TEXT: 1
  You could easily use The Midderlands, which is based on Swords and Wizardry Complete, as is with Crypts & Things. 
  This document gives more ‘game juice’ as The Midderland’s creator Glynn Seal calls it, to make running the setting with 
  C&T more seamless. 
  What is the Midderlands?
  Whist ‘The Midderlands’ is not strictly a Swords and Sorcery setting, it is a vile, dangerous and weird land. It is similar in 
  tone to Clark Ashton Smith’s Averoigne Stories, which are tales of weird fantasy set in a fictional province of medieval 
  France.
  Not got a copy of The Midderlands? 
  Shame on you! Go visit monkeyblooddesign.co.uk/The-Midderlands or drivethrurpg.com/browse/pub/7771/
  MonkeyBlood-Design immediately to remedy this sad situation.
  Not got a copy of Crypts and Things? Well you’ll need one to make head or tail of this document (as us Brits say). 
  Go pick up a copy either at D101 Games Webstore: d101games.com/store or DriveThruRpg.com: drivethrurpg.com/
  product/190299/Crypts-and-Things-Remastered 
  Contents
  Characters: Explanations about the origins of the characters, how the core character classes fit in The Midderlands and 
  new life events more suited to the setting.
  Encounters in the Midderlands with Fiends: A quick list of monsters from the C&T rulebook suitable for use in The 
  Midderlands.
  Threats to Sanity: This section highlights the unnatural delights of The Midderlands that might be alarming to non-
  residents.
  Gloomium: How this ever-present corrupting green goo affects the Crypts and Things Magic system. Includes rules for 
  ingesting gloomium, don’t try this at home kids! (no really don’t).
  Thanks to
  Glynn Seal for putting the The Midderlands together and opening up such a bottle of gaming fun! Also for proofing this 
  document.
  CRYPTS &THINGS 
  THE MIDDERLANDS  
  CONVERSION NOTES
  Legal
  This document is © 2017 Paul Newport.
  Crypts and Things is © 2016 Paul Newport. 
  Swords & Wizardry, S&W, and Mythmere Games are trademarks of Matthew J. Finch.
  Paul Newport, D101 Games are not affiliated with Matthew J. Finch, Mythmere Games™, or Frog God Games.
  The Midderlands is © 2017 of Glynn Seal, Edwin Nagy and Mark Nolan, and published by MonkeyBlood Design & Publishing. The content is 
  copyright of the respective authors and artists within (page 7 of The Midderlands). Those books are published under the Open Gaming License 
  v1.0a and contain Product Identity (see page 220 and page 221 of The Midderlands).
  References to the Product Identity contained in The Midderlands, and used in this document are used with permission.
  Note none of this document is Open Gaming Content. 
  Permission is given to print for personal use only.
  All other rights retained. 
  
  2
  Characters
  Characters can, of course, start out in the Continent of 
  Terror and then be magically transported from there, such 
  as the gate that is The Black Monolith in the Haunted 
  Lands Adventure (see page 217 in the main Crypts & 
  Things Rule Book). It may be that The Shroud, being an 
  in-between world between Zarth and the Other Worlds, 
  may have doors and gates that lead directly into the 
  Middergloom, the vast underworld that lies beneath the 
  Midderlands. Or they may be from the Midderlands itself 
  or the neighbouring lands in Havenland. If using this 
  option, the following Notes about Character Classes and 
  New Lifepath table are there to create characters native to 
  the setting. 
  Notes about Character Classes
  These short write-ups place the four core classes of Crypts 
  and Things in context of the Midderlands.
  Barbarian
  These are the unwashed lot of the Midderlands. The 
  especially stinky and wild who live outside the towns and 
  hamlets in the wilderness. Even Midderlanders consider 
  them a bunch of beggars who live in the ditches by the 
  roads, or in ramshackle hovels in the woods. They are 
  the natural enemies of both the fetid horrors of the 
  Midderlands and the civilised folk who come from outside 
  to tame and/or exploit it.
  Other Barbarians come from the Grim North, as part of 
  raiding groups who believe that “there’s gold in that there 
  Green Land”, and who end up alone after their party 
  return home, repulsed by force of arms by one of the 
  local lords, or eaten by ‘things’ in the wilderness.
  Fighter
  Some are out of work mercenaries from the border wars 
  in the Grim North who have drifted to the Midderlands 
  in search of work. Then there are the ex-soldiers from 
  the Soft South who are looking for adventure and glory, 
  which eludes them in the more peaceful lands they come 
  from. Native Fighters have usually worked their way 
  up through the local militias, the townguard, and the 
  Lord’s bodyguards and want a bit more life and coin for 
  themselves. 
  Sorcerer 
  The earth is thin, and Gloomium seeps through the lands 
  most readily. Sorcerers have flocked like vultures to study 
  the effects of this offensive material. White Sorcerers 
  seek to actively stop the significant horrors that are 
  coming from this land. Grey Magicians from the Royal 
  Society of Sorcerers study and catalogue the region’s 
  unique flora and fauna; critics say that they are little more 
  than overpaid academics. Foul Black Sorcerers rub their 
  hands with glee at the possibility of all the nasty, stinging, 
  rotting, fetid creatures that ooze in less savoury parts of 
  the Midderlands, whose body parts they can use in their 
  spells, potions, and as the base of even more foul magical 
  constructs. These sorcerer outsiders are quite rightly 
  feared, since many are scheming opportunists seeking to 
  loot and harvest unnatural things from the land. Even 
  the bearers of the Royal Seal of the Queen are seen as 
  meddlers who bring doom by poking their noses into local 
  mysteries and secrets best left alone. 
  Local Sorcerers are a mixed lot. The sons and daughters 
  of local village Wises and Hedge magicians, returning 
  Sorcerers who had an apprenticeship with a lone Sorcerer 
  in the counties beyond the Midderland’s borders or with 
  the Royal Society of Sorcerers in Great Lunden. None 
  of these magicians receives a happy homecoming, inland 
  where magic is blamed for all the strange and bad things 
  that happen. A land where the stereotypical sorcerer is like 
  Pye of Cairn Chase Forest — mad, bad and dangerous to 
  know.
  Thief
  The Midderlands is an exceptionally lawless part of 
  Havenland, where Thieves can operate quite naturally 
  without the law fingering them constantly.
  As well as a load of native bad types who make their 
  livelihood out of robbing, such as the infamous Merry 
  Green Men living on the edge of Cairn Chase Forest, there 
  is a whole load of bad types, mainly from the crowded 
  slums of Great Lunden, who have come looking for the 
  “Gold in the Green”.   
  The only downside of the Midderlands, from the more 
  organised rogue’s point of view, is that there isn’t any 
  established Guild of Thieves like there is in some of the 
  more prominent cities up North or South. Perhaps the 
  time has come for one to be set up by some enterprising 
  individual.
  The earth is thin, 
  and Gloomium 
  seeps through 
  the lands most 
  readily. Sorcerers 
  have flocked like 
  vultures to study 
  the effects of this 
  offensive material. 
  
  3
  New Lifepath Tables
  These tables take the assumption that the player characters are outsiders to the Midderlands, who come either from 
  the Grim North or the Soft South. They share a common mother tongue but a history of being invaded by neighbours 
  across the sea (such as the Norswedanes, whose dragon boats plague the Grim North, and the Knormuns whose 
  organised military invasions, eventually overran the South and established the current royal dynasty) has led to differing 
  dialects, which mark them as outsiders to the Midderlanders. Similarly, they share a common culture, with a shared 
  history and similar feudal political system, and are ruled by the same monarch, Queen Elspeth IV. There things diverge, 
  as the North and South of Havenland are distinctly different places. The North is cold, rainy, hilly and mountainous. The 
  South more temperate, less hilly and covered with farmland. The Midderlands themselves might as well be on another 
  planet, with it’s treacherous terrain.  
  Note these Havenlands are my personal creations and may be superseded by official productions by MonkeyBlood 
  Design & Publishing should they develop the lands beyond the Midderlands further. 
  The Soft South
  A land of abundant farmland, soft and rolling hills, pleasant Royal Forests where deer and other animals frolic 
  until hunted to extinction by the nobility. Towns are genteel centres of arts and crafts, while large cities like Great 
  Lunden strain with overpopulation. The Duke’s castles, built in a time when war between feudal dukes and lords was 
  commonplace, are more likely to be converted to comfortable places of leisure, designed to impress and accommodate 
  Queen Elspeth IV on her annual procession around her realm, than the heavily-fortified bases for private armies that 
  they were at the start of her reign. The south is, on the surface, at peace. All glory be to Queen Elspeth IV.
  Roll D6
  Life Event
  Characteristic 
  Bonus
  1. 
  Southern Dandy. The character is one of the Dandies (or Poffs as the Northerners 
  and Midderlanders call them). They are well mannered, yet outrageous in their 
  behaviour and dress. Ruffs, lace, outrageous pieces of jewellery all are the hallmark 
  of the Dandy’s honour. 
  +1 Charisma.
  2. 
  Shopkeeper. It is often said that the south is a land of shopkeepers. This paints 
  a rather idyllic picture of steady and calm commerce. In fact, nothing could be 
  further from the truth, the South being a hotbed of corruption and cut throat 
  deals. The character was brought up in an environment where outwitting mercantile 
  opponents was a way of life. 
  +1 Intelligence.
  3. 
  Easex Gangster. The character was a Lundener, but moved to the country 
  surrounding the city, to escape the grinding poverty of the capital. Instead of the 
  rural paradise with ‘work for all’, they found themselves shut out by the locals. 
  Instead, you were welcomed by a group of fellow Lundener’s in the same boat and 
  joined their criminal clan. 
  +1 Dexterity.
  4. 
  Bumpkin. The character is a from the vast farmlands that cover the eastern and 
  southern parts of the Havenlands. They are a tough people used to toiling in the 
  fields, surviving outbreaks of plague and bandit raids. 
  +1 Constitution.
  5. 
  Cosywolds Hill Dweller. The character is from one of the hill villages in 
  Cosywolds. This is a quiet and contemplative land of kings and ancient ruins, often 
  visited by foreigners in special organised expeditions, known as ‘Stagecoach Trips’. 
  +1 Wisdom.
  6. 
  Lundener. This character is a commoner from the overcrowded capital of the 
  Havenlands. Used to grinding labour to survive. 
  +1 Strength. 
  
  4
  The Grim North
  A harsh landscape of hills and mountains, which has higher rainfall and is much colder than the rest of Havenland. 
  Constant wars and raids from barbarian neighbours have also ravaged the North. Its scattered peoples are a reserved and 
  stoic lot, who can appear to be sullen to outsiders, but once amongst their own, in the privacy of their homes and pubs, 
  are in fact full of life and generous to a fault.
  Roll D6
  Life Event
  Characteristic 
  Bonus
  1. 
  Border Reaver. The character is a member of one of the Raider Borderclans, who 
  live in fortified manor houses either side of Hard Adrin’s Wall. Quarrelsome to the 
  extreme, they thrive in the disputed borderlands regularly swapping their allegiance 
  between the Lords both north and south of the Wall. 
   +1 Strength. 
  2. 
  From Twineside. In the lands of the River Twine, just south of Hard Adrin’s Wall, 
  it’s essential to know what side of the Twine you are from, since ancient ancestral 
  feuds, known locally as Knots, exists between the North Twineside (from Nowtcastle 
  and Shield) and South Twineside (from Gate of Head and Sunnyland). Nobody 
  understands Twineside dialect, except perhaps when they are drunk. Despite this, 
  Twinesiders have a natural charm and affability, which makes them misunderstand 
  why no one else in the Haven Lands is as nice as they are. 
  +1 Charisma. 
  3. 
  From the Lands of the Bishop Kings, the character hails from the Haven Lands, such 
  as Derhamshire and Yirkshire. Where Bishops instead of Dukes rule from fortified 
  Cathedrals and dare, in defiance to the Mad Queen, to take the title ‘King’. (Derham 
  and Yirkshire). People from this region pride themselves on being especially religious 
  and due to an excellent public-school system, provided by the monks, the only widely-
  literate area in Havenland. 
  +1 Wisdom.
  4. 
  Savage from Beyond the Wall. In the dark distant past, they built a massive wall, 
  Hard Adrin’s Wall, to keep the Savages from the furthest reaches from despoiling 
  Havenland. Named after King Adrin who ordered its construction and because it was 
  meant to be hard to get over. To the people south of the wall, these people are savage 
  tribesman, who regularly perform unspeakable acts as a matter of survival and run 
  about screaming whilst wearing only elaborate blue woad body paint. The truth may 
  be close or radically different. 
  +1 Constitution. 
  5. 
  Lindyfarner. Raised on the magical island of Lindyfarn, just off the coast of 
  Twineside. Believe that the fog on the River Twine is all theirs, and is due to the 
  pact between the Twinesiders and the Lindyfarners who raise the fog as a defence, 
  conjuring terrifying demons and monsters out of the fog. All Lindyfarners can cast 
  Phantasmal Force once per day. Unfortunately, this did not help the islanders ten years 
  ago when the island was attacked by raiders from the sea, and most of the population 
  was sold into slavery and ended up being scattered across the North because of this 
  raid. 
   +1 Intelligence.
  6. 
  Lakelander. Peaceful, contemplative, and terrified of lake monsters coming up from 
  the depths and eating them in their boats. +3 to Skill Tests involving small boats.
   +1 Dexterity. 
  
  5
  New/amended Career Life Paths for Character Classes
  Barbarian
  Roll 
  D6
  Life Event
  Benefit
  1
  The character was a “bog-fighter”, an expert in 
  fighting in pits full of mud. 
  + 2 to hit when fighting in swamps or similar muddy 
  conditions, and to skill tests involving being waist 
  deep in mud.
  2
  For most of the character’s life, they lived up in the 
  Mountains. 
  +2 to climbing skill tests.
  3
  A wild raider, an expert in stealing sheep and cattle.
  +2 to hit and run attacks.
  4
  A ‘reformed savage’ adopted by civilised folk.
  They never suffer any negative reactions from 
  townsfolk to their Barbarian nature. Civilised folk will 
  be able to tell from the characters manners and dress 
  that they have been ‘tamed’ and will look to them for 
  protection and guidance when they are under attack by 
  their less civilised kinfolk.
  5
  Corruption Fighter. 
  +2 to hit and damage when fighting creatures 
  corrupted by gloomium.
  6
  Head Hunter. They have a previous career working 
  for the Lords/Dukes, tracking down bandits and 
  raiders, taking their heads as bounty. 
  As well as being +2 to hit and damage versus such 
  uncivilised humans and non-humans, through 
  conviction and training, they can always collect a 
  bounty of at least 1d6 gold quids per head from the 
  local noble upon presentation of the heads.
  Fighter
  Roll 
  D6
  Life Event
  Benefit
  1
  The character is a career mercenary. 
  They can always find work in the private army of some 
  lord or other.
  2
  Ex-member of a Duke’s Standing Army, now out of a 
  job since Queen Elspeth IV banned private armies. 
  +2 to all skill tests regarding Ducal troops, such as to 
  recognise the owner of a particular Heraldic emblem.
  3
  Town Watch.
   +2 to hit any skill test regarding the capture of career 
  criminals.
  4
  Treasure hunter.
  +2 to any skill test to find treasure troves and safely 
  find and disarm traps guarding them. 
  5
  Caravan Guard.
  +2 to hit and damage when protecting another 
  character. 
  6
  Professional Monster Hunter.
   +2 to hit and damage when fighting large rampaging 
  monsters threatening local communities. 
  
  6
  Thief  
  Roll 
  D6
  Life Event
  Benefit
  1
  A “Merry Man/Woman” from a band of forest 
  outlaws. 
  +2 to all rolls when in the forest.
  2
  The character is a former member of a gang of 
  smugglers.
   +2 to all rolls when smuggling cargo past the 
  authorities. 
  3
  A footpad, who waylaid travellers on the lonely paths. +2 to all rolls when ambushing passers-by on the 
  byways and highways of the Haven Lands. 
  4
  A burglar who made a living breaking and entering 
  houses. 
  +2 to lock picking, forcing doors etc. 
  5
  A turncoat who has worked for the Lords, leading 
  the watch to former colleagues and associates
  Trusted by the authorities, who always pay a bounty of 
  at least 1d20 gold quids for information about known 
  felon’s activities.
  6
  A scout, leading ‘expeditions’ of rich tourists, looking 
  for thrills and excitement in the more out of the way 
  places of the Midderlands. 
  +2 to all rolls concerned with scouting activities. 
  Sorcerer
  Roll 
  D6
  Life Event
  Benefit
  1.
  A paid-up member of the Royal College of Magic 
  and carries their seal. 
  +2 to skill test rolls when dealing with the authorities or 
  any social situation where social status is involved.
  2
  Ex-monk, who was kicked out of the monastery 
  during the reformation at the beginning of Queen 
  Elspeth IV’s reign. 
  Specialised in healing the poor, knows Protection from 
  Evil and Cure Light Wounds as bonus spells in their 
  spell book. 
  3
  Court Sorcerer for a Baron. 
  +2 to any skill tests involving etiquette and the upper 
  classes.
  4
  Hedge Wizard.
  Automatically knows Animal Friend, Cure Light Wounds 
  as bonus spells in their spell book. 
  5
  Astrologer and Diviner, making money from telling 
  people’s fortunes. 
  The character starts with the bonus spell Divination in 
  their spellbook. 
  6
  An Alchemist. 
  They know Purify Food and Drink, Make Small Items as 
  bonus spells in their spell book.
  
  7
  Threats to Sanity
  The Midderlands are especially hazardous to the mental 
  health of those who live there. It is a massive shock to 
  outsiders, used to the blue skies and green fields of their 
  own lands. There are random magical effects, erupting 
  green gloop, noxious plants and foul, twisted beasties. 
  Even more so than the Continent of Terror.
  As usual Sanity Loss should be preceded by unnerving 
  description and foul omens and the guidelines on page 235 
  of Crypts & Things should be borne in mind. 
  Encounters in the 
  Midderlands with 
  Fiends
  Of course, you as Crypts Keeper may import any of the 
  Fiends found in Crypts and Things’ Compendium of 
  Fiends to The Midderlands to surprise and amuse your 
  players, but this author feels that the following creatures fit 
  in with the setting exceptionally well.
  Also, you can use the Gloom-touched deformities table 
  on page 11 of The Midderlands to add a gloomium-based 
  twist.
  •	
  Bloom of Death.
  •	
  Chreker.
  •	
  Corpse Colossus, the product of mass graves from 
  some past plague/battle brought back to life by the 
  grave being seeped in gloomium, which the monster 
  drips where ever it goes.
  •	
  Crawling Corruption.
  •	
  Fungus Man.
  •	
  Hanged Man.
  •	
  Khaos Monster
  •	
  Nemons can often be found in village ponds, having 
  crawled up from the Middergloom. They start as a 
  small colony and quickly infect and take over the 
  village. Bulging eyes, webbed feet soon become 
  prevalent amongst the villagers and a tendency for 
  running business solely for “Local People”. 
  •	
  Poison Tree.
  •	
  Sick Weed.
  •	
  Spore Fiend/Spore Zombie.
  •	
  Whip Weed.
  Gloomium 
  Gloomium is everywhere in the Midderlands. It seeps up 
  from the Middergloom, an ambiguous underworld below 
  the Midderlands. It is toxic and corrupting. It is green in 
  colour and is the source of much strangeness, corruption 
  and twisted magic. This section explains how gloomium 
  works in the context of Crypts & Things magic system.
  As a Source of  Khaos
  Crypt Keepers should assume that the seepage of 
  gloomium is the source of Khaos monsters and mutations, 
  for games set in The Midderlands. 
  Corruption 
  Whilst in the Midderlands, use the Gloom-touched rules 
  (Midderlands page 10 and 11), instead of the standard 
  Crypts and Things Corruption table on page 64 of Crypts 
  & Things.  
  Green is the Brightest Colour of  
  Magic!
  While in the Midderlands there is only two colours of 
  magic; Green and Colourless. 
  Green is the magic of gloomium; it’s harmful, toxic and 
  glows a malignant shade of luminous green when cast. It 
  causes corruption when cast, using the rules on page 84 of 
  Crypts & Things. All the spells on the Black Magic spell 
  lists (see page 50 of Crypts & Things) are Green.
  In addition, the following new spells from the Midderlands 
  are Green Magic spells:
  Curse of  Old Hobb, Gloomium Shield, Middergloom Missiles, 
  Morgontula’s Vomit.
  Colourless magic is everything else (i.e. Spells from the Grey 
  and White Lists). It does not have a colour when cast and 
  its effects are usually boringly beneficial or utilitarian in 
  nature. 
  What Did That Do? (see Midderlands page 74) is a colourless spell.
  While in the Midderlands ignore The Summons of Evil 
  rules for casting beneficial (white) magic. 
  Also, ignore the rules for Blood Magic (unless you are 
  using The Others from Crypts and Things or a similar 
  body of Demonic beings who provide magic for blood 
  sacrifice).
  
  8
  Sorcerer’s Magic Sensitivity to 
  Gloomium
  Gloomium is green-hot, radioactive stuff as far as a 
  Sorcerer’s magic sensitivity ability (see page 23 of Crypts 
  & Things) is concerned. It drives many Sorcerers ‘up to 
  the wall’, with the constant throbbing of the temples when 
  their magic sense is triggered by a pool of the green stuff 
  in some swamp, or from a creeping feeling of unease 
  because the house they are lodging in is built over a large 
  gloomium deposit. This does have the benefit of sorcerers 
  being great at finding gloomium. 
  Using Gloomium to Regain Magic
  Since gloomium is nasty raw magical stuff, sorcerer’s 
  may regain magic by ingesting it. This is a particularly 
  dangerous and insane practice which is not recommended 
  by the Royal College.
  The procedure is thus:
  For each ‘gulp’ of gloomium, a sorcerer regains one level 
  of cast spell and loses 1d6 hit points, from the toxic and 
  corrosive nature of the substance, and upon a failed Sanity 
  Roll loses 1d6 sanity points.  It takes one combat round to 
  take a gulp. They also glow bright glowing green for the 
  number of gulps you took in days. All these effects add to 
  each other, so for example, if you take four gulps you take 
  4d6 hit points of damage and potentially lose 4d6 Sanity 
  if you fail your Sanity Test and you can remember up to 
  a fourth Level spell or any combination of spells whose 
  levels.
  For example, Ned the Anxious, a rather foolish apprentice of  
  the Royal College, finds himself  in a spot of  bother in Cairn Chase 
  Forest. About to be skinned alive by some rather Unmerry Men, 
  and out of  spells, he decides to take two gulps of  gloomium, from a 
  readily-prepared flask of  the substance. This takes him two rounds, 
  during which time the Unmerry Men close on him and fire off  bows. 
  In round three, the gloomium kicks off. He takes 2d6 Hit Points 
  damage, rolling a four and a five for nine points of  damage, and 
  successfully makes his sanity roll – so keeps hold of  his mind. With 
  his innards burning from the liquid, he rememorizes the 2nd Level 
  Spell Web and wastes no time in firing off  a sticky web of  green 
  stuff  at the Unmerry Men. If  he had not been so worried, he could 
  have taken his time firing off  one Magic Missile this round, and 
  another the round after (two first level spells equalling 2 levels of  
  spells remembered as allowed by two glups). If  he survives, he will 
  glow bright luminous green for the next two days, making sneaking 
  about and hiding very difficult and becoming a magnet for any nearby 
  witch hunter. 
  Since gloomium 
  is nasty raw 
  magical stuff, 
  sorcerer’s may 
  regain magic 
  by ingesting it. 
  This is a 
  particularly 
  dangerous and 
  insane practice 
  which is not 
  recommended 
  by the Royal 
  College.
  
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