Whelp, this is it. If you had plans for something in 2023 you've got this evening to finish it up.
I rarely have "by year's end" goals. "This weekend" or generalized goals, yes, but not "this year" type goals. This weekend I'm taking out two closets and making custom shelves....and I clearly forgot that I'm old and broken because my two-day project will go at least three days, if not four or four-plus.
FFFFFFF....UUUUUU.......Fun! So much Fun!
Luckily there has been very little bleeding on these two builds and I did get the "big stuff" done. The work has given me time to think a bit and when I wasn't thinking about StarfieldDamn this hurts Did I measure twice cut once?other things, I thought about what kind of goals I should have for this next year. In other words, I actually want to have some "by year's end" goals.
I think it's important to actually state (share) goals and I also think one should have at least three goals: a big one, a medium-size one, and small/easy goal. How your goals fit into each category will be up to you, but for me small is easy, medium is probably (but with difficulty), and big is something I will really have to work hard to accomplish.
So my 3 goals, and these are gaming goals here, would be:
Small: I want to buy/build a wheeled gaming case to hold all my shit for a convention. Instead of lugging around my backpack and having to go up to my room to switch-out/resupply, I want a cool case I can wheel around and have easy access while at the table.
Medium: The project I think I can get done, but will take some effort, is to get a pet project of mine published. I have to be a bit secretive on that one.....but I'll be self-publishing and I want to be done this year.....it's been on my mind for far too long. The graphic for this post was inspired by this particular idea that I've not been progressing on.
Big: Another writing/publishing project, but a big one, is to write an adventure. I want to get the artists lined up, have it written and playtested, do the layout....etc.
Feel free to comment with your goals for the next year. Put a voice to that idea......an important 2nd step. Later this year, after NTRPG we can circle back and see if we (we......not just me) have been making progress on our goals.
Yeah, this post was supposed to have been posted yesterday. Ah well, it is here, today, so let's get to it - Tenkar
PS - I'll be diving into outstanding emails from the last few days of OSR Christmas tonight and tomorrow - Tenkar
The following gifts will be gifted on Tuesday, January 2, at some point after 7 PM Eastern, so make sure you comment before the cut-off and check back here on the blog side to see if you are receiving a gift from OSR Christmas Day 9.
If you want to be considered for an OSR Christmas Day 9 gift, simply comment below before 7 PM, Tuesday, January 2nd, 2024. PLEASE include if you are in the US.
From DiceBro:
•PDF Bundle of issues1-3 of Wizard Funk, an OSR zine
•OSR Stickers and Barrowmaze patches to give away (1 US)
From The Knotty Works:
•Bundle of BX Game Options Volume I-XII in PDF
From On the Tabletop:
• PDF copy of Holmes & Clark, along with digital goodies
From James Mishler Games:
•Set of 12 PDFs (by my count) of James Mishler releases for Shadowdark as well as the Isle of Eldisor for Labyrinth Lord in PDF
From Tenkar's Tavern:
$10 DTRPG Gift Certificate
The Tavern is supported by readers like you. The easiest way to support The Tavern is to shop via our affiliate links. The Tavern DOES NOT do "Paid For" Articles and discloses personal connections to products and creators written about when applicable.
DTRPG, Amazon, and Humble Bundle are affiliate programs that support The Tavern.You can catch the daily Tavern Chat cast on Anchor, YouTube, or wherever you listen to your podcast collection. - Tenkar
I remember this system and this series of supplements recently being Kickstarted. I know literally nothing about the Everyday Heroes RPG (ah, Modern 20 5e-ified) or its rules system, but the sourcebooks are damn tempting.
For 18 bucks, you get the full Everyday Heroes Bundle - core rules, Escape From New York, Universal Soldier, Rambo, Total Recall, Highlander, Pacific Rim, Kong: Skull Island, and The Crow. That's one hell of a line-up.
Don’t forget to pack the popcorn for your next RPG night, because it’s time to bring the movies to your table! This bundle from Evil Genius is packed with games inspired by some of the silver screen's most exciting names. Get ready to walk in the shoes of elite special forces fighters and take on larger-than-life missions in Rambo, based on the beloved films and fully compatible with 5e! Hop into your Jaeger and protect mankind from vicious kaiju in the 5e-compatible Pacific Rim! And more! Get games based on The Crow, Kong Island, Highlander, and other great films, and help support Gameheads with your purchase!
The Tavern is supported by readers like you. The easiest way to support The Tavern is to shop via our affiliate links. The Tavern DOES NOT do "Paid For" Articles and discloses personal connections to products and creators written about when applicable.
DTRPG, Amazon, and Humble Bundle are affiliate programs that support The Tavern.You can catch the daily Tavern Chat cast on Anchor, YouTube, or wherever you listen to your podcast collection. - Tenkar
If your name is found below one of the following gifts, you are receiving that gift. Email me at tenkarsDOTtavern at that gmail thing. PLEASE include "OSR Christmas Day 7" in the subject, and please mention the gift you are receiving in the body of the email. This makes it easier for me to match up everything.
Note - if you are awaiting a gift from Day 6 of OSR Christmas or earlier, email me, with "OSR Christmas Day X", where X= the day in question, and mention the gift you are waiting on in the body of the email.
1x The Cartomancer 2 Bundle (physical boxed set containing all three HandyMaps content) delivered anywhere in the world for free. https://monkeyblooddesign.co.uk/product/bundle-handymaps-the-cartomancer-2/
•An Arduin Bundle with the hardcover trilogy 1-3, all the grimoires 4 - 9, and Vaults of the Weaver, which has 7 Dungeons in It. All printed material worth $155.00 bundle for Christmas Day! (Note - US Only)
The Tavern is supported by readers like you. The easiest way to support The Tavern is to shop via our affiliate links. The Tavern DOES NOT do "Paid For" Articles and discloses personal connections to products and creators written about when applicable.
DTRPG, Amazon, and Humble Bundle are affiliate programs that support The Tavern.You can catch the daily Tavern Chat cast on Anchor, YouTube, or wherever you listen to your podcast collection. - Tenkar
If your name is found below one of the following gifts, you are receiving that gift. Email me at tenkarsDOTtavern at that gmail thing. PLEASE include "OSR Christmas Day 5" in the subject, and please mention the gift you are receiving. This makes it easier for me to match up everything.
The Tavern is supported by readers like you. The easiest way to support The Tavern is to shop via our affiliate links. The Tavern DOES NOT do "Paid For" Articles and discloses personal connections to products and creators written about when applicable.
DTRPG, Amazon, and Humble Bundle are affiliate programs that support The Tavern.You can catch the daily Tavern Chat cast on Anchor, YouTube, or wherever you listen to your podcast collection. - Tenkar
but today went a little pear-shaped at the end. Fires are put out, and everything is fixed (for now - heh), but I am emotionally drained and physically worn out..
OSR Christmas emails? The first thing to address after Rach's appointment in the morning.
I know, I haven't distributed gifts yet for OSR Christmas Days 4, 5, and 6! I know, this weekend was a time crunch, and I'll be tackling that gift-giving TOMORROW, December 26th.
The following gifts will be gifted on Thursday, December 28th, at some point after 7 PM Eastern, so make sure you comment before the cut-off and check back here to see if you are receiving a gift from OSR Christmas Day 7.
If you want to be considered for an OSR Christmas Day 7 gift, simply comment below before 7 PM, Thursday, December 28th. PLEASE include if you are in the US. ONLY US ADDRESSES WILL BE CONSIDERED FOR THE ARDUIN BUNDLE.
From MonkeyBlood:
•1x The Cartomancer 2 Bundle (physical boxed set containing all three HandyMaps content) delivered anywhere in the world for free. https://monkeyblooddesign.co.uk/product/bundle-handymaps-the-cartomancer-2/
From Emperors' Choice:
•An Arduin Bundle with the hardcover trilogy 1-3, all the grimoires 4 - 9, and Vaults of the Weaver, which has 7 Dungeons in It. All printed material worth $155.00 bundle for Christmas Day! (Note - US Only)
From DiceBro:
•PDF Bundle of issues1-3 of Wizard Funk, an OSR zine
•OSR Stickers and Barrowmaze patches to give away (1 US/1 Int)
From On the Tabletop:
• Softcover copy of Holmes & Clark (OSR Ruleset) (US Only)
• PDF copy of Holmes & Clark, along with digital goodies
From James Mishler Games:
•12 Sets of 12 PDFs (by my count) of James Mishler releases for Shadowdark as well as the Isle of Eldisor for Labyrinth Lord in PDF
From Tenkar's Tavern:
$10 DTRPG Gift Certificate
The Tavern is supported by readers like you. The easiest way to support The Tavern is to shop via our affiliate links. The Tavern DOES NOT do "Paid For" Articles and discloses personal connections to products and creators written about when applicable.
DTRPG, Amazon, and Humble Bundle are affiliate programs that support The Tavern.You can catch the daily Tavern Chat cast on Anchor, YouTube, or wherever you listen to your podcast collection. - Tenkar
I'm enjoying Christmas at the family farm, which is a long (almost exactly 12 hours) drive from where I live & work. That's too long of a drive for me so I tend to break it down into two 6 hour drive times. On my way up I managed to stop by an Ollies and pick up a copy of the D&D terrain case and the creature case. I had actually seen these for sale a a game store for $65, online for a bit under $20, and I paid $2.75....
I mention the prices not as a humble-brag, which would be applicable since I am a Midwesterner and it's common for us to say what price we paid for something as a casual part of conversation. I mention it know because I wanted to see how much value I felt there was in this product.
I'm going to only cover the Terrain Case because that's what I have in-hand and I'm not putting on pants, going outside, and digging through the truck to find the other case amongst the Christmas presents I have to unload later. Yes, I'm lazy....deal with it.
I'm probably going to be a bit petty about this "review" because if Hasbro (and that one game store) wanted me to pay $65, it better be a damned fine product.
The box has a hefty weight to it and my first issue was trying to actually open the thing. The outer wrap is glued pretty well and I had to flip it a few times to find a weakness I could rip off. While I had a knife I was loathe to use it because I didn't want to scratch the case.
Case is pretty enough, but I really don't care for the thick rope handle. It seems out of place aesthetically and the case isn't so heavy it has to have a handle. Now if I had a small issue opening the outer wrap I'm damned if I can get this actual case opened easily. Seriously? Do I need to look up a effing unboxing video to figure it out?
Ok, now I feel stupid, but it actually opened easily, just not the way I was trying to open it. The sides of the case have a small V cutout at the top/front and between these cutouts and the stupid rope handle make sit seem obvious that the internal box slides out of an external box. No....the top of the case is magnetic and it flips open, revealing a forest path scene on the inside of the lid and a removable tray set on top of a larger tray/open-sided box. The inside box has two paper-wrapped tile sets and the smaller removable tray has a big red ribbon sticking out of it. Pulling up the ribbon lets you remove the folded map board and an actual folder containing five pages of static clings.
Ok the clings are pretty cool and the maps/tiles are both wet & dry erasable marker capable. There are really only two map designs: generic grassland & generic stone. That's it.
Honestly I'm not impressed. Don't get me wrong, it's a pretty case, but $65.....no. Now if I paid $65 to Hasbro I'd get a digital DMG, but I don't want/need a digital DMG. Not knocking the game, but if I played it and was looking for terrain that means I'm the DM and I would already have the fricken DMG. Even if I didn't have a digital copy if that had value to me then I'd have already bought the thing. Adding something I don't want/need that costs the company nothing does not magically add $30 of value to a physical product.
Now I like the clings. I will use the clings, BUT.....I really wish they had provided a handful (five maybe) of empty cling backing sheets because once I remove a cling from the sheet, it's not going back on perfectly. Trying to fiddle with this in-game will prove to be an exercise in frustration. Now going ahead and peeling off all of the on-item cling and throwing it away gives me a lot more wiggle-room to replace items. Instead of spending money on producing a rope handle or and art insert I'll not use, give me something useful.
Speaking of useful, only two map designs? Really? Between the tiles and the foldable map that's four surfaces. If they had switched out the designs on the tiles then I could have used them with the foldable. A marsh map, rubble, rocky/hilly, cart path, creek, river, generic water......anything would have greatly increased the value of this terrain product.
IMNSHO the D&D Terrain Case is not worth the MSR of $65. It is too much style over substance and I think it isn't worth $20. Actually it is worth $20, but probably not to one person. I think any GM can get good use out of the clings and as far as the maps or tiles....pick one. I think I'd prefer the folding map, but I could totally see assembling the tiles and pre-drawing my map on it and then number & break it back up. As you play you only have to lay down the tiles as you need them. It really depends on your particular style. If I was running a con game I might like the tiles, already loaded with clings (obviously where appropriate) that lets me save time trying to draw things out during the limited convention game time.
Pro (ok personal experience) tip: If you're running multiple games (I'm specifically thinking multiple games at once as a head GM), but this will work for one game at a time as well, you can go to a fabric store and purchase clear vinyl "fabric" of various thickness/gauge material. It's normally 3-6' wide and sold by running foot. You can cut that up into smaller bits and draw your map out as individual rooms/halls, essentially creating your own clings! When you have multiple tables going at once you can easily lay one piece of vinyl over another and trace out a copy so all the table GMs have the same map layout all prepped in advanced.
Lastly....Merry Christmas everyone. I hope you all get to enjoy the holiday with friends and loved ones.
First, full disclosure. A portion of the monies raised from the sale of the Lost Adventures of Gary Con Limited Editionwill be going to help my wife, Rach, who is currently being treated for breast cancer, to assist with the out-of-pocket expenses. Also, I consider Don Semora (publisher) and Tim Kask (author) as close, personal friends. If there is any bias to be considered, it has been detailed here.
So, what is the Lost Adventures of Gary Con Limited Edition? Simply put, it is a reprinting of Tim Kask's adventures from Gary Con I & II back in 2009 & 2010. These early Gary Cons had limited attendance and thus exposure to these adventures in their original form was, by their very nature, limited.
This is the Hard Cover version limited to 300 copies of the Lost Adventures of Garycon. In this special edition are two of the first tournament modules that Tim Kask wrote for GaryCon I and II. Each module is presented in it's original form, and also converted into both 1E and 5E versions, so everyone will get something out of this unique product.
The two modules are The Tower of the Mad Wizard which was played at Garycon I, and also the Return to the Frozen North, which was played at Garycon II. Also inside this limited edition hard cover are several pull out full color maps, expanded monsters, and several unique pre-gen characters. Along with this stunning hardcover purchasers will get the following.
Also included is a four page comic spread from Jim Wampler of Marvin the Mage that was first shown at GaryCon 4. Plus included is a brief how Marvin the Mage is made, where you can see the process of making the madly madcap and amusing Mage being created.
Quality hard cover book, with full color heavy weight pages
All copies signed by Tim Kask
Certificate of authenticity
Several removable maps of the areas and worlds
16 Unique monsters never before seen or published
Unique Pre-Generated player characters
The scanned original module as played by Tim Kask
Security Hologram showing your edition number
ONCE THESE COPIES ARE SOLD THERE WILL BE NO MORE PRINTINGS
Some of the proceeds of the sale of this game going to do two special things. A portion of the sales will go to the 9/11 Never Forget Fund. However we are also donating a portion to Rachel Stiene, a brave woman who dedicated her life in New York City to helping those with substance abuse issues. Rachel recently was diagnosed with breast cancer, and we hope that we can help her with some of her medical expenses that she will incur that insurance will not cover.
The Tavern is supported by readers like you. The easiest way to support The Tavern is to shop via our affiliate links. The Tavern DOES NOT do "Paid For" Articles and discloses personal connections to products and creators written about when applicable.
DTRPG, Amazon, and Humble Bundle are affiliate programs that support The Tavern.You can catch the daily Tavern Chat cast on Anchor, YouTube, or wherever you listen to your podcast collection. - Tenkar
The following gifts will be gifted on Saturday, December 24th, at some point after 7 PM Eastern, so make sure you comment before the cut-off and check back here to see if you are receiving a gift from OSR Christmas Day 5.
If you want to be considered for an OSR Christmas Day 5 gift, simply comment below before 7 PM, Sunday, December 24th.
OSR Christmas Day 7 will be here, on the blogside, Monday, December 25th, Christmas Day. We have some REALLY cool gifts to give.
From The Knotty Works:
Bundle of BX Game Options Volume I-XII in PDF
From DiceBro:
1 PDF Bundles of issues1-3 of Wizard Funk, an OSR zine
1 Set of OSR Stickers and Barrowmaze patches - International Shipping!
From On the Tabletop:
1 PDF copies of Holmes & Clark, along with digital goodies
From James Mishler Games:
1 Set of 12 PDFs (by my count) of James Mishler releases for Shadowdark as well as the Isle of Eldisor for Labyrinth Lord in PDF
From Tenkar's Tavern:
1 - $10 DTRPG Gift Certificate
The Tavern is supported by readers like you. The easiest way to support The Tavern is to shop via our affiliate links. The Tavern DOES NOT do "Paid For" Articles and discloses personal connections to products and creators written about when applicable.
DTRPG, Amazon, and Humble Bundle are affiliate programs that support The Tavern.You can catch the daily Tavern Chat cast on Anchor, YouTube, or wherever you listen to your podcast collection. - Tenkar
Welcome to OSR Christmas for 2023 Day of Gifting, Day 3. Note that Day 2 & Day 4 of OSR Christmas were on the Tavern Chat Livestream.Day 5 will be here, on the blog side, Tomorrow, Friday. Day 6 will be on the Random Party GeneratorLivestream, also tomorrow, at 8 PM Eastern. The following gifts are being gifted from OSR Christmas Day 3.
If you are being gifted below, email tenkarsDOTtavernAT the Gmail thing - please put OSR Christmas Day 3, in the subject.
The Tavern is supported by readers like you. The easiest way to support The Tavern is to shop via our affiliate links. The Tavern DOES NOT do "Paid For" Articles and discloses personal connections to products and creators written about when applicable.
DTRPG, Amazon, and Humble Bundle are affiliate programs that support The Tavern.You can catch the daily Tavern Chat cast on Anchor, YouTube, or wherever you listen to your podcast collection. - Tenkar
I've been a fan of the various Kobold Guides for years. Each includes essays from some of the larger names in the RPG industry, and they cover a lot of ground. You may not agree with the view of each author, but the amount of creative boost to one's own creative juices is damn near priceless.
The Kobold Guides Bundle includes the following titles for 19.95: "the Kobold Guides to Board Game Design, Combat, Complete Game Design Second Edition, Gamemastering, Magic, Monsters, Plots & Campaigns, Worldbuilding, and Worldbuilding, Vol 2."
The Tavern is supported by readers like you. The easiest way to support The Tavern is to shop via our affiliate links. The Tavern DOES NOT do "Paid For" Articles and discloses personal connections to products and creators written about when applicable.
DTRPG, Amazon, and Humble Bundle are affiliate programs that support The Tavern.You can catch the daily Tavern Chat cast on Anchor, YouTube, or wherever you listen to your podcast collection. - Tenkar
OSR Christmas. Never duplicated, but it should be :)
Welcome to Day 3 of OSR Christmas for 2023. Note that Day 4 of OSR Christmas will be on the Tavern Chat Livestream, on Wednesday Night @ 8 PM Eastern, December 20th, 2023. Day 5 of OSR Christmas will be on the Random Party Generator Livestream, on Friday, December 22nd, 2023 @ 8 PM Eastern. On both nights gifts will be given around 9 pm Eastern.
The following gifts will be gifted on Thursday, December 21st, so make sure you comment before Noon Eastern time on December 21st and check back here to see if you are receiving a gift from OSR Christmas Day 3.
If you want to be considered for an OSR Christmas Day 3 gift, simply comment below.
Note, we need you to indicate if you are outside the US, as there are gifts that ship only to US addresses. Sucks, but shipping costs are what they are.
1 Set of 12 PDFs (by my count) of James Mishler releases for Shadowdark as well as the Isle of Eldisor for Labyrinth Lord in PDF
From Tenkar's Tavern:
2 $10 DTRPG Gift Certificates
The Tavern is supported by readers like you. The easiest way to support The Tavern is to shop via our affiliate links. The Tavern DOES NOT do "Paid For" Articles and discloses personal connections to products and creators written about when applicable.
DTRPG, Amazon, and Humble Bundle are affiliate programs that support The Tavern.You can catch the daily Tavern Chat cast on Anchor, YouTube, or wherever you listen to your podcast collection. - Tenkar
In a previous life I worked retail management at Fred Meyer and I was (unfortunately) in charge of my store's Seasonal Department. From just before Thanksgiving until New Year's Day my 45 hour work-week turned into 65+ hours a week. The holiday bullshit, especially dealing with Christmas Trees (both fresh cut and artificial) really took it's toll on me and these days I'm largely "Eff Christmas". I'm not so much Ebenezer Scrooge or Grinch, but maybe more like Margo Chester....
......and now you're looking up who that is. It's ok, this can wait.....
Thing is, I do like gift-giving. Receiving not as much, but I am a single guy in my 5th decade of life.....one could argue that everyday is Christmas for me. I wouldn't, but some could....
What I normally do is buy stuff throughout the year and save said stuff to give on Christmas. That's more for close friends and family at best. I do make gifts for most of my friends and co-workers and at my workplace I'm pretty much the only one who gives gifts....which is internally humorous to me since I'm not a fan of Christmas.....yes, I'm cognizant that so much of my life is oxymoronic.
See, I love tinkering and usually have a large handful of projects that I'm ignoring in order to watch TV or play video games.....but I do have fun with the projects when I get around to them. Being as I am a single guy there's only so much my cats and I need, so a lot of projects produce a surplus.....which means if I play my cards right I can have fun with the tinkering and then I have stuff to give away as needed.
Seeing as Christmas is now just over a week away I have a few projects/gifts to finish up. I did, however, get on top of my Gaming gifts this year and I can share what I did this year since my local group has already gotten everything and the two...ok three people I missed in the initial mailing have their packages enroute....
This year I picked up a few mystery dice bags from the Mystery Dice Goblins and I had some custom notepads made up with my version of the OSE PC Sheet. I do wish I had upgraded the backing, but overall I'm happy with the notepads. For the record, this was an edited copy of an "Official" OSE sheet that I had made just for my use, but I was given permission to share/distribute as long as I actually attached my name to it (which I thought was weird, but ok). The notepad is 5x7 inches with 25 front & back printed PC sheets. While it is small, there's more than enough room to handwrite a new PC, unless you like to use a fat sharpie or china pen.
Now my group plays B/X, so these sheets work well, and now I have more than enough left over (bought enough in bulk to get enough of a price break to justify the expense) that the cats and I will not need to print a new sheet off for a while...
I'm going to pick a nit with this Bundle of Holding - usually, you highlight a title in the Starter Collection, not the Bonus Collection. Dragonbane is in the Bonus Collection, not the Starter Collection, but I digress.
I've heard only good things about Vaesen and Forbidden Lands. I backed the Dragonbane Kickstarter and damn, but it's a beautiful set. If the rest of the releases in this bundle are of the same quality, it's a bargain and then some.
The Starter Collection Bundle of Dragonbane and Year Zeroincludes Vaesen, Forbidden Lands, Coriolis - The Third Horizon, and Mutant, Year Zero for 19.95 in PDF. The Bonus Collection is approximately 39 bucks and adds the Dragonbane Core Set, the Twilight: 2000 Core Set, Vaesen: Mythic Britain & Ireland as well as the Coriolis Atlas Compendium.
Adventurer! This new Dragonbane and Year Zero Bundle presents English-language tabletop roleplaying games from Free League Publishing, including the new Dragonbane game of magic, mirth, and mayhem, along with five Free League RPGs – Twilight: 2000, Vaesen, Forbidden Lands, Coriolis, and Mutant: Year Zero – that use the Year Zero Engine rules system also used in ALIEN, Blade Runner, The Walking Dead, and Tales From the Loop.
Dragonbane reimagines Drakar och Demoner (1982) with modern rules for fast and furious magical adventure, presented in a beautifully illustrated full-color core set including two books, maps, cards, pregenerated characters, and more, funded in a gigantic August 2022 Kickstarter campaign. And Year Zero games play just as fast, giving you meaningful and decisive results in one die roll. Well suited for harsh, survival-focused settings, Year Zero games are often deadly, and player characters are rarely safe from danger no matter how experienced they are. The YZE system is player-focused, story-driven, and adaptable.
The Tavern is supported by readers like you. The easiest way to support The Tavern is to shop via our affiliate links. The Tavern DOES NOT do "Paid For" Articles and discloses personal connections to products and creators written about when applicable.
DTRPG, Amazon, and Humble Bundle are affiliate programs that support The Tavern.You can catch the daily Tavern Chat cast on Anchor, YouTube, or wherever you listen to your podcast collection. - Tenkar
I am not a Pathfinder player. Never have been. That being said, the original Pathfinder Beginners Box was one of the best gaming values I've ever seen, and the Pathfinder 2e Beginners Box is damn close! You can snag a digital copy of the Pathfinder 2e Beginners Box for as low as 5 bucks with the cheapest bundle option.
The Pathfinder 2nd Edition Legacy Bundle includes THREE bestiaries in its collection - all under the OGL. So, it's ripe for the picking for other OGL systems (although future licensing and revisions will be under the ORC license)
Note: OSR Christmas emails for Days 1 and 2 will go out this weekend
The Tavern is supported by readers like you. The easiest way to support The Tavern is to shop via our affiliate links. The Tavern DOES NOT do "Paid For" Articles and discloses personal connections to products and creators written about when applicable.
DTRPG, Amazon, and Humble Bundle are affiliate programs that support The Tavern.You can catch the daily Tavern Chat cast on Anchor, YouTube, or wherever you listen to your podcast collection. - Tenkar
Friday Roundup
-
It's Friday, hurrah!
- So you want much more detail when you do dungeon stocking?
d4 Caltrops has you covered.
- This is one weird-looking Otyugh figure.
...
Writing playlists for all occasions
-
Hello again! Going off the idea of inspiration elaborated on by the prior
post, I also have music playing while I write my various games and fiction
pieces...
Friday Faction: BattleTech Universe
-
In 2024, *BattleTech* is forty years old. Infamously, the game of ‘big,
stompy robots’, in the four decades since the original publication of BattleTech:
...
Mothership: Advent Dawn session 1
-
On some backwater planet, Ossie Marcial, SpaceTuber and Teamster
specializing in computer repair and zero-G industrial equipment (hover
forklift certifi...
Grimdark, the bad guys
-
Every good group of heroes need a bunch of baddies trying to destroy the
world, right? How about some weasels, badgers, and rats? Plus a vile swamp
lord?An...
Citybook III: Deadly Nightside (1987)
-
From the web:
This book in the Citybook series focuses on nighttime businesses, NPCs, and
scenarios.
From the front cover:
A game-master's aid for all ...
My Shoe is Safe
-
Yesterday's quiz was a toughie. In it, to recap, commenters were encouraged
to guess at what the following pieces of art, generated by Substack's own
AI ...
This Old Dragon: Issue #115
-
[image: Dragon Magazine #115]
I think I have enough time left in this year to do another one of these. My
box of old Dragons, though, is getting a little li...
"What A Bunch Of Clowns." "Dangerous Clowns."
-
I love James Gunn's Creature Commandos. The animation is fantastic. The
voice work is phenomenal. The story is entertaining and I love the
characters. Oh a...
Gods of the Forbidden North – Volume 1
-
By Robert AldermanPulp Hummock PressOSELevel 1 On the arctic frontier, at
the border between the mountains and the wastes beyond, looms Castle
Thar-Gannon....
Worse Wounds
-
I'm testing out an alternative wound system for *clears throat* *Intergalactic
Bastionland.*
This game is very much at the "throw everything into a docum...
On Manifestos
-
The paid media was instructed to not print this.
To the Feds, I’ll keep this short, because I do respect what you do for our
country. To save you a leng...
Geeky SKAturday SKAliday: Oi to the World!
-
Next in line for ska songs that should probably be enjoyed every holiday
season: "Oi to the World!"
I only first heard this one when No Doubt covered it o...
AD&D and ability checks - from d20 to d100
-
I have often wondered if people playing AD&D RAW use ability checks, and
how often.
From a quick look at the rules, it would seem that if you don't, having...
Chagrinspire Adventure Seeds by Tier
-
*Blogger not showing many any other ppls blogs - just kill it with fire and
a few others from 9 years ago - this stu...
The Tarot of Pips
-
Somewhere in your dice collection is a die like this one, the humblest of
dice. Although you don't know it, this small white die carries with it a
secr...
Ælf-Adal - VotE Remastered Development
-
Their Origins in Dream
They come from out of Nightmare, though whose, or why, no-one remembers
now. They may have been the dying dream of a coma-locked god,...
Blue Sky Temple, Revised
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Last week, we made a crowdsourced dungeon on Bluesky.
It was fun and it yielded a cool dungeon with a lot of good ideas mashed
together.
This week, I ...
[CAMPAIGN JOURNAL] News on the March! Episode IV.
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This post continues the series of brief play reports I have been posting on
Discord. This does not cover every single session (sometimes, recon and
setup...
Pirates and Necromancers, a Play Report
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Over the Thanksgiving weekend we did a lot of gaming ranging from
“off-table” domain level stuff to some solo adventures to spell and magic
item rese...
Games, Grinches, and Good Ideas...
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As we enter the holiday season, yours truly can't help but remember what
was doubtless the most important (and consequential) Christmas gift to ever
grac...
City of Scorn
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City of Scorn is one of the centerpieces in my current Shadowdark Campaign.
I've never spent the time to draw each sector. Each of those black squares
i...
Warsmith's Words: Magic Trev the Sorcerer
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Greetings fellow Warsmiths! A very quick update to share a picture of the
latest addition to the Iron Warriors. This is Magic Trev the Chaos Sorcerer.
I...
Fokker D-II and D-III
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The Fokker D-II was a fairly mediocre and uninspired successor to the E-III
monoplane responsible for the “Fokker Scourge” of 1915-’16. The D-III
impr...
OSR: Magical Industrial Gunboats
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Here's some useful information for river-based adventures using *Magical
Industrial Revolution*. Skip to Part 3 or click this PDF link if you just
want t...
Quick Convention Report: LongCon 2024
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[image: Quick Convention Report: LongCon 2024]
Last weekend I was able to attend LongCon in Longview, TX. I had a work
trip to the Nashville area that en...
Welcome new Greyhawk Fans!
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With the publication of the new Dungeon Master’s Guide, there are doubtless
going to be a lot of new D&D players interested in my favorite setting, the
Wor...
D&D Player’s Handbook 2024
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Being an incomplete, visual review of the 2024 Player’s Handbook. I got a
copy of this almost entirely on the strength of the new cover art: (This is
the “...
Concerning the Future of Traveller
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I have been a fan of Traveller for a long time and have bought various
books over the years from just about every Traveller licensee, as well as
from Ma...
Grimdark vs. Eucatastrophe
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Noisms has some interesting ideas in this post about his desire for some
depth to his grimdark, and turns to Gene Wolfe and Tolkien for relief.
Now, it ...
Musings on Sleep in OD&D – Is it Over-Powered?
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Link to discussion
Let’s look at the sleep spell in Men & Magic:
>Sleep: A Sleep spell affects from 2–16 1st-level types (hit dice of up to
1 + 1), from...
It's been a bit
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Hey everyone, I hope you are doing well! I've had a lot going on and
haven't had much time to blog lately. Heres a recap of gaming events and
other st...
Session #12 & Adventure Sites Compilation
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Firstly, I wanted to let everybody know that Adventure Sites I by Coldlight
Press is now available as a free download on DriveThruRPG. It includes my
own...
Jim Ward's Adventure in Gygax's Wonderland
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Last weekend at GaryCon, many of us raised a glass to the memory of Jim
Ward, who passed away just days before the convention. Ward was very
helpful to m...
The Economy Engine, v0.2
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I made a thing. For D&D 3rd edition, so it might not be that interesting to
a lot of people. But I made it and I think it’s cool. The 3rd edition
Dungeon M...
*'s in SpaaaaaAaaaace
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A lot of SF (including a certain 2D6 RPG grandaddy) deal with ancient
aliens taking humans from Earth and dropping them, fleas and all, on one or
more w...
Last move - to self-hosting!
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As my vote regarding Substack in the “marketplace of ideas”, I’m moving to
self-hosting.
I’m now at (and hopefully staying for a long time at)
Blog: ht...
Time Rolls On
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Today is December 31, 2023, in the mid-afternoon. In less than ten hours it
will be 2024. 2023 2023 was a good year. But all years are good years. Both
goo...
This is an Important Game Mechanic
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*"That's the GM's Regional Map from my AOWG. And it's a damned good
regional map. It's not a good map for a Simple Homebrew Campaign. It does
some s$&...
Clean Your Room
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Looking back at my little blog here. That last post… wow, I was having fun
playing WOW Classic! That was August of 1999 and I was having a blast… it
was ...
Steve Jackson Interview
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James Maliszewski recently did an interview with Steve Jackson over on his
Grognardia blog. Steve chats about the beginnings of The Fantasy Trip and
upcomi...
ToAD Monster of the Week: Crocoman
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Now that I'm back doing the blog thing I thought I would use Tome of
Adventure Design to create monsters for The Black Hack.
Using the monster tables in th...
Strange, Dangerous, and Inhuman: The Fey and Fairie
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When I was a boy I loved fairy tales. Jack and the Beanstalk, Puss in
Boots, Rumpelstiltskin - I devoured all of it. My fascination that there
was a strang...
New Map of the Elf Empire and Southern Isles
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I’ve been having fun developing a new map-drawing style that I think is
finally reaching a certain level of maturity. And yeah, it owes a lot to Matthew
Ad...
Dungeons & Dragonmead Fall Schedule
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*As you know, I run public classic Dungeons & Dragons games at **The Loaded
Die**/Metro Detroit Game Night's Board Game Nigh at **Dragonmead**, in
Warren...
Fiction in Airhde
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On a whim this weekend, I picked up some fiction off the TLG store. *A
Houseless God & Other Tales* and *The Mirrored Soul & Other Tales*, both by
the T...
Ravensburg Reboot: Streamlined City Map
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I mentioned in my last post how I was tweaking and reworking parts of my
Ravensburg setting. Today I streamlined the city map. The old map had lots
of redu...
And Now the News Draft Download on Patreon
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It's self-styled Throwback Thursday and *having just released the 34-page
draft booklet of Hill Cantons news to my Patreon backers* I am going to
indulge m...
The Withered Crag available now
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I just enabled the sale of the PDF version of The Withered Crag at
DriveThruRPG a few minutes ago, and the custom print version will be
available startin...
Annihilation Rising Goes live
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The latest in Fail Squad Games’ Quick Kick projects has gone live and needs
your support!! This project is only running 11 days and ends on 5/28/2019!
...
James's Celebration of Life
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We could not have asked for a prettier day for James's service. It was a
bit chilly and windy but gorgeous. A heartfelt thank you to all that joined
us tod...
Trap Tuesday: A step back
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I will get back to Tomb of Horrors soon. I found a topic that was
interesting enough to take a break. While interacting in a 5E group on
Facebook I talked ...
Let's Talk About Pacing!
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The idea, I think, is that the RPG is ultimately about the long game. Even
rolling back to the early days of Basic & Expert, the goal of the player
was...
Profane and Profound Prep Part 2
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This is part 2 of my work to edit my magic items for a DMsGuild release,
along with adding cursed items along the way. Here is part 1. Bone of a
Saint 8000...
Please, I don't do paid advertisements - don't ask.
-
A little note since people have asked me about this. My video channel's
*not* an advertising platform, so I'm not available for hire if you want to
promote...
New website!
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Slowly but surely, all the content here will make its way — in updated
form! — to my new website: timbannock.com. For fairly obvious reasons, that
site wil...
Please Update Your Link!
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If you're seeing this, it means your link to the Greyhawk Grognard blog is
out of date.
Please update your link to www.greyhawkgrognard.com (RSS feed is
h...
Total Sales for WB:FMAG
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Hi Folks,
It's been a long time since I provided an update for the sales of White
Box: Fantastic Medieval Adventure Game.
*LULU*
Print: 396
PDF: 433
*OBS*...
How can We Destroy this Campaign World?
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d12
1. You must trick a bard into strumming the *Chords of Fate* on the *Lute
of Annihilation*
2. Legends tell of thermonuclear weapons beneath megadunge...
Mord Mar - Session 5
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We had another successful delve into the dungeon yesterday. The delvers:
Moira, the Magic-User
Radovan - Human Cleric (of Odin?)
Khazgar Stonehand - Dwarf ...
A Small, Quiet Plea
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There has been a great deal of discussing political agendas, social
grievances, and personal attacks within the little corner of gaming that is
my hobby....
Bundle of Fantasy Age
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Bundle of Holding: Dragon Age/Fantasy Age: Available until March 12. PA
Presents: Fantasy AGE Freeport live play Green Ronin in 2018 The Fantasy
Age RPG ma...
New Free PDF Module: The Hyqueous Vaults
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A new dungeon module—written in celebration of OSRIC's 10th Birthday—by
Rebecca Dettmann, Allan T. Grohe, Jr., Jimm Johnson, Matthew Riedel, Alex
Zisch, a...
Swords & Wizardry Light: Session # 6
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Two months after our last session (thanks to things like 8th grade finals,
a 4 year-old's birthday and party, Father's Day, etc.), we finally had our
next ...
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