A secret door here is similar to the one in Room #18 to Room #19.  Finding that one makes finding this one easier; an extra 1 (on a d6), a +16% (d%), or +3 (on d20).

This room contains Treasure Types A, G, and H. There is also a sword +3 here. The sword and all the treasure here is cursed. Removing any of it from this room results in the possessor needing to make a saving throw vs. Magic or begin losing 1 point per turn to a random ability: d6 1=Strength, 2=Intelligence, 3=Wisdom, 4=Dexterity, 5=Constitution, 6=Charisma. To stop the drain the items must be returned to this room.  

Only magic can restore ability loss. 

 You know how I have lamented how I never have found the perfect sci-fi RPG?  Well. That all might be changing.

Thirteen Parsecs

https://tinyurl.com/13psignup

Thirteen Parsecs: Adventures Beyond the Solar Frontier is the latest tabletop role-playing game project from Elf Lair Games, producers of Night Shift: Veterans of the Supernatural Wars and Wasted Lands: The Dreaming Age. It forms the third of our trilogy of core games - we've given you modern and fantasy, and now we bring sci-fi to the forefront with the same rules, completely customizable and ready for you to build exactly the type of science fiction gaming you want. As always, it's your game your way when it's Powered by O.G.R.E.S.!

I am so excited for this.  I have been dying to work on a solid sci-fi game since forever.

A bit of background, I think I have mentioned in the past that prior to switching gears to become a psychologist I had actually started out in physics, and astrophysics in particular. I got to a point in calculus where I just stopped understanding it, so I had to switch. BTW this makes my former Actuary (with degrees in math) wife laugh her ass off all the time. 

So it will be wonderful to put all this knowledge I have about astronomy, space, and science to good use.

Launch is not till later in the year, but Jason is already working out all sorts of great things. I hope to resurrect Space Truckers, get some more mileage out of Dark Star (formerly BlackStar), and more.

So please sign up and watch for more details!

 On the other side of Room 12-17 from Room 18 is another set of stairs to an ornate tomb.  This one belongs to the Vampire Queen's Majordomo, the Dwarf Fizko.

Fizko was in charge of the household of the Vampire Queen. She rewarded his faithful service by turning him into a Death Knight.

Death Knight

Armor Class -1 [20]
Hit Dice 12+36 (90hp)*****
Attacks 2 × weapons (1d10+4) + Special
THAC0 6 [+13]
Movement 120’ (40’)
Morale 12
Alignment Chaos
XP 5,900
Number Appearing 1 (1)
Treasure Type None

The Dwarf Fizko is a supernaturally strong Death Knight.

He attacks with a great mattock +3 that he can use to hit twice per round.  He can summon 2d6 Haugbui twice per day.

As a death knight, he has the powers and spells of a 12th level anti-Paladin.  His "lay on hands" ability causes damage instead of healing.

Fizko is fanatically loyal to the Vampire Queen, whom he believes is a Goddess and he swore his oath to her.

 A secret door in Room 18 leads to a secret treasure room.

This room contains Treasure Types A, G, and H. Additionally there is a suit of elven chain, and a sword +3 vs. Magic-users (Wizards and Witches).

 This giant area (Room 13) has three exits. One on each side of the room and one ahead. The first on the left is Room 18.

This ornate tomb is found at the bottom of a flight of stairs.  The doors are locked but can be picked.

This is the tomb of Dortya, the handmaiden to the Vampire Queen. 

She is a 10 HD Vampire. She has Boots of Speed, Bracers of Defence AC +3, and a sword +2 / +3 vs. Clerics.   Her tomb has Treasure Type F x3.

Her only task is to keep people away from her queen.

 This section of the larger area is the home to the graves of the Queen's Elven sacrifices.  Rising from the graves are Grave Terrors, the halfling undead. 

Grave Terror are halfling wights.

Grave Terror

Armor Class: 5
Hit Dice: 3d8+6 (31 hp)
Movement: 90" (30")
Attacks: 1 claw or weapon (+2 to hit, 1d6+2 damage)
Special Attacks: Fear aura, Spectral Blades
Special Defenses: Immune to sleep, charm, and hold spells
Saves: As 3rd level Fighter
Morale: 12 (Fanatic)
Treasure: Nil (grave goods destroyed with their undeath)
Alignment: Chaotic Evil

These creatures were warriors among the halflings until they were cursed to undeath.  They had high Strength and Constitution scores while alive (16+ each) and were formidable fighters.

They attack with a claw or a rusty sword for 1d6+2 points of damage. They can also summon a spectral blade to attack another opponent at the same level of proficiency. 

These undead creatures have Aura of Fear that acts like the spell Fear 15' Radius.  They are immune to sleep, charm, and hold spells. They are turned as Ghouls.

 This section of the larger area is the home to the graves of the Queen's Elven sacrifices.  Rising from the graves are Alp, the elven undead. 

Alp are the undead forms of elves.

There are at least six here and the potential for many more.

 Interesting one this week. I am unsure if I am calling people to support it. My purpose here is often to shed some light on a crowdfunded project you may not have seen. This one though is at $3 Million right now so it doesn't need my help.  But that is not why I am talking about this one today.

But first, the campaign.

The MCDM RPG

https://www.backerkit.com/c/projects/mcdm-productions/mcdm-rpg?ref=theotherside

This is a new big FRPG from Matt Colville (the "MC" in the name I am guessing).  It is obviously modeled on D&D style play and it is being pitched as a D&D alternative in all but name. Back in the day we would have called this a Fantasy Heartbreaker.

The game looks slick as hell and it will certainly be a lot of fun and look good. Matt does good work on his design so I have no doubt this will be a good game.

BUT...(there is always a but) there are a few things about it that I am not quite connecting with.

If you take D&D as the middle ground and go far out on the gritty/old-school side you get another wildly successful RPG ShadowDark.  Go the same distance in the other direction and you will have MCDM RPG.  Many of the selling points about this game read like "everything ShadowDark is, we are not." For example from the project page:

Compared to what ShadowDark say they are on their Kickstarter Project page:

NOW PLEASE UNDERSTAND. I am not trying to set up a MCDM vs. ShadowDark thing here. I think both games are great and their respective successes give evidence that both games are wanted and needed. AND (more to the point) both provide that D&D-alternative to those that want it. 

I think having a good D&D-alternative is a good thing given the bookend events from Wizards/Hasbro this 2023.  

Just as I don't click well with some of the things in ShadowDark, I also don't click very well with some of the things in MCDM.  I *do* want monsters to be able to avoid spells sometimes. I *do* want there to be a chance that the PCs can fail. I do want some grit. But I also want hope. My preferred gaming experience is somewhere in the middle.

Also, reading through the material, I get the sense that the design is not 100% complete yet. That is a red flag for me these days. When NIGHT SHIFT went to Kickstarter the book was done and playtesting complete. When Wasted Lands went to Kickstarter the playtesting on the new mechanics was done, the core rules were done, and the Gazeteer was nearly complete. Both games shipped early.  My concern is this game won't ship for a while.

I have seen online people calling this a "D&D Killer" which I have my doubts about. Pathfinder is a great game but it was not a D&D killer. I have seen a lot of so-called D&D Killers over the years. I don't think this one will be either.  But it might get WotC to pay attention. Maybe.

Even if it doesn't make WotC/Hasbro take notice it will provide a new game to people who love this sort of style and help keep role-playing going for a bit longer. Who knows, maybe I'll pick it up as well one day.

 This section of the larger area is the home to the graves of the Queen's Dwarven sacrifices.  Rising from the graves are Haugbui, the dwarven undead.

 

Haugbui

Armor Class 4 [15]
Hit Dice 6+6 (33hp)***
Attacks 2 × claws (1d6+4), 1 bite (1d4+4) + Ability Drain
THAC0 14 [+5]
Movement 120’ (40’)
Saving Throws D10 W11 P12 B13 S14 (6)
Morale 12
Alignment Chaos
XP 1,025
Number Appearing 1d8 (1d8)
Treasure Type None

Haugbui are undead dwarves of fierce warriors cursed to remain in their barrows and underground chambers. 

The attack with a claw, claw, bite routine. On a successful bite attack, they can drain blood at 1 point of Constitution per round. The get these undead unattached requires a strength ability check to pull them off.  

These creatures are very strong; Strength 20 and silver is required to hit them.

These creatures turn as Wights.

 This section of the larger area is the home to the graves of many horses. 

There are Undead Horses and Nightmares here.

Undead Horses

Armor Class 7 [12]
Hit Dice 4 (18hp)
Attacks 2 × hoof (1d6+1)
THAC0 16 [+3]
Movement 120’ (40’)
Saving Throws D10 W11 P12 B13 S14 (4)
Morale 12
Alignment Chaos
XP 125
Number Appearing 1d8 (1d8)
Treasure Type None

Undead horses are skeletal remains of normal horses. They attack much as they did in life, only now they can also be turned as Wights.

Nightmares

Armor Class -4 [24]
Hit Dice 6+6 (33hp)
Attacks 1 bite (2d4), 2 × burning hooves (2d4+2); Breath smoke
THAC0 14 [+5]
Movement 150’ (50’) / Fly 360' (90')
Saving Throws D10 W11 P12 B13 S14 (4)
Morale 12
Alignment Chaos
XP 1,025
Number Appearing 1 (1)
Treasure Type None

Nightmares are the steeds of night hags and other demons, black horses with flaming hoofs and mane. Their breath is a cloud of brimstone smoke, which causes any nearby opponent to attack at –2 (saving throw applies). These horrible creatures can become incorporeal and travel between the planes of existence, bearing their evil/chaotic riders.

(Section 15: Nightmare, Swords & Wizardry SRD)

--

Again, GMs choose as many as they need to challenge the PCs.

 Thanks to the magic of Withers (and a mere pittance of 100gp), my warlock Larina from my first run can now join my paladin Johan on his current run.

The game is still rather fantastic and 300+ hours later, I am still discovering more. With some of the mods I added I don't think I'll be able to get Sinéad in there as well. The "half-elf" hireling is gone, replaced by Alfria.

 Moving into the larger area of Encounter Area 12.  These are the graves of the human sacrifices. There are 666 total graves, from these rise a horde of zombies.

--

How many zombies?  All of them. The idea here is to overwhelm the PCs to keep them from going forward. Indulge your little black heart. 

 I have discussed my fondness for the Green cover B3 Palace of the Silver Princess. It is a fun adventure and great for newbie DMs. It came to me just as I needed it. For its ability to run and more lore to Glantri, and (for me) the ability to easily code it into a computer when I was trying to D&D on my little TRS-80 Color Computer. 

I like the adventure. A lot. But not this much.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/315023385002

Right now is it going for just a bit over $10k.  That is up $1000.00 from when I first saw it this morning.

The adventure is fun, no where near as good as the revised Green cover version. And it is certainly not with $10k except to a serious collector. 

Makes me wish I knew what dumpster they were dumped in at the time! I could pay my kids' college tuition with that. 

 The hallway of Encounter Area #11 opens up to a massive room filled with stone sarcophagi.  A plaque as the PCs enter describes this as the Hall of Sacrificed Dead.

These are the final resting places of the followers of the Vampire Queen. She sacrificed them to further her own power and appease her demonic lords.

There are 1,000 sarcophagi here, divided into groups.

• Group 1 (Encounter Area 13): Humans (666 total)
• Group 2 (Encounter Area 14): Horses (180 total)
• Group 3 (Encounter Area 15): Dwarves (55 total)
• Group 4 (Encounter Area 16): Elves (54 total)
• Group 5 (Encounter Area 17): Halflings (45 total)

This room is guarded by the undead temple guardians, 10 Huecuva.  They will wait until the characters enter the room and attack them from all sides.

Huecuva

Armor Class: 3 [116]
Hit Dice: 2*** (9 hp)
Attacks: 2 claws or 1 weapon (1d6 x2 or 1d8), ability drain
THAC0: 18 [+2]
Movement: 90’ (30’)
Saving Throws: D11 W12 P13 B14 S15 SS14 (Cleric 2)
Morale: 12
Alignment: Chaotic
XP: 35
Number Appearing: 1 (0) (see below)
Treasure Type: C
Turn As: Wight (Type 5)

A huecuva is a Cleric who has been cursed to undeath for their faithlessness. It resembles a skeleton wrapped in old, tattered robes or rusting armor. Small points of red light can be seen in each of its empty eye sockets. A huecuva speaks and reads all the languages it knew in life.

 A huecuva is a cowardly combatant, preferring to set up traps and ambushes for potential interlopers. It will attack Clerics before anyone else. Those struck by the huecuva's claws must save vs. Poison or contract a terrible wasting disease. Each day the target takes 1d3 points of Constitution damage. Those reduced to 0 Constitution die, and rise as a zombie on the following day, under the control of the huecuva. A cure disease spell must be used to prevent death. 

Ability points lost due to a huecuva's disease return at a rate of 1 per day of complete rest. All huecuva can cast spells as a Cleric (level 1d4+1). However, these spells are always reversed.

A huecuva can only be harmed by silver or magical weapons. In addition, it takes 1d6 points of damage from the touch of a holy symbol. A huecuva can be Turned by a Cleric (as a wight), and like all undead are immune to sleep, charm, and hold spells.  

They are turned as Wights.

 We decorated our "Geek Tree" this past weekend.  Even though my kids are older now and not really "kids" anymore (my oldest is a professional and is saving for a house, and my youngest is in school and has a girlfriend), we all still like to watch the old Christmas specials like How the Grinch Stole Christmas and Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer. Rudolph, in particular, is a favorite, not for itself but for how badly it has aged. There is one character in it, though, that is redeemable...well, two. Yukon Cornelius and King Moonracer.  We were talking while hanging up ornaments of starships, astromechs, and TARDISes about what sort of monster Moonracer was.  Manticore? No. Androsphinx? Maybe. Shedu? Maybe. Lammasu? Likely closer. 

This got me thinking later on while indulging in our other favorite Christmas-time indulgence, our re-watch of Game of Thrones.  I was digging around in my notes about Lammasu and Shedu for my One Man's God posts and thought I would resurrect them for today.

Lamassu and Shedu

One thing that bugged me way back when reading the Monster Manual was that many of the monsters were very similar. For example, there are Manticores (Greek), Sphinxes (Egyptian and Greek), the Lammasu, and Shedu, with these last two based on Babylonian/Sumerian/Akkadian myths. Sort of. The Lamassu and Shedu in these myths are actually two different names for the same creature. Also, the name in the Monster Manual has a different spelling ("Lammasu").

I always considered these to be related creatures. Something I would later see in the Forgotten Realms lore.  AD&D 2nd Ed made their differences a little more pronounced by making the Shedu the "psionic one."

Lamassu
Large Celestial (Outsider, Lawful)

Frequency: Rare
Number Appearing: 1-4 (2-8)
Alignment: Lawful [Lawful Good]
Movement: 120' (40') [12"]
   Fly: 240' (80') [24"']
Armor Class: 6 [13]
Hit Dice: 8d8+8**** (44 hp)
   Large: 8d10+8**** (52 hp)
To Hit AC 0: 12 (+7)
Attacks: 2 claws + Special Damage: 1d4+2 x2
Special: Magical abilities, spell use.Save: Monster 8
Morale: 12 (12)
Treasure Hoard Class: XVI (G)
XP: 2,608 (OSE) 3,040 (LL)Languages: Celestial, Common, Telepathy

Str: 16 (+2) Dex: 14 (+1) Con: 15 (+1) Int: 16 (+2) Wis: 18 (+3) Cha: 17 (+2)

Lamassu are spiritual guardians,  often in the service of a Lawful Good god or order, who spend their lives on the Material Planes guarding houses and temples. They can be found in the wild, typically warmer climes. They appear as winged lions with human faces. They are loath to attack mortals but will attack demons, undead, and evil creatures with fear or hesitation.  

The lamassu can attack with two foreclaws for 1d4+2 hp damage each on a single target. They can also employ the following spell-like powers: Protection from Evil 10' at all times, become invisible, and cast dimension door at will.  Additionally, they have the spell-casting and undead-turning ability of a Lawful Good Cleric of the 7th level.

Lamassu are typically viewed as female due to their association with the Goddess Lama. As guardian spirits, though, they are neither male nor female and both at the same time.  They are often compared to sphinxes (whom they share areas with and tolerate), manticores (whom they despise), and shedu (qv.). As spirit guardians made flesh, they are not "born" but come into being at the will of their Goddess. Though it could be argued that She is their mother.

Shedu
Large Celestial (Outsider, Lawful)

Frequency: Very Rare
Number Appearing: 2 (2-8)
Alignment: Lawful [Lawful Good]
Movement: 120' (40') [12"]
   Fly: 240' (80') [24"']
Armor Class: 4 [15]
Hit Dice: 10d8+8**** (65 hp)
   Large: 10d10+8**** (75 hp)
To Hit AC 0: 12 (+8)
Attacks: 2 hooves + Special Damage: 1d4+2 x2
Special: Magical abilities, spell use.Save: Monster 10
Morale: 12 (12)
Treasure Hoard Class: XVI (G)
XP: 3,606 (OSE) 3,800 (LL)Languages: Celestial, Common, Telepathy

Str: 16 (+2) Dex: 14 (+1) Con: 16 (+2) Int: 18 (+3) Wis: 16 (+1) Cha: 17 (+2)

Shedu are often considered to be the "male" versions of Lamassu. This comes from observations that shedu typically has thick, curly beards, and lamassu does not. Both, though, are genderless spirit creatures. Shedu have the bodies of great equines or bulls, with hooves of brass, the wings of an eagle, and the face of a human. 

Like lamassu, the sheu is loathe to attack mortals of any sort, save for the most evil. The will attacks demons and undead on sight.  They can attack with their great forehooves on a single target, each hoof getting an attack. Additionally, they have the following spell-like abilities they can use at will: Protection from Evil 10' radius, become Etheral or Astral, teleport without error.  They also can cast spells as a 9th-level magic User (wizard). 

Shedu are often found roaming the mortal planes, searching for evil to destroy and lawful good mortals to aid. They are always found in multiples of two. Sheu in their lair are often guarding a larger temple to a Lawful Good god, power, or order. Lamassu and Shedu are rarely found together unless they are working with a more powerful Lawful Good force. Even here, they are always found in multiples of two. When a Shedu is killed on the mortal planes, its spirit will return in seven days. 

Greater Shedu: There are shedu that are greater in power and size than the common Shedu.  These creatures have 14 HD, and their damage is +3 to each attack. They cast spells as a 13th-level Wizard. Greater shedu do travel and work in pairs, but they are also the only type of shedu that can be encountered alone. 

 For my personal foray into the Forgotten Realms, I will name this series exactly that: Into the Forgotten Realms. This is also appropriate because my very first recollection of the Forgotten Realms was not the "Grey Box" but rather an adventure in the pages of Dragon Magazine.

When Ed Greenwood was exploring the Realms in the pages of Dragon, he had a guide, the Sage of Shadowdale Elminster. Elminster told him stories of the Realms and was the intermediary between his world and ours. 

But Elminster, like Ed, was an expert on the Realms. I am not. I am not even good. I am an enthusiastic novice with no idea how much I am trying to bite off here.  So. I also need a guide. But my guide has to be as naïve as me so we can discover it together. 

Generally, for these explorations, I have characters on hand. When I was writing about vampires and undead it was my Paladin Johan. When it is magic, the occult or witches, it is my witch Larina. They are great characters, but neither is appropriate here. Neither has anything to do with the Realms for starters and I need a native.

So introducing (again) Sinéad. She is a half-elf from the Moonshae Isles and her elven mother claims to have ancestry from Evermeet. And...that is all I know. Fun right? Now to expand her out I used her as a character in Baldur's Gate 3 and of the many games I have played of it I liked her run the best.

As I progress through the material and books I am taking the literary license of having her tell me what she shows me as my guide, munch in the same way the Ed has Elminster. Plus it feels like a fun little nod to Ed and Elminster as well. 

Sinéad

What do I know about her? Well looking back at my 2nd Ed idea I know she is a magic-user of some sort and a Bard. Given some of the material I have read I also like idea she has wild magic, something she is not quite capable of controlling. This is why she leaves home. She needs a reason to go away from a loving family after all and I am not reverting to the trope of dead parents. 

This worked great in my run with her in Baldur's Gate. But I'll get to pencil and paper details in future posts.

Since I had such a great time with her and I'll be using her in tabletop games next year I couldn't help but get a new HeroForge mini of her as an early Christmas present to myself.

Sinéad from HeroForge

Not too bad really.  Here is how she looks on the HeroForge site AND in Baldur's Gate 3.

I rather like how she came out.  Of course, I had to do two of my favorite characters from the game, Shadowheart and Karlach.

I rather like how they all came out.

Shadowheart:

And Karlach: 

Yeah. If I am going to do this, then I will do it right.

I am also doing runs with Skylla and Kelek in BG3. Those have also been fun.

 The exit to this maze is in sight. The only thing stopping you is the titanic red dragon.

Unlike the black dragon from earlier in this maze, the red dragon (Raxafalion) has made his home here. He has amassed a pile of gold from the Dwarven tombs above and whatever Akelarre has not claimed. 

If Sir Fluffles is still with the party he will attack.

This dragon has maximum hp (80 hp) and twice the normal treasure (Hx2).

I am now at my last set of gods (or whatever the Fates are), which brings me full circle. Today, I want to talk about the Fates.

When I began this project I talked about this book of mythology I had that had stories of the Greek myths, the Norse myths, and ending in Beowulf. In my young mind, these looked like a continuum, one set of tales flowed into the next.  While age would teach me that these were separate myths, later age would also teach me they are still just one set of myths from an even older source (Proto-Indo-European, which I still want to tackle one day). But even way back then (I want to say 5th Grade) I saw the similarities between the Greek Fates and the Norse Norns. Three women, each representing the Past, Present, and Future, spinning, weaving, or otherwise looming the fate of humankind. Each person, from birth until death.

The image was powerful, and I was sure there was a connection between them. Even doing the briefest of surface research (ok, briefest of literature review. I am particular how people throw the word "research" around) one kind find similar beings all over the Earth and across time due to their PIE origins.

• Albanian: Fatia
• English: Wyrds
• Greek: Moirai
• Hinduism: Tridevi
• Hittite: Gulses
• Lithuanian: Deives Valdytojos
• Norse: Norns

Those are only the most obvious. 

For my Pantheon here I want to include them. They were important to the Greeks and Romans in their guise of The Fates (Moirai) and very important in Norse myth. Indeed, in Norse mythology, every living creature had a corresponding set of Norns that measured out their fates. 

I will also admit (and a little begrudgingly now) that some of my ideas of the Fates have also been colored by the Piers Anthony book series, The Incarnations of Immortality, with Book 3 With a Tangled Skein chief among them. The first five books were fun. The next two ok to falling apart at the end (it's like he had painted himself into a corner among other issues) and the last one? Well I have not read it despite owning it, I heard it was terrible. 

Fata Norne

The Fates of the Black Forest Mythos are not gods in the traditional sense. They are immortal, or more accurately, unending. They often appear as three young, mature, and old women in similar aspects of the Maiden, Mother, and Crone, though that is not who they are. Instead, they are Future, Present, and Past respectively. They can also appear as three identical sisters of indeterminate age. It is their job to measure the fates of the Gods and Mortals alike. No one, not even the Gods, can escape their decrees. It has led to a saying, "Once Fate has spoken, it is so."

FATA NORNE

Eternals

ARMOR CLASS: 5
MOVE: 24" 
HIT POINTS: 300 each
NO. OF ATTACKS: 1
DAMAGE/ATTACK: Special Only
SPECIAL ATTACKS: Decree of Fate
SPECIAL DEFENSES: See Below
MAGIC RESISTANCE: 100%

SIZE: M (5')
ALIGNMENT: Neutral
WORSHIPER'S ALIGN: None
SYMBOL: The faces of three women or a loom
PLANE: Erde (Prime Material)

CLERIC/DRUID: 15th level Cleric
FIGHTER: Nil
MAGIC-USER/ILLUSIONIST: 15th level Magic-user
THIEF/ASSASSIN: Nil
MONK/BARD: 10th level Bard
WITCH/WARLOCK: 15th level Witch
PSIONIC ABILITY: II
S: 23 I: 25 W: 25 D: 16 C: 24 CH: 10

Fata Norne, the Fates, are the goddesses in charge of all fates, from the lowest vermin to the mightiest gods. They do not interact with mortals save in the direst of circumstances. They avoid direct contact with the other gods; likewise, the gods avoid and possibly fear them.

If the Fates are encountered, they need a mortal agent of fate to complete some quest. They will give this mortal what they need but no more than that. It is assumed that since they know all creatures' fates, their choice is correct, but that is not the same thing as the mortal succeeding or even living through the quest.

If anyone is foolish enough to attack the Fata Norne, they can pass the Decree of Fate. Which removes the threat permanently. They decree that the attacker was never born and they cease to exist; no saving throw is permitted. In some cases, the offending mortal (or god) is instantly replaced with an alternate version who lived the same life but was not as foolish as to attack them. 

They can't be hit by normal weapons; even magic is ineffective. In addition to the radical removal of the offending attacker from all existence, they can, more simply, remove their attacker's knowledge of whatever magic they would use to attack. 

At their choice, they can cast spells as a 15th-level spell caster, either as a Cleric, Magic-user, or Witch.

No one worships the Fata Norne, and they do not grant spells to clerics.

--

There you have it! All the gods and monsters of this syncretized set of myths. Hope you can find some uses for them.

Now to produce a PDF of these.

Links

• One Man's God Special: Syncretism Part 3, the Roman-Norse Pantheon
• The Monsters
• My overview and rules for these postings
• Dökkálfar and Ljósálfar
• Alp
• Die Hüne
• Jötunar
• Hautveränderer
• Heuler
• Draugr
• Doppelsauger
• Nøkk
• Ulmenfrau
• The Gods
• Unser Vater, Father of the Gods
• Sisters of the Dawn, Liebhaberin and Ôstara
• The Mother Goddesses Herde Oberin, Mutter Natur, and Großmutter
• The Divine Twins
• Hüne Vater, Großvater, and Großmutter
• Ides, Demi-Goddess of Protection and War
• Helga, Goddess of Magic, Ghosts, and Witchcraft
• Hüter, Lord of the Dead
• Betrüger, The Trickster God
• Kriegskönig, The God of War
• Verwildert, the God of Wild Nature
• Wood Maidens
• Vater Meeren
• Schmied
• Skalda
• Fata Norne, the Fates

 Encounter area 29 is a large goat demon. He has been waiting for you.

This is the Demon Prince Akelarre.

He is the demonic patron of the Vampire Queen. They have an agreement and he is protecting her tomb, but he is under no obligation to stay and will retreat if the battle goes against him.

Unlike the others on this level, he can come and go as he pleases. Indeed he is the one that summons these creatures here. He is given all the spoils of this level.

Image by FreepikI have yet to talk much about my plans for 2024; it is a big year for D&D. It is the 50th Anniversary, a new edition (well...5.x or 5R) is coming out, and there should be a lot of nostalgia and navel-gazing.

Incidentally, 2024 is also the Year of the Dragon.

Tentatively, I am looking at the following "theme months."

January will be part of TardisCaptain's New Year New Character challenge. Mine though will be delving into some of my favorite characters since I started playing D&D.

April is the A to Z Challenge, where I will write about D&D and its history.

May is Sci-Fi month and I'll do a deep dive into Gamma World, Star Frontiers, and the d20 Star Wars. I'll also looking into games with a solid D&D connection with me. 

June has typically been Basic-era month where I focus a lot on B/X, BECMI, and OSE/LL. I really want to be sure I do that this year.

August is Dave Chapman's RPGaDAY month. I pretty much do this one as is. But I might focus on D&D more than other games. 

October is "horror" month for me. I want to focus on Ravenloft. All my horror movies will also all be connected to D&D in some way. Either movies from Appendix N authors or horror movies that mention D&D or fantasy/horror. I'll start putting together my list soon.

Additionally, I have something else fun planned throughout the year that I am keeping close to my chest for now.

But the big thing for me next year is going to be my year-long exploration of the Forgotten Realms. 

The Forgotten Realms and Me

I was never a Forgotten Realms fan. I dismissed it in the 1980s as an "upstart," ignored it in the early 90s, and actively disliked it in the late 90s. But it seems my ire was misplaced. Around the time the 3rd Edition Realms book came out I was beginning to soften my stance. By the 4th Ed era I was considering moving a campaign to the Realms. In the 5th Ed era I made it official, more or less.

Honestly, my coverage of Ed Greenwood's work in the pages of Dragon magazine changed my mind. 

These past few months, I have been playing the hell out of Baldur's Gate 3, and my desire to play in the Realms has only grown. 

To this end, I have amassed a small collection of Forgotten Realms books. Nothing special, just ones that I have come by easily either at game auctions, Half-Price Books, or as in the books pictured above, Print on Demand from DriveThruRPG. So I will go over them in detail throughout the editions.

I'd like to run a Realms-based game someday, but I am still figuring out what edition to use. Part of me thinks I need to do it in AD&D 2nd Edition since that was the edition that was the most "Realms" to me. 

The Forgotten Realms to me was always viewed through the eyes of a character, whether that was Elminster or Drizzt or whomever. Likewise, I am going to look into the Realms through the eyes of a new character. Presently I am leaning toward my half-elf sorceress Sinéad. I know I want use someone that has magic, and someone that I can tie to the rich lore of elves in this world. She is also one of two characters I had specifically created for the Realms in all my years of gaming. I think I owe it to myself to actually give her a spin someday.  However, my wife reminded me the other night that Keller the Silent Monk might also be fun.

In any case, 2024 is going to be a busy year of posting here and I am looking forward to it.