Dungeons and Dragons + The Campaign

Here it is, the beginning of The Campaign! This was one Saturday a few months ago. 13+ hours of fun and the photos don't really tell the story but a great way to spend a day with friends. Lewis, Grant and Phil were the players. Yours truly was the DM.

Some of these photos may be out of order and there was far too much going on to write out the turn of events. In true old school fashion, a lot of time was spent roleplaying without miniatures, dice or rules. However, the likelyhood of some sort of blog entries in the future detailing characters, monsters and game elements of this beginning adventure is high. Of course, we might just end up playing and not blogging anything. In fact, we've already had the next session. Dungeons and Dragons was the winner on the day!

Dice!

The party arrives at the 'abandoned' dwarven mines... this was after plenty of mayhem in Brym's Towne and some rather humorous events enroute.

The Sons of Ajax, Swords and Axes for Hire, have bolstered the party numbers.

Epic adventure awaits...

Mine exploration.

Tension mounts.

Fungai! This room lead to a whole episode of hilarity, mainly thanks to Bork and his Clerical Abuse. Give a man enough rope...

Mistreatment of Claris the Cleric of St. Cuthbert!

Draws unwanted attention! Ratmen?

Modular terrain. Like it?

You can make your own: http://hitstokill.blogspot.co.nz/p/terrain.html

Melee!

Kiss my axe!

Not in order.

Horsepuncher Jones has fallen. Ack.

The fight is won. No one mourns the fallen hobbit.

Stairs going downward.

Level 2.

A strange glow, weird incantations and the smell of sulfur and blue cheese.

Poof!

Crom's devils! What is that?

They summoned a giant demon rat!

Chaos reigns!

Ratmen! Cultists! Attack!

Hot chili dip! There is a ladder here also.

Ha! The gnomes are found!

Bandits!

Bandits: "Just give us the gnomes and nobody gets hurt."

Blood!

Hey, a chest!

Thief. Chest. Paydirt!

Hey, a way out!

Level 3: Meanwhile, Hatchet Higgins encounters a carnivorous ape.

If a tree falls in the woods, with no one to hear it...

Arrrrgh! Run away!

Hatchet Higgins flees upstairs with the ape on his heels.

Hatchet Higgins downs a potion of gaseous form after being savaged by the ape. Hoping it was a healing potion he has a rather spiritual experience as he departs on a journey around the dungeon.

Slime room.

Ravenloft and World of Darkness have nothing on this dinky duo.

Dwarves held prisoner in the lower levels.

Some sort of teleporter in the far room. 

The room of Gods.

Big freaky weird stuff avoided by not attempting to communicate with these dungeon dwellers.

If you go out in the woods today... you will befriend a wardog and follow it back to the bandit camp where you will slaughter the bandits and then the poor hound!

A room not entered.

Happy campers!

The morning after.

Further adventure awaits.

James Ward + Petty Gods + Artwork

Here is my latest artwork for the Petty Gods project. Ravel/Unravel is a god created by the legendary game designer and fantasy author, James Ward.

"Demi-god of both bad and good fortune, this being changes shape on a whim to move among the creatures of any race."

So I put pencil to paper, doing my best to follow his art order*. Here is the response:

What a wonderful piece of work. The image is exactly right. Please tell Darcy I think it's wonderful.

best regards,

Jim Ward

It's a very small world when the designer of the first science-fiction roleplaying game (Metamorphosis Alpha, 1976), various treasured roleplaying games and fiction (Gods, Demi-Gods & Heroes, Gamma World, Pool of Radiance, Deities & Demigods, Greyhawk Adventures, etc.) and collectable card, computer, and miniature battle games (Dragon Ball Z, Star Wars: Empire at War: Forces of Corruption, Westeros GAME OF THRONES), has art for one of his creations come from New Zealand.

I really am honoured. Thank you Gorgonmilk for making this happen. It's probably also a good excuse to play some Gamma World this month!

* [ ART ORDER: If I was asking for an image I would place two humans back to back. Ravel would be a wondrously pretty woman dressed in revealing sleepwear while Unravel would be a wrestler in size with black armor done in razors all over the armor with a sword larger than the image of the human.]

Floating Skull with Wizard Star Hat

This is an NPC in The Campaign. A skull walks into a bar... (1d4 damage)... well, at least that's how the party met him. He asked the bartender for a drink. Then he demanded a straw.

A failed alumni of Star Hat University *^U

A skull walks into a bar...

A failed alumni of Star Hat University *^U. Or he's the scavenged burnt remains of Claris the Cleric of St. Cuthbert. Currently being animated by a necromancer of great power that is using the skull as a mouth piece and guide to rescue his actual corpse from imprisonment by powers unknown.

A plastic skull, paperclip, coin and modelling putty. Mix with creativity and a steady painting hand. Voila!