My friend John is doing a cross-blog community project called From the Zones. Folks are describing weird places, things and notions set in the universe(s) of the novel Roadside Picnic and the movie Stalker. Here’s a contribution from me: a … Continue reading
Tag Archives: twelves
This is an amphora, like many used for shipping food, oil or other commodities. There are only two things that distinguish it from a thousand other amphorae: An ancient, extravagant script and glyph are inscribed on it; and A mud … Continue reading
The adventurers come across an uncanny mound in the forest. It sits next to the barely-worn deer path. Its shape suggests an artificial origin, but it has no stones or other markers nearby. It sits on higher ground, overlooking a … Continue reading
How do you invoke an enchanted item? I always want magic to be evocative, and to help the players become more invested in the situation. For those reasons, just saying “I use my staff on the bad guy” seems… boring. … Continue reading
For an enchanted item to have amazing powers is fun. But at least as much fun can be discovering the history of the object. Finding out that your sword makes a high-pitched keening sound when you’re near water is neat, … Continue reading
This staff, about seven feet tall, is made of gnarled ancient wood. Embedded in the tip is what appears to be a miniature castle tower, made of stone. The tower is fully crenelated and even has a few small windows … Continue reading
This warhammer is made from good materials (it is Quality +2), and has four deep red gems set into it. In a darkened place, you may notice that the gems have small glows inside them like nearly-cold embers. Possibilities: In … Continue reading
This is a B&C adventure I’ve used a couple times with different groups as a one-shot, and it’s gone quite well. If you haven’t played in this adventure yet and might, you probably shouldn’t read below the divider! The PCs … Continue reading
Happy New Year! And happy holiday festival of the moment to PCs in any of your game worlds. Festivals can be tremendously useful in RPGs; here are some of the things I’ve found them handy for. One of the biggest … Continue reading
At some point in their travels, the PCs find a silvery ring with a single hemispherical star sapphire mounted in it. The star seems to dance and shift depending on the angle it’s viewed at. The metal of the ring … Continue reading