Another Tidbit from my Greyhawk Campaign

I posted this on G+ some time ago and wanted to make sure I didn't lose it, since G+ is shutting down. This took place close to a year ago, I think. Brisco's PC was probably around 9th level at the time.


So, my son's Evil Magic User discovered and sneaked his way into the small, hidden dungeon beneath a temple dedicated to an obscure Spider God, located on the Wild Coast. Long forgotten by the priests above, the secret sanctuary below had once been the domain of the sorcery wielding masters of the cult.

After dispatching the guardians hidden therein, he discovered what he thought he was looking for. A sealed, silver door, glowing fiercely with red sigils of protection and binding. Flashes of flame, occasionally erupting from the lines of power traced into the metal.

A radically dismembered mage, the forgotten leader of the cultists, begged for help in achieving a long awaited death as flames licked at the many separate parts of his gore covered mortal coil. With tortuous gasps and whispers, the damned creature told him what lay beyond the door. And that the Bindings had been weakened by their prisoner's decades long attempts to win free, though the efforts exerted were still too paltry, thanks to the inhibition of her powers.

Still, my son's MU was fairly certain that the dark magic he sought was within the sealed room. One of the lost Doctrines of Darkness.

Leaving the cursed mage to whimper in agony, he went back to the fiercely heated door to attempt to dispel the wards.

"Allright. After your conversation with the dismembered mage, you can definitely see where the wards have been strained and made threadbare in places. I'm giving you a 50% chance to finish unraveling them with a Dispel Magic."

"Can I try again if I don't make it?"

"Sure. Next time you level up."

"Great!"

He rolls some ridiculously low number and grins in triumph!

"The door cracks and shatters as the wards disintegrate and stepping out of the doorway, surrounded by smoke and flame..."

Things I've Used in my Greyhawk Campaign and Reports on Some Recent Events in the Central Flanaess

I've been DMing by son, Brisco in a Greyhawk campaign for the past two years. Aside from the core 1e books, here's most of the published sources I've made use of and a little of what happened during play.

OSRIC - A handy quick reference for 1e. If I don't feel like lugging around a lot of books and I'm not expecting anything out of the ordinary, I'll sometimes just take my 1e PH and OSRIC A5 along as my basic ruleset. Available at RPGNOW in print and in pdf for free. 

The World of Greyhawk Folio - I've got the boxed set as well, buy I like the compact nature and layout of the folio. For me, the only thing of value the box set adds is info on the gods and I'm using the Dragon magazine articles for those. Now available at RPGNOW in print or pdf. Also, still very findable on the second hand market.

Mad Irishman's AD&D 1st Edition Character Sheets and NPC Sheets - The TSR goldenrod sheets for AD&D were the best. And these replica's are just what the DM ordered. The NPC sheet replica's are really cool, as well. Available gratis.

Classic Dungeon Designer's Netbook #4 - Old School Encounters Reference - This thing. This thing is very, very good. If you don't have it, get it. It's free. Perfect for running a 1e Hex Crawl, doing your normal prep, or for quickly rolling up virtually anything at the table. ANY THING. The word is: Comprehensive as Fuck!

Monsterless Manual - Al from Beyond the Black Gate posted a lot of good stuff back in the day and this free PDF of NPC's is something I always keep on hand. 

Things About Villains from Playing D&D With Porn Stars - An excellent random table from Zak S. Free on his blog. 

Tower of the Stargazer - James Raggi's classic OSR introductory adventure. When playing, my son is sometimes brazen as all hell and often incredibly... judicious. Upon confronting the "star gazer," he snatched the star crystal, did a quick appraisal and said "That's good enough! I'm outta here!" and made his way out of the tower, with the occupant's curses screaming after him, thus avoiding many of the module's nastier traps. Brisco later ran this module himself, DMing OSRIC for his friends. I set the tower in the Cairn Hills, not too far from the city of Greyhawk. Available in PDF from RPGNOW and in Print from the Publisher.

Under Siege - A Labyrinth Lord module set in Larm, this one is kind of interesting. Its main selling point is the battlemat and counters it comes with and if you don't mind printing these out and maybe gluing some cardboard backing to them, you've got a nice wargame set up with which to play out the Battle of Larm. A host of Goblin and associated critters, about 60 if I recall correctly lay siege to the small village of Larm. The PC's are expected to lead the defense and save the village! Bonus: the spider-goat encounter with associated game counter. 

I've been meaning to do a full review of this. I've ran it twice. The first time was a resounding success and the heroes saved the day. The second time was in this campaign.

Brisco's PC and his hireling fighter Thomas found themselves in Larm, located where the Need River is just about to cross into the Cairn Hills, some miles SE of the City of Greyhawk. In the early hours of the siege, Thomas is rudely dispatched and Brisco's Merlin decides to bug out, but not before stealing a few choice scrolls from the now dead village elder's office. 

Leaving the module and its doomed inhabitants behind, he uses his magic to turn Invisible and heads into the Cairn, northwards, running out of food, water and in serious trouble. A fortunate roll on the encounter tables finds him meeting up with a couple of gnomes, who offer him succor. In what is possibly his darkest deed, Merlin murders the Gnomes, taking their supplies and heading west. He later runs into a lone Mynock. This creature was an agent of Iggwilv, spying for her in the area. Brisco decides to attack first and ask questions later. 

The DM thought Merlin was going to die at this point, but the dice gods decided otherwise and Merlin unexpectedly triumphed, earning a Crystal Ball for his efforts and the attention of Iggwilv for the next several months of the campaign. 

It should be noted in his favor, that while he still sometimes prefers bold actions, Brisco quickly passed through this, shall we say, highly chaotic phase of his early D&D career and now seldom slaughters innocents, or attacks something for merely looking at him funny. He is still prone to betrayal, however and sometimes frets that his PC isn't being evil enough. 

Monsters of Myth - A book of monsters for OSRIC. One of the best alternative, or secondary monster manuals out there. And its Free in PDF. 

T1 The Village of Hommlet - A lot of the action in the campaign has taken place in and around the Kron Hills. Even after killing that bastard Lareth the Beautiful, Hommlet was the center of the campaign for several months. Rufus has been called back to Verbobonc and Burne is currently in Nulb, working against the surviving members of the Cult of Elemental Evil. Only available in pdf from RPGNOW, I'm sure you can find a copy on ebay. One of the most celebrated modules of the TSR era. 

B2 The Keep on the Borderlands - I replaced the dungeon but kept the keep and the basic setup. Baridel Keep is located in the Principality of Ulek, near the border with the Pomarj. An ambassador from Ulek traveled to several nearby areas, recruiting adventurers to help stabilize the area in and around the border with the Pomarj. My son's PC Merlin decided to check out the situation and while he was away from the Kron Hill area, a group of ne'er do wells went into the Temple of Elemental Evil and unleashed all manner of vile darkness. A few stray bands of cultists, as well as the occasional demon or two can still be found roaming the area, though good aligned forces have gotten the situation mostly back under control. Available in PDF from RPGNOW, but easily found on ebay

Highlights from the period include a 7th lvl Merlin taking on a mercenary band some 200 strong, alone, after they confiscate his horse and satchel of gold. Also, the Quest to recover The Horn of the Edge of Time, where Merlin earned the trust and respect of the dwarfs in the Kron Hills. . 

Fight On! - Various issues. The Darkness Beneath. I replaced the caves of Chaos in B2 with the Fight On! megadungeon. Only a few levels actually saw use, as play shifted back to the Kron Hills. If you haven't checked out any issues, I encourage you to do so. Fight On! was a staple of the early OSR and probably the best bang for your gaming buck. 

G 1-3 Against the Giants - A slaughterhouse of a module series. Available in PDF from RPGNOW. Second hand print copies can still be found, but you might have to do a bit of digging for this one and prices have been going up, last I checked. A party of doughty dwarfs, and one somewhat evil MU cleared up the Giant uprising. 

D 1-2 Descent into the Depths of the Earth - Things got weird with this one, as at the end of the Giants series, Brisco decided to descend into the depths at Eclavdra's side and traveled with a party of drow, down to Erelhei-Cinlu. Available in PDF from RPGNOW and of course, on the second

hand market.

D3 Vault of the Drow - After a bit of exploring the Vault, Brisco and a duergar henchman he picked up along the way, found themselves in Lolth's temple and face to face with the earthly avatar of Lolth herself! The duergar was quickly dispatched, but Brisco managed to sneak in a Disintegration spell at the beginning of the battle, before Lolth could extricate herself. Brisco watched nervously as I rolled the dice. Lolth failed the MR roll and her save, as well! This precipitated open war between the drow factions, further complicated by the arrival of several hundred Dwarven warriors from Balak-Tor. Available in PDF from RPGNOW and ebay, etc. 

DF16 Skein of the Death Mother - Published by Dragonsfoot, this is an alternative dungeon for Lolth's lair, meant to replace the Spider Ship in Q1. Curiously, I couldn't find this on DF but did find this link to a copy. I didn't use Q1 at all, choosing instead to expand this module with some appropriate abyssal scenery.

Merlin the MU - L 12,

his henchman Elimon the Fighter - L 10, 

associates Theron the Dwarven Fighter - L 11, 

Horos the Dwarven Cleric - L 11, 

Gozman Voz a hideously scarred servant of Zagyg - MU L7, 

and two L 7 Dwarf Fighters serving Horos, 

All descended into the Abyss to slay Lolth. For shits and giggles, apparently. It's been said that Q1 really doesn't follow logically from D3 and there's no reason for the PC's to go after Lolth in the first place. True. But I bet they do, 99 times out of 100. After a few skirmishes and one major pitched battle in Lolth's lair, the PC's quickly hunt down the demon queen and the final confrontation is over fairly quickly.

In round one, Elimon dies from Lolth's poisoned bite and the dwarves are struck with confusion, or fear. Someone manages to slightly wound Lolth. By about eight points. Not enough that she feels the need to invoke her thrice daily Heal power. Brisco has no idea how many Hit points she has, but he gets initiative and being now alone against Lolth, decides to take a gamble. He's been carrying around a scroll of Power Word Kill for several months. As always, I roll the dice in the open and Lolth totally blows her Magic Resistance roll! With 58 remaining HP, she dies!

Save vs. G+, Blogging, Killing Lolth, the Greyhawk Campaign and Other Projects

With the announcement of the impending death of G+, the online OSR & DIY gaming community seems to have quickly and largely settled on MeWe as its tentative new hub of activity. While there have been some concerns raised about the alt-right presence on the site, I don't see an issue as you don't have to friend or see anyone you don't want to and the goddamn alt-right is going to have a presence anywhere. You can friend me on MeWe at: mewe.com/i/james.smith227

There's been a lot of talk about revitalizing the blogosphere. Also, some people are certainly choosing other venues than MeWe, or none at all. With an OSR diaspora on our hands, my former OSR News post series might be of use again. I'm considering revising it.

The links to my gaming stuff should all be valid again. Somewhere over there, on the left.

I'm also currently looking into starting a YouTube channel, as there isn't enough OSR content available over there, yet. My son and I have been talking about starting a Podcast, which might be an interesting venture. He's been DMing for some of his friends, as well as for me on occasion and I think his fresh perspective combined with my own middle aged one might make for a good show.

I'm also currently working on a module. No expected arrival date. Maybe next month. Maybe next year.

On the gaming front, my son's MU, Merlin killed Lolth last week, with help from those shady
dwarves from the Kron hills, he hangs with. On the way back to the Prime Material, they accidentally got side tracked in Arcadia for a few minutes and one of the dwarves, Theron, saw Mount Clangeddin and is now convinced he has to atone for his many and varied sins. After days of soul searching, he was reminded of the dwarven bastion he saw when on Lolth's plane and has decided Clangeddin wants him to go to their aid. He demanded that Merlin aid him in this endeavor, in return for the many times he has fought at the MU's side. So, we'll see how that turns out.

Running a Greyhawk campaign has been a lot of fun. I've picked up so many bits and pieces of the lore over the past 35 years, but this is the first time I've actually ran a game in the setting. All of that material got reshuffled and properly organized in a rather enjoyable process. Most of the campaign has taken place in the area in and around the Kron hills. Merlin has convinced the Chief of the Dwarven stronghold of Balak-Tor to allow him to build a Tower in the mountains near their demesne, so once his latest adventure is over he gets to plan out his tower and pay through the nose for dwarven architects and builders. So, my son will get a proper introduction to the AD&D endgame and we'll start moving towards retiring the campaign. He wants to make it to 18th level before ending it, of course, so things aren't going to wind up too soon. He's 13th level now, so I can see the current campaign running for another year, or close to it.

Cultic Greyhawk Pt. 1

It's the damnedest thing. 

So, for the past three or four years I've been toying with running Greyhawk. Keep saying I'm going to do it.
Never pulling the trigger.

So, what draws me to Mr. Gygax's campaign?

It's not the history. Though, I like the history.

It's not the maps. Though, Darlene's Maps Kick all kinds of Ass.

Part of it's the strong ties to AD&D. And 1e Core's Implied Setting.

And the gods.

My favorite D&D pantheon, hands down.

Let's have an excerpt from an old blog post o' mine:

Shit! I better just quote the whole damn thing! (With a few edits...)

Gygaxian Supernaturalism - Or, What Happens to Hommlet's Rufus at 8th Level?

The Gods are Watching You!

From T1:
"Rufus Is also lawful good, and when he reaches 8th level he has been instructed to return to Verbobonc for special service in the Viscount‘s behalf."

Some Quotes from the DMG:
Page 81

"Why then the increase in hit points? Because these reflect both the actual physical ability of the character to withstand damage - as indicated by constitution bonuses- and a commensurate increase in such areas as skill in combat and similar life-or-death situations, the "sixth sense" which warns the individual of some otherwise unforeseen events, sheer luck,and the fantastic provisions of magical protections and/or divine protection. (Emphasis mine.)"

Page 25

Whether or not the character actively professes some deity, he or she will have an alignment and serve one or more deities of this general alignment indirectly and unbeknownst to the character.

         Page 79

By means of skill, luck, magical protections, quirks of fate and the aid of supernatural powers, the character making his or her saving throw takes none or only part of the indicated results - fireball damage, poisoning,being turned to stone, or whatever. (emphasis mine.)

There's more relevant material, such as that involving alignment languages, the penalties for changing alignment, etc. Hell, it's "passim" throughout the AD&D rulebooks!
One more quote, from Deities & Demigods, this time. Page 9:

Otherwise, the accumulation of hit points and the ever-greater abilities and better saving throws of characters represent the aid supplied by supernatural forces.

So. The supernatural realms and relations with deities are very, very important in AD&D. And an integral part of an AD&D campaign world.

Now, back to Rufus.

Almost 8th level! One step away from Lord. He's already gotten 3/2 attacks. Rufus is about to become a Superhero!

Rufus Is also lawful good, and when he reaches 8th level he has been instructed to return to Verbobonc for special service in the Viscount‘s behalf.

Now, Rufus wouldn't know what 8th level means. Would he? As you might suspect, I'm going to make the case that yes, 8th Level would indeed mean something to Rufus.

Gygaxian Supernaturalism! (With Thanks to Mr. Maliszewski.)

He might refer to it as becoming a Superhero. I don't think the text states that Rufus is a follower of the Cugel fellow, though Burne is. For the moment, let's assume Rufus is as well. It's likely, the cult of St. Cuthbert would have it's own title for 8th level. Or, maybe Superhero is more widely used.

The point is, that in a world where Leveled Characters are so closely married to the gods and supernatural powers, a Fighter as high as 8th level, especially one as well connected as Rufus, would have an idea of where he stood with his god, church and the Greater Supernatural Realm.

So, what might the Viscount have said to Rufus?

"Return, when you have witnessed the Vision of the Cugel at Noon."

Or, something.

Being a leveled Fighter, serving a deity, perforce, might be somewhat akin to being part of a Mystery Cult. Take structured training into account and Rufus may well be, just that! An initiate of a warrior brotherhood. The Cult of St. Cuthbert!

Rufus would know when he had crossed an important threshold. Not only is that the point at which Rufus was ordered to return, but it was understood that he would recognize his entry into 8th level. It could simply be that every level would be considered important. Or, maybe just every one above, say 5th.

At what point does a Fighter start noticing that he's a pawn of the gods?

Hell, he's probably been having dreams, nightmares and visions, sent by St. Cuthbert, and/or Planetars, lesser servants, etc., for quite some time. Not to mention nasty, demonic beings, or deliciously enticing ones, trying to make him swerve from his LG path.

Most gods aren't the type to be so altruistic and helpful, without ever being more noticeable. Or, demanding! Characters serving under protest, as it were, might be subject to more subtle treatment. Or, not! Those more involved with Churches and Organizations, might also only see signs of the deity, "out of the corner of their eye," as it were. Or, they might find themselves more directly put-upon.
Rufus' deity has been helping him out with Hit Points, Saving Throws, etc., to the point, where Rufus is 8th Level! He lives and moves in a supernatural reality and the gods have a vested interest, however small, in his doings. PC Level ties into this relationship directly! While it's easier to see with Clerics and MU's, as a Fighter gains levels, he's also becoming more tightly enmeshed within the schemes and powers of his deity. Whether he wants to, or not!

It makes perfect sense, that he would be able to see and track the progress of this relationship, at least somewhat. And that he would notice the changes his relations with the divine, were having upon him. His church, certainly his deity would know!

Established signs, omens, etc., not to mention the possibility of initiatory rituals of a sort, would fit in just perfectly.

Maybe the journey to visit the Viscount is a ruse and the Powers that Be, want to get Rufus out of Hommlet, so they can test his worthiness, to operate at 8th Level.

More on this shortly.

Archive Post: The Hommlet Files

I keep forgetting about Archive Thursday.

Here's two posts from the UG, regarding Hommlet and associated subjects. By dint of overwhelming mass suggestion, I've decided to run Greyhawk this evening. In Fact...

By God, It’s Time to Go Back to Hommlet! 

Originally posted Dec. 30, 2009.

The Village of Hommlet was the first Module I ever DM’ed. I think it’s the first adventure I DM’ed, but I  don’t quite recall. I was writing my own stuff, right off the bat and there’s a good possibility that I put my friends through some weird little ecological disaster of a dungeon, before initiating them into the joys of T1.

Back then, during our first year or so of play, we didn’t have a campaign. One of the four of us would decide, or be chosen, to DM and the rest would pull out characters from our notebooks, or roll up some new ones, assembling a level appropriate party for whatever the DM du jour had in mind.

This sort of tournament style of play isn’t nearly as satisfying as a true campaign. But, the year or so we spent on one-shot adventures, was a fabulous learning experience. Each one of us DMed on a regular basis, honing our skills and learning from one another. On a Friday night, in my friend Mel’s bedroom, I ran T1.

Even then, during my green, first forays into DMing, I knew it was one hell of a great module. 26 years later, I recall very little of that gaming session. I do remember how well the game went. We all had a blast and the experience encouraged and inspired me to continue with my apprenticeship as a DM. I also had my first DM Evilgasm, as the players, who had accepted Turuko and Kobort as adventuring cohorts, were shocked and surprised, when their trust was rewarded with treachery.

It was the only time I ever ran T1. I think it’s time that I rectified that little injustice. So, this coming year, I resolve to run The Village of Hommlet again. If anyone would care to join me, let me know. We can all compare notes and have some fun, seeing what we, as well as our players, do with this classic adventure.

Well, I've got to get my ass in gear and finish prepping for tonight. I'm excited by the prospect of running T1 again, after all these years. But first, one more Hommlet related re- post.  

Gygaxian Supernaturalism - Or, What Happens to Hommlet's Rufus at 8th Level?

Originally posted July 11, 2011

The Gods are Watching You!

From T1:

Rufus Is also lawful good, and when he reaches 8th level he has been instructed to return to Verbobonc for special service in the Viscount‘s behalf. 

Some Quotes from the DMG:

Page 81

Why then the increase in hit points? Because these reflect both the actual physical ability of the character to withstand damage - as indicated by constitution bonuses- and a commensurate increase in such areas as skill in combat and similar life-or-death situations, the "sixth sense" whith warns the individual of some otherwise unforeseen events, sheer luck,and the fantastic provisions of magical protections and/or divine protection. (Emphasis mine.) 

Page 25

Whether or not the character actively professes some deity, he or she will have on alignment and serve one or more deities of this general alignment indirectly and unbeknownst to the character. 

Page 79

By means of skill, luck, magical protections, quirks of fate and the aid of supernatural powers, the character making his or her saving throw takes none or only part of the indicated results - fireball damage, poisoning,being turned to stone, or whatever. (emphasis mine.)

There's more relevant material, such as that involving alignment languages, the penalties for changing alignment, etc. Hell, it's "passim" throughout the AD&D rulebooks!

One more quote.

From Deities & Demigods, this time. Page 9:

Otherwise, the accumulation of hit points and the ever-greater abilities and better saving throws of characters represent the aid supplied by supernatural forces.So. The supernatural realms and the relationship with deity is very, very important in AD&D. And an integral part of an AD&D campaign world.

Now, back to Rufus.

8th level! One step away from Lord. He's already gotten 3/2 attacks. Rufus is about to become a Superhero!

Rufus Is also lawful good, and when he reaches 8th level he has been instructed to return to Verbobonc for special service in the Viscount‘s behalf.Now, Rufus wouldn't know what 8th level means. Would he? As you might suspect, I'm going to make the case that yes, 8th Level would indeed, mean something to Rufus.

Gygaxian Supernaturalism! (With Thanks to Mr. Maliszewski.)

He might refer to it as becoming a Superhero. I don't think the text states that Rufus is a follower of the Cugel fellow, though Burne is. For the moment, let's assume Rufus is as well. It's likely, the cult of St. Cuthbert would have it's own title for 8th level. Or, maybe Superhero is more widely used.

The point is, that in a world where Leveled Characters are so closely married to the gods and supernatural powers, a Fighter as high as 8th level, especially one as well connected as Rufus, would have an idea of where he stood with his god, church and the Greater Supernatural Realm.

So, what might the Viscount have said to Rufus?

"Return, when you have witnessed the Vision of the Cugel at Noon."

Or, something.

In a world so tightly wielded to the supernatural powers, being a leveled Fighter, serving a deity, perforce, might be somewhat akin to being part of a Mystery Cult. Rufus would know when he had crossed an important threshold and we might assume that 8th level represents just that! An important threshold. Because not only is that the point at which Rufus was ordered to return, but because it was known that he would recognize his entry into 8th level. It could simply be that every level would be considered important. Or, maybe just every one above, say 5th.

At what point does a Fighter start noticing that he's a pawn of the gods?

Hell, he's probably been having dreams, nightmares and visions, sent by St. Cuthbert, and/or Planetars, lesser servants, etc., for quite some time. Not to mention nasty, demonic beings, or deliciously enticing ones, trying to make him swerve from his LG path.

The idea that the gods are giving characters all this aid, which increases at every level, yet have virtually nothing else to do with them is rather problematic. Gods just aren't the type to be so altruistic and helpful, without ever being more noticeable. Or, demanding! Characters serving under protest, as it were, might be subject to more subtle treatment. Or, not! Those more involved with Churches and Organizations, might also only see signs of the deity "out of the corner of their eye," as it were. Or, they might find themselves more directly put-upon.

Rufus' deity has been helping him out with Hit Points, Saving Throws, etc., to the point where Rufus is 8th Level! He lives and moves in a supernatural reality and the gods have a vested interest, however small, in his doings. PC Level ties into this relationship directly! While it's easier to see with Clerics and MU's, as a Fighter gains levels, he's also becoming more tightly enmeshed within the schemes and powers of his deity. Whether he wants to, or not!

It makes perfect sense, that he would be able to see and track the progress of this relationship, at least somewhat. And that he would notice the effect, his relations with the divine, were having upon him. His church, certainly his deity would know!

Established signs, omens, etc., not to mention the possibility of initiatory rituals of a sort, would fit in just perfectly.

Maybe the journey to visit the Viscount is a ruse and the Powers that Be, want to get Rufus out of Hommlet so they can test his worthiness to operate at 8th Level.

Oh, apparently Burne and Rufus are lovers. I don't really see St. Cuthbert as the sort to have a Sacred Bander wing of his army. Further research is called for!