Quick Reviews for Birch + Bat Studios

Birch + Bat Studios is the creation of Kiel Chenier and Arella Prest. You might know Kiel as the author of the fantastic and controversial (aren't they all) LotFP adventure, Blood in the Chocolate. They have some really cool mugs, shirts, stickers, and other things, but today I want to talk about their pdfs.

Their gaming pdfs are 50% off through the end of the month. I've purchased three of them and though I'd do a little quick review/recommendation.

Seance of Slumber is 11 page 5e supplement adds the element of dreams to your game. It includes a new merchant, who has some really cool dream related merchandise (including new magic items). There are some random tables to determine what the characters dream of. This is a fun little pdf and is currently less than a dollar.

Von Bottom's Hoard  is an interesting adventure for D&D (any version or variation) that has a humorous anime feel too it. The titular Baron Augustus von Bottom is a wealthy retired adventure who's swollen into a giant balloon man because of dragon sickness (caused from hoarding gold and eating dragon meat). The very open-end mansion crawl adventure is full of zany maids, cooks, and other servants. If you like humorous fantasy anime, pick this one up for sure. It's currently available for less than two dollars.

Burlesque House Siege! is an OSR adventure designed for tabletop gaymers and GenCon2016. The party find themselves having a waking up at the Maison Derriere, after a good night (which can randomly be determined by a roll). The players learn that there is a bandit army on its way to the burlesque house and must prepare, rally the employees, and defend the establishment. The pdf contains details and stats for several of the dancers, plus the bandits and their leader. Additionally there are discussions on running it as a convention game or making it a part of your home campaign. Finally, there are rules for running the Maison Derriere, should the pc's come into ownership of it, along with random burlesque dancer, performance, and show interruption tables. One thing I really loved about this adventure is despite the fact that every friendly character is LGBT, that has nothing to do with the plot and conflict. While I'm sure this one won't jive with some folks taste, I really like it and want to use it at some point. This pdf is also currently less than two dollars.

B/X Essentials: Demihumans of Dolmenwood

B/X Essentials: Demihumans of Dolmenwood is a free mini supplement for B/X Essentials (soon to be Old-School Essentials) and is playtest info for the in-development Dolmenwood Player's Handbook. If you aren't familiar with Dolmenwood, it's a fairy tail inspired forest setting created by Necrotic Gnome and featured in the Wormskin zine. The short supplement includes the following:

The Elf (Fairy) class- The elves of Dolmenwood are far more otherworldly than typical B/X elves. They are immortal, they are considered to have a CHA of at least 14 (for physical attractiveness), have access to special runes, can use magical glamours, and read magic. However, their ties to the fey realms main that they are vulnerable to silver and cold iron. Additionally, because the fey are outside of the realms of the gods, beneficial aid from divine magic won't necessarily affect them.

Woodgrue class - Woodgue are bat-faced demi-fey that know how to have a good time. They have musical abilities and can communicate via the wind and can use their abilities to cause those that hear it go into a mad revelry.  Like the Fairy Elf they are vulnerable to cold iron and silver. Additionally, they are compelled to take part in jubilation they witness must abide by ancient rites.

Favours for the Elf Lords - In addition to normal treasure, adventurers in Dolmenwood can gain special favours from the lords and ladies of the fey. The provide limited uses of spells or other unique abilities.

This was a cool little supplement and full of flavour. If you play B/X games, you should definitely download this one and take a look.

Music Monday - Vikings & Vampires

Joshua Burnett's Draugrs & Draculas Kickstarter project ends next week.  The project is an OSR zine that will contain the following:

• Stats and details on Dracula, his servants, and his rival, Elizabeth Bathory!
• Draugr information and a class
• Rules for making a deal with the Devil!
• Magic items of perilous power
• Pagan's Well - a small dungeon full of traps and treasures
• Anything else he can fit in.

Josh is a cool cat and you know this this one is right up my alley. I too love vikings and vampires (plus deals with the Devil).  If you're an OSR person, you should definitely check this one out.

I'm dedicating this Music Monday post to the zine by posting my favorite viking and vampire tracks.

"Hold the heathen hammer with a battle cry

For pagan I live and one day will die"

"I'm slipping through the cracks again

They'll never take me alive because I'm already dead"

Draugr & Draculas Kickstarter

Druagr & Draculas is a new Kickstarter by Joshua LH Burnett. It's a one-shot OSR zine about viking and vampires! If that doesn't excite you, we probably shouldn't be friends. Josh is doing all of the art and writing himself.  The physical copy will be 5.5" X 8.5" zine, staple-bound, and printed in black-and-white, just like the Zine Quest guidelines. This thing is going to have some great stuff.

• Stats and details on Dracula, his servants, and his rival, Elizabeth Bathory!
• Draugr information and a class
• Rules for making a deal with the Devil!
• Magic items of perilous power
• Pagan's Well - a small dungeon full of traps and treasures
• Anything else he can fit in.

I'm going to be honest, this book had me with Dracula. Josh has promised this version of the big bad will be something Lee and Langella would be proud of. Then the man decides he's going to pit Drac against my other favorite historical vampire, Bathory?! I've been joking that she was one of my lovers in a past life for years. Then you throw in undead vikings and deals with the Satan... Those are just icing on the delicious, evil, devilish cake for me. 

I seriously can't wait to hold this one in my hands and put it to use. I need this zine and you need to back it asap.

Knight Owl GenCon Bundle

Knight Owl Games releases some interesting looking material. Now through the end of Gen Con they have a special pdf bundle of OBS. I've not fully read pdfs enough to fully review them, but I did give them a good casual glance and I like what I saw.

You can snag the following pdfs for just a bit more than 50% off:

• The Vanilla Adventure - This adventure gives us all the familiars and is great for new players. There are also some moral quandaries that make it entertaining for experienced players too.
• Monsterarium - This is a pretty unique monster book filled with creatures that are suitable to be stars of their own adventures. 
• Invasion of the Tuber Dudes - This B/X Essentials compatible adventure is, as the author describes it, a mix between The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly and Attack of the Killer Tomatoes. If that doesn't make you want to buy it, nothing I say will. Of note, the titular tuber dudes are given the B/X race-as-class treatment at the end of the pdf.