Knights of the Watch, A Greyhawk Knightly Order

The Knights of the Watch were formed several centuries ago from the remnants of an older order, whose name is lost to time, located in the Gran March.  Their original mandate was for the protection of the lands of the Sheldomar Valley (an area which encompasses the nations of Keoland, Gran March, Bissel, and Geoff)…

Sheldomar Valley Political Map

Over the last few days I've been a little fascinated by the Sheldomar Valley. The area between the Lortmil Mountains and the Crystalmist Mountains is home to a series of small wars that coincided with the greater Greyhawk War that took up the majority of the continent's attention. I made this version of the map…

Forgotten Greyhawk: Gonduria

Last night I was up reading about the world of Greyhawk when I ran across the name of the fourth continent: Gonduria. The continent only appeared in print twice. The first time was in 1985's Sagard the Barbarian Game Book: The Ice Dragon by Gary Gygax and Flint Dille. This was a Hero's Challenge book…

Defiance.

Your players are always the stars of the show, but there should be times when they can't win. They need challenges that overwhelm them; that they can struggle against but can't immediately defeat. This provides them with an opportunity to show their grit and determination. Let them be the heroes they want to be.

Bibgy was Never a Good Man

Bigby is back in the Dungeons & Dragons lexicon again. He's being used in the world of the Forgotten Realms where his dark past as a necromancer is largely forgotten and swept under the stage. It shouldn't be. Bigby should be a complicated character. He should be cautious, and careful in how he operates -…

Keep Your Secrets

One of the aspects of the world of Greyhawk that I have always found so fascinating is the idea that you're existing in a world on the edge of war. It's something that over the last few years I've spent a lot of time working on. I want the world to feel like it's more…

The Tomb of Azharadian

One of the interesting places that Wizards of the Coast brought to the fore during the 3e era of Greyhawk was the Tomb of Azharadian. The Tomb was clearly meant to be an adventure hook, but it’s one that I think missed an opportunity to provide the world with something more meaningful. Let’s look at…

The Curious History of Philidor the Blue Wizard

A wizard casting spells from his magic circle by the light of his cauldron surrounded by creatures. by J. Wood 1763 Carl Sargent introduced a treasure trove of curiosities to the World of Greyhawk during the early 1990s as he helped reshape the setting, but perhaps none was more tantalizing than Philidor the Blue Wizard,…

Character Origins with One DnD

This past week, Wizards of the Coast, announced One D&D - which largely sounds like a revision of the current edition similar to the Player Options for AD&D 2e and Dungeons & Dragons 3.5. It's clear that they're looking to create a version of the game that they can sustainably use for another decade or…

I’m proud of you, Kid

I spend a lot of time on this blog talking about pretending and today I'd like to take a moment to say something real. I'm proud of you. I know what it's like to get up at 3 am to go to a job you hate; to get yelled at by people who couldn't give…

Enjoy the Things You Enjoy, without Apologizing for It.

One of the things that I've noticed recently, online, is that there are some people who want you to feel bad about enjoying the game the way you want to play it. They will loudly, and incessantly, berate you about liking D&D 5e. They'll demand that you play other games instead of doing what you…

Gods of the New Sun: Shaw

The next god of the New Sun is Shaw. Shaw is a god that kind of fills a big void for me that's often missing when you look at the brief lists of gods that often appear in the Player's Handbook. He's there not so much to pick one side or the other, but for…

The Gods of the New Sun: Nwt

The second god I created was Nwt. I wanted someone who could stand in stark contrast to Geb and so this is what came out: Nwt by Charles Akins When I started working on the illustration for Nwt I wanted to draw someone who was confident and felt like she could hold her own against…

The Gods of the Book of the New Sun: Geb

One of my favorite aspects of creating a world is building up the gods. I don't know why it is, but it's something that I've always loved. To that end I've begun working on the pantheon of the New Sun. Meet Geb. Geb, by Charles Akins Geb was the first god that popped into my…

The Book of the New Sun

Recently, I started talking to some friends about beginning a new campaign. Several of them had heard of Dungeons and Dragons, though only two of them have played before. So I'm treating this as a new experience for everyone involved and that means that I need to treat it like my first time DMing again,…