I've uploaded some pages made from my "Excellent Castle" scans. I can't say the details are perfect, since many of the original images were very small to begin with. You can find the collected files here:

http://rapidshare.com/files/236153887/castleguidelayout.rar

In game night news, my group has finally experienced combat in the Warhammer RPG. My friend who is GMing wrote a scene summary, which I'll steal for this post...

"At last the travelers reached the main road to Altdorf and it seemed that things were finally looking up. But peace of mind was short lived. An hour further down the road they came face to disgusting face with a true horror! A ravening mutant, whose rotted skin hung in ragged strips from his scabrous body (love that bit), assaulted the coach. It's charge frightened the horses into a panic, and they snapped free of their traces and dragged Hultz behind them into the woods. The man-thing then leapt at Gunnar, screaming for his blood, its bloody dagger plunging down at the hapless driver. All took pause, so frightening was this abomination that thirsted for your blood, but after a few seconds the men found their courage and Rolf, Max's one-time comrade, was cut down. Now there were two corpses in the road, Rolf and the Four Seasons coachman he had been feasting on. But this was just a hint at the carnage to follow.

I don't think the Rodders even saw us coming, struck down at Elven Bow range with our collector dollars. Of course, I'm talking about a print sales contest, in which the retro-fantasy fanzine FIGHT ON! took first place. I'll be interested if this will boost sales of the next issue, which should include many scribbles from me. Enjoy this preview of one illustration:

In my Tajamul campaign, the 30 Lashes was a daring clan of evil rogues. They didn't have a pirate ship for launching raids, rather, infiltration and drug/poison selling were their areas of expertise. The secret leader was a close relative of Lady Yser, and engaged in the practice of vile rituals. Their hidden enclave was built on the remains of raised dirt mounds used by lizardmen. The complex building resembles a Japanese dojo, with bamboo decks and screen doors. An ancient Unholy Shrine is just beyond the south wall, another reason this site was chosen. Outside the dojo, characters might run into Constrictor Snakes, Marsh Zombies, Fighting Crabs, Giant Mantis, Mold colonies, or the rare minor Xorn. For a high CR, add Otyugh, Scrags, and perhaps a Black Dragon.

 1) Drawbridge Entry: This gate is never used, since the road to the coast isn't maintained. The drawbridge itself is rotten, and nailed upright.

I thought I'd try hosting a D&D game at a Con this year, because I enjoy DM-ing and want to promote the content of retro magazines. Naturally, the events at conventions occupy a block of time that could only satisfy a tiny chunk of a classic megadungeon. Since this would be about old-school exposure, I don't want to have the same group over a span of linked sessions. Perhaps I was inspired by the Gygax memorial mini-sessions at GENCON last year, which rotated hourly.

I'm estimating that a "3 hour tour" by a cautious party won't involve more than 9~12 encounters. So, I'll be selecting favorites from the pages of FIGHT ON (and KNOCKSPELL too) to "blend" into a 100% unique mini-dungeon. Thus, not only will it be one of a kind, but any players interested in the source material will have to buy more than a single issue, haha! The convention I'm targeting isn't until the Fall, so there will be plenty of time to sort details and make the perfect map. The latter I've begun in a conceptual form, using Photoshop graphics to make a clustered arrangement (see my article on dungeon design).

Around the time that Ghost Tower was being constructed, I was also digging into gaming material for a Cthulhu Mythos adventure. I wasn't sure that my friends would want to rekindle the 3.5E D&D campaign I had DM'ed earlier, which was also burdensome in the paperwork/rulebook facets. However, I though that everybody would enjoy a "zombie massacre" tinged with Lovecraftian flavor, especially if the players could get right down to the skull-smashing without delay. Initially, I was dismayed that most of the standard Mythos RPGs seemed focused on detective work and defending one's mind from nonsensical literature and ethereal spooks. Even less helpful would be the default chronology, usually covering the WWI/Great Depression years. Good luck trying to escape that Byakhee without an Interstate Highway or 911! Running a turn of the century adventure might be great for some folks, but modern horror has more relevance to gamers raised on Romero/Argento/Carpenter flicks.