If you’ve been following Raging Swan Press for any length of time, you’ll almost certainly have encountered one of Mike Welham’s villages. Mike is one of our longest surviving freelancers, and has written countless books for Raging Swan Press. (I say they are countless because I haven’t counted them—and also because there are loads of them). This month, Mike has returned to Vulcanbridge—one of his most distinctive villages to both expand the place and add OSR and Pathfidner 2 edit...
2020-07-10 07:04:11 +0000 UTC
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Every adventurer on the planet (and on the known planes) loves magic items. They crave and covet them for the power and prestige ownership of such wondrous items brings. But often, our magic items are boring. A +1 longsword is nothing special. A longsword glimmering with inner light set with an ornate ivory pommel is something to covet.
That’s where 20 Things #51: Items Most Wondrous II comes in. Within you’ll find dozens of descripitons of magic items ready to tea...
2020-07-03 06:57:26 +0000 UTC
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This week, we’ve got June’s free monthly mini-eventure—A Day Out at Low Market— for you. Shopping! Pick pockets! Rumours!
Low Market
Low Market is a hodgepodge of stalls, handcart vendors and wandering pedlars. Here, Languard’s unwashed masses come to browse, shop and gossip. Low Market is a place rife with adventuring opportunities.
Much of Low Market’s offering is mundane, and of no interest to adventurers. However, persistent rumo...
2020-06-26 06:59:41 +0000 UTC
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I love this line of books. 20 Things was a line that accidentally grew out of my campaign about five years ago. Since then, we’ve published over 50 instalments and I just can’t see and end to the line—there is no much to describe!
With that in mind, I hope you enjoy this week’s book—the fifth compilation in the series. Because this is a compilation of the 20 Things line, I've decided to make the PDF version free to everyone. I hope you enjoy reading the book and that it gives ...
2020-06-19 06:57:32 +0000 UTC
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This week, we are back in the dungeon with Dungeon Dressing: Ceilings & Walls. I am very much enjoying revisiting the Dungeon Dressing line and updating and revising its various installments. I also can’t wait to get to the point where we can release the hardback compilation! Obviously, we didn’t do 5e the first time around and now with OSR and Pathfinder 2 editions as well we can spread the gospel of Dungeon Dressing to even more GMs!
This month’s installment is a do...
2020-06-12 07:01:12 +0000 UTC
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This week, we are back in Steve Hood’s Tigley taking an extended look at the village and its folk. Tigley is a cracking location. One of the things Steve does really well, in my opinion, is build a believable locale full of interesting folk. I hope you agree and that you can find a spot for the village in your own campaign.
About Tigley
Wracked by disaster, Tigley is a village reborn. Standing on the fringes of the noisome Gnatmarsh, its folk make their living from the swamp a...
2020-06-05 06:59:37 +0000 UTC
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Yesterday, I posted up a rough first draft of a two-page spread for the Campaign Codex--a new product line I'm plotting and scheming.
I've had loads of feedback--thank you--and sat down today to plot version 2. (I'm gaming tonight and the characters are fighting goblins so if seemed a particularly good time to give this some effort).
The attached file is Version 2 of the goblin spread I posted up yesterday. I've got the message loud and clear that each...
2020-06-03 15:08:23 +0000 UTC
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A week or so ago, I mooted the idea of a Campaign Codex style product for 5e (and, perhaps, other systems). I've been noodling about with the idea since then, and thought you might be interested to see a first draft of a sample two-page spread. I've featured goblins for the draft, because that's what my players will be fighting (mostly) in the near future.
The presented file is a two-page spread. The information could be shrunk down to one page with the removal of the illustration...
2020-06-02 09:49:44 +0000 UTC
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Hello everyone! Happy June!
I appreciate this probably isn't the most exciting post you'll read today, so I've kept it as brief as possible.
I wanted to give you an update on some changes we’ll be seeing which may affect some of your pledges. Due to new laws passing in several countries and US states, Patreon is required to start charging sales tax on some pledges starting July 1st.
Less than half of you will be charged sales tax, and for most, the amount...
2020-06-01 07:23:06 +0000 UTC
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June’s free 20 Things instalment is one of those that emerged from my own campaign. At time of writing, I’m running the old classic Horror on the Hill and wanted to add more flavour into the aboveground ruins. 20 Things #51: Ruined Monastery is the result. The book presents five pages of System Neutral material designed to help you quickly and easily add depth, flavour and verisimilitude to your campaign.
I hope you enjoy it, and find it a us...
2020-05-29 07:04:25 +0000 UTC
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This week, we are back in the dungeon and exploring the “delights” of dungeon stairs. Dungeon stairs are high-traffic areas that often link various dungeon levels to one another. Make them special with Dungeon Dressing: Stairs! Dungeon Dressing: Stairs is available in 5e, OSR, Pathfinder 1 and Pathfinder 2 editions. Download your copies today!
This week, everyone also gets copies of May’s mini-eventure: A Night at the Bloody Eagle, which is also availabl...
2020-05-22 07:29:15 +0000 UTC
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One of my players has a legendary fear of adventures on boats. I have no idea why, as at least one of the adventures I've run on boats hasn't involved kraken, storms or mysterious islands rising from the depths.
This week's eventure by Bart Wynants provides the tools for you to add depth, flavour and interest into an ocean-going adventure. There's even a mystery for them to solve, if they are of a mind.
About Sailing Aboard the Willow
A single mast thrusts skyw...
2020-05-15 07:07:29 +0000 UTC
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A lot of the news over the last few weeks and months has—quite frankly—sucked. The Coronavirus pandemic rumbles on. Millions of people have lost their jobs, millions more have been ill or confined to their home for weeks on end. Others are suffering serious hardship for a whole variety of pandemic-related reasons. Like I said earlier, a lot of the recent news sucks.
I’ve been a tad frustrated, because Raging Swan Press is not an emergency service. There’s not a lot ...
2020-05-12 12:50:40 +0000 UTC
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This week’s release—Village Backdrop: Rifthammer—has a long (mostly hidden) history with Raging Swan Press. Originally only available as bonus material for GM’s Miscellany: Village Backdrop II (a Pathfinder 1st edition supplement) the place once again came to the fore of my mind when a patron mentioned he didn’t have a copy of the village.
Truth be told, I’d somewhat forgotten about Rifthammer, but having read it again I realised Robert’s village was such a ...
2020-05-08 06:59:19 +0000 UTC
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Undead are great! For some reaons, my adventures often feature undead but—like many monsters—I never spend too much time detailing the monsters themselves—their stat blocks and treasure are always more important. Well no more!
With this handy 20 Things installment I present the tools for breathing life into zombies, skeletons and oher low-level undead foes. I’ll be using many of these details in my own campaign selflessly for my players' enjoyment.
As I "speak"...
2020-05-01 06:56:14 +0000 UTC
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Last week, I asked you all “Which one of the games or editions we publish books for would you most like to see Raging Swan Press create adventures and supplements for?”
168 of you voted, and many of you commented. I thought you’d all like to know the results.
I must confess, I was surprised at the popularity of our System Neutral supplements. I love dungeon dressing—that’s no secret—and I was delighted to learn so many of you find that kind of book so usefu...
2020-04-28 11:22:29 +0000 UTC
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I love bringing the game world alive for my players. I want them to immerse themselves in the setting and to become connected to the folk with which the interact. Adventurers should have lives outside their incessant questing. That was part of the reason for the Eventure line—a line I’m jolly proud of. I’ve used several of the eventures in my own campaign, and they’ve been a great change of pace to the normal dungeoneering that dominates most game sessions.
I hope you enjo...
2020-04-24 07:00:12 +0000 UTC
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Hello everyone!
Long standing members of our Patreon campaign know I occasionally post polls to get a better understanding of the games you play. This week, I thought I would check in on your preferred system/edition of books we release.
As you all know, we support the following systems/release the following editions of many of our products:
- 5e
- OSR
- Pathfinder 1
- Pathfinder 2
- System Neutral
I’m a long-standing Pathf...
2020-04-20 15:43:56 +0000 UTC
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This week, we’ve got two new books for you—and one is a Patreon exclusive which is my (free) thank you to you for supporting Raging Swan Press—particularly at this tricky time.
Dungeon Dressing: Bridges
I think bridges are an often underutilised dungeon feature. That’s sad, as they (and the chasms below them) can make great venues for exciting battles. From my own games, I remember the rope bridge in Forge of Fury with great fondness—that said, my players may ...
2020-04-17 07:01:50 +0000 UTC
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Last week, we presented 20 Things #48: Ruined City. This week, we travel to Macrimei--a village standing above and within a ruined city! (Sometimes my plans *do* reach fruition).
John Bennett is one of Raging Swan Press's longest serving freelancers. If memory serves, he wrote his first piece for us back in 2010. Macrimei 2.0--a village he first described back in 2016--is his return to the fold. I loved Macrimei the first time around and I hope you enjoy it as much this t...
2020-04-10 06:58:44 +0000 UTC
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It’s the start of another month, and that means another free 20 Things instalment is on its way to you as a thank you for your epic support. This month, we dare to explore a ruined city!
Ruined cities are excellent venues for adventure, but no GM has enough time to fully detail such a place. (And much of that time would no doubt be wasted as few groups are going to explore everything a ruined city has to offer).
That’s where 20 Things #48: Ruined Cit...
2020-04-03 06:58:10 +0000 UTC
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As you know, March 2020 is Raging Swan Press's 10-year anniversary/birthday. I had big plans for the month--today we were meant to be unleashing Super Secret Project Gelatinous Owlbear into the world. However, global events have overtaken us and now is not the time for Project Gelatinous Owlbear. It must, sadly, for now remain wreathed in shadow and mystery.
Instead, I thought I'd send you another free mini-eventure. It occurred to me yesterday that with all our f...
2020-03-27 08:00:16 +0000 UTC
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Ten years ago this month, Raging Swan Press slithered into the light from the dark shadows in which it had lurked. We released our first three products—Retribution, Swallowfeld and The Lonely Coast—and began our (noble) quest to make GMs’ lives easier.
I am delighted to return to the Lonely Coast this week, although I wish the circumstances were better. This 90-page sourcebook (available in OSR and Pathfinder 1) presents full details of the Lonely ...
2020-03-20 07:59:42 +0000 UTC
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I'm really enjoying the Patreon exclusive mini-eventure line. It's a fun creative change of pace and I can see myself using all three of the current entries in my own campaign--when my players get around to returning to Languard, of course. (Currently, we are trying 5e and have started a new mini-campaign set in Dunstone). I'm looking forward to writing the next mini-eventure. If you've got any gen...
2020-03-13 08:15:24 +0000 UTC
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This week, we return to Ashlar and the subterranean ruin of Fraywrack. Jacob Michaels has been one of my go-to designers for many years and I’m delighted to have had the opportunity to let Jacob loose on Fraywrack once again. I think he’s done a fantastic job of both fleshing out the rather atypical settlement in greater detail and in tying it closer to the over-arching story of Coldwater and the sinister and demonic aquatic menace lurking in the environs.
2020-03-06 08:09:41 +0000 UTC
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Urban adventures terrify me--mainly because the characters can go anywhere and it is impossible to prepare for every eventually. So, I've got a free download for you: the GM Screen Urban Locations Names Sheet! (In other news, I clearly need to get better at naming products).
Th...
2020-03-03 13:19:46 +0000 UTC
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A few months ago, Eric Schneid made a request over on our Discord channel for some specific 20 Things lists naming and providing a brief flavoursome overview of local landmarks. I loved the idea. The area surrounding a village or a town is no doubt replete with places of minor interest well known to the locals. As my brain exploded with ideas, I realised this subject clearly needed an entire 20 Things supplement.
Thus was born 20 Things #47: Local Landmarks
2020-02-28 08:26:19 +0000 UTC
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The Picaroon Peninsula is finally here! I say "finally" because myself and Richard Green have been discussing and plotting this mini-campaign setting for months. I think we started scheming in June of last year, and Richard turned over his manuscript in early October.
By then, though, I’d caught the bug and what I’d intended to be a relatively short book began to grow. We got a new map done by the ever-epic Tommi Salama, new amazing art from Matt Morrow and I couldn’t stop w...
2020-02-21 08:03:36 +0000 UTC
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As you probably know by now, I love dungeon dressing. I also love dungeons, and I am enjoying immensely updating the Dungeon Dressing line to 5e, OSR and Pathfinder 2. I hope you will get tons of use out of the Dungeon Dressing books and that your players appreciate your extra effort describing the dungeons through which they traipse.
I think statues are epic dungeon features. I have...
2020-02-14 07:49:01 +0000 UTC
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This week, the redoubtable Mike Welham returns to the sunken village of Beacon Promontory to give us a more in depth look at this dismal, partially drowned settlement. Standing on the coast between the Duchy of Ashlar and the Picaroon Peninsula it is an isolated dot of civilisation on a harsh and unforgiving coastline.
Beacon Promontory arose from the watery grave of Beacon Cove after a ferocious storm submerged the village. The handful of doughty survivors rebuilt their homes aro...
2020-02-07 07:49:18 +0000 UTC
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