I thought Holmes fans might find this issue interesting.

I thought Holmes fans might find this issue interesting. Caverns of Temeluc, the featured adventure in this issue of Dungeon Crawl, is a B1-style module with separate room descriptions, monster listings and treasure items. It is also 100% Holmes compatible, complete with monster Dexterity scores!
http://initiativeone.blogspot.com/2013/03/dungeon-crawl-2-available-from-lulu.html

What came first, Appendix N in the Gygax's AD&D DMG or the list of "inspirational reading" in the Moldvay's D&D...

What came first, Appendix N in the Gygax's AD&D DMG or the list of "inspirational reading" in the Moldvay's D&D Basic Set? I am asking this here because the Holmes experts (I don't have a copy, shame on me!) should be able to tell me if there's a list of literary sources in Holmes' Basic Set already? (Maybe I should also ask the OD&D crowd since I don't own a copy of that either, more shame on me I guess.)

BLUEHOLME™ Compleat Rules status report:

BLUEHOLME™ Compleat Rules status report:
http://dreamscapedesign.net/2013/03/30/blueholme-complete-rules/

Tidbit from the latest Dwimmermount Kickstarter backer update:

Tidbit from the latest Dwimmermount Kickstarter backer update:

"Autarch will develop a local map of the region between the town and dungeon. This will be similar in scale to the one in B2: Keep on the Borderlands, where an entry might mark the hut of a single mad hermit, and will zoom in on a few of the six-mile hexes of Rob Conley's existing wilderness map."

This jumped out at me because this week I've been working on a table for Holmes Ref that provides for random generation of an Area Map on the scale of Keep on the Borderlands (1 square = 100 yards).

ZENOPUS ARCHIVES: Holmes Ref: Current Contents

http://zenopusarchives.blogspot.com/2013/03/holmes-ref-current-contents.html

Here's a preview of Holmes Ref - a portion of the table for random magic items.

Here's a preview of Holmes Ref - a portion of the table for random magic items. The idea is to take the Holmes tables and make them more expansive. For example, "Ring" powers are not necessarily limited to an item in the shape of a ring. (The link will take you directly to a post in a thread on OD&D Discussion where the screenshot is posted)
http://odd74.proboards.com/index.cgi?action=display&board=workshop&thread=8634&page=1#116226

Please welcome Christopher Yoder (aka Clangador) - the 100th member of the Holmes Basic G+ community!

The project I'm working on, which was to be a supplement to play Delving Deeper in a Holmes-like fashion, will now...

The project I'm working on, which was to be a supplement to play Delving Deeper in a Holmes-like fashion, will now be an independent OGL Holmes expansion. The working title is now Holmes Ref, as it will be reference table heavy in the manner of the JG Ready Ref sheets. It will serve as a Holmes expansion, which I hope will re-released on pdf soon, or be usable on its own if you already familiar with the game, much as you can mostly play OD&D using just the Ready Ref sheets. It will also still be generally usable as a supplement to play Delving Deeper (or OD&D) in Holmes-like fashion, but won't make specific reference to it.

For more explanation see here (the project was formerly known as "Perilous Mazes"):
http://odd74.proboards.com/index.cgi?action=display&board=delvingdeeper&thread=7947&page=2#116134

Thread by SBLaxman on Dragonsfoot attempting to catalog all of the sources (myths, Gygax, etc) for the monsters in...

Thread by SBLaxman on Dragonsfoot attempting to catalog all of the sources (myths, Gygax, etc) for the monsters in the Monster Manual. This has been done before to some degree but this one is turning into a very comprehensive list.
http://www.dragonsfoot.org/forums/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=60560

ZENOPUS ARCHIVES: Obscure Art Friday: Sphere of Doom by Greg Bell

http://zenopusarchives.blogspot.com/2013/03/obscure-art-friday-sphere-of-doom-by.html

Comment I just left:

Comment I just left:
"The Sample Dungeon in the Holmes Basic Set has a 4th level magic-user as one of the BBGs, but he doesn't have Sleep spell. So I think Holmes recognized that this spell is a TPK-in-the-waiting if you give it to NPC MUs."
http://www.tenkarstavern.com/2013/03/the-sleep-spell-where-there-is-no-save.html

Some updated discussion of the putative "True First" of the Holmes Basic Set, which has a blank-bottom box (no...

Some updated discussion of the putative "True First" of the Holmes Basic Set, which has a blank-bottom box (no picture). It's been confirmed by a member who has a shrink-wrapped copy (formerly owned by Brian Blume) that this version came with dice in the box.
http://www.acaeum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=209239#p209239

From Sacnoth's Scriptorium (blog of former TSR employee John Rateliff):

From Sacnoth's Scriptorium (blog of former TSR employee John Rateliff):

"[Donald Wandrei's] "The Destroying Horde" [WEIRD TALES, 1935] seems to be the origin of the famed DUNGEONS AND DRAGONS monster 'the gelatinous cube' (deadly because perennially underestimated)."
http://sacnoths.blogspot.com/2013/03/weighed-and-found-wandrei.html

Possible Easter Egg...

Possible Easter Egg...
  #skullmountain #sampledungeon
http://zenopusarchives.blogspot.com/2013/03/lemunda-tiger-lily.html

For your DIY DM screens...

For your DIY DM screens...
http://zenopusarchives.blogspot.com/2013/03/holmes-od-reference-sheet.html

Skull Island from the 1933 movie King Kong.

Skull Island from the 1933 movie King Kong. The island has a large skull-shaped mountain & the page below has the best screenshot I could find of this. #skullmountain

https://web.archive.org/web/20130122035837/http://myeyeinthesky.net/2012/04/21/a-history-of-the-disembodied-head-ii-portals-and-passageways/

Zenopus note: As of 2019, this blog is gone. It is preserved on the Internet Archive, but without the images. I added the best screen capture from the internet I could find at this moment.

BLUEHOLME™ Compleat Rules update

Originally shared by Michael Thomas

As I am pounding my way through the expanded PART 3: SPELLS of the BLUEHOLME™ Compleat Rules, I note with considerable satisfaction that the BLUEHOLME™ Prentice Rules have gone well past the 1,000 downloads mark, with the Maze of Nuromen introductory module not far behind. I hope this means some old-school goodness is making its way to more gaming tables! All the more incentive to get the Compleat Rules finished and out on the virtual bookshelves, as if I needed any more incentive with the excellent new cover art staring at me from my monitor every day. Here’s a little sneak peek:

In OD&D creatures like gargoyles, werewolves and elementals are damaged by “magical” weapons.

In OD&D creatures like gargoyles, werewolves and elementals are damaged by “magical” weapons. It is not specified that these items must be +1 etc. This could be interpreted as allowing these creatures to be damaged by a sword -1, -2 etc. If so, a sword -1 could be very useful in certain combats if other magic items are not available.

A comment that I left here:
http://blogofholding.com/?p=5632

"The Secret of Skull Mountain", 1948, Hardy Boys #27

"The Secret of Skull Mountain", 1948, #27 in the original Hardy Boys series. Note the large skull on the top of the mountain. #skullmountain

Here's another Skull Mountain from a 1974 Horror Movie.

Here's another Skull Mountain from a 1974 Horror Movie. The movie poster illustration is certainly reminiscent of the Great Stone Skull on Stone Mountain. #skullmountain
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_House_on_Skull_Mountain

An origin story for a Skull Mountain

An origin story for a Skull Mountain, from the Wielding a Bohemian Earspoon blog: #skullmountain
http://panzerleader.wordpress.com/2013/03/13/ruined-fortress-of-the-evil-overlord/

A post from last year which just got a new comment from Paul Allan Ballard:

A post from last year which just got a new comment from Paul Allan Ballard:

"I had always assumed that lizard people (the one in your banner and on the Holmes introduction page) lived in the ruins of the Domed City. I wonder if I got that idea from the Marvel Comic? Interesting....

Of course I also had a giant electric crab (Think electric eel) in the 7th Level sea. I doubt that was in Howard's work."

#skullmountain
http://zenopusarchives.blogspot.com/2012/01/de-camps-great-stone-skull.html

I've followed the Strange Maps blog for years.

I've followed the Strange Maps blog for years. The following link may give you some ideas for creating a monster or two...

Peace...
http://bigthink.com/strange-maps/600-munsters-monster-mash?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+bigthink%2Fblogs%2Fstrange-maps+%28Strange+Maps%29

Table comparing the probabilities of rolling under an ability score using 3d6, 4d6 or 5d6 (with d20 for comparison).

Table comparing the probabilities of rolling under an ability score using 3d6, 4d6 or 5d6 (with d20 for comparison). Posted by IvanMike on Dragonsfoot in 2010. My group uses these checks and as a player I like them because it's always fun to roll a handful of dice, and there's heightened tension when the DM makes you make a 4d6 or 5d6 dice check.
http://www.dragonsfoot.org/forums/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=44537#p936629

A short playtest report from the Caverns of Temeluc, an adventure in B1 style (room key independent of monster and...

A short playtest report from the Caverns of Temeluc, an adventure in B1 style (room key independent of monster and treasure list) that will be appearing in Dungeon Crawl #2. A big thanks to everybody who helped give this a test run!
http://initiativeone.blogspot.com/2013/03/playtest-caverns-of-temeluc.html

There's been a site update at the Acaeum, including revisions to the Basic Set page.

There's been a site update at the Acaeum, including revisions to the Basic Set page. Newly listed is the "True First Print". Best available evidence indicates the Basic Set was first available at Origins III on July 22nd, 1977.
http://www.acaeum.com/ddindexes/setpages/basic.html

Often overlooked: in the LBBs, Clerics use Spell Books just like M-Us.

Often overlooked: in the LBBs, Clerics use Spell Books just like M-Us. Even the Greyhawk Supplement does not explicitly change this.

Discussed here:
http://odd74.proboards.com/index.cgi?action=display&board=delvingdeeper&thread=8129&page=1#114612

Discussion of the source of 5-point alignment vs 3-point alignment, started by Geoffrey, with some excellent...

Discussion of the source of 5-point alignment vs 3-point alignment, started by Geoffrey, with some excellent analysis by paleologos.
http://odd74.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=holmes&action=display&thread=8543

Thanks for adding me!

Thanks for adding me! Holmes was the first version of D&D I ever played and holds a special place for me. Been thinking of an old adventure I created for Stone Skull Mountain back in the early 80's and hoping to revisit it soon. And thank you for all the awesome work on the ZA website.

A list previously posted on the ZA website, from before I started the blog.

A list previously posted on the ZA website, from before I started the blog.
http://zenopusarchives.blogspot.com/2013/03/gygax-on-holmes.html

"As a matter of fact I sometimes want to play a level-based game myself because of the anticipation"

"As a matter of fact I sometimes want to play a level-based game myself because of the anticipation"

-Gary Gygax, 2/27/08, part of his last post (of 3,606) on Dragonsfoot

(Gary passed away 5 years ago today)
http://www.dragonsfoot.org/forums/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=26368&p=529026#p529026

Interesting find

Interesting find

Originally shared by Robert Miller

A Holmes Basic boxed set with uncut chits is up for sale on eBay:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/130861382553?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1558.l2649
http://www.ebay.com/itm/130861382553?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1558.l2649

I was just asked about the Holmes' stories that are in Alarums&Excursions.

I was just asked about the Holmes' stories that are in Alarums&Excursions. Does anyone know if they were ever printed elsewhere?

My discussion of two different interpretations of the Morale system in OD&D, which is described in Men & Magic and...

My discussion of two different interpretations of the Morale system in OD&D, which is described in Men & Magic and in a FAQ in a 1975 Strategic Review. One uses a Morale score like in B/X (but rolled randomly for each monster/individual), the other uses the Reaction Table from Men & Magic.
http://www.dragonsfoot.org/forums/viewtopic.php?f=88&t=60226#p1339121

Recent blog post from our newest member, Thaumiel Nerub:

Recent blog post from our newest member, Thaumiel Nerub:

"The base of these rules would be from BLUEHOLME (Holmes edition clone) because it's super clear and simple and it would be easy to add all those additional rules. Also BLUEHOLME is a small book, so the core of this universal retro system would be fast to create."
http://cradleofrabies.blogspot.com/2013/02/planning-to-create-core-retro-clone.html