Talien's Tower
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Wednesday, June 28

Death in Freeport - Part 2: An Offer of Employment

“Why can’t your…priests find him?” said Ilmarė, sneering at the word “priests.”

“It’s complicated,” said Egil. “After Brother Oriku’s betrayal, I suspect the Temple has been infiltrated by spies. I’m not sure whom I can trust there. But I know Lucius, and I know he would not just abandon his duties.”

“It’s either booze, a woman, or he’s dead,” said Kham. “One of the three, I’m betting.”

“It’s not like Lucius,” said Egil. “We all take vows of abstinence and poverty upon joining the Temple.”

“And that’s why I’m not a priest of Althares,” said Kham. [MORE]

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posted by Mike Tresca at 8:29 AM | 0 comments


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Sunday, June 25

Death in Freeport - Part 1: The Press Gang

“Is Kaiyem at the Pale Plate?” asked Egil.

“Not yet,” said Vlad. He looked embarrassed. “I’m not sure where he is…”

Egil nodded sagely. “He’s probably hung over.”

“So you know him,” said Vlad. [MORE]

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posted by Mike Tresca at 11:26 PM | 0 comments


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Thursday, June 22

Chapter 13: Death in Freeport - Introduction

This was one of those instances where the party really clicked. At one point, the party’s synergy comes together in such a way that you could feel everything lock into place. Which is pretty amazing, given that Mike had just joined us. Thanks to combined efforts of the rogue types, they managed to pull off an incredible heist. All that, and they unearthed a cult too! [MORE]

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posted by Mike Tresca at 8:17 AM | 0 comments


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Saturday, June 17

Family Guy Role-Playing Reference

That's right. You read it correctly. Unfortunately, the reference is a bit off (1d4 points of disintegration won't even kill a wizard), but hey, I'll take any positive reference I can get. [Check it out!]

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posted by Mike Tresca at 10:19 AM | 0 comments


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Wednesday, June 14

Talien's Tower Featured in Dragon's Landing Podcast

I recently got a shout out from my buddies at Dragon's Landing. Turns out I was there first interview (for some reason I didn't realize that). Check it out!
Episode 46 - Chuck's Tang is untungled!

This one went a little smoother than last week (at least for me, it did!) And we were able to get episode 1 of the Gamer Traveler from Daniel of Highmoon Media! Here are the shnotes:


Listen to the [PODCAST]

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posted by Mike Tresca at 8:28 AM | 0 comments


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Friday, June 9

Dungeon Crawl Classics: The Adventure Begins!

Purchase: Amazon.com
Type: Role-Playing Game (D20 Adventure)
Cover Artist: Jim Roslof
Suggested Retail Price: $34.95
Format: Hardback
Pages: 264
Publisher: Goodman Games
ISBN: 097707384X
Description:

Remember the good old days, when adventures were underground, NPCs were there to be killed, and the finale of every dungeon was the dragon on the 20th level? Those days are back. Dungeon Crawl Classics don't waste your time with long-winded speeches, weird campaign settings, or NPCs who aren't meant to be killed. Each adventure is 100% good, solid dungeon crawl, with the monsters you know, the traps you fear, and the secret doors you know are there somewhere.

Let the adventure begin! This compilation of twenty all-new 1st-level adventures is especially designed to kick-start new campaigns. Written by experienced adventure authors, these stand-alone modules will challenge your heroes with war-worms, hang-gliding kobolds, a hundred-foot-tall colossus, giant bees, an ancient wizard's tower, trained monkeys, dangerous mushrooms, a gigantic white salamander -- and more!

  • All-new cover art by legendary TSR artist Jim Roslof!
  • TWENTY adventures for 1st-level characters, every one of them suitable for kick-starting an entire campaign
  • A wide variety of plot hooks and unique encounters to spice up your game

The Bease of Barren Hill: The tales of the Beast of Barren Hill have spread far and wide – stories of its attacks on men, women, and children can be heard around firesides for miles around. Villagers rush in from their tasks at night and armed guards watch over livestock. The Beast has shown no fear of fire or blade and has an uncanny ability to avoid traps. You have pieced together the Beast’s appearance from eyewitness reports, but even that is fragmented. What you do know is that it is at least as large as a man and covered in black fur, with huge teeth and claws. You’ve seen the aftermath of one of its attacks first hand. There were not enough pieces left to identify the bodies. And now you must slay the Beast...

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posted by Mike Tresca at 8:10 AM | 1 comments


Want more? Please consider contributing to my Patreon; Follow me on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, and the web; buy my books: The Evolution of Fantasy Role-Playing Games, The Well of Stars, and Awfully Familiar.

Sunday, June 4

Game Review: Halo: Combat Evolved

Halo is drenched with testosterone, a product so perfectly targeted to adolescent boys that I actually created Master Chief as a comic book (that I published, incidentally) long before the Xbox even existed. That's right, Brenkin Kree wore a featureless helmet, carried a rocket launcher on his shoulder, and had a wristwatch computer named Babe who bossed him around. Just like Master Chief, he was bred specifically for war.

Did Halo rip me off? As much as my ego would like to think otherwise, I sincerely doubt it. Halo is merely the distilled perfection of every boy's dream; the biggest badass in town, thrust into an Aliens flick and armed with all the military might of the future. [MORE]

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posted by Mike Tresca at 4:08 PM | 0 comments


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DVD Review: Boogie Nights

Boogie Nights is one of those films, in the vein of Blow, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, and Requiem for a Dream, that stares unflinchingly at something ugly and asks us to follow along without blinking. When it's the porn industry, it's hard not to blink. [MORE]

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posted by Mike Tresca at 3:31 PM | 0 comments


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Movie Review: X-Men: The Last Stand

X-Men’s not a deep film, though its premise could be applied to everything from the war on terror to racism to gay rights. Instead, it opts to be a comic book movie, no more or less than the comic itself: lots of superpowers, a lot of brawling, and snippy asides. If anything, this third movie is truer to the comics than the first two. If you need further proof, stay through the end of the credits. [MORE]

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posted by Mike Tresca at 2:23 PM | 0 comments


Want more? Please consider contributing to my Patreon; Follow me on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, and the web; buy my books: The Evolution of Fantasy Role-Playing Games, The Well of Stars, and Awfully Familiar.