Operation Wood Pile Complete:)
I finished the last cords of firewood on Friday. Then I was gloriously lazy Saturday. Today I almost finished the conversion/adaptation of level two of the Broken Hammer dungeon. Like I said earlier, I'll run my #DIY30 work into October as needed, so looks like I'll be finishing up on the 3rd. The Broken Hammer dungeon has a third level, so I'll get started on that. When I complete this challenge I took upon myself, I'll keep working on the projects I didn't get to, but at a somewhat reduced pace. I'm thinking I'll work on stuff enough to write two blog posts a week. We played D&D 5e this morning. It was the second session of this arc of the campaign. Early stages, but lots of fun! The DM for that game is setting us up for some scary stuff, I think!
Sunday, September 30, 2018
Thursday, September 27, 2018
#DIY30 Day Twenty Six
Progress Was Made....
But not as much as I predicted yesterday, lol. I got more done with the wood pile, but I chipped away at level two of the Broken Hammer dungeon a little, too. I might finish the wood stacking tomorrow, but no promises.
But not as much as I predicted yesterday, lol. I got more done with the wood pile, but I chipped away at level two of the Broken Hammer dungeon a little, too. I might finish the wood stacking tomorrow, but no promises.
Wednesday, September 26, 2018
#DIY30 Day Twenty Five
It's My Birthday
I turned 40 today. I took the day off from wood stacking as a present to myself, but I worked on the Broken Hammer dungeon level two. Only nine rooms left to adapt, maybe I can crank through it and the wood pile tomorrow. We'll see how it goes. My birthday celebration turned out to be an awesome BBQ. We're having a warm fall, so far, here in my corner of the NW. Soon though, the short gray days will have their reign!
I turned 40 today. I took the day off from wood stacking as a present to myself, but I worked on the Broken Hammer dungeon level two. Only nine rooms left to adapt, maybe I can crank through it and the wood pile tomorrow. We'll see how it goes. My birthday celebration turned out to be an awesome BBQ. We're having a warm fall, so far, here in my corner of the NW. Soon though, the short gray days will have their reign!
Tuesday, September 25, 2018
#DIY30 Day Twenty Four
Same Shit, Different Day
Stacked wood, worked on Broken Hammer dungeon level two, rinse and repeat.
Stacked wood, worked on Broken Hammer dungeon level two, rinse and repeat.
Monday, September 24, 2018
#DIY30 Day Twenty Three
Another Day Another Wood Pile And Level Two Session
More wood in the shed, more conversion work done on level two of the Broken Hammer dungeon from "Strange Bedfellows." Probably gonna be the same story from me over the next two days.
More wood in the shed, more conversion work done on level two of the Broken Hammer dungeon from "Strange Bedfellows." Probably gonna be the same story from me over the next two days.
Sunday, September 23, 2018
#DIY30 Day Twenty Two
The Woodpile And The Dungeon
I started to stack wood today. It's going to take a few days to get it all in the wood shed. Also managed to get a little work done on the Broken Hammer dungeon level two.
I started to stack wood today. It's going to take a few days to get it all in the wood shed. Also managed to get a little work done on the Broken Hammer dungeon level two.
Saturday, September 22, 2018
#DIY30 Day Twenty One
Little By Little
Another session slogging through adaptation and conversion of level two of the the Broken Hammer dungeon from the Swords & Wizardry module "Strange Bedfellows." Only eight more days left in the month... I'll let #DIY30 run into October for any days I miss in September. Only missed one so far, but I have real world chores to do outside this week and I'm not sure if I'll be able to fit those and this project into each day. I've been slacking on getting the wood pile out of the driveway and into the wood shed. Gotta download some podcasts and just GITURDUN.
Another session slogging through adaptation and conversion of level two of the the Broken Hammer dungeon from the Swords & Wizardry module "Strange Bedfellows." Only eight more days left in the month... I'll let #DIY30 run into October for any days I miss in September. Only missed one so far, but I have real world chores to do outside this week and I'm not sure if I'll be able to fit those and this project into each day. I've been slacking on getting the wood pile out of the driveway and into the wood shed. Gotta download some podcasts and just GITURDUN.
Friday, September 21, 2018
20 Quick Questions to Illuminate My "Year of the Goat" Campaign Setting
First of all, gotta give credit to Jeff Rients for posting these questions over on his blog Jeff's Gameblog. They can also be found in his excellent adventure Broodmother Skyfortress, published by Lamentations of the Flame Princess.
Second, I started my campaign in early 2015. I didn't have much of this stuff defined at the beginning of the campaign, so many of the answers to these questions evolved during play. We've been on hiatus for about a year, as two of us started small businesses, and I was unable to put the time and energy into my DM prep that I feel is necessary for me to run a fun game. I think I've mentioned before I'm a prep heavy DM. I've taken some steps towards being a more prep light DM, with some success, but that saying "a tiger can't change his stripes" is correct in my case. I started writing answers to these questions several months after I received Broodmother Skyfortress. I'll be using different colors of text to show the progression of my answers as I was not able to answer all the questions in one go. I still have a few to answer so I will be coming back to update this when I flesh out those areas of my campaign.
5/17/17 entries will be written in BLACK.
6/28/17 entries will be written in GREEN.
8/23/18 entries will be written in BLUE.
1. What is the deal with my cleric's religion?
I have three somewhat well defined religious orders and about four or five others that I've not gotten very far in defining.
A. Church of the Covenant AKA Church of George, this is the Christianity analog. This religious order is inspired by the real world practice of Veneration. So instead of the worship of Jesus, this order is worshiping my fantasy version of St. George the Dragonslayer. We only have one PC cleric so far and this is his order.
B. Temple of Tycho. Tycho believers espouse gambling, chance, luck, and calculated risks as sacred to their god. PCs have encountered a friendly priest/scholar in service to Tycho.
C. Knights Order Medical. This order was briefly mentioned in A Stranger Storm, the adventure from the LotFP Grindhouse Referee Book. The NPCs that I've portrayed have been labeled as "creepy Scientologists" (are there any other kind, lol?) by the players. So I've decided it's a mystery cult that's a cross between Scientology and NATO Military Force with an absolute obsession for cleanliness. Most large cities and towns will have a Knights Order Medical bathhouse/laundry. PCs tortured and executed Sir Boris, a member of this order. He was really a Mimic, but the PCs didn't know that until they killed him. Knights Order Medical is now a bit unfriendly to the PC group, lol.
D. The god or gods of the ancient lizardfolk. The lizardfolk are believed to be extinct (they aren't.)
E. Demi-human deities. Nobody is playing a demi-human so far, so I haven't even decided what's going on with their gods. Or if they even have gods.
F. Druidism. I've used druids as NPCs. Until I get someone playing a druid, I'm not putting much thought into this.
G. Beliefs of the Shoum. Taking inspiration from Kevin Crawford's Shou in the Ride Tide campaign book, I've bundled goblinkind together into humanoids called the Shoum. Haven't worked out their religious system, yet. Probably gonna keep borrowing stuff about them from the Red Tide setting if it will fit into my campaign.
2. Where can we go to buy standard equipment?
Cities will have both expedition suppliers and smiths. A small village might have a smith with some armament skill and usually a market, farm stall, or someone willing to sell or trade surplus food and sundries.
3. Where can we go to get platemail custom fitted for this monster I just befriended?
4. Who is the mightiest wizard in the land?
Once it was Lord Vortulak, before his path intersected with the Queen of Nephilidia...
5. Who is the greatest warrior in the land?
Lady Uljana Chernetsk. Her estate rests outside the garrison city of Glister.
6. Who is the richest person in the land?
The Khan, Iman Mehdizadeh, who resides in Khyan-Hrapp Royal Palace located in the capitol city of Chizhova.
7. Where can we go to get some magical healing?
Cure Light Wounds- Can be cast by clerics (PC and NPC) of Church of the Covenant, Temple of Tycho, Knights Order Medical (and other religious orders as I make them up) for 250SP
Cure Disease- Can be cast by clerics (PC and NPC) of Church of the Covenant, Temple of Tycho, Knights Order Medical (and other religious orders as I make them up) for 350SP
Cure Serious Wounds- Can be cast by clerics (NPC) of Church of the Covenant and Knights Order Medical (all PC clerics can do this if they have spells at this level) for 400SP
Cure Critical Wounds- Can be cast by clerics (NPC) of Church of the Covenant and Knights Order Medical (all PC clerics can do this if they have spells at this level) for 450SP
Heal- Can be cast by clerics (NPC) of Knights Order Medical (all PC clerics can do this if they have spells at this level) for 500SP
8. Where can we go to get cures for the following conditions?
Poison-
Disease-
Curse-
Level Drain-
Lycanthropy-
Polymorph-
Alignment change-
Death- Ain't no cure for death, son.
Undeath-
9. Is there a magic guild my magic-user belongs to or that I can join in order to get more spells.
No.
There was a magic school up until recently... then Mimics happened.
10. Where can I find an alchemist, sage or other expert NPC?
11.Where can I hire mercenaries?
Most towns and cities have a notice board for hiring small numbers. The capitol Chizhova and Glister, a garrison city, would sometimes have larger numbers of mercs.
12. Is there any place on the map where swords are illegal, magic is outlawed, or any other notable hassles from Johnny Law?
"Black Magic" is a serious crime. Black magic being defined as casting a spell intending to harm another. Smaller settlements may have broader definitions of Black Magic.
13. Which way to the nearest tavern?
We'll go by city/town listing the taverns I've got currently.
Chizhova- The Inn of the Stealing Fat Golem
The Rotten Stump
Stink Drink (in the sewer tunnels)
Denton- The Good Cup
Glister- Inn of the Shining Djinn
Halwic- Inn of the Silken Sow's Sleeve
The Owl and the Whistle Public House
The Rich Wolf Tavern
Harmony- The Joyful Harp Tavern
Stone's Throw- The Gold Crown Tavern
Thorbald- The Soldier's Rest Inn and Tavern
Tragidore- One-Eyed Hrothgar's
The Grey Vampire
The Sputtering Otter
Uhniv- The Weeping Harpy Inn
Crossroads- The Inn of the Incontinent Vicar (just south of Argyle and east of Tragidore)
Wildwood Inn (west of Denton)
14. What monsters are terrorizing the countryside sufficiently that if I kill them I will become famous?
Mimics. Vampires.
15. Are there any wars brewing that I could go fight?
Various areas on my campaign map are set to trigger warlike conditions if the PCs travel far enough. If you picture the continents of Europe and Asia, my campaign setting is roughly Ukraine. There is a war brewing in "Bavaria" (the Better Than Any Man adventure module,) "Fantasy Fucking Vietnam" (Quelong adventure module,) and ...
16. How about gladiatorial arenas complete with hard-won glory and fabulous cash prizes?
17. Are there any secret societies with sinister agendas I could join and or fight?
From Zak Smith's Playing DnD with Pornstars Blog I'll be borrowing the Cults of Tiamat. They are The Black Wing of Tiamat, The Red Hand of Tiamat, The Pale Eye of Tiamat, The Cobalt Claw of Tiamat, and The Jade Fang of Tiamat. Duvan'Ku a death cult. The Ckult De Ghul: collective only in reference, this isn't one single cult, it's actually a number of small cults of myriad undead lords, vampire voivods, and skeletal schemers. There is a Spider Cult when I decide where I'm placing Scenic Dunnsmouth on the map.
18. What is there to eat around here?
19. Any legendary lost treasures I could be looking for?
20. Where is the nearest dragon or other monster with mad fat treasure?
Second, I started my campaign in early 2015. I didn't have much of this stuff defined at the beginning of the campaign, so many of the answers to these questions evolved during play. We've been on hiatus for about a year, as two of us started small businesses, and I was unable to put the time and energy into my DM prep that I feel is necessary for me to run a fun game. I think I've mentioned before I'm a prep heavy DM. I've taken some steps towards being a more prep light DM, with some success, but that saying "a tiger can't change his stripes" is correct in my case. I started writing answers to these questions several months after I received Broodmother Skyfortress. I'll be using different colors of text to show the progression of my answers as I was not able to answer all the questions in one go. I still have a few to answer so I will be coming back to update this when I flesh out those areas of my campaign.
5/17/17 entries will be written in BLACK.
6/28/17 entries will be written in GREEN.
8/23/18 entries will be written in BLUE.
1. What is the deal with my cleric's religion?
I have three somewhat well defined religious orders and about four or five others that I've not gotten very far in defining.
A. Church of the Covenant AKA Church of George, this is the Christianity analog. This religious order is inspired by the real world practice of Veneration. So instead of the worship of Jesus, this order is worshiping my fantasy version of St. George the Dragonslayer. We only have one PC cleric so far and this is his order.
B. Temple of Tycho. Tycho believers espouse gambling, chance, luck, and calculated risks as sacred to their god. PCs have encountered a friendly priest/scholar in service to Tycho.
C. Knights Order Medical. This order was briefly mentioned in A Stranger Storm, the adventure from the LotFP Grindhouse Referee Book. The NPCs that I've portrayed have been labeled as "creepy Scientologists" (are there any other kind, lol?) by the players. So I've decided it's a mystery cult that's a cross between Scientology and NATO Military Force with an absolute obsession for cleanliness. Most large cities and towns will have a Knights Order Medical bathhouse/laundry. PCs tortured and executed Sir Boris, a member of this order. He was really a Mimic, but the PCs didn't know that until they killed him. Knights Order Medical is now a bit unfriendly to the PC group, lol.
D. The god or gods of the ancient lizardfolk. The lizardfolk are believed to be extinct (they aren't.)
E. Demi-human deities. Nobody is playing a demi-human so far, so I haven't even decided what's going on with their gods. Or if they even have gods.
F. Druidism. I've used druids as NPCs. Until I get someone playing a druid, I'm not putting much thought into this.
G. Beliefs of the Shoum. Taking inspiration from Kevin Crawford's Shou in the Ride Tide campaign book, I've bundled goblinkind together into humanoids called the Shoum. Haven't worked out their religious system, yet. Probably gonna keep borrowing stuff about them from the Red Tide setting if it will fit into my campaign.
2. Where can we go to buy standard equipment?
Cities will have both expedition suppliers and smiths. A small village might have a smith with some armament skill and usually a market, farm stall, or someone willing to sell or trade surplus food and sundries.
3. Where can we go to get platemail custom fitted for this monster I just befriended?
4. Who is the mightiest wizard in the land?
Once it was Lord Vortulak, before his path intersected with the Queen of Nephilidia...
5. Who is the greatest warrior in the land?
Lady Uljana Chernetsk. Her estate rests outside the garrison city of Glister.
6. Who is the richest person in the land?
The Khan, Iman Mehdizadeh, who resides in Khyan-Hrapp Royal Palace located in the capitol city of Chizhova.
7. Where can we go to get some magical healing?
Cure Light Wounds- Can be cast by clerics (PC and NPC) of Church of the Covenant, Temple of Tycho, Knights Order Medical (and other religious orders as I make them up) for 250SP
Cure Disease- Can be cast by clerics (PC and NPC) of Church of the Covenant, Temple of Tycho, Knights Order Medical (and other religious orders as I make them up) for 350SP
Cure Serious Wounds- Can be cast by clerics (NPC) of Church of the Covenant and Knights Order Medical (all PC clerics can do this if they have spells at this level) for 400SP
Cure Critical Wounds- Can be cast by clerics (NPC) of Church of the Covenant and Knights Order Medical (all PC clerics can do this if they have spells at this level) for 450SP
Heal- Can be cast by clerics (NPC) of Knights Order Medical (all PC clerics can do this if they have spells at this level) for 500SP
8. Where can we go to get cures for the following conditions?
Poison-
Disease-
Curse-
Level Drain-
Lycanthropy-
Polymorph-
Alignment change-
Death- Ain't no cure for death, son.
Undeath-
9. Is there a magic guild my magic-user belongs to or that I can join in order to get more spells.
No.
There was a magic school up until recently... then Mimics happened.
10. Where can I find an alchemist, sage or other expert NPC?
11.Where can I hire mercenaries?
Most towns and cities have a notice board for hiring small numbers. The capitol Chizhova and Glister, a garrison city, would sometimes have larger numbers of mercs.
12. Is there any place on the map where swords are illegal, magic is outlawed, or any other notable hassles from Johnny Law?
"Black Magic" is a serious crime. Black magic being defined as casting a spell intending to harm another. Smaller settlements may have broader definitions of Black Magic.
13. Which way to the nearest tavern?
We'll go by city/town listing the taverns I've got currently.
Chizhova- The Inn of the Stealing Fat Golem
The Rotten Stump
Stink Drink (in the sewer tunnels)
Denton- The Good Cup
Glister- Inn of the Shining Djinn
Halwic- Inn of the Silken Sow's Sleeve
The Owl and the Whistle Public House
The Rich Wolf Tavern
Harmony- The Joyful Harp Tavern
Stone's Throw- The Gold Crown Tavern
Thorbald- The Soldier's Rest Inn and Tavern
Tragidore- One-Eyed Hrothgar's
The Grey Vampire
The Sputtering Otter
Uhniv- The Weeping Harpy Inn
Crossroads- The Inn of the Incontinent Vicar (just south of Argyle and east of Tragidore)
Wildwood Inn (west of Denton)
14. What monsters are terrorizing the countryside sufficiently that if I kill them I will become famous?
Mimics. Vampires.
15. Are there any wars brewing that I could go fight?
Various areas on my campaign map are set to trigger warlike conditions if the PCs travel far enough. If you picture the continents of Europe and Asia, my campaign setting is roughly Ukraine. There is a war brewing in "Bavaria" (the Better Than Any Man adventure module,) "Fantasy Fucking Vietnam" (Quelong adventure module,) and ...
16. How about gladiatorial arenas complete with hard-won glory and fabulous cash prizes?
17. Are there any secret societies with sinister agendas I could join and or fight?
From Zak Smith's Playing DnD with Pornstars Blog I'll be borrowing the Cults of Tiamat. They are The Black Wing of Tiamat, The Red Hand of Tiamat, The Pale Eye of Tiamat, The Cobalt Claw of Tiamat, and The Jade Fang of Tiamat. Duvan'Ku a death cult. The Ckult De Ghul: collective only in reference, this isn't one single cult, it's actually a number of small cults of myriad undead lords, vampire voivods, and skeletal schemers. There is a Spider Cult when I decide where I'm placing Scenic Dunnsmouth on the map.
18. What is there to eat around here?
19. Any legendary lost treasures I could be looking for?
20. Where is the nearest dragon or other monster with mad fat treasure?
#DIY30 Day Twenty
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| Texts About the Upcoming 5e Game |
Happy Mabon
Inching towards the equinox, almost there! I started the adaptation work on level two of the Broken Hammer Dungeon this afternoon. I might get to play D&D 5e this weekend! We'll see what my character Shaena the Halfling Rogue is going to do after meeting a midwife who's whole village was slain by EVIL FORCES. The DM for our 5e campaign is new to DMing, but he's got a great imagination and I think it's gonna be a fun game.
Thursday, September 20, 2018
#DIY30 Day Nineteen
Level One Done
I've converted/adapted what I've needed to for level one of the Broken Hammer Dungeon from the Swords & Wizardry module "Strange Bedfellows." Tomorrow I'll get started on the second level. I hope I get done adapting this module before the end of the month because I want to get more original work done during #DIY30.
I've converted/adapted what I've needed to for level one of the Broken Hammer Dungeon from the Swords & Wizardry module "Strange Bedfellows." Tomorrow I'll get started on the second level. I hope I get done adapting this module before the end of the month because I want to get more original work done during #DIY30.
Wednesday, September 19, 2018
#DIY30 Day Eighteen
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| #DIY30's MVP: AC Conversion Chart from the LotFP Grindhouse Referee Book |
There's A Crack In The Sky....
I'm nearly finished with the conversions/adaptations for level one of the Broken Hammer Dungeon from the Swords & Wizardry module "Strange Bedfellows." Just three more rooms and I can start on level two. I've been leaning pretty hard on the handy-dandy AC Conversion Chart from LotFP's Grindhouse Referee book. Tonight's #DIY30 soundtrack courtesy of The Klinik.
The Klinik, Fever
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z2vrJs2Nrms
Tuesday, September 18, 2018
#DIY30 Day Seventeen
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| Members of Goblin and Dario Argento |
It Was A Nitzer Ebb And Goblin Kind of Night
Man, synthesizers and drum machines are really helping me ride out this #DIY30 thing, lol. I started going through the dungeon of the module "Strange Bedfellows" changing all the goblinoids into Shoum, converting AC, and downgrading gold coins to silver pieces. I'm still working on level 1 of a 3 level dungeon, so we'll see how long it takes to get this conversion business out of the way. I forgot this module had one more part besides the dungeon; a druid tree-fort encampment is at the dungeon's other entrance, opposite from where the PCs enter. Thankfully it's a short section!
Monday, September 17, 2018
#DIY30 Day Sixteen
"It's not safe to go out, it's not right to stay home"
More Cabaret Voltaire getting me through this "Strange Bedfellows" module. The circus adaptation is done to my satisfaction. Instead of traditional goblinoids, there will be Shoum; instead of Ogren, there will be Shoum Witches. Tomorrow I tackle the dungeon section of this module.
Cabaret Voltaire, Don't Argue
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p5-1HG2oU_M
More Cabaret Voltaire getting me through this "Strange Bedfellows" module. The circus adaptation is done to my satisfaction. Instead of traditional goblinoids, there will be Shoum; instead of Ogren, there will be Shoum Witches. Tomorrow I tackle the dungeon section of this module.
Cabaret Voltaire, Don't Argue
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p5-1HG2oU_M
Sunday, September 16, 2018
#DIY30 Day Fifteen
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| Cab Voltaire, Just Fascination |
Soundtrack Was Cabaret Voltaire, Christian Death, and early 90s Dance
I almost bailed on #DIY30 today, but I soaked in the tub, took a little nap, and fuckin' RALLIED, lol. The soundtrack helped. So what did I get done? I worked on adapting the circus from Swords & Wizardry module "Strange Bedfellows." I am about a third or half way done. I'll finish tomorrow. It's mostly condensing descriptions, changing AC, and downgrading gold coins to silver pieces.
Cabaret Voltaire, Kino
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u4IAnSdtbNY
Saturday, September 15, 2018
#DIY30 Day Fourteen
Wizard's Tower and Dwarven Delve
I've decided to keep working on the G+ Flailsnails game today. I'll get back to my Year of the Goat campaign tomorrow or Monday.
The Wizard's Tower is 70 miles northeast of Hohnberg located near the coast. It's occupant has been touched by the Red Tide. Now a Tide Cult along with the former wizard are hatching foul schemes here.
I've placed the Dwarven Delve about 50 miles northwest of the village of Meredune and the Temple of the Iron Prophet Allia Howe. It's just over the border into the Shou Lands in the Godbarrow Mountains. The dwarven clan that had once called this delve home were nearly wiped out by pestilence and the survivors fled to another delve. It's now occupied by Shou.
Both of these encounter locations need a few more details and the mapping done, but I feel like I have a great start to my future Flailsnails game!
I've decided to keep working on the G+ Flailsnails game today. I'll get back to my Year of the Goat campaign tomorrow or Monday.
The Wizard's Tower is 70 miles northeast of Hohnberg located near the coast. It's occupant has been touched by the Red Tide. Now a Tide Cult along with the former wizard are hatching foul schemes here.
I've placed the Dwarven Delve about 50 miles northwest of the village of Meredune and the Temple of the Iron Prophet Allia Howe. It's just over the border into the Shou Lands in the Godbarrow Mountains. The dwarven clan that had once called this delve home were nearly wiped out by pestilence and the survivors fled to another delve. It's now occupied by Shou.
Both of these encounter locations need a few more details and the mapping done, but I feel like I have a great start to my future Flailsnails game!
Friday, September 14, 2018
#DIY30 Day Thirteen
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| Lentil Tacos With Vegan Ranch Dressing |
Taco Fortified
After eating a pile of lentil tacos and watching an episode of the show Van Helsing, I was ready to GITURDUN. I fleshed out the Makerite temple a bit. I named it Temple of the Iron Prophet Allia Howe. It has a few named NPCs and a conflict tag (grasping noble.) Mr. Grasping Noble has a few details like a name (Beremud Schmidt) and a household servant (Tancred.) The city of Hohnberg has a noble (court location.) He (Thusundi Amalric Gram) has a tax collector, Hui Niu. I rolled a couple of ruins on a random table, but haven't written any details down for them. There is a wizard's tower and a dwarven delve. I'm not sure yet which will go near the city and which will go near the Makerite Temple. Those are decisions for another day.
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| Assistant DM Vega |
Thursday, September 13, 2018
#DIY30 Day Twelve
Today I Had to Say "Fuck Module Adaptation"
Couldn't do it today. Wasn't gonna happen. I've powered through seven out of eight of Week One's bulleted projects, but today I needed a break from "Strange Bedfellows." So I decided to work on the beginnings of my G+ Flailsnails campaign. I'm going to work on this tomorrow, then get back to finishing up the work I'm doing with "Strange Bedfellows" over the weekend.
The Sun Is Rising on the Sunset Isles
Out of the five campaign settings I was deliberating running, I decided to go with Red Tide by Kevin Crawford. I have the details of the city Hohnberg sketched out. Tomorrow I'll be working on a remote Makerite Temple and some ruins. I'm excited both to use this setting and run my first online game! I'll be running this with LotFP rules, but it's a Flailsnails game, so players can bring whatever characters. I do want to take the Shou character class from this and do whatever conversions from Labyrinth Lord (the system Red Tide is written for) to LotFP to offer as a character option.
Wednesday, September 12, 2018
#DIY30 Day Eleven
Adapting the Swords & Wizardry Module "Strange Bedfellows"
I began my adaptations of this module over a year ago. The work I had already done with it, that I consider first priority after reading a module through, is to make changes to the NPC demi-human/humanoid races. For instance, I've mentioned in prior blog posts that the Shoum are my substitute for the Goblinoid races. So all the orcs, half-orcs, goblins, bugbears, and hobgoblins are all transitioned to Shoum.
What I Worked On Today
Today's focus was to condense the Three Points villages' descriptions and put them in my "place template format." The work left with adapting this module, that I'll move to tomorrow, is condensing the circus and dungeon chapters.
Tuesday, September 11, 2018
#DIY30 Day Ten
"The Hardest Part Is Getting Out The Door"
Above is a quote I gave a million years ago when I was interviewed for a college newspaper regarding winter bicycle commuting in Fairbanks, AK. Whenever I'm dreading getting started on any task or project, my own words usually run through my mind. I'm usually able to shake off my procrastination at that point and throw myself into the process. Map drawing was like that for me today. When I finally put pencil to paper, this little map took me about 20 or 25 minutes. It's a bare-bones little thing, but I'm satisfied with how it turned out and I'm happy it's done.
Above is a quote I gave a million years ago when I was interviewed for a college newspaper regarding winter bicycle commuting in Fairbanks, AK. Whenever I'm dreading getting started on any task or project, my own words usually run through my mind. I'm usually able to shake off my procrastination at that point and throw myself into the process. Map drawing was like that for me today. When I finally put pencil to paper, this little map took me about 20 or 25 minutes. It's a bare-bones little thing, but I'm satisfied with how it turned out and I'm happy it's done.
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| Vortulak Vineyard Outbuildings |
Monday, September 10, 2018
#DIY30 Day Nine
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| Neighbors |
Woke Up At 2:30 To Drive Someone To The Airport, We're Too Far Out For Uber
Living out in the boonies has its pros and cons. The airport situation is a definite con, lol. Anyway I busted out this little family that cares for the Vortulak Estate in the Lord's absence. I'll map the outbuildings tomorrow, then I can move on to the next project for #DIY30;)
House Staff of the Estate
A small family reside here year-round maintaining the house and garden. The patriarch of this family hires the seasonal vineyard workers and oversees the wine production. As zero level humans in LotFP.
1. Rocky Hsun- patriarch of the Hsun's and overseer of the Vortulak Estate Vineyard
2. Rance Hsun- Rocky's wife and head housekeeper of the manor house
3. Ricky Hsun- son of Rocky and Rance, helps with the vineyard and garden
4. Randi Hsun- wife of Ricky, helps with the house and garden
5. Reggie Hsun- young son of Ricky and Randi
Sunday, September 9, 2018
#DIY30 Day Eight
Chipping Away
I played instead of DMing today! So fun! We're doing a quick foray into my boyfriend's D&D 5E campaign that he started last fall. I'm not sure how many sessions we will play until we return to my LotFP YotG campaign, but the work I've gotten done in the last week has been long overdue;-) It's been satisfying to chip away at my pile of undone campaign writing. I finished up detailing the cellar and caverns below Lord Vortulak's Estate. I put a Mimic (not the D&D kind as I've said before, but a Changeling) in a locked cell that had previously been the lead smuggler's room in "The Sinister Secret of Saltmarsh." In the cavern closest to the river (in the original module this location was on the sea, my location is on a river cliff) I placed two Nephilidian Pawns (Rank 2.) It's been awhile since the PCs have encountered either of those monsters! Now I just need to get the outbuildings written and mapped and write up the house staff NPCs.
I played instead of DMing today! So fun! We're doing a quick foray into my boyfriend's D&D 5E campaign that he started last fall. I'm not sure how many sessions we will play until we return to my LotFP YotG campaign, but the work I've gotten done in the last week has been long overdue;-) It's been satisfying to chip away at my pile of undone campaign writing. I finished up detailing the cellar and caverns below Lord Vortulak's Estate. I put a Mimic (not the D&D kind as I've said before, but a Changeling) in a locked cell that had previously been the lead smuggler's room in "The Sinister Secret of Saltmarsh." In the cavern closest to the river (in the original module this location was on the sea, my location is on a river cliff) I placed two Nephilidian Pawns (Rank 2.) It's been awhile since the PCs have encountered either of those monsters! Now I just need to get the outbuildings written and mapped and write up the house staff NPCs.
Saturday, September 8, 2018
#DIY Day Seven
The Assistant DM Is Busy "Helping" Someone Play Far Cry
I worked on the re-write/adaptation of "The Sinister Secret of Saltmarsh" today. I'm close to finished; just need to get the cellar and caverns re-written, the outbuildings written and mapped, and write up a few house staff NPCs. I'm not going to re-produce my adaptation of the module here, but I will post the new wandering monster chart. Here you go friends!
Wandering Monsters
An encounter takes place 1 in 12 chance in the garden, vineyard and outbuildings, if the season is late fall through early spring. Otherwise seasonal workers (Zero Level Humanoids) will be found in the months of agricultural production.
1. 1d4 Shoum- (AC 15; HD 1; hp 4; #ATK 1 Spear; 1d6 DMG)
2. 1 Wolf- (AC 15; HD 2+2; hp 5; #ATK 1 Bite; 1d6 DMG)
3. 1d8 Wild Boar- (AC 15; HD 3+3; hp 18; #ATK 1 Tusk Gouge; 3d4 DMG)
4. 1d3 Violet Fungi- (AC 15; HD 3; hp 8; #ATK 1d4 Branch; Rots flesh in one round DMG) Save vs. Poison or Cure Disease
I worked on the re-write/adaptation of "The Sinister Secret of Saltmarsh" today. I'm close to finished; just need to get the cellar and caverns re-written, the outbuildings written and mapped, and write up a few house staff NPCs. I'm not going to re-produce my adaptation of the module here, but I will post the new wandering monster chart. Here you go friends!
Wandering Monsters
An encounter takes place 1 in 12 chance in the garden, vineyard and outbuildings, if the season is late fall through early spring. Otherwise seasonal workers (Zero Level Humanoids) will be found in the months of agricultural production.
1. 1d4 Shoum- (AC 15; HD 1; hp 4; #ATK 1 Spear; 1d6 DMG)
2. 1 Wolf- (AC 15; HD 2+2; hp 5; #ATK 1 Bite; 1d6 DMG)
3. 1d8 Wild Boar- (AC 15; HD 3+3; hp 18; #ATK 1 Tusk Gouge; 3d4 DMG)
4. 1d3 Violet Fungi- (AC 15; HD 3; hp 8; #ATK 1d4 Branch; Rots flesh in one round DMG) Save vs. Poison or Cure Disease
Friday, September 7, 2018
#DIY30 Day Six
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| My Assistant DM, Vega |
A Day Late...
I wasn't feeling well enough to write yesterday. My energy got sapped by a headache and nausea, but I'm feeling ok today.
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| "Oh, do you need this notebook?" |
And A Dollar Short
Lord Vortulak's Estate
Lord Vidor Vortulak was once a skilled mage and alchemist living in his ancestral home, an elegant manor house surrounded by a productive vineyard. Being quite the intelligent and charming fellow that he was, he caught the eye of the Nephilidian Queen. She soon made him her lover and quite quickly after that she made him a vampire like herself. Despising his condition and enslavement by such a monster, he escaped. Knowing there would be no acceptance of him as a vampire, he masqueraded as his nephew for a time. Once gossip began, regarding his ageless appearance, he left on an extended research mission. His curiosity and diligent studies led him to find clues to the reversal of vampirism back to a mortal being. After a suitably timed period, he has returned to Vortulak Estate as his grandnephew.
Presently he prefers to visit the estate periodically, instead of residing there permanently. This strategy is partly to allay suspicions about him and also to allow himself the ability to travel prolifically for reasearch. He employs a very small house staff to maintain the house and garden. The vineyard employs seasonal workers to produce the grapes for wine production. Vortulak Vineyards is a well regarded name among the region's oenophiles.
I'm working on the room descriptions and wandering monster table, but I don't think I'll be finished with that today. Since I've made his estate a vineyard, I'll probably need to draw a few maps of outbuildings for the agricultural and wine producing stuff. Some of this should be done and ready to go tomorrow.
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| Printed out a PDF of The Sinister Secret of Saltmarsh to highlight what I'll use from it |
Wednesday, September 5, 2018
#DIY30 Day Five
Recycling and Reskinning A Classic AD&D Module
Today and tomorrow I'm working on Lord Vortulak's Estate. Lord Vortulak is a former wizard turned vampire whose estate is several miles away from Halwic. I've chosen to take the maps from "The Haunted House" section of U1 "The Sinister Secret of Saltmarsh" module and re-write/re-populate as needed. I bought this PDF over a year ago for the purpose of re-skinning it for just this purpose, IIRC.
Earlier in this campaign, I used another classic AD&D module N2 " The Forest Oracle." In the case of that adventure, I only lightly modified/adapted it. It ended up being quite deadly for the PCs and their NPC followers! In reading the introduction to U1, I'm getting a feel for the changes I'll be making to this adventure location to tie into the NPC antagonist that I put in my campaign three and a half years ago. More on that tomorrow!
Today and tomorrow I'm working on Lord Vortulak's Estate. Lord Vortulak is a former wizard turned vampire whose estate is several miles away from Halwic. I've chosen to take the maps from "The Haunted House" section of U1 "The Sinister Secret of Saltmarsh" module and re-write/re-populate as needed. I bought this PDF over a year ago for the purpose of re-skinning it for just this purpose, IIRC.
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| The Haunted House=Lord Vortlak's Estate |
Earlier in this campaign, I used another classic AD&D module N2 " The Forest Oracle." In the case of that adventure, I only lightly modified/adapted it. It ended up being quite deadly for the PCs and their NPC followers! In reading the introduction to U1, I'm getting a feel for the changes I'll be making to this adventure location to tie into the NPC antagonist that I put in my campaign three and a half years ago. More on that tomorrow!
Tuesday, September 4, 2018
#DIY30 Day Four
Who Possesses False Chanterelle?
Today's #DIY30 project is to place the painting False Chanterelle somewhere in my campaign. To access the Maze of the Blue Medusa, it must then be stolen by the PCs and careful instructions of it's placement followed. Due to the Escheresque "interdimensional nonspace" of this megadungeon, the only other entry/exit point I have to place is a set of stairs on an island called Eliator. Hooray for pocket dimensions! So imma not even gonna worry bout Eliator for now. In reading the chronology of MotBM, I was excited to see Lizardmen and Reptile Women featuring prominently in the history as well as a Saurid holocaust. Coincidentally, there was a mysterious rise and fall of a Lizardman Empire in my campaign's ancient history that I've hinted at to the PCs when they were adventuring over in the capitol Chizhova. They inadvertently assisted a Lizard Shamaness and a Talking Iguana (polymorphed wizard) in awakening an "Old Sleeper" who had been in stasis for millenia. They (Talking Iguana, Shamaness, Old Sleeper) all buggered off to the east with an NPC cleric/scholar of Tycho who had also been searching for the Tomb of the Old Sleeper. So Talking Iguana (I'm too lazy to go dig through my notes for his name, will update with that later) speaks telepathically and first approached the PCs in dreams. So I think he will start contacting the PCs in dreams requesting they steal False Chanterelle for him and the Lizard Shamaness. The painting is the newly acquired possession of Halwic Magistrate Saad Abahsh. A month ago in the great northwestern city of Vornheim, the painting had been hanging on the wall in the home of Eshrigal, another medusae and possible sister of Psathyrella (Blue Medusa.) It was stolen from her, eventually landing in the hands of the fence in Halwic, Niole Paliyenko. Magistrate Abahsh is ignorant to the true nature of False Chantrerelle. He has had it installed in his lavish home and loves showing it off to any visitors. Eshrigal might have dispatched a retrieval team to "liberate" the painting...
Today's #DIY30 project is to place the painting False Chanterelle somewhere in my campaign. To access the Maze of the Blue Medusa, it must then be stolen by the PCs and careful instructions of it's placement followed. Due to the Escheresque "interdimensional nonspace" of this megadungeon, the only other entry/exit point I have to place is a set of stairs on an island called Eliator. Hooray for pocket dimensions! So imma not even gonna worry bout Eliator for now. In reading the chronology of MotBM, I was excited to see Lizardmen and Reptile Women featuring prominently in the history as well as a Saurid holocaust. Coincidentally, there was a mysterious rise and fall of a Lizardman Empire in my campaign's ancient history that I've hinted at to the PCs when they were adventuring over in the capitol Chizhova. They inadvertently assisted a Lizard Shamaness and a Talking Iguana (polymorphed wizard) in awakening an "Old Sleeper" who had been in stasis for millenia. They (Talking Iguana, Shamaness, Old Sleeper) all buggered off to the east with an NPC cleric/scholar of Tycho who had also been searching for the Tomb of the Old Sleeper. So Talking Iguana (I'm too lazy to go dig through my notes for his name, will update with that later) speaks telepathically and first approached the PCs in dreams. So I think he will start contacting the PCs in dreams requesting they steal False Chanterelle for him and the Lizard Shamaness. The painting is the newly acquired possession of Halwic Magistrate Saad Abahsh. A month ago in the great northwestern city of Vornheim, the painting had been hanging on the wall in the home of Eshrigal, another medusae and possible sister of Psathyrella (Blue Medusa.) It was stolen from her, eventually landing in the hands of the fence in Halwic, Niole Paliyenko. Magistrate Abahsh is ignorant to the true nature of False Chantrerelle. He has had it installed in his lavish home and loves showing it off to any visitors. Eshrigal might have dispatched a retrieval team to "liberate" the painting...
Monday, September 3, 2018
#DIY30 Day Three
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| Keen eyes will haves noticed a certain NPC was in yesterday's map as well. |
Quickie Relationship Map
I'm relieved the relationship map for The Abby of St. Forsythia took less than five minutes because the five hour relationship map yesterday kinda wiped me out! I had to do more foundational writing and research for yesterday's map, so it makes sense to me; it was a satisfying way to spend time, I'm not complaining. It was nice that the task today came easy because earlier in the day I ran the fourth and last session of the first Call of Cthulhu scenario our group has played. I had to do that session's write-up afterwards and wasn't looking forward to my looming #DIY30 project, lol.
List of NPCs in the Abby of St. Forsythia
Abbess Yefrosinya Bolotnikov, a noble turned nun
Raisa Pcholkin, has visions widely reputed to be genuine signs
Yosif, an inept acolyte
Bogatir, a curious scholar
Resources
Vornheim
Sunday, September 2, 2018
#DIY30 Day Two
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| Relationship map for prominent Halwic NPCs |
I Under-estimated the Time to Create This Relationship Map By Hours!
Other writing had to be done to get this relationship map completed. I had to write up the Knights Order Medical Chantry (for Halwic) and the Abahsh-Idzee Textile Mill Consortium (for Halwic.) I had forgotten my title naming conventions for the Knights Order Medical, and it wasn't something I had put in any of the old or new campaign notebooks. After about an hour, my google-fu saved me and I got the list of titles I needed to proceed with that write-up.
Who's Who of Halwic
Saad Abahsh- Magistrate of Halwic and CEO of Abahsh-Idzee Textile Mill Consortium
Abbess Yefrosinya Bolotnikv- Head of the Abby of St. Forsythia, Church of the Covenant
Arkadi Schelkanova- Philosopher (title, not profession) of Knights Order Medical Chantry, Halwic Branch
Valdis Kalinina- City Watch Captain of Halwic
Resources Used Today
Vornheim for the relationship map.
Red Tide for some of the NPC names.
Everyone Everywhere PDF for other NPC names.
Google helped me retrieve my title list for the Knights Order Medical.
Saturday, September 1, 2018
#DIY30 Day One
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| Yo DM Bast, Wyrmgear needs his own index card! |
The Current Situation
The PCs main motivation for entering Halwic is to pursue leads they've gathered on The Mimic Crisis. A secondary motivator is one of the PCs hopes to have Abbess Yefrosinya Bolotnikov bless (enchant) his newly smithed sword. He (Brother Barton) and the Abbess are members of the Church of the Covenant. The PCs are aware of the aforementioned Mimic Crisis and a fire devastating a district in the city. The party sent forth Sophie and Mikail (NPC followers), both young clerics of the same order as Brother Barton and the Abbess, to scout conditions of the city while the rest of the party returned to Tragidore to appraise Bishop Treadwill of their progress hunting mimics in the capitol city of Chizhova. Before leaving Tragidore, Mikail arrives to alert the party to the rumors of the plague. He (Mikail) had no prior exposure to the plague, while Sophie had survived a childhood bout of it and had immunity so she carried on alone into Halwic.
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| Wyrmgear |
Sophie Scouts Halwic (Or Does She?)
Sophie had every intention of entering Halwic, connecting with the Abbess, and providing her healing skills to those afflicted with the plague... but as she makes her way through the outskirts of the city she is abducted by a Nephilidian Vampire named Wyrmgear (a cultist in The Pale Eye Church AKA The Pale Eye of Tiamat.) He doesn't want her specifically, he wants information from the PC party regarding any information they might have about the former wizard, now vampire, Lord Vortulak. So he's kidnapped her to use as a bargaining chip.
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