Horror Between The Void - Ghosts In OSR Spacccee!

 When it comes to setting the scene in space for a monster one that seldom get's mentioned is 'the ghost'! A menace that has far more in common with a haunted house then a space craft. But why!? Ghosts are a perfectly suitable horror for an OSR  Science Fiction rpg. 

So in that vein we've been looking into James Mishler Games Ghost -- The Incorporeal Undead  which gives quite a few OSR style options to make a memorable intersteller menace. 
The idea that a human or even an alien undead is waiting an eternity for some fool to stumble upon their wreck or ruin of a space craft is an idea as old as Pulp Science Fiction. Sure there's been variants on the idea over the years but most of the time it's an idea that get's buried at the back of the dust bin of fictional history. 
Space craft wrecks stalking the Heavens looking for victims of the space ways has been an idea that's been in my head since '04 when I got back into retro gaming before the OSR. 

Imagine a crack team of Colonial Troopers going up against an alien ghost that has 10,000 years of experience on them. They'd need a psychic with experience handling such menaces. And its that unknown factor that can scare the Hell out of a group of experienced players. No clerics or exorcists to help them unless they've got one in spare. 

Colonial Troopers advertises itself as a Hard Science Fictional OSR rpg and it does fit the bill in spades. With all of the Bugs terror, carnage, battles, etc. their battle fields are a prime breeding ground for such undead horrors. Will the troopers be under the control of Bug necromancers or are they going to be on a tear for vegence againt their enemies or a bit of both?! Here's an example of a undead waiting between the void. 

Major Tom 
No. Enc.: 1d8 (1d20) Alignment: Chaotic (Special) Movement: N/A Fly: 240’ (80’) Armor Class: 3 Hit Dice: 3*** Attacks: 1 Touch Damage: 1d6 plus Fear Save: F3 Morale: 10 Hoard Class: XXI XP: 95

Specials: Blinking, Blinking Ectoplasm, Chained Ghost ( Major Tom must remain within 60 feet of his corpse 

Major Tom was the pilot of the radium ore hauler Coming Home on its route through hyperspacial locations. Major Tom had noticed the weird hyperspacial  anomalies which tore him from his body. His soul was wrenched from existence & only through sheer force of will was he able to make it back to his remains. Now Major Tom drifts between universes with a fortune of radium in his cargo bay but he's so drained of energy and incredibly hungry. He feeds on life forces of those he encounters but its such as effort to hold himself together. Bits and pieces fade in and out of the real & unreal ever 1d4 rounds and his touch damages those he tries to warn away. Major Tom's  hoard of radium is what often attracts & dooms adventurers!  Major Tom continues to sail the space ways between universes inspiring dread & fear in all of those he encounters! 

Commentary & Review on The Isle of Eldisor Hexcrawl Campaign Cyclopedia & Gazetteer by James Mishler & Jodi Moran-Mishler From James Mishler Games

 "Jordvann was once a land dedicated to Law and Good, until the rise of Eldisor, the Devil’s-Son, who together with his hordes of giants, dragons, trolls, ogres, orcs, and goblins conquered the land, reduced the people to slavery, and brought down Fimbul Winter, which caused empires to fall world-wide. Eldisor ruled for 400 years, until he was slain or brought low during a rebellion of his captains, the Old Evils. Fimbul Winter ended, and civilization rose again elsewhere, while the survivors on the Isle of Eldisor sought to stay alive between the warring Old Evils."

"Now, descendants (or claimed descendants) of exiled Jordvanner have settled the southern verge of the southern portion of the island, building colonies and rebuilding civilization among the monstrous and savage peoples of the isle. Little is known of the Isle of Eldisor, and what little is known is merely myth, legend, and rumor. The adventurers can partake of the return to the Isle of Eldisor in many ways – find and recover the lost treasures of the ancient civilization; discover, ally, and trade with the savage descendants of the Jordvanner; battle the remaining hordes of evil giants, dragons, trolls, ogres, orcs, and goblins; or seek to re-establish the lost realm of Jordvann and protect the native peoples from the inroads of the colonial factors" 

The Isle of Eldisor Hexcrawl Campaign Cyclopedia & Gazetteer by James Mishler &  Jodi Moran-Mishler is essentially a campaign jump off book & starter campaign all in one on the edge of an established evil empire state. The Isle of Eldisor Hexcrawl Campaign Cyclopedia & Gazetteer rocks in at Seventy Six pages with everything from natural random disasters to full on evil minions as hexcrawl encounters. The idea of the PC's being colonists on the isle is a brilliant one enabling the campaign to kick off in any direction. The illusion of free will is maintained with some excellent encounters. 

This is a deceptive campaign in the sense that  The Isle of Eldisor Hexcrawl Campaign Cyclopedia & Gazetteer  doesn't seem like a long campaign. But  The Isle of Eldisor Hexcrawl Campaign Cyclopedia & Gazetteer is going to take months to get through. Playing through this campaign means going through the isle timeline in ways that are going to be rocking the PC's hard. Expect to lose a few PC's along the way as you try to   re-establish the lost realm of Jordvann. The Isle of Eldisor Hexcrawl Campaign Cyclopedia & Gazetteer is more then its parts because this is a well established state of evil. The Evil here is dark, deadly, and dangerous as both threat & governing powers. Adventuring here is going to take cunning & more then a bit of stealth. 
The Mishlers writing is tight & the ideas here are rich with possiblities within 

the  Isle of Eldisor Hexcrawl Campaign Cyclopedia & Gazetteer. There's an undercurrent of unsettled violence & possible revolution brewing just under the surface of the campaign setting.  The savage descendants of the Jordvanner have unfinished business within the campaign  and it shows.  Is there evil to fight with a capital 'E' here?! Yes in many ways there are because the

Isle of Eldisor Hexcrawl Campaign Cyclopedia & Gazetteer is an unsettled land in every sense of the word. The world is in a state of flux and the old powers are dying by inches but the new ones haven't settled on their roles yet. This is prime time for a group of PC's to take back the isle!  For OSR games the isle and its environs are a place to reforge a lost society & fight the powers of evil in spades. For Swords & Wizardry The Isle of Eldisor Hexcrawl Campaign Cyclopedia & Gazetteer by James Mishler &  Jodi Moran-Mishler is an excellent point ot being adventuring. 

The Isle of Eldisor Hexcrawl Campaign Cyclopedia & Gazetteer by James Mishler &  Jodi Moran-Mishler From James Mishler Games Is Available Right Here 

 

Review & Commentary On 20 Minor Magic Items by James & Jodi Moran Mishler For The Fifth Edition of the Worlds Most Popular Fantasy Rpg

"20 Minor Magic Items contains 20 items of lesser or least magical sort, designed to be given to lower-level characters. Most of the Minor Magic Items listed herein are common or very common items of minor, lesser, or petty sort."




"One common or two very common items from this booklet can be substituted for any one common item from the standard treasure lists.

The 20 items are:

Adamantine-Chased Armor
Ammunition of Ready Recovery
Belt Pouch of Plenty
Crown of the Goblin King
Grenade of Wonder
Healing Salve
Holy Crackers
Instant Armor
Locket of Memory
Pastries of Provisioning
Phantasmal Pipe
Ring of Invisibility, Lesser
Ring of Truth
Ring of Warding
Rune Weapon, Lesser
Shielding Shield
Talisman of Resistance
Talisman of Protection
Thieves Tools Nonpareil
Tome of the Master" 

 There are two things dungeon masters can never have enough of & that's monsters or magic items. Now over the last couple of months I've been playing an on & off reoccurring PC in DM Steve's Amazing Adventures 5th edition game. And here's where 20 Minor Magic Items by James & Jodi Moran Mishler  comes in very handy! 

This has been a campaign based around 70's & 80's classic horror & fantasy movies. As a DM in rotation that hasn't happened due to work conflicting schedules with several of our players so I've had to sit on my hands for the moment. So over the last couple of months I've been quietly learning the 5th edition AA. And getting into the back drop adapting certain fantasy world NPC's. Among the things that I keep encountering is having interesting occult items that can be useful but not campaign wrecking. 20 Minor Magic Items by James & Jodi Moran Mishler clocks in at six pages of items with several wrinkles or hooks that could be exploited by the DM. 
A good example of this is the Crown of the Goblin King which plugs directly into today's Jim Henson inspired blog entry; "CROWN OF THE GOBLIN KING Wonderous item, common (requires attunement) This splendiferous, ostentatious device is a headpiece patched together from various flashy, gaudy, and tacky bits and bobs, none of which have any actual value. When you wear this crown you have advantage on all Charisma checks when dealing with goblins; unfortunately, you also suffer disadvantage on all Charisma checks with dwarves." This item could be a major plot hook while being a very minor magic item as the goblins of Fey will not recognize a new goblin king without it. And with a bit of hand waving these magic items could easily be dropped into a Castles & Crusades game with little or no modification at all. 

And  20 Minor Magic Items by James & Jodi Moran Mishler  is filled with exactly these sorts of  minor magic items. While they won't break the campaign they can & will make it memorable. For a dollar 20 Minor Magic Items is a wise investment that will give far more in the long run of a campaign.

20 Minor Magic Items by James & Jodi Moran Mishler Is Available Here

Review & Commentary On Demons of Dundurn (1982) By Les R. Scanlon & Derek C. Watson From Judge's Guild For Advanced Dungeons & Dragons First Edition & Your Old School Campaigns

 

"An eerie silence greeted the dawn at Riverside House the morning after the wedding feast of Arnulf and Gunda. As the day wore on concerned villagers appealed to Oskine to gather some of the guests at the Feathered Serpent Inn and investigate. Oskine instructed the group of guests to proceed ahead and said he would join them later. The guests crossed the empty threshold to discover..."

Note: The cover states that it is "Part 1 of the Rood of Parth Series" but no further adventure were ever published in this series too bad. And we'll see why.. 

At the moment sitting here in a favorite little bestro & coffee house with my current favorite Judge Guild module let' flash back to Eighty two. For a moment, we've already looked into the possibility of adding in  Ravenscrag to this Wilderlands of High Fantasy Campaign. But if the events of Gary Gygax's B2 Keep on the Borderlands unfold then what?! The whole region blows up into a full blown war. But let's face it this should take months of real actual game time. So what can we do in the mean time?! Demons of Dundurn (1982) By Les R. Scanlon &  Derek C. Watson From Judge's Guild has all of the right ingredients for a nasty heel adventure  turn in the meantime. There's plenty of NPC's, solid locations, an entire village, & some excellent cartography. Demons of Dundurn is the Wilderlands of High Fantasy settled & the civilized areas of the map. 

The adventure plot is solidly done & this works out as a great mid level or mid tier adventure for Castles & Crusades as well as Advanced Dungeons & Dragons as it was meant to. The whole cloth of Demons of Dundurn could easily be set right outside of the Citystate of the World Emperor without muddying the waters. Why?! Because in the shadow of the citystate the whole of module's adventures become a ripple in the greater schemes of the citystate. This lends campaign weight to the adventure whole package & product. 

What recommends Demons of Dundurn? The adventure can be easily slipped into any existing campaign.But what makes it desirable is the fact that the adventure's construction fits the world feel of a game of Castles & Crusades as a system. 
If the Wilderlands of High Fantasy is Frank Frazetta artwork, classic Sword & Sorcery  &  Appendix N influences then Demons of Dundurn is classic Saturday movie serial with plenty of action & sword play. The adventure plot is there, the artwork is top notch for a Judge's Guild product. 

I keep saying that Demons of Dundurn fits the over arching style & go about that is the Castles & Crusade system. This isn't an idle opinion, this is a testament to the hard line of Demons of Dundurn. This adventure could be used as bridge gap for C&C's Haunted Highlands & the Wilderlands of High Fantasy. The NPC's, the locations, & etc of Demons of Dundurn fit the venerable mini campaign setting of the Highlands. 
The Feathered Serpent Inn is perfect as an adventure location into the Haunted Highlands. Perhaps the inn occasionally 'wanders' a bit. 

Again this fits some of what I've seen in the new up coming Troll Lords adventures. Why?! Because Troll Lords is getting ready to launch a new Kickstarter soon 'The Feathered Serpent' could provide a way of translating between potent gaming resources. 

Demons of Dundurn offers an alternative to the 2020's same again & off again OSR offerings. We're deep into Eighty two weirdness with a twist or two of locations, solid NPC's & more. 

Now I really love the artwork in this adventure that said this review comes with a note. Many DM's will find that James Mishler's Magnificent Miscellaneum Volume II is going to be of use if your running Demons of Dundurn as a part of your  C&C campaign. Can't say why?! But you can figure it out folks. 

All together Demons of Dundurn (1982) By Les R. Scanlon &  Derek C. Watson is another title that I'm very glad was included on the near infinite thumb drive I received as a gift. The adventure is another slice of '82 Advanced Dungeons & Dragons at its best in my humble opinion. 

I'll save you a seat at the Feather Serpent Inn & have the bar maid save you an ale. Ta Ta for now my friends. 

Review & Commentary On Ravenscrag By Judge's Guild For Advanced Dungeons & Dragons First Edition & Your Old School Campaigns

Once again the deep well of my thumb drive provides me with a place that I just need to add into my on going campaign. This isn't the usual module that you hear about around the hobby shop soda machine. 



 In Eight- One Judges Guild produced Ravenscrag, a sorta of back filler kinda module that is rather unique its output & feel. Ravenscrag isn't your usual Judges Guild's product because while many JG products & books were generic in look & feel. Ravensscrag is all  castle and attendant area book. And its such that it can be dropped into your own campaign. For my purposes its proto Celtic/Norman feel is exactly the sorta of place that I want in the Wilderlands of High Fantasy. Why?! 

There's a lot going on in Ravenscrag! The module is chalk full of NPC's & a kingdom in turmoil. The kinda of turmoil that adventurers make much worse. You've got 

detailing the rooms and inhabitants of a six-level castle and a five story keep all within the reach of the player's PC's and that's where things get very interesting. How interesting?! Ravenscrag is a perfect location to tack on B2 Keep on the Borderlands.


Why? Because Ravenscrag makes an excellent castle & kingdom along the same track along the borderlands as the famous keep. And there's just as much intrigue happening in Ravenscrag. 

The maps, NPC's, and really the over all package of  Ravenscag make the whole very pleasing to the eye & the palatte of the old school gamer. Infact I'm not the only one who loved the module pacakge;"Paul O'Connor reviewed Ravenscrag in The Space Gamer No. 45.^[1] O'Connor commented that "If you play D&D or think you can overcome the problems of non-specific text, then Ravenscraft is an excellent buy for the money."" So as you can see there's quite a bit on the full burn of this module. 

The dungeons,the keep, the locations, & even the overall feel of this module keep the DM coming back for a bit more of a dip into the weyrd pools of Ravenscrag. There's a proto Arthurian or Norman Britian feel here that reminds me of a time long gone from fairy tales & deeds of daring do. 
But what is there for the OSR gamer?! 

Ravenscrag offers up a heap of Advanced Dungeons & Dragons madness that takes its cues from both '81 AD&D as well as some seriously good resources to pull from. The kingdom itself can be dragged & dropped into any world but fits in the seriously deadly annals of '81 style gaming. But that unto itself isn't its only draw. For Castles & Crusades the vibe of Ravenscrag fits within many of the recent adventures that we've seen outta of Troll Lords. Because Troll Lords is getting ready to launch a new Kickstarter soon  Ravenscrag could provide a way of translating between potent gaming resources. 

Why!? Because adventurers need islands of stability amid increasingly dangerous places. Fortunately Ravenscrag isn't that but kinda of is if lots of criteria are met. In otherwords there's a Hell of a lot of opportunity for the DM to use Ravenscrag to their advantage. 

Is Ravenscrag a good module?! Yes but is it a fantastic one?! Sorta if the DM is looking for a location that can offer as much adventures as it does opportunity across the board. Ravenscrag is a solid addition unto Castles & Crusades for myself. Because it takes the DM into a world of intrigue & the players into solid danger! Again classic & very well done for Eight One AD&D! 

Review & Commentary On Pegasus #10: Revenge of the Ant God From Judge's Guild 1982

 Tonight I'm gonna dive into Pegasus #10: Revenge of the Ant God adventure by Judge's Guild. Now there are reasons for this. Let's dive into the issue & we'll explain this one. 

So a little while back I got a thumb drive from a DM friend whose moving outta Connecticut & happened to mention this to my current group of players. What's on the thumb drive? The dungeon master's original  Judge's Guild collection including adventures & supplements. Now from time to time there have been murmers on this blog of using some Judge's material. But everyone just loves original JG's material & so even with the current Cacophony of  campaigns going on its been. Can you please slot this material into our current games?! Now bare in mind that since '08 and my first blog that the 'forever DM' has been me. With DM Steven currently down its been up me to once again shoulder the fun.


On MeWe I've got Jon HershbergerWilderlands of High Fantasy group. So for the past couple of months I've been lurking there but there's been something very weird that I noticed. 'Revenge of the Ant God' was written by Bob Bledsaw, Bob Jasper, and Mark Holmer in October of '82.  Whole adventure has the feel of a certain classic Horror/Sci fi film film from 1954. The classic Them from '54 is most obviously the inspiration for this adventure & that's not a bad thing at all. 

The PC's come into this Advanced Dungeons & Dragons adventure getting into the deep end of it straight off. The lure & hook of the adventure starts off similar to the film but gains speed quickly & picks up with a wizard messing with forces of nature best left alone. The descriptions here place the giant ants within a very dangerous structure of both nest & government. PC's become involved through the machinations of a mercenary who grew up in the region as a young boy. As I said this is a tight adventure. 

The layout is typical Judge's Guild of this era, and the background is laid out similar to the movie Them with vital clues scattered throughout the adventure. But this adventure is both part investigation & part wilderness crawl. There are a few stand out NPC's in 'Revenge of the Ant God' The cartography is stand out, the and premise is new for its eras well. There's a real sense of forboding & this could become a mini campaign with the adventurers up to their neck in this adventure. 

Others have come before the adventurers & there are lots of mutated ants within the nest & or hive. The impression that I've gotten is that this isn't the only hive within the Wilderlands of High Fantasy. There's far more boiling below the surface with 

 'Revenge of the Ant God'. 

The safety of the adventurers is depending upon their actions may have very large reaching consquences especially if the druidic ruler has others of his ilk gain control over  other giant ant nests! This is in my humble opinion one of the most underrated Judge's Guild adventures. There is in  'Revenge of the Ant God' enough for a small campaign with room to expand the plot beyond the bounds of the material within the original play through of this module. 

And its this replay value that adds to the mysque of the module. The cartography adds to old school claustrophobic feel of the  'Revenge of the Ant God'. And this enhances over all play & ultility of the module. 

The craziness of the  'Revenge of the Ant God' gives the module a very solid Sword & Sorcery meets Creature feature over all feel. This is done outta of love for the genre & not as a slight. Even though this is an Advanced Dungeons & Dragons first edition module. There's a very well done adaption for Castles & Crusades by James Mishler Games that takes a very back door approach. 'The Chronicles of Mhoriedh: Gods, Demi-Gods, and Cults Vol. 1: Chaos Queen of Ants' 2013 could easily adapt 'Revenge of the Ant God' into a Castles & Crusades conversion. And in point of fact I think is the true purpose of the product. 

None the less this does nothing to take anything away from the original classic of  'Revenge of the Ant God'. Could PC's die in this one? By the score & most likely they will. Would I run this one?! You bet you I would & tracked down my pdf copy on the thumb drive. 

In the end 'Revenge of the Ant God' is both a product of its time & a solid entry into the classic annals of the Wilderlands of High Fantasy. Would I run this one? Yes but not for the unexperienced OSR or old school gamer. This is a very nasty module & death is around every corner & ant hill. This is a solid old school entry into the darker recesses of the Judge's Guild catalog. 'Revenge of the Ant God' is a solid adventure entry for Halloween! 

 

Because Troll Lords is getting ready to launch a new Kickstarter soon I figured that 'Revenge of the Ant God' was a perfect crossover adventure to take a look at. 

Cha'alt & Breaking The House Campaign Session Prep - PC Death Breeds Opportunity ! Now With More Fiend Folio!

 

'So now you've made a fine mess of it!' this was the conversation at six A.M. from DM Steve. But DM Steve was in 'idiot mode' so we'll let him go for the moment. Let's fade back several months to when the  Godbound/Cha'alt campaign set in Las Vegas was in full force before Corvid 19 hit & hit hard. Back then I was quietly using several original Dungeons & Dragons third party books this included Dragon Tree Press's 'Amazon Mutual Wants You'. So why is this important?! Because this '82 book's premise was simple & very effective its adventure hook;"Amazon Mutual Wants You!: Volume One consists of four adventures in which the player characters are hired by Amazon Mutual Life Insurance to recover bodies of policyholders'. Is it a good book? Its up to many of the books by Dragon Tree press during the Summer of '82. 

Here's the problem? Rick's Godbound paladin had a contract with Amazon Mutual's god division. Or in his case the demi god division. His soul is now part of Hel's underworld or more specifically The Wilderlands of High Fantasy version of Hel.So now his contract is pending & I'm gonna tap Terrence to grab his soul from the Underworld. But how did we get here? Well Rick's PC was made using James Mishler's Demigod PC rules & then ported over to the Godbound rpg. Was he unbeatable or unkillable? Hel no! 

Now was I a complete bastard for killing off his PC?! Well in a way no! The roll of the dice determined the outcome! Is the player complaining? Nope this was in the cards when we started this campaign. But the PC's death breeds adventure opportunity. In this case his patron goddess wants his soul back & Terrence is the hired gun to get it back! 
But now its time to bring up the big bad Advanced Dungeons & Dragons Fiend Folio.  Rick's paladin PC soul is in the delicate han erm claws of  Hel's mezzodemons.

And what's this got to do with Cha'alt?! Well there's a gang of half demons who happen to be a hit squad  working for the Elsyium corporation who want not nothing more then to murder any godbound they come across. There are number of mezzodemons among their ranks. 

The Chaos hit squad of NPC's is taking shape as we speak. This Halloween prepare to get your demon on! The Nalfeshnee-Kin Racial Class for Labyrinth Lord is perfect for the sort of bastards who will be on Terrence's trail coming. I've talked with Terrence's player already & he'll be on the trail soon! 

Dretches On Hold Enter Sir John & Philip - Tegel Manor Session Report #4

So in last night's Castles & Crusades/Victorious rpg game one of my player's completely had his PC walk right by the important NPC & the build location within Tegel Manor Village. Then the PC had a confrontation with a group of dire bats & was able to nail one of them. That's when the PC stumbled across the corpse of an adventurer named Philip Le Diamona. Philip had been beheaded & his corpse cooling in the night air. Our adventurer had literally just arrived in Tegel Manor Village.. He somehow had gotten all of Philip's equipment. 

The adventurer in question was a bounty hunter who working for Amazon Mutual . Amazon mutual basically recover adventurer's bodies for resurrection contracts. The village watch walking along the village road meeting Philip Le Diamona mistook the PC for him. They led him back to the village lock up where he was confronted by Sir John the slayer. Sir John had destroyed a local bar down to the foundation killing everyone within! His bounty was being picked up by Baron Ronald Rump & the bounty was to be turned over to Sir John's enemy the Duke De Lamont in 1870! That didn't happen.
After a series of rolls & lots of role playing the PC was able to get Sir John into his custody & even blag a cargo wagon. But they went back to grab Philip Le Diamona corpse for resurrection at the local temple of Freya where arrangements had been made ahead of time.
For now the PC agreed to take the place of Philip Le Diamona's role with Sir John on the recovery of adventurer's contract.



Switch to my other player's whose been keeping an eye on Bark & Byte bar. Where the bard was keeping an eye on the interests of the Romps. That's when a very attractive girl walked in & bought the bard a drink everything went down hill. Our other player's new PC walked into the village & found one of the 'local's feeding on a group of sailors. He went into melee with her & it was on! The melee took the better part of a half an hour. The dice were flying & he got off a very lucky shot. The player staked her! 


Deodanth concept art by Greg Espinosa for the Arduin Monster Cards,1977 The attractive lady in bar went white & her skin changed shape into a deodanth momentarily as they left the bar with the two sailor victims that they had charmed. The bard followed the 'girls' & the PC's got into straight one on one combat & things turned nasty! There was a ton of melee action as one of the PC's let loose. The player's weren't taking changes with these deodanth vampire sisters. The ladies were stalked after a longed out & dragged out melee. Then the player's PC's were confronted by the vampire's spawn who had shape changed into wolves.

Wolf, Fuchs und Schaf by Christopher Paudi 

The bard dropped two chem ex grenades he had grabbed on his time on Cha'alt. And then the whole scene turned into an inferno! The vampire sisters, the spawn, & the sailor victims were all destroyed. All except one spawn who got away who fled to the Manor & went back to his master's side!

This leaves the question of where & when they will be dealing with the manor, the slavers, the pirates, & the undeath influence of the Romp's legacy. So what do I do to deal with really bring the needle up to eleven with my take on the Undead. And that's where James & Jodi Mishler's Ghosts the Incorporal Undead comes in. The perfect little gem to add into the alien weirdness of Tegel Manor & the rest of this nasty little business of a campaign.

I'm already working on a few James Ward Tainted Lands NPC's to sprinkle into the back ground of Tegel Manor village. There's also a number of ghost cults that have been rattling in the back of my demented mind.

The liches of Orcus are also on the boil a council of lich royals that control several of the cults of the undead demon lord but what's the connection to the Romps!?

Review & Commentary On The Balor-Kin Racial Class For Labyrinth Lord By James Mishler Games

Half demons have always been troublesome but when it comes to the sons & daughters of the Abyss that's a whole different level of Abyssial trouble! This is five pages of Abyssial fun waiting to happen to your players.




That's where 'The Balor-Kin Racial Class' For Labyrinth Lord comes in. Now let me go on record as saying that this is not a RC that's I'd allow at the table unless I was runnning a very high level Abyssial  game. The goes up to ten levels & I'd use it to create a very nasty & devestating demonic NPC villain. Why because of the unnatural abilities of one of these Abyssial bastards: 

"Balor-kin have the following abilities:

• Armored Skin
• Creatures of Fire and Shadow
• Creatures of Magic
• Dual Wield Warriors
• Immolation
• Inhuman Stature
• Movement
• Natural Magicians (can use spell-like powers of 1^st to 4^th level).

The balor-kin racial-class has 10 levels, each more fiendishly powerful than the last. "

No way was this meant for a PC of any type but for use with a NPC villain. This is a portrait of a young & very dangerous demon waitin to be sprung on your PC's! Let's get a little reminder here of the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons Monster Manual origins of these demonic horrors. What the 'The Balor-Kin Racial Class' For Labyrinth Lord is distills all that bottled demonic evil & brings it to your table top adventures. Believe me your players are not going to thank you for this!  All of the normal Monster Manual abilities are there but in miniature. 


The classic DCS Monster Manual artwork that does not appear in the
'The Balor-Kin Racial Class' For Labyrinth Lord but I'm using it for context.

Let me go into the publication history of the Balor from the Balor wiki entry to give some context on the most dangerous of demonic horrors & overlords; "The balors found in Dungeons & Dragons have little relation to the mythical Balor of Irish mythology, actually being based on the balrogs of The Lord of the Rings,^[2] and some of its derivation can be seen in its physical description, with its fiery aura, sword and flaming whip.^[3]

In the original Dungeons & Dragons pamphlets, this breed of demon was known as balrog,^[4] but the name was revised in subsequent supplements to simply "type VI demon" so as not to infringe on J. R. R. Tolkien's copyright.^{[citation needed]} In second edition AD&D, the name "type VI demon" was revised to "balor," taking the name of the greatest individual of their rank as the name for the entire breed.^[5] Also in second edition, balors now had vorpal swords.^[6]

Gary Gygax, in his Gord the Rogue novels, has alternately called them raloogs or conflagranti.^{[citation needed]}

Dungeons & Dragons (1974–1976)[edit]

The type VI demon appeared under the demon entry in the Eldritch Wizardry supplement (1976).^[7]

Advanced Dungeons & Dragons 1st edition (1977–1988)[edit]

The type VI demon (Balor, etc.) appears in the first edition Monster Manual (1977).^[8] In this incarnation of the game there were only six Type VI Demons in existence across all of the planes of the multiverse, and they were ranked in power below only the Demon Lords and Princes of the Abyss, who were each unique in both name and form. Each Type VI Demon had its own individual name as an indication of their importance and power, as lesser demons (Types I – III and lower) had only a species name, and not individual appellations. Their names were listed in an appendix of the Dungeon Master's Guide, given as: Errtu, Ndulu, Ter-Soth, Alzoll, and Wendonai, with Balor itself being the greatest and most powerful of them all.

Essentially you'd be allowing one of the most choatic & evil of the Abyss's  demon lord's progeny in your old school games. Labryth Lord hasn't changed this! Their as evil & unpredictable as ever! The fact is that James Mishler has distilled them down into a useable form hasn't changed the bastards! 

The Labyrinth Lord version of the
  type VI demon with awesome artwork 


This RC class is completely & utterely up to Mishler's standards, James & Jodi Mishler have done an excellent job of making this a completely usable class. But man would this class devestate a group of player's who had no idea of the depths of the Abyss they were taking on. The Labyrinth Lord version of this class is completely & utterly compatible with Advanced Dungeons & Dragons 1st edition. That means that even third party products such as the classic Mayfair Games Demon's box set is easily usable with  'The Balor-Kin Racial Class' For Labyrinth Lord.


The Balor came straight out of J.R.R. Tolkein with different name & paint job but they are at the completely  chaotic evil bastards of old who are more then happy to tear the wings off of angels, challenge & destroy gods, & wreck the very foundations of creation as well as campaigns themselves. The 'Balor-Kin Racial Class'  is their progeny given form & function within campaign. Use & allow these very carefully within a campaign. The PC class is streamlined to allow the monster to grow with the player characters & that's something unto itself. 
Is  The 'Balor-Kin Racial Class'  well done? Oh most definitely. But would I allow it into a game? Only as an NPC class to challenge the highest level PC's or the progeny of the gods! This is a class to be the heart & soul of a game campaign.