Hey there. So I decided to do another conversion. This one is for A2 Secret of the Slavers Stockade (Johnson, Harold; Moldvay, Tom. TSR, 1981).
If you want a copy, email me at daemonslye@daemonslye.com.
I took a different approach with this one. While no fan fiction is ever really safe, I did not rewrite the adventure. I also did not include more than a few key pieces of art. I really just focused on re-doing the stats for the encounters. So the DM must absolutely own the module or (better yet) purchase the new book, "Against the Slavelords" (which is very nicely done BTW).
However, I did do a little more than just stats. I wanted the conversion to be "game-ready" for the GM. I wanted it to be "interactive" (e.g. useful if online). I wanted it to be purpose built to run off a touch-screen.
I understand many GMs do not own iPads and even for those that do, only some operate games while connected to the Internet. The document works fine on a PC and can operate just as well as any other PDF when offline. However, if you do have an iPad and an Internet connection, many areas and icons of the document become much more useful.
For example, touch a "gear" icon and you get a web page with the base stats or spell description. Touch a picture icon and you get a web page with a picture of the person or monster. "Teardop" map icons take you back to the relevant map, etc. On an iPad Air, these links operate quickly and smoothly. You can use a “four-finger swipe” to quickly swipe back to the PDF. Based on my testing, on a PC, they feel slow and sluggish.
It's just something different I wanted to try, being an overworked GM myself, and I hope the extra effort will be worth it.
I did do a few modifications regarding the stats here and there, trying remain true to the flavor of the original. I also threw in a few story elements cultivated from the little snippets left by the authors. I kept the setting in Greyhawk, but it can be used anywhere with ease.
I’m giving a special shout-out to the d20pfsrd.com. It was handy to be able to link directly to ready content without unnecessary frames crowding out the content. Also, I made extensive use of the Herolabs(r) software and continue to highly recommend its use.
Technical Stuff:
Spoiler:
While I tested this on an iPad Air with the Adobe Reader App, it will likely work on other devices and apps. That said, I saw some weirdness (poor rendering, highlighted linking areas where I set them to be invisible, slowness, etc.) with other apps. Also the faster the device, generally, the better.
To get it on your tablet, I recommend downloading it to a PC then using a cloud-based service (like dropbox or box.com) to sync and open on your device. From there, select the file in the cloud-app and choose “Open In” then select the Adobe Reader app you previously downloaded (for free!).
Generally, Adobe will let you open links from PDF, although it will ask you for an “OK” first. Other apps may need the settings adjusted to open links. Most of the links run through tiny.cc, so if they are having an issue or if you (for whatever reason) can’t get there, the links won’t work. Obviously, I’m using this in case the links to images or other resources change – if that happens (you get a 404) drop me an email and I’ll replace it with a link that works. All you need to do is delete your browser cache (in settings-safari on the iPad) and reload once I have the link updated through tiny.
Please read the “Tips” page for ways to streamline the experience using the iPad.
Notes for GM:
Spoiler:
I ended up needing to re-do the maps. I'm awful at making maps and, worse, glacially slow at it. So apologies for the rudimentary maps - I tried getting the dimensions accurate at the minimum.
The NPCs, both evil and no-so-evil were the most fun to convert. I've been through the adventure as a player (around the time it came out, say 1982-ish) and the NPCs, when GM'ed well, made this more than just a encounter-to-encounter tournament dungeon. I tried to "pathfinder-ize" it without losing the flavor of the original. Its interesting just how close many of the items came through all the editions relatively unscathed.
From a power level perspective, a group of four or five highly optimized 5th or 6th level PCs will probably breeze through the place without taking much damage. So, GMs should take a close look at the PCs and determine if they need to be a little lower in level. A primary consideration is that any PC with an astronomical AC won't be challenged by the lower level monsters. The adventure is light on enemy spellcasters so the "high AC offset by low will save" won't balance out here as much. As a GM, playing up the need for stealth and speed could help, but there's always a way to tip the scales. All that said, if you play the adventure as one where the PCs cannot easily rest, by the time they hit the dungeons, they could be stretching their resources.
Bypass: If the PCs have perfect intelligence (easily scouting out the fort even with terrain difficulties, time pressures, and frequent wandering encounters), they will be able to bypass the curtain wall and possibly waltz right through Area 34 to Area 35 bypassing the entire Fort level. Then, if they use the trap door, to Dungeon level 20, they will bypass half of the Dungeon level. The GM has the ultimate call here - I included all of the mapped encounters as originally written. GMs could, however, remove the stairs up to Area 34 (the goblins there must traverse the roof) and remove the trap door in Icar's room. The PCs could also be motivated to kill as many slavers as possible during their raid, knowing that leaving behind Gorbin Stalworth or other leadership holed up in the Gatehouses gives the slavers command of the Fort for future operations. e.g. It's not just enough to steal in and rescue a few slaves and kill a leader or two, the PCs could be tasked with taking control of the entire fort!
While I converted the pregens, I kept most of their items and ability scores the same (although, I stacked the levels of Eljay and Kayen Telva and gave poor 3rd level Phanstern a bit of a bump through an additional template). I tried to make each pregen seem individually like a good pick, although Elwita and Karraway still seem to be default requirements. I made the pregen character sheets to be printed and did not construct them for use on a tablet.
Known Bugs: Dungeon Map - Area 22 and Area 12. The page link does not work. Just select a nearby room to get to the page. I was doing some editing and borked the link. I was not able to find an easy way to fix it.
I hope you enjoy this. Let me know what you think in a reply post, it'll help keep the thread alive. Again, sorry its just focused on updating the stats as opposed to a full re-imagining of the content. Thanks,
As you can see there were a number of hard choices to make while retaining the flavor of the original. Some things were left out because they didn't seem "required" (I suppose I could have pointed the eidolon's evasion ability at the 2nd level rogue, etc. but, at some point, less words are better without messing up the game).
Evolutions needed some re-work to simplify - Maybe I did it the wrong way, but I was going to for simple. The "healing evolution" would have ramifications at higher levels but works nicely at lower levels (if a touch powerful).
I suppose I could have given more summon monster abilities per day (like at 3rd level, may change that) - But the class seemed pretty powerful relative to the others already. I'd be happy for any input.
I went through the pledge system - Nowhere did it mention my actual pledge level at $535.00. I'm guessing it has to do with the various packaging. That said, one reason I did pledge at that level was the benefit to manage my avatar here on the messageboards. How does one do this?
Here is the payment info.
Greetings from Amazon Payments,
We wanted to let you know that we successfully completed a payment to Goblinworks, Inc. for $535.00 on Jan 14, 2013. This payment is related to the payment authorization listed below:
Payment details:
---------------
Transaction ID: 17GUZQIO6RJVM1AZKSUQZDDS7RAUZVB6NHF
Recipient: Goblinworks, Inc.
Amount: $535.00
For: Pledging $535.00 on Kickstarter.
Hey there, did another module - this one is original, although I'm following a similar pattern as the Temple of Elemental Evil.
IF YOU WANT A COPY: Send an email to daemonslye at daemonslye.com. Please do NOT post your email address in this thread. (Thanks!) I will respond individually and WILL NOT share your email address. Emails will be deleted once sent.
This adventure is a mashup of several influences (which should be readily apparent; Gygax, Lovecraft, Campbell/Carpenter).
To be clear: This is not a full conversion of Temple of Elemental Evil. This is a similar story in that the PCs start in a town, learn some things that lead them, over time, to a Temple. In the Temple, they will deal with competing factions they can either try to take advantage of or just wander about slaying everything. This is BOOK 1. Which means they do not get to the Temple yet (which occurs in Book 2). However, there is plenty of adventure to be had in Book 1.
I may post a plot summary later - But I really want folks to begin reading it without details of the story. It is one of those tales that opens up over time.
I really like doing Pathfinder conversions (I've done "A Paladin in Hell", "Tomb of the Lizard King", "Slave Pits of the Undercity", "The Lost City", "Castle Amber" and others), but, unfortunately, they are using other people's ideas. So this time, I included a few of my own. Maybe one day, I'll team up with an artist so that original art can be included as well.
I really hope you like it - I am constantly in awe of those who do this for a living, because, darn it, it's really hard. I spent more than a few weekends working on this, and, of course its compounded by the fact that I am formatting everything as I go. I'd be honored if you want to give some feedback, provide some free editing help, or have other comments.
Cheers,
~D
Spoiler:
Postscript:
Really, once you hack away at something over time, you tend to lose your sense of perspective. My own sense is I fell into a familiar writers trap, too many competing ideas and no limits on number of pages. I tried hard to connect the dots but.. Well, you'll see.
I wrote the adventure for someone reading it - Many modules (adventure paths) tend to chop up the module with encounters in one section, NPCs in another and environs in another. Its hard to get the sense of the whole story, so I kept them mashed together - hopefully it works for you.
I could probably spend another two months rewriting the thing and tweaking it, but I thought, I should just get it out there and get feedback before I started to go too far on Book 2 (to see if anyone would even *want* a Book 2 :).
I included some pictures found on the Internet here and there in addition to some maps. I did not use anything from Paizo (not even a logo). If you don't want any pictures, please ask in your email and I'll strip them out.
The PDF is big at 146MB (the email will provide a link, not an attachment) but seems to work ok on an iPad (although its formatted for 8.5 by 11 inches).
If you do like the adventure, let me know what ideas you have for Book 2 - See the Adventure Summary in the Introduction for a rough outline of the plot.
Hey there, I'm looking to help support this project, however, I want to make sure I have this right:
1. Select the $35 pledge and I get the software when it comes available.
2. Add $500 to the pledge to get the "hellknights most wanted" add-on (even though there is no other reference to this anywhere during the payment process); e.g. I get the ES hardcover book, flipmat, some minis and PDFs - and the avatar creation;
So I select the $35 pledge and in the first pop-up add $500 for $535 then go through the payment process. You will automatically understand I am adding on the hellknights most wanted addon because of the added funds. Do I have this correct?
Just keeping the community informed. I'd recommend we clarify what is OK and what is "not OK" on these forums (e.g. names, content, and other IP whatever that may be). In any case, I appreciate the comments from other fans and remain a fan of D&D in general. Perhaps now is the time to move to original content!
I post this to serve as a reminder to all to make sure we stay within the guidelines going forward.
Cheers,
~D
Note from Chris:
I am contacting you to inform you that multiple posts you have made on paizo.com have been removed or had the links removed. From our forum rules: "Users who participate in our message boards agree to not: post any content that infringes and/or violates any patent, trademark, copyright, or other proprietary right of any third party." Unfortunately, the conversion files, and in fact many of the files that have been posted violate Paizo's Community Use Policy and infringe on our copyright and trade dress, as well as other third party companies that are not Paizo. Additionally, you may want to revisit your OGL and Section 14 statements on your conversions and discuss them with a lawyer to be sure you are not violating any other company's terms of use or property. You may post these conversions or any other Community Use material once changes and revisions have been made, but as they are now, they are not allowed under our rules.
If you have any questions or concerns, please let us know.
Been kicking around in my head for a while and with the re-release of the books, I thought I post. 1E is full of nostalgia for me (not a proper grognard, I know).
What would it look like if Paizo re-wrote the rules? I don't mean "changed" them, but re-wrote them for ease of use. Of course, some ease of use, could be construed as "changed" (or converted, which is why I post here) - but the math and the results of the die roll remain the same.
Here is a sample (simplistic one I know) but gives a flavor for it. All I did was convert THAC0 to "Hit AC 20" (which means the same thing generally) and I took the 0-level saves and made them the "Base DC" and converted the rest of the saves to "pluses". Same math, same rolls needed. Easier to use.
Thoughts? Just a fan's nostalgia trip, but interesting how far you could go with this. The 1E rules are just all over the place but with a simple re-ordering and re-structuring, how close could you get to today's game? - While still retaining the nerdy coolness of 1E? (maybe I'm the only one that feels this way - I understand there's some serious unhappiness with 1E out there).
Hey there, here is a conversion of X2 Castle Amber (Moldvay, Tom. TSR, 1981). Note: This is a re-imagined version, rather than a straight conversion.
Here is the file -> X2 Castle Amber[74.25MB]
I recommend you right click the link and select "save as" to get the file; Otherwise, your browser may display a cached version.
Spoiler:
This one took a little longer than I wanted. I moved over to Adobe InDesign and Photoshop which took me a little while to learn well enough to produce the document. While my original plan was to reproduce all of the maps, the time requirement was high so I did the West Wing and Averoigne then used the old cut and paste method for the rest of the maps until I'm inspired to re-do them. I went for a sepia look to the document to help pull the artwork together. I don't know why, but the Castlevania artwork seemed to work with the Ambers. Hopefully, this will get some use out there or inspire others to make their own conversions.
Release Notes: Added bookmarks to the PDF. Some of the backgrounds are turned around, will fix in the future. Did a little QA but it's never enough, let me know where you see glaring issues.
Enjoy!
~D
Other Conversions Available
Spoiler:
A Paladin in Hell[67.69MB] - This is unfinished as of the date of this post;
A1 Slave Pits of the Undercity[40.00MB] G2 Glacial Rift of the Frost Giant Jarl[23.41MB] I2 Tomb of the Lizard King[43.75MB]
Did someone mention wanting a conversion for G2? Well, here it is: "G2 Glacial Rift of the Frost Giant Jarl" (Gygax, Gary. TSR, 1978). As with other conversions I've attempted, there was some license (e.g. not a purely "straight" conversion). That said, I opted for a closer conversion this time with inline stats. Because many of the creatures were straight from the Bestiary(s), this made sense (to me at least).
If anyone (Silke?) takes a look, let me know if you find mistakes, etc. Note that much of the text was written by Gary himself, so I may or may not change that further depending on it's impact to running the module.
Here is the current file -> G2 Glacial Rift of the Frost Giant Jarl[careful, its big, but worth the wait!]
Please right click the link and select "Save as.." to download the file.
Hey there; I've done a conversion of "A1 Slave Pits of the Undercity" (Cook, David. TSR, 1980). As with other conversions I've attempted, there will was some license (e.g. not a purely "straight" conversion).
Here is the current file -> A1 Slave Pits of the Undercity[careful, its big, but worth the wait!]
Spoiler:
I still have some "clean up" tasks at this point (Jul 06) - final editing; add the bestiary; complete the pregen characters; Then it's back to Hell (actually, a Paladin in Hell to be exact). Once I'm done with that, I'll look at moving on to A2 or something else. I still shudder to think of trying to convert the H series...
As always, right click the link and choose "Save As" for a better download experience.
Just wanted to start a thread for this game; Soon, I'll post full character sheets of the pre-gens so players can make their selections (first-come, first-selected). The pre-gens will be updated characters from the original.
If you have played the original, not to worry, this one will be just crooked enough you can expect a surprise or two.
Hey there; I'm going to go ahead and start a conversion of "A1 Slave Pits of the Undercity" (Cook, David. TSR, 1980). As with other conversions I've attempted, there will be some license (e.g. not a purely "straight" conversion).
Here is the current file -> A1 Slave Pits of the Undercity [careful, its a little big]
Spoiler:
OK, so I couldn't help myself, Eric T. mentioned this one and so I had to do it. I reviewed Labyrinth of Madness and the Bloodstone series. I need to finish "Paladin" before I even think about tackling those. Plus, the Slaver series always seemed like a great story but, given their initial design, had issues and limitations. That said, they also have great sentimental value. So - I will attempt to do them justice without mucking them up too badly.
A1-4 Scourge of the Slavelords and "Slavers" (by the great SKR and Mr. Pramas) are clear sources of inspiration if not direct borrowing. The "Scourge" adventure will help when tying them together but it does go a little to far afield for a direct conversion. I hope that is OK.
As always, I hope this conversion will bring a bit of a smile for those of us that still remember nervously scuttling down its hallways (those darn aspis and their multiple blades!).
Once I get it in shape, please give me any feedback/edits/recommendations - I hope this will live on for a little while in folks "download queue". I am thinking of converting all of the Slave Lords series but we'll see.
I continue to work on Paladin - I'm doing roughly one day on, one day off (of course this happens mostly on weekends. One must crank away at "real work" after all.).
Here is the "final" thread hosting the conversion of "A Paladin in Hell" (Cook, Monte. TSR, 1998). Note: This is a re-imagined version, rather than a straight conversion.
I recommend you right click the link and select "save as" to get the file; Otherwise, your browser may display a cached version.
Spoiler:
The other thread was getting a little long. I really appreciate all of the feedback so far. Helping me catch mistakes is also a major help, sometimes you get too close to the document to edit it effectively. I'll continue to post updates to the file in the link above so check back every so often.
At the time of this post, the file is not complete but its getting closer.
Hey there; I'm going to go ahead and start a conversion of "I2 Tomb of the Lizard King" (Acres, Mark. TSR, 1982). As with other conversions I've attempted, there will be some license (e.g. not a purely "straight" conversion).
Here is the current file -> [b]I2 Tomb of the Lizard King/b] [careful, its a little big]
Spoiler:
Please feel free to help out with this one and I'll get the updates formated in. I'll keep updating the same link so you can always see the latest version by clicking on the above.
I started out by placing this near the Mushfens. If there is a better place that feels closer to Eor, let me know. The Sodden Lands seemed too uncivilized and remote even though it has more lizardfolk presence.
I won't stop working on my other conversions, it's just nice to work on fresh material.
Currently, I'm trying to stay in the realm of four 7th level characters, with the setting set to "expert" (e.g. tough for 7th level characters).
Note: This doesn't mean I won't do *another* conversion (like, say, H4), but I wanted to go mid-level for a bit.
Hey there - I've been converting the 2nd Edition module, "A Paladin in Hell", in the Conversions area - and it made me somewhat nostalgic for 1E. So I took a quick shot at using the same format I use for Pathfinder conversions over to 1E.
Kind of interesting - While not as "usable" as the Pathfinder format, it doesn't translate as bad as I feared it would. I mean, initiative and other rules are still a bit arcane, but it's interesting to see how close we still are to 1E D&D.
MEET CUINRE BONESPELL, Type IV demon and his friend -> CLICK HERE
Oh yes, as additional incentive, any players joining will get a (professionally) bound copy of A Paladin in Hell for Pathfinder Rules shipped to them when it is finished.
Hrmm. Seems others are having similar problems. I'll just say, this is the only publication that I have ever had problems with re USPS.
Can you change my shipping preferences to something that is more consistent? Only one restriction, I cannot sign for anything (e.g. they need to leave the book in the mailbox).
Been playing Pathfinder since Alpha 1 and have had a number of long 4E games giving it a try.
I am in the camp that 4E has lost the "feeling" of D&D as I knew it through the years; The things I like about 3/3.5/PFRPG include the tremendous options (supported by the core rules), particularly when designing characters, NPCs and key villians. Curse of the Crimson Throne adventure path is a perfect example of why I enjoy 3E - Not only a good story, but the authors really embrace the expanse of rules available to design the villians, helping them come alive.
All that said, as a DM, one thing that 4E has going for it is simplicity in play - particularly when running encounters; The layout, more than limited options, seems to speed up play. For the record, I am not a "delve" format proponent, I like my monsters "in-line" with the text.
The problem I have had in the past is, even after an active 30 or so years of playing, I still cannot remember every spell description, and, with the tweaks in Pathfinder, while cool, I need to double-check even more.
So - I thought, "Hey, if the major benefit of 4E is simply the layout (according to me, of course, others will quite disagree), why not take a shot at a similar layout using PFRPG rules".
Now, this is simply a first straw-dog done in about 40min or so; I chose a lower level creature (Vreeg, from Edge of Anarchy). While lower level, he had an array of powers that pushed the limit on "fitment", so, a reasonable case study says I.
Some may see this as simply verifying the issue with 3E - an unwieldy set of powers/options/etc. that may never be used and too much prep time. That said, if a PUBLISHER were to give me something similar in FORMAT, my life as a DM would be made easier and I would have an easier time continuing on with 3E/3.5/PFRPG.
As I said, this is simply food for thought.
NOTE: There are several mistakes and items left out, etc. as this was a "rush" job to provoke thought. Please don't beat me up on accuracy, that was not the intent.
(if, for some reason, I have violated some sort of infringement or otherwise peeved off corp-type entities, let me know what I did and I'll fix - Thanks)
