It's a 8 page book. pages 1 - 2 and pages 7 - 8 are cover pages and so on. Page 6 is the obligatory OGL that every supplement of this nature has to have.

The real meat of the document is to be found on the middle pages. Its here you will find everything you need to create a truly unique lair each and everytime you create one for your group. There are 7 tables in total! Each one takes you from outside the lair right up to and including the treasure in the lair.

I have included the author's reason for that table's inclusion and 1 example from each of the tables. That way you can see for yourself why I think these supplements will quickly become essential for you as the DM. Usually there is also a very nice line art drawing of the monster that the lair belongs to.

As with any tables you can just read the list and take the one you like the most or you can roll each table. As a tip when I use an entry, I make a notation for which party I used it with so I dont use it again with them.

The tables. The tables themselves provide you with a strong creative spark to add to your descriptions of each scene. There have been times where the table entry has provided me with the full narrative needed for that section of the lair.
As you will quickly see from each example, the entries have been crafted by a gifted wordsmith, that or laboured over lovingly with dictionaries and a thesaurus. Either way you wont find trie descriptions or generic throwaways here.

Table 1. Outside the Lair - Determine notable features outside the lair, using this list.

1. Stunted, broken bushes make going difficult.

Table 2. What's Going On? - Use this list, to determine what’s happening when the characters arrive.

1. The Harpy is gnawing a partially decomposed leg when the PCs arrive. She uses it as a (missile) weapon at the earliest opportunity.

Table 3. Major Lair Features - Use this list, to determine the lair’s major feature(s).

1. A thick layer of slime and congealed bodily fluids covers the floor. The smell is revolting.

Table 4. Minor Lair Features - Use this list, to determine the lair's minor feature(s).

1. The heavy stench of death and decay hangs in the air.

Table 5. Harpy's Appearance - Use this list, to generate the monster’s appearance and other characteristics.

1. Has beautiful red and blue plumage. She stands out from typical examples of its brethren.

Table 6. Treasure - Use these lists [tables 6 & 7], to add interesting incidental items to the lair’s hoard.

1. Stained with soot and smeared on grim, this brass incense burner wobbles when stood upright

Table 7. Trinkets & Trash -

1. This thick bundle of firewood tied together with several lengths of red twine. The wood is exceptionally dry and burns quickly.

   As you can see, the descriptions detailed and rich. Its going to take you a number of campaigns / one shots to fully plumb the depths of richness that this aid provides. Honestly, anything that allows me to prep less and enjoy more is a boon and that makes this [and many of the Raging Swan supplements] supplement a 'literal' gold mine.

   At £1.10 [at time of writing] this is an absolute solid 5 stars from me.

The players in my game are about to run across a harpy's nest in the Scarlet Citadel! This is an amazing collection of ideas to bring it to life - as usual.

Great collection of handy prompts to bring your lair to life. High quality as usual.

An Endzeitgeist.com review

This installment of the Monstrous Lairs-pdfs clocks in at 8 pages, 1 page front cover, 2 pages of advertisement, 1 page SRD, 1 page back cover, 1 page editorial/ToC, leaving us with 2 pages of content, so let’s take a look!

Sometimes, you just need a bit of dressing for a wayside encounter – or something specific to a monster type. Finding appropriate entries can be rough, and so, this series attempts to remedy this shortcoming on 2 pages, with a total of 7 d10-tables.

In this installment, we take a look at the nests built by harpies, with the 10 approaches presented including stunted bushes, scattered bones and bloody pieces of garments, hinting at the savagery of the things to come. When reaching the nest, PCs may be greeted by one of 10 current events – like harpies gnawing on partially decomposed bones, snoring the sleep of the unjust…or just being lonely, which may delay the inevitable hostility of these vile beings, Tenderizing a corpse with a club was a mental picture that really made me gulp.

As far as features are concerned, we have revolting layers of slime covering everything, excrement-covered half-eaten bodies (ew!) and wall decorations of splintered bones. Really cool! The pdf also contains 10 minor features that include scratch-marks and piles of moldering equipment, sharpened twigs that may carry diseases…and depressions containing eggs, one of which is broken open, showing the metaphysical concept of perverted motherhood resounding through the myths of the harpy.

As far as appearances are concerned, 10 entries are provided, and they include wicked beaks, beautiful parrot-like plumage, livid scars or a mane of hair interwoven with bone fragments. The pdf also sports 10 treasures to be found, which include brass scissors, lockets containing lewd pictures, a folio of songs, a statuette of a wrecked horned, Pegasus (minor complaint: pegasi, per default, do not have unicorn horns in the tradition of D&D-based games). There also are 10 trinkets included, which include bent and rusty spikes, shards of broken blades and eye-catching belt buckles or open coffers – all stained or shredded.

Conclusion: Editing and formatting are very good, I noticed no serious hiccups. Layout adheres to Raging Swan Press’ elegant two-column b/w-standard, and we get a nice piece of b/w-artwork. The pdf comes fully bookmarked for your convenience, in spite of its brevity (kudos!) and is included in two versions – one optimized for screen-use, and one for the printer.

Harpies evoke images of stained purity, of perversion and cannibalism, of a corruption of the domestic sphere and the virtues of femininity once aligned with them; that is why harpies resonate with us to this day as something intrinsically wrong. The associations with filth, cannibalism and excrements make them disturbing and disgusting in equal measures, and this pdf by Creighton Broadhurst perfectly encapsulates these notions, making this an amazing little offering, well worth of 5 stars + seal of approval.

Endzeitgeist out.