Valley of the Azure Ziggurat ... And Hope to be back soon

Studying for my State Agent License exam. I finished my 40 hr pre-exam course and passed the "practice" exam. It's a bear. Hope to be back to regular posting, soon. Got a game, Friday night. Woo-hoo!

Made a map.

Right Click and open for expandable pic.

Monte's Out, 5e Open Playtest Starts and 3.5 Reprints?!?

Monte's announcement. Some highlights:

"However, I want to take this time to stress that my differences were not with my fellow designers, Rob Schwalb and Bruce Cordell."

"Due to my non-disclosure agreement, as well as a desire to keep things on a professional level, I have no intention of going into further detail at this time. (Mostly, I just hate drama, and would rather talk about more interesting things.)"

Not mentioning Mike Mearls in the "goodwill disclaimer," speaks volumes.

Mike Mearls is saddened and surprised. He also announces May 24 as the start of the open playtest.

Joethelawyer has some interesting B&N pre-order links. 3.5 Core books, with errata.

WTF?

Now, 3.5 core books sells like hotcakes on ebay. I sold a spare set of the three core books last week for $75.

$65 to $100 is typical. Consistently typical. A PH alone has been averaging about $35. Discounting odd outlying results, $25 to $45 is usual. And has been for the past year that I've been keeping up with 3.5 auctions. And we're talking a lot of auctions, every week.

Hell, the HC splats go for around $20+ a piece. This isn't just "collector's" scarfing these things up. I wonder how many non-Pathfinder customers have been playing 3.5? And spreading the game?

I think WotC may be hedging their bets. I wouldn't be surprised to see an OD&D anniversary type set and maybe a real BECMI box.

It is not a good sign, when one of the main designers of your new edition, jumps ship right before the open playtest. Especially when that designer has the profile of Monte Cook.

Good luck, Monte.

Random Table - Urban Mendicants

Submitted for your approval, 12 holy (or unholy) beggars, raising a ruckus in the streets.

1. Bomos the Mad - Chaotic-Neutral. An archetypal, crazy-eyed, wild-haired, filthy Prophet O' Doom, wearing a sandwich board declaring "The End is Nigh!" In the midst of his typically mad proclamations, he'll utter something only the PC's should know, or another secret, of relevance to their current doings.

2. Rafnk the Legless - F2. Chaotic-Good. A humble servant of his god, he's taken a vow of poverty. Rolls around on a crude cart, propelled by his mighty arms. A former adventurer, he has dated knowledge of the first three levels of the dungeon. Has a Dagger +1, that bestows 10% Magic Resistance.

3. Muad the Greasy - Chaotic-Evil. Claims to serve some god, that's completely unknown to everyone else. Wears soiled finery. Slick, oily and smarmy. Host to an alien symbiote, which grants him psionics. He murders and eats 1 beggar, or other homeless person, per week.

4. Whomis the Holy - C2. Neutral-Good. A benevolent, poor servant of a beneficent higher power. Cares for the sick and needy of the streets. If a PC donates 10 GP or more, they will receive a one-time blessing and the next Critical Miss they suffer, will become a Critical Hit.

5. Mahra of the Shadows - Illusionist L7. Chaotic-Neutral. Serves a vengeful, scary deity. Only seen at night. Stalks and murders the more parasitic denizens of the slums.

6. Mother Velvet - F3 Transvestite Half-Orc. Neutral-Evil. Bears the symbol of an ancient, near-forgotten deity of strife. Commands 20 or so orphan children, who collect information, which Mother sells to various clients.

7. Old Gideon - Lawful-Good. A polymorphed Silver Dragon, he's an amnesiac and has lost all knowledge of his former self. Wanders the streets, begging and telling stories about famous Paladins and other heroes.

8. Thak the Barbarian - FL4. Chaotic-Neutral. A barbarian prince, blinded in war. Stalks the alleys naked, demanding tribute for his patron demon. Which he spends on prostitutes and cheap wine. Will usually be carrying a makeshift weapon of some sort or another. Occasionally, will get his hands on a sword, eventually losing it after passing out in a drunken stupor.

9. Susannah of the Scarlet Sash - C4. Chaotic-Good. A Sacred Prostitute, Susannah became disenchanted with her religious organization, which showed more devotion to pecuniary concerns, than their mission of spreading... the word. Susannah has taken the good news to the streets! She wears a Scarlett Sash that's been blessed by her deity, confers a bonus of +2 on all her rolls and grants immunity to all diseases.

10. Ol' Bear - F3. Chaotic-Good. Reincarnated as a Bear. Something of a mascot to the people of the city, they'll be very sore if anything happens to this gregarious street preacher.

11. Toisim - A demon in human guise. Chaotic-Evil. HD: 6. AC: 4. # Att - 2. Dmg: 1-3. Aside from the usual characteristics of abyssal denizens (per the MM) he may cast Suggestion 1/day, Improved Phantasmal Force 2/day. He can implant false memories in others, a task which requires 1 full Turn of uninterrupted concentration, during which he must maintain line of sight with his victim. Save negates. He is building a small army, composed of the poor and dispossessed, who thanks to a whole lot of memory alteration, think him a reincarnated demi-god, capable of miraculous feats.

12. Baylam the Black - C2. Neutral-Evil. Hunted by the authorities, for fostering the cause of a blatantly forbidden deity, Baylam has no followers, no friends and sucks at begging, so he usually resorts to theft. Still has dreams of becoming an evil overlord.

In Which I Embark Upon a New Career

While engaged in starting a new post-divorce life, something occurred to me. Out of the several different things I've done to make a living, lo these many years, I enjoyed myself the most when I worked in the insurance field.

Yeah, that might sound strange. But the whole, convoluted mess of finance and esoteric formula can be rather fun. But, if I was going down that road, I wanted to do it right. And have the opportunity to help people, while doing so.

This afternoon, I was offered a position as a Life & Health insurance agent. Which, I'm accepting! I know quite a bit about Life & Health, Annuities, etc., already and I'm very familiar with how the business itself works. My prior time in insurance was on the underwriting side of things, so now I get to see how the other half lives.

My new boss and I really hit it off and seem to be on the same page. I like his style and approach to the insurance business and I'm thrilled to have the opportunity to work with a gentleman, such as himself.

So. Phase II, complete. Wish me luck!

This Week's Conan Pic - Conan Crucified!

I was loath to change that awesome pic of Conan and Belit, but when I found this little gem by Sanjulian, I decided it would be ok! As always, This Week's Conan Pic will be showcased in a widget on the left. A link to the full text of the story, courtesy of Project Gutenberg, is provided.

A Witch Shall Be Born isn't my favorite Conan story, but it does feature one of the most memorable passages in the series. Conan Crucified! And his savage battle, with the Vultures!

In his dulled ears sounded the louder beat of wings. Lifting his head he watched with the burning glare of a wolf the shadows wheeling above him. He knew that his shouts would frighten them away no longer. One dipped--dipped--lower and lower. Conan drew his head back as far as he could, waiting with terrible patience. The vulture swept in with a swift roar of wings.

R. E. Howard - A Witch Shall Be Born

The Black Blade/Usherwood Pub. OSRIC Imprint

ADDENDUM: The Black Blade website has an error and is quoting an inaccurate, overly high amount for shipping charges! Email Jon, address below, for a correct shipping quote. Priority mail to my address was $11.00, which may vary a bit, depending upon your location.

I'm reposting my pics of the Black Blade/Usherwood Publishing OSRIC imprint.

grodog had asked me if I could migrate the original post over, so he would have a ready reference to point folks towards, when they asked for some comparison pics. Unfortunately, I only recently found his request, which was made several months ago! Sorry! I hope this will still be of use.

A word, or two. The Black Blade/Usherwood version costs $26.00, which is a whole whopping .80 cents more than the Lulu version! The BB/U is thicker, wider, taller, has a sturdier binding and to quote Mr. Jon Hershberger:

-we've added additional art selections from John Bingham, Steve Robertson, Mark Allen, Peter FItzpatrick, Peter Mullen, Brian Thomas and Jim Holloway;
- Jason Zavoda's expanded index is four pages long, and there's now a two page index of tables and charts following the index; and
- we've upped the grade of paper for the book to 70# (not a sexy change to OSRIC, but it does add to the quality and the 'heft' of the book); the hardback OSRIC is going to weigh in at just over 3 pounds when it's done.

All of which is to say, as someone who owns both versions, I'd definitely buy the Black Blade/Usherwood edition!

What's more, it was packaged to withstand a nuclear explosion!

You'll need to email Jon if you want to purchase, as their checkout on the website isn't working. Shipping is via Priority Mail and Black Blade charges the actual shipping costs, so there ya go! :)

The pic compares the BB/UP version, on top, with the Lulu version, on the bottom.

Here's a side by side pic.

And a couple of pics showing one of the new pics, and then the snazzy red endpapers!

If you asked me what my favorite post TSR, RPG books is, I'd be hard pressed to come up with any one product. But, the Black Blade/Usherwood OSRIC imprint would be on my shortlist! It's all kinds of awesome and handsome as hell!

I Blame Michael Moorcock!

Neil Gaiman already snatched the perfect title for this Sub-Header

It's almost invariable. For almost 30 years, in almost every D&D campaign I've ever run.

The PC's end up travelling in time, or to another dimension, or plane, or another planet. Usually all of the above and on multiple occasions. Sometimes they come back. Sometimes, they never do.

I blame Michael Moorcock!

At 14 I was beginning my career as a DM, discovering Appendix N and shortly thereafter, scarfing up every Michael Moorcock novel I could find. For years, I named him my favorite author. He no longer holds quite so elevated a place in my literary pantheon, but I'll always love him for the Elric stories, the tales of Hawkmoon and most especially, The War Hound and the World's Pain. Still, while I appreciate authors whose work demands to be considered as a whole, instead of merely by its parts, I eventually tired of Mr. Moorcock. Feeling his work had become too derivative of itself, I still haven't read the last two Elric novels, The Skrayling Tree and The White Wolf's Son. I left off with The Dreamthief's Daughter.

As others have noticed,  I suspect that 14 is the perfect, or near perfect age to read Michael Moorcock. Perhaps, he's one of those authors, just subject to being outgrown.

That thought makes me a little sad.

Maybe I just have less patience for all the allegory, allusions and what-not. I've become... exhausted, when it comes to grappling with philosophical questions. Still, there's always been a belief in and hope for humanity, in Mr. Moorcock's work. I think I need to re-read him, through middle-aged eyes.

If you're going to steal ideas for your campaign, steal from the best!

All that trippy dimension-hopping and those Multiversal Conjuctions. The bizarre peoples, entities and worlds, were at the forefront of my Appendix N inner landscape. The Dark Ship and Prince Gaynor the Damned were only two of the ideas I swiped from Mr. Moorcock, for use in some campaign, or another. Foremost, I think, was the idea of frequent inter-dimensional and inter-planar travel.

It goes all the way back to my Kastmaria campaign. Around 4th level, the PC's traveled to an Ice Age world for a few hours, to rescue an absent-minded mage from his folly. They killed some cave-men and befriended a Silver Dragon, who was eager to escape its frozen hell and followed the PC's through the gate, back to their home world.

A few levels later, they accidentally ended up 150 years in the future and never went back. Then, there was the Bazaar, the city at the center of the Multi-verse (partially inspired by/swiped from Robert Asprin's Myth series as this was pre-Planescape.) They spent a lot of time off and on, there, having adventures, engaging in their war with the Magic-Users of Sorcerer's Isle. Saving the city from destruction, at one point, when a mad mage attempted to destroy the magical machinery that created the city's plane of existence.

Around 12th level, they went to an alternate Earth, where an evil Merlin released the Tarrasque on England, just to cover his tracks and rid himself of his failed attempt at creating a messiah, named King Arthur. At 14th, they took a 3 Turn trip to Avernus, to rescue that absent-minded mage again.

They went to a demi-plane to kill Merlin. King Balston was on some weird planar pocket, when he killed some weird, planar Dragon. I think Sir Alexian Balthafore was also in some weird, extra-dimensional space when he dueled with Pharj Mudast, all alone, at the end of the campaign.

Fortunately, he won! It would have sucked for Darren to end a campaign that spanned thousands of hours (Not 50, Mr. Mearls,) dying at the hand of his archenemy.

I'm sure I'm forgetting a few episodes.

"W" Interferes with my Plans

Decades later, in my long-running 3.x campaign, the PC's started on world A, quickly went to world B, ended up spending most of the campaign on world C, then, back to world B, but centuries before their first visit, for the last few sessions of the game.

Actually, its a bit more complex than that. That campaign was an amalgam of PC's from two different games, which became one campaign around 6th level, or so. All very convoluted and I'm too lazy to bother remembering exactly how that all came about, but  President George W. Bush's interference had a lot to do with it! He signed the order calling Josh back into service and shipped him off to Afghanistan for a year and a half, to fight terrorists.

I doubt that explaining to the President, that I needed Josh to fight orcs & dragons instead would have helped matters, so I didn't bother trying.

Oh, Shit! I Just Remembered!

The first branch of that campaign actually started in the Forgotten Realms! I have ran a published Campaign Setting! For about Two Sessions!!! I then, sent them elsewhere. I prefer discovering a milieu alongside my players. My psyche's intent, blazing a trail, far more fiery and personal than a published setting ever could be.

So, There's this Undead Apocalypse in The Black Mete

Well, what's gonna happen now? The PC's might have enough x.p. to make 3rd level. Might. Kinda doubt it. The civilized lands could muster about... 7,000 forces. Several Clerics. A few MU's. One Dragon would pitch in, to protect his investment. If, he absolutely has to!

Vs. 12k or so Zombies and Ghouls. That's tough. I'm thinking of breaking out Delta's Book of War. I owe him a review and wanted to make it a proper play-test.

I think a certain Lich is going to become involved. Still working out all the implications. The players want to do something. What can they do?

They need a few levels, I think. At least. Hmm...

You know...

I bet they would accept a quest, to find a way to stop all the undead madness. One giving them the opportunity to gain several levels.

Getting them out of the way for a little while, would work out pretty well. But, they need more time than that to gain some levels and prepare for what I've got brewing in the back of my mind.

Maybe the quest could take them to another world, for a while. Or, another plane. Or, backwards in time. Forwards?

My mind just wants to go there with it.

I blame Michael Moorcock!