Monday, 2 December 2019

The Inn on the Borderland - my licensed Gor book!


So, I actually have an official licensed Gor publication published today that I hope a few of you will support by buying in either pdf or print form.

Yes, official, licensed – 'approved' by John Norman, though I doubt he'll ever actually read it!

A few words of explanation then...

It's an adventure module for the tales of Gor RPG game that I wrote and gave away for free to James Desborough to help him out with some heavy vet bills for his cat, Charlie, who recently broke his leg in a very bad way and was at risk of losing it. I love cats, and James is a really nice guy and to be honest he's had a rough year or so. Running an independent publishing company specialising in role-playing games is pretty much a labour of love and not exactly a road to riches and fabulous wealth by any means. He has a lifelong love of the Gor series and bought the license from John Norman to write and publish a tabletop game based on the books, and very good it is too, and since then he has published several adventure packs in support of it.

You may recall I wrote a sample scenario for the game called Agents of the Silver Masks. If you haven't read it you can see it here:


Well, the Inn on the Borderland is a bit like that, only much bigger. Just under 15,000 words of my narrative writing before any game stats or appendices are added to the mix. Even if you don't play games, I've written the module in my usual witty style with my usual irreverent characters that makes it easy reading for non-gamers.

The setting is a border war between the Gorean city states of Lara and Vonda. Conflict has broken out between these cities over some trivial or not so trivial economic resource or point of honour, and a low level military campaign is being waged mostly through the employment of mercenary companies. Gor is home to many mercenary companies, the most famous of which is commanded by the fabled Dietrich of Tarnburg. By and large these companies are happy to receive regular pay in exchange for which they will manoeuvre across the contested area in a contrived fashion that minimises the possibility of actually meeting the enemy and having to fight.

Instead the companies routinely loot and pillage the area, burning villages and crucifying men who resist as a warning to other villages.

And then collect their pay.

None of them actually want the conflict to end of course, because this is their livelihood.

The passing of their baggage trains are signposted by plumes of black smoke and the wailing of widowed free women who find the corpses of their free companions lying in the dirt.

Into this the heroic Gorean characters blunder and, caught between manoeuvring companies of infantry and cavalry, they are forced to take refuge in one of the few safe places to be found – a walled and fortified roadside Inn where other frightened refugees have gathered. But as the cold rain of late autumn hammers at the parched earth, the war banner of feared mercenary captain, Sar Haranson, can be seen coming ever close to the Inn on the Borderland.

Just to reiterate, I don't make a penny from this myself – all proceeds go to help save Charlie the cat's leg. You can buy it in either pdf download (and have it on your computer now! Now!) for £2.99, or a lovely print copy for £5.99.

Links for the PDF and print copies can be found here:


Thank you in advance to those of you who are able to buy it. :)

- Emma x 




10 comments:

  1. David of Worcester02/12/2019, 20:27

    Just bought my copy

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  2. Tal Emma,

    Well done. Very public spirited of you.

    I too have a soft spot for a nice pussy, yours or otherwise.

    We had 2 as pets when I was a child, though I encountered several more as a student in my late teen/early 20s.

    David of Abertawe

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  3. I love cats. I especially love their cat-like behaviour and general sense of 'catishness'. :)

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    Replies
    1. Tal Emma

      Ironically our 1st cat was Twm (Welsh for Tom) but I don't remember him as I was 2.

      So my pornstar name would have been Twm Davies.

      The first cat I remember was FFluffy


      So my pornstar name could have been Fluffy Davies...….better than Fluffer Davies I suppose.

      David of Abertawe

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  4. Any relation to 'The Keep on the Borderlands'?

    It looks quite enjoyable Emma, well done!

    Jack of Sterling

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    1. The title is actually a nod to the classic horror novel, 'The House on the Borderland' by William Hope Hodgson, though I'm familiar with the D&D module you mention, and suspect the module title also referenced the Hodgson title.

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    2. Yes the D+D Module was in the Basic Boxed Set of the Original D+D game that I had as a kid.

      Funny to think some other people can still remember those late 70s/1980 days!

      Memories...like the way we were

      David of Abertawe

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    3. I don't actually remember it from the original late 70s D&D. I'm not quite that old! But I do have a copy (I think...) because just over ten years ago I bought some second hand vintage roleplay games from ebay when they used to be quite cheap. I picked up quite a few of the really old AD&D books at bargain prices, just to see what they looked like.

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  5. Tal Emma,

    So you are younger than my 1970 vintage?

    But then Buttercup says I dont need serums yet as I look 10 years younger than I am. As for looking my age in South Wales I look 15+ years younger than a typical male here knocking 50.

    Must be the Boots No 7 for Men or the healthy diet or gym or all 3....plus my mother's age defying DNA.

    Runequest as popular as a fantasy RPG with a more realistic combat wounds system.

    Check put old White Dwarf magazine covers.. very John Norman some of them

    David of Abertawe

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  6. Bought arrived yesterday

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