RPGs for Kids at Conventions - Being the Change I Want to See in the World!

      As some readers may know, I'm an OSR-style gamer living in New England. I attend about 3 RPG conventions every year. I have two young kids; at this writing one is 11, and the other is about to turn 13. The almost-13-year-old doesn't have much interest in RPGs, but the 11-year-old definitely does. They want to come to gaming conventions with me, but there is a problem - there are not many convention games for kids. 

     I can understand all the reasons why this is so. And there are sometimes games that are open to kids, but often only ages 13 and up. So my 11-year-old can't play yet. Kids get left out. 

     At one convention I've attended for the last few years, there is one guy who runs a game for kids, often just one slot for the con. He's great. His daughter plays (I think she's 10 now), and some other kids. They always have a great time. I know last year it was Old School Essentials, and this year a simplified D&D 5E. System doesn't matter so much, really, but I like that he doesn't just run "kids games," like Amazing Tales or something. Don't get me wrong - there are some great systems designed for little kids out there. But I also think kids grow best when they are challenged to stretch themselves, and playing with "grown-up" systems is good for them, as well as fun. 

     Anyway, I recently came to a conclusion. For the last several years, I've run about 3 games at each convention I attend (mostly Dungeon Crawl Classics, as part of the Road Crew). But I think I need to be the change I want to see in the world. Instead of waiting for more kid-friendly game masters to run more kid-friendly games, I think I need to start running at least one game for kids at every convention I attend. 

     I never really thought much about doing this before. I have been an educator, and I have training and experience in working with kids. But since I began adult life, at least, RPG gaming has been an adult activity for me, with the exception of playing with my own family. But I think I need to do this. I started playing D&D at 10 years old (in 1985!). I started with the Metzner "Red Box" Basic D&D and soon thereafter with Advanced Dungeons and Dragons (aka AD&D or "First Edition" D&D). It was extremely formative to how I grew up and the man I have become. I made my most enduring friends through D&D and RPGs, I learned vocabulary and history and math skills, I formed my tastes in literature and art through that lens. I probably wouldn't have become a teacher of Latin, Ancient Greek, History, and Mythology if not for RPGs. I'm running a campaign right now, in November of 2025, with two guys I started playing with in 1991. My life has been shaped by RPGs, and I'm very grateful for that. Kids deserve RPGs. 

     Be the Change You Want to See in the World. Not enough kids' games? Run more kids' games! 

     My wife is a special education expert and and educator with much more experience working with younger kids than I have. She has agreed to help me with this project. 

     So, I'm going to start writing games for kids for conventions, and running them. I need to make some choices, like about system (my wife thinks I should stick to D&D 5E, since that's what most kids are going to encounter outside of my convention games; I'm much more of a fan of experimenting with systems and promoting older systems like BECMI or retroclones of those systems like OSE). I think I want to create some "iconic" pregen characters that can be used across several convention games. And I've been reviewing my basic principles of game design (which I shall probably be writing about more over the coming weeks).

     There is a lot to consider. One thought I've had is that I ought to use miniatures and battlemaps for kids' games, because I think that will hold greater appeal and even help organize play better, while in adult games I generally prefer a "theater of the mind" style. A lot to think about and work on. But I think it'll be worth it. 

     Kids deserve good convention games. Be the Change. 

Barrowmaze 5E Session 8 - Clues to the Tablet of Chaos!

 

Saturday (11/1/25) we played our eighth session of Barrowmaze 5E. The party decided to continue to delve into the depths of the Barrowmaze dungeon . . . 

The roster of characters:

• Tanya - Sariel Moonblossom (Half-Elf Cleric of Arcantryl 3)
• Eli - Omarion Zolond (Drow Necromancer 3) 
• Aidan - Alivin O'Harris (Human Ranger 3)
• Christopher - Feles Pugnat (Tabaxi Fighter 3)
• Hireling - Freelik of Glossimir (High Elf Fighter 2) - 2 gp/day
• Hireling - Brother Binford (Human Cleric of St. Ygg 2) - 2 gp/day
• Mongrelmen Hirelings: Kasmut, Kenamon, Qalhata, Somintu, and Werenro

11th Day of Hardfrost, 1000 GCY

     The party awoke in their "safe room" in the dungeon, having taken an extra-long rest to recover and prepare to face the terrors of the dungeon. They decided to check out the northernmost edge of their map and see what progress they could make, They had decided to make it their mission to find and destroy the Tablet of Chaos. 

     They found a room that appeared to be a chapel, with a large statue behind an altar. They heard muttering and grumbling from under the floor, and found a pit trap containing a dwarf cleric named Arnd Cobblestone. Arnd had fallen into the trap and his companions had fled. They freed him from the trap and he became a new hireling of the party. 

     The party experimented with making offerings on the altar, and finally discovered that sacrificing an enchanted chain shirt produced an effect - the statue animated and offered to answer a question. The party carefully worded a question for the statue to tell them how to get to the Tablet of Chaos. The statue began to give them directions through the lightless corridors of the dungeon to the area where the tablet supposedly rests. The party does not think the statue necessarily gave them the shortest or safest route to the Tablet of Chaos, but they do believe that the information is genuine and that following its directions will lead them to the tablet. 

     With a long trek through the dungeon ahead of them, the party decided to stock up on supplies. They made the four-hour trek back to Helix, where they did some shopping, including for at least ten days worth of rations for each member of the party, Then another four-hour hike back into the Barrowmaze and back into the dungeon. They were lucky enough to avoid any encounters during this time. 

     The party began to follow the oracle's directions to the Tablet of Chaos. They encountered a party of tomb-robbers, and negotiated safe passage (the tomb robbers were heading west and the party was heading east). The party then looted the room they had vacated. 

     Next the party came across a battle between the Acolytes of Orcus and the Necromancers of Set. They joined the Acolytes and helped defeat the Necromancers, then negotiated another safe passage. Omarion looted a talisman of the dead from one of the Necromancers, learning that he could only attune to it if he were a sincere worshipper of the evil god Set. 

     The party passed through and looted several more chambers. Eventually they discovered an odd wand of secrets and tested it out in a nearby room - discovering a pit trap and three secret doors. They actually already knew where one of the secret doors was, because it had been revealed to them in the oracle's directions. 

     The party actually passed through a different secret door to check out the area and establish a safe place to camp. The room they explored contained four giant carnivorous flies, which they had to defeat, but then they were able to establish a safe place to camp until the next morning. 

Current PC XP: 1654 XP

Current Hireling XP: 1187 XP

Valhalla (R.I.P.)

•  Imeni the Mongrelman, beheaded by Varghoulis the Dread Knight and his Crypt Knights of the Black Legion (1/3/1000)
• "Killer" Kelg Barrelgut (dwarf fighter hireling), killed by a Son of Gaxx (and subsequently the corpse was burned for fear he would arise as a new Son of Gaxx) (1/9/1000)

The NEW roster of characters:

• Tanya - Sariel Moonblossom (Half-Elf Cleric of Arcantryl 3)
• Eli - Omarion Zolond (Drow Necromancer 3) 
• Aidan - Alivin O'Harris (Human Ranger 3)
• Christopher - Feles Pugnat (Tabaxi Fighter 3)
• Hireling - Freelik of Glossimir (High Elf Fighter 2) - 2 gp/day
• Hireling - Arnd Cobblestone (Dwarf Cleric 2) - 2 gp/day
• Hireling - Brother Binford (Human Cleric of St. Ygg 2) - 2 gp/day
• Mongrelmen Hirelings: Kasmut, Kenamon, Qalhata, Somintu, and Werenro

Barrowmaze 5E Session 7 - Back to the Dungeon! Zombies, Rot Grubs, Crystal Statues, Sons of Gaxx, and the Gaunlet of Palantis!

 

Saturday (10/18/25) we played our seventh session of Barrowmaze 5E. The party decided to return to the dungeon this times . . . 

The roster of characters:

• Tanya - Sariel Moonblossom (Half-Elf Cleric of Arcantryl 3)
• Eli - Omarion Zolond (Drow Necromancer 3) 
• Aidan - Alivin O'Harris (Human Ranger 3)
• Christopher - Feles Pugnat (Tabaxi Fighter 3)
• Hireling - Freelik of Glossimir (High Elf Fighter 2) - 2 gp/day
• Hireling - Brother Binford (Human Cleric of St. Ygg 2) - 2 gp/day
• Mongrelmen Hirelings: Kasmut, Kenamon, Qalhata, Somintu, and Werenro

10th Day of Hardfrost, 1000 GCY

     The party set off for the Barrowmaze early as usual, and arrived without any random encounters. They had decided to return to the dungeon and explore the edges of their map. They fought some zombies, and dealt with rot grubs.

     They battled two animated crystal statues and discovered a secret chamber in which they discovered a powerful relic of Law, the Gauntlet of Palantis. Based on their research, the party believes this magical gauntlet could be a key to destroying the Tablet of Chaos, should they ever locate it. Unfortunately, it can really only attune to a Lawful Good cleric or paladin, so the only character in the party to whom it could attune is their hireling, Brother Binford.

     The party found a couple of runic tablets in an otherwise empty crypt. Remembering that most such tablets contain curses, the party placed these tablets into a bag without attempting to read them, and decided to offer them for sale to their patron, Mazzahs the Magnificent, when they get back to Helix (if he has any interest in such things). 

     The party had a hard-fought battle with a Son of Gaxx before deciding to retreat to a "safe" room in the dungeon and camping there until the next morning . . . 

Current PC XP: 1590 XP

Current Hireling XP: 1123 XP

Valhalla (R.I.P.)

•  Imeni the Mongrelman, beheaded by Varghoulis the Dread Knight and his Crypt Knights of the Black Legion (1/3/1000)
• "Killer" Kelg Barrelgut (dwarf fighter hireling), killed by a Son of Gaxx (and subsequently the corpse was burned for fear he would arise as a new Son of Gaxx) (1/9/1000)

Barrowmaze 5E Session 6 - Investigating More Barrows!

 

Saturday (9/20/25) we played our sixth session of Barrowmaze 5E. The party decided to investigate more of the barrows on the surface rather than return to the dungeon . . . 

The roster of characters:

• Tanya - Sariel Moonblossom (Half-Elf Cleric of Arcantryl 2)
• Eli - Omarion Zolond (Drow Necromancer 2) 
• Aidan - Alivin O'Harris (Human Ranger 2)
• Christopher - Feles Pugnat (Tabaxi Fighter 2)
• Hireling - Freelik of Glossimir (High Elf Fighter 1) - 2 gp/day
• Hireling - "Killer" Kelg Barrelgut (Hill Dwarf Fighter 1) - 2 gp/day
• Hireling - Brother Binford (Human Cleric of St. Ygg 1) - 2 gp/day
• Mongrelmen Hirelings: Kasmut, Kenamon, Qalhata, Somintu, and Werenro

9th Day of Hardfrost, 1000 GCY

     The party set off for the Barrowmaze early as usual, and arrived without any random encounters. They had decided to investigate some of the barrows on the surface rather than return to the dungeon. They had to excavate the first one they chose in order to enter. Once inside, they experimented with some bathing pools, found some minor treasures, fought two Sons of Gaxx (one of which slew "Killer" Kelg Barrelgut and infected his corpse with rote grubs. The party later burned his corpse for fear that he might arise as a new Son of Gaxx). They explored two more barrows. They also fought two wood golems and an ochre jelly hidden in a jeweled goblet. They found statues with gemstone eyes, and used mage hand to steal the gems without dying from the obvious traps. And they found a barrow with a verdigrised bronze door which could not be opened without a key - and the mongrelmen followers informed them that they had seen such a key in the possession of a mongrelman sub-chief known as Horned One. So there is some thought that they might seek out Horned One to try to obtain that key . . . Anyway, after exploring a few barrows, they decided to head back to Helix. They got a late start back, and could hear the snarls and howls of the horrors that emerge in the Barrowmaze at night behind them as they hastened to return to town to sell their loot . . . 

     They PCs did get enough XP to level up to 3rd level at the end of the session. Alivin O'Harris chose the archetype of the Hunter, Feles Pugnat chose the archetype of the Eldritch Knight, and both Omarion Zolond and Sariel Moonblossom acquired second level spells . . . 

Valhalla (R.I.P.)

•  Imeni the Mongrelman, beheaded by Varghoulis the Dread Knight and his Crypt Knights of the Black Legion (1/3/1000)
• "Killer" Kelg Barrelgut (dwarf fighter hireling), killed by a Son of Gaxx (and subsequently the corpse was burned for fear he would arise as a new Son of Gaxx) (1/9/1000)

Barrowmaze 5E Session 5 - Back to the Dungeon - Carnivorous Flies and Ghouls!

 

Today (8/24/25) we played our fifth session of Barrowmaze 5E. The party decided to return to the dungeon and try to fill in some gaps on their map . . . 

The roster of characters:

• Tanya - Sariel Moonblossom (Half-Elf Cleric of Arcantryl 2)
• Eli - Omarion Zolond (Drow Necromancer 2) 
• Aidan - Alivin O'Harris (Human Ranger 2)
• Christopher - Feles Pugnat (Tabaxi Fighter 2)
• Hireling - Freelik of Glossimir (High Elf Fighter 1) - 2 gp/day
• Hireling - "Killer" Kelg Barrelgut (Hill Dwarf Fighter 1) - 2 gp/day
• Hireling - Brother Binford (Human Cleric of St. Ygg 1) - 2 gp/day
• Mongrelmen Hirelings: Kasmut, Kenamon, Qalhata, Somintu, and Werenro

7th Day of Hardfrost, 1000 GCY

     The party set off for the Barrowmaze early as usual, and arrived without any random encounters. They entered the dungeon and started to explore areas of the map they had left unfinished. They fought a gray ooze (damaging the weapons and armor of Alivin O'Harris, though they later replaced his damaged battle axe with a +1 battle axe) and a couple of giant carnivorous flies, and then pressed on to an area where they fought even more giant carnivorous flies in a room with the demolished ruins of a statue. They did find some murals that gave some hints to the history of the Barrowmaze that they had previously gleaned from a runic tablet - the ancient death-god, Nergal, gifting his favored priest with a special tablet, the Tablet of Chaos, then sending his followers into the Barrowmaze . . . Having used up a lot of spells and resources, the party retreated to a "safe" room (previously secured as a base) and took a long rest . . . 

8th Day of Hardfrost, 1000 GCY

     When the party finished their long rest, it was in the wee hours of the 8th. They explored a defiled crypt, where they fought a ghoul - Sariel turned the undead, and as it tried to flee, Omarion captured it, tied it on a leash, cut off its arms and jaw, and kept it. They then entered another defiled crypt, where four more ghouls awaited them. After this, the party decided to return to Helix for rest, recovery, and restocking . . . 

Valhalla (R.I.P.)

•  Imeni the Mongrelman, beheaded by Varghoulis the Dread Knight and his Crypt Knights of the Black Legion (1/3/1000)

Barrowmaze 5E Session 4 - Into the Barrowmaze - Hired Help, Barrows, and Dungeons

 

     Today (8/24/25) we played our fourth session of Barrowmaze 5E. Having decided previously to alternate exploration of barrows and the dungeon beneath them, the PCs planned to resume exploring the barrows at the start of this sessions. 

     Before we got to that, however, we started with the arrival of a caravan in Helix from Ironguard Motte. The caravan was in the employ of the Silver Standard Merchant Caravan, and had hired double the usual number of guards: a company of adventurers called the Fearsome Fivesome AND a bunch of independent adventurers. It was reported that the reason for this heightened security was a sharp rise in attacks by undead along the roads, some bearing the mark of the Black Legion. The PCs decided to hire some additional muscle before returning to the Barrowmaze, and so approached the independent adventurers (I used the pregen characters published with Barrowmaze for these characters): they ended up hiring Freelik of  Glossimir (High Elf Fighter 1), "Killer" Kelg Barrelgut (Hill Dwarf Fighter 1), and Brother Binford (Human Cleric of St. Ygg 1) at a rate of 2 gp/day each. The increase in "firepower" was assumed to be worth the split in XP . . . 

The roster of characters:

• Tanya - Sariel Moonblossom (Half-Elf Cleric of Arcantryl 2)
• Eli - Omarion Zolond (Drow Necromancer 2) 
• Aidan - Alivin O'Harris (Human Ranger 2)
• Christopher - Feles Pugnat (Tabaxi Fighter 2)
• Hireling - Freelik of Glossimir (High Elf Fighter 1) - 2 gp/day
• Hireling - "Killer" Kelg Barrelgut (Hill Dwarf Fighter 1) - 2 gp/day
• Hireling - Brother Binford (Human Cleric of St. Ygg 1) - 2 gp/day
• Mongrelmen Hirelings: Kasmut, Kenamon, Qalhata, Somintu, and Werenro

5th Day of Hardfrost, 1000 GCY

     The party set off for the Barrowmaze a bit later than usual (by about half an hour) because of the time taken to negotiate the hire of the hirelings. Along the way, they spotted two withered corpses along the path. They investigated, only to be set upon by two coffer corpses. The party quickly realized that non-magical weapons had little effect on the monsters, and switched to their meager magical daggers and spells to defeat them. 

      Arriving later than usual at the Barrowmaze, they explored the first mound to which they came - it was sealed, and so required some work with sledghammers to open. They found two skeletons (not animated), bowls of coins, and two decorated but fragile amphorae. 

     They then investigated a second mound, another one sealed requiring sledgehammer work to open, and found a sarcophagus; they opened it and faced a zombie draped in black cloth. In the battle the amphorae from the first mound were shattered. They defeated the zombie and claimed its treasure - a gold necklace with a jade scarab and a ring of protection +1 (claimed by Omarion, for the first time raising his Armor Class from 10 to 11!). 

     At this point, having spent much more time than expected hammering away at sealed tombs, the party decided to return to Helix before it got too much later. On the way they could hear the snarls and growls of the terrors of the Barrowmaze, but they managed to get back to Helix without incident. 

6th Day of Hardfrost, 1000 GCY

     The party got their usual early start to the Barrowmaze, intending to return to the dungeon beneath the burial mounds today. 

     This time they decided to explore a passageway to the north that they had previously bypassed. They entered a quiet crypt in which there was some graffiti ("Beware the Minotaur"), to which Feles added his own ("Feles was here"). They entered a second quiet crypt where they fought a giant spider and retrieved a hoard of electrum coins. Then they entered a defiled crypt in which they faced a phantom and found a runic tablet detailing the History of the Tablet of Chaos. 

     As a side note, this was randomly rolled - there are many runic tablets in the Barrowmaze, most of them bearing curses, but this one was purely informative, and of potentially epic importance, too. The tablet told of the ancient death-god Nergal and his Tablet of Chaos, which had power over death and the undead. It was said that the ancestral builders of the Barrowmaze brought the Tablet of Chaos to this place, and that it is possibly the reason the Barrowmaze is such an accursed place swarming with undead. It even hinted at the method of destroying the Tablet of Chaos (possisbly by sundering a law-aligned magical item or artifact against the Tablet of Chaos, thus destroying both!). 

     After this, the party explored a seemingly empty room beyond a portcullis, then found a secret door to a hidden chamber where they fought six zombies. 

    Finally, they explored one more chamber, smashing through a bricked up doorway to encounter a room with four shadows. They defeated the shadows in a hard-fought battle, then retreated back to Helix to recuperate . . . 

Valhalla (R.I.P.)

•  Imeni the Mongrelman, beheaded by Varghoulis the Dread Knight and his Crypt Knights of the Black Legion (1/3/1000)

Barrowmaze 5E Session 3 - Into the Barrowmaze - Return to the Dungeon

 

     Today (8/17/25) we played our third session of Barrowmaze 5E. Having spent the previous session exploring the burial mounds on the surface, in this session they decided to return to the dungeon. 

     The characters have learned to set off early in the morning, because travel time to and from the maze is about 4 hours each way, and they do not want to waste daylight in the maze (they took to heart warnings not to linger in the Barrowmaze after dark!). I use a time tracker that tracks both hours and 10-minute increments, which is useful in a setting in which one checks for random encounters every 20 minutes or so. The players got very lucky - they didn't roll a single random encounter for them in this game, even when they were making noise breaking down a bricked up doorway with sledgehammers!

The roster of characters:

• Tanya - Sariel Moonblossom (Half-Elf Cleric of Arcantryl 1)
• Eli - Omarion Zolond (Drow Wizard 1) 
• Aidan - Alivin O'Harris (Human Ranger 1)
• Christopher - Feles Pugnat (Tabaxi Fighter 1)
• Mongrelmen Hirelings: Kasmut, Kenamon, Qalhata, Somintu, and Werenro

4th day of Hardfrost, 1000 CGY

     The party entered the Barrowmaze and headed for the large mound they knew contained an entrance to the dungeon below the mounds. They used their own grappling hooks and ropes to enter, as they do not trust the existing apparatus. 

     The first room they explored was a trap that slammed down a stone slab with Alivin O'Harris and Feles Pugnat in a room and left Omarion Zolond, Sariel Moonblossom, and the mongrelmen outside the room. Then a door opened, releasing several skeletons into the room. Fortunately, Sariel quickly found a way to trigger the stone slab to rise, and the party was able to destroy the skeletons. 

     After this, the party carefully explored several more rooms, some of which were empty. For the first time they encountered rooms with burial alcoves, and spent time searching them for treasure - which was rewarded each time they searched, despite the cost in precious time! In one room they found a sack with 15 pp, in another room 108 gp from alcoves. 

     Next, they entered a room full of giant rats. Omarion blasted them with burning hands, and killed them all. The party looted 123 sp from that room! 

     They risked breaking down a bricked-up doorway next. The sound echoed through the ancient corridors of the dungeon, but brought no new random encounter down upon their heads, luckily! They looted sacks of treasure (300 sp and 400 gp) plus alcoves again (666 sp). 

      The party then moved into a slightly different area of the dungeon. I note that the maps for Barrowmaze do a pretty good job, considering the size of the task, but contain some oddities, such as areas where letters are used to indicate sub-areas, but the map does not always make clear to what area a sub-area belongs. Another oddity is that moving beyond area 17 leads to areas 60, 61, 62, etc. Like, it is hard to figure out how to number a non-linear dungeon, but sometimes, the numbering really seems to make little sense! Anyway . . . 

     They party found 115 cp, 2 silver earrings (50 gp), and a silver dagger +1, which ended up in the hands of the ranger, Alivin O'Harris, since the last magical dagger went to Feles Pugnat. 

     Passing through a room that had suffered a partial collapse, they triggerd another shower of debris, and everyone in the party took some damage from falling masonry.

     Finally, the party entered an chamber of many pillars (and some rubble from past collapses) occupied by a giant constrictor snake. The snake ensnared Sariel Moonblossom in its coils and nearly killed her, while the rest of the party engaged it in battle. It continued to lash out with its fangs while restraining Sariel. The party managed to kill the snake, searched the chamber and came up with 6 valuable gems, and then decided to make a retreat back to the town of Helix. They were able to make it back without any further encounters (although they thought they heard the distant war-drums of the Black Legion at one point!). 

     Back in Helix, the party sold off loot (they made a deal with a merchant to sell him the gems they found for a better price in exchange for promising him exclusive first rights to any gems they find in the future!). The party earned a total of 1072 XP, or 268 XP each. This brought them up to 461 XP each, so they leveled up to 2nd level. Alivin got to choose a fighting style (he picked two-weapon fighting) and Omarion chose necromancy as his arcane tradition. 

So now, the new roster of characters is:

• Tanya - Sariel Moonblossom (Half-Elf Cleric of Arcantryl 2)
• Eli - Omarion Zolond (Drow Necromancer 2) 
• Aidan - Alivin O'Harris (Human Ranger 2)
• Christopher - Feles Pugnat (Tabaxi Fighter 2)
• Mongrelmen Hirelings: Kasmut, Kenamon, Qalhata, Somintu, and Werenro

Valhalla (R.I.P.)

•  Imeni the Mongrelman, beheaded by Varghoulis the Dread Knight and his Crypt Knights of the Black Legion (1/3/1000)