Skip to main content

Books as Treasure - SS&SS 2e Preview

Time for another quick preview of what is coming in Sharp Swords & Sinister Spells.

I always liked the concept of questing for knowledge. Trying to rob that forbidden tome from the Tower of Scrolls to learn the secrets the powerful want to keep hidden from our eyes. So I made a tool to transform Books into treasure and making them useful in the game!

Books


Books are a great treasure, both for those who seek wealth and for those who want knowledge and secrets. They can contain all kinds of information and knowledge, from the records of past civilizations, to recipes, to magical formulas written by the powerful Sorcerer-Kings. The table below helps determine what the book contains.

d66
Book Subjects 
d66
Book Subjects 
11
Astrology
41
Jewelry 
12
Astromancy
42
Prophecy
13
Biology
43
Laws
14
Biomancy
44
Art
15
Herbalism
45
Demonology
16
Beasts
46
Witchcraft
21
Ancient Civilization 
51
Battles
22
Archeology
52
Poetry
23
Geography 
53
Traditions
24
Legends of a Region
54
Diary
25
Religions
55
Monsters
26
Necromancy
56
Empire’s Conquests
31
Architecture 
61
Pornography
32
Alien Technology 
62
Anthropology
33
Psionism
63
Linguistics
34
Elemental Magic
64
Illusions
35
Death
65
Lost Places
36
Forbidden Cults
66
Music

Using Books in Game


Books can be used as a source of information and a resource that can be depleted with use. Each tome usually have a Durability score of 2 or 3, and each time the players seek an information inside it, a Durability Roll is made. If it’s a succesful roll, they find an answer to a question (even though that might not be as clear as they want). A failure on the roll reduces the Durability score by one and the answer is not there, as the author of the book rambles about a pointless subject.

If you like what you've just read, check out my books over DriveThruRPG and Lulu.

Popular posts from this blog

How to never describe a dungeon!

Artwork by Luigi Castellani I've heard it a thousand times. You probably heard it too. Some people , I don't know why, say that dungeons , especially large ones, are boring . The endless repetitions of rooms and corridors and having to choose to go left, right, north or south depresses them. I don't know why. Actually, I do know why. Because they don't really know how to run a dungeon in play. It seems easy, effortless. Just say what's in the room the PCs are in and where the passages going out of it go. But it's not. They get bored with the "you get to a intersection and there is a door to the north and two passages, one going east and one going west" because that's a terrible way of describing a dungeon environment and gives nothing really useful to the players to choose from. You never describe a dungeon like that . There's a lot more going on that we can initially see. A good referee will take all the context of what the dungeon w

My RPG Zine Trilogy is on Kickstarter!

 I can't believe I didn't post about it here! The Dead are Coming, Screams Amongst the Stars and Running Out of Time are on Kickstarter right now! These are 3 complete games, made using the system of Electric Bastionland and Mausritter as the basis (and with some modifications to fit my vision for each of them). As with my games, they all come filled with many tools and tables to generate gaming content, adventures, locations, NPCs and much more. They are compact, easy to use, and equipped to provide you with years of entertainment! Here's a brief description of each of the games. The Dead Are Coming The first of them is called The Dead Are Coming, a minimalist, OSR style RPG about survival in a post-apocalyptic world where the dead have risen and other survivors can be much worse than the undead. Characters in this game are common people who have been struggling to survive, find their loved ones, keep them safe and just trying to keep living. They all carry resources like

Download the final text and sheets of Solar Blades & Cosmic Spells

Hello space hobos! Layout is about to begin and I have a surprise for you guys: The (as of right now) final text PDF of the Solar Blades & Cosmic Spells , together with the Character Sheet and Vehicle’s Sheet! With those, you can begin your crazy adventures in the Known Universe and try your luck under the cruel gaze of the Galactic Overlords. Try to earn a good amount of credits transporting goods or refugees through the sectors. Or even try to awaken a sleeping Star God to repair some of the damage the wars have brought upon our reality. So grab your Solar Blade and ready your Cosmic Spells! We are about to go on an adventure! SB&CS - Complete Text SB&CS - Character Sheet SB&CS - Vehicle's Sheet If you like what you've just read, check out my books over  RPGNow  and  Lulu .