't try and rush this adventure there are a lot of moving parts and pieces. 
9. There's something about this adventure where the PC's are a party of rag tag fighters that works on a number of levels. 
10. This adventure could be adapted to other classic rpg genres such as a post apocalyptic adventure. I used this one as a part of a space going Mutant Future/Buck Rogers style crossover. This style of adventure with altered ships, details, and some backgrounds allowed it to work great at the time.
    
     Breaking Up The Beast, Parts, Pieces, And More
    
    
    As I said this is a beast of an adventure that has a plot that could be used potentially for lots of applications. This is especially true of using Star Wars adventures for WWII movie style role playing a fact that I've used several times in modern style role playing games such as Top Secret and others. The secret to this style of role playing is the movie serial. Breaking up the plot of a complicated or long  range module allows the DM and players to emulate the pulp style reels of the 1930's.
    
    
    
    
    The serial approach allows the PC's to take center stage on a number of levels and allows the DM to break up the action of the adventure to be stretched into a mini campaign with the PC's playing their vital parts. This approach works especially well in a wartime style scenario or as a sword and planet or science fantasy vehicle. The Fifty Five film The Damn Busters really solidifies the idea for such an exciting adventure with a
    military theme.
    
    
     Once again we're going back to the roots of Star Wars in this case the Damn Busters a 1955 UK film that George Lucas used as inspiration for many of the Death Star sequences and trench run camera angles.Many of the action military films of yesteryear not only provide a touch stone with the roots of the film but also provide a clue for getting the most out of adventures that players might not be expecting.
    

1d6 Random Martian Finds In The Wasteland Table For Your Old School Post Apocalyptic Campaigns

There are few things that adventurers panic about more then the unexpected meetings with the tripods of the so called "sarmaks" or the so called Outsider Martians for they are not native to Mars at all. They inspire dread and utter panic in adventurers who out in the wastelands run into these beings or their machinations. They do however leave behind certain valuable and yet very dangerous relics.
And this Thing I saw! How can I describe it? A monstrous tripod, higher than many houses, striding over the young pine trees, and smashing them aside in its career; a walking engine of glittering metal, striding now across the heather; articulate ropes of steel dangling from it, and the clattering tumult of its passage mingling with the riot of the thunder.

• Book I, Ch. 10: In the Storm
  H.G. Wells War of The Worlds

“Few people realize the immensity of vacancy in which the dust of the material universe swims.”
― H.G. Wells, The War of the Worlds
Because of the alien nature of some of these finds PC's have a 20% chance of recognizing some of alien relics for what they are. As always caution should be used when approaching any of these types of relics.

1d6 Random Martian Finds In The Wasteland Table

1. High polished heat ray lens useful for focusing energy or laser weapons as well as the Martian heat ray. Worth about 300 gold pieces to certain wasteland collectors. 
2. Martian blood extractor unit and treaded crawling unit, this beast of a unit is useful in Earth's heavy gravity. It has seven needle like extraction units that do 1d4 points of damage to a target as they draw the blood and vital floods from a victim. Certain medical collectors & wasteland wizards will pay handsomely for these units. Worth about 6,000 gold pieces especially with the mechanical vacuum systems intact. 
3. Package of seven black smoke grenade canisters and launcher units. These can be launched in a 70 foot radius and will coat everything with a 15 foot radius in the black smoke like poisonous particles of the Martians. Targets must save vs poison or begin suffering the choking and poisonous effects of the smoke. Victims will die within three rounds after exposure to the smoke. Worth 700 gold pieces to the right collector.
4. A chunk of highly unstable radioactive Martian fuel there is a 30% chance of the piece being found with a suitable containment unit for safe handling otherwise targets within a 20 foot radius must save vs wands and take 1d6 points of damage every round. The stuff is worth 10,000 gold pieces to the right wasteland wizard. 
5. A set of Martian tools, these are very useful for working on the Martian technologies and repairing their tech. These are worth about 2,000 gold pieces to the right collector, scientist or wizard. They are often found in the remains of tripods or at the site of Martian operations. 
6. A giant artificial ruby focusing crystal for a Martian heat ray cannon, very useful for creating high yield heat ray weapons and artillery. Worth 20,000 gold pieces to the right collector but they sometimes are coated in a mildly poisonous preservative slime. Targets must save vs poison or break out in horrid red rashes.
   

Meditations On The What West End Games Star Wars Rpg Taught Me About Dungeon Mastering An Old School Campaign & Setting Building

Introduction



  I can remember the day I saw one of my favorite rpg from West End games in Dragon magazine in '87. The blurb really caught my attention and plugged into my kid Star Wars fever', "Experience the vast scope and sweeping power of the greatest space fantasy of all time!
Struggle against the awesome might of the evil galactic Empire, fly faster-than-light spacecraft, trade blaster fire with Imperial stormtroopers, fight lightsaber duels, and tap the mystic Force which binds all living things together. Explore a galaxy of a billion suns, each with wonders and dangers of its own — a universe of dire peril, where Rebels fight desperately against the eternal night of Imperial oppression.
In Star Wars: The Roleplaying Game, you will face overwhelming odds, hard choices, impossible challenges — but if you meet them bravely, you will triumph, for the Force is with you always!"
I think I mowed about maybe seven or eight lawns to afford this bad boy and I've still got my first edition Star Wars rpg book.


May the fourth has passed without incident except for the usual load of internet related Star Wars memes and it brought back certain strains of memory and nostalgia. It also brought back a certain back straightening memory. You see way back when I got seven friends together who were life long Star Wars fans and we got together to play the game. They were life long Star Wars fans who knew the canon like the back of their hands and that's where the trouble began. See at the time Dragonlance was in full swing and I was involved in a friend's home campaign. This is where I learned the difference between approaches in world building between a 'canned' setting and an open setting like 'Greyhawk'. I was used to 'Blackmoor' & 'Greyhawk' where you could make your mark on the campaign setting from the get go. Dragonlance established canon, history, setting, and more. It was a lesson that would come around in spades with Forgotten Realms but that is a story for another blog post.
All of a sudden during my first planned Star Wars game the arguments started about 'official Star Wars canon' straight out of the gate. The game degraded as they often did back then. What was I going to do. Well the answer was I got sick with the flu. That might have ended that right there.
Star Wars, Samurai,VHS  & Shakespeare 


 Things picked up with an unexpected visit and a brand new campaign direction. After the flu got a bit well, iffy.

 The flu was a big deal for a kid like me, I've got a touch now of asthma but back then it put me down for a long time. This insured that I had friends who brought me my homework and such from school. And that's where one of my mentors comes into it. See back then we had video stores that did some great rentals and one I used to hang out in and I became fast friends with one of the part time workers. His daughter went to  my school at the time and he brought me homework that day. Michael noticed my copy of  West End's Star Wars and went back out to his car for a copy of a 1957 Japanese film co-written and directed by Akira Kurosawa called Throne of Blood. Now the reason why I was watching Throne of Blood was simple I had a report on William Shakespeare's play Macbeth, Throne of Blood follows and retells the drama in a whole new light by transporting it to feudal Japan. Its vicious film and very well done and  it became a favorite of mine.
The plot follows Macbeth in its own way but there a lot of subtle differences but here's important points of the back plot;"Generals Miki and Washizu are Samurai commanders under a local lord, Lord Tsuzuki, who reigns in the castle of the Spider's Web Forest. After defeating the lord's enemies in battle, they return to Tsuzuki's castle. On their way through the thick forest surrounding the castle, they meet a spirit, who foretells their future. The spirit tells them that today Washizu will be named Lord of the Northern Garrison and Miki will now be commander of the first fortress. She then foretells that Washizu will eventually become Lord of Spiderweb Castle, and finally she tells Miki that his son will also become lord of the castle."

At the time I was watching a hell of a lot of low rent sci fi movies and Throne of Blood's plot fit right into the science fantasy background of Stars Wars. Everything came together with this two page spread in the game.

 The PC's were agents on the Galaxy Tours for various reasons who were aboard a luxury ship passing through the Tsuzuki system. An an asteroid collision puts the whole party in an escape pod rocketing down onto a back water planet. Where a dark side spirit has taken a hold of the local warlord and only his loyal R2 unit knows the extent of his descent into murder, and madness. The PC's had to figure out the tissue thin murder plot and help to restore the rightful heir to the throne of Spiderweb fortress.

 The R2 unit later became the backbone of this campaign which expanded into the Tsuzuki system which would later appear appear in my Wasteworld rpg in a totally new incarnation. 
The  Tsuzuki system is a backwater steeped in dark side mythology, misplaced alliances, bad deals, and lots and lots of blood.

Back to the Star Wars Rpg, the Tsuzuki system campaign became one of my longest running and sustained rpg campaigns ever. It lasted three and half years and bits of it are still floating in my back brain to this day.
Rules, Settings, Worlds & Mayhem




The West End Star Wars was one of my first smacking into the weight & back history of a fictional universe. Fictional settings & universes are something that people get very, very, attached to. It was also one of the times when departing from the official canon also meant blazing your own path. For some people this can be a very scary proposition. It also makes one of the real differences between new school and old school games for me. New school games seem to have worlds and settings already built into the system itself, this includes Vampire the Masquerade, Rifts, and too some extent West Ends Star Wars rpg.  I can hear the teeth grinding and whatnot but let's talk about second edition AD&D for a moment. They had all of those wonderful worlds such as Ravenloft, Dark Sun, Forgotten Realms, etc. All of these are premade world settings and that's not a bad thing and they do allow a DM to colour outside the lines to some extent.  

But there's also a huge number of differences with old school products such as Greyhawk, Blackmoor, Arduin, etc. That's the fact that its really up to the DM to fill as much or as little  of the campaign setting as they'd like. Here are ten things that I've learned about world building from West End Games Star Wars Rpg that I've applied to OSR campaign building :

1. Colour outside of the lines always. Don't be afraid to go outside of the comfortzone when it comes to 'official' canon. 
2. Rip, rip, rip off rip from the paperbacks or other merchandise that comes out for a game world, movie franchise,etc. These often have grey areas that you as DM can exploit to their fullest extent. 
3. Twist player expections in various ways, build the world or campaign events that you always wanted to see into your games and don't give an over arching reason. Just do it. 
4. Don't listen to so called 'experts' or super fans. Never let the official reason for something keep you from doing what you want. These are your games. 
5. Mark and make a game world or setting out as your own. Make a check list of bullet points of things, places, alien races, etc. you want in a game.
6. Create, create, dream, and create the adventures that you and your players want to play. 
7. Pick the black points on a map and go to town. Be sure to map out what areas you want for your universe. 
8. Don't be afraid to borrow from classic literature, plays, or other sources. Often times the origin points for movies or other franchises have things that the writers, directors, etc. never used. With a bit of research these can yield campaign diamonds that can add that extra facet. 
9. Pick your players brains, often times I see DM over prepare adventures and write out dizzying adventure scripts with maps, outlines, histories,etc. by themselves. Sit your players down and as a whole decide what your going to do and then twist from their. The whole experience should be about group enjoyment of the game. 
10. Stop over analyzing movies and settings. Instead let things develop organically from group table top play. Have fun.

1d6 Random Recoverable Android and A.I. Treasure Finds Table For For Your Old School Post Apocalyptic Campaigns

Adventurers sometimes find incredible relics and remains that get left behind when the Artificial Intelligence lifeforms abandon some  of  their creations and other weird cybernetic life forms out in the wastelands. Many of these creatures are dangerous and yet can yield valuable artifacts.


When adventurers stumble upon such alien artifacts their might be a wisdom or tech use skill check required. These finds can and do yield valuable and sometimes incredibly dangerous finds. Here's a list of some of the more esoteric and odd finds that adventurers can come across in the wastelands. Caution should be used when approaching any of these types of relics.




1d6 Random Recoverable  Android
& A.I. Treasure Finds Table

1. A carbonite android skull with the advanced optics intact inside the thing with its valuable silver housings. Worth about six hundred gold pieces but the thing has a radioactive battery which as a 40% chance of leaking when found presenting a dangerous radiation hazard. 1d6 points of flesh decaying weird radiation if leaking. 
2. A new flesh organ pod found in part of a robotic chest cavity, the organ is capable of regenerating nanite technological repairs capable of remaking or repairing any bread box sized item placed within it. The thing however will strip the flesh from a limb for 1d8 points of damage if placed inside the rubbery like organ. Its worth 10,000 gold pieces to a collector or wizard. 
3. A robotic birthing unit capable of creating an embryonic android of an appropriate type to the ruins its found in such as a soldier unit found in a military base or an engineering unit found in the ruins of an M.I.T. satellite facility. The thing is also capable of slipping in an assassin counter security demonic life essence into a living person, the thing will take over and reprogram a human mind in 1d6 hours. The person infected must save vs death or become the unwilling pawn of such a life form. Worth 40,000 gold pieces to the right collector or cult.
4. Deep Slumber robotic mind, this is a subsidiary mind for an A.I. that can act as back up or lesser mind units for the massive god like intelligences that run the deep other dimensional gate ways. These units are capable of copying a dead person's mind in a very limited way giving a form of artificial resurrection for a 2 year limited basis. These units are worth 60,000 gold pieces but the least little damage will cause them to rapidly decay. The unit can only be placed in the ear canals of the recently deceased who can't be dead for more then four hours. These resurrections are not perfect copies and some emotional or mental trauma may result without the use of a wizard specializing deep cybernetic life forms. There is a 30% chance of a demonic corruption of such a unit as well.
5. Helix robotic life essence unit, these organs are found in heavily created and armored robotic units and they are used for the collecting, dissembling and cataloging of mutant stock life forms out in the waste lands. They are very dangerous for the in hands of the right wizard they can be used to combined two or more mutant life forms into a totally new artificial or androidic life form. They do this by taking two genetic samples from mutant life forms and then forming a nanite cocoon which gives birth to a brand new monstrous artificial mutant life form. The possibilities of these horrors are endless and many cryptic cults seek such robotic units out to destroy and collect these organs. Such units are almost always heavily armed and very dangerous in their own right. These organs are worth between 30,000 to 80,000 gold to the right collector who might try to murder the party or adventurer anyway. 
6. An extra dimensional prism crystal this device is only found on certain sentient android life forms and the crystal is capable of detecting tears,rips, warps,and folds in space. The crystal can take a snap shot of such places or gateways for the creation of between 1d10 gateways of their own creation. These devices allow psychic mutants or wizards to travel between the folds in space time and to move side ways between dimensional planes.  These rare items are worth 60,000 gold pieces but if the crystal matrix is handled roughly there is a 40% chance of a small dimensional explosion that will suck the adventurer into an alternative universe from the mishandling. 
7. 
   
   
   

Preparing An Advanced Dungeons & Dragons Veterans Campaign Using Spellbook Games Journey through Malebolge Book One Part I

Introduction


GRAB Spellbook Games Journey
through Malebolge Book One HERE

There are times when the forces of Hell will not be put at bay and this weekend is going to be one of those times!  What was wrought ten years ago will be unleashed once again. The forces of Hell seek out the adventurers and Outlaws known as Callahan's Crew to drag one of their number down into the depths!
Once upon a time there was a group of adventurers who reached tenth level and after braving the depths of Hell managed to escape their shackles of damnation. This was of course after cutting a deal with a seemingly minor demon a life time ago in '96. Well,Hell doesn't wait and it claimed the soul of  the wizard Titrus Mire and dragged him off to the depths. Now his friends have to brave e depths of the darkness to either bring their friend back or set their friend's soul free from the clutches of damnation itself!

“Through me you pass into the city of woe:
Through me you pass into eternal pain:
Through me among the people lost for aye.
Justice the founder of my fabric moved:
To rear me was the task of power divine,
Supremest wisdom, and primeval love.
Before me things create were none, save things
Eternal, and eternal I shall endure.
All hope abandon, ye who enter here.”
― Dante Alighieri, The Divine Comedy


This is a veteran PC game using characters from a party of adventurers who found themselves in Judge's Guild's Inferno module. They escaped when their wizard made a pact with a minor demon named Azbenon lord of the Seven Darks. As good as his word they did indeed escape but the cuts that the demon made on the wizard's flesh bled and he was damned whisked off to Hell itself. But things have changed as I'm now using Spellbook Games Journey through Malebolge Book One

“Into the eternal darkness, into fire and into ice. ”
― Dante Alighieri, The Divine Comedy



  So what's really happening here and what is a Veterans campaign? Well, when I began to approach this campaign after so long I began with contacting the players who are coming home this weekend knowing that these PC's were used in home campaigns to establish their own settings and begin leading other bands of adventurers. The matter of Azbenon lord of the Seven Darks was brought up by one of my players But then I began to do some research into Journey through Malebolge Book One

and this one is a nasty piece of work. But why use this version of Hell for an AD&D game? There are several reasons right out of the gate. The first is because this is a far more expansive and dangerous version of the classic Hell that sticks very close to the original Dante literature.And its down right weird and nasty, it also happens to line up exactly with the situations that the PC's found themselves in originally. There's a nasty sort of honesty about this version of Hell. A sort of aura of evil hangs over every single entry and drips down through the situation even the dark woodland entry is a character unto itself:

"Every 300 to 400 yards the Adventurers pass the ruined remnants of stone buildings, mostly consisting of
piles of cubic stones, empty rectangular foundations, and one-story pieces of stone walls standing
alone. Many appear to have been set afire at some past time. If characters use spells or prayers
to determine alignment, these ruins have an aura of goodness associated with them. If characters closely examine, or dig into, the remains of these buildings they find unidentifiable bones, broken wood from furniture, small household objects, and various small twisted metal pieces"

Evil here is both subtle and brutal in its depiction and its not meant to be an easy place to adventure at all. This really is a place for veteran adventurers who might stand chance of survival and might even be able to return to the DM's regular campaign world.


This is not a book that takes the road map approach but the type of adventure setting that not only emulates but build upon itself one horror at a time while at the same time leading the adventurers deeper into its infernal mysteries and misery all of the while using information that  is provided about important denizens of each Circle, the sins and torments, weather, specific rules pertaining to the physical challenges faced by mortals in crossing each Circle, and random encounters. This is Hell in every sense of the word and a world unto itself. The maps are professional and well done, the encounter lists are written so that DM can actually use them and interlock them with his own campaign setting. What makes this a nice OSR adventure setting material is the set up that Spellbook Games uses for their material its easily adaptable to OSR gaming:"
Journey through Malebolge is written for the Spellbook Games RPG rule set, ‘Portal to Adventure,’ but is usable essentially ‘as is’ with Advanced Dungeons and Dragons or any similar rule set with very little adaptation. A Games Master using Dungeons and Dragons versions 3.x, 4, or 5, or any similar rules, will require additional preparations." Does it live up to this style of promise? Yes it does as a matter of fact. All of the classic adventure locations from the source material are here and more;"
an area of Gehenna above the Great Pit, the Gates of Hell, and Outer Hell, consisting of Circle Zero through the Fifth Circle.  More than thirty encounter areas are described, including the Shining Hill, Vile Forest, Gates of Hell, Noble Castle, the River Archeron, Cave of Tantalassus, Minos’ Palace, the Garden of Succubi, Cerberus’ barn, and the treasure caves of Plutus, the swamp Styx, Phelgyas’ Tower, the Walls of Dis, and the City of Burning Tombs." Yeah they're all here and more. The magick items are both vile and deadly as well as cursed but there are reasons why and explanations of their existence within the confines of Hell as its defined by Journey through Malebolge Book One

But Hell isn't simply a location of horror and degradition well it is but there is also the fact that the demons and devils are not simply another experience point on the PC's character sheet. These are demons & monsters willing to engage the PC's in conversations and able to show them the ten cent tour of the horrors of Hell. They might toss them into the Pit if it suits them. This is a Hell setting that has its roots in classic literature and the pulp era of horror equally and it draws deeply from both settings. This makes it a perfectly dangerous place for adventurers in equal measure.

 One  Thing Leads To Another


This is not a setting to take lightly and its evil is neither comforting nor easy to deal with on any level of play but it sure is damn fun. The PC's are going to be in for an expansive and hard time dealing with the horrors and degradation of the setting on multiple levels of play. Each and everything is keyed to doing them harm on some level from minor inconvenience to major NPC encounters & if your thinking that this is going to simply be a matter of killing X and Y for its treasure & experience points your going to be joining the damned here on a permanent basis.  I've had lots and lots of experience playing in Geoff Dale's version of Hell and it's really nice to see this beast of a setting getting its due and expansion. But I will caution those using this setting to use either high level PC's or very experienced players because you're going to need a stack of character sheets. One wrong move means that your PC is going to be dealing with the fall out from a stupid decision. This setting doesn't kill PC's but bad decisions will cost you in PC's lives and time in the setting's circles. I do strongly recommend Spellbook Games Journey through Malebolge Book One.

1d6 Random Recoverable Cybernetic Relics & Systems Table For Your Old School Post Apocalyptic Campaigns

When adventurers stumble upon the remains of an android, robot, or other mechanical or cybernetic life form they never know if the corpse of such an entity might have some ancient rare and valuable computer or electronic systems. Some of these items can be quite valuable to the right collector of the robotic or other  cybernetic instruments. However does your group have any way of knowing if the latest 'artificial life form find' is valuable or scrap metal? Here is a random  D6 table to help out.



1d6 Random Recoverable Cybernetic Relics
& Systems  Table

1. There is an artificial power source of a nuclear pellet that will last for 120 years. These systems are worth a cool 300 gold pieces. But men will murder your PC's for it because of the semi precious metals uses in its construction. 
2. The coloured bands represent newer quantum phase couplets of an extreme variety. If they are added to a cybernetic systems they add +3 on all Dexterity checks for the cyborg. They are worth 1d200 gold pieces because of beauty and rarity. 
3. A wide spectrum cybernetic system sensor, this sensor is worth its wait in gold because it is capable of dipping a nearby  flipper dimension and will pick up any and all supernatural entities within a 40 yard radius. The sensor however hasn't any protections from such entities. Worth about 10,0000 gold pieces because of the extreme natural of the system and what it brings to the table. 
4. A weapon cybernetic hand recovered from several owners. The piece is able to slip poisons and a mini laser that adds in a +2 on all to hit checks. The thing also has a poison reserve and needles that will slip into position. Its worth 600 gold pieces but damned is the person who advertises this ancient collector's item. 
5. A cybernetic coin that is able track the cybernetic sickness and state of mind of its owner. The thing is able to pick up the alpha waves from nearby telepathic or pychic winds as it takes its hyper sensitive abilities and can track down ANY telepathic or esper within a 60 foot radius. The system is worth a cool 1,000 gold pieces. 
6. An artificial spine, this piece of hardware augments the existing frame work and nervous system of its owner. The system adds a +2 on all initiative based rolls as the system works on the owner's spine and becomes a semi living bio organic organ. The thing will give its owner vivid hallucinations and there is a 30% chance of the owner being sensitive to danger and violence as it manifests on the psychic wind.Its worth 10,000 gold pieces because of its rarity and weird powers.
   
   
   
   

OSR Wasteland Weirdness Encounter - Actual Play Event With Commentary

The PC's in last night's post apocalyptic game adventure ran into some old friends in wasteland ruins. Here's how things went down.

OSR Set, Retro Clone Round Up, &
Execution
 

Well, sewing machine repair work has been giving me a run for my money but last night I was able to slip in some time to get together with my players. I started slipping in some science fantasy space opera ideas into the background of my regular DYI post apocalyptic OSR game. The players started finding several post apocalyptic artifacts with heavy space opera overtones. Many of these came from the Bandits & Battle Cruisers rpg book mixed in with a health dose of the free OSR resource  Terminal Space. All of this is getting the PC's in several games ready for the Summer campaign rounds of my Warlords of the Outer Worlds setting. So why Bandits and Battle Cruisers? Well, its Bandits and Battlecruisers is one of those great niche products that caters to a niche within a genre.By this I mean that it's not a complete system but a gaming supplement that easily attaches to an existing system to help bring the  rules set to a more Sci-Fantasy Space Opera as I've seen described. Just so we're on the same page here Bandits and Battlecruisers isn't a complete system its an add on or adjutant OSR gaming book Here's what it brings to the table: On its 140 pages you will find:

• Detailed character creation rules;
• Monster creation aids (plus 18 monsters - not the well-known monsters from the Original Game);
• Complete rules for creating star sectors, star systems, planets, moons and space stations;
• Five 100-keyword tables, helpful in designing monsters, robots, civilizations and planets;
• 100 random space encounters and 100 random space stations;
• Tools helpful in creating treasure hoards and artifacts (plus 16 sample artifacts);
• Over thirty random tables;
• Chapter with a detailed starship creation sequence and starship combat rules (plus over twenty sample spaceships).

So what I did was combined Hulks and Horrors and a bit of Warriors of The Red Planet With Labyrinth Lord and Mutant Future with a bit of public domain Charlton comics Space Western action. They go back even further however all the way back to my Nazi on Carcosa campaign.

The PC's in last night's game were doing a bit of generic dungeon and ruin crawling when they ran smack into some 'old friends'.

Melee With The Space Nazi
Last year I ran a game in which my players ran afoul of some space going Nazi with space colony on Mars. They ran into a gang of undead mutant Ju Ju zombies in last night's game. The players were not happy at all when these bastards appeared in the dungeon hall ways. So I pulled out my 15 MM Nazi zombie figures from Rebel Minis and it was on.

It took a good rest of the night last night to mop up these bastards and deal with the fall out of finding a Nazi laboratory in the dungeon but that's going to be cleaned up in next week's game. The PC's also ran across a Nazi skeleton wizard in the laboratory. The players are not happy with this latest development.

1d20 Random Places of Myth & Legend In The Wasteland An Encounter Table For Your Old School Game Campaigns

There are time haunted places that cross the borders of reality bleeding through the very pores of worlds to cross the threshold of our realities and come to create their own dream in the wastelands. These are places of forbidden myth and legend that come into our world in the least expected places. They often have their own rules, peoples and legends. They can offer great riches, great danger to adventurers and travelers in the wastes. Some of these places border Fairy & dream itself some of these places can't be explained in terms of purely intellectual terms. Here is where the most danger greets the adventurer in whose path these places appear.


“White spiders, demon-headed and large as monkeys, had woven their webs in the hollow arches of the bones; and they swarmed out interminably as Nushain approached; and the skeleton seemed to stir and quiver as they seethed over it abhorrently and dropped to the ground before the astrologer. Behind them others poured in a countless army, crowding and mantling every ossicle.”
― Clark Ashton Smith

1d20 Random Places of Myth & Legend In The Wasteland An Encounter Table

1.  An ancient city of people lost in time and space whose souls were swallowed by fairy during the 16th century but who are unaware of their fate. They are guarded by demons and ghouls who harvest the souls of travelers. 
2. An ancient palace time lost to a long dream of a demon god whose awakening dissolves the place back into unreality. There are 1d6 knights who are trapped in between realities. 
3. A caravan of gold and spices that was swallowed by the wastelands whose ancient souls were swallowed by demons of dream and they now manifest during certain days. The gold tempts the foolish. 
4. A palace of criminals and fools manifests upon a ridge above the wastelands and on certain days the smell of food and drink drifts on the wind tempting the foolish. A gnome illusionist's body has been taken over by a demon spirit rules over the place dealing in the souls of those who fall for his poison and drink. 
5. A castle from the depth of Hell itself manifest offering reprise from the heat and poison of the wastes only to claim the damned, the unjust, and the foolish who give into its treasure vaults of damned gold and miraculous artifacts. 
6. A troupe of fairy bards, artists, and entertainers travels the wastelands entertaining villages and survivors but claiming their souls and dreams in the process. They come with each new moon and leave with sunrise. 1d6 ghouls follow in their wake claiming the bodies of those who commit suicide in the wake of these performances. 
7. An ancient temple of faded gods tempts the faithful to use its chambers only to offer horrid demonic interiors filled with murder and horror. There are legends of golden alter relics and chalices that tempt outlaws and adventurers into its bowels of murder and mayhem. 
8. An ancient oasis offers eternal health and youth in one of its pools but it is guarded by 1d8 hook horrors who rest within its sands. They will eat anyone who uses the cursed waters of the pool. These fools are actually those who stay in the oasis over night when it disappears in the morning's light. 
9. There are rumors of a bunker full of artifacts and relics but actually an abode of terrible evil elemental Earth gnomes who claim the souls of those who come here. 
10. An evil humanoid dragon comes down from the stars into the wastelands to claim any farm animals, any souls it can find and worse. A knight will try to enlist adventurers in his fight eternal with the evil beast but both will fade back into the darkness with the coming light. Those who continue to fight the beast will have to remain by the knight's side. 
11. A temple of a chalice of evil appears with the new moons and offers treasure and salvation for the souls of those who suffer from mutation. It does cure them but with the kiss of death. There are 1d20 ghosts who will try to warn any future victims but there are 1d20 relics and weapons from previous victims. 
12. An ancient demon dragon guards a cache of fairy gold and artifacts until the day time ends and then shall these things be used to fulfill a prophecy of legend. Those who brave the dragon may join in the eternal struggle or choose one treasure. Those who try and slay the dragon will join it as its undead minions. There are 1d10 minor undead warriors currently at its side. 
13. An ancient curse causes a city of ancient myth and legend to appear and those who cross its threshold find themselves in a minor heavenly oasis like place of peace and perfection. Those who stay within the walls when the sun goes down find themselves in a city of phantoms and ghosts who might be joining the damned. 
14.  An ancient temple of a goddess of love manifests and the priestess of the place go out into the wastelands preaching their brand of religion and love. They give a single gold coin with the symbol of their goddess on it. Those who take it will gain +2 on charisma temporarily but they feel compelled to visit the temple on the night of the full moon. There they will become the 'golden sacrifices' to the hungry goddess of love and the cycle will begin someplace else. There is also a golden treasure.
15.  A fortress where an enchanted sword of myth has been stored appears and draws warriors and adventurers from far and wide. The blade holds great power and pride for those who hear its siren call. Actually the blade is the resting place for a pit fiend lord and those who draw it will be taken over and possessed by the demon thing. 
16. An ancient temple of three fairy goddesses appears in the wasteland and offers blessings for those who use its services for healing. The goddess's magick can cure many aliments and sicknesses as well as mutation but they want the first born of certain clans. They are looking for someone and murder those who don't meet their criteria. 
17.  This place is the ancient abode of a spirit of wrath and anger trapped within a diamond of the rarest clarity the crystal is actually a cursed god object and will draw in the souls of those who are charmed by its glamour. A cult of 1d20 1st level warriors guards the thing. There is a Type B treasure that is scattered about the ruins.
18.  The ancient spirit of a fairy god mother has been trapped here between dimensions and she manifests as a terrible demonic monster that tries to help travelers and adventurers. Those who can set her free will be granted a minor treasure. But she appears as demon queen of terrible aspect trapped in the ruins of a former palace.
19.  This is a castle made of the sands of time, those who come here may become trapped within the illusions of their own pasts. The place is filled with statues that appear to be ancient adventurers many of which have enchanted weapons but there is a 40% chance of them animating as JuJu zombies during the nights of the full moon.
20.  An ancient warrior's home palace appears in the wastelands filled with pre war relics and ancient servant robots but in actuality this place is an illusionary trap where the wall themselves are made from the flesh and souls of those who tried to take the treasures of this place. Ancient fairies guard the place and feast on those who try to steal its treasures. This place moves around dimensionally.
    
    

The Tyler Prequel An Actual Play Event - Playing On Clark Aston Smith's 'Uncharted Isle' An Astonishing Swordsmen & Sorcerers of Hyperborea/ Lamentations Mash Up Adventure

 Set Up & OSR Actual Play


"The boat touched a beach of fine, pearly sand, before I began to wonder where I was and to speculate concerning the shores I had reached. I knew that we had been hundreds of miles southwest of Easter Island on the night of the fire, in a part of the Pacific where there is no other land; and certainly this couldn't be Easter Island. What, then, could it be? I realized with a sort of shock that I must have found something not on any charted course or geological map."

I was able to get together with player and his family today to test out a couple of theories about about old school island play adventure encounters using a resource I've been itching to use.



Thanks to the Tyler family today I got a chance to try out an 'experiment' in old school gaming. Well, sort of it was more like I got together with the Tylers for a bit of Astonishing  Swordsmen and Sorcerers of Hyperborea and bit of old school gaming but I didn't have whole bunch of time to prepare so I pulled out an old rpg convention trick out of my bag. This was running an isolated island location but this wasn't one that I had written. Way back in AFS magazine #3 there was an article, about  adapting 'The Uncharted Isle' by Clark Ashton Smith to Adventure & Setting, by Jason Zavoda.

The island, its environs, and the town are all steeped in weird sword & sorcery fiction. The article basically outlines the island, its environs, the town, the NPC Lovecraftian deity, and the weird situation that the PC's suddenly find themselves embroiled in.

 So what does this have to do with World of the Lost by Rafael Chandler? Well two of the Tyler clan wanted to play sea wrecked PC's from the fictional city of Khirima. Since this was going to be several  ship wrecked crews on the island I was alright with that.

 There were several advantages to this style of adventure we ended up with two 2nd level warrior women from the fictional African nation who were time lost as well as ship wrecked. There were three characters among six who were taken from World of the Lost two warriors 2nd level and a male sorcerer. William and his brother were playing thieves from Hyperborea

Our final player Brian was playing a knight from Dark Albion and half of the game adventure was spent making sure that none of the player's PC's killed each other. They each woke up washed up on the shore and the exploration began in earnest. Everything about the island is wrong from the position of the sun, the geography of the island itself, the creatures on the island, the sky, the stars, the ocean, and then the story just keeps going.

 “More and more decisively, I knew that there was something wrong:  I felt an eerie confusion, a weird bewilderment, like one who has been cast away on the shores of an alien planet; and it seemed to me that I was separated from my former life, and from everything I had ever known…”
Clark Aston Smith 'The Unknown Isle'  It took a great deal of cooperation and know how on the players parts to get out of the situation. There are plenty of ways to get out out of the ship wreck situation that the PC's  find themselves in but also plenty of ways to die. They managed to get off the isle today but were ready to kill me for making the language barrier an adventure element. This adventure is actually a prequel to the Temple of the Book adventure. See below.

Further Deep Background on Clark Aston Smith's  Uncharted Isle
  Once again I get called into a spur of the moment game with a bunch of other friend's players. Is this a problem no not at all. I was reading a couple of the short stories of Clark Aston Smith the other night and after writing up The Temple of the Book I wanted to write up or play through a prequel. AFS magazine happened to be nearby with the article by Jason Zavoda and there's also an excellent blog entry about this short story. Both of these served very nicely to keep things moving tonight.

  This keep things moving right along up to the point when the PC's built a raft and escaped the isle and its weird environs but does that mean that the PC's will be making it too the Temple of the Book? Not necessarily, for I didn't say that this was a direct prequel to the events of the Temple at all there could be other  stops and more yet to go before they might just might find their way to their respective homes.

I've often used ship wrecks uncharted islands, lost worlds, and other worldly locations for this sort of a quick mini adventure for conventions and other old school play style adventures. This sort of situation makes for a very good bridge gap game to get a mix of PC styles. It also makes an excellent bridge into the classic Isle of Dread adventure another old favorite with whom readers of this blog know my keen obsession and compulsion with. But that dear friends is a blog entry for another day. Will be getting together again to play another adventure in this OSR chain? Well that will depend upon my players schedules and if we're all going to be in Connecticut again at the same time. Only time will tell.