The Tricky Owlbear's Den

Freelancer Writers Wanted!

noreply@blogger.com (Bret) — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 12:11:00 +0000

Are you interested in writing for the Owlbear? We'd love to see some submissions from both experienced freelancers and novice writers looking to get their foot in the door. Systems accepted include Pathfinder, Swords & Wizardry, and the upcoming DCC rpg from Goodman Games (releases in Spring 2012). Send inquiries to: bret.boyd@trickyowlbear.com

Pug's Bazaar released

noreply@blogger.com (Bret) — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 19:54:00 +0000

Better late than never with this little press release (how could I forget to post about it everywhere except the company blog/web page?!).

Meet goblin merchant Pug and peruse the wares of this first tent in a series of Pathfinder-compatible pdfs featuring new items and spells. Each piece in the product comes with a brief story about it plus an adventure hook. Perfect for players and GMs alike, Pug's Bazaar: Tent #1 is sure to please!

Sin of the Fathers released [Halloween adventure for PFRPG]

noreply@blogger.com (Bret) — Mon, 24 Oct 2011 20:49:00 +0000

The last few generations of people residing in Shadowfield have known only one major calamity—Thibbet Vaum. This human was responsible for no less than two dozen slayings before he was captured by a group of brave men who had simply had enough. Neither adventurers, nor deputized lawmen, this band of individuals one day agreed to track down Vaum and end his bloody spree.

The group eventually caught up with Vaum at an abandoned ranger's homestead on Shadowfield's western frontier. The killer had been offering up his victims' hearts in some kind of gory sacrifice to a nameless deity of evil. Vaum was beaten into submission before being taken in for trial. The next day saw the vile human at the gallows in what turned out to be a solemn gathering of the entire community. It seemed as though no resident had gone untouched by Vaum's heinous deeds. The man used his last breath to curse the attendees and vow that he would somehow return to exact vengeance on those who had captured him.

These men thought little of the threat as the murderer swung by his neck and, indeed, they each lived out happy lives. It is their descendants, however, who might wind up paying for the...

Sin of the Fathers

This Halloween-themed introductory PDF adventure was written with new GMs in mind. Perfect for this spooky holiday, "Sin of the Fathers" also establishes a base of operations in Shadowfield for a new campaign. Major NPCs of this hamlet are presented with plot hooks to explore once the adventure is run. That is, if the PCs survive the evil their ancestors believed they stopped nine decades before!

Written by Bret Boyd, this pdf retails for $4.95 and is available at Paizo, OBS, and Your Games Now!

Behind the Monsters - The 10th Issue!

noreply@blogger.com (Bret) — Sun, 25 Sep 2011 00:55:00 +0000

BtM: Dark Folk was released yesterday. This marks the last v3.5 pdf we're going to sell. But I think we closed the series with a great issue. Check it out and let us know!

Did Someone Say "Dead Tree?"

noreply@blogger.com (Bret) — Thu, 15 Sep 2011 12:10:00 +0000

Forgotten Foes is now available in print!!!

You can grab your copy wherever rpg books are sold. Paizo has a blurb for it in their store HERE!

Achievement Feats, vol 2 reviewed

noreply@blogger.com (Bret) — Sun, 11 Sep 2011 12:44:00 +0000

Shane O'Connor has graced our little pdf with a 5-star review!

Forgotten Foes review

noreply@blogger.com (Bret) — Fri, 09 Sep 2011 02:37:00 +0000

A new, if brief, 5-star review for our favorite monster book has appeared over at Paizo. Check it out!!

Chapbook Cover!

noreply@blogger.com (Bret) — Thu, 11 Aug 2011 01:50:00 +0000

We're pretty close to green-lighting this product, so we thought we'd give a preview of the cover for the Tricky Owlbear v3.75 Player's Chapbook. Like your information in one place without having to sift through flavor text and art? Then this is the book for you! We've combined the player's rules from the Pathfinder core book and the Advanced Player's Guide in one convenient tome and it's going to be 6"x9" for easy handling.

Check it out here!

"Buy it. Buy it now."

noreply@blogger.com (Bret) — Wed, 20 Jul 2011 12:51:00 +0000

A new 5-star review has rolled in for Forgotten Foes!

Achievement Feats: Volume 2 released!

noreply@blogger.com (Bret) — Wed, 29 Jun 2011 12:50:00 +0000

Great heroes perform great deeds—whether saving the world from annihilation, discovering heretofore unknown continents and planes of existence, unearthing the mysteries of forgotten civilizations, or defending entire cities from hordes of undead. Such acts of heroism, and occasionally villainy, leave their marks upon the souls and bodies of these heroes. Achievement Feats: Volume 2 details the in-game effects these grand heroics might have on a PC. This volume uses a slightly different approach than volume 1 in the series in that it requires little bookkeeping. It's a win-win for everyone!

Written by Susann K Hessen, AF2 retails for $2.95 and is available at PAIZO, RPGNow, and at YourGamesNow!

2011 Update

noreply@blogger.com (Bret) — Mon, 20 Jun 2011 02:14:00 +0000

It's with some alarm that I notice no new posts since the end of last year. I have only myself to blame. Hope everyone's having an enjoyable spring of gaming and is ready for some Owlbear releases. Here's what we're working on...

The Tricky Owlbear v3.75 Player's Chapbook: If you know of Mongoose Publishing's old 3.5 player's handbook (bare bones book with rules and that's all) then you've got the right idea about this release. We'll be looking over the finished edit soon and, so far, it's looking good. The Chapbook will contain all of the Pathfinder core rules pertaining to players as well as the player bits from the Advanced Player's Guide.

Achievement Feats, part 2: Written by Susann Hessen, this new take on the achievement feats concept is sure to please lovers of the first pdf and those new to the concept as well.

Forgotten Foes: Our flagship monster tome was submitted to the ENnies and will also be seeing a release into print in August. We're printing and distributing through Studio 2 Publishing so this great creature resource will be available in stores before too long. I know many people have been waiting for this one (us among them)!!

What Goes Up!: I know, I know, I've been posting about this one for awhile. I'm determined to get this old school adventure written and ready for release by summer's end. It features fantastic cover art by Jan Pospisil, uses Swords & Wizardry rules, and has to do with gnolls...using gliders...yes, you read that right. The adventure is for a party of level 1 adventurers.

Behind the Monsters: Compendium: Unfortunately, this series just never hit the sales numbers we were looking for. We're going to release the final issue--BtM: Dark Folk (featuring dark creepers and stalkers)--and then wrap all the issues together into a Pathfinder-compatible print version (and pdf too of course). We're going to print a limited number of these compilations at a local printer and mail it out ourselves. Probably only have 75 or so of them to make sure they sell out.

Many apologies for being so quiet over the last few months. Bret (me) has been dealing with some health issues and Scot is currently, as they say, in between jobs at the moment, making things more than a bit stressful for him, his wife, and their new baby. But bear with us, for the Owlbear will deliver more gaming goodness soon!

Best. Year. Ever!

noreply@blogger.com (Bret) — Sun, 09 Jan 2011 20:41:00 +0000

Although I only posted it on the Paizo forums, this "thank you" is to all of our valued customers.

Learning Curve Review

noreply@blogger.com (Bret) — Sat, 01 Jan 2011 22:32:00 +0000

The first review is in for our apprentice-level rules pdf and it's a hit!

Learning Curve: Apprentice-Level PCs (PFRPG)

noreply@blogger.com (Bret) — Wed, 29 Dec 2010 13:49:00 +0000

Tricky Owlbear is pleased to release its next Pathfinder Roleplaying Game supplement: Learning Curve: Apprentice-Level PCs.

It seems like forever that you wanted to become an adventurer. You've been practicing with your hand-me-down sword and you've made darned sure that your friends have practiced their spells, prayers, and lockpicking. With everyone's parents at the winter gala, it's the perfect time to strike out as a team and right some wrongs in the city. With a little luck, you can do it. But never, ever, let dad find out and drag you home early.

Learning Curve allows players to adventure the way they should at beginner level--the hard way! With the rules in this pdf, you can now multiclass at 1st level in the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game or, if you choose, start your adventuring career as a half-level PC. There's also a brief discussion on how and why a GM might want to use these rules in his campaign.

Written by Marc Radle (Kobold Quarterly, Super Genius Games) and retailing for $2.95, Learning Curve is available from RPGNow, YourGamesNow, and very soon from Paizo!

Like Free Products?

noreply@blogger.com (Bret) — Tue, 14 Dec 2010 02:55:00 +0000

Well, who doesn't?! Check out our Holiday Giveaway!

100 Strong and Growing

noreply@blogger.com (Bret) — Wed, 17 Nov 2010 13:05:00 +0000

Forgotten Foes has definitely proven itself as Tricky Owlbear's most popular book. We've now reached 100 purchases in a short time. Thanks to everyone who's picked up a copy and let's keep this momentum going!!

The first FF review!

noreply@blogger.com (Bret) — Tue, 02 Nov 2010 03:26:00 +0000

It's a warm welcome from the first reviewer. Let's hope this is the first of many 5-star writeups for Forgotten Foes! Review here!

Forgotten Foes unleashed! Tell your friends!!!

noreply@blogger.com (Bret) — Fri, 29 Oct 2010 15:15:00 +0000

Tricky Owlbear Publishing, Inc. is thrilled to release its most ambitious product to date--Forgotten Foes--for use with the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game. This 183-page, lavishly illustrated tome is sure to please every fan of the world's most famous fantasy roleplaying game, for inside are conversions for First Edition creatures like the grick, crypt thing, and azer alongside Third Edition mainstays such as the nightshades. We've also combed through the best third-party monster resources to bring newer favorites, such as the nefarious inphidians, up to date.

Forgotten Foes features over 120 monsters each with statistics, description, illustration, and a handy lore table for those knowledgeable PCs who may try to get an upper hand before an encounter. As if that isn't enough, FF also presents 38 new/converted spells and includes appendices that list the monsters by type, CR, and terrain. For ease of reference, the book also reprints the Universal Monster Rules in their entirety.

This must-have creature resource is now available in pdf from Paizo, YourGamesNow, and R PGNow/DriveThru for a special introductory price of $9.99 through Monday, Nov. 1, 2010! After 11/1/10, the price increases to $15.99. In a few weeks, you can pick up Forgotten Foes in print form from our Lulu storefront (price to be announced when the product is ready).

For this monster-themed Halloween weekend, it's the perfect time to grab a copy of Forgotten Foes, add PCs, and take your game to the next level!

Tricky Owlbear would like to thank all of the fans who've been waiting patiently for this book and to also thank the authors (Mark Gedak and Stefen Styrsky) and art director K. Axel Carlsson (Headless Hydra Games) for making FF the essential resource that it is.

Another review for Feats!

noreply@blogger.com (Bret) — Tue, 19 Oct 2010 11:57:00 +0000

Achievement Feats received another very nice review. I must thank Owen Stephens for pointing out the fact that robotviking.com was looking for more Pathfinder 3pp products to review.

BtM: Roper reviewed

noreply@blogger.com (Bret) — Sun, 10 Oct 2010 22:43:00 +0000

We'll take 4 stars. Read it here!

Achievement Feats

noreply@blogger.com (Bret) — Sun, 26 Sep 2010 19:38:00 +0000

Our newest pdf release is a collaboration by Mark Gedak and Stefen Styrsky called Achievement Feats. It brings together the handful of such feats already available from Paizo and adds original feats to come up with a grand total of 50 feats for just $2.95. If you like to track your PC's signature moves, achievement feats allow you to do so toward a tangible game goal. With the Beacon of Life achievement feat, for example, you must track the damage your channeling PC inflicts upon undead but, once a certain threshold is crossed, he can damage undead just by being near them!

Sample Page

noreply@blogger.com (Bret) — Wed, 15 Sep 2010 22:40:00 +0000

Here's a little preview of Forgotten Foes featuring the Arrowhawk.

Christmas in July Sale!

noreply@blogger.com (Bret) — Sat, 24 Jul 2010 03:25:00 +0000

We're offering 25% off all products in conjunction with RPGNow's mid-year holiday sale. Enjoy!

Third Anniversary!

noreply@blogger.com (Bret) — Wed, 07 Jul 2010 11:56:00 +0000

Today marks the completion of 3 years of Tricky Owlbear goodness. To help celebrate, we've decided to let you see the mock-up of the new Forgotten Foes cover art!

11th Hour Review

noreply@blogger.com (Bret) — Mon, 21 Jun 2010 13:11:00 +0000

Someone has blessed this inventive adventure with another 5-star review. Check it out!