Samuel Wright
Bio
I am a writer & tarot card reader in Oregon, TTRPG fan, love all types of sci-fi/fantasy books, movies, games, & read voraciously. All Hail Our Lady Of Darkness The Queen Of Shadows, Kelsey Dionne! Shadowdark Forever!
Stories (62)
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Nightfox Reports: Got Brains?. Content Warning.
Today I have another tale to tell, a tale of decapitation, a mad scientist, and Section 8 housing, and it takes place right here in the suburban paradise of the San Fernando Valley, specifically the little community of North Hills, just north of Van Nuys. I was riding my skateboard down Nordhoff Street this afternoon and missing all the hookers that used to hang out on Sepulveda Boulevard before the big crackdown a year or two ago, when I saw some five-ohs racing down Nordhoff Street and turning (illegally) onto Columbus Avenue (a.k.a. Crack Alley), sirens blaring like a pack of howling wolves. One unit after another raced around the corner and went shooting down the street. My immediate thought was that something very, very bad must be happening and I should definitely not go near Columbus Avenue. I should just continue on to the local library to return my books and then head home to study and check my stocks on the internet like any normal person would. So of course I turned onto Columbus and followed the line of police cruisers…
By Samuel Wrightabout a year ago in Horror
Spells of Blood & Kinship
An excerpt from a book of shadows, the tome of a wizard falling into Darkness: "Blood is Life. We feel it inside ourselves, we drink it from others, we taste it in the air. Blood is a source of power and holds secrets within it. It carries history and connects dynasties. Blood gives a person a flavour, a scent, that you can follow in the dark. Blood binds people together..."
By Samuel Wrightabout a year ago in Gamers
Casting Them Red-Handed...
Harlow Fasthands was only a middling wizard, but he was a brilliant detective and earned his steep fees by finding clues that local city guards could not find so crimes could be solved. Today it was a murder, the first the bustling fishing village of Nighthaven had seen in many years. A dwarven merchant had been found dead in his room at an inn, his neck cut. Blood was splattered across the walls and formed a puddle around his cooling body. Harlow knelt down next to the body and began chanting...
By Samuel Wrightabout a year ago in Gamers
The Mother of Madness
For Levels 1-3 Introduction: The tiny meadowland village of Darkwater sits atop what was once an underground river before the water’s source was diverted into a nearby lake. Far below the village, the river had cut through the earth to form a system of caves.
By Samuel Wright2 years ago in Gamers
Spirits of Battle
"There is malice in this sword. The dark heart of the smith still dwells in it. It will not love the hand it serves, neither will it abide with you long." —Melian on Anglachel (The Silmarillion, Quenta Silmarillion, Chapter XXI: "Of Túrin Turambar")
By Samuel Wright2 years ago in Gamers
Witch-Knights: Warriors of the Lost Gods
On the lost world of Arathia, hidden from the rest of the Multiverse, there was a terrible betrayal. One god, the Measurer, grown corrupt and tyrannical, cast his divine kin into an inescapable prison. From this well of infinite silence they could not hear or answer the prayers of their worshipers. Cut off from the gods, the holy warriors of this world could no longer use their priestly powers. The minions of the dark god of stone ruled with an iron fist, grinding away all joy from the lives of the people of Arathia. This was the start of the Grey Times, an era of endless toil, fear, and oppression.
By Samuel Wright2 years ago in Gamers
Better Than A Plain +1
Magic items, especially the common ones, can get dull. If you have seen one +1 dagger, you have seen them all, right? Well, with a little work, you can make the weakest magic weapon interesting. Just ask yourself, who made these, and why? Add a few details and maybe a minor magical effect that makes the item stand out so that a player appreciates having it. You do not need to give every random item a backstory, but having a class of items that shares a reason for existing in a campaign makes them meaningful. Give items a place in a culture, a role that can create plot hooks or just be interesting. “These are from this culture and were made for this reason” reduces the sheer boredom of a random, nondescript magical item.
By Samuel Wright2 years ago in Gamers
Nightfox Reports: Screamers
Not many people read news reports from all of the places that I do, just those who see the Big Picture, that obtuse angle of perception that makes other people anxious, so they change the subject and end a conversation as if the one speaking to them was somehow contagious. I have learned not to discuss these things with just anyone, so I will record my findings here on the Internet and occasionally try to find clues to map out the world that is hidden under the day-to-day life that the Mundanes think of as reality.
By Samuel Wright2 years ago in Horror
Knights of the Silver Way: Warriors of the Mind and Will
As Chenk pulled his mount to a hover, the nervous beast beat its gelatinous wings in a rippling wave and whistled through its gill-sacks. Looking down into the seemingly endless chasm he was flying through at the illithid lair below, Chenk knew that hundreds of slaves were groaning under the yoke of telepathic oppression, living in barely suppressed horror at the daily prospect of a mind-flayer slicing open a skull at random to feed on the delicate gray meat of a brain. “Easy, Salathious,” Chenk whispered to his steed, “We’re not alone...”
By Samuel Wright2 years ago in Gamers
Nightfox Reports: A Train to Nowhere
This is a hasty report because this shit just happened. Sometimes I do not even need the internet to stumble onto a weird, horrific event. Sometimes just trying to get home from somewhere I run over a mystery. Tonight I was in Downtown Los Angeles picking up some strictly medicinal herbs for my special brownie recipe from a reliable supplier, and testing some samples of other products he had. (We got baked!). Afterwards I had to take the subway to get back to the Valley so I skated over to Union Station, the hub of all the trains and buses in the Los Angeles area to catch the Red Line to NoHo. Personally, I have no idea why they call North Hollywood “NoHo” when there are tons of Hoes there. (Cue rim shot!) Whatever, I needed to get back to my kip in North Hills to start baking my goodies.
By Samuel Wright2 years ago in Horror
Adriana's Tale
Adriana looked out of her hiding place in the library of the ruined temple of Apollo. This was the one place in her city, Valora, she was sure that none of the wild, painted barbarians would bother to pillage and burn. The smoke from the fires in the rest of the temple had wafted away, the ashes were all cold now, and the screams of the dying had faded away, too.
By Samuel Wright2 years ago in Fiction
Knights of the Broken Blade: Ending War by Force
The two armies had been encamped at opposite ends of the bridge for days, occasionally making short forays against one another, periodically testing each other’s mettle while trying to find a way to gain the upper hand. Like most battles in this war, this one was futile and meaningless, and the real damage done by each host of warriors was to the local countryside as they pillaged nearby villages and farms for “provisions”. Neither side was willing to back down and let the other army seize the bridge across the winding river; but neither side had the strength to take it, so the siege lingered on…
By Samuel Wright2 years ago in Gamers
