Dungeons & Dragons Adventure Game Free on DTRPG

One of the last iterations of the basic D&D game before TSR was purchased by Wizards who abolished the basic line for a unified 3rd edition, the Dungeons & Dragons Adventure Game has just been made available on DriveThruRPG at no cost.

It has two books; a fairly minimal Rules Book, that packs quite a bit in it for the size. And an Adventure Book with 3 decent adventures.

Character progressions are described for 1st-5th levels. It has 7 character classes with 8 pregenerated characters:

Human Fighter
Human Priest
Halfling Thief
Human Paladin
Dwarf Fighter
Elf Fighter/Wizard
Human Wizard

The print set had character folders for player convenience. The classes are far from complete, like there is little in the way of spell descriptions. The DM section has nearly the most minimal set of rules possible and very little in the way of treasures. 

The monsters section is an eclectic collection that is almost as random as those from the Holmes' Basic. Including a level 9 Dragon!

For adventures it has a much cleaned up Random Dungeon Generator reminiscent of the tables from the DMG. The three adventures are:

1. The Mystery of UnderTown. A classic evil lurking in a peaceful village trope.
2. The Haunting of Black Isle. An old abandoned temple on an island.
3. To Find the Dragon’s Lair. A Dragon predating on the local farms. A surprising inclusion for such a basic low level adventure set.

It also has a DM's screen and a large fold out area map of the town of Haven.

I missed out on this set when it came out and it is one of the few Basic sets I didn't already own, so it's a pleasant surprise to be able to pick the PDF up for free. I may even run the adventures in my home game.

How does it rate? Well at a price of $0 it is a must buy, worth downloading it just for the adventures. Other than that it doesn't come close to comparing to the Moldvay red box. Though I think it may be an improvement over some of the later basic sets. Not a terribly bad sendoff for the basic line.

https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/284581/Dungeons--Dragons-Adventure-Game

Update: it's been pointed out to me that this is more of an introductory set for 2e Advanced Dungeons & Dragons than it is a Basic set. Having read through it I agree that there are some 2e like elements such as THAC0. 

APoM Adventure Design Diary #21 - Mapping Barsoom

Maps of Barsoom are always fascinating. Given the way the original books were written ERB didn't adhere strictly to an accurate map and instead chose to go wherever the narrative took the story. This resulted in locations and distances that don't match up when plotted out on a map.

To further complicate matters, no accurate map of the actual geography of Mars could even begin to be constructed until 1971 with Mariner 9, and it took decades to map out the planet in any detail. So combining this knowledge a lot of interpretation has to be made.

Since working on Warriors of the Red Planet and attempting to make sense of all of this in order to make a useful and semi-accurate map I've become a bit of a connoisseur of Barsoom maps, gathering from wherever I can find them. So I was pleasantly surprised to find this map of Barsoom from Punch Magazine 1956. In many ways it is the best way to tackle the subject as it is very illustrative and conceptual without trying to be too precise in any way. And it has a great aesthetic.

Creatuanary 2021 - the Ahool

 A few years back I participated in an art challenge called creatuanary where you post a drawing of a creature each day of the month of January. Out of that came the popular Norse Beastiary that sold out of 2 print runs in just a few months. (thank you to everyone who got a copy!)

I've been meaning to participate again but last January got away from me. This year though I've put together a great list of Cryptids that I want to draw, so I'll be posting them on my social media. 

Some of them could be fun creatures for your OSR game, so here is the Ahool with stats.

Ahool
Beast

HD: 3
AC: 16 [4]
Atk: 2 claws (1d4x2), 1 bite (1d6)
Save: 13
Move: 12" flight, 3" crawl
CL/XP: 3/250
Special: piercing shriek, save or be deafened for 2d8 rounds. Pick up and drop.

The Ahool (or Athol as it is called by some) is a flying primate with bat-like wings. Their name comes from its loud distinct cry; "AHOOooooOL!".

Ahool live in the deep jungles, and can be found across tropical and sub-tropical climates. They have a distinct face that has features of both a spider monkey and a bat's, with large dark eyes, red-orange skinned wings, large claws on its forearms, and covered in grey fur. They have a wingspan of 18 to 28 feet (6 to 9 meters). They mainly eat local fauna; such as large fish, they will occasionally attack humans. Most likely because they're extremely territorial and opportunist and will attack larger prey under the right circumstances.

In combat they will start with their blood curdling shriek. Then they can pick up a medium sized or smaller creature, lift it up to 100' in the air and drop it. As a last resort they will engage in melee attempting to claw and subdue potential prey.

APoM Design Diary #20 - Gozava

Today I am starting up the A Princess of Mars Adventure Design Diary posts again. I worked with a  researcher to go through the source material and compile it all into game-useful data. Now I am referring to that data as I build out the adventure. Most of the development remaining is editing, art, and layout.

In this NPC update, Sola's mom Gozava, you can see an improved stat block which provides some useful game info for the GM to be able to quickly refer to. In the spirit of turning the adventure into a sandbox rather than a railroad Gozava's fate is yet to be decided, while in the book she was tortured to death. Perhaps the PC's save her from this cruel end?

Gozava
Green Martian, 1st level Fighting Man
Armor Class: 10 [10]
Hit Dice: 1/6hp
Move: 120'
Attacks:  2x weapon attack or tusks (2d4)
Damage: 1d6 or 1d12
Save: F1
Morale: 5
Alignment: Neutral Good
XP Value: 100
Str: 10 (+0), Dex: 10 (+0), Con: 10 (+0), Wis: 13 (+1), Int: 10 (+0), Chr: 12 (+1)
Equipment: 2x shortsword, irradium pistol, ammo belt, dagger, domestic tool kit, female leather harness, sleeping furs, food pouch.
Special Abilities: Beast ESP, Minor Telepathy ; SD: Mind Blank

A green martian female in the retinue of the cruel Tal Hajus. Too small to breed by tribal standards (only 10ft tall), she was forbidden to mate as dictated by Thark custom. Slowly this fostered an aversion to the awful cruelties and loveless existence of her people and helped her nurture a shy sympathy towards others. She cares little for the barbaric ways of the greenmen. 

Thus it was that over 5 years ago, she entered into a fateful tryst with the chieftain Tars Tarkas and each unwittingly fell in love with the other. Together they quietly bore a forbidden egg completely outside tribal law, the penalty for which is death. While he was away on a years-long military campaign, Gozava secretly hatched their hidden egg alone, begetting a daughter upon whom she lavished affection - an occurrence so rare among the greenmen as to be unheard of in living memory. 

Knowing she could not keep the child hidden for long, Goziva conspired to mix her in with the other tribal younglings from that year’s incubator expedition. Though initially successful, the ruse was later uncovered by the ever-vigilant Sarkoja, though the child’s identity remained unknown. 

Betrayed, now Gozava is to be brought before cruel Tal Hajus to answer for her crimes. Without hope for mercy, she will likely be subjected to unspeakable tortures to force a confession.

• Secret - Her forbidden lover is Tars Tarkas, himself a powerful chieftain, and their illicit daughter is Sola. Should this ever become known, all three of them will likely pay dearly.
• Goal - To be reunited with her daughter and lover Tars Tarkas, and if not take her secret to her grave. If forced under duress - to preserve the lives of those dearest to her - she will lie and say she killed her own infant daughter rather than leave her to the mercy of Tal Hajus. 
• Motivation - She abhors the cruelty of the green men and only wishes to live in peace.
• Conflict - Her softer sentiments are considered decadent - a reason to demand she prove her worthiness to the tribe. Her being in the retinue of Tal Hajus means the punishment for her ‘misdeeds’ will likely be that much more severe.
• Quirk - Enjoys walking alone into flowering hills to daydream of a better life.
• Flaw - Her love for her daughter can be used against her. 

Discussion thread here.

Clyde Caldwell's Barsoom

In the September 1982 issue of Heavy Metal magazine, before he went on to fame and success at TSR, noted fantasy artist Clyde Caldwell did a series of Barsoom paintings. They are interesting both in their relative faithfulness to the books and their raciness. 

https://archive.org/details/Barsoom/mode/2up