There is a Fund to Send James Spahn to North Texas RPG Con

There is a GoFundMe to send our very own +James Spahn to North Texas RPG Con in June of this year. Its being run by +James Shields without conferring prior to James Spahn, which makes this extra often. Its a other sign of how this community takes care of its own.

Here's what James Shields has to say:

THE GOAL: 

James M. Spahn is a freelance writer and game designer for the roleplaying industry who has created a myriad of works loved by many. His works are among such titles as Swords & Wizardry , The One Ring RPG , White Star , and many others. 

This summer, his talent and works may finally receive the reward and recognition they deserve. His latest work, The Hero's Journey Fantasy Roleplaying , is up for a Three Castles Award at the North Texas RPG Convention. 

However, James is a working family man with little funds to spare and can't afford the trip. Beyond the chance of winning this award, there will be many creators and designers in attendance who have contributed to whom James Spahn is today. This would mean the world to him. 

THE COORDINATOR: 

My name is James Shields. I am freelance artist for the roleplaying industry. A few years ago, I was simply a man who admired James' work. Today I am his friend. I am organizing this campaign because it is something James would never do himself.
I figured I couldn't be the only one who wants to see him there. 

THE DEADLINE: 

While the convention and awards will not be until early June, James needs the funds fairly soon to start purchasing tickets, arranging plans, etc. Ideally, we can reach the goal by the end of March. 

THE FUNDS: 

The amount set forth above should be enough to cover his airfare, convention ticket, hotel room, food, and reimbursement for missed work. Any funds raised above these expenses will go towards either the cost of bringing his family (if possible) or additional spending money at the convention. 

If we don't make this goal, then either: 

A) Hopefully, it will lessen the trip's expenses enough for him to afford it and we will still have helped Send James Spahn to the North Texas RPG Con 

or 

B) This campaign will remain live and continue to raise support to send him to the convention next year. 

All funds will go directly to James Spahn as beneficiary of this campaign. 

THE AWARDS: 

The awards listed are the only thing of value I know to offer. This campaign is my surprise gift to James Spahn. I am sure he'd love to game with and express his appreciation to anybody who helps send him to this convention. 

THE GRATITUDE: 

I trust you already love his work. This is your opportunity to love the man. Thank you so much for what amount you give for my friend.
Help spread the word!

Now, what are the rewards?

Full disclosure: James Spahn is not only a very good friends of mine, he (along with +Zach Glazar ) are my partners on Swords & Wizardry Light / Continual Light. Should the funding goal be met, we'll offer the first issue of the Torchlight Zine at PWYW pricing in PDF to get it in the hands of the entire community.

Thanks in advance. Your Tavern Keeper :)

OSR Picks for the GM's Day Sale, Part VII - Last Three Days Countdown

Yep, there's less than three days left to the RPGNow GM's Day Sale. And yes, there's more OSR picks to be had :)

This post is Part VI. Part I ,  Part II , Part III, Part IV,  Part V and Part VI are linked. Remember, 5% of your purchase goes to support The Tavern and associated costs for projects like Swords & Wizardry Light and the upcoming Torchlight Zine.

Classic Traveller - Deluxe - Classic Traveller IS the defining edition of Traveller in my humble opinion, and the first system I houseruled (adding in experience points to add new skills) - This set includes the three core books, Book ) (and introduction to Traveller) and an adventure. $19.99  $9.99




HarnWorld Master Module, 3rd Edition - Harn was my first setting after Greyhawk. While Greyhawk was very general in its descriptions of locations, Harn was detailed. Where Greyhawk maps where almost whimsical, Harn's were extremely detailed. Greyhawk was mid to high fantasy, Harn was low fantasy. The comparisons were striking - "HârnWorld is a detailed, realistic, flexible, and system-neutral setting for fantasy role-playing games. Since 1983, HârnWorld has been used by thousands of people across the world to run a wide array of medieval fantasy adventures. HârnWorld can accommodate whatever style of campaign you are looking for, whether your player characters are knights, mages, barbarians, clerics, noble lords, mercenaries, gladiators, craftsmen, merchants, thieves, or even simple peasants yearning for adventure. This basic HârnWorld module has two components: Hârn Overview: This 58-page Hârn article is a general overview of Hârnic cultures, governments, economics, history, and more. It also includes campaign aids for such tasks as generating weather conditions and character backgrounds. - Hârn Regional Map: The map of Hârn provides a vast amount of information with a unique cartographic system developed specifically for fantasy gaming. The area detailed measures 620×930 miles (1000×1500 km). The colors and textures show vegetation and terrain as noted on the map key. $27.98  $19.98


Adventure Most Fowl - quite simply a nice, inexpensive introductory adventure for Swords & Wizardry (or the OSR game of your choice) - "On the edge of the Four Counties, in a backwater village of lost souls, there is a string of robberies that cannot be explained…Farmer Phileas Filson has lost his chickens, or rather he swears that they’ve been pilfered, along with his prize-winning hen Mabel, and no one in town will lift a finger to help. You and your adventuring comrades, freshly minted from the forges of fame and fortune, may be his only hope… Adventure Most Fowl is a great way to start that new party of low-level adventurers on the path to riches and rewards! With a broad cast of interesting, unusual and perhaps dangerous rural folk, a countryside filled with sheep, squash, and hallucinogenic flora and of course the mystery of missing poultry, your players and their new characters will have a fun-filled romp through this off-color backwater village." $1.99  $1.39

The Anime Hack - The Black Hack has spawned lots of various hacks, but perhaps the furthest afield from its source material is The Anime Hack - The Anime Hack brings the frantic energy of Japanese animation to the tabletop in an easy to play multi-genre role playing game based on the fantastic Black Hack RPG. Based on the original 1970s fantasy role-playing game the rules are easy to follow and playable right out of the box. Character creation takes a few minutes and you'll be playing in no time. The Anime Hack adds anime flavour, mecha and vehicle rules as well as advice for GMs and players alike who want to play in a world of over-sized eyes, giant robots, katanas, ninjas, weaponized mallets and collectable monsters. Choose between eight anime inspired classes: Magical Girl/Boy, Mecha Jockey, Monster Collector, Neko, Ninja, Robot, Trenchcoat Samurai, and Wunderkind. This is a complete game. The Black Hack is not required, but it is awesome and would add a lot to your experience. Everything needed to swing katanas and go "over 9000" is right here in 45 pages of adventure. $3.99  $2.79

Realms of Crawling Chaos (Labyrinth Lord) - I recommend this every time it is one sale. Want some "Dark Gods" in your OSR? Then this is for you - "Evil cultists consummate their union with Shub-Niggurath in dark woods no other mortals dare go. Alien terrors lurk in the underworld; their vast riches wait, or their incomprehensible powers could leave you broken, dead, or worse. Adventure in underworlds filled with horrible entities, or the ruins of alien beings that enslaved the ape-like ancestors of mankind. Seek hidden secrets from the arctic wastes to dark, briny seas. But as you approach the ocean, what are those strange longings you feel? Realms of Crawling Chaos is a Lovecraftian Dark Fantasy campaign supplement for Labyrinth Lord and the Advanced Edition Companion. In this book you will find: New player races, including white apes, white ape hybrids, sea blood, and subhumans. New spells .New monsters. New artifacts and a system for designing unique artifacts. Rules for psionics, compatible with Mutant future." $4.95  $3.47


The Manse on Murder Hill - sometimes what you want is a low level adventure where the PCs are just tomb robbers, but heroes. Let them be heroes - they can murder hobo during the next play session ;) - "Several children of Little Flanders have gone missing near an abandoned house of evil repute. A desperate town has begged your heroes to exorcise the house of evil spirits and rescue the children. Will you brave the dangers of the Manse on Murder Hill? A Labyrinth Lord adventure for levels 1-3" $1.99  $1.39

Black Streams: Solo Heroes - I'm trying to add an oft forgotten "freebie" with the last of these post - Want to play one on one? Here ya go! - "Maybe you want to show a friend the fun of classic D&D, but you can't pull a group together on short notice. Maybe you have nights where only one friend can make it, and you're tired of breaking out the card games. Maybe you just want to run a side game for somebody, but don't feel like weighing them down with an entourage of henchmen just so they can survive their first combat. What do you need? You need Solo Heroes, a free Labyrinth Lord-compatible supplement for lone adventuring. While written for the Red Tide Campaign Setting and Sandbox Toolkit, this supplement is compatible with a wide range of old-school games. Within, you'll find a simple set of rules for running classic adventures with just a single PC. There's no need to alter character sheets or rework modules to make them survivable for whatever class your player has chosen- Solo Heroes gives you a handful of simple rules for turning such solitary exploration from a death wish in the making to a daring tale of risk and potential glory.
In addition to these rules, the mini-adventure of The Yellow Toad God's Well is provided to give you a little something instant to run for your player's new hero. And if it turns out you've got a full group for that night's session? Just drop the optional rules and run it by the book. Solo Heroes lets you play the game without painful paperwork and adventure redesign, whether for one player or half a dozen. FREE!  FREE!

Why Less is Sometimes Something More and What I Learned from S&W White Box and Applied to S&W Light

In part this is in response to a recent discussion about minimalism in the OSR, but in reality it is something more. Its an observation of S&W White Box importance to the OSR and also a design goal of S&W Light. Well, observation and design are linked but not the same but are addressed together, but I digress.

I want to look at Swords &Wizardry White Box. Anyone care to guess how many games are based on that open ruleset?

Off the top of my head:

White Star

White Lies

Operation White Box

White Box: Fantastic Medieval Adventure Game

Skyscrapers & Sorcery White Box Rules

The Hero's Journey Fantasy Roleplaying 

Swords & Wizardry Light

I'm sure there are more that I've either overlooked or forgotten and I apologize in advance.

So, why do so many games build off of the S&W White Box engine? The answer is simple. Literally... It was / is one of the most basic OSR rulesets, meaning it was, and is, an easy choice to build on.

It is easier to build on top of another ruleset than to remove rules and modify and rebuild. Trust me. I have some knowledge of this, as I stripped the Swords & Wizardry White Box rules down to the four pages of Swords & Wizardry Light. The very reason I chose the White Box rules was that simplicity. Sure, there was stuff I had to strip and drop, but not nearly the amount if I had chosen S&W Complete.

I was initially surprised when other designers / publishers reached out to me as I was writing and rewriting the SWL rules, asking to see the work I had done as a guide to use for their own projects. I'm no longer surprised. Much as S&W White Box is the chassis for a number of variant rules, I suspect when the Swords & Wizardry Continual Light rules are released (16 pages or so), there will be variants and genres and rules specific settings that will use SWCL as their chassis.

Because adding is easier than subtraction.

Swords & Wizardry Light / Continual Light are written for the community. To be played, houseruled, hacked and mashed into what you want it to be. Add what you want. Its hard to break. The core is solid.

Heck, I have hacks in my head. Genres. Settings. Hacks. I find 16 pages of rules to be liberating, not restricting. Empowering, not powerless.

I look forward to the hacks of the future.

OSR Picks for the GM's Day Sale, Part VI - Last Four Days Countdown

Yep, there's less than four days left to the RPGNow GM's Day Sale. And yes, there's more OSR picks to be had :)

This post is Part VI. Part I ,  Part II , Part III, Part IV and Part V are linked. Remember, 5% of your purchase goes to support The Tavern and associated costs for projects like Swords & Wizardry Light and the upcoming Torchlight Zine.

GM Gems - A system neutral (with a free expanded DCC RPG version included in the purchase) book of tricks, advice and tools for every GM. Its from Goodman Games, so you know its good - did I mention its 50% off? - "GM Gems: A Tome of Game Master Inspiration is filled with a wealth of information and ideas to empower every aspect of your game. Never run boring, vanilla games and never be caught flat-footed! Inspiration and Perspiration - This 80-page collection of tricks and tips is systems-neutral, so you can play it with any role playing game you choose. GM Gems is written by veteran Game Masters and some of today’s best known RPG designers, and includes: Alchemical Mishaps - Empty Rooms Worth Describing - Extraordinary Campsites - Familiar Creatures with Unfamiliar Faces - Short Encounters for Short Attention Spans - Unique Taverns and Inns - Unusual Holidays - 100 Unique Treasures - And much, much more!" $11.99  $5.99

The Lost City of Barakus--Swords and Wizardry - Frog God Games has practically their entire catalogue on sale at RPGNow for the GM's Sale, which made picking a title to highlight difficult. But then it wasn't. Lost City of Barakus is the campaign I've been itching to run for ages, and the fact that it covers levels from 1 to 5 (or 6) makes it perfect for Swords & Wizardry Continual Light - "The Lost City of Barakus, designed to take characters from 1st to 5th or 6th level (or higher), is as much of a campaign setting as an adventure. Detailed within these pages is the great, bustling metropolis of Endhome, the Penprie Forest and Duskmoon Hills located north of that city, and, finally, the huge dungeon that is the Lost City of Barakus. Within all these areas are many adventures, NPCs, and locations for the party to explore, interact with and conquer. How and in what order the party chooses to take on the various challenges before them is entirely yours (the GM’s) and the players’ choice." $19.99  $13.99

Class Compendium - Over 50 new classes for your Labyrinth Lord campaign? Heck, they are easy enough to convert to just about any OSR ruleset of your choice. By +James Spahn none the less ;) - "The Class Compendium for offers over fifty alternate character classes for labyrinth lord and other old-school fantasy role-playing games. With these new options you'll be ready to face whatever dangers that lay hidden in the deepest dungeon of your next campaign! Class Compendium compiles the best classes from four years of material previously released by barrel rider games into a single tome – and a whole lot of extras! New art, rules for firearms and weapon mastery, new equipment, and three never before released classes! Top it off with an indexed spell compendium featuring every spell used by every class found in these pages, and you've got it all in one package!"  $9.99  $6.99


Petty Gods: Revised & Expanded Edition - always free, but I figured it should be mentioned. Grab it! Grab it now! You'll never find a more professional and complete and useful assortment of Petty Gods. For Ratacus! - Expanded Petty Gods Compendium provides Old School referees with a slew of new, weird minor deities and godlings, for use in rounding out their campaigns. This book includes information for 327 petty gods, 116 minions, knights & servitors, 12 cults, dozens of divine items & new spells, plus a host of other petty-god-related gaming material!  Free!  Free!

Bride of the Darkened Rider - Fat Goblin Games' first DCC RPG release, literally released earlier this week - "Two of the kingdom’s baronies have been at odds and occasionally outright war for centuries, in a blood feud that lost all meaning generations ago. Things have recently changed as the heads of the two noble families have arranged a marriage between the heirs to their baronies, in a move to secure peace and prosperity to the region. - This particular adventure has two sections. The first is an event based part of the game, where the players proceed from one event or scene to the next in a straightforward manner. Each scene or event is self-contained, but has links to the previous and the upcoming events. The latter half of the adventure, when the characters are finally ready to confront the villains of the adventure is a more classic dungeoncrawl, with pits, traps, monsters and treasure. Make sure you familiarize yourself with both before you start the adventure for your group. The adventure itself is written for 4-6 3rd level characters, but is adjustable for other levels of play as you see fit." $5.95  $3.95

Apes Victorious - Apes are the ones in power in the future. Humans are slaves - This is the Planet of the Victorious Apes! ;) - "Apes Victorious is a roleplaying game in which you take the role of an astronaut from the 1970’s who finds himself marooned on a future Earth ruled by intelligent apes. Players may also take the role of an ape, a degenerated human, or a psi-active underdweller. Fight to survive in this post-apocalyptic future ruled by four species of apes. Or play apes who hunt humans for sport. For a different kind of campaign, play highly intelligent but insane underdwellers who have advanced technology and powerful psi powers. This book contains: A complete game - A post-nuclear apocalyptic setting in which apes have become the dominant species - Seven player classes - Animals and creatures of the post-nuclear future - Campaign advice - A complete introductory adventure - Conversion notes for compatible games including: Labyrinth Lord, Mutant Future, Starships & Spacemen.  $4.97  $3.48

Swords & Wizardry Light / Continual Light Updates and Other Assorted Tavern Stuff

Not possible coloring for Print at Home
Quite possible for the Deluxe release

+Stephen Newton was gracious enough to offer his services to edit the Swords & Wizardry Continual Light Rules. I've updated the source document with most of the recommendations. Any remaining mistakes are mine and mine alone.

I should be ready to start printing the Gary Con copies this coming Monday night / Tuesday, which gives me a week to get all the ducks in a row and have my two dozen or so copies ready for the con. I plan to sign and number all of the con copies and I'm sure we can get +Zach Glazar to sign them too.

At some point Triumvirate Tavern Press will need a logo. Games +James Spahn was thinking three frosty mugs ;)

If, as looks to be the plan, that the core SWCL rules are released free in PDF and Print at Home at low buy in (near cost), I'll need to get things in order before we even consider orders. I still have some shipments of free S&W / OSR swag that is sitting in the corner of the living room. I'd like to say I'll get them out next week but with Gary Con prep, I really can't say. It doesn't hurt that Rach found the packages and wants them out of HER living room - heh.

As for Swords & Wizardry Continual Light - Deluxe (or whatever we call it when you add in seven adventures and a small sandbox) we still need to discus commercial release or POD. In either case, it will be affordable. The point is it should be played.

I arrive in Milwaukee the Tuesday afternoon before the con and leave the following Monday in the early afternoon. If anyone wants to carpool on the car service, I'm all ears :)

Podcast - Hobbs & Friends of the OSR

I had emergency uncle duties today (sick niece home from school) so I was finally able to catch up on some podcast listening. On the ride home I listened to the first episode of Hobbs & Friends of the OSR, and I must say - I was impressed.

It was a nice, relaxed conversation between Jason Hobbs +Jason Hobbs and +Eric Hoffman  and it felt like I was sitting at the local watering hole with them.

Much of the episode was spent talking about USR 2.0 (Unbelievably Simple Roleplaying), a game I've followed from a distance. Its intrigued me enough to decide to give it a look. Heck, its PWYW, so why not? ;)

Its also made me curious about The Treasure Vaults of Zadabad (S&W version - there is a DCC RPG version too) An island sandbox and more.

Hey, even I got a mention along with SWL, but more in the context of a recent discussion over whether or not less rules / text / etc is viable as well as useful. I think much of the viability depends on the goals of the product in question, but that's a whole 'nother discssion.

In any case, enjoyable episode. Now I need to catch up :)

OSR Picks for the GM's Day Sale, Part V - White Star Edition

Yep, its time to make some OSR Picks for the current GM's Sale at RPGNow. This post is Part V. Part I ,  Part II , Part III and Part IV are linked. Remember, 5% of your purchase goes to support The Tavern and associated costs for projects like Swords & Wizardry Light and the upcoming Torchlight Zine.

White Star: White Box Science Fiction Roleplaying - What can I say about White Star that I haven't already said? Probably the easiest to pick up SciFi RPG for the OSR grognard there is. If you don't already have a copy, grab a copy - "Whether a noble Star Knight protecting the universe from galactic tyranny, a hot shot pilot in the cockpit of the fastest stunt fighter in space, or an enigmatic Alien Mystic, classic science fiction adventure awaits you with White Star: White Box Science Fiction Roleplaying. Based on Swords & Wizardry WhiteBox, White Star brings all the simple elegance  of WhiteBox out of the dungeon and into the stars! This complete roleplaying game includes seven new classes as well as rules for advanced technology, laser weaponry, space combat, and so much more! So ready your star sword and fire up your faster-than-light drive! A galaxy full of thrilling heroics is at your fingertips with White Star: White Box Science Fiction Roleplaying."   $9.99  $6.99

The Graveyard at Lus - sandbox White Star? - "Space Graveyards - what's left behind when battles are fought among the points of light that map out the universe. Sometimes there's good salvage to be had there. There's always danger, though. Not everything is dead in a Graveyard, and you're not the only one that's come looking for the good stuff. And that's not even mentioning the radiation and debris left behind, or the dangerous creatures that end up finding their way there like graveworms and ... the undead. - A comprehensive toolkit for creating space Graveyards - the result of battles between forces at war in the stars - Multiple tables for the creation of starship damage, system damage, and crew survivorship - An event table to ensure that exploration is dynamic during sandbox play - New rules for Cinematic and Realistic space combat - New starship technology including sensors and rules for targeting/repairing specific systems - Additional rules for space-based phenomena, space-based explosions, and boarding other starships - Four new alien races for your White Star RPG campaigns - Updated starship usage for four of the core alien races in the main game - Five new creatures, including The Unquiet, a horriffic form of undead - Use the pregenerated Graveyard At Lus for your own games, or as a guide to create your own Graveyards - Worksheets and sample hexmaps at the rear of the book to help with generation of Graveyards - Designed for use with the White Star RPG, but easy to convert for other OSR sci-fi systems." $4.99  $3.49

White Star Companion - You already have White Star and you simply want more? The White star Companion is for you - "Daring Men of Tomorrow and intrepid Deep Space Explorers face off against a horde of savage White Simians in the floating jungle of a lost world. Plucky Sidekicks escape relentless Bounty Hunters aboard their modified skyboards. Somewhere on the edge of the galaxy, an Orbital Battle Station is about to obliterate an entire planet with the push of a button. The White Star Companion brings nearly one hundred pages of new options to your White Star: White Box Science Fiction Roleplaying experience. New classes, new aliens, new creatures, new weapons, and new starships are all revealed. Complete rules for planetary vehicle combat are provided along with ways to generate complete star systems simply by rolling a few dice. The brand new skill and Serial systems can instantly flesh out a character's history and talents. With the White Star Companion, you'll expand your game to the edge of the galaxy and beyond!" $6.99  $4.89



Star Sailors: The Magical Girl Supplement for White Star RPG - Watch Japanese Anime? - "This supplement is designed to introduce a new player character class into your White Star campaigns. A Star Sailor is a “magical girl” trope often found in classic Japanese anime and manga, but with a science fiction twist. Star Sailors guard the universe from the evil Gloom: extra-dimensional invaders with a talent for destruction. There are new rules for character creation, mascot sidekicks, special powers and abilities as well as write-ups for several adversaries and monsters." $2.45  $1.72

FIVE YEAR MISSION - Like Star Trek? Like White Star? Two great tastes - This is a supplement for White Star with a sort of Star Trek theme. If you're a fan of Star Trek, Andromeda, or Farscape, and even if you're not, there's a lot for you to like here! What do you get? FIVE (5) new classes: Engineer, Expendable, Guerilla, Sawbones, and Scientist, as well as additional notes on the core classes from White Star! FOUR (4) new racial classes: Disgraced, Living Starship, Quixoitic Alien, and Simulacrum! NEW EQUIPMENT that you can requisition, including weapons with a "stun" setting and badge communicators! FOUR (4) new starships and THREE (3) new starship modifications, including the Quantum Teleporter! NINETEEN (19) new NPC alien races, including a table to randomly determine the appearance of your own aliens! SIX (6) random tables for space exploration! HEXCRAWLS... IN... SPAAAAACE! A complete setting in TWO (2) different eras, THE CONTESTED ZONE! What are you waiting for? You can afford it. Treat yourself before the utopian post-scarcity economy kicks in!  $2.95  $2.06


Have Death Ray, Will Travel - Like cheese in your scifi? Flash Gordon flies again :) - The year is 1999 and a new millennium is on the horizon. Mankind has colonized outer space. Lunar City is a bustling metropolis. Earth has found new allies with the Martians and Venusians.  The Solar System is filled with mysteries, danger, and adventure! Have Death Ray, Will Travel is a retro-future setting inspired by  old pulpy serials, Sword & Planet adventures, the Wild West, and film noir.   Want exploration? Want political intrigue?  Like the Wild West with ray guns?  Want a little gritty film noir?  Bounty hunters? Space pirates? Gangsters? Alien emperors out to conquer the universe? It's all there. Includes two new classes (Scientist and Gunfighter), ten new ships and over 30 monsters and foes, and an introductory adventure: Lost Mines of the Brain Masters.  $2.49  $1.74

Tavern Chat Tonight - 9 PM Eastern - Where the Cool Grogs of the OSR Hang!

Just two weeks to Gary Con. Which means in two weeks, I won't be hosting Tavern Chat - as I'll be at my first Gary Con.

Still, plenty of stuff to talk about tonight.

Such as the ongoing GM's sale at RPGNow and some picks The Tavern has made (and more picks to come)

Or perhaps further details on the upcoming Swords & Wizardry Continual Light / Swords & Wizardry Continual Light Deluxe releases (yep, we've got you covered)

Maybe even some rare old school collectibles that will be auctioned of in The Tavern's Facebook Community starting tonight / tomorrow morning. Doing so for a friend who's family is set to incur some medical costs. I'll try and sneak some pics into the chat tonight - of the pics are working. You ARE a member of The Tavern's Facebook Community I hope.

Remember, 9 PM Eastern time - tonight - in that little chat box on the right hand side of this page. Log in with the Social Media membership that you favor - it takes most of them.

If chatting via phone or tablet, download the Chatwing app at the Playstore or iTunes.

If chatting via browser, i usually pop the app out of The Tavern's homepage, shrink my browser a bit and place the app on the right side of my screen.

See y'all in about two hours.

OSR Picks for the GM's Day Sale, Part IV

Yep, its time to make some OSR Picks for the current GM's Sale at RPGNow. This post is Part IV. Part I ,  Part II and Part III are linked. Remember, 5% of your purchase goes to support The Tavern and associated costs for projects like Swords & Wizardry Light and the upcoming Torchlight Zine.

WWII: Operation WhiteBox - You want a WW2 RPG as well as one that stays true to the roots of RPG gaming? Look no further - this is built of S&W WhiteBox with a Sherman Tank as its shell - "Tabletop roleplaying games have always been about epic quests, heroic deeds, and great crusades. These games feature mercurial wizards, diabolical dragons, and cunning adventurers. Such fantastical tropes are not so different from what has come to pass in our own history. In fact, it is that commonality which gives such stories their power. But what gives World War II its true power is that it was all real. It happened. Real men and women fought and died—including many of our own living ancestors. They laid down their lives when faced with unfathomable evil. And that is legendary. WWII: Operation WhiteBox is an homage to these heroes, both living and fallen." $7.99  $5.59

Crawling Under A Broken Moon fanzine (DCC) - Eighteen issues and going strong. This isn't just gonzo sci-fi - its Saturday morning cartoon gonzo sci-fi ;) - "a fanzine dedicated to bringing gonzo post apocalyptic content for the Dungeon Crawl Classics RPG from Goodman Games." $1.99  $1.39

Castle of the Mad Archmage Adventure Book - Ever wonder what gonzo Castle Greyhawk may have looked like? (and I'm not talking about the TSR version with Gummy Bears). We'', here's one take on it - "More than thirteen levels and over 1,500 keyed encounters of perils, monsters, traps, and treasure to bedevil your players. Find levels of warring humanoids, the deadly Arena, ancient artifacts, lost temples, portals to other worlds, and the ultimate secret of the dungeons... the Mad Archmage himself. Originally released as a free electronic book in serial format, the Castle of the Mad Archmage has been completely revised, expanded, and updated. It is a complete adventuring environment, from the surface ruins to the deepest caves and caverns. You and your players could literally spend years exploring the dungeons beneath the Castle and still not discover everything. It can accommodate characters from first to fifteenth experience level and beyond."$9.95  $6.97

Blood & Treasure 2nd Edition Rulebook - Blood & Treasure is the OSR RPG offering by the man behind NOD and the series of Hex Crawls offered by Frog God Games. John knows his stuff -"Blood & Treasure is the fantasy role-playing game for people who want to spend less time arguing over rules and more time playing, and the new 2nd Edition continues this tradition. Compatible with old school games, it strives to be rules lite and options heavy. Thirteen character classes, as well as suggested variations on the existing classes - The classic fantasy races - A streamlined and easy optional feats system - Hundreds of spells and magic items - you can run games for years without running out of new things to try - Optional scientific treasures for those who like science-fantasy - Quick and easy rules for exploration, combat, mass combat, naval combat, strongholds and domains and a simple task resolution system - Guidance on designing dungeons, wilderness, settlements and even the cosmos - Suggestions on converting to other old school systems and changes between the first and second edition." $9.99  $6.99

Lairs & Encounters - Nominally written for ACKS, L&E is chuck full of adventure seeds, seedlings and full grown (if small) adventures - well worth the 7 bucks - "Lairs & Encounters™ is the ultimate supplement for fantasy RPG sandbox campaigns. Designed for use with the Adventurer Conqueror King System™ (ACKS™), it is readily compatible with other fantasy role-playing games built on the same core rules - More than 165 ready-to-play monstrous lairs— one for every major monster in the Adventurer Conqueror King System. The lair listings are designed to be used both as dynamic points of interest that can be discovered while wandering through the wilderness and as obstacles to a would-be ruler’s attempt to secure land for a domain - A cartographic compendium of 36 lair maps for the Judge’s use and 6 treasure maps to hand out to your players - A catalog of 30 new monsters, including the chaos hulk, child of Nasga, dire beastman, draugr, desert ghoul, hag, khepri, and mummy lord - New subsystems for sandbox play, including rules for populating 6-mile hexes with lairs based on the terrain and extent of settlements in the region and rules for searching for lairs in the wilderness, factoring in terrain density, aerial reconnaissance, splitting up to cover more ground (never split the party!), and more - Additional mechanics for monsters, including ability scores for monsters, proficiencies for monsters, and young monsters." $10.00  $7.00

Dungeon Grappling - if you are anything like me, the first thing to get jettisoned from the AD&D 1e rules was unarmed combat and grappling. No one could get it done right it seemed - until now -"From the first story ever told, to tales on the silver screen. They all have at least one thing in common: Grappling. Grappling is thrilling, dangerous, and drives thousands of years of epic storytelling. Dungeon Grappling brings those thrills to the oldest fantasy RPG with rules and examples for Swords and Wizardry (and other OSR-style games), the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, and 5e. Dungeon Grappling provides: Simple, unified mechanics, using the same concepts as weapon strikes - Variable outcomes – grapples can be good or bad - Dynamic, tense stories - Weapons, talons, magic . . . they’re all in here. - Grappling just got scary again! -  this book contains rules based on Open Gaming License content from several editions of the industry’s most popular RPG – explicit examples for Swords and Wizardry, the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, and Fifth Edition." $9.49  $6.64

OSR Picks for the GM's Day Sale, Part III

Yep, its time to make some OSR Picks for the current GM's Sale at RPGNow. This post is Part III. Part I and Part II are linked. Remember, 5% of your purchase goes to support The Tavern and associated costs for projects like Swords & Wizardry Light and the upcoming Torchlight Zine.

Hubris: A World of Visceral Adventure - I've reviewed part of this book and it is simply amazing. Solid 5 star reviews on RPGNow - "Hubris is a weird fantasy setting that  uses the awesome Dungeon Crawl Classics rules!  In this book you will find 10 territories filled with tables and charts to generate interesting locations and encounters, new occupations, 4 new classes, 5 new playable races, 3 new spells, 4 new patrons, including 3 patrons spells for each, 11 new and terrible gods, 14 tables and charts for a GM to use to aid them in their game or create interesting/fun situations, two new adventures to kick off a campaign, and 51 new enemies.  Hubris is hackable!  Each territory can be used as the GM wills!  Need a desert, swamp, or frozen tundra for your game?  Use what's in Hubris!"  $14.99  $10.49


Starships & Spacemen 2e - What to play an OSR styled Star Trek TOS with the serial numbers scratched off? If so, this is for you - "Boldly explore the galaxy in search of alien civilizations! You take the role of a Military Officer, Technical Officer, Science Officer, or Enlisted Man in the Galactic Confederation. Travel in a starship under your command, on missions of first contact, rescue, exploration, and more in a galaxy full of hostile aliens. Try to maintain the tenuous truce with the militaristic Zangid, and fight the Videni who may look like your Tauran allies, but do not adhere to a philosophy of peace and logic. Design alien humanoids with either "original series" or "next generation" sensibilites, or blend the two approaches! There are 100 forehead shapes that may be randomly rolled when a new alien race is encountered." $6.45  $4.52


Fat Goblin Games - Stock Art - Whether its individual pieces, collections or subscriptions, Fat Goblin Games has an excellent assortment of high quality stock art, much of which is on sale. Perfect for little guys like me or bigger fish in our hobby ;)  30% off

Fat Goblin Games - GM Journal Series - If you are a mess like me, these form fillable PDFs are a Godsend. I just need to use them more. 30% off




Raging Swan Press - GM's Miscellany Series - System Neutral - If you haven't tried any of the releases in this series, may I humble suggest GM's Miscellany: Dungeon Dressing "Are you tired of dungeons lacking in verisimilitude? Want to add cool little features of interest to your creations but don't have the time to come up with nonessential details? Want to make your dungeons feel more realistic? Then GM’s Miscellany: Dungeon Dressing (System Neutral Edition) is for you! This gigantic compilations comprises all 34 instalments in the line as well as scores of riddles, new material and design essays by Creighton.  GM’s Miscellany: Dungeon Dressing (System Neutral Edition) presents loads of great features to add to your dungeon. Designed to be used both during preparation or actual play, GM’s Miscellany: Dungeon Dressing (System Neutral Edition)  is an invaluable addition to any GM's armoury!" 30% off

Sunken City Omnibus (DCC RPG) - What can I say? I've enjoyed all of the Purple Sorcerer releases - "The Sunken City Adventure Omnibus & Guide contains four complete beginning adventures and a host of new material to enhance your Dungeon Crawl Classics campaign. Features include - Every best-selling Sunken City Adventure (Perils of the Sunken City, The Ooze Pits of Jonas Gralk, A Gathering of the Marked, Lair of the Mist Men) combined and refined into a single full-color volume. Both a 96-page desktop/print version and a 200-page mobile version built from scratch for viewing on your tablet! A massive 84-page master appendix containing extra content, pre-gen characters, player maps, 1-inch scale battle maps, and over 150 paper miniatures.  A patron write-up of Malloc, the devious master of secrets. At long last... Opossuman player characters! Adventure seeds, new monsters, 24 new magic items, judging tips, and more!"  $12.99  $9.09

Dwimmermount (Labyrinth Lord version) - Yes, I know I have a history with Dwimmermount, but the final product far exceeds what was playtested by my group. So, kill some rats and grab your coppers, you have a dungeon to conquer! -  "The gates of Dwimmermount have opened. After years of rumors, it is time to discover the secrets of this vast mountain fortress for yourself... Dwimmermount™ is a classic megadungeon and old-school campaign setting presented use with Labyrinth Lord™ and other d20-based fantasy role-playing games." $10.00  $7.00

Savage Rifts - Sure, while not strictly an OSR pick, it does do something that the original Rifts rules could never do - actually make the game playable without ignoring or making up rules. Go figure - "In the battle for survival the Tomorrow Legion brings together the greatest, the bravest, and the craziest to stand against an infinity of threats. They stand for a better future than the past they've known. The Rifts® Tomorrow Legion Player's Guide contains everything you need to make and equip mega-powered characters for the Rifts® Earth setting. Iconic Frameworks load you up with options for well-known concepts (Glitter Boys, Juicers, Ley Line Walkers, Mind Melters), as well as the capacity to craft your own custom ideas. New Setting Rules bring home the gonzo, cranked-to-eleven nature of Rifts®, and the gear lists include everything from incredibly powerful weapons and armor to cybernetics to arcana-fueled Techno-Wizard items. New rules for Mega Powers bring magic and psionics to super-powered levels, and Hero's Journey tables flesh out your characters in exciting and fun ways."  Savage Rifts: The Tomorrow Legion Player's Guide: $14.99  $10.49