Prison Break

Over at B/X Blackrazor, JB has been discussing the Slave Lord series. In his most recent post he quickly talks about having the PCs be captured.

I have mentioned a number of times how much I like to use the Reaction Roll subsystem in B/X. One of the things I decided early in the development of the Northern Marches is that a very poor reaction roll when meeting with an NPC with authority (a high priest, a lord, etc.) could result in the PCs insulting the NPC so badly that a large group of guards (big enough to be either foolhardy or extremely risky to fight against) would be summoned and the PCs be put under arrest.

So, I needed a quick method to adjudicate the seriousness of the offence, what happens in the dungeon and the possibility of escape. I took a page from Barbarian Prince and came up with a very quick system.

Gravity of Offence (d6 +/- Charisma modifier)
1 or less: Marked for Death - You have committed a very grave offence. The death penalty is demanded. Until then, you are imprisoned. All your money, possessions and mounts are confiscated. You are provided with food and lodging while in prison. At the start of each day in prison roll one die: "1" means you manage to escape (see below for details), "6" means you must finally meet the headsman and are taken to a public execution. Any other die roll means you continue to languish in prison.

2: Thrown in the Dungeon - You are thrown into a deep dungeon. You lose all your wealth, possessions and mounts. While in the dungeon, you are provided with food and lodging (of a sort). At the start of each day in the dungeon roll 2d6, a result of 2 or 3 means you escape that day, any other result means you continue to languish in captivity. Every full week (seven days) you spend in the Dungeon inflicts 1d6 hit points of damage on you, due to unhealthy conditions, disease, and gradual weakness and starvation.

3 & 4: Imprisoned - You are imprisoned. All your money, possessions and mounts are confiscated. While in prison, you are provided with food and lodging. At the start of each day roll one die, 1 means you escape, any other result means you continue to remain captive.

5 & 6: Minor Offence - You are held overnight. Tomorrow you are assessed a fine of 1d6 x 10 x level gold pieces. If you can't afford it you are Imprisoned (see above).

Escape: If the result indicates a successful escape, present the prisoner with the opportunity (loose bricks in cell wall, a bribeable guard, the means to pick the lock, etc). If they are successful in their escape, have them make an Evasion check being pursued by a suitable number of guards. An alternative is to quickly develop a dungeon map and have them explore their way out.

201 Posts!

and I still can't believe anyone reads what I write about a little game put out 28 years ago.
Even if it is the best game ever!

Northern Marches Reboot

I have been thinking about my old Northern Marches campaign a lot recently. I have really been enjoying my 2nd edition AD&D campaign but it is an adventure path and doesn't scratch my B/X or sandbox itch.

I have been doing some reconstruction on the Northern Marches. I have redone some maps, changed some of my setting notes and implemented some changes based on lessons learned (mostly regarding retainers and treasure levels).

I have mentioned it to my current group as an alternative for those times when we aren't able to get the whole group together and I will again begin recruiting by put up a flyer at the Sentry Box.

If you are in Calgary and want to take part, drop me a line at p_armstrong [at] email [dot] com.

You can also check out my cleaned up and rebooted campaign blog at http://northernmarches.blogspot.com/

Wilderness Maps

With my Northern Marches campaign on my mind, I have been thinking about wilderness maps and their design.

A while ago there was a great thread over at Dragonsfoot about wilderness map design. It posited that a good wilderness map:

1. is for adventure - it had things to find, easter eggs if you will, such as lost valleys, hidden passes, etc.
2. has variety - different types of terrain.
3. has game utility - it is easy to use, has numbered hexes or some type of map key.
4. gives interesting choices - to get from city A to city B do you go through the swamp or around it?
5. provide obstacles to navigation - such as impassible mountain ranges blocking your way.

Most of the discussion there focused on hex maps or free hand maps.

While thinking about my B/X S&S hack I was looking for maps from the Hyborian Age. Some maps that I looked at were from RSI's Hyborian War. I found these interesting in that they took free hand maps and broke the area down into zones.

I found these maps interesting as you could combine the map with the province reports from the game for each zone, develop encounter tables and have a discrete area with its own feel. For example, from the province reports, the section titled Fort Wakla is made up mostly of desert and has a large fort. There is also a small chance of encountering hills or an oasis. It is inhabited by Zuagir Tribesmen. Making an encounter table with Turanian patrols, Zuagir tribesmen and some other desert encounters would be pretty easy.

The Hyborian War maps are similar to the wilderness map from DL1: Dragons of Despair where the map was split into encounter zones.

Another type of wilderness map I have seen is like a flowchart with multiple connections. These are similar to maps for old video games and MUDs. From SSI's Dark Sun: Shattered Lands...
Now, I have often mentioned that I don't mind abstraction and "gameism" in my B/X D&D so I don't have a big problem with this type of map so long as the players feel that they are exploring a wilderness.

I know that the West Marches campaign used a vector map but, as a computer dunce, I wouldn't even know where to start with that.

Are there other types of wilderness maps that would meet the five criteria outlined above?

9-Minute Campaign: The Northern Marches

I have had my old Northern Marches campaign on my mind recently. Earlier today I saw the 9-minute Campaign Design on the Mule Abides and I decided that for fun I would take a fresh look at the Northern Marches through this framework.

1. What is the Look & Feel of your campaign?
The idea of the Northern Marches was based on the similarly titled West Marches campaign. It would focus on exploring the unknown, ancient dangers, vast treasures, mythic underworld, forbidding wilderness, and harsh environments. It is an open campaign which features drawing from a loose group of players.

2. What’s the high concept of your campaign?
The elevator pitch. Exploring the dangerous frontier that was abandoned many generations ago - haunted ruins, valleys containing Lost Worlds, and mythic underworlds containing cosmic horrors and amphibious frog demons.

3. What’s the core story? (or: “Loveable misfits who…”)
The game is an exploration-focused sandbox game set in a dangerous frontier region away from civilization. There’s a convenient fortified town, New Hareth, that is an outpost of civilization and law, but beyond that is the haunted ruins of Old Hareth and dangerous wilderness. All the PCs are all loveable misfit adventurers based in this town seeking fame and fortune beyond the safety of the town's walls. Between sorties into the wilds PCs rest up, trade info and plan their next foray in the rowdy taproom of the Dancing Dragon Tavern.

4. What rules will you be using in your campaign?
B/X baby! As if there was any doubt. However, this is not just because I love B/X but also because I feel it is a great ruleset to give the appropriate feel for the campaign. The fragile nature of the characters, the roster of monsters, the clear rules regarding exploring the wilderness... it fits like a glove.

5. What are the big-scale social institutions or groups in the campaign?
New Hareth is a relatively self-sufficent centre of civilization. It would contain all of the major institutions required.
- Churches/Shrines for the Lawful and Neutral religions. In the Northern Marches these include the Church of the Great Dragon (Lawful, faux fantasy stand in for the catholic church) and the Dodekatheon or "The Twelve" (the old pantheon religion - mainly the 12 olympians).
- A small wizards guild.
- Town guard and courts that efficiently keep the law inside the town walls.
- Baron Hareth - authorized by the kingdom to award other baronies to those able to establish a stronghold in the wilderness.
- Blind seers, learned sages, mystic oracles, covens of witches, etc.
- Armourers, blacksmiths, merchants.
- The Dancing Dragon Tavern which serves as the meeting place for the informal group of adventurers.
- The Bounty Post for posting wanted posters.
- A small thieves guild.

6. Who are the major supporting cast?
Baron Hareth
The Striped Mage
The Lama of the Great Dragon
The Bishop of the Twelve
The Sage
Captain of the Guard
The Hood (head of the thieves guild)
A small number of NPC adventurers that have already established strongholds in the wilderness

7. What are the major threats in the campaign?
The Wilderness - getting lost, rugged snow covered mountains, hoarfrost crusted swamps, cold weather, hunger, monsters, rolling on the Triple Secret Random Horrific Fate Table of Very Probable Doom if you don't get back to civilization before the end of the session.
Castle Hareth - the ruined castle (megadungeon) of the abandoned settlement rumoured to be haunted and built on the ruins of a very ancient fortress.
Dungeons & Lairs - out in the wilderness
Barbarians, bandits, ancient ruins, cosmic horrors, huge dinosaurs, marauding orcs, blood-thirsty amazons, etc.

8. Draw a map of the campaign setting.
Got one.

9. Draft up your first adventure.
While it is a sandbox and the players can do anything they want, if they are new players I usually say one of the party members inherited, stole or otherwise procured a treasure map leading the party to somewhere out in the wilderness.

B/X S&S: The Thaumaturge Class

This is the renamed Priest class. The only thing that I have changed besides the name is how often they roll for drawbacks.

THAUMATURGE

Thaumaturges are those those who have dedicated themselves to some otherworldly being such as a demon or a Cthulhu-esque being from another dimension.
They will always be working towards their own advancement and the benefit of the entity which they serve. As a Thaumaturge advances in level, he or she is taught various rituals by the entity which they serve in return for the Thaumaturge's dedication and other gifts/bribes/sacrifices (to be left up to the DM). However, a Thaumaturge does not receive any rituals until they reach 2nd level (and have proven their dedication/sold their soul/etc). The prime requisite for Thaumaturges is Wisdom. A Wisdom score of 13 or greater will give the Thaumaturge a bonus on earned experience points.

RESTRICTIONS: Thaumaturges use six-sided dice (d6) to determine their hit points. They may wear any armour any may use shields. They are not extensively trained in combat and may only use weapons which do a maximum of 1d6 damage.

SPECIAL ABILITIES: A Thaumaturge may use rituals which are the same as cleric spells. However, only the reverse of any reversible spells may be used. For example, cure light wounds cannot be cast but cause light wounds can be, darkness instead of light, etc.

When a Thaumaturge reaches level 4, 8 and 12, they roll a d12 on the following table due to the strain of contacting the otherworldly entities and the channeling power meant for no mortal.

1. Animal Aversion - the Thaumaturge is inherently unsettling to animals. Any natural within 10 feet of the Thaumaturge instantly becomes nervous, skittish and irritable.

2. Blindness

3. Color Blind - Inability to distinguish one color from another. Any task requiring identifying items by color is impossible. It may also have some negative social consequences, such as an inability to put together an tasteful set of clothes.

4. Disfigurement - Disfigurements are often strange warpings of the body such as shrivelled limbs, bizarre scarring, eye discoloration or loss, transformation of hands or feet into claws or hooves, and so on. Disfigurements are permanent and always blatant, but can be hidden with some work. Characters with disfigurements also suffer some social disadvantages.

5. Distrusted - an unshakeable aura of untrustworthiness. Long hours of probing arcane secrets have subtly warped his personality and demeanour. The Thaumaturge, or even a group including the Thaumaturge, suffers a -2 penalty to Reaction Rolls.

6. Endurance Loss - Study of the dark arts has sapped your character's physical and psychic vigor. Lose 1d4 from Constitution.

7. Phobia - Fear of something. When exposed to his phobia he must roll over his level on a d12 or give in and do anything to get away from the source of his phobia.

8. Glutton - A glutton eats at every opportunity. His resultant girth means he can only wear custom-made clothing and armor, and he is of course much heavier than most other people.

9. Obsessive - The Thaumaturge is obsessed with something. When exposed to his obsession he must roll over his level on a d12 or give in and do anything to gain the obsession.

10. Nocturnal - When the sun is down, he is full of energy and will not sleep. By day, he is lethargic and groggy if not actually asleep. He is dazzled by sunlight, so much so that he suffers a -1 penalty for saving throws and "to hit" rolls.

11. Deafness

12. Madness - The terrible secrets your character has unearthed in his quest for forbidden knowledge have begun to loosen his grip on reality. Every day there is a cumulative 1% chance that he will be struck by a fit of madness (so he will without fail go temporarily mad at least every 100 days). When it comes, the fit lasts for 1-10 days, during which time he will run wild, liable to do or say anything. At the end of the fit, the chance of another fit begins at 1% and slowly climbs as before.

EXPERIENCE AND LEVELS: As clerics.

SAVING THROWS: As clerics.

CHARACTER ATTACKS: As clerics.

My Newest Elevator Pitches

My current 2E AD&D - Rise of the Runelords campaign is going great and I am having a lot of fun. This is the first time I have run an adventure path. We are still in the first adventure module (which is quite good) so we are early enough in it that there have been no troubles with conversions or "railroady-ness" of running a 3.5 adventure path with 2nd edition.

However, as I think about RPGs nearly every day, I have some other campaign ideas rattling around in my head right now. The likelihood of any of these going anywhere may be small but hopefully not nil. I would also consider using skype + gametable for any of these.

In no particular order:

- A B/X game using one of Robert Conley's Points of Light settings. I would like to set it up like my old Northern Marches campaign and make it an open game.

- A game using my recent B/X S&S hacks set in the Evil DM's Erisia.

- A game using my recent B/X hacks set in a not strictly canon Hyborian Age.

- A game using my recent B/X S&S hacks plus the Mutants & Mazes section from Mutant Future with a setting using the Dark Sun map from the original DS box. And it would have Sorcerer Kings - I just love the name Sorcerer Kings.

- A Tunnels & Trolls game using Gamma Trollworld and a slightly modified Carcosa as the setting.

- A B/X game set in the Known World from the Cook Expert rulebook. Starting off with an expanded version of the Haunted Keep from the Moldvay Basic rulebook.

- A B/X - Al Qadim hack.

Getting Rid of Some Stuff - For Sale

I am clearing out some storage space and I will be posting a few things here before I go through the headache of ebay.

A. "Field Guide to Encounters" - Vol 1 & 2. by Judges Guild. C$10

B. Traveller Core Rulebook and 760 Patrons from Mongoose Publishing. C$20

C. Talislanta - Fourth edition (the enormous blue hardback) C$20

D. Codex of Erde (d20) from Troll Lord Games C$5

All books are in good shape.

Payment by Paypal only; first-come, first-served; you pay all shipping and any insurance. You can contact me at p_armstrong [at] email [dot] com.

B/X S&S: Sans Armour - part two

I am going back on my previous thoughts about unarmoured AC for fighters. I now dislike the proposed solution I drafted in that post.

A character’s hit points represent his ability and luck when it comes to avoiding the lethal effects created by the point of a sword. In Dungeons and Dragons, armour class doesn’t scale with level, but hit points do. This is because a characters ability to avoid being hit isn’t reflected primarily by armour class, but by his hit point total.

As such, I think there are a couple of things that can be done to better reflect the trope of the loincloth wearing barbarian or chainmail bikini clad amazon while still keeping the same B/X combat system.

These are nothing earth shattering.

1. Start characters at a higher level - this gives them more hit points and also reflects the fact that S&S characters are usually already quite capable.

or

2. Give starting characters some sort of hit point kicker - something like adding the character's constitution score to their beginning hit point total.

An important thing to remember to capture the the S&S feel is to always focus on in-game disadvantages of wearing heavy armour. Such things as noise, heat, sand, insects, costs for repairs, etc should cause definite in game problems for any character wearing heavy armour.

I would also make armour much more expensive than given in the B/X rulebooks if I was running a sword & sorcery hack.

B/X S&S: Renaming the Priest Class

I still like the S&S Priest Class I came up with but I am becoming more and more unsatisfied with the name. I don't think it really fits the role that I envision. After all, a priest of Mitra doesn't fit the Priest Class whereas a priest of Set might better fit the current Sorcerer Class.

Two options:

1. Rename the Priest Class something else - such as Mystic or something else.

2. Rename the Priest Class as a "Sorcerer" and then rename the Sorcerer Class something else - such as wizard, warlock, etc.

What do you think?

B/X S&S: A Skype Test?

I would like to try using some of the B/X - Sword & Sorcery hack I have been doing the last while. I'm looking for three players for a skype + gametable game using B/X Dungeons & Dragons with the Sword & Sorcery house rules I have been working on.

This will be a episodic game set in the Hyborian Age. However, I will be going more for the "feel" and "themes" instead of literary accuracy as I am by no means a REH/Conan scholar. I will be using some of the stories from the Savage Sword of Conan stories for ideas/inspiration.

Given the episodic nature, if this is something we have fun with, there's always the option of adding more episodes or players.

I would like to run the first session during the evening of Saturday, Nov 21st. Note that I am Mountain time.

If you're interested, e-mail me at p_armstrong [AT] email [DOT] com, tell me a little about yourself, what kind of gaming you enjoy, etc. In the event that I get an abundance of requests, I have no set criteria for how I'll pick the players. I'll be happy to put the extra folks on the waiting list for possible future episodes.

In addition, I am also considering a play-by-post game. I will let you know if it progresses.

Check This Out

Dyson has taken the excellent dungeon tiles he has been working on and put them on a website that will generate a map.

Awesome!

D&D Levels and S&S

Back near the beginning of my hacking around with B/X for a sword & sorcery inspired game, Matthew from Wheel of Samsara made a comment:

"D&D is not ideal for S&S. It's not that you can't do it. Akratic Wizardry and The Wasted Lands both posted good, S&S hacks for D&D. The problem for me, is that S&S is not a genre about guys leveling up and that's the central premise of D&D."

While I am quite happy with the alternate S&S classes I have done for B/X there is still the nagging problem that the D&D level system eventually ruins the "feel" of a sword & sorcery game. The are numerous instances in S&S literature where the mighty hero is forced to flee from a D&D monster that a 12th level fighter would slice up for breakfast. Or instances where the mightiest of sorcerers cannot do what a 5th level magic-user can.

The more I think about this though the more that I think it really is not much of an issue because the number of characters that will survive to high levels will be very small. This is due to:

- B/X classes, from which all of the S&S hacks I have done are based, have low power levels.
- The lower level of magic items.
- Fewer magic-using characters due to the drawbacks built into the new classes.
- If there are sorcerers in the party, the heavy artillery spells (fireball, etc have either been made higher level spells of removed altogether.
- If true to the inspiration of the S&S literature, the size of the adventuring party will likely be smaller than assumed in standard D&D.
- The Fear Check mechanic helps to keep the characters on their toes.

Check This Out

Stuart over at Robertson Games has a series of posts about taking OD&D/Swords & Wizardry attribute scores and making them descriptive instead of numeric.

I think it is brilliant and makes the low attribute modifiers really interesting.

Check it out if you haven't.

B/X S&S: Classes so far

Here are the classes I have so far for a B/X Sword & Sorcery game:

Fighter - as B/X
Thief - as B/X
Barbarian
Savage
Priest
Atlantean
Sorcerer

And three more I am currently considering:

Mystic - spellcasters from the eastern kingdoms which have strong traditions in mind-affecting sorceries. An illusionist with a coat of paint.

Borderer - a variation of a Ranger. There would be some overlap with some of the other classes though so I am still thinking about this one.

Shaman - spirit totems, etc. This one would be largely taken from one of the BECMI gazetteers with some OD&D Druid thrown in.

B/X S&S: Fear of the Supernatural

I am still turning this one over in my head.

A large part of sword & sorcery literature is the instinctive fear of unnatural things— magic and creatures that defy explanation. Such things are unwholesome and evil; therefore, they should be feared.

I am always leery about taking the actions of a character out of the hands of the player but I think a large part of the genre is heroes overcoming this fear and defeating supernatural horrors. To reflect this I am considering the following rules regarding Fear Checks. This would also have the side effect of giving Sorcerers and Priests a bit of a bump in power.

Some monsters, spellcasters, and unusual magical items or situations may force a Fear Check. If the monster is ordinary (wolf, lion), no check is necessary. A check is made the first time the monster is encountered at close range, the first time a spellcaster does something involving magic (casting a spell or using a magical item), and whenever the DM calls for a check.

To make a Fear Check, the character should roll a saving throw vs. Spells (to which the Wisdom modifier applies).

A Character who fails the saving throw loses his action for that round (he stops in horror or awe at the sight of the thing). They cannot move or act until they are either attacked, distracted by another person, or successfully roll in a subsequent roll. Only one attempt can be made each round. If a natural 1 is rolled, additional effects are possible, depending on the DM’s judgment such as insanity or even dying of fright (for Normal Men).

B/X S&S: The Sorcerer Class

Here is a draft sorcerer class. It is the B/X magic-user class with a modified spell check from Chainmail and a slightly modified spell list. You'll note that while there are some Monster Summoning spells in the spell list, there is a lack of AD&D-type spells to summon demons. I envision this type of magic to be instead from magic tomes, etc - stuff the sorcerer may find through adventuring. Also, this was the first time I have ever sat down with the Moldvay and Holmes basic rulebooks and compared low level spell lists. It was an interesting comparison.

SORCERERS

Sorcerers are humans who, through study and practice, have learned how to cast magic spells. They gain their powers through careful study, travel to distant lands, gathering rare powders and plants, and having their agents search ancient ruins for objects of power hinted at in moldering texts.

The prime requisite for sorcerers is Intelligence. A sorcerer with an Intelligence of 13 or greater will gain a bonus to earned experience.

RESTRICTIONS: Sorcerers use four-sided dice (d4) to determine their hit points. They may not wear armour nor use shields and may only use weapons that do 1-4 damage.

SPECIAL ABILITIES: Sorcerers use many powerful spells. As they gain levels of experience, they also gain the ability to cast more and more powerful spells.

When a sorcerer casts a spell they have to make a Spell Check by rolling (2d6) plus their Intelligence modifier:

Spell....................Sorcerer Level.....................
Level...1-2.......3-4.......5-6.......7-8......9-10.....11+
1.........6/9.....5/8.......4/7......3/6......-/5.......-/4
2..................6/9.......5/8......4/7......3/6......-/5
3.............................6/9......5/8......4/7......3/6
4.........................................6/9.....5/8.....4/7
5...................................................6/9.....5/8
6.............................................................6/9

Results: Delayed/Immediate
Natural 2 - The sorcerer suffers corruption. Each time this happens the sorcerer suffers a cumulative -1 penalty to all saving throws. The spell is lost from the sorcerers memory.

If the roll is less than the Delayed result the spell is negated and has no effect. It is lost from the sorcerer's mind.

Delayed - Spell delayed until next round.

Immediate - spell takes immediate effect.

Sorcerers must still prepare spells every morning per the Magic-User but do not forget spells when cast unless they fail the Spell Check.

[Note: I would also intend to use my very strict reading of the rules with regards to B/X spellbooks.]

Sorcerer Spell List
Level 1
Charm Person
Dancing Lights*
Detect Magic
Enlargement*
Floating Disc
Hold Portal
Light/Darkness
Protection from Evil/Good
Read Languages
Read Magic
Shield
Sleep
Ventriloquism

Level 2
Audible Glamer*
Continual Light/Darkness
Detect Evil
Detect Invisible
ESP
Invisibility
Knock
Levitate
Locate Object
Mirror Image
Phantasmal Force
Pyrotechnics*
Ray of Enfeeblement*
Strength*
Web
Wizard Lock

Level 3
Clairaudience*
Clairvoyance
Dispel Magic
Explosive Runes*
Haste
Hold Person
Infravision
Invisibility 10-ft
Monster Summoning 1*
Protection from Evil/Good 10-ft
Protection from Normal Missiles
Rope Trick*
Slow*
Suggestion*
Water Breathing

Level 4
Charm Monster
Confusion
Curse/Remove Curse
Dimension Door
Fear
Fly#
Growth of Plants
Hallucinatory Terrain
Lightening Bolt#
Massmorph
Monster Summoning II+
Polymorph Self
Wizard Eye

5th Level
Animate Dead
Cloud Kill
Conjure Elemental
Contact Higher Plane
Feeblemind
Fire Ball#
Hold Monster
Magic Jar
Monster Summoning III+
Pass Wall
Telekinesis
Transmute Rock to Mud/Mud to Rock

6th Level
Anti-Magic Shell
Death Spell
Geas/Remove Geas
Invisible Stalker
Legend Lore+
Lower Water
Monster Summoning IV+
Move Earth
Part Water
Projected Image
Polymorph Other#
Stone to Flesh/Flesh to Stone


* Spell from Holmes Basic D&D
+ Spell from OD&D Supplement 1: Greyhawk
^ see B/X Cleric spell of same name
# this spell has changed levels

B/X S&S: The Atlantean Class

This class is envisioned as a rare elder race of humans, sort of like the Atlanteans, Lemurians, etc from REH's, Carter's and other's tales. The name of the class could be changed to fit any specific S&S setting. It is really just the elf class with a different name.

ATLANTEANS

Atlanteans are the remnants of an ancient race of humans, the descendants from the lost Kingdom of Atlantis. Atlanteans are slender, graceful humans with delicate features. They are tall, 6 to 6 1/2 feet tall, but weigh about 150 pounds. They can be dangerous opponents, able to fight with any weapon and and are adept with the arcane arts.

The prime requisites for an atlantean are Strength and Intelligence. If an atlantean has a score of 13 or greater in both Strength and Intelligence, the character will gain a 5% bonus on earned experience points. If the atlantean's Strength is 13 or greater and his Intelligence is 16 or greater, that character will earn a 10% bonus on earned experience.

RESTRICTIONS: Atlanteans use six-sided dice (d6) to determine their hit points. They may advance to a maximum of 10th level of experience. A character must have an Intelligence of 9 or greater to be an atlantean.

SPECIAL ABILITIES: Atlanteans have the advantages of both fighters and sorcerers. They may use shields and can wear any type of armour, and may fight with any kind of weapon. They can also cast spells as a sorcerer (using the same mechanics).

EXPERIENCE AND LEVELS: As elves.

SAVING THROWS: As elves.

CHARACTER ATTACKS: As fighters.

B/X S&S: The Basic Rulebook Monster Roster

I think that one of the reasons I keep coming back to a sword & sorcery style game using B/X is the roster of monsters given in the basic and expert rulebooks. I have typed out the list of monsters from the basic rulebook below. Looking at the list there are a few observations that quickly come to me.

1. The high number of man- monsters such as Acolytes, Bandits, etc.

2. The number of normal and giant animals.

3. The number of S&S-type monsters that can be covered, approximated, tweaked from this list. To run a sword & sorcery style game using this list would require very few deletions. I would delete dragons, the demi-humans (dwarves, etc), a few of the fairytale monsters (pixies, sprites) and a few of the humanoids. Many of the humanoid monsters could be relabelled and reflavoured and used in a sword & sorcery game - for example, looking at the picture I posted in the Priest Class post it could easily be an ogre.

List of Monsters from Basic Rulebook
Acolyte
Ape, White
Bandit
Bat (Normal & Giant)
Bear (Black, Grizzly, Polar, Cave)
Beetle, Giant (Fire, Oil, Tiger)
Berzerker
Boar
Bugbear
Carrion Crawler
Cat, Great (Mountain Lion, Panther, Lion, Tiger, Sabre-tooth Tiger)
Cave Locust
Centipede, Giant
Doppleganger
Dragon
Driver Ant
Dwarf
Elf
Ferret, Giant
Gargoyle
Gelatinous Cube
Ghoul
Gnoll
Gnome
Goblin
Gray Ooze
Green Slime
Halfling
Harpy
Hobgoblin
Insect Swarms
Killer Bees
Kobold
Living Statue (Crystal, Iron, Rock)
Lizards, Giant (Gecko, Draco, Horned Chameleon, Tuatara)
Lizard Man
Lycanthropes
Medium
Medusa
Minotaur
Mule
Neanderthal
Noble
Normal Human
NPC Party
Ochre Jelly
Ogre
Orc
Owl Bear
Pixie
Rat (Normal, Giant)
Robber Fly
Rock Baboon
Rust Monster
Shadow
Shrew, Giant
Shrieker
Skeleton
Snake (Spitting Cobra, Pit Viper, Sea Snake, Giant Rattler, Rock Python)
Spider, Giant (Crab, Black Widow, Tarantella)
Sprite
Stirge
Thoul
Trader
Troglodyte
Veteran
Wight
Wolf (Normal, Dire)
Yellow Mold
Zombie

B/X S&S: Healing

With the Priest Class not having any healing spells, already fragile B/X characters would become even more delicate. To counter act this I would consider including an item of near magical ability:

Flagon of Wine - acts as a Potion of Healing.

Also, I would use the common house rule of unconscious at 0 hit points and dead at -10 hit points. One reason for doing this is to also include the common S&S plot of having the hero captured and forced to escape.

B/X S&S: The Thaumaturge Class

I have discovered I am better at retrofitting the existing B/X classes to S&S tropes instead of developing new classes. The Thaumaturge class is just a reflavouring of the cleric. I am still debating whether this could be the default Sorcerer class. Some of the weaknesses are taken from the excellent Zefrs which I should have included with BoL and T&T in my list of games to use to run a S&S game.

THAUMATURGE

Thaumaturges are those those who have dedicated themselves to some otherworldly being such as a demon or a Cthulhu-esque being from another dimension.
They will always be working towards their own advancement and the benefit of the entity which they serve. As a Thaumaturge advances in level, he or she is taught various rituals by the entity which they serve in return for the Thaumaturge's dedication and other gifts/bribes/sacrifices (to be left up to the DM). However, a Thaumaturge does not receive any rituals until they reach 2nd level (and have proven their dedication/sold their soul/etc). The prime requisite for Thaumaturges is Wisdom. A Wisdom score of 13 or greater will give the Thaumaturge a bonus on earned experience points.

RESTRICTIONS: Thaumaturges use six-sided dice (d6) to determine their hit points. They may wear any armour any may use shields. They are not extensively trained in combat and may only use weapons which do a maximum of 1d6 damage.

SPECIAL ABILITIES: A Thaumaturge may use rituals which are the same as cleric spells. However, only the reverse of any reversible spells may be used. For example, cure light wounds cannot be cast but cause light wounds can be, darkness instead of light, etc.

When a Thaumaturge reaches level 4, 6, 8 and 10, they roll a d12 on the following table due to the strain of contacting the otherworldly entities and the channeling power meant for no mortal.

1. Animal Aversion - the Thaumaturge is inherently unsettling to animals. Any natural within 10 feet of the Thaumaturge instantly becomes nervous, skittish and irritable.

2. Blindness

3. Color Blind - Inability to distinguish one color from another. Any task requiring identifying items by color is impossible. It may also have some negative social consequences, such as an inability to put together an tasteful set of clothes.

4. Disfigurement - Disfigurements are often strange warpings of the body such as shrivelled limbs, bizarre scarring, eye discoloration or loss, transformation of hands or feet into claws or hooves, and so on. Disfigurements are permanent and always blatant, but can be hidden with some work. Characters with disfigurements also suffer some social disadvantages.

5. Distrusted - an unshakeable aura of untrustworthiness. Long hours of probing arcane secrets have subtly warped his personality and demeanour. The Thaumaturge, or even a group including the Thaumaturge, suffers a -2 penalty to Reaction Rolls.

6. Endurance Loss - Study of the dark arts has sapped your character's physical and psychic vigor. Lose 1d4 from Constitution.

7. Phobia - Fear of something. When exposed to his phobia he must roll over his level on a d12 or give in and do anything to get away from the source of his phobia.

8. Glutton - A glutton eats at every opportunity. His resultant girth means he can only wear custom-made clothing and armor, and he is of course much heavier than most other people.

9. Obsessive - The Thaumaturge is obsessed with something. When exposed to his obsession he must roll over his level on a d12 or give in and do anything to gain the obsession.

10. Nocturnal - When the sun is down, he is full of energy and will not sleep. By day, he is lethargic and groggy if not actually asleep. He is dazzled by sunlight, so much so that he suffers a -1 penalty for saving throws and "to hit" rolls.

11. Deafness

12. Madness - The terrible secrets your character has unearthed in his quest for forbidden knowledge have begun to loosen his grip on reality. Every day there is a cumulative 1% chance that he will be struck by a fit of madness (so he will without fail go temporarily mad at least every 100 days). When it comes, the fit lasts for 1-10 days, during which time he will run wild, liable to do or say anything. At the end of the fit, the chance of another fit begins at 1% and slowly climbs as before.

EXPERIENCE AND LEVELS: As clerics.

SAVING THROWS: As clerics.

CHARACTER ATTACKS: As clerics.

B/X S&S: The Amazon Class [Deleted]

I have deleted the draft amazon class as I feel that an amazon PC could just be a female fighter.

I do still love me some amazon antagonists!

B/X S&S: The Savage

Envisioned as something like REH's Picts using the B/X Halfling.

SAVAGES

Savages are a warlike, tribal people with a very primitive Stone Age culture. They are a short, broad swarthy-skinned folk. Every aspect of their lives is dominated by an awareness of their lush environment.

The prime requisites for a savage are Strength and Dexterity. A savage character whose Strength or Dexterity score is 13 or greater will receive a 5% bonus to earned experience. Savages whose Strength and Dexterity scores are 13 or greater will receive a bonus of 10% to earned experience.

RESTRICTIONS: Savages use six-sided dice (d6) to determine their hit points. They may advance to a maximum of 8th level of experience. Savages can use any type of weapon, however, they may wear nothing more protective than leather armour, and they may use a shield. Savages must have a minimum score of 9 in both Dexterity and Constitution.

SPECIAL ABILITIES: Savages have better saving throws than most other character classes. They are very accurate with all missile weapons and gain a bonus of +1, in addition to Dexterity adjustments, on their "to hit" rolls when using them. Due to their smaller stature and skills at dodging large ferocious beasts, Savages have a bonus of -2 on their Armour Class when being attacked by creatures larger than man-sized. When rolling for individual initiative (an Optional rule) savages add +1, in addition to any Dexterity adjustments. Outdoors, savages are difficult to spot, having the ability to seemingly vanish into woods, bushes or undergrowth. Savages have only a 10% chance of being detected in this type of cover, and even in dungeons there is a one-third chance (a roll of 1 or 2 on 1d6) that a savage will not be seen in normal light if the character finds some cover (such as shadows), and remains absolutely quiet and still. Savages are skilled at tracking and may follow a trail two-thirds of the time (a roll of 1 to 4 on a 1d6) when outdoors and have a one-in-six chance while in a dungeon.

EXPERIENCE AND LEVELS:
Level........XP.......HD
1...............0.......1d6
2...........2,000.....2d6
3...........4,000.....3d6
4...........8,000.....4d6
5..........16,000.....5d6
6..........32,000.....6d6
7..........64,000.....7d6
8.........120,000.....8d6

SAVING THROWS: As halflings.

CHARACTER ATTACKS: As fighter.

B/X S&S: The Barbarian Class

BARBARIANS

Barbarians are not from the decadent cities of civilization, but instead from the harsh northlands, scorching deserts or other inhospitable wildernesses. They are often stubborn but practical and have a strong distrust of magic. Barbarians are sturdy fighters and are especially hardy and resilient, as shown by their better saving throws. The Prime Requisite for a barbarian character is Strength. A Strength score of 13 or greater will give a barbarian a bonus on earned experience points.

RESTRICTIONS: Barbarians use eight-sided dice (d8) to determine their hit points. They may advance to a maximum of 12th level of experience. Barbarians may use any type of armour and may use shields. They may use any type of melee or thrown weapon but do not use missile weapons. A barbarian character must have a minimum Constitution score of 9.

SPECIAL ABILITIES: Barbarians are hardy and have better saving throws than most other classes. They are use to surviving in the wilderness and are able to forage (see page X51), discover the correct direction if they become lost (see page X56) and spot traps and snares in the wild one-third of the time (a roll of 1 or 2 on 1d6). When trying to evade an encounter in the wild (see page X23), treat the Party Size as one size category smaller (if the barbarian is alone he has a 95% chance for evasion).

When barbarians reach 9th level, they may build a stronghold and attempt to establish a clan. The stronghold will be located in the wilderness. The Barbarian Lord may only use barbarian warriors, but specialists and retainers of other classes may be offered other positions.

EXPERIENCE AND LEVELS:
Level........XP.......HD
1...............0.......1d8
2...........2,200.....2d8
3...........4,400.....3d8
4...........8,800.....4d8
5..........17,000.....5d8
6..........35,000.....6d8
7..........70,000.....7d8
8.........140,000.....8d8
9.........270,000.....9d8
10........400,000.....9d8+3*
11........530,000.....9d8+6*
12........660,000.....9d8+9*

* Constitution adjustments no longer apply.

SAVING THROWS: As dwarves.

CHARACTER ATTACKS: As fighter.

As you can see it is modelled on the B/X Dwarf.

The Sword & Sorcery Vibe

I have had the sword & sorcery vibe going the last while.

Honestly, if I were to run a S&S inspired game I probably wouldn't use D&D - even though I think B/X, with a few very minor tweaks, could do S&S very well (just look at the monster roster in B/X). But I might still post some thoughts here about a S&S B/X game.

Instead, assuming I could find players, I would likely use either Tunnels & Trolls or Barbarians of Lemuria.

I think that the mechanics of T&T would do a great job for a pulpy S&S game. Some might be put off by the humour in the spell names but those are easily changed. Remove the kindreds and allow only human characters and you are on your way.




I haven't heard much about Barbarians of Lemuria the last while but it is suppose to be republished by Cubicle 7 in the next while. The fast and furious mechanics are perfect for the genre (it uses a simple 2d6 vs target number mechanic). The Careers and Trait & Flaws takes the simple mechanic and makes it very flavourful. If you haven't you should check it out.

An Impromptu B/X Game Report

My current 2nd edition campaign group was going to meet last night but due to some scheduling difficulties we had to scrap the plans. Two of the players still came over and instead we decided to play an off the cuff session of B/X.

I had each player roll up two 3rd level characters using 3d6 in order. What resulted was great fun. One player rolled up two dwarves - brothers - named Ping and Pong. The other player rolled up Blorg the Fighter with an Intelligence of 4 and Seth the Cleric with a Wisdom of 7.

While they were rolling up their characters I was quickly trying to find a suitable adventure for the evening. I grabbed a handful of Judges Guild modules and started flipping through them for some inspiration.

After the characters were created, I had each player roll a d20 a number of times to determine if the characters had any magic item. I usually have them try to roll under their level (3 in this case) for each of the magic item categories. They actually rolled a number of 2's and had a handful of magic items.

One of the items rolled was a treasure map! This made me quickly abandon my flipping through adventures and I grabbed Judges Guild's Book of Treasure Maps. A few rolls later to determine with Wilderlands map and hex location and the group of four brave adventures were off in pursuit of the legendary Jewel of Kallapath (I just made up the name).

Alas, the adventure was short lived. After coming upon an old keep populated with goblins and ogres, the party spent a number of days travelling with few rolls on the Ravaged Ruins table to give some flavour and a few wandering monster rolls which came up negative.

Finally, I rolled up a wandering monster which led me to the Dragon subtable. Thinking to myself, "Oh, oh...", I quickly rolled up an encounter with two fire salamanders (AC 2, HD 8, 3 Attacks and fire damage to anyone nearby) which surprised the party. Seeing as this was a oneshot and I wanted to see what the players would do, I decided to just spring the encounter on them and see what happened. A roll on the monster reaction table gave the party an opportunity to try to evade. Unfortunately, the PCs decided to charge the fiery lizards and soon thereafter we had a dead party.

What Worked Well:
1. Rolling for magic items gave a great hook for the adventure with the treasure map.
2. Rolling to figure out where in the Wilderlands the adventure would be located was quick and fun.
3. Judges Guild's Book of Treasure Maps was a great help.
4. Rolling up four 3rd level characters with B/X was fast and led to some fun characters (not a surprise here!).

What Didn't Work as Well:
1. I discovered I am rusty at running a hex crawl. Being unprepared for an impromptu B/X one shot definitely contributed to this as did the fact that we randomly determined that the party started in hex 0914 of map one of the Wilderlands. However, it has been a while since I have run a hex crawl. I would like to play in someone else's game for a hex crawl just to see how others do it.
2. It being a oneshot definitely impacted the players' decisions. Four 3rd level adventures with no offensive magic going up against two fire salamanders was a definite mistake, but it didn't really matter because it was a oneshot.

All-in-all a good time and a great way to spend the evening.

Sans Armour - the S&S Trope in B/X

Three posts in one morning! After this I might have to go lay down.

One thing that is often seen in the sword & sorcery literature and artwork that is not directly included in B/X - or any other version of D&D - is the loin-skin wearing barbarian or chainmail bikini clad amazon wading into battle.

Now the argument could be made, and quite convincingly I think, that the increase in hit points each level actually does reflect the ability for an unarmoured character to avoid getting hit. But, an idea I have been considering to accommodate for this standard S&S trope in a way in which players might be happier with than just the increase in hit points every level is that a character's Armour Class can improve as they go up in levels as long as they are not wearing any armour.

DRAFT ONLY
Unarmoured AC is adjusted by Dexterity Armour Class Adjustment.

The idea behind it is that Fighters can hit an unarmoured opponent Fighter of the same level 50% of the time and the unarmoured AC progresses at the same rate as the improvement in the Fighter's "to hit". So as per the Attack tables on page X26, a level 1-3 Fighter hits AC 8 50% of the time, level 4-6 hits AC 6 50% of the time, level 7-9 hits AC 3 50% of the time...

From this base line assumption all of the other classes are worse and improve slower. I would also strongly consider not allowing this ability for any other classes besides fighters.

The key is that they must be unarmoured - wearing any armour including as shield makes the character use the standard AC system.

Art Used Without Permission

Ghosts in the Darkness

Somewhat related to my previous post about Normal Humans...

I read the the recent article from AP, Study: Man-eating lions consumed 35 people in 1898

When I was flipping through the Monster section from the Basic Rulebook I stopped at the Lion entry under Cat, Great (pg B32).

A Lion has 5 HD (average of about 23 hit points), an Armour Class of 6, and (the real kicker) three attacks: 2 claws (2-5 damage each) and 1 bite (1-10 damage).

I can easily see 2 lions killing 35 Normal Humans (AC 9 and 1-4 hit points) in B/X D&D - and not over nine months, all at once!

The Effects of Leading an Unsavoury Life

I was reading though some of the Basic rulebook and I came across something which reflects the nature of hit points as more than just a measure of physical damage that can be sustained but instead also reflects intangibles in combat such as morale, luck, skill, etc.

The entry for Normal Humans in the Monster section reads:

A Normal Human is a human who does not seek dangerous adventure. A normal human does not have a class. Normal humans have their own saving throws and "to hit" numbers. They have from 1 to 4 hit points (depending on their age, health, and profession). EXAMPLE: An adult blacksmith would have 4 hp, but a young child or sickly beggar would have 1 hp.

In contrast, the entry for Bandit assigns 1 HD and better saving throws for those who band together for the purpose of robbing others.

The difference between the two monster entries, I believe, highlights the impact that leading a dangerous life has on the game mechanics. Why would a Bandit potentially have more hit points than an active and fit blacksmith? Not because of any ability to sustain more physical damage but instead, the bandit's dangerous lifestyle has prepared him better for surviving a fight through skill, luck, etc.

The relative power levels between PCs and Normal Humans also shows that, even though low level PCs in B/X are not of heroic power levels, they are still a definite cut above 98% of the population. The fact that magic-users also have d4 for hit points makes sense as they also do not have the martial abilities of the other classes so their hit points being the same as a Normal Human makes sense. The Thieves d4 hit dice is a bit of a puzzler, however. If Bandits have d8 HD why does a Thief only have a d4? My take would be that Bandits are not "skilled" thieves but instead ruffians and other highwaymen that rob through brutishness instead of the more specialized skills of a thief - Bandits would instead be more like the Bandit Hillmen of the Conan sagas.

This also brings to mind a very sword & sorcery type scenario that low level PCs could survive - a village of evil Normal Humans, led by an vile priest or adept who is aided by degenerate snake men (use Lizard Men stats).

Art Used Without Permission

My Tunnels & Trolls

I have often heard/read that if you haven't houseruled T&T you're not actually playing in the spirit of T&T.

As such, if I were to run a T&T campaign right now here are the rules I would use:

1. The base would be 5th edition (but I could easily be talked into 4th due to the lower numbers involved - I find it funny that T&T has some of the "bloat" and "inflation" that D&D players complain about).

2. Add Speed Attribute - useful for fleeing monsters, chase scenes, etc.

3. Wizards - do not get to use any combat adds from strength but could use any weapon. They would still use strength for their spells.

4. Kindreds - I would adopt the 6th edition mechanics for generating attributes so humans get 4d6 and drop lowest. Instead of using the Peters-McAllister chart with attribute multipliers for other kindreds, the number of dice rolled for each attribute changes. For example, the number of 6-sided dice rolled for a dwarf are: Strength 5, IQ 3, Luck 2+1, Constitution 5, Dexterity 3 Charisma 3, Speed 2+2.

5. Talents - All human characters begin play with one talent. The talent should be a word or short phrase that encapsulates an ability, skill or knowledge (or all three).As long as the player can make a logical, interesting or amusing connection between his character’s talent and the task currently being attempted, add + 5 to the relevant Saving Roll (effectively reducing the difficulty level by 1).

6. Combat - I would use Special Damage such as Spite Damage and other monster abilities triggered by rolling 6's.

6a. Combat - I would use the base assumption that the losing side of a round of combat would split the damage taken evenly but I would also allow a SR to try to either protect a party member and therefore take their damage on yourself or to try to force your damage onto another party member (with or without their consent).

My Current RPG Landscape

My 2nd edition AD&D campaign has been a lot of fun so far. I have to say that the new group made up of a couple of players from my old group and a few new players appears to be lots of fun. But, of course, I can never seem to get enough RPGs. A few other things I am thinking about right now:

1. Getting the B/X Online game going again. There seems to be enough interest so it is just a matter of getting schedules lined up. Based on my previous experience I am putting bigger limitations on it this time. My plan is to stick closely to the B/X paradigm of dungeon exploration for levels 1-3, wilderness exploration for levels 4-8, and establishing strongholds after that. Also, not withstanding my recent post on magic items, I am planning on sticking to the rulebooks for treasure and magic items except for new magic items in any published adventures I use.

2. The previously mentioned 2nd edition game is set in Paizo's Golarion. It is a pretty standard D&D-esque setting with all of the usual fantasy tropes. While I really like Golarion, using a standard fantasy setting has made me ponder using other settings for other games. The B/X Online game is set in the Wilderlands. I have also been thinking about using either B/X, T&T, or OD&D for two very different campaign settings.

I have had a sweet spot for the weird fantasy of Scott Driver's old blogs about his World of Thool (which I have archived and his wiki is still available) and his OD&D WIlderlands blog (which I wish I had archived). I would love to play a campaign inspired by Thool, Athanor, Carcosa , Under the Dying Sun, and the writings of Brackett, Dunsany, Hodgson, Merritt, Shaver and Wells.

The second is Middle Earth. Not the Middle Earth of the Lord of the Rings but instead the Wilderlands of the Hobbit. Gandalf is actually Bladorthin and is just some magic-user not some godly-spirit. The Necromancer is just that - an evil wizard with a tower in the forest. Who knows - Blackmoor might be to the north of the Grey Mountains and the Great Kingdom to the south of Mirkwood or maybe to the west of the Edge of the Wild line.

3. I have also been toying with starting a play-by-post game. I have had limited exposure to this type of gaming and only as a player. We will see if I do anything about this one.

Variable Magic Items

I am not a huge fan of static bonus magic items - the sword +1.

A simple formula I work with when developing a magic item is:

1. What benefit does the item provide?

2. When does it provide this benefit?

3. What does this benefit cost?

Some examples:

- The Sword of Final Death - This sword has a +3 bonus to attack rolls against undead. It also always does maximum sword damage (8 + any strength bonus) against undead. However, the wielder of the sword also takes the same amount of damage when an undead creature is hit as the negative life force of the undead creature is absorbed into the wielder's body.

- The Night Helm - Anyone wearing this helm has a 99% chance of hiding in shadows and moving silently when outside at night and the command word is spoken. However, each time it is used the wearer must make a Constitution check with a penalty equal to the cumulative number of times the Helm has been previously used by the wearer. If the Con check is failed the wearer is turned into a Shadow.

Both of these magic items give the user a benefit under certain circumstances but also introduce an element of risk.