Humpday Blog-O-Rama 3.27.19

Blogs are an integral, vital part of the RPG hobby. They serve as incubators for new games, sounding boards for new ideas, and platforms for up-and-coming talent. They keep "forgotten" games alive, foster discussions, and build communities. Not everyone can work for a big game company, command a large audience on Twitch, or make a living from their art or cartography, but every RPG enthusiast can easily create a blog and start sharing their passion with the world. Every Wednesday on the Thought Eater podcast and blog, I take a look at what is going on in the vibrant RPG blog scene.

I was out of town last week, but still tried to follow along with things the best I could. As a result, this week's episode features material from the last couple of weeks. It's a big boy.


LISTEN TO THIS WEEK'S EPISODE HERE



LINKS FROM THIS WEEK'S EPISODE



MAPS

http://sorcerersskull.blogspot.com/2019/03/maps-of-eternia.html

http://sorcerersskull.blogspot.com/2019/03/maps-of-inner-space.html

https://goblinshenchman.wordpress.com/2019/03/26/tuesday-toot-mad-magazine-map-musings/

http://sevendeadlydungeons.blogspot.com/2019/03/a-quick-look-at-medieval-fantasy-city.html

http://falsemachine.blogspot.com/2019/03/who-makes-maps.html



TERRAIN

https://www.matakishi.net/making-things.html

http://batintheattic.blogspot.com/2019/03/some-days-this-hobby-of-ours-makes-one.html



REVIEWS

https://themetalearth.blogspot.com/2019/03/review-weg-star-wars-30th-anniversy-set.html

https://www.tribality.com/2019/03/13/review-conan-adventure-in-an-age-undreamed-of/

https://www.theseoldgames.com/2019/03/title-crash-on-volturnus-code-sf-0.html

http://backtothekeep.blogspot.com/2019/03/the-fantasy-trip-kickstarter-i-want-it.html



TUNNELS AND TROLLS

http://www.trollishdelver.com/2019/03/how-to-get-started-with-tunnels-and.html



KARAMEIKOS

http://bxblackrazor.blogspot.com/2019/03/revisiting-karameikos.html

https://bxblackrazor.blogspot.com/2019/03/human-lands-of-karameikos.html

http://www.pandius.com/thrs_mag.html



GREYHAWK

https://grodog.blogspot.com/2019/03/celebrating-greyhawk-fandom-renaissance-garycon-seminar.html

https://greyhawkonline.com/oerthjournal
https://greyhawkonline.com/OJ_issues/OJ_28.pdf



GLOG

https://diyanddragons.blogspot.com/2019/03/who-is-glogosphere.html



VARIANTS

https://tenfootpolemic.blogspot.com/2019/03/titan-scale-mass-combat.html

https://goblinshenchman.wordpress.com/2019/03/22/uno-an-initiative-system/

https://daimon-games.blogspot.com/2019/03/skills-part-one.html
https://daimon-games.blogspot.com/2019/03/skills-part-two.html

https://eldritchfields.blogspot.com/2019/03/variations-on-vampiric-drain.html



INSPIRATION: THE OCCULT

https://monstermagazineworld.blogspot.com/2019/03/history-of-occult-part-1.html
https://monstermagazineworld.blogspot.com/2019/03/history-of-occult-part-2.html
https://monstermagazineworld.blogspot.com/2019/03/history-of-occult-part-3.html
https://monstermagazineworld.blogspot.com/2019/03/history-of-occult-part-4.html



"COMMUNITY", EXCLUSION, AND IMPOSTOR SYNDROME

http://falsemachine.blogspot.com/2019/03/what-does-community-mean-to-you.html
http://falsemachine.blogspot.com/2019/03/rise-of-community-reason-i-was-asking.html

http://goblinstomper.blogspot.com/2019/03/the-magic-of-exclusion.html

https://anchor.fm/follow-me-and-die/episodes/Episode-93---Thursday-Thoughts---Impostor-Syndrome-e3faui



CLOSING

https://coinsandscrolls.blogspot.com/2019/03/osr-indefinite-train-community-project.html

https://www.dungeoncontest.com/

https://dreamsofmythicfantasy.blogspot.com


If you enjoy my free zine, podcast, and/or blog, please consider supporting my work for only $1 per month. 

Free and PWYW 5e DMs Guild Highlights: Week Ending 3.23.19

Every week, talented creators upload products to the DMs Guild, pricing them as free or pay-what-you-want in order to reach customers. Dozens of new free and pwyw products are added each week alone. It is a lot to sort through. My hope is that highlighting a few of each week's best supplements will help the designers get the attention they deserve. You can find previous posts in this series HERE.



The Beast of Benson Manor from Pie Rat Press

I really enjoy "haunted house" sorts of D&D adventures, so maybe I am biased, but I loved the dark fairy tale feel of this one.



Trinkets of the Blood War from Bendjinn Games and Art of Karthik

Well, THIS isn't your everyday d100 trinket list! Grim and flavorful detritus from the endless war between demons and devils. A lot of these could practically be campaign starters.


The Fungus Garden - An Undermountain Encounter from Green Bird RPGs

Short but sweet fungal cavern location/encounter that you can plug in to your Mad Mage campaign. I especially wanted to mention the artwork and map. So good. Reminiscent of a cool children's book.



Shopkeeper NPCs from Dungeons and Djinn

Handy collection of brief descriptions of various shopkeepers. A time saver if you aren't feeling very creative.



Squall Shaping Wizard Tradition from Brandon Laing

I really liked the flavor of this wizard tradition, and it should fit in just fine with the upcoming Saltmarsh book. You can do cool things like summon sea creatures and use an improved "shape water" cantrip. Also makes fun suggestions, like having a parrot or monkey familiar.



If you enjoy my free zine, podcast, and/or blog, please consider supporting my work for only $1 per month. 

Humpday Blog-O-Rama 3.13.19

Blogs are an integral, vital part of the RPG hobby. They serve as incubators for new games, sounding boards for fresh ideas, and platforms for up-and-coming talent. They keep "forgotten" games alive, foster discussions, and build communities. Not everyone can work for a big game company, command a large audience on Twitch, or get paid for their art or cartography, but every RPG enthusiast can easily create a blog and start sharing their passion with the world. Every Wednesday on the Thought Eater podcast, I take a look at what is going on in the vibrant RPG blog scene.

LISTEN TO THIS WEEK'S EPISODE HERE


LINKS FROM THIS WEEK'S EPISODE

Maps

https://joyfulsitting.blogspot.com/2019/03/traveller-supernova-local-stellar.html
https://alexschroeder.ch/wiki/Traveller_Subsector_Generator
https://travellermap.com
https://devilghost.com/software/travellercharacter/

https://rthorm.wordpress.com/2019/03/06/ruvifelns-cavern-rooms/

https://eltomocarmesi.blogspot.com/2019/03/un-extenso-subterraneo-en-blanco.html
https://www.patreon.com/emenica/posts

https://falsemachine.blogspot.com/2019/03/who-makes-maps.html

https://drive.google.com/drive/u/0/folders/1l-7JbIsb60osH0f06iNzHVnq-0oY-VNp



Props for Call of Cthulhu and Other Games

https://heropresstwo.blogspot.com/2019/03/making-paper-trail-great-big-story.html

https://propnomicon.blogspot.com/

https://cthulhustreasurebox.blogspot.com/

www.hplhs.org/



The Illusionist

https://playingattheworld.blogspot.com/2019/03/the-complete-od-illusionist.html

https://anchor.fm/Thedicearescreaming/episodes/Episode-62-Illusions-e39lke



Tables and Generators

https://paperelemental.blogspot.com/p/list-to-html-generator.html

https://thewizardofmacketown.blogspot.com/2019/03/d6-ways-to-introduce-your-next-npc-or.html

https://gamurgin.blogspot.com/2019/03/chumming-dungeon.html



Reviews

https://ynasmidgard.blogspot.com/2019/03/review-eldritch-tales.html

https://chaosgrenade.com/2019/03/05/rambling-on-solar-blades-cosmic-spells/
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/gallantknightgames/dark-streets-and-darker-secrets

https://punverse.blogspot.com/2019/03/survive-this-vigilante-city-core-rules.html

https://laughleviathan.blogspot.com/2019/03/first-time-playing-knave.html



Inspiration

www.thehistoryblog.com/

https://blogs.commons.georgetown.edu/labyrinth/

https://paleofuture.gizmodo.com/

https://paleofuture.gizmodo.com/the-clothes-of-the-future-were-supposed-to-be-set-on-fi-1833057731

https://paleofuture.gizmodo.com/this-television-monocle-from-1938-was-silly-and-wonderf-1830067727



Gary Con

https://savageafterworld.blogspot.com/2019/03/gary-con-day-0-my-return-pilgrimage-to.html
https://savageafterworld.blogspot.com/2019/03/gary-con-day-1-berserk-robots-hotel.html
https://savageafterworld.blogspot.com/2019/03/gary-con-day-2-tulipak-lonely-d6-and.html
https://savageafterworld.blogspot.com/2019/03/gary-con-day-3-overpowered-wineskins.html
https://savageafterworld.blogspot.com/2019/03/gary-con-day-4-weasel-disguises.html

https://greyhawkery.blogspot.com/2019/03/greyhawk-going-on-at-gary-con-xi.html

https://twitch.tv/garycon

https://anchor.fm/plundergrounds

https://followmeanddie.com/2019/03/11/gary-con-xi-recap/
https://anchor.fm/follow-me-and-die/episodes/Saturday-Scrawl-Gary-Con-XI-Special-e3dsa8



Closing

https://chaudronchromatique.blogspot.com/2019/03/pdf-versions-of-my-zines.html
https://dreamsofmythicfantasy.blogspot.com


If you enjoy my free zine, podcast, and/or blog, please consider supporting my work for only $1 per month. 

Review: Calpurnia's 101 Lesser Magical Items for 5e D&D by Joel Kelley

So, one of the benefits of doing reviews here on the blog and over at MeWe has been people sending me review copies of things. I joked at one point that I wished I had done more reviews a long time ago, given some of what I was sent. I don't always have time to work on them, so I don't really actively solicit things. Still, when I can, if someone sends me something I do my best to take a look at it and at least mention it somewhere. Joel Kelley was kind enough to send me a copy of his 5e magic item supplement and just kind of said "Review it if you like". I got around to looking at it today and was really impressed. So here we are.

Magic items lost a lot of luster over the course 3x and 4e. They pretty much ended up being tools in character optimization. They would appear in rulebooks along with the player options, like in Pathfinder. Players could pick and choose specific items. This isn't necessarily a bad thing depending on what kind of game you like to run, but it made for a very different feel compared to classic editions. I eventually just went with inherent bonuses in 4e. 5e made a real effort to change this, putting the items back into the DMG, doing away with the magic item economy to a large degree, and featuring item design more in line with the classic edition versions.

I admit that I am not much of a "house ruler" when it comes to items. I usually just use the 1e DMG in my home game. There are some areas of homebrew D&D design where I feel very creative, but designing items just isn't one of them. Joel Kelley doesn't have this issue. For $3.50, here you get 101 creative items.

This is a really nice pdf. I like the layout. I LOVE the hyperlinked table of contents; it makes jumping around really easy. There are items of all shapes and sizes and of all power levels here. I think Joel did a really good job tying many of them to specific 5e mechanics and class features. This isn't a bunch of thrown-together ideas. Honestly, given the quality and the large amount of items here, I could probably get by with just this supplement and the officially published stuff and never need to look anywhere else.

All in all, I have no real criticisms. I think this is a great value. There are items for every class, fluff fitting multiple campaign styles, and more than enough variety to give magic a unique feel in your games.

BUY IT HERE

Free and PWYW DMs Guild Highlights: Week Ending 3.9.19

Please note: I will be out of town next week, so this series will resume on 3.23.19

Every week, talented creators upload products to the DMs Guild, pricing them as free or pwyw in order to reach customers. Dozens of new free and pwyw products are added each week alone. It is a lot to sort through. My hope is that highlighting a few of each week's best supplements will help the designers get the attention they deserve. You can find previous posts in this series HERE.


There were several new products this week supporting the new UA Artificer class.

Artificer Pet Stat Blocks from Michael O'Connor (ThinkDM)

Basically a handy-dandy reference with the turret and homonculus stuff from the playtest reformatted into stat blocks for easier use.



Artificer Spell and Infusion List also from Michael O'Connor (ThinkDM)

Another good playtest tool to help track all of the spells and infusions for the artificer.



The Artificer's Handbook by Griffin Porche

Presented in the style of UA, this crafting-focused reference guide organizes magic items pertaining to the artificer class and provides some relevant alternate rules from the DMG and XGtE. Put this together with the aforementioned supplements and you are more than ready to playtest.



100 Non-Combat Random Encounters (The North) by Dungeons and Djinn

You had me at "random".



The Iceberg of Rime and Ruin by Brendan Hainline

Excellent cold-weather adventure that ties into the Tyranny of Dragons campaign. The first in a series. Some really great new monsters. I will be keeping an eye out for future installments.


If you enjoy my free zine, podcast, and/or blog, please consider supporting my work for only $1 per month. 

Humpday Blog-O-Rama 3.6.19

Blogs are an integral, vital part of the RPG hobby. They serve as incubators for new games, sounding boards for new ideas, and platforms for up-and-coming talent. They keep "forgotten" games alive, foster discussions, and build communities. Not everyone can work for a big game company, command a large audience on Twitch, or get paid for their art or cartography, but every RPG enthusiast can easily create a blog and start sharing their passion with the world. Every Wednesday on the Thought Eater podcast, I take a look at what is going on in the vibrant RPG blog scene.

LISTEN TO THIS WEEK'S EPISODE HERE



LINKS FROM THIS WEEK'S EPISODE


Maps

https://www.blueswordgames.com/blog/maps-as-art

http://shadekeep.com/shamat/shamat.html

https://www.cartographersguild.com/showthread.php?t=43609

http://paratime.ca/ff2019.html



Reviews

https://geekandsundry.com/five-great-changes-in-the-new-edition-of-savage-worlds-rpg/

https://doomslakers.blogspot.com/2019/03/al-qadim-golden-voyages.html

https://tabletopbellhop.com/game-reviews/shadow-of-the-demon-lord-review/

https://dungeonspossums.blogspot.com/2019/03/review-mothership-rpg-by-sean-mccoy.html
https://dungeonspossums.blogspot.com/2019/03/review-dead-planet-for-mothership-by.html
https://dungeonspossums.blogspot.com/2019/03/interview-sean-mccoy-talks-mothership.html
https://dungeonspossums.blogspot.com/2019/03/interview-fiona-maeve-geist-talks-dead.html
https://dungeonspossums.blogspot.com/2019/03/interview-donn-stroud-talks-dead-planet.html

https://ongoingcampaign.blogspot.com/2019/03/obscure-games-heroes-heroines.html



Random Tables and Generators

https://elfmaidsandoctopi.blogspot.com/2019/03/d100-things-elves-dislike.html
http://elfmaidsandoctopi.blogspot.com/2019/03/exilon-real-estate-hex-rush.html

http://archonsmarchon.blogspot.com

https://tarsostheorem.blogspot.com/2019/03/mapping-with-playing-cards-part-2.html

https://chaudronchromatique.blogspot.com/2019/03/slumber-city_5.html
http://www.lulu.com/spotlight/chaudronchromatic
https://www.patreon.com/evlynmoreau/posts


Cthulhu Corner

https://rollingboxcars.com/2019/03/04/call-of-cthulhu-aboard-r-m-s-lusitania/

https://creatfeatforever.blogspot.com/



Pure, Uncut B/X

https://lithyscaphe.blogspot.com/2019/02/quintessential-bx.html



Reactions

http://drbargle.blogspot.com/2019/03/how-to-resolve-everything-that-comes-up.html

https://dndborderlands.blogspot.com/2018/11/this-blog-post-was-prompted-by-michael.html

http://lizardmandiaries.blogspot.com/2019/03/alignment-dependent-what-does-npc-do.html



Appendix N

https://akraticwizardry.blogspot.com/2019/03/hawkmoon-is-coming-to-small-screen.html

http://heropresstwo.blogspot.com/2019/03/robert-e-howard-creating-age-undreamed.html





Miscellany

http://mojobob.blogspot.com/2019/03/mister-blobby.html

http://monstersandmanuals.blogspot.com/2019/02/campaign-hooks-in-spam.html

https://theymightbgazebos.blog/osr-anchorites/



New Blogger Spotlight: MTZE Writes About Games

http://matzewrites.blogspot.com



If you enjoy my free zine, podcast, and/or blog, please consider supporting my work for only $1 per month. 

Free and PWYW DMs Guild Highlights: Week Ending 3.2.19

Every week, talented creators upload products to the DMs Guild, pricing them as free or pwyw in order to reach customers. Dozens of new free and pwyw products are added each week alone. It is a lot to sort through. My hope is that highlighting a few of each week's best supplements will help the designers get the attention they deserve. You can find previous posts in this series HERE.


Single-Player Systems, Solitaires by Wraith Wright Productions

This is really cool. I remember loving Choose-Your-Own-Adventure books and the old solo D&D adventures. Other games like Tunnels and Trolls really made their names exploring solo play. Well, here a group of creators attempt to codify a system and approach to doing it with 5e. I have noticed some solo adventure products popping up; maybe this will lead to more. This actually consists of two books, a creator and player guidebook.



100 Non-Combat Random Encounters (Jungle) by Dungeons and Djinn

You can never go wrong with more random flavor! These minor, system-neutral encounters are suited for jungle settings and adventures.



So, a Blind Woman and a Medusa Walk Along the Road... by Various Authors

Really well-presented collection of road encounters from multiple authors. Includes an interactive pdf with high production values and links to the authors' other work on the DMs Guild. This whole series is money.



The Overgrown Shrine by Simone Rossi Tisbeni

Short but sweet little side quest that you can easily place in just about any forest.



Otterfolk by Jeff C. Stevens

This race may not fit the tone of all campaigns, but it is full of little creative touches (like the Otterian language) that make it worth mentioning. Even includes an Otterfolk-specific character sheet.


If you enjoy my free zine, podcast, and/or blog, please consider supporting my work for only $1 per month.