A man in crown and ermine grasps towards another man looking away

AAR: Desperately seeking Zen

This continues a long-form campaign, Zen and the Art of Caravan Maintenance.

Emmett & Joshua successfully drove buggalo from Emerald City to the Porcelain Citadel. Now they’re going back to the Lime Nomad Steppes to look for clues to a document on raising the dead that Joshua found. And earn some money playing a tour-guide maybe?

A drawing of a man with a crown, orb, and sceptre, on a thrown.

AAR: Flushed with success

This continues a long-form campaign, Zen and the Art of Caravan Maintenance.

Emmett & Joshua are cattle ranchers, seeking a quiet change in career for various reasons. They’ve made it from the Circle Sea all the way to the Porcelain Citadel. And now it’s time to deliver the buggalo!

Line drawing of a small ship going along some water with a Greek temple in the background

AAR: I Am On A Boat

This continues a long-form campaign, Zen and the Art of Caravan Maintenance.

Emmett & Joshua are now cattle ranchers, seeking a quiet change in career for various reasons. They’re driving buggalo from Emerald City to the Porcelain Citadel. Now they’re looking for their promised auto-golem and have found a gangster’s dead daughter.

Line drawing of a man looking shocked on a castle battlement looking at a spirit

AAR: Down and out in the Last Serai

This continues a long-form campaign, Zen and the Art of Caravan Maintenance.

Emmett and Joshua are now cattle ranchers, seeking a quiet change in career for various reasons. They’re driving buggalo from Emerald City to the Porcelain Citadel.

They’ve arrived at the Last Serai to collect their promised autogolem, but nothing’s showing up…

Sun breaks out from behind clouds, with hill in the background and somone on their knees in the foreground

AAR: The Road to the Last Serai

This continues a long-form campaign, Zen and the Art of Caravan Maintenance.

Emmett, Joshua are now cattle ranchers, seeking a quiet change in career for various reasons. They’re driving buggalo from Emerald City to the Porcelain Citadel. Specifically between Potsherd Crater to the Last Serai, a wretched hive of scum and villany.

They probably won’t be cautious.

Fancy drinking pitchers, goblets, tankards, on a table with some masks and a bag of coins.

AAR: Zen and the Art of Fishing for Treasure

This continues a long-form campaign, Zen and the Art of Caravan Maintenance.

Emmett, Joshua are now cattle ranchers, seeking a quiet change in career for various reasons. They’re driving buggalo from Emerald City to the Porcelain Citadel. Currently they’re on top of a mysterious shiny dome in the desert, trying to get to the delicious1 treasure inside

Week 2: Death

The theme for the second week is Death. I resisted going with DEATH!!, and went for something more normal. Well, more or less…

💀💀💀

Anyway I decided a mine full of the undead would be good. In the Evils of Illmire the players shied away from the mine when they got freaked out by some lights on in the abandoned village. So I guess I’m playing that in my own treehouse, with blackjack, etc.

It also gave me an excuse to draw minecarts and rails!

Map of a dungeon in a barrow

Week 1: Ancient

The theme for the first week is Ancient. I decided this would be a long barrow, as I was going to default to “temple” (which this still sort-of is). This uses the OSE entries for monsters (& treasure).

The many gears and escapement of a watch or round clock

Ultra Violet Hack

I want to run Luka Rejec’s Ultraviolent Grasslands setting, but I thought it would be a laugh to try The Black Hack, as I also wanted to try that engine. I don’t really have a good reason1, beyond having bought both. And liking both!

I’m a sucker for a pointcrawl that one can wander around, ever since Elite. You had a little ship, a map, and off you go to make some money. Luka’s setting is on the ground, and more sciencefantasy, to borrow Troika!’s term. But it’s scratching that itch.

Screenshot of the original Elite 1. 8 colours, 320 by 240 pixels. A rotating outline of a cube is your destination
The good old days

The Black Hack is me experimenting with a game engine that is simpler than 5e, and more complex than Into The Odd or Stay Frosty. It’s also another beautiful book. The engine removes stat bonuses in favour of having players roll under their base stats. Enemy attacks are also rolled by players, as defensive rolls, rather than the GM doing it. The GM still chooses the actions of the enemy combatants, though.

DUNGEON23

Starting Dungeon23

Yes, I’m going to join in with Sean McCoy’s Dungeon23 concept. For those that missed it, a reminder:

“Megadungeon for 2023. 12 levels. 365 rooms. One room a day. Keep it all in a journal.” Sean McCoy

Unlike the people who have started in earnest a week ago, I’m going to spend the rest of December 2022 deciding how I’m going to do this. And I’ve still not worked it out yet. I’m very keen to pick something as easy as possible in the hope that I’ll actually finish it.

I don’t want to take time away from my current UVG game or my attempts to learn to speak (and write) French though.