Saturday, January 12, 2019

The OSR News: January 12, 2019

The OSR goes West, the Cepheus Engine is getting a lot of love and there's an RPG Gazetteer from Tenkar's G+ community. Pacesetter Games unloads a flood of modules on DTRPG and yet more Kickstarters make the scene. All this and more in this weeks News!

New Releases


PhotoEilean Dubh: The Black Isle Gazetteer by the Tenkar's Tavern G+ community. Wraparound Cover by Luka Rejec. Available from Lulu in Print for $25.66. 442 pages.
Eilean Dubh: The Black Isle Gazetteer
Eilean Dubh: The Black Isle is a fantasy setting created through the Tenkar's Tavern G+ community. The island is described via articles each by different authors, focusing on a single Hex microsetting. This is a fan RPG project, and is offered at cost. All content is the property of the individual authors.
HDK 33 † Tales from the inn at the edge of the world
by V.A. Published by Heimat Der Katastrophe. Available from the publisher as a Digital Album for €4. Listen to tracks online for free (not sure if there is a limit to this or not. Haven't found it yet if there is.) Limited Edition Cassette sold out. 

(They always sell out of their physical copies fast and I was a couple of weeks late to this particular party. Apologies dear readers. I'm seeing more interest in Dungeon Synth of late and if you know of any other good sources for this sort of material, please do 
let me know.)
To celebrate Christmas in our own way, we have gathered together some of the musicians who have collaborated with us over the last year, asking them to write an unreleased song. We recorded their music in the "Inn at the Edge of the World" during a night of revelries and magic (as you can see in the tape cover). So "Tales ..." is the result of this meeting featuring the filthy KOBOLD and the fetid GNOLL, THONGOR the barbarian, a mysterious wanderer with one eye and the broken sword, the gloomy DOOM CATACOMB from the dying realms of Zotique, the two talented Italian dungeon-synthers SIDEREAL FORTRESS and BLACK TIGER, and those agglomerations of pixels that are BASIC DUNGEON and 1Kbyte DUNGEON.
LBM: Secrets of Black Marsh by Claude M. LeBrun. Published by Dragonsfoot. Available from the Publisher's site in PDF for Free. 35 pages.
Black Marsh is a large wilderness area, most of it unknown and unexplored. Over the years many explorers have entered the marsh never to be heard from again. Those that have returned brought back tales so outrageous that people thought the explorers were insane. Rumors about the Black Marsh tell about a treasure trove hidden somewhere in its depths. Does your party have what it takes to survive this dreaded place? An adventure for 4-6 characters of Levels 10-14.
Deviant Database 2.0 By Tim Snider. Available from Lulu in Print for $9.95. 48 pages.
Deviant Database 2.0ADDITIONAL ABOMINATIONS!

In this fiendish follow-up to the original “Deviant Database,” your players will meet 44 new twisted abominations lurking within The Savage AfterWorld!

• Gargantuan grotesqueries like the Bro’ding and Pangaea wander the ruined world like walking mountains and living islands!

• Analog assailants like the Computer Bug and Mechanobane are driven to rend and consume your robotic player characters!

• Hybrid humanoids like the Mako, Pwnees, and Clotted Ones welcome all visitors! (But will they allow them to ever leave?)

The Deviant Database 2.0 is fully compatible with Goblinoid Games' "Mutant Future" and "Labyrinth Lord" RPGs as well as other Original Edition Fantasy RPGs.
Moonhop: an Oddhack by Type1Ninja. Available from the author's blog for Free. 25 page PDF.

Here it is! I’ve been workshopping this on the OSR Discord for a while now and I think I’m happy with it. It’s a hack of Into the Odd, with GLOG-style races, failed careers, and a bunch of player-facing rules, including classless GLOG Magic, a new-ish set of Hexcrawling speed rules, and weird Hireling Squad rules.
Dyson Logos Commercial Map Pack 2018 by Dyson Logos. Published by ZERObarrier. Available from DriveThruRPG in PDF for $9.99. Page count unavailable.
71 hand-drawn maps by Dyson Logos, all available for your commercial use under a royalty-free license.

Every single commercially-licensed map released on Dyson's Dodecahedron in 2018 - the majority of which are 1200 dpi PNG graphics perfect for high resolution publication work. All are available for royalty-free commercial use, including the right to edit, mash, mangle, convert, change and modify to your whim.

All of these maps are available individually for free from Dyson's Dodecahedron. What you are purchasing in this product is a zip file with all the commercially-released maps from the site from 2018 in one convenient package.
Lifeform Reading: Vermin by Michael Brown. Available from DriveThruRPG in PDF for $0.75. 2 pages.
“No doubt about it,” the exterminator said matter-of-factly; “You’ve got yourselves an infestation of Blattella asterii.”

“Star roaches,” the Colonel hissed, making no effort to hide his disgust. “How bad?”

The exterminator looked around as though he could see the creatures through the ship’s bulkheads. “Pretty extensive here around your cargo bay. Probably how they got in. You’re looking at six thousand credits. That includes chemical and bioengineered pesticide. Nanites are extra.”

The Colonel silently mouthed a curse. I couldn’t believe my ears. Six thousand credits! Over a quarter of the money we’d made off that last job.

The Colonel sighed a long sigh of defeat. “Fine. Go ahead and get started. Let Bel here know whatever you need from us.”

Every world with living organisms has its share of lifeforms harmful to crops and livestock, and generally viewed as economic and ecological burdens. Vermin (colloquially called) tend to survive even in the face of intensive efforts to destroy them and thrive under conditions often harmful to sophonts. They follow sophonts out into the galaxy, stowing away (deliberately or accidentally) in space vessels and spreading their numbers anywhere their hosts go. There are literally millions of lifeforms that can be considered pests. Under the right conditions (plentiful food, lack of predation, etc.), even animals normally considered harmless can become pests.

This supplement for Cepheus Engine and the Original Science Fiction Roleplaying Game takes a brief look at infestations of starships by vermin and their effects on the crews therein. It also offers a look at some common pests and a method for running an infestation.
Tall Tales BX Wild West RPG by Mark Hunt. Available from DriveThruRPG in PDF for $7.99. 96 pages. Print version forthcoming.
TALL TALES is a wild west-themed retro-clone intended to be compatible with the original fantasy RPG. The rules presented can be used as a complete game or a companion to fantasy games using the same overall system. This book is a resource for Referees to pick and choose from!

A Complete Roleplaying Game!

Create courageous gunslingers, low-down desperadoes, singing cowboys or snake oil salesmen and test your mettle out on the trail.
Random Encounters Map Collection Vol 1, Issue 5 (Nov 2018) REMC005 by Justin David Russell. Published by Epic Werkes Studio. Available from DriveThruRPG in PDF for $10.00. Low-res version available for PWYW. 66 pages.
Want help finding inspiration for your next adventure? Are you a busy GM looking for a quick map? Do you want unique locations to spice up your random encounter tables? Then you’ve come to the right place! Random Encounters provides creative solutions for gamers. It specifically caters to the Old School Renaissance, but the maps, hooks, and descriptions found in this book can be used for any fantasy role playing system.

Please enjoy this offering. Have fun and, as always, GAME ON!
Manual of Unknown Monsters by Peter Pagano. Published by Peter Pagano Graphics. Available from DriveThruRPG in Print for $21.95, Print/PDF combo for $26.90 and in PDF for $9.95. 108 pages.
Create Your Own Book of Monsters!
Conjure the magic of your imagination to create new monsters for your RPG fantasy world! 
About the Book 
Perhaps the most fun being a fantasy role-playing game-master is creating new monsters! This monstrous manual provides you with a dedicated place to record your own creations. It contains one hundred open listings waiting for you to add your own descriptions, backgrounds, and unique details to bring your creatures to life. There are sixty illustrations to help inspire the creation of your unique horde of horrible monsters. In addition, there are forty entries with enough space for you to create original drawings of your own monstrous creations.

Create all-new monsters to challenge your unsuspecting players!

This Manual of Unknown Monsters is for the imaginative DM; it does not contain pre-generated monsters with their stats. The illustrations are designed to provide the game referee a starting point to spark their imagination in the creation of new monsters for their fantasy world. If you want a book that collects monsters of your own creation then order the print version so you can add it to your eldritch library.


About the Print Edition: The “Hardcover Color Book (Standard Heavyweight)” uses a thicker 70# white paper which has better page opacity. Despite being listed as Color, the book and interior illustrations are in black & white.
Carapace | Supplement – Queen Encounter by Goblin's Henchman. Available from DriveThruRPG in PDF for Free. 1 page.
This is a one page supplement for my procedural Carapace adventure.

I thought my Carapace adventure would be more interesting if the 'boss' encounter was made less generic, and had some links back to the NPC goals.

Basically, the Queen tries to communicate with the PCs using pheromones. Each PC only gets part of the message (a single word). This should provide the players with some quandaries ...

Built on the site of where dawns light first touched the world, and occupied time and again by civilizations both ancient and recent. Any number of stories are true, from dwarves, to elves, to mages to empires to private manor; all have been true at one point of another back to the literal dawn of time. But none survive for long, and wanderers keep coming to see what others have left behind. All pass through the Black Maw.

The first level of the Black Maw megadungeon, for character levels 1-2. A classic dungeon, with the preview showing you exactly what you get!

Thanks for your support!
SX1 Starry Knight Press 2019 Calendar by Louis "sirlou" Kahn. Published by Starry Knight Press. Available from DriveThruRPG in PDF for PWYW. 16 pages.
STARRY KNIGHT PRESS 2019 CALENDAR

A 12-Month Fantasy Calendar
Featuring the gaming supplements of Starry Knight Press

Hello and welcome, gamers!

This 12 Month calendar highlights a different Starry Knight Press supplement each month, coinciding with the month the supplement was written and/or released. The calendar also contains the United States Federal Holidays, as well as the major religious holidays for several faiths including the Old Faith, which is a key religion the faiths in my published campaign are based on. It also includes the birthdays of authors, creators and artists who are important and influential to me and many others in the RPG and fantasy community (e.g. Gary Gygax, J.R.R. Tolkien, J.K. Rowling, and etc.)

This calendar is being released as a Pay What Your Want product, and everyone is encouraged to download it and enjoy it! I would kindly ask you to please leave the suggested contribution (if you are able), and if you like my content and you are interested in supporting me and helping to keep the lights on here at Starry Knight Press!

As an ADDED BONUS, as a purchaser of one of my supplements you will also get, ABSOLUTELY FREE, a copy of the inaugural issue of my Old School RPG zone, CAVALIER ATTITUDE!!
GGAL001 - The Abandoned Tavern by Peter Lattimore. Published by Garblag Games. Available from DriveThruRPG in PDF for $1.99. 10 pages.
The forest holds many dark secrets, its bark, boughs and branches privy to the passage of time in a way people don't comprehend. It is an unavoidable space between the civilised pockets of the land. The local people make their way along the well-worn tracks and roads of the area. They know they should never stray from the path and they don't want to contemplate what foul creatures linger in the overgrown woods beyond their lantern light.
Frequently villages are ransacked by foul creatures and left empty and idle. Occasionally a village is so isolated and surrounded by the forest that people fear to live there. Rarely a plague or disease can destroy a village from within. For whatever reason, it is not unknown for villages to disappear, for paths to lead to nowhere and for travellers to never reach a destination. 
The Abandoned Tavern sits at the heart of one of these forgotten villages.

This open source adventure location is a standalone scenario that is designed to fit into an existing campaign, or be the jumping off point for one.

Set in a dark fantasy world, the Abandoned Tavern is an ideal stop off for an adventure in Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay, Zweihander RPG or any other dark and gritty fantasy rpg. It could even fit into a darker themed Dungeons & Dragons campaign.

This document will provide you with location descriptions, hooks to get in and out of the scenario and some potential hazards and enemies that would fit into the location well. As such this document will refer to elements that should be represented by finding the appropriate stats in which ever system you choose to play.

We hope you enjoy.
Mother's Maze by Daniel Vance. Published by Vance Games. Available from DriveThruRPG in Print/PDF combo for $14.99, in Print for $12.99 and in PDF for $9.99. 40 pages.
Welcome to a world of high-technology and brutal savagery, where pockets of super science exist side by side with elements of fantasy. Mother's Maze is an adventure set in ancient military testing facility. This murderous maze is filled with terrifying traps and diabolical creatures. Can your adventurers escape a death trap run by an insane computer? Find out in Mother’s Maze, a zero level adventure designed for the Dungeon Crawl Classics RPG.

Dungeon Crawl Classics and DCC RPG are trademarks of Goodman Games. For additional information, visit www.goodman-games.com or contact info@goodman-games.com.
Tall Tales BX Wild West RPG New classes by Mark Hunt. Available from DriveThru RPG in PDF for PWYW. 8 pages.
TALL TALES is a wild west-themed retro-clone intended to be compatible with the original fantasy RPG. This book is a resource for Referees to pick and choose from!

This is three new classes: the Gambler, the Preacher and the lawman.

Create courageous gunslingers, low-down desperadoes, singing cowboys or snake oil salesmen and test your mettle out on the trail.
Class Catalog for B/X Essentials by Mark Craddock. Published by Cross Planes Game Studio. Available from DriveThruRPG in PDF for $3.99. 24 pages.
The Class Catalog brings you the Aasimar, Dragonborn, Dwarven Priest, Dwarven Thief, Elven Rogue, Gnome, Halfling Burglar, Half-Orc, Pixie, and Tiefling Classes to your B/X esssentials game.

This is a supplement for B/X Essentials.
Frontiers of Space: Library Data by Joseph Mohr. Published by Old School Role Playing. Available from DriveThruRPG in PDF for PWYW. 35 pages.
This is a compilation of Library Data related to the Sonora Sector of the Frontiers of Space. This is Cepheus Engine product related to my previous title The Frontiers of Space.
Cerebral Cortex by Michael Brown. Available from DriveThruRPG in PDF for $0.75. 2 pages.
A serious injury results in a desperate race against time as the heroes must locate a skilled physician to treat a stricken friend. But the doctor is in the grip of evil forces that are all too willing to claim the PCs as well. Meanwhile, the victim, no longer in control of their own actions, proves to be a danger to themselves and others. The adventurers find themselves navigating conflicting events as they try to save their colleague.

Cerebral Cortex is a short adventure for 2D6 science fiction RPGs such as Cepheus Engine and the Original Science Fiction Roleplaying Game (OSFRPG.)
Lords of the Hinterlands by Michael Brown. Available from DriveThruRPG in PDF for $0.75. 2 pages.
The job is straightforward: find a Precursor artifact lost in a vehicle wreck in a remote area and return it to its new owner. But the heroes quickly discover that the item they seek isn’t the only unusual thing about the contract; and that their usual methods of dealing with a problem not only won’t work in this instance, they might just get them killed.

Lords of the Hinterlands is a short adventure for 2D6 science fiction RPGs such as Cepheus Engine and the Original Science Fiction Roleplaying Game.
Perilous Realms: Ruins of Silver Wood by J. Published by New Realms Publishing. Available from DriveThruRPG in PDF for $2.95. 6 pages.
This once elegant elven castle is now little more than overgrown rubble. There are rumors, though, of underground halls and chambers and the hidden treasures of elven lords. Monsters and raiding bands of humanoids are also said to lurk in the halls beneath the Ruins of Silver Wood.

Welcome to The Ruins of Silver Wood, the first expansion pack for the Perilous Realms Starter Set. The Ruins of Silver Wood brings you eighteen Adventure cards for The Ruins of Silver Wood area. Enter the dark depths beneath the ruined castle and beware the dangers that lurk there. Expand your campaign with the Ruins of Silver Wood expansion pack.
Tumbleweed Tales Volume 1 by Robert Garitta. Published by Surreal Estate Games. Available from DriveThruRPG in PDF for $1.99. 21 pages.
Match wits with shrewd and slick cardsharps. Brave a drink of medicine show libations. Venture into a den of snakes! Ride the wicked river! Tumbleweed Tales is a collection of three standalone adventures for your Western roleplaying game. Based on Tall Tales by Mark Hunt, it gives you a taste of the many and diverse situations available in the Old West for roleplay, using wits, gumption and sometimes shooting!

After all not every situation is about heading them off at the pass.

Riding into the sunset is optional.
Elegant Fantasy Creature Generator by Raphael Sadowski. Published by Nine Tongues Tales. Available from DriveThruRPG in PDF for PWYW. 16 pages.
There are plenty of random creature generators, so why would you need another one? For me, most of the otherwise great generators too often provide you with silly, or unplayable results. Half of the process is rolling for HD, damage, movement speed and resistances while the “tasty”, inspiring part is kept short or clearly neglected.

When I want to randomly create a creature from ground up I expect nothing at first, and hope that the first few rolls will make the bulk of decisions for me. Next rolls should inspire the overall theme and feel of the creature, and the final choice of features and skills should make it fun, unique and memorable.

I don’t want to roll for stats. I can create the stats myself; write down resistances and attacks that make sense and result of the creature’s shape, theme and features.

I want to roll for inspiration.

Thus, I present to you the Elegant Fantasy Creature Generator. Why Elegant? It should never provide you with silly results nor a randomized mess of stats. As you roll, note and combine the results you should always come out with an interesting creature, be it an NPC, a whole new race of creatures or horrible monster to harass your players with.
Adventure Framework 51: Assault on Dunmark by Stephen J Grodzicki Published by Pickpocket Press. Available from DriveThruRPG in PDF for $2.00. 18 pages.
Welcome to Adventure Frameworks!

We make sweet mini adventures - stand alone, drop in adventure 'skeletons', made to facilitate sandbox style play - for $1 (B&W) or $2 (colour).

Each adventure framework is set in a generic medieval or ancient fantasy location, with enough meat to enable the GM to improvise details (with minimal prep) and adapt to player choices.

System wise, these adventures use the Low Fantasy Gaming RPG (an old school/modern mix d20 based game; free PDF - Link), but are easily adapted to any d20 system.

So what do you get for your hard earned coin?

Adventure Framework 51 Assault on Dunmark consists of:
  • A downloadable, bookmarked PDF (15 A4 pages, excluding cover & credits, in (i) full colour, (ii) line art or greyscale with parchment background, and (iii) line art or greyscale with white background).
  • The Core Adventure: Moderate - High danger. "Aye, you heard it right; Lady Petria slew young Moson in a drunken duel – now Lord Foster is rallying his army to march on Dunmark, raze the keep, and execute his son’s killer. Word is they’re after sellswords to bolster their ranks. Good time to be a mercenary, I guess?"
  • In summary, Assault on Dunmark is a “Mass Battle” scenario, involving hundreds of warriors fighting over the Celdwyn’s isolated keep, nestled between Drelnor Forest and the Trackless Moors.
  • Rumours & Hooks suggestions.
  • Quality Colour Illustrations.
  • Professional Colour Map by Maciej Zagorski of The Forge Studios LLC. 
But don't take my word for it - google 18 Halls of the Dwarf Lord and 16 Delecarte's Carnival of Wonders to download two free examples.

Now, there's a few things AF's don't come with:

Boxed Text: Every time a GM reads boxed text, an ad-lib fairy dies, and I've got too much blood on my hands already. Paraphrasing and natural speech from the GM keeps players guessing what's pre-planned, and what's off-the-cuff-I-totally-planned-that awesome. And we wants that awesome, precious. We wants it.
No Grid: Maps, where provided, don't tend to have grid lines. It's easier to add a grid than to take one away. If you prefer a grid or hex, you may need to add it via Roll20, GIMP v2.10, etc.
US English. I'm in Sydney Australia, so my work is in UK English.

Armed with a handful of Adventure Frameworks, you can sandbox like there's no tomorrow. Browse through your library of AF's, throw out a few hooks, and let the players bite where they may. Whatever direction they take, you'll be ready to handle it with aplomb.
Hope you enjoy.

Note: This AF is not in the Midlands Low Magic Sandbox Setting book/PDF. 

Let's Talk About Pacesetter Games & Simulations


Pacesetter Games released the following modules on DriveThruRPG this week. They're also available on the Publisher's site, some in print, some only in PDF. The PDF prices sometimes vary from the DTRPG ones, usually being cheaper on the Publisher's site.

I don't know when these were originally released by the publisher. I kind of forgot all about Pacesetter Games and haven't been keeping up with their doings. Oops.

Regardless, here they are with links to purchase from the Publisher and from DTRPG.

H1 Six Feet Under by Bill Barsh. Published by Pacesetter Games & Simulations. Available from The Publisher in Print for $5.00, in PDF for $2.00 and from DriveThruRPG in PDF for $3.00. 16 pages. 
The graveyard sits on a small and lonely plateau just outside of town. It has gone unused for many years as all the burial plots and crypts have been filled. Visitors are few and now whispered rumors suggest an evil has awakened in the graveyard.
People speak of a more ancient barrow system under the graveyard and the crypt of a forgotten king. 
The lure of treasure and mysterious events is simply too much to resist!
Six Feet Under is is designed for four to eight characters of third to fifth level. The module is designed for use with the First Edition Advanced game system and is fully compatible with the OSRIC game system.
H2 The Witch of Monte Rosa by Bill Barsh. Published by Pacesetter Games & Simulations. Available from the Publisher in Print for $5.00, in PDF for $2.00 and from DriveThruRPG in PDF for $3.00. 20 pages.
The vines are dying and the ancient vineyards that fill the valley are failing. Families are found slain in their farms and whispers of flying devils have found their way into every town and village. Some claim a necromancer has come while others have whispered rumors of a witch queen from a time near forgotten. The call has gone out for help!
The Witch of Monte Rosa is an adventure for six to eight, first level characters using the first edi-tion game rules. The module is completely playable with the OSRIC game system. 
The adventure includes six new monsters and two new magic items!
D5 The Fires of Balir by Bill Barsh. Published by Pacesetter Games & Simulations. Available from the Publisher in Print for $5.00, in PDF for $2.00 and from DriveThruRPG in PDF for PWYW. 12 pages. (given title does not match the cover title on DTRPG. Module series designation is the same. ed.)
The Darkest Pit is an AD&D adventure designed for six to eight characters of seventh to ninth level. The sce-nario is balanced for approximately 45 character levels. The party should have a good mix of character classes, including at least three fighter types. All characters should possess at least one magic item and one magic weapon with a +2 or better bonus. 
The adventure takes place in an ancient dwarven silver mine that was converted into a prison. There is no compli-cated story or mystery to this adventure. The PCs are tasked with entering the prison dungeon and destroying the demons located on the fourth level of the mine. Only the fourth level of the prison dungeon is detailed in this adventure.
C0.5 Ghost of the Hidden Shrine by Bill Barsh. Published by Pacesetter Games & Simulations. Available from the Publisher for Free and from DriveThruRPG in PDF for PWYW. 8 pages.
This adventure module details several encounters to bolster TSR’s C1 The Hidden Shrine of Tamoachan.© 
C1.5 Ghost City of the Hidden Shrine is an adventure for six to eight characters of third or fourth level using the First Edition game rules. 
C1 The Hidden Shrine of Tamoachan is copyright Wizards of the Coast, Inc.
B2.5 Blizzard on the Borderland by Bill Barsh. Published by Pacesetter Games & Simulations. Available from the Publisher in Print for $5.00, in PDF for $2.00 and from DriveThruRPG in PDF for PWYW. 16 pages.
Winter has struck and the Keep struggles to combat the cold and snow.
But an ancient evil hides behind the piercing wind and ice waiting to destroy all in its icy clutch! 
This adventure supplement details several encounters
to bolster TSR’s B2 The Keep on the Borderlands.© 
B2.5 Blizzard on the Borderland is an adventure for eight characters of second to third level using the First Edition game rules. 
B2 The Keep on the Borderland is copyright Wizards of the Coast, Inc.
B0.5 Secrets of the Unknown by Bill Barsh. Published by Pacesetter Games & Simulations. Available from the Publisher for Free and from DriveThruRPG in PDF for PWYW. 8 pages.
The true secret of Quasqueton was not lost with the vanishing of Zelligar and Rogahn! 
This adventure supplement details several encounters to bolster TSR’s B1 In Search of the Unknown*. 
B0.5 Secrets of the Unknown is an adventure for eight characters
of first to second level using the First Edition game rules. 
*B1 In Search of the Unknown is copyright Wizards of the Coast, Inc.

T0.5 Cursed Cairn of the Moathouse by Bill Barsh. Published by Pacesetter Games & Simulations. Available from the Publisher in PDF for Free and from DriveThruRPG in PDF for $2.00. 12 pages.

Between the village of Hommlet and the malevolent Moat House lies a danger-filled path. 
This adventure supplement details several encounters to bolster TSR’s T1 The Village of Hommlet.© 
T0.5 Cursed Cairn of the Moat House is an adventure for eight characters of first level
using the First Edition game rules. 
T1 The Village of Hommlet is copyright Wizards of the Coast, Inc. 
TM1 The Lost Caravan by Bill Barsh. Published by Pacesetter Games & Simulations. Available from the Publisher in Print for $7.00, in PDF for $2.00 and from DriveThruRPG in PDF for $5.00. 60 pages.
Fifty years ago a treasure-laden caravan accompanied the Princess Alissandra to her destiny – A pre-arranged marriage with a prince from a neighboring kingdom.
Then the caravan and princess disappeared without a trace. 
Now a clue has surfaced that may uncover the fate of The Lost Caravan! 
The Lost Caravan was originally designed as a competition module designed for
Wintercon XI (1982), Oakland University, Rochester, Michigan.
This module has been revised for standard play. 
This adventure is designed for 4 to 6 characters of 5th to 7th level. 
This module includes the complete and expanded adventure, optional tournament scoring system, pre-generated characters, and maps. 
TM2 Storm Over Skyreach by Bill Barsh. Published by Pacesetter Games & Simulations. Available from the Publisher in Print for $5.00, in PDF for $2.00 and from DriveThruRPG in PDF for $4.00. 28 pages.
There are whispers that a storm dragon has returned to the mountain kingdom. Soon the whispers will spread and terror will fill the hearts of the people. The king must act fast and your group is the tip of his spear. You must find a way to ascend
Skyreach Mountain and penetrate the keep of a missing wizard to find the secret of the Storm over Skyreach! 
Storm over Skyreach is a tournament adventure that was originally held at Gen Con™ 22 in 1989 and released again at the 2011 North Texas RPG Convention. It is designed for use with the First Edition Advanced game system and compatible with the OSRICtm system. The scenario is designed for six to eight characters of 5th to 7th level.
N0.5 Twisting Trail of the Reptile Cult by Bill Barsh. Published by Pacesetter Games & Simulations. Available from the Publisher for Free and from DriveThruRPG in PDF for PWYW. 20 Pages.
The trail from Orlane to the compound of the Cult of the Reptile God is long and twisted.
Through the Dim Forest and the Rushmoors, danger lurks around every turn. 
This adventure supplement details several encounters to bolster TSR’s N1 Against the Cult of the Reptile God© 
N1 Twisting Trail of the Reptile God is an adventure for eight characters of first level
using the First Edition game rules. 
N1 Against the Cult of the Reptile God is copyright Wizards of the Coast, Inc.

Re-Releases, New Editions, Now in Print, etc.


What Ho, Frog Demons - HC04 by Chris Kutalik, Luka Rejec. Published by Hydra Cooperative. Now Available from DriveThruRPG in a Print/PDF Combo for $17.00 (color), $16.00 (B&W) and in PDF for $12.00. 112 pages. 
Weighing in at 112 pages of pure Slavic/Vancian/Moorcockian acid fantasy, What Ho, Frog Demons is the fourth stand-alone, mini-sandbox adventure in the Slumbering Ursine Dunes series. Fever-Dreaming Marlinko was an experiment in reforming the city setting book: sloughing off the tedious bits and cranking up the most adventurable qualities. What Ho, Frog Demons is a similar experiment: what happens when you rev up a regional setting book really high for pure play at the table.

What's inside its novella-length pages:

Two "Saturday Night Special" Dungeons. Experience the two-bit Tomb of Horrors of the deadly trapped hell of the Frog Demon Temple or the escalating schlock-horror of the Manor of the Beet God. Both designed to be easily slottable for a few sessions of manic play in your home mangled campaign.

Full Hexcrawl. Want to run your players through the Weird-infested environs between the Dunes, Marlinko, the Misty Isles and this product? Well here's a full hexcrawl of all of Marlinko Canton, the most feverish of the Hill Cantons.

An “Infection Index.” Much like the Chaos Index of previous adventures which brought an ever changing and escalating sandbox, the Beet God Manor will crank up over and between sessions.

A slew of new monsters and a random frog demon generation system.

A whole rural carousing system.

An entire Bucolic Slavic Village generation system.
The Black Hack Booklet Second Edition by David Black. Published by Gold Piece Publications. Available from DriveThruRPG in PDF for $2.00. 26 pages.
Black is Back!

All the essential rules you need (excluding monsters) to play The Black Hack Second Edition in a 26 page booklet format. If you're a player then this is all you need to play. If you're a GM then this will give you faster access to the most common rules you need during a game.

If you want the full edition of the rules you can find it here:

The Black Hack Second Edition.

The Black Hack is a super-streamlined roleplaying game that uses the Original 1970s Fantasy Roleplaying Game as a base, and could well be the most straightforward modern OSR compatible clone available. If speed of play and character creation, compatibility, and simple - yet elegant rules are what you yearn for. Look no further!

The Black Hack is a fast playing game and the rules can be picked up in minutes.
Polyhedron Newszine V3 #3 Issue 12 From Wizards of the Coast. Available from DriveThruRPG in PDF for $0.99. 32 pages.
Included in this issue:
  • Encounter — Grifton must face the red dragon, Forszhan — will he fight or flee, by Gali Sanchez
  • The Knight-Error - A cartoon, by Ron Shirtz
  • Dispel Confusion - By Frank Mentzer, Allen Hammack, Mike Carr, Mark Acres, James Ward, Merle Rasmussen and Dave Cook
  • Basically Speaking - Massed battles, by Jon Pickens.
  • Knight Hawks: A New Dimension - A STAR FRONTIERSTM Game Feature by Doug Niles
  • Mapping From Square One - Part III of a three-part series. by Frank Mentzer.
  • Notes for the Dungeon Master - Setting the Milieu by E. Gary Gygax.
  • Roles - A TOP SECRET Game Feature by Merle Rasmussen.
Polyhedron Newszine V3 #4 Issue 13 From Wizards of the Coast. Available from DriveThruRPG in PDF for $0.99. 36 pages.
Included in this issue:
  • Dispel Confusion — by Jon Pickens, James Ward, Allen Hammack, Mike Carr, Mark Acres, Merle Rasmussen, Penny Petticord, and Dave Cook
  • Under Construction — Ned's story continues, or, I never promised you a rose garden, by Mark Kirchoff
  • Deities, Demigods, and DMs — Learn how to more effectively and logically role-play your deities, by Roger Moore
  • Spelling Bee — Continual Light and Continual Darkness spells, by James Ward
  • The Hive Master — A GANGBUSTERSTM game scenario, by Harold Johnson
  • Ecosystem — A GAMME WORLD game feature, by James Ward
  • Go West, You Gamer — Add new abilities to your BOOT HILL game characters, by Steve Winter
  • Raid on Theseus — A STAR FRONTIERSTM Knight Hawks game scenario, by Doug Niles
  • Psionic Pspells — A look at spells resembling psionic powers, by Kim Mohan
  • The Condor Assignment — A TOP SECRET game feature, by Allen Hammack
Polyhedron Newszine V3 #5 Issue 14 From Wizards of the Coast. Available from DriveThruRPG in PDF for $0.99. 34 pages.
Included in this issue:
  • Encounters — Swat and his faithful bear companion take on an evil lich and a  by Roger E Moore
  • Two Cents — RPGATM Network Member Christopher Gandy's views on "role" playing, by Christopher Gandy
  • Dispel Confusion — by Jon Pickens, James Ward, Allan Hammack, Mike Carr, Mark Acres, Penny Petticord, and Dave Cook
  • The Lone Wolf — A GAMMA WORLD game PC or NPC, by James Ward
  • The D&D Name Means More thand just Modules — A comprehensive DUNGEONS & DRAGONS and ADVANCED DUNGEONS & DRAGONS licensed product list, by Heidi Kilpin, with Andy Levison
  • Notes for the Dungeon Master — Artifacts, Relics, and DM Headaches, by Roger E Moore
  • Ambush on Lossend — A STAR FRONTIERSTM game scneario, by Steve Winter
Cepheus: Faster Than Light! by Omer Golan-Joel. Published by Stellagama Publishing. Available from DriveThruRPG in PDF for $3.00. 38 pages.
Whether exchanging laser fire with aliens across a cratered moonscape or pushing the speed of light in a shining spaceship, interstellar adventurers lead exciting lives. These minimalist rules allow you to experience these wondrous adventures without fuss or complication. They are perfect for convention play, pick-up games, or a beer-and-pretzels night when you roll dice and blow stuff up. They include everything you need to play: character generation, task checks, personal, vehicle, and starship combat, as well as the basic rules for interstellar travel.

Compatible with Cepheus Light, the Cepheus Engine System Reference Document, and other OGL 2d6 sci-fi games.
Mutant Future [BUNDLE] From Skirmisher Publishing. Available from DriveThruRPG in PDF for $9.99.
This special 67% off bundle contains eight OGL/d20 sourcebooks stat'ed for the "Basic" version of this system and designed for use with the Mutant Future retroclone of Gamma World and other modern, sci-fi, and post-apocalyptic RPGS! They include the Gold-bestselling "Creatures of the Wastelands: Mutational Evolution" and the just released "Living Building."
Artificial: Robots in Clement Sector by Michael Johnson. Published by Gypsy Knights Games. Available from DriveThruRPG in Print/PDF Combo for $24.99. In PDF for $9.99. 100 pages.
Designed to excel!

Robots are a common sight in Clement Sector. They are often seen taking on not only the jobs that humans, altrants, and uplifts cannot do but also the jobs where biological lifeforms are unwanted. Often seen as tools and machines rather than entities, few care if you endanger the existence of a robot.

Artificial: Robots in Clement Sector provides you with a detailed design sequence that allows you to create robots of all shapes and sizes. With Artificial, you can create everything from a common cargo loader to a state of the art synthetic companion. Anything from the average cleaner bot to a biosynth avatar of your starship's computer AI.

Artificial also provides a method to play a robot as a player character. Play anything from an efficient robot butler to a dangerous warbot!

Artificial is designed to be compatible with Clement Sector, Cepheus Engine, and any science fiction setting where robots are present.

It's time to create!
Elfmaids & Octopi Fully Basick Book by Christopher Tamm. Available from Lulu In Print for $2.37. 32 pages. (PDF available from the author's blog.)
This is a compilation of blog posts made into a booklet for players in my campaigns. It is not a complete rule set it is just notes to help players make a basic character. 
Swashbucklers of the Razor Coast (S&W) [BUNDLE] Published by Frog God Games. Available from DriveThruRPG in PDF for $39.99. Contains Razor Coast S&W Edition, Fire as She Bears PF Edition, Freebooter's Guide S&W Edition, and Heart of the Razor S&W Edition.
Under the heat of the salted sun, along a pirate-riddled coast bloated fat with forgotten riches and forbidden secrets, the subjugation of the native tribes awakens long banished horrors. Horrors whose deadly plans threaten not only Port Shaw -- the corrupt fingerhold of a distant and decadent civilization -- but existence, itself. A sea of blood caresses the savage shore of the Razor. Rising from the abyssal depths, Harthagoa, the bastard spawn of a She-Kraken and Demogorgon drags whole fleets beneath the waves.
In the fetid Blacksink Marsh, unspeakable horrors lurk beneath the bog water, accursed cannibals pay gory obeisance to an ancient shark god of slaughter - begging its return.

A ghostly armada, murderous pirates, and balesharks prowl the waves - all threaten Port Shaw, the only bastion of "civilization" on the Razor. The city hosts foreign invaders chasing baleen, ambergris, and gold. They menace the native Tulita tribes and drive them from their ancestral home with smoke-belching cannonade.

Pele, The Goddess of Fire and Wrack, watches from her smoldering throne on Dreadsmoke Mountain. She stands ever ready to purge the people of Port Shaw from her domain in a torrent of ash and molten lava.

More Free Gaming Stuff from the Blogosphere and Environs


Mark Chance posted a 17 page PDF. Heroes of Mirelyn's Skyrealm. Link to Drive file. 

Todd released the beta version of his Domain Rules in a 33 page PDF on Patreon, available to everyone.


Ana Polanscak of Gardens of Hecate posted CCII. Cult of the Possessed: Brethren, which isn't so much a free gaming thing as a gameable idea with pictures of incredible miniatures and have I mentioned how fucking cool this blog is?

Konsumterra of Elfmaids & Octopi posted The Creature That Ate My Village. And some one page dungeon Zines, Gnome Hall, and Desert Ruins.  












Sebastián Calvo of DemogorgoniA posted Frostbitten & Mutilated - Amazon Divination Games.


Maptime





Reviews & Play Reports


Dungeon Musings on YouTube livestreams play through the Barrowmaze.









And in Other News...


Jimm Johnson of The Contemptible Cube of Quazar is looking for a Cartographer. And while you're there, be sure to pick up the free PDF of his Planet Eris houserules, on the column at the left. 

Joseph Browning of Sorcery & Super Science! launched his Stonewall fiction series. 


Kickstarters, etc.







And That's It for This Week...


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About The OSR News

Unless otherwise noted, all links to products and files are to the individual authors sites, pertinent posts, or sales pages. I don’t link directly to files unless that is the only link available.

I have received no remuneration from any publisher for reporting on their releases, nor is such a requirement for a product to be included in these posts. At times, an author or publisher may send me a complimentary copy of an item, for purposes of review. This is not a requirement for a product's inclusion in these posts. One Bookshelf site links are affiliate links and may provide some compensation from that retail site.

Please feel free to send me information on any new releases, events, or other items of interest, which you would like to see mentioned.

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