The Shadow Fane at a Glance

Evil is everywhere and humanity must be ever vigilant against its slow encroachment into all that is great and good. Small cults—dedicated to ancient, blasphemous powers—lurk throughout the world ready to carry out their dark patron’s bidding. One such small cult dedicated to Braal, god of hate, malice and revenge, dwells in the Shadow Fane below Languard’s High City. The cultists kidnap and murder in their dark god’s name, but recently they made a mistake that threatens their very existence. Instead of kidnaping a beggar the cultists accidentally kidnapped the daughter of a wealthy merchant and he is offering a handsome reward for his daughter’s safe return.

GM's ResourceCreighton BroadhurstDecember 20, 2019At a Glance, Dungeon Backdrop, AshlarComment

20 Dungeon Altars

Altars dedicated to dark, forbidden powers are a staple of many fantasy dungeons. Here, evil high priests officiate over bloody, blasphemous services or cultists gather to worship their terrible patron. Such places are thus often an excellent place to find and slay said evil-doers or to recover their hidden treasures. A few such locales have even established a tenuous link with the deity itself and strange, odd effects occur in their immediate vicinity.

GM's ResourceCreighton BroadhurstDecember 20, 201920 Things, Dungeon DressingComment

4d4 Hydra's Den

Sometimes ice-spitting or fire-breathing but always head- regenerating nightmares of bedtime stories and epic quests, the hydra is a challenge for any company of heroes. Use these lists, to add depth and flavour to the hydra dens in your campaign.

GM's ResourceCreighton BroadhurstDecember 20, 20194d4, Dungeon Dressing, Wilderness DressingComment

4d4 Basilisk's Den

The squat, reptilian basilisk has the terrifying ability to transform its prey into stone before shattering the statues into edible chunks to feast upon. Use these lists, to add depth and flavour to the basilisk’s dens in your campaign.

GM's ResourceCreighton BroadhurstDecember 20, 20194d4, Dungeon Dressing, Wilderness DressingComment

Idyll at a Glance

Idyll seems like the perfect place to live, but subtle signs something is not right are scattered throughout the village. Why are the residents reluctant to leave the village’s precincts? Why are there so few children in such a prosperous place? How has the village stayed unspoiled with the wasteland surrounding it? Why is the seemingly empty Wardens’ Lodge that once served as the centre of law for Idyll so ominous? Those who investigate Idyll’s mystery too deeply may discover plane-shattering secrets. Whether the curious can capitalise on these secrets is yet another question.

GM's ResourceCreighton BroadhurstDecember 20, 2019At a Glance, Village BackdropComment

1,000 Abnormal Ghouls

One of the most commonly encountered forms of undead, ghouls—and their more powerful brethren, ghasts—are rightly feared by adventurers for their paralysing touch and disease-ridden fangs.However, it often seems ghouls end up as nothing more than generic, bland enemies. That’s a shame as their appearance and accoutrements could provide clues as to their fate and inject more flavour and detail into an otherwise standard combat encounter.

GM's ResourceCreighton BroadhurstDecember 20, 2019Abnormal Creatures, 20 ThingsComment

6 Facets of Good Encounter Design

What makes an exciting, memorable encounter? Are four orcs in a chamber whose only purpose is to guard a chest and get whacked to death by the PCs good design? Absolutely not.

Thousands of words have been written about the mechanics of encounter design. Such mechanics are undoubtedly important, but there are other, foundational aspects of good encounter design a GM should consider when designing an adventure and its constituent encounters.

GM's Advice, Design AdviceCreighton BroadhurstDecember 19, 2019DesignComment

GMs! What's Your Problem?

I’m not trying to start a fight. Instead, I’m trying to understand what common problems GMs face when preparing or running our games.

QuestionCreighton BroadhurstDecember 18, 2019GM Question Comment

6 Easy Ways to Ruin the Game Session

I’ve written before about how to be a good gamer. Sometimes it’s fun—and useful—to look at the other side of the coin. Sometimes it’s worthwhile thinking about how you could ruin a gaming session. Knowing what ruins a gaming session makes it easier to avoid doing those things.

Player's Advice, GM's AdviceCreighton BroadhurstDecember 18, 2019Game PlayComment