Known World United - February 2021 Newsletter

My Extra Life team, the Known World United, is starting a series of monthly newsletters. You can click the image above to see the February 2021 Newsletter, including the sign up for a Through Sunken Lands and Other Adventures One-Shot that I'll be running on Sunday 2/21/21 3pm-7pm Central.

Starting with this February Edition, we're going to put out a Monthly Newsletter with opportunities to sign up for games played on and off our Known World United Twitch Channel (twitch.tv/knownworldunited) as well as to hear about what everyone else is playing and how they're keeping their spirits up. We hope you'll take advantage of the opportunities to play new games, meet new friends and generally find some fun during everything going on. Hope you enjoy and we'll see you at the (virtual) tables!

If you don't see it, drop by the Discord or send us an email (knownworldunited@gmail.com) or a DM to be added to the list!

Below is the blurb for my Through Sunken Lands and Other Adventures One-Shot that will run Sunday 2/21/21 3pm-7pm Central... Click through to the newsletter to get to the sign-up.

THROUGH SUNKEN LANDS AND OTHER ADVENTURES is a Sword and Sorcery game that takes a motley crew of sellswords, sorceresses, and cunning thieves, and sends them off in search of gold and glory.

One way or another, the heroes have found themselves at the tower of a great sorcerer, a dangerous place living in symbiosis with its master. The very nature of reality bends to the will of the tower, and strange creatures from many lands, and perhaps other planes, have come to feed on its magical powers. There is treasure here, as well as glory and lore for its would-be conquerors, but what is the price? Will the characters throw down the master of the tower, or will they become another of his playthings?

The Saltmarsh Register - Vol 1.10

The Saltmarsh Register is the in-game newspaper I invented for the Ghosts of Saltmarsh game I run online every other Saturday. It is reprinted here to give others a taste of how that game has developed. WARNING, it may have spoilers for the Ghosts of Saltmarsh adventure, though I have deviated a bit from the published module.

The Saltmarsh Register

VOL 1.10 – Starday, 8th of Goldmonth, 570 CY

Salinmoor’s Finest Catch of Tidbits and Tattle printed weekly each Starday, publisher Tyna Hilltopple

THE GHOST OF SALTMARSH

Readers of this publication have sent in reports of a GHOST stalking the foggy streets of Saltmarsh near midnight the last two Moondays… Rest assured that the intrepid editor of this publication intends to get to the bottom of these haunted happenings.

STRIKE RESOLVED

The strike in the Copperlocks mines has ended, with many of the former strikers leaving in frustration after claiming their leaders struck an inadequate deal with Manistrad Copperlocks. The Copperlocks clan has given a token raise to wages and claims that agents of the nefarious Scarlet Brotherhood were behind the sabotage of supplies.

GOBLIN ASSAULT

A tribe of goblins, thought to have left the Hool Marshes, has attacked a caravan coming from Burle to Saltmarsh. Ingo the Drover has been deputized by Captain Eliander Fireborn to lead a band of the guard and mercenaries out to deal with the goblins.

FISHING TIDBITS

Sailors have reported strange things at sea, with some claiming that a kraken was seen just north of Seaton.

So Many Games... So Little Time (to blog)...

 

Some games I hope to run during 2021...

I keep meaning to update here more... I had a week off earlier in January but spent a lot of it away from my home office taking a much needed break from sitting at a desk staring at computer screens for 8-12 hours a day. (Though I did devour the excellent Raised By Wolves while laying on a couch staring at a TV screen...)

More than needing a break, though, I'm realizing that most of my RPG energy these days is spent on actually running games, something that I did a metric-fuck-ton of during 2020. With alternating 5th Edition D&D games running Saturday Afternoons, games most Thursday evenings, every other Wednesday, a couple of stints running games every other Sunday morning and at least one one-shot game each month plus the one to two games I play in... well, I average two to three games per week most weeks...

While the downside of all this gaming is less blogging, the upside was running a lot of games, including a bunch of games I hadn't run before. Here is a quick break down...

• Call of Cthulhu 7th Edition

• I'd run CoC back in high school, so that would have been back in the 5th edition was still relatively new.. Ending up running several one shots and a short campaign and definitely think it works best in the one shot format. Highlight was running The Lightless Beacon, a free one shot scenario which is where I'd recommend starting if you're interested in running (also conveniently free on Roll20).

• The Quiet Year

• Ran (or facilitated rather, as its GM-less) this post-apocalyptic map game using Roll20 and would definitely give it another whirl. It is on my list of backup games for when my groups are down a few players.

• The Sprawl

• Finally ran a one-shot of the Sprawl, the Powered by the Apocalypse Cyberpunk Game and was pleasantly surprised at how well it worked, even in a one-shot. Many PbtA games really take more than one session to get cooking, but ran a one-shot using the Downtown Dataheist quickstart mission and had a blast.

• tremulus

• also ran the Cthulhu mythos themed PbtA game, tremulus, using the Ebon Eaves scenario and it was fine? Would try it again, but really, what I'm jonesin' to run is the frozen wasteland playset.

• Fiasco!

• Had played the original version, but the revised version that swaps in cards in place of dice was a marked improvement and quite enjoyed running through the Suburbia scenario and looking forward to being able to game in person again to take advantage of having the big boxed set and all the expansion packs.

• The Forest Hymn and Picnic

• I've now run the Last Winter Holiday quick-start adventure included in A Cursory Guidebook To The Forest Hymn & Picnic twice now and each time was a lot of fun, so I cannot wait until the full game is done and I can run a party through a campaign of the Forest Hymn and Picnic...

• Alien the Roleplaying Game

• This was the big one that I went into 2020 determined to run after getting it late in 2019... and run it I did... I ran six separate one shots of Alien, plus the Destroyer of World module as a three session mini-campaign. The system is pretty elegant and cinematic and I fully intend do a fuller review sometime soon.

The Saltmarsh Register - Vol 1.9

The Saltmarsh Register is the in-game newspaper I invented for the Ghosts of Saltmarsh game I run online every other Saturday. It is reprinted here to give others a taste of how that game has developed. WARNING, it may have spoilers for the Ghosts of Saltmarsh adventure, though I have deviated a bit from the published module.

The Saltmarsh Register

VOL 1.9 – Starday, 1th of Goldmonth, 570 CY

Salinmoor’s Finest Catch of Tidbits and Tattle printed weekly each Starday, publisher Tyna Hilltopple

MERCHANTS FROM AFAR

Davus Raal, a merchant from Nyrond has set up an office in Saltmarsh, seeking to establish trade from Salinmoor to Nyrond through the Sea of Gearnat. He seems to have been invited by Dulcinea Gideon, nee Hargrave, who has taken over the Primewater estate and fortune. Merchants from Ellred have also arrived in Saltmarsh, seeking to sell the fine timbers of the Wild Coast for ship repair and building.

STRIKE CONTINUES!

The strike in the Copperlocks mines east of Saltmarsh continue, with Manistrad Copperlocks maintaining that it must have been the employees themselves who sabotaged the supplies as an excuse to strike. The register has learned that negotiations are ongoing.

SMUGGLERS HUNG FOR STEALING FROM THE CROWN!

Marne Seashine and Bertrand Ravenshield were found guilty of theft and smuggling by Duke Marik Feldren and hung on Moonday, 24 of Reaping. Despite a warning from Garrett Axehandle that such an event could be seen as disloyal, many of the fisher folk of Saltmarsh plan a vigil for the criminals on Godsday 4th of Goldmonth and perhaps in a move to soothe tensions, Wellgar Brinehanded has agreed to say prayers on behalf of Procan at the vigil.

FISHING TIDBITS

While the Saltmarsh register always strives to bring news of the catches and notable events at sea, the fishers of Saltmarsh have refused this week to provide any information to our intrepid reporter. We were able to determine that Ol’ Norbert has still not been seen and perhaps is still in Seaton…

The Saltmarsh Register - Vol 1.8

The Saltmarsh Register is the in-game newspaper I invented for the Ghosts of Saltmarsh game I run online every other Saturday. It is reprinted here to give others a taste of how that game has developed. WARNING, it may have spoilers for the Ghosts of Saltmarsh adventure, though I have deviated a bit from the published module.

The Saltmarsh Register

VOL 1.8 – Starday, 22nd of Reaping, 570 CY

Salinmoor’s Finest Catch of Tidbits and Tattle printed weekly each Starday, publisher Tyna Hilltopple 

HEARTBREAK IN DREADWOOD!

The Saltmarsh Register has received word that Horatio Threesilver, of the Company of the Broken Maul, was killed by werewolves in the Dreadwood. The Company of the Broken Maul escaped from the Dreadwood and is traveling to Niole Dra to lay Horatio to rest in the place where he was born.

STRIKE IN THE MINE!

The Dwarven miners east of Saltmarsh have gone on strike after food supplies were found to have gone bad and ale casks were found drained. Manistrad Copperlocks has left Saltmarsh to negotiate with the strikers. In a statement to the Register, Manistrad said that the Copperlocks Clan has always treated its employees well and she is determined to get to the bottom of how such lax care of supplies happened.

THE GUARD ON WATCH!

Goblins have been seen leaving the Hool Marshes as the Lizard Folk take more complete control of it. As travelers from Burle have spoken of bands of goblins headed west from the swamps, Eliander Fireborn as put the guard on watch. Mercenary Ingo the Drover has been offering guards for hire for any who want protection traveling by land out of Saltmarsh as well.

SMUGGLERS CAUGHT WITH GOLD IN HAND!

Marne Seashine and Bertrand Ravenshield were caught by Royal Tax Assessor Garrett Axehandle trying to smuggle freshly minted coins from the Keoland Mint into Saltmarsh on their fishing vessels. While both claim never to have seen the gold before, they are being sent to Seaton to be tried by Duke Marik Feldren himself.

FISHING TIDBITS

Tierney Fishspout claims to have seen a great fleet of small vessels below the cliffs of the promontory just east of Seaton. She claims that robed figures on the boats pushed what looked like human figures into the water just as dusk fell but admits she did not get a good look as she fled before they could spot her.

The Saltmarsh Register - Vol 1.7

The Saltmarsh Register is the in-game newspaper I invented for the Ghosts of Saltmarsh game I run online every other Saturday. It is reprinted here to give others a taste of how that game has developed. WARNING, it may have spoilers for the Ghosts of Saltmarsh adventure, though I have deviated a bit from the published module.

The Saltmarsh Register

VOL 1.6 – Starday, 15th of Reaping, 570 CY

Salinmoor’s Finest Catch of Tidbits and Tattle printed weekly each Starday, publisher Tyna Hilltopple 

THE SECRET OF DULCINEA GIDEON

The Saltmarsh Register has learned that Dulcinea Gideon is actually Dulcinea Hargrave and is originally from the small village of Uskarn on the Nesser River where it flows inot the Sea of Gearnat. Rumors in Seaton have it that she was a member of the an offshoot of Raal merchant family, a family of great import in the Kingdom of Nyrond and fled to Seaton to be free of her familial responsibilities.

VAMPIRES ABOUND!

A gnome corpse, drained of all its blood was found by merchants traveling by road from Seaton two miles west of the Dwarven Mine.

KELEDEK ABSENT?

Strange sorcerer, Keledek the Unspoken has left Saltmarsh, according to sources for our reporter. While the wizard’s tower still has lights in it at night, we have reason to believe that the warlock has left Saltmarsh to research an arcane mystery. Will the mage return once his errand is completed or has he fled Saltmarsh completely for his distant homeland of Ket for reasons unknown?

THE ANSWERING CALL AND THE ISLE OF DREAD?

Rumor has it that the adventuring party which calls themselves the Answering Call has set sail for a distant land called the ISLE OF DREAD. What terrible curses, monsters and evil might these adventurers bring back to Saltmarsh from such a place?

TREMBLE AND THINK OF THE ORPHANMAKER!

Brave Captain Tamsyn Muir and her ship the Swift Blade encountered the pirate ship, the Orphanmaker, captained by the infamously cruel Anne the Red, three days ago in the Azure Sea. The Swift Blade was able to chase the Orphanmaker away from the merchant vessel they were robbing but not before Anne the Red and her pirates exacted a bloody cost and abducted several passengers. Again, this paper encourages all true and loyal citizens of Keoland to volunteer to serve in the Royal Navy to keep the Azue Sea save from the deprivations of the Sea Princes.

FISHING TIDBITS

Ol’ Norbert has not been seen in a week, though his fellow fisherman say he is likely spending his coin in Seaton on unsavory pursuits.

Catches have been bountiful and with the extra fish and coin being tithed to the temple of Procan, Wellgar Brinehanded has declared a Feast at the temple open to all on Godsday, 18th of Reaping.