Ale Break: Use of the written word
It’s nice to take a break every now and again and reflect upon running role playing games in a way that adds drama and excitement to the experience.
The written word doesn’t tend to take place so much in fantasy worlds, partly due to the historical precedent of illiteracy in Medieval European societies. However, most player characters end up interacting with the upper classes and powermongers of the societies they roll in, so at some point, they will likely encounter the written word.
This can provide a fun game element, especially if many of the characters do not read the official written language. Present your characters with a riddle, cryptogram or a set of hieroglyphs and watch the players try to solve the puzzle. This will likely lead to various competing interpretations, which, if your players are really role playing, will play out in their interactions. A cleric may consider it a message from a god and consider it his word and thus up to him to interpret. A rogue may see it as a coded message leading to a treasure. A fighter may see it as a document of surrender. An elf may find it primitive dribble. Hopefully your players will find a more nuanced position, assuming you present the right symbols.
For sources, check out books in the library or have a look online in old books for something that looks right. Or make one up yourself. It’s easy to sit down and write something up. For instance, in a recent session, I presented my characters with a sheet that was nailed to the door of an abandoned keep. What was written wasn’t as important as that fact that it was written in three distinct languages. So I made up some characters and used them in ways that looked like a fancy, almost magical script, a character-based language, and a hieroglyphics-inspired pictoral representation.
In addition, consider using writs of passage and official documents that travel the land, as well as secret messages sent out during the night. These present opportunities for characters to be sent on missions as couriers, and end up starting or preventing a war upon delivery, involving them very directly in the overarching story of the campaign and thus have the players feel agency in the game itself. These scenarios also allow the party to discuss the ethics of opening mail before it arrives at its intended destination, etc. Some may find this despicable, others may consider it the only way to ensure that the right things is done. Still others may be dastardly rogues who just want to meddle in other people’s affairs. All of these are welcome (nay, encouraged) in fantasy role playing games!
This drama is harder to sustain and play out with the common use of message, sending and other spells. Limit the use of these spells in your campaign if you want the written word to have any use. I recommend it; in my opinion, convenience kills role playing. It is urgency that propels storylines, not convenience.
The same is true for the use of multiple spoken languages. One way to spice up your game is to give NPCs who do not speak so-called “common,” or perhaps speak a different common than the PCs, strange accents and broken use of the language. Imagine a Frenchman or German speaking English. Even when they do speak it well, there are regular pronunciation artifacts that tag someone as having a “French or German accent.” This can be a great way of linking an NPC that the party knows nothing about with a specific region, based entirely on accent, no in-game “Where are you from?” “I hail from the Kingdon of Blah” dialogue, which can be cumbersome, and not necessarily realistic. Why would this person who doesn’t know you tell you where he’s from or even more fundamental, why would this NPC parley with the party in the first place? But if the characters overhear him gloating about killing a giant, they learn much about where he’s from and what’s been doing.
Of course, spells like tongues can completely negate the use of different languages in your game. This is why it may make sense to remove these spells entirely from the game, or have them only be able to be learned after a considerable amount of work or a quest.
Questing for spells is another way to add texture to your campaign. More on that in a later post.
Posted in Editorial and tagged ale break, language by Stephen Hilderbrand with no comments yet.
Dogs of War
Dogs of war and men of hate
With no cause, we don’t discriminate
Discovery is to be disowned
Our currency is flesh and bone
— the bard band Floidus Pinkus
Dogs of War
Size/Type: Medium Outsider (Neutral, Extraplanar, Lawful)
Hit Dice: 8d8+16 (52 hp)
Initiative: +7
Speed: 50 ft. (10 squares)
Armor Class: 22 (+3 Dex, +6 natural, +3 hide armor), touch 13, flat-footed 16
Base Attack/Grapple: +8/+16
Attack: Bite +13 melee (1d8+3/19-20 plus 1d6 electricity)
Full Attack: Bite +13 melee (1d8+3/19-20 plus 1d6 electricity)
Space/Reach: 5 ft./5 ft.
Special Attacks: Breath weapon, electric bite
Special Qualities: Darkvision 60 ft., immunity to electricity, scent, vulnerability to water
Saves: Fort +9, Ref +9, Will +6
Abilities: Str 20, Dex 17, Con 15, Int 8, Wis 11, Cha 4
Skills: Intimidate +15, Jump +16, Listen +12, Spot +15, Survival +8*, Tumble +7
Feats: Alertness, Improved Critical (bite), Improved Initiative, Weapon Focus (bite)
Environment: Lawful plains, battlefields
Organization: Pack (5-12)
Challenge Rating: 6
Treasure: None
Alignment: Always lawful neutral
Advancement: 9-12 HD (Large); 13-16 HD (Huge)
Level Adjustment: +3 (cohort)
A typical dog of war stands 5½ feet high at the shoulder and weighs 160 pounds.
Dogs of War are never encountered alone. They travel only in packs, and are often conscripted to fight both sides of large battles. They do not speak but communicate through a series of barks, yelps, and growls and can be taught battle commands.
Combat
Dogs of war are trained to fight as tight packs, using their strong initiative and skill with their razor-sharp teeth to swarm and flank their opponents. They are also often used as artillery, breathing bolts of lightning into melee.
The natural weapons of dogs of war are treated as neutral-aligned and lawful-aligned for the purpose of overcoming damage reduction.
Breath Weapon (Su): 10-foot-long bolt that travels up to 100 feet, once every 3 rounds, damage 2d6 electricity, Reflex DC 17 half. The save DC is Constitution-based.
Electric Bite (Su): Dogs of war deal an extra 1d6 points of electric damage every time they bite an opponent, as if these bites are electric weapon.
Skills
Dogs of war have a +5 racial bonus on Hide and Move Silently checks, though these are rarely used, except in surprise raids.
*They also receive a +8 racial bonus on Survival checks when tracking by scent, due to their keen sense of smell.
Posted in Creature and tagged dog, electric subtype, extraplanar subtype, outsider, proppian by Stephen Hilderbrand with no comments yet.
Omnibus 1 Released!
The first fifteen issues of Claw/Claw/Bite for the price of five!
Welcome to our world of strange and wonderful things, traveler. Bizarre treasures, cunning adversaries, powerful adventurers, and mystic realms are waiting for you. This omnibus is a collection of some of our best work over the past two and a half years.
It’s been a great joy to bring this material to you for the past few years, and we have every intent to continue this magazine, even as our new periodical, Tailslap, is gaining in popularity alongside the new edition of the core rules.
Our goal is to be a one-stop shop for you, the storyteller. All of our creations are designed for d20 3.5 rules. Many of the game elements that you see in this periodical will find their way into modules published by Unicorn Rampant, which will be available on RPGnow.com!
Go pick up your copy at rpgnow.com
Posted in news and tagged release by Stephen Hilderbrand with no comments yet.
Silverhorn
first you wanna kill me, then you wanna kiss me… blow!
The Silverhorn is an instrument famous for its powers of aiding negotiation. When blown, the horn emits an enchantment that encourages compromise. Those within earshot (including the blower) must make a DC 25 Will save or end up under the enchantment that finds middle ground between a buyer and a seller, or between multiple parties in a political negotiation.
A strategy employed by previous owners of the Silverhorn is to ask a ridiculous price for an item up for sale, then blow the horn, waiting for the best offer to come in. Of course, the Silverhorn does not guarantee that the average of the prices be affordable to the buyer, nor does it necessarily compel them to make a purchase.
The Silverhorn itself is tarnished from years of use, but is just as potent as when it was wrought a hundred years ago by a dwarf high in the mountains, one who participated in the conquest of a dragon. This is how he spent his horde, in the hopes of taking the other dwarves’ shares slowly, one financial transaction at a time. Whether or not he was successful is lost to the winds like so many story endings.
Posted in Uncategorized and tagged instrument, minor artifact by Stephen Hilderbrand with no comments yet.
Dindle Keep – Level 1
The party will arrive from the trail to the south, having had the guards in the toll houses far below signal up that they en route on business. This trail wraps around the front of the keep, which is inaccessible from the side facing the road.
Note of course that if the party is caught stealing anything or is deemed dangerous and unfriendly by Silas, the guards will attack the party, taking custody of them, and preparing them for delivery to Jæruel headquarters in Tannen.
If the party decides to sneak into the keep at night, Silas will be sleeping up in his room, his daughters both awake and sending messages to one another through a series of taps on the walls. Guards will be posted in many of the towers, in the entry hall, and outside their three rooms, two for Silas, and one for each of his daughters.
Towers – each of the hexagonal towers contains a small bed a the bottom of a staircase leading up. There is no level to the keep below ground; the bedrock was too hard to easily build into when the keep was built over a hundred years ago.
1 Outside the Keep
The tall door leading into the keep is nestled in between two towers on the uphill side of the keep. Tight clusters of cypress line the walls in patches along a neatly-fitted brick and stone walkway. The tall door is emblazoned with the emblem of the profile of a woman’s head and shoulders on a deep yellow shield. A man in impressive field plate with the same emblem upon it steps forward, says “Ho!” and waits for the party to bow.
Once they do, he steps forward, introducing himself as Lanx and holding his arm out, pointing the way to the door.
2 Entrance Hall
As the party approaches, read the following:
The oversized door creaks on its hinges as it opens, leading into the keep from the uphill side. A man who introduces himself as Lanx bids the party, “Welcome to Dindle Keep. Keep your troubles outside!” As everyone steps through the door, two armed guards wield the heavy portal and latch it shut with a large caber. They turn to watch the party.
3 Study
This moderately-sized room is lined with short bookshelves. Atop the shelves are various houseplants taken from the fields and forests in the local region. Upon the walls are landscape oil and watercolor paintings of sunrises and sunsets in brilliant hues. A lone candelabra illuminates a table in the center of the room. A book lies open in the central reading chair.
The book is on the local folklore, containing small, hand-drawn maps from storytellers. There are annotations pencilled into the margins, and the names of places underlined.
In the early evenings, Silas retires to the study to improve his knowledge of history, geography, and religion. He will be found here if visited in the evening.
4 Library
An impressive collection of books lines the walls of this room, the leather spines like the scales of a dragon. In the center of the room is a large table upon which rest a collection of maps.
If thoroughly searched, the party will find books on the local geography and history, which if studied, raise those skills by a point each.
5 Statuarium
Worn, humanoid statues occupy the two hard corners of the room, with the far walls coming together at 45 degree angles toward the rest of the keep. The stone ceiling rises another two feet above the floor to accommodate the tall statues.
The two statues have the emblem of the Dindle family etched in them. A careful inspection of the statues reveals small sets of wings on both of them, jutting out just past the shields slung over their backs. This hints at a relationship with the celestial.
6 Back Chamber
Passing under another large arch, the wooden ceiling lowers to a more normal height. A stone fireplace occupies the center of the exterior wall, with a gold leaf framed, life-sized oil rendition of a middle-aged man eerily staring out across the keep back toward the entrance.
7 Small Hall
Between two arches, modest paintings of former denizens of the keep find refuge in a dark corridor with wooden doors at either end.
Artistic renditions of multiple generations are represented in the frames. In a hidden alcove behind one of the paintings of the twin girls is a key ring with extra keys to each of their rooms (on Level 2).
8 Wide Hallway
Paintings of old relatives line this wide hallway, including as the most illuminated one, labeled “Lady Dindle.” Doors are set in opposite ends of the hall, and one is also set in the center of the hall. Three archways keep the hall fairly open-feeling, like the rest of the keep.
If the painting is studied in any detail, read the following:
Lady Dindle was an beautiful, yet austere woman. These traits come out in her appearance, with a scornful scowl scratching the surface of her glowing skin.
9 Closet
This moderately-sized closet is adorned with wood-paneled walls. Jacket, coats, mittens, hats, two sleds, tack, and other sundries are hung here on various metal hooks that jut from the walls.
Treasure: In the pocket of one of the jackets is a pair of gloves of storing.
10 Throne Room
Eight alabaster columns line the fine carpet leading up to a pair of sitting chairs etched with the Dindle arms.
If it is daytime, and there are guests in the keep, Silas will be here, providing them an audience. If Silas is here, he will be flanked by two guards armed with swords at their sides. Merchants pass through, bringing stories, which Silas is eager to hear. He has been known to reduce the toll on the road for those who provide him with quality entertainment. (more in a later post)
Treasure: A masterwork instrument called the Silverhorn hangs to the right side of the throne.
11 Dining Room
A large table is set in the center of the room, requiring everyone to walk along the walls to navigate the space. A large brass candelabra rests upon the table, illuminating the room in a warm glow. Along the floor, paralleling the impressive table, is a finely-woven rug.
Treasure: The rug is worth 1500gp, the candelabra 500gp.
12 Den
Small tables and chairs are tastefully laid out in the room facing each other, with a simple rug in the center.
Treasure: There are a few loose coins in the seat of the chairs.
13 Kitchen
Years of caked on grease and other food cling to the walls, leaving them black toward the ceiling, where a tapered ceiling has led thousands of plumes of smoke out of the keep. A large oven and multiple stoves line the exterior brick walls of this room. Pots and pans hang suspended from the ceiling in the center of the room.
Various foodstuffs can be found throughout the kitchen.
14 Pantry
This oddly-shaped, dusty room is full of large crates, barrels, and bags of flour and wheat. Tiny flour footprints lead in all directions.
Creature: There are 3 large rats in this room.
Treasure: A potion of charm person lies at the bottom of a crate otherwise full of hay.
Posted in Uncategorized and tagged Jæruel, keep, Location by Stephen Hilderbrand with no comments yet.
Unicorn Rampant is going to Owl Con!
We are proud to announce that we’ll be attending our first ever convention as a vendor this Feburary 6-9th at OwlCon, at Rice University in Houston Texas!
We’ll bring along some of our wares to peruse in printed form, and if you mention seeing this announcement on our blog, we’ll give you half off on all of our products! We’ll also be set up to give you discounts on any of our products you’d like to buy from RPGnow.com.
And of course, we’ll be set up to play some games right there at our table, so come on down and say hi!
Posted in convention, news by Adam A. Thompson with no comments yet.
Unicorn Rampant is going to Owl Con!
We are proud to announce that we’ll be attending our first ever convention as a vendor this Feburary 6-9th at OwlCon, at Rice University in Houston Texas!
We’ll bring along some of our wares to peruse in printed form, and if you mention seeing this announcement on our blog, we’ll give you half off on all of our products! We’ll also be set up to give you discounts on any of our products you’d like to buy from RPGnow.com.
And of course, we’ll be set up to play some games right there at our table, so come on down and say hi!
Posted in Uncategorized and tagged news: convention by Adam A. Thompson with no comments yet.
Old Rock Tower – Chickatrice in the Outhouse
We’re converting the first adventure we ever published, The Old Rock Tower, to 4th Edition D&D, and wanted to put out a sample of what you’ll find. This is one of the first encounters, outside of Talnabous’ Tower.
Description: A tiny wooden shack leans here, 5′ on a side. Its narrow door stands open a foot or two. A statue of a cat hissing, it’s tail up and bristling stands immediately in front of the door.
CREATURE: Five cockatrice nest in the ruins of the outhouse. Their small nest is built in the rafters of the decrepit 5’x5’ building. They will leap down and attack anyone investigating the outhouse.
Cocatrice – Level 6 Controller
Small natural magical beast – XP 250
Initiative +3 Senses Perception +2
HP 69; Bloodied 34
AC 19; Fortitude 16, Reflex 18, Will 17
Speed 6
Powers
Stony Beak (melee; standard; at-will)
+9 vs. AC; 1d6 + 4 damage. the target is slowed (save ends).
First Failed Save: The target is immobilized (save ends).
Second Failed Save: The target is stunned (save ends).
Black Moon Hiss (close burst 2; minor; encounter)
+10 vs. Fortitude;
Hit: Target is weakened (save ends).
Alignment Unaligned – Languages none
Str 16 (+5) Dex 19 (+6) Wis 10 (+2)
Con 13 (+3) Int 6 (+1) Cha 16 (+6)
The nest in the rafters, if searched, will yield 3 cockatrice eggs – these can be considered 600 gold worth of Arcane Components. The statue of the cat (actually a live cat petrified by the cockatrice) is perfect in every detail and worth 25 gp, or will make a good mouser if restored to flesh.
Posted in Uncategorized and tagged creature: heroic controller by Adam A. Thompson with no comments yet.
Feather of Falling
This feather is plucked from a flying creature’s wing, and is enchanted with a featherfall spell. It acts exactly like a feather fall spell, activated immediately if the wearer falls more than 5 feet.
Faint enchantment; CL 1st; feather of a flying creature; featherfall; Price 1,800 gp.
Posted in Magic Item and tagged enchantment, feather by Stephen Hilderbrand with no comments yet.