Ring of Five Questions: Round 1

Welcome back Greyhawkers. As promised I'm going to get the community involved by bringing back my Ring of Five Questions column. Looks like I've had some good responses so far too! Some people gave me short but excellent answers, while others offered more explanation and insight to their choices. I love it all. Some people even got over-anxious and just posted to me in comment sections on the blog or on Facebook. So against my own plans, I'll do a warm up post with some of these fans first. Reminder in case you are just now finding out, if you'd like to try out my five Greyhawk questions and share with the community, check out this link to the previous Return of the Ring of Five Questions post and then email me at mortellan@gmail.com with your responses. Now let's enter the Ring and see what is on our fellow Greyhawk fans' brains:

To start us off is some first time posters on Greyhawkery, drizzt ze'urden, Anonymous, Raymond the Scot and Fozzy21 who all chimed in with some good answers.

Q1. What is your favorite realm or region in the World of Greyhawk setting? 

drizzt: Hold of Sea Princes

Anonymous: Shield Lands

Raymond: At the moment, post-war Great Kingdom

Fozzy21: Furyondy

I love all these answers. I enjoy the Sea Princes mostly in my own campaigns, whereas the other three have mainly been used for war scenarios over the years. 

Q2. If you could actually be one Greyhawk deity which one would it be?

drizzt: Fharlanghn

Anonymous: Heironeous, kicking evil butts!

Raymond: Olidammara

Fozzy21: St. Cuthbert

Again, four solid choices. This Anonymous fellas definitely would be on the offense going after evil. In general these are all decent, well-known deities that I'd like to share a drink with at a bar.

Q3. You have one wish. Which Greyhawk module or accessory would you do over or fix?

drizzt: Five Shall Be One

Anonymous: No do overs, they are all good as they are. Instead, maybe add extra ones for the unexplored areas?

Raymond: The Doomgrinder. What a disappointment.

Fozzy21: S3 (Expedition to the Barrier Peaks)

Alright! We got a good variety of answers here. I agree with drizzt again and have indeed reworked FSBO for my Sea Princes Campaign. Anonymous throws down a pretty good gauntlet that we should look forward and bring new stuff to the table. Yes indeed! Raymond echos all our disappointment with this creepy Carl Sargent creation. And Fozzy comes out to claim S3 needs to be put in its place (wrong genre?) or perhaps just updated to modern RPG sensibilities. Who knows? Moving on...

Q4: You're putting together an all-star Greyhawk NPC group. Who is your number one pick?

drizzt: Tasha

Anonymous: Mordenkainen

Raymond: Reydrich of Ahlissa

Fozzy21: NPC Group: The Slave Lords

I like that when talking Greyhawk or D&D in general we tend to favor the wizards. Mordy is always a must-have, Tasha (Iggwilv) is an old classic NPC, but now the new hotness in 5E and Reydrich is another wizard, not as well-known but one who has alot of potential for development given the events of post-war Flanaess. Raymond really likes his Aerdy. Naturally, Fozzy went with the whole Slave Lords. I can't fault him though cause I can't think of them by name (except Markessa), however they do seem like one collective bad ass NPC in a way. Now for the question that really gets to the fans' psyche...

Q5. If you could possess one artifact or relic from Greyhawk lore, which would it be?

drizzt: Axe of the Dwarvish Lords

Anonymous: Hand of Vecna

Raymond: The Mighty Servant of Leuk-O

Fozzy21: Boccob's Staff of the Archmage

drizzt has a noble heart, I don't think I've ever used that item. I wish I had now. Anonymous gives up his identity finally, he is the Archlich Vecna in disguise! Raymond has the most realistic ambition, in that I think Gundam/Battletech stuff is in our future lol. And Fozzy finishes off the Ring of Five Questions with a good one. If you could have one artifact, that one has to be the most reliable and versatile right?

Thanks to these four for replying in the comments section. Next round I will focus on some more new faces before I get into some of the more elaborate entries of people that I know in the community. Stay tuned and enjoy!

Open Call: Return of the Ring of Five Questions

Greetings Greyhawkers! With Virtual GreyhawkCon fast approaching, I am glad to see so much creativity, commentary and collaboration in the community. I'm however in one of those slumps where I don't feel like writing anything, drawing anything and most of my posts are news items. Someone asked me recently about my Ring of Five Questions column (scroll to the bottom of the linked page for examples). I used to do this column years ago back when things weren't so active in the community and I was trying to make some connections to notable Greyhawk authors (some never responded like the Paizo crew). It seems now is a good time to dust off this part of Greyhawkery one last time and this time let all my friends and fans of Greyhawk try it out.

Below is five Greyhawk-related questions. Copy and paste them into an email and send your answers to mortellan@gmail.com. Be as short or wordy as you want! I will try to feature all respondents I get until I reach my 1000th post (I expect sometime next year). Have fun with it, but be respectful (no trolls). I look forward to reading your replies. Enjoy!

p.s. If you are one of the people I interviewed previously, don't fret, you can enter again!

Ring of Five Questions 2020

Q1. What is your favorite realm or region in the World of Greyhawk setting? 

Q2. If you could actually be one Greyhawk deity which one would it be?

Q3. You have one wish. Which Greyhawk module or accessory would you do over or fix?

Q4: You're putting together an all-star Greyhawk NPC group. Who is your number one pick?

Q5. If you could possess one artifact or relic from Greyhawk lore, which would it be?

Regarding the WotC Rumors

Hail Greyhawk enthusiasts! It's been a bit, so I'm sure everyone by now has seen the WotC panel remarks by head honcho Ray Winninger concerning the future of D&D and his hint that they are already working on a few classic setting books coming in the next couple years. Right. Not going to speculate. My mood is pessimistic though. They tease this every year.

The bulk of the panel involved talking about their fan outreach and initiatives to find new authorial and artist talent going forward. DMsGuild is what they are mainly looking at, so if someone is aspiring to be on the D&D team, get your stuff on there now or start hitting them up on social media like Twitter. There was a lot of talk about an anthology product to come out of this effort, which this time does not sound like the usual Greyhawk module plundering and repackaging, but diversely original adventures done by mentored creators they discover. We shall see. I hope so. Again, pessimistic.

So, now is the time if anyone wants to catch Wizard's eye and affect D&D's future. I'm content watching.

Update 10/15/2024: Hello from the future. Not only is the 2024 revised DMG going to have a Greyhawk chapter and an attached map of the Flanaess/GHC; they announced today that Greyhawk is unlocked for third party content creators on DMsGuild. Oh boy...

Touring the Flanaess Greyhawk Map

Hail Greyfolk! I'm still in a slump right now, but thank Pelor the Greyhawk community is more active than it's been since the heyday of Living Greyhawk! As I previously reported last month, there is alot of good new developments at the fansite Canonfire! including Richard Di Ioia's amazing Touring the Flanaess project! Along with Canonfire overlord Gary Holian and a host of contributing authors (I chipped in Ull of course) this project has taken on it's next transformation: a hyperlinked map to the all the country/region write-ups! Go to Canonfire now and check it out. It's very functional and easy to reference, perfect for new Greyhawk DMs and old alike! And there is still more work to be done. If you are a scholar of the Flanaess like many of us, contact Richard (Longetalos) to see about contributing to the Tour. Enjoy!

Greyhawk Reborn at Virtual GreyhawkCon

Hail Greyhawk heroes! Here is a quick post to help spread the news for our friends at Greyhawk Reborn and Warduke Press as they are participating in the upcoming Virtual Greyhawk Con 2020. I hope to see all my readers tune in to game, view and support the community. Until then I shall let the great Dave Guerrieri himself promote this epic event:

Warduke Press is honored and proud to announce we are offering 15 tables of Greyhawk Reborn adventures at Virtual Greyhawk Con 2020 (VGHC). It is a Greyhawk “Fan Content” Community Event, to celebrate the World of Greyhawk Fantasy Setting. We feel privileged to be standing online beside Anna Meyer, Casey Brown, Allan “Grodog” Grohe, Jay Scott, Gary Holian, Lenard Lakofka, Denis “Maldin” Tetreault, Scott Casper and other Greyhawk stalwarts to focus the spotlight on all that Greyhawk has to offer. 
VGHC is an online only convention on Friday, October 2 through Sunday, October 4, 2020. Friday and Saturday events run from 9 am to 1 am, and Sunday events run from 9:30 am to 10:30 pm.  All money collected, minus TableTop Events charges, will be donated to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.
Event Registration is now open. 
You may find more details regarding and register for Virtual Greyhawk Con at https://tabletop.events/conventions/virtual-greyhawk-con-2020.
In addition to Greyhawk Reborn adventures, a number of Greyhawk Twitch Community Live Streamers, over two continents, are providing World of Greyhawk content for those wishing to experience some of the best ever made Campaign Setting for D&D. Also we will have fantastic seminars from the likes of the great Anna Meyer, and main Sponsorship from Troll Lord Games.
The Virtual Greyhawk Con 2020 Discord Server is setup at: https://discord.gg/yHyG75


For more information during Twitch Live Streams: https://www.twitch.tv/lordgosumba
Legal Disclaimer: Virtual Greyhawk Con 2020 is unofficial Fan Content permitted under the Fan Content Policy. Not approved/endorsed by Wizards. Portions of the materials used are property of Wizards of the Coast. ©Wizards of the Coast LLC.
Warduke Press will also be offering Greyhawk Reborn and Midgard Chronicle adventures at Save Against Fear on October 9-11, and also at Fall MepaCon on November 6-8. Both of these events will be online only. Expect to hear more on these events, and other exciting news, in the near future!
More information about Warduke Press and Greyhawk Reborn, you may use the following links:

• our Warduke Press Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/wardukepress
• our Greyhawk Reborn website at http://www.greyhawkreborn.net/
• our GHR Facebook group at https://www.facebook.com/groups/greyhawkreborn/
• our GHR Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/greyhawkreborn

For any questions you may have about Greyhawk Reborn, please contact info@greyhawkreborn.net
As always, thank you for choosing to spend your valuable time with Warduke Press!
Be well!
Regards,
Dave Guerrieri,
CEO, Warduke Press

Greyhawk Stuff on the Net

Hola, Greyhawkers! It's Labor Day weekend in the states, so I figured, let's let someone else do the work on this post! Just kidding. There is alot of great contributors in the Greyhawk community and I'm pleased to feature a few in case you missed out. Enjoy!

Over at the blog Greyhawk Musings, David Leonard has a new article, On Vlek Col Vlekzed. It's another one of his amazing deep dives into the history and people of the Flanaess, in this case the Hold of Stonefist and its cruel leader. This article is well timed because David was recently on Legends & Lore with me and Anna Meyer to provide his sharp insight about this very subject, among other northern barbarians. Be sure to check out Greyhawk Musings for a wealth of historical material for your Greyhawk campaign.

Over at the stalwart blog Greyhawk Grognard, superfan Joe Bloch is always trying out new ideas and approaches to our collective hobby. This time he has really hit a homerun with his "unboxing video": Reading the World of Greyhawk, Part 1. Not only did Joe start his own Youtube channel, but he is showcasing the iconic boxed set and maps that I'm sure we all take for granted. When describing Greyhawk or Greyhawk books to new gamers, it never occurred to me that actually showing them what it's like to open the 1983 box and go through the contents for the first time, would be a fun way of doing it. Kudos again to Joe for this new outlet for his site. I'm looking forward to Part 2. 

Finally, I am overdue in promoting a new fan site The Greyhawk Companion by William Henry Dvorak. This site has an eclectic collection of campaign original material like his Rookroost series, and great stuff for 5E players such as new deity specific Warlock Patrons. Will runs his own Twitch RPG stream as well, WickedStudiosLLC. Check out the link for his stream schedule and stop in to see him in action! 

Wow. Being in the same community as creative people like Will, Joe and David is making me feel quite confident that the community is strong and has more outlets than ever to share content and just hang out.

 

 

Greyhawk: Barbarians Campaigns and Adventures

Greetings Greyhawkers! As I go into another week of Legends & Lore on Twitch, we are about to discuss the topic of Barbarians in the Flanaess. Luckily for me I did a post on this back in 2016. It's not much really, but the barbarian north in particular has always been a favorite of mine. 

One of my best, longest running campaigns during 2E was set in the Thillonrian Peninsula and was built off the 1983 boxed set and the Five Shall Be One story line to some degree. You may have even recently read about some of my war accounts out of the barbarian lands. In-between those huge meta-plots was some good campaign development by me and my players including custom hex maps of the Cruski and parts of Schnai and Fruz lands (will probably feature those another day) and a ton of NPC rules, heroes and henchmen. I bring all this up because I've coincidentally started to run my game group in the Thillonrian Peninsula again for 5E. As such, I'm dusting off my maps, looking at my old notes and even going over fan community resources, like these links to barbarian articles on Canonfire. 

Another amazing resource I rediscovered is a 3.5E adventure from Dungeon #133 titled Ill Made Graves. Written in 2006 by Kevin Carter (art by Steve Ellis and map by Rob Lazzaretti), this work almost slipped by me, I'm assuming because it was in the same issue as the ongoing AP Age of Worms. When not hyping their APs, Paizo used to do a lot of fringe Greyhawk modules during 3.5E like Maure Castle, it's extended levels, the Sehan and Istivin mini-series, and so forth. Ill Made Graves however wasn't afforded a tag saying its Greyhawk, instead it's promoted as a D&D adventure for any setting. True enough, but once you read the opening boxed texts you find its firmly set in the Ice Barbarians with Cruskii NPCs and plot to boot.

The module is adapted from the story of Beowulf as Bowenwar, the shield bearer of deceased King Lolgoff Bearhear tells the tale of the red dragon Oroshar (Dawn-Scorcher in Fruz) who came to lair in a sea cave on the Icy Sea. When the dragon went on a rampage, it is King Lolgoff who slays the beast at the cost of his own life. As the Cruskii prepare for a hero's funeral pyre, they learn the Frost Barbarians are preparing to invade since the Cruskii are weakened and a dragons' unguarded treasure hoard to plunder. There is a complication and Oroshar's lair must be visited again, this time by the PCs in order to save the Ice Barbarians.

One hook listed here mentions "a southern kingdom" that fears the power vacuum left by the kings death will result in the unification of the barbarians which in turn will lead to more raids on them. The PCs are sent to make sure the Cruskii remain independent and to spy on the situation. This is clearly the Great Kingdom, and fun because the events of Five Shall Be One/Howl From the North teased the barbarian unification as well, and of course failed to follow through. Now its uniting the barbarians through regular internal strife. 

The adventure involves an awesome funeral scene set in Lolgoff's "birth-city" of Jotsplat, some cold forest overland travel and a dungeon crawl, leaving an impending war up to the DM which is okay. Now in hindsight of fourteen years, I wonder why Graves was not given Greyhawk recognition? It's clearly well-written and designed. It lacks any Greyhawk map reference, no Thillonria (see below), nor Jotsplat, only a serviceable lair map. This shouldn't be surprising since as I mentioned earlier, the bulk of Paizo's effort was their Age of Worms AP cartography. Having a map would've helped a reader understand where and how the Frost Barbarians will attack the Ice for instance. And the module says the PCs cover 100 miles of forest to the dragons lair. That seems accurate going from Jotsplat the the Icy Sea, though the closest actual forest is the Sable Wood.

At any rate, Ill Made Grave's other curious snub was that it didn't interfere with published Greyhawk continuity. The Living Greyhawk campaign was still alive at that point, but the barbarian lands were not a playable region. Also head-honchos Mona and Jacobs would surely not have overlooked the content of this module when publishing it. Given they did green light this, they must not have had any short term plans for the barbarians since their next AP was Savage Tide set in the south. Now according to the LGG which is set in 591 CY, Lolgoff is still king of the Cruskii, so I must assume Mr. Carter's story of dragons, heroic death and a pending barbarian war, unfolds in the post LGG timeline. I would love to ask Mona or Jacobs why this module wasn't given a Greyhawk stamp of approval. Was killing off a big name ruler and starting a war too much timeline meddling for a simple module? Well at least, the content was left as the author intended. 

That's all for now. I may post more of my own home campaign material set in the Thillonrian Peninsula in the coming months. Until then, let me know if there is any other good sources I missed?