Best OSR Cartographers

A video about some my favorite cartographers in the game. This is not an exhaustive list, but the ones I go to the most and ones that have influenced my style of maps. 

If there is someone who needs to be on this list please add their name in the comments. 

Enjoy! 

Indexing Adventures

June 11th, 2014 I started my Patreon. 1While I haven't been active during the past half year or so I've accumulated 110 micro-adventures, 37 micro-locations, 43 NPC cards  and 2 collections of Shadowdark magic items. Through those years I've written for different systems starting with Swords & Wizardry Complete, Swords & Wizardry Continual Light, Old School Essentials and most recently, Shadowdark.

Nearly all have a place within my home campaign of the Komor Forest. Joe the Lawyer has been on my ass about combining them all. 

While I am no place to do a setting compilation I am cataloging everything I have created on Patreon and my other products over the years. What I am creating an index. I go through each one and detail the place type of the adventure (i.e. crypt, forest ruins ect...) enemies, any new thing I introduce such as gods, items and magic items, relics, spell reagents, disease, groups and places of note. 

It's been interesting returning to the old adventures. I've forgotten a lot. It'll be good to have them organized so I can finally have a definitive guide to the Komor Forest. This will allow me to generate more content that will relate to other pieces I've written and allow me to funnel down into my world mythology.

If your interested in checking out my work, my world please join me at https://www.patreon.com/gothridge. I'm going to tell you secret. To get access to my content. All of it, you don't even have to join. Don't tell anyone. All my PDFs are free to grab, but if you'd like physical copies check out the pledge levels. 

Hope you'll join and partake in some fun nonsense. 

GM's Day Sale Picks

It's March. That means RPG Drivethru is having its GM Day Sale! I've got a couple, a few, a whole lot of good picks for you. Here are four that jumped up and bit me. All the links included in this post affiliate links. 

Here are my Shadowdark selections.

Here's and interesting entry from Rune & Relic Press, Formoria. Formoria is a setting that was developed through actual play. It's an interesting look at 4th century Europe and integrating the historical aspect into a setting. If you like to run pseudo-historical setting Formoria is a great place to get inspiration.

Another kick ass offering from Chubby Funster, his GM Companion for Shadowdark. This book is packed with GM tools to elevate your game. Tools for hex crawl. Generate shops. Tavern and drinks. Lots of dungeon options. It'll enhance your game on all levels.

 

Fantastic GM Tools!

Sandbox Generator is a book I use a lot. A lot, a lot. You can make short of developing a hex crawl for your party. I've written all through my book adding and changing, tweaking it to fit my campaign. It is a fantastic book.

A Kevin Crawford offering, Worlds Without Numbers. Kevin sets the standard for quality gaming products and I think Worlds Without Numbers is the best. I run fantasy games and this one suits what I do. Tons of random tables to generate a ton of content. Its a lot of fun to grab your dice and start creating. 

Players Companion for Shadowdark

 

This post includes affiliate links. 

A grabbed a copy of Greg Christopher's Player Companion for Shadowdark a while back. And since then it has been my go-to third-party reference book. Let me give you the stats.

20 New Backgrounds

24 New Ancestries

36 New Classes

A gi-gundo amount of new equipment, armor and weapons

A breakdown for poisons

and spell catalysts that add an entirely new element to spellcasting

One of the main questions that I was asked if the new classes stepped on the toes of the four classes in the primary rulebook. Greg intends them to be drop-in replacement for the existing classes and ancestries. I'm not one that worries about class protection. I see the main classes as templates to build upon. A warrior in one region will look different from the typical warrior from another region. The differences are what adds the distinct flavor/feel of a campaign. Greg has provided different ways to do this. 

I am also a huge fan of his expanded equipment list. Always have been. Back when he penned Ambition and Avarice my favorite section was the equipment section. He provides a lot of diversity to how a character can interact with their environment. 

Players Companion is affordable priced at DriveThru RPG.

PDF is $8

Soft Cover + PDF is $9

Hard Cover + PDF is $15

If you like Shadowdark you can't go wrong getting a copy.

Creating a Hex Crawl Series

I've seen several people doing the 30 days/30 dungeons or variations. I love the idea, but I know my ability to focus on one series for that long is absent. I've been watching this guy Flint Fireforge doing his series keeping it simple. He draws a map...as an aside his maps make me hurt inside. They're all wonky and skewed and jacked. Now I think he does it because he knows. He is a spiteful dwarf. But he's trucking along doing one everyday. Map. 2d6 rooms. He rolls from various tables to get the idea for the dungeon. Check out Paul's (aka Flint) videos. He's oozes enthusiasm. Maybe I should stat Paul as an ooze. I heard he was kinda sticky.

And then there is this knucklehead. Matt Jackson. Need I say more? He looks to be doing the Dungeon 25. I believe that's where you map a dungeon room per day. Matt has his unique style of maps and adds a write up for each of the rooms. Below is a sample of his entries. Now don't tell Matt this, but he has a great way expressing his idea through his maps and layout. Always approachable and fun. Click the picture for the link. 

I'm sure there are others, but these are the two I am following right now. 

And then there is me. After watching Paul's videos and knowing my attention span limitations I decided to take the idea and make it more suited for me. I am generating a hex flower (a term I believe ChicagoWiz coined) hex crawl. I am generating geographical locations, settlements and some of the its and bobs. So this series of videos shows how I generate content for a hex crawl and then constructing adventures, sometimes dungeons, within the context of the surroundings. If creating hew crawls interests you please click the picture and the internet will whisk you away to my playlist. I'll add one or two a week. 

If you are creating 30 days/30 Dungeons or the Dungeon 25 please let me know. 

Waiting to Exist

What is this little underground complex? A basement. A dungeon of some sorts? Maybe a resupply station? Or a prison? Maybe. Maybe all of them. It's a place that has travelled through time becoming what it needed to be for those who decided to give it purpose. It has echoes of those who walked the corridors years before. The notches in the wall are where the sconces used to be until the iron rusted and flaked away bit by bit until only the holes in the stone remain. Over in the corner, or what used to be a corner, is not an opening and the ground has fallen within. A clear violation of the contract of earth. Walls are to keep the outside out and protect the insides from the outsides. 

Despite all of what it was. What is it now? It lingers between existing and not existing. No one remembers this place. No one knowns of this place. It is a forgotten space. 

The contract of earth was violated again. The ground gave way during the heavy rains this season. The ground slid away revealing a section of the walls. Now it waits. It waits for someone, something to notice. It waits to exist. 

As chance would have it, this underground complex was found by a series of actions and accidents. A halfling by the name of Hobbs was bored as he stood in line waiting to enter the northern gates of Scorn. As he whistled, annoying those around him, he saw a shiny tucked into the belt of an older man in front of him. He estimated he was a merchant, by the smell of him, some sort of spice merchant. Good boots. Must do well. His mule's bags were empty. Must have sold his wares. Probably a heavy purse somewhere in the mule packs, but it was the distinct glint of gold that transfixed the halfling. He looked around. A few people, but they looked tired. Fieldhands covered in dirt, exhausted from their day toiling under an unforgiving sun. 

Hobbs heard someone approach the spice merchant. He kept his eyes averted to avoid showing interest in him. A quick, sharp exchange with a woman who asked if she could get a drink of water for herself and her child. He told the woman to get away from him. Hobbs smiled. The justification to steal from this man was granted. 

With a quick, quiet step, Hobbs slid the object from the man's belt as he fussed with a saddlebag on his mule. Hobbs heard the jingle of coins. Hobbs froze as he heard the coins. Sound like a lot. Muffled. Large sack crowded with coin. 

The hesitation, distraction of coin, was enough to allow the merchant to see Hobbs standing uncomfortably close to him. "Get away from me you foul half of a man." He sinched the mule pack tightly closed. Then absently checked himself and found the object missing. "Thief!" He shouted. 

Reflex took over. Hobbs vanished in front of the man and ran toward the forest edge. Behind him he heard the merchant shouting for the guards. The others in line cheered as Hobbs fled. A smile crawled over Hobbs's mouth as he entered the forest. His preternatural ability to vanish would quickly give way to the natural order of things and reveal Hobbs. He tucked behind a tree and felt the invisibility slide away. There were no voices nearby. In the distance the merchant continued to shout. Demanded the others in line to help him with finding his thief. 

Satisfied with himself, Hobbs trekked deeper into the forest turning south. He'd just take an hour to walk and enter through the southern gate. His friend Big John would be working, harass him, but it was worth it. It was dark in forest but Hobbs wanted to see what he acquired.

The ground gave way and he slid a few feet before hitting the stone wall. The stone caught him under the ribs knocking the breath from his body. The pain flared and he dropped the object. Hobbs attempted to curse, but all he managed was a desperate gasp for air.

After waiting a few minutes his breath returned. He scrambled to find what he dropped, but it was too dark and there was so much mud. With the dark came the cold. He wanted to light a torch to find his treasure, but feared it would give away his location. After a short search Hobbs couldn't feel his fingers. 

Hobbs noted the location as best he could before tromping toward the southern gate. Any trace of triumph vanished. Mood soured. Aggravated. And worst of all, hungry.

Hobbs returned the next morning expecting to find the location, but didn't. Hobbs is thief of the city, not one for exploring wilderness. His confidence in his abilities was unjustified. 

With this act, the underground complex came into existence. It now exists in Hobbs's mind as he obsessed where it is. Before to long others discovered it. Today the underground has consumed the lives of small animals, a woman gathering herbs, and an unarmed elf who believed he'd found an undiscovered place he could loot.

It waits to be told what to be.

A Walk-Thru of Unnatural Selection

I received my copy of Unnatural Selection the other day and decided to do a video walk-thru. I travel through each section giving an overview of one of biggest 3rd party releases for Shadowdark.

https://youtu.be/Z7Hje2OFTS4

#19 Winter's Tax

The party is split. Not of their own doing, but split none the less. Last session found the spellcasters Bloggah and Dremont in an undisclosed destination. Within the ancient cavern they fought an old-time roper. I haven't used one of those in decades. The roper used Bloggah as a rag doll for a bit. Dremont tried to cast a few spells, but finally used his hammer and smashed his was to victory. Just in time to save his limp, little buddy from the grave reapers. 

On the other intellectually challenged side of the party was Tarin and Columbo. These meatheads were bushwhacked by cultists of a rival demon. Yes, Columbo pledged an allegiance to a demon Ostun. Demons are not known for playing well with others. The cultists harassed with arrows and swords, but it was a well placed fireball that did them in. Columbo likes to carry flasks of oil on his person. Well those caught fire also. Tarin peed on him to reduce the damage. Yes, he peed on him. I think Columbo liked it. Then Tarin went down. Cultist whittled his snizzle. Columbo managed to endure all the damage and push back the remaining cultists. 

The spellcaster escaped with the help of 8' tall dwarf. One of those original dwarves. Jimmie, a name he took from a fallen adventurer who wasn't using it anymore. Jimmie showed them the way out, but asked they help him cross over into their world. They pink swore. Then found themselves in the Komor Forest in an area they knew.

The bloodied and burned meatheads tucked their tails and are returning to Scorn. Columbo has an idea for a torch condom he plans to sell to the world. 

If this amuses you please join us because we have a great time. While we may be old men we still laugh like a bunch of middle-school kids jacked up on too much sugar and caffeine. 

Join us on Mondays 7pm EST and have some fun. Extra XP to those who heckle Joe. 

City of Scorn

City of Scorn is one of the centerpieces in my current Shadowdark Campaign. I've never spent the time to draw each sector. Each of those black squares is not a building, but a block that could have several buildings. So its a lot. I've been drawing a few of the blocks out. Out of need. 

Here is a sample of Sector 54. It has eight blocks broken down into the different buildings. It provides a lot of details like main streets, secondary streets and alleyways. I created a list of 120 business, professions, and other miscellaneous types of services to determine what is in each block. I have six d20 tables. Each block I roll a d4 to determine how many of the buildings I will determine what they are. Some have generic names, like maps to signify this is a cartography shop, but I couldn't think of a name I liked. Some do have detailed names.

I leave a good portion of the buildings blank for future use. 

Join Us

Each week, Mondays at 7pm EST, Joe, Vance, Ken and Paul get together as I run them through my ShadowDark Campaign. There is a lot of interaction and general chaos. Hope you'll join us. 

 

Far Away Land 2nd Edition Kickstarter is Amazing

Fay Away Land RPG Ed. 2 is now Kickstarting! It funded quick and has 22 days remaining as of this post. It is a unique setting and RPG that reeks of fun.

Dirk Stanley released the first edition 10 years ago and I remember playing it and having a blast. The artwork you'll find reflects the whimsical nature of Far Away Land. While I am a veteran of RPGs this game made me feel like a kid again exploring places and fighting monsters where I had no idea what to expect. It's got gonzo elements from everywhere. 

Far Away Land has already zoomed past two of the stretch goals. 

The first is png files of the monsters so you can print them out and show them to your players. I guarantee you'll get a laugh and the players will wonder what the heck it can do. 

The second stretch goal is one of my favorites, hex map icons! These are fricking cool! No, I mean cool, cool. Colorful and quirky, and over 400 different elements. Whoever makes maps with these its going to look fantastic.

The third stretch goal is absolute candy. A digital generator for monsters, PCs, settlements and more things to come. He's just shy of this goal and I have no doubt Dirk will crush it before it's over. 

If you need more convincing, Dirk has a Facebook group dedicated to Far Away Land so you can see all of what he has to offer. 

Please check out Far Away Land, you won't regret it. Unless you don't like having fun. If you do back on of the best gaming creators we have.

Session Zero

I'm starting a new ShadowDark Campaign. Four players. Roll 20. Mondays 7pm to 10pm. And for the first time, for me, livestreaming the games on YouTube. Something I, and the others, swore never to do. But here we are. 

Session Zero(s)

Each time I start a new campaign I like running one-on-one sessions for each player coming into the the game. I feel this is the best way to get players invested into a campaign world by allowing them to create relationships independently from the party. They can carry these into the game and their significance lasts as long as the player wishes it to last. Here is a quick list of things I try to address during a session zero. 

• This time around players rolled up their characters independently. Expect Joe. I have to keep an eye on Joe.
• I have a handful of house rules and go over them and answer any questions.
• We discuss the particulars of the character. Sometimes (rarely) do they have goals or traits that would drive them. Old school players tend to go light on this because the character could die before Charisma is rolled. 
• I usually do short write ups about their character and how he or she fits into the campaign world. This includes what knowledge the character would possess going in. A guide. A short one. One of the frustrations I always had as a player is going into a campaign world then doing something my character would have known not to do. Well. Maybe.
• I introduce NPCs through a role-play. Who knows the character. Friend and foe. Possibly and employer. Family. A pet. Whatever jives with the character.
• The latter half of the session is used to go exploring. A short adventure. I use this time to work out kinks in the character and to explore the system of combat and how house rules come into play. This is not going to be a deadly adventure (but damn near). 
• My session zero can creep into two sessions. I think two sessions are the best. I think a lot of character building can happen in those sessions.
• Then the characters come together. With them they carry their own experiences, friends, enemies and knowledge separate from the group. I believe this adds a nice dynamic to play.

Let me present you the cast of characters. When I say characters I mean the players.

JoetheLawyer. A master level shit stirrer and moocher. My cohort on Monday nights where we talk about gaming things. Soon to be transformed into the ShadowDark game. He rolled excellent. He made Columbo a dwarven fighter. His name theme is of 70s TV detectives. Joe decided not to roll up a backup character because he is overconfident in his ability to keep his characters alive. 

Paul aka Flint Fireforge on YouTube. Paul is new to the group. I do like introducing and getting a new player into my games. Paul played in a couple of one shots and fit right in. Glad to have him along for the ride. Paul is playing Elinar Digby an elf witch. Digby the name. His backup character is Wulf a half-orc wizard. 

Ken, who used to author The Rusty Battle Axe blog in the way back. Ken is my veteran player. He's been in many of my games and I've been in his games. Ken always comes up with great characters. He chose to play...well, I don't know. He hasn't sent them to me. It's always the ones that you've played with for years that take advantage of you. 

Lastly, Vance A of the Leicester's Ramble blog has joined the group. Known Vance for years and we've played on and off, but I think this is the first long campaign he's joined. I think. He's decided to play Bolggah a goblin wizard. We got together earlier this week and ran through his session zero. That'll be the next post. And his backup character is Estol an elven priest. 

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So that is how I use my session zero. I'm aware a character may die quickly. I don't fudge dice and sometimes it sucks when a PC goes down, but that's part of the fun playing an deadly game. 

ShadowDark Magic Items

The next campaign I run will use the ShadowDark RPG. I'm not sure when that'll be (I'm hoping a little later this year), but ShadowDark is my choice. I've only experienced it with one-shots. I want to kick the tires on a campaign. 

ShadowDark is a grim, gritty, and other words that begin with g system. It is geared for low-level play, only going to 10th level in the rulebook. There are several low-level magic items included. Some familiar, some not so much. I needed to play around with creating a few of my own. Here is a quartet of magic items I offered on my Patreon. The PDF is free to grab. Some folks prefer the actual item can join and get some cool stuff in the mail. 

These magic items are very specific to my setting, but adjusting them to your setting would only take a little elbow grease. I just thought to myself younger people have no idea what elbow grease means. 

A trio of artists with their fanatic black and white artwork made these cards possible. Carlos Castillho did two of the pieces, Daniel Whitehall, and William McAusland. I used the format of ShadowDark and I like the section dedicated to the history of the item. It helps ground the item within a setting.

I hope this finds everyone well and gaming. Enjoy.

Fun Facts About Medieval Stairways

I'm always writing adventures of some sort and I like to explore the intricate details of  'things' in an attempt to ground the adventure with these details. My Pintrest has a section dedicated to the anatomy and or terminology of things. Tonight, I was checking for names of stair parts. I went down a shallow rabbit hole and thought I'd share some of the things I thought were interesting. I have no idea if these are fact or fiction. 

• Stairs were build in tight, steep spirals when castles were fortifications, before they became noble homes. 
• Stairs were built clockwise. To give the defenders an advantage. They assumed the majority of soldiers would be right-handed. Some militaries required their men to fight ambidextrous. I've never read this before, but I think it could make an interesting nuisance.  
• The above fact is disputed (but still cool) and some say stairways were built clockwise so folks could run their hand on the righthand wall for balance. To compensate for the too-much-grog-walk?
• Some argue that the newel staircases are so small with no handrails that there was no room for swinging weapons (although it would be a hell of place for a dagger fight) and both combatants would fall to their deaths. A step does1d6 damage. 
• One other point, I think the best one, if the attackers are already inside running up the stairs, the fight is lost. The attackers are now mopping up and looking for loot. 
• Steps were built uneven. This gave defenders 'homefield' advantage as they were accustom to the idiosyncrasies of the steps and could take advantage of the situation when an attacker tripped on the uneven step. Also known as a trip step.

If you have any other fun facts about castle stairs please let me know. I was looking around and these seemed to be the ones that came up frequently. 

Resurrecting My Channel With ShadowDark

It's been a minute since I've posted here. Took a little dusting and a few repairs to get The Manor ready for company. I've been wanting to find a different creative channel and I went back to YouTube. I had a handful of videos, the last of which I post over 5 years ago. But I thought I would give YouTube another go. 

I'm starting off with an Unboxing of ShadowDark. I received my box of goodies and turned on the camera. What better time to start now. There is one part where I'm not facing the camera and talking to my bookshelf and a few times where my big fat elbow blocks the camera.

Ivy took the picture for my thumbnail. I had several ideas how to do it. She made it simple and beautiful. 

Click the picture above to check it out or the video below. I'm hoping a revival of my channel helps spark my creativity again. That field has been fallow for too long. 

Enjoy.