I like this tool for when I need some additional help fleshing out an area on the fly. It can generate the name of a kingdom (or area or whatever) along with the ruler, names of well known places, recent events, plot hooks, prominent people, and a host of other information. It has some other interesting options like generating lists of multiple armies, conspirators, laws, etc. Granted things like local fashions aren't a hot topic in most campaigns, it can add some flair if you like. Synced up to a map generator and with a few other options, this could be a very cool little program. Until then, $4 is a small price to pay for instant lands!

I collect all sorts of maps for game play, and these are most likely some of the worst maps I have ever seen designed for any games other than rudimentary tabletop games. The only positive thing is that they were free.

Adobe PDF reader won't open the file. Claims to be encrypted incorrectly.

Fun little freebie. Adds just enough feel to all those mindless zombie hordes. Art is a bit strange for the random "portraits", but it was free and I'm not complaining! Thanks!!!

Now, if you could do a fantasy version... evil grin

For those who haven’t seen ChaoticShiny.com, it’s Hannah’s site for random generators she’s come up with, allowing you to create civilizations, pantheons, mottos, regions and more. It’s a great way to piece together ideas for a campaign world. The KBGP2 is an .exe file (sorry Mac users) which gives you lots of possibilities for designing your own kingdom, including fashion, armies, law, place names, conspirators, events, and even flags! The first tab in the program is for your Kingdom & Hooks. This generates your Kingdom name, who its ruled by, prominent places, some laws, recent events in the kingdom, notable individuals, how the army is run, and current fashion. Some results seem odd (since it is a random generator), but you can get some really interesting variations on strange lands. I had it generate me a kingdom, and here’s what it came up with: Kingdom Name: Traetael Ruled By: A philosopher-queen Prominent Places: Kraemi Strait, Restdaisy Foothill, Treatmiss Jungle, Leastgator County, Wrackblade Wetlands A Few Laws: The penalty for a nonhuman striking a courtesan is a few months’ imprisonment. The penalty for insulting a juvenile is a few months’ imprisonment. Recent Events: In a northeastern township bandits have become prevalent and a beholder has been plaguing a village. Meanwhile, an important bard has gone missing. A prominent socialite may be involved. There has been a string of kidnappings near the eastern region and there have been severe droughts for the past several years. A prominent socialite may be involved. A prominent socialite has been stirring up discontent in the southeastern township and there is a dangerous drought. Notable Individuals: Alorrel, the proud master artisan who recently had a sudden change in alliance. She has few open allies. Rumors say that she has some interesting relationships with certain warriors. She can usually be found at all the biggest social events. She is wiry with mismatched eyes and black hair. The kind guard captain Scethai is her ex-lover. The arrogant adventurer Cansan is her lover. Cand, the slothful, smug foreigner who has been preaching the new religion. He has questionable allies. He is short with a pierced lip and piercing blue eyes. The talented spy Inoulloe is his adversary. Army: Traetael’s army is famed for its accurate archers and the use of flails. They often make use of rogues. They are famous for their high-quality weapons and for flashy tactics. Current Fashion: This fashion features soft, scanty tan and blue-green garments. Tops are typically short sleeved with low necklines. Jodhpurs and pants are also customary. Capes are popular accessories. Leather and collars are staples of the style. Bright blue, deep red, and vibrant blue are also common colors. The wealthy and the poor wear very different clothing. As you can see, there’s a lot of hooks there for you to expand upon. Even from the second line “Ruled by a philosopher-queen”, you begin thinking; how does being a philosopher effect her rule? With recent events, you’ve got at least three different game sessions each time you hit the “Generate Kingdom” button. That’s a lot! You’ll keep your party occupied for months! Sometimes, the results are less than stellar (an example being that “the penalty for insulting a juvenile is a few months’ imprisonment”). However, it gets your mind working, in figuring out why that would be in this kingdom. And if you don’t feel like spending the brainpower, just tell it to generate again, or go over to the “Law” tab. The other tabs are more detailed versions of the different events of the Kingdom & Hooks tab. you’re able to generate any number of armies and choose what suits you best, as well as place names (which could work very well when you’re in a pinch) as well as conspirators. The conspirators are a bit unusual, since I’m not sure why they’re named as such. I would most likely have named them “shady characters” if I was designing it, but I supposed conspirators works just as well. The Flag tab is really cool. With it, you can come up with all kinds of strange and unusual coats of arms, with pictures of dragons, unicorns, pegasuses, and more. You can set specific parameters, including colors, only using heraldric colors, and even import your own pictures for the symbols. In all, the Kingdom Builder is a definite must-have for anyone trying to come up with their own kingdoms, and those who could use a little help coming up with various hooks and NPCs.

Useful! This download is more like an article you'd read in a gaming magazine. The random tavern name generator alone is amusing reading. The download doesn't go into as much depth as I'd like to flesh out a tavern, but it's certainly useful if you need to wing a tavern on the fly.

Handy tool for a busy GR. I threw a couple of these at my group to buy me some extra time while working on a larger part of the game world project. Pretty flexible scenarios and with just a bit of tweaking will fit pretty much any universe.

Pretty decent for FREE and there are a few fun concepts that will help spark other ideas that the GR can flesh out on their own.

This free set is one of the first that got me hooked on what I call "paper Props" for my RPG gaming sessions. Once you start introducing this sort of thing into the game your players will be delighted. This set is easy to construct even for a beginner and pretty sharp looking especially considering the price (free) that you pay for it.

Worth while gift, if you like manipulatables for your role players. (Yes that's what training pros call the little bits of things that players collect, exchange and filddle with.) Not only might these be cut out as coins, they would also operate as graphics for seals, amulets and identifiers if you want to use them that way. Only suggestion to Swordgleam is to up the contrast on the black against the background, some of the imagery looks muddier than it should.

I found this fun little product free on RPGNow. If you get a chance it is well worth a look no matter what genre you're playing. Tavern Tables has a series of random tables to help a GM pull together a tavern in a few rolls. The first two tables (d100) are to name the tavern. The first table is the adjective and the second is the noun. An example I rolled was "The Mournful Stableboy". Sounds like a Monty Python skit. A simple mechanism that can create 1000s of names.

The next series of nine tables (these are all d6) are for tavern features, such as the quality, cleanliness and size of the place. The next three check prices, the variety of food and the quality of the food and drink. And the last three tables determine how crowded it is, how loud it is and if all those favorite dark corners that adventurers love to hog are taken or even if there are any. So let's continue on with the Mournful Stableboy. It's a fair quality tavern, that is sparkling clean, but a little cramped. The prices are cheap, but the owner has connections and can get almost any kind of drink or food all of which tastes 'interesting'. Unfortunately the Mournful Stableboy is empty most of the time and because very few people patronize the tavern it is always very quiet. And one dark corner is occupied by the sleeping bouncer. I made up the bouncer bit.

The next series of 15 tables (all d6 again) will help a GM describe a notable patron. I won't go through all the tables to make an example, but these tables could help a GM create any NPC they need to whip up details on the spot. I'll call our patron Gunther. Gunther is heavily cloaked with wild red hair and eyes of a mad mage, no pupil or iris, all of it covered in dark gray. His startling appearance is countered by his cheerful mood. He will not say what he does for a living, but he always seems to be carrying a book that he never lets out of his sight (if he sees at all). He entertains the others by doing card tricks, but never gets involved with gambling. Gunther was created by using half the tables available. I've added my own extra details, but the tables lend themselves to allow the GM to create something fresh with little nudges from the tables.

Next tables are when a good old donnybrook breaks out. There are 9 d6 tables. The first three decide how many opponents there are, what actions they take and what skill they are fighting at. Then the other six tables determine how much trouble you are in. Let's say Gunther gets into a brawl at the Mournful Stableboy (which will be difficult since no one goes there, but let's pretend they have stripping dryad night and its packed). The brawl starts with four people whacking one another and Gunther, despite his weird freaky eyes is sweeping the floor with his opponent. But his consequence is he must leave town now because he killed the man he fought. Now we know why the stableboy is mournful, it lost its one faithful customer.

The final page is a few examples of patrons that were rolled up. This is where I would have preferred to see a random drink and food tables. I think that would have completed the product.

My recommendation is get Tavern Tables. It's a great little supplement. Oh, and did I mention it's free. Hannah "Swordgleam" Lipsky of Chaotic Shiny Productions did a great job. Give their webpage a look and download Tavern Tables.

Arytis clocks in at only 24 pages, but that’s more than enough to give an overview of the culture, as well as a map of the city, and some utility powers for the Rogue and Fighter. Now, if you’ve picked up Martial Flavor, you will notice a bit of overlap. The utility powers in Martial Cultures: Arytis are the same as those in the chapter on Arytis in Martial Flavor, as well as some feats and flavor text. The real reason to pick up Martial Cultures: Arytis is for the additional flavor text, not the mechanics, and the number of feats in Martial Cultures is beefed up a bit from the few you’ll find in Martial Flavor. The Arytis are from a city of the same name. They love their city, worshiping the spirit who they believe inhabits it. They have a proud martial heritage, known for their fighters and rogues. The book features ranking of the Legions, both the names of ranks, as well as the actual symbology of each rank, which is a nice addition. Also, various ribbons and medals awarded to legionnaires is pretty cool, and I can see a lot of use in the game (rolling a History check and being able to identify that a certain soldier was involved in a certain war). As in the Martial Flavor book, Lipsky doesn’t tell you what race the Arytis are, instead giving you a few options for who they can be in your world. Primarily, the Dragonborn, Eladrin, and Human. Also featured, are ideas for making the Arytis either benevolent or malevolent, a very cool idea to show how making a slight tweak to your civilization can change it dramatically. New class options are given for fighters, rangers, rogues and warlords, as well as non-martial classes such as avengers, paladins, and bards. These change the class features to fit more in with the city. Some of the feats are the same as in Martial Flavor, but there are quite a few more, including ones for the non-martial classes, which is nice. The feats are for both Heroic and Paragon tier. A simple but effective map of the city, as well as information about important NPCs wraps up the book, featuring an actress, smith, city hero, really bad legionaire, cheif justice, a few council members, as well as the leader of the city. All very well thought out and intriguing. If you have been looking at picking up this book, and still aren’t sure, I highly recommend it. Right now, for the next couple of days, you can even get this book in the Gamers Help Haiti bundle! Definitely pick this up.

5 Minute mini-games is an example of a well-conceived idea that is not necessarily important to the overall aspect of the RPG, but when given first star production and presentation, turns into an essential supplemental tool at any game table, regardless of the system.

5 Minute mini-games, by Chaotic Shiny Productions, is a brief 9-page collection of games designed to be played between players when the DM’s focus is elsewhere. At first glance, this product seems non-essential, but looking underneath, it’s a smart tool to keep the focus on the gaming sessions without having to nanny everyone all of the time.

When I first started gaming, it was customary for players to play Magic: The Gathering and shoot dice when the party was split or the DM needed to convey secret information. By the time the DM came back, it took an additional five or ten minutes for everyone to refocus themselves on the game. 5 Minute mini-games fix that, by providing in game entertainment in the middle of the RPG. These games are decided on the characters’ skills mixed with a few players’ decisions. All 13 games are distinct and makes sense in a traditional fantasy game world. They are not necessarily breaking the banks of creativity, many of the games are fantasy versions of familiar real world games like tag, jacks and paper-rock-scissors. The innovation comes in how well they were executed in a land of sword and sorcery. The games are broken up into three sections, simple, standard and Complex. Each game entry has the skills required to play, number of players allowed and any additional material required.

For the Player Drunken God’s Honest Truth is a very fun Wisdom based game that incorporates role-playing strongly with skill checks. It bypasses complex drinking rules and focuses on the game.

For the Dungeon Master Half of the games in the book I have made up at one tieme or another to introduce the idea of gambling to my group. Mini-games adds another way to challenge PCs and to distribute information and items. My favorite game for DMs to use is possession. It’s complex and requires all of the players to be involved. It also utilizes several different skills to increase the challenge level.

The Iron Word 5 Minute Mini-Games makes itself a must have supplement by filling a niche that few products have attempted. It aims to starve player boredom by always keeping the fantasy going.

I was interested to see this earlier and got a copy in the Gamers Helping Haiti bundle. Some very nice design for 4e, particularly for the shield-wall concept and slightly more down-to-earth variants of other than martial classes. I'd want to watch the effect of the "ignore armour penalties to X" at-wills. There's plenty to enhance a setting as well, even if a GM doesn't take some of its ideas so far as they're presented. Liked the cover.

The book is a 55-page pdf, with some great cover art by Rachel Yung, featuring a human and Tiefling fighting one another. Yung’s art is featured throughout, and is top notch for a 3rd-party publisher. The idea behind the book is that it is a book of various cultures for your martial characters. But this isn’t just a book of fluff, it also features background benefits, feats, class features and powers. These are cultures that can be dropped into literally any campaign setting and used as is, simply incorporating in the history of the world to make it match their specific culture. The first group featured is known as the Daikort Pack, a band of nomad mercenaries who are willing to do whatever it takes to get the job done. Their allegiances change as often as their camp. The book states that the recruits the Daikort take in are either “the best of the best, or the worst of the worst, depending on who you believe.” The Daikort will take in anyone who is good enough to make the cut, regardless of race or sex. Most often, members of the Pack are either Rangers or Warlords. There are some pretty cool Utility powers for Rangers and Warlords for you to use, includimg my favorite of the bunch, Turn the Tables, a 10th level Warlord power which allows you to use it to cancel out you and any ally’s ability to be surprised who is within Range 10, as well as a few other bonuses. The Elessim are known as the “people of the horse”. They are a proud, noble culture, who believe that there is no better life than on the back of a horse. Their villages are small, surrounded by vast grazing land. The people have no written language and are seen by some as primitive and poor. The book advises you to use Eladrin, Elves, Half-Elves, Halflings or Humans for your Elessim culture. The Elesim are most commonly Fighters and Rangers, of which there are Utility powers to match. The Ikanoi are very similar to the Inuit of North America, living in the snow and ice of the bitter north. They cover themselves in tattoos from head to foot, each tattoo telling stories about their cultures and tribes, as well as their ancestors. Each part of their body tells the story of something else. Very fascinating and adds a lot of deep backstory to your character. It is advised you play the Ikanoi as Dragonborn, Dwarves, Half-Elves and Humans. I thought the idea of playing a Dragonborn Ikanoi as an excellent and unique idea. In this chapter, all four Martial Classes are given a nod, each being given three Utility powers to choose, as well as feats. If I were to choose a favorite culture in the book, the Ikanoi would be it. The Legions of Arytis are a very Romanesque culture, in which every citizen becomes a member of the Legion, known for their Rogues and Fighters. They are a mixed lot of races, who are not highly spiritual, and instead worship the spirit of the city itself. The Sijara are another nomad culture, reminiscent of Gypsies. They look disdainfully on the “Bound People”, those who live in one spot. They travel in family groups, “ranging anywhere from small troupes of three or four to huge extended families with members numbering in the dozens”. The Sijara wear their wealth through jewelry and ornate weapons. The book says that a “quick glance at a Sijara’s many earrings is usually enough to determine his or her current monetary situation”. The Sijara are most often Rogues and Warlords. This is my second favorite culture in the book, as I was looking, in the past, at playing a gypsy character in 4e. In the future, I’d love to see “Arcane Flavor”, “Divine Flavor”, “Primal Flavor”, and even “Psionic Flavor”. Near the back of the book, it mentions that they will be coming out with more books featuring even more details about the five cultures, each book focusing on a specific one of the cultures. I look forward to these as well. If you are playing 4e right now, I can’t praise this book enough. It’s got everything you need to introduce new and fascinating cultures to your current game.