Vancian Stacks

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Trinity College Library, Dublin, Ireland
britannica.com w/ Prisma Gothic filter

In March ‘26 I read Matt Schumer’s “Something Big Is Happening”, which encouraged me to explore AI more than scratching I had been doing at the corners. Copilot, Notebook LM, Gemini Gems are all things that I had experimented with; most as search without ads, research primers, and custom agents to help shape complex messages.

Schumer fired my imagination in his descriptions of software development through natural language and the concept of machines building machines. Here was an opportunity (for $20 a month) to try my hand at building software applications that I dreamed of as a washed up CS undergrad who happily cut over to history. Like many of my technology adventures I apply them to my hobbies first to help me learn their practical and professional applications.

I started big, I mean really big. Why not build a tool that could be used to play Holmes & Clark solo. I wrestled with context preservation, establishing design principals, project instructions, false declarations, and genuine hallucinations. It was great!

I scaled back in some areas, established a framework that is improving results, and in support of my regular AD&D 1 Eeeeeee game tinkered with some Claude.ai skills to serve my immediate needs and produced:

  • DMG Appendix A – Random Dungeon Generator – in progress
  • DMG Appendix C – Random Dungeon Stocking – done
  • DMG Appendix C – Random Party Generator – done
  • DMG pg xx – Random Gems & Jewelry – done
  • Custom Magic-User Spellbook Generator – supporting PHB, UA, and Wizards Spell Compendium via data sourced from What’s In Your Spellbook (thank you Delta) – done

The spellbook generator is based on principals I’m using to define higher level characters, where spell and magic item selection are significant blocking points in my preparing for play quickly.

Here’s a sample library of spellbooks & user guide, both prepared in just a few minutes by the Claude.ai skill that could produce trillions more in whatever combination might be of interest.

Please let me know if there is any interest in reading more about how I’ve been experimenting with AI or if the above skills might be useful to you too.

Urmalk the Boundless

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Prisma Gothic filter of the Echoes From Fomalhaut No. 12 players map

Open Tables

Packing for DunDraCon 49 last weekend I grabbed a few copies of Holmes & Clark in the off chance of organizing a pickup game. Leafing through a few adventures eventually settled on Urmalk the Boundless as I had run it a few months earlier at North Texas RPG con.

This is a fine little adventure for levels 3 to 5 offering an outdoor sandbox location and an underground dungeon. The outdoor area has some very interesting keyed locations though much of the exploration here is done though a series of random table roles.

I had such a fantastic time running this adventure at DunDraCon I was committed to doing so again as soon as possible.

Random Tables

The exploration in Urmalk the Boundless is driven by random tables, a series of d10 rolls with some conditional modifiers applied to these rolls. A little fiddly at the table and a prepared list would likely help streamline the play experience. In support of that effort I prepared a Google Sheet to generate these results quickly and consistently, available here.

Real Tables

Some thoughts on running Urmalk the Boundless:

  • Provide the PC with the highest Wis some rumors
  • PCs approach the Necropolis from a random (1d4) direction
  • The Necropolis is 1d6 hours form the nearby town
  • Provide the players a token to show there position on the map
  • Mark off explored locations with more tokens on the map
  • Mark the DM map with location of keyed monsters so that it can be understood if they will be draw by a nearby commotion
  • At North Texas RPG Con ‘25 we had as few as 2 players all the way up to 12 at one point, this was an epic session easily over 10 hour, Jeff Dee joined us in the final hours and that was a real highlight
  • At DunDraCon 49 my badge read “Can’t we just play D&D?” A buddy gathered a group and we explored the Necropolis for about 3h
  • Have at least 6 pre-generated characters so players can jump in quickly
The Google Sheet in action
Example table produced w/ afore mentioned Google Sheet
The player map in action
North Texas – Aron Clark, Tim, Glenn, and Jeff Dee
DunDraCon – Aron Clark, Jerry, Dave, Mike, Dan, Peter (who I’ve been gaming w/ for 40+ years)
The plays the thing…

…and now for the news from Lake Geneva

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There is a fundraiser going on for a Gygax memorial in Lake Geneva. Here’s your chance to be part of history.

I’m backing in for a paver but a worthy cause whatever you can contribute. The organizer, Paul Stormburg ran a game for me at Lake Geneva in the old Gygax house. Pretty special for me. Encourage you all to make the pilgrimage if and when you can.

Kickstarter link follows: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/617053430/gary-gygax-memorial-game-table-for-dungeons-and-dragons-fans

Some snaps of my 2024 GaryCon visit for the 50th Anniversary.

I’d also encourage you to check out the “When We Were Wizards” podcast. A great oral history of the dawn of D&D, link follows: https://pods.to/whenwewerewizards

Fighters in the Void

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Original image from Stewart Crowley’s “Terran Trade Authority” series w/ Prisma Gothic filter.

Casey Garske’s “Voidfighter” is out and I’ve just had a chance to play. I enjoyed my first game with these rules and looking forward to the next. In support of my next out I’ve quickly refined my Space Werido QRS in support of Voidfighter.

Grab the first iteration of this QRS here. Find the Voidfighter rules here.

Finally a few snaps from our first game. There are some lovely custom cards prepared by my good friend, sadly they were not enough to save my brave rebels, none of us escaped the fist of the Emperor Jeff. 😦

Update 14 September

An online gaming buddy has asked if we could play Voidfighter online, sure why not. Here are a few snaps of an Owlbear Rodeo session I whipped up this afternoon. The ships are from FASA’s Renegade Legion: Interceptor.

Update 3 May

My oldest friend just celebrated a birthday and has been having a grand time with Voidfighter. Inspired by his enthusiasm I organized 12 simple scenarios that I hope will inspire me or others to play more of this fine game.

Front Cover
Introduction
Mission Sample
Conclusion
Back Cover
Grab your copy here

RT Pocket

Aron Clark4 Comments
This thing isn’t mine, but it’s awesome

Back in 2021

In these dark times a glimmer of joy pieced my heart when a friend shared with me RT Pocket. Yes that RT, and it’s an amazing summary of the game. The most I did was upload to Lulu and futz with the cover a bit.

Get Yours

You grab your own copy at the link shared above, or if you’d like to order an at cost print copy you can find that here.