Spes Magna Games

Better with the blogposting and what not this week, so hurray for me. Still, nowhere near as productive as I ought to be, so boo for me as well.

Jethro Tull doesn’t quite qualify as prog rock. I’m not sure what Jethro Tull qualifies as. The band has drifted in and out of different styles over its decades of musical output. Yesterday, driving to a tutoring gig, I listened again to some Jethro Tull’s greatest hits. There are these words from Tull’s fourteenth studio album’s sort-of title track:

“I see a dark sail on the horizon / Set under a black cloud that hides the sun. / Bring me my broadsword and clear understanding. / Bring me my cross of gold as a talisman.”

And so we have another magic item.

A Sword of Clear Understanding performs as a +1 weapon. When carried or wielded, the sword increases its bearer’s wisdom. The overall increase equals 4 points if the bearer’s wisdom is 6 or less, by 2 points if at 7-13, and by 1 point if wisdom is 14 or higher. Furthermore, the bearer enables non-thief characters to read languages as if he or she were a 4th-level thief. If carried by a thief of sufficient level to read languages, he or she increases the normal chance by 10 percent.

70% of these swords are broadswords, 20% are longswords, 5% are short (small) swords, 4% are bastard swords, and 1% are two-handed swords.

Tags: AD&D, magic items, prog rock, ThursdAD&D

I’m back to selling a few gaming items via eBay. If you’re interested, check these out, and maybe even put in a bid.

Heroes of Olympus: A Task Force Role Playing Game was published as a boxed set in 1981. Conceived and written by B. Dennis “Chariot of” Sustare, this unusual game combines fantasy roleplaying in mythical Greece with squad level wargaming action. This game was (at least) almost unique among roleplaying games of the time.

RuneQuest Monsters was published by Games Workshop for use with the Avalon Hill/Chaosium RuneQuest roleplaying game. This book was authored by familiar names of gaming lore, such as Steve Perrin, Lynn Willis, and Sandy Petersen. The book features some wonderful interior art, including some full-color, full-page illustrations. Among the many monsters within include the frumious bandersnatch, the enigmatic dragonnewt, the shaggy jack’o’bears, and the fearsome walktapus.

I wrote Path of Legend for the Dawnforge: Crucible of Legend campaign setting published by Fantasy Flight Games using the d20 System. This adventure was designed to introduce players to Dawnforge. According to the front cover, it is a “Legendary Quest in the World of Dawnforge”. According to the back cover, “The adventure leads new heroes from 1st to 5th level, and also offers them the chance to earn their first legend point. The adventure provides a compelling mix of location and event-based encounters, and rewards roleplaying and puzzle-solving as well as combat.”

Tags: ebay

Tuesday Terrors have obviously been on hiatus for a bit, but today this sort-of-weekly feature returns not with a monster but with a new spell. To see the spell in action, click here. can be viewed with caution by clicking on the monster’s name below. The artist is Tooth Wu. Check out his ArtStation portfolio.

“We had the blaggard cornered. Xurek went at him head on while Pallamon moved in from the flank. It was the end. After days of fighting our way through his minions, it was the end. And then he cast…that spell. Xurek and Pallamon went down screaming. I ran. Discretion is the better part, right?” — Brego the Discreet

Pestilent Phylactery of Velenu
3rd-level conjuration

Casting Time: 1 action
Range: 10 feet
Components: V, S, M (viper fangs sealed in a phylactery)
Duration: Instantaneous

You wrap the phylactery around one of your limbs, which then becomes covered in writhing, biting growths that resemble vipers, centipedes, and fanged tentacles. You use these these horrid growths to attack up to three targets within range. You can direct the growths to attack one target or several.

Make a melee spell attack against the target for each growth. You have advantage on the attack roll if the target is within 5 feet. On a hit, the target takes 1d6 piercing damage and 1d6 poison damage. For 1 minute after a target is hit, the target must make a Constitution saving throw. If the target was hit by more than one growth, the target makes the Constitution saving throw with disadvantage. On a failed save, the target takes 2d6 poison damage. On a successful save, the spell ends for the target.

At Higher Levels: When you cast this spell using a spell slot of 4th level or higher, you create one additional attacking growth for each slot level above 3rd.

Tags: 5E D&D, spells, Tuesday Terror

Well, I’ve not done a very good job keeping up with this blog, my writing, et cetera, over the past two or so weeks. Not sure why. No excuses. Here I go again.

First up is a magic item inspired by The Moody Blues, probably the first prog rock band. The song is “Candle of Life” from To Our Children’s Children’s Children.

“Something you can’t hide says you’re lonely. / Hidden deep inside of you, only / It’s there for you to see. Take a look and be. / Burn slowly, the candle of life.”

Candle of Life: A candle of life is a magical taper that bolsters the life force of the one who lights it. The candle illuminates a 15-foot radius, and it will burn for 4 hours. It is possible to extinguish the candle by typical means, but it can be placed in a lantern or otherwise sheltered to protect it from drafts, et cetera. While the candle burns, the one who lit it must remain within the its radius of illumination to gain the following benefits. The user regenerates 1 hit point per turn so long as he or she is not dead. The user gains a +4 bonus to saving throws against disease, death magic, energy drain, poison, and aging. If one of these effects would not allow a saving throw, the candle‘s user is entitled to a saving throw, but with no special bonus.

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Next up, how about a new monster by a talented artist? Visit this site and check out a few creatures created by Lukaz Jaskolski. The monster below is inspired by his bug horror entitled “Predator Creature 1”. Enjoy!

Mortid
Frequency: Rare
No. Appearing: 1-6
Armor Class: 2
Move: 15″
Hit Dice: 8+8
% in Lair: 40%
Treasure Type: J-N, Q (x2)
No. of Attacks: 5
Damage/Attack: 1-6/1-6/2-5/2-5/1-4
Special Attacks: See below
Special Defenses: See below
Magic Resistance: Standard
Intelligence: Average
Alignment: Chaotic evil
Size: M
Psionic Ability: Nil
Attack/Defense Modes: Nil
Level/XP Value: VII/2,200 + 12/hp

The mortid is a horrific undead creature with a thick carapace and a skull-like visage. It scuttles about on four legs, and it attacks with its four claw-like appendages and its jagged teeth. Like most undead, the mortid hates the living, especially all types of elves.

This monster is stealthy and expert at camoflauge. It surprises prey on a roll of 1-4 (out of 6). The mortid can leap 3″ upon prey in order to attack. Its upper limbs strike with scimitar-like blades. Its lower striking appendages are blunter but still effective weapons. The mortid’s bite is not especially strong, but it has a powerful negative force that drains 1 life energy level from the victim, complete with corresponding losses in hit dice, ability level, attack level, et cetera.

The mortid is affected only by magical weapons. It regenerates at a rate of 3 hit points per melee round, but is destroyed if brought to 0 hit points. Sleep, charm, and hold spells do not affect the mortid. Neither does poison or paralysis, and it takes only half damage from spells based on cold or electricity.

Holy water splashed upon the mortid causes 2-7 hit points of damage per vial-full that strikes the monster. A cleric can turn the mortid as if it were a vampire.

Any elf drained of all life energy by the mortid becomes a half-strength mortid under the control of its slayer. This transformation takes place 1 day after the elf is buried, but only if the elf is buried. If the mortid which slew the elf is itself killed, the mortids created by it become free-willed monsters.

Tags: AD&D, magic items, monsters, prog rock, ThursdAD&D

In late 1972, legendary British rock band Uriah Heep released The Magician’s Birthday, a somewhat chaotic story of sorts about magic, love, hate, and hope. The title track is a 10-minute long prog rock ballad about how the Magician’s birthday party is interrupted by the forces of evil, which the Magician defeats in contest of spell versus counterspell.

Epic.

“First I’ll give you fire!” / “I turn your fire into a sleepy stream.” / “Yes, now I give you darkness!” / “From your horror I’ll create a dream.”

“You cannot fight me / For I have the sword of hate!” / “But one thing you can’t see, / My answer is simply / An impenetrable fortress / Of love.”

Thain’s Gift of Fire (Evocation)
Level: Magic-User 2
Range: 3″
Duration: Special
Area of Effect: One target
Components: V, S, M
Casting Time: 4 segments
Saving Throw: Special

By means of this spell, the magic-user creates a magic javelin that speeds itself to its target as if hurled by of a fighter of the same level as the magic-user casting the spell. The javelin is equal to a +1 weapon for hit determination purposes, but the effect of a hit might inflict damage on the target even if it would normally be harmed by a javelin or a magic weapon of only +1 value. This is due to the fire. The javelin itself does 2-5 points of damage. The fire which bursts forth when it hits inflicts 2-8 hit points damage in a 1-foot diameter. The fire burns for one round’s worth of damage for every 3 levels of experience the caster has above 3rd, so that damage occurs over two rounds if the spell cast is from a 4th-6th level magic-user, unless the target can extinguish the flames.

The material components are a sharpened stick and the seeds of a chili pepper.

Thain’s Sword of Hate (Evocation)
Level: Magic-User 2
Range: 0
Duration: 1 round/level
Area of Effect: 3′ long, sword-like blade
Components: V, S, M
Casting Time: 3 segments
Saving Throw: None

When a magic-user casts this spell, he or she causes a crackling ray of ineffable darkness to spring forth from his or her hand. The blade-like ray is wielded as if it were a melee weapon used by a fighter of the same level as the magic-user casting the spell (to include multiple attacks per round when applicable). If the magic-user scores a successful hit, the creature struck takes 5-8 points of damage, unless the creature’s alignment is the opposite of the caster’s on either the law-chaos or the good-evil axis. In this case, the blade-like ray is treated as a +2 magical weapon, improving “to hit” and damage rolls. Otherwise, the blade is not a magical weapon in the normal sense of the term, so other creatures that can be struck only by magical weapons are not harmed by the spell.

The material components are a small bone of some sort and a drop of the caster’s blood.

Hensley’s Fortress of Love (Abjuration)
Level: Magic-User 4
Range: 0
Duration: 5 rounds/level
Area of Effect: 20′ diameter sphere
Components: V, S, M
Casting Time: 6 segments
Saving Throw: Special

When a magic-user casts this spell, he or she creates a globe of protection identical to protection from evil, except that it encompasses a much larger area for a greater duration. Any evil creature that enters the area of effect must make a saving throw versus magic each round it remains in the area of effect in order to take any hostile action. If the saving throw fails, the evil creature cannot take a hostile action that round, but the creature may perform other activities. The caster cannot take hostile action during the spell’s duration, but he or she may use non-attack spells or otherwise act in ways that do not violate the prohibition against offensive action.

The material component is a garland of flowers.

Tags: AD&D, prog rock, spells, ThursdAD&D