Lone Tree
This single tree stands out in the vast stretch of Bale Morrow. It is said that this tree is so affected, that birds will not even land in its branches.
Many a shady deal has gone down in this location, with many an ill consequence. Here is a random encounter table (d100).
1-10: A small party of adventurers huddles around a crude map. If approached with care, they will serve as porters through the Bale Morrow in exchange for being led through.
11-15: A wandering wizard has set up a small camp under the tree, and is busy collecting mosses and fungi for use as spell components. If approached, the party will set off his glyph of warding, and he will turn on them.
16-20: A merchant has wandered off course, and his cart is stuck in the mud. If assisted, he will offer the party a few items.
21-35: A party of gnolls waits in ambush!
36-42: The skull of a humanoid provides the first clue of a deeper mystery, culminating in uncovering a murder.
43-50: The weather turns violent, and the party must seek shelter or risk being struck by lightning.
51-95: Choose a random encounter from an appropriate table.
96-100: A magical item has been left leaning against the tree. There is a 50/50 chance that it is cursed.
Further, if anyone tries to climb the tree, the limbs will emit a low shriek, causing a 20′ fear aura (DC 20). Finally, the limbs give off a murky poison (Fortitude save DC 25 or suffer 1d4+2 permanent Con damage).
Posted in Encounter and tagged Bale Morrow, farghoal, Location by Stephen Hilderbrand with no comments yet.
Bale Morrow
Part peatland, part bog, part moor, this region lies to the east of the Ten Princedoms, west of the Flordlands, and north of the Central Valley. In Bale Morrow, the sky is eternally overcast, and the ground moist, making camping difficult. Even the most stalwart travelers find the land uncomfortable.
This region is also infamous as the last known location of many an adventurer. It is said a chill wind passes over Bale Morrow at night, catching wanderers in its icy grip and drowning it in the shallow, murky waters that dot the landscape. Indeed, flying Vs, wargoyles, and even wyrmholes patrol the night skies, and wolves, trolls, and giant caterpillars are known to stalk the grounds.
One reason adventures venture into Bale Morrow is for the unique muds, mosses, and foliage. The bogmoss is a natural curative, and can be harvested to make healing salves and tinctures. Morrow mud is a beauty aid, and the various wildflowers and small shrubberies produce flowers and berries that top the reagent lists of many a mage. Even the still water itself is prized, even though it is a low-grade poison if consumed.
It is rumored that there are settlements toward the center of Bale Morrow, but none in the known world has made it both to and from the center of the vast region.
Approaching the vast mix of bog and peat from the west, the last tree before Bale Morrow is known as Lone Tree, and it is avoided by birds and animals of all types. It is as if they can sense the corruption in the land. Poisoned by the waters that have seeped into its roots, Lone Tree has not had leaves upon its branches in years.
Posted in Region and tagged farghoal, Location by Stephen Hilderbrand with no comments yet.
Ale Break: Questing for spells
One way to add some meaning (and difficulty) to spell-casting is to require spell casters to learn their spells in-character. Some characters may have a formal tutor, but many others will likely not, especially if they are sorcerers, woodland casters (druids, rangers, less-structured clerics) or rogue casters.
For these characters, there is a great way to make them (and their players) really respect and cherish their spells. Make them quest for them! Here are a few ideas.
* The party learns about an ancient tome containing a story about a historical figure who could disappear and reappear across town almost instantly. They decide to track down the tome, which leads them into a large city or the Plane of Knowledge (giant library, the size of a plane, with all known knowledge within — see upcoming CCB post) for more information.
* Someone in the party is killed or otherwise rendered incapacitated (due to an expected player unavailability for the next few sessions), and the rest of the party needs to gather the rare reagents to create the ritual environment for a raise dead, remove curse or similar to be successful.
* A young apprentice wants to learn the invisibility spell, but in order for his master to feel that he has learned the spell, she will hide the scroll that must be scribed in a secret location, and the scroll itself is invisible. The apprentice will need to locate the scroll, and this earn the spell, before he will learn the spell. The master might quip, “First you must know what it is like to be on the other side before you are mature enough to wield the spell.”
* A high-level spell is spread across multiple scrolls, which have been sent via courier to the princely barons of the land. Only by convincing these royals to hand over their parts of the scroll will the party acquire the spell, which happens to be, for instance, charm monster. This may require the party to perform tasks and take on quests for each of the barons, leading to even more adventure!
More to come in a future post…
Posted in Editorial and tagged ale break, dm tips by Stephen Hilderbrand with no comments yet.
Bog Maid
(young bog hag) – Level 6 Skirmisher
Medium fey humanoid (aquatic) XP 250
Initiative +6 Senses Perception +7; low-light vision
Unwholesome Presence aura 3; enemies in the aura gain only half
the normal hit points from spending healing surges.
HP 75; Bloodied 37; see also rending claws
AC 20; Fortitude 19, Reflex 17, Will 15
Speed 8 (swamp walk), swim 8
Claw (standard; at-will)
+11 vs. AC; 1d8 + 4 damage.
Rending Claws (standard; recharges when first bloodied)
The bog hag makes two claw attacks against the same target; if
both claws hit, the hag deals an extra 5 damage to the target.
Change Shape (minor; at-will) * Polymorph
A bog hag can alter its physical form to appear as a beautiful
young female elf, half-elf, eladrin, or human.
Evasive Charge
The bog hag shifts 2 squares after charging.
Alignment Evil Languages Common, Elven
Skills Intimidate +10, Nature +10, Stealth +12
Str 20 (+19) Dex 16 (+7) Wis 15 (+7)
Con 17 (+7) Int 12 (+6) Cha 14 (+7)
Posted in Uncategorized and tagged creature origin: fey, creature subtype: aquatic, creature type: humanoid, creature: heroic skirmisher by Adam A. Thompson with no comments yet.
Positive Reviews – Winter 2009
There are a few reviews of our material out there or about to be out there. Here are a few quick links:
We have received multiple positive reviews on rpgnow.
We are mentioned fairly prominently in the upcoming reviews on rpg-resource.org.uk.
Happy reading (and reviewing!)
Posted in news, Review and tagged press by Stephen Hilderbrand with 1 comment.
Fallon House
This location is inspired by the work of E.A. Poe, though none of it explicitly derives from his work.
This three-story dwelling is characterized by its distinctive lean. Each of the floors melds into the others, with very few staircases. Instead small one-step and two-step passageways pass from floor to floor, leaving all but the most astute dungeoneers disoriented. The corridors within are also oddly-shaped, starting wide and ending narrow. Ornate doors lead to rooms which face the outside in all cardinal directions, and a raised passage leads from the second floor main hallway to a two-story gazebo out back.
Throughout the house, cobwebs fill the corners, and a layer of dust coats the furniture and floors. Small animal footprints gather around the central hearth and lead off in all directions. Bats and giant caterpillars complete the ecosystem, in the broken rafters and under loose floorboards, respectively. Under these floorboards are old catacombs which predate the house itself. These catacombs can be cited as another reason for the lopsidedness of the house.
Outside, the barren trees have long-since grown away from the house, all they can do to distance themselves from the darkness within. A darkness that grows with each passing night. The timbers themselves have rotted from the inside, just like the human denizens of Fallon House.
The Fallons were once skilled translators of ancient texts, counting the most prominent political figures among their clientele. Since those halcyon days, however, the eldest couple in the Fallon household faced marital problems, eventually disintegrating the marriage. This collapse of the foundation of the family had visible physical effects, leaving the house and family lopsided as relationship upon relationship ended. The inhabitants left the house, one broken relationship at a time, until it was left deserted, as it has remained for a few years now.
This location holds many ancient secrets in the moldy tomes still within. It also hosts many creatures, as mentioned above.
Drawing by Ben Dare.
Posted in Uncategorized and tagged campaign plotline, Location by Stephen Hilderbrand with no comments yet.
Brizun’s Staff-hammer
Stepping back from his work, Brizun, the bugbear magician, folds his arms with the satisfaction of a job well done. Behold–The greatest (and possibly only) scientific leap in the realm of Spellcasting n’ Skullbashing technology–The Staff-hammer! Sure, the fifteen foot length of jute used to fasten the staff and hammer together may look unseemly, but the advantages in combat surely outweigh the aesthetic downfalls. “Besides,” Brizun declares to Mr. Scruffles, “I could decorate it with some feathers or something.”
“That’s a great idea,” He replies out of the corner of his mouth, holding a straw doll next to his face.
Staff-hammer — Two handed exotic weapon.
Proficiency +2, Damage 1d10, Price 10 gp, Weight 12 lbs, Group Staff, Mace
Staff-hammers hold the unique property of being usable as both a weapon and a wizard’s implement, and allow use of the Staff of Defense implement mastery. Enhancement bonuses for the Staff-hammer apply to both melee attacks and wizard spells that use the implement keyword. However, the proficiency bonus only applies to melee attacks.
Magic Staff-hammer – Level 9+
This chimera of a weapon glows with edritch energy, in addition to looking like it could crack some skulls.
Lvl 9 +1 4,200gp
Lvl 14 +2 21,000gp
Lvl 19 +3 105,000gp
Lvl 24 +4 525,000gp
Lvl 29 +5 2,625,000gp
Weapon: Staff-hammer
Enhancement: Attack rolls and damage rolls
Critical: +1d8 damage per plus
Posted in Uncategorized and tagged equipment: magic weapon, equipment: new weapon by Adam A. Thompson with no comments yet.
CCB tips picked up by roleplayingtips.com!
One way we try to actively give back to the gaming community is getting our ideas out there in less conventional formats. Johnn Four runs a great little gaming magazine, where he gathers and dispenses tips from game masters the world over. He recently included one of our posts on the use of the written (and spoken) word in role playing campaigns:
http://www.roleplayingtips.com/readissue.php?number=433
Keep sharing ideas, everyone!
Also, check out the rest of his site. It’s chock full of good ideas.
Posted in news and tagged dm tips, press by Stephen Hilderbrand with 1 comment.
Saha Ra and Ohases
Saha Ra is a neutral deity who provides clerics with access to the Sun and Earth domains. His wife Ohases provides his cool complement, Moon and Water.
He is concerned with the role of light and heat, and she with the role of shadow and cold. They are both favored by cultures which live in or near deserts.
His symbol is a the sun with the earth below, represented by a horizon line. A simplified version of the symbol is a circle with a horizontal line under it. Hers is a crescent with a wavy line below.
Tales of their troubled romance peppers the mythologies of those who worship them, as well as those whose religious practices allow for them in their larger pantheons.
Posted in Deity and tagged earth, moon, sun, water by Stephen Hilderbrand with no comments yet.