Demonic Grimoire Monster Preview + New Quick Delve Covers and More!

Demonic Grimoire Monster Preview

The Old-School Essentials Demonic Grimoire is chock-full of gameable goodness (or should we say, evilness), but foremost among this folio's features must be the feast of ferocious fiends!

Gaze into the abyss and get a taste of the horrors to come:

From classic demons drawn from the history of fantasy gaming to all-new creations, the Demonic Grimoire’s bestiary section is full of monsters ready to destroy, deceive, corrupt, and confound your players.

Every single monster is illustrated with inspiring visuals of these weird creatures, with all their abilities detailed in our signature easy-to-parse style. Each fiend is also connected to a particular demon lord, allowing you to build themed encounters, factions, and hellish hierarchies.

Less Than 2 Weeks to Go!

That’s only a peek at the demon realms beyond the veil. Follow OSE Month on Backerkit to be warned when the hordes of hell are unleashed!

Sign up now!

Quick Delves #4 and #5 Cover Reveal!

Crawling has its place, but sometimes you have to pick up the pace. The ol’ dungeon bash-and-dash. Enter Quick Delves, the adventure series that respects your time.

We’re excited to reveal the covers for the next two adventures in the series, Quick Delve #4: Shadows and Flesh (art by Rick Hershey) and Quick Delve #5: Golden Lies (art by Matt Stikker).

A little tidbit about Golden Lies—it’s actually part of OSE Demon Month, and features a sinister cult centered around a classic fiend. The adventure will release alongside the Demonic Grimoire, giving you a demonic adventure to jump into right away. Shadows and Flesh will still release first, so watch this space for clues on what that gnoll and his shady friends are up to.

Rogues Gallery 1 on Foundry

Get a cast of ready-made adventurers for your virtual games! Rogues Gallery I is now available on Foundry VTT for Old-School Essentials, bringing 21 pre-generated 1st-level characters straight to your virtual table.

The titular rogues cover all the basic character types and alignments, and each comes with a flavourful background. Illustrations are by the fabulous Sam Mameli (Skullboy)!

Get Rogues Gallery I on Foundry

Curious About the OSE 2026 Update? Check Out the Online Rules Reference

The new 2026 printing of the Old-School Essentials core books is coming later this year! No, it’s not a new edition, just a complete, consolidated, even more heavily illustrated, and OGL-free version of our flagship fantasy game. Seriously, see our FAQ.

You can now explore a work-in-progress online rules reference, with all core player-facing rules currently available to browse.

This reference presents a free-to-use, basic version of the game, with the complete rules and a reduced selection of classes, equipment, and spells. Referee-focused material will also be added in future updates, so stay tuned as the reference continues to grow!

Check it out here

OSE Month Collaborators: Feral Indie Studio, Mudknight Media

An eldritch wind blows in from the abyssal planes as OSE Month draws near. Our own Demonic Grimoire will be accompanied by 16 companion projects in the old-school RPG scene, including:

Feral Indie Studio

Feral Indie Studio, a.k.a Alex Coggon and Charlie Ferguson-Avery, is a duo of game creators from rural Appalachia with a few OSR hits under their belts, including the megadungeon Ave Nox, the wilderness exploration game guide Into the Wyrd and Wild, and much more.

For OSE Month, Feral Indie Studio is making Mildew and Silver, a first-level adventure set in the plagued wilderness and abandoned mines of a crumbling dwarven mining town where demon-hunters, cultists, and monsters all converge. Back it in OSE Month this May to get this killer starter adventure to kick off your campaign!

Mudknight Media

Mudknight Media brings together writer Brian Yaksha (author of The Ravener’s Ghat from our Adventure Anthology 2 and contributor to the Dolmenwood core books) and artist Daniel Harila Carlsen, creator of The Curious Creeps in Crimson Creek, Duginthroat Divided, and Black Antlers. Editor Walton Wood, indexer Emil D. Kaaen, and marketer Dai Shugars round out the team.

The Tiger Princess of Treacherous Tripura draws on Vedic myth to create an urban crawl through a realm of illusions and intrigue. Crash a wedding of mystical beings and dash through the back alleys and crowded markets of a city of adventure. More than a simple scenario, it contains all the tools you need to flesh out a South Asian-inspired setting with a touch of fiendish flair.

Citadel of the Sun-Kings on Kickstarter!

Michael A Curtis, author of the aforementioned Quick Delve #5: Golden Lies, has been very busy indeed. As well as contributing to our catalogue, he has also launched a successful Kickstarter for Citadel of the Sun-Kings, a sword-and-sorcery sandbox with emphasis on the sand.

Expect more than a quick delve from this 101-page hardcover, though. Designed for open-ended play, the book offers enough content to base a whole campaign on: a detailed starting settlement packed with NPCs and political tension, a sprawling hexcrawl wilderness, six dungeons, plus new monsters, items, and tables.

Beyond the intrigue-ridden river town of Najad lie the blazing Red Wastes, a shifting desert of ancient ruins and rival factions plagued by a fungal corruption. At its heart lies the legendary citadel of the Sun-Kings, promising both untold riches and terrible danger.

Sounds like quite an adventure, eh? Pack your waterskins and back now!

Some of the latest adventures, supplements, and other creations from the Old-School Essentials and Dolmenwood communities:

• The Brimstone Inn, a free PDF showcases an interdimensional inn with connections to the scenarios of OSE Month.
• Empire of Bones, a necromantic campaign setting from the creators of The Painted Wastelands, is now on DTRPG!
• The Wailing Lady, a one-shot adventure for beginner OSE characters.

Working on your own material? Our third-party licenses provide useful guidance and resources for publishing compatible content.

If you’d like your creation considered for a future newsletter spotlight, send the details (and a copy, if possible) to 3pp@necroticgnome.com