Continuing on in this passageway the party encounters a long corridor. 

This corridor is lit with an eerie eldritch light. The floor is made up of tiles.

The corridor is 50ft long, and every five feet there is a pressure plate on the floor that fires a magic missile at the party. 1d6 hp of damage, it will always hit one character at random.

A thief can find the traps (the pressure plate), but the trap itself is magical and needs a dispel magic to stop. The dispel magic only works for 1 of the 10 traps in this area.

Doing so will result in 50 xp.

 I had to think about this one, but my first RPG purchase of 2023 had to be my Deluxe Edition of The Dark Eye.

There is a lot about this game I really love and want to do more with. I still might get around to doing some more too.

• Review: The Dark Eye
• Review: The Dark Eye - Witch's Dance
• Character Creation Challenge: The Dark Eye

The first four tunnels are on the left, and they are all lined up next to each other.  The fifth tunnel is on the right and at an angle away from the others.

The farthest tunnel opening on the left leads to a short but wide tunnel. The walls are smooth, as is the floor, but it is obviously carved out of the rock.  Within this tunnel, the party encounters a group of four small demons.

DRETCH

These creatures are fat, with long, spindly arms and legs.  They have rudimentary human heads, with slobbering jaws and folds of fat.  Dretch demons have some weak demonic powers.  

Armor Class: 2 [17]
Hit Dice: 4 (18 hp)
Attacks:  2 claws (1d4), 1 bite (1d6)
THAC0: 16 [+3]
Movement: 120’ (40’)
Saving Throws: D10 W11 P12 B13 S14 (4)
Morale: 6
Alignment: Chaotic
XP: 225
Number Appearing: 1d4+1 
Treasure Type: J, K, L, M

• Low intelligence: Dretch demons are not intelligent and act accordingly.
• Demonic Powers: Dretch demons have some minor demonic powers. Each usable once per day.

• stinking cloud once per day
• teleport
• cause darkness (10ft diameter)
• summon 1d4 giant rats

 Yeah...I am obsessed. Mail call today, and it was full of some great witch books.

Up first, another witch-centric RPG I backed on Kickstarter, Last Sabbath.

Last Sabbath RPG Art, bookmark and pin

The game looks phenomenal, and I want to try it out really soon.

And one I have been waiting 20+ years for.

Ashley Poston has a novel out about 17-year-old Tara, one of my all-time favorite witches. 

This is her pre-Sunnydale days, and I can't wait to jump into this.  And because I had a credit lying around, I picked it up on Audible as well.

While I am sure the narrator will be great, it would have been nice to get Amber Benson to do it.

--

So yeah I *know* I am obsessed, and I know I catch some grief for it online, but you know what? 

I don't actually care.

This is my little corner of the Internet, and I get to do what I love here. And if that gets me 10 fans or 10,000*, then fantastic! Plenty of other sites out there that leave me scratching my head asking "who would even find that fun??" but hey, their sites, their rules. 

To quote Steve Martin, "The most amazing thing to me is, I get paid for doing this!"

(*It is less than 10,000, but a lot more than 10!)

 Another one that has been on my mine a bit lately.

My first Gamemaster was myself really. We all kind of taught ourselves how to play back then and I didn't have older brothers or friends that played.  But that changed when I got to Jr. High.

My first real DM was Jon Cook and we played this hybrid version of Basic (B/X) D&D and 1st Edition Advanced D&D. 

In a lot of ways I guess I am still chasing that high.

 Beyond the doors is a large cave system. The cave is huge and while fires can be seen down many of the tunnels (larger tunnels than the ones on the level above), this level is cooler.

There are five tunnels leading out of this chamber. 

 This one is easy because we played it New Year's Eve and Year's Day. My first game for 2023 was D&D 5e Dragonlance: Shadows of the Dragon Queen.

I was a player in it, not the DM, which was a nice change of pace.

My oldest was running it, and he combined it with bits and pieces of Rise of Tiamat and Horde of the Dragon Queen from the start of D&D 5.

Honestly, he did not care for the adventure as it was written and wanted to tweak it a bit for us.  We did not play many more sessions of this. My "falling out" with D&D 5 had a lot to do with that and his promotion as a pastry chef meant he had less time.  But we did have a great time. I was cleaning up our game room the other day and all of our minis are still in the "current campaign" box.

 These stairs go down into this tomb for quite a long way. Also, any dwarves (or other similar characters) will also note the stairs are moving towards the north.  

The stairs end in a large and somewhat cooler chamber.  There is a set of large iron doors.

These doors are large and heavy.  To open these doors requires a combined strength of 40 points or magic. Unless staked open they will slam shut.

--

This level has been largely protected from the volcanic activity of the level above.  

Wandering monsters are found here using the table for 8th level (and sometimes 7th level).  Again, magic sensitive characters can detect low levels of necromantic magic here.

 What is Monster Mash II: A Midsummer Night's Dream?

Much like my first Monster Mash, this one has classes that people typically think of as "monsters" for the D&D game, but uses the special "race-as-class" feature of older, Basic-era, versions of D&D like Moldvay Basic/Cook & Marsh Expert and BECMI.

This book features 12 faerie and sylvan-based classes. Bugbears, Centaurs, Hamadryads, Leprechauns, Nymphs, Pixies, Púcas, Satyrs, Werebears, Werefoxes, and Woodwoses.

Each can be played as a Basic-era "Race-as-Class," with each gaining special abilities as they level up, or as an Advanced "Race" with recommendations for classes. 

Also included is the Faerie Witch, because, well, it is one of my books. 

There are also new spells for Clerics, Druids, Illusionists, Magic-users, and Witches. 

And new occult powers and ritual spells for Faerie Witches. 

This book can be combined with my first Monster Mash for even more combinations.

Grab yours now!

Monster Mash

Monster Mash II: A Midsummer Night's Dream

Gaming conventions are scary and terrible. Going to a gaming convention means meeting all of those other attendees, who are people—and as we know, people are terrible. Gamers are worse. Who knows who we might end up with sat around a table playing a game, trapped with them for four hours? How are you going to cope with queues to get in—to everything—let alone the crowds in the trade hall and the dealers pushing things at you, trying to sell their latest and greatest games? And if the number of other attendees is an assault on the senses, so are the smells of the other attendees and the range of food on sale. Invariably bland and greasy, and whilst you might be hungry, are really you hungry enough to bolt that burger down and gulp that bottle of fizzy pop in the few minutes you have between the last event and the next? And there is, of course, the ‘con crud’ factor… Just how bad are you going to feel on Monday morning after the convention and your weekend away? What minor illness did you back with you which is going to leave you under the weather for days? Above all, are you really going to have fun, or end up exhausted and hungry with little to show for it except the ‘Con Crud’? Not all gaming conventions are really that bad, but the one you are about to attend in Stuck at a Gaming Convention very probably is.

Stuck at a Gaming Convention: A silly, thematic role playing game is a storytelling game published by Beyond Cataclysm Books. It can be played with a Game Master or without and is designed to take a group of players through the convention experience from the safety of their own home without necessarily having attended a gaming convention—though the experience of play will definitely be heightened if they have. Of course, Stuck at a Gaming Convention could actually be played at a gaming convention and even be influenced by that gaming convention as much as any other! Stuck at a Gaming Convention is a game about surviving the travails and traumas of being at a convention—encountering Coplayer Monsters, Leafleter Monsters, Crowd Monsters, Stallholder Monsters, running to the Food Court and the Nap Station, and all that before even managing to get to the games and actually play something!

Stuck at a Gaming Convention is played using a ten-sided die and a six-sided die. A Conventioneer has three stats—Fun, Fatigue, and Famine. All three are rated between zero and ten and Fatigue and Famine are negative stats, whereas Fun is not. A Conventioneer also has a Name, a non-gaming hobby, a reason why he came to the convention, and a favourite game, the latter selected from the six games detailed in the back of the book. The occupation, non-gaming hobby, and the reason for attending the convention each allow a single reroll during play if appropriate to the situation. The favourite game allows a single reroll in that game if it is played. If any Conventioneer’s Fun reaches a score of ten, then everyone will have had a good time at the gaming convention, everyone can go home happy, and the gaming convention has been a success and Stuck at a Gaming Convention is won. Conversely, if the Fatigue or Famine of any Conventioneer reaches ten, then that Conventioneer is reduced to misery as the gaming convention has beaten him, he and his friends have had a terrible time and decided to go home, and Stuck at a Gaming Convention is lost.

The roleplaying game is played into two phases—the Action Phase and the Gaming Phase. These alternate until the game is lost or won. In the Action Phase, the Conventioneers face the monsters of the ’Fan-dom Encounters’, including the Cosplay, Leafleter, Crowd, and Stallholder monsters. Face-offs against each monster are dice-offs, the player rolling the ten-sided die, trying to roll higher than the monster, who uses the six-sided die. Defeating a monster grants a reward that increases a Conventioneer’s Fun. Visiting the Food Court or the Nap Station will reduce a Conventioneer’s Fatigue and Famine respectively, but at the cost of Fun.

In the Gaming Phase, the Conventioneers play one of six games which include Settlers of Takan, Storm the Castle, and Escape the Dungeon. These are mini-games, typically dice games which are parodies of well-known board games, though Dream It is a drawing game. These are thankfully short affairs, not necessarily that interesting in themselves. They really offer only the one type of game as opposed to the range of games typically offered at a gaming convention, so no roleplaying, no LARPS, and so on. What this means is Stuck at a Gaming Convention may actually be asking the players to have their characters engage in gaming activities which they themselves do not find fun. Some random events might have been useful too, to give more chances of having Fun or suffering Fatigue, and they perhaps, could also have made the games themselves that little more interesting.

Physically, Stuck at a Gaming Convention is a busy, fuzzy affair in pale pink and purple that lives up to its name. Stuck at a Gaming Convention: A silly, thematic role playing game is silly and it is thematic, a one-shot game about surviving the game as much as the imaginary convention. It is also a game with a dichotomy. The part of the game where you are actually not meant to be having fun in-game is actually more fun out-of-game, whereas the part of the game where you are actually meant to be having fun in-game is actually less fun out-of-game. Stuck at a Gaming Convention: A silly, thematic role playing game is a game where the more fun that the players put into it, the more fun they are going to get out of it, and ultimately it is a game that people are not really going to want to that do that more than once or twice.

Far to the north stands the island of Ormil. At the heart of the island is the Great Lake. In the centre of the Great Lake is Olla’s Island. Standing on Olla’s Island is the Sorcerer’s Enclave. This is the last high point of civilisation in the north and no man should have reason to go beyond. This is a bastion for the study of magic and it can only be reached by the Dragon Ferry. A village, warded against those who would wish the Sorcerer’s Enclave ill, stands at the foot of the sorcerous sanctuary, but it is a mere steppingstone to the enchanted enclave that looms over it. Inside the Sorcerer’s Enclave, numerous schools of magic are studied and practised, some even simply recorded lest the knowledge be lost and need to be rediscovered in later generations. Druidic magic is one such school, part religion, part sorcery, which combines magics from across numerous later schools. The Druid’s way is practised outside, like the study of natural magics—practitioners insist the schools are very different, whilst inside, all wizards and wizards have the opportunity to learn how to use their magics offensively and defensively in the Duelling Pit, where that rarest of sights is seen—a Battle Magic wizard or witch in actual armour! Deep in the bowels of the Sorcerer’s Enclave is the Golem Manufactory where raw heartstones are infused with magic and inscribed with runes to dictate the behaviour of Golems they are placed deep within. Elsewhere alchemical arts are studied in their own laboratories, portents and omens are tracked across the sky from the observatory atop the Sorcerer’s Enclave, whilst mystic signs and alignments are tracked immediately below using a giant orrery.
The wizards and witches of the Sorcerer’s Enclave are even whispered to practise demonology, for how else can they explain the behorned, sometimes bewinged sprites that serve as their servants and assistants? All of these Minions wear hooded caps with bells on the end to prevent their presence from never being heard. After all, who wants demonic minions sneaking about a wizards’ school? Winged Minions work in The Arcanum or Great Library or the Sorcerer’s Enclave guard, members of which are recognised by their height of four foot or more, their bronze masks, and their hooked polearms. The members of Sorcerer’s Enclave are also served by Familiars as is traditional in many other schools, but here the Familiar is not duty bound to bond with a master or mistress. Instead, the Familiar Whisperer—a position of honour amongst the Minions—trains Familiars to accept that bond. This is the setting for The Sorcerer’s Enclave.
The Sorcerer’s Enclave is not a roleplaying book in the traditional sense. Published by SquareHex—best known for The Black Hack—The Sorcerer’s Enclave is more artbook than sourcebook, describing and depicting the rooms and locations of a great magical redoubt, hidden away from curious eyes and from accidentally unleashing some disastrous dweomercraft upon civilisation! The Sorcerer’s Enclave begins with a map of ‘The World as it is known’, showing the islands and their relationship. This is, unfortunately, too small to pick up on any detail on the page, but The Sorcerer’s Enclave is accompanied by a small poster map that shows the geography to far better effect. Our journey literally begins aboard the Dragon Ferry, crewed by Minions—many at the oars—with its dragon wing keel and rudder, and dragon head prow. This, like the whole of the Sorcerer’s Enclave, is shown in cross section with the Minions working and resting and there being actually little room for passengers.
Once ashore on Olla’s Island, the tour of the Sorcerer’s Enclave takes us roundabout and inside the enchanted establishment. Each location or section of the Sorcerer’s Enclave is given a two-page spread which showcases the room or facility itself as well as highlighting its location within the building as a cutaway on a silhouette of the Sorcerer’s Enclave. There are lovely little details such as a snoring wizard asleep in his chair, his feet resting on a Minion who is working on some notes and of the wooden tower atop a tree alongside the towers of the Sorcerer’s Enclave which is home to study of the Natural Arts. There is also a sense of story to The Sorcerer’s Enclave, one that becomes apparent as the reader turns its pages and progresses through the book and moves from the left to the right of the Sorcerer’s Enclave and its towers. Thus, the reader goes from the Dragon Ferry and the Dragon Jetty from the Druid’s Way and its menhir through the laboratories of the Alchemical Arts, the Great Library, the storehouse of the Masters of Secrets, and perhaps out beyond via the Portal Chamber. As the guide moves rightward, danger looms and so do the darkest secrets of the Sorcerer’s Enclave. First, there is the Thing Below, a betentacled creature lurking in a cleft in Olla’s Island, altered like many other fish and beasts of the lake by magic and alchemical spills, and then the tower that is home to the enclave’s lone necromancer, whose studies concern at least two of its Grand Magi and are revealed to the reader…
The Sorcerer’s Enclave is written and drawn by Aaron Howdle whose lovingly detailed pen and ink artwork is clearly influenced by the style of artwork being used by Games Workshop and Citadel Miniatures in the nineteen eighties such as the late Russ Nicholson and Ian Miller. Even the appearance of the Sorcerer’s Enclave as a silhouette echoes the castle logo of Citadel Miniatures. This is all confirmed by the artist’s biography at the end of the book, which actually contains more text than the rest of the book. Physically, The Sorcerer’s Enclave is lovely, the artwork is a delight, worth poring over for its exquisitely detailed locations and characters.
In game terms, there is almost nothing in The Sorcerer’s Enclave that is actually game-related. There are no stats or similar details. This means that whilst it is not immediately useful for a roleplaying game setting or rules set, the Game Master is entirely free to apply the numbers and mechanics that she wants to the setting to use it in her game world. One obvious direction of development for this, like the direction of the book’s exploration of the Sorcerer’s Enclave, would be to bring the threat of the establishment’s lone Necromancer and his plans into play. Others might be to use as a location and world to visit via the Portal Chamber or from somewhere within its own world, or to use it as a place of study for a wizard or witch-focused campaign. Of course, as a magical institute, the Sorcerer’s Enclave holds numerous tomes, potions, and other secret artefacts, all of which would interest the Player Characters.
The Sorcerer’s Enclave is simply a lovely book to own, a delightful and detailed homage to British fantasy artwork of the eighties that fans of Games Workshop and Citadel Miniatures will appreciate. As a gaming resource, The Sorcerer’s Enclave, very much awaits the input and development of the Game Master, but is especially suited to the Old School Renaissance.

The Christmas Annual is a traditional thing—and all manner of things can receive a Christmas Annual. Those of our childhoods would have been tie-ins to the comic books we read, such as the Dandy or the Beano, or the television series that we enjoyed, for example, Doctor Who. Typically, here in the United Kingdom, they take the form of slim hardback books, full of extra stories and comic strips and puzzles and games, but annuals are found elsewhere too. In the USA, ongoing comic book series, like Batman or The X-Men, receive their own annuals, though these are simply longer stories or collections of stories rather than the combination of extra stories and comic strips and puzzles and games. In gaming, TSR, Inc.’s Dragon magazine received its own equivalent, the Dragon Annual, beginning in 1996, which would go from being a thick magazine to being a hardcover book of its own with the advent of Dungeons & Dragons, Fourth Edition. For the Dungeons & Dragons Annual 2023—as with the Dungeons & Dragons Annual 2021 and the Dungeons & Dragons Annual 2022—the format is very much a British one. This means puzzles and games, and all themed with the fantasy and mechanics of Dungeons & Dragons, along with content designed to get you into the world’s premier roleplaying game.

Published by Harper Collins Publishers, the Dungeons & Dragons Annual 2023 moves on from the Dungeons & Dragons Annual 2022 in a surprising nod to recent events—it acknowledges the effects of COVID-19 and the Lockdown, and how that changed our gaming practices, many of us moving online to play Dungeons & Dragons and other RPG, for example, via Zoom. It suggests means of doing so and what those means offer in terms of play and interaction, making the point that it is still a viable option even though in-person play has returned. This is explored a little further in ‘Virtual Play Weekend’, which looks at events organised online by Wizards of the Coast.

However, where the Dungeons & Dragons Annual 2023 starts with ‘Welcome to the Multiverse’, an overview of some of the settings explored in official releases for Dungeons & Dragons from Wizards of the Coast. This itself begins with the Forgotten Realms—because it always does—but it includes some of the lesser know worlds such as Exandria of Critical Role and both Strixhaven and Ravnica from Magic: The Gathering. These are only thumbnail descriptions, so they are all too brief, leaving the reader wishing that any one them of had pages of their own in the book. Thankfully, several of them do, but not all. The three that do each receive this attention via a series of articles, sometimes paired, sometimes not. One is from the ‘Heroes & Villains’ series and the other is from ‘Mapping the Realms’. The first is Ravenloft, and its ‘Heroes & Villains’ entry is a description of Strahd, the Darklord of Barovia, one of the lands of Shadowfell. Included here too, are descriptions of his allies and enemies, such as the vampire hunter, Doctor Rudolph Van Richten, and Strahd’s rival, the Sun Elf vampire, Jander Sunstar. Van Richten receives more attention in the accompanying, paired ‘Mapping the Realms’ entry which also highlights Castle Ravenloft and its location on the map. Acerak, the villain of Tomb of Annihilation is given similar treatment, whilst the other ‘Mapping the Realms’ entries explore ‘The Feywild’ and its unpredictable, primal magic—later detailed in its own section in ‘Wild Magic’, ‘Gewhaawk’, the original campaign setting for Dungeons & Dragons, and ‘Avernus’, the first level of hell explored in Baldur’s Gate: Descent into Avernus. The heroes described in the ‘Heroes & Villains’ series are Mordenkainen and Volothamp Geddarm.

Community is not ignored in the Dungeons & Dragons Annual 2023 as it highlights the generosity of players in playing and donating to good causes. Being British means that one of these covered in the Dungeons & Dragons Annual 2023 is Comic Relief, a big event very other year in the United Kingdom. It is a sign of just how far Dungeons & Dragons has been accepted into the mainstream that it is part of such a big event. Other events highlighted are Extra Life and Playing D&D for Mermaids. The spotlight here is on the ‘Three Black Halflings’ podcast, ‘Girls Guts Glory’ streaming group, and even an interview with renowned Dungeon Master, B. Dave Walters in ‘Meet the DM’, which together showcases the appeal and diversity of the Dungeons & Dragons community.

Even if the Dungeons & Dragons Annual 2023 has no stats or adventures or anything mechanical for Dungeons & Dragons, Fifth Edition in its pages, it does talk about the basics of getting ready to run the game. ‘Planning a Dungeon Delve’ looks at all the elements of an adventure, whilst ‘A Beginner’s Guide to Homebrewing’ suggests ways in which Dungeons & Dragons can be modified, including characters and worlds. There is a guide too, to ‘Writing a Backstory’ as part of a character creation checklist, whilst ‘Session Zero’ examines how a pre-campaign session works and sets out eveyone’s expectations, and ‘One-shots’ suggests alternatives to longer multiple sessions of play and how they work. That said, describing a one-shot as a self-contained campaign is absurd. Lastly, ‘Level Up Your Table’ suggests ways to enhance play, such as using maps and miniatures and secret messages and even physical puzzles. Thus there is a mix of advice and suggestions for both player and Dungeon Master across the volume.

Beyond play, the ‘D&D Bookshelf’ suggests fiction to read, starting with the adventures of Drizzt Do’Urden, but also mentioning the Dragonlance and Ravenloft series. ‘Loot Table’ suggests gifts and collectible that a Dungeons & Dragons devotee might like beyond the core rulebooks and dice. This notable for the inclusion of ‘Crocs Jibbitiz’, official Dungeons & Dragons-themed adornments for your crocs. Thankfully, there are no official Dungeons & Dragons Crocs, but the Jibbitz are daft enough as it is.

The ‘Bestiary’ series covers otherworldly creatures. So, in ‘Fiends and Celestials’, it is Imps, Balor demons, Pegasi, and Solar Celestials. ‘Aberrations and Undead’ such as the Intellect Devourer, Aboleth, Ghoul, and Death Tyrant, and ‘Elementals and Fey’ like Mephits, Fire Elementals, Dryads, and Quicklings, are given quite detailed descriptions. Conversely, the ‘Gem Dragons’ only receive descriptions in comparison, so there is not really enough of an idea who they might be used in a scenario.

Of course, Dungeons & Dragons Annual 2023 being a British annual, it is not without its puzzles. So there are mazes, spot the difference, word searches, and more. In comparison to previous annuals, the theming is more generic Dungeons & Dragons than a specific campaign world or characters, so not as engaging as in past years.

Physically, the Dungeons & Dragons Annual 2023 is snappily presented. There is plenty of full colour artwork drawn from Dungeons & Dragons, Fifth Edition, and the writing is clear and kept short, so is an easy read for its intended audience.

In past years, entries in the Dungeons & Dragons Annual series have proven to be decent introductions to Dungeons & Dragons, but the Dungeons & Dragons Annual 2023 is beginning to push against the limits of what it can explain and showcase without actually showing what Dungeons & Dragons, Fifth Edition actually looks like. It has moved on since the earlier introductory annuals to look at more advanced aspects of character creation with character backstory and play with a discussion of Session Zero, but it constantly feels as if it is preparing the reader and potential player for something that it can never show. Which is any actual element of the doing of Dungeons & Dragons, so consequently, it is all description, all tell, and no show. Of course, the Dungeons & Dragons Annual 2023 is intended to showcase the numerous aspects of the roleplaying game and its setting, and this it does, but it constantly leaves the reader wanting to take the next step and not quite sure what that is. Taking that step is big one and perhaps a solo adventure would give the reader a better idea of what play is like?

To be fair, this is not a book or supplement that a dedicated player or Dungeon Master is going to need, or even want, to read. After all, much of this will be familiar to either. For the casual reader, the Dungeons & Dragons Annual 2023 is reasonable starting point, but the casual reader will quickly want more. For the collector, the Dungeons & Dragons Annual 2023 is an attraction addition to his bookshelves. Still as something to receive at Christmas (or not) in your Christmas stocking (or not), the Dungeons & Dragons Annual 2023 is an attractive product, informative about Dungeons & Dragons, Fifth Edition, and whilst its own limitations can only help the reader so far, a stepping stone from they can look for further starting points from which to play.

Between October 2003 and October 2013, Chaosium, Inc. published a series of books for Call of Cthulhu under the Miskatonic University Library Association brand. Whether a sourcebook, scenario, anthology, or campaign, each was a showcase for their authors—amateur rather than professional, but fans of Call of Cthulhu nonetheless—to put forward their ideas and share with others. The programme was notable for having launched the writing careers of several authors, but for every Cthulhu Invictus, The Pastores, Primal State, Ripples from Carcosa, and Halloween Horror, there was Five Go Mad in Egypt, Return of the Ripper, Rise of the Dead, Rise of the Dead II: The Raid, and more...

The Miskatonic University Library Association brand is no more, alas, but what we have in its stead is the Miskatonic Repository, based on the same format as the DM’s Guild for Dungeons & Dragons. It is thus, “...a new way for creators to publish and distribute their own original Call of Cthulhu content including scenarios, settings, spells and more…” To support the endeavours of their creators, Chaosium has provided templates and art packs, both free to use, so that the resulting releases can look and feel as professional as possible. To support the efforts of these contributors, Miskatonic Monday is an occasional series of reviews which will in turn examine an item drawn from the depths of the Miskatonic Repository.

—oOo—
Name: The Elk Jaw Dagger, It Drives ’Em MadPublisher: Chaosium, Inc.
Author: Clio Urquhart

Setting: Seventies ColoradoProduct: One-shot/Side Encounter
What You Get: Seven page, 8.67 MB Full Colour PDF
Elevator Pitch: “Revenge is a powerful motivator.” – Marcus LuttrellPlot Hook: Stopping off could mean stopping off forever.
Plot Support: Staging advice.Production Values: Decent.
Pros# Short one or two hour scenario# Easy to adjust to other time periods# Suitable for one or two Investigators# Non-Mythos horror scenario# Easy to adjust to other time periods# Aichmophobia# Cartilogenophobia# Scopophobia# Foniasophobia

Cons# Non-Mythos horror scenario# More detailed plot outline# Title gives everything away# Non-Mythos horror scenario# No NPC stats# No Maps# Scenario backstory left undeveloped for investigation
Conclusion# Potentially effective tale of possession and revenge horror undone by lack of scope to investigate the backstory.# Very short, bloody, slasher-horror scenario built around a dark relic which leaves too much for the Keeper to develop.

Much like the Miskatonic Repository for Call of Cthulhu, Seventh Edition, the Jonstown Compendium is a curated platform for user-made content, but for material set in Greg Stafford’s mythic universe of Glorantha. It enables creators to sell their own original content for RuneQuest: Roleplaying in Glorantha, 13th Age Glorantha, and HeroQuest Glorantha (Questworlds). This can include original scenarios, background material, cults, mythology, details of NPCs and monsters, and so on, but none of this content should be considered to be ‘canon’, but rather fall under ‘Your Glorantha Will Vary’. This means that there is still scope for the authors to create interesting and useful content that others can bring to their Glorantha-set campaigns.

—oOo—
What is it?Korolan Islands: Hero Wars in the East Isles – Volume 1 is a scenario for use with RuneQuest: Roleplaying in Glorantha.

It is a ninety-one page, full colour, 41.20 MB PDF.

The layout is clean and tidy, but the text feels disorganised in places and requires a good edit. The artwork varies in quality, but some of it is decent.

Where is it set?
Korolan Islands: Hero Wars in the East Isles – Volume 1 is set on the archipelago of five islands that make up the Korolan Isles which lie in the Jeweled Islands, the Islands of Wonder that lie to the east.

Who do you play?Korolan Islands: Hero Wars in the East Isles – Volume 1 is designed to be used with Player Characters who are native to the Korolan Islands.
What do you need?
Korolan Islands: Hero Wars in the East Isles – Volume 1 requires RuneQuest: Roleplaying in Glorantha, the Glorantha Bestiary, and The Red Book of Magic. In addition, the Guide to Glorantha and The Stafford Library – Vol VI Revealed Mythologies may be useful.
What do you get?
Korolan Islands: Hero Wars in the East Isles – Volume 1 introduces the five islands of the Korolan archipelago—Luvata, Mingai, Sitoro, Sereneto, and Tamoro—and their peoples, their gods, and religious practices. Part of the shattered remains of the eastern continent of Vithela, they once constantly warred with each other, but following a great heroquest, established a unity between the islands which channelled their rivalries into an annual athletics contest that established the five island’s rulers for the next year. Although all five islands share a similar culture, each has its own god. The inhabitants of Luvata worship the freshwater nymph, Irvata; those from Mingai worship Mingemelor, a fiery son of Karkal, the Burning God; Aoea, a spirit of the mountain peaks of her island, is worshipped on Sereneto; the island of Sitoro has no known god and the island is shunned; and the island of Tamoro is home to Tamorongo, both mountain god and mountain. These island gods are known as the ‘Parondpara’.
The supplement introduces the history, geography, flora and fauna, culture and the differences in culture between the islands, and also a playable species. These are the Keet, an avian species similar to the Ducks, but who can be found in separate albatross, cormorant, gull, mallard, pelican, puffin, seagull, tern, and other tribes throughout the East Isles. The pterodactyl Sorn are also given stats, but are presented as a possible threat.
All four cults of the known ‘Parondpara’ are described in detail, including an associated myth for each and these add enjoyable flavour that helps to bring each cult to life. The ‘Parloth’, the gods worshipped across the East Isles are given similar, but not quite as extensive treatment. It is common for islanders to be lay members of one or more cults dedicated to the Parloth in addition be initiates of their individual Parondpara. As you would expect, the requirements necessary to becoming an Initiate and a Rune Priest are given for both Parondpara and Parloth, but in addition to that, there are also requirements stated for becoming an Ombardaru Low Priest. This can be seen as the equivalent of the God Talker in RuneQuest: Roleplaying in Glorantha, but where the God Talker speaks for one cult and god, an Ombardaru Low Priest resides over worship rites for any and all of the Parloth. This enables a temple for one god to serve as a shrine for another and counters the issue of needing to travel far sea distances to worship on holy days and holding rites where there are relatively few worshippers for one individual Parondpara versus another.
In addition, Korolan Islands: Hero Wars in the East Isles – Volume 1 also examines other approaches to magic in Glorantha found in the East Isles. Spirit societies are only given cursory treatment, but Mysticism and its paths to enlightenment and Illumination are discussed in detail. Mysticism in the East Isles differs from either Nysaloran Illumination or Draconian Illumination. It is integrated into everyday society and aspects of it are practised widely, but its adherents study at asharams under sages. Here they can learn ‘Austerities’, magical powers and other abilities via ascetism and voluntary denial. Suggested Austerities include Permanent Countermagic—even asleep, and countering characteristic losses from aging, at high levels, effectively, immortality. All require the student to follow certain restrictions. Numerous Sages and their Mystic Paths are discussed as well linking Austerities to martial arts as these require similar restrictions and practices. One sample martial arts school is described, ‘Roaring Orangutan’, which has its own lore, alongside ‘Climb of Will’, which enhances the climbing skill, but requires the practitioner to not touch the ground or floor for a week; ‘Strength of Ape’, which grants the user the Strength spell for unarmed or school weapon attacks, but mandates that fruit must be eaten daily; and ‘Running on all Fours’, which increases his movement rate and reduces his Strike Rank, but prevents him from using missile weapons. Sadly, this is the only school detailed in the supplement, but there is scope for more.
Despite the focus in Korolan Islands: Hero Wars in the East Isles – Volume 1 on the five Korolan Isles, the Homelands section, multiple Homelands are offered as Player Character and NPC choices, including the Haragalan Islands, Shorenti Islands, Jabbi Isles, and Dessheetan Isles. A nice touch is that even the individual islands have their own cultural bonuses. Numerous new Occupations are detailed, including Marine, Martial Artist, Mystic Student, Pirate, and Temple Guardian. The Marine Occupation is the nearest to the traditional warrior Occupations of RuneQuest: Roleplaying in Glorantha and is included because warfare in the East Isles primarily takes place at sea. There is no Family History table, so this is skipped as per RuneQuest: Roleplaying in Glorantha in favour of various bonuses. There are tables for character backgrounds which add interesting details as do the Family Heirloom table. Lastly, there are details of arms and armour wielded in the East Isles plus short descriptions of other nearby islands and a list of all of the gods.
As an introduction to the East Isles, Korolan Islands: Hero Wars in the East Isles – Volume 1 sometimes suffers from too broad a focus. For example, the inclusion of four other island groups as possible Homelands shifts the sourcebook away from the Korolan Isles, as do the descriptions of the other islands, and the other gods. The other issue with the other gods is that all too often they are mentioned, but not given any further attention. For example, the antigods are mentioned several times throughout the supplement, but never fully explained or detailed. Also missing is anything in the way of advice for the Game Master. The culture and setting of Korolan Islands are very obviously different to that of Dragon Pass, but there is no advice as to what a scenario or campaign in the Korolan Islands would be like. However, Fires of Mingai: Hero Wars in the East Isles – Volume 2, the next supplement in the series does provide that campaign.
Suggesting influences such as the cultures of Southeast Asia and the Pacific Islands, from a setting perspective, Korolan Islands: Hero Wars in the East Isles – Volume 1 presents a culture and its outlook that is radically different from that given in RuneQuest: Roleplaying in Glorantha. Mostly notably in its geographical outlook, but also in its acceptance of Mysticism and Illumination. This presents interesting storytelling and roleplaying options, but some aspects of the setting do demand further development.
Is it worth your time?Yes—Korolan Islands: Hero Wars in the East Isles – Volume 1, with its background and character options, is a solid introduction to playing RuneQuest: Roleplaying in Glorantha from a different cultural perspective in a dispersed island setting. No—Korolan Islands: Hero Wars in the East Isles – Volume 1 is too location specific and too radical a change in cultural outlook to be of use in a general RuneQuest: Roleplaying in Glorantha campaign.Maybe—Korolan Islands: Hero Wars in the East Isles – Volume 1 is too location specific and too radical a change in cultural outlook to be of use in a general RuneQuest: Roleplaying in Glorantha campaign, but the two could be brought together in a culture clash situation.

It seemed like it would never happen. Until the publication of Adventures in Middle-Earth by Cubicle Seven Entertainment in 2016, it seemed as if Hobbits and Dungeons & Dragons would ever be the twain. After all, Tolkien Enterprises, Saul Zaentz’s film merchandising company, had threatened TSR, Inc. in 1977 with legal action over the use of the term ‘hobbit’ in Dungeons & Dragons. Which led to the removal of the term and which is why there are Halflings in Dungeons & Dragons as opposed to Hobbits. However, Adventures in Middle-Earth adapted Cubicle Seven Entertainment’s critically acclaimed The One Ring: Adventures Over the Edge of the Wild for use with Dungeons & Dragons, Fifth Edition, and so, much to the surprise of everyone, brought the two together. They are reunited, once again, with the advent of The One Ring: Roleplaying in the World of Lord of the Rings, the second edition of the roleplaying game from Free League Publishing, with publisher following it up with The Lord of the Rings Roleplaying. This is adaptation of new edition of The One Ring for use with Dungeons & Dragons, Fifth Edition, which literally lets a gaming group explore the background and source material for The One Ring: Roleplaying in the World of Lord of the Rings through the means of the world’s most popular roleplaying game.

The setting for both The Lord of the Rings Roleplaying and The One Ring: Roleplaying in the World of Lord of the Rings is the year 2965, over twenty years since the Battle of the Five Armies and the death of Smaug in the east of Middle-earth. This places it between the events chronicled in the pages of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, in the region to the west of the Misty Mountains, between the Last Homely House and the sea. This encompasses all of Eriador, from Rivendell in the east to the Lindon and the coast in the west, from the Ettin Moors in the north to Dunland in the south. At the heart of the region, astride the Great Eastern Road stand The Shire and Breeland, and these are likely starting point for any campaign of The Lord of the Rings Roleplaying. Unlike the landscape of Rhovanion to the east of the Misty Mountains, with its great forest of Mirkwood infested with goblins and spiders, its lengthy rivers and dreary swamps, Eriador feels more open and windswept. This does not mean that it is empty of dangers. Evil men can be found everywhere, and Orcs, Trolls, the Undead, Wolves of the Wild, and even Nameless Things lurk and hide throughout the region, often where secrets of the past ages may be found. Worse, the free peoples of the region may fall victim to their own weaknesses or Shadow Paths, such as the lure of power or the lure of secrets. The lingering effect of the Shadow can also be found in certain blighted, blasted locations, and then there is the reach of Mordor, when Sauron’s baleful gaze falls upon Eriador.
Thus The Lord of the Rings Roleplaying and The One Ring: Roleplaying in the World of Lord of the Rings do not differ in terms of background—including an adventure site or landmark detailed in the style of Forbidden Lands – Raiders & Rogues in a Cursed World. Located in the foothills of southern Ered Luin, ‘The Star of the Mist’ is not a full scenario in itself, but somewhere to be explored, full of dark secrets and factions that the Player-heroes can interact with. It should provide two or three session’s worth of play, but the Loremaster will need to develop a reason for the Player-heroes to be in the area and interact with it. Instead, where The Lord of the Rings Roleplaying and The One Ring: Roleplaying in the World of Lord of the Rings do differ is in terms of their mechanics, since the play of the roleplaying game remains the same with alternating Adventuring and Fellowship Phases, extensive rules for Journeys and for great social interactions called Councils, and the effects of the Shadow upon the hearts and minds of all. It should be made clear that although the The Lord of the Rings Roleplaying core rulebook contains everything that the Loremaster and her players need to roleplay in the setting of Middle-earth for Dungeons & Dragons, Fifth Edition, they will still a copy of The Player’s Handbook for Dungeons & Dragons, Fifth Edition for the core rules.

The Lord of the Rings Roleplaying like Dungeons & Dragons, Fifth Edition, is a Class and Level roleplaying game. Or rather, a Culture and Calling roleplaying game. Six Heroic Cultures are detailed—Bardings of Dale, Dwarves of Durin’s Folk, Elves of Lindon, Hobbits of the Shire, Men of Bree, and Rangers of the North. The inclusion of Bardings of Dale and Dwarves of Durin’s Folk shows how times have changed since the Battle of the Five Armies and the easing of the road east has opened up opportunities for travel and trade. Each Heroic Culture provides Ability score increases and details of cultural abilities, languages, skill and tool proficiencies, and so on, whilst associated Backgrounds add Ability score increases, skill and tool proficiencies, and Distinctive Features. Each Heroic Culture includes six Backgrounds, for example, the Hobbits of the Shire Heroic Culture has Bucklander, On Patrol, Restless Farmer, Too Many paths to tread, Tookish Blood, and Witty Gentlehobbit. Above all, a Background suggests why a Player-hero—as the Player Characters are called in The Lord of the Rings Roleplaying—might want to run off and do something as peculiar as go adventuring.

The Lord of the Rings Roleplaying has six Callings—Captain, Champion, Messenger, Scholar, Treasure Hunter, and Warden. Each Calling has a maximum of Tenth Level, but options allow a Player-hero to progress beyond that, though one aspect of The Lord of the Rings Roleplaying is that peoples of the Heroic Cultures only adventure during their youth, so age is also a limiting factor. The Captain and the Champion are both warrior types, the Captain a leader, the Champion a fierce soldier. The Messenger is a traveller and advisor, the Scholar a learned person who also knows healing and crafts, a Treasure Hunter someone who delves into dark places and secrets, and a Warden, a protector who uses knowledge of the land to help keep communities safe. There is some variation within the Callings, for example, the Scholar can specialise in Healing or Lore, and the Treasure Hunter in Burglary or Spying. All Callings include a Shadow Path, a narrative which a Player-hero might fall into should he fail to resist the influence of the Shadow. For example, the Champion has Curse of Vengeance and the Treasure Hunter has Dragon-Sickness.

Mechanically, if the changes between The One Ring: Roleplaying in the World of Lord of the Rings and The Lord of the Rings Roleplaying are major, those between The Lord of the Rings Roleplaying and Dungeons & Dragons, Fifth Edition are relatively minor. The Lord of the Rings Roleplaying adds several new skills—Explore, Hunting, Old Lore, Riddle, and Travel. Explore and Travel are similar, but Explore covers movement through unknown territory whereas Travel covers movement along familiar, though sometimes no less difficult routes. Together as a party—or Company—the Player-heroes have access to Fellowship, a group resource that can be spent to gain Advantage on all rolls and to trigger various benefits granted from the Company’s Patron. For example, Gandalf the Grey grants ‘Wisdom of the Grey Pilgrim’ which adds a bonus twenty-sided die to be rolled like Advantage for Saving Throws. The Lord of the Rings Roleplaying also allows for a Player-hero to achieve an automatic ‘Magical Success’, the equivalent of rolling a natural twenty on a skill check if he has a particular talent or an artefact. For example, the One Ring would provide a ‘Magical Success’ for a Stealth check. However, the rules for this focus more on the effect than the cause, so it is not immediately clear what talents enable this. As with The One Ring: Roleplaying in the World of Lord of the Rings, there are no spellcasting Callings in The Lord of the Rings Roleplaying, so the Medicine skill and herbalism kit is very useful, as might the Healing option for Scholar Traditions. In addition, resting also takes longer—a Long Rest can only be conducted in a safe haven, or a settlement or city, whilst a Short Rest takes a whole eight hours whilst out on a journey. In addition, The Lord of the Rings Roleplaying suggests ways in which the dice used in The One Ring: Roleplaying in the World of Lord of the Rings to enhance play and to give more of a hybrid feel between Dungeons & Dragons, Fifth Edition and The One Ring: Roleplaying in the World of Lord of the Rings. The result is a halfway house, neither one nor the other.

In comparison to Dungeons & Dragons, Fifth Edition, there is a distinct structure to the play of The Lord of the Rings Roleplaying. It consists of two phases—the Adventuring Phase and the Fellowship Phase. During the Adventuring Phase, the Player-heroes will form a Company and engage in Councils and Journeys. Councils are great social events when the Player-heroes might go before leaders or other notables, perhaps to deliver a message, ask for advice, or seek help. These are played out as a combination of roleplaying and social skill rolls to achieve successes and the Player-heroes can be rewarded Experience Points for the outcome. Whilst the Council mechanics model the Council of Elrond as depicted in The Fellowship of the Ring, the Journey mechanics model the great trips undertaken by Bilbo Baggins and his company in The Hobbit and the Fellowship of the Nine in The Lord of Rings. A Journey requires four Player-heroes—which really is the minimum required in The Lord of the Rings Roleplaying—to undertake one of four duties: Guide, Hunter, Look-Out, and Scout. Events on a Journey, such as a mishap, a chance-meeting, or joyful sight, can lead to a skill test being made by a Player-hero undertaking one of the four duties. Depending on the outcome of the skill test, the Company may end up with penalties or bonuses to the Fatigue Saving Throws made at the end of the Journey. Fail this Saving Throw and this can leave the Player-heroes suffering from Exhaustion. Again, much like the rules for Councils, the rules for Journeys consist of a mix of skill roles and in places roleplaying, although where Councils make use of skills based on the Player-heroes’ Charisma, Intelligence, and Wisdom Abilities, those for Journeys are all derived from the Wisdom Ability—Explore, Hunting, Perception, and Travel. The other activity during the Adventuring Phase is Combat, but this does not differ from Dungeons & Dragons, Fifth Edition.

The Fellowship Phase typically takes place in a safe haven for the Player-heroes. Depending upon the outcome of the Adventuring Phase, the Player-heroes can lose Shadow points gained during the Adventuring Phase, but in the main, individual Player-heroes will pursue a variety of undertakings during these periods of downtime. This can be to ‘Gather Rumours’, ‘Meet Patron’, ‘Strengthen Fellowship’, ‘Study Magical Items’, and ‘Write Song’. These can have effects on subsequent Adventuring Phases, for example, gathering rumours might garner the Company word of where its quarry might be, whilst a song can be sung during an Adventuring Phase to gain a benefit.

Throughout both the Adventuring Phase and Fellowship Phase, a Player-hero is expected to behave and act like their namesake to the best of their ability. That is, a hero. Player-heroes are not always perfect and they are susceptible to the effects of the Shadow, hence the Shadow Paths for each of the six Callings. Shadow points can be gained through the Dread of meeting some foul beast, Greed from discovering a great treasure hoard which turns out to be tainted, the Sorcery of the Dark Lord Sauron and his minions, and worse, Misdeeds by the Player-hero himself! Misdeeds, especially, if an act is intentional. The acquisition of Shadow points can be resisted with Saving Throws, but if a Player-hero’s equal half of the value for his Wisdom, he gains the condition of Miserable. He has an increased chance of failure on all rolls and the Fellowship rating is reduced. If a Player-hero’s Shadow points equal his Wisdom, he is instead Anguished, and he has Disadvantage on all rolls and can recover through a bout of madness. This also pushes the Player-hero along the Shadow Path for his Calling. Once the effects of Shadow do come into play, they can be devastating, but there is scope to overcome them through rest and good roleplaying.

The last part of The Lord of the Rings Roleplaying explores aspects of the setting that it shares with The One Ring: Roleplaying in the World of Lord of the Rings, including a decent guide to Eriador, the Landmark location, ‘The Star of the Mist’, and also more details on each of the possible Patrons for the Company, enabling the Loremaster to portray them and bring into play as characters in their own right. There is the bestiary too, which by the standards of Dungeons & Dragons, Fifth Edition and the Monster Manual, will feel woefully short. However, Middle-earth is not a setting with a wide array of monsters, rather lots of similar creatures. Thus, there are Evil Men, there are Orcs, there are Wolves of the Wild, all relatively common. Plus, there variations within each monster type, so Goblin Archers alongside Orc-Chieftains, Orc Guards, and Orc Soldiers. There is also solid advice for the Loremaster too and rules for treasure and treasure hoards, as well as precious objects and artefacts, including their creation. There is even a sidebar on what happens if the Player-heroes discover the One Ring!

If there was one single issue with The One Ring: Roleplaying in the World of Lord of the Rings, it was simply the lack of examples—play, combat, or sample Player-heroes. This is less of an issue with The Lord of the Rings Roleplaying, primarily because its rules are derived from Dungeons & Dragons, Fifth Edition, and not more familiar, but mechanically more straightforward.

Physically, The Lord of the Rings Roleplaying is also an of The One Ring: Roleplaying in the World of Lord of the Rings. So, it is very cleanly presented in a clear, open style, and the content itself is engaging to read. In particular, the maps are excellent, done in a style reminiscent of Tolkien and will satisfy any Tolkien fan. There are numerous quotes taken from his fiction throughout the book and these add to its feel and flavour. The artwork is also very good, a pen and ink style that captures the old-world rustic charm of the Shire and the region surrounding it. The style and look echoes that of the classic editions of The Lord of the Rings trilogy published by Allen & Unwin, and has a more scholarly feel as if Bilbo himself sat down to write it.

The Lord of the Rings Roleplaying sets out to provide a means for The Lord of the Rings fans who play Dungeons & Dragons, Fifth Edition to play in Middle-earth. It succeeds with a straightforward and attractive adaptation of The One Ring: Roleplaying in the World of Lord of the Rings that manages to bring the higher fantasy of Dungeons & Dragons into the grimmer, earthier world of Middle-earth. For the Dungeons & Dragons, Fifth Edition Dungeon Master and player who are fans of Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings Roleplaying everything that will need to set forth from Bree and explore the lands of Eriador.

With Everyday Heroes, publisher Evil Genius Games did for Dungeons & Dragons, Fifth Edition in 2202 what d20 Modern did for Dungeons & Dragons, Third Edition in 2002. That is, facilitate and handle roleplaying in the here and now, in the world we see outside our windows, on our television screens, and at the cinema. It went even further though by doing something not actually included in the rulebook. This is providing access to a number of source and scenario supplements all based upon a surprising range of films. In fact, a range of films which nobody expected to see turned into roleplaying material despite their popularity in the hobby. These consist of The Crow™ Cinematic Adventure, Escape From New York™ Cinematic Adventure, Highlander Cinematic Adventure, Kong: Skull Island Cinematic Adventure, Pacific Rim Cinematic Adventure, and Total Recall Cinematic Adventure. These showcase at least, what Everyday Heroes can do and are, equally, six good reasons to play Everyday Heroes. Each entry in this Cinematic Adventure series draws on the core film it is based upon as well as extra source material, to provide background material for the setting, new options for Player Characters, advice for the Game Master, and a full-length adventure, ready to play.

The Crow™ Cinematic Adventure is the first cinematic adventure sourcebook for Everyday Heroes. This draws specifically upon the 1994 film, The Crow, starring Brandon Lee, and the 1989 comic series by James O’Barr, as well as the 1996 sequel, The Crow: City of Angels. The later sequels are lesser source material for the supplement. This does mean that together, the subject for two halves of the book, scenario and sourcebook, does carry a number of subject warnings and like the comic book and film, is intended for a mature audience, dealing as it does with death and loss, drug addiction, torture, suicide, and other adult subjects. The world of The Crow and thus The Crow™ Cinematic Adventure is one in which the spirits of the dead are real. Their task is to guide the souls of the recently dead to the afterlife that is the underworld, to guard the gates to the underworld, and also return with messages and omens. Yet there are some spirits who escape the Underworld and find a way back to the world of the living—they are the Reborn. If a Reborn has been returned by a Crow spirit, then he too is called ‘The Crow’, but there are many other spirits of the dead—the Butterfly, the Cat, the Moth, and others. Each type of spirit is drawn to particular types of deaths and brings those who suffer them back as Reborn and even bestows particular types of quests related to both the deaths and the types. Guided by their spirits, Reborn walk the Earth again, not as one of the living, but the living dead, tasked with enacting revenge upon those who caused their death and fulfilling the quests set by the spirit. The Reborn find the world as dark and as tragic as they left it, the strong thea desire for a better world no more than a fleeting hope...

The primary new options given in The Crow™ Cinematic Adventure are for the Player Characters. These Hero Options include a number of new Backgrounds, such as Abused, Cult Escapee, Near-Death Experience, and Suicide Survivor. Already, these showcase the dark side of the setting. The new Professions include those from the seamier and rougher side of life, including Charity worker, Chop Shop Jockey—someone who cuts up stolen vehicles for their parts, stage Magician, Occultist, and Snitch. Many of these are directly inspired by characters in the film, including the Kid and Pawn Shop Owner. Two Classes after given. The Reborn is a Wise Hero who begins with a Spirit Bond, a Reborn Body, and the ability to Vanish at will. The Reborn also has Powers, such as Death’s Power to substitute the Reborn’s Wisdom bonus for the Strength or Dexterity modifier, Share Experience of his past life with another or Force Experience on another. These require the Reborn’s player to spend Focus to activate. The Reborn also has a Mask of Death associated with his Spirit. The Spirit grants its Reborn with benefits such as skill proficiencies and enhancements to the powers it also grants. For example, the Butterfly Spirit has Charming Presence, which allows a reroll on a failed Charisma check, Glamour to change appearances, Serenity to calm someone, and Sweet Nectar to heal others. All of these powers require the expenditure of Focus and they are the gift of the Spirit that the Reborn can use. In some ways they are also the gift of the Game Master, since the Spirit is not under the control of the Reborn and his player, but is instead an NPC. This allows the Spirit to become a character in its own right rather than just an extension of the Reborn. In addition, each Spirit comes with full stats as a Tiny Monster, and a discussion of its character, the souls it is drawn to, and both the type of quests it gives and some sample quests. Eight Spirits are detailed in this fashion in The Crow™ Cinematic Adventure, including the Butterfly, the Cat, the Crow, the Mastiff, the Moth, the Owl, the Snake, and the Spider.
The other option is the Soothsayer, a Smart Hero. The Soothsayer has Talents and Plans. The Talents include ‘As Foretold’ which enables the Soothsayer to substitute one of two twenty-sided his player rolls at the start of each adventure, whilst ‘Blessing of Fortune’ lets him grant a four-sided die as a bonus to other Player Heroes. The Soothsayer’s Plans include Bend Fate, Clairvoyance, Read the Omens, Witness Your End, and more, all of which are enhanced as the Soothsayer rises in Level. In addition to the two new Hero types, The Crow™ Cinematic Adventure lists several new Feats, divided between General and Multiclass Feats. The former includes Knife Fighter, Pyro, and Ritual Lore, whilst the latter includes Soothsayer Training and Advanced Soothsayer Training letting a Player Hero with another Class gain its mystical abilities. Similarly, the Spirit Servant Multiclass Feat enables a Player Hero who is not a Reborn to acquire a Spirit companion.

The only new rules in The Crow™ Cinematic Adventure are for Ritual Magic. Although several sample rituals are included, the rules in the main are narrative-based. Mechanically, Ritual Magic consists of deciding upon the effects of the spell, researching it, learning it, and then casting the spell. The guidelines are nicely supported with a good example. Conversely, where the rules and advice on handling Ritual Magic in The Crow™ Cinematic Adventure are more than enough for the Game Master to include them in play, the advice for the Game Master for running a scenario or campaign in the style of The Crow comes up short at just two pages. There is advice here on setting the mood, having more than one Reborn—and thus more than one quest—is in play, on playing Spirit allies, and running Ritual Magic (again!), and handling prophetic dreams. However, what the advice does not cover is the setting for scenarios set in the world of The Crow or the types of villains that the Player Heroes might be attempting to enact revenge against. The advice is followed a handful of scenario hooks.

Approximately half of The Crow™ Cinematic Adventure is dedicated to its adventure, ‘Prayers of the Past’, which even comes with its own soundtrack! The scenario is intended for Player Heroes of Fifth and Sixth Level and can be adjusted to be played with just one player, although the ideal number is five. It can also be run with just the one Reborn Player Hero or multiple Reborn Player Heroes. The set-up involves a Zero Session where the Player Heroes decide upon and play out what happened to the Reborn they are either playing or their Player Heroes know, which can can take a single scene or be developed into a longer session, so that the prequel to the scenario proper plays out as a series of prequels rather the one. Hooks are provided if the players cannot come up their own.
Each of the multiple Session Zeroes takes place in a different city before ‘Prayers of the Past’ draws the Player Heroes back to Detroit and the events of The Crow, coming together at Club Trash in a bloody orgy of revenge and violence. It is a solidly grim affair which works as a one-shot or even a campaign starter, overall, effectively drawing from the source material to create a situation and story which fits within that source material. Safety tools are strongly recommended throughout, if necessary, as the scenario is very much intended for a mature audience. In addition, the staging advice for Game Master is also decent throughout, and in fact, actually better in places than the scant advice given for the Game Master in her own chapter.

Lastly, ‘The Cast’ chapter provides stats and details of a variety of NPCs and more. The NPCs are divided into three categories. The first are general, including ordinary characters as well as spiritual ones, and there are suggestions here too, as to which NPC types to use to portray various characters from both The Crow and The Crow: City of Angels. These NPC types are drawn from both the Everyday Heroes core rulebook and The Crow™ Cinematic Adventure. The second category consists of NPCs for the scenario, ‘Prayers of the Past’, whilst the third consists of protagonists from both The Crow and The Crow: City of Angels. This includes Eric Draven, Darryl Albrecht, Sarah, and others. The more consists of five pre-generated Player Heroes, including a Soothsayer, an Omen of Disaster (a Reborn with a Moth Spirit bond), an Omen of Vengeance (a Reborn with a Snake Spirit bond), an Omen of Love (a Reborn with a Butterfly Spirit bond), and an Omen of Pain (a Reborn with a Crow Spirit bond). These support the scenario being played with multiple Reborn,
Physically, The Crow™ Cinematic Adventure is cleanly, tidily presented. Unfortunately, the sourcebook is not illustrated with images from the films, but the artwork in their stead is decent. However, the book does need another edit in places.

The Crow™ Cinematic Adventure is not a sourcebook for the world of The Crow—either the comics or the films. There is some background, more sufficient to do what The Crow™ Cinematic Adventure is designed to do rather than be exhaustive. What The Crow™ Cinematic Adventure is designed to do is present the means and tools for a Game Master to run and her players to roleplay a scenario or campaign in the style of The Crow and within the world of The Crow—and this, bar the underwhelming advice for Game Master—it succeeds at. The Crow™ Cinematic Adventure is a solid first entry in the series of Cinematic Adventures for Everyday Heroes, expanding it into the realms of the mystical and with new Player Hero options and a good scenario, bringing world of The Crow to the gaming table.

As well as contributing to Free RPG Day every year Goodman Games also has its own ‘Dungeon Crawl Classics Day’, which sadly, is a very North American event. The day is notable not only for the events and the range of adventures being played for Goodman Games’ roleplaying games, but also for the scenarios it releases specifically to be played on the day. For ‘Dungeon Crawl Classics Day 2023’, which takes place today on Saturday, July 22nd, 2023, the publisher is releasing not one, not two, but three scenarios, plus a limited edition printing of Mutant Crawl Classics Roleplaying Game – Triumph & Technology Won by Mutants & Magic. Two of the scenarios, ‘The Rift of the Seeping Night’ and ‘Grave of the Gearwright’, are written for use with the Dungeon Crawl Classics Role Playing Game and appear in the duology, the DCC Day 2023 Adventure Pack. The third, Crash of the Titans, is a scenario for Mutant Crawl Classics notable for sharing the same cover as that for the limited edition printing of the rulebook. It is Crash of the Titans which is being reviewed here as a preview of ‘Dungeon Crawl Classics Day 2023’.

Crash of the Titans is designed for a party of between four and six Third Level Player Characters which takes them into a unique environment to face—well, actually, to not face—but dodge and work around a pair of kaiju-sized monsters! The Holy Medicinal Order asks the Player Characters to help find a replacement power source for its most precious device of the Ancients—a rejuv-chamber—which is capable of healing almost any injury or illness. It requires a Q-Pack, one of the rarest of power cells and the Order knows of only one source where another can be found—the City of Storms. This is located in a nearby city of the Ancients and is renowned for the electrical storms which play out above its skies. However, when the Player Characters arrive, they discover that the skies are clear and the area, buildings and all, sits in a swamp of acidic water. This though is the very least of their problems.

As the Player Characters explore the area, they disturb not one, but giant mutants, one an insectoid monstrosity, the other all tentacles, and both towering over the Player Characters and the area. Both monsters wander the area randomly, stomping on the Player Characters if they notice them, and battling each other when end up in the same location. The region consists of six hexes surrounding a central hex which is a lake. There are encounters to be had and locations to be explored and scavenged in each of the six surrounding hexes amongst the old industrial and residential buildings. In other adventures for Mutant Crawl Classics, the number of artefacts that the Player Characters can find and make use of does sometimes feel scanty, but here the number feels about right given the limited number of locations and size of the scenario. The progress of the Player Characters is both hampered and driven by the looming presence and threat of the giant mutants, but it is also helped by a much larger, but more of an environmental nature mutant, which literally whispers hints to them as they move around the area.

Eventually, the Player Characters will find a Q-Pack, but will be faced with another problem—how to charge it! Thus sets up the second half of the scenario as the Player Characters ascend the vine-entwined walls of the area’s only standing building. This is a power tower and once inside, they will need to find a way to restore it to full operation and charge the Q-Pack, setting up the climax of the scenario in true King Kong kaiju style!

Crash of the Titans is a short adventure, which can be played in a single session, but probably best plays out in two. There is a sense of openness to the scenario with its relatively flat, swamp location combined with the ominous presence of the two giant mutants wandering around the region, sometimes clashing and fighting each other, forcing the Player Characters to flee. All of this can be played out on the scenario’s map which is presented in full colour inside its wraparound card cover. The scenario even comes with a pair of standees, one for each giant mutant, which the Judge can cut out of the cover and then use to indicate where each giant mutant is on the map. Whilst this would give the scenario a sense of space, would a Judge really want to cut holes in Crash of the Titans’ fantastic cover?

Physically, Crash of the Titans is very nicely presented. The cover hints at the adventure to come and the map inside the wraparound cover is very nice. In fact, it is actually good to see a map for Mutant Crawl Classics done in full colour like this. The scenario is otherwise well written, easy to understand, and straightforward to run.

If perhaps Crash of the Titans is missing anything it is that the whispering ally that the Player Characters encounter during the scenario could have been developed further, perhaps as a Patron—an alternative to the Patron A.I.s usually encountered in the Mutant Crawl Classics? Otherwise, Crash of the Titans is a great little scenario for Mutant Crawl Classics Roleplaying Game – Triumph & Technology Won by Mutants & Magic, one which packs a lot of inventive adventure into its few pages. Overall, of the releases for ‘Dungeon Crawl Classics Day 2023’, Crash of the Titans is the best of the three scenarios released.

As well as contributing to Free RPG Day every year Goodman Games also has its own ‘Dungeon Crawl Classics Day’, which sadly, is a very North American event. The day is notable not only for the events and the range of adventures being played for Goodman Games’ roleplaying games, but also for the scenarios it releases specifically to be played on the day. For ‘Dungeon Crawl Classics Day 2022’, which took place on Saturday, July 16th, 2022, the publisher released not one, not two, but three items for the Dungeon Crawl Classics Role Playing Game and Mutant Crawl Classics Roleplaying Game – Triumph & Technology Won by Mutants & Magic. These included Dungeon Crawl Classics Day: The Book of Fallen Gods , a book of Patron ‘Un-gods’, gods who were, and whose worship has drastically dwindled, but were the Player Character Wizards and Clerics to find them, would accept worship once again; the DCC Day 2022 Adventure Pack, which contained two scenarios, one for the Dungeon Crawl Classics Role Playing Game and one for Mutant Crawl Classics Roleplaying Game – Triumph & Technology Won by Mutants & Magic; and DCC Day #3 Chanters in the Dark, a separate scenario for the Dungeon Crawl Classics Role Playing Game. With ‘Dungeon Crawl Classics Day 2023’ taking place tomorrow on Saturday, July 22nd and with a preview of the DCC Day 2023 Adventure Pack, the Dungeon Crawl Classics Role Playing Game scenario for the event, having already been published, it is DCC Day #3 Chanters in the Dark which is being reviewed today.

DCC Day #3 Chanters in the Dark is bit special. Designed for a party of between four and eight Player Characters of First Level, it begins en media res, with their being aboard a boat that hurtling along an underground river before plunging deeper into the earth. This is exactly how Dungeon Crawl Classics #67: Sailors on the Starless Sea, the classic Character Funnel ended and although it can be run as a standalone adventure, DCC Day #3 Chanters in the Dark is actually designed as a sequel to Dungeon Crawl Classics #67: Sailors on the Starless Sea. To that end, it even includes advice on how the Player Characters can level up, from Zero Level to First Level within the confines of the scenario given that they are far away the surface and home. The most amusing of this advice is what to do with the animals that Zero Level Player Characters sometimes begin play with at the start of Character Funnels. Essentially, chickens and ducks will not be a problem per se, but if a Player Character former farmer and would be adventurer really wants to bring his pig or his cow along, there might be more of an issue. Otherwise, the leveling up advice covers the acquisition of spells for Clerics, Elves, and Wizards, as well both tools and skills for thieves.

The river dumps the Player Characters in the cave entrance to the Lost City of Quetat, an underground, alien city much in the mold of I1 Dwellers of the Forbidden City. The city is small, dominated by an arena and an entrance to a temple. It is primarily inhabited by beastmen of various types, many of which seem to be suffering from Anophthalmia. However, this does not seem to bother the transient beastmen who regularly move from one of the city’s simple, but ancient dwellings to another. Their lives are dominated by the worship of Yuzz and part of this involves the sacrifice of their eyes. This does not disturb them unduly and they see it as part of both worship and normal life. Plus, the eyes do grow back. However, the continued worship of Yuzz and the dominance of its priesthood has divided the Beastmen. Reformers seek change and want to overthrow the priests of the Temple of Yuzz and the beastmen’s dependence on the Great Fungal Mound which lies at the heart of their faith and their subsistence. Rebuilders want the Player Characters to stay and become part of the community, providing the Beastmen with new blood and possibly, new leadership. The Religious want continued worship of Yuzz and consumption of the Great Fungal Mound and acceptance of the sacrifice of their eyes and the narcotic effect of the Great Fungal Mound. The Religious will regard the Player Characters as interlopers and an evil threat to the city if they do not leave or conform.

The progress of the Player Characters will driven by three factors. One is the need to find a way out and a means to return to the surface world. The other is the three factions and interacting with one, two, or all three of them, even allying with one of them, which is likely to be the Reformers. Combining these is a series of events which will very likely influence the reactions and opinions of the Player Characters as they go about the city in pursuit of the other factors. There are some genuinely creepy moments in the scenario, such as stumbling upon one of the blind Beastmen for the first time, encountering the elephantine Caretaker with its proboscis that it uses to literally suck the eyeballs out of its victims—willing or unwilling, the weirdness of the temple and the priesthood, and the moment that that one of the Player Characters has the eyeballs sucked out of his head! There are rules included for this and the effects of being both partially and totally blind included, but rest assured that this is horribly disturbing and means that is DCC Day #3 Chanters in the Dark best suited for a mature audience and its genre is as much horror as it is fantasy. At best, most players are going find this aspect of the scenario ‘icky’, at best, at worst, ommetaphobia-inducing.
The emphasis in DCC Day #3 Chanters in the Dark veers towards exploration and interaction, but there is plenty of combat in the scenario as well, so that overall mix is fairly balanced. Although the actions of the Player Characters can alter the balance of power in the Quetat, they cannot solve the problem at the core of the situation as they are far too low Level. Ultimately, they will turn to attempting to escape that that presents a very physical challenge, which can end with the Player Characters successfully escaping to surface or being trapped in Lost City of Quetat...
Physically, DCC Day #3 Chanters in the Dark is decently done. It is lightly illustrated, but the artwork is okay. It it is a pity that the eye-sucking monster was not illustrated. The maps are clear and easy to read, although there is a disconnect between the main map and the internal map of a building in that the number for the main building is not in keeping with the numbering of its internal locations so that there is no location number ‘2’ on the main map, but its internal locations all start with ‘2’.
DCC Day #3 Chanters in the Dark details a low level, unworldly lost city in the tradition of classic scenarios of the past and classic pulp stories, but makes it creepier and weirder and even more claustrophobic. This is great little scenario for the Dungeon Crawl Classics Role Playing Game for First Level Player Characters which will challenge them to survive right to the very end.

Now in its sixteenth year, Free RPG Day for 2023 took place on Saturday, June 24th. As per usual, Free RPG Day consisted of an array of new and interesting little releases, which are traditionally tasters for forthcoming games to be released at GenCon the following August, but others are support for existing RPGs or pieces of gaming ephemera or a quick-start. Thanks to the generosity of David Salisbury of Fan Boy 3, Fil Baldowski at All Rolled Up, and others, Reviews from R’lyeh was able to get hold of many of the titles released for Free RPG Day, both in the USA and elsewhere.

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Cobra/Con Fusion is a scenario not just for one roleplaying game, but two! It is published by Renegade Game Studios for use with its G.I. JOE Roleplaying Game and its Transformers Roleplaying Game. In bringing the two together, the theme of the adventure is team-ups. For when Cobra and the Decepticons begin working together, the operatives of G.I. Joe and the Autobots are forced to co-operate in order to thwart their iniquitous intrigues… This means that the players will take the roles of characters working for both—three from G.I. Joe and three of the Autobots. What this means is that Cobra/Con Fusion actually differs from other adventures for Essence20—the system that the G.I. JOE Roleplaying Game, the Transformers Roleplaying Game, and the Power Rangers Roleplaying Game use—in which the players use characters created of their own or pre-generated characters. Instead, Cobra/Con Fusion uses specific pre-generated Player Characters, which consist of A.W.E. Striker Bumblebee, Bulkhead, and Minerva of the Autobots and Cover Girl, Doc, and Mainframe from G.I. Joe. They are all of Tenth Level as required by the scenario and are available to download. The other notable aspect of Cobra/Con Fusion is that it is independent of the timeline for the comics for both G.I. Joe and The Transformers, so fans of either can expect some differences.

Cobra/Con Fusion opens with Part One, ‘Awestruck’, with the three G.I. Joe operatives arriving on La Grande Dune du Pilat on the south-west coast of France in the Bordeaux area for a briefing. Stalker, the G.I. Joe leader giving the briefing, reveals four things. The first is that The Baroness, the Cobra mastermind has been seen in the area. The second is the existence of the Autobots, Bumblebee, Bulkhead, and Minerva. Three, that the G.I. Joe operatives will be working with the Autobots. Four, one of the Autobots, Bumblebee, is badly damaged and needs to be repaired. This sets up the first challenge for the scenario, as members of the two diverse factions—G.I. Joe and the Autobots—are directed to co-operate in repairing Bumblebee. This scene is essentially an emergency room scene played out against a time limit, with each of the Player Characters being given tasks that they can perform to complete and speed the process. In actuality, there is no time limit, but rather that the quicker the Player Characters perform the repairs, the greater the benefits they can gain when facing the forces of Cobra and the Decepticons. At the end, Bumblebee is restored to full operating health, though with G.I. Joe technology rather than Autobot technology.

The action-proper begins in Part Two and ‘Street Hustle’, when the story moves south-east to the village of Saint-Bertrand-de-Comminges, close to the Pyrenees, where G.I. Joe has tracked the Decepticon and Combaticon Swindle. Oddly, the whole village has been bought out from underneath the residents by none other than The Baroness. The G.I. Joe operatives and the Autobots are sent to capture and interrogate Swindle in the hopes of discovering the location of The Baroness. This sets up a desperate car chase around the village which is hampered by the fact that the village is one of the most beautiful in France and has a heritage which dates back to before Christ! Which means that parts of it are very old and cannot be damaged by collateral damage. Full rules are provided for vehicle chases in The Field Guide to Action & Adventure Crossover Sourcebook, but sufficient details are provided here for the Game Master to run the scene. However, there is scope here for some expansion too, since like the earlier La Grande Dune du Pilat, Saint-Bertrand-de-Comminges is a real place, so the play through of the chase around the village could be enhanced with maps and photographs—none are given in the scenario—to give a greater sense of verisimilitude.

Part Two will climax with a battle between Swindle and the Player Characters, but they will be able to learn what Cobra and the Decepticons are planning together. This includes where the plans are being carried out, a secret base in the Pyrenees. In Part Three, ‘Break the Joint’, the Player Characters must break into the facility and destroy the fruition of Cobra-Decepticon co-operation—a prototype H.I.S.S. drone based on the leader of the Decepticons, Megatron, known as Fusion. Defeating both Fusion and the forces at the Cobra base brings the scenario to a successful end.

A full appendix gives the stats for all of the adversaries in Cobra/Con Fusion, including Fusion. In addition, there are notes for the Game Master throughout the scenario, giving advice on using other Player Character options, modifying the adventure up to Twentieth Level, and staging the adventure.

Physically, Cobra/Con Fusion is well presented. The artwork is good and the map of the Cobra facility is clear. The text in Cobra/Con Fusion is tight in places and a little busy, so the Game Master will need to pay careful attention to the checks and stats needed for each scene.

Cobra/Con Fusion is designed to highlight the supplement, The Field Guide to Action & Adventure Crossover Sourcebook. Not just mechanically with the chase rules, but also thematically, as Cobra/Con Fusion is a ‘layered crossover’, in which both settings of G.I. Joe and The Transformers exist in the same world, but rarely interact. Of course, in Cobra/Con Fusion, they do. The nature of scenario with three Player Characters from G.I. Joe and three Autobots does limit choice, as does the fact that the G.I. Joe operatives tend to be technical versus the Autobots who are more competitive in nature. But that is in the nature of scenarios with pre-generative Player Characters and Cobra/Con Fusion is a one-shot after all. Plus, it would be more difficult to run it as part of a campaign or with other Player Characters.

Cobra/Con Fusion is a fun, one-shot scenario, just about the right length to be run in a single session or at a convention. This makes it the best offering from Renegade Game Studios for Free RPG Day for both the G.I. JOE Roleplaying Game and the Transformers Roleplaying Game to date.

Between October 2003 and October 2013, Chaosium, Inc. published a series of books for Call of Cthulhu under the Miskatonic University Library Association brand. Whether a sourcebook, scenario, anthology, or campaign, each was a showcase for their authors—amateur rather than professional, but fans of Call of Cthulhu nonetheless—to put forward their ideas and share with others. The programme was notable for having launched the writing careers of several authors, but for every Cthulhu Invictus, The Pastores, Primal State, Ripples from Carcosa, and Halloween Horror, there was Five Go Mad in Egypt, Return of the Ripper, Rise of the Dead, Rise of the Dead II: The Raid, and more...

The Miskatonic University Library Association brand is no more, alas, but what we have in its stead is the Miskatonic Repository, based on the same format as the DM’s Guild for Dungeons & Dragons. It is thus, “...a new way for creators to publish and distribute their own original Call of Cthulhu content including scenarios, settings, spells and more…” To support the endeavours of their creators, Chaosium has provided templates and art packs, both free to use, so that the resulting releases can look and feel as professional as possible. To support the efforts of these contributors, Miskatonic Monday is an occasional series of reviews which will in turn examine an item drawn from the depths of the Miskatonic Repository.

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Name: A Place Just For UsPublisher: Chaosium, Inc.
Author: Charles Huysman

Setting: Modern day Product: One-shot
What You Get: Eighteen page, 2.89 MB Full Colour PDF
Elevator Pitch: “When I became a man I put away childish things, including the fear of childishness and the desire to be very grown up.” – C.S. Lewis.Plot Hook: Going home means coming home to play...
Plot Support: Staging advice, two NPCs, and one map.Production Values: Reasonable.
Pros# Bucolic horror# Non-Mythos horror scenario# Flexible storytelling elements# Suitable for small groups# Easy to adjust to other time periods# Fennecaphobia# Xylophobia# Ludophobia

Cons# No clear explanation of the plot# Underwritten set-up and town description# Non-Mythos horror scenario
Conclusion# Bucolic hometown horror which takes the Investigators back to their childhoods# Underwritten set-up leaves Keeper with development to make play easier