Greyhawk

Greyhawk – Setting the Wichita Campaign in Motion

2022-12-26T15:57:41-05:00February 2nd, 2020|

Last Sunday, 26 January 2020, we created characters (some both of two, some just one of two since they had create PCs at TsunamiCon in October) and began to adventure in our local Wichita Greyhawk campaign. The players created the following first-level characters---two each, since I wanted them to have backups in case PCs are turned to stone, killed, or otherwise out-of-action for awhile:Brad - one new PC: Verdure, a female half-elf druid; 2nd PC TBDBrian - one new PC: Varis, a half-elf mercenary for hire (assassin), who is being played in preference to Melisor, a human magic-user (who delved my Castle Greyhawk at TsunamiCon)Henry - one PC: Vilador, male human magic-user, who also delved Castle Greyhawk at TsunamiCon; 2nd PC TBD after I figure out if we're doing children in the game or not (I'm leaning toward yes)Jeff - one new PC: Hagrid, male dwarf fighter/thief; 2nd PC is Oberon Canorbe, human cleric of St. Cuthbert; Hagrid and Verdure split the costs for Fang, a wardogJon - two new PCs: Danger Ranger II, male human ranger; 2nd PC is Slim Bandicoot, human thiefVince - one new PC: Lugh, male human ranger; 2nd PC is Seriat, human cleric of Obah-HaiSeveral other players participated in the TsunamiCon events, but weren't able to attend on Sunday's kickoff, so I'm still waiting to see where the mix of regular and semi-players settles out. After creating PCs, the players opted to explore through the ruined monastery dungeons from the AD&D Dungeon Masters Guide, which I've set on the southern verge of the western side of the Gnarley Forest:Darlene's Greyhawk mapfrom the 1980 Greyhawk FolioThe PCs began in Ellorn, a small ... read more!

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NPC – Lavas Laerk Apothecary City of Greyhawk

2020-01-27T20:42:05-05:00January 27th, 2020|

NPC - Lavas Laerk Apothecary City of Greyhawk There are several apothecary, potion and compenent shops that can be found on the Street of Dreams in the City of Greyhawk, (although it is known mostly for a large and languid brothel as well as several dens where drugs are consumed and a large theater where illusions and shows of light are cast on the ceiling, and few all hours fried meat-sandwhich sellers nearby), but none are more respected than Lavas Laerk's Bottle Shop. His storefront seems modest but behind his counter the curtain in the doorway to his backroom leads to a long building with many basements and cellars. His stock includes potion and elixirs of almost any kind, medicinal or magical. The compenents held in storeroom cover the mundane, the exotic and the impossible. He is constantly on the look-out for replenishment of material and the source of many an adventurers livlihood as he sends them to find this rare plant or creature or that mineral or item necessary for the creation of potions, spells or items of power and deviltry. The shop is frequented by some of the most powerful users of magic in the city and is guarded by several wards and creations that would daunt or destroy any would-be robber or burgler. Lavas is something of a Half-elf, certainly there is high elf blood in him but it is questionable if the other half is human. He has run his shop for at least a century and, according to those with equally lengthy lifespans, appears no older than he did when he first opened his doors. Originally published on the Hall ... read more!

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I’m published!

2020-01-04T17:41:00-05:00January 4th, 2020|

Although I'm likely known for my History of Oerth posts, I'm deviating from the norm to announce weird and wonderful news. I'm published! I've been writing for years, and have completed two novels and a handful of short stories, none of which could be considered Fantasy, or even speculative in any shape or form. I wrote contemporary stories, and turn of the century novels, one set in Timmins, my hometown, in the year of its birth, and the other a faux history of my great grandfather's supposed experiences in the Great War. I say "supposed history" because he never once spoke about his experiences while in uniform. This is not to say that I'm not acquainted with fantasy or Dungeons and Dragons, because I most certainly am. I read science fiction when I began reading, and then Lord of the Rings in my early years of high school. I picked up Gary Gygax's "Gord" of Greyhawk novels, and the original Dragonlance trilogies as they came out. I must say that I tired of the Forgotten Realms novels rather quickly, even as I continued to buy and read them for many years. I preferred the Black Company series to them. Time passed, my friends who played D&D moved away, and the game slipped into the past. That's likely a similar story to many readers of this blog. I swapped fantasy for classics and histories and literary novels like Hemingway and Fitzgerald and Faulkner, and a host on Canadiana I won't bore you with since you've likely never heard of Findley and Robertson and so many other Canadian authors, and there I stayed until relatively recently, when ... read more!

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History of Oerth, Part 9: Of A Rumour of War

2022-10-18T16:21:43-04:00December 20th, 2019|

History of Oerth, Part 9: Of A Rumour of WarThe Great Kingdom has all but collapsed under the weight of its own wickedness. New powers have taken to the field in the wake of its collapse, each eager to snap up what is unclaimed. But in the absence of law and order, chaos has risen. Evil is sweeping the land.Two names will enter the fray: Iuz and Ivid, and the Flanaess will fall into such tyanny as it had not known since the name Vecna was whispered by those under the weal of his Occluded Empire.505 CY King Avras of Furyondy took note of the doings of Iuz, for what king wouldn’t be concerned about the rise of Evil on his border. The Vesve was already hard pressed by this Iuz, as orcs and hobgoblins bearing Iuz’s mark had penetrated their canopy and were laying waste to all they encountered. Avras mustered his troops and sent them north. But even as they engaged his vile forces, the armies of Iuz had already begun to break apart. For Iuz was not to be found. And it was his tyranny that had held them together.But neither Furyondy nor Vesve was directly involved in the banishment of Iuz, generally dated to 505 CY. [Iuz]St. Cuthbert of the Cudgel has been allowed to strike against Iuz, when his avatar assisted those imprisoning Iuz in 505 CY. That St. Cuthbert would wish to fight Iuz is not unexpected. Of the "martial" [...] Powers, Heironeous has his great struggle with his hated brother Hextor [....] But St. Cuthbert is a doughty, tough fighter, and he hates Iuz's [...] nature. That he ... read more!

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History of Oerth, Part 8: Of The Dissolution of the Great Kingdom

2019-12-12T12:28:00-05:00December 12th, 2019|

History of Oerth, Part 8: Of The Dissolution of the Great Kingdom The Great Kingdom had waxed and waned, and it its waning, the western principalities declared their sovereignty, for in truth, they were already self-determining and self-governing. Others closer to its heart were soon to follow, for in its Turmoil Between Crowns the Great Kingdom’s reach was surely foreshortened. And the Houses of the Celestial Circle, knowing this to be true, were plotting and maneuvering, but then again, when were they not?Why had the Great Kingdom fallen so? Had depravity outweighed morality? Had personal gain outstripped duty? Had Evil bettered Good? Its Houses schemed against one another, dread Death Knights had risen, and with them, the much-celebrated Knights Protector had fallen. Raids and piracy plagued her seas. And lesser races, when not actually serving the Malachite Throne, were snapping at the hand that had once kept them at bay, for they could smell its death on the wind.To make matters worse, a madman was set to soon sit upon the Malachite Throne. The Houses used what tools were available to them in their intrigue. Rumours. Misdirection. Subterfuge. But there were other, more direct, means at their disposal, and they were not above or loathe to use them: the dirk and a dram of poison. Such crass deeds would always be hired out, of course. And only if they couldn’t be traced back to them. c. 300 CY The History of the Book of Darazell This spellbook has a dark and evil history—a legacy that mirrors the land from where it came, the blighted Kingdom of Aerdy. Its spells were first put to paper sometime ... read more!

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From the Vaults – World of Greyhawk Rarities for Your Games

2022-12-26T15:57:44-05:00November 29th, 2019|

In this "From the Vaults" series of articles, I'm going to present and summarize information about obscure, rare, and less-well-known World of Greyhawk content. There are many Greyhawk rarities well-worth digging into. Some add significant lore to the setting, while others are simply solid Greyhawk adventures that are fun to run and play. Some are old, rare, obscure, and very difficult to find, while others are hot-off-the-presses and being actively published by fans today!What Greyhawk Rarities? The first question* to ask about this topic may be, "How does Allan (or anyone else) know what constitutes a rare item in the world of Greyhawk publishing?" Well, Ant "Echohawk" Brooks maintains a Greyhawk Collector's Guide on ENWorld, and it's amazingly comprehensive. I link to it on my Greyhawk Links page, and while there are still bits and pieces of info that trickle in with new discoveries, new versions or editions of books, additional Living Greyhawk tourney scenarios catalogued, and new titles written by and for Greyhawk fans being published each year, Echohawk's work is my go-to guide whenever I want to dig into the history of Greyhawk publishing over the decades.I've written about some of these curios here and there in my web site, and in some previous blog articles, and some of these items are somewhat better-known or are already well-documented, but I may still touch on some of them, either in passing, or directly:"The Lost Caverns of Tsojconth" is Gygax's 1976 tourney from Wintercon V and the precursor to TSR's 1982 S4 The Lost Caverns of Tsojcanth:Gary Gyga's 1976 WinterCon V tournament,The Lost Caverns of TsojconthI've written extensively about both versions---see http://greyhawkonline.com/grodog/gh_s4.html and http://www.greyhawkonline.com/grodog/gh_s4_encounters.html in particular and ... read more!

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History of Oerth, Part 5: Of The Peoples of the West

2019-11-22T17:22:00-05:00November 22nd, 2019|

History of Oerth, Part 5: Of The Peoples of the West Let’s look way back shall we? The Suloise were a cruel and haughty people who aspired to the power they saw in the Grey Elves. They coveted that power, but as chance would have it, the Elves saw the wisdom of their having released their Magic into the world as folly, and closed their schools. The Suel were enraged. Their relations with the Elves suffered and in time, when the Grey Elves went to war against their dark brethren, they sided with the Drow and Giantkind against their former tutors. The Drow were victorious, but both they and their allies saw their forces all but wiped out. The Suloise did not venture East after that. The Drow were not as the Grey Elves were, and despite their having fought side by side with the Drow, they knew those dark elves were not their friends. So they looked to the North and West for conquest. They had learned much while at the knee of the Grey Elves. And they had learned far more since. They sought to know all and sent out missions in all directions to gather up what knowledge they could, some even as far north as the Barrier Peaks to spy upon their past allies, for they knew one must be prepared against the duplicity of the perfidious. They unearthed spells of great power, and they grew adept at artifice. Their foes were no match for them. Machine of Lum the Mad:Perhaps this strange device was built by gods long forgotten and survived the eons since their passing, for it is incredibly ... read more!

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grodog’s Mega-Dungeon Maps – The Heretical Temple of Wee Jas

2022-12-26T15:57:46-05:00November 18th, 2019|

So, today's my first new Mega-Dungeon Mondays post, and I thought I'd share a bit about my mapping design process. "The Heretical Temple of Wee Jas" level was the map that I began to design immediately after The (First) Landings Level, and its original name was The Second Landings Level (original, eh? ;) ). Like "The Landings Level", I playtested this dungeon at GaryCon, the North Texas RPG Con, and KantCon, among other events. I completed the first iteration of the map over several nights, noodling through a few different options on how best to design the lower half of the map, particularly the large temple in the SW corner:Draft 1: grodog's Heretical Temple of Wee Jas---draft 1 dungeon level mapWhen I'm unsure how I want to work out a particular section, or when I'm working on keying for a level with a completed map draft (I almost always draw my maps first then work on keying), I'll make photocopies of the level to play with variations until I'm happy with how the design turns out.I did that several times with the temple in the SW corner, as you can see in the various second drafts:Draft 2a:grodog's Heretical Temple of Wee Jas---draft 2a dungeon level mapDraft 2b:grodog's Heretical Temple of Wee Jas---draft 2b dungeon level mapIn the end, the completed first draft 3 of the level looked like this, but you'll note that I still hadn't decided on how to trick out the temple area:grodog's Heretical Temple of Wee Jas--- completed draft 3 dungeon level mapI was also still drawing non-narrowing stairs as stairs up at this point in my design process, but I eventually ... read more!

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History of Oerth, Part 4: Of The Dark Age Of The Flan

2019-11-17T16:33:00-05:00November 17th, 2019|

History of Oerth, Part 4: Of The Dark Age Of The Flan Flan Warrior; by Lady Lolth The Ur-Flan were not idle as Vecna rose to power. They were a greedy and covetous lot, never satisfied to live under the rule of another, so they each sought to carve out their own realms while Vecna threw his forces against the shield of the Elven Kingdoms. They were not all so. Some sought refuge from the tyranny of their peers. Thus, Tostenhca was born. Those who sought the Wisdom of Pelor fled from their evil brethren into the high and frigid Griff Mountains, where, to their delight, they discovered a green plateau that was of temperate climate in those days. They came upon the Dwarves, who, wary at first for they knew of the Ur-Flan and their war with the Elves, were convinced of the honour and goodness of these people. And it was with the help of the Dwarves that they carved their city from the greenish-black rock of the mountain, and it was a wonder to behold. Ramps, broad avenues, and good roads of such quality were cut through the mountains that they’ve withstood the ravages of time and are still used today by the local dwarves. Their broad avenues were lined with tall statues, backed by the facades and courtyards of the noble estates that were hued into the rock is such a way as to be sky lit by tapestries of coloured glass. Murals adorned their walls. And gardens bloomed and spilled out over the dappled streets in a floral canopy. Enormous cisterns caught the rains and fed their statues and fountains ... read more!

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grodog talking 1e Undead and Greyhawk on Twitch tonight @ 8pm EDT

2022-12-26T15:57:46-05:00November 13th, 2019|

Just a quick announcement: I'll return to talk Greyhawk and undead on Twitch again tonight, with Jay Scott, Anna Meyer, and Mike Bridges on Wednesday, 13 November 2019 at 8pm EST, livestreaming at https://www.twitch.tv/lordgosumbaHere's Jay's full announcement:Legends & Lore - Season 4 Premiere on TwitchWednesday Evening on the Lord Gosumba Channel Hello Friends and Greyhawkers! Legends & Lore has moved to the Lord Gosumba Channel starting this Wednesday, Nov 13, 8pm EST. To Kickoff their 4th season, the discussion will be about Undead of the Flanaess; this will include the various types of the non-living, and specific names of renown that put a shiver down the heartiest of adventurers! Join Anna Meyer, Mike Bridges, and me, as we welcome, Allan T. Grohe Jr., "The Grodog", to this weeks discussion!Thank you all for the wonderful support and stream participation! See you Live Stream! www.twitch.tv/lordgosumbaIt feels like I've been doing quite a few more of these live/streaming discussions lately, and I guess I feel like I'm starting to get the hang of it! I've also done some others in the more-distant past too, and I should put together a compilation of all of them, I suppose---my son Henry at least is interested in going back to watch (or listen) to some of them ;) See you later tonight! :DAllan.

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A Beginning…

2019-11-02T11:17:00-04:00November 2nd, 2019|

A Beginning... Does the world need another Greyhawk blog? You bet it does. For those of you who campaign in the setting, you know that Greyhawk doesn't get the love it deserves as the setting that started it all off. Some would argue that Dave Arneson's Blackmoor was the first setting of OD&D, and they'd be right; but most of the first adventure modules were set in Greyhawk. One could even argue that Basic D&D was orginally set in Greyhawk too before The Known World was created by Tom Moldvay. The monochrome edition of "In search of the Unknown" specifically states that suggested locations for the module were Ratik, Tenh, or the Pale. And "Keep on the Borderlands" could be connected to Quasqueton by the collapsed tunnel within, so it too could be placed in Greyhawk. Moreover, Greyhawk was referenced again and again in the AD&D Players' Handbook and DM's Guide. The Forgotten Realms may be the most popular setting; it certainly has the most novels set in it; it certainly has more sourcebooks dedicated to it; and it most likely has been the most supported setting over the decades. But it's Greyhawk that holds the grognards' hearts. That said, what do I hope to do here? I was inspired by the continuing love for the setting by others of the Gaming community. Much more was added to it during 3rd edition when Living Greyhawk fanned out over the globe and OSR licensing permitting fan content. And even more has been added since. I'm giving a shout out to Anna B. Mayer (that's a sample of Anna's wonderful map, a labour of 20+ years), Mike ... read more!

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grodog talking 1e Dragons and Greyhawk on Twitch Sunday night @ 7:30pm EDT

2022-12-26T15:57:47-05:00October 25th, 2019|

Just a quick announcement: I'll return to talk Greyhawk and dragons on Twitch again this weekend, with Jay Scott and Anna Meyer, on Sunday, Oct 27, 7:30PM EDT, livestreaming at https://www.twitch.tv/lordgosumbaHere's Jay's full announcement:Sunday evening, we continue our discussion on everyone's favorite D&D monster, Dragons, with Gabbin' at Lord Peak's Haven #68 - Dragons of the Flanaess, Part 2. We will discuss specific Dragons from Greyhawk Canon and Lore, and from the participant's Campaigns. My guest hosts this week will be Anna Meyer and Allan T. Grohe Jr.! This should be a fantastic finish to our two week chat on this topic! We begin Sun, Oct 27, 7:30PM EDT. Thank you so very much for the wonderful support, and I hope to see you Live Stream! www.twitch.tv/lordgosumba Talk to you then! :D Allan.

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grodog’s Events at TsunamiCon 2019: Greyhawk AD&D and Aliens: This Time It’s War

2022-12-26T15:57:48-05:00October 17th, 2019|

At the 11th hour this week, I decided to submit events to run at Wichita's TsunamiCon, our sixth annual gaming convention. Details on the events appear in my post to the TsunamiCon Facebook group, but I figured I'd share the details here as well:The events are listed at TableTop.Events, and here are the details:Introduction to World of Greyhawk and AD&D 1st edition: Create new characters for AD&D 1e, learn the basics of play, and explore grodog's infamous version of Castle Greyhawk. Players new to Greyhawk or AD&D 1st edition welcome! Bring your graph paper, dice, and a healthy dose of paranoid courage! 1e character sheets will be provided. Prizes awarded!This will run on Saturday from 1-5pm, and 7-11pm. Aliens: This Time It's War!: Celebrating 40 years of Alien, this is "The Reactor" level from the classic 1989 miniatures skirmish game. Players control Colonial Marines trying to escape the alien nest that has awoken around them! Fast-paced and very deadly, rules will be taught. In space, no one can hear you scream!This will run on Sunday from 9am-Noon, and 1pm-4pm.I've been discussing the kickoff of a new multi-group Greyhawk campaign in Wichita for the past couple of months, and hopefully this will provide a good opportunity to introduce Greyhawk and AD&D to new and interested players! If you're local and interested, the main discussion is in our local Wichita D&D group in Facebook.Allan.

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Darlene Greyhawk Gothic Font

2022-12-26T15:57:51-05:00August 26th, 2019|

Darlene Artist's wonderful Greyhawk font, showing-off some of the dungeon level titles from my version of Castle Greyhawk! You download the free-for-non-commercial-use font from https://www.facebook.com/groups/1471065309863986/permalink/2082384232065421/In the text file of the download, Darlene includes details on how to purchase a commercial license as well. Some additional context/details from Anna Meyer, who sponsored Darlene's development of the font: I helped Darlene create a font featuring the famous script of the Greyhawk logo. It took awhile but here it is, version 1 of the Greyhawk Gothic font. It is released as Creative Commons -BY -NC -SA 4.0 so you can use it for all your gaming needs as long as they are not for commercial purposes. You can grab it here: http://bit.ly/GreyhawkGothic-Font After I downloaded the font, I played around with it using some of my Castle Greyhawk dungeon level titles:Allan.

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grodog interview on Twitch TV, Sunday 18 August @ 7:30pm EDT

2022-12-26T15:57:54-05:00August 16th, 2019|

Jay Scott, one of the gamers I know in South Jersey, runs a Twitch TV channel dedicated to his 30+ year 1e campaign set in the World of Greyhawk. While visiting with him on my last trip back home, he asked about having me on his show, which will be live-streamed on Sunday this weekend. Here's his announcement:Sunday Evening on the Lord Gosumba ChannelHello Friends and Greyhawkers! Finishing up a wonderful vacation week with family at the shore! On this Sunday's Gabbin at Lord Peak's Haven #58, my special guest will be Allan T. Grohe Jr., the grodog!We will discuss Allan's multitude of accomplishments to the D&D and gaming community, his love of the World of Greyhawk, and share what Allan and his company, Black Blade Publishing, are working on currently.Also, we will discuss some intriguing Greyhawk topics, including, Castle Greyhawk and Castle El Raja Key, Greyhawk Artifacts, rules variants for homebrew Campaigning, and using third party D&D Adventures in the World of Greyhawk setting. I cannot wait to delve into this discussion!As always, we will welcome questions and participation from the audience! See you Live Stream, Sunday, 8/18, 7:30 PM EDT! https://www.twitch.tv/lordgosumbahttps://www.twitch.tv/lordgosumbaPerhaps I'll see a few of you on Sunday night in the audience :DAllan.

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