Sunday 28 February 2010

Which edition do you play?

Tunnels and Trolls currently sits proudly on its 7th edition, with an extra .5 to iron out the creases. But unlike most other games T&T's editions aren't exactly clear cut, with an unofficial mythical 6th edition, two first editions (UK and US) and decimals stuck on 5th and 7th; there's certainly quite a bit to choose from.

The question is: which one do you play? I've seen a bunch of people subscribing to the neolithic 1st edition rules and one player creating a 4th edition campaign called The Dark Isles. When visiting forums I can see that there's a whole lot of love for 5th edition and even more for an amalgamation of 5th and 7th (which is the one I prefer).

So what do you play? Leave answers in the comment section.

Friday 26 February 2010

Solo Encounter: This Little Piggy

The latest in the solo encounter series of posts, pitting your character against foul enemies, deadly traps and the occasional yummy ham.

Suitable for delvers with 60+ personal adds.

The forest is quiet. Too quiet. No; even quieter than that. It's so quiet that the soft sound you make as you move through the undergrowth are deafening to your ears.

You have been tasked with tracking a terrible beast that has been terrorizing the small town of Razorback. Just a few days ago the tanner went on his morning stroll and never came back. He was the third person that month who had gone missing. Whispers of a strange beast began to weave around the little village, folks saying a demon of the forest is abroad, summoned by the legendary liche of the Ghania Forest. They say the sound of a bell can be heard when it draws near.

Snip. You feel a slight tug against your ankle. Make a L2 saving roll on LUCK or DEX, whichever is highest. If you make the save then you narrowly miss being caught by a falling barbed net. If you fail then you are entangled in the barbed net, taking 2d6 CON damage and you must make a L1 SR on IQ to throw the net off of yourself. Everytime you fail in this way you must take another 2d6 CON damage.

The tinkle of a small bell echoes through the once silent forest. Suddenly a giant raging pig comes charging at you out of the undergrowth. A L2SR on DEX will allow you to leap out of harm's way. If you fail then you are trampled for 2d6 CON damage.

The pig has a small golden bell tied around its fat neck.

Squealing Hamgiant MR 80.
Special abilities: Stomp - When Squealing Hamgiant rolls 3 sixes it does an extra 2d6 CON damage.

Treasure: Bell of Ridiculous Rage - When you roll three sixes when equipped around your neck you do extra CON damage equal to half your STRENGTH. However, you +3 levels whenever you need to make a saving roll to be stealthy.

You return to Razorback with a few rashers of bacon and hear the townspeople rejoice as you boast about how amazing you were in defeating the great pig beast. You are rewarded 300 gold by the mayor for your troubles.

Thursday 25 February 2010

Introducing Brungarr

Brungarr is a level 3 dwarvern warrior with one goal in life: loot the infamous Castle of Duke De'Ath. There is nothing he wants more than to become the richest and most powerful dwarf in all of Trollworld and will risk life and beard to attain his dream.

In this blog I will be documenting Brungarr's adventures so you can watch how he grows (or dies). Once he feels that he is strong enough he will enter the castle of the fabled duke and hopefully emerge victorious and filthy rich.

This is the state of Brungarr currently:

NAME: Brungarr
Level 3 Male Dwarf Warrior


Height: 4'4", Weight: 157 lbs.


ST: 30, IQ: 12, LK: 19
CON: 26, DEX: 12, CHR: 11
SPD: 11


Adds: 25, Missile Adds: 24 Armor: 50 AP: 4758

Broad axe - 4
Tower Shield
Gauntlets
Plate armour
Full helm
Copper Bracelet


Wt. Possible: 3000, Wt. Carried: 1775.0
Languages:
Dwarvish (native language)

Gold: 237 gp 47 sp 110cp

His next adventure maybe his last. Won't you join him on his journey?

Wednesday 17 February 2010

Solo Encounter: Goblin in the Machine

I had a little idea and thought I might as well run with it and see if you guys get a kick out of it. Basically I'm going to start posting up scenarios for your T&T solo characters to take part in, with different levels per encounter. Each scenario will generally depict a single room in a dungeon or perhaps a tricky situation you must get out of. If you succeed in the encounter then you will be rewarded exp and possibly treasure and magic items. However, be prepared for the eventuality of having your beloved character smushed all over the walls.

Goblin in the Machine
An encounter for a single first level character

Word had spread around the village of Blueberry that a band of goblins have been stealing scrap metal from around the village. A tankard would go missing here, a false tooth there, and it was starting to get a bit out of hand (the guards were having to make do with mops instead of swords). You have been asked by Lord Higglebottom to track down these foul creatures and retreave the stolen metal.
After battling through the Orctongue Caves you reach the final room where several goblins are trying out their newly forged plate armour by chucking spears at each others chests.

There are 4 goblins here (there were 5 a second ago, but due to a spear mishap, Grotnob Bluggar is slumped on the floor). Each has an MR of 10.

Roll a Level 1 SR on LK. If you pass then the goblins are too busy dodging spears to notice you draw upon them. Take a free attack against them.

Once they are dead you find a red healing potion on a table in the corner. This heals 1d6 CON.

Suddenly the south wall comes crashing down and a great mechanical beast enters the room, groaning and whirring. A goblin sporting some fetching goggles sits in the cockpit of the metal biped shouting obsceneties at you.

The Grimlock Burnwalker has MR 40 and a flamethrower that is activated on the roll of 2 or more sixes. This special attack does an extra d6 damage that can't be absorbed by armour.

If you manage to destroy the machine the pilot will climb out, groggily holding his head. He begs for his life and offers to give you a bracelet he stole and help you take all the metal back to Blueberry. The bracelet is magical and gives you +3 DEX when worn.

You gain 200 exp

Wednesday 10 February 2010

Upcoming Adventure: Vaults of the Lich Lord

Andy Holmes, aka Boozer, is, in my humble yet factual opinion, one of the best T&T writers around. His solo and GM games are second to none and to top it off he's a really nice bloke.
So it excites me to see that he has a new GM adventure on the horizon called Vaults of the Lich Lord.

The Hobgoblin's Tavern website says:

Once again, a caravan of travellers has been slaughtered, caught unawares as it passed close to the Forest of Maugaral. Rumourmongers speak of Goblin raiding parties from their dungeon lair beneath the ancient and ruined Mausoleum of Vasarax, with Hobgoblin warriors waiting in ambush. Rewards have been posted throughout the land, with gold promised to be paid for every Goblin, Hobgoblin or Ogre head brought before the crown. Beneath the Mausoleum is a mighty dungeon, known to be the stronghold of Goblins, Hobgoblins, Ogres, and worse. At the very deepest point of the great dungeon, the tomb of Vasarax, ancient and malignant sorcerer, lies surrounded by earthly riches. However, the long-dead sorcerer is known to have become a Liche-Lord, still active despite being dead for centuries. It is said that whomever steps foot into his resting chamber will instantly die.

 So it is with determination and excitement that you prepare for the expedition to the desolate hill atop which squats the ancient and ruined Mausoleum of Vasarax, beneath which is the entrance to the dungeon known as the Vaults of the Liche-Lord. 

This is the largest and most exciting GM dungeon written by AR Holmes to date, and features maps by AR Holmes, fantastic cover art by UK artist Simon Lee Tranter and wonderfully evocative interior illustrations by USA based Jeff Freels.


This is a dungeon not to be missed.

Limited copies available.

Sunday 7 February 2010

Trollzine

So after the news about James Shipman's idiotic activity I don't really know what the future holds for the awesome Hobbit Hole. Although I hope it continues to exist and thrive, there is a successor on the horizon. Trollzine is a community effort that spawned from the Trollbridge forum and seeks to draw in ideas from the fans to create a free PDF download.

I'm excited to see Trollzine come to fruition and hope that it has a long and healthy life. Hey, maybe I'll submit an article or two to future issues. After looking at the content of the first issue and a good selection on features in the second issue I can say that the new publication will be stocked with great ideas and some wonderful solos.

It's great to see the community banding together, especially in such a turbulent time in T&T's history. It just goes to show that good games don't have to be money rakers, that a solid fanbase is all a game needs to survive. T&T has this fanbase.

I return

It's been four months and I apologise as much as I possibly can. There have been things happening and I've needed time to adjust, so I haven't been updating here or in Trollhalla. I feel terrible for not giving any warning and I'm sorry.

But I'm back and more full of T&T goodness than ever and I plan on making TD the best it can be.