30 April, 2009

Today’s Tabbloid
PERSONAL NEWS FOR riorio2@rogue-games.net

ROGUE FEED into the hobby as it was played in the early days. There’s remarkably
little artifice to most JG products. What they contain they contain
Erol Otus Interview because the writer thought it was cool and, more than likely, because
APR 29, 2009 09:21P.M. he’d used it (or something similar) in his home campaign. There’s nary a
whiff of an agenda or theory behind these books, to both their benefit
I haven’t had the pleasure of interviewing Erol Otus, but Matt Staggs did and detriment.
and the results are available here.
A good case in point is 1978’s Ready Ref Sheets. This is in fact the
expanded second edition of the product, the original having come out a
year earlier. 56 pages in length, the Ready Ref Sheets, as its name
implies, is a miscellany of charts, tables, and optional rules for use by
referees of Dungeons & Dragons. The majority of this miscellany comes
ROGUE FEED the first six issues of Judges Guild’s Guildmember subscription,
supplemented by material from the Campaign Hexagon System booklet
Retrospective: Ready Ref Sheets and other JG products. You’ll note that this edition is listed as “Volume
APR 29, 2009 04:02P.M. I,” but, so far as I know, there was never a Volume II.

Many old school referees quite rightly swear by the Ready Ref Sheets.
Within its pages is a collection of some of the interesting, useful, strange,
whimsical, bizarre, and downright stupid ideas for D&D collected in one
product. Here’s a sampling of just a few of them:

• City encounter tables, based on social class

• Special encounter rules for women, including how to determine

their bust and waist size based on their Charisma (no, I am not
making this up)

• Rules for adjudicating a court case

• Rules for advertising for hirelings

• An alternate coinage system that includes mithril and adamantite

• Shock rules

• A new system for initiative based on “weapon priority”

• Tables for “startling statues” and what they do when examined

• Extensive wilderness encounter charts

• Rules for prospecting for ore

As you can see, it’s a real mixed bag of ideas and I shudder to think of
There’s a reason why I have such a soft spot for Judges Guild and it’s not
playing in a campaign that used all of these charts. Of course, I doubt
just because, even 30 years later, their best products favorably compare
anyone ever would. Instead, they’re intended as spurs to the
with anything that’s been produced since. It’s because they’re a window
imagination, something to which a referee can turn in those moments

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Today’s Tabbloid PERSONAL NEWS FOR riorio2@rogue-games.net 30 April, 2009

when he doesn’t quite know what happens next in his campaign. S

It’s here, I think, that a key bit of wisdom from the past reveals itself. T
Lots of contemporary gamers will make the claim that they lack either
the time or confidence to run a proper sandbox-style campaign. Being W
able to think up encounters or details on the spot can be difficult, no
question, but it’s not as if the referees of the past were made of sterner I
stuff than are those of today. What they had, though, was recourse to
dozens upon dozens of random tables for every occasion — just look at A
the AD&D Dungeon Masters Guide! Modern gamers frequently turn up
their nose at this stuff, but they shouldn’t, since it’s these tables that Dex
allowed earlier referees to wing it with much greater ease.
Ld
I know I regularly used tables in the Ready Ref Sheets as aids to my
imagination and am glad I did. I often think that the old school Int
movement would be wise to produce a book much like this one, geared
toward providing gamers with the tables and charts they need to help Cl
shoulder some of the burden of our preferred play style. Properly
presented, such a book might even be of interest to gamers outside our WP
little corner of the hobby and go some way toward clarifying just why we
love randomness as much as we do. Fel

57

ROGUE FEED 0

[Lost Works] Lustria, Part 9 4

APR 29, 2009 10:01A.M.
5

3
New Monsters
60
The jungles of Lustria are a lush tropical paradise. It is a land that time
has forgotten and many strange and unique creatures can only be found 3
here. Table 3 lists the monsters from the Warhammer Fantasy
Roleplay Book that can be found living in Lustria. The following are new 0
monsters that are native to the land.
43
Table 3: Existing Monsters
43
Giant Leech WFRP, page 240 Giant Spider WFRP, page 245 Griffon
WFRP, page 238 Hippogriff WFRP, page 239 Lizardmen WFRP, page 43
222 Swarms WFRP, page 228 Troglodyte WFRP, page 228
43
Coatl
29
M
Physique: The Coatl, or Flying Serpent, is a strange, Lustrian creature
WS that figures in the legends of the Slann. The Slann associate the creature
with the God Sotek, and treat it as a sacred animal. Coatl are intelligent
BS creatures, and may be magical. They speak their own sibilant language.
Adults can reach 20′ in length, and may be magical in nature. Coatl’s

2
Today’s Tabbloid PERSONAL NEWS FOR riorio2@rogue-games.net 30 April, 2009

resemble as large snakes, with the head of a dragon and feathered wings. 2
Sometimes their whole body can be covered in feathers. The Coatl can
shed and regrow plumage in any color it chooses. Coatl’s live in the 0
tropical rain forests of Lustria, and avoid contact with other races.
10
Alignment: Neutral
5
Special Rules: Bite attacks are venomous. They fly as swoopers, the
movement allowance given is for ground movement only. Coatl’s cause 15
fear in living creatures under 10′.
10
Cold Ones
0
M
Physique: Probably the direct descendant of a prehistoric creature the
WS cold ones have remained basically unchanged. They are found all over
the continent of Lustria and as far North as Naggaroth. Cold ones are
BS large monsters with long sharp claws and a mouth filled with sharp
teeth. Colds ones get their names from the fact their bodies are cold to
S the touch. Their bodies are covered in thick scales, and a foul smelling
slime oozes from their pores. Cold ones are also known for one thing:
T their lack of intelligence. These are creatures that need to be goaded into
action. Among the great crest skinks (the only group who is known to
W handle the cold ones effectively), it is joked that kroxigors are smarter
than these beasts.
I
Alignment: Neutral
A
Psychological Traits: Due to their size cold ones cause fear in all
Dex living creatures under 10′. Cold ones are also immune to fear and terror,
mainly because they are too stupid to know the difference.
Ld
Special Rules: Cold ones are subject to stupidity, and each time the
Int rider wants the cold one to do anything the rider must make a Ld test.
Failure indicates that the cold one does nothing for 1d6 rounds.
Cl
Culchan
WP
M
Fel
WS
8
BS
33
S
0
T
4
W
6
I
17
A
10
Dex

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Today’s Tabbloid PERSONAL NEWS FOR riorio2@rogue-games.net 30 April, 2009

Ld Giant Frog

Int M

Cl WS

WP BS

Fel S

6 T

33 W

0 I

4 A

4 Dex

11 Ld

30 Int

2 Cl

0 WP

14 Fel

10 3

24 33

24 0

0 3

Physique: The Culchan is a huge, flightless, carnivorous bird that lives 3

on the Culchan Plains. It is prized by the slann for its multi-colored
plumes and flesh, which is considered a delicacy by humans and slann 11
alike. The creatures are extremely fierce, but can be used as riding beasts
if hand-reared. Consequently, eggs or hatchlings are very valuable. These 30
unusual birds have strong legs and necks, and their head is similar to
that of a parrot. Their beaks are exceptionally strong and can easily crack 1
a man’s skull. Plumage is usually brown, but males in good condition
grow a completely new set of colorful red and blue plumage, as well as 0
long tails and crests. They can reach 8′ to 9′ in height.
24
Alignment: Neutral
6
Psychological Traits: Subject to stupidity.
43
Special Rules: 1 bite from beak and 1 stomp attack from the legs.
43

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Today’s Tabbloid PERSONAL NEWS FOR riorio2@rogue-games.net 30 April, 2009

0 6

Physique: The giant carnivorous frog lives in the Mosquito Swamps 30

and along the Amaxon River where it preys on all forms of life. They are
solitary hunters, and very territorial. Skinks very fond of the flesh of this 1
creature, which is said to taste like chicken, as much as giant frogs are
very fond of skinks. Giant frogs resemble normal frogs, except that they 0
can grow up to 5′ in length. They have long, razor sharp teeth (also
prized by skinks), and are usually green with yellow and black eyes. 24

Alignment: Neutral 2

Special Rules: Giant frogs can use their long sticky tongues to deliver a 24
combat attack at up to [10’] distance. They cannot use their tongue and
bite during the same round. 24

Giant Tick 0

M Physique: The giant tick is a tropical parasite and is native to the

jungles of Lustria. They are large but rarely grow larger then 10′ in
WS length. Ticks are blob shaped, bloated, and white in color.

BS Alignment: Neutral

S Special Rules: Bite attack, fears fire but immune to psychology.

T Jaguar

W M

I WS

A BS

Dex S

Ld T

Int W

Cl I

WP A

Fel Dex

2 Ld

33 Int

0 Cl

3 WP

3 Fel

5
Today’s Tabbloid PERSONAL NEWS FOR riorio2@rogue-games.net 30 April, 2009

9 T

41 W

0 I

4 A

3 Dex

6 Ld

30 Int

3(5) Cl

0 WP

10 Fel

14 6

43 41

43 0

0 5(7)

Physique: The Jaguar is one of the Lustrian big-cats; others include 4

animals such as the cougar. They are very similar and the same profile
can be used for both. The Lustrian jaguar is a large animal, larger than 11
any living cat found in the Old World. They cannot be ridden, but if
captured young and carefully hand-reared they can be kept as pets, 40
guards, or animals of war. The Norse are particularly skilled at this, and
the jaguar has become companion animal to the leader of the Skeggi 3
Colony. Jaguars are large feline creatures, a orange/brown or sand
colored fur marked in black or dark brown spots or broken spots. They 0
are under 10′ - usually 6′ long.
14
Alignment: Neutral
14
Special Rules: 1 bite and 2 claw attacks. If attack from ambush and
with surprise all four claws and bite attack simultaneously. Tame 43
animals must have a handler within 20′, and will test reaction on
handler’s characteristics. 43

Saber-Toothed Tiger 0

M Physique: A remnant of the prehistoric inhabitants of Lustria, the

saber-toothed tiger is still found deep in the jungles of that lush
WS continent. Saber-toothed tigers are the largest cats in the world, often
standing more than six feet at the shoulder. They are powerfully muscled
BS creatures, capable of moving quickly and delivering mighty blows with
their front paws. The most distinctive features of these tigers are their
S overgrown canine teeth. Up to nine inches long, these teeth hang over

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Today’s Tabbloid PERSONAL NEWS FOR riorio2@rogue-games.net 30 April, 2009

the tiger’s bottom lip in a fearsome ivory curve. These teeth can inflict 0
the most horrendous damage as they rip through the flesh of the tiger’s
prey. Saber-toothed tigers have also been known to be able to stalk and 24
successfully kill the thick-skinned stegadon. Skinks fear these great cats,
and even the slow-witted kroxigors realize the danger in facing this cat. 15

Alignment: Neutral 10

Special Rules: 2 claw (S5) and 1 bite (S7) attack. 15

Salamander 0

M Physique: Salamanders live in the jungles and swamps of Lustria, and

they are viscous lizards who spit corrosive venom. This venom is so
WS strong that it can bring down prey and be used against enemies. The
skinks have trained the salamander to act as weapons of destruction, but
BS this is still dangerous due to salamanders enjoying skink snacks.
Salamanders are large and measure 15′ in length. Along their back is a
S large dorsal fin, and their long snouts are filled with sharp teeth.

T Alignment: Neutral

W Special Rules: 1 claw, 1 bite, and can spit corrosive venom 15 yards.
The venom is so powerful that it does 1d6 points of damage.
I Salamanders are also cold blooded and thus they are immune to fear and
terror.
A
Stegadon
Dex
M
Ld
WS
Int
BS
Cl
S
WP
T
Fel
W
6
I
33
A
43
Dex
4
Ld
4
Int
10
Cl
20
WP
3

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Today’s Tabbloid PERSONAL NEWS FOR riorio2@rogue-games.net 30 April, 2009

Fel BS

6 S

35 T

0 W

8 I

6 A

35 Dex

20 Ld

5 Int

0 Cl

24 WP

15 Fel

20 2

15 33

0 0

Physique: Stegadons are large, ferocious and aggressive reptiles with 4

long beaks filled with rows of blunt teeth. Protruding from their nose is a
single horn, and two more horns protrude from their head. Racing down 4
their back are bony spines, and their tails ends in a set of spikes, and
their bodies are also covered with thick bone plates. Despite their 5
appearances stegadon’s are herbivores, and the lizardmen use these
creature as earth moving machines and beast of burdens. In times of war 20
these large lizards are used as war mounts. Skinks fit them with a large
basket called a howdah, and a crew of four skinks control these large 1
beasts.
0
Alignment: Neutral
10
Physical Traits: Due to their great size stegadons cause fear in living
creatures under 10′ tall. Since they are cold blooded, stegadons are 35
immune to terror and fear. The skin and bone plates that cover the
stegadon are very thick, and give them 1 AP to all body areas. In combat 15
stegadon’s bite, gore, stomp, tail lash and gore in that order.
15
Terradon
0
M
Physique: Terradons are found only in the jungles of Lustria.
WS Terradons are flyers and live in the high trees of the jungles. Unlike the
cold ones, terradons are very intelligent and are easy to train. Terradons

8
Today’s Tabbloid PERSONAL NEWS FOR riorio2@rogue-games.net 30 April, 2009

have a wingspan of 10′, and a large beak filled with razor sharp teeth.

Alignment: Neutral

Psychology: Terradons are cold blooded and as a result are immune to

fear and terror.

Special Rules: Terradons fly as swoopers.

Posted in Games, thoughts Tagged: Games, Lost Works, Lustria,

thoughts, Warhammer FRP

This issue contains posts from between

Apr 29, 2009 07:04a.m. and Apr 30, 2009 03:04a.m..
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