The Time Bandits

Six boisterous dwarves, who, until recently, were employed by the Supreme Being to fix holes in the space-time continuum. Then they had a brainstorm: Why mend the holes when they could slip through them to any destination where loot might be found, with the Supreme Being’s Map of Creation,

 

Randall, the leader

Cha 14 +1  Con 12 +1  Dex 13 +1   Int 17 +2   Str 11 +0    Wis 11 +0

Para 10         Poison 9        Breath 12      Device 10      Magic 11

Armor 15 (leather), Move 120’, 5th Level Dwarf Specialist, 27hp, revolver 1d8, dagger 1d4

Architecture 4, Languages 3, Search 2, Sleight of Hand 2, Stealth 3, Sneak Attack 3

Leather, aviator hat & goggles, bandolier, monocle, pistol, bullets (80), dagger, Map of Creation

 

 

Og, the dumb one

Cha 12 +0   Con 16 +3   Dex 11 +0   Int 11 +0     Str 14 +1    Wis 11 +0

Para 10         Poison 8        Breath 13,     Device 9        Magic 12

Armor 15 (leather and helmet), Move 120’, 2nd Level Dwarf, 22hp, cutlass 1d8

Architecture 3, Open Doors 2

Leather, horned helm, sword

 

Fidgit, the silly one

Cha 14 +1   Con 13 +2   Dex 13 +1   Int 10 +0    Str 10 +0    Wis 10 +0

Para 10         Poison 8        Breath 13      Device 9        Magic 12

Armor 16 (leather and helm), Move 120’, 2nd Level Dwarf, 20hp, dagger 1d4, handaxe 1d6

Architecture 3

Leather, strainer helm, dagger, handaxe

 

 

Strutter, the serious one

Cha 12 +0   Con 18 +4    Dex 13 +1   Int 14 +1   Str 11 +0    Wis 14 +1

Para 10         Poison 9        Breath 12      Device 10      Magic 11

Armor 15 (leather), Move 120’, 3rd Level Dwarf, 28hp, club 1d4, cutlass 1d8

Architecture 3, Languages 2

Leather, bowler hat, spectacles, club, short sword

 

Wally, the grumpy one

Cha 7 -1     Con 10 +1   Dex 10 +0   Int 13 +1     Str 13 +1    Wis 11 +0

Para 8           Poison 6        Breath 10      Device 7        Magic 10

Armor 14, Move 120’, 4th Level Dwarf, 23hp, arquebus 1d8, dagger 1d4

Architecture 3, Languages 2, Open Doors 2

Leather, pirate hat, arquebus, bandolier, dagger, powder & shot

 

Vermin, the quiet one

Cha 9 +0   Con 14 +2   Dex 13 +1   Int 11 +0    Str 8 -1     Wis 14 +1

Para 10         Poison 8        Breath 13      Device 9        Magic 12

Armor 15 (leather), Move 120’, 2nd Level Dwarf, 17hp, dagger 1d4, club 1d4

Architecture 3

Leather, confederate hat, club, dagger

The Ultimate Pseudo-Historical Fantasy Campaign

I'm planning on running a pseudo-historical fantasy campaign in the near future. I'm gonna set it in some far corner of Siberia, but from the player's perspective it will start as a traditional fantasy game using Swords & Wizardry (or LotFP) for character creation. They wont necessarily know they are on earth, at least not at first. 

I want to use certain old school tools, such as using the advice of starting small in a 100 x 60 mile region using Underworld & Wilderness Adventures to flesh out castles and rulers as we encounter them. if they leave the starting region we'll use the Outdoor Survival map and random encounters from U&WA. 

Dwarves and Halflings are allowed though they are rare and common people will be leery of  them. Elves are evil, I'm gonna use the Elves from Lion & Dragon and run them like Melniboneans, cruel and haughty Fae, stealing children, and luring men under Elf Hills and such.

Depending what the players do, and how long this runs, I have some ideas of what lies to the north and the south. If they go north they'll pass through Blackmoor, LotFP's Weird New World before reaching Mount Meru at the North Pole, where they could discover the openings to the Inner Earth. For that, if it ever happens, I'll use Grimm Aramil's Lexicon Geographicum Arcanum Vol. 1: Species of the Hollow Earth. If the go south they will discover China and the Silk Road (Sword & Caravan). 

I also plan on using a custom version of Jeff Reints' Random Campaign Advancement from Flame Princess Zine #6? Which will slowly move the campaign from high-magic fantasy to mundane low-magic historical. So, dwarves could fade away, or magic and magic-users, or even clerics could lose their abilities. It will all be random so, in classic old school fashion, I have no idea how this world will play out. 

I want to throw in the Lost Dungeons of Tonnisborg somewhere in there.  

I imagine this will be the ultimate campaign that plays out over several IRL years, but who knows, you know how these things go. Plan big, prep small. or something.

LotFP Greyhawk Campaign

I wanted to run some old school Greyhawk. I thought, why not use the old 1e rules, I had OSRIC, so we made characters and started running Against the Slave Lords. We played the first 2 modules then the party split up, half went to Greyhawk City and half continued on. The ones who continued died in the Dungeons of the Slave Lords. 

Then we played a wild ass Lamentations campaign for the rest of the summer. Finally in the Fall we picked up Greyhawk again, but this time I converted everyone's characters to LotFP rules and off we went. 

Everyone had at least 2 characters, 3 to 5 players at the peak, then back to 3 players. We played a few adventures around Greyhawk from Treasures of Greyhawk, they found a Spelljammer vessel so we went into space and played a couple adventures from Skull and Crossbows. I never owned any of this stuff back in the day. These books were the reprints from drivethru. 

Finally they came back to Oerth and finished the Slavers modules. Then we started Expedition to the Ruins of Greyhawk. So I've run 1st, 2nd and 3rd edition modules with Lamentations of the Flame Princess and so far its been pretty smooth. 

I tied this new campaign in with my old Greyhawk game from 2001 in the 3e days. So my old high level character has made an appearance. My players are these young 20-something guys, so they are getting to discover Greyhawk for the first time.

Some people might wonder why Lamentations for the ruleset. Well, first I just love LotFP, it was my first retro-clone. And I like its skill system, the encumbrance, and there's very few class restrictions. For me as the DM, LotFP is just so smooth and easy to run.

Our highest level characters currently are around 8-10th level. 

It's been epic, we are wrapping up our last session by the end of the year. I enjoyed revisiting Greyhawk, not sure what our next campaign will be.

Until next time. Have fun, be cool. See ya next year.

Rise of the Lagomorphs Available Now!

 

Available Now!!

Something has caused the local rabbit population to explode. Unusual birth rates lead to strange mutations. As time goes by the rabbits become gigantic, intelligent, and full of bloodthirsty ambitions! Can your characters stop the Rise of the Lagomorphs?

Print: here

PDF here

 

 

Masters of the Universe Vehicles and Weapons for LotFP

Completely unrelated to recent He-Man controversies, I stated up some stuff for use in our recent LotFP campaign. I used these in Carcosa, not completely canon, I took liberties with the abilities.

Battle Ram Tank is a one-man vehicle with a detachable front sled. 30 Ship points, wheeled 180’, Cosmic Radiation Missile 6d6 +mutate, Save versus Poison or mutate, 15 missiles, Motion Detector, Chemical Identifier, Detachable Sky-Sled.

 

Sky Sled detaches from the Battle Ram to take flight. 10 Ship Points, hovering 300’, Violet Laser Beam 2d4, 50 charges.

Battle Harness Armor provides a Force Field of 20 points which must be activated. Recharges at a rate of 1 point per hour.

Power Sword, +2 to hit and damage, 1d8 damage, +1d6 damage to Neutral, +2d6 damage to Chaotic, X-Ray Pulse 1d12. Lawful, Int 10, Ego 5, can speak Lawful, Alien, Primordial, Dwarf, Detect Gems, Detect Traps, Telekinesis

There are 2 Power Swords. The counterpart is Chaotic, when brought together the two opposing alignments cancel each other and the sword becomes Neutral.

The Other Power Sword, +2 to hit and damage, 1d8 damage, +1d6 damage to Neutral, +2d6 damage to Lawful. Chaotic, Int 9, Ego 5, empathic, Detect Traps, Locate Secret Doors, Extra Damage: x4 damage for 1d10 rounds.

If they are brought together they will fuse, unlocking its final, ultimate power, the ability to open dimensional portals to other worlds.

Fused Power Swords, +2 to hit and damage, 1d8+2d6 to all alignments, X-Ray Pulse 1d12, Neutral, Int 10, Ego 5, can speak Lawful, Chaotic, Neutral, Alien, Primordial, Dwarf. Detect Gems, Detect Traps, Telekinesis, Locate Secret Doors, Extra Damage: x4 damage for 1d10 rounds, Open Portal.

 

Psi-Snakes from Outer Space, an encounter

Here is an encounter I wrote but ended up not using, so figured I'd throw it out there maybe someone can use it. Enjoy!

On a cold and lonely night, a bright light is seen streaking across the sky over a small village.

What the villages saw as a shooting star is, in actuality, an alien spacecraft. A group of alien hunters have come looking for slaves. The aliens are reptilians with psionic abilities and advanced tech. They have come for human slaves and will march toward the closest village and begin rounding up peasants.

 The PCs just happen to be in the village on this fateful night, either locals or just spending the night during their travels.

 Hss’Tak, the Leader: Armor 17 (dex +1, scales & chitin), Move 110 slither, 140 swim, 3 HD, 13hp, claws 1d8+1, Radio Pulse Pistol 1d10, 300’, 100 charges, Morale 9. Can breathe underwater, six-armed, wall crawling, rubber-boned (1/2 damage from blunt weapons). Psionics: Mind Control 2/day, Enlarge, Darkness, Ray of Enfeeblement 1/day each. Pistol, Datapad (spellbook), battle armor (see below)

Pythonis, the Big One: Armor 16 (scales & chitin), Move 110 slither, 140 swim, 3 HD, 22hp, +6 to hit, claws 1d8+1, Laser Bazooka 3d8, 3000’ range, 25 charges, Morale 9. Can breathe underwater, six-armed, wall crawling, rubber-boned (1/2 damage from blunt weapons). Psionics: Mind Blast 2/day. Bazooka, battle armor (see below)

Sslure, the Sneaky One: Armor 16 (scales & chitin), Move 110 slither, 140 swim, 3 HD, 14hp, claws 1d8+1, Radium Ray Gun 1d10, 300’ range, 100 charges, Morale 9. Can breathe underwater, six-armed, wall crawling, rubber-boned (1/2 damage from blunt weapons). Psionics: Telekinesis 2/day. Skills: Languages 5, Sneak Attack 2, Stealth 3, Tinkering 3. Pistol, battle armor (see below), sonic screwdriver (specialist’s tools)

 Battle Armor 

All of the Psi-Snakes are wearing Battle Armor. It is designed for their large snaky bodies and cannot be worn by anyone else.

 Battle Armor: AC 19, anti-gravity 240’, +5 to hit/+11 to damage in melee, Force Field 30pts, can carry 900 lbs.

Mini-Missile 1d12, 1 mile 40’ radius. Web Launcher, 1 mile range, 40’ radius, save versus Paralyzation or be ensnared

Last Resort 

If things start going badly for the Psi-Snakes, they will unleash their last resort, the Earwig. The Earwig is a giant mutated creature which the Psi-Snakes keep in an agitated state. It will be hungry, pissed, and out of control attacking anyone in the area, including its masters.

 The Earwig: Armor 18 (scales & chitin), Move 130 slither, 130 swim, 5 HD, 23hp, bite 1d12, Morale 12. Huge, six-legged, wall crawler, ½ damage from cutting weapons.

In Print

 

I was finally able to get all of my RPG modules in print. For awhile lulu.com didn't do book less than 20 pages I think. These books were 15 and 16 pages. Well, now they do. Saddle-stitched and in A5 size.

They fit in nice and snug with my other LotFP books, as if they were always meant to.

My next step is to convert Colony of Death over to A5 size. So that will be coming soon.

It's an incredible feeling to see your work in print and be able to hold it in your hands. 

Please check them out and enjoy!

The Place of the Skull https://www.lulu.com/en/us/shop/mw-hess/the-place-of-the-skull/paperback/product-p4j4q4.html?page=1&pageSize=4

The Witch Shack https://www.lulu.com/en/us/shop/and-friends-and-mw-hess/the-witch-shack/paperback/product-v2qnrr.html?page=1&pageSize=4

My Own Private Fantasy Fucking Vietnam

 

 

When I first heard the title "Fantasy Fucking Vietnam" (See: Green Devil Face #1) this is what I imagined.

Fighters or Specialists only 

Physik skill for medics (Flame Princess Cult #1)

Crossing Classes option

Just to keep things simple all guns do 1d8. Burst weapons are save versus Breath Weapon or take 3d8 damage. 

The players for this were all about 21 years old so they have never seen Apocalypse Now, so I lifted the plot and placed them on the Qelong River. I used WWII: Operation White Box for character backgrounds and military ranks and basic equipment. I used the weather and some of the encounters from Qelong, and BOOM! you have LotFP Vietnam.

NPCs

Special Forces Unit 

Sgt. Drake, William (Bill): Armor 13, Move 120’, 1st Level Fighter, 8hp, M-16 1d8, 9mm 1d8, Morale 11. BDUs, M-16, 9mm

 Cpl. Willis, Jeffery – Heavy Gunner: Armor 13, Move 120’, 1st Level Fighter, 8hp, .50 Cal 2d6, Morale 11. BDUs, .50 Cal

 Sgt. Lebowitz, Herschil – Radio Operator: Armor 13, Move 120’, 1st Level Fighter, 8hp, M-16 1d8, 9mm 1d8, Morale 8. BDUs, M-16, 9mm, Radio

 Pvt. Akers, John – Tunnel Rat: Armor 13, Move 120’, 2nd Level Specialist, 8hp, 9mm 1d8, Morale 10. Search 4, Tinkering 4. BDUs, 9mm, flashlight

 Cpl. Edgar, Robert (Butch) – Point man: Armor 13, Move 120’, 2nd Level Specialist, 8hp, M-16 1d8, Morale 11. Bushcraft 4, Search 4. BDUs, M-16, flashlight

 Pvt. Hicks, William (Bill) – Interpreter: Armor 13, Move 120’, 1st Level Specialist, 8hp, M-16 1d8, Morale 9. Languages 6. BDUs, M-16

 Cpl. Andrews, Wesley (Wes): Armor 13, Move 120’, 1st Level Fighter, 8hp, M-16 1d8, 9mm 1d8, Morale 11. BDUs, M-16, 9mm

 Pvt. Jensen, Thomas – Medic: Armor 13, Move 120’, 1st Level Specialist, 6hp, M-16 1d8, 9mm 1d8, Morale 10. Physik 5. BDUs, M-16, 9mm, med kit

 Bad Guys 

Viet Cong: Armor 13, Move 120’, 0-Level, 6hp, Kalashnikov 1d8, Morale 10.

 Vietnamese natives: Armor 12, Move 20’, 1HD, 5hp, fists 1d2, spear 1d6, blow dart 1 +poison, Morale 8. Save versus Paralyzation or stunned for 1d4 rounds.

 Col. Kurtz, Insane White God: Armor 14, Move 120’, 3rd Level Fighter, 23hp, M-16 1d8, 9mm 1d8, knife 1d4, Morale 12.