Killer_GM's page

This is an excellent product. I highly recommend it to my fellow cruel GMs.

I’m back in the saddle after a lengthy lay off. I'm GM'ing Slumbering Tsar. We're playing twice per month. I hadn't expected to GM a game for the foreseeable future, but one of the guys that I played with during 2017/18, requested that I run Slumbering Tsar. Tsar admittedly wasn't my first choice of campaigns to run, but the player in question specifically requested it, so Tsar it is. I’ve played in Rappan Athuk, and I own Richard Pett's the Blight, and I recognized that a similar sort of Frog Gawd product was probably going to be well written/produced and fairly brutal on the characters (like Rappan Athuk), which is a good thing. I may offer the players a side trip to Richard Pett's the Blight at some point in the campaign as well. I have four players/victims involved, and several other possible players soon to join. The campaign has already started, and I am working on the posts for the first three game sessions. I look forward to corresponding with some of you fellow Paizoans that I've chatted with from previous campaigns in years past. Regards, KGM

I am expecting to start Strange Aeons in January 2017 with my existing group. We play only monthly, so my journal may quickly fall behind those of other posters who are running the same campaign. My regrets. Currently my players' characters are all 5th level, and are at present grabbing their ankles in the old Judges Guild adventure Tegel Manor (adapted for Pathfinder rules system). The group was expecting to move on to play in Ravenloft's Hour of the Knife, and then onto Return to the Tomb of Horrors. I have not yet informed my players of my hopes of dropping them back to 1st level to begin Strange Aeons, and I expect some resistance from one or more players. I don't know exactly how it will resolve, though I don't want to start them in Chapter 2 of the AP. If we reach an impasse on starting the characters back at character level 1, I will probably have the group start chapter 1 at a higher level and just up the difficulty.

This is the first adventure path I have run since Age of Worms in 2006-07. I have wanted to run another AP for a long time, but I always find things about each AP that I don't like enought to put me off of GM'ing it. Second Darkness, Serpent's Skull and Mummy's Mask each almost made the cut, but I always came up with enough reasons I didn't like the path to where I didn't follow through and run it. I was about to go with a Pathfinder version of 1st Editions's Against the Giants to Vault of the Drow, but the work load of coming up with stat blocks for all of the drow in D1 & D3 put me off of that at least for the time being. But with an AP based on Call of Cthulhu, I have no reasons not to run this gem, and been waiting for a long time in hopes of a Lovecraft-based AP. One of the players has stated that he wants to play a character all the way to level 20, and as Strange Aeons ends at 16th, I'll run a "Sequel" to Age of Worms from 17th-20th if the group hasn't fired me as DM before then...

I don't know what to tell you to expect regarding a character casualty count. In years past, Turin the Mad has advised me to get in touch with my more 'benevolent' GM side, at least to outward appearances. In this AP though, I don't expect a pleasant run for the characters, as the Call of Cthulhu theme of the AP suggests character death and insanity throughout. Either way, this is Pathfinder meets Call of Cthulhu folks, so I will "benevolently" inform my players to bring reams of paper for new character sheets, because they're gonna need 'em. I look forward to corrosponding with many of you I've had the pleasure of chatting with in years past on these threads. Regards, KGM

Hello everyone. I’ve returned from a lengthy lay-off, and am attempting to resurrect something resembling my old Pathfinder game. I have one player from my last campaign and four new players I've never rolled with before. The game will be held only monthly, and we've just started in March. I hope to have the first game's post up sometime later this week.

This campaign will consist of four parts. I’ve composed a very brief and rough outline below of what I’m expecting to include in the campaign. As things often change, I have no idea how much of this will come off as planned, but I'm leaning towards the following:

Part 1: a homebrew adventure “the Goblin Wars,” starting at 4th level to 7th level, the characters will be wading through a war-torn landscape of goblin/dwarf confrontations, looking to find a cache of hidden gold.

Part 2: 7th to 10th level, the 2nd ed Ravenloft adventure Hour of the Knife (using Pathfinder rules), followed by some adventure yet to be determined, and then conclude with a homebrew that I’ll call the “Styes 3” (nods to Richard Pett).

Part 3: 11th level to 13th level: Feast of Dust, a new Pathfinder module written by Nick Logue.

Part 4: And Lastly, I will either conclude with a homebrew adventure I’ll call “Legacy of Worms” which is based off of the Age of Worms adventure path, which I ran ten years ago; OR Maure Castle.

All the characters are starting at 4th level. Most players (one notable exception) are already hitting me up to use every Paizo book in existence...

The players and their characters for the first game session were (note the characters nick names are mine, and not what the players call their characters):

Bates the Rogue #9: Is being played by the player of Bates from many past games I've done campaign threads for on these boards. The player is the same, the class (rogue) is the same, and the feeble attempts at survival are the same. He just isn't playing a skulk anymore. I'm starting him at #9 because I think his character bought the farm about eight times in the last Tomb of Horrors and 2014 campaigns I ran the character in. I didn't count to be exact though. I will confess that I did NOT waste his character in our first session, because he was beaten into unconsciousness in the first big encounter, and charmed throughout the second... I thought I'd spare him till next week.

Patsy the Useless Bard: I didn't even bother attacking him during the 1st session because he was largely inconsequential to what happened, that there was no reason to go after him. In the rare moment when he did hit an opponent, he did about 3 hp of damage per hit. Before the game ended, the player of Patsy started playing another character (see Presto below) along with Patsy who actually did a few worthwhile things.

Chef the Gnome Alchemist and his riding dog Fido. An interesting character, but his bark is worse than his bite...

Da' Fighter the Fighter: fairly capable, but was beaten like a red-headed step child all afternoon.

Doc the Cleric: he has a high AC, and is a healing machine.

Presto the Wizard, came in during the final encounter when the player's other character Patsy the bard simply wasn't accomplishing anything worth while.

I look forward to corresponding with you delightful gents that I’ve previously met during campaign journals past, and new posters as well. Regards, KGM

I am re-starting my group. We play Pathfinder 1 (one) Saturday per month for about 6 or 7 hours, starting at around 9:30 or 10 am. I am located in Stafford Virginia. I have 3 players at present. The game will start in February or March 2016. The players are currently deciding what genre they want (if you join us, you are welcome to offer your opinions also), but the system will be Pathfinder. I run the game at my residence, which is just off I-95 and Route 1.
Regards, Allen

I've resumed my campaign, and I'm starting a new thread for it. Here is a recap of the first game session.

The campaign officially began with the 1st Edition d&d module C1 The Hidden Shrine of Tamoachan (modified for Pathfinder rules). Once the player characters reach 6th level, I'll put them through the meat grinder in the Ravenloft adventure ‘Hour of the Knife.’ At 7th level, I'll either do Savage Kings or Ghost Tower of Inverness.

The line up of five player characters is as follows (note, the nicknames are mine):
Bates the Rogue #8 (a skulk 3rd level Rogue)
Medic, a 5th level Cleric: Wis 18, Dex 12, Con 14, Cha 14
Red Shirt #1, a 5th level Fighter: Str 20(22), Con 16, Dex 13
Squiggy, a 5th level Wizard: Int 18, Dex 16, Con 14, Wis 12
& Lenny, a 5th level Dwarf Fighter Str 18(20), Con 18

I had to spend a little time covering the intro, and the surroundings, but the players got down to playing in short order last night. The group was chased by a swarm of bounty hunters through the jungle. They stumbled into the clearing that housed the Pyramid of Tamoachan. The group fell into the collapsing hole and started at area 1. Given that this happened at night, and on account of the poison gas and the steep drop in the dark, I decided that the bounty hunters would not immediately follow the PCs into the hole which leads to Area 1 on the Map. Since the bounty hunters couldn't see the PCs, shoot arrows at them in the dark, or get down safely, I had them hurl more rocks and insults down at the group and wait for sunrise before coming after the PCs.
The PCs puttered about in area 1 & 2. Bates the Rogue wanted to search for traps all along the hallways. When I started giving each character 1 HP of damage from the poison gas per turn, Bates quit searching for traps in the corridors, and the group hurried along. The group found the dead giant hermit crab (where's the Rancid Crab Butter when we need it) in Room 3, and went Left down to areas 8 & 11. Nothing of consequence happened in these areas, apart from the players taking more time then they probably needed.
We finished for the evening at Room 13. The characters booted in the door and found the Lamia waiting for them. The Lamia used a Suggestion Spell while the group tried to decide what the hell to do. Naturally, Red Shirt successfully made his save and didn't do what the Lamia suggested he do... something about shoving his weapon in a certain place... Initiatives were rolled, and Bates the Rogue went first and rolled a 19+24=43 Stealth roll. Yes, my misery returns with Bates the skulk and his insane stealth rolls. Not to worry. I've got some things in store for dudads flopping Bates the skulk...

Can any of you scholarly readers kindly refer me to a source (3.0/3.5 or Pathfinder) that contains the stats/info on the 'Norker.'

Regards KGM

Killer GM’s 2011 Return to the Tomb of Horrors Pathfinder Campaign

I can’t believe that it has been nearly 10 whole years since I last ran ‘Return to the Tomb of Horrors’ for my players. This, the greatest adventure ever written, carries with it the express purpose of annihilating every single player character that dares set foot in it. And I plan to achieve that purpose:-). There is nothing like seeing players clutching their precious character sheets, and praying to whatever Gawd they subscribe to, that their characters will survive until the next encounter, much less the end of the adventure. And of course, they WON’T:D

We will be starting on October 8 at 10:00 AM, and playing one session per month. I’ll be chronicling every twist, turn and scream for your reading delight. I will be using WoTC’s 3.5 revamp of the Tomb of Horrors by Bruce Cordell, and the 3.5 Conversion of Return to the Tomb of Horrors, available on EN World, and modifying them for the Pathfinder rules system. I would imagine that a few of the 3.5 rules will still persist during the campaign, especially regarding pit traps with poison spikes…

The following is the current list of characters slated to start:
Paladin 8, Rogue 8, Ranger 8, Cleric 8, Magus 8, Ninja 8, and one or two characters yet to be determined. I have 6 players on board, and possibly two more yet to join in, one probably in October, the other in November.

After extensive review of the 3.5 Tomb and Return to the Tomb adventures, it is clear that they are ideally designed for mid-level characters. High-level characters would easily evade most of the traps. While I could increase the DC on the traps to cater to higher level characters, that still wouldn’t prevent high level spellcasters from sidestepping much of the hazards of the place. Ultimately these adventures, (to quote from the Return to the Tomb adventure), mark a rare occurrence “where the players are actually afraid for their characters.” A mid level adventure best accomplishes that.

I have myself statted up two additional groups of player characters (8th & 9th level) for player use when an existing character departs the world of the living in a heinous fashion. When previously GM’ing this campaign, I have found that characters often get greased so fast, that the players can’t produce a new character quickly enough to get back into the game, and become frustrated. I’ve also arranged with the player whose home we are playing in, to allow players to scan and photocopy their character sheets for use with new characters, with a mere name change and re-rolled ability scores. Any character who perishes in MY Tomb of Horrors (assuming they aren’t raised) becomes permanent property of this Killer GM (that is, the character sheet goes into my Return to the Tomb of Horrors Boxed Set) as a permanent memento. And I already have a collection of past character sheets :D

The set up for this Return to the Tomb adventure is tied to the events of my 2001 and 2002 Return to the Tomb of Horrors campaigns (I have a thread here on Paizo’s journals on them). There were two survivors who crawled back to civilization from the failed 2001 campaign, and three who survived the 2002 campaign (which ended after the original Tomb, as the group was wiped out and did not go on to Moil). These shattered survivors brought with them tales of great wealth and wonderful magical goodies, that have lured numerous groups of adventurers to now try to make a dash to the tomb in hopes of getting rich.

The atmosphere is something like that of the 1999 movie, “The Mummy”, where you have several competing groups of adventurers preparing to leave in search of the tomb. In addition to the player characters, there are 3 other rival groups of adventurers. Two of the groups are good & neutral aligned alternate Player Character adventurers (I’ll call them ‘Group A’ & ‘Group B’), that I’ve rolled up for eventual player use in the place of existing player characters, if/(when) they buy the farm, though at the present, they are competing against the current group of player characters. The 3rd group, is a group of malevolent, evil aligned PCs that the players will also get to tangle with during the course of the adventure.

Lastly, it’s good to have you (fellow readers) along for the campaign. Enjoy the reading. Please feel free to comment. And Happy Halloween Everyone. The First game is in 8 days from today.

Ever since Kara-Tur arrived in the days of 1st/2nd edition, the 'Asian' campaign setting has been a combination of multiple countries, specifically China & Japan. While I am a fan of both, I tend to separate them and use one or the other when running games. Are you (fellow posters) of the opinion that the Jade Regent adventure path is predominantly to exclusively Japanese in flavor, predominantly to exclusively Chinese in flavor, or a combination of both? If it matters, I'll be purchasing all six issues of the AP no matter which culture/mythos is dominant.

These look good. Anyone know what miniatures will eventually be available for purchase on this first run?

This monster template was found in the 3.0 edition book for wizards called "Tome & Blood", specifically in the Alienist Prestige Class. Would any of you modify anything about this monster template for Pathfinder stats, or do those of you who have the book think that a straight conversion to Pathfinder is possible? ~KGM

Greetings ladies, gents, fellow peeps, sick freaks, and aspiring killer GM’s. It's great to be back behind the infamous GM’s Monkey Screen after a seven month layoff. Our first game session will be on January 8th of 2011. This upcoming campaign should likely last about 2 years, and hopefully will produce plenty of player character suffering and destruction for many months to come. I told the guys that I'd run a campaign that would take their characters all the way from 1st through 20th level. As we'll be playing every 2nd or 3rd Saturday, it may well take the better part of two years to run the guys all the way to 20th level. (Especially as often as these guys buy the farm...)

After running an exhausting 18-month homebrewed campaign through 2009-2010, I thought I’d take a break from the rigors of home-brewed campaign design and instead string a number of my favorite TSR/WoTC published adventures from years gone by, together for the group. In the 5 Homebrewed campaigns I’ve run in the past ten years, I've noticed that my Players tend to get bored with the long-term campaigns (published or homebrew) and forget significant plot lines, characters, events, etc.). I think that the shorter-term adventure ‘modules’ offer the players a good chance to get in, kick butt (or in this campaign: get their butts kicked), and then move onto the next adventure.

I’ll list the adventures I plan to run in the coming campaign below. The PCs will be on the ‘Slow’ XP Advancement track. In order to keep the characters at levels that the adventures in question are designed for, I’m going to more or less advance the characters when they’ve completed an adventure successfully. If they die once or twice, no big deal. But if they'e died so often as to make it seem like a Call of Cthulu game, I may opt to have them do another adventure of the same level to make up for the lost XP from the repeated demises.

Well, anyways… Welcome back everyone. Let’s go waste some player characters:D

Character Level: 1-2
Adventure: B4 The Lost City by Tom Moldvay
This has always been one of my favorite adventures of all time, for low level characters. I have vague memories of playing through it in 1983/84, and GM’ing it in 2001. As I plan to use the adventure to take the player characters through level 2 only, I'll make it a bit easier. I’ll be tying most of the objectives to the PC’s eliminating “Darius” the cleric of Zargon on Tier 5. I’ll also try to work in Matt Concklin's female Cleric of Zargon from the Masque of Dreams Dungeon Magazine adventure, and one of the Doppelgangers on Tier 5 will also be a long term/reoccurring, pain-in-the-ass villain for the player characters as well.
Much later on in the campaign, I’ll have the higher level PCs make a return trip to destroy Zargon and lead the people of Cynidicea to freedom and prosperity. I’ve always wanted to have a group of characters do that. But that’s likely at 15th level.

Character level: 3
? I don’t have any module in mind for 3rd level, and I’m leaning towards a homebrew.

Character levels 4-5-6
Adventure: Module A1-2-3-4 Scourge of the Slave Lords
I’ve run these adventures at least twice back in 1983/4 and 1987 respectively. Some of the less notable slave lords (who were killed in prior campaigns) will be swapped out for some of my re-occurring villains. However the three main slave lords of importance (Stalman Klim, Edralve, and Theg Narlot) will be present. I’m getting goose bumps just thinking about running this adventure. If any of you readers want to post your attempt at Pathfinder stats for the Aspis (ant men) of A1, please go ahead and kindly take a stab at them.

Character level: 7
Adventure: Module S2 White Plume Mountain
I’ll be using the 3.5 re-vamp that WoTC did a few years ago. I’m going to forgo with ‘Return to White Plume Mountain’ as the difficulty would likely be greater than say 8th level, meaning the characters would have to return later at a higher experience level, or I’d have to ‘downgrade’ the difficulty level, and I’m not willing to go to the headache and effort to do that. If the players are really for a return trip however, I may reconsider…

Character level 8:
Adventure: Module XL1 Quest for the Heartstone
While this module is ridiculed on its own Wikipedia entry, I really enjoy it. I was unsuccessful in my attempt as a player in 1985/6 to conquer this adventure. I ran this adventure in 2003/04, and I’m going for another attempt. The players will NOT be using the famous d&d characters such as Strongheart, Warduke, etc. that the module is normally geared for, though I do confess some desire to turn Strongheart into Swiss Cheese, but I digress…

Character level 9:
Adventure: Tomb of Horrors (3.5 edition revamp by Bruce Cordell)
One of my biggest deliberations was whether or not to run the entire ‘Return to the Tomb of Horrors’ campaign. I could, and still may do this, but I have thus far opted not to for two reasons. Number one, the ‘Return to the Tomb’ campaign is significantly longer, and is a character grind of the first order. While I'm all for anihiliating my Player's Characters, the players at least normally can hope that 'the next level adventure will be easier than the current one is.' With 'Return to the Tomb', they learn pretty quickly that they're screwed from levels 8 all the way through 11. I will need to evaluate my players come about 7th level to see if they are of the mental state and eager to play the entire Return to the Tomb of Horrors campaign for the 4 full character levels that it lasts. In a nutshell, IF I think I can get away with subjecting my players to a lot of deaths in the entire RttToH campaign without them revolting, then I’ll probably do it. IF I’m not sure whether I can convince the players to keep playing in the City of Moil & Fortress of Conclusion (after they've died repeatedly in the Tomb), then I may opt to stick with just ending it after the Tomb itself.
Secondly, I would like to run the listed adventures at 10th & 11th level that I’ve chosen. If I opt for Return to the Tomb of Horrors, I’m going to have to scrap Quest for the Heartstone & Blackguard’s Revenge/Iron Crypt, and push the Lost Caverns of Tsojcanth to 12th level (and as it was written for 11th level, I’d rather keep it where it was intended for). We’ll see.

Character level 10:
Dungeon Crawl Classic adventure #12 & 12.5 Blackguard’s Revenge & Iron Crypt of the Heretics
I really like both of these adventures, and they get straight down to good old fashioned ‘hack ‘n slash’ right from the get go. There is also NO down time, and although the Players know this going into it, they have to pace themselves and save as much spells and other expendable magic as possible. (For those not familiar with the Blackguard’s Revenge: the PCs arrive at an abbey of Good aligned monks that is under siege from a small army of Wights, led by a Devourer and an Anti-Paladin. The PCs have to route the entire lot of them if they are to save the monks from death and damnation. If not handled intelligently, these two adventures have massive PC destruction written all over them.

Character level 11:
Adventure: S4 The Lost Caverns of Tsojcanth (3.5 edition revamp on the electronic dungeon magazine).
I chose this adventure over Greg Vaughan’s “Istivin Trilogy” in a close decision. I may or may not include the expansion “Iggwilv’s Horn” depending on whether I’m running this adventure at 11th or 12th level, and/or also if I end up inserting the Forgotten Temple of Tharizdun into the mix.
I’ve played through this adventure twice in the 1980’s but I’ve never GM’d it. It’s in some ways a good adventure to be a player in. Most monsters in the caverns are not allied, and you can engage in ‘hit and run’ tactics for most of the adventure. If I do the Return to the tomb of Horrors campaign, then this adventure will get pushed back to 12th level.

Character level 12 OR 13:
Adventure: Module G1 Steading of the Hill Giant Chief
The players will get this adventure at 12th or 13th level depending on whether I use the scripted adventures as planned (12th in that case) or I opt for the Return to the Tomb of Horrors (in that case, it will be at 13th). G1 was one of my favorite adventures as a player. The last time I played in this adventure was 22 years ago, with Turin the Mad and the infamous group of player characters known as the ‘Walking Death Machine,’ as we just kicked in the doors of the chief’s feast hall when all the giants were all there, charged in, and began an legendary battle-royal blood bath, hack ‘n slash combat of epic proportions. I’d like to give my players a chance to experience the same, so I’m slating it for 12th or 13th level, as a group of 4 hill giants is an EL 11 encounter. If memory serves, there’s over 20 Hill Giants in the main room, and I don’t have any illusions about a group of 10th level characters (especially my group) being able to survive a straight up fight in that place. I opted for G1-2-3 rather than Maure Castle. If the guys hate these adventures, then Maure Castle is a back up option.

Character level 13 OR 14:
Adventure: Module G2 Glacial Rift of the Frost Giant Jarl.
My favorite of the three ‘G’ series adventures as a player and a GM. The two White Dragons and the Cluster Screw of Ogre Mages should give my players fits. The hallway filled with Yellow Mold should do likewise. I’m going to have to reduce the amount of gold/treasure found herein, as the later editions were not built to accommodate this insane amount of cash falling into PCs hands.

Character level 14 OR 15:
Adventure: Module G3 Hall of the Fire Giant King.
This adventure likely boasts the potential for the highest fatality count, yet the PCs are getting up there in power as well. The ‘Elder Eye’/Tharizdun tie in will be useful for the end of the campaign. The encounter with Eclavdra & co will probably be an encounter the players will want to forget...

Character level 15 (only used if G3 is run at level 14 rather than level 15)
??? I may place the encounter for the ‘Return to the Lost city’ where the Pcs come back for a showdown with Zargon. That is all of probably 1 or 2 encounters. I don’t know what I’ll run for the rest of the level…

Character level 16:
Adventure: Module CM2 Death’s Ride (for the Companion Set)
Another favorite of mine. This one will likely see some major overhaul, and use of homebrewed villains.

Character level 17
Paizo adventure: The Witchwar Legacy by Greg Vaughan

Character level 18 & 19
??? Likely homebrew adventures. I can't think of any classic adventures to use here. If I go with homebrews, I will likely 'conclude' several past unfinished campaigns that I ran in 1985/86 and 2003/04. I'll probably try to rope Turin the Mad back in for this part of the campaign, as he was in my group back in 1985/86.

Character level 20:
Adventure: ‘The Essence of Evil’ by Robert Schwalb. This adventure was in one of the electronic dungeon magazines following the end of the printed magazines run. It is a 20th level, stop Tharizdun from being freed, or the campaign world goes bang, kind of adventure. It has Lareth the Beautiful from the Village of Homlett/ToEE adventures in it; but I'll likely add even more horrific NPCs to humor my players:)

I look forward to chatting with many of you. Regards ~AS

Is anyone aware of any Pathfinder products that contain Aspis (they are Ant men that were in the 1st edition adventure A1 Slave Pits of the Undercity, and in the 2nd edition product Slavers)? Regards ~KGM

A question to any who have any opinion on the matter: the 3.5 WotC Monster Manual has Krakens as a CR 12 with 20 HD and 290 HP; the Pathfinder Bestiary has Krakens as a CR 18 with 20 HD and 290 HP. My question: why the huge increase in CR given the same amount of hit dice and hit points. I get that Krakens may have been slightly tougher than their original CR 12 would indicate, but with little changes between the Pathfinder and original 3.5 versions, is a net increase of 6 CR's necessary? Can a Kraken realistically survive even 1 round against a group of 18th level player characters??? I ask you.

Are the authors breaking any new ground on this adventure/backstory, or is this just a translation into 4.0 edition rules?

Ladies & Gents, I'm dealing with a group of players who are sporting high-powered characters, and looking for any loophole in the rules in an effort to trounce me. I'm interested in ideas my fellow Pathfinder GM's might have for ways to make life very difficult for my power-gaming players (who for the most part stay within the rules), in the form of clever uses/situations for spells, magic items, battle tactics, etc. In short, I'm interested in how my fellow GM's are "playing hardball" with their player's characters (within the rules, naturally) when the situation calls for it. And in my group, it calls for it big time!

Regards, KGM

Guys, you're killing me. Can anyone comment on why Devastating Blow (and Backswing) didn't make it into the final Pathfinder book? You've robbed me of a prime means of wasting my player's characters... WHY!!!

I for one, am planning to 86 one of my players characters in the months to come, using the opera aria "Vesti la giubba" from Leoncavallo's opera "Pagliacci", when the heroes are at the opera looking to save an important NPC from a ruthless assassin, only to find out too late, that one of them is in fact, the intended target...

Alan, or any others, any word on if Uncle Rob has got any levels of Maure Castle in the works, and if so, what edition they'd be statted for (Pathfinder vs. 4Ed).

I had long hoped to run these adventures for the group (a.k.a. the Red Folder Gaming Society, and more recently “Crew 2“), before 4th edition came in and swept them under the rug, unused and unsung. Fate stepped in during a strange turn of events that has made this possible. I must concede that I didn’t anticipate the timing of this campaign (which was mainly due to Turin the Mad‘s scheduling conflicts and the canceling of our Savage Tide campaign), nor the low player count that has followed the dividing of the game group in 2007, and the subsequent defection of count ‘em SIX group members + Turin the Mad, due to a myriad of obligations and other problems.

Our current 4 slated players are Haru, Da Pimp, Yoda (Evil M), and The Resident Artist. I’m in the process of luring several victims… er, players from the Age of Worms campaign of 2006-2007 (who did not move into Turin the Mad’s Savage Tide Group #1 campaign), back in from their lengthy absences. Hopefully my efforts will soon bear fruit >:D
I look forward to continuing correspondence with many of you delightful fellow peeps, sick freaks, and aspiring Killer GM’s, as I take my players down the sickened streets and twisted alleyways that are the Styes. First game’s this coming Saturday May 3, 2008. Until then…

I GM'd this campaign in October 2002 under the 3.0 edition rules. I recently came across my very detailed notes that I took during this campaign which have made it possible for me to now chronicle this hilarious romp through the ultimate 1st edition dungeon crawl, for all of you humble Peeps, Sick Freaks, and Killer GM's sadistic enjoyment.

I also do this to honor Don "the Dying One" the best player of d&d I've ever met. His great love for the game, combined with his inattention to important details and the staggering number of player character fatalities that resulted are the stuff of legend. This brief campaign is one of Don's crowning achievements. I hope to have the first post up within a day or two.

Regards,
Killer GM

I thought the free content was supposed to end December 31. Any idea or info on why it's still open/free of charge?

Mr. Jacobs, Mr. Leati, and fellow readers & posters, I'm interested in useful strategies and experiences to assist Kyuss (the Rev. Jim Jones of the D&D game) in annihiliating my player's characters. I'll periodically post a few ideas and thoughts and hope some of you will offer comment or feedback on them.

For starters, can Kyuss be harmed while in his monolith? (I recognize that the Monolith itself is invulnerable). Can he retreat back into the Monolith during the fight to heal up in safety?

Am I correct that although Kyuss cannot directly communicate with his minions (those on/within the spire) while in his prison, he can see what they see given that they are in a 'shrine' to him.

WHY the insane limitation against Kyuss acting against the PC's on the first round following his emergence from the prison? What purpose does this serve other than getting him killed? How have other GM's dealt with this limitation, other than disregarding it entirely (which is what I'm likely to do)?

When Kyuss "emerges" from his prison to combat the PC's, can he take only a 5 foot step and be partially still contained within his prison to maintain some degree of cover bonus and deny PC's attacks of opportunity if they have positioned themselves just outside of his monolith?

I'll post more questions in the future. Thanks in advance for feedback. ~AS

I'm a bit suprised that no one has mentioned Cadfael for TV programs worth watching. There are 13 episodes total done for PBS Mystery series, all based on the books by Ellis Peters. Sir Derek Jacobi plays Cadfael, a former warrior of the crusades, returned to England, and has taken the cow and become a monk. Yet he is a sleuthing monk, who goes about solving all manner of nefarious activity by numerous unsavory Medieval folks. All episodes are on DVD, and I recommend them strongly to those who enjoy intelligent, well done British productions. Watching them makes you feel like you're right there in the Middle Ages.

Although the fight with the man himself is still several months away for my players' characters; I'm interested in the experiences and opinions of other players/GM's who have run/participated in the fight with Kyuss. Specifically, have any of you found anything that can potentially derail the encounter?
For example, could a PC use a Sphere of Anihiliation/Bag of Holding/Portable Hole type combo to potentially send Kyuss off to the Astral Plane? Have any of you other GM's experienced any unexpected ingenuity from your players that seriously hampered Kyuss in the process? A fellow killer GM would like to avoid any such fortunate ideas by my players... Do help a brother out:)

I kill enough PC's in my AoW campaign, that I'm a little wary of running this encounter, strange though that may sound. Something about likely TPK'ing the entire party, and then telling them, "oh, you didn't really die, it was only a dream" after pissing them all off and hearing them complain throughout the entire encounter, seems rather... pointless.

Has anyone run this encounter, and have any thoughts they'd care to share on it? All opinions welcome.

I am a die-hard Greyhawker. I expect to be told how wonderful the new campaign world is by whoever writes it, but in all seriousness, what, if any, existing campaign worlds does this new campaign most resemble or what "flavor" does it most compare to? Are we talking a hardened-Conan-like world, or a slightly-real world-flavor like Greyhawk? Or are we talking about a Super-high-level NPC's/buy your latest magical gear at MageMart like the Forgetable Realms? All responses appreciated, and please excuse my parting shots at the latter campaign. I couldn't help myself...

Given that WoTC does not/will not publish Greyhawk material, save with RARE exception (and LG of course), does anyone think that we can expect to see any material for this setting published in the future by WoTC, (other than the already announced Expedition to Castle Greyhawk)?

We're waiting on pins and needles Uncle. How do you think you might get Maure published and when???????????????????????????????

Given that Greyhawk and the other campaign settings (which I have no interest in but I know other readers do) are WoTC owned, will Pathfinder be able to write for adventures set IN those campaigns specifically under the open-game license?

Will Rob Kuntz's MAURE CASTLE be able to continue in Pathfinder?

In the most recent issue of Dungeon, #146, Assistant Editor James L. Sutter, states in the editors column, that "hack-n-slash is dead." I have noticed this regretable viewpoint held by some posters that hack & slash and "dungeon crawls" are not wanted in the magazine. I would encourage my fellow 'old school' players to make their preferences known. Please help Mr. Sutter to see the errors of his ways. "Hack & Slash" and "Dungeon Crawls" are what this game was built on, and you wouldn't have a game were it not for hack and slash. I think that we need to continue to honor the traditions of the game, (and to appeal to those who have supported it for years and still want this type of adventure/content). I'm not advocating for banning all of the "Role-playing" adventures. I would merely like a reasonably even split between the two (preferably with Greyhawk content:).

Hack and Slash is clearly not dead. Goodman Games, the Knights of the Dinner Table comic, and other producers of Hack & Slash material does not appear to be shutting down. For those of you who want Shakespearean drama or role-playing "self-discovery" sessions where you 'get in touch with your character', (in your Dungeon magazines to the exclusion of Hack & Slash/Dungeon Crawls), please consider your local acting club, nearest psychologist, or go to the next Renissance festival dressed in your newest "outfit".

Mr. Jacobs, Mr. Kuntz... Anyone got any info???

I suspect my affinity for these creatures probably stems from growing up in the 1970's and playing the old Atari 2600 Adventure game, with it's red, yellow, and green dragons seeking to eat your brave little square throughout...

... and to select Sleep spells rather than magic missiles at 1st level...

Anybody know anything? Hypotheses and educated guesses welcome, just state them as such...

I have often thought that Dragons have been used in fantasy RPG's in ways that dragons were not envisioned historically over the centuries. Why would the most magnificent of fantastical creatures allow him/herself to serve as a steed for a rider? I am reminded of Tolkein's Smaug and the movie Dragonslayer, where Dragon's didn't give people rides, they burned crops unless placated by sacrifices of virgins, nor did dragons masquarade in human/alternate forms and have Half-dragon spawn with basically anything registering a pulse. Does anyone else agree with me that the ferocious beast we all imagine and love have been made something altogether different than they historically thought to be? I for one can't see a dragon serving as a glorified taxi cab.

The Wizards of the Coast web site has a September release date for a reported 160 page adventure by our wonderful author Mr. Greg Vaughan. Those of us who appreciate his excellent work will be looking forward to it (even though it is not set in Greyhawk...) and to his future offerings here in Dungeon magazine as well. It is the hope of the poster that Mr. Vaughan will drop a few tidbits about the adventure. Well, Mr. Vaughan...

A common occurrence in the group I play with, it the tendency for the players to gravitate to the more exotic flavor classes and prestige classes, while shamefully neglecting the regular ones. Although I frequently GM the group, and the absence of a cleric in the group (a fairly common occurrence) doesn't bother me, when I play as a player, I always end up playing a Wizard, or a Cleric, because no one in the group wishes to play either. Everyone wants to play Rogue/Scout or Dragon-like characters. Anyone else notice this type of trend?

A high level knight of the chalice potentially adds 4d6 extra damage per hit. Does anyone think this is a bit much, and have any of your players stumbled upon this little gem of a class that wreaks havoc on evil Outsiders (even more so with a few levels of Ranger before the prestige class, and with a bane weapon or a mace of smiting)?

Issue 135 stated that we'd have an adventure by the fabulous and often Greyhawk-heavy Greg Vaughan, titled 'The Coming Storm.' I note on the upcoming web page for the new 136, that instead, we're not getting 'The Coming Storm' but instead are getting a Forgetable Realms adventure. Can anyone elaborate. Please accept my humble plug for anything Vaughan writes in the future.

I've heard on several occasions that Kuntz is taking longer to get the next chapter in Maure Castle into Dungeon because he is working on "Castle Zagyg". I've got WGR1 Greyhawk Ruins. My question is, what exactly is castle Zagyg? Is it a re-do of Castle Greyhawk/the Tower of Zagyg? Is it 3.5 d20, or is it for another game system. Does anyone have any recommendations regarding this product?
Thanks in advance.
AS

I have a few requests for the MM4 which is due out in July. I don't have any delusions of influencing the designers to do things my way, (and I imagine that the product has long since been completed and sent to print), but I would hope for the following in the MM4:
Please, Please put out statistics for many of the 1st edition creatures that have not been updated, with several exceptions.
Please, Please do NOT provide me with another vast array of Abberations, Constructs, Vermin, or Outsiders, who look like one of these three. I say this because I am interested in a "fantasy" role playing game with monster types of a similar flavor (remember the good old days in the 80's, anyone). Although I recognize that the designers will want to include at least a token few of each type of monster, I think that they have been well represented in past monster books (particularly abberations) and are due for a break in favor of more 'traditional fantasy' creatures. I know others will argue that 'fantasy' can easily include monsters that look like they're straight out of a Sci-fi novel or HP Lovecraft's works. For example, what is the purpose of Nerra, Inevitables, War Forged, and Rilmani in a 'fantasy' game? I'm sure the designers worked very hard to come up with them, but do they honestly belong in a fantasy game where you go stomping through a dungeon with a sword? What do Formians and Kaorti (sorry, Far Realm fans) do to enhance the traditional fantasy flavor of the game?
Since I don't imagine I can influence WoTC, I'll just see what the rest of you think, and enjoy your scorn and disdain for my ramblings.