Forever unto the breach, dear friends...

Sorry, I haven't been around. But it's for all the right reasons. My roleplaying card is constantly filled, these days.

I started Once More Unto the Breach to be a vehicle for, and chronicle of, my personal journey back to roleplaying after a hiatus from the hobby. Finding the OSR and all the associated blogs back around 2009 was (as cliche as it sounds) a revelation for me. Through a simple web search, I found a path forward to where I am today, part of a thriving community of gamers that keeps me busy and happy!

So, I guess you could say I am well and truly beyond the breach! And for that, I am grateful! I'm definitely going to keep Once More Unto the Breach up and running, but I'm going to be focusing my energies on my new site, Silverbeard Games. It's where I'm going to be posting about what I'm running and creating in the RPG realm. It's also where I'll talk about the people I meet along the way.

I've grown old(er) in pursuit of this pastime of ours, folks. My beard has indeed become silver, but my enthusiasm for roleplaying has only grown.

Thanks to all of you who have been my companions from back when this blog started out. It's been fun, and it's only getting better! Hope to see you at the table! Game on!  

Chronicles of the Adventures in the Dune Imperium!

Cover art for Dune: Chronicles of the Imperium core rulebook

I have one of the few copies of the Dune: Chronicles of the Imperium core rulebook that were printed in 2001 by the long-defunct Last Unicorn Games. As a perennial, some might say addicted, patron of RPGs, it was one of the many games I own but have never played. But considering that the game was so short-lived (Last Unicorn was purchased by WOTC and the game ceased production) there wasn't much support for the game at any rate. 

The Last Unicorn version of the game was the first RPG based on the venerable sci-fi novel, and there wouldn't be another attempt at publishing a Dune RPG until the release of the similarly named Dune: Adventures in the Imperium almost 20 years later. 

To be honest, I believe it takes a group of people similarly steeped in the lore of Dune to truly co-create a deep and fulfilling campaign. In 2022, with the proliferation of web-based roleplaying options, I think it is much more feasible to have such an experience than was possible in 2001. I'm considering running such an online game at some point, as I believe the version of the 2D20 system used by the recent Dune game lends itself well to the limitations of online play. In other words, the system seems to be flexible, intuitive, and "light" enough for online play (verses games with more crunch...not that you can't run crunchy games online...I personally don't have the time or patience to do so).

I was going to do my usual end-of-year "artstravaganza" to end 2022 but...I don't feel like I have to do it this year...or maybe ever again. This last year was a good one for me in my never-ending quest to keep the roleplaying spark alive in my life. I may not have chronicled it much here on this old blog that I keep propped up and limping along by the skin of its teeth, but...my gaming situation is good, I'm content, satisfied even. It's a feeling I need to explore and savor more often. 

Needless to say I've got a lot on my mind when it comes to life and roleplaying these days. I'm definitely feeling nostalgic, but also simultaneously eager for what the new year ahead will bring. It almost makes me wish I was as prescient as Paul Atreides. On second thought, considering what happened to him...maybe not!

I'm looking forward to gaming in 2023 and beyond, in the world of Dune and elsewhere!

Happy Xenogiving!

Just a group of happy sunbeams ready to feast and die horribly!

Happy holiday season, folks! I ran a one-shot Alien RPG session (i.e. a Cinematic session) for a big group of my friends this past weekend, and we had a blast! 

I don't know how much you know about the Alien RPG by Free League, but you may have heard about its d6 dice pool mechanic in combination with its Stress and Panic system. The rumors are true, people! The system at its foundation makes for an excellent recreation of an Alien movie! Things start out calm in the beginning, and by the end, there's mahem, madness, and death galore! 

I wrote up my own Cinematic adventure and used some pregens from other Alien RPG products available for free on the Free League website. Most of the people in my group are experienced players, but there were a couple guys who were new to roleplaying. I was determined to keep things fun and flowing, trying to avoid looking up the more detailed rules of the system. 

Basically, you need to roll 6s on your rolls to succeed. If you fail a roll, you can opt to reroll but you have to increase your Stress level by one. For each Stress level, you roll a Stress die. If a one comes up on the designated Stress dice, you have to roll on the Panic table. Hilarity and horror ensues!

My scenario centered on a ship called the Bettendorf, and the PCs were passengers paying to get away from Earth to find new opportunity on the Frontier of known space. The PCs all had their own agendas that spiced things up (such as the scientist PC constantly scheming to make "space cocaine"). The first act of the session involved them plotting and scheming while waiting to go into hypersleep for the 180 day journey ahead. They interacted with the NPC crew a bit, including discussion with the captain's 14-year-old son about the book Space Beast, written by the character Robert Morse in Alien 3, the lone convict survivor at the end of the movie. Little did the PCs know that the Bettendorf, a Wayland-Yutani science vessel, was carrying all sorts of deadly specimens...

Act 2 of the scenario started with the PCs being rudely awakened from hypersleep by the ship's XO, Ava. From there, they encountered mutated abominations like those encountered in the Prometheus movie, a facehugger, a bloodburster like the one encountered in Alien: Covenant, and of course a classic Xenomorph! Heck, there was a secret android among the crew who saw the humans as expendable thanks to Company orders!

By the time they were fighting the creatures, the PCs started dying horribly and losing their minds to Panic. Let's just say there was a lot of fear-induced paralysis, screaming, tremors, dropped weapons, and other bad things. Of the eight PCs only three survived: one officer, a drug-addicted pilot who was beaten to a pulp, and a roughneck/space trucker type who selfishly escaped in the Bettendorf's single lifeboat shuttle by himself (the lifeboat could accommodate seven people). The officer, beaten pilot, and the 14-year-old NPC were taken prisoner by a crew of soldiers in a passing Union of Progressive Peoples' patrol ship (or "space commies" as I called them during the session). These three were hauled off to a "space gulag," and the Bettendorf was left to float in space for the time being, until some unsuspecting fools decide to go salvage it...

All that fun was punctuated by a friendsgiving feast of turkey and other seasonal delights! All told, it was a great way to game in the holiday season!

Barrowmaze OSE Campaign 2022: Session 0

Identities hidden to protect the not-so-innocent!

I

Last December, I lamented about wanting to run a Barrowmaze campaign, and declared that "someday" I will see the look of apprehension in the faces of players!

That day has arrived! Yes, yes, I know that I've run bits of Barrowmaze before in other campaigns, but now I'm attempting an ongoing, at least once-a-month (twice a month if I can swing it), open-table style campaign. I'll run a session if there's at least two players (who will be able to run multiple characters). That's what happened this weekend: I had two players show up, and they ran two characters each, and also hired three retainers to supplement their numbers. 

The players rolled up characters before the session, and I was able to explain some things to them before the session. So it was partly a session zero, which became a session "0.5" of sorts because we got some actual play in. I'll try to do a session recap soon! But in the meantime, I'm celebrating meeting some new players as well as bringing old friends into the mix. I'm also celebrating making my gaming aspirations a reality once again! 

Game on! 

End-of-Year Dragonlance Artstravaganza: The Companions

Just wanted to wish you, dear reader, a very happy New Year! May the coming 365-ish days bring you many excellent gaming opportunities! Fight on!

Dragonlance - After the Dawning: Introduction

I've waited a long time to get a proper Dragonlance campaign started. I tried once years ago (in OMG 2011!), but it never panned out. A big reason for that abortive start is my own rampant gamer ADD (with which I still struggle to this very day). But also, I remember feeling that I wanted to run the campaign with old friends, those who were around in my youth when I was in my roleplaying heyday and formed my deep and abiding love for Dragonlance through the novels.

Now, it seems that day has come, finally! I have reunited with my old friends at the gaming table, and we roleplay as much as busy adults can these days! I'm using the excellent Castles & Crusades rules for the campaign. I may use the Obsidian Portal page I created for the campaign almost nine years ago (!) if I can find the time and the energy (getting...old).

The campaign starts six months after the end of the War of the Lance (in the year 353 AC). The characters are a cross-section of the free peoples of Ansalon. Those of strong will and body have been called to Palanthas to aid the resurgent Solamnic knights in restoring peace and order to the world. 

This should be fun! Can't wait to share what we're doing on Krynn! Onward!

End-of-Week Palencar (10/5/18): The Terror of It All...

Welcome to Halloween month, folks! To celebrate, I'd like to share a bit of the eerie work of John Jude Palencar! I first encountered Mr. Palencar's surreal and disturbing work on the covers of Lovecraft story collections. Enjoy, and thank the Great Old Ones that October has returned!

Salton Seekers - Session 1: Into the Barrowlands (and 1st Annual D&DBQ)

We kicked off our reinvigorated Salton Seekers campaign in grand Summer style last Friday! We decided we would hold our inaugural D&DBQ! Props to my boy Jim for granting the event its name!

So, before the gaming started, we gathered up some barbecue staples, everything from burgers and dogs to kielbasa and chicken. We also had a bevy of sides, and even a cheese and cracker plate! We're not barbarians, folks (especially because we're playing Labyrinth Lord)! No, we have class (or rather, classes...seven of them, to be exact)! And of course, the beer flowed freely!

After fueling up, we headed to the gaming table! Here's the characters and the players:

• Devalla of the Mountains, level 2 magic user (Derek)
• Nikolaus, level 2 cleric of the One True God (Jay)
• Xander Darkwood, level 2 thief (Dan)
• Varhauth Chainsman, level 2 fighter (Jim)
• Gideon Silverleaf, level 2 elf (Pat, who arrived toward the end of the session)

Just a note: I love the names of these characters! And a well-balanced party. All the characters except for Nikolaus were pregenerated at Wizardawn.

To set the scene: On the planet Æarth, at the northern tip of a continent ruled by the New Thulian Empire (which arose from the ashes of the Old Thulian Empire), lies the frontier city of Salton (known as Salt Town when it was founded as a humble fishing village hundreds of years before).

So, the session started with the gang (minus Pat's elf because he was running late for the game) gathered at the adventurer's guild. One of the guildmasters made some announcements of adventuring opportunities in the area. The party decided to head to the barrowlands, to investigate the rising of the dead (for the promise of a reward of 50 gold apiece if they could bring back some good evidence of what is causing the dead to rise).

The rumor is that something is amiss with the neutral god of death, Nergal, who hates undeath for obvious reasons (he wants the dead to stay dead). There are two gods who are in constant conflict over the domain of undeath: Set and Orcus. The Church of the One True God doesn't like any of these opposing deities!

A half-day's ride on rented horses brought the party to the eerie expanse of burial mounds south of Salton, a place eternally drifting with mist and strangely quiet. As the group began to explore and investigate, they found a trail of somewhat fresh blood, as if someone had been dragged through the calf-high grass after being killed.

The gory trail led to the entrance of a smaller barrow, which had been opened some time in the past. They were met with a grizzly sight: the half eaten remains of some human limbs. There was a strange darkness within the barrow entrance that neither daylight or lantern light could illuminate. Xander the thief detected wet sounds emanating from the barrow...

After a lot of cautious planning, the group moved into the darkness of the barrow. Within, they found a sarcophagus, behind which hid several ghouls finishing a gory feast of human flesh. The cleric cast Light, bringing the illumination of the One True God to the chamber, which finally banished the unnatural darkness that their torches and lamp could not.

The party made short work of the ghouls, then studied the sarcophagus. The lid sported a carving of a strange-looking beetle. Actually, evidence pointed to the fact that the lid once featured a different carving, one that was reworked into the shape of the beetle for some reason. They decided to open the sarcophagus. Pushing open the lid, they saw a body wrapped in bandages, adorned with magnificent jewelry and with an ornate silver dagger on its chest. There was also a scroll resting above the head of the wrapped body, with a wax seal bearing the eye symbol of Nergal, god of death.

Nikolaus the cleric decided to break the seal. The scroll was written in ancient Thulian, which the magic user Devalla can read. The scroll was a blessing for one called Sheeara, a priestess of a god called Khepri. Nikolaus knew that Khepri is worshiped in the deserts far to the south. The scroll praised her for her sacrifice in the struggle against the vile servants of Set and Orcus. The group cut open the corpse's bandages to reveal the recently deceased Sheeara herself. Out of respect, they resealed her sarcophagus.

Though the party had enough evidence to obtain their rewards, they decided to check out the central barrow in the vicinity, surrounded by a ring of standing stones and rumored to be the entrance to a maze of tunnels below. They noted much evidence of other adventurers having come and gone from the area: broken arms and armor, signs of old blood, cast-off equipment.

Entering the central barrow, they saw a old, much used tripod with a pulley system and rope hanging down into a pit at the center of the chamber. The group used one of their own grapples and rope to lower themselves down. They saw more evidence of many past adventurers in the form of graffiti, some crude and some ominous, mentioning the deaths of comrades.

The party found passageways that seemed well-constructed, not the rough tunnels they were expecting. They turned down a short passage and inspected a door. Moving through it, a trap was triggered that brought down a heavy stone slab in the doorway. They group had no choice but to throw themselves into the room beyond the door. Another door, on the opposite side of the small 20' x 20' room, burst open, and five grotesque humanoids ran in, armed with crude but wicked-looking weapons. The beings themselves were strange hybrids of man and animal, and some looked like mutated humans.

The party slew two of the creatures, causing the rest of the hideous humanoids to retreat back through the door from which they entered. Then, the stone slab that had trapped the adventurers raised back up, allowing the group to escape. It was then they encountered Gideon the elf (Pat arrived after work), who had just come down from above, on a mission from the elf king of Dolmenwood, Atanuwe.

The group, with Gideon now joining them, decided to head back to Salton before night fell. They were able to return to the city before too late in the night. They promptly returned to the adventurer's guild, and showed their evidence to one of the guildmasters, who suggested that the scroll be taken to the temple of the One True God for study. The party decided to rest for the night at the most notorious inn in Salton: the Wanton Cockatrice. That's where the session ended, well after midnight in the real world!

Thanks for reading this recap! I hope I wasn't too cheesy...

Session two will, hopefully, happen very soon!

Salton Seekers: My Frankensteinian Labyrinth Lord Campaign

Okay, so I'm doing a soft reboot of the Basic D&D campaign I started earlier this year. My group of old friends and I sorta stalled on the roleplaying for a while. But we're all basically back on a more normal adult responsibility schedule, so I'm deciding to kick things off again.

Also, while I love the pure nostalgia factor of using the B/X rules, I have so much stuff for Labyrinth Lord, from the referee screen to game supplements, that it made sense to shift over to using LL. As any OSR follower worth their salt knows, there's enough differences between B/X and LL to necessitate moving from one rule set to the other.

I'm still using the city of Salton I created as the foundation of the campaign. I'm letting players keep characters or create new ones, with all characters moving up to level 2 (based on prior play and XP gained). Just need to transfer characters to LL sheets!

As for the campaign world itself, I was primarily using the Dwimmermount world of Telluria as the basis for the campaign, and using some homebrew stuff tacked on (including Stonehell Dungeon). I've decided to move things over to a world I call "Æarth." I know, clever aren't I?

To pull back the curtain a bit, here's a list of older and new OSR products I'm using so far to cobble together my Frankensteinian campaign:

• Dolmenwood (from the pages of the Wormskin zine)
• Barrowmaze
• Isle of the Unknown
• Frostbitten and Mutilated
• Blackmarsh (and possibly the larger Points of Light campaign setting)
• Stonehell Dungeon
• Maybe Dwimmermount again, if the characters head far enough south...

Okay, that's all for now! I'll be posting some session recaps as we go along! Happy gaming, y'all!

Score at the Vintage Store: Endless Quest Books!

So the male offspring and I went to The House of Fun in Oaklyn, NJ yesterday. It had been a while since we'd been there, and I've written before about their stash of D&D and other tabletop gaming material.

As the boy, as usual, drooled over the wall-to-wall press of old and new action figures and other stuff, I headed for the book shelves in the back. There was the usual stockpile of games including D&D modules and particularly a lot of Ravenloft stuff. 

But lo and behold, what to my wondering eyes should appear but a small selection of random Endless Quest books! I also spotted something I'd never heard of: a Sagard the Barbarian adventure book. According to the Wiki entry, St. Gygax collaborated with Flint Dille, screenwriter for Transformers: The Movie and game designer/writer for games like Dead to Rights.

I figured I should grab a couple of the books for nostalgia's sake (you know how that goes). The store owner said they were $8 a pop, so I settled on two:

I was particularly glad to snag a copy of Return to Brookmere, being a fan of the cover illo by Larry Elmore. The interior art by Tim Truman is no slouch either (his stuff has a definite similarity to Elmore's work...perhaps that's why they were teamed up for this book?):

I picked up the other book, Duel of the Masters, mostly because of the artists: Clyde Caldwell for the cover and the late, great Keith Parkinson for the interior illos. I've honestly never seen anything done in black and white by Parkinson. I've always associated him with the incredible cover art he's done for gaming books and novels. 

Anyway, I'm happy with these small scores! Have you picked up anything you're excited about that has fueled some nostalgia?

Tales of Telluria Session 1: The Adventures Begin!

Identities hidden to protect the not-so-innocent...

So, here's the scenario: we got the old gaming band back together. These guys are good friends I've known since my youth, and include gentlemen that were around in the early days of my gaming career.

We decided at last that it was a crime we haven't roleplayed together in ages. This had to be remedied ASAP. So, we set a date and got together. Me? Well, I got into my traditional role as DM. 

Yeah, I said DM, not GM. Because we're playing D&D, baby! Moldvay/Marsh/Cook Basic/Expert D&D, to be precise! Yeah boy! It was beyond awesome to have the old crew around the table again! It's been far too long, criminally so! 

But all regrets aside, here's what I'm doing with the old crew: I'm running an episodic campaign. Whoever can jump in during the sessions, that's who's there. Players/characters can pop in and out on the fly. If a guy can't make a session, his character gets "separated from the group," whatever. The excuse doesn't matter. 

I printed out 70 pregenerated characters before the session (generated from this excellent site). Ten characters of each class. The guys decided to pick characters at random. Here's who they got:

• Derek is Devalla of the Mountains, second level female magic-user
• Dan is Eam the Spiritual, second level male halfling
• Pat is Nufar the Searcher, second level female cleric
• Jim is Cope, second level female fighter

The campaign is set on the world of Telluria, the setting for the Dwimmermount megadungeon. The campaign has started out in the town of Salton. A day's ride west is none other than Stonehell dungeon.

Oh yeah, I'm throwing it all into the pot, folks!

ANYway, three ladies and a halfling walk into a tavern after checking in at the adventurer's guild. The tavern is The Wanton Cockatrice, and the crew is there for a good time.

Cope the fighter puts her high Charisma to immediate work, looking to fleece some poor sucker out of some gold. She puts the moves on Finz the veteran fighter (an NPC), who she convinces to buy drinks for everyone in the place. 

Eam the halfling earns some gold plucking on his mandolin, while Nufar and Devalla drink up (Devalla does so in a disgruntled manner, because she is generally disgruntled... by the way, she's a magic user with 18 Strength, 18 Intelligence, and 18 Dexterity... what can I say, that's how the character generator created her...)

Well, suffice to say the usual roleplaying tavern shenanigans ensued, interrupted by sudden iridescent flashes of light and rumblings from outside. The party scrambled outside to see flashes of rainbow-colored lighting emanating from the red crystal dome of a wizard's tower across the river to the north. The place has been the dwelling of a powerful magic user who has hermited himself there for years. 

As the artificial lighting struck the surface of the river, a great bubbling arose from the depths. Then, pale, grotesque humanoid fish creatures pulled themselves from the water onto the docks.

The group sprang into action, entering into combat with the monstrous, disgusting things! Once the creatures were dispatched, the proprietor of the Wanton Cockatrice, a beefy fellow named Dirk, told the group that the wizard in the tower, the former adviser of Salton's Lord Brereton, had holed himself up in the tower years ago. During that time, events such as this would plague the town. The party resolved to get some sleep and investigate the tower in the morning. 

Ah, but in the middle of the night, there were more screams of terror! The party awoke to see dark, hulking forms running through the streets outside the Wanton Cockatrice. Whatever the creatures were, they had broken into homes and murdered local citizens before disappearing.

The group suited up and headed out, and spoke with some members of the town guard, who led the party to a collapsed well in a nearby public square. The well had caved in not long after the shockwaves emanated out from the wizard's tower. The party, worth their adventuring salt, decided to head down to investigate. The town watch lowered them into the collapsed well. 

The group found themselves in a winding passage, lined with burial niches. Perhaps they had stumbled upon an ancient Thulian Empire burial chamber? They lit up torches and lanterns and headed forward into the dark...

They eventually came to a larger chamber with several columns carved with bas-reliefs depicting scenes of conquest. None of them being Thulian scholars, they weren't sure if the carvings were from that empire, but the supposition was likely, given the fact that Salton is located at what would have been the eastern frontier of that old kingdom. 

There were eight niches in the walls of this chamber, filled with bodies wrapped in ancient linens, and adorned with ceremonial costume jewelry. These were more elaborate burials than those found in the niches in the passageway they had just left, though the fake jewelry spoke of pretended nobility. 

The group decided to cut open one of the "mummies" to see if there was greater wealth inside. The action of slicing open the wrappings exposed the group to a noxious, powdery substance. Saving throws were rolled, and a few of the group failed. Those who didn't make their saves began to cough up blood!

Then, the desiccated corpses in the wrappings began to stir, and ripped free! The cleric turned a few of the undead abominations, and the remaining things were defeated with a combination of weapons and magic!

We decided to stop there, after a long night of gaming and drinking! Overall, the group felt good to be back at the table! I, for one, felt great! After years of gaming with "strangers" who became friends, it was wonderful to be roleplaying with my original crew!

Session two of the campaign will happen next month! Can't wait!

P.P.S. One complaint I have is regarding the Labyrinth Lord screen I was using during the session. Now, I know there's some minor differences/modifications from B/X, but that's not my problem. Here's my gripe: I really wish DM screens had reminders of rolls for demihuman detection skills (hidden doors, etc.) and other abilities like what you have to roll to open doors, etc. But maybe that's just me. It makes me miss the unified SIEGE Engine mechanic of Castles & Crusades.

Something Wonderful is Brewing...

Oh yes, my friends! Details coming soon!

End-of-Week Elmore (10/20/17): Bada$$ Battle!

Incidentally, it's my birthday today, my preciousessss! The same day as the late, great Tom Petty,  Snoop Dogg, and Viggo Mortensen! I know the meaning of life, the universe, and everything now, because I'm 42. So long, and thanks for all the fish!

Hope you are all having an incredible October! It's been a busy start to my next trip around the sun, but it's well worth all the activity! I am grateful for my wonderful, full, rich life! I wish the same for all of you, my fellow gaming fiends! Roll on, fight on, game on!

Game Session Report 10/21/16 (Part 1): Hello Dorkness My Old Friend...

...or maybe for a few hours on Friday!

...it's good to game with you again!

Yes, On Friday night (October 21st) we had "roleplaying with the newbs" night! Over the last few weeks my wife and I had heard through the grapevine that some folks in town were curious about D&D. My wife leaked the word that I am a veteran roleplayer, and...Boom! A game night was scheduled!

I expected people to be a bit shy and tentative about the experience. I expected some of them to be nervous about word getting out that they were playing D&D. All very normal and valid concerns for the casual gamer, given the stereotyping and ridicule of gamers that still exists in the world.

I assured them I'm a discreet game master! No need to fret, folks, your secret is safe with me!

Everyone arrived at our place, and introductions were made as needed. We had a good supply of food and drink to share. I called everyone to the kitchen table, where I had my DMing gear already set up.

There was much joking and rib-poking as the players went through the pile of pregens I provided. I made a short speech about the rules and gave them a tour of their character sheets, but I could tell they just wanted to play.

"We'll get the hang of it as we go along," they insisted. "Let's get started!" Eager, they were, indeed!

So, I set the mood and the stage: Castle Westguard, a wilderness outpost of the Great Kingdom in Southland (thanks Rob Conley, for the setting). The lord of the walled settlement, Lord Griff, needs hearty adventurers to explore the barrowlands to the northeast. Why? Because an archaeological dig seeking artifacts from ancient kingdoms has gone missing, of course!

Lord Griff needs those willing to sacrifice life and limb for the promise of treasure. "Go, find the lost archaeologists," he decreed, "and you'll be rewarded 10 gold pieces each!" The party was ready for adventure, indeed, and they set out without hesitation!

Our party of first and second level pregens (created via Wizardawn) consists of:

• Matt, playing the wizard Magic Mike (of course).
• Laura, playing the cleric of Leo named Noo.

(note, I made the on-the-fly decision that the gods of this world are the twelve gods of the zodiac, based on the suggestion of one of the players...)

• Jennell, playing the female dwarf Elvira.
• Ed, playing the fighter Donald.
• Lesley, playing the male dwarf Tases the Archaic.

 As they marched through the barrowlands, they came upon a grizzly scene: three dead bodies of priests (of the god Libra) laying outside the excavated entrance to one of the barrows.

The party decided to investigate, and discovered one of the priests was still alive. He was badly wounded, so Noo the cleric decided to heal him. Once he recovered enough to speak, the priest introduced himself as Brother Thomas, and he thanked the party profusely before telling them that he had been part of a group of ten people sent by Lord Griff to excavate barrows. The ten were a mix of scholars, priests, and guards.

The scholars had been following an ancient text that pointed to this particular barrow as having deep significance to a long-dead civilization. They had broken open the entrance and entered the circular chamber within, the walls of which were lined with niches that contained mummified bodies wrapped in linens.

One of the scholars had walked onto an elaborate mosaic of colored stones in the center of the chamber. The floor had given way underneath the man, who had plunged a hundred feet or so to his death. The majority of the group decided to descend the shaft to recover the body and explore what was below.

Thomas and the other two Libran priests had remained on the surface. They waited for hours for the return of their fellows, and even engaged in some prayer to pass the time. It was during their prayers that they were attacked by a group of small, horrible green-skinned creatures bearing rusted swords and shields that looked as if they were made of stretched skins.

The creatures, of course, were goblins. They attacked the priests and slaughtered them...except for Thomas. Once they had finished their bloody work, the goblins disappeared back into the barrow, and presumably went back down the shaft to the depths from whence they came. And, of course, it seems none of the others on the archaeological dig team had ever come back up from below...

His story complete, Thomas then asked that one of the party escort him back to Castle Westguard. The party, as a whole, told him that wasn't going to happen, because they needed to find the rest of the archaeological team. Thomas balked at that, but before he could continue to argue, the gibbering voices of goblins once again boiled out of the dark entrance to the barrow...

TO BE CONTINUED...

End-of-Week Elmore (10/21/16): GAME DAY!!!

Woohoo! Tonight, I'm running my first roleplaying session with adults since...I don't know when! There are some cool folks in my neighborhood who are "gamer-curious," and it got around that I play D&D. The rest is history! As far as I know, none of them have played D&D before, so I get to introduce them to it!

I'm running a session tonight using Moldvay's Basic! Generated a bunch of characters with one of the many handy-dandy websites out there, so the players have about 15 characters to choose from for the game.

I'm using the Points of Light setting by Robert Conley. And the module is (drumroll please!) B1: In Search of the Unknown! Of course! Why not, right?

Expect a full report of the session soon! Happy gaming, all!

May the Road to Adventure Go Ever On and On...

Happy New Year to one and all in the gaming blogosphere! May you have much high adventure in 2016! I dedicate Bowie's Ballad of the Adventurers to you!



Sickened by sun, with rainstorms lashing him rotten
A looted wreath crowning his tangled hair
Every moment of his youth apart from its dream was forgotten
Gone the roof overhead, but the sky was always there
Oh you, who are flung out, alike from heaven and from Hades
You murderers who've been so bitterly repaid
Why did you part from the mothers who nursed you as babies
It was peaceful and you slept and there you stayed
Still he explores and rakes the absinthe green oceans
Though his mother has given him up for lost
Grinning and cursing with a few odd tears of contrition
Always in search of that land where life seems best
Loafing through hells and flocked through paradises
Calm and grinning, with a vanishing face
At times he still dreams of a small field he recognises
With a blue sky overhead and nothing else

Happy Holidays to All the Gaming Fools Out There!

Happy holidays to all you fellow gaming enthusiasts around the world! I hope the holiday spirits were kind to you! I was just reflecting on my own yuletide experience, both this year and years past...

The last few solar cycles I've received some gaming goodness during the Christmas holiday. Last year, it was the Dungeon Crawl Classics Chained Coffin box set and the Lamentations of the Flame Princess Rules & Magic hardcover. The year before that, it was the Lords of Gossamer and Shadow RPG.

This year, I don't have anything in my hands...yet. I'm looking forward to receiving the 4th printing (and associated stretch goal goodies) of Dungeon Crawl Classics RPG next Spring. Also, I'm hoping that the massive Conan board game Kickstarter will come to fruition soon, considering they've missed their October 2015 deadline. 

So what about YOU? Have you received a gaming product you're particularly psyched about, either this year or in the past?

End-of-Week Elmore (7/10/15)

Okay, first, here's your Elmore illo for the week!

Second, I know it's very belated, but I'd like to say that I had a great time on Free RPG Day at my old RPG stomping grounds: All Things Fun!

Here's a pic of my humble haul (of which I consider the Dungeon Crawl Classics GM screen from Goodman Games to be the crown jewel):

Early next week, I'm going to post in  more detail about the good bit of gaming I got up to on the day, complete with pics! Until then, have a great weekend, and happy gaming!

Have I mentioned that I love Robotech?

Awww yeah! My childhood self would have crapped himself at this sight!

 

Note: If you can relate to this post, please comment below! I'd love to hear stories of your own Robotech nostalgia!

 

When I was a young teen, there was no Internet, no Netflix, no DVR. Heck, there were no DVD players. I guess there was laser disc. But there were VCRs. However, those things were clunky and not easy to program. And even if you programmed the damn thing, someone else in the house was going to mess things up. Because, you know, you're a kid. People don't respect your right to see your friggin' shows.

 

No, when I was a mere lad, there was none of the futuristic entertainment technology we take for granted today. Therefore, all TV was pretty much "appointment TV." Meaning, you got in front of that tube, or you didn't. And if you didn't, you missed that show you so desperately wanted to see. Too bad, so sad. Here's a tiny violin, playing just for you.

 

I'm about to get all "back in my day" right about now. Seriously, the kids these days (heh, I actually wrote that) don't know what it's like to be at the whim of the TV overlords. Nowadays, TV is all about "on-demand," of course. Now, we are the new rulers of our entertainment destiny.

 

But that's not what I had as a kid. Nope. As a kid, I had to book it home after school to catch the shows I loved.

 

One of those shows was Robotech. I loved the hell out of that show as a kid. I discovered the series at a tender young age, somewhere in the mid-80s. Robotech was something "new" back in the day. It was called "Japanimation" at the time, not anime. Wow, that sounds weird now. And maybe racist?

 

Anyway, there were only two times of day that Robotech came on back then. During the week, one channel showed it at 6 AM and 3 PM. Kid-me thought 6 AM was an ungodly time when no decent, sane person should be awake. And, school got out at 3 PM. You see my dilemma?

 

So, that school bell would ring, and I would force my chubby body to run as much as possible across town so that I could catch as much of the show as I could. I remember running through freezing cold, slipping on ice in my haste. I remember running through sweltering heat, until I arrived at home, chest heaving like a bellows and sweat pouring off of me.

 

I usually caught about 20 minutes of the show on a good day. But those were precious moments that made a huge impact on the burgeoning sci-fi fan in me.

 

On those rare serendipitous occasions when I actually got an episode on tape, I watched the hell out of it. Over and over, in awe of the sci-fi action, the giant robots battling, and the soap opera of the relationships between the characters. I mean, the show had a race of space giants that were as entranced as I was by the thought of kissing a girl. How could I not relate? How could I not love this show?

 

As time went on, as things happen, my interests moved on to other shows. I became absorbed with other pastimes, such as roleplaying of course. But my love of Robotech remained, lingering within me, and manifesting in an abiding passion for giant robots and space opera.

 

I even tried, once, to combine my love of roleplaying with Robotech. I bought a couple of the Robotech roleplaying books pumped out by Palladium...but never played the game. One of my big roleplaying regrets.

 

Recently, Robotech has made a resurgence in my mind. And, of course, I turned to the miracles of modern connectivity, and quickly found a certain 20-disc set. I bought it for a song. A gateway to hours upon hours of Robotech goodness that I never could have imagined as a kid!

 

 

I'm about to embark once again on a voyage into a space epic, one that will no doubt take me through time AND space. I give a nod to kid-me, to let him know that it's time to come home and enjoy one of his favorite shows in a way he never could. On his own terms, finally.

 

Come with me, young man. We have places to go, giant robots to pilot, and space ladies to woo!

Time to Give My Kids a DAGGER!

Yes indeed, I've decided it's time again. Time to once again attempt some roleplaying with my kids, that is! In the past I've run them through some short home-made scenarios using the Basic D&D rules, but they were a year younger than they are now when I made those attempts. Now they're both over the age of five, and I think they will be better able to grasp the basic concepts.

 

Helping us this time around will be Dagger for Kids, the neat little booklet of truncated Basic D&D rules from Brave Halfling Publishing. I think there might still be too much going on for them in the way of rules when it comes to the Basic rules, so I'm going to use Dagger in conjunction with either the actual Basic books or something like Swords & Wizardry/Labyrinth Lord.

Getting my kids into roleplaying is going to be awesome, for a number of reasons:

• I get to be a DM again, in a more low-pressure environment/situation (and I can fit these games into my busy schedule on the fly, because my players live with me! No FLGS needed, we can just set up at the kitchen table and GO!).
• I get to share the hobby I love with my kids
• They benefit from time away from video games (which seem to be taking up more and more of their attention these days)
• They benefit from all the personal development goodness that roleplaying is basically proven to offer.
• I get to spend some quality imaginative and creative time with my kids, creating epic stories with them and bonding over shared adventure!

So, I'll be reporting back on our adventures soon. I hope to get our first game of 2015 going tomorrow night! Can't wait!