PDF Update and Other News

So, today I uploaded "Version 2" of the Eldritch Tales PDF to RPG Now! We've corrected and fixed all errors we could find, from typos to layout inconsistencies. I also dropped a new landscape character sheet into the downloads, this one was made by Tom Novosel and matches his excellent layout. Its very clean, easy to read and has an Art Deco feel!

Since release, Eldritch Tales has been featured on Yog-Sothoth.com and has received great feedback all-around! Mark Siefert, who playtested ET and has been a long time supporter of the project, has created an Eldritch Tales Fan Community over on G+. I had this on my own to-do list, but Mark actually beat me to it, so rather than having two communities, Mark's ETFC will be the official place to find ET news. Be sure to join up and take part in our growing discussions, we'd all love to hear your questions, input and comments on things Lovecraftian! Thanks to Mark for setting this up!

Next, Jonathan Hicks has written a very nice review of Eldritch Tales. Be sure to stop over at his blog, Farsight Blogger, and check it out! Thanks for the review, Jonathan!

Around the time that Eldritch Tales went live, Rafael Beltrame contacted me and asked to do a mini-interview for his Brazilian blog, Modulos RPG, in which he reviews and discusses older editions of D&D and OSR games. The link will take you to the interview post, but you can find a link there for the English translation. Thanks for your interest in ET, Rafael, I had a great time answering your questions!

And finally, something that only recently came to my attention. Skinner Games, dropped an actual play video of their play through of an earlier version of Eldritch Tales. Due to their tight schedule, Skinner Games wasn't able to get any sessions in before the playtest closed, but they were still enthusiastic about getting a game in before live release. They actually streamed the game back in May, but I didn't learn about it until late August. Shame on me. Like I said, this is an earlier version of the rules and not everything you see here carried over to the final product. Check out the video on YouTube! Many thanks to the Skinner Games team!

Swords & Wizardry Appreciation Day 2017!

Swords &Wizardry Appreciation Day has arrived and festivities abound! Visit Gamers and Grognards to see the full list of blog posts, freebies, sales, podcasts and other S&W support!

S&W is a great game, and has had some amazing growth over the past year. Charlie Mason's White Box: Fantastic Medieval Adventure Game has taken the WhiteBox torch and run with it. It has quickly become one of my favorite games and is the game that I chose to introduce my stepson and his cohort of friends to the game. Meanwhile, Erik Tenkar has slimmed the game down to its bare bones with Swords & Wizardry Light, which puts the game into your pocket. Probably most notably, Swords & Wizardry Complete has received a fully updated (and gorgeous) third printing. 

I've been focusing my attention on WhiteBox. Its robust but malleable nature has allowed third parties to create some slick compatible works - White Star (now PWYW!), WWII: Operation White Box, and White Lies all spring to mind. My own S&W derivative, Eldritch Tales: Lovecraftian White Box Role-playing, was announced last year and has garnered some much-appreciated support. It is currently in playtesting. I want to tweak some of the additional rules, but the majority is written and playable. My next steps will be editing, art and layout. I am still hopeful for a 2017 release!

I missed S&W Appreciation Day last year, but resolved to do something this time around. First, my White Box adventure, Beyond the Ice-Fall, is on sale at 40% off on DriveThruRPG from April 22nd thru the 24th. I've also offered a free pdf copy to be given away on the Drink, Spin, Run live broadcast, airing on April 22nd, at 9:00 PM EST.

Second, a few days ago I released a product called Dungeon Connections but I'm only now officially announcing it. The pack consists of two small dungeon maps with some room descriptions and with at least two exits/entrances. However, they are entirely system-neutral with no stats or plot; nor are they stocked with treasure or monsters. Why? The idea came from my own games in which I sometimes run pre-published adventures and link them together with small dungeon locales. I use the unfinished "expansion tunnels" to lead to other large dungeons, by way of a "dungeon connection." I've created a few maps and think they'll be useful to any referee looking for a quick dungeon to stock with monsters and treasure to suit their party level and campaign. If they prove useful, I'll likely put a few more packs together. Dungeon Connections will also be on sale this weekend at 40% off the list price!

That's all for now, enjoy S&W Appreciation Day!

Beyond the Ice-Fall Released!

Beyond the Ice-Fall  is a low-level adventure written for use with Swords & Wizardry WhiteBox and similar OSR games! Set in a northern land of viking warriors, the adventure is for a party of 4‐8 characters of levels 1‐3. It can be easily adapted to any campaign!

In the village of Askibakken, the winter has been harsh and an unnatural blizzard has gripped the area. The village chieftain has called upon young warriors to search for a missing supply ship, but this endeavor leads the adventurers into a mysterious adventure. Will the party discover what lies Beyond the Ice-Fall?

Beyond the Ice-Fall is inspired by Algernon Blackwood’s The Glamour of the Snow and Robert E. Howard’s The Frost Giant’s Daughter.

Features cover art and an interior piece by Del Teigeler! Writing, cartography and additional art completed by Joseph Salvador. Included in this 28-page product are a mini-setting, a dungeon crawl, two maps, new monsters, new magic items, new spells, and a viking name list!

Get it at DriveThruRPG! It will be on sale 20% off until March 24!

Eldritch Tales: Contacts and Characters

Last week, we talked about the four base character classes in Eldritch Tales: Lovecraftian White Box Role-Playing, and I mentioned that every class begins the game with Contacts.

Not even beginning characters live in a vacuum and all have some experience with the world and people. University students are exposed to any number of professors, soldiers meet people from all walks of life, lawyers know experts within the justice system, and so on. Each character begins with at least one close friend who is willing to help out when the character is in need - these are the character's Contacts. Characters may call upon their Contacts to assist in any way they can, dependent on the referee's discretion. However, most Contacts will not break the law or put their lives and livelihoods in jeopardy, and players are advised to remember that just as they may call upon Contacts, Contacts may call upon them. Friendship is a two-way street.

Characters are not restricted to only those Contacts that they start with and may acquire additional Contacts  during the course of the game. There is no set mechanic for gaining Contacts, only that it can be accomplished through role-playing and cultivating connections. Again, the referee is free to control this as he or she wishes.

The make things manageable, Contacts are divided into broad categories - Academic, Criminal, Influential, Legal, Martial, Medical and a final catch-all, General. This division is mostly used during character creation to direct what type of Contacts a beginning character starts with. For instance, an Antiquarian begins with two Academic Contacts - perhaps a curator and a librarian; while a Socialite begins with one Influential contact and any two other contacts - maybe a governor, a detective, and a fence. The choices that a player makes here will help to define the character's background and add some color to the campaign.

Finally, Contacts help the referee craft a story with depth. They can be used as plot devices - anchoring a character to a specific area or interest, connecting characters to the game world, providing motives and goals for characters, they might even present plot hooks to the group and "call in favors."

Next week, I'll discuss Occupations, an entirely optional rule that further defines a character's background and offers greater character customization.

Making friends?

Character Classes in Eldritch Tales

In Eldritch Tales: Lovecraftian White Box Role-Playing, players take on the roles of average people thrust into maddening and horrifying situations. They investigate Mythos mysteries, learn cosmic secrets and face ancient monstrosities that have plagued the Earth since before mankind.

There are four base classes in Eldritch Tales and these represent a broad spectrum of character types. The Antiquarian is a scholar who gains additional languages as he rises in level and the unique ability to find clues when all other channels fail. Antiquarians might be professors, curators, occultists, antique dealers, amateur scholars, or any other individual interested in seeking knowledge. Antiquarian's skills involve educational studies, such as history, science, and literature. They are largely untrained with weapons but are the only class that gains a bonus against Insanity Saves.

The Combatant is a translation of the Swords & Wizardry fighter class. They have the traditional "combat machine" ability, which might be limited by ammunition at the referee's discretion, and gain an ability to inspire their allies, providing a bonus to saving throws against fear. Their skills include knowledge of tactics and weaponry, fighting styles, and endurance.

Opportunists replace the thief, but fill a similar role - they are adventurers, scoundrels, gentleman rogues, and others who seek fortune and glory. They gain the usual backstab attack and are unusually lucky (may re-roll one failed die roll per session). They skills include perception and stealth, driving and appraisal, and may choose a geographic area in which to specialize. This allows the player to tailor her opportunist however she sees fit - a criminal or detective Opportunist might choose a city, while a globe-trotting archeologist might specialize in Egypt.

Finally, the Socialite rounds out the core classes and allows players the option of a class eminently suited for verbal information gathering and investigation. Socialites are charismatic personas such as actors, politicians, preachers, or con artists, and may hail from any social stratum. They have a special knack for influencing listeners and are skilled at interrogation, impersonation, deception and seduction.

In addition to these attributes, all classes receive a certain number of Contacts to help in their endeavors and may be further customized by inclusion of the optional Occupation rules. Next week, we'll describe Contacts in greater detail.

Which one of this multitude might you be?

Crowd Outside NYSE, Public Domain

Eldritch Tales: Lovecraftian White Box Role-playing

Coming soon from Raven God Games!

ELDRITCH TALES: Lovecraftian White Box Role-Playing is a new, old-school game that builds on the mechanics of Swords and Wizardry WhiteBox and other original edition RPGs. In Eldritch Tales, players will investigate the oddities of Mythos Earth, learn arcane secrets, and experience sanity-blasting terror!

Eldritch Tales is inspired by the weird fiction of Howard Phillips Lovecraft and other pulp writers including Clark Ashton Smith and Robert E. Howard. Lovecraft created a version of terror called cosmic horror, which emphasizes the idea that man is an insignificant creature and that mankind's history and even biology has been influenced by ancient, inhuman beings known collectively as the Great Old Ones. Many of these Old Ones continue to alter the course of normal events through sorcery, weird science and the machinations of diabolical cults!

Eldritch Tales includes four base classes - Antiquarian, Combatant, Opportunist, and Socialite, a new spell-casting system based on the original but tweaked to better suit the genre, a system for tracking your character's increasing madness,  Mythos artifacts, a host of sinister adversaries to thwart the party, and much more!

Eldritch Tales is entirely compatible with Swords and Wizardry WhiteBox, and can be used with most other OSR games with ease. Coming in 2017!

Keep checking back for more information!! 

Artwork copyright 2016 Eric Lofgren, used with permission. All rights reserved.

Eastern Expeditions Samurai & Ninja Classes for Delving Deeper

I am happy to announce that Raven God Games has released two new character classes for Delving Deeper - the Samurai and the Ninja! These are the first offerings of the Eastern Expeditions line and are free/PWYW. Future Eastern Expeditions releases will include a complete game supplement detailing a number of classes, monsters, treasures and more; adventure modules; and a mini-setting, allowing 0E players to take their games to Mythic Japan!

These classes are written to be immediately compatible with Delving Deeper RPG, or the original game, and with only slight modification, they can be used with most OSR games, including OSRIC and Swords & Wizardry Complete. Each supplement includes a complete character class, weapons and armor suitable for their use, and other information. 

Both classes can be found at DriveThruRPG and are hosted on +Simon Bull's Delving Deeper website.

Delving Deeper is freely available as online hypertext, can be downloaded here, and is also available in print.

I'd like to take this opportunity to, once again, thank +Simon Bull for his assistance on this project. Simon's knowledge and understanding of the earliest fantasy role-playing game is staggering and this project could not have happened without his valuable input! Thanks Simon!

Delving Deeper/ 0e Logo!

For the past year or so I have been in communication with +Simon Bull , whose input has had a huge input on my upcoming releases for Delving Deeper RPG. As Simon continues his work on DD, he hopes that other publishers and writers will expand on the game with adventures, settings, and other supplements. Part of that vision has been to create a "Zero-Edition compatibility logo" for use with Delving Deeper material, and other 0E/OSR creations. I've been able to help Simon fine tune the logos a bit. Simon did a great job with the logo design and offer these images as a preview of greater things to come.

As for my own additions to  Delving Deeper, I have two classes - the samurai and the ninja - ready for imminent release on DTRPG and Tabletop Library. They will also be available directly from the Simon's DD site. These classes will be part of a larger supplement, Eastern Expeditions (c), that will expand DD games into the realm of mythic Japan.

You can get Delving Deeper freely here, browse the hypertext online, or grab a low-cost paperback copy from Lulu!