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One - I love bestiaries probably more than I love setting books because the ten-year-old in me just wants to see kickass monsters. Two - I love old world folklore and mythology, and that is why so many of my homebrews draw inspiration from that. Third - breathes - OHMIGAWD THIS BOOK IS SO FLIPPING FLAPTASTIC! When Andrea reached out to me on behalf of the team to review this, I will admit I got nervous shivers about this bad larry cause I knew how much work, time and effort went into it. It was quite the beast to approach when reviewing, cause I wanted to be fair and build a comprehensive list and yaddah yaddah yaddah.
But as many of you assume, I was not able to. If I could have been an anime character I would have gotten a Mach 5 nosebleed and heart eyes the size of Minneapolis - because lordy I love this book so so so so so so much! I can't help it, there is so much murdering monster magic in this thing that it is brimming with life. I can smell the musk from Fenris, feel the hatred rolling off of the trolls, and the manipulative energies stemming from the nokken. But what really sets this book apart - aside from the absolutely star studded cast of writers and artists and designers - is the fact that it feels lived in.
You could take this book and give it to your players and it could feel as real as an in-world book as it would be a game manual for you to use. So to everyone who worked on this project, I grant you the vision of Wayne and Garth prostrating themsevles before and shouting "We're not worthy!" because you have all done an amazing and magnificent job in creating this book. To all the other people in the world - GO BUY THIS!!!!!!!!!!!
I proudly give Monsters of the Old World the first Comics, Clerics, & Controllers Golden d20 Badge
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I always love it when Chris gets ahold of me to tell me he has something new for me to review, because I know it is going to be good, and The Swanmay: A Ranger Conclave is no different. Taking numerous myths from across multiple different cultures, the Swanmay is one part support and one part offense, able to deal lighting fast damage as well as aid and back up their allies. The swan transformation mechanic is awesome, making you an exceptionally versatile character - perfect for espionage and scouting. The class flows well, is balanced nicely, and the use of traditional art throughout grounds the product in its connection to realworld folklore. Once again, Chris has created something that is truly marvelous, and honestly, I would say you should pay more than a dollar for this bad larry, cause with the skill and presentaiton of it, it rivals some of the big boy stuff that Wizards puts out.
Comics, Clerics, & Controllers d20 Roll: Nat 20
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The Merciless Merchants do an excellent job of making their adventures have an OSR feel and look to them - and Standoff at Sandfell Sea Fort certainly harkens back to that aesthetic. Starting off with a gripping encounter, a lot is fit into the 26 pages that comprise this adventure - swashbuckling adventure-action, devious political intrigue, and splashes of sandal and sorcery that is rare to see in D&D projects. The art is fun with its gritty ink feel, the adventure flows very well with a clear plotline, and it allows the players a great deal of agency in deciding how they play. Overall, an excellent little quest if you ever needed something to pop into a campaign for a breka game, or start a new one completetly.
Comics, Clerics, & Controllers d20 Roll: Nat 20
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Everything Oliver touches turns into liquid hot gold, and Ezmerelda vs. Ravenloft is no exception. I knew I needed to review this the minute it dropped and by jove I was not disappointed. From feeling like a 90s fighting game combined with a 16bit aesthetic and comic book style layout that Oliver is so well known for after Killer Kobolds, this adventure is both hilarious, informative, and an artistic masterpiece. Half the battle is presentation, and Oliver knocked it out of the park.
But the biggest thing Ezmerelda vs. Ravenloft does under the veneer of a cheesy fighting game is cut deep and true into the dark side of what women go through in the modern age; old ideals of lack of intelligence, the time worn excuse of "She asked for it with that skirt", and other truly grim instances. This adventure is both a PSA to the treatment of women in our society, and to what we can do to fix it. And that, my friends, is what makes this product so flacking powerful.
Comics, Clerics, & Controllers d20 Roll: Nat 20
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Big-book-adventures always need to do a lot to impress me, as many of you know that I am not a fan of them. What Vall has done though is take everything I love about a good campaign and mix it altogether with amazing themes and genres. The Curious Case of the Calm Delilah merges elements of noir horror, swashbuckling adventure, political intrigue, and good hearty action into a chowder of awesomeness. With awesome art and excellent thematic layout, this adventure beats out some of the big Wizards books by a score. Plus, it does what all good adventures should do - it pulls you directly into the story and gets you immediatly involved and invested.
The only problems I have with it is that sometimes the pages feel overloaded and the layout at times seems to get a little blurred together - walls and walls of text kind of smush together and there are few on-page boxes to split it all up and let the reader have a break. Otherwise, if you are looking for an campaign to get your players into Saltmarsh or any nautical themed arc and really want to build the horror aspects of seafaring roleplay, Vall has done it all with this book, and you should snag a copy now.
Comics, Clerics, & Controllers d20 Roll: 18
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Soooo, I will attempt to be as calm as possible....which will be very hard. What sits before is worth far more than $9.99 - it is worth countless and countless hours of gameplay and fun. When Vall asked me review Greasemonkey I didn't even hesitate and jumped in the minute I was asked - holy cow was I unprepared for THE METRIC ROCK TON OF AWESOMENESS IN THIS BOOK OHMIGAWHD! One part Gundam, one part Transformers, and a hell of a lot of mecha sweetness The Greasemonkey's Handbook: Rules for piloting Magitech, Steampunk, and Sci-Fi mechs in D&D 5th Edition is a must-have for anyone who wants to go balls-to-the-wall crazy in their next campaign.
With execellent tables for building, creating, and organizing mechs, as well as a ton of new magic items, class options, and so so much more, Greasemonkey takes our gritty Pacific Rim daydreams and turns them into reality. Who wouldn't want to be a dwarven pilot in a massive axe-wielding death machine taking on giants? At the end of the day, you can see and feel the amount of passion that went into building Greasemonkey and it truly pays off.
Comics, Clerics, & Controllers d20 Roll: Nat 20
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There are those players and DMs who thrive on realism and ingenious integration within their games, and then there are those of us who have to slap campaigns together in 10 or 15 minutes. Adam's Balduran's Guide to Kingdom Building is one of the most useful supplements you could ever ask for - it has monsters, maps, guidelines, tables, and all sorts of mechanics for ensuring that you can build the most comprehensive and realistic kingdom in your game.
The biggest strength of this product is the heavy importance of geographic location and biome in which your kingdom is located, as this is going to play directly into how your kingdom is going to function - an arctic kingdom is going to be scores different in the way it is built and managed than a marsh or plains kingdom. If you partnered this with Neverember's Guide to Urbanization, you would be set to create and flesh out entire worlds for life. In 160+ pages you get so much amazing new content that it is unreal.
This is a stunning example of content creation perfection - really everyone who can should take a look at and buy Balduran's: you will not be disappointed in the slightest.
Comics, Clerics, & Controllers d20: Nat 20
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First off - you can tell how much work went into this project, it was an intensely collaborative piece and all of the varried voices merge together into one unifed shout. When Ashton was out looking for folks to do reviews of Friends, Foes and Other Fine Folks, I knew it was going to be something big, so I immediatly volunteered my services and can say without a doubt that I could not have been more thrilled.
What this colossal book offers you - clocking in at 131 pages, and now with a POD option - is a whole slew of new NPCs with stat blocks, some lore, and original character art; all ready to be dropped into any game. It is helpfully divided into fourteen subsections, all with different themes such as Craftspeople or Rabble Rousers. It is handsomely laid out and well organized, making it a dream book for any DM to have in their library.
But the biggest success of Friends, Foes and Other Fine Folks is its open representation and acceptance of NPCs with disabilities, LGBTQIA, or gender nonbinary. This is a huge step forward in a fantasy game that has been stuck in the male/female perfectly built person system for many years and is starting to reflect the diversity of its players on the pages of this amazing product.
Comics, Clerics, & Controllers d20 Roll: Nat 20
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Creator Reply: |
Thank you for the great review! |
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This supplement is both visually and mechanically stunning. When Dimitri posted about it I immediatly felt a draw to it - from the cover to the encounters within to the art and layout: everything about 21 Freaky Forest Encounters is wonderful. My top encounters are The Forgotten and The Guardian, both standing out in so many ways, but the addition of the Forest Devil is fantastic.
The Forest Devil stands out to me the most because of the powerful connection to old folklore and old religious traditions from across medieval Europe: the woods were evil, and evil things lurked within them - things that were Satanic and would carry unwary or unpious children off. 21FFE is a perfect mesh of horror, adventure, and lore - making it a perfect supplement to plop into any game if a DM needs a quick encounter.
With the CR range, excellent professional style, and new monsters - what Dimitri and his team have done is create something that truly comes off as a big-market piece made by folks who truly appreciate roleplay and the game. If you are getting ready to dive into the Feywild or a big forested area, snag a copy of 21 Freaky Forest Encounters - you won't regret it.
Comics, Clerics, & Controllers d20 Roll: Nat 20
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When Oliver revealed this little gem on the DMs Guild Creator Circle, I knew I needed to review it. It immediatly reeks of intense creative energy and endless possibilities - and Bearthazar himself is a perfect narrator for the course of this little gem. At the core of Bearthazar's House of Familiars is the belief that not all familiars are created equal, that all are a little different in their own special ways. Garfunkel and Jeeves are probably my favorite from the menagerie of mystical sidekicks, and they are only the tip of the iceberg of 73 pages.
With a useful badge system to delineate which familiars are what type - Ranger Companions, Find Familiar, Pact of the Chain, Dangerous, and Unbound - and you even get a fancy dancy familiar ownership contract. All organized in ascending cost from Copper to Platinum, what Oliver, Cat, and Jess have made is something both highly comedic and perfectly roleplayed and it should be featured in every game. Any wizard, ranger or warlock worth their magic pips should snag a copy of this treasure.
Comics, Clerics, & Controllers d20 Roll: Nat 20
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I had heard tale from other folks that Dave was a hell of an adventure writer, so when he asked if I could review The Urchin of Camorr, I was more than happy to comply. And right when I started reading, I knew that this was one of those rare few adventures that I would 100% want to run. A strong suit of any good writer is building a well knit plot and well developed story, and with the flow chart that Dave provides in the opening pages of Urchin, you know you are on the right track.
This adventure blends adventure, horror, intrigue, and investigative noir beautifully in a fully fleshed-out community where the players feel truly connected and invested in the outcome of what happens should they fail their mission. This is paramount to the adventure as a whole and what really makes it stand out - Dave makes the DM and PCs relate and empathize with the NPCs so quickly it is almost uncanny.
With excellent layout and formatting, clear encounters that never get too clunky or slog on, and original art, The Urchin of Camorr is a steal for any DM looking to introduce his players to D&D with something that is definitely more worthy of pulling new players in than the Starter Set adventure. But be wary, cause you will definitely get addicted to whatever else Dave has put together.
Comics, Clerics, & Controllers d20 Roll: Nat 20
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Dwarves will always be my first love for fantasy races - short, stocky, big beards, usually Scottish/North Country English accents, with a love for beer and axes - what is not to love? So when our friends over at Wayward Rogues Publishing asked us if we wanted to take a look at their new Cultes of Celmae: Dwarves 2e supplement, I was more than down - and just in time since I got my Pathfinder 2e stuff in today.
With new feats, racial heritages, as well as setting locations, deities and classes, Dwarves 2e packs so much into 14 pages and it leaves me wanting more. At some points the layout seems a little off, and some of the text options for titles blend into the page a bit too much, making it hard to see - but those are my only qualms. Acting both as an intro to Pathfinder 2e fan content and as the Shattered Skies setting that Wayward Rogues has developed, Dwarves 2e is a perfect little product to add to your Pathfinder library if you are looking to add something a little new.
Comics, Clerics, & Controllers d20 Roll: 18
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For me, prewritten quests are hit-and-go. I either like them or hate them - and Stratos has created one I definitely enjoy. With Nameia's Laboratory, Stratos fits into 19 pages what some people can't fit in 200, making and weaving a highly immersive adventure. From Nameia's secrets to the plight of the missing citizens, to the exploration through the dark and terrifying labratory, this quest offers strains of old horror and suspense pieces like Resident Evil, Event Horizon, Saw, and IT. The art is fantastic, the layout is awesome, and it is a perfect adventure that you could slip into an evening where someone might be missing or you might need a change of tone for a little bit. Plus you get some kickass new magic items that connect beautifully and thematically to the adventure. It is truly the attention to detail that Stratos has put together here, as this looks and feels like a full Wizards product - and that makes it truly even better.
Comics, Clerics, & Controllers d20 Roll: Nat 20
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When Massimo was looking for folks to review Neverember's Guide to Urbanization, I jumped on the chance. I love anything that adds new levels of depth and intricacy to a game, and with this honking supplement, I was not disappointed at all. With tons of new mechanics - classes, roll tables, rules, charts, and other strategies - all based around building and developing cities or expanding already existing towns/villages into towns/cities, what Neverember's does is pretty much make it so that you could run an entire campaign arch in a city.
One of the things that I have often run into, especially after playing the seminal City of Mist RPG, is that D&D lacks mechanics or really much of a push to run games set within large communities. Now, I know its all about imagination and theater-of-the-mind (jeez stupid, this is D&D, OF COURSE you could run a game in a city) there was something lacking whenever I wanted to do such a game. Building something from scratch just wasn't cutting it. And what Massimo and the rest of the team created with this book satisfied my every need to be able to replicate that very feeling of complete worldbuilding.
This book has completely blown me out of the water with this product - combining tons of awesome new tables to develop and build events, individuals, and portions of the city, to the beautiful layering of rule and story that fills this 75 page supplement - which I honestly feel should be developed into a whole-hog sourcebook - to bursting. If you don't have Neverember's Guide to Urbanization you are missing the hell out.
Comics, Clerics, & Controllers d20 Roll: Nat 20
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What David has done is take would could be a massive undertaking with tons of complicated mechanics and loopholes and built it into several roll-tables, some easy rules, and clear direction - all in five pages. When he asked me to review Creating and Leveling a Guild I was very excited because I love guilds and think they are honestly a little underused in RPGs - hence why I always try to use them.
And with David's product, the process becomes so much easier. Now with a few quick rolls, you can level your guild, give it new features, how much XP players can earn from opening it, and even offers a couple NPCs to populate it with! Overall Creating and Leveling a Guild is a perfect product for DMs looking to add a little bit of Renaissance flavor to their table.
Comics, Clerics, & Controllers d20 Roll: Nat 20
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