Neal Litherland
Founding member
Bio
Neal Litherland is an author, freelance blogger, and RPG designer. A regular on the Chicago convention circuit, he works in a variety of genres.
Blog: Improved Initiative and The Literary Mercenary
Stories (270/0)
5 Tips For Playing a Better Pacifist
When our adventures start, battle can seem a foregone conclusion. After all, you don't overthrow the ironclad grip of a despot with peaceful protests, nor can you win a war through diplomacy alone. However, there are many players who may enjoy the challenge of playing peaceful characters; characters who will shed no blood, and cause no harm throughout the entire campaign.
By Neal Litherland7 days ago in Gamers
The Power of Prepared Casting
Over my many years with Pathfinder Classic as an RPG, I've run into a lot of players who simply refuse to play prepared casters. Wizards, clerics, druids, magi, warpriests, witches, and others, it doesn't matter the flavor of the class or how powerful its spells are, they simply will not consider these classes when putting together their characters.
By Neal Litherland15 days ago in Gamers
Pixabay is an Ideal Resource For Bloggers, YouTubers, and Content Creators
A picture is worth a thousand words, or so the old saying goes. And if you're on the Internet creating content, you need to have images to catch people's eyes so they stop scrolling long enough to look at what you've made. Whether you run a blog, create videos for a platform like YouTube or Dailymotion, or you just put out articles on Vocal, you need to have eye-catching images.
By Neal Litherland16 days ago in Journal
Blackest Knights
The inquisitor hung from where he’d been shackled to the cross brace. Sweat ran across his skin, cutting through tracks of dirt and blood alike. His chin practically rested on his chest, and he stared at the floor with half-lidded, unfocused eyes. His breathing was slow and steady. He had barely said a word since he’d been bound there nearly three days ago. His silence did not bother Trixentia. Truth be told, she liked to take her time with the early steps of the dance, drawing out the beautiful agony that was yet to come. And as the one who had taught her the art of confession had said, a body will tell you secrets even if the lips stay silent.
By Neal Litherland21 days ago in Fiction
The Ancestral Harbinger
The street had been deserted a moment before. As Garen watched, though, bodies stepped out of every alley, and most of the doors. They were clad in green and red, the colors of the Ya'sha hatchetmen. Garen licked lips nervously, and swallowed as his eyes slid from one enforcer to the next. The heavy weight of his father's old sword, the horse cutter that Garen hated so much, tugged at his shoulder. It felt warm against his back, like it smelled blood in the air and it was starting to wake up. As far as Garen knew, it could do that.
By Neal Litherland28 days ago in Gamers
If 90,000 People Read This Article, I Can Pay My Bills This Month
This week's title is pretty self-explanatory. As a Vocal+ creator, if I could get 90,000 people to all read this article, that would earn me roughly $540 for this month, and that would be enough to pay my part of the rent on the apartment I share (about $500), and my portion of the utilities (which is about $40).
By Neal Litherlandabout a month ago in Journal
Blending Inspiration and Homage in TTRPGs
When it comes to TTRPGs, all of us take our inspiration from somewhere. Whether it's comic books or action movies, Shakespeare or mythology, the catalyst for characters and plots can come from a wide variety of sources. And sometimes we want to make it obvious what that source is, because that's part of the game for us; paying deliberate homage to the thing that sparked our initial idea.
By Neal Litherlandabout a month ago in Gamers
The Unrelenting Cruelty of a Dark and Dying World: Looking at Mork Borg
A cancerous moon hangs like the head of a dying god in a blind and empty sky. Storms ravage the land like fever, the rancid muck churning with the blood of dying sacrifices, and the birth pangs of monsters. A two-headed basilisk shrieks prophecies into the minds of the mad, and the miserable masses seeking just to survive another night of howling beasts and depraved murders bow their heads to pray in crumbling, dilapidated churches.
By Neal Litherlandabout a month ago in Gamers
The Black Blade Bastard
Arven Veck eyed the sword suspiciously. The mercenary had the look of a man who'd lived a hard life, and his suspicious, green eyes spoke of someone who'd learned to look for traps in every good hand fate chose to deal him. Giving the weapon a wide berth, he checked the spells and lock of his hair he'd set on the door. Both were right where he'd left them, indicating no one had entered that way.
By Neal Litherland2 months ago in Gamers
5 Cringey Clerics You Meet in Your Gaming Career
The cleric is one of the oldest standbys of fantasy RPGs, going all the way back to the earliest editions when it was called the priest. A servant of divine powers, the cleric is given the ability to manifest miracles to aid their allies, turn back abominations, and heal their companions... but if you've ever shared a table with one of these clerics, you might have decided to just load up your pack with healing potions and take your chances without bringing the god botherer along.
By Neal Litherland2 months ago in Gamers
5 Classes To Pair With The Shadowbound Corruption
There are some experiences you simply cannot emerge from unscathed. Things that, even if you survive, scar your soul and stain the fabric of your flesh. Those who have been lost to the light for too long, and fell through shadow, might find that it is now an indelible part of them. And just as shadow seeks to consume light, so too you will be lost to darkness if uncontrolled.
By Neal Litherland2 months ago in Gamers
