Yearly Archives: 2012

Types of Preparation

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Download a draft PDF of my session document

What makes up the work that a referee does when preparing to run an RPG? Here is a taxonomy that I find useful for evaluating the utility of published products, and also for deciding how to spend my own limited time. I cover the categories from the general to the specific.

ATMOSPHERE

Atmosphere includes the kind of things that will define a setting at the highest level. Preparation at the this level is like basic scientific research. It is necessary if you don’t want stagnation, but is not very useful when the rubber meets the road in actual play. Luckily or unluckily, the vast majority of published RPG material is atmosphere. For example, most published tabletop RPG settings fit here. They are very far from being play-ready, though they might have some good ideas. Most game entities (the contents of “splatbooks”) also fit here, and include things like monsters, treasure, and spells. Even most modules are better situated here. Fun pleasure reading, interesting ideas, but often not so good at the table. I don’t want to denigrate atmosphere too much; you need to get your ideas from somewhere. But reading a module or game setting is often at the same level as watching a movie or reading a novel.

SETTING

At some point, you need to start deciding where things exist in the campaign world. In the simplest case, you don’t need to do much work here; a town and a dungeon are enough for traditional D&D. Genre expectations (e.g.: generic Tolkienized medieval fantasy, Gotham City) can do much of the work for you, assuming that you don’t require your setting to be unique. The standard tradeoff here is approachability versus specialness (the same tradeoff exists for base rules and house rules). This level, for me, is no longer about general info (that would go above in the atmosphere category); the point of this is stuff that PCs might interact with at a macro level, both in spacial and relationship terms (e.g.: north of the kingdom are mountains, the guild of thieves seeks to steal the secrets from the council of magicians). There are few examples of published setting material under this definition. Most published “settings” are 90% atmosphere with 10% actionable setting info mixed within. I’m still not sure what the best way to store and reference setting info is, especially for use during the game. Character generation rules (or creation of pre-gens), selection of base system, and house rules all also fit here, practically speaking.

ADVENTURE
In an old school style game, this will likely be a site to explore, but it could also be something like an NPC relationship map. It must allow players to make low-level tactical decisions. In terms of published RPG material, the module is the most obvious analogue, but I’m coming to believe that the one page dungeon is a better model. Unfortunately, historically most published examples have been flawed by verbosity and linear story-based presentation that do not allow player choice to have much influence over how the game plays out. Verbose modules can still be valuable, but as atmosphere as described above.
SESSION
This phase doesn’t have a published analogue that I have seen (pointers welcome!), and so it gets far less attention than it deserves. For many people (myself included, until relatively recently), this phase entails a few hastily scrawled notes, maybe a map, and perhaps some refresher cram-memorization if running a module. However, I find that I have been able to run games much more effectively given a slightly more structured approach. Specifically, I need to be able to track time and monster health. To assist with this, I roll up a set of encounters and hit dice beforehand (inspired by Jim’s DM prep posts over at Carjacked Seraphim and Courtney’s session tracker over at Hack & Slash). Turn sequence and hit dice are randomized before every session. This means that during play, I only need to check things off. It is surprisingly freeing to have this info predetermined, and I highly recommend it. Before I did this, I was unable to reliably track time. Afterwards, it became trivial. In addition to this tool, I sometimes create a list of more complicated encounters, compile a list of names to use for improvised NPCs, and have a section to note down treasure or “important things” discovered. This document is still a work in progress though, and I assume it will continue to evolve.

Magic-Users are awesome

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JB has a post up about how the traditional D&D magic-user class sucks. I’m not putting words in his mouth, either:

So when I say, MAGIC-USERS SUCK, I’m only talking about the magic-using class, as used by player characters. And my astute observation (that they suck) comes from a careful review of the rules as written and their actual use in-play. My concern is about the “fun factor” of the class, both for the player who actually plays the character, the other players in the party, and the DM running the adventure.

In contrast, I think the magic-user as written is great, one spell slot at first level and all. First I’ll tell you why, and then I’ll address a few of the points he raises directly.

Eknuv the magic-user, tamer of hobgoblins

Eknuv the magic-user, tamer of hobgoblins

This morning I played a magic-user in Dwimmermount at OSRCon, and never once did I feel like I had nothing to do. We started at second level, but this still only gave me two prepared first level spells, a scroll, and two hit dice (which was 5 HP, as it turned out). Still in danger of being killed in one hit. I had AC 9, two daggers, and a small collection of adventuring gear. I had sleep, charm person, and a scroll of shield (which I never used). The sleep got us past a group of hobgoblins, and the charm person got me a hobgoblin henchman. But I didn’t feel the need to use any spells until fairly deep into the dungeon, on the second level.

Let’s also look at the list of first level spells. I’ll stick to the 3 LBBs here, because I think they encapsulate the essence of the class best. Later editions dilute the list by adding direct damage spells like magic missile too early, but the essence still remains if you look.

  1. detect magic
  2. hold portal
  3. read magic
  4. read languages
  5. protection from evil
  6. light
  7. charm person
  8. sleep

All of these spells are solutions to common dungeon problems. Detect magic can tell you which treasure is most valuable, or what aspect of a complex puzzle you should focus on (or avoid). Read magic allows you to use scrolls that you find without needing to retreat to the surface or potentially identify some magic items, if there are inscriptions. Read languages allows you to decipher maps or clues (I wished that I would have memorized read languages today when I was exploring Dwimmermount). Protection from evil prevents enchanted monsters from getting near you (like level-draining undead). Light is a failsafe in case you lose your main light source, or need to light an area that can’t be well lighted by torches or lanterns (like under water, in within magical darkness). Charm person gets you a retainer. Sleep allows you to avoid one direct confrontation. You get one of these potential wildcards in addition to everything else you can do as a person with two arms, two legs, a brain, and exploration equipment.

How much of a character’s capabilities should be located in the class “extras” and how much should be player creativity and interaction with the environment? I see the second category as primary, and the first as secondary. Everyone is an adventurer. Fighters get a small advantage in terms of combat (a bit more HP, better weapon selection, etc); thieves can climb and have a small advantage in some dungeoneering activities; clerics get to turn undead (and no spell at first level!); magic-users get a spell and the ability to use magic items and scrolls.

Which brings us to scrolls. How could JB have forgotten to mention scrolls? Scrolls allow magic-users to carry a potentially limitless number of utility and attack spells. If using the Holmes rules, they can be scribed for 100 GP per spell level, and if not using those rules DMs can place them as treasure or make them available for purchase (doing so is part of the class design, not a house rule). Even more spectacularly, depending on your edition of choice, you may be able to cast spells above your level from a scroll (I believe AD&D gives a chance of failure, but OD&D and B/X allow magic-users to cast spells of any level if they are on a scroll). In addition to scrolls, there are, of course, other magic items, most of which cannot be used by any other class. Even a small amount of adventuring will provide a fledgling magic-user with plenty of resources and options.

Now to individual points. Quotes are from JB’s post linked above.

The existence of house rules in many, many campaigns to change or increase magic-user effectiveness.

People house-rule many things. The most common house-rule I have seen in TSR D&D (and its simulacra) is full HP at first level. This is something I don’t think is necessary, is usually not specific to the magic-user, and even if implemented still leaves the magic-user often dead after one hit.

The modification and tweaking of the class and its abilities over-time and across editions, expressing dissatisfaction with the class as conceived in prior/earlier editions.

This has happened to all the classes, not just the magic-user. The humble fighter has probably come in for the most revision (due to some people not liking the lack of “awesome things to do” written on the character sheet), but every single class has been targeted at one time or another. The thief takes away skills from other characters, the cleric is a healbot, or is out of place in swords & sorcery settings, etc, etc. I do play commonly with several house rules about weapons and armor, but this is because I don’t care for weapons restrictions in general, not because I think that the magic-user class needs more weapons. Also, the OD&D method of using d6 for both hit dice and damage solves the same problem.

Instead, they’ll be skulking around the back of the pack, or whining that they need to retreat the dungeon to re-memorize their sleep spell(s), or bitterly complaining that they “can’t do anything.” Or all of the above.

Retreat is a strategy that is often available to PCs. There is nothing wrong with this; it will have advantages and disadvantages like any other choice. I don’t understand the complaint about the 15 minute workday. By all means, retreat if you think it will benefit you! This is only a problem if you have a planned sequence of events that your players must experience in order. Also, can’t do anything? How about holding the light source, flinging oil, reloading missile weapons, or any number of other helpful things?

Another house rule I often use is to give magic-users a chance to retain spells after casting them by succeeding at a save versus spells. But the same house-rule also provides for spell fumbles if you roll a 1 on the save (the point was not to give the magic-user more utility, but to make magic less reliable and more flavorful).

In Praise of Modules

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Hating on modules seems to be a common thing. Not just specific modules, but the abstract idea of them. I agree that many modules have problems. Many modules are so poorly laid out for actual use that it almost makes more sense to build something from scratch than to try using them at the table. Many classic AD&D modules fall into this category for me, with their huge wall-of-text room descriptions. However, even hard to use modules can also be read like literature and mined for ideas. Additionally, there is the benefit of getting out of your own head, at least to some degree:

Anybody can make maps and stock them with monsters and treasure. You can even do it randomly. Off-the-cuff refereeing is a skill that indeed requires no outside support, be it commercial or free. But I know when I buy an adventure, I am seeking in-depth descriptions that make the map and the contents of the location come alive, and hopefully in a way that I would never have done on my own. When I run someone else’s adventure, it’s because I want the challenge of running something different, to present my group with something different. Changed names to integrate a work into my setting aside, I don’t want to make an adventure “my own.” The whole point is to escape that for a bit and to charge my own creative batteries by basking in someone else’s creative light.

(From the introduction to Hammers of the God)

I would add a few more practical considerations that favor modules. The first is that it’s almost always easier to learn from examples than it is to learn from manuals. Any programmer will vouch for that insight. The second is that modules provide communal shared experiences. The third is that time is limited. It’s not hard to bake bread, but I still often defer to the baker.

City of the Beast

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Image from Paizo’s page

I just finished reading City of the Beast (also known as Warriors of Mars), Moorcock’s tribute to the planetary romance of Barsoom. I picked this up during Paizo’s recent sale. It is indeed highly derivative, and even eschews Moorcock’s standard problematic hero in favor of a chivalrous John Carter clone (though Michael Kane hails from the 1960s, and fought in Vietnam rather than the US civil war).

Almost needless to say, I didn’t care about a single one of the extremely simple characters, but there are still some interesting setting ideas here. The humans of Mars (or Vashu, as the inhabitants call it) have a well established civilization of graceful, tall buildings of white stone and blue marble with golden traceries. They also possess much lost technology from an ancient race called the Sheev (page 32):

They are very great and few of them still live. They are remote and of an older race than any on Vashu. Our philosophers speculate on their origin, but we know little about them.

And (page 39):

We are content simply to use the things of the Sheev. We were warned in the far past never to tamper with their gifts since it might result in disaster for us! Their mighty civilization once suffered a disaster, but we have only a few legends which speak of it and they are bound up in talk of supernatural entities in whom we no longer believe.

These artifacts include mind-crowns that allow people who don’t speak the same languages to communicate (how convenient), flying ships, light sources which “had once burned much brighter” (nice!), “ethercraft” (space ships), and laser sidearms. Repairing and recharging these items is beyond the knowledge of Vashu’s people, which makes them perfect “magic item” treasures for a tabletop RPG.

Also briefly mentioned in passing are the Yaksha, “ancient enemies of the Sheev but originally of the same race” (page 116). The Yaksha left ancient ruins spread over vast plains covered in black mud and stunted, sinister shrubs.

By the way, despite the cover image, the blue dudes are supposed to be 8 to 10 feet tall (not 20 feet or more). They are called Argzoon and are standins for the noble savage Tharks of Barsoom, though they live in an underground cavern city located in the Caves of Darkness.

Attack Ranks as Attack Bonuses

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Following on my discussion of OD&D AC yesterday, here is how to use OD&D attack ranks with the d20 SRD armor system (which uses armor class as target number, also known as ascending AC).

Attack Ranks
Rank Weak (Magic-user) Average (Cleric, Thief) Strong (Fighter) Attack Bonus
1
levels 1-5
levels 1-4
levels 1-3
+0
2
levels 6-10
levels 5-8
levels 4-6
+2
3
levels 11+
levels 9-12
levels 7-9
+5
4
levels 13+
levels 10-12
+7
5
levels 13-15
+9
6
levels 16+
+12

NOTES

Read the table like: clerics of levels 9 through 12 have attained attack rank 3 and have a base attack bonus of +5.

Again we see the power of three at work here. Weak, average, and strong fighting capabilities are enough to distinguish the classes from each other. Other than a category for not progressing at all, I can’t see any finer granularity adding much value to gameplay.

I have capped the progression of the weak and average classes. It should be obvious how to extrapolate the progression if you want it to be unlimited for all classes. I prefer that the pinacle of fighter combat achievement be higher than other classes.

Yes, it’s a table lookup, but it’s offline, not during the game, so who cares?

Simplified d20 SRD armor bonuses:

Armor Bonuses (Simplified)
Armor AC Bonus Penalty Exploration Tactical
light (leather)
+2
0
120′
40′
medium (chain)
+4
-4 (-20%)
90′
30′
heavy (plate)
+6
-6 (-30%)
60′
20′
shield
+1
-1 (-5%)
N/A
N/A

The really cool thing about this is that there are only 24 different possibilities to remember, and all of them are distinct. So players could potentially use whatever interface they prefer, and it would be all the same to me. So, all are equivalent: I hit plate, or I hit AC 3, or I hit AC 16 (my notes generally use the “AC as plate” form).

The penalty is for ability checks and thief abilities. This is taken directly from the d20 SRD, but the numbers work with the original game, so why not? The movement rates are the same as in this encumbrance system, just presented in a slightly different form.

Armor Equivalencies
Armor Descending AC Ascending AC
Unarmored
9
10
Shield
8
11
Leather
7
12
Leather & shield
6
13
Chain
5
14
Chain & shield
4
15
Plate
3
16
Plate & shield
2
17

I’m sure you have seen similar tables to this before, but I include this one here to show the minimum knowledge I need to keep in my head. You’ll also notice that the ascending AC column above is identical to the first OD&D combat rank.

THAC2, OD&D AC, and Combat Ranks

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In OD&D, there are only 8 armor classes. AC 9 is the worst (unarmored) and AC 2 is the best (plate & shield). Each number maps reliably back to a given armor type. So, presented with AC 5, you know that means chain armor (or medium armor, if you’re abstracting it).

Probably medium armor, depending on your setting (source)
  1. Plate & shield
  2. Plate
  3. Chain & shield
  4. Chain
  5. Leather & shield
  6. Leather
  7. Shield
  8. Unarmored

There are no other armor classes in the whole world. If you roll well enough on your starting gold, you can begin at first level with the best armor class in the game (plate armor and a shield cost 60 GP, well below the expected value of 3d6 * 10 starting GP, which is 105 GP). Contrast this with the cost of full plate in Second Edition: 4000 – 10000 GP.

Magic armor does not modify AC, but rather penalizes the attack roll, and the most potent magic armor in Men & Magic is rated +2. By the book, magic shields only help one third of the time, and only if the magical bonus of the shield is greater than that of the armor (i.e., they don’t stack). That requires an extra die roll per combat (extra fiddly), and so will almost certainly be something I jettison. Maybe I’ll house rule magic shields to an additional flat penalty of 1 to the attacker’s roll, along with the full magic bonus for certain saving throws (like dragon breath). I’ve always liked the idea if shields being extra good against dragon breath. [Edit: see here for a clever way from Talysman to handle the shield chance without resorting to another die roll.]

In addition to this form of fixed descending AC, OD&D uses something that I referred to in a previous post as a matrix of combat ranks (my words, not from the book) rather than THAC0 or attack bonus. All classes move through the same ranks, but fighters move through them faster (advancing to the second rank at level 4, when attaining the “hero” title). From Men & Magic, page 19:

Magic-users advance in steps based on five levels/group (1-5, 6-10, etc.), and Clerics in steps based on four levels/group (1-4, 5-8, etc.). Normal men equal 1st level fighters.

I actually like this staggered progression (which is preserved in Moldvay Basic), because it means that PCs need to survive by their wits for a while before they get any mechanical advancement (though I can see why some people might like a smoother progression, and in fact using Target 20 with a smoothly advancing attack bonus seems to be one of the more common OD&D house rules).

Attack Matrix 1

The OD&D approach does have some drawbacks compared to both THAC0 and armor class as target number (more commonly known as ascending armor class). THAC0 is easier to reason with than attack matrices, and direct target numbers don’t require any math (other than situational bonuses and penalties, though in practice those modifiers can end up being rather complicated in 3E).

In the end, all these systems are about the same level of complexity, and all require writing the same amount of numbers on the character sheet. In OD&D, you write down your attack rank column (which is a list of target numbers). In 2E, you write down your THAC0 (and probably derive your other target numbers from that). In 3E, you write your base attack bonus adjusted by all the other modifiers next to every weapon (if you are efficient).

However, the matrix approach does have some benefits, the main one being that anchoring AC helps prevent absurd bonus inflation (especially coupled with the simplicity of ability scores in OD&D). This helps make it clear that while mechanical combat advancement is part of the game, it is not the biggest part of the reward structure. Also, simple AC categories may help make weapon versus AC possible (though you do have to deal with rulings about monster hide being similar to what kind of armor).

This is one reason why I don’t care for the extra d20 SRD armor types that managed to creep into Labyrinth Lord. They break the elegant simplicity of the light, medium, or heavy armor types (modified by a potential shield) present in OD&D and Basic D&D. Obviously there are more types of armor than leather, chain, and plate; however, it does not seem useful to make a distinction regarding armor class past that threefold categorization (other differences can be handled by ruling; for example, chain mail could be used as a crude filter, something that it would be difficult to do with hide armor).

D&D Phase Shifts

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Image from Wikipedia

JB over at Blackrazor has been writing (one, two, three, four, five) about the phases of D&D (dungeon delving, wilderness exploration, and domain endgame) and how the traditional D&D incentive structure works well for the first, okay for the second, and not so well at all for the third. I more or less agree with his overall analysis. New incentives need to be discovered for domain play, and not just collecting taxes (because that is boring).

As idle thought experiments, here are two variations on the traditional phase-based D&D game. In the first variation, you tell the story backwards. You already have a lord or wizard with a stronghold and followers, and the game is to figure out how they got there. Unlike standard D&D, final death can’t be a danger because you already know that your character makes it to name level. Also unlike standard D&D, the game would end when you reach first level or 0 XP, rather than potentially going on indefinitely.

Would there be a way to make D&D played backwards interesting? I’m not sure, maybe 1d3 adventures per level, with each “death” leading to some sort of complication that would draw out the particular adventure. So getting from name level back to the beginning with the fewest complications would be the achievement. I feel like there is some connection here to the idea of planning out build options up to high levels like is sometimes done in 3E and 4E.

Now for the second variation. What if players started out with a stronghold? Either one per player or collectively. I feel like this would probably feel very different from D&D, despite the fact that all the rules would be identical for things like classes and spells. I’m not sure exactly why this would be the case, except perhaps that in the standard dungeon to wilderness to domain play (assuming a relatively deadly and impartial referee), everything is earned, whereas in this proposed structure you get everything for free. Also, people would not be as attached to their individual characters and thus perhaps not care as much about their advancement.

I imagine such a game progressing by first setting a basic stage (surroundings, stronghold capabilities, followers) and then advancing domain turns (probably one month per turn) to see what happens, based on some series of event tables. Scope could be zoomed in or out as necessary, so for wilderness expeditions, the players would zoom down to the perspective of questing knights and their squires (or magic-users with warders seeking rare spell components).

What would the overall motivation be to keep playing? Perhaps, like Dwarf Fortress, to see how many domain turns you can keep the whole thing going before being overwhelmed by an orc invasion or releasing some nameless menace from a long-sealed tomb? Individual characters need not gain levels (knights could just be level 4 fighters, for example) but I could see gaining powerful magic items still functioning as a reward of sorts. Does this just turn into a war game? Perhaps, but I’m not sure; especially if there are not opposing player-controlled sides.

Beginning complexity would also be higher than traditional D&D (and thus character/domain generation requirements would be heavier), but since there would be multiple characters (a lord, knights, spies, dungeoneers), lethality would not be problematic like it is in heavy chargen systems that make you put all your eggs in one basket. Such a basket is easily sent to the grave with a bad save versus poison roll.

Part of the tension here might be that when playing D&D, people want (or at least expect) to play an individual, whereas the domain level game is really less about individuals and more about collectives. This is why the incentives at the individual level don’t seem to make as much sense. Thus, maybe Game of Thrones style intrigue from the beginning just doesn’t work as well in a game, or at least not in the compulsively obsessive way D&D does.

Magical Research Assistance

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Image from Wikipedia

The only method given in the 3 LBBs for acquiring new spells is magical research. No mention is made of copying scrolls into spell books, as is common in many later editions. The magical research system (detailed on Men & Magic page 34) is based on GP investment followed by a percentile roll for success. Costs per 20% chance are, by level of spell:

  1. 2000 GP
  2. 4000 GP
  3. 8000 GP
  4. 16000 GP
  5. 32000 GP
  6. 64000 GP

There are no spells above sixth level that can be prepared in spell slots (though there may exist more powerful ritual magic). The expense is cumulative, so that if you spend 10000 GP on researching a first level spell, there is a 100% chance of success. One week per spell level is required per attempt.

This is quite expensive, but in my game there are some house rules for increasing the chances of success without investing more GP. Here are some such ways (a few are based on ideas described in more detail in Spells by Reverse Engineering & Dissection). The epiphenomena of researched spells will likely be affected by the type of research employed.

Reverse Engineering
If you are willing to destroy a magic item in pursuit of magical insight, that is worth a 20% bonus to the spell research roll. The item must be relevant to the spell effect in some way. Note that this covers using scrolls in magical research rather than casting the spell from them directly.
Dissection
If you can procure (by capture or purchase) a magical creature that is related in some way to the spell being researched, that is worth a 20% bonus to the spell research roll. For example, a creature that can use shadows as portals might be useful for researching dimension door. Mundane creatures are not generally useful for this bonus (thus, dissecting birds does not help with researching fly).
Studying Another Magic-User’s Spell Book
You can’t just copy a spell, but if you have access to another magic-user’s version of a spell, that is worth a 20% bonus to the spell research roll. Access to a grimoire works also.
Human Sacrifice
Magic-users with flexible morals may consume sentient, intelligent lives to help power their dark investigations. The number of souls required for a 20% bonus to the research roll is equal to the GP value of investment by spell level divided by 1000. Thus, a first level spell requires 2 while a sixth level spell requires 64. Not all spells can benefit from human sacrifice.
Places of Power
Some locations are inherently magical, either due to the echoes of past events, or strange connections to other places and times. Some examples are ancient standing stones and sites that exist half in the mortal realm and half in Dream-Land. Performing research for some kinds of spells in certain places is worth a 20% bonus on the research roll.
Self Sacrifice
Some magic-users crave power so much that they are willing to give of themselves. You may spend 1d4 ability score points or one hit die for a 20% bonus to a spell research roll. These reductions are permanent. Spells researched through self-sacrifice are said to be more deeply tied to their creator than other spells.
Assistance
What are apprentices good for, if they can’t help you with magical research? An arcane entourage will provide a 20% bonus to spell research rolls. One apprentice per spell level is required for this bonus (so six assistants are required to get any benefit during the research of a sixth level spell). The assistants in question must be skilled enough to prepare spells of levels two beneath the level of the spell being researched.
Mind invasion
ESP along with a subdued magic-user that has a given spell prepared is much the same as having access to a spell book with the magic formula. Not for the squeamish or ethical.
Specialized Library
Large collections of specialized books are quite rare and valuable, but may in some cases be worth a 20% research bonus.
Diabolism
Demons know a lot about magic. If you give a demon or spirit something, it might help you out enough to get a 20% research roll bonus.
Image from Wikipedia

Each attempt must include at least one unit of monetary investment (for example, at least 16000 GP must be spent on any attempt to research a fourth level spell). In general, other forms of assistance may be used no more than once per attempt. For example, a magic-user could capture and dissect a salamander during the research for wall of fire, but capturing and dissecting another fire-oriented creature would not grant another 20% bonus for this particular spell.

Abstract magical research may be performed at any point, if the GP is available. This may be applied to any future specific attempt, but abstract magical research functions like carousing and requires a saving throw versus spells to avoid unintended (but often amusing) consequences.

What happens if the roll fails?
The preparation and investment are not totally lost, but some aspect of the magic-user’s understanding or ritual preparation was off. One of the 20% bonuses is wasted. So, if you only invested the minimum needed GP and didn’t use any other form of assistance, you must start over from scratch. The magic-user may try again in one moon with the reduced percentage (if any is left over), or invest further in the procedure. The same preparation may not be used for a different spell.
What about researching a spell in the rules versus making up your own spell?
Mechanically, these two cases are handled the same way. However, it will generally be easier to find non-monetary components to assist with the research of spells from the rules, as scrolls and NPC spell books will contain formula for those spells. Also, I have seeded the campaign world with other features and items that are useful for researching particular spells.
How does this interact with the grimoire system?
If you have a grimoire, and cast read magic to interpret a spell in it (only needed before preparing the spell for the first time), you may prepare the spell as normal. However, the spell is not “yours” and if you lose the grimoire in question, you will not be able to prepare the spell again. Researching a spell (either one from the book, or a new one from your imagination) does not allow you to create a grimoire, which is a special kind of magic item. Creating a true grimoire is the feat of a great archmage. Thus, finding a grimoire is the least expensive way to get access to a new spell that is not consumed after one use (as a scroll is so consumed).
How does this apply to clerics?
Clerics use the same system for magical research, but the list of potential aids is different, and will likely be covered in a future post. Cleric magic is more limited than the sorcery of magic-users; methods of discovering new cleric spells generally include activities like copying holy scripture and staging secret rites.
Image from Wikipedia

There are stories about guilds of magic-users that share spell books, thereby easing the cost of magical research (one only needs time with another magic-user’s spell book to use it as an aid in magical research). No such actual organizations near Pahvelorn are known, however, and magic-users tend to be a jealous, paranoid, secretive lot. Also, legend has it that learning another magic-user’s spells will give you insight into the weaknesses of those spells and potentially even power over their creator, much like knowing a true name.

Planet Hulk

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After starting to follow people in the OSR, I’ve begun to pick up a comic book now and then. I saw Planet Hulk mentioned over at Sword & Shield a number of months ago. The premise is more or less Hulk as John Carter or Hulk as He-Man. The Hulk’s friends trick him into going to another planet (because they think he is too dangerous on Earth) but the shuttle navigation messes up and he ends up on this savage Barsoom-like world instead of the idyllic planet they had originally selected. There is also an animated movie (which I have not seen). In the afterword, the genesis of the idea is described as Hulk + battle axe + alien planet, which is a pretty accurate description of the end product.

There are plenty of Hulkish themes present which work pretty well in the context of Planet Hulk. Normal people need “monsters” to save them when they are in danger, but when civilization returns, they turn on the monsters. What if the Hulk was in a world where his anger was a gift rather than a curse? There are parasitic space zombies called spikes which could work well in a tabletop game.

This is not so much a story as a pastiche of ancient Rome, Spartacus, Barsoom, Conan, and Hulk. The plot is very simple, and most of the characters other than Hulk don’t seem to have any motivation. Who is the Red King and why does he like to don power armor and fry his subjects? It is not explained; he is merely a cookie-cutter despot. There are some great cover illustrations, like this one:

How about these dudes as red elves of Areon?

Also, the back of the trade paperback edition has something like a gazetteer of the planet Sakaar. There are descriptions of the major areas, characters, and some maps (one of the land and another of the capital city). One could easily base a pretty interesting campaign on this material.

Sightseer’s Guide to Zorfath

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Welcome to Zorfath! Unfortunately, the town is not what it once was. In the 100 years after the ascension of Castle Pahvelorn to the overworld, the northeast, southeast, and southwest quadrants have fallen to ruins. The town itself, located in the northwest quadrant, is almost perched on the edge of the great chasm. It’s only a about a hundred paces to the Great Stairs, which leads to one of the entrances to the ruins in the pit. The abandoned parts of town are not safe; creatures from the surrounding wilderness often wander in, though they are prevented from entering the town proper by wards and the diligent town guards.

Oh, and stay away from the entrances to the old sewers. A cleric that came through town years ago sealed them all with holy power when the unquiet dead began to emerge and terrorize the town. Everyone assumes they are still trapped down there.

Here is a list of some locations that travellers like yourselves might be interested in, organized by what they provide.

Rumors, retainers, affordable lodging, and a good drink: THE GIANT’S SWORD. This is the best known tavern in Zorfath, so named for the huge rusty sword, the height of two men, thrust in the ground by the door. The blade was said to be wielded by a giant slain in the campaigns of the exiled Lord Arios.

Weapons and custom armor: BLACKSMITH’S SHOP. There’s only one, and it doesn’t really have a name, everyone just calls it the blacksmith’s shop. It is run by Master Greenscum and his crew of apprentices. Greenscum collects exotic weapons and will pay good GP for such items.

Exploration gear: THE GENERAL STORE. Pretty much what is says on the sign.

10′ poles, torches, lamps, oil, and other illuminates: take your pick of ARGOTZ LAMPMAKER & OILCRAFTER, SEVENTOOTH BLAZEWORKS, and VENDRANG’S ILLUMINATIONS. Lamp, oil, and other light-giving tools are one of the major products of Zorfath (fish, orange pottery, and green wheat being the other two major trade-goods). Any of the illumineers will pay for fire beetle glands, giant fireflies (more if alive), and several other creatures useful for light-crafting. The Zorfathian 10′ pole is used by the lamplighters and is generally fitted with a small metal hook at the business end.

Antidotes and other herbal concoctions: USETH’S APOTHECARY. Shilum the apprentice mostly manages the apothecary now, as his master Useth is gravely ill. Seeks undamaged corpses of poisonous creatures.

  • Wyvern antitoxin (500 GP per dose, limited stock)
  • Giant centipede antitoxin (25 GP per dose)
  • Other antidotes may be available depending on supply

Selling valuable loot and buying exotic items: THRACLE’S GRAND EMPORIUM. There are always a few strange and marvelous items to be found at the Grand Emporium, though they change frequently. Thracle is probably the richest person in Zorfath, though he is rarely present, as he has Emporiums in other towns and strongholds as well, and often organizes caravans. Some people believe he pulls the real strings in Zorfath, rather than the Sheriff or Council.

Learned consultation: STRODASTIN THE SAGE. He is employed by Thracle, and has chambers somewhere in the upper stories of THE GRAND EMPORIUM. He travels frequently, and so is not always present in Zorfath.

Specialist hirelings, treasure maps, and other resources for explorers: NULHOON’S LODGE. The home of the Society for Treasure Hunters. This is not open to the public and requires an invitation.

There are also numerous bakers and fishmongers, in addition to the CENTRAL MARKET, where rations can be procured. BEGGARTOWN lies on the west edge of Zorfath, and cheap (but often unreliable) help can sometimes be found there. That poor part of town lies just inside the geomantic wards that help prevent dark creatures from overrunning the town during the night, when the powers of chaos are strongest.

More rumors:

  1. The master smith Hovandam is said to live somewhere on the downlow in Zorfath. Supposedly, he has sworn never to make another blade, but maybe you can convince him otherwise.
  2. Zuhar the bandit chief has a hideout somewhere nearby Zorfath, though his raids have been infrequent lately (several caravans have made successful journeys without needing to pay Zuhar’s toll). Nobody knows why.
  3. Villagers have been going missing recently, approximately one or two per month for the past several months.
  4. The last group that went into the west caves did not return. Smoke is sometimes seen coming from it.
  5. There is an abandoned and despoiled shrine in the southeast quadrant. When the town was still larger, it was raided by wicked soldiers and the relics were carried off. The story goes that the raiders took shelter in the exposed ruins of the great chasm to avoid pursuit, and were never seen again.
Most of the buildings in Zorfath are built from orange bricks shaped from the clay of the Whiskerknife Hills, though this is contrasted with the dull gray imported stone of the old town and castle.
Map of town and surroundings to come in a future post.