Past Year in the Manor

I didn't do this last year and not sure if I did one of these year end posts ever, but for some reason I feel like doing one this year.  I think its been a good year overall for my gaming.  Bought too much stuff again, but you'll have that.  My vices are few, but intense and one of them is gaming stuff.  Here are some general numbers for Gothridge Manor this year.

Number of Reviewed Products:16
Crawl! No. 8: Firearms
Tombstones of Terror
Life of Rage OSR Edition
Adventures Dark and Deep: A Curious Volume of Forgotten Lore
Rory's Story Cubes
Adventure Fantasy Game
Verloren
World War Z
6 Iron Spikes & a Small Hammer
Gnomes of Levnec
Lair of the Orc Shaman
Kefitzat Haderech
Citadel by the Sea
Moleskin Maps 4
Moleskin Maps 3
Menagerie of the Ice Lord

I'm glad to see I did at least 16 reviews.  I would like to do more this coming year. 

Number of Maps Posted: 21
Little Laminated Maps
Mini Map Time!
Map Time! and a Question
Map Time!
Map Time!
Campaign Map Funneling
Mega-Dungeon Map Time!
Map Time...I Know, Again
Map Time.  Again!
Map Time! 
Campaign Map Time!
Map Time!
Map Time!
Map Time!
Map Time!
Map Time!
Map Time!
Map and Adventure Under Construction
Map Transformation
Map Time!
Dungeon Map

I hope my maps were a little more creative than the post titles.

My Favorite Chart:
Mr. Blue created this chart for my Manors.  So cool.

Ha!  Really love this chart.  Mr. Blue, I would love to see an updated version.

Products Released this Year:  6
February, The Manor #3
April, Mini Manor: Faces Without Screams released for Swords & Wizardry Appreciation Day.
July, The Manor #4
August, Where is Margesh Blackblood?
November, Manor #5
December, Execution Corner

I'm very happy with the the number of releases I had during the year.  In 2014 I would like to get four issues of the Manor released along with side projects.

Things I Failed to Follow Through With:  2
NaNoWriMo
Commenter XP

While I did not follow through with NaNoWriMo I did get a lot of writing done and it got me started on a couple of projects.  Commenter XP became too much paperwork although I want to do something in the future that is much easier to calculate. 

Conventions Attended:  1
Con on the Cob

I'd like to get into a couple more cons next year or at least game days.  And I hope not to get sick as hell next time.

Most Visited Posts
Campaign Map Funneling - 975
Friday Question: Diseases - 974
1000 Posts - OSR Mega Bundle Giant Giveaway - 854
Mega-Dungeon Map Time! - 734
Thoughts on How to Keep a Mega-Dungeon Interesting - 720

The Map Funneling and Diseases numbers were greatly enhanced by my linking them to Reddit.  Still, I've seen a large increase in hit this year. 

Best Event at the Manor
1000 Posts - OSR Mega Bundle Giant Giveaway

This was amazing.  So many people donated to my giveaway to make it a bug event.  People I'd never spoken to before were very generous and I was able to give four people 15 different PDFs and RPGNow gift cards.  

On-Going Posts
Sleestak Sunday
Friday Question
Map Time! 
GM Games Sales Reports

Sleestaks are getting harder to find these days, but I do enjoy the hunt.  Friday questions always seem to get a good response.  Map Time!, who doesn't love maps?  And the GM Games report is a peek at my numbers and how I do things.  Sometimes good, sometimes not so good. 

Blog Gamers I Met Over the Year:  5
+Ken H - The Rusty Battle Axe
+Chris C. - The Clash of Spear on Shield
Dylan Hartwell - Digital Orc
+Bryce Lynch - 10 Foot Pole
imredave - Forgotten Runes
+Dan C. - The Dungeoneering Dad

All of these fine folks I met at Con on the Cob.  I even managed to get Chris join our Money night group....sucker.

Thanks to everyone who takes time out of their day to check out Gothridge Manor.  Here's to the new year and all the cool gaming stuff it will bring.

Early Sleestak Sunday

This picture comes from The DeviantMakepeace.  Sleestak have surrounded the the kids from the Ark.  I barely remember the Ark show.  I think I even had a big wheel version of the ark when I was wee.  Surprisingly I recognized the kids and their uniforms.  The ark kids are moments from being slung up in a net and fed the moaning sleestak god in the ever smoking pit.

Map Time! Double Time!

A couple more mini maps on 4" x 6" cards using Sharpies and colored pencils.  I've been liking the smaller canvas.  I can pump out more and use the scanning process to make them larger. 

Loot in the Mail

When Lulu had its 40% off and free shipping and needed to get something even though I put a temporary halt to my game spending, holidays and all.  But with both coupons I had to get something.

I have a ton of the books from Lulu so I wanted to pick something completely different.  As in, something I hadn't heard of or tried.  Still a gaming book.  Let's not get all weird.  I found Fantastic Heroes & Witchery.  +Timothy Brannan suggested I take a look at it and on his suggestion I bought it.  With a name like Tim, how could he be wrong?

A Review at a Glance
Just got it in the mail about an hour ago and I really like what I see in the contents.  I bought the paperback version.  While it is a retro-rpg it looks like its taking on a few curves and backroads not normally traveled.  The class section looks interesting and something I am extremely interested in at this time.

The layout is very nice.  Double column deal with good art.  Most of the art looks to have been purchased on on-line or public domain pieces, but I think used well.  And what I think is original artwork is very nice.  EDIT: Tim Brennan said the author did much of the artwork inside.  Even better.  Cover is simple and cool.  A mage pissing his pants while a fighter is wondering if he shoves the mage into the dragon's mouth if that will give him enough time to get away.  The print is nice and dark, easy to read. 

I'm very excited to sit down with this 400+ page bad boy and have a look at it.  So far I am giving Fantastic Heroes & Witchery a healthy thumbs up.

If you want to grab a copy here are a couple of links to go surf the ether.
The paperback version will cost you $24.62.
The hardback version will cost you $36.22.

A Pre-Adventure, Adventure

Picture by LuigiL

I continue to shape the campaign world I'm working on.  I plan on running my first adventure in January sometime.  A playtest of sorts.  I'll have the guys start with 0-level guys, kinda of like DCC style, they will have items that reflect their background and of course be incredibly susceptible to the world around them.  Creating a couple of characters would be a good idea.

I "plan" on running a coming of age adventure.  The theme will focus on these very young adventurers coming together as they go through a rite to adulthood by completing the Trutoro Pilgrimage.  So it will be a pre-adventure, adventure.  It will give the players a little background, an introduction of the people they will be dealing with and the world in general.  I guess you could compare it to Harry Potter going off to Hogwarts, except I don't get a billion dollars.

I've got ideas for the pilgrimage.  Some I've gotten from historical references, culture rites of passage and a good portion is my own made up stuff.  I like the idea of having adventures before the players become adventurers.  In the past I ran a session or two with each player individually to give their character a sense of history, an identity beyond the group.  It also helped to establish contacts, friends and develop enemies or at least competitors. 

Off to work.  It's a weird Friday since very few will be there.  I've loaded up my iPod and plan to zone out to some tunes and catch up on paperwork.  That's the plan.  But like most plans, I imagine it will be blown to shit within 15 minutes.

Art in My Mailbox

Right before Christmas I stopped by the post office, which was surprisingly empty, and got my mail.  There was a little yellow slip inside which means I got a package.  A yellow slip is a good thing.  It means books or packages of fun stuff and maybe presents.  I had no idea what this yellow slip was for.  The only thing I could think of was one of the card kickstarters I backed finally delivered...ah, no. 

It was better.

It was a slim cardboard envelope from Ireland.  Jay Penn, art guy who drew the cool picture for the cover of issue 5 of the Manor, sent me something?  I got into my car and opened it up and saw this.

No way! 

Way!  How cool is that.  Jay sent me the original piece.  What a cool and surprising gift for the holiday.  I need to get some frames for all the work Jay has sent.  And I need to clear off some wall space to get them hung.  Thank you Jay for your work and generosity.   It's going on the wall.

Santa is Just Another Red Shirt On Any Other Day

Taking Over My Husband's Blog

You know what I love about not being at work?  Means I get to stay home, hack into my husband's blog and give it a little makeover.  Some lights.  A few falling Santas.  Really brightens the place up.

Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go make a big pile of almond pizzelles for Tim. I'm going to use them as leverage to get him to help me clean out the fridge, tomorrow.   If that doesn't work I'll just take my top off.  That ALWAYS works.

 

Frink'n Santas on My Blog

I'm at work and eating mash potatoes.  I click on my blog to check out what everyone is writing and a see a Santa fall.  Then another.  Frick'n Santas all over my blog. 

IVY!

Sleestak Sunday

Hey, a little sleestak from Angela Oster.  She's got lots o little skinny drawings on her site. 

Xerography Debt Reviews The Manor

In issue #34 of Xerography Debt Joel Biel reviewed the first three issues of The Manor. I thought it was an interesting review being it was from someone that I don't believe is associated with the OSR or even know what it is.  Here's the review.

This is a zine of homemade role-playing game adventures and rules supplements.  Very cool.  These have been pouring into my life lately.  The feeling of the adventures here is very small town and reminds me of the sort of made-for-TV horror movies of the 1980s or HP Lovecraft in the fact that a single creature like a Ghoul or Troglodyte is the ringleader terrorizing people unfamiliar with encountering monsters, rather than dozens of goblins or a dragon or a Lich.  It's encouraging, like it elevates the characters and role-playing rather than building to one campaign-defining combat sequence where the characters expect to win.  He writes elaborate personalities for the people who work at the potion shop and defines the economy around it and the public's various reactions, creating interactions around what, in my experience, is normally treated as the most mundane part of role-playing: shopping.  Smuggler's Inn is given a similar treatment along with an adventure that may result from your stay.  #3 include "Mine of Rot & Disease," another adventure whose title should likely not be revealed to your players!  Again, it's conceptually creative, redeeming a few cliched themes to catch your players off guard.  Lastly, we are treated to Pog Nog, a goblin street vender who specializes in things you just can't seem to find anywhere else...and numerous role-playing possibilities how things could go wrong with dealing with him!

There is probably close to a hundred reviews in Xerography Debt.  As first I couldn't find the review.  Luckily it has an index in the back.  I'm going to dig around in it and see what other zines look interesting.

Little Laminated Project Maps

I've been drawing maps on 4" x 6" note cards.  Then recently I released Execution Corner as a quick location based on one of the maps.  I liked how it worked.  I was messing with the write up and wondered if I could fit it on the back of the note card.  Map on front info on the back.

The Sharpies bled through the note cards.  Printing on the back would look bad and unreadable.  So I printed the descriptions on a second note card.  It's an 8 font, tiny, but I still think readable.  I couldn't figure out how to combine the two.  Then my better half suggest I laminate them together.  Fricking brilliant.  I don't have a lamination machine...but work does.

I scored the lamination machine at work. 

There is a hand drawn map on front and description on back.  This particular on is a two set map.  Outside the mine entrance and the second is a map of the inside.  I placed the two note cards back to back and put them through the machine and wa la, I have a single, sturdy little adventure.  Can spill water on it, mark it and erase.  I think it's pretty cool.

I'm sending out a few out to random folks.  I don't have many maps and each one is unique.  No copies are made.  There will only be one of what I send out.

I don't think much will come of this, but its a cool exercise.  Playing with the presentation of an adventure and I learned how to use the lamination machine.  Might just have to add that to office equipment I need. 

Lulu 40%, Help Me!

Okay, Lulu's got a 40% off coupon.  I need suggestions.  I have already bought a ton of stuff from there, but looking for something I may have missed or fell off my radar.  Help me choose!

Game Night: The Demonic Squid

Last night was game night, and our party fresh with a purpose set off.  A secret door was found.  A large underground lake.  Then a demonic, giant squid appeared.  That fresh purpose was quickly forgotten by Adzeer, who relished the idea of sending this monstrosity back from whence it came.  Only it looked more like this...

Adzeer was nearly a snack.  The others, more intelligently, stayed back and assisted with spells and missile attacks.  Never fear though, Adzeer survived to battle another day, but the demonic squid did also.

We managed to stumble upon a small stash of treasure.  Some very good items there.  A talking sword that will provide lots of entertainment in the hands of our little dim witted thief.

When the session ended the party was 20' from where we started.