Yes they are. Before comparing them to other classes, let's take a look at other versions of D&D. In AD&D, fighters have several abilities that are ignored in B/X: - 1d10 HD. - Better attack progression. - Better types of ordinary armor. - A few perks if they have high abilities (more HP, damage, etc.) - Extra attacks as you level up. - Extra attacks against low-HD foes. AD&D came before B/X, but BECMI came soon after. Arguably, BECMI "fixed" many things in B/X I perceive as flaws (e.g., the cleric), and it also added several toys for fighters: weapon maneuvers, proficiency, e ..read more

N. Robin Crossby's Hârn setting included a beautiful poster-sized hexmap that allowed for all the hexcrawlery an adventurer's heart could desire. Here's a thumbnail of the map: Here's a close-up of one region: (click for an even bigger view) This is one of the all-time great fantasy campaign maps, but, like so many such maps, it is ultimately a referee's map. But Hârn also has a player's map, what it calls the "poetic map" of the realm: "The map is not the territory," as ol' Al Korzybski used to say. Without a "poetic" map, there's no gap between the world-as-it-is and the P ..read more

Click here for the other sessions. Expedition 56a 06 Jun 2024 After a night’s rest and again applying the Healing Staff to Umphred’s shortened limb, the party departed Vyones, only this time they followed the river north. An overnight stay in Ximes, and then they continued along the river until they judged it a good ..read more

Last session, our band of miscreants came upon a tomb inhabited by an undead knight of an old order. They have encountered such undead warriors before, so delved in to see if they could recruit said knight to their cause. The knight, although handicapped, was willing to join. However, the party found that his soldiers had been corrupted by other organisms, and a fight was had.  So sharing a slightly revised version of the quick encounter area that I sketched up for the party.  As clearly shown... The original map was drawn by prolific creator u/Raznag. I have a handful ..read more

Mediaeval Guilds In my Work, The Guild Council, and later, the Guild Combine, sold everything and were not only the financiers of Armies, but the equippers, managers, and trainers.  This saved the Nobles from dying unnecessarily (TMMHV), and later, in more democratic eras, meant that only Professional Soldiers fought wars -- against each other -- friends, brothers, lovers -- all for pay ..read more

Dragon, Yew Bakra-do, Wrilk and Skorbi watched as the two small dragons attacked the small town, spewing streams of arrows at the guard while the arrows of the humans, elves and other defenders bounced back at the archers, killing most ..read more

In our last episode, I just picked some random art to show. Here I also pick random art to show. But maybe I'll try to speak about some of the pieces. Folks tell me I don't say enough about my own art. I don't share my thoughts and shit. More here. I was probably thinking "but you CAN show both at once". lolz... I did this robot guy when I was working on another Troika! romp book. Didn't finish the book, decided to make a new space fantasy RPG instead... ZSF will be coming eventually, folks. Eventually. I just like making funky cool band logos for fake bands ..read more

I've got the draft of the TS&R Game Master Guidebook edited and formatted. I've sent a segment to a friend who's never run a game to review. If he says the initial advice on how to run a game is good and easy to understand, I'll release the book. If he says it's confusing, I'll spend a bit more time revising.  Today, I'd like to share an excerpt here. I've taken a different approach to the Outer Planes than Gygax. No Great Wheel in my games. My conception is a lot closer to Mentzer's in the Masters and Immortals sets, which is probably no surprise, but unlike Frank, I really don't car ..read more

DRAMATIS PERSONAE: Ranzel of the Wood (Human Ranger 3) Solcha (Elf Fighter 3 / Magic User 2) Skeef Hawkridge (Half Elf Druid 3/ Thief 2) and his giant weasel Riki Goro (Half Orc Cleric 3 / Fighter 2) Balthus (Human Fighter 2) and his War Dog  Date/Time Wealsun 25 late afternoon to Wealsun 25 evening The party pushes along the edge of one last mud-filled chamber and finally emerges onto dry-ish land. The passage initially leads to a large chamber filled with deep water and no sign of a way to cross it. Turning back, they take another branch of the corridor which leads to a door, swo ..read more

By GM JeremyTWK LiveOSELevel 1 In the bustling port city of Vystaanzport, where ships arrive with goods from distant lands, a peculiar disturbance has emerged. Reports speak of rats swarming the docks, threatening the flow of trade and commerce. The ..read more