Category Archives: Games

The Sunken Temple Of Arn

In honor of the late Dave Arneson, who left us one year ago today, I present my (non-winning) entry in last year’s One Page Dungeon Contest. I was gunning for the “old school” category and took my inspiration almost 100% from Supplement II: Blackmoor.

So in case you missed it (and you know you did) here’s your chance to visit .

Here’s the entirety of the background, as a teaser:

In ancient days the monastic assassins known as the Sons of Arn built a great temple to their strange god on an island off the southern coast.

For many years they managed a troubled coexistence with the other religions. But when they dared to strike down the high priest of the sea god, their island temple was cast beneath the waves forever in an act of divine retribution.

Their knowledge lost and their religion destroyed, the Sons of Arn vanished from the world, leaving only half-remembered whispers in their stead. But now rumors abound of a shipwreck whose lone survivor escaped from a Sahuagin band that makes its home in a submerged ruin eerily reminiscent of the legendary Sunken Temple of Arn.

As a One Page Dungeon, The Sunken Temple Of Arn lacks game stats, but should be useable with pretty much any system you want. I specifically had OD&D in mind when I wrote it (obviously), but Swords & Wizardry (Core or WhiteBox) or Labyrinth Lord should work fine. Of course, so would Barbarians of Lemuria, Basic RolePlaying, OSRIC, or any other system that tickles your fancy.

One quick note for those who might not be familiar with a couple of the monster names: per Blackmoor (and some later books):

Koalinth are aquatic hobgoblins
Kopoacinth are aquatic gargoyles
Lacedon are aquatic ghouls

Most people who happen across this post probably know that stuff already. But hey, it never hurts to pass along a bit of (slightly) lost wisdom, eh?

Ringside!

Wherein your humble scribe presents a stable of boxers for use with RINGSIDE, that odd little boxing simulation game by Brian Blume that appeared in Dragon #38.

Boxing, like baseball, has always fascinated me. I can’t quite put my finger on why. It’s certainly not something I’m good at. But that’s not the point of this post, so we won’t dally there. Instead, here’s a small stable of boxers I rolled up for RINGSIDE. I’d love to figure out how to do something with them – a campaign or tournament or something.

Side Note: I absolutely adore the idea of strange, convoluted campaigns for war and sim games (like the great Starfire! campaign I never got off the ground back in ’95), but they never come to fruition. Blame it on real life. Blame it on laziness. Blame it on being unable to find other people who share my level of weirdness. Who can say?

Anyway, I don’t expect that many (if any) of y’all are even aware of the existence of RINGSIDE, but hey, consider this post a reason to rush out and track down a copy of Dragon #38 (and #61, where the aging rules for boxers appear). You know you want to 🙂

And now, without further ado, here are the boxers who train at Pao’s Gym:

Heavyweights

Israel Rasmusson
A classic out-fighter.
Agility 60
Uppercut 3
Right Jab 3
Right Hook 3
Combo 3
Left Jab 3
Left Hook 1
Endurance 13
Counter 23

Nigel Oginski
Pure brawler, baby.
Agility 53
Uppercut 3
Right Jab 1
Right Hook 4
Combo 2
Left Jab 2
Left Hook 1
Endurance 9
Counter 13

Rodney Madrid
A crafty counter puncher.
Agility 46
Uppercut 1
Right Jab 3
Right Hook 3
Combo 2
Left Jab 2
Left Hook 1
Endurance 19
Counter 30

Eleazar Mancuso
A dangerous in-fighter.
Agility 42
Uppercut 2
Right Jab 2
Right Hook 4
Combo 4
Left Jab 3
Left Hook 1
Endurance 19
Counter 24

Welterweights

Emmett Ashby
A well-rounded boxer-puncher.
Agility 55
Uppercut 1
Right Jab 3
Right Hook 2
Combo 4
Left Jab 1
Left Hook 2
Endurance 19
Counter 16

Roy Hollinger
A glass-jawed counter-puncher
Agility 53
Uppercut 3
Right Jab 3
Right Hook 1
Combo 1
Left Jab 2
Left Hook 4
Endurance 3
Counter 27

Alberto Charron
A southpaw in-fighter.
Agility 50
Uppercut 3
Right Jab 1
Right Hook 1
Combo 1
Left Jab 3
Left Hook 3
Endurance 24
Counter 18

Clarence Hibbs
An aging out-fighter.
Agility 44
Uppercut 2
Right Jab 3
Right Hook 3
Combo 3
Left Jab 3
Left Hook 2
Endurance 15
Counter 20

Lightweights

Abraham Levario
A fiery-tempered out-fighter.
Agility 60
Uppercut 3
Right Jab 3
Right Hook 2
Combo 2
Left Jab 3
Left Hook 2
Endurance 10
Counter 30

Reuben Aguila
A brawler through-and-through.
Agility 53
Uppercut 3
Right Jab 2
Right Hook 3
Combo 2
Left Jab 2
Left Hook 2
Endurance 15
Counter 12

Mervin Tiley
A boxer-puncher who has seen better days.
Agility 50
Uppercut 1
Right Jab 3
Right Hook 2
Combo 2
Left Jab 1
Left Hook 3
Endurance 3
Counter 11

Salvador Taveras
A lefty in-fighter.
Agility 44
Uppercut 2
Right Jab 1
Right Hook 1
Combo 3
Left Jab 2
Left Hook 4
Endurance 17
Counter 22

Bantamweights

Edwin Fane
A boxer-puncher and former Olympian.
Agility 58
Uppercut 2
Right Jab 1
Right Hook 3
Combo 3
Left Jab 3
Left Hook 2
Endurance 16
Counter 24

Dallas Langley
An out-fighter known for his intricate tattoos.
Agility 54
Uppercut 2
Right Jab 4
Right Hook 2
Combo 4
Left Jab 2
Left Hook 2
Endurance 10
Counter 15

Clark Wair
A counter-puncher with good foot speed.
Agility 52
Uppercut 1
Right Jab 3
Right Hook 2
Combo 2
Left Jab 1
Left Hook 3
Endurance 6
Counter 28

Steven Overton
A brawler with big dreams.
Agility 44
Uppercut 3
Right Jab 2
Right Hook 3
Combo 3
Left Jab 2
Left Hook 3
Endurance 19
Counter 17

LL/AEC Rogues Gallery: Sub-Classes Assemble

Wherein your humble scribe, endeavoring to get his ass back into the swing of blogging, finally gets around to presenting the final entry in his Labyrinth Lord/Advanced Edition Companion Rogues Gallery series. This time, it’s a passel of characters from the ranks of the sub-class classes.

As noted in earlier installments, these characters are all 1st level, were granted maximum HP (default LL/AEC HD, not the Advanced option), and have a bare minimum of equipment. They were all created with 3d6 for stats, more often than not in order. I did throw out the absolute weaklings, though.

Assassins

Crowbeard / Dwarf Assassin 1 NE
STR 13 INT 12 WIS 9 DEX 15 CON 13 CHR 10
HP 5 AC 6 Gold 136
Scimitar, Dagger, Leather Armor, Shield

Grimskull / Half-Orc Assassin 1 CE
STR 16 INT 13 WIS 6 DEX 13 CON 12 CHR 9
HP 4 AC 6 Gold 105
Battle Axe, Dagger, Leather Armor, Shield

Druids

Danaar / Human Druid 1 N
STR 11 INT 9 WIS 15 DEX 12 CON 14 CHR 15
HP 7 AC 7 Gold 82
Scimitar, Sling & 10 Bolts, Leather Armor, Wooden Shield
Druid Spells: Detect Snares & Pits; Entangle; Faerie Fire; Invisibility, Animal

Savareen / Human Druid 1 N
STR 16 INT 10 WIS 17 DEX 9 CON 9 CHR 16
HP 6 AC 7 Gold 100
Sickle, Sling & 10 Bolts, Leather Armor, Wooden Shield
Druid Spells: Entangle, Locate Creature, Purify Water, Shillelagh

Monks

Maartense / Human Monk 1 LN
STR 14 INT 10 WIS 17 DEX 17 CON 13 CHR 10
HP 9 AC 9 Gold 13
Hand Axe, Light Crossbow & 10 Quarrels

Ling Po / Human Monk 1 CG
STR 12 INT 13 WIS 15 DEX 16 CON 9 CHR 6
HP 8 AC 9 Gold 24
Quarterstaff, Sling & 10 Bullets

Illusionists

Rhodanthe / Human Illusionist 1 CG
STR 10 INT 15 WIS 10 DEX 18 CON 13 CHR 9
HP 5 AC 6 Gold 150
Quarterstaff, Spell Book
Illusionist Spells: Detect Illusion, Phantasmal Force

Arvo Tir / Gnome Illusionist 1 LE
STR 9 INT 17 WIS 9 DEX 16 CON 13 CHR 10
HP 5 AC 8 Gold 120
Dagger, Spell Book
Illusionist Spells: Color Spray, Hypnotism

Paladins

Etienne The Chaste / Human Paladin 1 LG
STR 14 INT 16 WIS 16 DEX 14 CON 14 CHR 18
HP 9 AC 4 Gold 10
Long Sword, Scale Mail, Shield

Sorvan Of The Candle / Human Paladin 1 LG
STR 13 INT 9 WIS 13 DEX 8 CON 12 CHR 17
HP 8 AC 4 Gold 85
Mace, Banded Mail, Shield

Rangers

Alyx / Half-Elf Ranger 1 CG
STR 14 INT 12 WIS 17 DEX 12 CON 15 CHR 14
HP 13 AC 5 Gold 35
Long Sword, Long Bow & 20 Arrows, Scale Mail, Shield

Jorn / Human Ranger 1 NG
STR 11 INT 12 WIS 15 DEX 10 CON 15 CHR 9
HP 13 AC 5 Gold 21
Long Sword, Hand Axe, Heavy Crossbow & 10 Quarrels, Chain Mail

Green Demons Of The Fevered Dream

When the mighty sorcerer Krug Jas cast Prince Asaam and King Riaz into the realm of the Fevered Dream, he trapped them in eternal battle against the Green Demons who live there.

Though 1,000 years passed in Kaalmuria, time all but stood still for the warriors who fought beneath the Golden Eagle banner of Kharnum Dhrynn. There they remained, fighting a ceaseless horde of demons who all-but-completely resembled their original foes, the army of their nation’s chief rival, the Emirate of Bateer Falim.

Bereft of its leaders and army, Kharnum Dhrynn fell before the might of its enemies (as they themselves would later fall when Krug Dras had squeezed them dry for his own benefit), leaving little but legend of the once proud nation in its wake.

Today all that remains of Kharnum Dhrynn are three strange onion-domed towers hidden in a canyon deep within the Great Western Desert. There, atop her decaying throne, sits the ancient, undying body of Queen Svetla, who works slowly at the embroidery she holds in her dry, brittle hands as she awaits the return of her husband and son from their campaign against the minions of Krug Jas.

The Green Demons appear as human soldiers armed with swords, axes, or whatever one-handed melee weapons are used by the foes they mimic. Except for a slight greenish cast to their skin and a wolf-like lengthening of their canine teeth, the Green Demons are indiscernable from those they are meant to resemble.

The Green Demons are classified as rabble.

Attributes
Strength 2
Agility 0
Mind 0
Appeal -2

Combat Abilities
Brawl 0
Melee 2
Ranged 0
Defense 0

Career
Soldier 2

Lifeblood 3

Protection: 1d3 (light armor & shield)
Weapons: Swords, Axes, or other 1-handed weapons, 1d6

Barbarians Of Lemuria GM Screen

Here’s a quick & dirty Barbarians of Lemuria GM screen I put together a while back. It’s also available at the BoL Yahoo group, but since the BoL Forum has kind of taken over and no one really goes to the group anymore, I thought I’d post it here.

Notes:

This was put together prior to the Legendary Edition, so it still has the old armor approach (i.e., fixed values for specific pieces of armor).
I can’t remember if there were any additions to ways to spend Hero Points in the LE or not, but if there were they’re not included in the summary of spending Hero Points.
I had house ruled in initiative rolls prior to the release of the LE, and that’s reflected on the screen. The good news is that my house rule matches the change that was implemented in the LE, so this fits with the new rules just fine.
Again, since this predates the LE version of the rules, there are no references to the “new” Priest/Druid magic approach.

Also, all the art is from ClipArt.com, so I take no credit or blame for the art itself. If you need to praise or rail against the art, I’m only culpable for the choices made in which art to use. 🙂

Enjoy!

BoL Bestiary: Vaarloi Death Worms

Vaarloi Death Worms are 5′ long with smooth blood-red skin covering their thick bodies. Though they are often found in deserts, these creatures avoid the heat of the day and are only active at dawn and dusk, unless skies are overcast.

Vaarloi Death Worms attack by discharging static electricity from their bodies. They begin combat by “spitting” their full charge (to a range of 30′) at foes as they are approached. After this large discharge, the worms are left with only small electrical “bites” until they have had a significant amount of time to recharge (typically longer than any given encounter).

Vaarloi Death Worms occasionally bleed off excess electrical charge with a crackling burst that creates a small cloud of ozone in their vicinity, which smells like an approaching rain storm. This aroma may be the source of the ancient warning against traveling through the desert when rain is likely.

Attributes
Strength 1
Agility 2
Mind -3

Combat Abilities
Attack with electrical “bite” +2; damage 1d3
Attack with electrical “spit” +0; damage 2d6 (once per encounter)
Defense: 2
Protection: 1d2-1/1d6-1 vs blunt weapons (rubbery skin & body)
Lifeblood: 5

On A Magic Carpet Ride

So, I ran an Arabian Nights style BRP game for some friends last night. It went well.

Strangely, it turns out that no matter how much (or how little) I prep for a game it is exactly twice as much as we have time for. So that means the adventure isn’t finished. Folks do want to get together and complete it, though, so that’s nice.

The downside to not having finished is that I can’t post the notes I made, compiled together brilliantly by me into the PocketMod format. I’m insanely proud of the work I did (as in, it’s really not that impressive, and yet I’m inordinately pleased with myself) putting pretty near all the notes I needed into a little eight 1/8th page book. It’s kind like the whole 1-page dungeon thing, but cuter and without a map.

Anyway, since there’s a chance that one of the players could stumble across it, I’ll save posting it until after we’re done.

Also, I want to wax rhapsodically for a moment about the player who took the bait and swung down from the party’s flying carpet, high above the desert, to the one that had come up beneath them, whose passengers were trying to cut the party’s carpet. It was very exciting pulpy genre action and the dude gets points for diving right in. Big fun.

Oh, and the good thing about not having finished is that it doesn’t actually impact my ability to work on the blog, since I already did the prep work. Expect more content soon.

Lastly, are any of you folks who read this thing baseball fans? More to the point, are any of you the type to play fantasy baseball? If so, let me know in the comments. I might have a proposition for you.

In The Weird Dungeon Of Makes No Sense At All

I abhor writing up “actual play” type posts, so I won’t do that here. But I will say that a good time was had last night. There was combat. There were puzzles. There were traps and tricks and travails. And, most important of all, there seems to be a consensus to continue sometime before next March. So maybe a regular(ish) group has been born. I’ll keep you posted.

In other news, if I draw the short straw I’ll be running something in BRP this coming weekend, which would likely delay the next installments of the Demons of Adad Untash yet again. With any luck I’ll know by tomorrow night. In either case, keep the faith. There’s plenty of demonic nastiness coming your way. Trust me.

Labyrinth Lord GM Screen, v1

Well, here it is, my first draft of a

It’s nothing ornate, but it should get the job done. It’s definitely skewed towards (a) Advanced Edition Companion usage and (b) immediate in-game reference. I’m sure there are things that could be added (and for my purposes I have a little more than full page to spare still), and I’m open to suggestion from the peanut gallery (that’s you), though I make no promises that I’ll do anything more with this.

Also, just so you know, I pulled all the tables from the old Word doc of Labyrinth Lord, so there might be some numbers in here that don’t quite match up with the newest printings. In other words, I haven’t really gone over the numbers with a fine-toothed comb. Use at your own peril and all that.

Finally, it’s not exactly stunning to look upon. But hopefully it’s not painful to look upon, either. Maybe the theoretical v2 will be fancier. Maybe 🙂

My Own Private GaryCon

Ok, so here’s the deal. For the past two years I’ve run a little game near the anniversary of the death of Gary Gygax. The first year it was on a complete whim and we used Castles & Crusades to get through roughly 50% of the very enjoyable Dungeon Crawl Classics module #31 The Transmuter’s Last Touch.

The group featured my wife, Kira, who played some D&D when she was a kid and is very understanding of my geekitude. Also involved were one of my regular geek friends (Parker) and his wife (Chloe), who’d never touched a d20 in her life. Fun was had, and when the pizza delivery guy arrived he saw what we were up to and asked if it was a regular thing or was specifically in honor of Gary. I love this town.

The next year (2009), we got together again with the intent of continuing the module, but we added a new person – Ren, a friend of Parker’s – and so decided to start fresh rather than shoehorning him into the middle of a module. Once again we used C&C, though with a number of tweaks to make it even more old school (no thieves!) and I decided to try out DCC #28, Into The Wilds. We bashed our way through precious little of the module itself – thanks to the players going in an utterly unexpected direction – but still had tons o’ fun. We vowed that we’d continue it sooner rather than later, but for various reasons (including the birth of a child to Parker & Chloe) we didn’t.

Late last year (or was it early this year? who can remember?) Parker decided to run a game of Mutant Future for the same group (blame me, I gave him a copy of MF after he’d related what a fan of Gamma World he’d been). We played two sessions of that marvelous game, finishing an adventure and learning just how deadly a giant poisonous chicken can be. This, naturally, brought us back around to trying to “finish” what we’d started last March.

So here we are, on the eve of our own personal GaryCon ’10. The date and time are set. Dice will be thrown. The only hitch is that we’re switching over to Labyrinth Lord so that there’s a bit of rules continuity from the MF game (to assist the not-really-gamer types – oh, and because I loves me some LL while at the same time I’ve become quite disenchanted with C&C).

What this means in practice is that I’ve got to do some work on character conversion (started, but not finished) and possibly a little bit of prep in re-reading the module, doing some stat work, and figuring out just how much I’m going to use from it at all, given the wildly off course position we’ll find ourselves at the beginning of the game.

“So, Venomous Pao, what are you getting at?” you ask.

Well, all of this long-winded junk is just a way of saying that I’m not sure, given the limited time I have in a day, how much stuff I’ll be churning out for Strange Stones this week.

I know, I know. You’re waiting (impatiently) for the next round of entries in the Demons Of Adad Untash. You’re hoping for more posts in the LL/AEC Rogues Gallery. Or maybe you’re just jonesing for some more Barbarians of Lemuria content. And believe me, I want to give you such things (I’m a giver, after all). And I will. But right this minute I wanted to prep you (my small but adoring audience) for what may turn out to be a very quiet week ’round here.

What I will almost certainly do in my offline work this week is put together a Labyrinth Lord DM’s screen for use at my game. And unless I somehow don’t do that (unlikely – I love playing with InDesign), I’ll be sure to post it here for people to grab. Think of it as a bribe for not giving up on me while I’m working on stuff for an actual game.

Thank you for your patience and support, amigos. Wish me luck in the actual play!