Rescue of Princess Phoedra released for Olympia!

Last year, at the height of the quarantine, I was busy putting together the first adventure set in Olympia. It was a work that featured a lot of discovery. Discovering what was different between Olympia and Akhamet and Saggakar and Rhym.

Writing this adventure forced me to ask myself the question: what do I need from the setting to write this adventure? how can I showcase unique elements of this?

I would not have completed Olympia had I not completed this adventure actually. I ran a first version of the adventure for the (FOEPatreon) in August or September of 2020.

After the first version, I went back into it later, having written Olympia. It was fun to revisit this adventure.

I wondered for a long time whether I should include this adventure for this past Gencon, settling in at the last moment to the story of King Kreon.

A good choice in the end.

Get is now on DriveThruRPG!

Early Firearms released on DM's Guild

Let me preface this post by saying that I am not a gun enthusiast. I am a history fan and a D&D fan (if you don't know, how are you here???). So when I began thinking of ways to add early firearm. I'm talking 16-17th century firearms, the era of high chivalry into the musketeers.

Ahhhh musketeers, definitely on my list of favorite books ever.

So I got to thinking to myself: how can I make guns useful in the game without becoming an exercise in gun crafting and handling. I put my ideas on "paper" and refined them. This product is the result of all those thoughts, iterated a few times.

And a few others.

In the end, the book provides a concise series of weapons PCs are likely to use. So muskets, pistols, blunderbuss, and small artillery like swivel guns. Things a party are like to use themselves.

If I could publish this under GOSTOR, this fits right in with the others. However, since the DM's Guild does not allow me to use that imprint...

So you won't find naval guns or battery cannons here. They may be the object of future products.

Get it today and add some boom to your game on the DM's Guild!

FOE writing update Oct 2021

It's been a while since I posted a writing update. So here goes. These are the bigger products FOE is actively working on.

- Olympia Adventures With the success of Olympia, I plan on releasing some of the adventures I used as I playtested the campaign world, and the two original Gencon adventures, part of King Kreon's Woe series. Expect those starting in November.

- Ozaka Campaign Add-on This is an idea that germinated as I was putting the finishing touches on Olympia about a place inspired by ancient Japan that could be dropped into any campaign setting. Not a full setting by itself, but something to throw a curveball to your players.

- Princes a race book for 5e that complements Princesses with Ibsen-Z we have been arguing over "what does THIS prince do?" for a while now. Fun stuff.

- Service is Eternal (Redux) When I first published Service is eternal for Pathfinder, I was still very new at this and when I returned from Gencon, I looked over the book and... well I did not like it. FOE products have really improved since then. Not only in the quality of text and format, but especially in the quality of art. That book is an expansion of the First Ones so they are less tied to the world of Saggakar and more of the universal threat they have been in (almost) everything FOE published.

- Witches of Pikemaster A campaign for levels ~3-10 I have been inflicting on my group for a few month now. Witches + Inquisition type of story, with influence from Hammer movies, Salem witch trials, and classic D&D. This is going to be a big campaign (over 120 pages). Prepare to meet some very classic characters, travel the planes, and decide the ultimate fate of Pikemaster...

- Gencon Specials and adventures Yes, we are already working on Gencon material for next year!

Lost Pyramid of Neferheket reaches copper on DriveThruRPG

It seems that not that long ago, that I put down the first lines of what became the "Lost Pyramid". I remember that time well. I had just lost my job and was looking for one and desperation was setting in. It seems that those times produce some of the most creative products.

The Lost Pyramid is an adventure I wrote when I started Akhamet. It was written before the setting even had a name. I took the adventure to multiple cons, using it to introduce new people to the setting. It has a little bit of everything that makes Akhamet the awesome setting.

It is, in effect, a trip down memory lane for me. The adventure remains a solid one with many fun surprises, even for veteran explorers who have seen it all.

It is available today on DriveThru RPG.

Akhamet Player's Guide Reaches copper!

I cannot believe I missed this but a few days ago, the Akhamet Player's Guide reached copper Best-Seller level on DriveThruRPG! I keep two copies of the book (both WIP) next to me here as my immediate reference for my weekly Akhamet game (Shout-out to the gang!)

This is a big event as I have a few Akhamet books in the works: magic items, spells, and new monsters! I've been working on that next book on and off for a while now and its exact content is always evolving, as is its title.

If you don't have your copy, get it now on DriveThruRPG.com.

Akhamet: Two Numru

Those two characters were painted to represent the Akhamet iconic wizard, Futeb the Scholar. He is a character that may not get as much love as I think he should. He's a tough cookie - litterally as numru as hardy folk who like their goat-head are survivors. They make good wizards.

These miniatures are from Crocodile Games.

[Release] Demonic Forces II: Graz'zt's Entourage Released on DM's Guild

I am happy to announce the release of a new product, Demonic Forces II: Graz'zt's Entourage.

These creatures were originally designed for the upcoming Witches of Pikemaster (currently being play-tested). I will have more information about this one a later time, with the British Shark doing a wonderful cover. Can't wait to unveil it.

The armies of the Abyss are formed of demonic humanoids, like the blighted. Three new demons to ravage and destroy the Prime Material plane and the planes beyond.

- The Caprazau, brutal demonic warriors
- The Dark Cherubs, vile monstrous children
- The sensual and fast Lantazu.

…and three named demons to lead them for the glory of the Dark Prince.
- The Avatar of Graz'zt
- The Oracular Glabrezy Red Hierophant
- Graz'zt Herald, the caryatid gargoyle Zeravina

Check it out and let me know what you think.

[Kinda Book Report] Glen Cook's Water Sleeps

Way back in 2019, before everything stopped, I was lucky enough to meet Glen Cook and buy the final omnibus of the Black Company. In both my 2013 and 2014 retrospectives, I reported that I did not enjoy that the previous offerings. Going so far as nothing that I don't think I will read any more of this series [...]. The characters become stale and boring.

The sequel is Water Sleeps. This installment is very much a transition book, setting up the final mega climax of the series. Truth be told as much as I disliked the previous, this one seemed to provide more answers than the previous two which did not answer anything. They were just a slow build-up, building up towards nothing.

Water Sleeps moves to the endgame. Finally some answers are given, and though not everything is revealed, the final book, Soldiers Live should be filled with explosions and world-shattering events. I can't wait to read it.

I said the previous characters were stale... Well now most of them are gone! And ten years have passed! And the Black Company is "no more."

Okay Glen, you have my attention. I'm reading.

My one strike against this one is that it FEELS like a setup for the next book rather than a complete story. Most of the threads are still on-going, and we see a few resolution.

So a score?

I was stumped. This was NOT the best book ever, but I enjoyed it more than a little. So I did the following: I went to my list of other ratings on this blog and looked at the entries. Comparing to others, I can give this one a 4/5.

Yes, I will read the next installment in the series! I have an omnibus!

[Kinda Book Report] Avengers West Coast: Sins of the Past

I never read the West Coast Avengers during its first run. Frankly, I did not care about it AND none of its members really drew me to read the series.

So this was my introduction to the series, something I was looking to. This book covers issues 10-16 and Avengers Annual #15 and WAC Annual #1.

One thing I like is the storytelling style of the Jim Shooter era at Marvel. Regardless of when you start, the issue is a jumping off point to the series. The art is fine and the stories are okay.

My biggest with it is that as a group, they do not have the power to do much more than beat up on people: no mystic, no energy-blaster, and no alien (Wonderman being the oddest one in the bunch, and Tigra's powers are those of a tiger...). It is the most mundane group of superheroes I read in forever.

I got annoyed when the plot took the WCA to some hellish region, but they could do nothing, having to turn to Hellcat and the Son of Satan (from the defunct Defenders) who became protagonists for a few issues.

The Annual had an interesting plot until the reveal when you go: WHAT!? And again the resolution was made by non-active members. However how the two teams work together to resolve the problem is interesting and the pace does not let up.

Giving a score put me in a quandary. Storytelling was entertaining, but the team has nothing unique about it. The characters are randomly assembled. Yet the plot moves forward and is interesting. That made me settle for a 2.5, rounding it up to 3/5.

Will I buy another title? Maybe, but without enthusiasm.