Reviews & Commentary On Chartreuse Shadows By Venger Satanis From Kort’thalis Publishing For The Crimson Dragon Slayer Rpg & OSR Rpg's

 "The long awaited 3rd book of the Cha'alt trilogy.  This PDF includes Saving Cha'alt, Cha'alt After Dark, and the Cremza'amirikza'am megadungeon.  I've also included the updated Crimson Dragon Slayer RPG and Crimson Escalation.  This motherhucker is 360 pages! "

"This work is for mature audiences that specifically want edgier, sleazier, and darker material.  You've been warned!

If you've ever wanted an eldritch, gonzo, science-fantasy, post-apocalyptic campaign setting with random tables, humor, pop-culture references, and grindhouse / exploitation vibes, this is your lucky day.  Works like Cha'alt don't come round very often.  This is the opposite of corporate mainstream D&D."


Several months ago, my group of players were in the middle of Saving Cha'alt as a Godbound rpg  campaign. And unfortunately two of our players bowed out because of work scheduling commitments. Fortunely Venger Satanis collected Saving Cha'alt, Cha'alt After Dark, and the Cremza'amirikza'am megadungeon into one volume in  Chartreuse Shadows. And it also includes Crimson Dragon Slayer RPG and Crimson Escalation. Now here's what I can tell you having DM'ed Saving Cha'alt. You have to understand that this is a completely gonzo campaign  as is the rest of the Cha'alt books. This doesn't mean that the adventures here are not hard or deadly quite the opposite.Sure there are lots of gonzo elements but this is a continuation of the Cha'alt books & their very skillfullly done. 

Cha'alt is a desert planet that takes on its  eldritch, gonzo, science-fantasy, post-apocalyptic campaign setting seriously. There's more then enough tools here in  Chartreuse Shadows for the DM to dive into the deep end of a Cha'alt campaign with little to no issue. Chartreuse Shadows takes its gonzo seriously with lots of twists & turns to take the campaign setting of Cha'alt to the next level. The final twist on the Cha'alt setting is the Cremza'amirikza'am megadungeon. This is a megadungeon of nastiness.  There's some really solid encounters & several disturbing ones that stretches the nastiness of Cha'alt. And then there's Cha'alt After Dark by Venger Satanis is a series of supplemental rules, sexual encounter random tables along with consquences, and lots of Venger Satanis DMing advice all collected into Chartreuse Shadows . 
This is rounded out with another copy of the Crimson Dragon Slayer Rpg. And its a very well done micro set of OSR rules. This is just enough to run an entire Cha'alt rpg campaign for some months. Crimson Dragon Slayer has a really strange twist back to its own Eighties campaign period and it works quite nicely as a PC backdrop & possible origin point for Cha'alt. And this comes in quite nicely for Chartreuse Shadows. 

As for myself having run Saving Cha'alt some months back I'd use my favorite OSR Rpg rules to bring out the best in  Chartreuse Shadows. Cha'alt works best when you bring in outside PC's into the weirdness of Cha'alt & Chartreuse Shadows continues this OSR element. Is Chartreuse Shadows good?! Yes, and yes I do think its worth the money. 
You can grab Chartreuse Shadows right over here! 

Review & Overview of Cha'alt Ascended By Venger As'Nas Satanis For The Cha'alt Mega dungeon & The Crimson Dragon Slayer rpg

"Cha'alt is the beast of a book (218 pages) I've been working on for the past year.  It's a ruined world focusing on a couple of introductory dungeons before getting to the main event - the megadungeon known as The Black Pyramid.  
The Black Pyramid is like nothing you've ever seen before.  Unique design, purpose, feel, magic items, NPCs, monsters, factions, motives, agendas, strangeness, the works!
There's a decent amount of setting detail besides dungeoncrawling - space opera bar, domed city, mutants, weird ass elves, desert pirates, a city ruled by a gargantuan purple demon-worm, and much more!
Cha'alt is compatible with both old school and 5e D&D purposefully blended for maximum usability"

So its  Wednesday & I've had to devote at least the three days to work. Its been interesting to say the least. I've been trying to work on my Cha'alt/Godbound rpg  Las Vega campaign but its come to naught. I hate when this happens but stall out happens to everyone folks. Don't let anyone tell you different. Basically I've been running on empty for about a week or so. Then Venger Satanis sends me Cha'alt Ascended which is basically a FREE  add on to the Cha'alt mega dungeon house system. The book is basically a spalt book of optional & add on player characters in the form of feats & skill sets in the form of random tables, backgrounds, add ons, backgrounds,etc.  I'm not crazy about the cover choice for Cha'alt Ascended. Personally I would have changed the ruddy crimson filter to a purple in keeping with the theme of Cha'alt.


The content is a whole different ball game in Cha'alt Ascended here we've got a bunch of Venger's house rule awesomeness. The rules for two handed fighting go hand in hand with Venger's Crimson Dragon Slayer OSR/fifth edition stuff. Buuttttt given how its written reminded me of something?!

"Two-Weapon Fighting You can attack with two weapons in the same round; however, the second attack is at disadvantage." Now where have I seen this sort of attack hmm was it Fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons?! Nope afraid not. No I've seen exactly this sort of an attack in Castles & Crusades! That's right it wouldn't take much at all to bring your C&C players over Cha'alt. 


I'm I saying that the Crimson Dragon Slayer rpg  is inferior? Not at all & in fact the opposite. Crimson Dragon Slayer's OSR/5th edition's engine is easily adaptable. The whole cloth system of Cha'alt Ascended can be slapped whole hog into your favorite OSR engine & zoom right along. That's actually the point of Cha'alt Ascended. And this I feel is where the niche & strength of Cha'alt Ascended  is on point & perfectly suited in the OSR. 

Commentary & Review Of Stairway of V'dreen For Crimson Dragon Slayer Or Your Favorite Retroclone System

"Find a place to hide! Luckily, such a place happens to be nearby.
Approximately 50' away from where the adventurers currently stand is a half-buried hunk of metal the size of a small village. Various metallic parts of the thing are halfway sunk into the ground. The large metal structure is tilted slightly downward."
The PC's find a mad scientist Dr. Ebzub in the middle of an   experiment will
open a gateway to "a place the gods have forgotten." the forbidden Stairway of V'dreen


So I've been laid low by a vicious head cold but that's not going to keep me from reviewing The Stairway of V'dreen From  Kort'thalis Publishing. You can think of the  Stairway of V'dreen as a mid level adventure/setting  for Crimson Dragon Slayer rpg & its easily adaptable to any  OSR retroclone rpg system. This adventure is a throw back to those Eighties setting books that we got for many old school system games. The overview from the adventure's Trinity of Awesome Returns Kickstarer best describes the other dimensional setting;"
Each PC will have his own reason for visiting V'dreen - a random table will personalize every character's desire/need.  Reaching the stairway, V'dreen's greatest treasure, will not be easy - alien, mutant dreamland hazards bar the way!
This location will be the most bizarre thing I've come up with yet.  The main Kickstarter picture above gives you an idea of what's in store. But I've got some additional details and a b/w illustration directly below...
Fruiting bodies.  The scent of V'dreen is that of a corpse blooming with strawberry and apricot preserves.  A fragrance that one cannot easily forget.  Pungent jam and jelly intermingling with the sweat of human fornication.
Rumored tales of V'dreen: a magical timepiece is buried in the ground, preventing this place from aging, neither evolving nor decaying.  However, some believe the timepiece to be broken in some way - or perhaps it had always been corrupted - because slavering demons roam free, wizards scry and watch and influence life on V'dreen with their little knobs and levers and buttons... my God, even the tentacles have tentacles!
The stairway leads to an even more distant realm.  It is a personal voyage... the discovery of self-annihilation, where travelers lick savage dreams and ride bareback upon the sparkling-scaled magenta snake-thing with golden eyes coiled at the heart of eternity."


So basically this is a part setting, part adventure location that echoes with the Eighties horror/sci fi Lovecraftian horror that Venger loves to mix with his rpg systems. The Stairway of V'dreen is a type of adventure that rarely comes along a mix of dark fantasy, comedy, & lovecraftian weirdness all around the usual Venger quality. It clocks in at nineteen pages & reminds me a bit of the Eighties film 'From Beyond'  with a bit of body horror mixed in with an old school style adventure. Because of the very nature of the dark fantasy of the  The Stairway of V'dreen   its really useful for other OSR systems such as Lamentations of the Flame Princess or other OSR systems. This is partially because of the random monster generators & the random magic items that can be created from similar generators. The vary fact of this unpredictable  factor is going to keep those jaded & long time players reaching for their Advanced Dungeons & Dragons Dungeon Master's Guides. I can easily see adding in the The Stairway of V'dreen  to a game of Lamentations of the Flame Princes as adventure location or a game of Labyrinth Lord. The setting technically could be used as a twisted Lovecraftian  domain for Adventurer,Conqueror, King. But I would using this as an adventure location for Astonishing Swordsmen & Sorcerers of Hyperborea. The pulpy flavor is very strong in the the The Stairway of V'dreen .


The Stairway of V'dreen is the type of setting that you could potentially drop in a bunch of Mutant Future PC's or any old school adventurers into & not break it at all. There's the usual Venger Satanis sleaze but much of the setting is far more geared toward the dark fantasy/Lovecraftian vibe. Its well written and balanced for a far more experienced group of PC's to come into in my opinion. I really enjoyed thumbing through this one. Can't wait to subject my players to this adventure/setting. Five out of five.
The Stairway of V'dreen  Is Available Right Over HERE

Review Of Kort'thalis Publishing's 'Slippery When Wet' Adventure by Venger Satanis For The Alpha Blue Rpg

There are dark times in the galaxy when a bunch of outlaws & sleazoids are needed to take on the worst scum in the universe. This is the set up for Slippery When Wet an Alpha Blue rpg adventure which has a bit of everything from space battles to dungeon crawling. Here's the thing about Alpha Blue despite the silly/sleazy names in the adventure this is one that's tightly designed & well written. But I think that unless your ready for what Venger Satanis is trying to pull off this one isn't going to make a lot of sense unless your into the Eighties sci fi vibe of the  Alpha Blue universe.

This is the result of the highly successful kick starter for the Trinity of Awesomeness that Venger did back in October
Here's the low down on Slippery When Wet;"This is a 4- 5 page adventure of sleazy space opera action in the 23rd century.  After a large-scale assault, the PCs hitch a ride on an underwater vessel named the bearded clam.  Their destination is the undersea citadel Aqua Vulva. "

It's made for the Alpha Blue RPG, but will be usable with almost any sci-fi RPG of your choice.  Ever wanted to play in a universe akin to Ice Pirates, Flash Gordon, Spacehunter: Adventures in the Forbidden Zone, Starchaser: The Legend of Orin, Space Balls, Heavy Metal, or some porn parody of Star Wars or Star Trek? "
So what's the party of adventurers in Slippery When Wet? Well a bit of gun running, double crosses, lots of space sex, and plenty of death if your players take some very dumb risks. Slippy When Wet clocks in at about fourteen pages & there's some great cartography by Glynn Seal of Monkey Blood design.
There is balance in the design work of the adventure & I don't really think that this is a beginning adventure for Alpha Blue rather this would actually be a good middle or connecting adventure for a party of experienced Alpha Blue players. Some of the menaces here are clearly very dangerous and could be retro fitted into some of the back adventures from the Alpha Blue product line. If you want to see what the Alpha Blue rpg is all about there's a clean version of the game with free quick start rules right here
 
Slippery When Wet adds in underwater elements to the Alpha Blue game and several minor factions to play as well. Some of these could be expanded upon to give even more nasty surprises to players as their time in the Alpha Blue universe gets underway. Several of the major Alpha Blue interstellar power blocks come on stage for the weirdness of this adventure. Remember this is an adult title so its not one for the kids!



Slippery When Wet could be used with Universal Exploits to be expanded into a full blown campaign with almost but not quite Italian Star Wars rip style weirdness throughout. This sort of an adventure is one of my favorites and my preferred way of running Alpha Blue has been with Crawljammer in the past.


These two game system really work well together & Alpha Blue's Slippery When Wet fits right into the background of Crawljammer. Given the free range of the material in Alpha Blue it fits into the Dungeon Crawl Classics fanzine ethos quite nicely. There are more then enough ways of exploiting this vibe to create fully detailed DCC funnels within the Alpha Blue universe but that's a blog entry for another time.


Do I think that Slippery When Wet is worth the price of admission? In a word yes because of the fact that so many of the Alpha Blue elements are on parade & its done with the bravado and sleazy weirdness that I've come to love from the game! Grab this one and get some friends together to play in the interstellar strangeness of Alpha Blue

You Can Down 
Load Slippery When Wet Right Over Here

Commentary & Review Of A Green Jewel They Must Possess From Kort'thalis Publishing For The Outer Presence Rpg System & Your Old School Campaigns

Did you ever look at an adventure & think yeah there's something slightly off with that one. Yeah it makes you want to run it all the more.  This is one of those adventures, A Green Jewel They Must Possess is from the prolific mind of Venger Satanis.

Now is that time of year when you really need an adventure for a Saturday or Sunday night with the holidays coming up. Very few folks have the time to put something together on the spot, that's where our next adventure comes in."A Green Jewel They Must Possess" From  Kort'thalis Publishing   clocks in at about ten pages taking place in the Early Eighties and its mostly a back handed homage to the animated film Heavy Metal. I say mostly because its actually its own beast & really wallows in its own Eighties slime filled juices more on that in a moment.
"A Green Jewel They Must Possess" is about a compact an investigative adventure that a DM can get it clocks in at eleven pages and gets out of its own way in the first page establishing you relationship with the main protagonist in the first two minutes with a random table.
"It's Chicago in autumn, nineteen seventy-something. Ezra Jackson calls one of the investigators, asking to meet at a nearby restaurant in order to talk business. He sets the meeting for 5:00pm on a Tuesday. Ezra is about 30, medium height with a medium build, long brown hair, glasses, and wears a tan corduroy jacket with brown suede patches at the elbows. He's usually quiet unless he has something to say. Ezra is ambitious, but not at the expense of his friends. He became fascinated with the occult at a young age, but never went too far down the rabbit hole. Determine which of the following suggestions explain Ezra Jackson's relationship to each investigator."
 The investigators or adventures meet at a local restaurant and things get weird as he sketches out the origins of the green artifact.
"Ezra Jackson has a little proposition for the investigators. Ezra heard about excavation in what is now Syria - a new temple was discovered by a team of Americans, buried underneath what was considered the oldest temple discovered - until now, that is. Within this temple, the archaeologists found a sphere made of an unknown material. After touching it, the sphere began to glow green.
After one of the archaeologists died under mysterious circumstances, the sphere was shipped back to America for study and eventual display. "Nothing like this has ever been seen or recorded, not  only in the Middle East but any ancient civilization on earth... this is truly a unique artifact!""

Yeah that's right this is actually an occult heist adventure rather then a standard occult investigation and that marks it as both different and well executed. The black market underbelly of artifact, archaeological, smuggling, theft,murder & crime isn't something that nice rpg's like to talk about but not this adventure. Your PC's are put smack into the cross hairs of the Lovecraftian rifle scope. This adventure takes place some very nefarious & dangerous NPC characters. Something that the Outer Presence rpg adventure also takes full advantage of.

Photo by Colin Brown from Silver Lake, CA, U.S.A

So basically this puts "A Green Jewel They Must Possess" right into the rpg camp of Call of Cthulhu's Delta Green or Call of Cthulhu 's Eighties territory this isn't a bad thing at all. This adventure could serve as an introduction to a black market Delta Green or Call of Cthulhu campaign quite easily. The material is there to full advantage of any weird moves on the PC's part in this 'job' adventure but there is a heavy Lovecraftian or occult object here buts its not a red herring in this case. Don't forget this is a homage to the Eighty One Heavy Metal film, the green glowing artifact isn't a dead end, its a major plot element in this adventure & a very deadly one.


 

So now the big question that everyone was recently asking me about 'A Green Jewel they must Possess" can it be connected to Alpha Blue or Crimson Dragon Slayer? The answer is a very easy yes! In fact with very little work, the back drop of the story could be changed to another world and the same characters could be used as sleazy and dangerous space smugglers whom the PC's have to do a job for. That's the beauty of "A Jewel They Must Possess " its easily adaptable for all kinds of mayhem with the PC's. The background of the Heavy Metal film gives an easy in for the PC's.
What about the "Crimson Dragon Slayer" rpg system? Well, in point of fact given the post apocalyptic nature of the "Crimson Dragon Slayer" game and the fact that "No Escape From New York " came out last year. It wouldn't be too much of a stretch to take that book & adapt in the events from "A Jewel They Must Possess" into that world quite easily. New York  after a short but calamitous global thermal nuclear war, the urban landscape became a burned-out wasteland of ruin and mutation. Survivors congregate in the city that never sleeps, making it their nightmarish playground… a shi*hole of degeneracy and wickedness. This sounds right for the events of the adventure. A combination of the two systems would be a thing of beauty using the events of "A Jewel They Must Possess" as the glue for a mini campaign. Taking it a step further because the world of Torth is always night  there will be a few minutes of dawn or dusk at odd intervals, but mostly it's constantly nocturnal - just the way they like it. If any of the players ask, tell them it's because of The Torth Effect'. And this is only the start of it, given the gonzo background of CDS. This is the sort of an adventure setting that PC's from Mutant Future, Labyrinth Lord, etc. or your favorite retroclone would be at home in. In point of fact "No Escape From New York City" could be used to act as a bridge gap into the world of Thule for your favorite OD&D or retroclone PC's. This means that an entire campaign could center around the "Earth of No Escape From New York" with "A Jewel They Must Possess" as the beginning  adventure. "The  Slaves of Tsathoggua" might possibly be the middle & finally "Slippy When Wet" could get them into the deep end of "Alpha Blue".


One of the nice things that the "Jewel They Must Possess" has is a table for continuing the events after the adventure is over with. This makes continued place not only possible but campaign events can be linked into the adventure's backdrop for extended play. Seems like a simple thing to do but many adventures miss doing this. On the whole I really really enjoyed this adventure, it does what it says on the tin and creates a really nice set up for a mini campaign in the world of the "Outer Presence". Not too shabby at all for a three dollar adventure. Five out of five stars in my opinion.

You Can Purchase A Jewel They Must Possess Right Over Here

Commentary On Slaves of Tsathoggua From Kort'thalis Publishing For Crimson Dragon Slayer & Your Old School Campaigns

So recently I provided a bit of advertising for Venger Satanis's Trilogy of Awesome kickstarter, well today I received my review copy of Slaves of Tsathoggua From Kort'thalis Publishing & it wasn't at all what I was expecting!? First of all before the set up and plot work for this adventure you need to understand that, "this is the first adventure creates specifically for Crimson Dragon Slayer, edition 1.11.  However, it's compatible with the original Crimson Dragon Slayer RPG and relatively easy to convert to any other fantasy RPG."




Otherwise everything after this isn't going to make a lot of sense, Slaves of Tsathoggua takes the idea of the 'beast in the cave' cliche & turns this into an adventure of weird proportions.
"There's something in that cave... the cave all those villagers are afraid of.  What's inside?  Will the adventurers be able to leave once they enter?  What does this have to do with Tsathoggua?" This adventure clocks in at fifteen pages and is filled with memorable NPC's, lots of weird situations, and a ton of strangeness that connects in deep with the latest incarnation of Crimson Dragon Slayer 1.11

From  Kort'thalis Publishing.

This adventure is a bit different then other Crimson Dragon Slayer affairs, it combines many of the author's usual themes but has something a bit different too it. Basically this adventure can act similar to a DCC funnel taking PC's from inexperienced yobs to fully fleshed and blooded adventurers in one shot. It uses a series of balanced and very dangerous encounters to really get into the psyche and gonzo pulpiness of the PC's who experience it.

Slaves of Tsathoggua could be put between adventures in a campaign to test the mettle of adventurers from from the Crimson Dragon Slayer rpg system and it would do a good job of it. This adventure takes place in the village of  Needham is home to around 300 people. About half of them are farmers, the rest owning various shops like the baker or providing services such as the blacksmith.A short distance from the village is a cave & its hiding a secret of dangerous providence. This is Venger at his  best dishing out old school adventure with a dollop of pulpy gonzo aggression in equal measure. The stakes here are very high and in fact a bit epic for any party exploring the ins and outs of the Caverns. Slaves of Tsathoggua is a mix of Eighties sword & sorcery fantasy that has mated with an episode of the Outer Limits with a bit of Clark Aston Smith  thrown in for good measure but bring some extra PC's.  This adventure might be a great one to run with Dungeon Crawl Classics because everything here is a perfect funnel to throw some PC's through to take them from green horn to experienced in one shot. The fact that this is a Crimson Dragon Slayer adventure makes this a gonzo must  buy. 

Did I happen to mention that  Slaves of Tsathoggua is a perfect gonzo dungeon crawl of psychotropic proportions to link up with  +Venger Satanis' The Islands of Purple-Haunted Putrescence. 
There are few if any naughty bits in Slaves but the material in this adventure has a perfect link up device for the PC's if the DM wants to take advantage of it.
Basically Slaves of Tsathoggua From Kort'thalis Publishing is a great direction to take the Crimson Dragon Slayer game and one that I think is going to be great for future publications. I'm very pleased with Slaves of Tsathoggua From Kort'thalis Publishing and give it a five out of five, for only three dollars this one hits my gonzo pulpy heart of old school goodness. 
GRAB Slaves of Tsathoggua
From Kort'thalis Publishing
HERE 

For The Love Of Tsathoggua - Venger Satanis's New Kickstarter Trinity of Awesomeness

 BACK IT RIGHT HERE

So when it comes to watching what's coming down the OSR or hobby track I'm possibly one of the late fans to the table except for some of my favorite OSR writers or designers. Venger Satanis is on my list for sure, there are three reasons for this his O5R material is weird, easily adaptable, he's prolific, & the man runs a tight Kickstarter. Now with the on coming birth of twins in the Satanis household he's on a bit of a crusade to get some incredible adventures out there. He's not got one adventure out there on Kickstarter he's got three;"3 short scenarios for old school RPGs by Venger Satanis: Slaves of Tsathoggua, A Green Jewel They Must Possess, and Slippery When Wet."
Each of these three adventures is connected with one of Kort'thalis Publishing's other O5R rpg's. Slaves of Tsathoggua is connected with and has been created for Crimson Dragon Slayer RPG, but would be suitable for any fantasy rule-set with a minimum of conversion.  This is a sort of dark science fantasy adventure with a real theme of 'what's in the cave'

I'm really digging on A Green Jewel They Must Possess which slots itself some place between a nightmare & the Heavy Metal movie from 1981. The basic premise is that a Loc Nar like jewel has been found & its worth a fortune & the adventure scratches the investigative Lovecraftian adventure itch. The basic plot goes something like this:" A glowing green sphere with spiritual powers has been discovered in Peru, but it's cursed because people keep dying.  Obviously, it's worth a fortune." This one is geared for 'The Outer Presence rpg crowd ie you Call of Cthulhu types.


Finally we get into the hard core element with a bit of the Alpha Blue vibe & 'The Slippery When Wet'. This is going to be a space romp with an Underwater theme ala several of those doomed under the ocean films of the Seventies seen through the Alpha Blue lens. The basic plot screams Alpha Blue in spades;"After a large-scale assault, the PCs hitch a ride on an underwater vessel named the bearded clam.  Their destination is the undersea citadel Aqua Vulva."
Personally I think that the world & the Alpha Blue rpg system need more adventures with the release of the two mammoth sourcebook/adventures Universal Exports & Girls Gone Rogue its time for a nice sleazy space opera to even things out in the universe of Alpha Blue.

So why are these adventures important? Well, besides the fact that the author/designer is actually supporting his own rpg product line with follow up adventures. This kickstarter is going to be the last we see of Venger until the Satanis twins appear in the world (congrats to the Satanis family btw), this means that we're getting three titles to unleash on our unsuspecting players. New material, new monsters, high weirdness, and all of the sleaziness you come to expect with a Kort'thalis Publishing product! So get in on this one and let's get those adventures unleashed on your unspecting players!

Meditations On An Alpha Blue Rpg & Crawljammer Mash Up As An Old School Campaign Setting

 I've been off line for a bit but now your uncle Eric is back with a bit of science fantasy action. We're going to switch things up a bit like finding that box of sleazy vintage science fantasy at a tag sale or attic & talk about quick campaign construction with Alpha Blue & The DCC fanzine Crawljammer.  These two go together like peanut butter & intergalactic jelly but there are some rpg issues that need to be addressed.

Finally getting home now & throughout the day I've been discussing Venger Satanis's Alpha Blue rpg & Dungeon Crawl Classic's fanzine Crawljammer with a friend yesterday and here's what we came up with. What Alpha Blue brings to the table is a dyed in the wool violent  fun sleazy adult themed traveling space opera along with a ton of background and world setting material. Crawljammer has DCC's system & mechanics to work with. So here how the break down would go for running a campaign with the two:

• DCC/Crawljammer for the system & mechanics to speed along the process but Alpha Blue works with random tables to fill in some great PC background details & bits after the funnel. Crawljammer has some really nice 'insert bits' that can add some really nice twists to
• Alpha Blue has some great adult interstellar setting material & it brings that straight through from page one. Alpha Blue as a setting location is one vast intergalactic traveling adventure location. This is a perfect front to branch off into Crawljammer missions. Then there are those Alpha Blue factions that bring all kinds of twists & turns to the table.
  
  Everything here meshes quite nicely because Dungeon Crawl Classics is like B/X (race = class), running on a simplified d20 engine (Ascending AC, Fort/Will/Ref Saves), on LSD. Alpha Blue has the tools to convert its system into & through most OSR retroclones quite easily. Use the Alpha Blue  system as a bench mark and fudge or change as needed.

We're going to have to quickly talk about some of the adult themes and issues in the background of Venger Satanis's products & writing for a moment. The adult themes, Lovecraft bits, & weird tentacle sex stuff is all there no I'm talking about the fact that while the Liberation of the Demon Slayer adventure stands on its own the product dove tales into Islands of the Purple Haunted Putrescence, Revelry in Torth,  
and even the Crimson Dragon Slayer 1.11  if you want a free sample of Kort'thalis Publishing's wares. Sounds like a headache?


Its not at all, basically Alpha Blue provides a suitable and easy to drag and drop intergalatic background with all of the trimmings. While DCC/Crawljammer provide a really nice system to use for PC generation & combat. Crawljammer fits the background quite nicely from the PC technomages to the fly people in issue #1 to a ton more.


Here are some of the material from Crawljammer that fits Alpha Blue in no particular order:

1. Deadly cocktails that can only be served in high velocity!
2. The PSYCHIC KNIGHT PC class is excellent as a counter point to the Zedi knights from Girls Gone Rogue
3. The PERILOUS LEAGUE is a perfect explorers guild that fits the ideals laid out in Alpha Blue. Alien wizard in control of a guild of space faring adventurers with a hidden agenda. 
4. From issue four of Crawljammer SPACE PIRATES FROM BEYOND THE GRAVE a great menace to have lurking in the back of the Alpha Blue setting. 
5. An elemental-powered, dimension-shifting space monk called called the RIFTRUNNER that will punch your face as it summons a LEECHTAIL SPACEDRAGON to devour your friends. Yeah that also fits the Alpha Blue vibe quite nicely. 
6. Issue number five is really essential for this mash up. Why because it has space gods by the score! 
7. SISTER ULTIVA, GODDESS OF VENGEANCE a space going dominatrix of death & vengeance
8.  ARS-ELEETA, GODDESS OF TECHNOLOGY, whose machinations will have adventurers running for cover! 
9. THE ECCLESIAST is a perfect blend of space cleric & adventurer whose going to cause all kinds of issues on Alpha Blue and run afoul of the factions of Alpha Blue 
10. All of this material has a cheeky adult themed blend of weirdness and erotically charged adult humor. This isn't for the kids! 

  While none of the material of Crawljammer is anyway adult many of the themes and ideas fit in a bit well with Alpha Blue especially Girls Gone Rogue an Alpha Blue sourcebook/adventure. The material works hand and glove together with its background. Be advised this isn't one for the kids so play this one when they're asleep.


Now one of the main points of friction is going to be the Templars & THE ECCLESIAST  pc/NPC class hating each other right out of the gate. These factions are going to be trying to exterminate each other faster then you can say,"I'm holy then thou".  Which is exactly the sort of interstellar drama that you as a DM are going to want.  These are the sorts of friction that mercenaries, space scum ermm I mean adventurers want to exploit for fun and profit.


This combination also has some great points where the sword & sorcery angle can be completely played up to add just that quick Lovecraftian DCC twist to adventures allowing DM's to port over their favorite DCC adventurers quickly and easily.


There's lots of other little interstellar niches that the DM can easily exploit and tack on to keep the PC's on their toes throughout this adult themed campaign setting romp. Take the brain bugs which are perfect fodder to grate against the myriad of Crawljammer insect peoples. Lots of opportunities for interstellar extermination in the cosmos.


So keep those dice rolling and those space funnels moving!
Until next time kids!

International Crimson Dragon Slayer Day (A Day Late) & Commentary On The Free Crimson Dragon Slayer 1.1 Rpg As Old School Style Campaign Setting

  

Well the forbidden stars were aligned against me yesterday & so I had to take my father to the doctor's yesterday. The man came through with a clean bill of health! But I missed the release of Crimson Dragon Slayer 1.1 which is a free version of the game released by Venger Satanis unto an unsuspecting public! Which according to him was a ;"Indeed, a bleak and bloody dawn approaches.  T'is Crimson Dragon Slayer Day today, and we're celebrating with the release of edition 1.11 here. "

Well there are several reasons why its a bit important, first this is a free introductory game/adventure all in one. It sets the more Eighties metal tone of the game and takes it in a completely new direction. Everything about the game is far more vicious and dangerous. This is more in line with keeping the game closer to a mix of Eighties horror/metal/popculture fantasy. The mechanics are the same but this game is closer to the vibe lurking under all of the first edition jokey cartoon fantasy elements. This version is far closer to the vision that I saw lurking under the surface of the original incarnation of the game. So was the first version a misstep on Venger's part? No I don't think so either. For those who own the original edition of Crimson Dragon Slayer there isn't really difference between editions only in feel not in mechanics.

Picture altered by MachoCarioca

Because of the PC options in the original edition I think Venger should put them aside and offer those as a part of either a player options book or a player hand book later on. So if a DM wants to run a Saturday morning style game in the wastelands of Thule its on the table.
In the meantime the leaner and more meaner version of CDS has hit the streets and its a nasty piece of work much closer in keeping with the spirit of  No Escape From New York adventure. That entire adventure is both a send up and homage to Eighties post apocalyptic & dystopian films such as Escape From New York, The Warriors, The Wanderers, and many more. The whole point of the adventure is a lone band of adventurers against the world with bunch of Lovecraftian horrors nipping at their heels & the whole world trying to exploit them or  kill them. Plus in No Escape From New York there are dozens of homages to other Eighties horror. This is actually the module that I've used repeatedly over the last year or so as an introduction to the world of Thule.


This version of Thule is the one that's floating up in the sky above my two campaign settings and where the majority of  post apocalpytic mercenaries with modern weapons come from. Thule does a brisk business in my campaigns of importing and exporting strong arm thugs as well as drugs and more. This is one of the beauties of the OSR materials especially Venger's material the fact that you can mix and match it to create your own unique vision to play in. This is both one of the benefits and problems with the OSR, many creators and writers of the OSR have told me that the problem is the fact that product identity gets blurred when mixing and matching creations. Venger's stuff seems to revel in it. One more plus about CDS, the whole setting works great with Dungeon Crawl Classics and is easily adaptable. I've mixed Crawling Under A Broken Moon and CDS more times then I can count and the players loved it back about six or eight months ago.

There are ten reasons why Crimson Dragon Slayer's new direction works ; 

1. Crimson Dragon Slayer plays very well with Alpha Blue and makes it very easy to import or export PC's in and out of both settings. 
2. CDS plays nice with other OSR material and can be adapted into a fast pick up game quickly and easily. 
3. More metal awesomeness 
4. Modern & post apocalyptic characters easily mix together in a solid blend of Eighties awesomeness. 
5. Weird back handed Lovecraft references scattered throughout. 
6. Parody setting with a seriously warped undertone. 
7. Plays well with Lamentations of the Flame Princess & can be used for a side game setting with little conversion
8. Handles everything from horror to high fantasy because of its weird off handed magic system that works. 
9. Kid friendly option from the original edition if you want a fast Saturday morning style cartoon pick up game. 
10. Slick design, quick weirdness, and a solidly designed OSR style gaming package.

1d20 'Random Most Excellent Eighties Finds' Table For The Crimson Dragon Slayer Rpg & Your Old School Campaigns

Because of the very nature of Thule & its environs there are still treasures, relics, and  items of super science that have been changed by the weird radiations & other dimensional powers. These items are considered by many adventurers to be prizes that some search their entire lives for. Some items are pieces of power with their own histories and strange backstories, these items are adventures unto themselves. Adventurers should be wary of these items for some carry the taint of magick & the curse of power about them.



There is a twenty percent chance of these items being cursed or on the list of items of recovery for one of the factions of demon draconian warriors of Thule. Those high end collectors of magic & treasures out in the wastelands of Thule.

1d20 'Random Most Excellent Eighties Finds' Table

1.  The Burning Gauntlet of Metal - this techno magical item is a combination of home computer & armor. It enables its user to access other machines & weird technologies up to three times per day. It also shoots bolts of weird energy for 1d4 points of black energy three times per day to the wail of a banshee like guitar solo. 
2. The Ring of Silva - This ring allows one to pass through walls twice per day except on Tuesdays. 
3. Statue of the Madonna - Saint icon of early Eighties pop star with the words 'you can dance on it' , when activated a dance party will appear around the user three times per day from the early Eighties. Most folks will be stoned or drunk out of their minds. 
4. Handcuffs of Darcy - These fuzzy handcuffs will summon a succubus or incubus demon from Wall Street who will demand a favor of the owner but give incredibly insightful advice on treasures or relics. The demon might if asked nicely fight for or do a favor for the owner once per week. 
5. Ring of the Horror Host - This ring allows one to take on three minor abilities of the undead once per week but the owner must star in a horror style adventure once a month. The owner is unaware that they are famous in an alternative dimension as a minor movie star. 
6.  Soccer Ball of Death - The owner of this ball has a +1 weapon but once a week the ball becomes a flaming sphere of death and a small soccer team of warriors will appear to do battle for the owner. 
7. Hardric The Hanson Hard One  - This is a personal computer A.I. unit that is able to advise, adventure with and act as a familiar for the hero. They are going to be lugging around an Eighties style briefcase through. 
8.  Valley Girl of Doom - This android is from an alternative universe & possibly from Alpha Blue but she's actually a cunning and murderous assassin in the form of a blonde Valley girl. She'll act as a companion bot for the PC but will try to kill anyone who gets between her and her 'man' ( this could be any sex but its always her 'man'). Some units have hidden weapons and cyber systems. 
9. Dildo of Power - This is one of the most dangerous objects of power with the ability to alter reality three times per day. The thing has a most perverse intelligence of demonic perversity. 
10. Mood Ring Of The Seventies - This object of power's decade is long over but it refuses to go quietly into the twilight of the ages. The thing will rant & rage about the Sixties & flower power, protest marches, etc. The mood ring can affect anyone's mood three times per day and cast a charm spell. In addition it also has the ability to cast a mood affecting color spray like illusion that will cause confusion & rolls at a minus three twice per week. 
11. Axe of Vitality - This guitar and amp combo is able to to heal anyone listening to the dark and sardonic music from it. The axe can also be used twice a day to make 1d6 +2 sonic power cord attack. There are 1d4 demonic hell spawn seeking this guitar whose proper name is not known. 
12. The Wit of Sula - This robotic head is/was an advisor to a princess of the Valley eons ago but now is only a head of incredibly dangerous proportions able to cast six spells every three rounds. She is chaotic to the max and will try to possess the body of anyone she comes across for nefarious purposes.   
13. Blur Bucks of Doom - These are cursed Alpha Blue bucks that cause nothing but blue balls in whomever handles them. These blue bucks can also change into any currency when the command words 'Greed is good' is spoken. The bucks will find their way back to the pockets of whomever owns them. They also have a murderous streak to them and once per month someone will try to murder the owner. 
14. +3 Fire Poker of Doom - This extremely well made fire poker is a weapon of demonic doom after being used to kill a major Lovecraftian demon. It has an ego and a murderous streak a mile wide. Once per day it may make the owner immune to flame and fire. Once I said may.
15.  Video Game Gauntlet of Awesomeness - The owner once per day may summon 1d10 space invader creatures to do their bidding. They in turn will have a quest for the owner once per week. They will also bring the owner beer or Eighties Clear Cola on command. The owner can also command electronics once per day as per the spell. 
16. Shoulder Padded Jacket of Cindi - This power jacket can act as incredible armor after the wizardess Cindi enchanted it with powers of black magic and darkness. The jacket regenerates like a biomechanical living thing and provides protection from fire, radiation, horrid magical energies, etc as long as the owner can stand the nerve grating chatter of Cindi's ghost.
17.  Murder Claw of Fredrick - This glove has five enchanted short knives that are able to cut through most mundane materials. The glove also gives its owner the ability to cut demons and creatures of magic but the owner must make a murder once per week to satisfy the glove's blood lust. The owner has a 30% chance of becoming a dream demon per week of using the glove and disappearing into the Dreamlands. There are many other powers in the glove's purview according to legend. 
18. Clive's Cube of  Hellish Weirdness - This multi sided cube is a gate way to a hell realm of incredible horror and depravity. The demons withing will allow nothing to escape and once opened nothing ever escape's the cube's purview. 
19. Bracelets of Power & the Rope of Law - These items are items of law and can only be used by a female agent of law. The Bracelet's of power give a +2 on all Dex rolls and can deflect even magical energy bolts. The Rope of Law is a living embodiment of law allowing its owner to entangle opponents and compel those tied up with it to not be able to lie to the owner. These items are immune to most magics but the owner is not. 
20. Boom Box of Cthulhu - This boom box is actually a magical spell book of incredible proportions. The thing only plays dark Eighties metal and passes from one set of hands to another bringing insanity and horror. Once per week of its own power the boom box can summon forth a dark spawn of Cthulhu or a Lovecraftian demon.  The thing is a cursed item and will sit quietly in the background until it decides to cast a spell or create an inter dimensional portal or some other magical effect from Hell. This is a very dangerous item and PC's should beware its ferocious reputation.
    
    
    

Review & Commentary On The "One Hour Game" for The Crimson Dragon Slayer From Kort'thalis Publishing

Alright so you may have noticed a number of posts International Crimson Dragon Slayer's day on July 11th, and I've supporting it with a number of tables and what not. Well there is a reason for this Venger is offering a free PDF of a lean and much more meaner version of Crimson Dragon Slayer as a free PDF. According to a recent blog post;"Sometimes, it seems like we're re-inventing the wheel a thousand times over.  Yet, I believe there's value in what Erik is doing with his Swords & Wizardry: Light.
That's why I've been taking a little time off from Universal Exploits to create an even shorter, streamlined version of Crimson Dragon Slayer.  It will be a free PDF with professional layout and cartography by +MonkeyBlood Design (Glynn Seal).  This should be available by July 11th, which just so happens to be Crimson Dragon Slayer Day!"
‘The southern border
has always felt...
witch-haunted.’

Gone is the jokey & tongue an cheek gonzo weirdness of Crimson Dragon Slayer instead we get a combination of dark & slightly sinister Eighties with touch of the stranger horror romp movies meets sword & sorcery. This is a stripped back Crimson Dragon Slayer with only Human, Elf, and Dwarf as racial types. Warrior, thief, cleric, and wizard as the character classes and VS6 system. So what is the VS6 system?
Well its a task resolutation system that is simple, easy and flexible plus it works quite nicely with OSR style games;"VSD6 This system uses six-sided dice exclusively. When 1d6 is mentioned, it means roll one six-sided die. When 2d6 is mentioned, it means roll two six-sided dice. When 3d6 is mentioned, it means roll three six-sided dice, and so on. Occasionally, one may be asked to roll 0d6. In such instances, a player will roll 2d6 and take only the lower of the two results. Roll 0d6 when there's tremendous difficulty in achieving some action, such as picking up a small horse and throwing it a short distance. Similarly, if the village idiot tries to read a wizard's cryptic notes, he would be asked to roll a dice pool of 0d6, as he would be ill-prepared for the task. Roll 1d6 when there's great difficulty in achieving some action, such as convincing a guard to shut his eyes for a few minutes without a bribe of gold or something of similar valuable. If a sorceress tried to pick up a sword and slay a foul creature from the Outer Darkness, she would be asked to roll a dice pool of 1d6, due to her specialization of magic rather than conventional arms. Roll 2d6 when there's reasonable difficulty in achieving some action, such as sailing the high seas in a pirate's ship during a storm. Similarly, if an able bodied character tried to climb up 30' of rope wearing chain mail armor, he would probably be asked to roll a dice pool of 2d6.Roll 3d6 when there's not much difficulty in achieving some action, such as sneaking around in the dark if it's a moonless night and the sounds of nature are all around. Similarly, if a wizard attempted to cast a trivial spell, such as igniting a torch, he would be required to roll a dice pool of 3d6."
The magic system is handled in the same sort of free form system, this game doesn't use the Vancian fire and forget method of spell memorization. Instead we get a dice pool system that suits the role of wizards from a dark Thundarr style world; "Wizards must force their will upon the universe, changing reality as best they can. Their sorcery is freeform, there are no spells to memorize or prepare.
Though magic can be used in combat, it cannot destroy or even directly harm a living creature,without calling upon the energy of a blood sacrifice, though indirect harm or destruction is acceptable.
For instance, if the adventuring party is facing several fire elementals, the wizard may attempt to flood thechamber with water. Neither can wizards heal mortal wounds. Healing powers are granted by the divine. Only clerics may restore a character's Health. Clerics can usually be found in the great cities, but only occasionally in towns and villages.
The more ambitious the spell, the lower a wizard's dice pool. That means a spell merely trying to nudge reality a little bit here or there would probably qualify for a dice pool of 3d6. Medium sized spells that affect small areas and/or are far more than mere coincidence probably qualify for a dice pool of 2d6. Spells that attempt to greatly change reality would get 1d6."
Like I said this is a lean and mean approach to the Crimson Dragon Slayer game and its in line with the vision of the author at this point. In case I haven't explained this is a one hour from the ground up game that Venger is going to be running.



The heart and soul of the International Crimson Dragon Slayer give away is the adventure called The Curse of Xakaar Abbey;"The southern border has always felt… "witch-haunted", for lack of a better word. For centuries, that part of the land was stained - tainted by an unnatural
corruption. At the obscene heart of this malevolence is none other than the half-demon sorcerer Xakaar.
Ensconced in his ruined abbey directly south of your village, Xakaar traffics with forces from Outside. For the last few decades, the half-demon demanded an annual sacrifice. Apparently, that is no longer sufficient. The sorcerer grows impatient for more victims! Several of the villagers - people you know well and see every day - have fallen into some trance. Mindless, they shamble to Xakaar Abbey, and are never seen again.Last night, someone close to you was taken by that devil Xakaar! That made up your mind. Someone has to stand up and fight… even if it means your death. Yes, it's time to take up the blade and spellbook, to use cunning, imagination, and courage to slay the evil one in his ruined church." Basically in eleven pages Venger manages to get all of his essentials down into an actually decent workable sword & sorcery game. The adventure locations and descriptions read like something that came off of every Eighties metal band album cover but in this case that's a good thing. A special mention for the great artwork and cartography. Layout and Cartography by Glynn Seal of Monkey- Blood Design & the artwork by Craig Brasco is definitely up the quite of efforts that we've seen from these artists before. It really suits the themes and ideas of Crimson Dragon Slayer's new direction.  This is the sort of direction I was exspecting Crimson Dragon Slayer to take when it first came out. This new sword and sorcery Eighties metal twist is going to be a lot easier to hook up with the Alpha Blue rpg system as well. Thule is a very dangerous and menacing setting if you read between the lines of the game. This direction cements that deviant  direction from CDS's past incarnation.  But it really comes across as a playable game system and I do approve of the new direction. The whole idea is to bring new players and blood to the table and in this I do think that this latest incarnation of Crimson Dragon Slayers might succeed. Five out of five for a new incarnation of Crimson Dragon Slayer rpg system and its place in the Kort'thalis Publishing line.