frog-and-rat - Tumblr blog

[frog-and-rat]

I asked my kid to also write his version of our ShadowDark game.

SHADOWDARK GAME JOURNAL:

EPB 10-1-23

The Party was Trudging through the forest looking for the town of [Town name here]

When they find a ruin. After exploring the ruin they find treasure and a trapdoor leading down to a cistern,

Then some bird monsters the size of a horse attacked them so they hid in the cistern.

They find some goblins who are having a really bad time becaus there is also a GIANT FREAKING SNAKE!

in the well with them... yaaaaaaay... after some fighting Marie (my character) gets the kill by swimming underneeth the snake and slicing down its under belly with her knife! (i know I'm awesome like that)

So then the (stupid) goblins give us the treasure they had. THEN THE NEXT DAY they steal the treasure and lock the door and leave us to die... AFTER WE SAVED THEIR [nice word here] LIVES!!!!! needless to say they are now top of my hit-list

And thats what went down this time... (Did i do it right dad??)

[frog-and-rat]

Drawing of Urn and Sinred by my son who plays Marie. And their cat.

Urn- daggers x infinity

fears: Big snakes (and me - Marie)

Sinred-

fears: Big snakes and Marie

[frog-and-rat]

Some notes:

I need to do better at encouraging role play. I missed a great opportunity for interrogation and sharing of rumors while my players were trapped with Sinred and Urn. They haven’t played a lot, and don’t know about these things, so I need to organically encourage this… somehow.

I need to do better, at explaining what my player’s goals are/ where my players are. This might be because my players are kids/inexperienced , or because I’ve thought through the planning, it;s familiar, and I did not explain it well (I’m inexperienced).

I think I’ll add some NPC’s in the cave. 2 Halflings from the random encounter table. They’re from Wardenwood, and got lost while looking for evidence. They suspect someone is poisoning the well water!

[frog-and-rat]

ShadowDark Campaign update.

Marie (Level 2 Cleric) , Vidrid (level 2 Fighter), and the Beastman, Grall (level 1 follower/fighter) found the ruins of Thistlewood Keep (102) following rumors of treasure. They poked around, took a dis-interested note of the large bird nest and fresh goblin bones laying nearby, and decided to quickly look for treasure and jet before the bird came back.

They dug around in the ruins a while, it seemed many treasure hunters have already been here. I rolled on the Mythic Fate Chart to see if they found treasure (very unlikely). Fate said “yes” so I had them roll on the ShadowDark treasure 0-3 table. Marie found a fancy, but slightly smashed tankard. Vidrid took a bit longer, saw a giant bird heading towards them, and stumbled upon a nice shield. (1XP to each) before diving into a recently uncovered trap door at the last minute. (Stupid high roll)

Inside was complete darkness, and slick with moisture. 2 failed DEX saves expedited the climb down the ladder; Vidrid ended up in chest deep water. In the dark, they heard soft grumblings! When a torch was finally lit, the party saw two drenched and miserable looking goblins, Sinred and Urn. The goblins explained how they were trapped in this cistern to die! Either by Beast-birds, which had killed two of their friends, or by the giant snake, which had killed a third! However, seeing the party’s weapons, Sinred plucked up his courage and suggested escape!

“But first, we must kill the snake, and retrieve the treasure from poor Dink who was swallowed whole! If you help us escape, we will even give you the treasure!”

The PC’s spotted the snake, snoozing lazily among the supports near the ceiling, with a swollen section confirming Sinred’s claim. It looked big enough to swallow much more than a goblin! They began to goad the snake closer so they could fight it without getting in the water. The snake finally slithered down into the murky water for several rounds before getting a surprise attack on Urn, constricting Urn and then dragging him into the water. Sinred leapt to the snake stabbing it deeply with a short sword. Marie tired to avoid the fight, but jumped in when several in the group needed healing. There were some close calls, but the party was victorious, Marie claimed the killing strike! The snake lay dead and Dink’s slowly digesting body was removed, clutching a small rotting wooden box.

Urn made a jump for the box as the torch died out. Vidrid scuffled for control of it in the dark, and when Marie got another torch lit, Vidrid was holding the box.

Sinred clumsily reprimanded Urn, made a show about getting something of sentimental value for Dink’s family, but kept eyeing the small box in Vidrid’s hand.

Vidrid quickly peered within the half rotten box and saw a pristine white gold diadem sculpted with thorns and a snake. He shut the box, and secured it into his pack.

Searching for another way out, they found a tight squeeze leading into a cave system, or the trapdoor they had entered through. They decided to take a long rest, then attempt the trapdoor, and use the cave system only if necessary. For the rest, I asked for a d20 roll from Vidrid (3). They made a damp camp, and slept as best they could.

The Mythic Fate chart revealed to me that the perytons were still outside, but were not seen. Urn, and Sinred, eager to escape the cistern after being trapped for several days, we’re first up the ladder and through the trap door. As Vidrin was climbing out, I called for a save (nat 1) and Urn stabbed down at his face, and kicked him back down the ladder before closing the door. The party cursed as they heard something large being dragged over the trapdoor. In a panic, Vidrid checked his pack and found the diadem missing.

Marie pulled out a notebook and began updating her ‘priorities’ list, as Vidrid lamented the loss of the diadem, and the prospect of squeezing into an unknown cave. I called the session here, and will prepare a few caves for next time.

[frog-and-rat]

Putting this here so I can read it later

I suggest The Pauper's Tomb. This was created as part of In Search of Adventure, a jam focused on old-timey adventure module B1: In Search of the Unknown.

In it you'll find more loot than combat. Link to the jam.

Link to the adventure.

Here's the thing. I haven't written many adventures, and this is the first one I put out. On a binary scale of bad/not bad, it's firmly not bad. There's magic, difficult places, and a ghost, so give it a look. It's certainly worth what you pay for it!

[frog-and-rat]

Should be next month!!

Eagerly anticipating the release of the print version of Shadowdark!

[frog-and-rat]

Vidrid the Dwarf

[frog-and-rat]

The Shattered Tower (102)

I am Playing ShadowDark with my kids, in the mini campaign setting of The Gloaming from Cursed Scroll #1.

Hex (102) “The Shattered Tower” has a short blurb about a ruined keep with a trap door leading to a cistern with something slithering in the murky waters.

Time to flesh this out:

The Thistlewood Keep is centuries gone, but a rumor remains of a priceless diadem, never recovered. The legend varies widely and no detail seems to remain the same from one re-telling to the next, save for one. The Princess of Thistlewood Keep, moments before destruction, took her family’s most cherished possession and hid it away. Though the enemy razed the keep, the treasure was never found! Much speculation has been made, and many a young adventurer has often dreamed of finding the treasure!

More recent generations have used the keep as a sort of initiation or hazing ritual, much like a snipe hunt. Young adventurers have often been sent by their older siblings to go find the treasure and prove their worth. After a trek of adventure, or boredom, the children are lucky to return with an odd button, or a piece of a broken plate from the keep.

And more recent still, a few months ago, there has been a report of a pair of monstrous birds nesting in upon the ruined tower. Their bodies are like giant eagles with the head of a mighty stag! Their talons and antlers are iron hard, and razor sharp! Hunters have warned all the townsfolk and all the children to avoid the area and STOP these hazing rites, for this monsters will most surely kill and eat anyone who disturbs it’s nest. There have been a few failed attempts to kill these monsters ending in the death of several hunters each time. For now, hunters are avoiding coming too near the area.

Elsewhere in the Gloaming, a camp of Outlaws led by Grieves Redthorne. Recently, a group of goblin bandits attempted to waylay some of his men, but quickly surrendered and begged mercy, and to make it up to Redthorne and join his group. For this crime, the group was offered a quest to atone for their transgressions. “Bring back the Thistlewood Diadem!” The goblins, unaware of the monstrous birds made haste to appease this Grieves Redthorne, grateful for this uncharacteristic offer of mercy!

When my players arrive, there is a chance the perytons will be present at the nest, but I hope to get them into the cistern where they will meet the goblins. Sinred, the now leader of the goblin group will explain how they’re all surely doomed! Because the perytons have killed 2 of their group and won’t let them leave the cistern! And even now, lurking within the cistern, a giant snake which has eaten another of their group! Sinred will beg the PC’s for help, and even offer the treasure if the party helps them escape! Sinred claims that before Dink was swallowed whole, by the snake, he had clasped in his hands, a small treasure chest! Sinred and Urn, the remaining 2 goblins, were too afraid to fight the snake on their own, and after it’s meal, the snake slithered away and ignored them, as they did not attack it.

If my players defeat the snake, they will indeed find a goblin and a waterlogged chest containing the diadem. Sinred will attempt to betray the PC’s and steal back the diadem if given half a chance.

The perytons are a great threat to the PC’s at level 2. And I will give the PC’s ample warning to not stick around to fight them.

The PC’s will find another exit, a crack in the wall of the cistern, that will lead into a vast cave system. I have some tables ready with content from Veins of the Earth, and the ShadowDark core rules. I want to open up the idea of cave exploration, as we have not yet done this, and also have some possible shortcuts, throughout the Gloaming.

Peryton

AC 14, HP 30, ATK 1 talon +5 (2d6) and 1 tail +5 (1d8), MV double near (fly), S +2, D +4, C +0 , I +2, W +0, Ch -2, AL C, LV 6

[frog-and-rat]

Welcome

This is to be a starting point for me to blog about ttrpgs. It will hopefully be my game notes, or tables if i can think of them… or maybe art drawn by me. No one really knows.

The name “the Frog and the Toad” came from the tavern name tables in ShadowDark by Kelsey Dionne of the Arcane Library. The current header images shows the 1 and the 20 rolled in my emergency dice kit to get that result.

ShadowDark is currently my system of choice, though I just got a pretty good end of fiscal year bonus from work and I’ve backed/bought a few more games. Unnatural Selection is a supplement by the Dungeon Damsels. Knave 2e, by Questing Beast, Dolmenwood, by Exalted Funeral, I backed something by the Merry Mushmen, but i don’t remember what it was, then i bought A Folklore Bestiary by them. I should have tons to talk about.

I’m currently, slowly, playing a game with my kids using the mini-campaign setting The Gloaming found in Kelsey Dionne’s Cursed Scroll no. 1. It is written with one adventure fully written, but otherwise several places and NPC’s with a few sentences about them, the rest I get to come up with, or yoink something from other adventures to insert into the campaign. I hope to post these adventures here. Feel free to join me, or if you never even stumble upon this blog, that’s okay to. Who knows, maybe I’ll get good at this kind of thing and start a real blog, like a Xanga!

Who knows what is to come here? Probably not much, but I’ll try.

[frog-and-rat]

Procreate doodle of a potion bottle because i was sitting still for a while suppose to be listening…