OSR Review & Commentary On Wretched Minions Issue 7: Wretched Minions from the Beyond by The Red Room For The Wretchedverse Rpg

 "Wretched Minions Issue 7: Wretched Minions from the Beyond by

@oggm_adventures

is now available at the Red Room store,

@biggeekemporium

and

@GiantSlayerRPGs

. This new addition to the Wretched Bestiary plunges you into the depths of The Beyond, the nexus of the Wretchedverse. In this issue you will encounter demons and devils from the darkest recesses of imagination, entities feared and revered across various cultures and religions, each boasting distinct and spine-chilling powers, challenging players to rethink their strategies. Issue 7 of Wretched Minions also includes information about the Deva, the fallen angels of the Wretchedverse. https://moordereht.com/product/wretch"

Wretched Minions Issue 7: Wretched Minions from the Beyond by 

@oggm_adventures

 is the perfect way to add in damnation and the diabloic to your Wretchedverse rpg campaign. Wretched Minions Issue 7 adds in a veritible cornanopia of devils and the demonic from the Beyond for your OSR game campaigns.  No joke Wretched Minions Issue 7  adds in sixty two pages of wall to wall devils and demonic horrors perfect for the necromancer or black wizard in your Wretchedverse games. The Red Room covers the pethora of devils throughout all from the diablolic realms of the Beyond. These are wall to wall devils with some great A.I. artwork thrown in to boot. 
Wretched Minions Issue 7 is well done with excellent layout, solid A.I. artwork, and a real flare of devils perfect for your black sorcerer or vile necromantic villain for your games. 

Wretched Minions Issue 7 is perfect to add into Wretched Darkness second edition when your PC or NPC need that extra dose of demonic or devilish fire power in the from off a devil or demnonic minion. And  Wretched Minions Issue 7 has you covered with wall to wall devils of every stripe and damnation. They cover it all with devilish minions to really help bring your necromatic needs to the table. 
Need a supernatural messenger to send the damnation to your PC's?! We've got you covered. Need a message delivered untracable to your friends or underlings the speed devils is perfect. And the devils are not easily stopped or defeated many of these creatures pack more then the usual supernatural firepower. Add in the fact that while some of these devils might seem familar believe me thier not. They have the added weirdness of being from the regions of the damned in the Beyond. While they have the devilish agendas they are far different in motive, motivations, tactics, etc. then the average D&D style Devil ( even though those are formitable within thier own rights). The devils of Wretched Minions Issue 7 are highly dangerous capable of giving even experienced parties of Wretched adventures headaches, heartburn, and much worse. 

ed-verses-issue-20-wretched-minions-wretched-minions-from-the-beyond/

OSR Commentary On Lamenting The Tome of the Unclean By Stephen Chenault, & Kim Hartsfield For The Castles & Crusades Rpg

 "Beyond the darkness and beyond all sense lies a gulf of empty fear where true evil lurks. Born with twisted thought, tainted with stains of malice, they are creatures foul and bent. They dwell in the darkness of time's caverns, in the Abyss, in Hell, in those Wretched Planes of shadow and evil, loss and despair. The echo of the unknown drives them from darkness toward the light. Some few seek salvation, but others to drive the souls of mortals to ultimate darkness and corruption. Tome of the Unclean unleashes all of the power and horror of these wretched planes upon your Castles & Crusades game!"

"From the Lords of the Abyss, to the Legions of Hell, and through to the gray wastes of Gehenna, a host of devils, demons, and daemons await your table! Tome of the Unclean includes all of the familiar denizens of the darker planes. Here you will find Demogorgon and Orcus; Asmodeus, Bael, and Mammon, plus legions of others. All of the major and minor demons, greater and lesser devils, and a veritable host of creatures from your players' worst nightmares await within these pages." 

With Halloween coming upon us soon we were speaking about Castles & Crusades. When it comes Castles & Crusades one of the books that doesn't seem to come up is an old favorite in the form of the Tome of the Unclean.  For Castles & Crusades the demons, devils, and lesser diabolic horrors are perfect to drope into your old school or OSR games. For Castles & Crusades the infernal regions are still the ultimate taboo in a way because of the Eightis Satanic Panic. Screw that! Tome of the Unclean covers the damned & diabolic quite nicely. Nothing up points a C&C paladin or cleric like a diabolic cult to play terror with a party of adventurers. 

With the callenge rating that includes a diverse range of damned & diabloc monsters Tome of the Unclean covers it. And these monsters as the center piece of a cult of the damned it's not hard to see how  an NPC cult leader  villain could offer more then a simple challlenge for your own party. Stephen Chenault, &  Kim Hartsfield have excellent chemistry in the Tome of the Unclean by tapping into the Hellish planes for their renditions of classic demons, devils, & horrors of the Underworld. 

Adventures fearturing monsters from 'The Tome of The Unclean should be incredibly special and because it plugs into Halloween these adventures should be special one shots. One shots offer three things a beginning, middle, and closed end. One shots should also have simple goals, & special treasures. And one shots should have memorable monsters & demons or devils offer those in spades.The Tome of the Unclean is perfectly aligned to offering a demonic cherry on the top of your adventure. The  Tome of the Unclean is in my humble opinion one of the most underrated monster book in C&C's product line. 

Demons & devils can also serve as both phyical & spiritual adventure metaphors for the corruption & horror that have come to pass with events that have happened in a given area experiencing traumatic or horrorific events. And this is the opportunity for adventurers to put things right. Often while this might seem like an old fashioned adventure or campaign goal. Often times players actually love making a marked difference in a campaign where evil with a capital 'E' can be vanquished.  Tome of the Unclean is a perfect book for the C&C dungeon master to add the extra horror of Halloween while offering monsters to crush the justice & good adventurers of a campaign. And these horrors offer challenges beyond the pale for knights, clerics, and paladins to have epic  conflicts with. 

Blast em with Hellfire! Settling into an OSR Hell - Cha'alt & My Version of the OSR Hells!

There are so many lovely little Frog God Games Swords & Wizardry Monsters that 

I'd love to use in my games. I decided to get my infernal campaign  notes out for some business in my version of Hells. This goes back to my 3.5 Dungeons & Dragons D20 days so a little OSR patience.

Recently we reviewed Troll Lord Games Castles & Crusades Tome of the Unclean  & that review generated a ton of controversy. That's good because it means that folks are reading the blog & thinking about OSR gaming. Let's kick the infernal into hi gear or at least my version of Hell.


Someone made a comment on Me We in one of the OSR groups I'm in about the free D20 Infernum book rpg system book -  'Infernum - Book of the Damned'

"You are in Hell.
For an eternity, there has been nothing in the Infernum except constant war and constant suffering. Those in power grind those beneath them into the burning dust, while those below plot and conspire to overthrow their masters and take their place and all bow before the might of the warring Houses. Now, there is dissent and opposition even against their might, as the Free Cities declare their independence and threaten the hegemony of the Houses.
War is coming to Hell. Anyone, even a mortal, could conquer the Pit and become a lord of the Infernum.
Infernum: Book of the Damned is the Player’s book for the Infernum Roleplaying Game. In it you will find everything you need to start your adventures in Hell and begin working your way up the demonic ladder towards total domination.
Play as Mortal, Demon or Fallen Angel. Equip yourself with the latest infernal weaponry such as the flayer or hellcannon and trap a demon within your chosen tool of warfare. Develop and nurture your mutations as they twist your flesh and increase your demonic power. Feed from damned souls and bind other demons in unbreakable Covenants. Do unto others before they do unto you and remember...
Conquer or suffer. These are the only choices in the Infernum."

Now here's the thing for three years when D20 Infernum book rpg system book  came out I ran the system as an addition to 3.5 Dungeons & Dragons. Shocking I know because the first book was followed up with the setting book Infernum: Book of the Tormentor. The final book in the series was Infernum: Book of the Conqueror  which gives the upper PC levels & to rule in Hell & more.
Now I had a far bit of experience with the Infernum Hell because I also own Mongoose's D20 Book of Hell. Here's the thing this book came out before  D20 Infernum book rpg system book & there are several monsters, classes, equipment, etc. That are  not in the D20 Infernum the Book of the Damned.  There's a very nice quick conversion for 3.5 D&D or  Pathfinder over to Swords & Wizardry on the Pickled Punks OSR blog here. 


Now given the circumstances that several of Frog God Games Swords & Wizardry products are on sale I thought I'd go into these Hellish circles.  Now I had to do a lot of house ruling when it came to running D20 Infernum book rpg system books. So much so that I whole cloth modified very nature of the setting Hell itself. The Seven Circles of Dante's Hell became the main stage of Hell with the Abyss & its demons being the back stage. The view point was reinforced with Green Ronin''s Book of Fiends another 3.5 Dungeons & Dragons  book which I own.  The thing is you as the dungeon master have to realize the amount of scaling that you have to do with the monsters for OSR games. But for converting 3.5 Dungeons & Dragons monsters over to Castles & Crusades? I've got that covered with this forum post over at Troll Lords. 

Now with my Cha'alt/Godbound campaign on hiatus for a bit I've taken some time to evaluate some of my old Hell campaign notes. You've got to understand that this was a balls to the walls Rifts/Gamma World style VHS grind house game. Towns being swallowed up by Hell, humans being mutated into demonic horrors then sent to ravage their own towns, etc. This was a campaign in need of  heroes & it got them! These were some very flawed heroes indeed but they were summoned to Earth to do a job! 


Now I've been thinking about using the Siege engine/Castles & Crusades to do a full balls to the walls Rifts Cha'alt game for weeks now. But what about the forces of Hell are they simply going to be on the side lines?! I've got a team of demonic mutant horrors just waiting to be unleashed on my table top as soon as this quarantine breaks!

Note that I really don't give two craps about the poisoned  politics of any the designers & writers of these games. I've put my time into this campaign & on the whole I've got to say that this part of the community aspect of the hobby sucks. Keep your politics off of my table folks. 

Review & Commentary Castles & Crusades -- Tome of the Unclean By Stephen Chenault, & Kim Hartsfield

  "Beyond the darkness and beyond all sense lies a gulf of empty fear where true evil lurks.

Born with twisted thought, tainted with stains of malice, they are creatures foul and bent. They dwell in the darkness of time's caverns, in the Abyss, in Hell, in those Wretched Planes of shadow and evil, loss and despair. The echo of the unknown drives them from darkness toward the light. Some few seek salvation, but others to drive the souls of mortals to ultimate darkness and corruption.

Tome of the Unclean unleashes all of the power and horror of these wretched planes upon your Castles & Crusades game! From the Lords of the Abyss, to the Legions of Hell, and through to the gray wastes of Gehenna, a host of devils, demons, and daemons await your table!

Tome of the Unclean includes all of the familiar denizens of the darker planes. Here you will find Demogorgon and Orcus; Asmodeus, Bael, and Mammon, plus legions of others. All of the major and minor demons, greater and lesser devils, and a veritable host of creatures from your players' worst nightmares await within these pages."

A week or so ago I ordered a copy of Castles & Crusades's Tome of the Unclean. Let me first point out that this supplement is meant for Castles & Crusades exclusively. While Castles & Crusades's Tome of the Unclean can be used with other OSR systems its meant exclusively for C&C or other Siege engine rpg systems. This book does exactly what I was looking for, it adds in a  plethora of Demons, Devils, & even appendixes on adding in undead, hellish fauna, & flora. But  Tome of the Unclean is geared for Aihrde, the default C&C campaign setting. I'm good with this.
This seems to bother a lot of members of the OSR & but not me in particular. I'm a completest & so  Tome of the Unclean has been on my Troll Lords radar for a long time. My feeling is that I'd love to put together an OSR game campaign centered around my version of the Hells as the major antagonistic force of darkness.  Since the C&C Player's Guide is being offered for free I figured it was a great time to get in on the action.


I gotta say that despite reviews like this from Tim O; "C&C is my go to game, but I must say I'm very disappointed in this one. I was really looking forward to the official versions, but the expected improvements to the "big baddies" did not happen. In my opinion all the major demons and devils are under powered as far as hit points and magical abilities go; even the "standard" abilities of both groups seem weak and incomplete." Sigh.. I didn't particularly find this at all. In point of fact I think that all of the infernal deviants of  Tome of the Unclean  work very well for me. I wasn't looking for a huge push in abilities,powers,etc. in the way of the 'munchkin factor'.
Instead I'm looking for an infernal book that lines up with other Siege Engine & OSR products. So if I want a demon, devil, etc. I can grab this book off of the shelf & pop one of these horrors into my games. Tome of the Unclean   is that book. It does it job & its up to the quality of  other Troll Lords products. I bought it with my own pocket money & paid well for   Tome of the Unclean. That should tell you everything right there. 

Infernal & Darkest Secrets of The Cult of Druaga For Advanced Dungeons & Dragons & Your OSR Game Campaigns

There are dieties who represent an alternative order of Law in its rawest,most orderly  & most torturous. These dieties represent the planes before the great Schism. On a plane prime of Earth the lost city of Babel & its tower are cast into ruin & disorder. But the king of the devil world was insensed by this for it was echoed across the planes.But his linage ruled the Inferno long ago & shall again. The Romans knew of  his cult in ancient times for he was counted & worshipped upon in the house of Nimrod;

"The Jewish-Roman historian Flavius Josephus, in his Antiquities of the Jews (c. 94 CE), recounted history as found in the Hebrew Bible and mentioned the Tower of Babel. He wrote that it was Nimrod who had the tower built and that Nimrod was a tyrant who tried to turn the people away from God. In this account, God confused the people rather than destroying them because annihilation with a Flood had not taught them to be godly.

Now it was Nimrod who excited them to such an affront and contempt of God. He was the grandson of Ham, the son of Noah, a bold man, and of great strength of hand. He persuaded them not to ascribe it to God as if it were through his means they were happy, but to believe that it was their own courage which procured that happiness. He also gradually changed the government into tyranny, seeing no other way of turning men from the fear of God, but to bring them into a constant dependence on his power... Now the multitude were very ready to follow the determination of Nimrod and to esteem it a piece of cowardice to submit to God; and they built a tower, neither sparing any pains, nor being in any degree negligent about the work: and, by reason of the multitude of hands employed in it, it grew very high, sooner than any one could expect; but the thickness of it was so great, and it was so strongly built, that thereby its great height seemed, upon the view, to be less than it really was. It was built of burnt brick, cemented together with mortar, made of bitumen, that it might not be liable to admit water. When God saw that they acted so madly, he did not resolve to destroy them utterly, since they were not grown wiser by the destruction of the former sinners [in the Flood]; but he caused a tumult among them, by producing in them diverse languages, and causing that, through the multitude of those languages, they should not be able to understand one another. The place wherein they built the tower is now called Babylon, because of the confusion of that language which they readily understood before; for the Hebrews mean by the word Babel, confusion. The Sibyl also makes mention of this tower, and of the confusion of the language, when she says thus:—"When all men were of one language, some of them built a high tower, as if they would thereby ascend up to heaven; but the gods sent storms of wind and overthrew the tower, and gave everyone a peculiar language; and for this reason it was that the city was called Babylon.""

Druaga was worshiped in Babel near the land of Shinar before the Flood.  Babel was a pre Babylonian trading city whose existence stretched back to the beginnings of human civilazation. Druaga was the king of the devil world in Babel. His cult counted on human sacrifice & very vile rites including the  summoning of arch devils during high ceremonies to Earth.  Druaga was counted favorited among the infernal Lords of Order during this time & has remained so.


The Babel pantheon was destroyed along with its tower leaving the last vestiges of the cult of Druaga  to fester in the desert sands. Or so it was hoped. There were those high priests of Druaga who had been smuggled out of the city before the tower's apocalyptic destruction. These priests were smuggled out by the proto Silent Ones deep into the bowels of the Earth for they were some of the last beings who spoke the occult language of Alko. They knew the deepest inner secrets of the cult of Druaga including the merging of human & devil flesh, the creation of the temple towers of infernal power, the summoning of the most dire of the lords of infernal order, & the final secrets of power for the lords of stability on Earth.

The Tower of Babel by Pieter Bruegel the Elder (1563)

The cult of Druaga continues to operate in secret across the planes  behind the scenes arranging an assassination here, corrupting government officials there, adding in powerful members into its outter cell's ranks, & building a power structure only to utterly destroy it later on. The final lesson of the cult of Druaga is that law in its rawest & most terrifying is that the stablity of static is utter destruction. The blade of the knife & the  silence of the grave is what makes way for the next cycle of order & law. When the cult of Druaga makes itself know it will be integrated into a society at the highest levels of rulership. The subtle & infernal corruption will start from within with officials of office & integrate down to the lowest ranks of society usually within an orderly 2 to 20 years. These numbers being significant to the cult. 
 When the 'towers of summoning' that belong to the  cult of Druaga are erected it is always a bad sign. There will always be 1d20 minor devils or 1d6 cambion priests around these temples of the infernal.


Anti paladins & clerics are recruited from the lowest straits of life & given purpose within the order appearing as members of law, teachers, priests, judges, etc. A miniature of cult of Druaga ruby rod is often used as sign to members placed upon the person of high ranking member of his cult. It is visible to other members of the cult for easy identification. 

 They work from within the bounds of society to make it easier for the preparations of the summoning of their master. Gold & treasure are sacrificed along with virgins in great bon fires a top the highest towers & peaks to gain  Druaga & his devils attentions. Members of the cult of Druaga gain a temporary  +1 to Charisma, +2 to Constitution, +1 to Wisdom, & Intelligence during the high unholy days by attending ceremonies regularly. Cult members  will often rigidly keep certain occult rituals at home or among themselves or they may suffer the loss of Druaga's favor as -2 on all intelligent rolls. Druaga is not devil king to be taken lightly & closely watches his flock for loss of judgement & order. Black wizards & magicians are often his closest worshipers for he gives two spells a day instead of the usual one. But the price is high as they give two pints of their own blood to the devil king taking a point of damage in return.


Druaga rules a giant palace in Hell within its walls are an  endless maze of corridors & changing temple complexes within which the souls of his worshipers are what make up the entire place. They are held rigidly within the heirachery of their place suffering incredible tortures & pain within. Their suffering feeds the cult over the centuries. These damned are often used to be consulted on by many inner members of the cult. Druaga does not have anything to do with the ruling of Hell or so it seems. According to some sources he is regularly consulted by Asmodeus on a semi regular basis. Druaga moves behind the scenes of Hell & the Inferno as a power behind the infernal thrones. And is not ever to be underestimated.

Infernal Evil For Advanced Dungeons & Dragons From The Dragon Issue #42 & How to Counter It OSR Style

So last night I dragged The Dragon issue#42 out in into the light. This issue has some fantastic stuff for the dungeon master looking for something spooky but all of his or her players have memorized every Ravenloft & monster manual around.




The issue only runs about sixty pages but these are solid additions to any dungeon master's tool box; "
 The Mansion of Mad Professor Ludlow - A spooky AD&D adventure; Demons, Devils, and Spirits; The Possessors; Patron Demons; The Restless Dead; Day of the Dwarf; Minarian Legends - The history of Pon; Giants in the Earth; Electric Eye - Adventuring by computer.

October 1980 ... 60 pages". Now this little bright spot of October goodness came about because of Wayne's Books whose The Dragon magazine resources are spot on unlike other internet sources. This is the issue that put the Satanic in Panic & will put the fear of Hell in your players. You got the Demons, Devils and Spirits by  T. Moldvay for Advanced Dungeons & Dragons first edition. These are some very powerful devils straight out of Hebrew,Greek, & occult mythology such as :

SARAPHS Saraph (from the Hebrew, Shin, Resh, Pe—to burn or devour with fire)
FREQUENCY: Very Rare
NO. APPEARING: 1
ARMOR CLASS: -1
MOVE: 9”
HIT DICE: 10
% IN LAIR: Nil
TREASURE TYPE: Nil
NO. OF ATTACKS: 3/2
DAMAGE/ATTACK: 1-8(+ 7)
 SPECIAL ATTACKS: +4 to hit
SPECIAL DEFENSES: See below
MAGIC RESISTANCE: Standard
INTELLIGENCE: Very
 ALIGNMENT: Neutral (tending toward Lawful Good)
SIZE: M PSIONIC ABILITY: Nil
Within their homeland there is, presumably, a large variety of classes and types of Saraphs. Outside their home, however, one meets only members of the Brotherhood of the Sun. These warrior Lords wear a red surcoat with a flaming golden sun in its center, over a suit of scale mail which appears to be made from some cooper-gold alloy (though it is as strong as steel). The Saraphs’ helmets, greaves, and bracers are made from the same material, as is the longsword and dagger belted at their sides. The sun motif on a red field is repeated on their shields. Saraphs are a hominid race which lives on the Elemental Plane of Fire. They appear as seven-foot-tall, ruddy-skinned individuals with bright red hair and pink-irised eyes. Since they come from a highly magical Plane, Saraphs’ armor and weapons acquire magical properties on the Physical Plane. Treat as Scale Mail + 1, Shield + 1, Sword + 1 (Flame Tongue), and Dagger + 1. The magical bonuses apply only when the armor and weapons are used by Saraphs. Individuals of the Saraph race are generally larger than humans, and have quicker reflexes, coming from the Plane of Fire. As the Brothers of the Sun are chosen for maximum strength and dexterity, treat any brother as having 18/00 Strength and 18 Dexterity, with all appropriate bonuses.Saraphs may cast the following spells once per day (as a 10th level Magic-User): Fireball, Fire Shield, Fire Charm, Burning Hands, Detect Magic, Detect Invisible, Dispel Magic. They can Produce Flame or cause Pyrotechnics as often as desired. Fire-based attacks do no damage on Saraphs if the fire is non-magical; magical fire attacks are at - 1 on both “to hit” and damage dice
The Saraphs are at war with the Efreeti. The war occasionally spills over to the Prime Material Plane since Saraphs hunt Efreeti through the Physical Plane and vice versa. The Efreeti have made an alliance with Fire Giants. Saraphs have countered this alliance with one between themselves and Golden Dragons. The Brothers of the Sun are few in number, and, outside of the Plane of Fire, will always be encountered singly. Saraphs appear on the Physical Plane to track down and kill Efreeti. They also serve Gold Dragons who have aided the Saraph race in the past, often acting as treasure guards when the dragons are out feeding. Saraphs have been known to contract service with high-level characters (particularly lawful good or neutral Magic-Users) in return for that character’s aid. Contracts will specify the length and nature of service for both parties. Note that such contracts depend solely on the good will of either side; service is a matter of conscience, not coercion.

Yeah that's right these are the arch enemies of the Efreeti & everyone seems to forget just how dangerous the Efreeti really are. Everyone points to the demons & devils of Advanced Dungeons & Dragons but its actually the Efreeti who cause all kinds of havoc according the Monster Manual.



DAT Monster Manual Efreeti illustration.

The rest of the article digs into the other inhabitants of the Tom Moldvay devils & demonic horrors but its the note at the beginning I want to reprint; "(Author’s note: Few things spice up an adventure more than having characters confronted by a monster they have never seen before. The monsters described below are based on traditional names from the ancient magical grimoires. Using a translation of the name as inspiration, four new monsters were created. Devils and Demons (Asperim and Hacamuli, respectively) follow the general guidelines for such creatures as set down in the AD&D Monster Manual. Spirits (Apollyon and Saraphs) infer a creature or category of creatures whose power base is primal, primordial, or elemental. Such beings often originate in planes other than the Prime Material Plane and would usually occur very rarely. Spirits would generally be of one of the seven alignments exclusive of Chaotic Evil and Lawful Evil.)"
What it infers here is the fact that many of the monsters & systems presented in The Dragon even at the time were always optional for the players & DM. This gets into some of the most evil & nasty vile monsters that I've seen & had the unfortunate experience to encounter "The Possessors By A. Parker ; "Hell raged around the crag-faced mountain top, bringing down monstrous strokes of white lightning from the cloudy black sky. The air was choked and stifled with the smell of brimstone and the terrible cries of the abyss. Plutonian mists encircled the base of the great mountain, and, at the peak, there was carved a throne of bone. The throne was hellishly ornated with red rubies and blue diamonds, all set into the bleached white bone of the royal seat. Upon it sat the ruler of this domain: Satan, the Lord of Hell. Satan pondered the evils he had done and the things he had wrought. For uncounted months he had set upon the bony throne, his contemplations continually returning to his experiments in the loathsome pits of the everlasting fire. He had experimented upon many things, in many ways, using many devices, but still he had not the results he desired. His creations did not serve his complete purposes, and, realizing this, he had begun his search for a new evil. He discovered it easily, for it was fundamental to his essence. He discovered temptation! Temptation was then set to work upon the people of the world. Soon many men (and even some elves) became engrossed in this proposal of Satan, which was: Serve him and he will grant much power. So were born the undead. But this had been long ago, and Satan still was not able to accomplish all of his designs. So he sat upon his throne, thinking. He questioned himself continually, but his great intellect had failed to equal its reputation . . . until now! Suddenly all of Hell screamed, in answer to Satan’s discovery, with an unholy fury that was never again to be matched. The Lord of the Abyss no longer sat upon his throne, but instead he stood upon the precipice of the mountain, calling up the horrors of Hell. Souls were writhing in unbearable pain, for Satan was rejoicing, and celebrations in Hell, more often than not, contented only the Prince of Darkness. As the churnings of Hell subsided, Satan went to his darkest, most vile pits, and he began to call upon unholy rites. For days Hell was unruled, chaotic, and the souls trapped therein knew unprecedented relief from the tortures of Satan. Upon the sixth day, Satan completed his evil scheme, and, then torture was reborn and multiplied in the pits of the Dark Realm. The possessors had been spawned."

Posssessors are lawful evil, have been ruled by the same Arch devil since the beginning of the events of The Dragon #28, “The Politics of Hell” by Alexander von Thorn article. And are very nasty indeed ; "Possessors are wholly and completely incorporeal beings. They have no mass, and, thus, they cannot be attacked in any normal way. They must be summoned to and from the material plane by a powerful being because they cannot travel the planes alone. They are absolutely not affected by any weapon or any magic with the exception of certain spells (listed below). The material forms that they appear in, however, can be slain normally. "
Now if you think that the local clerics & other priestly orders ( pagan ones included here of course) are helpless in the face of such devil spirits then you are sadly mistaken! Exorcise, 4th level cleric spell, page 48 of the Player's Handbook! Dispel evil, spiritwrack, exorcise, banishment, succor, holy word are perfect for making frail friar so & so a very kick ass name taker when it comes to other worldly horrors. 


If it was me I  would House-rule the 'Turn Undead' ability for Clerics to include Exorcism. But there's a whole cloth thread on this on the Dragon's foot forums.  This got me thinking about the Arduin Grimoire here. Why?! Because of the fact the planes of the early issues of The Dragon magazine were very experiemental.
Twenty Two planes of the Arduin Hells were burnt out planets, planes, etc. which to merely step on too meant death & damnation. Let's not mention the demons & devils of the twenty Hells. 

There are several optional spells in the Arduin Grimoires that allow one banish such things 'The possessors' & can bring them to their spirtual knees. The fact is that exocisisms make really boring adventures after the third time.  But I might be bringing back the third optional AD&D campaign background for my campaigns coming up.
Having a solidly strong priest class is essential in an old school or OSR game in my humble opinion. This is where Dark Albion  comes in offering a very interesting alternative to the usual options. But Dark Albion Cults of Chaos with its inquistor campaign option that might actually be the order of the day here. 


Another slightly unorthodox option might be to use the shamans, runegravers, etc from Astonishing Swordsmen & Sorcerers of Hyperborea. There are several ways of bringing over the horrors & weirdness of demonic entities while battling on the planes of Hyperborea. The work of Clark Ashton Smith was filled to the brim with dangerous devil spawned entities.

1d7 Random Treasures & Relics of Old Satan For Your Old School Campaigns

At the edge of a valley on Mars two figures edge along kicking up dust and a cloud of sand upon the back of their lizard horses. They stopped when of the riders nearly broke his mount's leg on a metal object sticking out of the sands. 'Easy girl' was the half voiced & telepathic response as the rider got off & eased his mount. The two riders had gotten turned around in a violent Martian sand storm & found a path into this lesser known Martian  valley.
'Rel The Strong' the red Martian mercenary took his googles and sand gear off to examine the object that almost sheared off his mount's leg, 'She's very lucky, it only took off a bit of hair and scales. But who the hell leaves a brass bladed sword like this out here?' I've never seen a blade like this in twenty years of the trade'.
That's when he uncovered the alien skeleton with dozens upon dozens of cuts through the corpse's chitin exoskeleton & armor. 
"Don't touch that sword friend Rel' the hiss of Hashic Vro Tholian occultist was like the crack of the man eater whip vines they had faced on 'Old' Venus. Rel got his swords out just as the first warrior covered from head to toe in whirling signs & glowing infernal symbols attacked!
'Where the Jeddak's dagger did he come from!?' the question was answered by the dozens of trap doors in the valley's floor opening letting more warriors pour in on the two adventurers. The lizard horses the first things to go down under the exceedingly sharp brass swords of the warriors. Their cries were unearthly things that chilled mind & soul.


That's when the singing & chanting started along the walls of the valley. The alien signs & symbols etched into the swords began to glow with the cold fires of ancient & dead Hells.
'We've got to leave this valley my friend!' The cuts in the exoskeleton were pulsing with sickly light  in time to the chanting in the valley above them.
The sigil of Satan for all to see was visible to all to see!

On the lonely sands of  future Zothique there stand ancient & abandon temples to the old
"enemy" or "adversary" of creation. The old devil Satan more malevolent entity opposed to the Gods, also called the devil, who possesses abhorrent qualities. He has become even more twisted by time & now is an insane and utterly evil power of chaos. Alone and infecting others with his might, he is a disease on the face of Old Earth & the solar system. He has become an insane devil god of old. Making pacts & feasting on the souls of his followers. He relieves in the violence & power he grants to his followers. Wizards & black priests think of him as a  a symbol of virtuous characteristics & liberty but these have long been shed for the horror beneath. It has become a god of essence reveling in the violence of excess & horrors long past a beast of the wastelands.


The 'Vulth' russ' tells a vastly different story about the bright star & scholar of warriors. This being came from the stars battle scarred & with swords broken. He tempted the  warriors of the old plains with promises of  knowledge & the glories of warfare. Those who serve him serve him in his valley throughout eternity, their pledges of eternal war are etched on their swords & their skin. They are cursed with undeath, damnation, and eternal service. There are those among the wastelands who still spread the word of his cult. Adventurers & outlaws from time to time come across his valley and temples  on Mars, out in the Asteroid belt, & even out in the ancient wastelands & ruined cities on Old Earth.
1d7 Random Treasures & Relics of Old Satan

1. Lvriel Bracers - These bracers have row after row of inscribed etchings and runes of power that draw from the black blood of the planet. They give the owner a +2 on all melee damage and they're able to hit contra temporal beings. These bracers also give the owner the ability to see 1d4 minor nearby planes but also may 20% drive the owner mad with dangerous visions of insanity. They are inscribed with the runes of violence & excess disguised as a rune of liberty. 
2. Claws of S'arna - These +2 claws were created using the metal bones of an ancient Martian demon. They still bare the feriousity and violence of that creature scared to Satan. These claws were used to murder many an ancient Jeddak or prince. These claws may be used to slay certain types of minor undead or minor semi demonic kind/. They've been lost to the Martian sands for many centuries. 
3. Daggers of The Twelve Betrayed Kings - These +2 daggers of Martian design were created by twelve Jeddaks as symbols of their unity and brotherhood but were used by all in a coup for an ancient political assassination. They will warn if anyone close by is planning a murder except if the murderer is a close blood relative. These daggers may once every century be used to summon the beastly prince aspect of Satan. 
4. The Crown of Knowledge - This crown is actually a repository for the lost knowledge of the scientist king Crusr the Second. The crown contains all his knowledge as the king sold his soul to save his dying father. He himself always had the answer but the old devil took his soul anyway. It will turn its owner into a lich with vast mad science knowledge after 1d8 years of use but this relic has been lost to the old solar system for many centuries. 
5. The Swords of the Beast  - These are the brass swords of +2 that are forged using the heart blood of the follower who must make a pact with the old devil for their eternal service and black honor. They are seldom seen as those who do are murdered by them. These swords can be used to cut through most mortal substances and the blood of their victims is absorbed by the sword adding their to their terrible power. The owner heals damage quite quickly but begins to take on the characteristics of undeath.
6. Wands of Brill - These metal wands are created by the blind wizard smiths from the iron of the valley of the lost. They enable one to see any and all of the works of the infernal . Once per day they can cast 1d6 magic missile spells & glow with the power of the Satan. Those who see this light of damnation must make a save vs fear or flee from its power and might. 
7. Fangs of the Beast - The preserved fangs in metal and Martian ivory of the Martian banth that enables its owner to take on the aspects of the monster. The owner becomes a beast like horror subject to lycanthropy rules and able to track enemies across the wastelands easily. The owner is able to gain a +2 attack against any supernatural horror but is subject to a murderous rage once per day. They are far more prone to the influence and horror of the old devil. At the end of their life their souls are forfeit to the cold hells of the old beast aspect of the devil. 

A crownless king who reigns alone,
I live within this ashen land,
Where winds rebuild from wandering sand
My columns and my crumbled throne.

My sway is on the men that were,
And wan sweet women, dear and dead;
Beside a marble queen, my bed
Is made within this sepulcher.

In gardens desolate to the sun,
Faring alone, I sigh to find
The dusty closes, dim and blind,
Where winter and the spring are one.

My shadowy visage, grey with grief,
In sunken waters walled with sand,
I see- where all mine ancient land
Lies yellow like an autumn leaf.

My silver lutes of subtle string,
Are rust- but on the grievous breeze
I hear what sobbing memories,
And muted sorrows murmuring!

Across the broken monuments,
Memorial of the dreams of old,
The sunset flings a ghostly gold
To mock mine ancient affluence.

About the tombs of stone and brass,
The silver lights of evening flee;
And slowly now, and solemnly,
I see the pomp of shadows pass.

Often, beneath some fervid moon,
With splendid spells I vainly strive
Dead loves imperial to revive,
And speak a heart-remembered rune-

But, ah, the lovely phantoms fail,
The faces fade to mist and light,
The vermeil lips of my delight
Are dim, the eyes are ashen-pale.

A crownless king who reigns alone,
I live within this ashen land,
Where winds rebuild from wandering sand
My columns and my crumbled throne.

The Kingdom of Shadows  (1922) 
by Clark Ashton Smith

Relic Living Metallic Tissue Armor For Your Old School Campaigns

One of the rarest relics created by the ancient Hyperboreans was  nanite skin weave mesh armor of the gods. This living metallic tissue armor was created using a vril power source when the Hyperborean super science was at its highest. The armor is made of an alien metallic living lattice that most would mistake for mold or fungus growing on rocks & whatnot in forbidden & dangerous parts of the Underworld. This stuff flourishes under the transcomic blue lights of N'Kai & other places where the strange radiations of the underworld exist. It is said that the presence of Tsathoggua and his other worldly god thing ilk carry with them the necessary transcosmic radiations to allow this stuff to grow and flourish.


Photo to by  SecretDisc

Once it is harvested by the blind priests of Abhoth, Tsathoggua, or Yululun this material is given over to the tender mercies of the witches of the spider goddess Nacha. They weave in the vril powder rich webbing that powers this material & allows it to taken on the twenty two nights of magick & enchantment's rites. These rites awaken the naturally occurring sigils of power & magick built into the structure of the living metal fabric. This grants the material the following spell like abilities:

1. Nanite skin weave mesh armor bonds with and becomes a part of the living flesh of its owner granting the owner a natural armor class of 6. This protection can not be stacked with any other armor. 
2. The owner is immune to any mind affecting spells or spell like abilities when wearing the armor as the head piece that grows over the owner's head protects from these types of mind effecting attacks. 
3. Nanite skin weave mesh armor acts a ring of fire resistance and adaption allowing its owner to survive in space or on other planes of existence. The owner becomes immune to gas attacks or lack of a breathable atmosphere. 
4. Each week the owner of the armor is able to generate 1d10 tiny mini magic missile like spell effects to attack a target. 
5. The owner of the armor can instantly command it to cover a body part or other orifice with a good solid thought or command word. 

Many collectors of esoteric items  will give their eye teeth to possess a set of this armor. It often comes in strange aerosol cans of the stuff with a strong and very weird magnetic holding the armor in place. After opening it. The stuff will escape the confines of its container and crawl across its new home namely your PC's flesh. 

After 1d8 days the stuff will have bonded with the flesh of the owner and become a living extension of their body's systems. Unopened cans of this stuff  is worth 700,00 to 900,000  gold  piece per can. Once open the stuff will begin drawing arcane vril energies from the local channels powering the armor with a strange quasi mystic power source good for 1d8 years.. The stuff may give off unusual radiations and strange displays of power causing those in the area to make a wisdom check to see if they notice this strange energy  creeping out of it. The secret to creating this armor through the forbidden twisted rites of the Underworld are said to have been collected in the proto Martian rites contained in the The 'Vulth' russ'

1d7 Random Relics & Treasures of Beelzebul Table For Your Old School Campaigns

Hashic Vro Tholian occultist looked on the swampland with concern & more then a little fear. Positioned all around the vast & seeming infinity swamp were the wrecks of a thousand flyers from hundred alien cultures.
'What's up with all of the flyers Hashic?'  'Rel The Strong' the red Martian mercenary spit the words out with a sort of vindictive Martian curse.
'I've seen this type of place before so keep your eyes peeled friend Rel's Hashic Vro occultist and devotee of Vulthoom was very worried and this worried Rel in turn.
They had ditched the legion forces about one hundred miles back when they found themselves in one of the largest fresh water swamps they had encountered on 'Old Venus'. The water was only ankle high so far but they had encountered Venusian blood words the size of small Martian tharp ponies & throat leeches which made creating fresh drinking water an interesting affair to say the least. 'Com'n on friend Rel we have to make the temple by night fall!!' the occultist's voice was a wee bit panicked as they double timed their movement.
'What do you know that I don't' Hashic Vro was about to tell his friend about spotting the inscribed  sigil of the old Earth Arch devil Beelzebul.
But his words died in the sound of buzzing wings, wings that only came from giant flies the size of Martian troop transports.
'We have to make the temple!'
'So you have told me but not why?!' words were croaked out of the ragged throat of
'Rel The Strong'.
'They can't cross over their master's unholy symbols & sigils of protection for his worshipers.'
'Well they don't know if we are or are not friend Rel'
That when they spotted the temple with the giant brass fly with a giant humanoid skull for the head of the fly.
'Oh I have a very bad feeling about this Hashic' upon which Rel shoved a new cell into his blaster carbine.



Far into the future of Zothique  Beelzebul the old arch devil had lost his bid for the throne of Earth. The old devil was formerly a leading heavenly angel who was (6.7) associated with the star Hesperus (which is the normal Greek name for the planet Venus (Αφροδíτη) as evening star). He took himself and his followers with him back onto the ancient swamp world of Venus. He had temples built to hit to honor himself in ages past. These temples have fallen into disrepair but usually covered in the wreckage are ancient forbidden technologies and secrets. These sites are guarded by vicious and hideous life forms that are just waiting for adventurers.

The 'Vulth' russ' tells a tale of betray, surrender, and horrid loss on the 'Lord of Flies' part in the great war of Heaven's past. The old enemy of mankind stood his ground even as his lieutenants betrayed him during the final hours of the war causing for him to a series of defeats. First he retired to Mars and secreted many of his most valuable of treasures on 'Old Venus'. Many black sorcerers & wizards come to the planet in the hopes of finding his cult to create a pact with the old arch devil. Adventurers & outlaws from time to time come across his vaults on Mars, out in the Asteroid belt, & On Old Venus

1d7  Random Relics & Treasures of Beelzebul Table 

1.  The rod of Beelzebul which enables its owner to summon 1d1o giant flies and also 1d6 giant fly kind monsters. The rod really responds to its master's call and will not produce any monsters to attack him at all. Once per day the thing can act as a contact other plane or speak with the dead as per the spell. 
2. Statue of the Assassin bug - This strange humanoid statue once per day can summon 1d8 assassin bugs who are members of the local swarm guilds. The statue allows the owner to speak to or through any of the monsters. 
3. The Tablet of the Buzzing - This table contains over 143 characters and is able to act as a summon monster spell but this tablet contains 1d20 +5 black magic spells which can be used once per day. 
4. Crystal Shard of the Fly - This strange crystal looks like an alien  seascape in a miniature . This piece of the crystal is actually the spoiled remains of one of the arch devil's eyes from a fallen avatar. The eye allows the owner to contact other plane, cast wizard's eye three times per day and be immune to any gaze attacks. 
5. Sting of the Lord of Flies - This strangely wrought piece of twisted metal is actually a weapon belonging to one of the devils in the ranks of the Lord of flies himelf. The weapon is a +3 spear. It can be used to pin a human shadow with easy and it act as a weapon against the invisible and those who would harm the masters plans. 
6. Vase of the Swarm - This strangely wrought vase made of molded reality is actually the resting place for two dozen swarms which can be released in tandem. The vase holds a dangerous flesh stripping swarm of deadly insectoids three times three per day.
7.  Wrist mounted fly thrower - This device holds six insectoids in sequence and this device will launch them one at a time over twenty feet. These things will make anyone that gets hit by a fly make a save vs wands or be polymorphed into a giant fly under the control of the owner for 1d8 hours. The thrower is cursed however and after 1d6 weeks the owner of the device.
   
   
   
   
   Against my heart your heart is closed; you bid me go:
   What ways are left in all the world for love to know ?
   Desolate oceans, and the light of lonely plains,
   Dead moons that wander in the wastes of ice and snow—
   
   These, these I fain would see, and find the splendid bourn
   Of sunset, or the Brazen deserts of the morn,
   That I might lose this ever-aching loneliness
   In vaster solitude; and love be less forlorn,
   
   Faring to seek with alien sun and alien star
   The strange, the veiled horizons infinite and far;
   Spaces of fire and night, the skies of steel and gold,
   Or sunset-haunted seas where foamless islands are.
   
   The Exile  (1922) by Clark Ashton Smith