We’re in a golden age for TTRPG releases – there’s so much out there, and something for everyone’s developing tastes. With kickstarter and other crowdfunders making it easier to get games out, it’s inevitable that someone like me who chases after the new shiny things will end up letting some games drop unjustly. Here are four of my games that were formative to me (most predate this blog) – and what I like about them. Should I get them back to the convention table, maybe in 2024? Let’s see…
Continue reading →The “How To” book the Hobby’s Been Waiting For – Review: So You Want to be a Game Master?
For a hobby with a lot of techniques and ideas to master, we’re terribly short of advice books. Aside from a wealth of excellent blogs, there’s really only the occasional book that looks at how to start GMing. The chapters in RPG books can be variable at best, and there’s a lot to the craft of GMing.
One of the best blogs out there for GM advice is The Alexandrian, and Justin Alexander has focussed a lot of his thoughts from there, and expanded on them, to release “So You Want to be a Game Master?” – a book focused on taking you right from the beginning of prep to running successful games.
Continue reading →The Clockwork Citadel – a one-shot for Fabula Ultima
I’ve been grooving on Fabula Ultima, a JRPG-style system with simple, flexible rules, since it released. As well as a nifty set of rules, it also has hands down the best quickstart I’ve ever seen, which takes players and GM through the rules, setting, and play culture of the game hand in hand and step by step.
Continue reading →Diceless Doom – Review: HUNT
From Spencer Campbell’s GILA RPG’s, home of the LUMEN system, comes HUNT – a diceless one-shot system of doomed beast-hunting knights. It’s a flavourful mix of shared narration and tactical combat, and well worth checking out if you want a one-shot narrative system to use at a convention or game night.
Continue reading →Guiding the Ironlands – how to run Ironsworn as a One-Shot
Ironsworn, Shawn Tomkin’s RPG of dark fantasy with solo, guided, and GMless modes, is one of the most exciting releases to the hobby in recent years. With its sci fi sequel, Starforged, now established it’s beginning to get some decent play on the convention circuit – and it plays really well with a GM (in ‘guided’ mode) as well. So here are some tips if you want to get it to the table.
Continue reading →The Fire In Men’s Hearts – a mystery for Vaesen
Vaesen: Spirits and Monsters of Mythic Ukraine is a fantastic, pay what you want, supplement for Vaesen that brings a wide range of Vaesen from Ukraine to the game. Illustrated by a selection of artists, it’s a good old fashioned bestiary. Each Vaesen has several plot hooks and ideas, and there’s a real range here.
After meeting Tasha and Oleg from Idea Roll over at The Kraken, at Unconventional GMs we recorded a mystery based on one of the Vaesen from the book, and here’s my (largely unedited) prep notes to run the mystery. The recording is over on the channel here – it comes in at just over 2 hours of play, although it could easily be a 3-4 hour game with a bit less pushing and pace. Over on the channel we’re trying to demonstrate how much you can pack into 2 hours – at your own table you may want to luxuriate a bit.
Continue reading →Bandits! Bandits! – an underrated low-level antagonist
Prepping a low-level fantasy adventure? Then you need to realise that the ultimate antagonists aren’t goblins, orcs, or kobolds – but bandits! Too often an extra in the TTRPG space, they can and should be the centre of your prep.
Continue reading →Chang’an Critter Carnival – a Ready-to-Run Feng Shui 2 One-Shot
Apologies for the slight delay in posts – in short, I got covid just as I started a new job. But normal service resumes! Here, a one-shot set in the Ancient juncture for Feng Shui 2 that was originally prepped to run for Robin Laws himself! (Sadly, his attendance at Kraken was prevented)
As before, I’ve presented this pretty much as-prepped – feedback earlier was that this sort of rough-and-ready style wasn’t a problem, and gave some insight into what prep notes could actually look like – so enjoy and let me know if you’d like more ‘official’ stuff instead.
Continue reading →Hit The YouTube!
Just a short update here, but I wanted to share some news that’s been teased for a while – Unconventional GMs has launched!
Unconventional GMs is a collaboration between me and Gaz from The Smart Party podcast, where we produce short, snappy one-shots showcasing some of the techniques we blog and/or talk about on our shows. Episodes are 2 hours long, with minimal editing, and have a rotating roster of players.
While you’re reading this, I should tell you about my Patreon. Patrons get access to content 7 days before they hit this site, the chance to request articles or content, and the chance to play in one-shot games, for a very reasonable backer level of £2 per month. If you like what you read, want to support the blog, and have the funds for it, please consider supporting here. Telling people about the blog, and sharing links/retweeting is much appreciated also – thanks!
So far we’ve released games of Ironsworn: Starforged and Candela Obscura (check out my blog post about the latter here), and the first part of a short campaign of Odyssey Aquatica, an Agon hack where you play oceanographic explorers. Sessions of Deathmatch Island, 13th Age Glorantha, Vaesen, and even D&D are scheduled for release – and if there’s anything you’d like to see us tackle, let us know in the comments or on twitter!
Release schedule is every two weeks, but we’ve put a few eps out first to give you all something to watch.
As well as this, both me and Gaz, and Ben (the other half of the smart party) led a seminar at The Kraken game convention in Germany last week, where we designed a scenario from audience prompts in an hour. Watch out for the actual scenario appearing on here soon!
Similarly, as a patron bonus, I’m going to start putting my convention notes for scenarios up on the Patreon – so if that’s something you’d like to see, be sure to join, as £2/$3 a month gets you access to not only these but access to blog posts 7 days early.
Into the Wasps Nest – a 13th Age Glorantha One-Shot
I’ve just got back from The Kraken, the best 5 days in gaming, in Germany. I ran two 13th Age Glorantha games, and this is one I didn’t run but took along with me. I ran it first five years ago at the Furnace convention, and it’s a great way to use one of 13th Age’s ‘signature monsters,’ the Goblin Bat Cavalry, in a Glorantha game. So here it is!
It’s balanced for 5 2nd level adventurers; Patrons have access to a set of pregens for this, which makes it truly ‘ready-to-run’.
Patrons get access to content 7 days before they hit this site, the chance to request articles or content, and the chance to play in one-shot games, for a very reasonable backer level of £2 per month. If you like what you read, want to support the blog, and have the funds for it, please consider supporting here. Telling people about the blog, and sharing links/retweeting is much appreciated also – thanks!
Into the Wasps’ Nest
A 13th Age in Glorantha Adventure for 5 2nd-level PCs
first played at Furnace 2018
Introduction
Deep into the siege of Whitewall, your Sartarite comrades hold strong against the coming hordes outside. But rumours of the Crimson Bat awakening mean they are in dire need of air support, and so the heroes are dispatched to find out what happened to the Wasp Riders, pygmy riders of giant wasps. The last person to deal with them, you realise, is the hero Crontas – but he was last seen heading towards Troll Woods to broker a peace with the trolls there. Can you rescue Crontas and escort him to negotiate with the Wasp Riders?
Dramatis Personae
Orana is the current leader of the Sartarites in Whitewall. A tall, stout woman, she smokes a pipe filled with pungent tobacco and, while determined to never surrender to the Lunars, is a pragmatist – which is why she favours sending the heroes to negotiate instead of her soldiers
Crontas is a ‘legendary’ duck hero. He talks a bit like Peter Falk in Columbo, and is incredibly cowardly until he is persuaded or flattered into action. He’s a lovable goof, but a little older and calmer (if not wiser) than he has been in other adventures.
Gruk is the leader of a band of Kitori trolls in the Troll Woods. He has adopted Crontas as a jester, and doesn’t want him to leave.
Essa and Iva are the rightful leaders of the wasp riders. They are currently under the sway of their older, and angrier, brother Yani. They are friendly with Crontas, but have been captured by their brother
Yani is an exceptionally short, even for a pygmy, wasp rider who was insulted by Crontas when he last visited Wasp Nest. He has taken over leadership of the tribe and wants nothing to do with the Sartarites.
Scene One – In Whitewall, The Heroes
Whitewall is a near-impregnable fortress that is currently surrounded by a half-hearted Lunar army legion. The Lunars are just about able to maintain the siege, but it is certain that Whitewall has enough defences and supplies to hold out for years if needed. Orana summons the heroes to her war chambers, filled with tobacco smoke, and explains the circumstances.
She needs to be able to call on the wasp riders for aerial support, and they are currently refusing and contact. The last ‘diplomat’ she sent was most recently sent into Troll Woods, so she wants them to make contact with him, persuade him to accompany them to Wasp Nest, and negotiate with the wasp riders.
She begins by asking the heroes of their previous heroics – each player should recount a tale of their band, in which they made a heroic act, finishing off each others tales. With this, they are sent on their way.
Scene Two – Lunar breakout
If needed, and if time allows, the heroes encounter Lunar resistance as they exit Whitewall through the tunnels. At 2nd level, this is six Dara Happan Legionaires and a Dara Happan Veteran (p310-311 of the 13G book)
Scene Three – Into Troll Woods
The heroes must now venture into the Troll Woods. These woods are full of Kitori trolls, humans that transform into trolls. Ask for a relevant DC 15 background check – success means they are able to creep up on Crontas, failure means they are ambushed and taken by the trolls to their leader, Gruk.
At Gruk’s cave, they see Crontas – an energetic Duck armed with a wooden broadsword – demonstrating his heroics to a group of onlooking Trolls, who chortle and applaud every time they hear a good bit. A DC 15 background check will reveal that they are much more laughing at him than with him.
Crontas is keen that his roll as ambassador to the Kitori trolls is vital – he is educating him in the ways of the world, just like Lhankor Mhy would. He even shows them a ridiculous beard he has fashioned for himself. He must be persuaded to accompany them – the trolls are much more fun than the serious wasp riders – even though he has been there before and will speak of Essa and Iva, and his great friend Yan, from his time with them.
It’s possible that they will have to break Crontas out if they manage to offend the trolls; if that’s the case, here’s a troll squad ready to fight. It’s 3 dark troll warriors and a troll spirit priestess (13G p295-296). These could also be an encounter on the way out of the forest, if time allows or the players look like they need it.
Scene Four – The Approach to Wasps Nest
Crontas tells them that a frontal approach to Wasp Nest is suicide – the wasp riders defend their borders forcefully, and he isn’t sure that they’ll recognise him even though the are of course great friends. He instead suggests skirting round the foothills near Dragonrise; there have been increased chaos incursions there, which mean both the Kitori and the Wasp Riders are probably steering clear.
Run this scene as a montage as in the GM’s kit. They start in the midst of thick forest with warring troll tribes all around them; they will hit the foothills soon. Any and all chaos beasts – even dragonewts – are fair game, but there will be no skill checks made.
Scene Five – Ziggurat of the Wasp Riders
As the players approach Wasp Nest, they are greeted and warned by a pygmy who approaches them – she is Essa, living out in exile. She tells them that Yan has taken control of the throne and has forbidden the wasp riders from having any contact with humans – or especially Ducks. Crontas is confident that him and Yan were great friends, but he does admit that he was sometimes the butt of his jokes. Essa pleads with them to defeat Yan and free her sister Iva, who is being held captive after she stood up to him.
They can confront Yan at the throne room. As they challenge him, Wasps Swarm around and they must face his elite guard.
The fight is with 5 wasp-riders and 1 wasp rider shaman – this could be a tough battle, so be prepared to adjust on the fly if needed. Wasp-rider stats are from the 13th Age Bestiary – p235-6 have the monster list with references for them.
Scene Six – Return to Whitewall
With Essa and Iva restored as the leaders of Wasp Nest, they are happy to lend their aid to Whitewall – the heroes can return atop the giant wasps as they see another huge red bat appear in the distance!
Burn After Running: RPG One-Shots 