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!
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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!
Slavers 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 MoreWithin wizard’s towers, terrible, eldritch deeds are wrought and strange, otherworldly research is carried out to its logical, but sometimes unwise, conclusion. Such arcane works leave their mark on the fabric of the place.
Read MoreSome urban landmarks are only notable in the immediate locality. The landmarks below could appear in virtually any village, town or city.
Read MoreEvery town and city has landmarks great and small.
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 MoreStanding on Selka Street, this rowdy inn is a favoured haunt of adventurers, mercenaries and other rough and ready sorts. Run by the grizzled ex-mercenary Rister Osma the place offers cheap, no-frills food, drink and accommodation.
Read MoreLurking twixt the crag-jagged hills south of Dunstone sit the ruined remains of an old dwarven fortress-temple. Rusted helms and broken blades jut from the surrounding soil like cast-off husks of iron grain, betraying the area’s violent history.
Read MoreDeep within the tangled mangroves and bottomless pools of noisome swamps black dragons lair in sunken ruins of miasmic evil.
Read MoreThe leavings of many civilisations dot the land. Such places are often a magnet for minions of evil. Bandits, marauding humanoids or other—more terrible and ferocious—monsters can be found lairing in such locales.
Read MoreThe leavings of many civilisations dot the land. Such places are often a magnet for minions of evil. Bandits, marauding humanoids or other—more terrible and ferocious—monsters can be found lairing in such locales.
Read MoreAdventurers often need henchfolk and hirelings to round out their party. Often, however, such folk end up being nothing more than one-dimensional fighters, clerics or whatever.
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 MoreAdventurers often need henchfolk and hirelings to round out their party. Often, however, such folk end up being nothing more than one-dimensional fighters, clerics or whatever.
Read MoreNestled in a deep valley, sunlight has never caressed centuried Shroudhaven. Thick fog—rendered permanent by ancient magics—fills the valley. Here, refugees from a long-forgotten war found sanctuary from their enemies. Most villagers are undead, and a dark reputation hangs over the village. Visitors to the village, though, tell a different story. They speak of the undead battling their basest urges and trying to live peaceful lives.
Read MoreFor much of its life, the village of Arcmoor was a sleepy place, far removed from the doings of heroes, kings and warlords. All that changed, however, when an orcish horde was destroyed near the village by the hero Therald Arcmoor. Therald died at the moment of his greatest triumph, and his death—strangely—heralded great change in the village. A shrine raised in his honour has grown increasingly popular of late and Arcmoor is slowly being transformed from a sleepy backwater into a popular destination for pilgrims, visiting warriors and the like.
Read MoreWhite Moon Cove is a respectable fishing town located in a cove which acts as an excellent, natural harbour. The inhabitants of this tightly-knit community are sober, hardworking and amiable fishermen, traders and other sturdy folk making their living from the sea.
Read MoreThe Mottled Spire’s wild, rugged uplands lie beyond the Selka River. Crumbling ruins and abandoned mines—the leavings of civilisation’s ebbing tide—dot the hills. One such place is the isolated wind-blasted ruin of Bleak Hill Manor.
Read MoreBuried deep in the snow and ice a white dragon’s frigid lair is a terrifying locale.
Read MoreAncient ruins, lost mines and strange burial sites often lurk in the hilly wilderness areas bordering civilised lands. Adventure lies in such places.
Read MoreAncient ruins, lost mines and strange burial sites often lurk in the hilly wilderness areas bordering civilised lands. Adventure lies in such places.
Read More
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.