The Sundered Wolds

The wolf things settled in the Sundered Wolds three centuries ago, erecting obelisks of giant bone and man meat that kept the twisted angels at bay with their screaming spears and blind masks. This is a description of the different areas in the Wolds for your perusal.

Fairy Trap

The wolf things season their meat with magic and so have set a plant trap for the nearby trooper fairies. The mouth of the plant contains the finest silk, and a fairy can't resist to touch it, only to be clamped and ground into a paste.

Guur Circle

The Guur tribe are few but ancient. Their customs dictate that once per green moon they join hands and raise the great millipede from its den. It feasts upon the eyes of the worthy before expunging a carapace shell used to fashion skull totems. These totems dot the landscape, causing non Guur who are near to vomit nightmares.

Thale

A village on the border of dreams. Unlikely beings come and go from the village well, though no mortals descend there. The elder to Kun, barbarian of the dawn. His horns blaze in the sun and his eyes can see time itself. 

The Skarp

A beach where skeletons crawl from the sand in search of tongues. The sea is red like wine and ghosts of ships float overheard illuminated in green.

Grib's Hollow

An old goblin living in an ancient tree. His arms are crafted of steel. He strings up wildcats on the branches to attract the Wub birds who carry a sweet nectar that is his drug. Grib is in love with every elf he sees.

Cave of Lat

They do not speak of the cave. To speak of it is to invite its denizens into your mind. The Putzees are winged shadows with single yellow eyes on a stalk. They chitter and purr, leaving the cave in search of wandering thoughts. 

The Old Ship

Washed ashore, a wreck where Puck Puck birds lay their black eggs that erupt into clouds of poison ash when touched. The old captain resides here sucking on anemones and whispering to a map who occasionally whispers back. 

Bortle's Wood

The god Bortle sleeps in the canopies - part bee, part horse. He sings at the dawn a song that causes the Zib flowers to vomit forth a golden ale called Neth's Elixir, famed for its gender-altering properties. The centaurs of the wood guard their world with ferocity, their queen Shifanavala being the most beautiful and deadly creature of the Wold. 

Destiny Quest returns with Raiders of the Dune Sea Kickstarter

Probably the fattest gamebook series I've ever read was Destiny Quest, a current trilogy that's soon to hopefully become a quadrilogy with Raiders of the Dune Sea.

Megara Entertainment is helming the new fundraising effort for the next book and if you're a fan of solo gaming but haven't heard of DQ I highly recommend you check it out. The books are set up like action RPGs like Diablo - you go from map to map getting loot and optimising your character. The build here is part of the fun of the game, with classes and sub-classes to become. The Kickstarter also includes some exclusive items cards that don't feature in the book, but once you meet the criteria you can pick them up, along with a new downloadable dungeon to add to the game.

Stuart Lloyd has done an interview with Ward delving further into the new book, which promises to be pretty brutal.

Support the Kickstarter.

The Woodcut Dungeon from Hell

This is the dungeon of Olaus Magnus, High Dread Sorceror of the Seventh Spire. He was said to have died years ago, leaving his fortification ripe for plundering. Nearby monarchs are trying to lay claim to the dungeon and the magical treasures within. Unbeknownst to them, on his deathbed Magnus made a pact with Thanuu, a demon of the pestilence realm. Now Magnus lives as a half beast, gathering his forces to invade nearby kingdoms and bring them under the rule of Thanuu.

Madness is claiming the settlement around the dungeon. Thanuu is creating visions of pestilence in people's minds. They are heavily religious and have taken to self-flagellation. Trying to stop them will cause them to attack - but they welcome a beating from the religious.

This is Gimlet Sneeve, a rogue, rabble-rouser and drunk. He is posing as a monk to get villagers to pay him for blessings. If he's rumbled, he'll help the PCs get into the dungeon and will join the for a cut. At some point reveal he's a werebear. As a clue, villagers have been found torn apart. Some report a hairy beast prowling the moors they call a devil. He doesn't know he's a werebear.

Balthazar is the demonic blacksmith in the dungeon, creating infernal weapons for Thanuu's soldiers. He wants human bone and hair to will forge a morbid blade. If PCs refuse, he will try to make the blade from their bodies.

Kunoth of the Bells is a demon in the warped chapel, blackened from demon bile. Each bell rung causes a different effect:

1. 1d6 PCs become sexually aroused by the smell of demon bile and smear it on themselves. This can attract fester devils.
2. The ringer grows a single horn tipped with black mamba venom
3. 1d4 PCs must make a constitution save or equivalent or fall pregnant with a demon that comes to term in 1d6 hours, tearing them apart and devouring their corpse
4. The PCs are teleported into a pit of demon feces.

Savnoc the Elder One wishes to feast on fester beasts, but the PCs will do nicely. Throwing an item into its hat enchants it, allowing the user to smell secret doors (they smell like wet moss).

Olaus Magnus sits on his damned throne. He is particularly weak to venom or the blessings of the clergy. He claws eyes out and lays hexagonal eggs that hatch into fester demons. All he wants to do is die, but Thanuu won't allow it.

Thanuu makes an appearance once Magnus is killed, or decides against killing the PCs. He has the appearance of a blasphemous bishop. The face on his chest can hypnotise PCs to believe they are babies again. He can fly, cast sleep and cause two or more fester demons to merge into a Dreadwalker - which feeds on wisdom.

Monster Brains

I discovered this blog when I was researching art by Sidney Sime (Dunsany's artist). Monster Brains is all about that sweet monster art of yore. I'd recommend getting lost in there one afternoon.

Bogles for Romance of the Perilous Land

Before Duergar appeared in D&D, they were part of the rich tapestry of English folklore. I've taken my own liberties with the folklore of this one for added gameplay opportunities.

Duergar, or Bogles, are ugly grey wild dwarves found across the Perilous Land. They wear lambskin and smell of ammonia. They carry copper lanterns with them in order to lead travellers astray in the dark, causing them to mis-step and often drown in a bog or stumble into a ravine.

Bogles are malevolent beings that disappear before the dawn. They secret themselves away in dirt warrens and lay still until the night comes. Should one be unearthed during the daylight they are entirely vulnerable and can be killed with a swift blow.

Bogle blood is a potent poison, causing severe vomiting and amnesia. After 1d6 days, the victim must make an endurance save or lose 2d10 hp and be unable to recall anything from the past month. Smearing it on your door keeps spirits away from your home for up to a year.

Clues that a Bogle is near:

- milk sours
- the jackdaw does not crow
- trees bend in strange ways
- ammonia whiff

Bogle
HD 3 (13)
Attack: Claw
Special: Bogles can render themselves near invisible when in the darkness. Anyone attempting to attack the creature must make a Mind saving throw to harm it. If it is unsuccessful, there is a 75% chance the attack will miss. If a Bogle is exposed to natural sunlight it may be killed if it takes at least 1 hp of damage.

Steal this setting: Stabbia - Kingdom of the Living Blade

The city of Stabbia is ruled by an intelligent bastard sword called Michael. He was once a human of royal bloodline until he was hexed by a sand crone who took umbrage with his family for the scorpion wars that decimated her homeland (his soldiers were humanoid scorpions).

Michael is married to a sentient dagger called Elsilon, found by the royal guard when plundering the Tombs of Spinewrath. She is a killer, but Michael doesn't know.

The towers of Stabbia whisper conspiracies to one another when the moon is full and the lunebats are abroad. Alcohol is outlawed, so an underground black market for wine and ale lurks in the city's crevaces. Much of the alcohol is controlled by sorcerer mobsters who are able to easily conceal their barrels with spells and defend them with fireballs.

The river rears vampire snakes who are in cahoots with the old men of the lagoon who drag children into the depths with great mirth.

In the springtime comes the great troll festival. Mr Gutsnall, a massive effigy of a legendary troll, is paraded through the city where children beat it with sticks to knock sugarplums from its mouth. At the end, Michael is jammed into the troll's head to a great cheer.