Welcome to the Raging Swan Press blog. Herein you’ll find resource and advice articles to make your game better. From time to time, we’ll also post exciting Raging Swan Press news!
Check out our recent posts, many of which include free downloads, or visit the Archive to browse all our blog posts.
Normally places for the poor or the penny-wise, boarding houses offer lodgings and food; most such places offer only the barest of essentials to their guests.
A free GM’s Resource for any fantasy roleplaying game.
Far below the sunlit surface lie places and things undreamt of by decent commonfolk. Some such things have never seen the light of day, while others have escaped into the Underlands to escape the hated sun.
A free GM’s Resource for any fantasy roleplaying game.
It’s no secret that at Raging Swan Press, we are big fans of dressed dungeons. A dressed dungeon feels more real than an undressed dungeon. A dressed dungeon engages your players’ imaginations, promotes creative play and helps them immerse themselves in the adventure.
It’s always the perfect time to game, and we hope you can find something below that will help you have more fun with your friends!
Small roadside shrines appear in many towns and cities. They venerate important saints, local deities, or gods without a formal church in the area and are often tended by a small group of dedicated lay worshippers.
A free GM’s Resource for any fantasy roleplaying game.
One or more stables can be found in any settlement of note—and many of those without note.
A free GM’s Resource for any fantasy roleplaying game.
At Raging Swan Press, we believe that games set in a richly detailed, immersive world are better than games that are not. It should come as no surprise that we are huge fans of dungeon dressing, but what exactly is dungeon dressing, and why do we keep going on about it?
With Citadel on the Wilderlands now out in the world, our attention turns to the Late 2024 edition of Shadowed Keep on the Borderlands and the Player's Guide to Citadel on the Wilderlands!
When your characters return from a successful adventure laden with loot their thoughts often turn to shopping. Curio shops, pawn shops and the like are ripe venues for browsing and haggling. Use these lists to add depth and verisimilitude to the curio shops, pawn shops and market stalls in your campaign.
Read MoreA horrible amalgamation of dragon, goat and lion, the bizarre chimera hunts to feed the urges of three monstrous beasts rolled into one. Use these lists, to add depth and flavour to the chimera dens in your campaign.
Read MoreSlavers and cannibals gnolls are a horror to fight, and even more terrible to be captured by. Vicious and lazy they wander the hills with their hyena pets looking for treasures to steal, carrion to feed upon and slaves to take back to their primitive camps.
Read MoreShunned by most, the witch is the taker of children, bringer of bad harvests and seducer of good men. Living apart from good honest folk, the witch plays on superstitions to create her terrifying reputation. Beware the dark woods…
Read MoreRuined castles are a classic adventure locale, particularly in borderland or contested regions. A castle’s lofty, crumbled walls and towers can hold many foul things (along with the treasure those foul things have accumulated). Use these tables, to add depth and verisimilitude to the ruined castles in your campaign.
Read MoreShunned by most, the witch is the taker of children, bringer of bad harvests and seducer of good men. Living apart from good honest folk the witch plays on superstitions to create a terrifying reputation. Beware the dark woods…
Read MoreWhether lurking unseen in the urban jungle or stalking the wilderness or ancient ruins, medusa are a terror to any that befall their stony gaze. Worshipped with adoration by some their cunning makes them truly terrifying enemies.
Read MoreAn evil fane should be so much more than a room featuring just a bloody altar (and some treasure). These are places of ineffable evil and as such deserve decent design time. But who has the time? Use these lists, to add depth and verisimilitude to the evil fanes in your campaign.
Read MorePerhaps the single most pervasive feature of a dungeon is its near perpetual darkness. Darkness creates a serious disadvantage for surface dwellers exploring a dungeon and a great advantage for its denizens.
Read MoreThe quintessential fort (or keep) on the borderland is a classic locale for neophyte adventurers to visit at the start of their careers. Using the fort as a base, they can explore the wilderness and know a safe haven lies nearby. Borderland forts are not featureless places devoid of interesting features and folk. They are living breathing places.
Use these lists to add depth and verisimilitude to the fort on the borderland in your campaign.
Read MoreFarming villages are often the site of neophyte adventurers first adventures, quests and tests (or at least the party's base from which they sally forth into the wildernes. Such locales often stand on or near danger-filled borderlands rife with opportunities for adventure. Use these lists, to breath life and detail into the farming villages in your campaign.
Read MoreMagic items should be wondrous objects, but these days they often seem to be relegated to nothing more than a commodity to be bought and sold like any other (expensive) item. That’s not right, and an evocative, flavoursome description of an item can help to reestablish the the sense of mystique and excitement that should surround such items.
Read MoreMagic items should be wondrous objects, but these days they often seem to be relegated to nothing more than a commodity to be bought and sold like any other (expensive) item. That’s not right, and an evocative, flavoursome description of an item can help to reestablish the the sense of mystique and excitement that should surround such items.
Read MoreSahuagin, the so-called sea-devils, are the bane of ships and coastal towns alike. Striking from their undersea kingdoms they raid the surface for slaves and treasure for their twisted religion or purely for the enjoyment of murder and destruction.
Read MoreThe ghoul is a creature of nightmare for any adventuring group. From the packs of mindless, carrion-eating undead to the ancient civilisations deep underground, screaming adulation to their sheep-headed god Orcus, all ghouls have one thing in common. An eternal, gnawing hunger that no amount flesh can ever sate.
Read MoreFrom well-dressed dandies to undercity scum you never know who covets your wealth from the shadows. Whether it’s through violence, trickery, misdirection or subterfuge they know a hundred ways to liberate gold from their victim’s pockets.
Read MoreOgres are generally stupid and brutish creatures, but they desire the safety and protection of a home.
Read MoreHavage, bestial creatures of rage and violence—minotaurs are terrifying enemies. Often solitary beasts haunting labyrinthine dungeons, or similar locales, they delight in hunting and terrorising their prey. Minotaurs are innately cunning—surprising given their bloodthirsty, atavistic tendencies—but employ straightforward, simple tactics in battle. Legends tell of their origins—of how the gods created them; most minotaurs, however, believe their roots to be more demonic.
Read MoreRuined cities are much more than a sea of rubble. Some places—major temples, towers and fortifications—will have survived in better conditions than others. In other places, the advanced decrepitude of the ruins create areas of heightened danger. Use this list, to add major features and the like into the characters’ exploration of a ruined city.
Read MoreHalf-woman, half-monster harpies are vicious, corrupt hunters driven by their insatiable desire to eat. They prefer intelligent prey and enjoy speaking and parleying with their meals. Dwelling in the world's wild and desolate places harpies are savage and utterly without remorse. They love shiny baubles and decorate their lairs with such. The stench of death and decay hang heavily over a harpy and her nest.
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Houses of worship and quiet contemplation stand in or near many settlements. Within, the occupants seek spiritual enlightenment in the service of their patron.
A free GM’s Resource for any fantasy roleplaying game.