March 4th, 2018
Conventions, Gary Con, The WEGS Fray
It’s March 4th, Old Skool-ers! I’m taking a moment today to acknowledge the “life well played” of Gary Gygax (July 27, 1938 – March 4, 2008). He’s the reason I got hooked on roleplaying games back on Christmas ’79, when I unwrapped the Basic Dungeons & Dragons box set. Man, the adventures I’ve been on since then: from the Keep on the Borderlands straight through to our own GameWick Games booth at Gen Con Indy.
Yup – it’s all due to Gygax’s efforts to get D&D out into this world when he started his game company, TSR. My little game company and my wacky rpg system WEGS Old Skool is done in this same spirit. In fact, if you’re reading this, all credit goes right back to Mr. Gygax. Most of you reading this I’ve met at a gaming con – so, you know what I’m talking about. Some of you I will even see at this week’s Gary Con Gaming Convention (where the Gygax family holds a gaming weekend in his honor).
March 4th, friends!
L. Willy Wick
Thank you, Mr. Gygax!
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March 1st, 2018
The WEGS Fray
What’s a No Roll Hero, you ask? It’s a basic character creation process for the WEGS Old Skool Fantasy RPG. This stripped-down version of our classic Ark Kard is designed for intro play (but also includes a nifty new mechanic called the Heroic Edge)! The No Roll Hero PDF introduces players to the basic rules of play and has them ready for action in mere minutes. Perfect for convention play!
The guide also introduces you to Gorgax The Barbarian,
illustrated in the classic old skool stylings of Brian “Glad” Thomas!
CLICK THE PIC TO DOWNLOAD THE NO ROLL HERO PDF.
This is also a little sneak peek at our next WEGS Old Skool release – BOSS RULES.
What’s BOSS? The Basic Old Skool System, of course!
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January 19th, 2018
Cast Blast, The WEGS Fray
Hey Old Skoolers – some exciting news for you! We’ve been secretly working on our Old Skool spellbook. Right now, we’re looking at thirty new spells for the Mage and Sage. That’s thirty new spells each. Casting and blasting is gonna blow off the roof! Just what will player’s do with all these new spells? Well, we’re not 100% sure, but we’re hoping you (yes – you!) give us some feedback (via facebook, email, whatever). Once a month, we’ll give you a glimmer at the new spells. Some have been playtested, some not. One thing’s for sure, these suckers are long overdue!
Gigantify (Mage)
One man-sized target increases in size and strength. The target’s Warrior Strength and Move scores increase by +2 points and Wounds increase 100 points. The target doubles in physical size, as do their personal effects, clothes, and weapons. Magic or enchanted properties of such items do not change. The hulky friend must stay within range of the mage.
Target: Self/Other
Type: Special Effect-Touch
Range: 12 SQR
Use: 4 x per day
Upkeep: Normal
Cudgel (Sage)
The sage summons a mystic cudgel that allows 2 attacks per action. For the sage’s attack roll, Grace is tested instead of Prowess. The cudgel inflicts (d6 x SPS) wounds. The cudgel inflicts (d6+4) x SPS wounds versus creatures of the magic realm, however the sage is allowed only one such attack per action. The wounds are normal, not enchanted. A foe is allowed normal invulnerability checks.
Target: Self
Type: Attack
Range: Engaged SQR
Use: 4 x per day
Upkeep: Normal
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December 20th, 2017
The WEGS Fray, Trove Roll
The annual rolling of the trove begins! From December 20 – 31, we’ll be making daily rolls on our magical Table I: Trove Table Generator (d%). This post will be updated with those results. As with prior year results, these items can be claimed by any player who joins us for a WEGS convention game. What wonders will stuff our stockings this year?!?
On the first day of WEGS-mas my GM rolled for me…
Ring of Invuln, +8% INV%
Realm: Neutral. The wearer gains an automatic invulnerability bonus (no Move penalty applies). The ring also has 8 charges per day that can be spent to gain an instant +20 INV% per charge spent (effect lasts thru next spante).
On the second day of WEGS-mas…
The Great Glaive (Two Handed Weapon)
Realm: Neutral. If wielder rolls their RUG INI score or less, a +1 Damage Die bonus is gained. 2 SQR Range (one diagonal allowed).
On the third day of WEGS-mas… We hit a ROLL TWICE ON THE ARMOUR TABLE bonus!
Helmet, Medium +2 Armour Points
Chainmal, Full Metal Jacket +16 Armour Points
On the fourth day of WEGS-mas… We hit a ROLL TWICE ON THE WEAPONS TABLE bonus! Every weapon on this table gains a TABLE II: STRENGTH BONUS roll (an INI Roll that grants a strength bonus, from +1 (Common) to +6 (Exceptionally Rare). You must roll a 32 for that latter bonus. We rolled a 30 though for the scepter below for a +5 WS bonus.
Longsword, +2 WS
Scepter, +5 WS
On the fifth day of WEGS-mas… we rolled a 95 and hit the MASSIVE TROVE table (range for this is 94-96).
The Skolarum Ring
The power of this ring is dizzying and quite detailed in the notes. What follows is just a summary… Grants +2 SPS. Number of charges per day is equal to the ringbearer’s SPS score (which is heighted due to wearing the ring). Charged effects are: (1) Sense Surge (automatic Sense Magic or Sense Mystic), (2) Ethereality, (3) Vitality (auto heal (d6+4)x10 wounds), (4) Enchanted Immunity (77%). The ring also absorbs any Insanity points the wearer suffers due to spellcasting. Now, this ring also has some quirks (there’s an INI% chance that the ring is insane) and other unpleasant traits. You’ll have to wait for the release of our long-promised Trove book to find out all the vicious details…
On the sixth day of WEGS-mas…
Mystic Potion: Fervor
Works just like the spell of the same name, without the need of Sense Mystic. However… the fine print in the book reads: “There is a (d6xd6)% that the potion is tainted”. Via that dice roll, a 10% chance was established… and then I rolled that success. So, then we refer to the Tainted Potion section where the Kreator gets to pick one of the following effects: Trollspittle, Wraithbreath, Delusion, or Berzerker Brain. Full details of these fun effects noted in the book!
On the seventh day of WEGS-mas…
Mystic Skrowl: 5 Spells
A mystic skrowl has d3 spells upon it; there’s a Frozen Roll chance that it contains an additional d3 as well. However, there’s a (d6 x # of spells)% chance that any skrowl is malevolent… The spells on this skrowl are: (1) Blessed Warrior, (3) Cursed Dice, and (1) Sphere of Light. But… is the skrowl malevolent? You’ll have to wait until its use to find out…
On the eighth day of WEGS-mas…
Studded Leather Bracers +4 Armour Points
On the ninth day of WEGS-mas…
Stealth Blade : +1 Dirk (thrusting dagger)
As a Stealth Blade, the wielder uses their Stealth% score for attacks. In addition, if the attack roll is within their Stealth INI Zone, the attacker suffers -20 INV%.
On the tenth day of WEGS-mas… Rolled a 91 for a Massive Trove table roll!
Enchanted Ring (Magic) : Hands of Ice
4 charges per day. Holds 12 spoints. Immediately blast Hands of Ice spell with no spoint cost. Spell is blast at 88% ING and 8 SPS strength. The ring bears the enchantment, not the wearer. Its spoints can be used for spell upkeep or to benefit the wearer’s actions at any time. If drained of all spoints, it can still blast the spell (wearer would then pay upkeep with their own spoints).
On the eleventh day of WEGS-mas…
Leather Breastplate : +4 Armour Points
On the twelfth day of WEGS-mas..
Magic Potion: Flaming Fryball
Works just like the spell of the same name, without the need of Sense Magic. Spell is blast at 88% ING, 8 SPS, and 8 inning duration. (Fine print in the rulebook reads: “There is a (d6xd6)% that the potion is tainted”.)
A very merry WEGS-mas to all – hope to see you ’round the game table in 2018!
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December 11th, 2017
Fiends & Fodder, WEGS Old Skool
A new WEGS Old Skool Fantasy blog series has arrived: Fiends and Fodder! This series will reveal mighty dungeon fiends (like dragons and liches), as well as lesser dungeon fodder (like hobgoblins and orks). Each monster will be treated to “advanced style formatting” (you’ll see what we mean when you crack open the pdf) and all certified fresh for WEGS play, too.
Now, we’re not holding back for our first F&F entry. We start with a fiend that goes right for the jugular: the Vorpal Hare. This furry little horror comes in two flavors: terrifying and psygonic. A solitary Psygonic Hare was introduced at Gary Con IX earlier this year. It pretty much was responsible for a TPK…
(Oh, yeah… forgot to mention… this series will also be throwing about WOSF
material that has only ever been whispered about, like trove and psygonics…)
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June 5th, 2017
Caves of Utter Chaos, Conventions, Gary Con, The WEGS Fray
The Caves of Utter Chaos dungeon crawl adventure started out as a fun riff on Gary Gygax’s Keep on the Borderlands; something that would fit neatly into a three-hour event slot at Gary Con IX. After a week of fleshing out the dungeon and its monsters, I decided to leave the dungeon for a bit and take a stab at the base of operations for the adventurers. That’s when the Winterworn Keep came into view. (Click to see all prior Caves of Utter Chaos thread posts.)
Perched above the valley where the Skewered Mountain squats is the imposing Winterworn Keep. Those within this stronghold maintain a careful watch over the chaos bubbling below. It is a half day’s march down a treacherous cliff-side trail to the valley o’ chaos, and then another full day’s trek to the Skewered Mountain. The winding trail down is patrolled and fortified for defense against enemy forces (who might attempt to use the trail to assail the keep). The keep’s escalated positioning is so very strong that only an insane army would mount such an assault. But, then again, that’s exactly the type of enemies dwelling in the Caves of Utter Chaos.
Is that an ogre swinging from the gibbet?
The Winterworn Keep is the spearhead for the Thundervold, a stepped plateau that gradually descends to the civilized lands of the Wegswyrld. The plateau itself is sandwiched between two very angry mountain ranges known for their thunderous outbursts that shake the mountains to their very root. Just as sailors who take to the open sea, those who live in the Vold are certain of their courage.
The Thundervold plateau contains eight small kingdoms. Winterworn Keep is located in Hrootdurn, the northernmost and, in winter, coldest kingdom. Together the eight kingdoms are known as the Thunder Lords and they are allied as one to protect the Vold. Each kingdom dedicates a strength of warriors to the Winterworn, as that stronghold is the Vold’s wall against a chasm of chaos.
I noted in Part II: Monsters that, once created, the Caves of Utter Chaos dungeon started filling up with monsters, seemingly on its own volition. The same was now occurring at the Winterworn Keep, as a beacon for its stalwart inhabitants. Once again, the module was expanding beyond its needs – and a large unexplored swath of the Wegswyrld map was coming to life. My mind kept opening doors that one need not open for an intro crawler. Just who was in charge of this dungeon outing?!?
While the Winterworn Keep was becoming a pretty cool place to start the adventure, there was that half-a-day trek down the trail and another full day hike unto the Skewered Mountain. All this before the adventure even started! Might as well just add a tea-party beforehand and call it “There and Back Again”.
No… I needed a base camp closer to the Skewered Mountain and Caves of Utter Chaos.
Welcome to Yown Town, folks!
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