Zenopus Archives: Holmes Basic website & blog - updates
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Post Posted: Mon Sep 24, 2018 6:46 pm 
 

Well, being virtuous does make one more beautiful.

At least, that's how it works in my mind.  :wink:

But, some question my mind, so there it is.  :mrgreen:



When my mind starts to answer, we're in for big problem city.


Art of dragons doing what dragons do. Site of a friend. Dragonstuff

  


Verbose Collector

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Post Posted: Mon Nov 26, 2018 11:19 am 
 

The Tales of Peril Book Club has returned. Here are the most recent posts, the third of which was posted today.

Scene 5: "The Ancients Worked on a Grand Scale"

Scene 6: "A Map of the Dungeons Explored So Far"

Scene 7: "The Grisly Business of Swallowing the Corpses"

The posts for Scenes 6 and 7 show portions of Holmes' original dungeon maps that correspond to parts of the story!

Here is one of them:
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Zenopus Archives website & blog: Exploring the Underworld of Holmes Basic D&D. Holmes Ref: Reference Sheets for Holmes Basic Referees, also compatible with OD&D plus the Greyhawk supplement

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Verbose Collector

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Post Posted: Thu Apr 18, 2019 4:02 pm 
 

I've created a second blog that archives the posts made to the Holmes Basic G+ Community from 2012-2019.

Fomal Announcement on the Zenopus Archive blog: What is this Archive?

Direct link to the new Holmes Basic G+ Community Archive blog


Zenopus Archives website & blog: Exploring the Underworld of Holmes Basic D&D. Holmes Ref: Reference Sheets for Holmes Basic Referees, also compatible with OD&D plus the Greyhawk supplement

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Verbose Collector

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Post Posted: Tue Jul 02, 2019 12:32 am 
 

Here are d12 wandering hauntings that might be encountered in your Zenopus Dungeon:

ZENOPUS ARCHIVES: d12 Hauntings in the Dungeon of Zenopus


Zenopus Archives website & blog: Exploring the Underworld of Holmes Basic D&D. Holmes Ref: Reference Sheets for Holmes Basic Referees, also compatible with OD&D plus the Greyhawk supplement

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Verbose Collector

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Post Posted: Fri Jul 19, 2019 10:11 am 
 

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I'm the guest on the latest episode of the old school Dungeons & Dragon podcast Save or Die!

The link below is to a post on my blog with a link to the show along with links to articles for further reading and to other Save or Die! episodes of interest:

ZENOPUS ARCHIVES: Save or Die! Podcast #154


Zenopus Archives website & blog: Exploring the Underworld of Holmes Basic D&D. Holmes Ref: Reference Sheets for Holmes Basic Referees, also compatible with OD&D plus the Greyhawk supplement

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Post Posted: Sun Jul 28, 2019 10:56 pm 
 

Zenopus, I am downloading this podcast so I can listen during my commute. Did I see correctly that this episode is 1 hour 47 minutes? Thanks again for posting.
:D

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Verbose Collector

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Post Posted: Fri Aug 02, 2019 12:21 am 
 

You're welcome. It is 1:47. Though the last half or so is Carl running the other two DMs through an exploration of the Zenopus dungeon. They recorded that separately from the rest of the chat.


Zenopus Archives website & blog: Exploring the Underworld of Holmes Basic D&D. Holmes Ref: Reference Sheets for Holmes Basic Referees, also compatible with OD&D plus the Greyhawk supplement

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Verbose Collector

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Post Posted: Tue Aug 06, 2019 1:17 pm 
 

A new blog post describing a newly found letter by a 16-year-old Holmes to a pulp in 1946, with his many suggestions for classic stories they should reprint:

Holmes' 1946 Letter to a Pulp

Many thanks to Malchor77 (member here) for finding this artifact!


Zenopus Archives website & blog: Exploring the Underworld of Holmes Basic D&D. Holmes Ref: Reference Sheets for Holmes Basic Referees, also compatible with OD&D plus the Greyhawk supplement

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Verbose Collector

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Post Posted: Fri Jan 24, 2020 1:54 pm 
 

The blog has been fairly quiet the last six months or so because I've been working on a conversion of the Zenopus Dungeon to 5E D&D. It's finally out on DMs Guild!

The Ruined Tower of Zenopus: A Conversion (DMs Guild Link).

Read more about it here:
ZENOPUS ARCHIVES: The Ruined Tower of Zenopus 5E on DMs Guild


Zenopus Archives website & blog: Exploring the Underworld of Holmes Basic D&D. Holmes Ref: Reference Sheets for Holmes Basic Referees, also compatible with OD&D plus the Greyhawk supplement

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Verbose Collector

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Post Posted: Mon Feb 10, 2020 1:40 pm 
 

Two reviews of the Ruined Tower of Zenopus, which has hit Silver seller status on DMs Guild and is climbing towards Electrum!

A review on the oldschoolfrp Tumblr:

I bought this and gave it a first read-through.  It is an excellent conversion of one of my favorite classic low level adventures, updated for 5e.  There are some new monster stat blocks and minor magic items, a little town map on a peninsula (which makes it easier to locate the town on almost any coastline), options for expanding some areas, notes on factions, rumors, and ways to tie Portown to Saltmarsh, plus even 4 pre-gen PCs. Check it out.

A review by Erik Jensen on Twitter:

Finally had the time to read The Ruined Tower of Zenopus: link @zenopusarchives has done an AMAZING job with this 5e update of the Holmes sample dungeon,

It's a solid dungeon using the classic map, but it's more than that.  It's a great campaign starter for 5e with old-school sensibilities and trappings.  It has new 5e monsters and items.  Zach gives us 1st-level pregens.

Tips for situating the thing as part of 'Ghosts of Saltmarsh' to turn the beginning of that campaign into a sandbox.  You want old-school?  A nice rumor table.  A delineation of the factions in the dungeon.  A list of classic AppN stories that probably inspired Holmes' dungeon.

'The Ruined Tower of Zenopus' is, stunningly, only $1.99.  If you're a 5e DM, pick it up and put it in your go bag.  If you're an old-school DM, pick it up and see what Zach did with this baby, you'll appreciate it.  Strongly recommended, looking forward to using it myself.


Zenopus Archives website & blog: Exploring the Underworld of Holmes Basic D&D. Holmes Ref: Reference Sheets for Holmes Basic Referees, also compatible with OD&D plus the Greyhawk supplement

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Verbose Collector

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Post Posted: Fri Feb 21, 2020 8:54 am 
 

This past Sunday was the 90th anniversary of J. Eric Holmes' birthday!

A few days ago I took stock of my Holmes-related activities over the past year, and a few that are upcoming:

Holmes Day 2020

And today I've written a post about the games I'm running at Gary Con this year:

Gary Con XII games that I'm running


Zenopus Archives website & blog: Exploring the Underworld of Holmes Basic D&D. Holmes Ref: Reference Sheets for Holmes Basic Referees, also compatible with OD&D plus the Greyhawk supplement

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Verbose Collector

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Post Posted: Sat Mar 07, 2020 3:13 pm 
 

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FYI, I will be a guest on the Wandering DMs live chat tomorrow at 1 PM EST with hosts Delta & Paul!

Their YT channel is here: http://youtube.com/wanderingdms

The twitter promo is here: WanderingDMs on Twitter: "Set your clocks right, because we've got Zach from @ZenopusArchives on the show tomorrow to talk about his smash-hit Ruined Tower of Zenopus on DM's Guild, and his unmatched knowledge of Holmes Basic #DnD (1 PM Sunday)"

ZENOPUS ARCHIVES: I will be a guest on Wandering DMs live chat tomorrow


Zenopus Archives website & blog: Exploring the Underworld of Holmes Basic D&D. Holmes Ref: Reference Sheets for Holmes Basic Referees, also compatible with OD&D plus the Greyhawk supplement

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Verbose Collector

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Post Posted: Wed Mar 11, 2020 10:41 pm 
 

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(updated image for the product site)

News:

The Ruined Tower of Zenopus goes Electrum on DMs Guild!


Zenopus Archives website & blog: Exploring the Underworld of Holmes Basic D&D. Holmes Ref: Reference Sheets for Holmes Basic Referees, also compatible with OD&D plus the Greyhawk supplement

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Verbose Collector

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Post Posted: Thu Apr 02, 2020 1:28 am 
 

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A new Equipment Reference Sheet for Holmes Ref! Read more on the blog & find the link for download (free 1-page pdf):

Holmes Ref Equipment Sheet


Zenopus Archives website & blog: Exploring the Underworld of Holmes Basic D&D. Holmes Ref: Reference Sheets for Holmes Basic Referees, also compatible with OD&D plus the Greyhawk supplement

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Post Posted: Fri Apr 03, 2020 11:05 pm 
 

Was looking for something that was listed in electrum and luckily I found the pint of ale!
Cheers

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Verbose Collector

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Post Posted: Mon Apr 06, 2020 3:41 pm 
 

Yeah, electrum needs to be used more often! Or order two mugs and pay 1 gold.  8)

* * * * *

Something completely different for today:

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A portrait of Holmes in an imagined study, drawn by fan David Crawford!

Read more here:
ZENOPUS ARCHIVES: Holmes Portrait by David Crawford


Zenopus Archives website & blog: Exploring the Underworld of Holmes Basic D&D. Holmes Ref: Reference Sheets for Holmes Basic Referees, also compatible with OD&D plus the Greyhawk supplement

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Post Posted: Sun Apr 12, 2020 7:25 pm 
 

Very nice drawing!!

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Verbose Collector

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Post Posted: Tue Apr 14, 2020 11:04 am 
 

Image

A possible influence on Sutherland's red dragon on the cover of the Holmes Basic Set:

Smaug vs the Sutherland Dragon


Zenopus Archives website & blog: Exploring the Underworld of Holmes Basic D&D. Holmes Ref: Reference Sheets for Holmes Basic Referees, also compatible with OD&D plus the Greyhawk supplement

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