Favorite Posts/Blogs of the Week

I've been trying to pay more attention to the blogs I read.  I don't know how many times I read something then want to go back to it and cannot remember where the hell I read it.  So I started writing down a few of my favorites from each week.

My first one I saw this week was from R.W. Chandler of the Black Hole Diaries.  He post a tavern game called Rot Grub Roulette.  Absolutely love this game.  It's horrible and creepy and exactly what stupid drunk adventurers would do.

Ckutalik over at Hill Cantons started a Point of Light Contest.  Being that my campaign is run on this concept I took an interest in this post.  Read the comments.  There is a ton of great entries.

Lastly, Jason Sholtis from UNDERWORLD INK started a brand new blog called The Dungeon Dozen.  I love the concept of the blog.  Each entry is a random table on random subjects.  Jason brings back some respectability for the often forget d12.  Love the tables he's done so far.

I am off this week and looking forward to getting some work done on a couple of my projects.  I hope everyone had, is having a great holiday and then we got another one of those next week.  I love 2fer holidays.

Merry Sleestak Sunday

Enik gets into the Christmas spirit by installing fiber optics into the ancestors' skulls.

I know this one is a little big, but it was the only way to keep it flashy.

A Super New Blog!!

I'm just missing the superhero balloon around that title.  But its true.  Jason Sholtis, OSR artist extraordinaire and all around swell guy has a new blog.  This one is called the Dungeon Dozen.  This blog is not about his art which is already well known and features in his other blog Underworld Ink.

If I'm not mistaken the theme of the blog is the posts list 12 things in a variety of topics.  Some examples are Dungeon Corpses, Unknown Spells, Unfathomable Deities and what are you still reading my blog for click on over to The Dungeon Dozen and join.  He doesn't bite.  Although he does fling poo. 

Spells as Treasure

My players are stuck in an uncivilized land.  When leveling up this hurts the mages the most.  Why?  Because fighters increase their fighting ability, thieves continue to improve their craft and clerics get addition spells by their god.  What about mages?  They level up, but where do they learn their new spells?  There is no guild hall, no secret coven, no lonely tower in the wilderness (at least none that they've found) for the mage to go and learn new spells. 

Now spells become a commodity.  Something that can be traded among a few of the spellcasters that are on the same side.  And those scrolls that are often considered minor treasure become important.  To the mage, the most valued treasure. 

The rules I have in place for my current campaign is a magic-user may transcribe a scroll into a spell book, but it consumes the original scroll.  I pretty loose with the recovery of spells.  Just get a full night's rest and say you're recharging your spells and I'll let you know if all of them are memorized.  The other thing I've added is a version of Rob's (Bat in the Attic) version of ritual casting spells.  Great for utility spells.  Such as a detect magic.  When you're in a hostile environment keeping yourself armed is critical, so using a precious spell slot on a service spell is not often done.  But with the ritual spell, a magic-user can cast a spell by using 10gp of spell components/level of the spell and it takes 1 turn/level of the spell to cast.  Here again, since the players are in an uncivilized area they need to take time to gather the natural spell components available in the woods.  Which I've decided takes 1d2 hours/10gp worth of components.  *On a related note, I had all the players before the start of the game pick a secondary skill, like mason, leatherworker and so on.  If a player chose herbalism or some sort of wilderness skill this time is reduced by half.

I've always liked the idea of spells as earned or found treasure.  I have those spell compendium books so I have a lot of new and interesting spells the players may have never heard of or experienced.  It adds an element of surprise to the casting itself.  It is not a memorized effect.  So the caster will need to experiment a bit to discover the nuances of the spell.

Werestak and My 600th Post

A little known fact that the sleestak are susceptible to lycanthropy.  Despite this, some of their features, such as their large eyes remain intact during the transformation.  Probably the strangest thing is hearing a wolf hiss. 

Yep, that's right this is #600.  What does that mean?  Means I've managed to stick around longer than I thought.  I'll be doing a couple year end blogs looking back on stuff I bought and blogs I've read and written.  Sometimes it seems like I've been doing this forever.  Have a great Sleestak Sunday.  Even you Lurker.

The $1000 Mark Has Been Surpassed

Well I've gone and done it.  I've been keeping a close tally of my year's spending on gaming stuff and it looks like I have officially gone over $1000.  Trey's Weird Adventures was the temptation that put me over.  A thousand is it a lot, but I have no regrets.  I don't smoke or drink so my indulgence is gaming material.

This year is coming to an end, but there are still a few things I would like to get.  That total may get a little higher.  Ivy is in the background chanting "Now I can get my Vitamix.  Now I can get my Vitamix."  So she has ulterior motives in her support of my gaming habit.

I just saw Weird Adventures hit #8 on RPGNow.  Go buy a copy and make it #1.  I haven't read it yet, but since I follow Trey's blog I know it's going to be great.

A Stellar Week for the OSR

It's been a pretty good release week for the OSR.  The long awaited Weird Adventures by Trey, From the Sorcerer's Skull blog.  It is available in PDF, but if you want it in print *raising my hand* then you'll have to  wait until after the New Year.  I plan on getting both.  This is one I've been waiting to get my hands on for some time.  The PDF runs $10.99.  No word on how much the print will be. 

Second, James Raggi had double release of Carcosa and The Isle of the Unknown.  There is a long line waiting to get these.  I think it's smart to do the double release.  More than likely gamers will purchase both and save on some shipping.  The LotFP machine rolls on.  I would give you the price, but its in euros and James is has discounts so go check it out and buy yourself a very cool Christmas present.

Third, lesser known than the two above, but I think just as significant, is the first release by Dylan Hartwell over at the Digital Orc blog.  He took the plunge and decided to produce and sell his product, The Blasphemous Brewery of Pilz!.  He wrote and did the art.  The artwork is great, reminds me of old Judges Guild drawings.  At $2.99 go check it out and let him know.  Support a fellow OSRer.  (OSRer? I'll go with it.) 
 
And I am so damn jealous I did not get in on those Dungeonmorph Dice.  Those look great.  Everyone involved in that project did an excellent job.

Have a great Saturday.  And don't forget the buy some OSR goodness for Christmas.

A Monster of Monsters

The other day I asked a question on Google+ if anyone had used the Tarrasque in their game.  Most had, one even said it was a playable class which boggles the mind and sounds fun as hell.  Recently in my campaign the players were exploring one thing and ended up seeing the Tarrasque free itself from hibernation.  They're not sure what to think of it other than not to get in its way at this point.  I know what I am doing with it and how to use it, but I was thinking of different ways such a creature could be used in a campaign.

First, it is a force of nature, destroying everything in its path.  It eats and sleeps.  It's only purpose is to eat and sleep.  There is no grand scheme to its actions other than that.

Second, it is a force of nature that does have a purpose.  When things get unbalanced, because we all know nature is neutral and loves balance, this big boy comes out to play to set the scales equal.

Third, a god pet.  Release the Kracken kind of thing.

Fourth, a prehistoric god itself who has outlived all its followers and now seen only as a abomination.

And I am sure there are a billion other back stories you could give this big boy.  I'm still working on the mythology for mine.  I've got most of it figured out, but still looking for some tasty bits.  So if you have any Tarasque stores and feel like sharing please do.  I want to peek at your ideas and maybe steal some ideas.

At least I am an honest thief.

I've Hijacked Tim's Blog

Yeppers.  I'm taking over this blog and offering gamers 20% off their entire purchase at My Blanket Shoppe.  Hope you take a look-see.

Coupons expire 11:59PM (12.18.2011). As always, Free Shipping within the continental US. And please remember to add your coupon code GAMERDISCOUNT, when asked at the end.

In other news, Tim's due home soon.  Paprika chicken and sweet tea for lunch.  And for the pups, homemade ice cubes.  Nums, nums for all.

Merry Christmas & Happy Gaming.

Thanks Bunches,
 --Whisk

Necklace of Second Chances

Last night the game ended with the party battered and one member rescued from the brink of death.  One of the interesting treasures the players discovered was a necklace with three cubes (I found the picture by google ganking and I was surprised to have a choice of three cubed necklaces).  For now it is called the Necklace of Second Chances.

The Necklace of Second Chances makes the saving throw for the player automatically.  Here's how it works.  Each cube can hold up to six charges represent by a rune appearing on one of the sides of the cube.  To charge the cubes requires Viz.

Viz is a physical manifestation of magic that occurs naturally in nature.  Also creatures with magical abilities have viz charged parts that can be harvested.  And some mages can create viz. Viz can be use in place of a spell slot.  One viz will allow a magic-user or illusionist to cast a 1st level spell without losing the spell.  The viz is consumed on use.

The cubes can be separated into necklaces to the number of cubes it has.  The one they found had three.  With each viz one charge is absorbed into the cube and a rune will appear.

Not all saving throws are the same.  If a player is bit by a giant centipede one charge is used to make the save.  If an ancient red dragon bears down on the player with a full blast of fire it may require six or more charges.  There is not set number of charges for the different saves.  The GM can determine that.

The only drawback is if a save is required the necklace will automatically use the charge if available.  The player has no control of when it is used.  If the necklace is worn it is in play.  The only time it will not use its charges is if the save requires more charges than the cube(s) has available.  So if the players necklace only has one charge when that red dragon breathes on him the necklace can do nothing to help.

These necklaces require contact with the person or creature they are protecting.  So having it in a backpack or pouch will not help. 

Very few of the necklaces exist.  The cubes themselves can be made of nearly any material.  Most are made of metal, but bone and wood have also been used.  So when the cubes are empty of charges they look like a normal cube and can be easily overlooked.

In my campaign I give 1000xp for the first time the players find and discover the use of the necklace.  Market value is determined by the location of where they try to sell and to whom they try to sell it.

Sleestak Sunday

Even the Sleestak get sad when their elder gods tell them no.  This one is not allowed to play in the pylons for a week. 

This Just In

Hey, lookie what I found in my mailbox.  I'm very excited about coming home tonight and looking through it.  I know I'll be rolling  an adventure just to see what happens.  As the owner of the first two books, if the second two are just as good I'll be one happy gamer.  By the way, this book came to me in excellent shape.  No dings, dents or scratches.

Knowledge Illuminates Sale, Sales

Please move along if you have no interest in this, but I like to do sales updates.  Since I put Knowledge Illuminates for sale on the 24th of November I've sold 10 more.  That puts the total sold to 97.  Out of 97, 14 were comp copies and 83 were sold.  That brings my gross total to $291 and my net is $189.15.  So though it didn't get near the total I spent for the year it certainly had fun exploring with it.  When I have that credit at RPGNow I am more likely to take a chance on a product and pick up things I would like to see.  Which I did a lot this year.

I want to thank those ten who took advantage of the sale and hope you enjoy the adventure. If you end up using it let me know how it went.

Well that's all for a Tuesday night.  I'll be doing a game summary of last nights game. They discovered the big bad secret.

Town Name Generator

I found this Town Name Generator messing around on the web.  I'll add to my gaming links section.  It looks like it can be used for fantasy or modern.