User blogs
Inspired Unreality open game chat will be held on the 2nd and 4th Saturdays of the month at 11:00 AM to Noon, Central Time.
The Holidays may be over for you but we've got one more Holiday to go. We have a birthday party on January 14, so Inspired Unreality will resume starting on January 28.
If You Play You Win actual play will be held on the 1st and 3rd Saturdays at 1:00 in the afternoon at Eclectic Geekery and on the internet. Some days we will be Cozy Adventuring In Tobbins Shire. Some days we'll have a one off with guest DMs. Some days I'll be livestreaming chill jazz piano in Beatles Park. On those days we will skip the actual play.
We hope to resume If You Play You Win in February depending on the weather and the Covid stats. If You Play You Win is also subject to Eclectic Geekery availability so, as always, we will send a Gamer+ News announcing our events.
In my other newsletter I discuss Bebop Beatniks new album, "Church".
https://gamerplus.org/newsfeed/4998
I also talk about it some on my podcast, From The Archives Of Something Blue.
https://sbblues.com/2022/12/31/dj-hairy-larry-presents-bebop-beatniks-playing-gotta-lotta/
I got a nice Christmas present from my granddaughter, DM Lizard.
https://gamerplus.org/newsfeed/4997
https://gamerplus.org/user/SearchingForGyphons
Did you ever want to run an adventure in colorful mountains? Here's a photo gallery of free culture and creative commons photos taken right here on Earth.
https://gamerplus.org/photo/useralbum/hairylarry/138
Please forward this email to your gaming friends and share this link.
https://gamerplus.org/blogs/post/997
Thanks,
Hairy Larry
https://gamerplus.org/user/hairylarry
https://mastodon.social/@hairylarry
hairylarry@deltaboogie.com
Join us tonight on Inspired Unreality open game chat at 9:00 PM Central. We will be in the gamerplus chatrooms at Tenkar's Tavern on Discord. If you've never been to Tenkar's Tavern there's an invite for you here.
https://gamerplus.org/index
We have moved If You Play You Win to 1:00 PM Wednesdays, Central Time. Actual play. I'm not sure what the game will be but I'm pretty sure it will be OSR.
https://gamerplus.org/groups/26
Follow Me And Die posted Episode 192 - Death of an Anti-Paladin. I guess they're getting revenge for the near TPK.
https://gamerplus.org/newsfeed/2714
And he has a new video out too. Roll20 For The Absolute Beginner No. 19 - GM View A Map As A Player Without Other Players Seeing It
https://gamerplus.org/newsfeed/2716
I took a picture of some mushrooms in my back yard.
https://gamerplus.org/newsfeed/2692
And also of three miniatures I printed and painted.
https://gamerplus.org/newsfeed/2694
Stay in touch!
Thanks,
Hairy Larry
https://gamerplus.org/user/hairylarry
hairylarry@curators.mixremix.cc
hairylarry@deltaboogie.com
In which we recover all the loot, branches from the ancestor tree, squamish mushrooms, and a tailfeather from an owl, and complete our quest.
Last week we left off talking to the fairies near the fairy circle. Cautious not to ask a favor and indebt ourselves to them we finally found out that the fairies remembered when the woodcutter came through here and found the ancestor tree. When the fairies pointed out the trail that the woodcutter took, Caper couldn't see it but Ari and Bones could and Caper soon discovered that it was a game trail and he could also help follow it with his tracking skills.
After hiking for about 4 hours we found ourselves at the foot of a large hill. The trail seemed to continue up the hill but it was not distinct. We decided to climb to the top before dark even though we were already tired.
It was dusk when we got to the top so we waited for dark to see if the big tree at the top of this hill was the ancestor tree. Ari detected magic on the tree and it was magical. She detected magic on branches on the ground and they were not. So this might not be the ancestor tree but at least we were in the right vicinity.
The moon was already up in the sky when the sun set. Soon it was dark and the moon lit the treetops but we didn't see a fey glow. Bones helped Caper up to the first branch and Caper carefully climbed to the top where he could look out over the moonlit forest. After Caper got back to the ground he said, "I think we've come too far. The moonlit glow is brightest to the northwest and I think the ancestor tree is back a ways in the direction we came."
In the morning Bones suggested that Caper climb the tree again for a daytime view but it was slick with dew and Caper couldn't do it. (I rolled a 4) So we headed back down the hill the way we came and at the bottom with the sun peeking up over the eastern horizon we searched for a path up a hill to the northwest. Soon we were climbing the next hill and were at the top well before noon.
Of course there was a big tree at the top of this hill too. Bones boosted Caper up and he was easily able to scramble up to the top. When Caper climbed back down he said, "The next hill to the northwest is even taller than this one. I'm not sure the ancestor tree is there but I'm pretty sure this isn't the ancestor tree." So after we ate we continued on to the northwest again. Ascending the next hill we found a huge tree. It was time for supper. After we ate we thought we would look around for squamish mushrooms just in case this was the ancestor tree. Bones found a patch of them due west and then Ari found a big patch north of them.
After the sun set the big tree glowed brighter than the moon. We went to the big patch of mushrooms and followed the moonbeams penetrating the forest canopy and shining on the ground. With half the night gone Bones finally saw the moonbeams light some mushrooms and he was able to pick five of them which barely covered the bottom of the witch's bag.
In the morning we ate and although we were tired we decided to search for a branch from the ancestor tree before we slept. We searched here and we searched there and then Ari found a big branch just north of the tree. She detected magic on the branch and sure enough it was a branch from the ancestor tree. Caper searched again to the northeast and Bones searched around close to the tree. Bones found one but Ari couldn't tell if it was magic or not. Caper suggested that Ari carry her branch and that Bones should carry his back to the witch to find out if it is magic.
After their naps Ari searched for medicinal plants and Caper searched for mushrooms. Ari found a fever plant and harvested leaves. Caper found two large mushrooms he knew to be edible but when Ari detected magic on them she discovered that they were magical and Caper decided not to eat the magic mushrooms until he had talked to the witch about them.
It took two more nights to find enough mushrooms. The third night we spread out a little with Bones looking at the patch to the west while Ari and Caper looked at the big patch. We had good luck toward morning. With the moon near full it didn't set until almost sunrise. We ended up with 30 mushrooms. 20 filled the witch's bag half full and Ari put the other ten in another bag stowing them carefully in her pack.
Although we were tired we decided to hike on back to Milyagon. We found a game trail heading east and we left the Wilken Woods in the farmlands to the west of Milyagon. Soon we were across the bridge and at the Inn having a hot dinner, something Caper really missed while they were camping.
After we ate it was a short walk to the witch's cottage to the northeast of town and she was vary glad to see us. She kept the branch Ari was carrying saying it would do fine. She looked at the branch Bones found and said it was also from the ancestor tree and was in fact a magic quarterstaff. She told Bones to keep it and thanked him for his help. When Ari showed her the two bags of mushrooms she was delighted and said that she would teach Ari how to make the squamish salve and she could keep the extra for her medicine kit. She grinned wide when she saw the tailfeather, stuck it in her bonnet where it looked right at home, rolled her eyes three times, touched her nose, and said, "Yes, this will do nicely. My thanks to all of you." Then Caper showed the witch his magic mushrooms found beneath the ancestor tree and the witch said, "Now these are nice. These mushrooms are not dangerous but they should be consumed in moderation. One half of one of these large mushrooms will affect three people as if they had two large tankards of ale. And, of course, the mushrooms are much easier to carry then a keg of ale. Unlike ale the mushrooms don't slow you down in fact they do the opposite and make you slightly more dextrous for about four hours."
XP
Group XP
For finding the ancestor tree and completing the quest - 400
Ari
For finding mushroom patch - 20
For finding mushrooms - 40
For finding a branch - 100
For finding the fever plant - 20
Following fairy trail - 40
Detecting magic - 40
Total for session - 660
Bones
For finding mushroom patch - 20
For finding mushrooms - 80
For finding a branch - 100
Following fairy trail - 40
Total for session - 640
Caper
For finding mushrooms - 60
For finding edible magic mushrooms - 40
Tracking - 20
Climbing trees - 40
Total for session - 560
Happy Autumn. Fall is here. Summer is over. Winter is coming.
Tonight on Inspired Unreality we continue our quest in Wilken Woods. If You Play You Win in the gamerplus chat rooms at Tenkar's Tavern on Discord. Starting at 9:00 PM Central. Jump in jump out. Everyone is welcome.
Here are the session summaries from our game so far.
https://gamerplus.org/blogs/259
https://gamerplus.org/blogs/258
Next Monday the Related To Geeks Book Club is discussing "The Epic Of Gilgamesh".
https://gamerplus.org/groups/28
ZDL has posted two more Reviews From The Fringe, "Starships & Spacemen" and "Story Engine". These reviews are top notch placing the games in history as well as discussing game mechanics and playabiility.
https://gamerplus.org/blogs/261
https://gamerplus.org/blogs/263
Follow Me And Die passes 100,000 views on YouTube and he is moving up close to his 1000th subscriber.
https://gamerplus.org/newsfeed/2475
Yourbuddy75 posted a link to his Searching For Destiny stream where they are continuing their endeavors in the Forest of Hope.
https://gamerplus.org/newsfeed/2474
And I mean what I say there in the comments. Always let me know about any projects you are working on and we will promote them at Gamer+. We have so many creative people on Gamer+ that I know I'm not keeping up with them.
Welcome our new gamer, MyrddinWyllt. He's into a lot of horror gaming and literature and he has an interesting blog.
https://gamerplus.org/user/MyrddinWyllt
Keep in touch,
https://gamerplus.org/user/hairylarry
hairylarry@curators.mixremix..cc (on my friendica)
hairylarry@deltaboogie.com
Tonight is the Related To Geeks Podcast at 9:00 Central. Our topic this month is DIY Gaming. Please join us in the gamerplus chatrooms at Tenkar's Tavern on Discord. If you haven't been to Tenkar's Tavern we have an invite for you at Gamer+.
http://gamerplus.org
In two weeks the Related To Geeks Book club will finish out the year discussing The Epic Of Gilgamesh. It's a free download and it's a pretty short read so this could be an easy one for anyone to join us. More info here.
https://gamerplus.org/groups/28
Follow Me And Die has been improving his studio. He says, "I use it to record YouTube videos, and also for livestreams." I've been trying to catch up on his project because I have been preparing the Icosahedron for a similar setup.
https://gamerplus.org/newsfeed/2444
So DM Hairy Larry has been running a quest on our available Mondays. I wrote "Milyagon Treasure Hunt" and we're playing in Just Quest, a rules light OSR system. We've got an owl's tailfeather and we're talking to the fairies at the fairy circle. Can we find the ancestor tree? We'll be playing next Monday at 9:00 again, in between our podcasts.
If You Play You Win. Here are our session summaries for the first two weeks.
https://gamerplus.org/blogs/259
https://gamerplus.org/blogs/258
On the music side of my life I have been working on a new website called Hairy Larry Rocks. Hairy Larry Rocks is one ring to rule them all. A Hairy Larry portal at the center that connects all my music, writing, videos, publishing, ... I could go on. But I won’t.
I am sure I will add more in the near future. Enjoy the music.
https://wordpress.hairylarry.rocks
Be sure you let me know what you've been doing. I'm on the internet.
Thanks,
Hairy Larry
https://gamerplus.org/user/hairylarry
hairylarry@curators.mixremix.cc (on the fediverse)
hairylarry@deltaboogie.com
Ari, Caper, and Tude (Ari's wildcat) got a message from Kendrick to go see the witch at Milyagon. The witch gave them their quest, to bring back an owl's tail feather, some squamish mushrooms, and a branch from the ancestor tree in the Wilkin Woods. She also mentioned that no one knew more about Wilken Woods than the woodcutter.
The party went and talked to the woodcutter who drew them a map and gave them sage advice about the fairies.
They entered Wilkin Woods and traveled nearly all the way across it on Woods Way. About halfway across they ventured south and found the first marked owl's eyrie. Returning to Woods Way by traveling due north they found a landmark, a tree with a burl on it that looked a little bit like a face with knotholes for eyes.
Continuing along Woods Way they realize they must have passed the second marked eyrie. Caper leads the party back, leaving the road to the west of the eyrie which they also find. It is now evening so they eat supper and prepare to camp hoping for more luck with these owls in the night.
XP
---
group XP for surviving a day in Wilken Woods - 200
for getting the quest from the witch - 50
for getting the map and advice from the woodcutter - 50
Ari - finding the first eyrie - 50
Caper - finding the second eyrie - 50
- climbed two trees successfully - 20 + 20
Our story so far:
https://gamerplus.org/blogs/259
Ari, Tude, and Caper were joined by Bones under the owl eyrie. The party erected a large tarp using rope and Bones' tent hoping to catch a naturally falling owl's feather. Caper climbed a tree trying to make friends with an owl but when it started to get dark he had to come down. They attracted two owls by putting out some meat in a cook pot on a tripod.
Then Ari threw Tude's ball under some bushes. Tude ran over and flushed a bunch of rodents and bunnies. For a few minutes there was a flurry of owls feeding. The next time Tude ran under a bush Caper shot a little bunny rabbit. Holding the dead bunny Caper called to the owls with a series of hoots. An owl landed on Capers outstretched arm and started feeding. With his other arm he slowly petted the owl. And then he had a hold on the tail feather that had been bothering this owl. Bones said we should scare the owl. Tude tried to scare it and Caper added in some cat noises and the owl flew off leaving one tail feather behind. Caper handed the feather to Ari for safekeeping.
We went south looking for the fairy circle trying to get some help from the fairies finding the ancestor tree. Ari and Caper kept true south while Bones scouted east and west. Bones was about a quarter mile to the west when he found the fairy circle. He jumped right in it and started dancing but fortunately he made his saving throw and didn't fall into Feyland.
Bones stayed near the fairy circle and after a while Ari and Caper noticed he was late. Ari asked Caper if he had anything with Bones scent on it so Tude could track Bones by scent. Caper held his rope out for Tude to smell and then they followed Tude west to Bones.
Caper found some rocks for chairs and sat down about 20 ft. from the fairy circle and played his flute. Sure enough some pretty fairies came to listen to the music and the party started up a conversation with them.
XP
---
group XP for surviving a half day in Wilken Woods - 100
group XP for getting an owl's tail feather - 200
group XP for talking to fairies - 50
Bones - idea about tarp - 20
Boosted Caper into tree - 20
Finding the fairy circle - 40
Ari - working with Tude at Owl's Eyrie - 30
working with Tude finding Bones - 30
Caper - Climbed a tree - 20
Held owl on arm - 30
played flute for the fairies - 20
Prerelease text from the If You Play You Win game now on Inspired Unreality Monday nights. When this is published I will add the link here.
---
Ari is a human wizard trained in healing and defense. Ari has a pet wildcat named Tude, she has raised from a kit. The cat is not a familiar but there is a very close bond and the cat is always alert for danger. Caper is a halfling bard with a storied past. Although designed for two player characters this quest could be played by any low level party.
Kendrick uses a telecommunication spell to send Ari a message. (calls her on her cell phone) He says "Big things are astir so small things must be put in place. Contact the witch at Milyagon. She has a task that needs done."Ari and Caper travel to Milyagon and talk to the witch. She needs three things from Wilken Woods but she cannot go herself because her daily rounds helping the elderly keep her busy. She's been putting this off but evidently Kendrick thinks it's important enough to send help.
The witch says:
"You have to go to Wilkin Woods to get a feather from an owls tail, some squamish mushrooms, and a branch from the ancestor tree.
"The feather cannot be stolen but must be given freely. If the owls
suspect foul play they will attack as fowls do. Do not let the feather touch the ground. If you find a feather on the ground it will not work.
"The squamish mushrooms grow in leaf molds under large oak trees. Their magic concentrates under the moonlight and they are best picked with the moon shining directly on them. Here is a small bag. It needs to be more than half full but not all the way full or the mushrooms will bruise.
"The ancestor tree grows large in the heart of Wilken Woods. It's a giant oak. The legend is the ancestor tree was the first tree in Wilken Woods and the forest started from this one tree. The ancestor tree is big magic, the other oak trees less so. The magic dilutes with extended lineage those grown from ancestor tree acorns have half the magic of the ancestor tree. Those grown from their acorns, half again. You will know the ancestor tree because it shimmers with a fey glow in the moonlight.
"Do not to cut, break, or chop any tree in Wilken Woods. The oak trees will defend the forest. It is safe to pick dead branches from the ground for firewood but fires should not be started under a tree. Never burn a branch from the ancestor tree.
"Branches on the ground have no magic except for the branches fallen from the ancestor tree. So you can detect magic on branches around the ancestor tree to make sure that a branch fell from the ancestor tree. A branch doesn't fall far from the tree so first find the ancestor tree and then find a branch. Get a big one.
"The squamish mushrooms close to the ancestor tree have the most magic. So after you get the branch search the area for the best mushrooms.
"Wilken Way deliberately avoids the most magical areas of Wilken Woods. The ancestor tree is to the south of Wilken Way. Nobody knows Wilken Woods like the woodcutter. He lives at the north edge of the woods in the least magical area. Still, all of the woods are magical and you should be on your guard at all times."
The witch points to the sky and says, "See the half moon up in the blue sky. You have come at a good time. The moon is full in a week and you will have strong moonlight over the next two weeks.
Last week on Inspired Unreality Vivian and I went to Milyagon. We are doing a task for the witch, getting some supplies from Wilken Woods, a magic forest.
Tonight we're going back. And you can come too. If You Play You Win, actual play DnD, in the gamerplus chatrooms at Tenkar's Tavern on Discord. 9:00 PM Central.
Follow Me And Die says "Today on the blog, I write about Session Summaries."
https://gamerplus.org/newsfeed/2415
Made sense to me so I wrote up our session summary.
https://gamerplus.org/newsfeed/2416
Follow Me And Die also introduces us to Devin Rue. He says "Deven Rue is an awesome cartographer, who also makes various other things for table props."
https://gamerplus.org/newsfeed/2428
See you in Milyagon,
Hairy Larry
https://gamerplus.org/user/hairylarry
hairylarry@curators.mixremix.cc
hairylarry@deltaboogie.com
Tonight, actual play on Inspired Unreality. I will be running my quest, "Milyagon Treasure Hunt", in Just Quest, a super light rule system that I wrote based on Carl's "Wizards and Heroes" RPG. Yes, If You Play You Win is back. If you want to play you are welcome. It takes less than 5 minutes to roll up a character. Inspired Unreality starts at 9:00 PM Central every Monday night in the gamerplus chatrooms at Tenkar's Tavern on Discord.
Inspired Unreality - https://gamerplus.org/groups/9
If You Play You Win - https://gamerplus.org/groups/26
In September the Related To Geeks Podcast will be on Sept. 14 and the Related To Geeks Book Club will be on Sept. 28 so we may play again next Monday. If you have an idea about something you would like to do contact me.
https://gamerplus.org/user/relatedtogeeks
FollowMeAndDie posted "Episode 185 - My Campaign - Did They finally Reach The Sand Vikings?" on Anchor.
https://gamerplus.org/newsfeed/2410
Most of you know I'm into music. I am also a Free Culture/Creative Commons advocate promoting Mix Culture where you reuse other people's art to make your own. Put them both together and you get MixRemix Radio. Give it a listen, play it for background at your table, or find some music to use in your vlog, podcast, or other project.
https://mixremix.cc/mixremix-radio
Stay in touch. Let me know about your projects. Post them on Gamer+ and I will include you in this newsletter.
Thanks,
Hairy Larry
https://gamerplus.org/user/hairylarry
hairylarry@curators.mixremix.cc (on the fediverse)
hairylarry@deltaboogie.com
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