Taking on The Nothic's Eye GLÅUGUST 2025, challenge #6 is from a list of their own - "Paladin of an unorthodox Law" - the law here is gravity, these paladins it's wardens.
Paladin of Gravity
A - Ripples in the gravity well
B - Gravitic Nudge
C - Slip the Grasp
D - Time lens
Increment Higgness +1 per template.
Should a Paladin of Gravity find themselves aboard a Spelljammer, any of the below can be applied to the ship if desired.
A Paladin of Gravity, if conscious, no longer takes fall damage if they choose not to. They still leave a crater if they fall far enough.
Ripples in the gravity well - gain awareness of the interplay of the local gravity plane - perceive all as it thrums against the gravity plane. The paladin gains tremorsense and true-sight to a range of Higgness * 30'. They can also take a minute to unerringly know direction relative to the planetary center and the local system gravity center.
Gravitic Nudge - Command local gravity. Summon meteors, slow foes or cause structural damage of d6 * Higgness per day. AC against missiles improves by Higgness.
Slip the Grasp - Gravity releases its most faithful servants. You can move Higgness * 30' per round, along, up or down any surface.
Time lens - Subtly scrunch gravity to warp time just when you need it; reroll any attack, save or ability check. Do this Higgness times per day.
30 August 2025
27 August 2025
Commission for the ethical sourcing of construct souls (GLÅUGUST 2025 #5)
Taking on The Nothic's Eye GLÅUGUST 2025, challenge #5 is from a list by Archon - "Minor social movement" - we discuss below the Comission for the Ethical Sourcing of Construct Souls.
The recent arrival of 'brassbones' - also known as warforged elsewhere in the multiverse - has caused some debate among the artificers and clergy of Krarland and other parts. Before them everything was clear.
Everyone knew that a wizards staff does not have a soul, that a homonculus was just an extension of a wizards self and that familiars were just sparks of the feywild, mirrors to a wizards will.
For the longest time everyone knew that constructs like enchanted broomsticks, talking clocks and dancing chairs and the like were just clever tools, extensions of the wizards hands.
But once the constructs grew more and more versatile, and clearly were be-souled as they could ask and care about questions like 'did they have souls' then the troubling question arose of where were these souls coming from?
Were souls from the great cycle now being incarnated in metal forms - the artificers workbench standing in for the mothers womb? Or were these new souls being drawn from some source attuned to metal, wood and stone? Were these dwarves in different forms?
A quiet sense of unease spread among the temples and workshops, a sense that while the need to know the answer to the question is not yet critically necessary, something of potentially great import was being meddled with blindly. With a feeling that it might become very important to be clear on the answer suddenly and without warning, the commission for the ethical sourcing of construct souls was founded.
The commission can be a vehicle for introducing NPCs with a specialty in information-gathering or any arcanist or clergy. It could also be a vehicle for NPCs to know one another if necessary - or a reason why given NPCs are distracted.
The first 6 of the below can be placed anywhere - such as a dungeon - the Commissioners were either seeking privacy to discuss the matter or gathering information in this out of the way place.
d8 Things Commissioners Might be Encountered Doing
1. Complicated auguries - a group of otherwise perfectly respectable and upstanding clerics acting really suspiciously because they are worried the very existence of brassbones is disrupting some natural cycle with terrible consequences but they do not want to start a panic. Yet.
2. Interrogation of summoned fiends - a masterclass in dread summoning by some morally-grey conjurers supported by every forbidden tome ever confiscated by the major temples. The fiends trying to figure out why they are being asked these questions, how rich could this new vein of souls be. Conjurers trying to find excuses to use and possibly memorize tricks from these books they never get access to. Clerics trying to block both but wring useful answers from the fiends.
3. Attempted necromancy on a smashed brassbones - necromancers with a grim group of death clerics carefully studying what kinds of things raise brassbone corpses and how different they might be.
4. Comparative soul analysis - brassbones and volunteer civilians being brought on a tour of spiritually null, isolated, hallowed and desecrated places to witness and record their relative reactions.
5. Crowd sourcing ancient legends in 'old folk' communities - sages touring dwellings of the long lived - elves, giants, dragons, etc - and asking them about their ancient legends for any similar happening before.
6. A mixed group of arcanists, clerics and other interested parties attempting to collate various notes from all the above efforts into some sort of order - currently it is a mess of chalk scribbles, tacked up notes and lengths of red string with people standing within it pointing and arguing.
(Outside the dungeon)
7. An incredibly over-engineered hospital offer free treatment for any injured brassbones - hugely overstaffed, with far too many high level clerics present for the small handful of damaged brassbones. The place is festooned with divination magics.
8. Incredibly over-engineered temple to craft gods - brassbones being assembled amidst an array of divination devices, meditating acolytes and other things meant to give some indication of where the soul entered the new form from.
The recent arrival of 'brassbones' - also known as warforged elsewhere in the multiverse - has caused some debate among the artificers and clergy of Krarland and other parts. Before them everything was clear.
Everyone knew that a wizards staff does not have a soul, that a homonculus was just an extension of a wizards self and that familiars were just sparks of the feywild, mirrors to a wizards will.
For the longest time everyone knew that constructs like enchanted broomsticks, talking clocks and dancing chairs and the like were just clever tools, extensions of the wizards hands.
But once the constructs grew more and more versatile, and clearly were be-souled as they could ask and care about questions like 'did they have souls' then the troubling question arose of where were these souls coming from?
Were souls from the great cycle now being incarnated in metal forms - the artificers workbench standing in for the mothers womb? Or were these new souls being drawn from some source attuned to metal, wood and stone? Were these dwarves in different forms?
A quiet sense of unease spread among the temples and workshops, a sense that while the need to know the answer to the question is not yet critically necessary, something of potentially great import was being meddled with blindly. With a feeling that it might become very important to be clear on the answer suddenly and without warning, the commission for the ethical sourcing of construct souls was founded.
The commission can be a vehicle for introducing NPCs with a specialty in information-gathering or any arcanist or clergy. It could also be a vehicle for NPCs to know one another if necessary - or a reason why given NPCs are distracted.
The first 6 of the below can be placed anywhere - such as a dungeon - the Commissioners were either seeking privacy to discuss the matter or gathering information in this out of the way place.
d8 Things Commissioners Might be Encountered Doing
1. Complicated auguries - a group of otherwise perfectly respectable and upstanding clerics acting really suspiciously because they are worried the very existence of brassbones is disrupting some natural cycle with terrible consequences but they do not want to start a panic. Yet.
2. Interrogation of summoned fiends - a masterclass in dread summoning by some morally-grey conjurers supported by every forbidden tome ever confiscated by the major temples. The fiends trying to figure out why they are being asked these questions, how rich could this new vein of souls be. Conjurers trying to find excuses to use and possibly memorize tricks from these books they never get access to. Clerics trying to block both but wring useful answers from the fiends.
3. Attempted necromancy on a smashed brassbones - necromancers with a grim group of death clerics carefully studying what kinds of things raise brassbone corpses and how different they might be.
4. Comparative soul analysis - brassbones and volunteer civilians being brought on a tour of spiritually null, isolated, hallowed and desecrated places to witness and record their relative reactions.
5. Crowd sourcing ancient legends in 'old folk' communities - sages touring dwellings of the long lived - elves, giants, dragons, etc - and asking them about their ancient legends for any similar happening before.
6. A mixed group of arcanists, clerics and other interested parties attempting to collate various notes from all the above efforts into some sort of order - currently it is a mess of chalk scribbles, tacked up notes and lengths of red string with people standing within it pointing and arguing.
(Outside the dungeon)
7. An incredibly over-engineered hospital offer free treatment for any injured brassbones - hugely overstaffed, with far too many high level clerics present for the small handful of damaged brassbones. The place is festooned with divination magics.
8. Incredibly over-engineered temple to craft gods - brassbones being assembled amidst an array of divination devices, meditating acolytes and other things meant to give some indication of where the soul entered the new form from.
25 August 2025
Shiny TTRPG links #239
High summer links for your internet interest. For more, see the previous list found here or on the weekly r/OSR blogroll or check the RPG Blog Carnival. Originally inspired by weaver.skepti.ch End of Week links.
Prismatic Wasteland writes on AI and Empty Art
The Flesh Resists shares It's always the butler
MixUpPixels on itch.io gives us GREEN CORRIDOR
Goblin Punch shares A Dungeon of Your Own
Revivify Games gives us The Overachiever’s Guide to Lazy Hexcrawl Building.
Cat Bussell at WarGamer writes Daggerheart may be all the rage, but don't sleep on this fantasy masterpiece
Crow’s Corner gives us Table-Tested Review of Vaesen’s "Seasons of Mystery"
Francesco Cacciatore on Polygon writes Critical Role's 'West Marches-style' Campaign 4 will be the most interesting yet
Prismatic Wasteland writes on AI and Empty Art
The Flesh Resists shares It's always the butler
MixUpPixels on itch.io gives us GREEN CORRIDOR
Goblin Punch shares A Dungeon of Your Own
Revivify Games gives us The Overachiever’s Guide to Lazy Hexcrawl Building.
Cat Bussell at WarGamer writes Daggerheart may be all the rage, but don't sleep on this fantasy masterpiece
Crow’s Corner gives us Table-Tested Review of Vaesen’s "Seasons of Mystery"
Francesco Cacciatore on Polygon writes Critical Role's 'West Marches-style' Campaign 4 will be the most interesting yet
23 August 2025
Don't Tell Me It's Raining
Bearer of the RPG Blog Carnival torch Scott Newbury themselves gives us this months prompt Good Morning, Dave on ways that you’re using AI in your gaming. Below my view on AI as it is pitched to us today, and its fitness-for-purpose for TTRPGs to the limit of my patience since I deal with it professionally too. The super short version, I am no AI zealot either way but AI is not yet pulling its weight for me and my DM-ing workflow and the 'outsource my braining' aspect of it does not appeal.
Experience so far
On the basis of lived experience I think my over all view can be summed up in that I gave using AI tools a shot back in ~2020-2021 and was generally dissatisfied with what they could give me so I chucked it. I had a go at LLMs to boost encounter tables across the pandemic - mostly attempting to increase lists - so very well 'prompted' and the effort required for setting it up and cleaning up the output was not worth it. See examples of villanous escapes, night events, living doors and mythic shoreline encounters.
Experience so far
On the basis of lived experience I think my over all view can be summed up in that I gave using AI tools a shot back in ~2020-2021 and was generally dissatisfied with what they could give me so I chucked it. I had a go at LLMs to boost encounter tables across the pandemic - mostly attempting to increase lists - so very well 'prompted' and the effort required for setting it up and cleaning up the output was not worth it. See examples of villanous escapes, night events, living doors and mythic shoreline encounters.
20 August 2025
2d12 Debutante Ball Encounters (GLÅUGUST 2025 #4)
Taking on The Nothic's Eye GLÅUGUST 2025, challenge #4 is from a list by Gokun - "Debutante ball encounter table".
Below a list of folk present at a debutante ball - could be another noble event - in standard fairy-tale high fantasy. Lifted straight from current events of my menagerie-world campaign. The below is light on the obvious villains because those will be specific to your game/campaign - the encounter list below gives you all the plausible background folk to make the world feel real, weighted for 2d12 probability curve.
Also - avoid my mistake - if there is someone who you need the players to meet then do not put them on the random encounter table, no matter how probable the placing. Decide a trigger and have them turn up otherwise you could end up with your players rolling like demons and getting everything except the one encounter you need. This is a variant of 'don't gate the vital clues behind a skill roll'. In particular because these are social encounters, there is a risk of time running away as people interact with these NPCs - which may be something you are happy to have happen, just be aware of it.
2d12 Attendees of the Ball
2. Very old 'elf' holding court, font of lore, arbiter of etiquette, has slightly strange bunch of hangers-on - very conservative in mannerisms but an otherwise diverse group, very pale, no reflection.
3. Lady in black, immaculate gown subtly dripping with jewelled embroidery, excellent listener, delighted to share gossip, only slightest hint of sulphur trailing them hints at infernal origin, here watching over investments
4. Uncomfortable looking outdoorsy type, fine but obviously unfamiliar outfit highlights astonishing physique, here as a reward for monster-slaying, wishing they got gold instead
5. Starry eyed youth, dazzled and delighted, here as reward for assassinating particularly nasty cult leader by infiltrating their fortress
6. Ancient court wizard, here from long tradition, has met or is aware of most people, here so their glamoured-up entourage can play at high society for a night
7. Distant arch-fey relative of the Duchess, patroness of one of the debutantes, here to make a big splash of granting her blessing
8. Proper, slightly stuffy monster-slayer heir to major noble house, here out of duty, wants to be out on the hunt earning a name of his own. Taciturn, unless about monsters and killing them
9. Scion of the smiths guildmaster, already an established reputation as a fashion setter, patron of crafts and advocate for trade. Bulldozer direct wrapped in perfect manners
10. Trailing end of the current generation of the ruling house, knows everyone, dislikes the spotlight, jittery because they are aware of the dangers here but not very dangerous themselves
11. Minor nobility in from the country, more people in this room than settlements she grew up in, overwhelmed, completely focussed on not causing a mess
12. Trade guild minor scion, has been to many of these for his siblings, excited to see long-absent cousins, viewing it all as a big family get-together
13. Scion of an old pre-conquest minor house, social butterfly, knows everyone including most servants, her people have lived here since time immemorial, this room was her families once
14. First generation of newly established mage-house, excellent student of magic, uncomfortable in crowds, trying to be what his parents hope
15. Almost too-old member of a ruined minor house recently restored to the Duchess favour and sponsored by her. Perfectly mannered, aware she is a single slip from social abyss
16. Bored younger sibling, thinks whole thing a waste of their time, they have a whole year until they do it themselves, mostly interested in brashly chasing pretty folk, adeptly avoids increasingly frustrated guardians
17. Last years debutante, returning to support sibling with charming spouse on their arm, judgemental of anything non traditional, keen to soak up the experience without the stress of being its focus
18. Sibling of the Duke, recently back from border skirmishes, renowned war-hero, very interested in potential useable talent, trailed by grim looking body-guard, long-suffering spouse
19. Duchess, graciously hosting, full fey-ancestry glamours on display, seeking a perfectly pleasant and orderly introduction to society for everyone, standards up-held and all, entourage of secretary, ladies in waiting, favoured companions
20. Perfectly dressed if understated thief, polite and mannerly, happy to take invitations to dance, excellent listener, all to prolong time scouting nice jewels
21. Immaculately turned out, suave seducer- seeking a romantic tryst they can lever to their advantage, quickly moves on from bad prospects
22. Somewhat battered but appropriately attired avenger, wary and watchful, seeks one who has wronged them, ready for violence
23. Ambassador from afar, smooth, like an excellent butler, will be fascinated with PCs stories, happy to direct them towards folk that might help
24. Duke master of spies, formally dressed as member of minor nobility, older society members get quiet around them, mostly watching for threats
Combine this table of people with my previous d20 Odd events at a nobles ball if you just want a handful of things to spice up a ball where you know the main 'plot' already or add the Masquerade as social depth-crawl structure to both of those to make it a whole thing in and of itself.
Below a list of folk present at a debutante ball - could be another noble event - in standard fairy-tale high fantasy. Lifted straight from current events of my menagerie-world campaign. The below is light on the obvious villains because those will be specific to your game/campaign - the encounter list below gives you all the plausible background folk to make the world feel real, weighted for 2d12 probability curve.
Also - avoid my mistake - if there is someone who you need the players to meet then do not put them on the random encounter table, no matter how probable the placing. Decide a trigger and have them turn up otherwise you could end up with your players rolling like demons and getting everything except the one encounter you need. This is a variant of 'don't gate the vital clues behind a skill roll'. In particular because these are social encounters, there is a risk of time running away as people interact with these NPCs - which may be something you are happy to have happen, just be aware of it.
2d12 Attendees of the Ball
2. Very old 'elf' holding court, font of lore, arbiter of etiquette, has slightly strange bunch of hangers-on - very conservative in mannerisms but an otherwise diverse group, very pale, no reflection.
3. Lady in black, immaculate gown subtly dripping with jewelled embroidery, excellent listener, delighted to share gossip, only slightest hint of sulphur trailing them hints at infernal origin, here watching over investments
4. Uncomfortable looking outdoorsy type, fine but obviously unfamiliar outfit highlights astonishing physique, here as a reward for monster-slaying, wishing they got gold instead
5. Starry eyed youth, dazzled and delighted, here as reward for assassinating particularly nasty cult leader by infiltrating their fortress
6. Ancient court wizard, here from long tradition, has met or is aware of most people, here so their glamoured-up entourage can play at high society for a night
7. Distant arch-fey relative of the Duchess, patroness of one of the debutantes, here to make a big splash of granting her blessing
8. Proper, slightly stuffy monster-slayer heir to major noble house, here out of duty, wants to be out on the hunt earning a name of his own. Taciturn, unless about monsters and killing them
9. Scion of the smiths guildmaster, already an established reputation as a fashion setter, patron of crafts and advocate for trade. Bulldozer direct wrapped in perfect manners
10. Trailing end of the current generation of the ruling house, knows everyone, dislikes the spotlight, jittery because they are aware of the dangers here but not very dangerous themselves
11. Minor nobility in from the country, more people in this room than settlements she grew up in, overwhelmed, completely focussed on not causing a mess
12. Trade guild minor scion, has been to many of these for his siblings, excited to see long-absent cousins, viewing it all as a big family get-together
13. Scion of an old pre-conquest minor house, social butterfly, knows everyone including most servants, her people have lived here since time immemorial, this room was her families once
14. First generation of newly established mage-house, excellent student of magic, uncomfortable in crowds, trying to be what his parents hope
15. Almost too-old member of a ruined minor house recently restored to the Duchess favour and sponsored by her. Perfectly mannered, aware she is a single slip from social abyss
16. Bored younger sibling, thinks whole thing a waste of their time, they have a whole year until they do it themselves, mostly interested in brashly chasing pretty folk, adeptly avoids increasingly frustrated guardians
17. Last years debutante, returning to support sibling with charming spouse on their arm, judgemental of anything non traditional, keen to soak up the experience without the stress of being its focus
18. Sibling of the Duke, recently back from border skirmishes, renowned war-hero, very interested in potential useable talent, trailed by grim looking body-guard, long-suffering spouse
19. Duchess, graciously hosting, full fey-ancestry glamours on display, seeking a perfectly pleasant and orderly introduction to society for everyone, standards up-held and all, entourage of secretary, ladies in waiting, favoured companions
20. Perfectly dressed if understated thief, polite and mannerly, happy to take invitations to dance, excellent listener, all to prolong time scouting nice jewels
21. Immaculately turned out, suave seducer- seeking a romantic tryst they can lever to their advantage, quickly moves on from bad prospects
22. Somewhat battered but appropriately attired avenger, wary and watchful, seeks one who has wronged them, ready for violence
23. Ambassador from afar, smooth, like an excellent butler, will be fascinated with PCs stories, happy to direct them towards folk that might help
24. Duke master of spies, formally dressed as member of minor nobility, older society members get quiet around them, mostly watching for threats
Combine this table of people with my previous d20 Odd events at a nobles ball if you just want a handful of things to spice up a ball where you know the main 'plot' already or add the Masquerade as social depth-crawl structure to both of those to make it a whole thing in and of itself.
18 August 2025
Shiny TTRPG links #238
High summer links for your internet interest. For more, see the previous list found here or on the weekly r/OSR blogroll or check the RPG Blog Carnival. Originally inspired by weaver.skepti.ch End of Week links.
Crow’s Corner shares a Table-Tested Review of Raiders of the Serpent Sea
Blog of Forlorn Encystment writes Dealing with NPCs Should Be Expensive and Irritating
Meg Zone gives us The lords of rock and river: a tiny regional hexcrawl
Veritas Tabletop shares Coins and Currency: Adding Flavor to Your Coins
Busy Wyvern gives us Making it Real (or, how to make your players squirm a bit)
Valeria Loves shares Promises - a Mythic Bastionland House Rule
Vaults of Zin writes GM's Glossary Part 6: Everything you can do with your Stats
Bommyknocker Press gives us Writing Encounters in Pairs
Graeme Davis shares Lost Warhammer: Heroes for Hire
GROGNARDIA writes The Dream-Quest of the Old School Renaissance
Swords & Stitchery gives us Designing Martian Adventures In The Warriors of the Red Planet Rpg - Edgar Rice Burroughs The Mastermind of Mars
Playful Void writes Bathtub Review: A Perfect Wife
Crow’s Corner shares a Table-Tested Review of Raiders of the Serpent Sea
Blog of Forlorn Encystment writes Dealing with NPCs Should Be Expensive and Irritating
Meg Zone gives us The lords of rock and river: a tiny regional hexcrawl
Veritas Tabletop shares Coins and Currency: Adding Flavor to Your Coins
Busy Wyvern gives us Making it Real (or, how to make your players squirm a bit)
Valeria Loves shares Promises - a Mythic Bastionland House Rule
Vaults of Zin writes GM's Glossary Part 6: Everything you can do with your Stats
Bommyknocker Press gives us Writing Encounters in Pairs
Graeme Davis shares Lost Warhammer: Heroes for Hire
GROGNARDIA writes The Dream-Quest of the Old School Renaissance
Swords & Stitchery gives us Designing Martian Adventures In The Warriors of the Red Planet Rpg - Edgar Rice Burroughs The Mastermind of Mars
Playful Void writes Bathtub Review: A Perfect Wife
16 August 2025
God-whale refinery (GLÅUGUST 2025 #3)
Taking on The Nothic's Eye GLÅUGUST 2025, challenge #3 is from a list by Vayra - "wizard tower dungeon (must have a gimmick)"
This is a wizards tower in a giant, animated hermit-crab-like nautilus shell. Stands on what looks like too-few legs above a miasma of crackling haze, more legs go in than it stands upon below. The surroundings are lit by irregular flares of burning discharge running down the shell. A dreadful smell of grease and offal surrounds it. Within a cabal of mid-tier wizards boot-strapping their artificer expertise and elbow grease to take down their old master.
All rooms are stages of a process and extraction chain for god-flesh wrenched from an colossal extradimensional being captured in some of the towers claws that protrude beyond sight. Everything shakes and shudders in its death-throes.
Everything here is hazardous, the crew/workers will freak out at people acting dangerously but are mostly too occupied with not dying themselves to actually care if people are moving through, as long as they are authorised. Authorisation checks can be as limited as a glance to confirm appropriate protective oil-skins and a purposeful walk.
Locations
This is a wizards tower in a giant, animated hermit-crab-like nautilus shell. Stands on what looks like too-few legs above a miasma of crackling haze, more legs go in than it stands upon below. The surroundings are lit by irregular flares of burning discharge running down the shell. A dreadful smell of grease and offal surrounds it. Within a cabal of mid-tier wizards boot-strapping their artificer expertise and elbow grease to take down their old master.
All rooms are stages of a process and extraction chain for god-flesh wrenched from an colossal extradimensional being captured in some of the towers claws that protrude beyond sight. Everything shakes and shudders in its death-throes.
Everything here is hazardous, the crew/workers will freak out at people acting dangerously but are mostly too occupied with not dying themselves to actually care if people are moving through, as long as they are authorised. Authorisation checks can be as limited as a glance to confirm appropriate protective oil-skins and a purposeful walk.
Locations
13 August 2025
State of the Blog (post #800)
Was a bit of a grind these last dozen or so posts getting a bunch pre-written so I could travel but as we hit this milestone number I am somewhat happier to continue blogging and am a touch more optimistic about the general health of the blog-o-sphere at the moment. Long may it last.
On Traffic
It remains hard to tell is the trend in traffic growth across this place real people or bots. Even accepting that a large fraction (~50%) of internet traffic is bots, that fraction has been stable over the past could of years so the slow up-ward trend in visitors might be real folk. Comments suggest people real people do turn up here (welcome!) and mention made elsewhere of the shiny weekly links posts - and some very welcome direct email appreciation - suggests people find those useful.
So all in all - probably more of you stopping by than before but very, very hard to say anything more definite than that.
The restart of the r/OSR blogroll is having a small impact. Although it has come back as a shadow of its former self - roughly half the participants despite the same amount of upvotes as the latter days - there are flickering signs of growth as the weeks progress. Dare I say another subtle sign of blog-o-sphere health?
Gratitude must also be expressed at this point to u/Leicester68 of Leicester's Ramble for generously taking over blogroll duties these past four weeks while I was travelling - it is not important who posts it, just that it gets posted regularly!
On Traffic
It remains hard to tell is the trend in traffic growth across this place real people or bots. Even accepting that a large fraction (~50%) of internet traffic is bots, that fraction has been stable over the past could of years so the slow up-ward trend in visitors might be real folk. Comments suggest people real people do turn up here (welcome!) and mention made elsewhere of the shiny weekly links posts - and some very welcome direct email appreciation - suggests people find those useful.
So all in all - probably more of you stopping by than before but very, very hard to say anything more definite than that.
The restart of the r/OSR blogroll is having a small impact. Although it has come back as a shadow of its former self - roughly half the participants despite the same amount of upvotes as the latter days - there are flickering signs of growth as the weeks progress. Dare I say another subtle sign of blog-o-sphere health?
Gratitude must also be expressed at this point to u/Leicester68 of Leicester's Ramble for generously taking over blogroll duties these past four weeks while I was travelling - it is not important who posts it, just that it gets posted regularly!
11 August 2025
Shiny TTRPG links #237
Briefly back on desk with a fresh fistful of shiny links! For more, see the previous list found here or on the weekly r/OSR blogroll or check the RPG Blog Carnival. Originally inspired by weaver.skepti.ch End of Week links.
Blogging bandwagons for you to jump on which sprang into being while I was off:
* Prismatic Weekly has a Blogwagon Announcement: Appendicitis N
* TTRPGSupreme on itch.io starts Mythic Bastionland TTRPG Jam #1
* Traverse Fantasy is Inaugurating the Icon0clasm Ball!
* AUTOCRATIK once again gives us #RPGaDAY2025 in August
Trick's Tales shares Some lessons from an indie TTRPG zine fundraiser
All Dead Generations writes Dungeon Design Note: Defining Interactivity
I Cast Light! wrote PSYCHOLOGICAL WEIGHT IN SLOT-BASED ENCUMBRANCE: The burden of magic & sin
Blogging bandwagons for you to jump on which sprang into being while I was off:
* Prismatic Weekly has a Blogwagon Announcement: Appendicitis N
* TTRPGSupreme on itch.io starts Mythic Bastionland TTRPG Jam #1
* Traverse Fantasy is Inaugurating the Icon0clasm Ball!
* AUTOCRATIK once again gives us #RPGaDAY2025 in August
Trick's Tales shares Some lessons from an indie TTRPG zine fundraiser
All Dead Generations writes Dungeon Design Note: Defining Interactivity
I Cast Light! wrote PSYCHOLOGICAL WEIGHT IN SLOT-BASED ENCUMBRANCE: The burden of magic & sin
09 August 2025
Installing Rulers
Of campaigns I have run these past few years, two were open sandboxes and in both of them, after a little poking around dungeons, the partys decided to lock in on some currently non-descript local dweller and get them elevated to a position of power. As the meme says, odd that it happened twice.
Is there something in here about the domain game of D&D being emergent in a convergent-evolution style? Left to their own devices, a party of PCs naturally seeks to instil order, even if it is not to put a crown on their own heads?
Is this just a reaction against whatever the DM is throwing against them - if what they get is a structure plot or obvious hooks, then they will focus on hijinks and chaos creation along the way. If what they get is a pure open sandbox and they can do anything at all, is the reaction to try and impose order and dominion?
These were two completely unrelated groups of players - the first campaign was Southern Reaches where a mix of UK, Ireland and Austria based players playing remotely eventually decided that their goal was going to be getting one of their number elected as mayor of the local big city. The player of that PC had needed to quit so they were effectively a known NPC at that point - no power would have accrued to an active player.
The second time was for my current sandbox, which as running under the name of Realm of the Reluctant King since this effort to crowbar a kingdom in under an NPC is now the main focus. The NPC in question has even told them not to, disavowed any will to be responsible for the locality and fled the region. The current main effort of the campaign is to pry him out of the hands of slavers and bring him back to install at the head of the realm they have hammered together.
Is there something in here about the domain game of D&D being emergent in a convergent-evolution style? Left to their own devices, a party of PCs naturally seeks to instil order, even if it is not to put a crown on their own heads?
Is this just a reaction against whatever the DM is throwing against them - if what they get is a structure plot or obvious hooks, then they will focus on hijinks and chaos creation along the way. If what they get is a pure open sandbox and they can do anything at all, is the reaction to try and impose order and dominion?
These were two completely unrelated groups of players - the first campaign was Southern Reaches where a mix of UK, Ireland and Austria based players playing remotely eventually decided that their goal was going to be getting one of their number elected as mayor of the local big city. The player of that PC had needed to quit so they were effectively a known NPC at that point - no power would have accrued to an active player.
The second time was for my current sandbox, which as running under the name of Realm of the Reluctant King since this effort to crowbar a kingdom in under an NPC is now the main focus. The NPC in question has even told them not to, disavowed any will to be responsible for the locality and fled the region. The current main effort of the campaign is to pry him out of the hands of slavers and bring him back to install at the head of the realm they have hammered together.
06 August 2025
Wells and Un-wells (GLÅUGUST 2025 #2)
Taking on The Nothic's Eye GLÅUGUST 2025, challenge #2 is from a list by deus ex parabola - "Selection of interesting wells, wishing or non-wishing". In the finest of tradition, these were drafted on the back of an envelope on a train with an odd guy staring at me.
Unusual water sources.
1. drawing on a cracked open insectfolk ruin - occassionally contaminated with honey-like nectars
2. runoff from an ice-elemental cooling system at the arcane university, inexplicable ice-chunks that look like melting scales
3. distillery condensate from a dwarven subterranean facility; mildly alcoholic
4. tapping a great root; faint taste of sap
5. well created by a giants blow - shattering the rocks below; brought water from tight rocks but now draw is exceeding inflow as people congregate
6. a bizarre system of a belt made of bear pelt running down into a filthy well with the rising, soaked pelt having water squeezed out with wringers. Tastes bad - both pelt and filth leaving trace tastes - but safe enough to drink
7. dwarven venturi jet pump - on a high wind day this dwarven windmill pumps water back down to a cunning venturi nozzle at the bottom of the well and lifts more water back out. Originally designed to combine with a now-missing wind-powered set of trip hammers and forge bellows, it is now a booster-pumped well that is dry (jammed with machinery) on a still day or a torrent on a windy day
8. furious air elemental imprisoned down-well throws off bubbles that reduce the density of the water column and allow the well to lift.
9. a pump operated by skeletons turning a windlass - incredibly squeaky, skeletons hiss and snarl at any who come close but only attack if the pump is interfered with
10. collosal archimedes screw descends huge distance down a 30 degree bore. Distant snarls and roars echoe up the bore and the screw occassionally shakes from impacts.
11. well is an opening into the top of a cavern containing under-sea. Buckets are lowered a very, very long way, sometimes come up with a fish
12. something lives down the well and trades water for things like feathers and leaves. Can be heard chirping happily when buckets with offerings are lowered.
13. beetle shell continuously sheened with condensate that drips into a pan beneath
14. well stands alone within a fetid swamp with a complex curved roof - a seethingly hot gem within the well sets steam rising that runs down the roof to a ring trough that surrounds the well. Gruesome smell of burning marsh mud surrounds it
15. shattered remnant of a wizards tower; twisted apparatus surround a borehole, blue flames leap continuously from the blackened stones of the tower but beneath the water is clear
16. partially buried giant ice-block, frozen around a trapped ice elemental. Hack off some ice.
17. well is a bowl where a salt-crystal thread is being constantly spun by invisible fingers; once all the salt is spun out, invisible hands toss the water and refill the bowl from the nearby sea - snatch the bowl before it is thrown to get the fresh water
18. barnacle encrusted artificers tower, the grumbling machine within sifting tiny grains of gold from huge volumes of seawater - sifts out everything in fact - with fresh water being dumped out by a pipe into what is now an anomalous garden
19. badly resealed portal to the elemental plane of water has flooded the basement of a wizards tower. Only slightly tastes of mold and reagents.
20. shattered tower of a once-mighty aboleth jitters between this reality and other times, occassionally passing through when this place was/is/will be a lake complete with thunderclap of displaced air/water and great splosh as the towers volume of water is displaced to here.
Unusual water sources.
1. drawing on a cracked open insectfolk ruin - occassionally contaminated with honey-like nectars
2. runoff from an ice-elemental cooling system at the arcane university, inexplicable ice-chunks that look like melting scales
3. distillery condensate from a dwarven subterranean facility; mildly alcoholic
4. tapping a great root; faint taste of sap
5. well created by a giants blow - shattering the rocks below; brought water from tight rocks but now draw is exceeding inflow as people congregate
6. a bizarre system of a belt made of bear pelt running down into a filthy well with the rising, soaked pelt having water squeezed out with wringers. Tastes bad - both pelt and filth leaving trace tastes - but safe enough to drink
7. dwarven venturi jet pump - on a high wind day this dwarven windmill pumps water back down to a cunning venturi nozzle at the bottom of the well and lifts more water back out. Originally designed to combine with a now-missing wind-powered set of trip hammers and forge bellows, it is now a booster-pumped well that is dry (jammed with machinery) on a still day or a torrent on a windy day
8. furious air elemental imprisoned down-well throws off bubbles that reduce the density of the water column and allow the well to lift.
9. a pump operated by skeletons turning a windlass - incredibly squeaky, skeletons hiss and snarl at any who come close but only attack if the pump is interfered with
10. collosal archimedes screw descends huge distance down a 30 degree bore. Distant snarls and roars echoe up the bore and the screw occassionally shakes from impacts.
11. well is an opening into the top of a cavern containing under-sea. Buckets are lowered a very, very long way, sometimes come up with a fish
12. something lives down the well and trades water for things like feathers and leaves. Can be heard chirping happily when buckets with offerings are lowered.
13. beetle shell continuously sheened with condensate that drips into a pan beneath
14. well stands alone within a fetid swamp with a complex curved roof - a seethingly hot gem within the well sets steam rising that runs down the roof to a ring trough that surrounds the well. Gruesome smell of burning marsh mud surrounds it
15. shattered remnant of a wizards tower; twisted apparatus surround a borehole, blue flames leap continuously from the blackened stones of the tower but beneath the water is clear
16. partially buried giant ice-block, frozen around a trapped ice elemental. Hack off some ice.
17. well is a bowl where a salt-crystal thread is being constantly spun by invisible fingers; once all the salt is spun out, invisible hands toss the water and refill the bowl from the nearby sea - snatch the bowl before it is thrown to get the fresh water
18. barnacle encrusted artificers tower, the grumbling machine within sifting tiny grains of gold from huge volumes of seawater - sifts out everything in fact - with fresh water being dumped out by a pipe into what is now an anomalous garden
19. badly resealed portal to the elemental plane of water has flooded the basement of a wizards tower. Only slightly tastes of mold and reagents.
20. shattered tower of a once-mighty aboleth jitters between this reality and other times, occassionally passing through when this place was/is/will be a lake complete with thunderclap of displaced air/water and great splosh as the towers volume of water is displaced to here.
04 August 2025
Shiny TTRPG links #236
Yet more deep-time blog-trawlings while I am travelling. For more, see the previous list found here or on the weekly r/OSR blogroll or check the RPG Blog Carnival. Originally inspired by weaver.skepti.ch End of Week links.
games with others created Monsterparts (attribute-less D&D)
Aboleth Overlords gave us Ye Olde Fantasy: Social Status
Last Gasp shared The House of Rules
BASTIONLAND gave us Expose your Prep
Canmom asked Can we make RPG money more interesting?
Sheep and Sorcery wrote The Science of Friend (Social Mechanics)
The Blue Bard asked Must It Always Be Violence?
Hill Cantons gave us The Unbearable Dullness of DnD Wilderness
Monster Manual Sewn From Pants gave us Weapooning
games with others created Monsterparts (attribute-less D&D)
Aboleth Overlords gave us Ye Olde Fantasy: Social Status
Last Gasp shared The House of Rules
BASTIONLAND gave us Expose your Prep
Canmom asked Can we make RPG money more interesting?
Sheep and Sorcery wrote The Science of Friend (Social Mechanics)
The Blue Bard asked Must It Always Be Violence?
Hill Cantons gave us The Unbearable Dullness of DnD Wilderness
Monster Manual Sewn From Pants gave us Weapooning
03 August 2025
Actual Play - Yaksha's Hexfill Method (Part 2)
Closing out a table test a Brian Yaksha's Hexfill method on a 'fill as you go' basis on a previously un-explored part of the map. Written up to follow Jenx first best practice: "Record your hobby experience" while continuing the DM commentary addition to the session notes.
This second session had things work more smoothly, I was happy with how it played out. As before, I was working off a single page print-off of all the tables, double column, minimal borders and using that with an overloaded encounter die.
I used an overloaded encounter die so there were both 'encounter, positive' and 'encounter, negative' possibilities plus 'locality' and 'percept' options. Fatigue and expiry results did not require anything from these tables.
1. Setback
2. Fatigue/delay
3. Expiration
4. Locality
5. Percept
6. Advantage
Setup
The party was continuing to try and evacuate a large column of freed prisoners through a swamp. Play picked up with the party catching up with the column of refugees they had let be escorted on ahead by some other adventurers they hired. Approx 175 people in the column, rested but with no food, with four hours left until sundown.
This second session had things work more smoothly, I was happy with how it played out. As before, I was working off a single page print-off of all the tables, double column, minimal borders and using that with an overloaded encounter die.
I used an overloaded encounter die so there were both 'encounter, positive' and 'encounter, negative' possibilities plus 'locality' and 'percept' options. Fatigue and expiry results did not require anything from these tables.
1. Setback
2. Fatigue/delay
3. Expiration
4. Locality
5. Percept
6. Advantage
Setup
The party was continuing to try and evacuate a large column of freed prisoners through a swamp. Play picked up with the party catching up with the column of refugees they had let be escorted on ahead by some other adventurers they hired. Approx 175 people in the column, rested but with no food, with four hours left until sundown.
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