B/X D&D and OSR tutorials, news, and honest reviews — no corporate spin, just
old-school gaming done right.

Hosted by Tenkar, a retired NYPD investigative sergeant and gamer since 1980, this is the home for honest, unfiltered OSR news and RPG investigations. No corporate gloss—just scripted, no-nonsense investigations into the hobby we love.

WHAT WE COVER
We dive deep into the systems that prioritize player agency:
- B/X D&D & Old-School Essentials (OSE)
- Shadowdark RPG & Swords & Wizardry
- TSR History & Industry News

THE SCHEDULE
Join the "Minions" for a relentless content stream:
- Videos: 5 days a week.
- Livestreams: Wed, Thu, & Sat nights (and 2 Sundays a month)
- The Open Table: A persistent world for members.

THE AESTHETIC
We utilize a "high-tech random table" approach to maintain a classic 1980s TSR aesthetic, keeping the Tavern’s identity consistent.

SUPPORT THE TAVERN
Free of corporate sponsorships. Support independent OSR coverage by joining as a member.


Tenkar's Tavern

I'll be on the Vlog of Many Things @ 1PM ET
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nkm_W...

3 days ago | [YT] | 27

Tenkar's Tavern

I’ve been digging deep into the channel analytics over the last week, and the data is shouting something loud and clear : Shorts are actively getting in the way of deep-dive discussions.

During a recent 7-day test where we completely paused Shorts, long-form views jumped by over 50%, and daily subscriber gains more than doubled. The message from you guys is unmistakable: this community values depth, nuance, and long-form expertise, not 15-second disposable clips.

Because of that, I’m wiping the slate clean and making past Shorts "unlisted". We are running on a pure long-form signal from here on out. More deep dives, more procedures, and more focused live shows are on the way.

Thanks for always showing up for the real conversations. See you in the next video!

3 days ago | [YT] | 156

Tenkar's Tavern

13,000 SUBSCRIBERS — THE TAVERN HAS TRIUMPHED ⚔️ POP THE CORK
741 MEMBERS STRONG
We officially breached the 13,000 subscriber mark tonight, and we did it on the back of the most legendary membership avalanche in the history of this channel.

By the time the dust settled on our massive Saturday Night stream, the community dropped a mind-boggling 232 gifted memberships on the bar, pushing our total garrison to an all-time high of 741 members!

To put this in perspective: 5.7% of everyone who walks into this Tavern is a card-carrying, paying member. That level of dedication and financial backing is practically unheard of for an independent OSR channel on YouTube. You aren't just an audience; you are an absolute legion.

And the timing couldn't be sweeter. With our AdSense entity verification fully finalized and cleared by the ghouls this weekend, every single bit of this historic momentum is routing perfectly and cleanly straight into Tenkar's Tavern Media LLC.

We have officially entered a brand-new era.

Thank you to the 13,002 of you who pull up a stool here, our 16 Super Minions, and our now 17 Master Minions holding down the inner circle.

Raise a glass tonight. The Tavern is fully open for business, and we are just getting started.

HUZZAH! 🍻

4 days ago | [YT] | 125

Tenkar's Tavern

13,000 views on the d6 video. Still climbing.

I pulled the advanced analytics this afternoon because I'm a numbers nerd and I wanted to understand who was actually watching. Here's what I found:

The people who have the bell turned on — all 375 of you — watched an average of 6 minutes and 31 seconds. On an 11-minute video. You're not skimming. You're actually sitting down at the tavern table.

Discord shares brought in more clicks, but those folks averaged 2 minutes 45 seconds before moving on. Browse traffic — the 10,000 cold strangers — averaged 4 and a half minutes.

The bell crew finishes the video. Every time.

If you want a seat at the table when the next one drops, hit the bell. You'll get there first, and apparently, you'll stay the longest. — Tenkar

4 days ago | [YT] | 136

Tenkar's Tavern

728 MEMBERS AND COUNTING
Absolute legends of The Tavern just dropped a 221 gifted membership avalanche right on the bar tonight, blasting our total headcount from 516 straight straign to 728 members!

On top of that, we have 2 brand new sign-ups, a new Super Minion, and our 17th Master Minion as well joining the highest tier of the inner circle.

To put this in perspective, nearly 6% of this entire channel is now a card-carrying member of the Tavern. For an independent OSR channel, that kind of financial backing and community loyalty is practically unheard of on YouTube. You all aren't just subscribers; you are an absolute legion.

We are currently sitting at 12,919 subscribers—just 81 heroes away from hitting the big 13k milestone.

Pull up a stool, welcome the massive wave of new regulars, and let’s keep this momentum rolling into the night!

5 days ago | [YT] | 85

Tenkar's Tavern

Tuesday's video is still going strong and just hit 10k views. We also just hit 12,900 subscribers. Simply amazing! Thank you all!
link to the video: https://youtu.be/nh4fPudB55k
link to The Tavern's Discord: discord.gg/tzMQ5Aaad

5 days ago (edited) | [YT] | 78

Tenkar's Tavern

Friend of the Tavern - ShadowSun Revised - Quickstart - PWYW

Chubby has been a friend of mine for about 15 years and he does amazing RPG games. His latest is ShadowSub Revised Quickstart priced at PWYW. I have the orignal ShadowSun, and as a homage of Dark Sub, it is actually IMHO better than the original. The SS Quickstart is 132 pages

www.drivethrurpg.com//product/566810/shadowsun-revised-quickstart?affiliate_id=1446

*note it is PWYW and this is an affiliate link, but you can grab it for free

6 days ago | [YT] | 60

Tenkar's Tavern

Tuesday's d6 video has caught the algorithm wave and it's still building — 6,600 views and climbing, which is nearly double what a typical video does in this window.

Honestly, after the LLC mess had me ready to hang it up, watching this one land the way it did reminded me why we're here. The d6 has been the invisible spine of B/X all along — glad so many of you agreed.

What's the one d6 roll you'd never cut from your table? Drop it below. — Tenkar

https://youtu.be/nh4fPudB55k

1 week ago | [YT] | 92

Tenkar's Tavern

The Gnomes Have Finished Rewiring the Tavern

After a few days of "technical silence" from the Google overlords, the new business association for the Tavern is officially APPROVED.

If you missed the ads (said no one ever, but they keep the lights on!), they are officially back. This LLC move is a big step in securing the future of our little corner of the internet.

Thanks to all the Minions and Subscribers for your patience while we did the administrative heavy lifting. Now, let’s get back to the dice.

1 week ago | [YT] | 100