WargamerX's Game Blog

Cast: ​John as Badger II, the boy Wizard and Amar the Cynidicean ​Wyatt as Avery, Accidental Destroyer of Worlds, Cletus the Space Cowboy and Ederik the Dog Kathy as Katilia the Dwarf, Kilcia the Cleric of Madarua, and Kiya the Halfling  The group started at the secret door they had found at the end of last episode and started down the vast hallway they found beyond. First item of interest was a trapdoor that opened to a ladder leading down. Second item of interest was a couple primitive rock baboons charging them with murderous intent! The baboons were quickly dispatched and the group began an evening of exploring rooms.  ​ ​In the first room they found, the door had a 2' chewe d hole near the bottom, Entering they found a coffin, now nest for a trio of giant shrews. One shrew was killed another fled, but the last shrew...haha...dodged a fumble by Cletus the Space Cowboy - in which his new-found black magical sword  Not Stormbringer  shattered against the flagstones...

Cairo, Egypt   10 September 1939 Cast: ​Alex as Ontario Johnson, Explorer ​John as Mr. Phillips, Retired Engineer ​Wyatt as Max Webber, Spy ​Nick as Siomon, British Consulate "Fixer" ​ ​The team from Italy was redirected in their stolen plane by radio to Egypt. Apparently, N, the team's handler in the SIS (MI6) had heard about Erlichmann's journal and decided that the team needed to get on the ground to find out more about this Black Stone.  ​ ​Clifton, the pilot needed a long rest in a mental sanitarium after the harrowing flight (and the last twenty miles gliding in to Alexandria). Victoria went on a Nile cruise, "taking the airs", leaving Phillips and Max to brief the local consulate. After their debrief, Siomon, an up and comer in the Consulate and Ontario Johnson proposed heading to the Museum of Antiquities to look for hints of this Black Stone. Johnson may have been sincere, but Siomon seemed more interested in the lovely blonde Museum Assistant, M...

{Note: B4 is really a megadungeon crawl and min-icampaign, so by Part 4, we are really still less than half way through the first part...} Cast John as  Badger II the Child Wizard and Amar the Cynidicean Kathy as Katilia the Dwarf, Kilcia the Cleric of Madarua, and Kiya the Halfling  Wyatt as Avery the Cleric of Law, Cletus the Space Cowboy and Ederik the Dog ​ ​ ​ The party continued their descent into the buried pyramid. They met up with the Warrior Maidens of Madarua and Kilcia performed an induction ceremony.  In return, the party crashed, ate and recovered a little before getting directions to the unexplored area of the Third Tier. There was not much left, and after dispatching a Tiger Beetle found the exit to the Fourth Tier of the pyramid.  Once in the Fourth Tier they found a coffin, which had a spring-loaded Jack-in-the-Coffin, which made Badger II panic (and develop a phobia of clowns).  ​ ​They also started encountering more undead...

The Cast: The Deniable Assets (British SIS) Victoria - Classical education in Archaeology, Leftist leanings Clifton - Daredevil pilot Mr. Phillips - 65 yo, retired Dutch Engineer Giovanni - Italian hitman (working for the SIS). Captured by OVRA (Italian secret police). Prisoner at the dig site. British SIS: Max Weber - anti-Nazi Germany, formerly of Vienna Station Niccollo - Milanese former communist artist, Agent in Charge Rome Station. Missing. Lucretia - Daughter of wealthy nobles, exiled by Musselini. Called for help when Niccollo goes missing, now prisoner at the dig site.  ​Early September 1939 ​ ​Rome ​ ​The session begins with the party retconning having all moved into a new (middle income area) hotel, and Clifton trying to deal with Niccollo, the now insane SIS agent who had gone missing in Rome. Clifton gets Niccollo undressed and in the tub (the man was filthy having been homeless on the streets, but also simply covered in dried mud. Max Weber comes back ...

The party of space refugees and those lost from a desert caravan encounter a number of "natives" of the lost city of Cynidicea. The natives are universally albino humans with white hair and skin, and infravision (but a -1 to all rolls in sunlight). They also wear masks, and take "mind-expanding" drugs.  After a few "experiments" of their own (Cletus) the party setys off to invade the abode of the Magi of Usamigaras. They do pretty good, with Nisandra looting a technicolor robe, Avery finding a new pet wolf, and the party a chest of 2500 silver pieces and a small spellbook.  Then...the High Magis shows up with his hobgoblin mercenary bodyguard to spoil the party... After a pretty hard fight, the hobgoblin mercs betray the Magis and leave him to his fate. Nisandra and Badger finally pick up some offensive spells and...most important, the newly appointed Priest of Madarua has to face a hard decision - does she continue to the underground city, or leave the ...

The Cast: John as Mr. Phillips 68 yr old retired Dutch engineer Kathy as Victoria, Proper English collegette with leftist leanings  Nick as Clifton, English test pilot  Wyatt as Max Webber, SIS spy in Vienna (NPC) Giovanni the Italian Hitman ...and introducing... Niccollo "Nicky" Filipi, Insane missing SIS Agent   The party boarded the train in Vienna with a destination of Rome, Italy. They are headed there for two missions; an SIS agent has gone missing and their partner has sent a distress note to Vienna, and there are indications from Erlichmann's notebook that there are hidden Atlantean artifacts wanted by someone in the Nazi hierarchy located in Rome.  This episode was covered in "tradecraft" - the party moving through enemy country and trying to not be noticed. In fact, the most that could be said, by the end, was that some luggage went missing on a train, and that tourists were looking at the tourist attractions of Rome. No bang-bang shoot-shoot here, But...

Writing while I wait for The Crimson Tide to roll over some tigers... So, I helped Kickstart Frog God Games The Blight...it turned out as I expected...a mass of content, geared for 5-E, and historically a disaster.  Why can't fantasy writers do a wiki search of medieval cities?*  But maybe, I am picky.  I mean the staple for medieval cities is New York, right? Soooo...ignoring the city stat block from here on out...* Casterhage (pronounced a very Anglo Casterhazie) the "real name" of the Blight is a good and dark fantasy city detailed in over 800+ pages of 5-E goodness...good luck to those who like it, and as my local pals do, I'll be throwing it out as an option for our next play. But my heart belongs to Goodman Games and Dungeon Crawl Classics...so, I'll be working on that conversion for my R20 players...starting with 0-level occupations...fortunately 5-E mimics DCC with its "backgrounds"...apeish flattery which in this case serves my purposes...