Enter the One Page Dungeon Contest!

It's time for the One Page Dungeon Contest again. Submissions are due by April 30th.

I always forget about the contest until it's too late, but I'm going to try to submit an entry this year.

Ruins of Xampon

Again passing "old walls" on each side of the road, at the distance of two leagues we reached Xampon, where stand the remains of an edifice which, when entire, must have been grand and imposing, and now, but for the world of ruins around, might excite a stranger's wonder. [...] In a few moments I found myself ascending the side of a lofty stone structure, on the top of which were the remains of a large building, with its walls fallen, and the whole side of the mound strewed with sculptured stones, a scene of irrecoverable ruin. Descending on the other side of this structure, we reached a broad platform, in a good state of preservation, with trees growing upon it, without brush or underwood, but so teeming with insects and large black ants that it was necessary to step from stone to stone, and avoid touching the ground. Running off lengthwise from this terrace was a small building, which the Indian pointed out as containing the altar and copal.*

Dungeons of Dread

UPS just dropped off my copy of the new Dungeons of Dread. It looks pretty good. The quality of the book is about the same as the deluxe AD&D reprints, except that the page edges are not gold leaf.

By the way, the price on Amazon for the OD&D reprint has dropped to $94, which is a more reasonable value than the $150 MSRP.

Pulp Adventure Name Generator

I wrote a pulp adventure name generator. Here's some sample output:

• The Statement of Qivxilcthumu
• The Cyan Queen of Zignernâl
• The Pitfield Thing
• Pale Crocodile
• The Eye of Tsalzzaste
• Tribe of the Dark Ellipse
• An Imp Shall be Born
• The Necromancer of the Dismal Wasteland
• Peculiar Fortess in the Lightning
• The Testament of Nâl
• The Green Brain
• Harbor of the Pink Creature
• The Evils of Aar
• A Traveller Shall be Exposed
• Maws of the Road
• Of the Judgement That Came to Zazul
• The Djinn-Stalkers of Yggts-yim
• The Rope of Cthuavyggyo
• Gold of the Witch-Hellion
• The Entities of Nerzigav
• The Beguiling Dimness
• The Reaches of Zigzim
• The Entity in the Manse
• The Glyph of Zul
• The Strange Dungeon in the Storm
• Manling of the Gloomy Village
• The Jewels of Ts
• Coven of the Unlit Arbelos
• The Fortess of Blue Tomes
• The Music of Fazim
• Mithril Dimmet of Neptune
• A Fiend in the Glyph

Creator of Diplomacy, RIP

Any of you who have been reading Playing at the World, the excellent history of our hobby, know the important influence of Diplomacy. I was sorry to hear that Allan B. Calhamer, the creator of Diplomacy, passed away on the 25th. Please keep his family in your thoughts.

OD&D reprint pre-orders available

The OD&D reprints are now available for pre-order. The Amazon price is $104.

Chile’s secret witch cave

The always excellent Smithsonian history blog Past Imperfect posted about Chilean witches with headquarters in a secret cave:

The most important of the warlocks brought to court in 1880 was a Chilote farmer by the name of Mateo Coñuecar. He was then 70 years old, and by his own admission had been a member of the Righteous Province for more than two decades. According to Coñuecar’s testimony, the society was an important power on the island, with numerous members, an elaborate hierarchy of “kings” and “viceroys”—and a headquarters located in a vast cavern, 40 or more yards long, whose secret entrance had been cleverly concealed in the side of a ravine. This cave (which Chilote tradition asserts was lit by torches burning human fat) was hidden somewhere outside the little coastal village of Quicavi, and was—Coñuecar and other witnesses swore—home to a pair of monsters that guarded the society’s most treasured possessions: an ancient leather book of magic and a bowl that, filled with water, allowed secrets to be seen.

That's pretty ripe for write up as an adventure.