OK Lets Fix G123

So reading lots of stuff as holidays and my friends I thought id see all doing family stuff so might go away next years hols. I have done some giant stuff before. Giant land and my magic tree kingdoms in the sky. My war with giantland and ruins of Castle Colossus, a mighty ancient ruined giant kingdom. So this might end up like all that one day. My murder hobo dungeon bastards like demolished G1 and were sick of monster killing half way through G2. When I first played it in 80s my players had a giant overdose. Once party are a well honed giant killing squad most monsters have to fear them. Also the original 3 modules have extra art so i might get drive through POD.

Best Things in G1 The Murdering of the Hill Giant Chief
-Giant bag table, stunning stuff
-The Hill giant hall fight is a huge meat grinder
-My Druid wanted to block all the passes to giant land with magic
-Helping slaves revolt and have them murder former masters while helping
-Hidden wierd temple ty some long lost mythos religion
-Magic that helps vs giants in treasure


Best Things in G2 Skull rift of the Frost Giant Jarl
-The rock art in wall depicting advanced civilised giants vs dragons
-Monsters on Ice!
-Lots of good magic loot
-Giant vikings and bears in a giant icebar


Best Things in G3 Harm of the Fire Giant King
-Drow up to no good as clou should be more of this
-In Muspelhiem invading the world tree awesome!
-Women to rescue from dungeon i liked when 13
-Mentions spell wall of tentacles for drow
-possibly recruit a bunch of naked gnolls
-The demon staff is soooo coool and meta
l- Free a titan in prison and a cursed altar

d12 Rumours
1 Giants working together is part of a terrible prophecy
2 A dark unknown force is spying on the kingdom
3 Cattle prices have soared from giants plundering region
4 Flash flood from mountains brought down several giant animal bodies
5 Humans have been carried off as slaves under the mountain like old times
6 Humans have no choice but accept the yoke of slavery from giants or be eaten
7 Merchant bankers do not want and will reward giant killers
8 Gods and giants had wars in area long ago leaving marks in rock long ago
9 Noble Alliance recruiting giant killing adventurers in competition for contract
10 All the land and valleys around here were made by giants
11 The giant lands have secret roads to other worlds where giants rule
12 Plucky band of villagers are seeking heroes to join them for glory in giantland

d12 Frontier Encounters Day
1 Refugees fleeing area in panic, tell of kin eaten alive by giants and worse
2 Optimistic soldiers marching off 8 hours later demoralised survivors limp home
3 Giant killers looking to get rich quick
4 Hill giant and a pet d4 1=cave bear 2=sabretooth 3=direwolf 4=dimetrodon
5 Hill giant with d4 ogres, 2d6 cavemen raiding land of humans
6 Squad of orc scouts with three more infantry squads and commanders nearby
7 Stranger wants to join you d4 1=bard 2=doppelganger 3=assassin 4=
8 Hill giant shaman hero with evil treant and 2d4 scout ogre allies who throw rocks
9 Group with a fire giant, a frost giant and a d4 hill giants
10 Demihuman reporting on giants beyond frontier and entry to giantland
11 Cyclops priest with d3 hill hill giants and 2d6 orcs veterans riding dire wolves
12 A stone giant watches party. Will talk but mostly just flees and merges with some rock

d12 Frontier Encounters Night
1 Ghouls 3d42 Were wolves 2d4
3 Wights 2d4 hungry for corpses left by giants
4 Zombie ogres 6HD each 2d4 from tribe rejected drow
5 Squad of orc scouts with three more infantry squads and commanders nearby6 Dire wolves 2d4 hunting
7 Hill giant scouts d4
8 Ogres hunting humans with baskets on backs 3d4
9 Giant carnivorous bats 3d4
10 Group with a fire giant, a frost giant and a d4 hill giants
11 Drow squad with magician seeking mischief against humans
12 Runaway orc slave hates giants will serve who helps them

d12 Factions in Dungeon
1 Drow spies with shadows and doppelgangers report to underland city nobility 
2 Drow spider witch cult serve a underland spider goddess who wants conquest
3 Drow demon witch cult serve greater demons under a broad cloak of united evil
4 Hill giant cultists are primitive hunters who woorship and serve hill giants
5 Frost giant cultists are a viking cult who want to rule a frozen world with ice magic
6 Fire giants cult love war and weapons and smelters and mines forever
7 Stone Giants dont want to join alliance but will keep an eye on situation and giant killers
8 Giant Killers Guild a prestigious org regulating giant killing and planning attacks
9 Dragon cultists run by shape shifting dragons and draconian folk seek to sabotage giants
10 Mystic troll elders time travelling to help free trolls from giant control
11 Orc slaves want to free kinfolk kept by humans will bond with human brothers who help
12 Titan order serve titans most who died battling the gods long ago or were imprisoned

d12 Reasons Giants thinks Drow are AOK?
1 Drow give us drugs that are amazing stuff from all over the underland
2 Drow have brought us magic and coins to help giants rule again!
3 Drow give us new pets and servant creatures like real underland warlords
4 Drow give us erotic furniture and smutty scrolls that have enriched our love lives
5 Drow are master strategists and magicians, together we can fight the gods!
6 Drow are teaching some of their magic and increasing our trade through the underland
7 Humans have squeezed us into seclusion but now giants will rule the surface world
8 Wizards were snooty and superior and we shunned alliance with them
9 Those disgusting slimey old horrors of the deep that sent the squid faced wizard folk were a lot less appealing and only want us for our brains and as slaves
10 Demons failed us before and cower before the human gods like worms
11 If we don't try to finish humans now giants are done for, accept Drow even if only for now
12 Drow support more giant autonomy and the right to eat lesser slave races, its ok to be a hateful evil giant

Giant types might have swapped children in alliance deal long ago and fire giants using this to unite all giants. See I have also done giant wars tables that would extend this adventure.

Giants might have more notes and documents or bags of cash minted in underland.

Agents of other powers want to see inside giants lairs also.Lots of visiting allies might leave mores or messages. Possibly in code.

Adding extra giant types is a bit of pain as you probably wanna change enemies after these three. Players want to cut a deal with the giant council or killing them or pushing factions to favourable conflict. Killing drow agents is good perhaps drow assassins kill someone to remind party they are not cool. Imagine if party sent as escorts to noble for peace talks and during feast giant chief kills and eats diplomat then look at party. You can make players feel bad with signs these are the last generation of giants so on verge of extermination.

UK Series

Just got this old classic and most of series again.
I have most of my oldschool DnD dream items now
Possibly go for gammaworld reprints in future.
Possibly hardcover ravenloft series.
See my updated wish list sidebar
Have house shortly and ok temp accommodation

Those and Dragon Warriors and Fighting Fantasy shaped my taste in fantasy gaming. Plus Moorcock and Lovecraft in Deities book and Chaosium games being used in Greyhawk and Known World DnD. Id like to run all the UK series and saltmarsh together. The art, design and maps on these were some of the 80s best of TSR and had some grungy uk vibe.

UK5 Eye of the Serpent for 1st Level, Quick Thoughts
There are a lot of good lessons you can get from this adventure and it can be run cinematic and feature chases and other pulp fun. Some odd characters to meet and murder. Easy to put in a campaign setting. Little consequences for a setting really. It is a secret mountain valley route with remnants of former inhabitants.

I like it. Good beginner intro setting and characters can come from anywhere. Party grabbed by roc in beginning and dumped at top in a nest and flee downwards.

-Good first wilderness scenario for kids or noobs
-They will sigh at railroad set up probably but persist
-Has a good flow chart point and has some choices
-Made for one monk or druid or ranger vs dm or with a beginner party
-Map is a outdoor dungeon with a few choices in paths
-Probably repayable with one character or a party
-Has lots of terrain types to learn to deal with 
-Lot of mini adventures and encounters many quite grisly
-Has 80s Brit punk grit & grime feel a bit like a fighting fantasy book
-Kind of has melancholic, lonely, romantic mood & mild horror

-Art is excellent more like fiend folio style
-Good layouts and attractive maps too
-Good for beginning players or dm
-Overall I rate this 4 stars out of 5

It is a good way to start a campaign and characters can meet in the nest. Being a bit blessed by the gods and some dreams or visions might help motivate players. In a way they are performing a ancient rite that has not been played for generations since the tribes left. Fate might guide them further to be heroes of the land. As a game starter it beats a we met in a pub as a origin story.

The basic setup could be used in different games too.
Just mix up monsters a bit or revere the trek.
Give it a creation myth and a quest for RuneQuest.
Add strange tech and mutants and trash for Gamma World
Strand some astronauts on a mountaintop with wrecked outposts of scoundrels and native inhabitants

UK 2&3 Alderweg Series, The Sentinel and the GauntletCool items and story. The Sentinel Lv 2-5 has a soppy item and a log fort of baddies and a ruined villa to explore (or murder spree). The Gauntlet Lv 3-6 lets you take a cool cliff fort then fight off a army from it which is one of my first Battlesystem experiences at the time. Plus the evil glove is way cooler. The second of the series is better one and i used fort at a key pass for years in my campaign. 

UK4 When a Star Falls 3-5 LvI love this scavenger hunt, has good fatalistic prophecies and dreams, interesting places to visit and things to do. The deep gnomes in this set my ideas on them since. I love their constructs - kinda dart and flame shooting deco streamlined daleks. Derro here and decor interesting. The Tower of Heaven I used in a game for years. Getting first dreams from a monster is nice touch.

UK7 Dark Clouds Gather 7-9For the level you get to raid a crystal cloud fort with flying baboons and frost giants, Lots of small locations to visit. It is a pretty good into to higher level style of adventure. I had totally forgotten what was in here until I opened it up so not as strong memories of the above in series.

All that glittersDon't have

UK1 In storage but notable strange adventure 

The old Character Design Game

This is a bunch current thoughts on my system rewrite.
Will do in basic steps bits at a time like basic 4 classes and character stuff first
then add extra classes in various comps and source books and combine all together when at least half done. Nothing in stone yet.

Classes and Prime Requisites
Assign stats as you please but consider
-your best stat in your class prerequisite gives you extra abilities
-your class prerequesite stat is equal to the highest level you can gain or 20 max
-you can change your class once per +1 INT bonus you can have
You can roll again till your bonuses reach +5 or better in total 

Prerequisite Stats & Bonus Benefits

Basic Four Classes 
Cleric WIS bonus divine pells d8HD Medium armour
Fighter STR bonus WP +1 Unarmed +2 Critical Hit +3 Cleave d10HD Any Armour
Thief DEX bonus NWP +1 Sneak +2 Street Wise +3 Acrobatics d8HD Light Armour
Wizard INT bonus arcane spellsd d4HD No Armour
Basic Four Races (Mysterious Demi Humans)Dwarf CON +1 Engineer lore +2  Blacksmith (or other craft) +3 Gunpowder Any Armour
Elf CHA bonus spells choose one list Any Armour d6HD  Any Armour
Gnome WIS bonus spells choose one list  d6HD Any Armour
Halfling DEX bonus NWP +1 Sneak +2 Survival +3 Herbalist d6HD Medium Armour
Secondary ClassesDruid WIS bonus spells bonus nature spells d8HD Light Armour
Monk WIS bonus NWP +1 Acrobatics +2 Tumbling +3 Feign Death d10HD No Armour
Bard CHA bonus spells choose one list d6HD Light Armour
Sorcerer CHA bonus arcane spells d8 HD No Armour
Secondary Races (Forbidden Monsters Races)
Abhuman CON +1 Survival +2 Track (or other lore) +3 (pick one) Lore, d12HD Light Armour
Changeling CHA bonus spells choose one list d6HD No Armour
Giant STR  +1 Smash +2 Lifting +3 Eating d12HD Medium Armour
Tako DEX bonus spells choose one list d4HD Any Armour
Tertiary Classes
Paladin CHA bonus divine spells d10HD Any Armour
Ranger DEX bonus nature spells d10HD Medium Armour
Alchemist INT bonus alchemist recipes No Armour
Shaman WIS bonus mentalist spells No Armour
Tertiary Races (Psychon Apocalypse Races)
Robot CON (Golem) bonus apps d8HD No Armour
Mutant CON (Freak) bonus mutations d8HD No Armour
Alien INT (Outsider) bonus spells choose one list d4HD No Armour
Psionic WIS (Mystic) bonus mentalist spells d6HD No Armour

Prerequisite

Roll and allocate
Roll four lots of 3d6 stat rolls
- only one stat can be below 9 raise whichever ones you wish otherwise to 9
Two stat rolls of 4d6
- 12 min 18 maximum to help your prerequisite class stat highAssign as you please 

your reject rolls can be used for your starting followers
each reject set is one follower (1+CHA bonus max, pick best stats)
this might take 3 or 4 four tries low stats could be a child or animal or old aunt

or

pick and allocate one of these sets of scores
18 17 11 10 9 9 (74 total +5 bonus total)
18 14 13 11 9 9 (74 total +5 bonus total)
16 16 13 10 10 9 (74 total +5 bonus total)
16 13 13 13 10 9 (74 total +5 bonus total)
13 13 13 13 13 9 (74 total +5 bonus total)
18 16 13 10  9 8 (74 total +5 bonus total)
16 16 13 13 9 7 (74 total +5 bonus total)
no starting followers

or be a more modest hero and struggle more
16 13 10 9 9 9 (66 total +3 bonus total)
13 13 13 9 9 9 (66 total +3 bonus total)

What are Stats for
CHA ability to befriend or influence others, command followers
CON ability to resist disease, poison, hold your breath or other resist bodily shocks
DEX ability to dodge traps or dangers, manipulate tools or be sneaky
INT ability to solve riddles or puzzles, understand things, spot immediate clues or know stuff
STR ability to lift stuff and smash things and hit hard or throw things further
WIS ability to resist magic or spells, use will power, common sense, experience or foresight

Sample Basic Classes and Prerequisite Stat
CHA Elf
CON Dwarf
DEX Thief, Halfling
INT Wizard
STR Warrior
WIS Priest. Gnome

What is Bonus for
CHA bonus is your to your number of loyal followers +1
CON bonus is added to your HP every level
DEX bonus on all to hit rolls and AC
INT bonus to WP or NWP or Languages, can take skills not from your own class
STR bonus to damage on all muscle powered weapons
WIS bonus to luck points +1 (thieves get +1/Lv)

Bonus for stats
Stats below 9 are damaged by disease or injury and could be restored
the cost of this is beyond earnings of a commoner
3 -3
4-5 -2
6-8 -1
9-12 0
13-15 +1
16-17 +2
18-19 +3
20-21 +5
22-25 +6

Spell Bonuses for classes with high prerequisite stats provide extra spells
+1 one first lv spell at first level
+2 one first leval spell at first level and again at second
+3 one first level spell at first, second and third plus a second lv spell at 3rd
+4 one first level spell at 1st to 4th level plus a second lv spell at 3rd
+5 one first level spell at 1st to 5th level plus a second lv spell at 3rd
+6 one first level spell at 1st to 6th level plus a second lv spell at 3rd and 4th
a first level spell can be replace with 4 cantrips with a certain skill
some learn a extra cantrip slot as a skill, goblins do it all the time
some classes get proficiencies instead of spells or other abilities

Hit Points HP
Class HD + CON Bonus
d4 Wizard
d6 Bard, Elf, Sorcerer, Gnome
d8 Cleric, Thief, Druid,Halfling
d10 Fighter, Monk
d12 Dwarf, Abhuman, Giant
Most persons without character class like commoners d4 or d6 for typical fighting men 
Roll for 1st level HP has a minimum 
d4(3min) d6(5min) d8(6min) d10(8min) d12(10min)

Armour Class AC
AC is total of AC points in best possible case, you might also record AC vs missiles or from behind. AC Number is 10 + DEX bonus + Armour bonus + Shield Bonus + other skills or magic

Light Armour
+1 Heavy cloak*, bracers*, heroharness*1gp
+1 cloth, padding, leathers, furs, wrappings 4gp
+2 Gambeson, 15gp
+3 Leather armour, Fibre 20gp
Medeum Armour
+4 Ringmail armour, scale armour, hide armour, bezainted armour  -1 Mov 75gp
+5 Chainmail armour or metal scale armour -3 Mov 150gp
+5 Breast Plate*  -1 Mov 250gp
+5 Elfmail -1Mov 1500gp (dwarfmail, orcmail or high tech human ballistic mesh)
+6 Reinforced Chain, splintmail armour -6 Mov 250gp
Heavy Armour
+7 Platemail armour -6 Mov 400gp
+8 Fullplate armour -3 Mov -1 incoming damage 2000gp, custom fitted (or ballistic plate)
Power Armour
+9 Scout Power Armour 10000gp +3" Mov and Jump, 2 hydrogen cells for 12 hours
+10 Atomic Power Armour 100000gp +3STR d6 unarmed, atomic power cell 30 days
*Can be stacked with other items every +4AC -1Mov

Helms
+1 Cap helmet* 1gp
+2 Full helmet* (halves perception) 75gp

Shields
Buckler +1 vs one attack
Small Shield +1 vs any incoming attacks
Medium Shield +1 +2 vs missiles
Large Shield  +2 -1 Mov

Movement (Mov) and Range (R)
Standard Mov is 12".
1" is ten foot indoors and ten yards outdoors for Move (MOV) or Range (R)
time measured in one minute combat round or ten minute turn
Cone areas off effect are 30 degrees times range
Explosions or clouds are measured in circles across in inches" or radius in inches"
STR in Items under 2lb is non encumbered
More than STR in Items under 2lb is light encumbrance -1"Mov
More than STRx2 in Items under 2lb is  medium encumbrance x1/2 Mov
More than STRx5 in Items under 2lb is  heavy encumbrance Mov 1"
More than STRx10 in items under 2lb can lift with a STR roll standing to max of STRx20

Untrue but quick Simplified Scales and Conversions for game:
Foot 30cm Yard=Metre 2.2lb = one kilo,  quart=litre, gallon=4 litre mile =1.6 kilometres

Time in the Gameround is one minute
turn is ten minutes

Followers could be....
Use your CHA bonus +1 for your number of followers
They are loyal helpers and best friends who will do anything for you out of love
Pet or mount or servant or friend or spouse or relative or lover
Any interesting available person you meet might be convinced to be your follower in play with a CHA roll. If they like you and have no other commitments. Banishing a follower unjustly might make all of them leave you (Morale roll each one to stay)

Henchmen 
You can have one henchman per CHA point
They are loyal goons that will be fairly loyal and you support their upkeep
They actually like you and choose to support you and are more loyal
They generally follow orders and stick to your instructions

Hirelings
Are paid personnel. They are loyal to you for money mostly
They are more likely to disobey or be tempted by a distraction
The only limit is your payroll

Command Radius for followers and hirelings
Most characters use CHA bonus in inches to command troops to rally or motivate them
Fighters and add their Lv to their CHA command radius bonus
Bards add their Lv to their CHA bonus command radius bonus

Morale
Morale rolls are made with a d12 to determine hirelings obey orders
CHA bonus of leader adds to group morale score
Green/cowardly 4
Experienced/uncomited 6
Veteran/determined 8
Elite/fanatic 10

Hirelings need morale checks to
-charge superior odds or forces
-hold line if charged by superior looking forces or cavalry
-close ranks if broken ranks from previous failed check
-stop looting corpses or treasure keep fighting if comanded
-stop tormenting prisoners keep fighting if comanded
-stop running away if morale broken if comanded
-don't go charging into enemy trap or taunts, stick to plan as comanded
-regular troops hit by heavy artillery or magic or break formation
-irregular troops hit by missile troops like archers or slingers

Regular Troops -spread out not base to base fight as a mob in open ranks
-if demoralized they withdraw and possibly try to regroup
Irregular troops -base to base in formation in closed ranks
- if demoralized they become irregular

Patron God
Roll for your god from one of the tables grouped by pantheon
reroll till you find one you like
all the ones you reject are angry at you
or
let DM appoint you a patron based on your occupation, past or class
or
Be a godless heretic almost as bad as a witch or cultist

Luck Point Can be Used To:
Reroll any dice after the fact to succeed better
Change a spell memorised to another one you could have
Have a common item you forgot or found like lamp, rope, water
Heal d4 HP could stabilize wound if bleeding to death
Revive if unconscious with 1HP in a d4 turns

ENC SystemENC is about 2-4lb and can be held or used in one hand
2 ENC is many two handed weapons, kite or tower shields
Armour ENC is = AC bonus

More ENC than STRx1 -1 Mov and initiative
More ENC than STREx2 -3 Mov and initiative
More ENC than STRx3 -6 Mov and initiative
More than STRx4 only move 1 cannot fight or run

Typical belt 2 ENC
War Belt or bandoliers 4 ENC
Bag 4 ENC
Girdle 6 ENC
Satchel bag 6 ENC
Small Sack 10 ENC
Small Pack 12 ENC
Big sack 20 ENC
Army Backpack 30 ENC

Saving Throws, skill tests and difficulty
Simple Task roll over relevant stat to see if you fail
-Something you are skilled in
-Anyone can normally do but has some risk especially if under pressure
-Saves using your prerequisite score
-Making a roll against some one or thing offering minimal resistance
-basic trap or mild poison from unskilled user or mild
-Especially skilled or prerequisite stat save in simple task automatically succeeds
-Possibly taking a long time on simple task automatically succeeds

Difficult Task roll over half relevant stat to see if you fail
-Tasks you have no skill in but can still try with a serious risk
-Additional difficulty attempting something you are skilled in
-Any one could take a risky chance in in task but mostly would fail
-Attempting a skilled task vs some one with successful skill roll
-Saves not using your prerequisite

Impossible Task roll over stat bonus to fail
-Very unlikely to succeed without skill but slim chance
-Unskilled versus a successful skilled person
-Something you are skilled at at but near impossible difficulties

Starting Loot and Status in Shadelport

d10 Thief, monk, sorcerer, druid, mutant,
giant, abhuman, shaman, outsider
1-6 common 7-9 freeman 10 noble

d10 Priest, warrior, wizard, bard, elf, dwarf,
tako, halfling, elf, dwarf, changeling, paladin,
ranger, gnome, robot, psion
1-3 common 4-8 freeman 9-10 noble

Common Status
Live off a copper a day minimum 3d6 copper to start
Pauper, beggar, peasant, slave, servant, labourer, monk, watchman, serf. Some of the better ones have more and have some savings and a hovel, the worst are destitute beggars or criminals.

Clothes: old shirt, old trews, old hat, string belt, foot wrappings or sandals woven from reeds

Items: cheap bowl, wooden spoon, sack, a piece of cloth, small knife d3, candle, clay or wood pipe

Arms and Armour: sling d4 or staff d6 or club d4

Provisions: loaf of coarse old bread, gourd or clay jar or water, d4 1=onion 2=turnip 3=plump rat 4=bowl of tripe
Trinket (1cp): d6 1=wooden beads on string 2=wooden holy symbol on leather thong 3=clay or wood palm size figurine 4=carved bone medallion 5=candle 6=carved wooden cup

Followers: married partner, child, friend immediate family member, dog, cat, goat, pig, donkey,rat, squirrel, sheep, crow, chicken

Freeman Status
lives off a silver a day minimum 3d6 silver to start
Town person, shopkeeper, yeoman farmer, trader, priest, officer, craftsman, house hold warrior Some of the better ones own a shop, farm, business and/or a town house, with money in a bank.

Clothes: good outfit and a old everyday outfit, hat, cloak, shoes, leather belt, pair of stockings

Items: nice cup, nice bowl, knife, bag or backpack, blanket, small knife d3, oil lamp, tinderbox, clay pipe

Arms and Armour: dagger d4 and shortbow d6 plus d12 arrows or small sword d6 or spear d6 or hand axe d6

Provisions: full skin of water, loaf of fresh bread and d6 1=pound of cheese 2=pound of spicy dried sausage 3=rabbit 4=fish 5=pidgeon 6=bowl of eel stew.

Trinket (1gp): d8 1=family brass crest ring 2=tiny silver holy symbol necklace 3=old bronze arm ring of clan 4=large symbolic key on a string 5=a legal document such as letter of recommendation, banknote, passport or merchant licence 6=very fancy hat 7=bone dice 8= personal note, map or verse on parchment 

Follower: Friend or relative or married partner, student, child, servant, slave, dog, cat, goat, small cow, cart pony, sheep 

Noble Status
live off gp a day minimum 3d6gp to start
Noble or richest merchants or large scale land owners. Some of the better ones have land and taxation rights over commoners.

Clothes, fancy court outfit, colourful everyday outfit, coloured cloak with symbol, pair of  boots, pair of fancy shoes, ornamental leather and fur girdle with metal or ivory decor, silver signet ring
Items: Ornate tin lantern with built in tinderbox, knife, pewter cutlery, pewter mug, brush, hand mirror, bar of fancy soap, cloth, blanket, ornate knife, plate and bowl

Arms and Armour, padded armour +1AC or gambeson +2AC, fancy dagger, any bow or crossbow or pistol, any two hand weapons and a shield in good condition with family insignia
Provisions: dried fruit cake, wineskin with good wine, week dried rations, pound of cheese, loaf of best bread and d8 1=piglet 2=pheasant 3= duck 4=chicken 5=joint of boar 6=joint of deer 7=nice fruit and berries, 8=large game meat pie.

Trinket (30gp): d6 1=gold family ring 2=enamel brooch of family 3=mask used by secret society or cult 4=tiny gold holy symbol 5=letter if introduction from noble 6=family tree 7=small book with selections of holy verse 8=deck of playing cards 9=dose of poison or sleep drug or narcotics in tin 10=fancy box of sweetmeats and bottle of mead
When you spend the amount of living money to class standard for a month and have basic clothes and items according to your status in public you get accepted. Wearing clothes not of your station might be a criminal offence.

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Im considering modifying my robot class into a golem class but would need to change at least names of abilities, power sources, etc but interesting

Acrobatics & Tumbling for my rpg's

Just a clarification on these gymnastic skills I use in DnD, BRP and Marvel.

Its seems like olympic gymnastics are a art with codes and stuff id have to read whole books on to get.

Lots of gross motor gymnastic skills could exist
Dance, climb, jump, leap, flip, fall, etc and could all be used at same time

But a few i use players sometimes ask what is different?
Both related and complimentary. The dumbest definition is tumbling about springing off the ground and landing well, uses whole body but legs most. Acrobatics is aerial maneuvers and falling well, uses whole body but arms more. Skills should stack and compliment.

Tumbling helps to
-reduce fall damage by 20 feet or two stories or 6m
-spectacular cartwheels, flips, hand springs, hand stands 2/3 movement
-instantly stand with roll taking no time to get up
-while tumbling is harder to hit and can improve dodge attempts

Cool stuff to try
-mix with balance to tumble on a high wire
-jump out of car, off a building like a stuntman
-dive between someones legs, stab them in the back
-a tumbling charge makes you hard to hit
-if knocked over or fall or make dive for cover, then leap to feet all in an instant
-mix with martial arts to be more confusing target and fall well
-pretend to fall but dive and roll instead
-kick someone in the face while doing a handstand

Acrobatics helps to
-move through air with fineness when falling, diving, leaping and change to any facing instantly
-work with other acrobats, grabbing each others for flips, throws, form ladders
-swing on ropes, poles, candelabra, other persons to vault over them with ease and land on feet
-while performing acrobatics is harder to hit and can improve dodge attempts

Cool stuff to try
-jump from great height and and reorientated yourself to shoot multiple targets diferent directions
-vault over someone to attack from rear
-swing on chandeliers or curtain or vine to attack or just move about a scene
-make crazy leaps, vaults and swings by improvising terrain as gymnasium
-move in between people or over many difficult terrain hazards easily
-leap from tumbling burning vehicle and land on your feet
-maneuver in zero g better than everybody else
-fall but can maneuver to land on least worse things, like a enemy or tree
-fall but can maneuver closer to something for a chance to grab
-land on your feet if knocked back with punch or blast or can dive but land on your feet like a cat

My DnD

Tumbling helps to
-while tumbling is harder to hit +1AC and can improve dodge or DEX saves by +1

Acrobatics helps to
-while performing acrobatics +1AC and can improve dodge or DEX saves by +1

My BRP

Tumbling helps to
-while tumbling is harder to hit -1% per 5% skill  and can improve dodge by +1% per 5% skill

Acrobatics helps to
-while performing acrobatics harder to hit -1% per 5% skill  and can improve dodge by +1% per 5% skill

My Marvel

Tumbling helps to
-while tumbling is harder to hit +1cs dodge or evasion and -1cs extra on dodge penalty to be hit

Acrobatics helps to
-while performing acrobatics is harder to hit +1cs dodge or evasion and -1cs extra on dodge penalty to be hit

I let these stack for agility or talent feats

A few other notes

Climb can be used to grab or catch a falling person or to catch own fall or hang on to a bull
Throw skill is for unbalanced non weapon found objects
Throw can be used to catch items thrown at you
Wide range of athletic skills and dance could all be combined
Specific thrown weapons may require other skills

Circus Performer Career Skills
Acrobatics
Tumbling
Dodge
Balance
Climb
Throw
Jump
Dance

I want to design a ballet dancing hit-man narcissist hero now

Exilelog: Goblin mines at last!

Have a new player Sal tonight who is mostly unfamiliar with pre 3rd ed dnd is interesting . His own game if a killer deathtrap dungeon where people die lots called Die With Honour. Has awesome collection of monster minis. He gives us dungeon map. Some people played  through 3 times over several years and play in con several times a year. It is in many ways a oldschool mega dungeon. We even get map to colour where character had been. 3.something edition.

Anyway as almost cancelled session ended up making character and Andz came over after all and we had a entertaining game as they finally visited my goblin mine zone in Devil Hill. Actually the peak is a Goblin city just with lots of empty places for fringe gangs and  murder hobos er cough I mean adventurer can attack.

Sal did worst roll i seen in years with a 9 a 10 and 11 as best tat so we cried abort. Started a new one as a sorcerer. Has a Imp. Also has own party of followers. A Elf, a Cleric and a Wizard. He leads them on adventures and kept hearing all the songs in adventurer pubs of Devil Hill. Also heard about the devil god imprisoned beneath story. Came to check out. On way met face shaping wizard (3rd time a player ha met. Boosted CHA more. Elf and Priest in armour and sorcerer wears +4 leather and a magic ring. Uses a shortsword and shortbow.

Asper Cumberbitch the CE pirate halfling and slum lord was looking for his pals in pub and none showed up xept the Dwarf who was so handy last time. Other younger warrior had retired from adventuring after one bout. So Asper and his lookalike followers four approached new party for a possible jaunt to one of the Dungeons. Also tailing him was Lilly a thief he had recruited and saved from certain death earning her devout loyalty. Neither ever been to Goblin mine and it was a popular destination. Cap of mountain riddled with caverns, caves and mines. Human, Dwarf and goblins all have used the mountain and Iron is deep into the depths now and too many dungeons to mine.

So they marched off across fields into woods the elf recognized as being kin to the dark elf wood. The elf is a pretty awesome hero with better stats than his master. On edge of fields was a gallows with rotting Barron's policemen hanging. Threw a rock at one up close and bodies dropped, alldhorror undead that made all the newcomers Flee. The elf just ran as all his friends did. Halflings petted with huge volley like a machine gun blasting apart three of dead and one fell at feet. Then it lept up terrifying away several halflings and missed grabbing a girl halfling by neck. Asper with swords finished it.

Everyone else came back and burned gallows and dead and Asper took dog tags.

In woods startled strange black deer with white dot markings. Thought nothing of it till heard distant stag grunt. Then wolves howled and storm started. Halflings all scuttled up and wizard did while rest  tried and failed. Elf blamed full plate. Then wolfs came and were fireballed into ash even though they all saved. Then the black stag man druid cast a lightning strike from the storm and shattered the tree. Two out of three halflings hurt a tad, rest landed like cats and threw rocks. Elf got in close and hurt and beast man returned bow with a great slash of his bone sword. Magic missiles finished off.

Nabbed his druid stuff. And debated. Elf said while evil was a being of natural order. Others said kill it, let it bleed. Asper treated its wounds and had follower halflings with poles carry the bound and gagged brute.

Someone will buy this freak", he cheered.

Outside dungeon entry buried the beastman with a hobbit pipe for a snorkel and a space for his face to breathe. Then went to check out the entry they had found. A rickety wooden and rope bridge over a rocky gorge. Hmmmph typical.

Sent halfling over and on way back he stopped and crawled back. Scared of sounds of fighting and goblins inside the mine entry. Asper went over and went inside. He saw purple goblin and green goblins betting on a pit orc fight. The fresh grown and born orcs offered them amusement older orcs would not tolerate. Asper walked up after one orc dead and loser greens left.

"Hey fellas, any one get in on this?"

Goblins grumpy and suspicious.

"You couldn't help me with my gold could you? It's too heavy and back here"

As stared with amazement he killed them all with stones before they new what hit them.

Party came in and saw entry was abandoned human mine that had exposed graves before goblins burrowed in the rear. Asper was kicking corpses off a cliff. Was a distant giant turd. Asper threw rocks at it and a baby otough crawled out and the halflings stoned it. Saw mine car and tracks off distance. Went after green goblin and down stairs into chamber of mildewy mist. A circle of stone in middle of room so halfling threw a rock at one. Glowing eyes opened and looked about then closed. Threw nearby and saw more eyes. Elf identified as mushroom men. Spoke peaceably and swapped a wooden ogre child's doll for a healing shroom. Went on and found another track wih a cart. Before sorcerer could say that looks dangerous, five exited halflings sitting in it. So sorcerer cat fly on elf and he followed the halflings who chased down the goblins. They broke break handle and dived out and bashed goblins. Elf first aided them and left one gently with resting head. Asper winked and a halfling bashed its head in silently as party moved on.

Heard distant crash and gibbering of goblins excitement.

Found a chamber of a crypt surrounded by dead miners. Opened with a cantrip and skeletal revenant came out. Part beat it back and tried o burn but it still healed so they it sealed up.  Found kobolds camping and one a pointy hatter. Surely a wizard! So spoke about trading potions till halflings and Lilly broke out and killed kobolds except two surrendered. Asper told Lilly to take bound kobolds and take care of them so their friends will find them. Elf seemed pleased about his heroic good influence. Lilly wiped kobold blood off her knife and returned.

Party find huge cathedral chasm with many entries, some lights, and can see scattered goblins rummaging through shrooms and mine rubbish. Decided to head back. Passed a shroom room and picked some edible, drug and poison shrooms for later. At least this party had shrooms they could bond over and they returned to Froghop village Tavern. On way saw secret police and sorcerer shocked to see halfling walk up and talk.

Halfling showed his official informant badge and gave them dog tags from dead men and they gave him a 50gp ruby!

"It's ok guys we are on good terms"

Then it was beer and shrooms for all!

Exempt that beastman who might have been forgotten.

Konsumterra's Top 10 RPG Designs

Inspired by Zac S current discussion on terrible design, rather than let my inflamatory joints speak about things I hate I will discuss the best overall RPG products and lines I have seen in exactly 30 years of game book buying. I have some visual impairments and aversion to some paper stock which are my problem but shape my taste.

Things I rate on:
Good layouts - i like side bars and boxed clarifications
Good rules but enough to steal if i dont want system
Art - I like pretty books but lotsa tiny spot illos help alot
Value for money and completeness
Enough stuff to do a campagn or at leas one really good starting supplement
I am totally biased to games I focus on here lots
Dislike new editions for sake of cashflow - If it aint broke dont fix it
Wish I could buy maps and legit PDF's of some of these

1 Gammaworld 2nd Ed
Golden age of TSR box sets. Great art on cover and books. Great elmore spot illustrations that set mood. Good layout. Enough campaign detail for a few months play and room to do your own thing somewhere on bigger map. Pitzbourke and surrounding area well detailed with maps in several scales. Actually I think this was best game ever in terms of did not ever need changing. While I dont play the rules straight 3rd ed had a choose your own adventure instead of campagn info and was a organisational mess. Some interesting ideas but jumping on a Marvel style table was a mess too. Actually 2nd ed was best box set ever in terms of everything you needed and better value than DnD sets. I recommend the original Legion of Gold and Famine in Fargo which are a great expansions. I will buy a copy if anyone can hekp me as product I most regret selling ever.

2 Traveller 2300
I like Traveller and Megatraveller too which did some good things for layout but I never liked rules. GDW did good design and great settings but overly wargamer and militaristic settings. They did mostly bad adventures. The first box set of this was a beuty. The revised one even better. Some of the best technology ever presented as far as vehichles, weapons go. Insignia and cloth patches were also awesome. Cant say system was for me and I never used It. The vehicle and equipment guides are awesome. The Kafer source book great too. The universe is loaded with well thought out tech, some of best SF race ever in any setting (go Pentapods!). Actually this setting + Cthulhu would work or Aliens. Later cyberpunk setting ad ons felt like bandwagon after though but interesting. Kafer Sourcebook is a really good ad on. I still have this.

3 GURPS 1st-3rd Edition
I followed GURPS from first box set. I liked many ideas and stole add ons for my other games. The setting books came regulary from 1st to 3rd and was like a monthly release. Some of the best genre and historical setting books ever. Dont like horseclans? Dont get it. As system grownt to huge full colour books have lost interest. No longer interesting world books coming out. I regret selling many of these but PDF's readily available. Books are dense, well laid out and the sidebars really ad to the overall effect better than the box full colour modern version. Modern ones just feel cold and no longer interested in lots of new settings. Steve Jackson illustrations basic but set a tone, many recycled from decades of game products. They just add to mood and break up space nicely. Autoduel is a great example because first printing of guy in armour is one of my favorite bits of art and I prefer layout to later version. One of my favorite RPG books - a awesome cyberpunk setting.

4 Top Secret/SI
This was a really under rated system with a very good layout. The rules are quite good and I stole lots of Ideas. The emporary damage system (also in gangbusters) works well in Cthulhu so you can have fist fights without murder (but a woman accidentally murdering a cop is part of Cthulhus charm). Great Chase Rules. Good advantage/disadvantage system. Several of the sourcebooks were very good. Agent13 one of best Pulp sourcebooks - actually better than novels and comics based on. F.R.E.E.lancers setting was a great proto cyberpunk-superhero setting. Mercenaries/special ops sourcebook full of good military trivium if that floats your boat but still influences me. Guns, Gadgets and Getaway great book was very good with hundreds of cars and guns with distinctive differences. Highstakes Gamble box set is pretty but but just an overblown module with lots of props but some would enjoy. A far cry from the spy dungeon game of first version.

4 RQ3
It is no secret I love old Chaosium. Superworld was broken but a fun amalgam of Champions and BRP. Stormbringer 1st ed I liked. RQ 1&2 were nice but setting put many off. I love Glorantha and Greg's anthropology and mythology take on fantasy which DnD has never done. RQ3 is slick, detailed, lets you run a wide range of fantasy and a great System. Lots of core remains in BRP. I never liked strike ranks and fatigue a bit much to record and found skill category bonuses a bit painful but loved system that i played late 80s through to the 90s. More recent versions have things i steal from but did lots of stuff i dont like. Layouts were great. Most of the classic box sets are amazing and gloranthan bestiary, apple lane, snakepipe hollow are awesome. Elder Secrets and Troll Gods have some of most disappointing art ever but text good for hardcore fans. Even layouts seem hasty. Single volume book version with errata is great too i might have to get one. I have complte box st of rules, dm version and two players ones. Got a version bound by friend too. Kinda need lotsa books because rolling up stats on everything is hard work which is most painful element. At least foes are individuals. The first few years as a GM only got divine magic. Playing in another campagn i got how to abuse spirit and shamanism. A scientist among us got sorcery and i suits scientists well - later 90s supplements gave better examples of pre gen sorcerers. Dorastor book is one of best campagn settings ever. This continues to be core of my historical gaming. Luckily by calling games cthulhu gets peeps in but viking game has been doing very well and everybody loves vikings.  Will run Babylon and Rome in future. The generic Dark ages setting underrated and very good for Dark Ages Cthulhu.

5 Call of Cthulhu 1st-5th ed
I have most consistently played this game. A simple lethal version of BRP. I dont get why rules needed changing from 1st edition. I like they added extra ststs and book descriptions in new editions. No need to include HPL actual fiction. New edition 7 terrorfies me as seems designed for kids who cant divide or multiply by 5 but possibly more deadly. I have detailed in past how more skill points and less skills in clue finding and languages means more skills for combat. In older editions many characyers had no fighting skills. In 6th ed everyone has so many more skill points most have weapon skill. Has become more pulpy.

I liked everything in this system till orient express - too much real world mythology (not HPL in my book) and too many monsters (common problem in many new books) and too clive barker gore based 80s horror. I actually threw out the adventure part of the terrible barely a box set it came in. I got 6th ed and over design is rampant. Too many bug chewed holes and other useless decor that makes hard to read. Old Chaosium was textbook like and easy to use, best design in the hobby. I got 6th ed hardcover only to find it very hard to use and heard of new edition making it irrelevant when i got home from game con. I really liked games workshop edition but they just slapped content together with no editing but was good. Are some promising aspects to new edition rules wise but basically my 30 year love affair with with Chaosium is over. It's not me It's you.

Several really dud adventure out last year Im glad I only got PDFs. The 50s one I will go elsewhere for a good 50s sourcebook on atomic age horror. Cubicle7 Stuff is mostly superior and I look forward to the non Chaosium BRP Cthulhu game coming out. for the record I find Gumshoe depressing and more linear and less GM controlled. Finally saw d20 Cthulhu and I will read. One of my players said he thinks you should get stronger against the mythos with levels and he prefers but not really horror. I miss old Cthulhu adventure books with 6 or 7 short adventures to the mostly convoluted poor ones I cant be bothered digesting that I recently got.

The lovecraft county line was awesome why is "Adventures in Arkham Country" impossible to get at a good price - i have never even seen it or "Dead Reckonings" The CoC version of Dunwich book with stats for d20 and normal cthulhu is a ugly mess - glad i have first print. I have some issues with Australian Aboriginals in products too.

Still my favorite game but something really rotten sinking in.

6 Ringworld
Dense, detailed, beautiful, good art some very nice. Perfect BRP SF game with companion. A great book on known space setting which is great read. Wouldn't play setting as is though. Has some great variations on BRP and best version of stat derived bonus system im using in my vikings game. Really hey should do Spaceworld and release this stripped of setting. Most of you if you have not seen a copy probably never will. I like lots about Nivens work but he is a jerk. With very old characters in this setting you can have huge amounts of skill points so can take a while.

7 Mutant Epoch
This book and supplements really hit it with me. First the books are dense with text and spot illustrations. The monsters are really horrible. The game deals with horrible topics most games will not - like what if monsters capture you. There are some typos but I can forgive them with the volume of effort and detail. Handy for any post apoc setting and raidable for my gammg and psychon games. Has a fun vibe like 2000 AD comics i dont see in many American products. Modules a bit too box text but could run as solo or have own character with players and has even solo use. I like idea you could rerun and have different room contents each time. Would like to see write advenures for veteran gm without box texts though. The cross road region book is so huge and dense. If they do more of these books wil be a super busy world. I look forward to fantasy version.

8 DnD
The red and blue book editions from 1980 do everything very well with limited space. The famous red and blue box sets with Elmore art on front are very beautiful. Not as complete as Gammaworld 2nd ed but very nice. The cyclopedia edition is the best version of DnD to me and id love to get one again as mine stolen. The gazetters for the setting are pretty good too with very good art. I liked the black covers of late 2nd ed ADnD as less new age looking than first one and those monster folders were terrible. Later versions of DnD I cant read same as Pathfinder. Too much trying to look pretty with full colour totally distracting from readability. My favorite thing about ADnD 1st ed (later covers in mis 80s nice) was the older art with wargamer and historical arms and armour. When i see a crystal bauble in a product i usually lose interest. Same for fantasy computer games. I hate big crystals everywhere.

9 Warhammer Fantasy RPG 1st ed
I only lost this recently and regret it. Very complete setting and game lots of fun, great art with lots of resources for campaign and ideas for any fantasy setting with the UK grit I love. Older edition more unbalanced. Good. The 40k games are very pretty and over designed but get it right. Setting a bit too detailed and too much info but awesome.

10 Eclipse Phase
I dare say one of prettiest games ever rich in ideas, horror without supernatural and way beyond most cyberpunk genre stuff. Great art and layouts. Cant say i follow system but feels like most truly modern SF game with so much to steal.

Honorary Mentions

Star Fronteirs Alpha Dawn and Knight Hawks has a built in Universe I played for a while but lack of new stuff made me use own. Now with the free mags is better than ever and free. Space combat is good.

Buck rogers game I think was killed by mediocre art concept but actually a solid settig and early d20 SF game by mike pondsmith.

TORG had so many good ideas and some great art. Didnt care for the universe at war setting but made a good campaign for my Marvel game. The fantasy one had some good spooky stuff but was a bit generic and probably weakest. Kanawa and Cyberpapacy good for cyberpunk. Tharkoldu has that 80s horror i mostly dislike but i like here and the tech good for any sf game. Wished Id got space gods book. Mechanids were a bit pulpy for me but gave me some ideas. I used card deck and then made my own for RQ games I used for years. I rate mos for inspiration over usability.

Paranoia 1st ed and i had games workshop hardcover i ditched regrettably during a purge but great game, great art and settin with ideas for my sf, post apoc and other settings.

DCC i got for art. I wish someone would run it as i dont quite get it yet as I dont metabolize rule sets like i did when younger. Dont think would b a regular game but good for dungeon crawl fun.

Mega Traveller Journal Publications were amazingly better than GDW ones and I recomend the scout and races books as some of the best Traveller products ever. Robot and vehichle book good too. An adventure was probably was one of my favorites. FASA did nice Traveler books too -  a reprint of Skyraiders with great asteroid hab and geomorphs would be a good product to recreate.

TSR MARVEL MSH or FASRIP was of course lucky to have great comic art. But one table does all was a big feature of this game and the built in descriptive elements of stats and ranks was very goo design. Karma xp reward syste very flexible. Has its flaws but core is very good.

Gangbusters box set pretty nice too with good components. Im lucky to have revised modules with very pretty covers.

Cyberpunk was pretty good but the Solo of Fortune book looking like a Merc mag was gold - more supplements like this with items scattered everywhere and fake ads. Teenagers From Outer space and Mekton are awesome too.

Dark Future was a carwars type game from GW i use for all my cyberpunk/carwars games. Jack Yeovil novels are awesome. Great art and setting painted as sidebars and boxed text in a wargames rules.

Cthulhu Tech and Cthonian Stars both beautiful and sexy games, well\designed

Paladium stuff dense with ideas and some pretty art, plenty to plunder for DnD

Iron Crown MERP and historical books very good and dense with info

OSR DnD Settings: Why I Made Exile Island

Update from last year to show what new settlers have done over 2 campaigns - more on this after the OSR cliche sausage fight bit. Im starting to layout some books for editing at last.

Inspired by this nice piece on Dungeon fantastic
Greyhawk = map for wargamers
Original Forgotten Realms = map for adventurers
a nice observation among others explored here

What makes a good product fantasy setting?

Writing products for a DM = DM-ing for DM's = Meta DM-ing

I want a good sandbox
I want a sandbox map world not a story script for a world wheremaps are just player props and not really able to deliver on myth of freedom good maps convey

I find all licensed setting a risk - starwars, marvel, krynn, FR, Glorantha
Author free to DM over you and change cannon every edition not = good
Too many cooks or Safety in numbers both flawed too
The Meta DM trying to block my DMing style and make his characters best is lame
I prefer the non-cannonical approach and prefer the early DIY settings

DIY is best I find as not really very hard
Keeping up with canon is harder
Dragonlance and my Fanboy days ended in 86 highschool

My favorite settings are very complex and this is intimidating
I was threatened by Tolkien and Star Trek games as stronger fans than me were nit picking and Forgotten realms has become this. I would try Trek and Tolkien now but still just id rather do my own thing. I play Marvel not with any recognized heroes too. I like Tukemal and Glorantha and was intimidated by it for many years before i could run it from very good adventures and setting material So much stuff has come in Glorantha and system changes to RQ i feel like this again.

Historic games are among my favorite because so much more meaningful than something made for  bunch of fans for profit. I like national geographic and libraries and PDFs for almost free for supplements. If I know about history I can talk about it related to everyday life and people might think im clever. If I talk about klingons and orcs I would be dismissed by plenty out of hand. I find it challenging and a bit intimidating but even if im wrong it is all part of something bigger. People accept alt history better than alt Tolkien or alt hello kitty 40K or Star Trek. You can always do better and dont have to pay for privilege of being wrong or dated or trapped in an edition so much. Gurps books were awesome for this, old Rolemaster even those green 2nd Ed ADnD books were good fun. Cthulhu was game got me researching real history for gaming. Even 20s trivia is useful. What the hell a Dritzt is I actually dont know.

Ive had many big worlds but have played for 5 years on one island with one horrible city - and multiple dungeons per 4 mile hex. Bigger worlds had different story. Azaerth setting (some company probably used same name used since 1988) was about visiting a kingdom, locate what evil god is up to babess in cosmic plot here then stop and try to get king to join the alliance. Island game about how not to fall in a dungeon and get trapped but live to sell scraps off other dead adventurers.

Visually I am inspired by UK fantasy adventure solo game books like lonewolf, demonspawn, fighting fantasy, early 80s White Dwarf (well first hundred issues). Warhammer fantasy, 40k, Dark Future among my favorite settings and inspirations. I never felt constrained here. Less sweeping wilderness travel more gritty hacks into horror and isolation and the strange. Dense, fast and slightly horrible is my motto.

One thing I got from TITAN setting for fighting fantasy was that world is a dungeon and every city is a dungeon and every forest is a dungeon.

My Junkheap d100 table sandbox

My Exile Island Setting started with party washed ashore of big mountinos Island thic with ruins and wilderness, some frontier that moves every year, some ever expanding villages and expanding common law and the city. The distant Empire has no map. It's mad young emperor has gone from youthful psychopath with godlike power in succession war to becoming a disciplined tyrant still exterminating other factions in civil war.

There are always refugees (a bit of an issue in Australia) needing new land
There are political and common criminals banished from the mainland
The Island has famed prehuman ruins and was part of a bigger continent lost in cataclysm
Geological layers feature diferent dungeon epochs of magic.
There are more dungeons, foreboding crypts, spooky abandoned houses, ruined temples and dark caves to hidden under lands than there are people on Island.

In recent years the Empire has put in a garrison and taken southern part of Island
The Evil Pirate Barron of the city has made peace with all non humans not just his goblinoid and orc allies. All non humans hate the Empire that drove them here thousands of years ago.

I made horses only for nobility or name level, death sentence to ride, all horse nomads are criminals. Demihumans exempt.

This keeps travel speed low. Most villages can be reached in a day pleasant walk though farm and grazing lands. Thick impassable forests and mountains limited by terrain and supernatural forces. Medowland encounters mostly nice but more isolated and woodland areas are hellish and unfriendly.

Every hex in plain has been visited. Mountains around Shadelport and above swamp have been explored lots with more dungeons than any party knows what to do with. State systematically claims dungeons and send in explorers, occasionally by force. Some dungeons or towers have notices from state declaring not to be opened on pain of death - reasons often classified. Kings of the world know artifacts from here the most potent and numerous.

Players mostly scared to leave safe roads and run home from a dungeon in a few hours than explore the wilderness. One 10th Lv party went far into mountains and carved out a small kingdom to north I will need to map. Still lots of the north to explore and the highland people are more numerous than thought. 13th Lv party went to invade monster island with a colony but I never got them to hell. I might have to do a one shot where they do - I could just let them all be 20th lv a few years later.

Farmers often ex military and well protected by law. The Yeomen around city protected by the Barron. But they are very tough and undefeated. Everyone here respects food producers and leave them be. Occasionally tribal humanoids kill some farmers and hunted into some subterranean hell hole. Non humans are not friendly and Bright elves kill people more than the Dark elves (they kill your family and make them zomie dancers and then charm you for fun). Dwarves resent men and orcs for robbing them of gold and technology. The Barron and the Empire protect elves now. Both want dark or bright elves onside. The scariest thing about elves is their king and queen are gods. Most think bright and dark elves have different king and queen but actually they are same beings with many bodies and forms.

Players know map very intimately after this time or the bit illustrated here anyhow. Marshwood was a village of squalor and vice being corrupted by scum and a serpent demon cult. Now it is clean and friendly to lizard men. All the scum now in Grogstop Gulley where seedy merchants and crooks and orcs go. Bloodsand is so horrible nobody in years has ever gone there but a Druid plotted to destroy it. 95% male scum rejected by city and chopping up and rendering animals (whales, sealions, penguins, seagulls) for oil and meat. I will do a table for it one day. Shadelport is much nicer and has some charm among the vomit and poison caltrops.

Hex 2604 Devil Mountain Dungeons had players buried in lowest level in a few hours. A whole under land kingdom with months before they escaped. Halfling reluctant to return but knows he must. Im sure they will get back again.

Hex 1406 Dungeon Delves of the Skull mountains. Many dungeons mazes here and many ruined old houses, towers and castles on road way there. Dungeons are trashy redbrick types with mad wizards or tribal humanoids and evil high priests and a mausoleum of undead.

The city has a ruined section full of towers, crypts, tombs, temples, dungeons many with pasted government orders with explorers deeds available from city council. Island is dungeoneering mad. A gold rush economy ever present.

Unicorn Run into Elfland (bright kingdom) and the Swap God (an it's dragon) have been a bottleneck for all history for those entering the northern mountains and hidden forests (giant land, troll land, orc land, goblin land, dwarf land, gnome land, halfling land, sea kings (vikings) land, hill horse nomads, hill barbarian kingdoms. Many places never visited by players.

There are wilderness land masses besides the empire continent. There is a Eastern continent of conquering horse nomads, and he aged empires - drug addled Cthulhu cultists and another of dragon worshiping philosophers.

Some of my favorite game products

Early DnD 1980 ish
Geomorphs
Encounter and Treasure tables book
Both helped me improvise classic crawls

Theives World/Runequest3 Cities - explains alot about my taste
Gammaworld2nd Ed and Legion of Gold original - Gygax hexcrawl and mini adventure gold
Gammaworld has many scales of detail as example then gives you a world - Star Frontiers 2300 Traveller all gave a world but rigid (at least Impirium Huge).
Gurps Space was awesome DIY toolbox. I wish i had them all still Have Auotoduel, China still).
Swords of the Diamyo AD&D Oriental Adventures - classic hexcrawl TSR product
RQ3 Crucible of the hero wars setting box set was amazing - encounter examples painted a portrait of culture easy to emulate. Dorastor amazing. Griffin Island amazing (both versions)

I like most of old AD&D classic modules, Dragonlance probably last dnd modules I got
UK modules all interesting and great maps and weirdness

My top 10 DnD modules (not in order)

The Lost City - could play for whole year in here
The Hidden Shrine of Tamoachan - hellishly stylish kill machine
The Principalities of Glantri - you could stick this in centre of any world
Dwellers of the Forbidden City
Desert of Desolation as a whole, im a sucker for bronze age and nice maps
Against the Cult of the Reptile God classic horror village out to get you
Swords of the Daimyo hexcrawling fun
The Lost Caverns of Tsojcanth wilderness plus dungeon plus gygax craziness
Castle Amber Based on a favorite writer but i love the mad wizard family cursed by gods and house
The Sinister Secret of Saltmarsh Horror, fake ghosts, pirate smugglers, play this one as children might be fun

Honorable mention for Feast of Goblyns for adding detail to first Raveloft set and having lots of stuff in it. Adventure flawed, art very nice. I liked this version of Ravenloft - hammer horror smackdowns (yes it is still horror). Also for Tomb of lizard king I remember players being very unhappy when kings secret power revealed. Expedition to the Barrier Peaks for the crazy. Decent Series all horror elder race fun with depraved porn drow furniture and sexiness and drug abuse of evil elves - made my teen brain pop. Many of the Dungeon Crawl Classics adventures are really good - i find i steal stories and dont always use their maps. DnD known world Gazeteers and early forgotten realms region books good - the gods dying thing killed it for me like a DC comic reboot.

I liked Basic DnD world right up to when it became Mystara
I still like it but flying boats im pretty down on (ruined mummy film) sorry
Cthulhu 20s so mapped out i am enjoying other eras more even though a favorite
TSR putting lazy psuedo history into products made me a RQ history gamer for 10 years
I still like osprey military history books and wargamer look of 70s TSR
Unseen rooms make me sad in scripted dungeons and happens often
I admire Pathfinder art & design but it just does not look like my fantasy or aesthetic so probably not for me