OSR News From The Underdark Gazette - Saturday, August 14, 2010

Christian Has Dropped The Zine Bomb!

Over the past few days, Christian at destination unknown, has posted a ton of PDF's of his Iridia zine, as well as issues of Scrollworks, Iron Rations, The LMS D&D Club Newsletter and Iron Rations. He also has a mini-supplements section. There's Old School and New School stuff, Basic D&D, Labyrinth Lord, 3e, Gurps, Shadowrun and just all sorts of gaming goodness! The Unknown Index section in his right hand column, will pull up all the posts. In particular, I recommend you don't miss Iridia # 87, which compiles the material for The Freecity of Haldane a supplement for Labyrinth Lord. Be sure to get the cover as well, as it has the city map and that cool cover! You can also check out the Grognardia review of Iridia # 87. (Christian has also put up links for the version of the supplement, which went out under the title of The Freecity of Haldane. I think the only difference is the title.)

Thanks bunches Christian, for all your work, dedication and for sharing all of this with your fellow gamers!

And if you're not following destination unknown, you're missing out on one of the best gaming blogs around!

New Releases

Shadow, Sword & Spell by Richard Lorio II and James Maliszewski is available! Published by Rogue Games. 142 pages. A Print & PDF combo costs $12.99. The PDF alone is $6.99.

"You hail from a world awash in conflict, danger, and threats. You might be a thief due to your knack for picking the pockets of rich merchants in Gravinia while evading the blades of the competition. You might be a raider selling your sword to the highest bidder and fight for any or all as long as the silver flows. You might even hail from mysterious Cal’athar and have an affinity for arcane forces, using them to work spells outside the realm of Man."

Also, Zachary from the RPG Blog II has a review of Shadow, Sword & Spell.

Advanced Adventures # 15 - Stonesky Delve by Joseph Browning. Expeditious Retreat Press. Available in Print for $14.00 and in PDF for $7.00. The PDF Page Count is 24 pages.

"Stonesky Delve is An OSRIC(tm) module designed for 6-10 adventures of levels 4-7.

Giant Stonesky Mountain has been a spiritual home for the Dwarves since the first clan received the 4 Pillars of the Underearth from Motsognir. The voice of the dwarven deity purified the halls and caves under Stonesky and the mountain has been a sanctified place for all the various dwarven peoples. And now, as lamentable dwarven internal conflicts rage on, a new entrance into the Stonesky has prompted an exploratory party. Unwilling to send his own into the dark hole when they are so desperately needed elsewhere, the local Hlaford's hired you for your delving expertise. Your mission - enter, explore, map, and do not return to the surface until the passing of three days! Who knows what challenges, wonders, and dangers lie ahead?"

The Sorcery & Super Science PDF has been released! $7.00 from Expeditious Retreat Press. 48 pages.

"After the cracking of the moon and before the rise of Atlantis the world was a place strange to the thoughts of honest men. The death throes of science amid the birth of magic sculpted new generations of conquerors who strode the lands forging civilizations of steel, sinew, and sorcery from the decrepit hulks of the ones that fell before. Tyrannical wizards, amoral super-scientists, charismatic catalysts, and multifarious mutants battled for wealth, power, and honor. It was ten thousand years of barbarity; ten thousand years spent in the shadowy shells of past glories, hiding from horrible creatures that scratched and skittered for blood; ten thousand years of tyranny and injustice, ten thousand years of Sorcery & Super Science!

Welcome to the mad post-apocalyptic world of Sorcery & Super Science. This fast-paced and deadly game is designed for long-term campaign play. This 48-page rulebook gets you right into the meat of the game, providing a healthy dose of starting information upon which the experienced GM may build his or her unique gaming environment.

So flex your mutated muscles, whisper the words of long-dead sorcerers, or repair the technology of a world long gone. The world under the shattered moon is yours to explore!"

And don't miss The House of Blue Men, the Free Adventure/Quick Start Rules!

"After the cracking of the moon and before the rise of Atlantis the world was a place strange to the thoughts of honest men. The death throes of science amid the birth of magic sculpted new generations of conquerors who strode the lands forging civilizations of steel, sinew, and sorcery from the decrepit hulks of the ones that fell before. Tyrannical wizards, amoral super-scientists, charismatic catalysts, and multifarious mutants battled for wealth, power, and honor. It was ten thousand years of barbarity; ten thousand years spent in the shadowy shells of past glories, hiding from horrible creatures that scratched and skittered for blood; ten thousand years of tyranny and injustice, ten thousand years of Sorcery & Super Science!

This introductory adventure and quickstart rules will get you right into the thick of things in the world under the shattered moon! The House of Blue Men provides 8 sample characters as well as a blank character sheet for making your own. Don't forget to get all the rules from the Sorcery & Super Science Core Rulebook!"

And There's More! Check out the Sorcery & Super Science! blog, where Mr. Browning is posting more material for the game! He's also posted a version of the PDF Cover, more suitable for printing. If you missed it last week, the Print version of the game is available for $15.00, here. 

Blood Moon Rising by Peter C. Spahn. Small Niche Games. Available in PDF for $4.95. 32 pages. Also available from Precis Intermedia, where if you buy the PDF, you can add a Print On Demand copy now, or later for an additional $5.54.

"Garanton is a village like any other, except for five days out of the year when it hosts the Feast of St. Garan. During this time, fighters from abroad come to join in the revelry, mingle with other adventurers, and win fame and fortune fighting in the daily games. But all is not well in Garanton this year. Cruel orcs prowl the forest, dark wizards cast webs of treachery and deceit, and bat-winged demons fill the moonlit sky. Does your party have what it takes to ward off this evil before it consumes the entire town?

Blood Moon Rising is a Labyrinth Lord^TM adventure that is easily converted to other editions of the world's most popular fantasy roleplaying game. Designed for 3-6 characters of 1^st through 3^rd level, the adventure is set in and around the village of Garanton and involves a mixture of wilderness, dungeon, and urban encounters. Use your archetypical frontier village for more than just a rest stop between forays into the wild. Come enjoy the Feast of St. Garan today!" 

Open Game Table: The Anthology of Roleplaying Game Blogs Volume 2 Edited by Jonathan Jacobs, Kameron Franklin, Berin Kinsmen, Tony Law, Ben McFarland. Studio 2 Publishing. Available in Print for $22.95 and in PDF for 9.95. 160 pages. 

"Foreword by Justin Achilli. Through the combined efforts of over 70 authors, artists, editors, and fans of RPG blogs - Open Game Table is back! Inside you will find timeless interviews with Dave Arneson on the roots of roleplaying games, Robin D. Laws on RPG theory and game play, and Jonathan Roberts on his career as a master cartographer. Included in Volume 2 are 65 articles that serve as the perfect complement to Volume 1: GM and player advice on character and campaign design, sandboxing, story pacing, play styles, gaming with your kids, and much much more. WIRED.com's GeekDad blog says Volume 1 is "... a treasure trove. A tome worth killing a few orcs for." and "The kind of brain stimulus role players need, diverse and quality content." Bards & Sages Fantasy Review says "Open Game Table, Volume 1 is the reference guide equivalent of a Deck of Many Things, ... you can draw from it again and again." Open Game Table, Volume 2 brings that same level of excellence back to the table, and never misses a roll."

Congratulations to everyone, on these new releases!

Free Downloads

The Mad Demigod's Castle is available as a free download from Dragonsfoot. It's designed to be used in conjunction with Joseph Bloch's Castle of the Mad Archmage and gives us a version of Level 1 - The Storage Rooms.

Jason Metcalfe's The Chalice of Pericles is now listed as a free download on Lulu.

JB at B/X Blackrazor has a list of 100 reasons to go adventuring.

taichara at A Hamsterish Hoard of Dungeons & Dragons has an Esper Class for you to check out.

Sniderman from The Savage Afterworld has updated his World of Thundarr sourcebook for Mutant Future!


Randall at RetroRoleplaying: The Blog has the final playtest draft of Microlite 75, available for download.

Head over to DwD Studios for a Labyrinth Lord Character Sheet.

Faster Monkey Games has put out a free, 2 page supplement, Free Gems. A companion piece to their Gems release. James Maliszewski of Grognardia, has a review of Gems, here.

Thanks guys, for all this cool gaming material!

In Other News

Read this post from James Maliszewski at Grognardia, which points us to a J. Eric Holmes Memorial Service report.

The New LotFP items, are now available from US vendors.

Mark Allen, 1st Place winner of the 2009 Erol Otus Art Challenge, has some new prints for sale! (I've gotta get a better job! There's too many things, I really want to buy!) Remember that awesome cover for Fight On! #6? That one and several other cool as hell prints, are available!

I Hit It With My Axe: Episode 22: What's a Wyvern?

Tim at Gothridge Manor has a review of the Pathfinder Kingmaker Adventure Path.


JB at B/X Blackrazor has a review of Death Frost Doom!

And Mr. Raggi has a post with links to several LotFP RPG reviews.

Blog Spotlight

E. G. Palmer's Old Guard Gaming Accouterments is one of my favorites. To see why, check out his d6 Random Unique Dragon Generator. Or, his Wyrd Greyhawk series of posts. And this post from yesterday, is fantastic! If you haven't checked it out yet, I heartily recommend doing so!

What I'm Pimping This Week

Matt Finch Month Continues, so let's pimp Advanced Adventures #1 - Pod-Caverns of the Sinister Shroom! Expeditious Retreat Press. Available in Print for $12.00 and in PDF for $6.00. The PDF runs 16 pages + the cover.

"Strange doings are underfoot in the wild hills bordering the realm of decent and civilized folks. Villagers and cattle have gone missing; woodcutters have disappeared; misshapen beings have been seen shuffling through the forests. Some brave villagers have tracked a group of stolen oxen as far as the rocky banks of a small river in the hills. The trail disappeared down into a fissure in the limestone rock, where a fast-running stream plunges down to the dark caverns below. Gird your loins, stand behind the dwarf, and get ready to face The Pod-Caverns of the Sinister Shroom!"

You can read the Grognardia review, here.

About The News
Unless otherwise noted, all links to products and files are to the individual authors sites, pertinent posts, or sales pages. I don’t link directly to files, unless that is the only link available. The OSR News is produced as a service to the community and is entirely a non-commercial endeavor on my part. I have received no remuneration for advertising, reviewing or reporting on any of the items appearing herein. Please feel free to send me information on any new releases, events, or other items of interest, which you would like to see mentioned.

As always, the What I’m Pimping This Week section of the OSR News and its accompanying blog widget, feature products which I have purchased (or items which are available for free download) and wish to support. No one has asked me to spotlight their material in this section and I have received no payment of any kind for doing so.