The Tavern Newsletter for June 18th, 2023
Well, we’re still trying to get back into a rhythm with the newsletter. I can almost guarantee the summer festivities will disrupt it :)
Title: The Lair of the Ominous Ogre - A low-level OSR adventure
Map generated using One Page Dungeon Generator
An adventure written in part using Chat GPT
Adventure Synopsis:
Deep within the treacherous Blackwood Forest lies the hidden lair of an ominous ogre. Rumors speak of a powerful artifact tucked away in the ogre's domain, and a group of daring adventurers seeks to retrieve it.
Room 1: The Shadowed Entryway
As the adventurers make their way through the dense forest, they stumble upon a concealed entrance to the ogre's lair. The room beyond is dimly lit, with flickering torches casting eerie shadows on the walls. An intricate mosaic depicting ancient battles adorns the floor, but it conceals a pressure plate. If triggered, the walls begin to close in, threatening to crush the intruders. The adventurers must search for hidden switches disable the trap and proceed.
Room 2: The Hall of Whispering Winds
Upon passing through the entryway, the adventurers enter a vast hall where a cold breeze rustles their clothing. The walls are adorned with faded tapestries that once depicted scenes of grandeur. However, they are now torn and tattered, bearing cryptic messages. The door to the south is hidden by a tapestry. The room is occupied by a half dozen orcs, sleeping soundly after completing their outside patrol.
Room 3: The Chamber of Illusions
In this room, the adventurers encounter an assortment of enchanted mirrors that distort their reflections. One mirror on the south creates distorted fun-house style duplicates of the party. Same AC, 1/2 max HP, does half damage per attack and is immune to and unable to cast spells
Room 4: The Catacombs
The adventurers find themselves in an ancient crypt. The walls are lined with ancient sarcophagi, and the air is heavy with the scent of decay. The ogre's minions, skeletal warriors, guard room. 2 Skeletal Guardians, HD 3, AC 5 (decaying chainmail), long swords, 1/2 damage from piercing and slashing weapons. They will follow the party into Room 2 but no further.
Room 5: The Arcane Library
The adventurers enter a room filled with towering shelves housing countless tomes of knowledge. This library was once a sacred place of study, but it has been defiled by the ogre. One of the books is actually a Libriam of Physical Accuity, adding 1 point each to Dex, Str, and Con of the first to spend 1 week reading its contents.
Room 6: The Throne Room of the Ogre
At last, the adventurers reach the lair's heart, the grandiose throne room of the ogre. The room is adorned with grim trophies and the stench of rotting flesh hangs heavy in the air. The ogre, a towering beast with rippling muscles and a malevolent grin, awaits them. The ogre wields a massive club. Stats as per normal Ogre, but hit points should be at least 75% of the potential max for its kind.
Tenkar’s Tavern - Gaming news, observations, punditry, and more regarding the OSR. Livestreams Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday Nights @ 8 PM Eastern with various cohosts, including other casters on the TVN. You can also find me at TenkarsTavern.com.
It's rare when I agree whole-heartedly with the RPG Pundit, but this is one of those times
Tabletop Taproom - Reviewing Frontier Explorer 8: Yazirian Literature, Cuisine of the Core Four Species, Conversion notes for Star Frontiers to Stars Without Number, a new comic, new equipment, a new alien species, new starships, new Frontier fiction, and more.
NOTE: I made a censored version of this video because of a privacy complaint by Justin LaNasa. Youtube, however, agreed with me that my coverage of these important public documents, filed publically by a public figure held CRUCIAL PUBLIC INTEREST and in their words: "The content does not violate our policies and will remain on the site. We thank you for using YouTube." I will be leaving up both versions of the video since both have views and I'm rather proud of my first time censoring skills adding a cow mowing at key points in the video- I chuckled every time that cow went moo.
Justin Lanasa reports less than $30k in gross revenue earned for 3 year period but $360K squandered in the same time period. What sort of business genius has earns $100/month in 2023 but agrees to pay $28k in rent? How does a "powerhouse" game publisher have no inventory? Where did all the inventory and money go?
The Frontier Explorer fan magazine is available for free: https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/129214/Frontier-Explorer--Issue-8
Greyhawk Grognard - Analysis, reviews, and new material relating to the World of Greyhawk Campaign Setting, tabletop gaming, and the OSR, with occasional forays into pop culture and industry/hobby news. Weekly videos on Thursdays, a Greyhawk-themed adventure hook every Sunday, plus other videos as the mood strikes.
I have a new book out now! You can buy it in pdf or hardcover format here (affiliate link): https://tinyurl.com/4pck59xb
Joethelawyer’s Analog Mancave – Joe is an old bastard who puts out videos on D&D, both old school and new. He’s been playing D&D since 1984. Joe is currently wrapping up a 4 ½ year 5e campaign and is about to start up a long long very long 2e campaign. He’s doing a series of videos on how he’s prepping for it, and the campaign is expected to launch in the next couple of months. No, you won’t ever see these games livestreamed. The lack of dignity and decorum in these games would shock, confuse and horrify anyone under 50.
He sometimes does videos with his brother Mike, called the Joe and Bro Firepit Show, where they talk about the D&D games they each play and run, while sitting in his brother’s backyard around his firepit. Roscoe the dog, known as “Squirrelbane” to his enemies, sometimes visits while they yammer on. There’s usually much alcohol and other semi-legal things consumed during these shows, so they aren’t for the faint of heart. Often, they aren’t even coherent or comprehensible. He does unboxings, product reviews—both new and retro, and plans on reading all the books in Gary’s Appendix N soon. God knows he has enough books…he may as well put them to use.
This week’s video:
In this video I show you my DM'ing game bag setup and pull out everything so you can see what I bring to in-person games.
Email: analogmancave@gmail.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/analogmancave
Twitter: https://twitter.com/analogmancave
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100077311317522
MeWe: www.mewe.com/i/joed15
Webpage: www.analogmancave.com
Eldrad Wolfsbane (The unofficial Wizard of the OSR) talks about how we gamed back in the 80s and early 90s.
Morality Clauses and Cancel Cultures over them in the RPG Industry? Who's Morality?
GP Adventures – That Guy With The French Accent: Ben Poire is a veteran gamer who has been playing and running tabletop RPGs since the 1980s, posting in gaming circles online since the early 2000s, and designed his first module with the Hyperborean Laboratories of AFS Magazine #3. He partnered with Ernest G. Gygax Jr. for the cartography, design and writing of the Marmoreal Tomb Campaign Starter with Troll Lord Games. He is working on the larger Hobby Shop Dungeon project set in the the World around the Duinnsmere along with the Tomb.
Ben likes to create informative videos about the Old School, open-ended sanbox play style, mine and develop the published material of GP for their users, talk alone or with guests about the hobby, the games, play styles, pop culture, and various topics relevant to tabletop gamers including terrain and miniatures, cartography, logistics of gaming, as well as the occasional review or trailer reaction, because why not.
Where I react to the first trailer for DUNE part 2, directed by Denis Villeneuve
Facebook: /bpoire Twitter: @BenoistPoire. Instagram: @benoistpoire
Matt Jackson’s Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/mattjackson
Interesting Video:
Solo RPG. I discuss how I use my oracle to help me run my solo games.
Glen Hallstrom’s Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/GlenHallstrom
I review Hyperborea 3rd Edition by North Wind Adventures.