Campaign Updates: Catching Up

Lest anyone be concerned: all three of the ongoing campaigns I'm currently refereeing continue, but I simply haven't had the time to write any posts providing updates of what's happening in each of them until now. In fact, so many sessions have occurred since my last update that this post is going to gloss over some of the finer details in the interests of brevity. I suspect few readers will mind. However, if there's something that's unclear or about which you wish to know more, leave a comment and I'll do my best to answer your query. 

Barrett's Raiders

Despite Michael's admonitions, Vadim revealed to Lt. Col. Orlowski the truth about his background and his connection to Michael. Strictly, he was not a prisoner of war but a military defector. A doctor by training, Vadim had been drafted to serve in a unit of the Red Army's chemical troops. While there, he learned of a project to unleash a cereal crop pathogen on the United States with the intention of fostering famine and civil unrest. As a doctor and man of conscience, Vadim saw this as a war crime in the making. He used his rank and position to obtain copies of certain documents pertaining to this project and fled his unit, hoping to make contact with someone in the West to whom he might give this information.

That contact turned out to be Michael, a deep cover CIA agent in Eastern Poland, who immediately recognized the value of the documents Vadim possessed. He promised to get Vadim first to safety, the GRU hot on his heels, and then to American lines, so that his information might be put to good use. Now that they were both on the other side of the Atlantic, Vadim felt it was the time to reveal what he knew and make every effort to aid American officials – military or civilian – who could make good use of it. 

This conviction is at the root of a conflict within the characters' unit. As a CIA agent, Michael is pledged to support President Broward and his government in Omaha. Though traveling with soldiers loyal to USMEA, his ultimate loyalty lies with the reconstituted civilian authority of the USA. Orlowski has tolerated Michael's position, because of how steadfastly he had aided his men in Poland and, truth be told, harbors some qualms about USMEA himself. At the same time, he is not interested in going out of his way to cross his superior officers or otherwise do anything to undermine them. 

Vadim is likewise grateful to Michael for his aid in getting him to America. Though now an American citizen under the provisions of AR 000-00 as adjudicated by V Corps HQ, he cared little for the politics of the post-war USA. From his perspective, all he wished to do was share his documents widely with as many people as possible, in the hope that they could counter the pathogen and spare America from famine at this critical moment. On this point, he was adamant.

Col. Franks, CO of Fort Pickett, recommended that Orlowski and his unit seek out Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee. That's where many of the scientists and doctors from Fort Detrick were transferred after the nuclear attack on DC and Maryland in 1997. If anyone could make good use of Vadim's information, it was them. To calm Michael, Orlowski authorized the creation of a copy of Vadim's notes, so that they could be shared with whomever he wishes. At that, the unit then set off west toward Oak Ridge.

Dolmenwood

The characters set off into the region of the swamp known as the Flotsam Pools, after all the small pools of strange debris that had arisen along the banks of the nearby river. Led by Waldra, they made good progress through this unpleasant terrain before a group of bog corpses appeared. Lumbering through the muck, they attacked the group. Sir Clement leapt into action and handled the bulk of these foul undead, while his companions kept at a distance and attacked with missiles. The menace defeated, Waldra and her blood hound (Joremey) picked up the sent of Emelda, which led them to a strange hut by the river.

Exploring the hut, which sat on stilts, neither Alvie nor Marid found any evidence of Emelda. In fact, they found very little evidence of anything other than the possessions of an aristocrat down on his luck. Not long thereafter, an elderly longhorn Breggle appeared, advancing through the river's water. Identifying himself as Sir Tekwell Onehorn (on account of his single horn), he claimed to be living in seclusion, lest his "many admirers" continue to harry him. When asked about Emelda or the Hag, he was evasive, leading Sir Clement to be suspicious of him.

Eventually, Tekwell offered to lead the characters to the borders of the Hag's domain, the location of which he admitted under some duress. Approaching that locale, with its green mist and strange sounds, the characters were beset by black tentacles that seemingly grew from the ground, trying to snatch them. Tekwell was an early victim of the tentacles but, fortunately for him, Sir Clement bore no grudge against him. With the help of his companions, the tentacles were defeated and Tekwell saved. The grateful Breggle then admitted that he had not come to the swamp to avoid his celebrity but because he'd fallen from grace in service to a high Breggle lord. Inspired by Clement's bravery, he vowed to lead them directly to the Hag, which he did.

The Hag's dwelling was a floating hut, guarded by two ogres. Sir Clement challenged them to a fight, which they accepted. Initially, the fight went badly for Clement, despite the assistance of his comrades. However, Tekwell proved surprisingly effective and played a major role in slaying both the ogres. Next, the characters decided they needed to find a way into the hut, since it was some 10 feet above them. Clement placed Alvie on his shoulders, who attempted to reach and open the door through the use of a rope.

Just as he did so, the Hag opened the door, her eyes goggling. She looked down at Alvie and smiled, "Thief-son, you may come in. The rest of you, begone!" Reluctantly, Alvie agreed to enter, surreptitiously tying his rope to the handle of the hut's door. Just as he entered, Sir Clement grabbed Marid and threw the grimalkin enchanter headlong into the Hag's home, just as its door slammed shut.

House of Worms

Táksuru had not only sent the characters on their way to Avanthár but also provided them with an ancient device that would temporarily deactivate some of its external defenses, allowing them to make use of an auxiliary entrance. Once inside, however, the defenses would soon reactivate and they would not be able to leave by the same means. This was a one-way trip into one of the most well protected and secret locales in all of Tsolyánu, perhaps all of Tékumel. The only way out was through. One way or another, the members of the House of Worms clan would soon end their adventures.

The auxiliary entrance was located inside a rise near the Mssúma River, well hidden except to those, like the characters, who knew of its presence. Kirktá made use of the device Táksuru had given them, which opened a door disguised as a rockface. Beyond was a huge, vaulted chamber overgrown with weird vegetation. Everywhere were small pillars made of a strange crystalline material. Above, portions of the ceiling flickered with peculiar lighting – a reminder that Avanthár had once been some kind of fortress from the Ancients and would undoubtedly contain many examples of technology from before the Time of Darkness.

Thus began an extensive exploration of these forgotten, subterranean levels of Avanthár, in the hopes of locating the prison of the One Other, assuming it even existed. The characters then proceeded to move carefully from one chamber to another, ever mindful of the dangers they might encounter. One room contained a series of "windows" that seem to depict possible/alternate futures, not all of them pleasant. Another housed shadowy reflections of the characters lying in ambush. And another still seemed to be an armory or repository of some kind. For the most part, the characters avoided doing anything too bold in these chambers, lest they activate a trap or defense mechanism of some kind.

Eventually, though, their luck ran out and they came to a hallway with an energy barrier that allowed on Kirktá to pass through it. A voice in an ancient tongue – translated by an eye of incomparable understanding – stated the following if anyone else attempted this, "Incompatible genetic signature. Further access denied." Clearly, at least some of Avanthár was keyed to Tlakotáni DNA, meaning only Kirktá could proceed. This was not really an option, so much time was spent trying to determine a way to circumvent the system. They eventually succeeded in this and continued to advance.

One of the more worrisome aspects of their advance was the discovery, in multiple places, that Prince Dhich'uné was already in Avanthár himself, possibly racing toward the same destination ahead of them. Dead Sárku troops attested to this, as did the charred body of Jayárgo, Dhich'uné's top lieutenant. As the characters pondered this, they realized that it made sense Dhich'úne was already here, as he had been conspicuously absent in Béy Sü during the build-up of Eselné's troops. Clearly, Dhich'uné felt that the real battle was here, beneath the emperor's palace and that nothing less than reaching the prison of the One Other would secure the Petal Throne. Needless to say, the characters soon hastened their steps.

Campaign Updates: Ghosts of the Past

All three campaigns have been forging ahead into new areas, most especially House of Worms, which is rapidly nearing its ultimate conclusion after a decade and a half of regular play. Though I can't say for certain when the End will finally come, I feel pretty confident in predicting that things will wrap up by the end of the summer at the absolute latest. 

Barrett's Raiders

Having left Fort Lee after several days there, Military Liaison Group 7 once again took to the highways, heading in the direction of Fort Pickett, their next designated stop. Upon arrival, the comparison between the two USMEA bases couldn't have been starker. Where Fort Lee had multiple blockades and checkpoints, as well as a large refugee zone outside its walls, Fort Pickett had none of this. The characters' vehicles were inspected at the gate and, once Col. Orlowski identified himself and explained they'd been sent by USMEA command in Norfolk, they were directed to the security office. There, they signed in, received their visitor badges, and given further directions to the office of the commanding office, Col. Edward Franks.

The name of the CO was familiar to Lt. Tom Cody. He'd served with Franks in the infantry before the war, though, at that time, he was a captain. Franks was pleased to see Cody, though he was more than a little shocked to see him wearing lieutenant's bars. Cody explained the circumstances of his field promotion and the two caught up on what they'd been doing since they last served together. Franks soon showed himself to be a fairly no-nonsense officer who didn't place much stock in formalities. He also suggested that he'd heard about events at Fort Lee, intimating that he didn't think much of its CO, General Summers, whom he referred to as a "desk general."

Col. Franks then offered to assist MLG-7 in any way that he could. Orlowski explained they were simply passing through before heading north toward their ultimate destination at Fort Meade. Franks laughed at this, saying that only USMEA would send them west so that they could go north. Orlowski did his best not to speak poorly of his superiors in reply. Franks then asked if he could ask a favor of MLG-7. He said that some of his winter grain supplies, sent in from western Virginia, had been spoiling at an unusually quick rate. The same was true of several other USMEA bases. He asked Col. Orlowski if he and his men would keep an eye out for any information about this as they traveled.

Orlowski agreed to do so and Frank added that he'd put them in touch with some of his medical staff and agronomists. They would brief MLG-7 on the nature of this strange affliction, in the hopes that it might help them in their own investigation. Once Orlowski returned to the others and explained what Franks had told him, Vadim stepped forward and announced, "This looks like the effects of a Soviet bioweapon." Before Orlowski had a chance to respond, Michael stepped forward and said, "I don't think you should be saying any more about this. The Colonel isn't cleared for that." 

Dolmenwood

Father Horsely directed the characters to the Merry Mendicant Inn as a place to stay the night. The characters made their way there and took several rooms for the night, with Falin sharing a room with Emelda, in order to be certain that nothing ill befell her during the night. Unfortunately, that proved insufficient protection. In the morning, Emelda was nowhere to be seen and there was no evidence that she'd left the room either by the front door or the window. 

The characters split up, looking throughout the Woodcutters' Encampment for signs of Emelda. One group interrogated the inn's proprietress, who explained that, during the night, a "strange woman with eyes like saucers" did come into the common room. She said nothing and everyone steered clear of her on account of the "odd feeling" she engendered upon any he looked at her. The woman spent maybe 10 or 15 minutes in the common room, staring at the stairs leading to the sleeping quarters before leaving as mysteriously as she came. Meanwhile, another group questioned the town guard, who did not see Emelda during the night, because they were too busy fending off an attack by "bog corpses" – dead bodies reanimated by black magic that sometimes wander into the Camp.

In combination, this convinced Waldra that something unpleasant had happened while they were asleep. Talking to Father Horsely revealed that the woodcutters have legends about "the Hag," a repulsively ugly old woman who was once a fairy princess, the sister of the Queen of Blackbirds, in fact. For her obsession with meddling in mortal affairs and interest in death and decay, she was cursed to age but never die. Exiled from Fairy, she now dwelt among the mortals that so interested her, where she has since been a source of much mischief. Of course, Father Horsely didn't believe in the existence of the Hag. Waldra, however, wasn't so sure. Indeed, she began to worry that perhaps the Hag was responsible for the disappearance of Emelda, either for her own purposes or to use as a bargaining chip in trying to lift the curse her sister had placed upon her.

House of Worms

Chiyé's summoning of the spirit of the First Tlakotáni, the founder of Tsolyánu more than two millennia ago, worked surprisingly well. This worried Chiyé somewhat, as his sorcery usually could not conjure the spirit of one so long dead. By all rights, their spirit-soul should have passed either to the Isles of Teretané or to one of the various hells of the gods to punish those who'd transgressed their laws. The Tlakotáni explained that Chiyé was indeed correct in his assumption, but that, in his case, his spirit lingered as a consequence of the pact he made with the One Other so long ago. Much like the One Other himself, he was bound to Tékumel. In fact, his fate was linked to that of the One Other. So long as the one remained bound, so too would the other.

That is why he begged the characters to free the One Other. Only by doing so could Tsolyánu be freed from the dire consequences of his arrogance. The First Tlakotáni explained that he had hoped, by using ancient Llyáni rights, to force the One Other to protect Avanthár and, by extension, Tsolyánu from ever falling. His desire to ensure the empire he had founded would never suffer the fate of Engsvanyálu before it had blinded him to the fact that doing so would ossify Tsolyánu forever. His empire would never fall, it's true, but neither would it change or improve. It would be trapped in a kind of living death, one where stability and tradition stifled creativity and growth. The time had come for History to reassert itself, for the One Other to be freed.

Needless to say, this thought concerned the characters, but, after some discussion, they realized that this was a gamble they were willing to take. Better to end the connection between the One Other and Avanthár than to see either Dhich'uné ascend the Petal Throne through trickery or Eselné to do so through violence. They then sought out Prince Táksuru, told him what they had learned, and asked for his aid. Though reluctant at first, he agreed to assist them, calling upon his contacts within the Temple of Ksárul to open a nexus point just outside of Avanthár, one close to a hidden entrance into the ancient fortress. He also provided them with a device that would temporarily suspend its defenses to allow entrance. Once inside, though, they were on their own and would have to find a way past its many guardians to locate the supposed prison of the One Other – if it even existed.

Táksuru bid them farewell. He stated that he did not expect to see them again and prayed that the Weaver of Skeins would smile upon their efforts. What they were attempting was madness, but, given that Tsolyánu was currently waiting to see which of two madmen might become its new emperor, perhaps there was no other way. For his part, Nebússa said that, if they should fail, it was up to Táksuru to carry the day. He felt the young man would make a fine successor to his father, Hirkáne. With that, the characters stepped through the nexus point.

CleriCon 2025

While I'm looking forward to attending Gamehole Con in mid-October, I have often bemoaned the fact that there aren't more RPG conventions I'd like to attend closer to home. That's why I was very pleased to discover the existence of CleriCon, now in its third year. Organized by The Dungeon Minister – a real-life cleric – it's a small but growing old school-focused convention in Glen Williams, Ontario (about an hour outside Toronto). 

I'll be running a Dolmenwood adventure at the con on Saturday, October 25. If any Grognardia readers should find their way to CleriCon, please drop by to say hello. That's probably my favorite thing about gaming conventions: the opportunity to meet my fellow roleplayers in the flesh rather than just online.

Campaign Updates: Into the Woods

After a few weeks when the frequency of the Dolmenwood campaign was more sporadic than it had been in the past, we seem to be back on track. Meanwhile, the House of Worms and Barrett's Raiders campaigns continue to barrel along, with the former rapidly heading toward what is soon likely to be the consummation of more than ten years of play. 

Barrett's Raiders

The next scheduled supply run was in the late afternoon of December 7, 2000 – the date on which MLG-7 told General Summers they'd be leaving Fort Lee to head westward to Fort Pickett. Since Lt. Col. Orlowski doesn't like leaving work half-done, he decided it would be in the best interests of everyone involved if he and his unit made sure that no more supplies from the base were being funneled to New America. To that end, he asked Corporal Forest to accompany Specialist Huxley on the run. Meanwhile, other members of the unit would scout ahead, checking out the area where the hand-offs of supplies had been happening in the past, in order to be prepared.

The scouting party consisted of Lt. Cody, Sgt. McLeod, Michael, and Radosław. According to Huxley, the hand-offs happened near a side road accessible from the highway. The side road led to several industrial parks, where small businesses of various sorts were located. Most of the businesses looked to have been looted some time ago. Cody and McLeod split off to look more closely at these parks, while Michael and Radosław headed further down the road. One of the industrial parks contained a self-storage facility whose door was closed. Two men in an irregular mix of civilian and military garb, armed with rifles, stood near it. Further down the road was a large, concrete building that was apparently part of the local water authority. Michael observed two men with rifles patrolling that area as well.

The two groups radioed back to Orlowski, who told them to keep observing the guards. Once the supply truck arrived, there'd be a delay of a couple of minutes before the rest of MLG-7 arrived in their vehicles to prevent the escape of the guards and, presumably, anyone else associated with the hand-offs to New America. Everything more or less went as planned. The supply truck arrived at its designated spot near the side road. Shortly thereafter, five men, led by Denny Lagrange, appeared, with the goal of removing a couple of crates from the truck. This time, however, MLG-7 showed up, firing a warning shot from one of its vehicles. Lagrange and his men quickly surrendered.

The sound of the shot alerted the guards at the self-storage. One of them opened up a shed, went inside, and then, after a couple of minutes emerged. He then carefully closed the shed and the pair fled. Cody and McLeod shadowed them from a distance. To prevent the guards' from revealing anything to others, Sgt. Farley jammed their walkie-talkies. Cody alerted Michael and Radosław about the guards coming their way. They then laid in wait to surprise and capture them. Then, all four members of MLG-7 worked together to do the same to the guards at the water authority building. This left only their boss, a man called Layton, inside. He surrendered without a fight, just like the others. With all ten men captured, Lt. Col. Orlowski decided to return to Fort Lee so that they could be processed and interrogated.

Dolmenwood

With Emelda Wishorn now safely in their care, the question back what to do next. While Sir Clement thought that now was the time to confront Lord Malbleat and denounce him for his nefarious crimes, his companions were none too sanguine about the prospects of that working. Instead, it was suggested that perhaps it might be best for all concerned, especially Emelda, to flee the area of the Shadholme Lodge and head eastward toward Castle Brackenwold, with the goal of seeking the protection of the duke or some other powerful figure (perhaps Abbot Nedwynne?). 

Everyone agreed this was the best solution and, after a quick visit to Sir Clement's pavilion on the festival field, they departed, bringing everyone, including Sidley Fraggleton with them. Sidely desperately wanted to escape his impending nuptials to Celenia Candleswick, as well as evade the tender mercies of Sir Shank Weavilman, who had taken an intense dislike to him. In Sidley's mind, being on the run from Lord Malbleat was preferrable to that fate.

The plan was to avoid using the Ditchway road east, since, if Malbleat wanted to overtake them, it would be much easier to do so. Instead, they would brave the forest and marshes to the east, hoping to make their way to the Woodcutters' Encampment on the verge of Hag's Addle as a stopping-off point before continuing to Brackenwold. Waldra, in her travels, was somewhat familiar with the Camp and its people, so she suggested it would be a reasonably safe place to rest before resuming their journey to Castle Brackenwold. 

Along the way, the group traveled through an area reputedly inhabited by a murderous magician, another infested with the feared nightworms, and another containing trees ravaged by a recent fire. While all of these could well have been worthy of closer investigation, Waldra instead kept her companions moving forward. She did not want to slow down, lest Lord Malbleat's servants – if indeed they were coming – any opportunity to capture them. Just before nightfall, they reached the marshes outside the Camp, where the local vicar, Father Horsely, was out foraging for herbs with his dog, Clewyd. He welcomed them and accompanied back to the settlement, offering to find them a place to stay for the night.

House of Worms

With Prince Eselné's attack on Béy Sü's Temple of Sárku to begin at first light of the next day, it became ever more urgent that Kirktá figure out just what the seven items left to him by Míru did and how they might be useful in dealing with the problems at hand. Nebússa, in particular, was very keen that this matter be resolved and resolved quickly, since there was no longer much time left to investigate. Up till now, they had the luxury of being able to take their time and put things off until later. Now, they had to act. The very fate of Tsolyánu – and their place within it – hung in the balance.

One of the first items to which Kirktá and Keléno devote any effort is the thin scroll of leather that is warm to the touch and gently pulsating. After some experimentation, it becomes clear that the scroll is keyed to the thoughts of the person(s) looking at it. Any text the viewer knows to exist appears in full on the scroll, even if it's something he cannot read. The funerary mask, when placed in front of one's face, generates a low hum that affects the wearer's vision, hearing, and sense of touch, causing pain that increases over time. Kirktá eventually took it off once the pain began to induce actual physical damage to him. 

The amount of time spent experimenting with just these two items began to frustrate Nebússa, who repeatedly suggested that they needed to focus more deliberately on figuring out what all of the items did. Míru had clearly set them aside for a purpose. What was it? This led to much discussion – some of it paranoid – about whether or not Míru, as a secret priest of the One Other, had an ulterior motive in giving these items to Kirktá. What if he hoped he'd use them in a way that benefited the pariah god whom he served? Nebússa would have none of this. "Leave paranoia to the professionals," he joked.

That's when the group turned its attention to the mummified finger kept within a reliquary. Chiyé, as a lay priest of Sárku, could communicate with the dead, so long as he had the person's body or a part of it present. Why not use his sorcery to talk to whoever the finger belonged to? Perhaps he or she could shed some light on many of the questions that so vexed them? With everyone's agreement, Chiyé performed the necessary rituals and contacted the spirit-soul of the person whose finger it was – the First Tlakotáni, founder of Tsolyánu and the mysterious man who supposedly entered into a pact with the One Other millennia ago. If anyone could give them some answers, it was probably him ...

Campaign Updates: Closing In

This past week, all three campaigns made significant progress toward resolving – or at least advancing – the current plans of the player characters. In the cases of both Barrett's Raiders and the Dolmenwood campaign (which, I have just noticed, does not have a distinct name), it's likely that their focus will soon shift to other matters. That's true in House of Worms, too, though the shift is not so much in focus as it is in intensity. Things heated up in a very significant way this way week, as you'll soon read.

Barrett's Raiders

Major Hunter sequestered herself in the officer's tent, scouring through the requisition and inventory forms that Lt. Cody had recently acquired, hoping to find evidence of anything obviously suspicious. In the end, it became clearly that the records were so poorly maintained that almost everything within them could, in the right light, appear suspicious. Even so, Hunter eventually concluded that there had been a deliberate effort to conceal some kind of malfeasance by the base's logistics personnel. In fact, the most suspicious forms were all personally endorsed by Captain Tolen, whereas the majority of the others were signed by his assistant, Lt. Bennett.

Meanwhile, Lt. Col. Orlowski set out for the DCAZ with Sgt. McLeod in order to meet with Sarah McBride, a former Richmond city councilor, who was identified to them as a leader amongst Fort Lee's civilian refugees. McBride was an older woman and, initially, she was none too pleased to see Orlowski. She explained that lots of military officers had been to see her to "assess the situation" and "seek solutions" and nothing had come of it. Orlowski made no promises that he could effect any improvements, but he did sincerely wish to know what was happening in the DCAZ.

McBride then explained that the biggest problems were ones of benign neglect rather than malice. General Summers and his officers weren't lording it over the civilians, let alone abusing them. Sure, there were incidents from time to time, but, with the exception of the recent death of Corporal Ramos, they rarely got out of hand. Mostly, Summers was too hands-off and allowed problems to fester instead of dealing with them directly. She suspected it's because he'd rather do nothing than risk creating a PR disaster through error. 

Orlowski then questioned her about whether there was any black market operating in the DCAZ and whether they might be trading in anything dangerous, like weapons and ammo. McBride said that, of course, there were illicit goods being traded, but she added that none of them were dangerous. Further, she had the impression that at least some of these goods were being passed to the refugees by Army personnel, either out of genuine concern or just a desire to make a profit somehow. Orlowski took note of all this and returned inside the fence of Fort Lee.

Having completed her examination of the logistics records, Major Hunter then began the process of interrogating any even remotely involved with the missing supplies, starting with Specialist Darrell Huxley. Huxley, Lt. Cody had learned earlier, was a local. Hunter used this to grill him about the times the supply truck he drove got flat tires. Eventually, she made him admit that Captain Tolen had provided him with extra supplies "off the records" to be picked up by a high school friend of his, Denny Lagrange, who'd then pass them on to others in the area who needed them. He didn't want anyone to get into trouble, least of all Tolen, whom he said is "a good guy." Hunter then suggested to Orlowski and others that they might now need to approach Tolen and others in logistics to get to the real bottom of this.

Dolmenwood

Having rescued the scholar Farnham Ribblemead from the catacombs beneath Shadholme Lodge, the characters regrouped in Sir Clement's pavilion on the nearby Festival Field. Sir Clement had come to the conclusion that, in order to prevent Lord Malbleat from succeeding at the necromantic ritual he was planning on the next evening, he had no choice but to attempt a rescue of the young woman held at Redwraith Manor. The woman, Emelda Wishorn by name, was essential to Malbleat's plans. By spiriting her away from the manor, he could foil those plans. This was an eminently suitable task for a noble knight such as himself and he urged his companions to join him in it.

Everyone but Marid agreed to assist him. Marid claimed it would be better if he stayed on the Festival Field and keep watch over Ribblemead. The others thought this was a very good idea, since they did not want the old man to fall back into the hands of Malbleat or his servants. The rest then headed north along the Manor Road in order to reach their destination. They had previously passed Redwraith Manor on their way to Shadholme Lodge and found it an ominous and uninviting place, with a black, wrought-iron fence and a forbidding gate. The place looked even more uninviting in the small hours of the night. Of course, the cover of darkness this time afforded made it much more likely that they could approach without being spotted by Malbleat's guards.

Sneaking onto the manor's grounds was not easy. There were several patrols, as well as an expanse of open ground between the fence and the closest part of the building. Alvie is a thief who possesses a sprite-wing cloak, which gives the wearer near-invisibility and Waldra, as a hunter, is good at hiding herself. That left just Falin and Sir Clement, both of whom wore plate armor and were both louder and slower. So, Alvie lent Falin his cloak, while Sir Clement made use of a philtre of invisibility he found in the alchemy lab beneath Shadholme Lodge. After some near misses with guards, all four made their way to the manor.

The most obvious way in was through an enclosed garden. However, the garden was occupied by an elderly breggle who seemed to be engaged in some kind of experimentation with the plants and flowers within. Fearing something sinister, they avoided the garden. Instead, Alvie climbed in through an open window and unlocked another door. The characters then spent some time, avoiding guards and other inhabitants of the place while they looked for stairs going down (on the assumption that there must be a dungeon beneath the manor). Eventually, they found the stairs and, after a stealthy fight against several guards, made their way into the basement.

Their assumption was indeed correct. There was a secret prison beneath the manor. All of its cells were empty but one, containing a young woman, who identified herself as Emelda Wishorn. Using keys obtained from one the guards, they freed her and explained they were here to rescue her. Emelda was confused by this; she also showed signs of being drugged. So, Falin helped her out of her cell and told her they would take care of her. She agreed to come with them.

House of Worms

Rumors were spreading throughout Béy Sü in the aftermath of Prince Eselné's speech. The Temples of Karakán and Vimúhla were solidly – and publicly – behind him, as were the Temples of Avánthe and Dlamélish (due, no doubt, to Princess Ma'ín's support of Eselné). Meanwhile, the Temples of Belkhánu and Sárku opposed him. The other temples and the great clans of the city sat on the sidelines, many of them hoping that the prince's rhetoric was just that and he did not truly intend to break the millennia-old Concordat and wage war on the Temple of Belkhánu. 

Unfortunately for them, Eselné was not bluffing. He sent for Grujúng to lead the cohort (400 men) of the First Legion to attack the temple just before dawn the next day. Joining Grujúng were his clan mates and comrades of many years, all of whom wish to be present during this historic event. Kirktá worried that Grujúng had been chosen to lead the attack so that, should thing go badly, he could be used as a scapegoat. After all, he was a member of a small, unimportant clan from the eastern empire, with no noble lineage or history. For his part, Grujúng's attitude was "In for a qirgál, in for a káitar." He was already too deep into what was happening to worry about the consequences. He'd either be a hero or take the high ride on an impaler's spike. 

Grujúng was given strict instructions: kill them all. No one could be allowed to escape, since there was no way to know which priests were secretly part of the cult of the One Other. Everyone within the temple, no matter their station, must die. Grujúng had no problem with this and planned accordingly, splitting his men into two main groups – one attacking the front and one attacking the rear of the temple. Others were arrayed outside its walls to deal with any priests who attempted to scale them to safety. (There was also a second cohort, not commanded by Grujúng, whose job it was to deal with anyone attempting to flee into the underworld.)

The frontal assault met with strong resistance, while the rear assault met barely any at all. The rear group also contained a small group of skirmishers, led by Nebússa but also containing Kirktá, Chiyé, and Keléno. They were tasked with plundering as much as possible from the temple's library and treasury before anyone else sacked the place. Kirktá was worried that, when the temple was finally razed by Prince Eselné, he would not care whether he destroyed priceless artifacts or not. Plus, he was still unsure whether or not what he had been told about his role in the succession was true. If it were, he might need these items.

Inside the temple, what soon became clear was that it was largely empty but for a few fleeing priests and those who were at the front of the temple defending it. They suspected that they'd been given advance warning about the attack and fled earlier. Their suspicions were confirmed in the library, when they encountered Míru, the priest of the One Other they'd met previously. He was alone in the library and told them, "They're all gone – many of them to Dhich'uné, who offered them sanctuary. He claims he's 'upholding the Concordat as tradition dictates,' but it's just another ploy to advance his own cause." He then added, "I knew you'd come, Kirktá. I've set aside a few things for you here," pointing to a collection of artifacts. Then Chiyé shot him with the excellent ruby eye and tossed him into Kirktá's chest of the topaz god (an extradimensional container) for safekeeping. They grabbed the artifacts and prepared to leave the temple.

Campaign Updates: Reckonings

Apologies for not having kept up with updates from the three RPG campaigns I'm currently refereeing. I have been distracted by the triple threat of real life, working on the Secrets of sha-Arthan 'zine, and simply finding other topics worthy of extended interest. Consequently, I haven't written one of these posts in a couple of weeks. I will nevertheless attempt to keep the information below brief, which necessarily means leaving out (or not dwelling upon) some of the details.

Barrett's Raiders

The investigations at Fort Lee continue, starting with Lt. Cody, who decided to follow-up his previous digging by paying a visit to the base's Logistics Office. There, he attempted to make an appointment to see the officer in charge, Captain Reginald Tolen. Tolen was unavailable. Cody approached his assistant, Lt. Nolan Bennett, who set up an appointment for later that day. Bennett seemed concerned that Cody was part of "that liaison group that's been sniffing around" and that he might be looking for someone to blame for the loss of supplies. Bennett assured Cody that Tolen was "straight – probably too straight" and he was doing the best he could in a bad situation. Cody assured he wasn't here to railroad anyone; he just wanted some answers.

Later, Lt. Col. Orlowski and Sgt. McLeod were keeping an eye on their unit's vehicles, to be sure no one came by to look too closely at them. Throughout their time, they noticed that several MPs passed by and took a look in their direction, but were otherwise disinterested. On the other hand, they did notice that a younger officer (a lieutenant) wearing a Logistics insignia passed by several times in the course of a couple of hours. He was clearly watching them, but was doing a poor attempt to hide it. Later, conferring with Cody, they concluded the officer in question was Nolan Bennett.

While at the medical tent in the DCAZ with Vadim, Michael observed Elijah poking his head inside. He caught Michael's eye and asked, "Is Dutch here?" Michael told him no, but said he'd let him know that Elijah was looking for him. Eventually, Dutch goes to see him and Michael follows at a distance to determine if anything else is going on. Elijah worries that Dutch might think he's with New America; he assures him he's not. "You don't build the New Jerusalem out of bones and lies," he adds. He encourages Dutch to keep digging and says if he hears anything he'll pass it along. He also spots Michael, despite his efforts to hide. He approaches him, extends his hand, and introduces himself as Calvin Traynor "but folks round here started calling me Elijah and I didn't have the heart to disagree."

Cody's appointment with Captain Tolen revealed several avenues for investigation. Both water and gasoline are tight. Other supplies are better. The problem, he claims is twofold. One, security at the supply depot is lax. Tolen blamed the MPs and insinuated that Col. Kearns was hoping to manufacture problems as justification for a crackdown. Two, the convoys in and out of Fort Lee are chronically short – missing crate here, missing drum there. He wonders whether the problem originates in the base or outside it. Tolen then supplies Cody with records to help his investigation but admits that many are in poor order, since people had been used to doing a lot with computers before the war and they're struggling to go back to the old ways. Cody thanks him and heads out.

Dolmenwood

The characters continue to explore the chambers beneath the Shadholme Lodge. It soon becomes clear that Lord Gryphius Malbleat is planning to do something related to his long-dead ancestor, Wrygott Gnarlgruff, in whose honor the annual Hlerribuck festival is held. Previously, they had assumed that Gnarlgruff was somehow still alive, as their investigations in Faerie revealed what appeared to be correspondence between Gnarlgruff and Prince Mallowheart, a powerful fairy lord. Now, they're starting to think that the "Gnarlgruff" of that corrrespondence was Malbleat acting under a pseudonym – though there were other possibilities, as they soon learned.

During their explorations, they freed an old human man by the name of Farnham Ribblemead. Ribblemead explained that he had been kidnapped by Malbleat's servants to translate an ancient ritual from The Book of Foul Wonders. The ritual was a form of necromancy intended to raise Gnarlgruff from the dead under the command of Malbleat, who hoped to use his ancestor's sorcery for his own evil ends. However, to accomplish this, the ritual demanded, among other things, that it be accompanied by a song "sung by the most beautiful voice in the High Wold." That voice belonged to a young woman, also kidnapped by Malbleat, but whose current whereabouts Ribblemead did not know. "Most likely," he explained, "she's held somewhere at Redwraith Manor," but he couldn't be sure.

Since Ribblemead desperately wanted to leave the chambers where he was imprisoned, the characters did not linger much longer. However, they did spend some time poking around other rooms beneath the Lodge, as well as those above. With the exception of one room (the wine cellar) inhabited by a frightful spider-woman with human hands at the ends of its eight legs, they found little of immediate interest. The spider-woman caused them such fright and disgust that they fled the scene almost immediately and decided that discretion was indeed the better part of valor. They returned to Sir Clement's pavilion and prepared their next actions. 

There is one more day until the one when they believe Lord Malbleat will attempt the ritual Ribblemead described and there remains much to do in order to prevent him from succeeding.

House of Worms

After Eselné's speech in the Hall Unfurled Banners and Dhich'uné's response, all of Béy Sü is in turmoil. The great clans, the temples, and anyone else of any power or influence is hastily attempting to determine whom to support and how best to do so. While there are a few zealots among the various contending factions, most simply want to escape the unfolding chaos with their heads intact. It is now obvious that, one way or another, a reckoning is about to come upon Tsolyánu's capital city – and quite likely the Empire itself. 

As the characters pondered their own place within these events, Nebússa was met by Múresh hiQolyélmu, a member of his own Golden Bough clan, as well as the local chief of the Omnipotent Azure Legion. Nebússa, of course, already knew him, but his desire to talk was nevertheless notable. Múresh explained that Eselné's actions had disrupted their own plans for the upcoming Kólumejàlim. "Balances were already in place," he said, "The path was already clearing." Nebússa took this to mean that the OAL intended to fix the Choosing so that the "right" candidate – probably Táksuru – emerged victorious, though Múresh did not say this directly. Múresh also told Nebússa to be alert. If necessary, he should be prepared to make "a single cut, quiet and clean, before the whole loom comes down around us."

Grujúng received his orders from General Kéttukal, giving him command of the cohort of the First Legion that will attack the Temple of Belkhánu just before the next dawn. Kéttukal asked that Grujúng and anyone else who planned to join him make their way to the Palace of War as soon as possible so that they could be briefed on the ins and outs of the attack. Kirktá intended to join the attack, disguised as an ordinary soldier. His intention is to use the chaos of battle as an opportunity to loot the temple of anything he deems potentially valuable to current events. For that reason, he chose not to accompany Grujúng, lest his presence be detected too soon. After all, Kéttukal already made it clear that Kirktá would not be permitted anywhere near the temple.

Kirktá had other matters to attend to. He was informed that a delegation from the Temple of Dlamélish had come to see him. Initially, this made no sense, as he had no dealings with that temple whatsoever. However, others more versed in the intrigues of Tsolyáni politics understood that the delegation was, in fact, a cover for a visit from Princess Ma'ín, who'd recently thrown in her lot with Eselné. Ma'ín was her usual playful self, employing subtlety and innuendo rather than coming right to the point. In short order, though, it became clear what she really wanted to know was if Kirktá and his comrades were "plotting something clever – something dangerous." When Kirktá assured her he was not and that he was wholly behind Eselné's cause. "How disappointing," she declared. "You really are what you appear to be: a boring scholar."

She then left. Nebússa was very pleased. Kirktá had played his part well. 

Campaign Updates: Black Box

Barrett's Raiders

This week saw the characters finally cross the Atlantic (with a brief stop at Lajes in the Azores for refueling), arriving at "Naval Station Norfolk" on 3 December 2000. I used scare quotes, because their destination was located not at Norfolk proper – which took a 1 MT nuke in November 1997 – but rather at Newport News on the other side of the James River. Though the US Military Emergency Administration (USMEA, the acronym used by the military government) had made efforts to rebuild portions of the original station, it was still too irradiated for long-term human habitation, hence the relocation. Plus, both Langley AFB and Fort Eustis were nearby, as well as the National Defense Reserve Fleet ("Ghost Fleet") of inactive naval vessels.

Once in Virginia, the members of Barrett's Raiders were processed and given barracks prior to being interviewed, as per the directives of Operation Resolute. Because of they'd impressed General Hawthorne in West Germany, he asked USMEA Command to make every effort to keep the characters together as a single unit. They clearly possessed unique skills that could serve USMEA well in the anarchy of post-war America. For that reason, they were interviewed together by Captain Daniel Calloway, whom the characters immediately suspected of being their "handler" (or commissar, as former Soviet doctor Vadim later called him). He filled them in on the current situation in Virginia, as well as recent efforts by USMEA to deal with local threats. 

Calloway explained that his superiors wanted to keep Barrett's Raiders together as "Military Liaison Group 7," operating with a high degree of autonomy as force multipliers for local groups in the Delaware/Maryland/Virginia (Delmarva) region who are attempting to rebuild. If they were amenable to this arrangement, he tasked them with traveling to Fort Meade, Maryland, where a former official of the pre-war government had established a safe area and was looking for assistance. Though nominally aligned with the "unrecognized civilian authority" in Omaha, the official needed all the help he could get. Calloway explained that, if the characters can assist him, it'd go a long way toward helping to bridge the gap between USMEA and their rivals. After brief discussion, the characters agreed, thereby accepting continued service with the US Army.

Dolmenwood

Having reached the Shadholme Lodge and the camp that grew up around it in anticipation of the Hlerribuck festival, the characters spent much time settling in. They soon discovered that the Hlerribuck had attracted people from across Dolmenwood, including people whom they knew. Sir Clement encountered Sidley Fraggleton, a childhood friend, who was engaged to another friend, Celenia Candleswick. Celenia's father, Sir Jappser, didn't think much of Sidley (or Clement for that matter), which is why Sidley was glad to hide from him in the company of Clement and his comrades. For their part, the rest of the characters mostly ignored Sidley as they went about their own business.

Part of that business involved Falin being impressed into service as the temporary vicar of the memorial chapel set up on the grounds of the Lodge. Apparently, the priest who was expected to be here, Father Dobey, was nowhere to be found and many of those who'd traveled to the festival required the services of a cleric. Falin reluctantly agreed to this and set herself up in the chapel – which Sidley promptly claimed as his "sanctuary" from Sir Jappser and his brutish friend, Shank Weavilman – and began tending to a number of odd folk who happened by.

While in the chapel, Alvie found a dusty key on the floor. This led him and Marid to begin looking around the place, assuming that the key must be for a lock in the church itself. After a while, they discovered a keyhole at the base of the chapel's altar. When used, the key unlocked the altar itself, which could be slid to one side, revealing a dark shaft into the earth, complete with a set of rungs leading downwards. Locking the chapel doors, Alvie descended some 20 feet down before discovering a door, on the other side of which he heard Breggle voices. He climbed back up and reported what he saw and heard. The characters decided this was worthy of investigation, but it would have to wait until nightfall, lest they draw too much attention to their activities.

House of Worms

The day of Kirktá's presentation to the city of Béy Sü and, by extension, the entire Empire of Tsolyánu, as a declared heir of the now-deceased Emperor Hirkáne was finally upon the characters. The festivities began early, with food and entertainment in the courtyards of the Golden Bough clanhouse. This was intended for members of the lower clans, while the high clans would partake of refreshments inside. It was inside that Kirktá, attired in the garb of an imperial prince, would receive his visitors, well-wishers, and rivals. The characters had made an effort to advertise the party widely and had specifically invited other known heirs to come and meet their newly revealed (half-)brother.

Prince Eselné sent his regrets, saying that he was "needed elsewhere." Prince Dhich'uné said the same, but promised to send someone in his place, with "a suitable gift." The gift was a large black box, borne by four slaves, and presented by Jayárgo hiKhánmu, a priest of Sárku of long association with Dhich'uné. Jayárgo was polite and respectful and explained that the box contained "something most precious" and would aid Kirktá in achieving his destiny. Naturally, this frightened Kirktá, who felt that, whatever it contained, it might serve as a catalyst for breaking down the mind-bar placed on his memories years ago. Rather than risk that, he had the box sent away to a safe place and planned to view its contents later.

Throughout the evening, Kirktá met several other people of significance, most notably Princess Ma'ín, who arrived with great fanfare. Her arrival attracted a lot of attention away from Kirktá, for which he was somewhat grateful. Ma'ín's chat with Kirktá was laden with subtle – and not so subtle – innuendo about his future. By comparison, Prince Táksuru was straightforward in his interactions, urging Kirktá to stay out of "the game" and promising him and his companions rewards if he did so. Prince Rereshqála, meanwhile, explained that he had hoped to avoid entering the Choosing of the Emperors himself, but that he would gladly do so if it meant ensuring Dhich'uné did not become emperor. He further suggested that all the other heirs might need to work together toward this one end. He then departed and said they would speak again soon.

Rules, Rules, and More Rules

I'm currently refereeing three different campaigns at the moment: House of Worms, using Empire of the Petal Throne; Barrett's Raiders, using the Free League edition of Twilight: 2000; and Dolmenwood, using the rules of the same name. Of the three, only two – EPT and Dolmenwood – can be called "old school" in the usual sense of the term, though T2K has a lot in common with many old school games, specifically its focus on hexcrawling and resource management. That said, I wouldn't really call Twilight: 2000 "old school" without some big caveats. That's no knock against it, since my players and I have been enjoying ourselves with it for more than three years now, but I think it's important to note these things, particularly in light of the topic of this post.

Empire of the Petal Throne is a very early RPG. Released in 1975, it's a close cousin to OD&D in terms of rules, meaning that it's not very mechanically complex. Dolmenwood is a little bit heftier, being largely derived from Moldvay/Cook Dungeons & Dragons (1981), itself a clarification and expansion of OD&D. Twilight: 2000 (2021) uses a variation of Free League's "Year Zero" rules, versions of which can be found in most of the company's games, like Forbidden Lands or Vaesen. The T2K variant is a bit more complex than the others, owing to its inclusion of modern firearms and vehicles.

In each campaign, I rarely use the game's rules as written. I don't mean that I've introduced lots of house rules (though I have in a few cases). I mean that I often ignore the rules. When playing, I often don't want to slow down the flow of the session by having to refer to a rulebook or a chart. Instead, I prefer to rely on my memory and that of the players, which means that we're more likely to strictly apply those that we remember than those we don't. I call these kinds of rules "sticky" rules, because they stick in your memory. 

One of the reasons I prefer old school RPGs like D&D is that I find their rules much stickier than those of newer games. To some extent, that's simply a function of familiarity. I've been playing D&D and Traveller for more than four decades; I know them almost like the back of my hand. I lack this familiarity with games I learned more recently. On the other hand, there's no question that most older roleplaying games are much more mechanically simple than those that came later. Again, this is a generalization and there are plenty of counterexamples. My point is that, as both a referee and a player, I'm much more comfortable with fewer and simpler rules, since I'm much more likely to remember and, therefore, use them.

But, as I already noted, even in games like EPT or Dolmenwood, I regularly handwave or outright ignore rules in the heat of play. For example, Empire of the Petal Throne includes spell failure rules. Depending on a character's level, psychic ability, and the type of spell, there's a chance a spell might not function. At mid to higher levels, this chance is minute, but there's still a chance of failure. Despite this, I don't always make the players roll, since there are many occasions when I feel it unnecessary or disruptive to the flow of the action. I defer to my own judgment here rather than the rules and the players have never complained. Were they to do so, I wouldn't hesitate to use the rules as written, but I like to think that, after a decade of play, we've built up enough trust that that no players worries much about how I'd adjudicate in-game situations.

I think about this question a lot, because many aspects of the new Twilight: 2000 rules, chiefly the combat system, are more complex than I like. There's nothing wrong with them and, by many measures, they're much simpler than the original GDW T2K combat rules. However, I'm not fond of them and I frequently dispense with many persnickety aspects of them in the interests of speed and simplicity. Again, the players rare complain about this and accept my judgments. Had I the ability to start this campaign over again, I might have opted for simpler, more straightforward rules, but, after more than three years, it's too late for that, so we muddle through. 

That's more or less where I am with rules these days: when give the option, I prefer simple, even simplistic, rules over more elaborate and complex ones. I'm not opposed to trying to model complicated situations and activities mechanically and, under the right circumstances, could even find that enjoyable. However, as a referee running a weekly game over the course of many years, I have come to find that rules I can't keep in my head without recourse to a book or a chart or a table don't hold a lot of appeal for me anymore. Consequently, my latest drafts of the rules for Secrets of sha-Arthan are decidedly much simpler than earlier ones. It's yet another way that my experiences as a referee have colored my own design work – and for the better, I hope.

Campaign Updates: Change of Course

This was a week when all three campaigns shifted gears to varying degrees – in significant ways for both the Barrett's Raiders Twilight: 2000 campaign and the House of Worms Empire of the Petal Throne campaign. 

Barrett's Raiders

This week, there wasn't much actual play. Instead, we devoted ourselves to tying up any loose ends in Europe, as the characters were about to head home aboard the assembled vessels of Task Force 34 (its flagship, USS John Hancock, depicted above). Chief among these loose ends was Private Ronnie Baxter of the British Army, who'd joined the characters in Kraków several weeks before. The British wouldn't be evacuating until the new year, so he bid the Americans farewell and rejoined his countrymen in Braunschweig, which served as the winter headquarters of the First British Corps. Several other player characters would also be departing upon arrival in Norfolk: Private Lou "Oddball" Guida (honorable discharge and returning home to Brooklyn); Seaman Jimmy "Aquaman" Jones (transfer to an actual naval unit), and Sergeant Jess "Cowpoke" Gartmann (other duties – the character of a player who dropped out of the campaign and stayed on as an NPC up till this point).

Much of the session was devoted to developing replacement characters for those departing, as well as the expenditure of experience points accumulated but not spent in previous sessions. I wanted to be sure that, when we resumed next week, everything was in place to pick up and play on the other side of the Atlantic. Lt. Col. Orlowski, the characters' commander, made a request to his superiors that his men be kept together for detached duties as needed in America. He argued that, having survived several months behind enemy lines in Poland, they'd formed a bond that would serve them and the Army well. This will form the new frame for the Barrett's Raiders campaign: the characters will be initially operating in Virginia and the surrounding areas during the period (December 2000–March 2001) when Naval Station Norfolk is still operational. After that, only time will tell.

Dolmenwood

Marid Aventi having joined the party, the characters spent the day in Shagsend, conferring with Windore Hoblewort, a breggle magician who acts as Lord Malbleat's representative in the town. It was soon apparent that Hoblewort didn't think much of his master, but he was a great source of information about him and his activities nonetheless. For instance, Malbleat was presently preparing to host an annua festival called the Hlerribuck, said festival being a commemoration of the life and deeds of his illustrious ancestor, Wrygott Gnarlgruff. Since the characters were already interested in Gnarlgruff and his supposed involvement with the recent intrusion into Fairy, this news caught their attention. Surely this could not be a coincidence.

The group then said their farewells and made their way southward toward Redwraith Manor, the estate of Malbleat. They weren't head there: the Hlerribuck would be held at Shadholme Lodge, which sits atop the mausoleum where Gnarlgruff is interred. Still, they were fascinated to see that the way to the Manor was barred by a wrought-iron gate and further secured by heavy chains. Malbleat clearly didn't want unexpected guests to show up on his doorstep. They then continued on toward the festival grounds set up around the Shadholme, directed to the right place by a grumpy groundskeeper, who, like almost everyone in the High Wold, deferred to Falin, since she's a breggle (the High Wold being "breggle country"). Though this continues to make her uncomfortable – she's used to being ignored in human lands – her companions urge her to make the best of it as they prepare to mingle with the aristocracy and well-to-do of the region.

House of Worms

Toneshkéthu is a student at the Colllege at the End of Time, a institution that literally exists at the end of Tékumel's timeline – and not just one Tékumel but every possible version of Tékumel, of which there are many. She's been an ally of the characters for many years, though, because of the nature of her "location," they often encounter her out of temporal order. This makes dealing with her complicated, as she sometimes remembers things that, from the characters' perspective, haven't happened yet (and vice versa). She gave Keléno a device to communicate with her when necessary, but he's loath to use it. The other characters are not quite so reticent, which is why he contacted her at the end of the last session.

Keléno queried her first about the mind-bars placed on Nebússa and Kirktá. She brushed off the one placed on Nebússa, "It's just ordinary sorcery; you can deal with that yourselves." The one placed on Kirktá, she admitted was unusual and powerful. However, she cautioned against trying to remove it. "The mind-bar will come down on its own in time. Parts of it are probably already breaking down – or soon will be. It's there to protect him from things it can't yet handle. Removing it ahead of time would like shatter his mind." Keléno then asked about Prince Dhich'uné and his plans, specifically whether or not they should try to avoid involving themselves in them further. Toneshkéthu replied, "Oh, so you've reconciled yourselves to the fall of Tsolyánu, then? Interesting." 

Needless to say, this horrified the characters. Were they supposed to aid Dhich'une, as Ki'éna suggested they would, or were they supposed to oppose him, as they preferred? They had no way of knowing, as Keléno declined to ask further questions of Toneshkéthu. He worried it might unduly influence their decisions one way or the other. He thanked her and bid her farewell. Before she severed communication, she told him to remember these words: The Inevitable of the Ineffable. The words meant nothing to him, but Kirktá immediately remembered reading a book of that title when he was younger. It was a polemic from Bednallján times, written by Artúkko Ala'á, a foe of the priest Pavár (whose divine revelation established the pantheons of Change and Stability). Ala'á argued that Pavár's religious reformation wold spell the end of the Bednallján imperium, as people abandoned the daily sacrifices to the One Other that sustained the empire.

What, if anything, this had to do with their present circumstances, the characters didn't yet know. They soon decided that the time had come to make Kirktá's existence known to the wider world. They would publicly announce his presence in Béy Sü and his status as an heir of the deceased emperor. By doing so, they hoped to draw out any who might be alarmed by his presence, including other heirs and factions vying for control during the interregnum. It was a dangerous gambit, of course, but they no longer wished to skulk around the edges of imperial politics. Now was the time to play their hand and see more clearly who their friends and enemies might be.

Campaign Updates: Tous les Trois

Since these weekly (or semi-weekly) updates have been surprisingly well-received, I've decided to keep writing and posting them. In addition to simply giving readers insights into the games I'm playing and how I'm playing them, the updates also often serve as useful springboards for other discussions on this blog. It's long been my contention that, while theorizing about RPGs has its place, the most important thing – the very heart of the hobby – lies in actually playing these games. rather than simply talking about them. It's my hope that these updates will thus provide just as much food for thought as more "abstract" discussions. 

Barrett's Raiders

The characters continued to make preparations to leave Goleniów and head west toward Bremerhaven, where US forces were marshalling in preparation for evacuating Europe on 15 November 2000. Col. Kettering provided them with a reasonably up-to-date map ("It was accurate a week ago – or so my superiors assure me.") of northern Poland and Germany, including the current disposition of NATO and Warsaw Pact forces. While this made planning for their coming journey easier, it did nothing to resolve the question of the medium atomic demolition munition (MADM) and whether to reveal their possession of it to Kettering. In the end, the characters opted not to do so, feeling it better to turn it over to the appropriate authorities in Bremerhaven.

Before leaving Goleniów, Vadim (Soviet doctor POW), Michael (CIA deep cover operative), and Radosław (Polish People's Army deserter) all needed to obtain Polish identity papers – Vadim and Michael because they needed to hide their true identities from American forces, and Radosław because he had none. To do this, they had to work out a deal with Sergeant Dariusz Kowalski, a logistics officer attached to the forces of the Polish government-in-exile. Nicknamed "Miś" – "teddy bear" – Kowalski was a big, burly man who had black market connections. He could give the characters what they needed but it would cost them in weapons, ammo, or medical supplies. Fortunately, they had plenty of captured AKM rifles and 7.62mm bullets to trade. A deal was struck and they got their papers.

Now ready to go, the characters bid farewell to the Canadians who'd been traveling with them and departed. Their journey across northern Germany was relatively uneventful. They took longer than needed, because their commander, Lt. Col. Orlowski, wanted to be sure they were well rested when they reached Bremerhaven. In addition, he was still somewhat concerned about what would meet them there. The situation back in America was obviously fraught and he had no desire to see his men impressed by the Joint Chiefs into a civil war against their fellow Americans. On the other hand, the evacuation fleet in Bremerhaven was their only ticket home, so they had little choice. That's why, on Saturday, September 23, 2000, the men of Barrett's Raiders elected to head down the road that would lead them to an uncertain future. 

Dolmenwood

Now that Clement of Middleditch was Sir Clement of Middleditch, sworn knight of Princess Snowfall-at-Dusk, the youngest daughter of the fairy Cold Prince, he had a quest. His liege lady had asked him to investigate the activities of Lord Malbleat, a dubious breggle noble, who seemed to be behind schemes that threatened both the mortal world and Fairy. He and his comrades had chartered a boat to traverse Lake Longmere, in order to reach the High Wold, the ancestral lands of the breggle. This they did without much trouble – a first in their journeys across the Dolmenwood. 

On the other side, they encountered breggle fishermen who greeted Falin with great reverence. This discomfited her greatly. As a breggle cleric – and a somewhat heterodox one at that – she was used to being treated with condescension and suspicion among humans. To now be treated with respect was an odd thing. She learned from the fishermen that just to the south lay the hamlet of Shagsend, whose lord, Windore Hoblewort, was a vassal of Malbleat. If they wanted to know more about Malbleat and what might await him in his lands, Hoblewort was the breggle to talk to. 

As they made their way to Shagsend, the characters encountered a grimalkin mounted on a seelie dog. Sophisticated and elegant, he introduced himself as Marid Adventi, an enchanter traveling to Shagsend in the company of the Demoiselle Madrigal de Chanterelle, a fairy fungus cat. Marid is a new player character, so this was an opportunity to introduce him into the campaign, bringing the total characters to four. I was especially happy in this case, as his player is an old friend with whom we hadn't gamed for many years. His return to the fold was thus a moment for rejoicing.

House of Worms

The character continued their interrogation of the moneylender Kautélu huGurudrá. It soon became clear that he had acted simply as a go-between and that he knew comparatively little about the people with whom he interacted – including their schemes. He was, however, willing to aid the characters, provided he did not have to betray any confidences to do so. After some thought, they made use of a series of code words they'd plucked him mind via ESP, in order to present themselves as members of his own Copper Door clan sent to test his loyalty. This proved sufficient and he directed them toward an entrance to the underworld beneath Béy Sü. That's where their quarry, Makésh hiVriyón, had fled.

Crossing a series of basements, sub-basements, and hidden chambers, the characters soon found themselves in a subterranean labyrinth. Making use of Nebússa and Grujúng's tracking skills, they eventually made it to a room guarded by a number of copper-armored undead guardians – Shédra! They defeated them handily, though Kirktá wondered whether doing so was some kind of violation of the precepts of Sárku. Since no one else seemed concerned, they proceeded ahead, eventually finding a chamber that showed evidence of someone's recently passing through. A smoldering torch in a sconce more or less confirmed this.

Inside, they discovered Makésh attempting to make an escape through a trapdoor. With him was an unnerving beautiful woman. Everything about her was perfect by Tsolyáni beauty standards – so perfect, in fact, that it triggered a sense that she couldn't possibly be real, a fact more or less confirmed by the inability of Keléno to use his ESP on her. This was clearly Ki'éna, for whom Makésh worked. She was friendly and non-threatening. She explained she wished no ill upon the characters, especially Kirktá, who, she stated, had a "glorious role to play" in the coming ascension of Prince Dhich'uné to the Petal Throne. She told them that Kirktá would be unwise to seek the Throne himself, but, if they had to know the location of the golden disc identifying him as an heir to the deceased emperor, they should seek it at the Temple of Belkhánu.

The characters briefly considered attacking Ki'éna but opted instead to let her and Makésh go, They assumed her to be a powerful sorceress or some other potent being. More to the point, they had other matters to ponder, including whether or not to flee Béy Sü itself, since it's possible that, whatever Kirktá's "glorious role" was, he might not be able to achieve it elsewhere. This, in turn, led to speculation that maybe fleeing was exactly what Ki'éna wanted them to do. Rather than consider every paranoid possibility, they concluded that they had no real option but to keep pressing ahead in the capital. Whatever was going on and whatever Kirktá's role within it, they needed to prepare themselves.

Campaign Updates: All Three

Some brief updates on the three campaigns I'm currently refereeing:

Barrett's Raiders

Advancing northward, the characters saw evidence of both the remnants of the last Warsaw Pact push westward and the entrenchment of NATO forces along the Baltic coast. Just east of Goleniów, they made contact with a reconnaissance team attached to something they identified as "Task Force Saber," an amalgamation of surviving elements of several US Army forces in the area. Headquartered Goleniów, the task force consisted of about 600 men and vehicles. Its mission was twofold: aid the partisan forces of the Polish government-in-exile and cover the retreat of the NATO units heading for Germany.

Lt. Col. Orlowski decided the characters should make their way to Goleniów for rest, resupply, and a sharing of intelligence. He worried somewhat that they'd be dragooned into joining Saber, but he hoped he could argue that he and those under his command were answering call to pull out of Poland and, therefore, could not remain there. What he found in Goleniów were friendly and helpful US soldiers, keen to render them whatever support they required. After months behind enemy lines, warm food, soft bed, and hot showers were welcome.

Michael, the CIA field agent who'd been traveling with the characters, wanted to make contact with the task force's own intelligence apparatus. He was soon in a meeting with Major Rachel Sturgess. After an exchange of code words to demonstrate authenticity, Sturgess told Michael that he's fortunate he spoke to her first. She explained that the situation back home was very fraught and that members of his service were no longer trusted, owing to their support for "President" Broward. Though she herself was loyal to the Joint Chiefs, she cared more about the fate of their country than political disputes. She urged Michael to hide his CIA connections and to pose as a Pole to avoid being arrested upon reaching Germany.

Orlowski also had a meeting, with Col. James Kettering, commander of the task force. They shared information and it soon became clear that Kettering had no interest in keeping the characters in Goleniów. He wished them well in their journey, explaining he and his men would be bugging out toward the end of October. For now, they had to remain here, especially in light of recent reports that a Soviet general, former commander of the Baltic Front, had reportedly got hold of a MADM (medium atomic demolition munition) and may have been planning to make use of it. Orlowski, of course, knew a little of this, but he hesitated in revealing more – at least for now.

Dolmenwood

Clement of Middleditch had wanted to become a knight since he was a small boy. He'd set off in search of adventure to achieve that goal, in the process acquiring several traveling companions – Waldra the woodswoman; Falin the breggle cleric; and Alvie the young thief. Over the course of their time together, the one thing Clement most desired was a lord worthy of his service, someone to whom he could pledge his loyalty and who, in turn, would make a true knight. He eventually concluded that the lord he most wished to serve was, in fact, a lady, specifically the Princess Snowfall-at-Dusk, the youngest daughter of the cruel Cold Prince. 

Clement had briefly met the Princess at the very start of the campaign, when he and his companions had reunited her with the ghost of her lover, Sir Chyde. She resided in the realm of Frigia within Fairy and getting back to her was nigh-impossible, thanks to the innumerable wards placed on that otherworldly realm centuries ago by an alliance of mortals. Nevertheless, Clement and his friends found a way to bridge the gap, albeit briefly, during which time he hoped to convince Snowfall-at-Dusk to become his lady. 

What they found was that the Princess's tower was besieged by elves under the command of the nobleman, Uncounted Sighs, who believed she (and Sir Chyde) were somehow responsible for the appearance of crookhorn raiders within Fairy – a rare example of intrusion into the elves' domain from the mortal side of the barrier. Snowfall-at-Dusk asked Clement and the others to prove this was not so and help to lift the siege. If he did this, she would consent to take him as her vassal.

Investigating the matter, the characters learned that the crookhorn had entered Fairy through a previously unknown means: a magic portal that connected Frigia to the domain of Lord Malbleat, a breggle lord of decidedly unpleasant reputation. Closing the portal, the characters then took evidence of what they'd discovered to Uncounted Sighs, who asked them to swear to its truth. Having done so, he and his army departed and Princess Snowfall-at-Dusk took Clement on as her "eyes and ears in the mortal world." She then tasked him to travel to Lord Malbleat's domain and discover just how and why he'd created this portal and, if possible, put an end to his meddling in Fairy once and for all.

House of Worms

With the Kólumejàlim less than a month away, the characters are scrambling to locate the inscribed golden disc that can identify Kirktá as a child of the decease emperor. Without it, Kirktá is just a minor priest of Durritlámish from a minor clan in eastern Tsolyánu. With it, he is a candidate for the Petal Throne – or at least a publicly recognized scion of the mighty Tlakotáni clan, with all the rights and privileges associated with that exalted rank. It's really for this reason that the characters want to locate the disc: it's a golden ticket to a better life for them and their clan mates through Kirktá.

The characters' investigations initially seemed to hit a brick wall. No one they talked to, either at Kirktá's original Red Sword clan or the Temple of Belkhánu, had much information to offer them. Their only leads were a high priest back in Sokátis – two weeks travel from Béy Sü – and a scribe within the Court of Purple Robes in the imperial citadel of Avanthár. The scribe was close and more likely to know something, but getting to see him would be a challenge. Avanthár is not a place one simply turns up to unannounced or without a powerful sponsor.

Fortunately, the newly-revealed Prince Táksuru, whom the characters had helped years prior, was willing to assist them. Though himself a candidate for the Petal Throne, he had openly expressed his hope that the characters, including Kirktá, would support him in his bid to become the next God-Emperor of Tsolyánu. He made arrangements for the scribe, Makésh hiVriyón, be brought to Béy Sü to speak with them about events more than 20 years prior, when Kirktá was first placed with his clan as a hidden heir.

Makésh proved unhelpful. He feigned ignorance of the knowledge they sought and displayed a confidence in his own inviolability bordering on arrogance. As a member of the Court of the Purple Robes, he could not be harmed or forced to testify to anything without the involvement of someone of very high station. However, when he left the characters, Nebússa shadowed him back to the marketplace, where he observed Makésh enter the workplace of Kautélu huGurudrá, a moneylender and member of the Copper Door clan. Makésh never left, suggesting he'd made use of a hidden exit.

Nebússa and his minions then kidnapped Kautélu and interrogated him, with Keléno using ESP on him during the interrogation. It soon became clear that Makésh was an agent of a woman named Ki'éna, whom the characters do not know, and Prince Dhich'uné, whom they do. Though many unanswered questions remained, at least they had a better sense of who might be behind their current problems.

Thoughts on Dolmenwood

Recently, a couple of readers took note of the fact that, under the header "What I'm Refereeing" on the lefthand column of this blog, I've included Dolmenwood, published by Necrotic Gnome. However, unlike my House of Worms Empire of the Petal Throne and Barrett's Raiders Twilight: 2000 campaigns, I've never posted about this. This is absolutely true, though the omission was not intentional – far from it, in fact, as I have nothing but praise to offer about Dolmenwood, both as a fantasy setting and as a game. Indeed, I'm really enjoying Dolmenwood and consider it one of the best "new" fantasy roleplaying games I've played in some time.

I put "new" in quotation marks, because, rules-wise, Dolmenwood's not really new. It's a very close descendant of Old School Essentials, which is itself a very close restatement of the 1981 Moldvay/Cook version of Dungeons & Dragons (or B/X, as many people call it). How does it differ from B/X, I'm sure some of you will ask? Most obviously, it has its own classes and races, some of them unique to the setting. Likewise, it uses the dreaded ascending armor class and has its own saving throw categories. There are few other small differences, mostly in terms of presentation, but, for the most part, the rules of Dolmenwood are so close to B/X (or OSE) that I don't think anyone already familiar with those – or, for that matter, almost any version of old school D&D – will have much trouble picking it up.

Where Dolmenwood shines, though, is its setting, the titular Dolmenwood, a large, tangled forest at the edge of civilization that's filled with intrigued, secrets, magic, and lots of fungi. If I were to sum up the setting in a simple phrase, it would be "fairytale fantasy," even if that doesn't quite do Dolmenwood justice. It's like a weird cross between Jack Vance's Lyonesse, Machen's The White People, and Dunsany's The King of Elfland's Daughter, with touches from Twin Peaks and The Wicker Man, among many other influences. As a place, Dolmenwood is weird and eccentric, filled equally with whimsy and terror.

A big part of what makes Dolmenwood such a dichotomous place is the lurking presence of Fairy, which is to say, the otherworldly realm of the elves and other supernatural beings, the most powerful of which were long ago cut off from the mortal world by a coalition consisting of the Duchy of Brackenwold (who rules the wood), the Pluritine Church (who serves the One True God), and the secretive people known as the Drune (who have their own agenda). Elves and fairies are no longer as common as they were in the past, but their machinations can still be felt. In particular, the Cold Prince, the lord of winter eternal, seeks ways to regain his dominion over Dolmenwood.

Of course, there are lots of contending factions within Dolmenwood – the Duchy, the Church, the fairies and their nobles, witches, the Drune, and the wicked Nag-Lord, a trickster figure who serves as a literal agent of Chaos, corrupting the land and its peoples. These factions all play roles, large and small, in ensuring that Dolmenwood is never a dull place. One of the things I've found in refereeing this campaign is that I'm never at a loss for adventure ideas, because there's so much going on in the setting. Once the characters started doing what characters do, they soon found themselves enmeshed in all sorts of plots and schemes, gaining allies and enemies in equal measure. 

Speaking of characters, there are presently four in the campaign:

• Squire (soon to be Sir) Clement of Middleditch: The big-hearted but small-brained of a minor noble sent out into the world to make something of himself (or die trying). He's presently attempting to be knighted by a fairy princess, an idea that appeals to his romantic soul, even if doing so brings with it more than a little risk.
• Alvie Sapping: A teenaged thief with a quick mind and quicker tongue. He's attached himself to Clement's retinue as a way to travel and, he hopes, make money. Alvie has an intense dislike of bards and other musicians, on account of his no-good father's having been one, which has occasionally been a source of trouble for him (and amusement for everyone else).
• Waldra Dogoode: A hunter and woodswoman, who's more comfortable in the wild spaces of Dolmenwood than in its more settled ones. She's an expert tracker and an amateur student of the many mushrooms and other fungi in the region. Her ambition is to one day produce a complete and accurate map of the entire Wood.
• Falin Cronkshaw: A breggle (goat-man) cleric, who was exiled to a small parish because of her insistence that there were in fact breggle saints whom the Church has suppressed. She now travels with her companions hoping to find evidence vindicating her theories. 

The characters are an interesting bunch and their interactions with one another and the people they meet have been among the highlights of the campaign. Thus far, they've helped a ghost reunite with his love, explored a weird series of caverns, traveled to a remote village overrun with fungus, helped an exiled elf reclaim his home, and journeyed into Fairy as part of Clement's quest for a liege. Along the way, they've seen strange sights and met many unusual people, some of whom would later become important to the unfolding events of the campaign.

Unfortunately, Dolmenwood is not yet available for sale, though it should be soon. Having supported Necrotic Gnome's crowdfunding of the game, I have access to advance copies of its three rulebooks (Player's Book, Campaign Book, and Monster Book) and several adventures. They're all very well done, beautifully laid out and illustrated, filled with ideas to spark your imagination. The Campaign Book is especially nice. In addition to discussing at length the various factions I've already mentioned, it also includes a hex-by-hex gazetteer of Dolmenwood. This makes refereeing the game quite easy, as all you need to do is find the hex where the characters currently reside (or through which they're traveling) and read the entry, which usually contains multiple places of interest, major NPCs, and adventure seeds. Truly, this book alone has made refereeing the campaign quite easy. It's a model for what a campaign book should be in my opinion.

There you have it: my brief thoughts on Dolmenwood the RPG and Dolmenwood the setting. If you have any more specific questions, ask me in the comments and I'll do my best to answer them.