From last week we had the Crakenburg Carters to this week having the Clawed Captain and, some more NPCs to come. But the Captain, Garius Goldclaw is a strong and honourable man who is duty bound to serving the cities protector. But how far will he go in this servitude and will that cross a line between good and evil?
So let’s grab a coffee, sit back and roll into tonight’s adventure!
Garius stormed through the hallway with the witnesses in tow, smoke rising from his helmeted brow. It wasn’t a rare occurrence the guardsmen of Yole saw their captain mad but to see him literally fuming had many of them scarring out of the way. A woman in light armour appeared at his side, “the council have asked for a statement captain, they want to make sure that the streets are safe.” she began.
“Not now Duplicity, I am working on it. First we have to ensure that our one prisoner is safe and that we can collect statements from these bystanders.” Garius growled through his helmet. “I will deal with the council when I know where we stand. If you can show these adventurers to your office lieutenant I will be there shortly. I have a prisoner to have words with.” Garius showed the adventurers down a hallway while he descended the stairs to where the secure cell would be.
Sighing Duplicity tried to smile towards the party as she led them down the hall. Her brighter purple armour brings out the undertones of her skin. “We are a bit busy at the moment with Boraleius not being at the parade and the attack – it’s kind of rattled a few feathers so I hope you can bear with me as I ask you some questions. The Captain isn’t a bad man, there is just a lot of pressure on him to have the answers for something that should never have happened.” she continued, looking back towards the stairs he descended.
As they were shown to an office, a small one at that, Duplicity opened the door and showed them in. “Now I need you to start at the start. What did you see, when did you see it and what happened from your point of view. I need you to be specific about what you heard and saw as well as anything else.”
Thanks for joining me for another night at my table top. Some gorgeous NPC artwork this week that was created using SDXL 1.0 on Nightcafe – I do recommend checking it out!. Don’t forget that we will be expanding the adventure each night this week so don’t forget to come back daily and, as always, don’t forget to roll with advantage, The Brazen Wolfe
The City of Yole is a hot-pot of cultures, races and troubles but there is a single event that brings everyone together – the Dragon Parade. However the star of the show, an adult Bronze dragon is surprisingly missing from the parade. But more will be revealed a the week continues!
So grab a hat, find a seat and let’s stroll into tonight’s adventure!
The high defender of Yole is a metallic dragon known as Boraleius, an adult bronze dragon who has a soft spot for the city of Yole due to the vibrancy of life, the colours of its people and the wealth that it brings. However not all see eye to eye with those who express their gratitude to the dragons protection and over the last year a rise in public discourse has been noted.
But this time the yearly parade where Boraleiusleads the parade through the streets is devoid of one bronze dragon. People begin to be worried and when an attack is made against those in the parade the concern turns to fear. Has their dragon protector left them? Will the city be safe for its visitors? Will the parade continue?
The sound of the drums could be heard from streets away as the parade stormed down the main street in Yole. The Dragon parade was a way that the people of Yole celebrated their connection to the dragons as well as the diversity in their city. Much like the dragon race the city was made up of different races, different colours and different cultural backgrounds but this tapestry of life is what made Yole what it was.
As the party watched the parade, hoping to get a glimpse of the cities very own bronze dragon they were met with a disappointed hush as the start of the parade moved into view. “Where is Boraleius?” a copper scaled dragonborn asked from nearby, concern thickening her accent. The other dragonborn who were standing with her expressed similar concerns and soon the concern spread like a fire.
The parade moved on, representatives of all races walked lifting effigies of the different coloured dragons and dragonborn as they marched down the street. Soon the crowd recovered from their concern, mostly, and began cheering the parade onwards. The different actors, street performers and even the city guard who walked down the road all drew the attention of the crowd, so nearly no one other than the party noticed the group on top of the building until vials of alchemist fire rained down on the parade.
Several people started screaming instantly as the fire burnt through their clothing or oozed through the cracks in the armour of the guards. However several the Dragonborn walked through the fire, a testament to their heritage, and shot down several of the attackers with pin-point dragon breath or shots from crossbows.
As the panic in the crowd escalated a commanding voice boomed from the head of the guard, demanding calm. The crowd, largely, obeyed and soon the bodies of the attackers were lined up and the parade was quickly ushered through the street with the wounded taken to be healed.
“Did anyone see what happened? Please come and see me” the guard captain called out at those who still stood back as he began to investigate the bodies of the attackers. “Captain! We have one of them alive over here.” called one of the guards before several armoured figures walked towards the squirming prisoner.
Another week and another adventure. With a parade this weekend in my own home town I felt inspired to look at something that could go wrong and to see how I could turn it into an adventure. So don’t forget to come back each day this week as we expand further on this adventure. And lastly, as always, don’t forget to roll with advantage, The Brazen Wolfe
Tonight and I have created a zine, the seventh of the new year. As I still continue to play catch-up on these zines you may find one or two of them pumped out in a weekend. But regardless of that I hope you are finding the current format of this Zine useful. So without any further waiting I present, To hunt the Grag’s game, in the same format, as a fun one-shot to assist GMs.
As always this adventure can be used system agnostic but focuses on D&D so please feel free to adjust to what ever system and the creatures you are using in your adventure! However as always Kobold fight club can be used to quickly balance an encounter for Dungeons and Dragons and Tetra-cube provides the stat-blocks for the creatures found in this adventure.
So I hope you enjoy this weeks adventure, To hunt the Grag’s game, and that your rolls are made with advantage.
The Town of Grag, not a very imaginative name as it was named after the series of stony mountains and pillars that it was built near. History would say that the mountains and jagged stony peaks were created from the ribs and shattered bones of a great and colossal creature or a god that fell in the land but none can be sure.
The land itself is harsh, untamed and flooded with dangerous beasts and monsters – hence the township sprung up. Attracting the most foolhardy and brave of the lands hunters, the hunting lodge is the main, and only, attraction of the town. Acting as a central hub for all hunting that occurs within the Grag – the mountains and stones beyond.
Drawn here to the hunting competitions the party find themselves at the lodge, a kind of inn-come-guild hall.
The Dusty Grag Hunting Lodge – Created in Nightcafe.
El’thirnol approached the party once the rest of the hunters had left in a hurry, pulling up a chair he sat down and signalled a barmaid to bring over. “I will cut to the point. Callum is a liar and risks giving the hunters of Grag Town a bad name. There are many adventurers, hunters and would-be glory seekers that are present here who could never return if and when Callums lies catch up to him. I want to pay you, in advance of course, the prize money if I can provide guidance to you as to where the eggs would be and if you can beat that man to this prize, I will pay you again in full.” the elf stated before the flask of wine was set in front of him and several other drinks that the party would enjoy.
“But I wish to test if my instincts are correct. If you can bring me back a single beast from the Grag I will take that as proof of your worth. But time is short, if we have an accord we shall depart shortly. I have a quarry and a wager I do not wish to lose.”
Thanks for joining me today for another Zine this year. As usual there is a lot more in the Zine than there was in the daily updates on this blog – so make sure to grab a copy of the PDF.
Next time you get a party together consider running this adventure and I hope that you enjoy it. I hope you don’t miss a thing so come back daily in the coming week and year. This is so you can experience the creation of the next adventure as it evolves and shapes out. And as always, don’t forget to roll with advantage, The Brazen Wolfe
Good evening all and welcome to the Tenth day of adventuring for my party. While I will endeavour to not give away the campaign, adventure or plot moving forward (in case my party read these updates!) I will attempt to write up each adventure this year continuing with my 2024 campaign adventure 10 – continuing on from the 2023 adventure.
This is a continuation from 2023 Campaign adventure 9 as the party continues on their first mission as members of the investigation of the strange creatures in these lands.
2024 Campaign Adventure 10
Sa406CaE10
Plot:
Daybreak
The party started with a humble meal of cured pork, bacon, and bread as they geared up to face the cold outside of the Inn. As they bid farewell to Daryll at the Snowtown Inn, and its newly fixed door they head towards the witches hut again to see if their assumption was correct. Crunching through the snow the new day held promise of snow, funnily enough for Snowtown, but it was still sunny enough that the hoard of snowmen that waited in the shade of the trees for them to be foolish enough to enter the tree line.
However Kai began to cast Toll the Dead and as the snowmen began to drop as the party moved on the snowmen crept deeper into the wood outside of the range of the spell. Reaching the old witches hut they asked Armaeth to scout out the old Willow tree in the forest and to look for a path towards it where they didn’t have to wade through the snowmen. While the fairy was gone they confirmed, as best to their knowledge, that the willow wood they burnt and turned to charcoal yesterday was the same as the ones they found in the hut which they believed was used for rituals for creating snowmen.
When they waited long enough a shriek for help sounded from outside. Rushing out they saw that Armaeth was being chased by a giant snowy owl. Quickly thinking they dispatched it with a crossbow bolt and a well placed hand-axe. After retrieving what they could, the axe and a single bolt, they found out from Armaeth’s scouting that there was a way to the tree that had been cleared from the forest.
The Willow Tree, The Bear and the Fight
Walking to the tree wasn’t a difficult task but it was made more tiresome from the thick snow and increasing slope to the hill. Eventually making it to where a path was cleared to the Willow tree they investigated the area – looking for clues to Aster or the source of the snowmen. After much investigation, and Kai talking to the woods, Tater discovered large booted footprints, much larger than a normal humans, as well as large beast pawprints. Following these from the Willow tree, where it looked like several straight limbs were removed carefully, they found that the tracks lead upwards towards the Goliaths sacred hill, the hut and the quarry.
Walking in the path of the two monstrously large tracks that head up the path they eventually spotted the hut. Approaching it carefully, with a sanctuary spell ready to be cast, they were shocked to see a very obedient large polar bear sitting next to the hut with a small covering in snow. A booming voice called for Kirilla – the bear responded, and a nine foot Goliath exited the hut to talk to the party.
The Goliath discussed the odd occurrences that were happening and that their tribe was currently recovering from a heated encounter with the snow-abominations at the ancient Quarry. Asking if they could get assistance from the Large man, Gordak, he deferred to Felicia – the Chiefs daughter and his current hunt-leader. Felicia then appeared, as if summoned, to dissuade and reinforce that the party was not allowed in their village – as it was sacred to their kind.
Instead they brokered for two things – an escort and guide to the quarry (where they suspect they will find Astra and the source of the snowmen) and, more importantly, Tater won a brawl with the Goliath. After only two rounds of beating the Goliath – and dealing a few good blows himself, Tater was knocked unconscious by his towering foe. With some healing they sat down to a meagre stew that was made from venison the goliaths hunted as well as vegetables that Tater offering as a barter for the guide to the quarry.
The Quarry
Moving from here, and discussing landmarks and history of the area the party eventually came across the Ancient Snowtown Quarry. The goliaths let them wander in but stood watchful to see if they could best what a hunting party could manage. As Kai, Groku, Armaeth (hiding in Taters beard) and Tater stalked through the quarry around the trees, rocks and mounds of snow a ill-timed slip from Groku caused human sized constructs to rise from the snow and attack ferociously.
The battle was ferocious as four Snowcraft Guardians attacked the party. Tater managed to down them by sacrificing accuracy for power, but he was quickly surrounded by three of these constructs. Eventually their club like fists slammed and razor sharp ice-claws cut Tater until he was within an inch of his life. However Kai, who was heroically casting Toll the Dead from a ‘tactical’ range engaged in the melee and healed Tater – saving his life. But the battle was not over and Groku also suffered several wounds.
As the last guardian fell one of the now dying cores began to inch its way towards the cavern – the cave in below the cavern where a now-frozen waterfall had cut its way through the stone and snow and revealed a cavern below. After receiving a salute from the Goliaths the party collapsed from exhaustion and prepared for the next step in their adventure.
Creatures:
Terrain / Maps
The below have been created to be printed on an A4 sheet of paper. This creates a cheap and effective way to give depth and scale to players while not taking away from the tactical view of the game.
Snowtown Quarry – created in Inkarnate.Snowtown Quarry Cavern – created in Inkarnate.Snowtown Quarry, old tracks – Created in Inkarnate.Snowy Trees and rocks – created in Inkarnate.
Main NPCs:
Gordak – Goliath Warrior
Felicia Stonefist
Sidekicks
Armaeth
Groku
Thanks for joining me tonight for a hybrid of the continuation of my campaign as well as the seasonal adventure for my group! (last-last years Dice-ember one-shot). Don’t forget to come back again tomorrow for more content. And, as always, don’t forget to roll with advantage, The Brazen Wolfe
The Ironwood is a place that is filled with life, both flora and fauna but none are more deadly than the Ironwood Assassins. These plants inhabit much of the forest but due to the amount of food amongst the trees and bushes they don’t eat so often. Unlucky for the party and their new companions as its feeding time!
So let’s keep our ears and eyes out for these assassins. Start off by grabbing a coffee, sit down and let’s roll into tonight’s adventure!
The ironwood vine is a stealthy opponent. When it’s not rushing its tentacles forward to strangle its prey it looks like any other vine or bush in the forest. It can go months without eating, depending on its last meal of course, but as soon as it realises it needs food it is a voracious and non-fussy predator.
The sound of rushing, slithering vines is the first thing that its prey hears before vines constrict them, strangling and slowly digesting them with fluids that aid in digestion. But they are just a plant after all. By pulling its plant base and step forward it can move slowly but always towards where its starting to digest its prey. It doesn’t move as long as there is life in the creature it has entangled and for this reason its difficult to pinpoint.
The larger assassin of the forest is a sentinel from the druids. The awakened tree protects the forest based on its creators wishes and its able to understand language but it will rarely be convinced or swayed from its duty. Otherwise indistinguishable from other trees nearby it smashes down upon its prey when they are within range of its branches. Strong and resilient bark resists arrows and clubs but, like most plants, fire will make short work of it.
Now that’s all we have for tonight’s update on the Ironwood assassins, for now. So don’t forget to join me the next few nights as we wrap up this week, and catch up on a week in the past. And lastly, as always, don’t forget to roll with advantage, The Brazen Wolfe
A nice easy map tonight with the Ironwood Forest Path which is where the main, potentially, encounter will be for this week. Not wanting to spend hours on a map I decided that a simple, small encounter map would be good enough for tonight. And, also good enough to suit the purposes of meeting Kevin Bruce this week.
So let’s grab a coffee, sit back and roll into tonight’s adventure.
The canopy and clouds above gave the ground a patchy and mottled appearance. The dense bushes were smattered with flowering plants, occasional berries but also a richer, deeper and greener grass. It was evident that there were a few paths that moved through the forest in different directions. However, there was a heavy oppressive feeling in the air which made travelling through the Ironwood forest tense to say the least.
About five overlapping painted textures form the basis of tonight’s map with layered plants overhead. This gives the forest a busy vibe while still having space for the clearing in the middle of the map. the other thing with this map is its scaled for 8″ by 11″ which is, the size of an A4 sheet of paper. This will enable me to print this off and have it, and other such maps, on the tabletop if printed with a decent printer. This is a cheap and effective way to get a battle map on the table for your gaming group.
Thanks for joining me tonight for another map night. A simple one that will have many re-uses over the next few years. But this isn’t the final piece of the puzzle and there is still another night, or two, to come so don’t forget to come back and as always, don’t forget to roll with advantage, The Brazen Wolfe
Now not all adventures start in a tavern, regardless of how good a name of the Lonely goat may be sometimes the adventure kicks off somewhere down the road – such as in the Ironwood Forest. Tonight we get a glimpse of the events immediately occurring as the party encounter poor Kevin and his Carting Crew.
Let’s not keep a good man waiting, so grab a coffee sit down and let’s roll into tonight’s adventure.
The Ironwood Forest
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Sweat beaded down Kevin’s nose as he paused amongst the trees waiting for something to lunge outwards. They had been travelling towards the druids grove, at the centre of the Ironwood forest when they had found something. Drag marks in the earth, fresh ones, that looked like someone was pulled into the bushes ahead and with Kevin and his Carters he didn’t want to be next.
As they stopped and waited the feeling of being watched to pass it only increased and the forest became full of noise. Movement in the bushes, a shriek or call in the distance in one direction then a heavy thud in the soil elsewhere. Soon the resilience of the Carters was wavering and it was not long until one panicked and ran forward out from their cover and into the clearing in front of them. Immediately one of the Carters fell over and was dragged backwards into the brush as tentacle like vines thrashed at them trying to get purchase on their limbs.
As they rushed forwards they were just in time to witness vines launch downwards towards the man who moved first to constrict and haul him upwards into the branches ahead. Slashing and sawing at vines and branches they tried to free their friends, briefly, before having to change the heroic rescue into an effort of self preservation. The vines lashed out, twisted and wrapped as branches slammed into the bruising carters.
Though the men had some experience fending off wild beasts and smaller hostile humanoids on the road their experience only lasted so long and they were tiring. Kevin struggled to free himself to begin cutting at the vines that had taken his last fellow Carter, Joel, into the brushes when he became aware of another presence, a group of adventurers launched forward to begin attempting to free him and his men.
The battle was brief yet ferocious as the newcomers’ blades, projectiles and magic made short work out of the living forest. But, it was not enough. Out of the five men he entered with, three could not be recovered, one would not see the night through and the other was unconscious and bleeding profusely. exhausted and thankful for being alive Kevin looked up at his heroes and knew, this is what would bring him glory. Travelling with and helping these heroes as a full time adventurer.
While tonight seems to be of “behind the scenes” this can be an interesting interaction to watch. While the party are on their way to Crankenburg they pass through the Ironwood Forest where they witness a man rush out before chaos erupts. A simple way to get to the action quickly and by saving Kevin they get information to the next part of the adventure. But that is for the next few nights so don’t forget to come back each night and, as always, don’t forget to roll with advantage, The Brazen Wolfe
The farmers of Crakenburg are a hardy bunch but none are as resilient as the Crakenburg Carters – the group that manages the carting of hay out of Crakenburg and beyond. These militia-farmers are a strong and durable folk who have trained in military tactics for years. However they are still not as strong as trained adventurers and regular warriors.
But before we get into that let’s grab a coffee, sit back and roll into tonight’s adventure!
Kevin looked across the tables in the Lonely Goat and shook his head at the farmers who shook with fear. “We don’t have no choice. We need to cut n’ store the wheat now,” one farmer proclaimed as he sipped on his ale. Some farmers agreed, the tired ones who spent half the night shooing the locusts from the crops to no avail. “But half the crops aren’t ready yet!” another protested which was met with cheers from other farmers.
“Mine wont be ready for weeks. If I cut them now then I wont have anything!” another said loudly which gained both ire and support from the others. “Well if you don’t do anything about it you will lose it all. Damned if you do damned if you don’t” Reeves said as he looked up from tired hands. “We have two options. Burn them out or we get the help from the druids” he continued. This drew the quiet from everyone in the inn.
“I’ll do it. I’ll seek the druids out and if they won’t help us willingly I will make them!” Kevin called out as he stood up. He had listened to these farmers for hours now and none of them were taking any action. ” Standing up he slammed his third empty tankard on the table and stormed out of the inn. A few of the others, The Crakenburg Carters, stood up to go with him and with a group of five they left to seek out the druids for help.
That’s it for tonight. Thanks for joining me tonight to meet two of our NPCs for this week, there may be more to come. Don’t forget that the next few nights we expand the adventure so don’t forget to come back each night this week and lastly, as always, don’t forget to roll with advantage, The Brazen Wolfe
Another week has begun and we have a little village nestled amongst the mountains and forest who will be facing off against the swarm of hungry foes this week. But do not be afraid because as luck would have it we have a party of adventurers who have come to Crakenburg in the nick of time.
So take a load off your tired feet, grab a coffee, let’s sit down and roll into tonight’s adventure!
The problem with farming has always been the land required to create those crops and feed those beasts. Crakenburg finds itself at the foot of mountains and nestled amongst the rough wilds around it and it has had to prove itself stubborn and durable enough in the past to earn its place in the world.
But not all of nature’s wilds share this sentiment. Despite the rock slides, ambushes and raids from orcs and gnolls, earthquakes and worse, nature still demands a toll to pay. As the village prepares for its harvest festival where they harvest the wheat and straw darkness descends on millions of wings.
Will the adventurers be caught in the crossfire between nature and the village or will they find a way to divert the ravenous swarm?
The sun set down behind the Crakenmoore mountains as evening spread its tendrils of restfulness across the valley beyond. As shadows from the mountain mingled with the shapes of trees, rocks and buildings the people of Crakenburg hurried to usher their animals within the large barns as oil lanterns were lit across the village’s streets in a mimicry of the sun’s warm embrace.
As Reeve O’leary finished locking up the barn with his pigs safely within he moved contently across his paddocks and watched as a distant flock of birds took flight from deep within the Ironwood forest as dusk began to fall. The vast fields of wheat lay before him, the result of a hard season of labour and good weather which he could only thank the druids for. The stalks swayed in the cool breeze that descended from the mountains and as he looked outwards at the village he could not help but sigh with contentment.
The distant watch tower already had people watching over the plains around the valley. Over the years orcs, gnolls and other roving raiders had caused trouble for the village. Last year though they had an earthquake that shook great chunks of mountain down, crushing houses and flattening crops and animals alike. However they had recovered and shown their durability. As the flock of birds weaved through the dusk sky the way they moved drew Reeve’s attention. Soon he was having to squint as the distant sound of thrumming wings could be heard.
Slowly like a cloud, the once-birds-now-creatures descended towards the crop of wheat next to his and landed amongst the stalks. The sound of chirping, flapping-skittering wings and thrumming could be heard as the creatures feasted on the crops. A few of the creatures flew into his paddock and he crossed the wooden fence to go and investigate. Pitchfork in hand he approached the buzzing creatures but it would do little for him as a large locust the size of his hand jumped out and landed on his pants. Crawling up his leg and chirping soon more were jumping towards him and he turned and fled.
The creatures hung onto him for a few strides before sharp and aggressive swats dislodged them. As he ran towards the Tavern, the Lonely Goat, he looked down at his hand where he had grabbed one of the creatures. The still twitching corpse of the locust lay in his outstretched fingers as the other farmers, merchants and guards fell in to gaze upon its rigid ugliness.
“The paddocks are filled with them…” Reeve got out as the others looked between it and him. “Hundreds of them. Chewing on the wheat…” Soon several farms were taking large sticks, swatters, to go and investigate the fields. The locusts were gone but a large portion of the wheat field they landed in was also missing. They would need a miracle, or a brave group of adventurers to travel into the Ironwood forest to request aid from the Druids of the woods.
Thanks for joining me for the start of another week of adventuring. Don’t forget to come back each day this week as we expand this adventure. And as always, don’t forget to roll with advantage, The Brazen Wolfe
Tonight and I have created a zine, the sixth of the new year. As I still continue to play catch-up on these zines you may find one or two of them pumped out in a weekend. But regardless of that I hope you are finding the current format of this Zine useful. So without any further waiting I present, Hunger at Hawkcreek, in the same format, as a fun one-shot to assist GMs.
As always this adventure can be used system agnostic but focuses on D&D so please feel free to adjust to what ever system and the creatures you are using in your adventure! However as always Kobold fight club can be used to quickly balance an encounter for Dungeons and Dragons and Tetra-cube provides the stat-blocks for the creatures found in this adventure.
So I hope you enjoy this weeks adventure, Hunger at Hawkcreek, and that your rolls are made with advantage.
The Famished are a blight upon the existence of the living. Drawn to energies of excess and creatures fulfilling their needs and desires these creatures feed off the residual energy as a way of fuelling the fire that is their life force. Drawn to places of mirth and debauchery alike it is no wonder that inns, taverns and less reputable establishments can attract these creatures in the dozens.
However such creatures can not exist without torment and so the taint of fear, misery and loss needs to be great to summon them from the planes. A cursed existence is what it means to be one of The Famished as they will nearly never become sated and will always want for more.
Those Famished ones that do achieve a mote of contentment will become Sated, bloated and a new swollen form will appear. By consuming enough residual energy they can create a new form and in doing so a new being is created. However being a cursed creature it means that wherever they go the famished are drawn to them. As being sated means being filled with mirth, contentment and not being hungry for any more. So the Sated seeks out places to create the perfect situation to create a new stated one in the attempts that the famished that follow them like hungry gulls do not tear down the new form they have managed to create.
This is the endless cycle of the Sated and the Famished ones as they seek, devour and destroy themselves for eternity.
This is the endless cycle of the Sated and the Famished ones as they seek, devour and destroy themselves for eternity.
Thanks for joining me today for another Zine this year. As usual there is a lot more in the Zine than there was in the daily updates on this blog – so make sure to grab a copy of the PDF.
Next time you get a party together consider running this adventure and I hope that you enjoy it. I hope you don’t miss a thing so come back daily in the coming week and year. This is so you can experience the creation of the next adventure as it evolves and shapes out. And as always, don’t forget to roll with advantage, The Brazen Wolfe
Brazen Wolfe Tabletop 