DM Essentials #04: 10 Knightly Encounters

Stop Hiring Shiny Saviors. Start Navigating Martial Minefields.

In medieval  fantasy, a knight is often a walking trope—a shiny hero who saves damsels for free and follows a code of "being nice." They are static, predictable, and devoid of the weight of the world. That is a fairytale trope that kills the tension of a grounded campaign. Your players deserve a world where steel is expensive, honor is a currency, and a knight is a monopoly on violence.

DM Essentials #04 is a surgical tool designed to strip away the myths of chivalry and reveal the "Pure Steel" of the martial class. In an authentic, grounded world, a Knight is an expensive military asset and a social predator. They are the heavy cavalry of the feudal machine, often trapped between the crushing debt of their equipment and the brutal expectations of their lineage. They aren't waiting for a quest; they are busy litigating land disputes, collecting back-rent from starving serfs, and maintaining a veneer of etiquette over a reality of blood.

What’s Inside?

• The Martial Ecosystem: A deep dive into the "Historian’s Eye" on the knightly class. Understand the Knight as a "Tank, Not a Toy." Explore the astronomical cost of plate armour, the reality of "Chivalry" as a medieval HR policy to control violent men, and the rise of Militant Orders as the world's first international bankers.

• The 10 Knightly Encounters: Ten hyper-detailed, psychologically rich interactions that challenge the players' ethics and survival instincts. Each entry includes:

  • The Surface Interaction: The chivalric facade or martial challenge the players witness.

  • The Surgical Truth: The hidden logistical rot, PTSD, or financial desperation driving the knight.

  • The Pivot: Targeted 5E Skill Checks to navigate the social friction or trigger a skirmish.

• The Martial Powder Keg d10 Table: A quick-reference tool to instantly drop a bankrupt sir, a zealot auditor, or a "false" knight into your session.

The "Pure Steel" Difference

We don't do "Shiny Hero" tropes. We do Historical Weight.

• The Bankrupt Knight isn't selling his warhorse because he’s greedy; he’s selling his "status" and his only means of defense to buy medicine for a dying sister.

• The Zealot Banker isn't looking for heretics; he’s a "Military Accountant" auditing a village to foreclose on a spiritual debt that will bankrupt the entire region.

• The Cruel Chivalrist isn't just a bully; he’s a "Code-Shark" using the obscure laws of etiquette to legally rob travelers who fail to bow correctly.

Product Specifications:

• System: 5E Compatible (Tier 1-2 focus).

• Setting: Agnostic (Grounded Medieval Fantasy).

• Use Case: Perfect for "Roadside Friction," military drama, or adding social gravity to a noble's retinue.

ENTER THE ARCVERSE

This is more than a $1.99 download. It is your invitation to the Arclands. We build worlds with soul, from the rain-slicked rooftops of Nova City to the mythic, grim-fantasy peaks of Northrealm.

[👉 CLICK HERE TO EXPLORE THE ARCVERSE CATALOGUE]
Join the ranks of DMs who have moved beyond the slop. Get the Ultimate Collection and lock in your Legacy Discount today.

The Council’s Tactical Note:
A Knight without a lord is just a bandit with better manners. Use this tool to give your martial class the edge they deserve. Flick the switch.

Our team voted for 2026 to make Catacombs a primary focus. This set is the result of that choice and our continuing effort to expand our Catacombs terrain with OpenLOCK base options. We made our bones with Catacombs and it was one of the first sets that brought us fans. The work will continue, at least until we receive an acceptance letter from the École des Mines de Paris.

 Thank you for your support of Aether Studios. We can’t tell you how much we appreciate the place you’ve saved for us at your table.

Our team voted for 2026 to make Catacombs a primary focus. This set is the result of that choice and our continuing effort to expand our Catacombs terrain with OpenLOCK base options. We made our bones with Catacombs and it was one of the first sets that brought us fans. The work will continue, at least until we receive an acceptance letter from the École des Mines de Paris.

 Thank you for your support of Aether Studios. We can’t tell you how much we appreciate the place you’ve saved for us at your table.

Our team voted for 2026 to make Catacombs a primary focus. This set is the result of that choice and our continuing effort to expand our Catacombs terrain with OpenLOCK base options. We made our bones with Catacombs and it was one of the first sets that brought us fans. The work will continue, at least until we receive an acceptance letter from the École des Mines de Paris.

 Thank you for your support of Aether Studios. We can’t tell you how much we appreciate the place you’ve saved for us at your table.

Dare the Realm of the Sauvage King!

In the heart of Logres, an enchanted wood festers and grows. It is the realm of Madog, King of the Forest Sauvage, and it holds many great perils… and strange wonders. Many who venture beneath its nighted boughs are never heard from again. How will you fare?

What’s Inside?

Pendragon: The Sauvage King is a campaign expansion for Pendragon, offering a wellspring of adventures to play and settings to explore as part of an ongoing campaign.

The Forest Sauvage

A massive sandbox-style adventure, The Forest Sauvage plays differently every time the Player-knights enter. It is a wild realm that will test the Player-knights mettle with its fairy beasts, witches and enchanters, demon-spawned knights, and cursed castles.

Launch a New Campaign…

“The Adventure of Black Annis” and “The Adventure of the Salisbury Hare” are one-shot scenarios designed to be played in a single session. They are perfect for launching a new campaign.

…Or Enrich an Existing one!

“The Adventure of the White Horse Vale,” promises an evening the Player-knights will not soon forget, and the possibility of earning blessings from the Goddess of Horses herself. This adventure can be slated into any ongoing Pendragon campaign. Additionally, Pendragon: The Sauvage King contains three random adventure generators that enable the Gamemaster to create encounters with strange knights, damsels in distress, or mysterious magicians on the fly, or as the seed for a scenario of their own design.

The Pendragon: Core Rulebook or the Pendragon: Starter Set are required to use this book. The contents of this book can be enhanced with the Pendragon: Gamemaster’s Handbook.

This gamebook is available for this price until February 5th 11 AM US Eastern time.

Demons & Dungeoneers! Shagrock Tunnels (Solo Adventure) Regular price: 0 Bundle price: 0 Format: PDF

Salutations! May good fortunes always find you! If you are unsure about purchasing a Demons & Dungeoneers gamebook, download the very first one I wrote for free - Demons & Dungeoneers! The Dragonslayer. That way you can see if it is right for you.  Demons & Dungeoneers! Shagrock Tunnels is a gamebook using a classical sword & sorcery story. You will need a 6-sided die or generator to play the game.  Inside the PDF downloads: - You can choose from 6 pre-made dungeoneers of which each has individual (fillable) character sheets eliminating the need to use a pencil and eraser to play the game.  - The gamebook is hyperlinked after each action for your convenience. - There are over 230 beautifully drawn illustrations by various professional artists. - There are only 4 page...

Leveling up a characrter should be more than erasing one number and wirting another and that's why I wrote Shadowdark Fighters: Earning The Blade.This resource takes each fighter title, Lawful, Chaotic and Neutral, and gives the GM a process to give the PC more depth and an opportunity to expand their world.

Each title is earned and fleshed out with 

- a requirement

- a review (the judges) 

- a rite

- a reward

I also offer options for expanding a PCs renown and what happens if they fail their rite. 

Refugees speak of clicking sounds in the night, of cattle vanishing into the undergrowth, and of webs thick as ropes strangling the trees. Thousands of spiders of all sizes swarm across the land. You must find the Brood Queen and end this infestation. Grab a pencil, paper, and two dice. They will be your sole companions for this adventure. NO OTHER PURCHASE NECESSARY.

NOT RECOMMENDED FOR ARACHNOPHOBES.

The system: All rolls in the game are “roll under the relevant Attribute on 2d6.” Want to wound a foe? Roll Might or less. Want to spot a clue? Roll Intelligence or less. Want to dodge an attack or climb a tree? Roll Dexterity or less. Want to get information or a good deal from an NPC? Roll Charisma or less. Maps are generated randomly on a blank hex sheet.

A wealth of treasures awaits you, readers and roleplayers, as Heroes of Action and Wonder! offers new Archetypes — the Antihero, Berserker, and Shapeshifter; new Cinematics — including Forced Perspective, Lawyer’s Nightmare, and Studio Notes; and a full campaign structure for crossovers among the various They Came From games!

This is a book crammed with content for Players and Directors alike. Heroes of Action and Wonder! is a sourcebook for They Came from [CLASSIFIED]! and They Came from the Cyclops’s Cave!, but it can be used as a companion for any They Came From book.

This book uses the Storypath System.

HEROES OF ACTION AND WONDER! INCLUDES:

• The Antihero, Berserker, and Shapeshifter Archetypes! 
• New Cinematics, Quips, Origins, Covers, and Quests!
• A new, crossover-specific antagonist to sink your swords and bullets into!
• Story hooks and a full campaign structure for games incorporating elements from two or more They Came From games!

Also available now from Onyx Path Publishing:

They Came from [CLASSIFIED]!

Listen up, agent. We’ve secured firm intelligence that agents of SMERSH, PHANTOM, STENCH, and similarly inclined villainous alphabet groups intend to execute some damned rotten deeds from all corners of the globe, and it’s up to stalwart, queen and country types like you to stop them!

We’ll be outfitting you with a top-of-the-line Aston Martin (with machine guns just above the headlights), the finest in Italian suits (with knockout gas in the lapel button), a pen that goes “bang,” then sending you into enemy territory to clean these blighters’ clocks!

Your plane leaves in an hour. Time enough for a martini or cup of tea, wouldn’t you say? I prefer mine stirred counter-clockwise.    

They Came from [CLASSIFIED]! is the latest in the They Came From… line of tabletop roleplaying games. [CLASSIFIED]! sees characters ranging from talented adventurers and agency quartermasters, to dashing spies and sexy provocateurs, embracing all the excitement, gadgets, and mayhem of the spy movies and detective TV shows prevalent from the 1960s onward. Whether you’re a Moore-era Bond fan, an aficionado of John Steed and Emma Peel’s adventures, or an Austin Powers-esque swinging cat, [CLASSIFIED]! has everything you need for a groovy, espionage-filled story.

They Came from [CLASSIFIED]! uses the Storypath System, which is contain in full in the pages of this book.

They Came from [CLASSIFIED]! includes:

• Five new playable Archetypes, introducing the Adventurer, the Detective, the Operative, the Provocateur, and the Quartermaster!
• New Cinematics, Quips, Twists, and all new Fiendish Plots!
• A rogues gallery of renegade agents, enemy spies, science fiction supervillains, and dastardly henchmen!
• Everything a Director needs for running games ranging from the seriousness of The Ipcress File or Tinker, Tailor, Soldier Spy, to the innuendo of The Spy Who Loved Me and the silliness of Austin Powers!
• Two full missions you can run straight from this book!

They Came from the Cyclops’s Cave!

I see you approach my campfire equipped in gleaming armor and brandishing a sword blessed by the gods. This is good. It shows you take your quest seriously, albeit naively.

Oh yes, I’ve seen your kind before. Even given a few of you sage advice before sending you on your journeys up mountains, across seas, and into swamps. I can tell you this: Your armor will not shine overlong, and you will find wits and the aid of trustworthy companions far more reliable than a simple blade.

Ah, but you do not wish to hear this kind of counsel… You want to know how to slay the gorgon, how to steal the minotaur’s treasure, how to make the sorcerer’s tower fall…

Well, settle in, my new friend. Throw me a gold coin, and I’ll tell you how to strike down your intended foe, if you get that far.

They Came from the Cyclops’s Cave! is the latest in the They Came From… line of tabletop roleplaying games. Cyclops’s Cave! sees characters ranging from heroic swordsmen and cunning sorceresses to charming minstrels and agile scoundrels, embarking on quests designed to evoke the majesty of fantasy movies and television shows from the 1940s onward. Whether you’re looking to channel an epic like The Thief of Bagdad or grim fantasy such as The Sword and the Sorcerer, Cyclops’s Cave! has everything you need for swashbuckling, noble heroism, and monster slaying.

They Came from the Cyclops’s Cave! uses the Storypath System, which is contain in full in the pages of this book.

They Came from the Cyclops’s Cave! includes:

• Six new playable Archetypes, introducing the Champion, the Dreamer, the Inhuman, the Puppet, the Sage, and the Scoundrel!
• New Cinematics, Quips, Fiendish Plots, and all new Magical Effects and Fantastic Settings!
• A deep bestiary of creatures and critters from trolls, chimeras, and giants, to dragons, orx, and necromancers!
• Everything a Director needs for running games ranging from the epic feel of Clash of the Titans or The 7th Voyage of Sinbad, to the sword and sorcery of Krull and Conan and the campness of Xena: Warrior Princess!
• Two full quests you can run straight from this book!

This is the product description for the adventure we just built. In the product line, the Session Zero Lore Manual is Part 1, and this adventure, The Black Circus, is Part 2.

The Zeros #2: The Black Circus

THEY CALLED YOU NUMBERS. NOW, CALL YOURSELVES FREE.

For fifteen years, you were "Biological Assets." You were sedated, monitored, and kept in the dark of a Himalayan sub-basement. You were the property of Dr. Night, the crown jewels of the Black Circus.

Then, the world screamed.

The Zeros #2: The Black Circus is the explosive first adventure in the Vanishing Saga. Picking up immediately where the Session Zero Manual left off, this Mutants & Masterminds adventure thrusts five broken siblings into a desperate survival-horror breakout. The "Vanishing" has shattered your cages, but the Black Circus doesn't lose property—they repossess it.

To survive the night, you must navigate a rebooting high-tech prison, face the cold psychological manipulation of your "Owner," and pull off a high-stakes heist for the only thing that can keep you alive: The Obsidian Ledger. This "nuclear option" blackmail is the only leash you have to keep Dr. Night’s assassins at bay.

But even if you reach the sky, you aren't hidden. Your Resonance Suits are redlining, broadcasting your heartbeats to a man who views you as his greatest experiment.

Inside this 19-page PDF, you’ll find:

• The First Black Circus: A multi-act adventure that moves from the sterile horror of the Asset Vault to a cinematic showdown on a 3,000-foot-high hangar deck.

• Tactical Horror Mechanics: New rules for Sensory Awakening, where the "real world" becomes a physical hazard to characters raised in sedation.

• The Heist of the Shard: A detailed guide to infiltrating Dr. Night’s private vault to secure the Black Metal Shard—a mysterious artifact that will define the future of the campaign.

• Boss Encounter: Redeye: Full PL 12 stats and tactical guidance for the "Perfected Son," a relentless enforcer designed to maim and retrieve.

• The Vulture-Jet: Rules for your new mobile base, including its traumatized AI, ICARUS, who must be persuaded to help the siblings escape.

• Complete M&M 3e Stat Blocks: From the hive-mind Husks to the corporate Cleaners.

The world is cruel, but the table is safe. Secure the Ledger. Steal the Jet. Don't blink.

Requires the Mutants & Masterminds Hero's Handbook to play.
Part Two of The Zeros series (Following the Session Zero Manual).

Are they men? Are they Muppets? Are they Muppets of Men? Who knows, but they will be a lot of fun! A custom species made to go along with a video!