You’ll Love The Hated Pretender As A First OSR Journey

Thanks for the evaluate of Jail and glad you favored it. Here is a pair solutions to the questions you pose and a little bit of historical past on the journey.

So… Jail of the Hated Pretender was first revealed again in August 2012. It was one of many first adventures I wrote for others again within the days of the OSR, and like the remainder of my early work it was a free PDF on my weblog. Initially it was written on a single lengthy name at work, and edited later that evening. The complete journey was an experiment on a minimal viable funnel – funnel adventures being a more recent thought again in 2012. The shorter (additionally free) model is far messier however nonetheless accessible on the market.

The up to date model from a couple of years in the past was from a interval the place I used to be making an attempt to determine run dungeon crawls in 5E. It is a mission I finally put aside, however I feel Jail nonetheless stands up as a playable 5e expertise (undecided how a lot mainstream 5E gamers would tolerate it, not to mention prefer it although – which isn’t a dig at 5E – the tone and play model are sufficiently off from the norm of the play model/group I think). I nonetheless suppose it largely works in 5E (and in different scene primarily based video games, together with story video games) as a result of it is not a dungeon crawl in any significant sense, however a couple of puzzles wrapped round a central one – the jail’s whole day and evening cycle.

Now your design questions.

Damaged Huts exists for 2 causes. First it helps set a extra “mud core” tone and was initially designed to be the funnel beginning village, the characters could be 0 stage damaged hut youth heading to the Jail on a dare. Second it presents a haven, although a minimal one making the journey slightly simpler to fit into low stage wilderness crawls. After all it additionally gives rumors, and a few potential depressing NPC sorts to switch get together members. I suppose a 3rd motive is that I discover locations like damaged huts enjoyable – as you level out they’ve potential for characters to take stewardship roles even at low stage and so can pull gamers into the setting at early ranges. It was expanded from a easy rumor desk titled “What are the soiled bumpkins of their damaged huts saying in regards to the tower” largely as a result of individuals who performed the journey informed me their gamers wished extra in regards to the place. I do know in a single Youtube precise play (utilizing Trophy Gold) the get together finally ends up making an attempt to determine export the place’s horrible turnip wine. I’ve solely run Jail as soon as myself however the gamers acquired out of Damaged Huts quick.

As to hooks and story, the Jail is a 1-2 session (although I’ve heard of events spending many extra in some way???) journey, and it is secondary objective is to drop onto level or hexcrawls as a location (with or with out damaged huts). Within the dungeon crawl/old style custom the character, being motivated by treasure (particularly at early ranges) will search such ruins out and attempt to loot them – no extra story is critical. The identical with the mysteries concerned. One will get a couple of names and concepts in regards to the who, how, and why of the jail exists, however these do not should be tied into something – they’re there for the referee to bend to their very own world. Maybe the Beaked God is a going concern and the Hated Pretender actually was as soon as a despot of an enormous merciless nation (there may be one other journey tangentially that includes him – additionally free on my present journey archive) however possibly he is only a random petty king some bizarre forgotten fowl cult pulled some nasty sorcery on. Story, particularly for a location primarily based journey, is a factor that I discover is greatest provided as a facet dish or fully contained inside the location. It is a model factor and sure an artifact of the previous OSR, the place adventures had been ideally strewn throughout a referee’s map and the gamers would discover impulses (principally grave robbing) to seek out and discover them.

Anyway – glad you favored Jail, it is held up properly over the previous decade.

Yow will discover hyperlinks to my different free adventures from the OSR days (they’re much less polished and fewer 5E pleasant) at my weblog:

My present paid adventures are largely revealed by my imprint Ratking Productions on DTRPG and I usually attempt to embrace a bit of recommendation or referee notes.