Another Random Table devoted to those marvelous Magical Items. This time we have One Hundred Magical Axes. Just like with my other magic item tables, these can be used to embellish that bog-standard bonus in order to make for a more intriguing and wonderous weapon should it be needed. As always, feel free to season some of these to taste in terms of potency, duration, or frequency of use.
Going through some of my Tables, I found one that did not get published when it was finished quite some time ago. It is a simple affair: Just a d100 list of Monster Defenses and Other Special Abilities that might work well in conjunction with my Monster Special Attacks Table or even my Fairy Tale Weaknesses. My intent was to whip up a perchance generator at some point that just spits out Monsters using these tables to see what shakes out, but I obviously became distracted from this goal and it languished in my drafts folder.
So here it is, ready to finally see the light of day. I have not given up completely on the idea of a Monster Generator, however, but that may have to wait until I finish a few more Tables that can contribute to other, less mechanism focused things that I tend to find useful in Monster Descriptions.
Although I do have a few prior Tables that are focused on fleshing out those “Followers” in compelling ways, for this one I decided to focus on traits and temperaments that might have the potential to create some real conflicts or discretely limit options in order to generate what might be “interesting” situations in Play.
This dovetails a bit with my overall philosophy that Hirelings/Retainers should not be thought of as robotic automatons or trap-springers: Often their sense of self-preservation should be just as strong (if not stronger sometimes!) as that of the Player Characters. Whilst risking life and limb might be par for the course to wrest those Rewards from Dangerous Places, there are lines that some simply won’t cross. This table should provide a bit of fun fodder for defining those, with the idle hope that over time, some of these “Retainer Restrictions” might even make those “Meatshields” at least a little more memorable. This could also work quite well if a Party has worn out their good-will with a local Settlement’s potential applicants, and when only the unqualified or unsuited respond to their Call to Adventure!
Naturally, I leave it as an exercise to the Referee whether or not these might come up during the Hiring Process. For some entries, the inhibition might be more obvious than others or there might be Clues. Others might work a bit better as a rather rude revelation once the Adventure has begun!
For a little while now, I have been working on a series of Flow Charts that illustrate some of the basic Procedures present in the B/X ruleset. While the list-based Presentation might be adequate for some Referees, I have found that being able to visualize how these operate and the “loops-within-loops” they can create in Play is extremely helpful. It also makes it quite easy to see which steps might be commonly elided due to Fiat, when one compares them to how they typically oversee situations in Play.
In the following document I have outlined:
Without further ado, here are the Flow Charts in their current Draft State. I hope you find them as helpful as I have for illustrating the order of operations for those common game-play loops and situations!
Let me know if you have any interpretations of these Procedures that might differ! I am always interested to hear those. These attempt to adhere to the Rules-as-Written, but they still serve as excellent bones and scaffolds to build Play around. I tend to cleave pretty close to these in terms of the Procedures I use, but naturally, a few adaptations and minor elaborations are bound to creep in and become incorporated over time.
Single-Use, Consumable Magical Wonders have always been some of my favorites, especially when they present the Players with incredibly specific solutions to hereto unknown problems. There’s an immense sense of satisfaction when you happen to have just the right tool for the job, or the final piece that helps a plan or scheme succeed.
As I was thinking about these sorts of things, I decided to do a Table of Incense or Candles. These items may be burnt (and consumed) to produce a special effect but are generally temporary in nature: lasting only as long as the Candle burns, or the incense remains fragrant. Requiring a source of Fire, and hampered by damp or windy conditions, activating these can sometimes be a challenge in itself. I imagine the radius or duration of effect might be rather limited as well in most cases.
Here are a hundred ideas for adding these kinds of flammable wonders to those Treasure Hoards. Potentially those with specific knowledge could even manufacture these (via Magical Research, or perhaps by acquiring special Reagents), or the less spectacular/more utilitarian entries could even be found for sale or barter by specific Vendors (Incense Mongers in my games always only accept Electrum).
Below is a d100 table that might be useful for sprucing up Holidays, local Festivals, or other unconventional Customs. I am always eager to pepper the Calendar with various Special Occasions throughout the year, as these can lend a lot of character to a place and time. Naturally, some might end up with the Player Character’s hopelessly embroiled in these customs or situations, but sometimes that kind of distraction is an entertaining one.
Certain magnificent Magics and marvelous Miracles make it possible to return a dead Character to Play in these games. In some games, this process is pretty perfunctory: Simply locate your Local Lama and acquire a casting of Raise Dead within the Time Limit. Then after a mandatory two-week recuperation period (during which the Character is hardly in a state for Adventure: with only a solitary Hit Point, half movement, no carrying capacity, they cannot attack, and are unable to use Spells or other Class Abilities) the revivified is right as rain.
Later, when the Players gain access to these Spells through their own Resources, it tends to further emphasize that this Death is merely a speed bump, a temporary set-back with a well-earned vacation perhaps, but the Character will be back in no time.
I have always thought it might be more interesting if the process left a little mark here and there on those who underwent something so significant, so here is a table of one hundred potentially interesting concomitants for that process. These might work a little like Curses (and this could even work alongside that dreaded Energy Drain as well, q.v. my Rumored Cures for more on this) and have their own Durations or Required Deeds to overcome, or they could become a permanent part of the Character in a way (some more of that lovely “Foreground Growth.”) I think in creative hands, a few of these could even be spun into Boons with the right application or in certain situations. I tend to prefer that sort of “Drawback” after all.