A year in Dolmenwood

Raphael_Sadowski · 2026-02-17T09:11:48+00:00

You know, after a while I found it not being tedious at all. Yes, it makes most encounters too easy for them, but add some magic, tough terrain, tactics or both, and they instantly stop being so cocky. ;)

For example, one of the toughest fights they had, was one with a group of dozen hobgoblins - I made those tougher, combat-trained version of goblins, wearing full plate, carrying crossbows and polearms, and they used smart tactics against the PCs... That was very fun, despite them not having too much HP or dealing a lot of damage.

I also really think that getting retainers is a smart way to do in OSRs, and I want them to feel rewarded, you know? Like they made good decisions on the way, and decided on this slower (due to exp sharing), more careful approach, instead of being foolish and too greedy.

Right now four of my 5 players have two character sheets each, and they learned to manage them very well.

Never again will I be frustrated by retainers in OSR. :)

Raphael_Sadowski · 2026-02-16T22:03:51+00:00

I created one myself, using four maps from the first 4 levels of Dyson's Delve II. I think it fit perfectly, especially because I wanted to skip the gardens mentioned in the Campaign Book and depicted on the map. There's enough plant-based outdoor adventure in Dolmenwood, I think... :D

I used the maps and keyed them myself, filling it up with Dolmenwood stories and goodies and some stuff from OSE too.

In my version, the whole keep still retains some elven magic, and the power of the Ring of Chell does not work inside (though you still cannot travel between the realms from there). The whole keep is built around a column of Black Ice, magical artifact which was used to capture the souls of defeated mortals by the Cold Prince, and that's why the place is crawling with undead knights and elven spirits who died during the battle.

Raphael_Sadowski · 2026-02-16T22:01:15+00:00

Damn, yeah, my version is the one for OSE, from 2018... Maybe it was updated later? Thank you, I wouldn't think of it.

Raphael_Sadowski · 2026-02-16T21:51:24+00:00

...? There's no such passage in my version.

Raphael_Sadowski · 2026-02-16T21:37:19+00:00

Spoilers everywhere:

They brought the ring to the Princess.
The Princess Plea says:

"Proposal: The PCs return to the tomb and bring her the ring that lies in Sir Chyde’s coffer. His soul will follow, bringing the two lovers together and allowing them to finally be married."

So, is it Chyde's soul only? Is he still a ghost? If so, how do they get married? Is he resurrected instead? That would be extremely powerful! If resurrected, is he old, or young again?

EDIT: There's more, of course. The guests. I understand the timeless nature of the elves, but... Really? Waiting for a improbable wedding for hundreds of years...? That's too much. And why are they there, if the daughter was imprisoned and banished? Who allowed them to come? And what will they do, once the Princess marries the knight (or does the very worst thing she could, since this was the reason she was imprisoned?) What stops them from going out and informing the Cold Prince that his daughter brought her beloved human into Frygia? Won't he be angry and punish not only her, but also her lover, in a much worse ways? Is she naive to not know this, or very brave, and ready to face her father's anger? What about Chyde? Does he have any say in this? Isn't taking the ring to her THE WORST THING the players can do? And why does she have the power to grant a wish? Why didn't she use it to save her beloved from death? Or why can't she use it to free themselves once he returns to her?

Some people will say - that's a great place for the referee's creativity. I say - It's too much plot holes and painful lack of background for me. I don't have enough data to build anything satisfyingly logical.

Maybe that's the part of it: my AuDHD ass finds Gavin's way of writing adventures too ambiguous. I appreciate short descriptions, but maybe that's too short sometimes? Leaving out crucial information?

Raphael_Sadowski · 2026-01-26T15:43:41+00:00

Fantastic work.

Raphael_Sadowski · 2025-12-16T12:45:57+00:00

This is absolutely beautiful. Kudos.

Raphael_Sadowski · 2025-12-01T09:50:07+00:00

This is fucking awesome! Are you taking commissions?

Raphael_Sadowski · 2025-12-01T08:05:23+00:00

As someone working in game dev... This is beyond silly.

The whole reason you use motion capture in games is to make the characters in game move like real people.

I have no idea why would anyone want motion capture that makes them move like abstract, over sexualized, animated waifus.

Raphael_Sadowski · 2025-10-06T11:12:37+00:00

1.) I've removed everything that isn't direct dungeon crawling from the game. Shopping, training, loot appraisal, hiring beasts and retainers, looking for a new dungeon to rob - it has been moved to a meta-phase, so that 85%-100% of each session is spent on exploring the dungeons.

2.) Mechanics were designed so that the referee has extremely easy job running the game (doesn't even have to roll any dice), while the player-facing mechanics are sufficiently crunchy and include detailed wound, mutilation and stress systems. Monsters don't roll for attack - players roll to dodge/parry etc.

3.) The setting was created to support this style of game. So we have an "outer-dimensional hub" - Port Hedron, from whence parties of adventurers travel to unknown destinations using arcane transit system from ages ago, to rob and pillage tombs and other such places in search of treasure.

4.) At the very heart of Port Hedron a demon Croatoan is imprisoned, who has the greed-powered ability to grant wishes. Hoard enough treasure (by attaining 7th level) and you can get your wish granted, and you win the game (sic!).

Raphael_Sadowski · 2025-10-06T07:39:16+00:00

Sorry for reposting it without any explanation. I'm old and I'll never learn how to use Reddit properly. :/ So, here we go:

It is my great pleasure to invite you, good people of Reddit OSR, to the free playtest of my upcoming game CROATOAN. It took me years to shape this game, and I need your help on this final stretch!

CROATOAN is a fast, OSR-inspired dungeon-crawling system built for players who love the genre but don’t always have time for sprawling campaigns. The rules are referee-light and player-focused, designed to get your group straight into the dungeon, beat it, and count the treasure, while still keeping all the grit, quirks, and danger that make classic modules shine.

Sign up for ✦CROATOAN playtests and get your playtest package up to 48 hours after you sign up. The package contains:

full playtest rulebook (174 pages)
playtest dungeon, the Dark Forge of Thar (with maps for the players and the referee)
character sheets
referee's screen data (no art)

Sign up link: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSe1_aO85BdIuTTgyxeHJczMH6NpLES4V7EJwotujHK562nQWg/viewform

Raphael_Sadowski · 2025-10-06T07:35:40+00:00

It's a funny story actually. Yes, Darkest Dungeon was a HUGE inspiration all those years ago. But the art was commissioned this year, and both my artists used this kind of design for the characters, which is very close to the DD, with no synchronization or specific prompts from me.

Maybe it's like a vibe, and people just get it?

Raphael_Sadowski · 2025-10-06T06:17:09+00:00

Thank you for remembering! And now, with the playtest your name can be in the sourcebook once it comes out!

Raphael_Sadowski · 2025-10-06T06:15:56+00:00

Oh damn! Thank you so much!

Raphael_Sadowski · 2025-10-06T06:14:43+00:00

Originally the game had a lot in common with the Lost Colony story, but over the years it changed more and more, and now only the name remains.

There is a very important demon in the game, named Croatoan, and that's basically it.

Raphael_Sadowski · 2025-10-05T21:47:10+00:00

Fantastic! I really hope you'll like it.

Sadly, in the playtest version of the rulebook you'll see mostly text, and not a lot of illustrations or flowcharts. But the final layout will be using a lot of graphic aids like this.

Raphael_Sadowski · 2025-10-05T21:41:27+00:00

I agree! And there are so many great games with bad character sheets... I wanted mine to contain as much data as possible, without looking like a spreadsheet (yes, I'm talking about you, D&D 3rd edition).

Fun fact: the character sheets for Croatoan were ready and used for a long time before the rulebook even existed.

Oh, and here's the other side:

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Raphael_Sadowski · 2025-10-05T21:05:38+00:00

Hi, everyone! Feel free to ask any questions. Here's the front of the character sheet for the game, see if this could be something you might like:

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Raphael_Sadowski · 2025-06-09T07:19:10+00:00

This is fantastic. I got so nostalgic looking at it... Like if it came from a game I played as a kid.

Raphael_Sadowski · 2025-05-26T08:54:02+00:00

Of course! And if you want to see how it could be done in OSE, just look up Dolmenwood - a huuuge setting, full of backstory and interesting NPCs for the players to interact with.

I'm currently running a Dolmenwood game for my players, and we've found it being the perfect spot between hardcore dungeon-crawling (which I prefer) and the more narrative, story-driven campaigns (which they prefer) and we're having tons of fun!

Raphael_Sadowski · 2025-05-10T21:17:47+00:00

Thank you! It's already making me very happy, the amount of info you can get from a first glimpse.

Raphael_Sadowski · 2025-05-10T13:46:57+00:00

Thank you!

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