Updated Character Sheets up to and Including Episode 34

The inclusion or exclusion of certain characters might be considered a spoiler, so you'll need to scroll down a bit to read the content.

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Yellowfly, fighter lvl 4

S 14

I 15

W 14

D 11

C 10

Ch 9

HP: 26

AC: 15 with chain and shield

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Faylin Orla/Catsbane, magic user lvl 4

S 7

I 15

W 13

D 15

C 10

Ch 10

HP: 12

AC: 11

Read Languages, Magic Missile, Burning Hands, Web, Mirror Image

1 dose of healing potion

1 dark crystal 'proximity mine' frost damage

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Shahnay, thief lvl 5

S 11

I 8

W 6

D 16

C 14

Ch 9

HP: 19

AC: 14 with leather and dex bonus

1 pair of magical gloves of dexterity

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Jayce, fighter lvl 3

S 9

I 8

W 11

D 12

C 13

Ch 11

HP: 26

AC: 15 with chain and shield

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Party treasure = 1pp, 111gp, 12 sp

Shownotes for Episode 34

Theme                      Enchiridion https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8NkG3bhIxU

Welcome                  148 Barovian Castle https://tabletopaudio.com/

Previously On          Scott Buckley Legionnaire 

                                 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NwW0vFUCzEM

Part 2 section b        Vivek Abhishek Horror Theme Creepy Background:   

                                 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LwjzmdiRFpc&t=59s

Some  FX:                https://www.zapsplat.com

Cross Promo Partners: Legends from the Fireside & The Billowing Hilltop

Another Beautiful Portrait

 Another gem from Simon J WIlliams.  It's Catsbane, of course!  Thank you, Simon :)

That's a Long Way Down!

 Using AI, I created this image of Whitestone Castle to help me visualize it.  That's one heck of a drop!

Song Lyrics: Lambkins

I didn't write this song, though I did set it to a melody and arrange it.  

The lyrics are public domain and they are by Christina G Rossetti

What can lambkins do

        All the keen night through?

    Nestle by their woolly mother

        The careful ewe.

What can nestlings do

        In the nightly dew?

    Sleep beneath their mother's wing

        Till day breaks anew.

If in a field or tree

        There might only be

    Such a warm soft sleeping-place

        Found for me!

Christina Georgina Rossetti (5 December 1830 – 29 December 1894)

Shownotes for Episode 33

Theme                           Enchiridion https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8NkG3bhIxU

Welcome                      148 Barovian Castle https://tabletopaudio.com/

Previously On              Scott Buckley Legionnaire https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NwW0vFUCzEM

Some  FX:                    https://www.zapsplat.com

Cross Promo Partners: That Cthulhu Jawn & Good Friends of Jackson Elias

It's Kind of a Scene

Sometime I think podcasting is a lot like being in an indie band.  There's a DIY aspect and a one-fan-at-a-time feel to it that seems so similar to me.  I also can't help but notice how other pods will lift each other up, just like we used to do in our garage band days.

In the same spirit, lately it feel like there's a bit of a Solo Scene developing. Can you feel it too?  Just off the top of my head, in the last few years, we've had so many pop up and new ones are still emerging. As I locate their websites, I'll post them here on the blog.

Check out this list and if you know of others, please share!

The Iron Realm

Tales of Mystara

Errant Adventures

Legend of the Bones

Echoes of Eshaton

Legends from the Fireside

Stories From the First Watch

Role Play Rescue's Crag's Ruin series

Me Myself & Die

Shownotes for Episode 32

Theme                                Enchiridion https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8NkG3bhIxU

Welcome                            148 Barovian Castle https://tabletopaudio.com/

Previously On            Scott Buckley Legionnaire 

Some  FX:                          https://www.zapsplat.com

Cross Promo Partners: Isfet Archives & Echoes of Eschaton 

 The song you hear in the middle of the episode is my version of a poem by HW Longfellow.  Melody and arrangement - as well as some lyric changes - are my own.

‘The Arrow and the Song’

C

I shot an arrow into the air,

Am
It fell to earth, I knew not where;

Dm
So swiftly it flew, my eyes

G
Could not follow its flight.

I breathed a song into the air,
It fell to earth, I knew not where;
He's wise and strong,
Who can follow the flight of a song

Long, long afterward, in an oak
I found the arrow, still unbroke;
And the song, to end,
I found in the heart of a friend.

HW Longfellow

Shownotes for Episode 31

Theme                                 Enchiridion https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8NkG3bhIxU

Welcome                             148 Barovian Castle https://tabletopaudio.com/

Previously On             Scott Buckley Legionnaire

Dramatis                             RPG SOUNDS “Realization” 

Combat:      343 Dungeon Collapse https://tabletopaudio.com/

Some  FX:                          https://www.zapsplat.com

The Arrow And The Song: Lyrics by HW Longfellow (Public Domain). 

Melody and Arrangement by TOTM.

 Cross Promo Partners: Legends from the Fireside & The Billowing Hilltop

Shownotes for Episode 30

 Theme                                  Enchiridion https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8NkG3bhIxU

Welcome                               148 Barovian Castle https://tabletopaudio.com/

Previously On               Scott Buckley Legionnaire 

Part 3b              Odin https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1XddzQIaRIU

Some  FX:                             https://www.zapsplat.com

Recent Craft Build: Hut Using Popsicle Sticks

 Similar to a recent build, but using popsicle sticks over cardboard for the walls instead of foam. It turned out OK but I think the next one should have a thatch roof.

Shownotes for Episode 29

Theme                              Enchiridion https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8NkG3bhIxU

Welcome                          148 Barovian Castle https://tabletopaudio.com/

Previously On                   Scott Buckley Legionnaire

Some  FX:                         https://www.zapsplat.com

Suro the Mad

 Presenting... Suro the Mad!

Shownotes for Episodes 27 and 28

 Ep 27

Theme                         Enchiridion https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8NkG3bhIxU

Welcome                     148 Barovian Castle https://tabletopaudio.com/

Previously On     Scott Buckley Legionnaire 

Part 2 (near end)     Odin https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1XddzQIaRIU

Some  FX:                   https://www.zapsplat.com

Ep 28

Theme                         Enchiridion https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8NkG3bhIxU

Welcome                     148 Barovian Castle https://tabletopaudio.com/

Previously On     Scott Buckley Legionnaire 

Part 1     Kyellan No Way Out https://soundcloud.com/kyellan-cc 

Some  FX:                   https://www.zapsplat.com

CLAY-O-RAMA!

 Once upon a time, Dave 'Zeb' Cook published a little game in Dragon magazine.  When I was a kid, I played this a lot and I recently sprung it on my table game players as a mini game.  Just for fun, I fed some of the photos into AI to see what these monster might really look like.  It was super fun - a great way to break up our game with something totally different and bonkers.

(If you're curious... the bull-monster won.)

More Fantastic Art from Simon J Williams

Yellowfly is here! Thanks so much, Simon. I love it!

Shownotes for Episodes 25 & 26

 Ep 25

Theme                   Enchiridion https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8NkG3bhIxU

Welcome                 148 Barovian Castle https://tabletopaudio.com/

Previously On Scott Buckley Legionnaire 

Dramatis                RPG SOUNDS “Realization”

Part 2 Tense Cinematic Instrumental Ambient Music by Argsound

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eTz6Qp7QE_c  

Some  FX:               https://www.zapsplat.com

Ep 26

Theme                   Enchiridion https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8NkG3bhIxU

Welcome                 148 Barovian Castle https://tabletopaudio.com/

Previously On Scott Buckley Legionnaire 

Some  FX:               https://www.zapsplat.com

Goodpods

A little Slip Up - very minor spoiler for Ep 24

  I think it started in ep 23 and continued through 24: an error I totally missed, despite listening to each episode a dozen times during production.  The error is this: Sister Araness says she doesn't want Catsbane to go with her to the tower, but then, boom, there he is, without explanation.  

  This is not a case of my pulling a sneaky one; it's just an oversight.  I briefly thought about fixing it after the fact, but any explanation I came up with sounded thin and didn't make much sense - better to just come clean and do a mia culpa.  

  I suspect I've made other errors in the past I'm not even aware of.  This one is not game breaking. It irks me to have missed something so obvious, but it's nothing really to lose sleep over, either.  Sorry if this confused anyone or made them think, 'Jon's doing something here... but what is it?!"

Shownotes for Episode 24

Theme                                 Enchiridion https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8NkG3bhIxU

Welcome                             148 Barovian Castle https://tabletopaudio.com/

Previously On             Scott Buckley Legionnaire 

Dramatis                             RPG SOUNDS “Realization”

Part 1          Kevin MacLeod Gregorian Chant https://www.chosic.com/download-audio/27276/

Some  FX:                           https://www.zapsplat.com

Shownotes for Episode 23 and...

Theme                     Enchiridion https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8NkG3bhIxU

Welcome                 148 Barovian Castle https://tabletopaudio.com/

Previously On Scott Buckley Legionnaire 

Dramatis                 RPG SOUNDS “Realization”

Some  FX:               https://www.zapsplat.com

...and... there's a fairly minor continuity error in this episode that you might have noticed.  To avoid spoilers, I'll wait a couple of days before explaining. Sorry if it interfered with anyone's enjoyment of the show - it's a pretty small thing, but it is there.

More Gorgeous Art from Simon J Williams

 It's long overdue that I show off these two fantastic pieces from Simon of Legend of the Bones.  Simon has a style that I just adore. Just look at those expressions! 

Torches, Rations and Ammunition

 My live-at-the-table group is currently playing B4 The Lost City and I am trying to run it more or less as-written.  The reason for doing it that way is because when I was a kid, I actually very rarely played published modules.  I'd read them like books, but most of our games were homebrew.  

B4 The Lost City was one I never played or read, so I was after the genuine (intended) experience.

To that end, I thought: I should really track light, water, food and ammo very carefully.  Part of the tension in this adventure comes from being careful with supplies and figuring out how to replenish them.

But you know what? It just didn't work out, and it left me wondering: do most tables track this stuff? Or do they hand wave it? Or something in between?

When I say it didn't work out, I mean, it didn't feel fun. It felt like work - something else to remember to do.  Also, it was a bit unintuitive. Am I really counting off each hour? It seems to me that play style would almost feel like a board game or would at least grind down to a crawl.  I'm curious to know what you do? If you have found a method to track this stuff that's fun and really works in practice, I'd love to know.  Do you use supply dice? Or trackers like this?

or this?

These systems all look cool but what really works for you?

Shownotes for Episode 22

Theme                                 Enchiridion https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8NkG3bhIxU

Welcome                             148 Barovian Castle https://tabletopaudio.com/

Previously On             Scott Buckley Legionnaire 

                    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NwW0vFUCzEM

Part 1a            Tense Cinematic Instrumental Ambient Music by Argsound

                   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eTz6Qp7QE_c

Part 1b            RPG SOUNDS “Dark Continent”  https://tabletopaudio.com/

Dramatis                             RPG SOUNDS “Realization”

Some  FX:                          https://www.zapsplat.com

A Table of Random Names 2 (for Pendulum or General Use)

  This is the table I have on hand for male names.

male names for a fantasy setting

1 Harlek

2 Hewamir

3 Maygrip

4 Goddard

5 Vowuran

6 Rutlig

7 AIdriss

8 Aynor

9 Olwen

10 Gerhart

11 Petrik,

12 Altirin

13 Weldrik

14 Varn

15 Maygoth

16 Gwillum

17 Orjo

18 Warian

19 Heilon

20 Struan

Playing Maze Rats with Steve Morrison

 Steve runs Errant Adventures - and his show is just awesome.  He is a solo gamer and podcaster, like myself, and he switches systems quite often, so he's bound to have something to interest everyone. Highly recommended!

Steve and I have collaborated a few times now, and, in fact, we have a project in the works.  We started talking about it when we played a 2-shot together (2 players and GME) using Mazerats.  

You can find them here.

Just scrol. down a bit until you see this:

Maze Rats - Episode 1 with Tale of the Manticore

I don't want to spoil anything, but I can help adding this AI generated image I made of the climactic scene...

Shownotes for Episode 21

Theme                    Enchiridion https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8NkG3bhIxU

Welcome                 148 Barovian Castle https://tabletopaudio.com/

Previously On Scott Buckley Legionnaire 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NwW0vFUCzEM

Part 3 “Temporal Desolation” by Darren Curtis 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=huU085IZ1-E

Some  FX:               https://www.zapsplat.com

Shownotes for Episode 20

Theme                     Enchiridion https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8NkG3bhIxU

Welcome                 148 Barovian Castle https://tabletopaudio.com/

Previously On Scott Buckley Legionnaire 

        https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NwW0vFUCzEM

Some  FX:               https://www.zapsplat.com

A little inspiration from Survivor 53 (Very Minor Spoiler for ep19)

 Now that both Survivor 53 and TOTM 19 are well in the past, I thought I'd share my inspiration for the nasty contrivance used on day three of the King's Three Days of Blood and Justice.  

In the episode, the prisoners are forced to hold closed the bottom trap doors of a trough of boiling oil as they stand under it.  The idea came from watching the latest Survivor, in which players were made to hold up a ball.  If it fell, they were out.  Of course, keeping it up required an amazing display of strength and physical (and mental) endurance, and it was only a matter of time before even the strongest could hold it no longer.  When I saw this on TV, I threw out my random table because I knew the Survivor idea was so much cooler (also I finally got to put ten foot poles in the show!).

Holiday Crafting

 Whenever I make these things, I end up looking at the finished product and thinking: "Why did I make this? Am I a total man-child?"

The answer is, "Yes."

Here's a holiday craft I just finished a few days ago. It's a ramshackle inn, or something like that.

First, a cardboard and popsicle stick frame using hot glue and tape.

Next is the roof.  thin cardboard shingle-lines (not individual) on a frame.

Then the base coat of paint and Mod Podge.

Initial layer of paint with emphasis on lights and darks.

Final paint job with more muted tones, blackwash and drybrushing. 

My Goals for 2023

 I don't really think resolutions work for me, but I do believe in setting goals.  This year I hit a milestone that I've been dreaming about for ages: 250K downloads.  It took three years to get there.  Can I realistically get to 500K in one more year? Hmmm... I think it's too big a stretch.  But I think I can do it by the end of Season 2, which is probably about a year and half from now.

Apart from that, I'm looking to do some more collaboration (Errant Adventures and I have something in the works).  I'm planning to update Encyclopedia Manticorica with updated maps. (I had hoped to be doing that right now, during my winter break, but I can't see myself having the time to get good enough at it to create release-ready stuff.  I might be able to do indoor maps.  It might be better if it's all at once, so I don't bombard folks with updates.)  

I also have a few "stretch" goals.  If I can hit Gold status with One Shot in the Dark, I'll publish an expansion adventure for it.  I'm sure I'll continue putting out stuff for Pendulum here on the blog, too.  Finally, I would like to try to put out Season 1 of TOTM as a novel.  (Actually, more of a cleaned up transcript, as I think it's important to leave all the 'meta' stuff in.  It wouldn't work as a pure novel.)

In my group gaming life, I'd like to finally try out some of the systems I've been sleeping on, namely Savage Worlds, Mork Borg, Cairn, Mausritter, Alien and many others.  Recommendations are always welcome!

How about you? What are your goals for 2023? Dungeon23?

Shownotes for Episode 19

Theme                        Enchiridion https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8NkG3bhIxU

Welcome                    148 Barovian Castle https://tabletopaudio.com/

Previously On    Scott Buckley Legionnaire 

           https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NwW0vFUCzEM

Dramatis                     RPG SOUNDS “Realization”

Some  FX:                  https://www.zapsplat.com