Reviewing the Beatles solo albums in order - part 1

Forced myself to listen to Two Virgins: Side One. What self-indulgent dreck, completely unworthy of a Beatle! Side two was just as bad.

Life with the Lions is possibly even worse. I couldn't last 10 minutes.

I lasted nearly 20 minutes through Harrison's Electronic Sound. The only interesting thing about that album is that some of the effects sound exactly like Atari 2600 games (particularly Combat), from eight years later.

Endured 2 minutes of The Wedding Album. Yikes!

Live Peace in Toronto 1969 was a relief to hear real music again, though I had to try to ignore Yoko's insane caterwauling in the background. How John failed to think she was mocking his singing his beyond me. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S-TI-8J27YE... - My favorite treat from Ringo's Sentimental Journey album, which I had never listened to before. Ringo seems to be channeling Nat King Cole here, even though this wasn't a Nat King Cole song.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7_2mDp0EEek... - No surprises on McCartney, the earliest solo album I've ever owned. Though far from perfect, there are seven tracks on this album I either like or like a lot, with the best, not surprisingly, being this number...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vV8xAZnJY6I... - First time listening through Beaucoups of Blues. This was a real challenge, since I am not generally a fan of country music. Would Ringo's love of country rub off on me? Eh...maybe not too much, but it's certainly not a bad album either, with some pleasant tracks. "Without Her" falls flat with Ringo singing, but this would have been a magnificent vehicle for Roy Orbison. My favorite track isn't on the album, but the B side to the single Beaucoups of Blues -- or at least the first two minutes of "Coochy Coochy." It's a really fun song and more upbeat than anything on the album, but after two minutes it just sort of rambles on into a jam session I didn't need to hear.

After Ringo used his cachet as a Beatle to pursue two dream (for him) albums, John squandered his reputation on the notions of his psycho drug-dealer bride, and Paul phoned in his first album, George produced All Things Must Pass. John, Paul, and Ringo got passes on their early albums because they were Beatles, but even if no one had ever heard of George Harrison before, he should have become a music star based on the strengths of the spiritual "My Sweet Lord," the sweeping epic of "Isn't It a Pity" (thanks to Phil Spector), the wisdom of "What Is Life" (which I love even more paired with the music video), the power of "Let It Down," and the beautiful "All Things Must Pass," which exists in its most sublime form in this proto-version, before Spector butchered this one with too much overdubbing - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ODEhwaU2Uw. It is not a perfect album; someone should have told George that the entire 3rd record was not worthy or just not ready for release.

The John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band, thankfully, involves Yoko in name only. It's still not a very good album, but at least John is starting to make an effort again, with Beatles-worthy tracks like "Hold On," "Love," and "Look at Me." Of the three I'm most partial to "Hold On" for the completely random shout-out to Cookie Monster in the middle of it. Pure John. 

Today I did karaoke with the entire RAM album, looking for fresh insights. I did learn that, in "Heart of the Country," he's singing "where the holy people grow" instead of "where the lonely people go." I like my version better.

 

It's such an amazing album. How many artists besides Paul can cobble a song out of a medley as diverse as "Uncle Albert/Admiral Halsey" and make it that epic? The surprisingly touching "Too Many People," the rocking silliness of "Smile Away," the gentle "Heart of the Country," and the Seussian "Monkberry Moon Delight" would make a great album for anyone else, or just business as usual for Paul McCartney, but then "Uncle Albert" starts and business as usual starts to break down. Powerful songs are puncturing through this album, shaking things up and even separating "Ram On" into two parts, as if normal time cannot contain the album any longer. If it had ended with the epic "Long Haired Lady" that would have been a great ending -- but even then it's not over, because "Long Haired Lady" is followed up by a second, even grander epic, the finale of "The Back Seat of My Car," where every young couple's naivety ever is summed up in Paul screaming their mantra "We believe that we can't be wrong!"

John's Imagine album must have been such a relief to his fans. Phew! He really does still got it. There's plenty of familiar songs on here -- everyone knows "Imagine," but "Jealous Guy" and "Oh My Love" get a lot of replay on the radio. Songs I really enjoyed that I don't remember hearing before were "It's So Hard" and "I Don't Wanna Be a Soldier Mama."

With Christmas over, it's time to go back to listening to solo Beatles albums in order! Which, unfortunately...takes me to...Wild Life. It's hard to believe Paul followed up the majesty of Ram with this....It's like he was searching for a new sound, couldn't find it, and just gave up and said, "Oh well, I'll just cut an album out of all these takes anyway." I will confess to finding some guilty pleasure in the frothy "Bip Bop" - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sh4b_p55e2U..., and "Tomorrow" seems like it's just one more rewrite away from being a good song. But the rest of this album...ugh. Even the one cover song, "Love Is Strange," which should have been a no-brainer tribute to the Everly Brothers, is here transformed into something unpleasant…

The Concert of Bangladesh is a tougher album to judge. As a concert recording, it's not going to have the technical merit of a studio album, and it's only real measures of success are: a) is it a good choice of songs? And b) does it get across how much fun it must have been to be at the concert? I'd have to say it succeeds at both.

I don't mind Indian music. True, I have walked into the occasional gas station or fast food parlor run by Indians enjoying their own cultural music and wondered "Did someone record someone dying?", but in the hands of true masters like the artists George Harrison surrounded himself with, they make a sound quite pleasing even to a strictly West-oriented musical palette.

George Harrison and pals produce some lovely favorites to entertain the patient audience. I don't know who Leon Russell is, but the highlight is a grand medley he seems to have assembled for mid-program.

Back-to-Basics Original Dungeons & Dragons Greyhawk Campaign - Interludes 1 & 2

Interlude 1

In the Barrier Peaks stands the castle of Mordenkainen. Many protective guards and wards protect its walls from those who could even reach it to begin with, as remote as the castle is. But unlike, well, any living thing, we can soar through an upper window on the thirteenth floor, through a study, down a hall, through a larger hall, around another corner, and into one of the private rooms of Mordenkainen himself. He is sitting in a chair while an elf servant trims his beard.

Suddenly, Mordenkainen lurches forward, stumbling out of his chair. He reaches out for something solid to help steady himself. He turns, looks around, and says to the elf maid, "Did you feel that?" in her own tongue.

She did not. Concern knits Mordenkainen's brow. For a full minute he looks at the floor, deep in thought. Finally he decides on a course of action; he walks to the nearest side wall and gives a very special rap of his knuckles upon it, causing a door to appear there. He opens it, and steps through. We follow.

Mordenkainen has stepped into his divination room. He uncovers a crystal ball, touches it, and speaks a command. "Show me Tenser. Allow me to speak with him."

The image of another of Oerth's most famous mage's appears in the ball. He's eating a sandwich.

"Tenser," Mordenkainen says, "I have felt a great disturbance. Something feels amiss to me. Do you not feel it?"

"Is that why my sandwich tastes off?" Tenser asks. "What goes on?"

"That I do not know, though...I have a strange premonition that gives me some inkling...I will get back to you."

Mordenkainen touches the crystal ball again and the image blurs and disappears. He thinks twice before saying what he says next. "Show me the Mad Prophet. Allow me to hear him."

The image of a dimly-lit cell, illuminated by the flickering light of some distant torch, appears in the ball. In the gloom, covered in matted hair almost as thick as fur, is a man. The man cackles with a hoarse, dry voice.

"Who is watching me? Basiliv? Rary? Mordenkainen? It does not matter...you will all come to me in time...and, in time ...will come to see what time will mean in time."

Interlude 2

Ready’reat 1, 620 CY

The ogre lumbered away, but only three more paces across the courtyard before falling forward, its head lolled to the side, and three of Eirenden’s arrows sticking out of its back.

“Don’t let them fall back to their tower!” Eirenden called out. He had another arrow already notched and was sighting his next target of the fleeing ogres.

But Rulf, further back, had just had a gravelly voice whispering in his ear. “Stop!” Rulf shouted. “Everyone, fall back to me! Zig’s orders!”

“Zig isn’t here,” Vincent said, holding his bloodied wound, but still with enough strength left to him to sound defiant.

“He will be,” Rulf argued. “Everyone, form a defensive circle around this spot!”

Rulf backed away into the circle of Eneever Zig’s henchmen forming up as instructed. Even Vincent. He had no love for Rulf, but he was wise to fear disobeying Zig.

Motes of magical energy began to dance in the spot near where Rulf stood. They spun briefly in a vertical oval shape before disappearing in a brief flash of light -- and then Eneever Zig stood in that spot. He wore a black conical hat and black robes that his white beard hung over, and he clutched a wizard’s staff. He could not have looked more the stereotype of a wizard had he consciously tried.

“Well? You found it?” were the first words out of Zig’s mouth.

Rulf seemed to know to what he referred. “Yes. We located the Bottle City. Did you wish to see it right away? We were just dispatching the rest of the ogres in this place.”

“Leave them,” Zig said. “They do not concern me. I would be taken to the Bottle City at once, but I have a new task for after you lead me there. Take the men and secure the main tower of the castle, so I may make use of it upon my return.”

“The main tower is held by a group of elves…” Rulf said.

“I know. You may try convincing them to leave if you wish, but if they resist, kill them. Kill them all.”

Back to Basics Original D&D Greyhawk Campaign - Sessions 9 & 10

Session 9

Patchwall 27, 620 CY

The adventurers (still having no company name, even unofficially) have found the cost of carriage rides to Castle Greyhawk is prohibitively expensive since the last carriage driver died/”went missing,” so they bought two mules, put the dwarves on the mules along with some of their gear, and everyone bringing platemail armor for the dungeon bought leather armor for traveling, so they could make the best time possible. 

At this time of the year, even moving as fast as they could, it was dark well before they reached the castle, which was also when they came across a small campsite of goblins. The adventurers used bows and slings to attack the four goblins, downing two, but the other two fled and got away. The goblins were poor, with only 6 sp recovered.

When they did reach the castle, it was well after the goblins had, and they had gone for help. Six orcs piled out of a gatehouse before the castle (one that had never produced occupants before) and charged the adventurers with their bardiches, with the goblins trailing behind. But the party was now well-experienced with missile fire and brought down half the orcs before they’d finished their charge, and took down the remaining half right after, without a drop of the party’s blood being spilled. The goblins tried to get away again, but the party’s slings were too deadly efficient. Unlike the goblins, the orcs were apparently well-paid by someone to guard that gatehouse; they had 21 gp between them.

The party made their way into the courtyard but, because of the late hour, decided to rest for the night before visiting the dungeons. They knew, thanks to Brother Langdon, that the Chapel to Boccob was a safe place for them, and they hoped it was unoccupied so they could get away with bringing their mules in. Unfortunately, a Brother John was at the chapel, a priest who had risked entry to the castle because he felt he was needed here, but apparently not to put himself at risk helping to clear out his monstrous neighbors. 

Instead, the party decided it was a safe risk to put the mules in the old stable overnight. John confirmed that it was no longer haunted since Denebus the Wraith (Siliceous had researched the likeliest identity of the wraith on his downtime) was dispatched. To further ensure their safety, the main doors to the stable was barred from inside and the party left through a side door, and posted a watch all night from a window in the chapel. 

That last step is what ensured that Siliceous, during his watch, was able to hear the main doors being broken into. 

A lone ogre had been roused from whatever ogres do in the night by the smell of mules, and seriously injured one of them with his axe before John Grond was able to distract it with his ability to speak Ogrish. Grond came up with a plan, that even the lawful members of the party wound up endorsing, of paying the ogre to guard the mules through the night, and then kill him in the morning. 

Patchwall 28, 620 CY

To be fair, they tried charming it first, but the spell failed. The plan to kill it surprised the ogre and it was dispatched quickly before it could retaliate. It had only 14 gp on it.

Now it seemed clear that there were just too many ogres about and that it was dangerous to go into the dungeon with ogres at their backs. So the new plan was to go around to all the towers along the castle’s curtain wall and search them for ogres. They started by knocking on the door of the square tower at the castle’s entrance they had previously fought ogres in, and found two new ogres had made it their home! Haruspex put one to sleep with his remaining spell. It took two minutes to drop this ogre, and during that fight it delivered a crushing blow to John Grond! After the battle, Jolith and his hench-elf carried Grond back to the chapel to be healed, while the others searched the tower.  The tower produced a total of only 77 more gp in the ogres’ sacks.

Back at the chapel, Jolith had to bribe Brother John to help save Grond (since Jake the Cleric had not come on this trip, they lacked a healer!). For 20 gp, and as a favor to Langdon, Brother John helped – though through mundane rather than magical means. It was touch and go, but Grond lived!

Session 10

Ready’reat 13, 620 CY. An unusually warm earthday this late in autumn. 

Jake is still busy with other things in the city (this has kept his new inductee to the party, Erin, from being able to go with yet), and Lumpy is still mysteriously missing, so a party of five -- Haruspex Niv, Siliceous Slagg, John Grond, Jolith Rhygar, and Brother Langdon -- plus their two hirelings (Slagg’s silent caddy, Haldor, and Jolith’s prankish elven archer Trebor) and their two mules (the injured one has healed nicely) make their way back to Castle Greyhawk. The plan is to spend the night in the Chapel of Boccob and then visit the dungeons again.

Those plans are changed abruptly when they find the drawbridge to the castle is up! 

Siliceous has done much studying of castles and knows there must be a sally port or two somewhere, but they prove difficult to spot from the far side of the chasm-like dry moat completely surrounding the castle. Undeterred, they circle the moat for the first time and discover, on the east side, a narrow set of stairs descending to the moat’s floor 40’ below! Everyone (mules included) go down and the first thing they find is a cave mouth, but in the east wall of the moat, leading away from the castle dungeons. Still, the party is confident that the tunnel inside might loop down and around and come into the dungeons, so they go in. 

Almost immediately they are stopped by a pit at an intersection of tunnels. Grond carefully tests the wooden planks over the pit and finds them all rotted and unsafe. So the party leaves the mules here, guarded by Haldor and Trebor, and the five of them rope themselves together so they can cross the narrow corner around the pit safely and head south. 

The route never does lead under the castle, but only further from the castle! They explore cave after cave, finding a locked salting room, a cavern that might have once been an ogre nesting site before the ogres moved into the castle, and someone’s abandoned archery room (a long straight tunnel leads into it) now inhabited by four kobolds. Along the way, they pick up some loose treasure here and there, the best being a bolt of velvet found intact in the old ogre den. 

While listening in the archery room, Siliceous hears someone’s footsteps in there with them that he can’t see. He takes his rope out and swings it around until it touches something invisible. Then that invisible person runs north down a tunnel leading out of the room, but Langdon sprints after him and catches him. The invisible person casts a charm spell on Langdon, but he resists. Everyone can now see he’s some dressed like a fellow adventurer. Siliceous and John join Langdon in a dog pile on the lone spellcaster, beating him up until he surrenders. Haruspex tries to charm him, but this man -- who says he’s a conjurer named Arlo -- also resists the spell. 

Arlo claims that he was also looking for another entrance to the castle, so he could impress its new master, Eneever Zig, by getting in. In exchange for his life, Arlo tries to buy his freedom with the contents of his purse, that includes three precious stones, and the rumor that an old well on the south side of the castle leads down into the dungeons. Arlo is tied up and held by Langdon on a leash as the party moves on to explore more (the room behind the door turned out to be abandoned).

Moving further east, in the direction that Arlo was fleeing, they are surprised by goblin guards and, despite there only being three goblins, they prove surprisingly successful at seriously injuring both Grond and Langdon before they go down. The party moves on again, but more cautiously. 

To the north is a large cavern. As they are checking it out, they hear a huge crowd charging at them from the north end of the cavern. It turns out to be 10 more goblins (it sounded like even more!). Luckily, Haruspex has been holding onto his sleep spell all this time! It drops eight of them, and the remaining two turn in mid-charge and flee through another passage east. Fearful of reinforcements, the party decides they have had enough of this foray and backtrack out the way they came. Haldor, Trebor, and the mules are still alive and well when they return to the entrance!

Before leaving, the party checks out Arlo’s story and do indeed find an old well outside the castle walls. They lower a lit lantern on 100’ of rope to test its depths, and they have still hit neither the bottom or water. Realizing they want no part of this particular sally port, yet, they head home to lick their wounds and sell their loot.  

   

Back-to-Basics Original Dungeons & Dragons Greyhawk Campaign - Sessions 7 & 8

Session 7 (two weeks later...)

In Sittingbourne, Haruspex Niv paid for all but the ship’s crew to sleep the night in the Red Lion Hostel.

The next morning, Niv, his hireling Peter, Siliceous Slagg, Jake, Sagan the Nameless, and John Grond returned to the Rhenee Mistress and continued their riverboat tour southward, reaching the Village of Faversham that same morning. The wagon and horses were unloaded, the horses given some time to stretch, and the party considered their best course of action. Though John wanted to seek out information at Pelor’s Inn, Sagan suggested any guards at the west gate to the village (Faversham being a walled village, even if the wall was not very high) would be a better source of information. The two sentries were very surprised to see anyone wishing to go to Ashford; no one had been coming or going to Ashford for some time, since a hydra was lose in the area (something the party had heard rumors about weeks earlier). The party decided to chance it, but bought a pair of goats to bring along as hydra food in case they ran into it.

Outside the village was an abbey. Jake had always wanted to visit this abbey and begged leave of the others to see it.

Jake-less, they survived the day, seeing no sign of a hydra. But neither did they reach Ashford that day, given their late start. They camped the night behind a low hill away from the road and set one-man watches. It was at the end of Niv’s first watch that a small band of local adventurers from Ashford happened upon them. They were hunting a barrow wight, traveling with goblins, that had been sighted in the area. They knew of Propsero -- indeed, they knew he had been shut him in his home for over a week, refusing to leave, even to help with this wight business. This lent extra weight to their mission of helping to move Prospero, the task the Striped Mage had given them. Further, the adventurers were concerned the party might be wights in disguise. John submitted to tests to prove he was no wight, and the local adventurers pushed on.

In the morning, they reached Ashford and John checked the local stores for silver weapons, but found none. They set out to find Prospero’s house, got lost in the forest, but doubled back and found it a few hours later. And that was when they encountered eight little grey men -- kobolds -- who warned them they had no business with the wizard and to leave. It seemed like it would be a simple matter to put them to sleep with a spell -- but they seemed unusually resistant to the spell and only four went down. The other four were defeated, with two taken prisoner, but not before John, Niv, and Peter had all been injured, Niv and Peter seriously.

They were searching the bodies and finding some silver pieces when nine more kobolds arrived from the woods with the same warning. John killed one of the prisoners to try and break the morale of the fresh wave, but it did not work. Another sleep spell was attempted, this time by Sagan, but he was hit with a spear and his spell disrupted. Niv, Sagan, and Peter all retreated to the house with the remaining kobold prisoner while Slagg and Grond tried to hold off all their opponents. Indeed, they won in the end, dropping seven more kobolds and the two remaining ones fled, but by now both Slagg and Grond were seriously injured as well.

Meanwhile, the others were exploring the ridiculous-looking house, filled with curious knickknacks, and clocks that were impossibly miniaturized. Most importantly, Peter found Prospero sitting in his living room. Prospero was confused and indecisive, but claimed this was because of some unknown spell afflicting him. He was further aware that his house was surrounded by monsters that were not just unusually magic resistant, but “impossibly” magic resistant. To test this, Niv and Sagan both cast their remaining spells on the prisoner, trying to make the kobold like them, but it did not even seem to need to try and resist the spells.

Slagg came in, announced the battle was over, and asked for a healing potion. Luckily, Prospero had one with extra-healing properties, so Slagg and Grond could split it between them. It didn’t heal very much, though.

They saw another test shortly of this “magic resistance” when they convinced Prospero to come outside and they saw a large green monster about to attack Grond. Prospero dropped a Cloudkill spell on it, but the spell didn’t do much but obscure its vision. Everyone fled back inside.

While packing Prospero’s valuables, John stole a “magic coffeepot,” and Sagan found a magic talking mirror on the upstairs floor. The mirror told them of a secret passage under the house that Prospero claimed to have forgotten. It was a tunnel that led six miles east; the magic mirror was even able to show them that the end of the tunnel was clear. So they all made their escape, leaving their horses, wagon, and goats behind for the huge green monster…

Prospero recovered his wits as soon as they were some distance down the tunnel. Once they were out, Prospero took his things (minus the pilfered coffee pot) and teleported to the City of Greyhawk. Before he went, he asked them to make contact with his friend, Roger Bacon, in the Village of Faversham. They needed to go back there anyway to pick up Jake from the abbey.

Peter, Niv’s hireling, was badly shaken by having to flee from a troll -- he just kept going, never to be seen again (so far).

After a week in Faversham, during which time Prospero never returned, Sagan and John decided it was time to return to the Striped Mage and inform him of their success. They had, after all, helped Prospero move, just not in the way they had expected. Upon returning to Greyhawk City, though, they were shocked to learn that the Striped Mage had died, apparently from old age! All of his indentured servants were expected to attend his wake that weekend…but some of them would soon have other plans…


Session 8
Patchwall 14, 620 CY

On a beautiful autumn Starday morning, seven adventurers rode out from Greyhawk City, northward toward the Cairn Hills. The rented carriages carried them over the side trail that led to the infamous ruins of Castle Greyhawk. For Haruspex Niv, Siliceous Slagg, and Jake, it was a return. For Sagan the Nameless, John Grond, Tuko "Lumpy" Burrstone, and Jolith Rhygar, long denied the chance to seek fame and fortune by their master, the Striped Mage, the day of his wake was a fittingly spiteful time to at last visit the Castle.

Not long after one of the carriage drivers had told them about an ogre ambush on the last carriage tour to the old castle, two ogres charged the party just as they were unloading from the carriages. First blood went to Jolith’s sling, but the ogres responded in kind with hurled spears and one random throw impaled Sagan and the other impaled one of the carriage drivers. Jake tried to magically heal Sagan, but it wasn’t enough -- Sagan the Nameless died. The battle was quickly ended, for the injured ogre fell afflicted by Niv’s charm spell and, between the charmed ogre and John (who could speak Ogrish), they convinced the remaining ogre to stand down.

After huddling up, the adventurers came up with a pretty audacious plan to deal with the ogres. They bribed the ogres into compliance by feeding them the horses from one of the carriages, then bribed the remaining carriage driver into returning to the city, not report what happened to the other carriage, and use the money left on Sagan to pay for his funeral. A few choice gear items were removed from Sagan (and carried by John). After the carriage was away and the ogres were done eating, the adventurers asked for an escorted tour of the castle grounds.

The ogres showed the adventurers their home and inside was a human cleric chained to the wall -- what the ogres offered to share as dessert. The adventurers sent the charmed ogre off on a false errand, surrounded the remaining ogre, and killed it. They freed the cleric, Brother Langdon, who had come on a solo pilgrimage to the Shrine of Boccob here at the castle. They found Langdon’s gear (and 30 gold from the ogre besides), and brought him along to keep him safe. Then they retrieved their charmed ogre and convinced him to go into the dungeon with them, through the trapdoor entrance they knew so well.

The ogre did not care for the tight confines of the dungeon and had never been down here before, but proved an invaluable door opener. The jail cells in the entry hall were empty this time, so they were able to move on quickly. The old brigand lair was now being shared with hobgoblins (they had 15 gp between them), but with the ogre’s help the hobgoblins were quickly dispatched (though Lumpy was seriously hurt by their polearms) and the brigands surrendered (they had a decorative shield worth 20 gp). The old orc lair was empty. They searched the sarcophagus room and found treasure they had missed months earlier (a 100 gp tourmaline and a 25 gp incense burner). Lastly, they found a new room with a trapped chest in it (Jolith triggered the trap, which was supposed to hit him with magical cold, but something went wrong with the trap and he took no harm). Inside was the biggest cache of treasure they had ever seen before -- 4,000 gold pieces worth of gold and jewels, and three magic potions.

Leaving the castle with their spoils, their charmed ogre pulled the carriage halfway back to the city, where they left the ogre to his own devices, and then they walked back home the rest of the way.

Back-to-Basics OD&D Greyhawk Campaign - Sessions 5 & 6

Session 5 (two weeks later...)

At the end of that summer, the three freemen adventurers - Siliceous Slagg, Jake, and Haruspex Niv - decided to finally go to Grossettgrottell and see if Mather and his clan had a reward for them. They were joined by Niv’s newly hired man-at-arms, Peter, and a new adventurer, Sagan the Nameless, who they suspected was spying on them for Eneever Zig, but let him come anyway.

After an uneventful trip into the Cairn Hills, they finally reached Grossettgrottell, which seemed to be no more than a thorp full of gnome shepherds with a human-sized inn. The inn was run by Halril, an elf maiden, who entertained merchants who could not or would not go down into the warrens (a friendly merchant of this sort they met was John Rown) and gnome shepherds waiting for the bowling games to start. Though they made sure the inn could put up their wagon and two draft horses, it seemed accommodations were scarce because this was a fest day, or a market day, and indeed they were missing it even now in the warrens below.

Moving outside, Slagg quickly found the concealed tunnel entrance to the underground warrens. They were stopped at a guard outpost where the gnomes were suspicious until Slagg described Mather and his nephews, and then they were admitted, and warned not to pet the badgers (they had many opportunities to, but chickened out).

The entry tunnel went past a side passage with a dwarven glyph over it, but they ignored it and pressed on to the trade hall cavern. In this enormous cavern they found the marketplace just starting to break down for the day. They hired a gnome guide for 2 sp who took them to a tunnel that led to the Amdur Clan’s section of the warrens, home to Mather and the nephews, Horach and Pincnan. Here they were received warmly and told they could stay as long as they wanted. A feast would be prepared for them – but the chef Ipayah refused because she had no violet mushrooms for everyone’s favorite dish. The mushrooms could only be found in the Forbidden Caves.

At first, the party wanted nothing to do with the Forbidden Caves. They found the Amdurs’ drinking hall and, socializing with the gnomes there, learned of undisclosed bounties on kobolds, goblins, hobgoblins, and orcs that infested the Cairn Hills. They told about kobolds bursting into flame when killed, and goblins having special abilities, which may or may not prove to be true. But the Forbidden Caves were starting to sound more tempting, especially when Horach and Pincnan agreed to come and point out poisonous mushrooms to them (the whole “forbidden” thing was really more of a guideline…).

In their first cave, they found poisonous, sticky mushrooms, and normal-sized beetles that seemed to like heat. In the second cave, they found destroying angel mushrooms that were, besides being deadly poison, would explode with a flash if thrown. Jake was collecting some when three giant centipedes attacked him, but they were quickly dispatched by the party without harm. Niv made Peter collect the bodies and place them in his pack.

In a third cave, they found a slick slope and decided it looked too dangerous, so they backtracked to a side passage. Down this way they found a fourth cave with a 4’ cube carved stone in the center of it. Though initially wary of the cube, Jake went in and touched the back side of it, at which time the side facing a small side passage turned white and the side facing a shallow niche turned black. There was definitely some puzzle here, but they decided not to mess with it. It was getting late and they wanted to find their way back. Which they did!

Session 6 (Two weeks later…)

On the two-week anniversary of the party’s arrival in Grossetgrottell (this week’s market day-fest was taking place in the neighboring village of Chataignier), the party was planning to go back and explore the rest of the Forbidden Caves. Haruspex Niv, Jake, and Sagan the Nameless found Siliceous Slagg, who had been spending time with his fellow dwarves in Grossettgrottell, while the others had been staying close with the gnomish Amdur Clan. Their reunion was cut short by a commotion -- the mayor’s son, Zeph, had been kidnapped! Everyone who wasn’t away in Chataignier was mobilized to search, including every burrowing mammal, but the only clue was that something had been seen heading towards the Forbidden Caves!

Mather was rallying his people when he spotted the party. Singing their praises as experts in rescuing gnomes, he also volunteered to come with them, armed with his lucky dagger and a shield he had bought. They also had Niv’s man-at-arms hireling, Peter, along with. Slagg volunteered that he knew of a dwarven hero staying in the area, but the others did not like the thought of splitting treasure with a hero and decided six people was quite enough thank you very much.

The party headed back into the caves, being more careful to map this time, and used Niv’s ESP spell to try and home in on the gnomenappers. They covered a lot of familiar ground at first, making sure the four caves they knew about were not occupied and looking for tracks. It was when they returned to the cave with the magical stone cube in it that Niv’s spell finally detected evil monsters ahead. Still, the party took the time to try and detour around the direction the thoughts emanated from, suspecting an ambush. So they came at a cave with three goblins and four giant rats in it from a slightly different angle. The rats charged at them and the goblins threw their spears, but Jake blocked the tunnel entrance with his shield and the spears all glanced off -- and then their opponents were all dropped by Niv’s Sleep spell. They had minimal treasure -- 12 sp -- and it was decided (after killing the rats) to tie up the goblins and see if they had any information of value. It turned out, their boss was a gnoll, and the gnoll had gnomenapped Zeph. The goblins were guarding his back as the gnoll headed deeper into the caves. After questioning them, Slagg dispatched them with his axe.

The next cave had a high ledge overlooking it like a balcony and there was a lone goblin guard watching them from the balcony. The party went back to get the three throwing spears from the dead goblins and come back, but when they did they found the lone sentry had gone and got all his friends -- four of them -- to come man the balcony with him. They lobbed javelins at the party, lightly injuring Slagg, and nearly killing Mather (he was saved at the last minute by Jake’s only cure spell). The javelin-tossers were chased back by flaming oil, but soon the cave was filled with smoke and too dangerous for the party to stay. Luckily, there was another tunnel down here to try…

Which lead to a cave with the gnoll in it, accompanied by a lone goblin, and a sack with something moving in it. The goblin met the advancing party and blew out Jake’s torch (being able to blow out torches was something the gnomes had told them goblins could do -- and it turned out to be true!). The gnoll was running towards a tunnel on the other side of the cave when the lights went out; Sagan tossed a Sleep spell down the tunnel as far as it could go and caught the gnoll in it, which they found out after Slagg dispatched the remaining goblin. Sure enough, Zeph was sleeping now in the bag, but they woke him up. Mather comforted Zeph while the gnoll was tied up. The party quickly decided they would bring back their prisoner to face gnomish justice…and maybe collect a reward for capturing him. They also found the cave the gnoll had fled into was the cave of violet mushrooms -- the very delicacies they had been looking for last time! They filled the sack that had held Zeph with the delicious mushrooms and started to head back.

But not all the way back yet. There was something Sagan had noticed while mapping…that a dead end they had seen earlier seemed to come to the other side of the balcony cave. They all went there and searched it for secret doors. They almost found none, but Peter found it, searching a little further back in the tunnel from the dead end. This lead to the secret lair of the six remaining goblins, who were felled by another Sleep spell. In a chest, they had 9 cp, 300 sp, and 31 ep, which the party took.

And lastly, Jake wanted to back and gather 16 more “exploding” destroying angel mushrooms, enough to fill the remainder of space in his backpack.

When returning to the Village of Corippo, they returned Zeph, and were treated to a 50 gp reward, plus 20 more for bringing them the blackguard who had abducted him. The violet mushrooms were worth 50 gp to the Amdur Clan (and shared only with the Amdur Clan, cementing their cooking- related power in the community!). Jake looked into if the destroying angel mushrooms were saleable and learned that the four he’d picked two weeks ago would rot in the next few days, meaning his collection was of limited value.     

My Back-to-Basics OD&D Greyhawk Campaign - Sessions 3 & 4

Session 3 (Two weeks later…)

 

The wagons rolled over the drawbridge into the courtyard of Castle Greyhawk once more. Rulf, acting like he thought of himself as a sergeant when he did not outrank any other indentured servant, called for everyone to line up and sound off, while the wizard Eneever Zig reviewed them. Zig’s instructions were short this time. Instead of waiting here, Zig was going into the dungeon himself, to speak to someone in the Bottle City. He explained how this was literally a city in a magic bottle, on the second dungeon level. He did not even assign guards to the wagons before walking off.

 

Jake, Haruspex Niv, Siliceous Slagg, and Baron von Hage (Baron was his first name) were not interested in guard duty, they abandoned Rulf and the others for the trapdoor that led into the dungeon, intent on collecting bounties.

 

Passing the dungeon cells, they found a third gnome in the first cell! The gnome was chained up and made it clear an ambush was waiting for them in the second, adjoining cell. Forewarned, the four bounty hunters surprised two brigands lurking in the next cell, a variant of the trap the brigands had left here for them last time, but more dangerous because one of the brigands had an alarm horn in hand. Thankfully, the brigand dropped the horn when surprised, and neither brigand lasted long (one slain, the other, Bill, captured).

 

The gnome was freed. His name was Mather, and he had come looking for the two gnomes freed two weeks back, but was himself captured and tossed in here as fresh bait for the bounty hunters. Mather, unlike his cousins, wanted to accompany them and avenge himself, and was given Baron’s dagger.

Bill was questioned about the location of the Master. He had no idea, but he explained some dungeon economy to them. Rather than being paid money he was allowed to keep, Bill was given a weekly allowance that he could use to buy replacement weapons, good wine, or a romp with the Master’s harlots. This seemed like a good clue to the bounty hunters and they insisted Bill lead them to the harlots. Niv cast his ESP spell so he would sense thoughts they approached and would be harder to surprise.

 

The way to the harlot rooms seemed deserted, though. Bill suggested that it might be meal time; his sense of time was thrown off by the week he had spent in the cell as part of the trap for them. Eventually they reached a locked door that they could not break down, but the noise of them throwing themselves against it brought the attention of the harlots on the other side. When they claimed to be the Master, it brought the madam, Muriel, to the door.

 

There was a brigand in the room who was now half-dressed, had picked up his spear, and rushed in to fight, with Muriel fighting alongside him with her dagger. But the brigand went down fast and Muriel surrendered. She had fought to make a show of loyalty, but her only real loyalty was to her girls. She said she had few encounters with the Master, and most of her dealings were with a lieutenant, Gregory. It was Gregory with whom Muriel had an arrangement that her girls would always be compensated. She was asked if the women would want to leave the dungeon if escorted, but she said some had been down here long enough they did not remember the surface world anymore. She agreed to lead them into the vicinity of Gregory’s quarters, but would not risk being seen with them and let him know she had betrayed him. She also implored them not to kill Gregory, as her girls would no longer be safe then.

Two more brigands had been in the next room of harlots, but one escaped and only one remained to guard the other’s escape, wielding only a scimitar in his hands. He was a capable swordsman and it took some time for Slagg, Baron, and Jake to drop him.

 

A short distance away, at Gregory’s quarters, they fought and killed a guard outside the room, and Baron was finally able to upgrade his armor to what this man had been wearing. By now, Muriel had vanished (Mather had her dagger now, though). The door to Gregory’s room was locked, and another door on the other side that seemed to lead into the same area was locked. Niv sensed no thoughts within, so making lots of noise breaking a door down did not seem useful enough to them. Instead, they moved on to a new part of the dungeon past here.

 

The next rooms were also empty of people, but they were not empty. One contained a blue opal in a chamber full of centipedes, including two giant centipedes, which were easily killed. Mather helped in the combat here, despite still having no armor. Another room contained a stuffed albatross on a wooden pedestal, with a pair of dice next to it. A third room contained even more elaborate and puzzling contents. There was a pool of water (curiously, saltwater!) with a chain hanging from a pulley above it. In a small adjoining room was a winch controlling the chain. The bounty hunters tried lowering the chain into the water, and tried baiting the chain with the stuffed albatross, but caught nothing on their fishing expedition.

 

While trying to solve the puzzle, they were caught by three guards on patrol and the bounty hunters fought them and killed them. Mather, again, proved useful (so much so that he was convinced Muriel’s dagger was magical), but by now both Slagg and Baron had been injured and Jake only had a healing spell for one. Leaving Baron moderately injured, they decided it was time to start heading back. Returning to the harlots’ rooms, they found Muriel had returned here. She told Mather her dagger was not magical, shocking him to learn that it was all himself who had been so successful in combat. Muriel had discussed their offer of freedom with her girls and three of them wished to go.

 

They got turned around once on the way back out, but realized they had taken a wrong turn when they reached a pit they had never seen before. Luckily, they had still been dragging Bill around all this time, and Bill led them out. However, not far from the first bandit lair, they opened a door and found four wandering giant rats. Two of them jumped on Baron and tore him apart. Mather killed them both, while Slagg and Jake took care of the other two.They tried to revive Baron, but all they got out of him were his final words. “I had a good time…don’t tell anyone how I died.”

 

Returning to the courtyard (Bill was forced to carry Baron), they found all the other servants badly hurt and one of the wagons smashed! Two ogres had ambushed them from the roofs of the nearby round towers and hurled rocks down on the nearest wagon to smash it. The ogres had been chased off after a horrendous battle.

 

Eventually Zig returned and he had news too: the dungeons had changed since he was down there last and he could no longer find the Bottle City. He offered a 200 gp reward if they happened to find it. No one had, of course, but they did have treasure to show Zig. The dice found by the albatross had fading magic, or some residual magic, to them. Curious, he gave them 50 gp for the dice. The blue opal was worth far more -- 2,000 gold pieces. Now the bounty hunters had a serious discussion -- use the money to resurrect Baron, or pay for their freedom? The 2,000 split three ways would make all three of them free men (or two men and a dwarf, at any rate). The desire to be free men won the day, but to assuage their guilt they agreed to give the remaining 200 gold to Baron’s next of kin.

 

And so they all left, with the remaining wagon, to return to the City of Greyhawk…

 

Session 4 (Two weeks later...)

 

Though Haruspex Niv was eager to get Mather to Grossettgrottell (and possibly a reward), Jake and Siliceous Slagg made him wait, vowing they’d do that after one more trip to Castle Greyhawk. They brought Goryc along (even though Goryc is still an indentured servant of Eneever Zig!).

 

Thanks to a wealthy patron Jake met the previous week, they had a carriage ride and men-at-arms escort all the way to Castle Greyhawk. Once there, they realized they could do anything they wanted, with no mission from Zig. They looked around the entrance and found an ogre’s “nest” in one of the square towers, but the ogre wasn’t home (the heroes know there are at least two).

Then they checked out the stables on the south side/high end of the castle grounds. There they found a working wagon, miscellaneous possessions from old workers, and – on the third floor – a haunted room. Jake performed a ceremony to try and put the undead to rest, but the ceremony only upset – a wraith! Niv and Goryc ran (I wasn’t taking the blame if they got energy drained while they were NPCs). Slagg had a silver dagger, so he stayed and fought. Jake poured holy water on his morning star so he could fight too. And they won! (Chiefly because the wraith was a terrible fighter/I could not roll more than a 10 to hit/forgot silver weapons do half-damage. Oops!) The room contained some loose change, a holy symbol, and more importantly a workbench full of a master blacksmith’s tools in pristine condition.

 

Rather than move on in exploring the castle, Slagg had an unusual suggestion: why not quit now with the spoils they had? They could load everything that looked saleable into the wagon and push it downhill to the courtyard entrance. If they hurried, they would get out before the ogre(s) came back. After some discussion, they agreed as a group to leave, left the castle, and met their escort just outside. Their carriage had two horses; they bought one outright from the driver and returned at half-speed to civilization. Rather than return all the way to Greyhawk City, they stopped at the Village of Hawfair Green, so they would reach it by late evening.

 

My Back-to-Basics OD&D Greyhawk Campaign - sessions 1& 2

 Prologue (Session 1)

They came in a covered wagon, not allowed to see the route through the hills they took to reach the castle. They were only allowed out when they were in its courtyard. Their actions were limited because they were the indentured servants of a wizard – one Eneever Zig.

The wizard himself was there and waxed nostalgic about where they were – Castle Greyhawk. He talked about how generations had looted its dungeons and been responsible for the beginning of a new social class, the adventuring class. And, even though the castle should have been cleared out by now, someone or some force had restocked the castle dungeons with monsters and treasure. Zig wanted those treasures, and any treasure brought to him would help pay for their emancipation. He even showed them a way down, revealing a concealed trapdoor in the courtyard.

The initial five servants were Card, Jake, Korrin, Rex, and Thorin; of them, only Jake was human. They found the dungeon, at least near this entrance, was truly a dungeon in form and function, and one of the first three cells were inhabited. They freed two gnomes and sent them up to the surface. Their jailors were a group of bandits at the end of the hall. Not many of the bandits were there in their lair, so they went down quickly.

From a bandit they left alive they learned of a nearby maze area the bandits avoided. This sounded promising to the five adventurers. They explored some of it, finding a spear trap behind a false door, and eventually found their way to a room with kobolds in it. They also made short work of the kobolds. Then they found a larger room with a row of three doors and, after they tried one, they found this area was inhabited by a lot more kobolds – too many to handle! They fled for their lives, Rex sacrificing himself in an attempt to slow the kobolds down…

Session 2: Five Months Later

Eneever Zig returned to the castle, with two wagons full of servants and other retainers this time. He wanted information more than treasure this time, and put a bounty of 100 gold on the head of Gurth, the bandit leader. Jake, having survived the first foray months earlier, returned to guide three new adventurers, Goryc, Hauspex Niv, and Siliceous Slagg. They went down via the same route.

At the prison cells, they found the same two gnomes! They had never made it out of the courtyard, having been captured by an ogre five months ago and returned to the cells. They had someone else in the cells with them, but this man turned out to be one of the bandits. He pulled a dagger to Goryc’s throat and demanded the others leave! Niv was fast with a charm spell and put the bandit under his power.

The charmed bandit led them to the bandits’ rooms. The bandits were spread out over two rooms, with Gurth in the second room. All of the bandits were dispatched, save Gurth and one other (the charmed one was killed by Slagg). They collected some treasure and returned up top to claim their bounty. The light of day hurt the eyes of the bandits, so accustomed had they become to living underground.

Zig asked them to pin Gurth down, then used a medallion to read Gurth’s thoughts. The medallion killed Gurth, but not before giving up his thoughts to Zig. Zig did not get the answers he wanted, but he now placed a bounty of 200 gp on someone Gurth knew as “The Master.” Zig also appraised the treasures the adventurers brought back. Goryc suspected Zig of lowballing them and cast a magic-detecting spell. None of their treasure was magical – but he did learn that Zig was protected by two invisible, magical guardians nearby him. At least they got 100 gold which, when added to their bounty, gave them 200 gold to pay down their servitude. Just 550 gold each left to go…

The captured bandit that wasn’t Gurth was eager to trade information for his life and told of a lieutenant who might know where the Master was. The prisoner was forced to lead them down and took them to a room full of eight orcs. Prepared for them in advance, the two magic-users dropped all eight of them with two sleep spells before the orcs could even reach them. They killed all the orcs, but left one alive for questioning. Their new prisoner told them the lieutenant they sought was a “half-goblin” named Herg and gave them directions on how to find Herg.

The adventurers followed the directions, passing three doors that led into rooms that housed huge weasels. They left the weasels alone and made their way to a large muralled hall and a pair of double doors, just as the orc had described. But the double doors were extremely hard to open.

While working on the doors, a man with a candle and a cape made of rat pelts approached them. This man was a roving furrier, buying rat pelts, and had been down here so long he wasn’t sure he wanted to leave and promised to think it over.

Meanwhile, the magic-users found, if they each touched one door that they opened for them. Unfortunately, the orc had lied. This was not Herg’s lair, but the lair of nine berserkers. Short on spells and not feeling confident, the adventurers tried to quickly trap the men inside the chamber, but the men were able to easily open the doors from inside. The adventurers fled the way they had come, but the berserkers were faster and caught up to them around the corner, in the hallway with the weasel rooms. The adventurers staged a fighting withdrawal up the long hallway, but would likely have lost the battle had Niv not started opening doors and letting weasels out. The weasels wound up doing more harm to the adventurers than anyone else down here had, but they also kept the berserkers busy and allowed them to escape.

Campaigning in South Province

This is the longer version of the write-up about South Province that I wrote for Canonfire, and you can read here: http://www.canonfire.com/cf/modules.php?name=Forums&file=viewtopic&t=9224

Campaigning in South Province is for the DM who wants to downplay dungeon crawling in favor of political intrigue and military campaigning. More properly called the South Province of the Great Kingdom until 587 CY, and thereafter known as the United Kingdom of Ahlissa, the South Province is one of the most population-dense areass in the Flanaess, which means it is relatively safe of dangers such as roving bands of monsters, dragons, giants, etc. That is not to say the South Province is safe -- the Herzog of South Province extensively used humanoid troops and now there are many orcs and hobgoblins still in positions of authority throughout the kingdom. The warmongering followers of Hextor are everywhere and they are displeased with a stable, peaceful Kingdom of Ahlissa. The former capital of Zelradton is a hotbed of devil worship, so bad that to avoid their influence the capital was moved to Kalstrand, a city only annexed to the kingdom post-Greyhawk Wars.

The United Kingdom of Ahlissa is much larger than the former South Province, now including the lost Prelacy of Almor and much of what was known in recent memory as the Great Kingdom. However, these areas are not covered in this entry and should be covered separately.

The South Province is in the southeast Flannaess, south of Relmor Bay, bordered to the east by the Thelly River, to the south by the Greyflood River and the Iron Hills, and Dunhead Bay to the west. Its latitude and geography suggest a climate like Earth’s Egypt. While there are no interior rivers within the province, the population density suggests there is no shortage of water, so there must be ample streams and springs, as well as well-fed water. This is supported by the abundance of food prepared in South Province, one of the chief staples of the economy, even though copper, silver, and gold are all mined around the perimeter of the province. In this wet, hot clime, rice is likely a staple of local diets.

The culture, largely Oeridian, is here more like a mixture of Germanic and Slavic. The original Flan inhabitants were decimated by the migrating Oerdians and this long ago act of evil has cast a lingering presence over the Province ever since. Corruption is rampant and the standing army is little more than bandits, brigands, and monstrous races (including a significant number of ogrillons). Much of the history of its Flan inhabitants is now lost, though the Flan name for this land, Ahlissa, suggests some kinship with the legendary Queen Ehlissa of antiquity.  

The “natural enemies” of South Province are the states of the Iron League to the south. Idee, the Iron Hills, the Hollow Highlands, and Sunndi resisted generations of herzogs who ruled South Province before the current Overking, and the unattainable goal of finally reabsorbing those lands, long ago lost to the Great Kingdom, have not been forgotten.   

Country specific resources:

“Developments from Stonefist to South Province” (Dragon #57)

Ivid the Undying (the unpublished Sargent-era supplement)

Adventures in this country include:

lCity/naval adventures along the coastlines, fending off Scarlet Brotherhood-backed pirates.

lPerform a quest for the druids to restore the Bonewood.

lDefend Trennenport from a Sahuagin invasion.

lExplore Icespire, a cursed area on the Dunhead Coast where it is eternal winter.

lExplore the Undercity of Prymp, with its watery caves of deadly monsters and connection to the Underdark.

lAid (or put down?) an insurrection of the slave population.

lOppose the machinations of the Church of Hextor without openly fighting them (since they are inexorably bound to the power structure of the kingdom).

lPolitical intrigue between backstabbing political factions willing to take any steps against each other, up to assassinations.

lQuest for Queen Ehlissa’s Marvelous Nightingale, hidden somewhere in her ancestral lands.

lSolve the mystery of the callings from the Calling Mines.

lTransform the system from within, gradually lessening the hold of Lawful Evil over the kingdom and backing leaders who can change it to Good.

lAfter 400 years, the Yuan-Ti (represented by Graf Reydrich’s ancestor, Reynevar the Snakeheaded) return to Ahlissa. But for what purpose? Do they also seek the Nightingale?

Adventures in nearby areas include:

lCement the tenuous alliance between the Iron Hills and Ahlissa through diplomacy.

lEstablish peace with the Kingdom of Nyrond (and stop their raids!).

Fan-made Resources:

“The Principality of Ahlissa” (Oerth Journal #16)

“Trennenport” (Oerth Journal #21)

“Zelradton: City of Steel” (Oerth Journal #18)

Downtime Spending Rules for OD&D

Downtime Spending

In OD&D, where game time is meant to correspond to real time, I saw a need for mechanics to determine what happens during those 2 weeks of game time between our sessions.

 

You pick the social class you want to live like, and that determines how much it costs per week, as follows:

Lower Lower Class (bums on the street) - 1 cp

Middle Lower Class (what you were as indentured servants) - 1 sp

Upper Lower Class (freemen, working class) - 1 ep

Lower Middle Class (common tradesmen) - 5 gp

Middle Middle Class (guild tradesmen) - 10 gp

Upper Middle Class (merchants) - 20 gp

Lower Upper Class (knights) - 60 gp

Middle Upper Class (barons) - 180 gp

Upper Upper Class (dukes) - 360 gp

Upper Upper Class+ (princes) - 720 gp

Upper Upper Class++ (kings) - 1,440 gp

What Happened to You Doing Your Week of Downtime? Table

Roll       Result

1 or less Someone kills you in your sleep and takes all your stuff

2            There is a 5 in 6 chance that someone beats you up, robs you of 10-60% of your wealth, and leaves you with 1 hp

3            You have a 4 in 6 chance of catching an ailment/disease/infestation (referee’s call)

4            You have a 3 in 6 chance of one of your contacts/followers/hirelings/henchmen leaving you

5-9        Nothing happens

10          You have a 3 in 6 chance of picking up a new contact/meeting someone to hire

11          You have a 4 in 6 chance of someone seeking you out to hire you to do something (plot hook!)

12          You have a 5 in 6 chance of a sponsor finds you and offers to pay your way to the next social class up next week

13+       You are accepted into the hierarchy for your class or race (your choice) or advance up in that hierarchy (permanent one step up on the social class table)

Social Class Modifiers

LLC -4

MLC - 2

ULC -1

MC - no modifiers

LUC +1

MUC +2

UUC +4

[This next part is adapted from an early Dragon magazine: ]

Further, like in the original Blackmoor campaign, you can earn XP *again* by additional spending during downtime, in the following ways:

- Religious sacrifice. Any classes, no more than 1/week, no limit.
– Philanthropy. Non-chaotics only, no limit (half-value for Neutrals).
– Spell Research. Magic-users only, up to 250 gp per level per day.
– Clan hoards. Demi-humans only, no limit, but must travel to the location of the clan & its hoard.

- Guild/Church tithing. Any classes, no more than 1/week, up to 10% of everything you have.
– Carousing. Non-lawfuls only (half-value for Neutrals). Max spent is 500 gp per level per night (or 250 if at less than full hp). A character needs a CON score of 2 per day (so a CON of 14+ is required to keep going all seven days of the week), and the character needs an equal number of days of rest afterwards.

For downtime extra spending, 1 XP is earned for every 2 GP spent (so 50% of its initial XP value when earned).