Friday Fantasy: A Darkness at Runegate

The Dragonrise broke the hold that the Lunar Empire had on Sartar and enabled the clans and tribes the imperial thumb to join forces with the rebels that had long opposed the occupation from the hills and rise up, to free themselves. It also upended the social order, leaving a vacuum where there was not a fully cohesive government. Some settlements were left to fend for themselves. One such town is Runegate, famed for its east gate sacred to Asrelia, the goddess of luck and fortune, and for the great horses it breeds and sells. Despite lying in the lands of the Colymar tribe and being the market and religious centre for three of the tribe’s clans, its leaders and inhabitants have been forced to recover alone in the aftermath of the Dragonrise. This is going to change. Leika Blackspear, newly restored Queen of the Colymar Tribe has despatched a delegation from Clearwine Fort to present gifts to the Runegate leadership and so hopefully lay the groundwork for both its and town’s restored fealty to her. However, when the delegation of four reaches the walled town, they find too many funeral pyres smouldering and being attended to outside of the walls, many of the townsfolk coughing and spluttering, and a far from happy welcome.

This is the set-up for A Darkness at Runegate, a scenario for RuneQuest: Roleplaying in Glorantha published by Chaosium, Inc.. It comes complete with a set of four pre-generated Player Characters and can be played as a one-shot, but its location and time frame actually make it easy to add to a campaign. It is located in the northwest of the Colymar tribal lands, a day or so’s travel west of Apple Lane. It takes place late in Earth Season of 1625. This combination makes it easy to add to a campaign based in the area, especially if the Game Master has used or is using the campaign material set in and around Apple Lane primarily found in the RuneQuest Gamemaster Screen Pack.

Begrudgingly welcomed into the town, the Player Characters find any fears they had upon reaching Runegate, quickly confirmed. The townsfolk are suffering from a widespread outbreak of disease, but the situation worsens as their only source of respite, the Chalana Arroy priestess, is found murdered in the Lightbringers Temple. This escalates A Darkness at Runegate from a horror scenario into a murder mystery. This being a scenario for RuneQuest: Roleplaying in Glorantha, the cause of the diseases is essentially already known. In Glorantha, bad spirits cause disease, sent by the Goddess of Disease, Mallia, and nearly all of the inhabitants of the town have been touched by a disease spirit, and when they interact with them, there is a strong possibility that the Player Characters will be touched by them too. This adds to the impetus driving the scenario. That is, to find the source of disease that it is not only afflicting the townsfolk and its leadership, but potentially the Player Characters. If Mallia, the Mother of Disease and one of Unholy Trio of Chaos gods, is involved, the likelihood is that there are cultists devoted to her operating in Runegate or nearby. Investigation and talking to the townsfolk able to talk will reveal the depth of the problem, but observation will reveal that with the failure of the Chalana Arroy priestess to find the cause and alleviate the symptoms—prior to her death—some in the town are turning to another healer, recently arrived in Runegate.

The scenario will culminate in a confrontation with The Healer as the Player Characters attempt to work out quite who she is and who she actually worships, whilst she obfuscates and prevaricates. The scenario presents several ways in which this can play out, but whether The Healer lives or dies, is captured or escapes, she still has a group of quite nasty allies nearby. Ideally, the Player Characters will be able to identify and deal with the threat that blights the people of Runegate and thus as her delegates, show Queen Leika in a favourable light. Four pre-generated Player Characters are provided if A Darkness at Runegate is to be run as a one-shot or demonstration scenario. They consist of a good mix, particularly ages. There is a young priestess of Ernalda; her elder sister, an initiate of Orlanth Adventurous (Vinga); a middle-aged initiate of Issaries; and a young initiate of Humakt. All four have quite detailed background, but these are not presented separately for easy provision to the players.

Physically, A Darkness at Runegate is decently presented in the style you would expect for RuneQuest: Roleplaying in Glorantha. The new artwork is good, as is the map of the town. There is no map of the region which might have been useful considering that the actual climax of the scenario is likely to take place outside of Runegate.

One thing to note is that A Darkness at Runegate is not a new scenario, it having been used as a demonstration scenario prior to it now actual publication. What this means is that there will be some players who will have already played this scenario, so it will not be of use to every group or Game Master. Of course, given the diversity of games run in Glorantha, this applies anyway. The scenario itself is a little dense, but that is often the way of mystery scenarios. Otherwise, this is a great little scenario that shows off some of the consequences of Sartar’s immediate history and how the world of Glorantha is different to other fantasy settings. A Darkness at Runegate is a desperately disease-driven scenario as a one-shot or convention, but a good addition to a Sartar-based campaign.

Jonstown Jottings #105: Applefest

Much like the Miskatonic Repository for Call of Cthulhu, Seventh Edition, the Jonstown Compendium is a curated platform for user-made content, but for material set in Greg Stafford’s mythic universe of Glorantha. It enables creators to sell their own original content for RuneQuest: Roleplaying in Glorantha, 13th Age Glorantha, and HeroQuest Glorantha (Questworlds). This can include original scenarios, background material, cults, mythology, details of NPCs and monsters, and so on, but none of this content should be considered to be ‘canon’, but rather fall under ‘Your Glorantha Will Vary’. This means that there is still scope for the authors to create interesting and useful content that others can bring to their Glorantha-set campaigns.

—oOo—

What is it?
Applefest is a scenario for RuneQuest: Roleplaying in Glorantha. It is intended to be used after the events in and around Apple Lane as detailed in the RuneQuest Gamemaster Screen Pack.

It is a thirty-three page, full colour, 1.410 MB PDF.

The layout is tidy, but there are no illustrations and the text does need an edit in places. The single map is decent.

Where is it set?
Applefest is set in Apple Lane and takes place early in Fire Season over the course of Harmony week in the run up to the Ulerian holy week.

Who do you play?

Applefest is designed to be used with any Player Characters, ideally ones who have played through the events of the RuneQuest Gamemaster Screen Pack. It is assumed that by the end of that, one of the Player Characters will have been appointed the Thane of Apple Lane, although the scenario accounts for the possibility that this has not happened or has not yet happened.

What do you need?

Applefest requires RuneQuest: Roleplaying in Glorantha and the RuneQuest Gamemaster Screen Pack. The Glorantha Bestiary and The Red Book of Magic may be useful.

What do you get?
In the wake of the Dragonrise and the Lunar Empire being forced out of Sartar, there has been an understandable resurgence in Orlanthi religious practices and the village of Apple Lane is no exception. Every Fire Season for decades before the Lunar occupation, the community would hold a three day festival which celebrated its most well-known crop in conjunction with the village’s renowned temple to Uleria. It was, until the Lunars invaded, a quiet local affair, but this year it will be different. It will take on a greater significance than ever before as omens speak of ill winds flowing south still from the Lunar Empire, the Storms gods intimate that the old practices be taken up again, and guests from far and wide, including the great and good, and the unknown and the malicious. It will be up to the Player Characters to help marshal events, keep the peace, guide several children on their first ‘hero quest’, help save the day, and ultimately make sure everyone has a good time.

Playing out over the course of three days and nights, Applefest is a busy affair that brings a classic festival scenario to Glorantha and Apple Lane in particular. What would have been an ordinary affair quickly balloons in size as unexpected guests arrive, including a band of Telmori, an Earth Priestess from Kero Fin and her entourage, and Queen Leika and her entourage! In addition, there are traders and entertainers, and significantly if the Player Characters have played through the events of ‘Gringle’s Pawnshop’ in Apple Lane, the return of an old band of foes. Thus, there will opportunities for a barroom brawl, diplomacy, shopping, entertainment and games, a little mystery, some madness, and some active childcare in the field!

Although any ordinary band of adventurers can play through Applefest, this is a scenario that is really going to both interest and benefit a group that includes the thane of Apple Lane amongst their number and which makes the village their home. It is highly detailed and it involves multiple plot threads, both major and minor, plus a lot of NPCs, so the Game Master will need to need to prepare it carefully and be prepared to keep those threads moving and the Player Characters involved. The effort will pay off, ideally with the thane and the other Player Characters burnishing their reputations and helping to restore the spiritual strength of Sartar and its people.

Is it worth your time?

Yes—Applefest is a thoroughly entertaining addition to any campaign set in and around Apple Lane.

No—Applefest is too location specific and too story specific to work elsewhere with ease and the Game Master may be running a campaign set elsewhere.

Maybe—Applefest is too location and story specific to adapt to elsewhere with ease, but there are plenty of ideas and events that could be reworked for a similar event.

Jonstown Jottings #97: A Broo Did It And Ran Away

Much like the Miskatonic Repository for Call of Cthulhu, Seventh Edition and The Companions of Arthur for material set in Greg Stafford’s masterpiece of Arthurian legend and romance, Pendragon, the Jonstown Compendium for RuneQuest: Roleplaying in Glorantha is a curated platform for user-made content, but for material set in Greg Stafford’s mythic universe of Glorantha. It enables creators to sell their own original content for RuneQuest: Roleplaying in Glorantha, 13th Age Glorantha, and HeroQuest Glorantha (Questworlds). This can include original scenarios, background material, cults, mythology, details of NPCs and monsters, and so on, but none of this content should be considered to be ‘canon’, but rather fall under ‘Your Glorantha Will Vary’. This means that there is still scope for the authors to create interesting and useful content that others can bring to their Glorantha-set campaigns.

—oOo—

What is it?

A Broo Did It And Ran Away is “A 5 page plot with 2 parts” for use with RuneQuest: Roleplaying in Glorantha which presents a short mystery that the Game Master can run as a single session’s worth of play or possibly longer.

It is a two page, full colour 534.26 KB PDF.

The layout is tidy, the artwork rough, but serviceable, and it does need an edit.

The scenario hook can be easily be adapted to the rules system of the Game Master’s choice.

Where is it set?

As written, A Broo Did It And Ran Away takes place in the same lands as the Player Characters’ clan. This can be in Sartar or any settled land. Ideally, it should be located adjacent to a forest and near some hills, and it should be run during Earth Season.

Who do you play?
A Broo Did It And Ran Away does not suggest any specific character type, but as it ends in a fight, combat capable Player Characters are recommended and ideally, it should not include a Storm Bull, as an NPC fulfils this roll and drives the plot.

What do you need?
A Broo Did It And Ran Away requires RuneQuest: Roleplaying in Glorantha only. The RuneQuest: Glorantha Bestiary may be useful, but is not essential to play.

What do you get?

A Broo Did It And Ran Away does give the scenario’s antagonists away in its title, but it is easily adapted to a campaign and run in a single session. It opens with the Player Characters helping out their clan during earth Season by getting the harvest in, working the fields owned by Adestra and her husband, Barkos. When a Storm Bull starts attacking the field that the Player Characters are working, claiming that it is tainted with Chaos, then something odd has to be going on. To investigate, the Player Characters will need to calm the Storm Bull and look round the field, and beyond. Adestra seems nervous. Is it just because there is a Storm Bull claiming that one of her fields is tainted by Chaos or does she know something more?

Ultimately, the Player Characters’ investigation will force to Adestra to respond. She may confess all or she may make an attempt to solve the problem herself. Either way, the clues will point to a hermit who has recently moved into the area and begun living in a nearby cave. Confronting the hermit will reveal who and what she actually is and lead to a nasty combat in a confined space. This requires careful adjustment by the Game Master to match the threat with the combat capabilities of the Player Characters.

However the scenario ends, the Player Characters should learn that Adestra has been a fool rather than evil. Nevertheless, give what she has done, there should be consequences. This will be handled by the chief of the clan, but it may be an interesting situation to roleplay if one of the Player Characters is the clan chief or even just the Thane of Apple Lane.

Is it worth your time?

Yes—A Broo Did It And Ran Away presents a combination of a small mystery, a small, but brutal combat, and a small dilemma that can easily dropped into a campaign on clan lands and played in a single session.

No—A Broo Did It And Ran Away is just a tiny bit too silly, perhaps too brutal a fight, and a Game Master’s campaign may necessarily take in clan lands.

Maybe—A Broo Did It And Ran Away is serviceable enough and perhaps a scenario that the Game Master might want to keep is her back pocket to run in between other scenarios or when not all of her players are present.

Jonstown Jottings #91: Skull Ruins: Tusk Riders Need Blood!

Much like the Miskatonic Repository for Call of Cthulhu, Seventh Edition, the Jonstown Compendium is a curated platform for user-made content, but for material set in Greg Stafford’s mythic universe of Glorantha. It enables creators to sell their own original content for RuneQuest: Roleplaying in Glorantha, 13th Age Glorantha, and HeroQuest Glorantha (Questworlds). This can include original scenarios, background material, cults, mythology, details of NPCs and monsters, and so on, but none of this content should be considered to be ‘canon’, but rather fall under ‘Your Glorantha Will Vary’. This means that there is still scope for the authors to create interesting and useful content that others can bring to their Glorantha-set campaigns.

—oOo—

What is it?

Skull Ruins: Tusk Riders Need Blood! is a scenario for use with RuneQuest: Roleplaying in Glorantha which details an escort mission in which the Player Characters are tasked with guiding a Tusk Rider ‘ally’—or intelligence asset—of Queen Leika, along with his unruly boar tusker deep into unfriendly territory along the new border between Sartar and the Lunar Empire, where a blood sacrifice can be made.

It is a possible sequel to the scenario, ‘Defending Apple Lane’, from the RuneQuest Gamemaster Screen Pack.

It is also a guide to the Boarsbeard Clan, a clan whose members have either been kidnapped by Tusk Riders and instead of being sacrificed, were offered to the Dark Spirit of the Bloody Tusk cult, or whose ancestors were. Many of them are not simply Pig-Hsunchen, but Tusk Brother Wereboars! Plus, the Cult of Sawtooth, dedicated to a legendary renegade guardian of the Stinking Forest, whose members consist of a weird mix of Aldryami, Trolls, and Tusk Riders, many of whom serve as scouts.

It is a full colour, seventy-six page, 59.91 PDF.

The layout is tidy and it is very nicely illustrated.

It needs a slight edit.

Where is it set?

Skull Ruins: Tusk Riders Need Blood! begins in Clearwine, but will take the Player Characters north to cross The Creek and from there make their way to Skull Ruin in the Bone Hills near the boundary of the territory between Alda-Chur and Herongreen.

Who do you play?
Skull Ruins: Tusk Riders Need Blood! does not require any specific character type, but Player Characters who are capable warriors and a skilled negotiator are recommended, as is an Earth priestess.

What do you need?
Skull Ruins: Tusk Riders Need Blood! requires RuneQuest: Roleplaying in Glorantha, the RuneQuest Gamemaster Screen Pack, and the RuneQuest: Glorantha Bestiary.

What do you get?

Skull Ruins: Tusk Riders Need Blood! sets up an interesting moral quandary for the Player Characters. They are chosen by Queen Leika Blackspear of Colymar to escort a very strange ‘intelligence asset’ deep into the territories between liberated Northern Sartar and pro-Imperial Alda-Chur, newly disputed as a result of the Dragonrise. This ‘intelligence asset’ is Penjurlhi, a Tusk Rider, an ‘Aramite’ held captive by the Queen. (One option here is for Penjurlhi to have been captured by the Player Characters as a result of playing through ‘Defending Apple Lane’ from the RuneQuest Gamemaster Screen Pack.) Penjurlhi has knowledge of the secret routes that the Tusk Riders use to conduct their raids which he is willing to share with the Queen. Unfortunately, Penjurlhi is losing the connection he has with his Tusker and the giant boar is growing increasingly erratic and dangerous. The connection can be reforged, but this requires a sacrificial rite—including a blood sacrifice—at a secret location known as Skull Ruin. This is a series of caves in a snake-like hill and it is in possession of an infamous bandit called Gornorix.

The Player Characters have a chance to discuss the mission with the queen and her advisors before they leave as well as Penjurlhi. They must then travel their way north, arrange means of crossing The Creek, and from there make their way to Skull Ruin. Along the way, an encounter with a Troll warband reveals that the Player Characters are not the only ones interested in Skull Ruin, as Gornorix is holding one of their number captive. It is this Troll captive who will be the unwilling victim sacrificed as part of the ritual to reforge the connection between Penjurlhi and his Tusker.

The quandary for the Player Characters depends upon their views on blood sacrifice. Many cults practice it, but not necessarily with a sentient being. So do the Player Characters follow through with Queen Leika’s orders and let the Troll captive be sacrificed? Do they instead side with the Troll warband and antagonise first Gornorix and then Queen Laika? Or do they find another way of resolving the situation? Numerous options and their possible outcomes are discussed in some detail, helped by the clearly presented motivations of the various NPCs. Full stats are provided for all of the inhabitants of Skull Ruin and the Troll Warband, along with a guide to running the assault/defence of the Skull Mountain, depending upon whom the Player Characters side with. There is also a full list of random things to be found in the caves if the Player Characters have the opportunity and more importantly time—searching some locations can take hours!—to comb through every location. That said, there is a lot of treasure held at Skull Mountain and the adventure includes some nicely done magical items, such as the Plinth Stone Club, made from a piece of a shattered Dragonewt plinth stone, that either drains or transfers Magic Points or drains Rune Points!

The scenario is rounded off with a set of scenario hooks that the Game Master can develop as sequels. In addition, the scenario details the Boarsbeard Clan, whose members are tolerated by both Heortlings and Tusk Riders and are often used as intermediaries between both. The strange Cult of Sawtooth, based in the Stinking Forest, is also fully detailed. Both Boarsbeard Clan and the Cult of Sawtooth should provide a ready source of interesting, often powerful NPCs. The very full Cult of Sawtooth write-up is accompanied with some advice on how to use it and some adventure ideas as well.

Is it worth your time?

Yes—Skull Ruins: Tusk Riders Need Blood! is an excellent scenario which requires careful roleplaying and negotiation upon the part of the Player Characters, whilst still having plenty of scope for combat and action, as well as a moral dilemma at its heart. (The extra background is a bonus.)

No—Skull Ruins: Tusk Riders Need Blood! is a challenging scenario morally and the Player Characters may not want to have to deal with blood sacrifice. Plus the Game Master may not be running a campaign in Sartar.

Maybe—Skull Ruins: Tusk Riders Need Blood! is a challenging scenario morally and one reason it may not be easy to set up because the Player Characters did not capture a Tusk Rider in ‘Defending Apple Lane’ from RuneQuest Gamemaster Screen Pack, and instead killed them all!

Jonstown Jottings #88: The Bully Bird

Much like the Miskatonic Repository for Call of Cthulhu, Seventh Edition, the Jonstown Compendium is a curated platform for user-made content, but for material set in Greg Stafford’s mythic universe of Glorantha. It enables creators to sell their own original content for RuneQuest: Roleplaying in Glorantha, 13th Age Glorantha, and HeroQuest Glorantha (Questworlds). This can include original scenarios, background material, cults, mythology, details of NPCs and monsters, and so on, but none of this content should be considered to be ‘canon’, but rather fall under ‘Your Glorantha Will Vary’. This means that there is still scope for the authors to create interesting and useful content that others can bring to their Glorantha-set campaigns.

—oOo—

What is it?

The Bully Bird is “A monstrous predator packed into two pages” for use with RuneQuest: Roleplaying in Glorantha which presents a creature and three hooks to use the creature in a campaign that the Game Master can develop and run as a single session’s worth of play or possibly longer.

It is a two page, full colour 329.59 KB PDF.

The layout is tidy, the artwork rough, but serviceable.

The creature and the scenario hooks can be easily be adapted to the rules system of the Game Master’s choice.

Where is it set?

As written, The Bully Bird details a creature found across Dragon Pass.

Who do you play?
The Bully Bird does not require any specific character type, but the Bully Bird is hated by Orlanth-worshippers in particular, and anyone who keeps alynxes, such as Odayla or Yinkin worshippers.

What do you need?
The Bully Bird requires RuneQuest: Roleplaying in Glorantha only.

What do you get?

The Bully Bird details a simple, but very large creature, roughly four times taller than the average man and the size of a mammoth. It is a giant bird that talks and pecks its way back and forth across Dragon Pass, able to fly, but only with the benefit of a running start. It will stalk and eat anything it likes, but not men, though it is capable of defending itself by pecking or grappling with its beak or flapping its wings in a strong strike. Having escaped into the mortal world from God Time following a botched heroquest, it has become both a terror across the region and a much desired trophy for hunters, who are seen as being either very brave or very foolish for wanting to hunt it. One reason to hunt are its magical feathers, which either make magnificent trophies or can be used to attract predators when hunting.

In addition to describing the Bully Bird, how it came to be in the mortal world, and giving its stats, The Bully Bird includes three plot hooks. These will have the Player Characters preventing it being accidently caught by Summons of Evil cast by a clan, the Bully Bird becoming infatuated with a Player Character, and the Player Characters becoming involved in an attempt to banish the Bully Bird. These are thumbnail descriptions at best, and the Game Master will need to undertake a fair amount of development to have something readily playable.

One aspect of the Bully Bird which would have have benefited from further development is the heroquest that enabled it to escape God Quest. That might have better prepared the Game Master who wants to run a heroquest to banish it or it might even set up the possibility of the Player Characters having performed the original heroquest that set the Bully Bird free in Dragon Pass!

Ultimately the usefulness of The Bully Bird will depend upon if the Game Master does not mind adding another creature to Glorantha, especially as one as ridiculous as the the Bully Bird, and does not mind developing the included scenario hooks.

Is it worth your time?

Yes—The Bully Bird adds a strange beast to Glorantha that can be seen lurking here and there throughout Dragon Pass before the Player Characters go hunting for it just as in Lewis Carroll’s The Hunting of the Snark.

No—The Bully Bird is just a bit too gonzo, even silly, and needs too much effort upon the part of the Game Master to effectively use.

Maybe—The Bully Bird is fantastically absurd, a looming presence which reminds others of the dangers of heroquests gone wrong and with a bit of effort its plot hooks can be developed in something worth running.

Jonstown Jottings #87: Porcupine Cat

Much like the Miskatonic Repository for Call of Cthulhu, Seventh Edition, the Jonstown Compendium is a curated platform for user-made content, but for material set in Greg Stafford’s mythic universe of Glorantha. It enables creators to sell their own original content for RuneQuest: Roleplaying in Glorantha, 13th Age Glorantha, and HeroQuest Glorantha (Questworlds). This can include original scenarios, background material, cults, mythology, details of NPCs and monsters, and so on, but none of this content should be considered to be ‘canon’, but rather fall under ‘Your Glorantha Will Vary’. This means that there is still scope for the authors to create interesting and useful content that others can bring to their Glorantha-set campaigns.

—oOo—

What is it?

Porcupine Cat is a “A 2 page terror for padding out Prax” for use with RuneQuest: Roleplaying in Glorantha which presents a creature and three hooks to use the creature in a campaign that the Game Master can develop and run as a single session’s worth of play.

It is a two page, full colour 255.71 KB PDF.

The layout is tidy, the artwork rough, but serviceable.

The creature and the scenario hooks can be easily be adapted to the rules system of the Game Master’s choice.

Where is it set?

As written, Porcupine Cat details a creature found in Prax and the Big Rubble.

Who do you play?
Porcupine Cat does not require any specific character type, but as it can be found anywhere where there are granaries or rats and other vermin, almost any type of character encounter it.

What do you need?
Porcupine Cat requires RuneQuest: Roleplaying in Glorantha only.

What do you get?

Porcupine Cat details a simple creature and provides three hooks involving the creature. The Porcupine Cat is a feline-like creature noted for the quills that run along its back and protrude from the end of its tail. It is not a threat to most adults, but can be to children. It can fire the quills from its tail. Quills that get stuck in the flesh are difficult to remove and painful enough to impede movement and other physical activity.

The supplement provides a general description of the Porcupine Cat, the effect of its quills, and an illustration along with the stats. This followed by the three adventure hooks. These are quite inventive, including spine getting stuck in the spirit of a warrior, obtaining quills for a Tarshite Lunar scribe who believes them to be perfect for writing the New Pelorian script, and going into the Big Rubble to find a sample beast for a local alchemist. These contain a reasonable amount of basic information, but will require the Game Master to develop further details.

Ultimately the usefulness of Porcupine Cat will depend upon if the Game Master does not mind adding another creature to Glorantha and does not mind developing the included scenario hooks.

Is it worth your time?

Yes—Porcupine Cat is a short and simple supplement, and surprisingly better than anything intended “... for padding out Prax” deserves to be.

No—Porcupine Cat is either set in Prax where the Game Master’s campaign is not or leaves too much for the Game Master to do given the simplicity of the content—if not both.

Maybe—Porcupine Cat is not as bad as it sounds and the scenario hooks are workable.

Jonstown Jottings #86: The Bandit Den

Much like the Miskatonic Repository for Call of Cthulhu, Seventh Edition, the Jonstown Compendium is a curated platform for user-made content, but for material set in Greg Stafford’s mythic universe of Glorantha. It enables creators to sell their own original content for RuneQuest: Roleplaying in Glorantha, 13th Age Glorantha, and HeroQuest Glorantha (Questworlds). This can include original scenarios, background material, cults, mythology, details of NPCs and monsters, and so on, but none of this content should be considered to be ‘canon’, but rather fall under ‘Your Glorantha Will Vary’. This means that there is still scope for the authors to create interesting and useful content that others can bring to their Glorantha-set campaigns.

—oOo—

What is it?

The Bandit Den is a scenario for use with RuneQuest: Roleplaying in Glorantha which presents a simple, straightforward plot outline that the Game Master can run and prepare for a single session’s worth of play.

It is a two page, full colour 367.16 KB PDF.

The layout is tidy, the artwork rough, but serviceable.

The scenario is can be easily be adapted to the rules system of the Game Master’s choice.

The scenario requires some scaling to match its threat to the number of Player Characters.

Where is it set?

As written, The Bandit Den takes place in Hiording lands, but starts in Apple Lane. It takes place after the Dragonrise.

Who do you play?
The Bandit Den does not require any specific character type, but warriors of any kind are highly recommended.

What do you need?
The Bandit Den requires RuneQuest: Roleplaying in Glorantha whilst the RuneQuest Gamemaster Screen Pack will be useful if the scenario is set near Apple Lane.

What do you get?

The Bandit Den is a simple strike mission. The merchant Irella Goldfoot has been ‘taxed’ once too often and vows revenge. Consequently, she hires the Player Characters (or if this is played in Apple Lane, appeals to the Thane) to deal with the problem. A Divination reveals the location the bandit hideout, an abandoned hunting lodge. The scenario begins there, with the Player Characters attempting to get into the tumbledown building and attack the bandits. Their access is complicated by a couple of traps outside, but once inside, this a standup fight, either to the death or until the bandits, a desperate, sorry lot, surrender.

The scenario includes a map of the hunting lodge, complete with ‘sad furniture’, a set of stats to adjust match the Player Characters, and a little treasure. It is very easy to prepare and can be run in a single session. However, it is not an original scenario and the Game Master could easily come up with something similar of her own without any difficulty.

It does bear superficial resemblance to Jorthan’s Rescue Redux. However, The Bandit Den benefits from being vastly shorter, much simpler, and far easier to prepare, as well as having a shorter running time.

More scenarios in this format this would be a welcome addition to the the Jonstown Compendium, but perhaps not as simple in terms of plot.

Is it worth your time?

Yes—The Bandit Den is a short and simple, easy to prepare, and there for when a group is a few players short or the Game Master needs a scenario idea in a hurry.

No—The Bandit Den is nothing that the Game Master cannot create on her own.

Maybe—The Bandit Den might be good to hold in reserve, but it really does not provide anything more special than a filler scenario.

Jonstown Jottings #78: Veins of Discord

Much like the Miskatonic Repository for Call of Cthulhu, Seventh Edition, the Jonstown Compendium is a curated platform for user-made content, but for material set in Greg Stafford’s mythic universe of Glorantha. It enables creators to sell their own original content for RuneQuest: Roleplaying in Glorantha, 13th Age Glorantha, and HeroQuest Glorantha (Questworlds). This can include original scenarios, background material, cults, mythology, details of NPCs and monsters, and so on, but none of this content should be considered to be ‘canon’, but rather fall under ‘Your Glorantha Will Vary’. This means that there is still scope for the authors to create interesting and useful content that others can bring to their Glorantha-set campaigns.

—oOo—

What is it?
Veins of Discord is a scenario for use with RuneQuest: Roleplaying in Glorantha.

It is a thirty-four page, full colour, 38.59 MB PDF.

The layout is clean and tidy, but the scenario needs a slight edit in places. The artwork is decent. However, there are no maps, so the Game Master will need to refer to the maps included in the RuneQuest Gamemaster Screen Pack.

Where is it set?
Veins of Discord is set in Sartar, specifically in and around the village of Apple Lane.

Who do you play?

Any type of Player Character can play Veins of Discord, but ideally they should be invested in the future of Apple Lane and they should be capable working in the surrounding wilderness. The scenario presents an interesting situation if a Player Character is the thane of Apple Lane or an Ernalda worshipper.

What do you need?
Veins of Discord requires RuneQuest: Roleplaying in Glorantha, the Glorantha Bestiary, and especially, the RuneQuest Gamemaster Screen Pack for its information about Apple Lane and its surrounds. The Red Book of Magic may also be useful.

What do you get?

Veins of Discord begins with a strange visitor to Apple Lane. Accius Yuthuppa wants wilderness guides to help him investigate the nearby Thunder Hills for reasons that nobody can quite fathom, though, it turns out, the pay is pretty good. It quickly becomes clear that he ill-suited to the wilderness, even the relatively tame wilderness around Apple Lane, but after collecting numerous sods and clods and rocks, he disappears from the lives of the Player Characters, only to be remembered as an odd encounter.

Not long after Accius Yuthuppa has left, several Dwarves arrival in the Apple Lane, their leader wanting to negotiate for the mining rights to the nearby hills. The Dwarves will compensate the village (and its thane) for these rights, but if the thane or the people of Apple Lane decline, the dwarves will move on and find someone else to negotiate with. Either way, the Dwarves will begin mining in the hills. Naturally—because after all, what the Dwarves are doing could be seen as unnatural—this has consequences.

Veins of Discord confronts the Player Characters with a dilemma as the actions of the Dwarves bring them into conflict with the Elves of the nearby Tarndisi’s Grove. Do they side with those that they made agreement with or do they side with the Elves who want to undo what they regard as the damage that the Dwarves have inflicted on the earth? Whether they gave permission for the Dwarves to mine in the hills, in which case, the Elves will be unhappy with the Player Characters, or the dwarves successfully sought permission from someone else, the Elves will still make a plea for assistance. Whichever side the Player Characters decide to support, the Elves will assault the mine, and there will be long term consequences for supporting one side and not the other. Ultimately, there no easy answer to the situation presented in the scenario.

Veins of Discord is a straightforward scenario, though the Game Master will need to prepare the final showdown in the mine as it involves a lot of combat. Full stats and descriptions are provided for both the Elves and Dwarves involved in the scenario as well as various other creatures. One thing missing from the scenario is a map of the mine. The Game Master can run the scenario without it, but its inclusion would have been useful.

Another aspect of the scenario is that although the plot and central idea behind Veins of Discord—modernity and industrialisation versus traditionalism and the natural world—is not necessarily new to roleplaying, it is not necessarily a familiar plot in RuneQuest. The players will need to both roleplay their characters’ reactions to what is to them a very alien concept and the fact that their characters will not at all be familiar with the consequences of what the Dwarves want. Not so much a challenge, but rather something that they should keep in mind.

The format and plot to Veins of Discord means that it actually plays out over the course of several weeks. The Game Master could easily run another scenario as the events of Veins of Discord play out offscreen.

Is it worth your time?

Yes—Veins of Discord is a straightforward and enjoyable scenario which presents the Player Characters with a surprisingly modern dilemma that ultimately cannot be solved to everyone’s satisfaction and feels all the more satisfying because of this.

No—Veins of Discord is too location specific, being set in Apple Lane, and involves both Elves and Dwarves, and an industrial theme which may not suit a Game Master’s campaign.

Maybe—Veins of Discord is flexible in that it can set elsewhere, but its industrial versus the ecological theme may not not suit every Game Master’s campaign.

Jonstown Jottings #64: A Short Detour

Much like the Miskatonic Repository for Call of Cthulhu, Seventh Edition, th Jonstown Compendium is a curated platform for user-made content, but for material set in Greg Stafford’s mythic universe of Glorantha. It enables creators to sell their own original content for RuneQuest: Roleplaying in Glorantha, 13th Age Glorantha, and HeroQuest Glorantha (Questworlds). This can include original scenarios, background material, cults, mythology, details of NPCs and monsters, and so on, but none of this content should be considered to be ‘canon’, but rather fall under ‘Your Glorantha Will Vary’. This means that there is still scope for the authors to create interesting and useful content that others can bring to their Glorantha-set campaigns.

—oOo—

What is it?

A Short Detour: An Adventure for RuneQuest Glorantha is a scenario for use with RuneQuest: Roleplaying in Glorantha in which the adventurers come to the aid of a mother and her son and become involved in a moral dilemma.

It is a forty-one page, full colour 3.74 MB PDF.

It is cleanly and tidily presented and some of the artwork is decent.

Where is it set?

A Short Detour: An Adventure for RuneQuest Glorantha is set in northern Sartar and could easily be take place near Apple Lane as detailed in the RuneQuest Gamemaster Screen Pack.

It is set during Sea Season, 1626.

Who do you play?
There are no specific roles necessary to play A Short Detour, but this can be an interesting scenario for a Lhankor Mhy. A Storm Bull may short circuit the scenario. Martial characters will be needed as combat is likely to be involved (in which case the Storm Bull will be useful).

What do you need?
A Short Detour: An Adventure for RuneQuest Glorantha requires RuneQuest: Roleplaying in Glorantha, as well as RuneQuest: Glorantha Bestiary and The Red Book of Magic.

In addition, Cults of Terror will be useful for its background information. Depending upon how the scenario plays out, Holiday Dorastor: The Temple of Heads, may also be useful as a sequel.

What do you get?

A Short Detour: An Adventure for RuneQuest Glorantha is a short, simple, and straightforward adventure which as written takes place in northern Sartar, but can be adapted to other areas if necessary. The Player Characters encounter, Renuvela and Nemiast, a mother and her son trying to fend off a sounder of boars. After they come to their rescue, she asks the Player Characters to escort them her and her son to Runegate.

This sounds like a simple situation, but if the Player Characters agree, it quickly plunges them into a moral dilemma. Renuvela and Nemiast are being hunted by two different factions with an interest in his future. One group wishes him ill for what will be seen as the ‘right’ reasons, whilst the other wishes him well for the ‘wrong’ reasons. At the heart of the scenario is the agreement the Player Characters will have made with Renuvela and Nemiast and their honouring that agreement even as the truth about the pair is revealed. Ideally, this should lead to a clash between their Passions and their Honour for the Player Characters. In addition, in terms of roleplaying, the scenario challenges the differing viewpoints of the players and their characters within Gloranthan cultures.

A Short Detour requires good roleplaying upon the part of the Game Master in portraying both Renuvela and Nemiast, but she is given good advice to that end, and further supported with a set of highly detailed NPCs, each with well explained and clear motivations. Some of them are delightfully vile and Machiavellian, but others are simply cannon fodder that the Player Characters will enjoy putting to the sword.

The scenario discusses numerous possible options and outcomes, and this includes what can be seen as an optimum outcome, though getting to that is extremely challenging when faced with the rival demands of the others involved. The scenario is supported with an abridged version of the myth behind its plot, notes on the nature of tattoos, and an essay on the nature of the Chaos Rune and its effect in play. This falls into ‘Your Glorantha May Vary’.

Is it worth your time?

Yes—A Short Detour: An Adventure for RuneQuest Glorantha confronts the Player Characters with a moral dilemma and excellent opportunities for roleplaying supported with some fantastic NPCs.

No—A Short Detour: An Adventure for RuneQuest Glorantha confronts the Player Characters with a moral dilemma which may not fit the group’s play style and a discussion of Chaos which may not suit the Game Master’s campaign.

Maybe—A Short Detour: An Adventure for RuneQuest Glorantha confronts the Player Characters with a moral dilemma which may not fit the group’s play style and a discussion of Chaos which may not suit the Game Master’s campaign.

Jonstown Jottings #59: Lost in the Dark

Much like the Miskatonic Repository for Call of Cthulhu, Seventh Edition, the Jonstown Compendium is a curated platform for user-made content, but for material set in Greg Stafford’s mythic universe of Glorantha. It enables creators to sell their own original content for RuneQuest: Roleplaying in Glorantha, 13th Age Glorantha, and HeroQuest Glorantha (Questworlds). This can include original scenarios, background material, cults, mythology, details of NPCs and monsters, and so on, but none of this content should be considered to be ‘canon’, but rather fall under ‘Your Glorantha Will Vary’. This means that there is still scope for the authors to create interesting and useful content that others can bring to their Glorantha-set campaigns.

—oOo—

What is it?
Lost in the Dark is a scenario and supplement for use with RuneQuest: Roleplaying in Glorantha in which the adventurers are tormented by a mischievous Darkness spirit and literally get lost in the dark.

It is an eleven page, full colour 27.46 MB PDF.

The layout is scrappy and the scenario requires development and editing, but the artwork is engaging and the cover excellent.

Where is it set?
The sidetrek in Lost in the Dark is specifically set along in the Nymie Valley on the route between Apple Lane and Clearwine Fort. It could easily be set elsewhere.

Who do you play?

Any type of Player Character could play through Lost in the Dark, although a shaman or assistant shaman may be useful. Uz will have a specific advantage when encountering the Lost in the Dark spirit and are not suitable for the side trek adventure seed given in Lost in the Dark. The Player Characters do require a reason to be travelling from Apple Lane to Clearwine Fort, especially at night.

What do you need?
Lost in the Dark requires RuneQuest: Roleplaying in Glorantha as well as The RuneQuest Gamemaster Screen Pack for wider information about the region around Apple Lane. The RuneQuest: Glorantha Bestiary will be useful for details of some of the encounters.

What do you get?

Lost in the Dark plays on the Orlanthi fear of the dark instilled in him in ages past in the Greater Darkness. Whilst travelling at night, the Player Characters unknowingly encounter a Lost in the Dark, a darkness spirit who delights in playing tricks on travellers, making it difficult for them to navigate their way by dimming both torches and the stars in the skydome, and forcing them to become lost. Mischievous rather than malicious, the Lost in the Dark literally forces the Player Characters into a series of side treks from dusk to dawn.

Full stats are provided for the Lost in the Dark, a child of Dehore, although no description is given. There are two illustrations, so the Game Master can choose from either. Notably, the Lost in the Dark is chased away when Yelm ascends out of the Underwrold at dawn, so the Player Characters will not be plagued by it longer than one night, and it can be negotiated with if it is spotted or sensed. Unless a Player Character has Spirit Sense, this is understandably difficult.

 

The adventure seed in Lost in the Dark sees the Player Characters start the day-long journey from Apple Lane south to Clearwine Fort—and do so at night. The Game Master is expected to provide a reason for the Player Characters to do this, but given the fear that Orlanthi have of travelling at night, this is an issue. It really, really has to be a good reason, and Lost in the Dark really, really should have included some suggestions, especially how specific it is in terms of setting.

 

Lost in the Dark also includes rules for ‘Navigating in the Dark’ which are workable enough, along with a fully worked out example. The adventure seed itself is supported with a number of encounter suggestions. Like the adventure seed itself, these can easily be extracted from Lost in the Dark and run elsewhere, although the Game Master will need to provide any stats necessary and may want to develop them a little further to fit into her campaign.

 

The best use of Lost in the Dark is as an interlude between longer scenarios. Its brevity makes it easy to prepare and run, but for some players, the mischievous and hidden in the dark nature of the encounter could be an exercise in frustration.

Is it worth your time?

Yes—Lost in the Dark presents an easy to run interlude that can be adapted to elsewhere, but which requires some development input upon the part of the Game Master.

No—Lost in the Dark presents an annoying encounter with a mischievous spirit at a time when the Player Characters know better than to be out and which the Game Master really has to provide a reason to explain that. Plus the campaign may not be set in the lands of the Colymar Tribe.

Maybe—Lost in the Dark presents an an annoying encounter with a mischievous spirit at a time when the Player Characters know better than to be out and which the Game Master really has to provide a reason to explain that.