deClench's page

Hooray for the dead! :)

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Halloween is a time for the dead... and for those that love them.

Our long-awaited Mysteries of the Dead Side: Sacred Necromancer rings in this dark holiday. The fruit of our very first Kickstarter campaign, this is the epitome of a devoted necromancer class.

We've also just released our schizophrenic version of the shaitan in Wishbreaker, a Tale of the Shaitan. You can use the creature as a shaitan or as a new genie called a wishbreaker. Either way, it is more than ready to torment PCs.

And one more, our first batch of color prints of Incantations from the Other Side: Spirit Magic and Incantations in Theory and Practice have arrived.

The latest Tattlebox is out from Zombie Sky Press.

Down, down, down, into the dark we go. (That's where they keep the good stuff!)

• 2 mini dungeon levels to add in anywhere
  
• New ways to envision dungeons, like in the belly of a dragon or without walls
  
• Underground hazards just waiting for fresh victims
  
• Feats that utilize a character's environment, such as bounding off walls
  
• Vermin inspired weapons and items
  
• And more new dungeon-delving equipment than you can shake a collapsible 10-ft. pole at!

Now, you too can stab at the darkness.

By Jesse Benner, John Bennett, Thomas LeBlanc, John Pingo, James Thomas.

There’s no such thing as too many monsters!

These cunning creatures may look like dogs from a distance but the slimy skin, poison, and other strange abilities will change your mind fast. Pack-hunting jungle predators, the wastehounds are on the prowl. And they’re hungry!

• 5 new monsters—ghulhound, wastehound, wastehound alpha, wastehound exile, and zelodian mutant
  
• Ecology of the wastehound
  
• Explorer’s camp with detailed color map
  
• 3 different mini-adventures of varying levels, featuring wastehounds
  
• And tons of hooks!

Here Be Monsters brings you new monsters, their ecologies, and mini-adventures to bring them to life. Each episode focuses on one monster but presents several different types of that monster or closely related monsters. More than that, a full ecology fleshes them out for your game, and a lair or other locale is presented—complete with a map—with one or more different scenarios utilizing the creatures.

Let the killing begin!

Here Be Monsters is a high quality, full-color, web-optimized, 17-page PDF from Zombie Sky Press with convenient links to d20PFSRD.com for common gaming terms. It uses the Open Game License and the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Compatibility License and is compatible with the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game and standard 3.5E fantasy RPGs.

Design: Liz Courts, David Schwartz, Joshua Stevens
Illustration: Michael Jaecks, Ashton Sperry
Editing: Scott Gable, Dora Wang

(You can pick up your copy at DriveThruRPG, Paizo, or RPGNow. On sale for a limited time!)

Tattlbox #3 is out... and there's a SKELETON RIDING A FREAKING SHARK!!!

Come get some Pathfinder piratey goodness...

• Tales of ancient vengeance on the seas
  
• Disappearing islands full of adventure and death
  
• Ghostly, black pirate ships, seemingly unmanned and traveling the seas of the multiverse</li>
  
• Vicious pirates and the legacy of their dread orc leader
  
• Undead of the seas uniting with aquatic variants of some of your favorites
  
• Adding ship's positions, like captain and navigator, to your game
  
• Playing swashbuckling characters, swinging from the chandelier
  
• Piratey gunslinger archetypes
  
• Torpedoes! And depth charges! And mines!
  
• Horrific hazards of the high seas
  
• And scurvy!

Come join our Pathfinder jam session. Ar, I dare you not to have fun!

The latest issue's out of this new monthly! Grab some alchemy. :)

The free premier issue of Tattlebox has been available for a year now, but what about the rest? Very soon, Tattlebox will return as a monthly digital release for Pathfinder. Each issue will be tightly focused to a specific topic with articles for both GMs and players. Alchemy, pirates, dungeons, and much more are all coming!

Many have asked if our incantations would ever see print. Well, now they have! Incantations from the Other Side brings together our work on incantations in one print.

Copies will be on hand at Paizocon and then the online store. Preorder to reserve yours!

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It's my birthday, and I'm giving stuff away. (That's how it works, right?)

I'm considering what to work on next year for Zombie Sky Press, and I'm always looking for new and interesting challenges. So for Thursday only, I would love to hear what you want to see in RPGs. What would set your mind ablaze?

What system would you prefer: Pathfinder, 4E, Fate, an original game system, other? What content would you like to see? What would excite you? Could be something to do with existing lines or something altogether different.

Three posters, chosen by me, will receive free copies of all the PDFs that ZSP has already published or the next three releases free, your choice.

(You can also post on Facebook and Google+.)

Game on!

Clinton Boomer, writer of many of the wonderful D&D and Pathfinder RPG products you love, wrote a book! The limited print edition is already available, but Boomer is extending his domination into the digital realm. The ebook version of The Hole behind Midnight will be available very soon through all your usual ebook vendors, including here at Paizo. If you already love Boomer's writing, you won't be disappointed.

The Hole behind Midnight is being published by Broken Eye Books, a brand-new fiction publisher. Become a fan by liking their Facebook page or commenting at the announcing post on Google+, and on Halloween, you might win a free copy of the ebook.

A Broken Eye Books website is coming. Stay tuned for more news on Boomer's novels and other authors.

The Hole behind Midnight

Royden Poole is having a very bad day.

Strong-armed into investigating a break-in, a bizarre theft, two missing persons, and a shooting with no body, and all he wants to do is go back to pretending he's dead.

And that's just a warm up.

Explore behind the scenes of reality in the 25th Hour, a strange world of gods and monsters. A place of wonder and horror, a place of magic. Follow along with Royden Poole on a foul-mouthed, darkly comic, hardboiled romp through the twisted underbelly of the world you thought you knew.

Recommended for mature audiences only.

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You don't have to go to the stars... they're coming to you!

It Came from the Stars is a new patronage project from Zombie Sky Press, exploring the effects of the weird on your game. Join today!

Beyond the Realms You Know

It Came from the Stars brings the mystery of the unknown and the weird to your Pathfinder Roleplaying Game with new player options, new monsters, and new adventures. Mystery, wonder, and terror from the starry vastness await you. Whether you play in a world that is already aware of what lies beyond or that has been so far oblivious, it's about to get ugly.

Discover bold new options for characters: Fantastic psychic abilities. Strange alien technology. Mindwarping secrets. Will you stalwartly oppose the madness or will you give in? Can you twist the dark whispers to your own advantage?

Confront challenging new foes: For instance, the dreaded star beasts (one is illustrated above). Each star beast is unique in personality, appearance, and power. What can you hope to do if one of these devastating forces comes to your world? Or any of the other new creatures, for that matter?

Plunge into harrowing adventure: The stars are here! Stave off invasion. Discover derelict technologies. Plunge yourself into worlds unknown. How will you fare in the coming confrontation?

Set Sights for the Weird

Join us in bringing the weird to your game. It Came from the Stars comes in two parts, 64 pages each, wondrously illustrated by Roxxy Goetz (The Spoils CCG). The first is full of player options, including new classes, new options for existing classes, and much more. The second is full of new monsters and crazy adventures. Discover strange, new technologies and portals to other worlds. Meet odd monsters and take their stuff. Save the day or die as your world burns. (This product will be supported with Hero Lab, character generation software from Lone Wolf Development.)

Who could bring you such a thing? Only masters of the weird, that's who: Scott Gable (Incantations in Theory and Practice, The Faerie Ring), Colin McComb (Dark Sun, Planescape, and Ravenloft Settings), Richard Pett (The Sixfold Trial, The Styes, We Be Goblins!), Michael Kortes (Entombed with the Pharaohs, Haunting of Harrowstone), Clinton Boomer (Incantations from the Other Side, The Infernal Syndrome). And you! You can join us in this craziness: contribute your designs, playtest the results, shape the final product, and have some crazy fun!

As a milestone, if we can reach 150% of our funding goal, we'll create three parts, instead of just two: the bestiary and the adventures will each have there own 64 pages. (That means a minimum of 192 pages!)

The Stars Are Here!

Maybe the strange creatures are here to enslave! Maybe they're here to eat! Maybe they're here to mate!! Whatever the case, it probably won't be pretty. It Came from the Stars is not a setting but a set of tools for you to add the wonder of the stars to whatever setting you wish. It's an event to up the stakes of your game and shatter expectations. It gives you what you need in order to add an element of the unknown to your game. Mysterious abilities, strange technologies, powerful foes, and mind-blowing adventures. It's about discovering that you're not alone. That there is much more than you had ever realized out there. That you are in terrible danger always.

It Came from the Stars provides the means to launch your game in new directions. Spice up your fantasy with a taste of the stars--some Lovecraftian horror here, some space opera there, a splash of pulpy action. Add some mystery to your ancient cultures, giving them ties to things beyond the stars. Add an unexpected twist to the storyline, upping the stakes and revealing new possibilities. Create rich characters with backgrounds hinting at the stars and powers threatening to consume them. Stave off the invasion forces and discover new worlds.

While a book of the weird, for sure, It Came from the Stars is fun and playable and still the fantasy you know and love. It's intended to shake up campaigns, pushing the limits--whether that's cthuloid squishiness or arcane science or weird psychic powers.

There's weirdness out there. You ready to explore it with us? Follow along with the pre-launch discussion and teasers at zombieskypress.com and Scott's G+.

It Came from the Stars is the first offering in The Weird Cycle. Future offerings under this banner will explore... other weirdness! It Came from the Stars complies with the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Compatibility License.

I was going to wait until after everyone got back from Gen Con, but then I realized that some folks--like me--can't go this year. So here's something to help ease the pain!

We're trying out a new community project using Kickstarter. If the project gets funded, you get to help create the sacred necromancer.

Come spend some time with me and the project backers to create the sacred necromancer, a new class for your Pathfinder Roleplaying Games.

With your input right from the beginning and your playtesting, it will be a class that you can't wait to play and that you know will be balanced.

A class worth dying for! ;D

We're considering something different for the next [i]Mysteries of...[/url] release and looking for advice. (The previous release, Mysteries of the Tengu Road, presents the yamabushi, taking inspiration from the 3.5E warlock and dread necromancer and combining that with the Pathfinder oracle.)

This series is all about player options (primarily through new classes). I love devising new classes--experimenting with new design and sculpting the rules into a thing of of beauty. But I'd like to add an element of patron feedback to the process.

I'm considering developing the next class a little differently: fund it as a small Kickstarter project and have the patrons help me brainstorm and playtest the new class, possibly on Google+.

I haven't pulled the trigger, yet, because I'm still working out the implementation. Is this something that would interest you?

Yay, the Store Blog! Spreading its love! :D

Come one, come all...

• Cast your eyes upon Marvelous Ashton Sperry's Falling Leaves comic
  
• Gaze in horror as I try to convince you that splitting the party can be fun
  
• Delight at 14 new weapons, including the maul, new chain weapons, the personal ballista, and more
  
• Wonder at the new weapons special features, like feint and bull rush
  
• But avoid looking directly into the new artifact, the Tattlebox itself, for your very sanity is on the line

Wonders await you!

Welcome to Tattlebox, the traveling sideshow! Find an assortment of wonders and horrors in this ongoing miscellany for the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game.

In this issue, you’ll find...

• Falling Leaves: a comic of fey proportions
  
• Let's Split the Party!: an essay on why you should split the party
  
• 14 new weapons, 6 new weapon special features, a new artifact, and more!

Each Tattlebox presents something for everyone: tips, flavor, crunch. Stuff for players and GMs alike. Add something new to your game!

The first issue will be free for 1 week. Grab yours today!

The Faerie Ring: Along the Twisting Way #2—Red Jack is now available!

The next chapter of The Faerie Ring is here! Play as as kitsune. Develop your fox magic. And never cross the self-proclaimed avatar of death, Red Jack (an epic-level bad guy).

Check out this snapshot of one corner of the fey worlds!

Mysteries of the Tengu Road: Yamabushi, the Sublime Transmuter is now available!

Play a new base class, the yamabushi. They are masters of transmutation magic. There's also a new PC race, the daitengu (fey cousins of the tengu). There're also 3 new transmutation spells, a new weapon (the ring staff), and more.

When else would the fey invade but on the longest night of the year?

The Faerie Ring has finally begun! Check out The Faerie Ring: Along the Twisting Way Prelude.

It uncovers the Preternatural Planes where the fey can call home when not vacationing on the Material Plane, several new subtypes of fey, and fey sovereigns and other power players.

The Faerie Ring is ongoing, combining elements of sourcebook, mini-setting, and player's guide. The next chapters are right around the corner.

We have lots of plans for the fey, but we also want to know what you want to see. Feel free to ask us whatever questions you have.

Nail down the furniture, and hide the children... the fey are coming!

The Faerie Ring is almost here, but before you meet the fey lords and their servitors within this new series, you need to get up to speed with The Faerie Ring: Along the Twisting Way Prelude. What are the fey? Where do they come from? Why do they torment you so? Find out on 12/21/2010.

Most cultures easily rattle off stories of the fey, portraying them in the most colorful of ways. On the surface, the tales seem little more than entertainment and whimsy, perhaps a moral interjected here and there. More often than not, they are so contradictory or ridiculous as to be easily dismissed. However, if you look long enough, you eventually realize that the fey are simply more diverse and complicated than previously imagined.

The fey aren’t like you and me.

In this book, you’ll find...

• Secrets of the fey laid bare
  
• Fey origin myths, philosophies, and social habits
  
• Wonders of the Preternatural Planes
  
• Glimpses into twisted, fey thought processes
  
• New subtypes of fey
  
• Evidence of fey lords, their demesnes, and their servitors
  
• And more of the craziness that can only come from the fey!

The Faerie Ring brings you the worlds of the fey. From the fey lords to those that serve them. Their lands, their magics, their machinations. Everything a GM needs to bring a fresh dose of fey to a game. And for players, there are playable fey races, feats, incantations, and more. The Faerie Ring: Along the Twisting Way Prelude is merely the beginning of the journey.

Here Be Monsters: Aching for Blood (Mosquitofolk) starts a 5-part arc of jungle-based monsters.

I wanted to give a more detailed sampling of content, so here's what's in it:

9 Monsters:

• Giant mosquito
  
• Mosquito Swarm
  
• Mosquitofolk, Hollow (undead bloodbag)
  
• Mosquitofolk, Blood Jumper (fast attacker, hit and run tactics)
  
• Mosquitofolk, Secret Sting (sneaky with a nasty poison)
  
• Mosquitofolk, Blood Blade (armed killer, see below)
  
• Mosquitofolk, Cage Glider (giant, creepy slaver)
  
• Mosquitofolk, Swarm Spewer (spits out and controls mosquito swarms)
  
• Mosquitofolk, Wound Mage (vile mastermind and blood master)
  
• Ecology, encounter groups, lore, and more--complete with the wonderful illustrations of Ashton Sperry
  

(Monsters span CR 1-10)

5 Alchemical Items:

• Blood Lure
  
• Gag Grass
  
• Haze Frond Torch
  
• Reek Sap
  
• Stonefall Seeds
  

Blood Meal Mini-Adventure:

• A cliffside lair, gorgeously mapped by Liz "Lilith" Courts (a keyed version and an unkeyed version) [We've already gotten several compliments on Liz's awesome lair map!]
  
• 3 simple scenarios with multiple encounters using the lair, usable as sidetreks to insert into your campaign (for 4th, 8th, and 12 th levels)
  
• Hooks to incorporate the mosqitofolk into your campaign, tips on taking PCs as prisoners, and more
  

And here's a sample mosquitofolk:

Mosquitofolk, Blood Blade CR 7

This sleek mosquitofolk moves with a sinuous grace that makes the slightly curved, doublebladed spear it holds in its hands seem almost a
part of it.

XP 3,200
NE Medium monstrous humanoid
Init +3; Senses blood scent 60 ft., darkvision 60 ft.; Perception +12

DEFENSE
AC 20, touch 14, flat-footed 16 (+3 Dex, +1 dodge, +6 natural)
hp 85 (9d10+36)
Fort +7, Ref +9, Will +7
Immune disease, mind-affecting effects

OFFENSE
Speed 30 ft., climb 30 ft., fly 30 ft. (good)
Melee mwk double spear +13/+13/+8/+8 (1d8+5/x3 plus bleed) or bite +14 (1d6+7 plus attach and bleed)
Special Attacks bleed (2d6), blood drain (1d4 Con), diseased

TACTICS
Before Combat Blood blades charge into combat.

During Combat A stalwart combatant, a blood blade relishes facing opponents head on and despises enemies who try to get around it. It prefers to use its spear in melee and only employs its bite attack when hoping to drain blood.

Morale Mosquitofolk fight to the death against living foes possessing blood or in defense of their nest. Otherwise, they attempt to flee immediately.

STATISTICS
Str 20, Dex 17, Con 18, Int 10, Wis 12, Cha 11
Base Atk +9; CMB +14 (+22 grapple when attached); CMD 27 (31 vs. trip)
Feats Combat Reflexes, Critical Focus, Dodge, Two-Weapon Fighting, Vital Strike
Skills Climb +23, Fly +17, Perception +12, Stealth +13, Survival +11; Racial Modifiers +8 Climb
Languages Buzz Speak
SQ blood scent

Zombie Sky Press presents...

Here Be Monsters: Aching for Blood (Mosquitofolk) (PFRPG)
There’s no such thing as too many monsters! Here Be Monsters brings new monsters and everything you need in order to use them right now in your campaign.

In this book, you’ll discover…

• 9 new monsters—different varieties of mosquitofolk and related creatures.
  
• The complete ecology of the mosquitofolk.
  
• A mosquitofolk lair with detailed color map.
  
• 3 different mini-adventures of varying levels.
  
• And tons of hooks!

The mosquitofolk want nothing more than your blood—all of it. And they’ll stop at nothing to get it. Some of the creepiest monsters ever imagined, they are fully fleshed out and ready to spring on unsuspecting characters everywhere.

Here Be Monsters: Aching for Blood is a perfect monster resource for game masters wanting new monsters for their world or for players wanting to learn about and prepare for the world of their characters. This high quality, web-optimized pdf is compatible with the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game and contains everything you need to utilize mosquitofolk in your game right now.

Design by Hal Maclean and Scott Gable; Illustration by Ashton Sperry; Cartography by Ted Reed and Liz Courts; Editing by Troy Taylor and Scott Gable.

To be released October 25th.

Paizo just announced their coming exploration of voodoo in the latest adventure path!

Zombie Sky Press wants to take this opportunity to remind anyone that may have missed it of our own Pathfinder Roleplaying Game supplement, Incantations from the Other Side: Spirit Magic--a third of which is devoted to voodoo!

Incantations in Theory and Practice, the latest product from Zombie Sky Press, just became available.

Incantations in Theory and Practice brings incantations—the alternate system of ritual magic from 3.5E—to the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game. This exciting twist on magic brings great power to the fingertips of any player,even non-spellcasters, but power like this never comes without a price.

In this book, you’ll discover…

• Everything you need to start using incantations in your game right now.
  
• Guidelines to build your own balanced incantations and incorporate them into your game.
  
• New ideas on what incantations can be. (Here’s a hint, they’re more than just ritual magic.)
  
• New options, including opposed checks and lesser incantations.
  
• And 3 new incantations!
  

Every incantation is a story, complete with built-in hooks for more
adventure. This is an unpredictable, living, breathing magic.

Incantations in Theory and Practice is a perfect resource for players wanting to add a little danger to their characters or for game masters needing that extra something for their game world. This 9-page, high-quality, web-optimized pdf is compatible with the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game and contains guidelines for building and using incantations and presents 3 new sample incantations.

Written by Scott Gable and Troy Taylor; Illustrated by James Keegan

Visit www.zombiesky.com to discover similar products.

And as a sneak preview, here's one of those new incantations:

Corpse Dancer

You plunge your hands into the open abdomen of the corpse laid out in front of you. You slowly work the medium—the blood and innards—making sickening squelching noises the entire time. It is only as you finish, when the creature opens its eyes and stares up at you, its master, that the full reality of what you’ve done becomes apparent.

School necromancy; Effective Level 3rd
Skill Check Heal DC 20, 2 successes; Spellcraft DC 20, 1 success
Casting Time 30 minutes
Components M, S
Material Components—corpse of sentient creature, recently deceased (within 2 weeks of death); exotic unguents for preparing corpse (worth at least 500 gp)
Range touch
Target dead creature touched
Duration instantaneous
Saving Throw none; SR no

Description
You create a homunculus.With a fresh corpse in hand, you begin the work of molding some of its flesh and organs into your homunculus. Slowly, the tiny form takes shape, and with luck, it begins to take on a life of its own as it pulls away from your sticky hands and corpse incubator.

The creature is a homunculus (see Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Bestiary). You supply the creature’s vitality with your own blood (or 1d10 of its total 2d10 hp). You are its creator, possessing the standard bond between homunculus and master.

A secondary Craft (sculpture) skill check is required to determine how well crafted the homunculus is. (This check doesn’t affect the actual success or failure of this lesser incantation.)

Craft (sculpture) (Check Result)
9 or lower (The homunculus is poorly shaped, possessing ugly
deformities and no wings (or useless wings). It cannot fly.)

10-19 (The homunculus is appropriately formed. It can fly.)

20 or higher (The homunculus is expertly crafted. It appears as a tiny replica of whatever or whomever you wish: perhaps of yourself or another individual.)

Backlash
Half of the total hp of the homunculus, or 1d10 hp, are permanently drained from you to fuel the tiny, necrotic construct. You cannot heal this damage unless the homunculus is destroyed.

Failure
If you fail two consecutive skill checks, the homunculus animates as normal, but you are not its master. You still suffer the backlash, fueling the creature, and you still develop a telepathic link with it, but you cannot control it. It makes its own choices. You do not realize the failure until the homunculus says or does something to clue you in: it may threaten you, attack you, run away, or something else as appropriate.

The homunculus resents you for dredging it into existence, and it wants to ruin you for it. It may attempt to do so openly or secretly. It may even play along, feigning that it’s under your control, but you never actually control it.

I wanted to echo the recent blog post and give praise for Andrew Hou's artwork. Aside from Wayne Reynolds (who deserves every bit of it), the artists don't always get the props they deserve. Hou's artwork has consistently stood out for me in the pages of Dragon and Dungeon, and I am thrilled to see his talent continue to grace the products of Paizo.

Cool!

This will be my first Pathfinder character's weapon of choice...

Desna, Song of the Spheres
CG goddess of dreams, stars, travelers, and luck
Domains: Chaos, Good, Luck, Travel
Favored Weapon: starknife

...unless of course the starknife is cooler.

Anyone up for some crazy speculation? What would we like to see for the goddess of dreams and the stars! (I can tell right now that I'm gonna like her.)

I enjoy new, crazy material. That's just the way I am. I love psionics and Eberron and "psionics in Eberron" and the Far Realms and anything that challenges my imagination. Frankly, I would be bored to tears in games that are intended to be historically accurate. Nothing at all against those that enjoy those games or are itching for a trip down memory-lane, I'm simply stating my position and hoping that there are others like me. Not everyone will agree with my views, and that's fine because we can just arm wrestle later to see who's right.

In the meantime, I'm challenging all you writers that want to see new, crazy material to submit it. I know it's tough. Writing for the margins is risky, and only so much risk is acceptable. Though, if there's more of an interest shown, then maybe we'll see some of the material we want. Of course, then it won't be in the margins and we'll have to find something else to champion. ;D

So here's the thread. What crazy stuff do you like in "Your D&D"? I would love to see:

Psionics -- Of course! New material. Incorporation into non-psionic articles.
Mythology -- The Demonomicon articles are great most definately, but how about some brand-new ones? Spin some mythologies for new "uniques." Maybe some psionics incorporated in.
Planar -- New locations. Not tied to pre-existing worlds (not even Eberron).
Strange -- Just bizarre creatures, locations, hooks, systems, items, whatever.

These are a few things I'd like to see more of (I'm rushed, so I'll add more later). How about you? Come, let's talk of new things, shall we?

When my own proposals -- I'm sorry, *IF* my own proposals get rejected, I will be writing them up anyway and doing something with them. Maybe I'll post some here, so feel free to add to our repertoire of the crazy. Cheers and good luck! ^_^

Ermm? The King in Yellow referenced on the cover of issue #134? For sanity's sake noone read that issue! Don't even open it!!

;)

I have seen other's comments and I have had my own internal debates, and I am still undecided. What do you prefer?

On one hand, we have adventures (or features in Dragon for that matter) that are deeply rooted in a given setting. These can be incredibly rich experiences for those gaming within that setting but sometimes less than useful for those gamers of another setting. [greater use to fewer people]

On the other hand, there is the generic approach. These adventures (or features) are intended to have broader appeal. They may be dressed in a specific setting, but they have little or no setting-specific depth and are easily ported to a different setting. The risk here is a less-interesting environment. [lesser use to more people]

Personally I've gone back and forth on my preferences. I like well-written generic adventures for the exact reason that they are easy to place. However, I also love adventures that delve into a specific setting. Here's where I admit that I have no love for FR and great love for GH and Eberron, and therefore, FR specific adventures are generally less-than-useful for me.

My current preference is for several generic adventures with periodic setting-specific adventures (maybe 2:1 with a rotation on the setting). The important part, though, is that the setting-specific adventures should be immersive with the setting; I just don't see the point of generic adventures pre-set in one of the 3 worlds.

What do you prefer?

I thought I would start a critique thread for the latest issue. The intention is to provide a space to comment objectively on the recent issue’s adventures in a constructive and friendly way. My own contribution to this topic will include an (x/10) rating of each adventure based on how much I enjoyed reading the adventure and how well I envision it in play.

My hopes are that we can use these criticisms – good and bad – to improve our writing and our understanding of that “perfect adventure” we all strive to create. It can also serve as feedback for the editors.

As fair warning, this is coming from someone whom has not yet gotten a proposal accepted.

The Beasts of Aulbesmil (2/10)

It is hard to place the type of this adventure. On the surface, it seems like a murder mystery, but the entire town already “knows” that Cloten has something to do with their problems – mystery solved. It could be an urban adventure but there are precious few NPCs with little to distinguish them apart but for name and few places to visit. That leaves us with a wilderness version of a dungeoncrawl. That is certainly a genre that deserves to be written, but there is nothing in this adventure that makes me want to play it.

Cloten was not given much personality to speak of and is not satisfying as a villain. The part with the orcs feels detached and unnecessary. The climax (fighting Cloten) will have likely already occurred before the PCs see the orcs or the even the owlbear and I doubt that those encounters would prove satisfying for my players. The story is also surprisingly linear barring the red herring of the owlbear. Though it tries to give the PCs the illusion of choice, it is a bit too transparent.

I view this adventure as a gritty murder case in a rural setting. As such, the adventure would have tracked better and maintained its gritty tone by dropping the fantastic and extraneous (i.e. the owlbear and the orcs) and expanding the options in town (i.e. more NPCs with deeper personalities). Cloten could have been better accommodated with more personality and a more drawn-out fight that builds to the revelation of his affliction.

I will say that I appreciate that this adventure is generic and uses only OGL material, as far as I can tell. In the end though, I felt unsatisfied due predominantly to dry writing and a plot that is not compelling. I simply was not ever excited while reading this.

The Hateful Legacy (7/10)

I have to admit that I was *very* excited by seeing the giant scorpion and dinosaur fight on the opening splash. Unfortunately, that led to minor annoyance, as there was no such fight detailed in the adventure. This is a solid, well-written adventure. I have only a handful of minor criticisms and one larger complaint.
To start, this adventure takes place in Greyhawk and gives us a rich but dense background. This will supply a barrier to entry for many, but the adventure is otherwise relatively generic. The bibliographic details of the sourcebook for much of the history is included and is *greatly* appreciated and I hope that this trend continues. More problematic is that the prepackaged adventure hooks seem unnecessarily entangled in the setting. In my mind, the hooks should be the *most* generic part of an adventure: there are more words in the hooks that I do not understand than in the background!

The adventure is in three parts if you consider Zorgus separately. The encounter with Zorgus is quite thrilling and serves as a great first encounter. This leads into the cliff dwellings of the ogres. This is the bulk of the adventure and is solid. The end follows with the Kazgorva confrontation. A criticism arises here with regard to the presence of the ogres. Since Kazgorva took such great pains to erase his once allied giants as is mentioned in the background, why would he, and his servant Zorgus, suffer the presence of the ogres now? I could not find a rationale expressed anywhere, but I may have missd it. The same goes for the harpies toward the end. These relationships seem inconsistent with Kazgorva’s reason for existing.

The final fight with Kazgorva and Urgush is well done; the encounter and antagonists are well developed and interesting. My only minor quibble is that Urgush is the same power level (CR) as Kazgorva where my sensibilities demand that this mere *servant* be less powerful than his master (especially since Urgush is smarter and prettier). Of course, the adventure ends with the looting. A major part of that is a new minor artifact that has little, if any, use to the PCs and no connection with the adventure, so I have to wonder why it was included.

So far, this has been a very solid adventure with only very minor complaints. My *big* criticism of this adventure is a compound one. This is a site-based adventure. There is nothing wrong with that as long as there is a compelling reason to be there. I will admit now that I prefer adventures that are event-based or at least partially so. Unfortunately, the adventure also gives me the feeling that the important stuff has already been done and there is nothing left of import for the PCs to do. The Hateful Wars are over; the armies destroyed; the deadly, hurricane-force gas locked away; and Kazgorva perished only to spend his days in undeath languishing in a mud bath and not bothering the world. There is no history-making here for the PCs, just damage control (if used as written). All of this likely reflects more on my taste in adventures than anything else and simply means that I would have to change a quite bit prior to use.

Overall, this is a very good adventure. In my opinion, it is overly mired in its own details and it lacks a certain empowerment for the PCs. However, it is well written with some well-developed antagonists, a solid flow of action, and a *great* use of environmental hazards (geysers and the deadly gas).

The Prince of Redhand (10/10)

Wow! This is the adventure I have been waiting for. It is of course an installment of the “Age of Worms” adventure path. Though it is difficult to evaluate separate from the overall story, I think that this is a great adventure on its own and owes no greatness to its association with the AP, which I think is an important distinction to make.

The more customary portions of the church, the Well, and Ilthane’s lair all have motivations tied to the previous parts of the AP. That said, they are all short, exciting, and concisely achieve what they are intended to achieve. Well done.

That leaves us with the party. This is where the adventure *really* stands out. This portion is easily tailored to any campaign as the partygoers can talk about whatever you want them to. The real gem here is the mechanic of the party – a series of “party games” – and the concept of the Authority Points. This is a great opportunity for some lengthy roleplaying. I was taken aback at first by the decadence and perversity of some of the party-games until I realized that that was how I was supposed to feel. However, maybe some mention should have been made on PC opposition to games such as the Corollax shoot and the cockatrice fighting. There is a bit on how the prince would react if offended though which is very important.

The NPCs are beautifully developed and unique. The party is splendidly open-ended: the PCs could be poisoned by the prince, they may disrupt the party and be hunted down by the Angels, or they could close the party having a wonderful time. I am curious to put my players through it just to see how the party goes.

I will close by saying that this adventure is *very* well written. The words flow smoothly and on pace. This was a true pleasure to read.

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I encourage you to provide your own review or to simply respond to mine. Please take these comments as they are given – as friendly criticism – and forgive me if I offend. I can only hope that everyone can someday review my own published work. :)

Cheers.

It's recently come to my attention that, in the way-back, Dragon ran the occasional Cthulhu-related articles (I'm guessing when WotC still supported CoC D20). As my collection only goes back to around #275, I was hoping that someone(s) might be able to help me find these articles and which issues they're in.

**Anything even remotely Cthulhu-related will do**

So far from other sources I've found:

#138 ("The Black Book and the Hunters")
#150 (re. skills)
#198 (re. one Josh Wellmeat)

On a related note, is that CD of collected early Dragons commercially available? I've not been able to find it in the Paizo shop.

Thank you.

So I'm back into gaming after a long hiatus. Now in the role of a DM and interested in writing adventures in Greyhawk, I am a bit stuck.

In the "way back," I was merely a player and we focused on homebrews. I never journeyed behind the scenes (as the DM) and then I stopped playing for years and missed a lot (including all of Planescape). I am now DMing and running both homebrew and Eberron bits. While I love what we're playing, I would like to know more about the Greyhawk that I mostly missed and is still getting support at least at Dungeon.

As I've started querying adventures to this mag, I also wanted to be better able to write in Greyhawk and, also, to be better able to use the Greyhawk adventures that are published in Dungeon.

Then along comes Paizo and offers up the PDFs of old material -- great! After all that rambling, what I'm trying to ask is:

...where should I start? What are the most important bits to Greyhawk? There's a lot of material at the store, which do I want? Which sourcebooks are essential to knowing (as much as anyone could know :) ) that which is Greyhawk? I also have an interest in the Planescape material if anyone has opinions on that (and I've been on the boards long enough to know that many of you DO :) ).

Thanks in advance. ;)

Secrets of Xen'Drik

Due out July of 2006 according to Amazon. I've been on the boards enough to recognize all of the authors' names. ;) Very nice.