Spes Magna Games

Probably my favorite thing about the Old-School Essentials combat sequence is the declaration phase at the start of each round. This phase occurs before initiative is rolled. Placing the declaration phase prior to initiative injects a further degree of uncertainty into something as dangerous as combat involving swords, spells, and sinister monsters. Since I’m looking to start something like an OSE campaign about mid-January, I’ve started tweaking the core rules a bit. One of the things that’s gotten the tweak is the combat sequence. My rough draft version follows this paragraph. Nota Bene: Thirds of movement are always bumped up to the next 5-foot increment (e.g., 13.33 feet rounds to 15 feet).

Phase 1 – Monster Morale. Checked after the first round of combat in most cases.
Phase 2 – Declare Spells. PCs that are going to cast spells start the process this phase by committing to spellcasting.
Phase 3 – Initiative. Roll 1d6 for each side. Individual modifiers are applied to the roll. Tied initiative is possible.
Phase 4 – Actions. The initiative-winning side acts first during each subphase. Slow weapons always act last in a subphase regardless of initiative.
▶ 4A – First Third Movement. A PC casting a spell may not move.
▶ 4B – Missile Attacks. Resolve all missile attacks before the next phase begins.
▶ 4C – Second Third Movement. A PC casting a spell may not move.
▶ 4D – Spells Are Cast. Resolve all spell effects before the next phase begins.
▶ 4E – Third Third Movement. A PC who cast a spell may move.
▶ 4F – Melee Attacks. Resolve all melee attacks before the next round begins.

Tweaking the combat sequence made tweaking Movement in Melee rules sensible:

Movement in Melee: If engaged in melee combat, movement is halved for the phase. Choosing to move at more than half speed means the mover cannot attack, and foes in melee with the mover get a free, immediate attack with a +3 bonus to hit.

Also, since I’m not particularly fond of precision archery into or while in melee combat, I’ve added this rule:

Missiles in Melee: Making a missile attack while engaged in melee combat imposes a -2 “to-hit” penalty. Launching a missile attack into melee? Roll to hit and then determine the actual target randomly. Small creatures count as 1, man-sized as 2, and larger creatures as 3 or more (at Referee’s discretion). For example, an elf fires an arrow at the ogre fighting a dwarf, a cleric, and a halfling. That’s 7 “size points” of creatures in the melee. Roll 1d8. 1 targets the dwarf, 2-3 targets the cleric, 4 targets the halfling, and 5-8 targets the ogre.

Tags: OSE

To create the giant vulture, I took the dire wolf’s stats and tweaked them a wee bit, indulging in a variation on the Just Use Bears idea.

Vulture, Giant
Large, scabrous, semi-intelligent birds. Dwell in remote places.

AC 6 [13], HD 4+1 (19 hp), Att 1 x bite (2d4), THAC0 15 [+4], MV 90′ (30′) / 150′ (50′) flying, SV D12 W13 P14 B15 S16 (2), ML 8, AL Neutral, XP 125, NA 2d4 (4d4), TT None.

▶ Keen Senses: Acute vision and olfactory senses. Can track by scent. Surprised only on a 1 (in 6).

▶ Mounts: Sometimes trained as mounts by goblins.

▶ Training: At the referee’s discretion, captured chicks may be trained like falcons. Giant vultures are rebellious and extremely difficult to train.

And because they’re in the picture: Goblin vulture-riders often bomb their victims (Core Rules 132). The two most common bombs goblins use are described below.

▶ Bomb: Explodes on impact. Inflicts 2d4 damage in a 5-foot radius. Successful save versus breath halves damage.

▶ Slime Sack: Bursts on impact. Entangles targets in a 5-foot radius. Open doors check to break free. Successful save versus breath grants +1 on checks to break free.

Tags: B/X D&D, monsters, OSE

I dove back into Erin D. Smale’s BX Options: Class Builder to put together a phanaton character class, perhaps useful to people playing The Isle of Dread. Nota Bene: Those previous links are affiliate links. If you click and purchase, I get a few coppers.

Phanaton

“The phanaton looks like a cross between raccoons and monkeys. They are roughly halfling-size and have 4-foot long tails can grasp objects. …. In addition, phanaton have membrances of skin stretching from arm to leg. They can spread these membrances and glide…” (quoted from 1983’s D&D Expert Rules by Frank Mentzer)

Requirements: Minimum DEX 11
Prime Requisite: DEX
Hit Dice: 1d6
Maximum Level: 8
Armor and Shields: Shields only
Weapons: Any appropriate to size
Languages: Alignment, Common, Dryad, Elvish, Phanaton, Treant

Damage Bonus: At 6th level, a phanaton receives a +1 bonus to melee and missile damage rolls. This bonus increases to +2 at 8th level.

Climb Sheer Surfaces: A phanaton can climb sheer surfaces as a thief of the same level.

Combat: A phanaton makes attacks as a monster (Rules Tome 135) and saving throws as fighters (Rules Tome 29). Phanaton cannot use longbows or two-handed swords.

Gliding: A phanaton glides via its wing-like membranes, dropping 5 feet for every 10 feet it moves.

Prehensile Tail: An adult phanaton’s tail is about four feet long. It can manipulate items somewhat clumsily.

Stronghold: When phanaton reach 6th level, they may build strongholds.

Tags: B/X D&D, Character Classes, OSE

In years past, I’ve done Advent and/or Christmas-themed posts once December rolls around. For example. I’m not doing that this year, but I am doing something similiar via social media. For example, in the Old-School Essentials (OSE) public Facebook group, I’m participating in the Dicember challenge to follow the Dicember calendar and come up with something for each day of December. I’m going to stick to OSE content for those posts, which I’ll compile into a document of some sort once January hits.

Speaking of OSE, a long time ago, some Germans coined the term Öhrwurm, which was a compound of dried, ground insects used to treat ear ailments. I think in the 1970s, some author used the English translation of Öhrwurm to mean a bit of music so catchy that it metaphorically burrows into your ear and keeps humming away, which brings us to today’s creature.

Ondlibi Worm Infestation
Found in the steaming Ondlibi rainforests, these gray-brown, psionic maggots that hatch from tiny Ondlibi fly eggs, usually deposited in narrow, warm orifices, such as ear canals. Wise travelers wear headgear that covers the ears.

AC 9 [10], HD 1 hp, Att NA, THAC0 NA, MV 3’ (1’), SV D14 W15 P16 B17 S18 (NH), ML 12, AL Neutral.

• Infest: 4-16 eggs hatch in 1-6 hours. Worms burrow into host right after. Symptoms include itchy rashes, low-grade fevers, and psychic cacophony (see below).
• Just a Maggot: No threat at all in combat. At its largest, it’s a fat worm about the size of a human pinky’s terminal knucklebone.
• Psychic Cacophony: Worms detect and mimic host’s thoughts, mentally echoing snippets of them repeatedly. Host cannot concentrate or sleep. Cure disease kills the infestation.

Tags: B/X D&D, monsters, Old School Essentials

I took a break from grading book reports and pulled out the Four Evil Brothers’ Fortress map (FEBF), a blank sheet of graph paper, a pencil, a couple of black markers, and an eraser. Some time later, I had remapped FEBF’s northwest quadrant, as you can see below.

I tweaked the layout a bit, most obviously by adding some thickness to the walls. FEBF’s exterior wall is 5 feet thick. Interior walls are usually about half that, although there are few places where the walls are thicker. I also changed the map scale from 10 feet to a square to five feet a square. The quadrant barely fits on the paper, but it fits.

I left off all the doors. The original write-up included brown puddings as wandering monsters, and brown puddings eat wood and leather. Given how long FEBF has been abandoned, it’s reasonable that brown puddings would have devoured most wood and leather in the complex. FEBF was built in a swamp, and I like the idea of swamp monsters more or less having free run of an ancient fortress of evil. It’ll change the ecology of the place a bit, I’m sure.

I also like the idea of a dungeon crawl without doors. Nothing to close or open. Nothing to barricade or listen at. Adventurers with light sources will unintentionally cast illumination into shadowy corners. The thick walls, all made of stone, baffle or block sound. Add details related to years of humidity, darkness, moisture, and rot, and the entire place is likely rank with mold and fungus.

How long before explorers develop respiratory problems?

Tags: dungeon crawls, maps, place of power