A couple of nifty OSR "Toys"

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There are a couple mega-cool things that popped up recently on blogs I read.  Meatshields! The Classic Fantasy Hirelings & Henchmen Generator allows DMs to make simple cannon fodder for their old school campaigns. The DM enters the size of the location, either village/small town or large town/city. For 5 gp, the players can The players can even choose to give an extra 5 gp to the town crier to get some extra (and I assume somewhat better) applicants. The example below gives the general idea of the output.

Name	Type	Race	HP	Sex	Weapon	Armor	Alignment	Background	Possessions & Knowledge	Notable Features
Samix	Torch-Bearer	Human	2	M	Dagger	None	Neutral	Mercenary	Nothing	Unwashed
Ulmyr	Torch-Bearer	Human	2	M	Dagger	None	Neutral	Failed Apprentice Mage	Nothing	Yellow teeth
Balgar	Man-at-Arms	Human	5	M	Spear, Dagger	Leather	Neutral	Failed Tradesman	Nothing	Pudgy
Beyda	Man-at-Arms	Human	4	F	Spear, Dagger	None	Neutral	Street Thug	Nothing	None
Corgard	Torch-Bearer	Human	4	M	Dagger	None	Neutral	Beggar	An ink pot	Hook for a Hand
Worford	Man-at-Arms	Human	2	M	Club, Dagger	Leather	Chaos	Escaped Slave	Nothing	None

 Notes for the DM:
The two most commonly recruited hirelings are:

• Non-combatant humans who serve as torch-bearers, porters, potion-testers, door-spikers, etc. Suggested rate of pay: 5sp/day.
• Zero-level human men-at-arms. Suggested rate of pay: 1gp/day.

In rare instances, the party may also recruit:

• Zero-level demi-human (dwarf, elf, or halfling) men-at-arms. Suggested rate of pay: 3gp/day.
• First level human henchmen (fighter, cleric, or magic-user). Suggested rate of pay: 1/3 share of employer's treasure.

Anyway, check it out. Pretty simple and a lot of fun. I'll definitely be using it for the Swords & Wizardry White Box game whenever appropriate.

Another cool OSR thing to play around with is the Weird Things in Rooms (d100) Random Table that popped up on Beyond the Black Gate yesterday. Lots of fun stuff on there to drive those players that assume everything in a room has to be there for a reason right up the proverbial  wall. Seriously. Dump this stuff in some room with no reason for them to be there and somebody will spend half the game session trying to figure out what they need to do with it.

Here's a couple examples to wet your whistle:

• 3. A large stone wheel set on one wall, clicks when turned.
• 14. One wall has been painted to look like three windows looking out into a lovely garden.
• 33. Seven fluffy orbs of light dance and float in the air of this room, remaining ever beyond your reach.
• 70. A mannequin stands in one corner wearing a surcoat made from fresh meat.

Just to be fair to your players, make sure you make these random rolls right before they enter room, so you have to be on your toes, too!