Swords Against Madness

Episode 40: In the Land of the Dead Goddess

A summary of Episodes 31-39 Swords Against Madness episode 40 is a summary of the plot from episodes 31 through 39. An opportunity to catch up on the plot or just refresh your memory. It adds nothing to the main plot-line. Music in this Episode From the Free Music Alliance: King Edward by Mister Smith (CC-BY) from the Free Music Archive From Pixabay: “Crossroads” by Alexander Nakarada “Scorched Fields” by Alexander Nakarada “Dark Suspense Trailer” by Nastel Bom “The Enchantress” by OB-LIX “Nepal” by Abydos Music

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Episode 39: California

California 1974: four friends make a strange discovery while star-gazing that kicks off a strange journey across space and time that intersects with Miria’s own journey. The story of three teens in San Benito County, California that discover a meteor that drags them across time & space. This is the origin story of Tom Foreman, creator of the wizard van, and his allies Cyrus and Tina. This episode includes references to or oblique depictions of Sex, Drugs, and Rock & Roll. The World of Xen Interested in my setting bible for Xen? It is a campaign world that includes characters, places, and things from over 25 years of the 41 that I have been playing Dungeons & Dragons. Fin it here it is on my Google Drive. Voice Talent: Craig Husebo as Cyrus Katrina Rideout as Tina Music on this Episode: From the Free Music Alliance: “King Edward” by Mr. Smith a CC-BY song released through the FMA From Suno “Eternal Nightmare Initiation” by Doughnut Elemental From Pixabay: “Acidcore” by Jumping Bunny “Jökull” by Alexander Nakarada “Opus 7” by Kristen Guitar “Orchestral Suspense Scifi Undertone” by Cyberwave “Drawing Desert Heat” by Alesia Davina “Vintage Rock” by Twisterium

Episode 38: Elemental

Crossing the Ashlands of Muspellsheim, Miria and Kale face a being far beyond their ability to fight... Voice Talent: Jon Cohen plays The All-Knowing in this Episode. Music on this Episode: From the Free Music Alliance: "King Edward" by Mr. Smith a CC-BY song released through the FMA From Pixabay: "Acidcore" by Jumping Bunny "Country Rock" by litesaturation "Orchestral Nebula" by Diogodelassivlavsmores "Jack the Lumberer" by Alexander Nakarada "Slabfall" by Vlad Annekov "Battle Metal" by Top_Sue "Awesome Pink Floydish Guitar Riff" by Palle Knudsen "Evidence" by meegistudios See the full show notes at https://swordsvmadness.stormheadproductions.ca for encounter tables, monster stats, and more commentary!

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Episode 37: Warships

Miria and Kale begin a perilous journey through Ice, Fire, and Eternal skies to rescue their fallen friends.

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Episode 36: Detour

Miria goes deep within her mind to commune with the All-Knowing and prepare herself for a dangerous journey.

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Episode 35: A Gateway to the Stars

We turn our attention to Yanghu as he hunts for those who had meddled with his Gorum and Carver tech. This session was played extemporaneously using Swords & Wizardry and the Mythic Game Master Emulator. Sometimes you just want to play the bad guys for a bit, and figure out what the heroes are really up against. The Master The Master was once a gifted and driven chirurgeon called Haidran. His failure to save South Nar from the purple plague drove him halfway to madness. He sought out the ability to perfect himself and discovered Yanghu’s secret cache of Carver Tech. With it he has made himself into a monster. The Master (human Ur-Cleric 9*): HD: 9d6+9; 54 hp; AC 7 [12]; SV: 7; att: Tentacle Orb (2d4+grab); MV: 12″; SQ: spells, +2 save vs. petrification & paralysis, mutations; AL C; Str 14** Int 15 Wis 16 Dex 10 Con 15** Cha 16**; Spells Prepared: 1st: Detect Good, Detect Magic, Darkness; 2nd: Hold Person, Snake Charm, Silence 15′ radius; 3rd: Bestow Curse, Cure Disease; 4th: Cause Serious Wounds; Cure Serious Wounds; 5th: Commune, Finger of Death Mutations: The Master can steal traits from any creature he has captured and experimented on. He can maintain one mutation in his body per two levels. He can change these after a week of research and some time spent in a Carver Surgical Pod. His current mutations include: the paralytic touch of a carrion crawler the ability to phase like a phase spider the immortality of the gorum Carried Equipment: tentacle orb, bracers of defence +2, blowpipe of inhaled poison, fine clothing, spawn of Frix *The Ur-Cleric is the equivalent of a Cleric, but Chaotic in alignment; they have no ability to turn the unholy. They worship themselves only, but make pacts with alien intelligence for their power. **The Master has used the art of flesh-crafting to increase each of these ability scores by 4. He will be able to improve a 3rd ability at level 12, and again at 15th and 18th levels. The Master’s Concubines Master’s Concubine: HD: 5; AC: 5 [14] Att: 4 claws (1d4); SV: 12; Special: speed, mutation; MV: 15; AL: Chaotic; ML: 9; Int: 9; #App: 2d4; CR/ XP: 7 / 600 Women who have been warped and mutated by the Master. They cannot fail morale if they are in The Master’s presence. They have a +1 on initiative. Each one of them possesses a random mutation granted to them by the master: d6Mutation 1Paralytic Touch of the Carrion Crawler 2Phase power of the Phase Spider 3Cloying Pollen of the Yellow Musk Creeper 4Immortality of the Gorum 5Song of a Harpy 6Bite and blood drain of a Giant Tick New Magic Item Tentacle Orb: This object serves as The Master’s unholy symbol. He may cause it to open and tentacles to reach out. These attack, dealing 2d4 damage if they hit. A target that is hit is coiled in tentacles and may not move or take actions except to attempt to break free, which requires a successful save. Music in this Episode “COMBAT: Classic Metal Chugga-Chugga” by Jon Cohen, used with permission. From the Free Music Archive: “King Edward” by Mr. Smith a CC-BY song released through the FMA From Pixabay: “Powerful Stylish Rock (Motivational Indie Rock Trailer)” by Sound for You “Scorched Fields” by Alexander Nakarada “Outlaw’s Reckoning” by Moodmode “This Heavy Metal” by Mr. Claps_ “Hate” by Mr. Claps_ “Game Show” by Mr Claps_ “Earthquake‘ by Leva “Dark Temple (Geisha)” by Yellowbird Beats “Powerful stylish rock” by Sound for You “Dark Pagan Ritual Chant” by Domarti Studios Acidcore” by Jumping Bunny

Episode 34: Crocodile

Edryk, Miria, and Kale face a terrifying onslaught on the dismal beaches of Abzû. This game sues the crocodile stats from Swords & Wizardry, It also delves pretty deep into the Dungeons & Dragons theory of the Soul that was made central to the concept of planar travel in Advanced Dungeons & Dragons starting later in the 1st edition and refined in the Planescape setting. I also wanted to share the Enuma Elish, if you want to read some ancient Mesopotamian myth. Roger Dean’s Cover for the first Asia album self-titled “Asia” was a huge inspiration for the setting of Abzu. I spent a great many hours staring at this album cover and listening to the record when I was a kid. In fact a great deal of the campaign aesthetics in – in my head at least – are inspired by Dean’s art. Roger Dean was a major influence on the aesthetics of the Psychedelic art and music movement and redefined what Fantasy looked like through the 60s and 70’s. I would be remiss if I didn’t send a link to his homepage where you can get prints of this truly amazing work. Abzu Random Encounter Table 3d6categoryEncounter#Mein 3SettlementForlorn Camp*specialSuffering 4SettlementDuregar mining camp**specialFeasting on HER flesh 5IntelligentScorpion Men1d4Worshipping HER 6IntelligentIxitchatil2d10Hunting 7IntelligentBeast Men3d10Digging a burrow 8TravellerJaani2d4Lost 9TravellerNight Hag1Performing Dark Rites 10MonsterGiant Scorpion1d3Frozen in despair 11MonsterLarge Giant Centipede1d6Mating 12MonsterCrocodiles2d6Sleeping 14MonsterSea Serpent1Exploring 14SupernaturalLarvae3d10Tormenting 15SupernaturalShedu1Cultivating HER wisdom through alchemy 16SupernaturalElsewhale1Desperately trying to get elsewhere 17AtmosphericTiamat Stirs***n/aGoing Mad 18AtmosphericStormm/aGrieving Notes *Forlorn Camp: a wretched set of huts of bone, skin, and scale overrun by wasp’s nests. Most inhabitants are dead, but 1d6 diseased and mad cultists linger. **Duregar Mining Camp: 2d10 Duregar oversee 5d20 beast-men slaves in mining scale and bone from Tiamat. ***Tiamat Stirs: The ground shakes and strange omens fill the sky before a deafening scream splits the sky. All creatures must save vs spells or be paralyzed with terror for 1d3 turns. Check for additional encounter. Voice Talent in this Episode: Owen Rideout as The Psisquid Music in this Episode “COMBAT: Classic Metal Chugga-Chugga” by Jon Cohen, used with permission. From the Free Music Archive: “King Edward” by Mr. Smith a CC-BY song released through the FMA From Pixabay: “Apex” by Alexander Nakarada “Scorched Fields” by Alexander Nakarada “Crossroads” by Alexander Nakarada “This Metal” by Mr. Claps “Melodic Metal” by Alex Koff “Powerful stylish rock” by Sound for You “Island of the Lost” by OB-LIX

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Episode 33: Abzu

Miria, Kale, & Edryk cross the shimmering plane of Amber, and then into the darkness of Abzû, beset on all sides by monsters and mysteries. This episode includes a classic Dungeons & Dragons monster: the Aurumvorax, reproduced here based on the stats in the AD&D2e Monstrous Manual for Swords & Wizardry. I did take liberties with the speed of the aurumvorax to make it more of a threat and more weasel-like. Aurumvorax The Aurumvorax or gold-gorger is an eight-legged weasel-like creature about 12′ long. It can burrow through solid rock. The aurumvorax eats gold, which it processes in order to produce teeth, claws, and fur of naturally shaped gold, and its flesh is infused with the metal. Aurumvorax: HD: 12; AC: 0 [19]; Att: bite (2d4 + grab); SV: 3; Special: grab, bludgeoning resistance; MV: 24 or Burrow 3; AL: Neutrality; ML: 11; No. Appearing: 1; CL/XP: 15/5,800 Grab: When an Aurumvorax hits with its bite, its target must make a saving throw or be grabbed. Once an aurumvorax grabs a foe only death can make it let go. At the beginning of each round, the aurumvorax deals 8 bite damage automatically, anc makes 2d4 claw attacks on the target that deal 2d4 damage each, Bludgeoning Resistance: An Aurumvorax takes half damage from bludgeoning attacks. Pelt: An aurumvorax pelt is worth 17,400gp The Amber Random Encounter Table 3d6categoryEncounter#Mein 3WeirdnessChaos Shock Troops*specialMarching to war 4WeirdnessThe Yearning**n/aWeeping 5IntelligentTitan (Lawful)1Creating Beauty 6IntelligentJaani2d3Wandering 7IntelligentArcane1Trading 8HumanoidElves2d10Exploring 9MonsterArumvorax1Foraging 10MonsterArchon1d3Guarding 11MonsterGriffon1d6Hunting 12MonsterLeucrotta1d3Plotting 14HumanoidParagons†2d10Patrolling 14SupernaturalSprite2d4Frolicking 15SupernaturalSirine1d3Resting 16SupernaturalDemon, Greater1Destroying 17AtmosphericSight of the Palace‡n/aBlessing 18AtmosphericScar of Chaos⁰m/aResearching Notes *Chaos Shock Troops: roll 1d6: 1-2: 3d6 Orcs, 3-4: 3d6 Gnolls, 5: 3d10 beast men; 6: 1d6 Ogres; led by an evil fighter level 2d4+2. **The Yearning: All mortals must make a save or feel compelled to rest, stay, and seek service at the castle. They become blissful, being automatically surprised by later encounters, and at -2 to attacks and damage until they leave Amber. If all members of the party fail, they will seek to serve at the castle. †Paragons: Nearly perfect divine reflectiosn of humanity. Generate an adventuring party but all statrs are at 2d4+10, maximum hit points, magical equipment. Loyalty to the Prunces of Amber ‡Sight of the Palace: A view of the crystal palace of Amber. ⁰Scar of Chaos: A rent in reality caused by wars to rule amber. Roll for an encounter from another random plane. Music in this Episode Original Music: “The Colonists’ Shanty” by Brian C. Rideout From the Free Music Alliance: King Edward by Mister Smith (CC-BY) from the Free Music Archive From Pixabay: “Cyberpunk Futuristic City” by INPULSMUSIC “Powerful Stylish Rock (Motivational Indie Rock Trailer)” by Sound for You “Gritty Blues Riff” by Catch-22 Music “Massive 90s Trip-Hop” Musinova “Dead Sci-Fi Ambient” by Everything is Dead “Dark Ambient Soundscape” by DELOsound “Danger” by SergePavkinMusic “Acidcore” by Jumping Bunny

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Episode 32: Cruel

Miria contemplates her past as she, Edryk, and Kale cross the Divine Seed of Amber, a place of beauty, perfection, and cruelty. This episode draws its inspiration from the setting of the Chronicles of Amber by Roger Zelazny, one of the top six inspirations for Dungeons & Dragons listed in AD&D‘s Appendix N. This scifi-dense story is mostly told in flashback. Much of my Scifi elements of my campaign are played using Cepheus Deluxe and White Star: Swords & Wizardry in Space, Galaxy Edition. I also mention a classic D&D monster, the Flail Snail. This issue introduces a race of humanoid cyborgs, The Zaeth. Zaeth: HD: 1; AC: 5 [14]; Att: Sonic Disruptor (1d6); SV: 18; Special: agility, bionics, sonar; MV: 12; AL: Neutrality; ML: 7; No. Appearing: 1d4; CL/XP: 3/90 Agility: Zaeth have thief abilities at a level equivalent to their hit dice. Bionics: Zaeth are immune to poison and disease. Their body temperature is always the same as the room. They cannot be healed with healing magic. Ultrasound: Zaeth can see texture in perfect darkness up to 120 feet away. I am also collecting emails for an AMA bonus epsiode!! Get in touch with me here! Music in this Episode Used with permission: “Classic Metal Chugga Chugga” by Jon Cohen From the Free Music Alliance: King Edward by Mister Smith (CC-BY) from the Free Music Archive From Pixabay: “Opus 7” by Christian D “Crystal” by Tyler Gill “Punk Rock” by Alex Grohl “The Enchantress” by OB-LIX “Turkish Bazaar” by Simon LeGrec “MR Arabian Nights 2” by Antipodean Winter “Dark Suspense Trailer” by Nastel Bom “Japan Background” by Yellow Bird Beats / Tunetank “Cyberpunk Futuristic City” by INPULSMUSIC “Stylish Blues Rock (Wild West)” by Brightest Avenue “Outlaw’s Reckoning” by Moodmode “Acidcore” by Jumping Bunny

Episode 31: Where Time & Space Don’t Really Matter

Miria, Edryk, Kale, The All-Knowing, and the Squid set sail across the Astral plane and discover that it is anything but empty. This episode uses a mix of planar travel rules found in Advanced Dungeons & Dragons, Dungeons & Dragons 3.5e, and the D&D3.5e Planar Handbook, as the players travel across the Astral Plane. It also features a monster from Dungeons & Dragons3.5e: The Elsewhale. Elsewhale Elsewhale: HD: 16; AC: 6 [13]; Att: bite (4d8); SV: 4; Special: plane shift, adaptation, telepathy; MV: swimming 18, flying 18; AL: Neutrality; ML: 9; No. Appearing: 1d3; CL/XP: 20/2,4,400 Elsewhales are magical cetaceans that can be found on almost any plane. They wander the multiverse endlessly in pursuit of their own ineffable ends, devouring astral krakens and other planar creatures. They can sometimes be bribed to carry small groups in their mouths from plane to plane. Elsewhales Originally appeared in the Dungeons & Dragons Planar Handbook. Adaptation: An elsewhale immedatiely adapts to any ambient hazards of a plane, anything within 1′ of the elsewhale’s hide is likewise protected. An elsewhale can create a bubble of breathable hair that can last for 4 hours in its mouth. Plane Shift: An Elsewhale can cast plane shift at will. Telepathy: An elsewhale can communicate with any creature within 100′ that is capable of using language. Music in this Episode From the Free Music Alliance: King Edward by Mister Smith (CC-BY) from the Free Music Archive From Pixabay: “Opus 7” by Christian D “Psychedelic Atmospheric Dream Guitar” by Sonican “Stylish Blues Rock (Wild West)” by Brightest Avenue “Outlaw’s Reckoning” by Moodmode “Psychedelic Atmospheric Dream Guitar” by Sonican “Dark Ambiental Experiments” by Natarjan Connection Western Duel Rock by Abydos Music “The Collapse” by Alexander Nakarada “Dark Pagan Ritual Chant” by DOMARTI-LAB “Saffron Skies” by Lumine Wave “Sands of Alba” by Lumine Wave “Culprit Massacre” by Alexander Nakarada “Crystal” by Tyler Gill Awesome Pink Floydish Guitar by Palle1958 “Acidcore” by Jumping Bunny

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Episode 30: Strange Journeys

A summary of Episodes 21-29. Swords Against Madness episode 30 is a summary of the plot from episodes 21 through 29. An opportunity to catch up on the plot or just refresh your memory. It adds nothing to the main plot-line. Cast This episode includes performances by: Jon Cohen from Tale of the Manticore Music in this Episode From the Free Music Alliance: King Edward by Mister Smith (CC-BY) from the Free Music Archive REVELATION by Soularflare (CC-BY) from the Free Music Archive From Pixabay: “Acidcore” by Jumping Bunny

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Bonus: Bullets Against Madness 1: Wahpettons

This is a special bonus episode of Swords Against Madness featuring my new TTRPG, Undeadwood: Weird West RPG. Follow the Lost Soul Carson Swift, as he tries to help a bounty hunter track down a stolen item, only to be dragged into a battle between a powerful land-owner and a dark cult of alien mystics. This episode is played using my Undeadwood: Weird West TTRPG system, and its dark, American folklore-enriched setting of Wonkatonkwa County. The game is available on DriveThruRPG. You can also learn more about it through the game development podcast, Dead Man’s Dice, and on my weblog: Welcome to the Deathtrap. All music and Sound Effects are courtesy of Pixabay.

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Episode 29: Wizard Wagon

Miria, Edryk, and Kale finally reach the place where the All-Knowing believes there is a means to travel to the planes. The object they discover is far stranger than anything they could have imagined. In this session I reference the amazing role-playing game Dungeon Crawl Classics RPG from Goodman Games. DCC catches the strange psychedelic vibe of the books that inspired D&D – and Swords Against Madness – better than any other game on the market. It also borrows some rules for planar travel and plane shifting from Advanced Dungeons & Dragons and Dungeons & Dragons 3rd Edition to fill in the gaps in the Swords & Wizardry rule-set. Magic Item: The Wizard Van The Wizard Van is an enchanted 1974 Ford Econoline with air-brushed fantasy art on the sides and comfortable couches in the back. It is fuelled by magic-user spells. Each level of spell cast into its Flux Capacitor provides two hours of fuel. The van can shift to the Astral Plane by using 2 hours of fuel. It can also fly at 55 miles per hour, but has a ceiling of 50ft. and consumes twice as much fuel. Some Inspiration I mentioned the song Wizard Wagon by Glitter Wizard; if you want to check out this awesome (if explicit) song, you can hear it here! Cast This episode includes performances by: Jon Cohen from Tale of the Manticore Owen Rideout of The Boy in the Submarine Music in this Episode From the Free Music Alliance: King Edward by Mister Smith (CC-BY) from the Free Music Archive AI Generated Pieces: Fire up the Wizard Van by Doughnut Elemental (That’s me!) From Pixabay: “Stylish Blues Rock (Wild West)” by Brightest Avenue “Outlaw’s Reckoning” by Moodmode “Night Detective (no beats)” by Amaksi “Deep Forest” By NNChannel “Psychedelic Atmospheric Dream Guitar” by Sonican “Acidcore” by Jumping Bunny

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Episode 28: Friend

The party may have destroyed the Dread Silkworm, a half-giant-caterpillar-half-god monster… but there are still more creatures devouring the juju garden, and a mission to fulfill. This episode opens with rounds 8-14 of a brutal gruelling battle! The Dread Silkworm may have fallen, but it is far from the only threat that the party was facing! This is an AI-free episode of Swords Against Madness. Cast This episode includes performances by: Jon Cohen from Tale of the Manticore Music in this Episode From the Free Music Alliance: King Edward by Mister Smith (CC-BY) from the Free Music Archive Used with special permission: Combat Cookie Tin by Jon Cohen From Pixabay: Aggressive Metal (Sinister) by Brightest Avenue Cybertech (Tense News Background) by Tune Tank “Stylish Blues Rock (Wild West)” by Brightest Avenue “Outlaw’s Reckoning” by Moodmode Magical Ritual Shaman Amazonian Indian by Denis-Pavlov Music Night Detective (no beats) by Amaksi Interstellar Dark by Lumine Wave Undeadwood: Weird West RPG Sometimes folks head out West, and just fall off the edge of the world. They end up here. Wonkatonkwa County. They just show up, confused, frightened, missing a year off their life with no idea where it went. A place full of walking dead, prehistoric monsters, black magic. t takes a special kind of grit to make your way here. You gotta be crazy, or nearly so just to make sense of what you are seeing. And if you weren’t crazy before, circumstance will be happy to oblige you. Best thing to do is get yourself a gun, and sober up the preacher so that he can give it a proper blessing, then find yourself something to hold on To. A bible. A bottle. It don’t really matter which… After all, You ain’t in Texas anymore. Undeadwood: Weird West is a dark weird west game that doesn’t take itself too seriously. It embraces some of the stranger, more offbeat elements of American Folklore. Along with the devils, ghosts, cursed treasure, and mad scientists, you can expect to see hodags, jackalopes, and thunderbirds. My goal is to play a game that has all the action and grit of a pulp Western story from Lariat or Triple-X, but fused with the humorously macabre of The Addams Family or Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Played using 2d6. And featuring work from some of the greatest artists to ever grace the pages of pulp western magazines. Now available on DriveThruRPG

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Episode 27: Silkworm

The party attempts to help the Nilkin clear the Ravenous Caterpillars from their sacred garden, only to find the threat is much greater than anyone anticipated. Mythic Game Master Emulator throws a number of crazy curve-balls at the PCs this session, showing just how wild and unpredictable it can make a game become… …Especially when you are willing to truly let your imagination run wild with the prompts it creates. This is the first fully AI free episode of Swords Against Madness. Cast This episode includes performances by: Jon Cohen from Tale of the Manticore Carl White from The Lone Adventurer This episode includes two home-brewed monsters. Ravening Caterpillar Ravening Caterpillar: HD: 4; AC: 4 [15]; Att: bite (d6) or silk (ranged, entangle); SV: 15; Special: poison spines, regeneration; MV: 3; AL: Neutrality; ML: 7; No. Appearing: 1d4; CL/XP: 8/900 poison spines: any creature attacking a ravenous caterpillar with a melee or natural weapon takes 1d2 damage and must save (at +2) vs. poison or die. regeneration: regains 1 hp at the beginning of every round, cannot regenerate damage done by fire or acid. Silk: has a range of 60′. A hit target is entangled and may not move unless it first makes a save to break free. The Dread Silkworm The Dread Silkworm: HD: 6 (27 hp); AC: 4 [15]; Att: bite (d8) or silk (ranged, entangle); SV: 15; Special: poison spines, regeneration, spells; MV: 3; AL: Neutrality; ML: 10; No. Appearing: 1 (unique) CL/XP: 11/2,400 poison spines: any creature attacking a ravenous caterpillar with a melee or natural weapon takes 1d2 damage and must save vs. poison or die. regeneration: regains 1 hp at the beginning of every round, cannot regenerate damage done by fire or acid. silk: has a range of 60′. A hit target is entangled and may not move unless it first makes a save to break free. spells: Casts spells as a 5th level Druid. Spells prepared: 1st level: Faerie Fire, Entangle, Darkness; 2nd: web; 3rd: plant growth Music in this Episode From the Free Music Alliance: King Edward by Mister Smith (CC-BY) from the Free Music Archive From Pixabay: “Zulu Sunrise” by LumineWeave “Acid Lands” by Emmeraan “The Wanderer” by OB-LIX “Deep Forest” By NNChannel “Brain Implant” by Soundbay “War Metal” by Lite Saturation “Suspense Tension Background” by DELOSound “Heavy Cyberpunk Metal” by Bertsz “Stylish Blues Rock (Wild West)” by Brightest Avenue “Outlaw’s Reckoning” by Moodmode “Dark Marimba” by Grand_Project “Valhalla” by Nakaradalexander “Acidcore” by Jumping Bunny

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Episode 26: The Nilkin

The Party joins the mysterious wild halflings, the Nilkin, in their village in hopes that the local shaman might be able to help them find the planar travel device. The Nilkin are not as firendly as they might seem, and have a dangerous task that needs doing. This episode of Swords Against Madness includes a discussion of the Dungeons & Dragons module Hot Springs Island by Jacob Hurst et al. at Swordfish Islands. This age-of-sail tropical island hexcrawl has set the standard for me for adventure design and I used many of its monsters and encounters in designing Nar. It consists of two books: A Field Guide to Hot Springs Island and the Dark of Hot Springs Island, although some of the dungeons included are also sold separately as The Lapis Observatory and Toxic Elvish Smut. Monsters mentioned in today’s episode included: Kuji Bird: HD: 3+3; AC 2 [17]; Bite: 1d4; MV: 12; SV: 16; AL: N; ML: 7; CL/XP: 3/60 Kujibirds have naturally ocurring gold feathers and talons. A kuji bird’s body is worth 300gp. Wild Halflings: HD: 1d6; AC 6 [13]; Atk: sling (1d3) or short sword (1d6); SV: 19; AL: N; ML: 8; CL/XP: B/10 Plant Zombie: HD: 2; AC 5 [14]; Atk: slam (1d6); SV: 17; AL: N; ML: 11; CL/XP: 1/15 Music in this Episode From the Free Music Alliance: King Edward by Mister Smith (CC-BY) from the Free Music Archive From Pixabay: “Dark Intentions” by UniversField “Zulu Sunrise” by LumineWeave “Technology Game App Marimba informational Music” by Denis-Pavlov Music “Hyper Adventure Action” by Sonican “Bloom, Spice Mirage” bu ODennehy “Dark Magic Music” by Onetent courtesy of Pixabay Generated with Suno Reign of Shadows Eternal Nightmare Initiation

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Episode 25: The Devouring Wilderness

Miria, Edryk, Raxon, Berle, & Kale brave the untamed norther jungles of Nar, to find that the wilderness itself seems to hunger for them… This episode features a reinterpretation of the Vine Horror from the epic Dungeon Crawl Classic RPG module Sailors on the Starless Sea, a legendary module that helped define DCCRPG and secure it as the most popular Old-School RPG around. It also features my Swords & Wizardry adaptation of the Kuji Bird from the equally epic (and edition agnostic) D&D module Hot Springs Island. Creatures in this Episode Strangling Vine: HD: 2; AC: 6[13]; Atk: vine (1d3 + grab); Special: grab, strangle; MV: 5; SV: 17; AL: N; ML: 10; CL/XP: 3/60 When a strangling vine hits with a vine attack the target becomes tangled in the vine. They automatically take 1d3 damage on the strangling vine’s turn until the Strangling Vine is destroyed, another character spends a round cutting them free or they take an action and succeed a saving throw to break free on their own. Kuji Bird: HD: 3+3; AC 2 [17]; Bite: 1d4; MV: 12; SV: 16; AL: N; ML: 7; CL/XP: 3/60 Kujibirds have naturally ocurring gold feathers and talons. A kuji bird’s body is worth 300gp. Wild Halflings: HD: 1d5; AC 6 [13]; Atk: sling (1d3) or short sword (1d6); SVL 19; AL: N; ML: 8; CL/XP: B/10 Music in this Episode From the Free Music Alliance: King Edward by Mister Smith (CC-BY) from the Free Music Archive From Pixabay: Underwater Mysterious Ambient by Harumachi Music Awesome Pink Floydish Guitar by Palle1958 Dark and Suspenseful Atmosphere by SoulProdMusic Words of a Sermon No One will Hear, Ambient Nod to Elanor Rigby by ODennehy Western Duel Rock by Abydos Music Iron Cathedral by JYProject A Place of Calm and Wonder by UniqueCreativeAudio Midnight Quirk by Top-Flow Ominous Tones by UniversField Deadite Ash vs Evil Dead Song by Anon Generated with Suno Reign of Shadows Eternal Nightmare Initiation

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Episode 24: The Pirate’s Tale

With the help of the All-Knowing, Miria delves into the terrors of Haalu’s mind to learn more about the cruel and enigmatic Master. This episode includes an encounter with a monster that in Swords and Wizardry is referred to as a Carrion Worm. Other pseudonyms have included the Carcass Crawler, Corpse Worm, and Tentacled Horror, but they all refer to one classic and horrifying Dungeons & Dragons monster: The Carrion Crawler. The Carrion crawler gets multiple attacks around, each doing only 1hp, but each requiring a save or the unfortunate character becomes paralyzed. On a bad round, the Carrion Crawler can paralyze an entire party, and finish them off at is leisure. They are one of the most feared terrors of D&D for good reason! The Music in this Episode includes: “COMBAT COOKIE TIN” by Jon Cohen, used with permission “King Edward” by Mr. Smith (CC-BY) couresy of the Free Music Archive “Bury it Deep” by Alana Jordan courtesy of Pixabay “Ominous Tones” by UniversField “Dark Intentions” by UniversField “Dark Magic Music” by Onetent courtesy of Pixabay “Serpentine” by SoularFlare

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Episode 23: The Surgeon’s Tale

The Miria, Edryk, Berle, Raxon, and Kale have their showdown with Haalu; we explore a piece of Edryk’s past, where it crosses with doctor Haidran. This episode includes my quick and dirty rules for fighting manoeuvres in OSR games: Roll your attack as normal. If you hit, the DM will cut damage dealt in half or down to 0. The effect goes through. In the case of grappling, the target cannot move or use a weapon bigger than a dagger until they make a save to break free, If they cannot break free they become pinned and helpless until they are released. The Music in this Episode includes: “COMBAT COOKIE TIN” by Jon Cohen, used with permission “Fallen” by Mr. Smith (CC-BY) “Cave 1” by HolzinaCC0 (CC-BY) “A Scar on Your Soul” by Soularflare (CC0) “Emergent Phenomena” by Soularflare (CC0) “Spirit Elixir Drunkard” by Megalith Levitation (CC0)

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Episode 22: Spiders & Flies

The party makes a narrow escape. Miria, Edryk, Raxon, Berle, and Kale secretly prepare for treachery. This episode includes an encounter with a classic Dungeons & Dragons monster that isn’t included in Swords & Wizardry: the Phase Spider. The version I used was from one of my all-time favourite D&D resources, the AD&D2e Monstrous Manual. With a massive selection of Monsters from the first 30 years of D&D from the true classics to the extremely bizarre with amazing art, including David A. Trampier and Tony Di’Terlizzi!

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