Ghosts in the Moon-Tower

I am so behind on my game related reading that it isn't even funny.  It's amazing how much time a job and family can take up.  Sheesh!!!

Anyway, I've had Dicey Tales #2 in my possession for quite some time and haven't had a chance to read it. Well, I grabbed it last night and gave it a quick look through.  I read only one article thoroughly.  That was "Ghosts in the Moon-Tower" by Garnett Elliott, a.k.a. G-Man.

"Ghosts in the Moon-Tower" is set in Lemuria amongst the Besharoon Mountains.  It is a compact adventure that involves some mysterious ruins of a lost civilization.  It is an imaginative adventure that I would enjoy running.  Only one question niggles at me about it:  Where do the villagers get milk in a lizard dominated world?

I think "Ghosts..." is a great addition to G-Man's series of BoL adventures.  I also think it is pretty cool that it's been published.  His adventures are much more valuable than free.  Hey, I like free but he deserves the recognition.

There are a couple of other adventures in the issue that look promising, as well as a nice bestiary of both regular animals and fantastic creatures.  Another feature I like about this issue is that it is inclusive of other members of the BoL family.  For example, one of the adventures uses the pulp rules laid out in the first edition of the magazine while the other is for the Legends of Steel world.

Good stuff all around.

Dicey Tales #2 Part 2

I downloaded Dicey Tales #2 this morning.  Since I am at work I have only been able to glance at it. It contains a G-Man adventure set in Lemuria!  Another reason to be excited about this issue.

Ghosts of Acheron

While I was on hiatus, G-Man produced another outstanding adventure set in Conan's Hyboria.  I think it came out in April.  So, I'm a little late.  I reread the adventure the other day and it reminded me how cool it was and how I hadn't mentioned it yet.  So...

What do the Picts, a Khitain scholar and a hole in the ground have in common?  Download and find out!

You can get it at the Strange Stones blog here.

Enjoy!

The Homecoming of Count Inchiostro

Hey, if you haven't already, do yourself a favor and check out G-Man's BoL adventures over at Strange Stones. They're like a free Christmas present to yourself.

The latest installment is another Hyborian adventure entitled The Homecoming of Count Inchiostro. Count Inchiostro is a dispossessed Zingaran noble looking to reclaim his heritage. But, of course, he needs the PC's help to do this. Inchiostro has a resemblance to a certain historical literary character of a semi-comical nature. The adventure itself, though, is far from comical. It is rather gritty and has an appropriate ending for this type of adventure.

G-Man has scored again with this adventure.

Crimson Shoals

When I heard that G-Man was going to create a Barbarians of Lemuria adventure set in the Hyborian Age of Robert E. Howard, I was excited. I have very much enjoyed his previous adventures and since Hyboria is one of my favorite literary settings I figured that it would be a great adventure. My excitement wasn't misplaced, it is a great little adventure.

The characters are the survivors of a ship that wrecked off the coast of Shem. They discover two ships on a nasty reef that seems to draw ships towards itself. As usual I don't want to give much away but the adventure involves pirates, treasure, Stygians and magic foul. As is his practive, G-man has included several helpful appendixes. These include the full stats for important npc's, random treasure tables and pregenerated characters that can be used for the adventure. The last appendix branches out and includes the full stats for the npc's for the Basic Roleplaying.

I really like this adventure and appreciate that G-Man shares the results of his labors with the rest of us. Crimson Shoals would work great as a one-shot or as the springboard for further adventuring in the Hyborian world. Also, Hyboria is a perfect setting for BoL. If you are a fan of the game or the fiction, I believe will enjoy this adventure. I only hope G-Man has the time to create another adventure in this setting.

Edit: You can find the PDF here.

I snagged the artwork from the cover. It is again the work of Floyd Thompson, III.

G-Man's Lovecraftian BoL Adventure Trilogy

I’ve completed my read through of G-Man’s third installment of Lovecraftian adventures for Barbarians of Lemuria. (You can find the other posts here and here.) This adventure is called Children of the Void. I enjoyed this adventure as much as the other two. It has a similarly strange atmosphere and creepy bits. It comes in at 11 pages, which includes a nice appendix covering spells appropriate for the adventure. And it has maps. Once again, I don’t want to give the little (or not so little) surprises away so won’t comment more on the content.

Of the trilogy, I like The Sea Devil’s Debutante the best. The others are great but for some reason Debutante resonates with me the most.

G-Man has stated that he is working on a Hyborian adventure for BoL and, frankly, I’m having troubles waiting. G-Man is a creative individual who did such good work with these three Lovecraft flavored treats that I really would like to see what he can do in the world of Conan. When I think of BoL, I think of Conan so these should be right up my alley.

The three adventures can be found here. And once again the evocative front piece was done by Floyd Thompson III.

You can find all three adventures here. The material is hosted at Strange Stones. Check it out. It has some cool materials beyond G-Man's stuff.

The Sea-Devil's Debutante

The Sea-Devil's Debutante is another atmospheric adventure for Barbarians of Lemuria by the talented G-Man.

The beautiful Clarisse Strangtham, scion of the mysterious, waterloving Strangtham clan, has come of age and is looking for a husband. So the Strangthams throw a party on their floating mansion to select the bridegroom. But all is not as it seems.

I won't say more so as to not ruin the surprises for potential players.

I very much like this scenario and how it is written. The author offers several potential hooks for getting the players involved. He sketches out the main npc's in enough details so you have a sense of what they are like. I particularly like the first of the two appendices. Appendix A details Strangtham family artifacts that can be potentially found in the mansion and used by or against the players. They can also be stolen and/or modified for other adventures.

If you are looking for a (self-labeled) Lovecraftian style adventure for BoL, look no further.

The gracious Venomous Pao is hosting the document over at his blog Strange Stones. You can find the 13 page adventure itself on this page along with other adventures for BoL and different systems. The artwork is from the first page of the document and was done by Floyd Thompson III.

The Unholy Greyl - A BoL Adventure

The Unholy Greyl is a Barbarians of Lemuria adventure by a fellow called G-Man that is being hosted over at Strange Stones. It runs 9 pages and is filled with BoL goodness. The Unholy Greyl has all the classic sword & sorcery qualities and as a result it hits all the right notes for me. It is atmospheric, set in a strange, mysterious locale, there is a lost and degenerate race, greed, slavery, and sorcery strange. The adventure has a definite terminus but the author also gives the GM a lot of flexibility and room to customize or randomize aspects of the scenario. It also includes an adventure seed that could lead the players further into the dar forest.

I don't want to give much more away, so suffice it to say that if you are a fan of BoL then I think you will like this adventure. Oh, and it's free!