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Stock Art: Library Dragon
by Itai A. R. [Verified Purchaser] Date Added: 10/04/2023 14:37:17

I love art that shows the other side of dragons, the magic side, the diplomatic side, the scholar side, like this photo. We used it for the Golden Scholar chapter in our book "Nine Dragons".



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
Stock Art: Library Dragon
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Stock Art: Ash Dragon
by Itai A. R. [Verified Purchaser] Date Added: 10/04/2023 11:40:57

I really like this photo, the dragon's crooked smile, it resonantes character. We used it as an illustratron of Grog, the Grey Wanderer, in our "Nine Dragons" book and I'm very pleased with how it turned out.



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[5 of 5 Stars!]
Stock Art: Ash Dragon
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Stock Art: Ravener
by Itai A. R. [Verified Purchaser] Date Added: 10/02/2023 11:11:26

We used this piece to accompany our draconlich statblock in the dracolich chapter of our "Nine Dragons" book.



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[5 of 5 Stars!]
Stock Art: Ravener
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Stock Art: Dwarf Huddle
by Itai A. R. [Verified Purchaser] Date Added: 10/02/2023 05:46:02

Great scene full of character and details! The dwarves are all the same but different! Used it as a new dwarf guardian order for the kingdom of Tarshish, in the Tarshish episode in our "Nine Dragons" book.



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[5 of 5 Stars!]
Stock Art: Dwarf Huddle
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Stock Art: Path to Oblivion
by Richard W. [Verified Purchaser] Date Added: 07/02/2023 05:26:36

Cool illustration, and perfect for a little project I was working on!



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[5 of 5 Stars!]
Stock Art: Path to Oblivion
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Stock Art: Half-Orc/Half-Ogre
by Sevan B. [Verified Purchaser] Date Added: 01/28/2023 15:19:13

I was really excited when I found this guy. He is great! The download comes with multiple file types, which is super helpful. He was exactly what I needed.



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[5 of 5 Stars!]
Stock Art: Half-Orc/Half-Ogre
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Witches of Porphyra
by Timothy B. [Featured Reviewer] Date Added: 09/12/2022 17:21:08

Originally posted here: https://theotherside.timsbrannan.com/2022/09/100-days-of-halloween-witches-of.html

I bought this one as soon as it came out. Purple Duck Games does a lot of great stuff so I had very high expectations for this one. This is for Pathfinder, but likely it would work for any 3.x d20 OGL game.

Witches of Porphyra

PDF. 52 pages. 1 cover, 1 title, 4 pages OGL. Rest content. All text open gaming content. Color covers and interior art.

A bit about the art. We have seen a few of these pieces already. The cover by Gary Dupis, interior art from Brian Brinlee and Brett Neufeld. I mention it because I really want to collect all the products that use the same art a build something, maybe an NPC witch using that Gary Dupuis art and all of these books. So yeah, for me this is all a value add.

We start with an introduction to Witches and Witchcraft in Porphyra. A nice little extra that many books do not do.

We get right into the archetypes next. The Blooded Hag, the Brewer, the Impetuous Dervish, the Insufflator (a "breath" hag), Legionmaster (lots of familiars), Mentor, Polytheistic Witch (many patrons, nice idea), Sanguisuge (feeds on their familiars), Sightless Seer, Warweaver, the Whitelighter (!), and the Wood Witch. All are fantastic and I'd love to try them all to be honest.

We get some new familiar archetypes. As well as new familiars (4). Our cover girl is set for example with the new Hoop Snake on pages 31-32. If you want something a bit more classic there are winged monkeys too.

Of course, with a new world, there should be opportunities for new types of Patrons. This book delivers on that with 13 new patron types. I say new because I have seen these Patron types in other books. That is not a slight against this book. It just means the authors all had similar ideas.

Hexes are one of the Pathfinder's witch's biggest features. So this book does have some new hexes as well. Nine hexes, six Major hexes, and three Grand hexes.

There are also nine new feats.

There is a section on new materials and a sample witch.

The book is great and if I were to say it was missing anything it would be spells. But there is so much here that I didn't even think about it in my first read-through.

So for just under $4 you get a lot.



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[5 of 5 Stars!]
Witches of Porphyra
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FT 0 - Prince Charming, Reanimator
by keith m. [Verified Purchaser] Date Added: 08/23/2022 19:48:22

A delightfully deadly funnel adventure for DCC. Every time I run this the players all enjoy it immensely. The familiarity of the fairy tale is something most people can cling to, but there are so many little twists included that make it enjoyable to play and to run.



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
FT 0 - Prince Charming, Reanimator
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Witch Options (PFRPG)
by Timothy B. [Featured Reviewer] Date Added: 08/08/2022 09:59:21

Originally posted here: https://theotherside.timsbrannan.com/2022/08/100-days-of-halloween-witch-options.html

Witch Options (PFRPG)

PDF. 10 pages, 1 cover, 2.4 pages for OGL. 6.6 pages of content. $2.00

I like Purple Duck Games. They produce a lot of material so it is a good chance there is something out there that you will enjoy. This book has a lot of different options for the witch class as the title says.

There is a little bit of everything in this book too.

There are five new hexes. Five new Major hexes and four Grand hexes. Six New Patron Themes. Ten new feats. I am rather fond of the Triple Moon Tattoo feat to be honest.

Ten new spells, including "Summon Hag." Four new pieces of equipment.

There is the hagborn template to add to any monster for creatures born to hags.

There is not a lot of any one thing here, but a lot of different things. For $2.00 how could I say no?



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
Witch Options (PFRPG)
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Heroes of Erkusaa
by ronald p. [Verified Purchaser] Date Added: 12/29/2021 23:08:01

an excellent addition to the heroes line well worth buying!



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[5 of 5 Stars!]
Heroes of Erkusaa
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Witch Options (PFRPG)
by Greg W. [Verified Purchaser] Date Added: 06/12/2021 14:10:40

Someone else has already written a very lengthy and pretty fair review so I won't waste your time duplicating. This booklet adds thematic strength to the witch and choices that are genuinely worth considering (as opposed to so many that are published which fall straight into the 'why would you bother?' category). It's short but good. It would probably represent a slight power-up to the witch, especially in the hands of a player who really knows how to play a witch. However, if you've been playing the game for ages (like me), it's great to reinvent it a little. The other players can grab their own 3rd party 'Options' books too and it would probably all balance out anyway.



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[5 of 5 Stars!]
Witch Options (PFRPG)
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Porphyra Roleplaying Game
by Adam S. [Verified Purchaser] Date Added: 03/21/2021 23:47:56

Well, if you want to keep playing Pathfinder, but you don't like Second Edition, this is the game for you! This book impresses me, and it shows me just how far the d20 system of legend and yore can be pushed to it's zenith.



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[5 of 5 Stars!]
Porphyra Roleplaying Game
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Stock Art: Wrinkled Monster
by Austin C. [Verified Purchaser] Date Added: 08/13/2020 05:39:10

I love this weird creature. Used it for artwork in a bestiary product and as part of the cover, and had great responses from my audience. Resolution's good, image quality is good, and it's not a monster I've seen a million times (like orcs or wyverns).



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
Stock Art: Wrinkled Monster
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Gnome Jambalaya
by Thilo G. [Featured Reviewer] Date Added: 07/07/2020 06:07:25

An Endzeitgeist.com review

This module/supplement clocks in at 45 pages, 1 page front cover, 1 page editorial/introduction, 2 pages of SRD, leaving us with 41 pages of content, laid out in 6’’ by 9’’ (A5) booklet size, so let’s take a look!

This review was moved up in my reviewing queue as a prioritized review at the request of my patreon supporters.

Before we get to the main meat of this supplement, it bears mentioning that this book actually has some serious player-facing stuff, so let’s start with that! Oh yeah, and because someone is bound to think that: Ähem…BLASPHEMY! DCC HAS NO GNOMES!! ;) Well, in case you missed the (properly-credited to Yves Larochelle!) CRAWL!-zine #6, you might not have been aware of there actually being such a race-class, and it has been reproduced and expanded here. Speaking of proper credits: Even suggestions by a user on the Goodman Games-boards are credited! That’s awesome and seriously deserves applause!

In case you missed the class so far: We have d5 HD, 20 ft. speed, training with sling, staff, dart and dagger, and are limited to attaining 5th level. Gnomish magic is restricted to illusion and deceptions, and gnomes can’t have patrons; they get to choose 3 1st-level spells from their list, and cast like wizards via Intelligence, with the exception of the Trick Die, which is rolled to determine the caster level. The spell check is rolled with 1d20 + Trick Die + Intelligence modifier, and spell failure only applies if both dice come up as 1s. Gnome illusions can become “sturdy” if the judge deems it appropriate and the Trick Die comes up as 3 or higher, becoming tangible and potentially dealing an automatic 1d5 damage per level of the gnome; if the Trick Die comes up as 5 or higher, the target must also succeed on a Will save vs. the spell check or flee. Sturdy illusions can cause elemental damage, if that’d make sense. Trick Die starts at 1d3 and improves one step up the die-chain every level, up to 1d7. Each level nets a spell known, with 5th level providing two, and the maximum spell level increases by 1 at 3rd level and every level thereafter. All saves kick off at +1, with Reflex improving the quickest. Gnome attack bonus caps at +3, and the class uses crit die 1d6 (improving to 1d10) and table I throughout. Action die remains 1d20, with only 5th level adding +1d4 to that; the action die can be used for attacks and spell checks.

Gnomes are resistant to magic, having a 10% chance per level to not be affected by magic; gnomes can also roll the Trick Die to render animals/insects with less than 1 HD friendly; they can see in the dark up to 60 feet, detect the presence of gems (10% chance per level), and apply their Luck modifier to all saving throws versus magic attacks and spells. 0-level gnome information is provided, and we get a 1d14 table of Zero-level occupations.

This class is also supplemented by the scripted illusion spell, which pretty much does what you’d expect.

Beyond the interesting gnome class, we also have an expansion of the awesome faerie animals class introduced back in Faerie Tales from Unlit Shoes: Creeping Beauties of the Wood (seriously, if you haven’t checked out the series and even remotely like dark faerie tales, then get the entire series now…); the expansion focuses on bayou-themed animals, with class table etc. provided alongside a massive alternate occupation/animal type/etc./table.

The supplemental material also includes a d20-table of swampfolk occupations, and also features notes on how to tie it to a selection of other Purple Duck Games supplements (excellent ones), and hints at something I’d rather love to see.

Now, as for the main adventure featured herein, it is a funnel and was tested with gnomes + faerie animals; it should be noted that the module is pretty deadly when run as such, and puts a serious focus on player skill, but not exclusively. It does work well as a 1st level adventure for 4 characters, just in case you were wondering.

The module sports well-written read-aloud text, and a pretty massive array of modular/random encounters, which include infected spoonbills, swampfolk, quicksand, etc., running a pretty good gamut between the grounded and dangerous, and weird. And these only are the random ones.

Structurally, the module is essentially a sandbox of the Blackwater Bayou. The hex map of the bayou is presented in full-color and comes with a keyed encounters noted for the GM; GMs get two versions, one with hexes, and one without them; however, even better, the supplement comes with a player-friendly iteration of the map, which is also presented in proper pngs for VTT-use. A player-friendly version of the final location of sorts is also provided. HUGE kudos, considering that the lack of player-friendly maps is often one of my main gripes with DCC adventures. A hex s assumed to be 1000 ft. and take 10 minutes to traverse, and paths and trails are noted on the maps.

It should be noted that the adventure does a pretty neat job at setting up global effects such as drinking swampwater, and it does have a rather rarely seen vibe, somewhere between twisted fairy tale, classic weird and southern gothic.

All right, and this is as far as I can go without diving into SPOILERS. Potential players should jump ahead to the conclusion.

… .. .

Okay, only judges around? Great! So, a meteor…WAIT. I know, it’s a trite old cliché at this point, but a) the module does frankly acknowledge its inspirations and b) the devil’s in the details. In many ways, we don’t have a full subversion of the classic trope here, and instead focus on an execution that lives and breathes a unique atmosphere by virtue of its small tidbits. The “infected” creatures I mentioned above are infected by a weird fungal lifeform spreading from the carcinoma, and there is a risk of fusion with the horrible hellscape these things hail from.

So far, so predictable – but you won’t call the curious bottle witch with her d7 tables of dark and light liquids. These can include the shadows of the slain (who might later rise, when the PC passes the place they’re buried in) or gain other benefits. But, being a witch (she’s illustrated in full color, btw.!), she does demand a price – and these not only note the price and consequence, but also how it is taken, be it soul, shadow or dream. A proper engine for her oracular readings and effects is also provided, just fyi.

From skunk apes and snapping turtles to strange swampdweller villages and beached skiffs, there’s quite a bit to uncover as the PCs need to brave a crossing – and what about that instance where frogs, like in the old Budweiser ad (yep, even I know that one, and I’m from Germany!) croak the name of their demonic patron? (Which also doubles as a chance to take ole’ Bobugbiliz as a patron…)

As the PCs progress, they will find villages of zombie-like individuals controlled by a dread petalhead, vanguard of the potential invasion…and if you enjoy the timeless/dimensionally-confused themes, you’ll geta chuckle out of the New Orleans 65 miles sign. If you don’t want that angle in your game, you can easily change it, with guidelines provided. This holds true for all such instances, btw. En route, the party also has a chance to potentially experience a deity’s positive influence (and/or end that…), making for a potential cleric (-to-be) angle.

Ultimately, the party will reach the carcinoma, and the nightmarish petalheads, which are also illustrated in full color. And they almost feel tailormade to scare the living hell out of me. You see, I consider sunflowers to be creepy. They move too much for plants, are too tall, and I always feel watched by them. It’s the one truly irrational fear I have. The petalheads? Picture three leg-like things, a stalk, hands, and a sunflower-ish head with an eye-studded mass in the middle. I genuinely can’t look at the artwork for long, and my response at the table would be to scream to purge these things with fire and extreme prejudice.

Ultimately, the party needs to eliminate the strange machinery slowly doing its horrid work, hopefully sending the carcinoma back to its homeplane/world of Hellgoth.

Conclusion: Editing and formatting are very good on a formal and rules-language level. Layout adheres to a 1-column b/w-standard, and the module comes with a couple of really nice full-color artworks. The cartography in full color is neat as well, and the presence of player-friendly versions that are VTT-friendly is absolutely great. Not so great: The pdf unfortunately has no bookmarks, which is a comfort detriment; once the PoD-version goes live, I’ll get that; until then, I suggest just printing out the pdf – its layout makes this pretty printer-friendly.

Daniel J. Bishop’s “Gnome Jamabalaya” is a great example of a supplement that is greater than the sum of its parts; when someone had told be about the individual components, of the relatively grounded aspects, with slowly mounting weirdness and some Easter eggs thrown in, I’d probably have yawned, which makes describing the appeal of this module pretty hard for me as a reviewer.

You see, there are goofy elements here, there are playful elements here; however, these are contrasted with a surprisingly effective rendition of growing horror, which, while not subtle, performs in an effective slow-burn that mounts towards the finale, which btw. can best be solved by smart players.

So, as a whole, I consider this booklet to be a neat success; it is not the author’s best module, but it is yet another example of how a great author can wring gold from even tired tropes. As a whole, I consider this to be a module worth getting if you’re looking for something playful that yet can be run in a truly creepy manner. My final verdict will hence clock in at 4.5 stars, rounded up due to in dubio pro reo and the player-friendly maps.

Endzeitgeist out.



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[5 of 5 Stars!]
Gnome Jambalaya
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Monsters of Porphyra 3
by Thilo G. [Featured Reviewer] Date Added: 05/04/2020 11:52:17

An Endzeitgeist.com review

This massive bestiary clocks in at 256 pages, 1 page front cover, 1 page editorial, 1 page ToC (by letter – smart!), 2 pages of alphabetic monster list, 3 pages of SRD, leaving us with a massive 248 pages of monsters, so let’s take a look!

This review was moved up in my reviewing queue as a prioritized review at the request of my patreon supporters.

Okay, so a few things first: The book provides a list by monster subtype, by monster type, by environment and by challenge rating – in short, combined with aforementioned ToC and alphabetic list, handling the book is simple and painless. That might sound like a small thing, but particularly for big bestiaries, it’s seriously helpful. It should also be noted that, if you’re not familiar with Porphyra RPG, this book’s content is pretty much compatible with PF1 – most GMs will be able to use the monsters herein on the fly, without any hassle.

However, this is not where the book stops: 12 pages are devoted to the universal monster rules employed herein, and we also get the rules for subtypes and types. And yes, these genuinely are helpful – take e.g. demon lords: They will be particularly proficient with ritual magic (coming soon), and do not possess a static initiative, providing a glimpse of what we can expect from apex-level outsiders. From ogdoad to the zicree, there is a lot here that is interesting: The zicree can e.g. construct via strange fibroids, and are automatically part of a collective for the purpose of ability interactions – so yes, psionics remain very much a fixed part of Porpyhra. Types have their own entry that lists their metabolism with a new header– so whether they eat, breathe or sleep…which is something I genuinely appreciated being here, as it makes parsing that information swifter than in the previous iteration. It’s admittedly a small thing, but I found it helpful. The slightly tweaked monster creation guidelines (up to CR 20) are also presented herein – it is notable that class skills of monsters have been moved to their types, which I personally like – it means you won’t have to flip pages as much.

Okay, that’s the organizational aspect covered, but there’s another big thing to note: The book has a list of artists, and which creatures they provided the artworks. I am always in favor of crediting people properly for their work, so kudos here – particularly considering the vast amount of full color art herein!! I wish more publishers did that. After this list, we have a pretty detailed “How to Use” for the book, which does include a handy summary of the poison rules (which imho are seriously superior to PF1’s take on poisons!). The section also explains the changes made to initiative (passive total) and Notice, which is essentially passive Perception.

Okay, so the book as a whole, obviously, is a monster book, and as such, it is devoted to presenting a ton of creatures for your game. I have reverse-engineered quite a lot of the critters herein, but not all of them. From the data I collected, I can attest a degree of precision that is beyond what you’d expect to see from a book of this size. Covering each and every creature herein would bloat the review beyond any utility, so I’ll try to provide a cross-section of what this book offers.

All right, so, what do we get? Well, the book supports quite a few of the less prominent outsiders, including aeons, and the CR 8 parabythos deserves special note: They can fire a blast that splits mortals in two – the body and a crystalline form, which is immobile, with both having half the target’s HP. And yes, getting rid/curing the affliction is included – unique, and flavorwise a neat niche covered here. The lepidoral agathion manages to make a bunny-person look cool, and has pretty brutal slaps that can cause confusion for a rather prolonged period of time, and speaking of agathions, there also are owl-agathions capable of creating blizzards. The book also introduces something rather uncommon, namely a low-CR angel, the meadow maid, and the book includes a psionic angel. Speaking of uncommon outsiders: What about a psionic beetle-like asura? The book also features a new demon lord, and something that made a lot sense to me: The apiary devils, essentially a whole low-CR caste of devils that acts as a group of individuals establishing footholds – and making fortresses, for they are super-adept at making new fortified structure. This makes so much sense in the context of infernal efficiency. 2 new genies (metal and wood) are also provided, and there’s a new inevitable as well – they are REALLY creepy to me, tasked with eliminated creatures of mixed bloodlines. Yep, that is a damn chilling thought here, having a four-armed monster come after you for your mixed bloodline...and did I mention the qlippoths designed to interact with mortals? They are also rather chilling.

Did I mention the sonic-themed sluu’gho? Or the four-armed warfan-using Hevaka, agents of Lyvalia, the Whispering Councillor?

The elemental themes of Porphyra are also represented in some really cool multi-type elementals, like the mighty CR 17 backdraft, which can suck targets prone and towards it, then deliver truly devastating multi-damage type explosions? Or the masagmasvima, hurling magma and an aura that can sicken targets?

Of course, there are a lot of other critters herein. For example, there are the one-eyed Abaasy giants with a fear-inducing gaze and horrid, metal lashes, the chthonic cyclops, and there are the anakim giants (aesthetically-coded as quasi-Sumerian); and with chingatrüll and drainpipe trolls provide 2 new types of trolls with unique signature abilities. Speaking of which: In case you were wondering, yes, this book does include several templates as well, for example ones for the unknowing creature, which is used to design creatures that haven’t realized that they’re dead – and who don’t take kindly to that being pointed out. Another example would be the hexenbiest template, which is a means to represent beings bound to a hag – as such, there is quite a bit of variety even within the template. Templates, of course, do include several sample creatures. I am particularly fond of the moldering template, since this template allows for the use of common molds and slimes as infections that take over the bodies of host creatures.

Do you like dragons as much as I do? Well, then this book has quite a lot of material for you! Beyond the guardian, hagiographical and porphyry drakes (4 statblocks provided for each of them), we also have the arid, ashen, darkstone and hoard dragons (3 statblocks + global rules provided for each of them), and the new CR 13 wasteland linnorm, which comes with suggested sample treasure. While an elemental, the sleet dragon is draconic in form, and the qi dragon is actually an animal and not exactly smart. I was surprised seeing that this fellow was not at least a magical beast, but its design is very much in line with the design paradigms of animals – very much focused on being a hunter, etc. The grotesque CR 20 typhoean, with its draconic headed arms can also be roughly considered to be a part of this section...and this also holds true for the really cool paper dragon golem! (CR 26, btw. – and yes, they are extremely deadly!)

Of course, there are more constructs in this book: There would be a spiderbot with laser webs, there are drones, there is a really cool guardian made from blood, linked to a ward? One of my favorites is the nightmare collector – a boss-monster-level construct that can create dark duplicates, with a smart Achilles’ heel – a very cool example of a puzzle boss!

Of course, the book also makes ample use of the notion of a fantastic ecology, which includes new oozes, giant wolf spiders, the long-limbed trog flies…and what about a horrid amalgamation of grizzly, shark and octopus? (!!) Two new owlbear variant are provided, and we can find the massive whalecrocs, and a mongoose-like creature bred with an eye towards thwarting killers, able to detect poison and studded with skunk-like spray. Dinosaurs and megafauna are also provided, and what about the grotesque psionic moddey dhoo, with their curse of the black dog, moving in perpetual silence? Did I mention that the book provides stats for dire penguins, or the rot monster, a chilling relative of the rust monster that is really creepy? The chameleon-like psionic shadowcat and the sheepsquatch, or the shadow-themed anglerfish-thing…the strange flora and fauna really help and add to the flavor presented here.

As you can see, there are some fun critters here – and this playfulness can also be partially seen among the fey, with beavertails…and did I mention that Tiny fey preferably ride…DIRE CORGIS? On the creepier side, the undead/fey crossover botachs, who portend disasters, are also here. Coral dryads and other water-borne critters are provided. Plants also deserve special mentioning: For example, there are spores from space which blight and transform organic material, generating twisted lifeforms. What about oozes grown in bear-form (jellybears?), or a take on the CR 15 leucrotta, or the roog, which are fey that have adapted to urban life, distilling poison from their surroundings? The eye-plucking Vaar’s ravens are magical beasts, but also sport this flavor, and we do get a wendigo template as well as a take on Old Man Winter. Did I mention the racing snails, including brief rules on handling races?

Do you prefer the macabre? Well, the yaramayahu has a grossly-enlarged head and can swallow foes and regurgitate those slain as spawn, their bite shrinking targets. This monster would be ridiculous, but the artwork actually made it in equal parts disturbing and surreal. The crypt mother is a genuinely disturbing undead, twisting the themes of motherhood, with the children of the dead complementing this in a twisted manner. What about swarms of eyeballs? Based on porphyran lore would be undead nature spirits and deist spirits. The typhoid mary creating plague doctor undead also offers a twisted angle – and if my fey examples above were too much on the cute/myth-side – there are truly twisted fey here as well, for example the organ thief…and yes, nomen est omen.

Of course, if epic tales are more to your liking than the horrific, this book delivers as well: There are the mighty techtonic terrors (pun intended), a construct doomsday machine capable of causing earthquakes, searing those nearby and firing jets of magma. There are the starfallen inquisitors, heralds of strange worlds beyond;  there are steam-powered turtles, and the mighty CR 22 Colossus of Dhu (CR 22) recontextualizes the Rhodos notion for an oasis in an epic manner. The artwork of the lion-headed golden titan certainly set my mind ablaze. Or perhaps you liked the notion of horde demons, of standing against a Berserk-like flood of deadly demons? Good enws: We get a whole category with the Bosch demons, so named after ole’ Hieronymus, with several menus of abilities. I mentioned the zicree before: Think of these as psionic octopi with multiple eyes and strange exposed brains – and did I mention their guided evolution and potent creations? 8 zicree are provided, with surprisingly different tricks – these breathe a nigh-perfect pulp-angle, and it’s been quite some time since a creature-species immediately made me want to write a whole series of adventures for them.

Conclusion:

Editing and formatting are super-impressive on a formal and rules-language level; this ook is impressive regarding its precision as a whole, particularly considering that it’s essentially an indie production, even though you wouldn’t notice! Layout adheres to a printer-friendly 2-column standard with purple highlights, and each monster gets a proper full-color artwork. An original one, mind you! (!!) The blending of styles is rather nice – horrifying monsters look horrifying; goofier monsters goofier – the assignment of artists to monsters was handled very clever. Moreover, the styles don’t differ too much, providing a rather consistent aesthetic identity. The book also includes a couple of full-page artworks. The pdf-version comes fully bookmarked with EXCESSIVE bookmarks – links are included for each critter. Kudos!! I can’t yet comment on the print version yet, as it hasn’t been released as per the writing of this review, but I’ll be sure to get it.

Mark Gedak and Perry Fehr, with additional material by Derek Blakely, manage to deliver something genuinely impressive: Not only are big bestiaries hard to make, delivering the third (!!) such massive book, the purple ducks managed to actually provide creatures here that I haven’t seen before: There are plenty of unique abilities, and I’d be hard-pressed to mention a creature I didn’t enjoy. Oh, and the authors achieved that without being redundant, adding unique twists to classic concepts in the few instances where the like was quoted. Moreover, the supplement manages to be incredibly well-rounded, filling niches in monster-coverage even when already using PF1’s 6 Paizo-bestiaries and the first two Monsters of Porphyra. The thematic gamut runs from science-fantasy to pulp to horror to the mythological, to monsters drawing from D&D’s tradition of weird fantastic ecologies. Like dragons? This delivers. Enjoying dinosaurs? The book has material for you. Enjoy pulp? Monsters for you are right here. Do you need some horror-critters? The book has you covered.

This is even more impressive when you consider that this book didn’t have a huge team of people working on it – apart from the ton of talented artists (Bob Greyvenstein, Brett Neufeld, Brian Brinlee, Carlos Torreblanca, Gary Dupuis, Gennifer Bone, Jacob Blackman, Jayaraj Paul, Justine Stilborn, Kristen Collins, Matt Morrow, Michael Syrigos, Rick Her­shey, Ryan Rhodes, Tamas Baranya, Theresa Guido), only three people managed to make this gem of a book. For context: This actually is my favorite Monsters of Porphyra-tome so far – the genesis regarding the transition from PF1 to Porphyra RPG did not hurt this gem. My final verdict is 5 stars + seal of approval, and this gets a nomination as a candidate for my Top Ten of 2020.

If you’re looking for a great bestiary for PF1 or Porphyra RPG, get this! Oh, and as an aside – by using Monsters of Porphyra I – III as the creatures in your new campaign, you can really change up the tone of your game in a cool manner. Try it!

Endzeitgeist out.



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
Monsters of Porphyra 3
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