fragments of a blue ruin
I dreamed of ranks of human beings, dreamed of their remote and ancient faces over which the faintest expressions of love and rage flickered like hints of light from a distant fire. None spoke. The figures were bent to their tasks, each shackled to a desk of fine hard wood on which parchments and stylus… Continue reading HESYCHIAN CONFESSOR
I am pleased to announce that Jacob Marks's entry to the 2024 Vaarn Summer Jam, Penumbral Oasis: Part One, is now available in print format from Antipode Zines. Penumbral Oasis is a three-level dungeon suitable for starting PCs. It contains plenty of new monsters and Exotica, as well as a hook for a second installment… Continue reading PENUMBRAL OASIS: PART ONE
Vaarn’s microbiome is just as varied as its macrobiome, and aeons’ worth of genesculpting have left a fearsome legacy within even the smallest of Urth’s creatures. The biomancers and alchemists of the Long Ago devoted much energy to breeding pestilences to vex their enemies, and while the monarchs who funded the creation of such horrors… Continue reading VAARNISH DISEASES
After a long gestation period, the fourth issue of the main Vaults of Vaarn zine series is finally available for purchase. Printed copies of the zine, along with special edition cassette tapes of the official soundtrack by Out On Our Own, can currently be purchased from my online store Antipode Zines. I will be adding more retailers here as… Continue reading VAULTS OF VAARN #4 RELEASE
As Skerples and Arnold K have written, you should create threats that ‘attack every part of the character sheet.’ I think this is a solid concept to keep in mind when doing creature design, so I had a stab at it. None of these monsters deal direct HP damage, although they are far more dangerous… Continue reading BEYOND HP DAMAGE
To mark the impending release of the Deluxe Edition hardback, I'm hosting a Vaults of Vaarn game jam on itch.io. The Vaarn Summer Jam is a non-ranked game jam, where entrants are invited to contribute submissions relating to Vaults of Vaarn, and science-fantasy roleplaying games in general. Entries can be adventures, maps, artefacts, NPCs, art packs, or… Continue reading THE VAARN SUMMER GAME JAM
I hope you'll forgive the title; I know it's only marginally amusing but once I thought of it I had to do something with it. Anyway, this post was sparked by a discussion I had on Reddit about re-skinning dungeons and monsters from classic fantasy RPGs to the Vaults of Vaarn setting. This is an… Continue reading B/X TO THE FUTURE
The Vaults of Vaarn are subterranean ruins that riddle the blue desert. Crucially, these Vaults will always contain Exotica, the far-future treasures the PCs are searching for; therefore, the GM is advised to create one such location before the campaign begins. Follow these steps to begin drafting a Vault. Roll a d20 to determine the… Continue reading CREATING A VAULT
As a follow-up to my last post on Toxin Dice, I thought it would be fun to showcase a few Vaarnish creatures that attack with or use toxins. Toxic attacks are indicated with the abbreviation TOX. If the affected character fails a CON save, they gain a Toxin Dice of the size indicated. So a… Continue reading TOXIC CREATURES
Long ago, when the Autarchs still reigned over Vaarn, there was a certain valley where no plant grew and no bird sang and no man had made a house for the land underfoot was poisoned and all who camped there would sicken and die. In time the Autarch's wise men were told tales of this… Continue reading BLIGHTSTONE KNIGHT
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