So What is your Grail Game?

You know the one you are on a quest for that you'll probably never get.

For me that Melanda Lands of Mystery

Its the ancestor to Fudge and Ars Magica basically/

Mesmerized by Sirens has the most discussion I've ever seen on it with a second post here

Now this game can be had on E-Bay from time to time but there is a snowballs chance in the City of Brass I'd pay over a hundred for it. I like games but I have better uses for a Franklin.

As a side note I wouldn't terribly mind having Bifrost RPG either but only if I could find all 4 books. Thats not going to happen. Even if it did (which would require an infinite improbability drive or time machine I think) I suspect after I read them I'd be vaguely disappointed and end up selling them Catacomb Librarian (the blogger at the above link) much as I sold my OD&D books to ENWorlds resident OD&D grognard a while back.

Happy Holidays

I think the term is kind of bland but my players might be celebrating Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, Solstice, Christmas or anything else, shrug

Happy Holidays guys.

Happy Thanksgiving

I'll haver more content and discussion soon but for all my fellow Americans, Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Samhain Everbody.

I said I didn't celebrate Halloween however , since it is a major holiday for a lot Pagan, Wiccans and the like wellll.

Happy Samhain everybody

The Widom of Necrostatle

I usually avoid posting too much from Big Purple but this thread is just hilarious.

Real Philosophical Quotes as if done by a necromancer.

I suspect that the writings of Necrostatle or maybe even the sage himself shall shamble into my game at some point. Its just too much fun to pass up.

Games You Should Like But Don't.

Another open thread.

What are the games that in general people would assume you would like but don't

Mine?

Hollow Earth Expedition. There is just something not quite right with the Ubiquity system and for some reason , it and the other game that uses it Desolation sticks in my craw.

secondly, Savage Worlds. I've owned this game twice and traded it (no loss to me) twice. Never again.

How about you?

What oddball games do you most want?

Just curious.

The two weird games I have yet to get that I want are Tales of Gargenthir and Melanda (also here)

I'd also like En Ferreus Veritas but I covered that long ago.

So whats your oddball ?

Open Thread... What do you think Oathfinder should be?

I was typing a reply over at ChicagoWiz's blog when my ham fingers typed an O rather than a P --

I quickly deleted Oathfinder and finished more post but that got me to thinking, Oathfinder is kind a neat name.

So I am opening a thread and asking

What do you think Oathfinder is or should be?

Answers should be clean and gaming of course but beyond that, skies the limit

The Best Darned Second Edition AD&D Podcast Out there

Or at least thats what the pod-cast guys have to say and I kind of agree with em...

If you like 2e as much as I do (and that a lot) and want a nice MP3 Podcast for your listening pleasure give THACO'S Hammer a try.

Twenty Quick Questions For Your Campaign

From Jeff's Game Blog

Now with my answers

1. What is the deal with my cleric's religion?

A- ask based on what faith the cleric serves.

2. Where can we go to buy standard equipment?

B- Most small towns and up or a sutler. Non combat gear can be had in some villages

3. Where can we go to get platemail custom fitted for this monster I just befriended?

C- A big city. Freeport is best.

4. Who is the mightiest wizard in the land?

D- Baran , The Master Magister

5. Who is the greatest warrior in the land?

E- The Weapon Master Valan Jal

6. Who is the richest person in the land?

F- Probably the head of the Slaver's Guild

7. Where can we go to get some magical healing?

G- Many Temples.

8. Where can we go to get cures for the following conditions: poison, disease, curse, level drain, lycanthropy, polymorph, alignment change, death, undeath?

H- A temple or a hedge witch. There is no cure for death and I don't use level drain

9. Is there a magic guild my MU belongs to or that I can join in order to get more spells?

I- Yes to both. The Order (aka the Traditionalists) is your best bet

10. Where can I find an alchemist, sage or other expert NPC?

J- Most cities. Four-Gate or Freeport are good choices


11. Where can I hire mercenaries?

K- Four Gate, The Vara Embassy, Freeport.

12. Is there any place on the map where swords are illegal, magic is outlawed or any other notable hassles from Johnny Law?

L- Hard to outlaw magic. Vilechia has tight weapons laws,

13. Which way to the nearest tavern?

M- N/A

14. What monsters are terrorizing the countryside sufficiently that if I kill them I will become famous?

N- Best place for that kind of crazy is the Wastes. Its full of Undead. You might also hack out a chunk of Amachia as well.

15. Are there any wars brewing I could go fight?

O- The Kingdoms are full of opportunity.

16. How about gladiatorial arenas complete with hard-won glory and fabulous cash prizes?

P- Nope.

17. Are there any secret societies with sinister agendas I could join and/or fight?

Q- Slavers Guild or Society for Permanent Manumission though they really aren't secret. There may be Denomolater cults here and there was well.

18. What is there to eat around here?

R- Try the Potatoes.

19. Any legendary lost treasures I could be looking for?

Amachia is full of them. You might also go looking for a Deathlords Crown though the world would appreciate if you gave it into good hands. There might be some pirate or dragon gold as well.

20. Where is the nearest dragon or other monster with Type H treasure?

Try the Barrens or the Fae Woods. Might be a few in the Stahl Range as well.

A fun new 2e (and older) site

Monstrous Party explored the art of the Second Edition D&D Monstrous Manual in a fun and idiosyncratic style.

As a lot of the monsters have shown up in other editions, even folks who are not into or have never played 2e will find something to laugh about.

A word of caution though, more than a few swear words are used here and there and while its work safe (its 2e era art and therefor sanitized for your protection) if your office is touchy about language, its NSFW.

Music: Anything Goes

In honor of my last post. Willie Scott (the lovely Kate Capshaw) from Temple of Doom singing Anything Goes

Big Iron

In honor of my players coincidental "Big Iron" remark (I was listening to the song that day though he didn't have any way to know I have ever heard the song ) some Marty Robins with Big Iron

Hot Elf Chick? RUN!

When I think of Hot Elf Chicks this is what I think of.

La Belle Dam Sans Merci.


My advice is if you see a hot elf chick , don't hang around to mack on her, RUN! Elves are well as Sir Terry puts it (reposted here)

Elves are wonderful. They provoke wonder.
Elves are marvelous. They cause marvels.
Elves are fantastic. They create fantasies.
Elves are glamorous. They project glamour.
Elves are enchanting. They weave enchantment.
Elves are terrific. They beget terror.
The thing about words is that meanings can twist just like a snake, and if you want to find snakes look behind words that have changed their meaning.
No one ever said elves are nice.
Elves are bad.

Terry Pratchett, Lords And Ladies

Now if you traffic with that lot and something awful comes of it, don't tell me I didn't give you fair warning.

Charlie Sheen in 3x

This post over on Big Purple stating up everyones current favorite clown prince Charlie Sheen got me to thinking about a 3e write up.

A Tiger Blooded Vatican Assassin Warlock is actually rather easy to do in 3x terms. This wrote up assumes my usual +2 to skills house rules.

In case you wondered I decided against making him a shifter an djust made "Tiger Blooded" a feat though I don't know what it does

The 14 intelligence and 12 wisdom might seem a bit high but the man does seem to know his limits and seems to have trolled the entire planet. The high Constitution and Charisma are of course obvious ..

I decided to go straight warlock, assume a "divine" power source and multi rogue to cover the Vatican Assassin bit too.

So without further ado ...


Charlie Sheen

S 12
I 14
W 14
D 12
Con 20
Cha 16

Human?
Warlock 8/Rogue 3

Feats
H Tigerblooded
1 Lighting Reflexes
3 Iron Will
5 Great Fortitude
7 Extra Invocation
9 Extra Invocation
11 Extra Invocation

Skills
You figure it out

Special Abilities
Eldritch Blast with Hideous Blow and Brimstone Blasts (flaming fists of magic!)
Fell Flight
DR 2 Cold Iron
Fiendish Resilience
Beguiling Influences
Dark Ones Own Luck
Extra Invocation from Feat (Voice of Madness)
Extra Invocation from Feat (See the Unseen)
Sneak Attack +2d6
Evasion
Trap Sense +1

Special Items
Magic Machete

If you wanted to use this in E8 its actually easy. Just drop the Rogue Levels add a bonus feat (Martial Weapon Proficiency /Machete) and you are done, This still makes him a superhero of course but how many Vatican Assassin Warlocks do you know ;)

Just hit Level 5! Thinker

As an old school blogger of course.

Thanks to everybody who subscribed !

Rock your players world: Serve them Iron Rations

Surprisingly this is not that difficult to do and while iron rations are not tasty, the certainly are a change from the snack foods most of us serve.

For GM's who like immersion into their game world, having the players smell and taste what their characters are eating can really get them into the game. And hey it looks less silly than robes and a wizard hat.

Midrea Style Iron rations

#1 Hard Tack about 4-6 ounces . This is based on US civil war allotments here. A daily ration would be about 1lb on the march. I figure its bad tasting , the players are sedentary and its a snack anyway so 4oz will do.

#2 A skin of non alcoholic wine or beer- You can let this sit for a while to give it that gamy wineskin taste just by pouring it before the players arrive and leaving it in the room . Off of course in groups where driving is not an issue and everyone is of legal drinking age, feel free to use real wine or beer. Two Buck Chuck seems about right .

#3 a Little Salt in a cloth bag

#4 Pemmican. Not the beef jerky of the same name or the energy bar, but the real deal, dried meat and fat.

#5 Dried Fruit, mixed. You can add this to the pemmican of you like as well.

#6 Some hard cheese. I like to leave mine out for a few hours but you'll have to decide if thats safe on your own

#7 A little bowl of something pickled, I like sauerkraut but pickled cucumbers are also a good choice.

#8 A little honey

Serve this in those silly wooden bowls and mugs you bought at Ren-Faire and you are good to go.

As always know your players and make sure there are no allergies or food safety issues ....

This is officially the worst thing I have ever eaten

This isnlt a food blog but I really want to vent (and I am out of ideas ;) )

Nordic Sweets Salty Licorice Fish.

They tasted vile, took 30 minutes to get the taste out of my mouth and they upset my stomach to boot.

Two of them were too many of them ....

Whats your worst thing ?

Quickhatch Revisited

I wrote this to display the versatility of the E8 Pathfinder rules and how they cross over into "superhero" territory after L6 or so.

This is a fairly complete version a certain regenerating furball who seems to show up in every other comic book and TV series =.

He uses the low magic rules, a general house rule grating +2 skills per level and a few other bits. His magic augments value are not listed but the rules come from Dragon and Oathbound. For simplicity treat them as magic items at twice the cost.

The term "advances" refers to the extra feats gained at 10k XP after maximum level (in this case 8) is achieved.

This is fan content and a great many terms are property of Wizards of the Coast. Shift was calculated at 4 rounds per day + Con Mod with an extra 2 rounds per shifter feat. Shifters were granted Low Light Vision to balance them vs other races in Pathfinder

Quickhatch

Name – Lojan of the Great North

Race – Razorclaw Shifter

Class – Level 8 Barbarian w/ 16 Advances

S 16
I 14
W 14
D 16
C 22
CH 14

Race Abilities
Low Light Vision
+2 Con
Shift 30 rounds per day!

Feats
1 Animal Magnetism (grants +4 to reaction from opposite sex)
3 Shifter Ferocity
5 Healing Factor
7 Extra Trait (Wild Hunt)

A1 Razorclaw Elite
A2 Iron Will
A3 Reactive Shifting
A4 Combat Reflexes
A5 Shifter Multi Attack
A6 Improved Unarmed Strike
A7 Alertness
A8 Endurance
A9 Extra Rage Power
A10 Great Rend
A11 Die Hard
A12 Shifter Savagery
A13 Shifter Magnetism
A14 Shifter Instincts
A15 Improved Initiative
A16 Weapon Focus Claws

Barbarian Abilities
Fast Movement
Rage 24 rounds per day
Trap Sense +2
Damage Reduction DR1

Rage Powers
Fearless Rage
Internal Fortitude
Renewed Vigor (2d8+6 as standard action)
Guarded Life
Smasher

Magic Augments
Admantium Claws (treat natural weapons as +2 Keen Admantium)
Admantium Bones ( 75% fortification)


Masterwork Bastard Sword
Fitted Ranger Armor
Clothes
Dagger
Personal Effects
Superior Repeating Crossbow
Case
Bolts

Traits
Coherent Rage (use Stealth as normal when raging)
Resilience (+1 Trait bonus to Fortitude)

Skills (72 w/ house rule)
Perception 13
Acrobatics 12
Climb 11
Swim 11
Intimidate 13
Stealth 10
KS: Nobility 5
Survival 8
Knowledge Nature 7
Bluff 5
Ride 8
Handle Animal 8
Sense Lies 7

HP 108
AC 20
MV 40

My 500k Choices

I had a hard time with these choices and in the end had to let armor go. Really I can't see much use in medieval armor in the 21st century anyway. Besides with the arming ring I could stash mundane armor in there and combined with the other items and the fact reality (tm) is really E6 anyway ;) I should be fine.

Part of my selection also includes the fact that I included items for family and comfort. I am not e one of the adventurer/heavily armed hobo types that seem to make up some PC's groups after all, just a bored and silly 21st century schmo ....

Sources include Magic Item Compendium, Pathfinder and my old lists from Dragon

2 X Campfire bead

6x Nacreous Grey Ioun Stone in Wayfinders

Ring of 3 Wishes

Cauldron of Plenty

3x Muleback Cords

Ring of Invisibility and Protection +2

6X Handy Haversacks

6x Hat of Disguise

6x Vestments Many Styles

Belt of Hidden Pouches

Survival Pouch

2 Protection Arrows Potions

20 Seeker Rounds (modern rifle rounds likely)

Forceshot Pistol

2 Enlarge Person Potion

2 Reduce Person Potion

16 Cure Light Potions

2 Potion Spider Climb

4 Pass without Trace Potions

6 Cure Moderate Potions

6 Cure Serious Potions

Rod of Metal and Mineral Detection

3 Immovable Rods

Rod of Enemy Detection

Rod of Security

Ring of Lockpicking

Meteoric Knife

Gwareons Boot

Magic Amulet made with MIC rules (+2 to AC, +2 to Con, Emergency Healing)

Ring of Arming

Pearl of Speech 6x

Lesser Return Crystal for pistol

10 Bottles Goodberry wine

2 bags animated caltrops

Circlet persuasion

decanter endless water

2 bottles kegotums ointment (10 doses)

45 Blessed Bandages

6 Everfull Mugs

Rope of Climbing

Optionally I think I'd drop the seeker rounds and maybe the cauldron which would be 31,500 k worth of gear.

Of course being able to reach out and auto-zap a possible threat at like a mile or something could come in handy as would having an unlimited food source so its hard to say.