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.
Successful thieves need a fence—someone willing to buy and sell their ill-gotten gains. Like their customers, such folk must keep their true business secret, and thus, they often openly practise some other legitimate trade.
A free GM’s Resource for any fantasy roleplaying game.
Merchants, traders, artisans, and some ordinary folk, need somewhere to store their bulky goods. Some own their own warehouses, while others hire the requisite space on a temporary basis.
A free GM’s Resource for any fantasy roleplaying game.
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.
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!
Citadel on the Wilderlands is a flavour-rich 5e mini-campaign setting designed for low-level characters intent on wilderness exploration and dungeon delving. Designed to be easy to prepare and easy to run, Citadel on the Wilderlands is perfect for GMs who don’t have unending time to prep for the next session.
Read MoreAtavistic warriors dwelling in the inner reaches of Ashlar’s Salt Mire, the Coiled Serpent tribe worship Yig—Father of Serpents—who they believe will one day consume the world. The Coiled Serpent tribe numbers about 100 or so individuals and they are an insular folk happiest when ignored by their human neighbours.
A free GM’s Resource for any fantasy roleplaying game.
Read MoreOne or more blacksmiths can be found in any settlement of note—and many of those without note. Forging the myriad finished metal goods the populace needs to live, smiths are often respected, comparatively wealthy members of the community. Some can even fashion simple weapons.
A free GM’s Resource for any fantasy roleplaying game.
Read MoreThere are always those willing to profit from the most odious of all trades—slaving—and to grow wealthy from other people’s misery. Most of the smugglers lurking in the dismal coastal village of Coldwater are nothing more than smugglers.
A free GM’s Resource for any fantasy roleplaying game.
Read MoreAt global HQ, Citadel on the Wilderlands is now in the home development strait (it’s been a long but satisfying process), and our attention begins to turn to the second 2024 update of Shadowed Keep on the Borderlands—adding the Shunned Valley of the Three Tombs in the 5e, OSR and Pathfinder 1 editions! We’ve also got some rather spiffing Ashlar updates on the way for September and October!
Read MorePlayhouses exist to entertain and sometimes educate the masses. Herein can be found jugglers, bards, singers, actors, playwrights and more. Some playhouses are magnets for those with nefarious intent, while others offer additional entertainments to favoured (or wealthy) customers.
A free GM’s Resource for any fantasy roleplaying game.
Read MoreA shadow of their former greatness, the Orcs of the Severed Hand tribe lurk beneath the numberless boughs of the southern forests. Once a mighty and feared tribe, the Severed Hand has never recovered from its war with the retired adventurer Valentin Ironwolf.
A free GM’s Resource for any fantasy roleplaying game.
Read MoreAre you a busy GM? Does session prep take too long? Do you never have time to work on the cool little details that can bring your adventures to life? These focused lists give you, the time-crunched GM, the tools to effortlessly add verisimilitude and detail to your urban adventures.
A free GM’s Resource for any fantasy roleplaying game.
Read MoreThe past rarely stays buried forever, and forgotten and forbidden things have a way of finding their way back into the light.
A free GM’s Resource for any fantasy roleplaying game.
Read MoreAt global HQ, Citadel on the Wilderlands is in the final development strait. This project—the first in a series of three—has been in the making for almost two years. If you need a new self-contained mini-campaign setting for an upcoming game, look no further!
Read MoreSlaves of their tentacled master, the Troglodytes of the Ebon Lake creep through the eternal darkness of their home searching for both new ways to reach the surface and for discarded remnants of the ancient civilisation that raised their cyclopean home millennia ago.
A free GM’s Resource for any fantasy roleplaying game.
Read MoreAre you a busy GM? Does session prep take too long? Do you never have time to work on the cool little details that can bring your adventures to life? These focused lists give you, the time-crunched GM, the tools to effortlessly add verisimilitude and detail to your urban adventures.
A free GM’s Resource for any fantasy roleplaying game.
Read MoreTowns and cities produce large amounts of waste. To keep the population healthy and the streets relatively clean, a place to dispose of all that rubbish is essential.
A free GM’s Resource for any fantasy roleplaying game.
Read MoreSummer is in the air. Finally.
Read MoreThe bugbears of the Frozen Tears are believed by many to be demons. Astride their glacier toads, they prowl the frigid passes of the White Cliffs, hunting for unwary travellers.
A free GM’s Resource for any fantasy roleplaying game.
Read MoreRarely does a thieves’ guild advertise its presence. Rather, the thieves work secretly in the shadows and use legitimate businesses as fronts to hide their nefarious doings.
A free GM’s Resource for any fantasy roleplaying game.
Read MoreOnce the last friendly place in the so-called Valley of Tears the Hall of Nuraduum is now known by a different name of far more sinister demeanour—the Cursed Refuge. Some travellers who pass through its stone door do not emerge again, while others tell terrifying stories of the nameless horrors they encounter in the enduring dark of the old dwarven fastness. Persistent rumours tell of old treasures hidden in the place, and a few old dwarves dream of reclaiming the refuge—so that at least a fragment of long-fallen Vongyth may again be held by dwarves. Will the characters dare the rumour-shrouded refuge, or will they flee the horrors that yet lurk within?
A free GM’s Resource for any fantasy roleplaying game.
Read MoreFor centuries, the adherents of a strange cult have harvested the skulls of learned folk and interred them in the so-called Halls of the Undying Oracles. Thus, their knowledge is safeguarded for future generations. Now an earthquake has severely damaged the Halls. Was it a natural event, divine punishment for the cult’s blasphemous works, or is something more sinister going on?
A free GM’s Resource for any fantasy roleplaying game.
Read MoreWith GM's Miscellany: Wilderness Dressing in the world we turn our attention to Dungeon Backdrops in May!
Read MoreEqually renowned for their battle skills and mercenary hearts, the warriors of the Mailed Fist serve anyone with sufficient coin. Heavily armoured, disciplined and well-trained, those who stand below the Mailed Fist's banner are formidable fighters capable of great slaughter. High above, their winged cavalry—elite warriors and battlecasters astride gigantic black bats—hurl missiles and spells down upon their hapless foes.
A free GM’s Resource for any fantasy roleplaying game.
Read More
How can Raging Swan Press help you have more gaming fun?