Spend Christmas in the Domains of Dread in a PWYW adventure from the Dark Lord Master of Dungeons Christian Von Zeuchovich. Enjoy a grim, frigid nightmare of a holiday!

https://www.dmsguild.com/product/338830/The-Great-Trial-Christmas?affiliate_id=1507682

Encounters with the Dark Powers by Christian Zeuch (@czeuch1)

“Encounters with the Dark Powers is a DUNGEONS & DRAGONS supplement offering enhanced roleplaying opportunities to characters that die while exploring the Domains of Dread. These enhancements, perfect for a Curse of Strahd adventure, offer characters a moral dilemma: they can live again, but at what cost?”

The Dark Lord Master of Dungeons Christian Von Zeuchovich is back in the Domains of Dread, following their bestselling Encounters in Barovia (https://www.dmsguild.com/product/337503/Encounters-in-Barovia?affiliate_id=1507682), Encounters in Barovia Map Pack (https://www.dmsguild.com/product/335614/Barovian-Encounters-Map-Pack?affiliate_id=1507682) and The Great Trial: Christmas (https://www.dmsguild.com/product/338830/The-Great-Trial-Christmas?affiliate_id=1507682), and this time they brought some friends along who want to play.

The Dark Powers can offer their Dread Marks to anyone whose tragic untimely death occurs in the Domains of Dread (up to 5th level or DM discretion), granting them another chance at a semblance of life at the cost of being forever changed by the experience, warped in ways that reflect elements of the unknowable entities that hold dominion over Ravenloft. These bargains come with a permanent physical and/or mental alteration and Zeuch provides a table of 20 new phenomenally freaky Dark Gifts, such as “[hearing] the tormented souls of Ravenloft pleading for help” or a “character’s face [being] concealed by shadows” that confer certain mechanical execrations and boons, such as taking a hit to their powers of persuasion but gaining the power to turn an enemies shadow against them or supernatural abilities, such as turning gaseous or travelling to the ethereal plane that push them beyond the brink of exhaustion.

What truly elevates and sets this supplement apart are the deliciously dark, mysterious and disturbing encounters that accompany each Dark Gift with chilling boxtext and evocative suggestions and questions for the DM to pose the characters. These give the DM a glorious opportunity to roleplay as the Dark Powers and to play out these strange and singular scenes with their players, truly giving them the Ravenloft experience and memories that will stay with both players and characters forever.

This is should be required ready for every prospective Dark Lord and makes me ache to run some fun the Mists again! If you are running Curse of Strahd or roaming Ravenloft you’re going to want to read this. I’ll never travel to the Domains of Dread again without carrying this in my back pocket.

Credits Author: Christian Zeuch Art Direction: Christian Zeuch Layout: Christian Zeuch (based on the Affinity Publisher template by Nathanaël Roux) Editor: Matthew Wulf Ravenloft Consultant: Chris Massey Sensitivity Reader: Jasmine Eisinger Cover Art: KELLEPICS (CC0 from Pixabay) & fotokitas Adobe Stock Interior Art: Dean Spencer Playtesters: Bob Carnicom, Chad M. Lensch, Cita A F, Dave D. Grandmaison, Isaac Mandagie, Jillian Zaski, Kathleen Harrington, Luke Russell, Ricardo Andrade, Sanae Rosen

My Affiliate Link: https://www.dmsguild.com/product/340046/Encounters-with-the-Dark-Powers?affiliate_id=1507682

A Shovelful of Maps by Fernando Salvaterra (@fersalvaterra)

Art Book 31 hand-drawn black and white RPG maps

"I drew these maps between June and September of 2020. They are presented here without names and explanations for you to use it as you wish in your RPG games”

This is an absolutely phenomenal collection of maps from a truly talented cartographer and artist Salvaterra.

There’s just so much here! Across the 31 maps there are battlemaps, regions, dungeons and isometric dungeons, mines, huts, gates, rivers and more that can be connected, a hexcrawl, islands, mountains and valleys, countryside, underground, shrines and buildings!

It would be truly awesome to create a campaign using them all! There are infinite ways to connect and extend and improvise and be inspired!

I have just fallen in love with the character of Salvaterra’s penmanship and their flavourful old skool style! When I saw the actual Shovel Map cover I was smitten and eagerly awaited this release, and I am not disappointed!

A true talent and a wonderful collection of Maps!

Credits Fernando Salvaterra E-mail: diariodecampanharpg@gmail.com Patreon: Tome of Salvaterra Twitter: @fersalvaterra Facebook & Instagram: @diariodecampanharpg

My Affiliate Link: https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/338715/A-Shovelful-of-Maps--Art-Book-and-Map-Pack?affiliate_id=1507682

Mundane Magic by Lysa Penrose (@lysapenrose)

A magical storytelling game of escalating consequences “You are one of the fates: a coven of crones charged with the care of all mortals. You weave the fabric of reality with the source of your power, the mighty Loom of Destiny!!! Or you would. If your fellow crones— definitely not you—hadn’t broken it. Again. But time and space wait for no one. Quickly! Descend unto the realm and interfere in mortals’ everyday lives the old-fashioned way: your witchy magic and wits.”

A phenomenal back and forth of collaborative storytelling and descriptive roleplay with witches bumbling through time and space, causing chaos, dealing with their consequences and trying to achieve their goals, so reality, time and space don’t come afoul of the knotted mess the skein has become!

From the glorious cover art by Maldo Illustration (@maldo_art) depicting the fates in contemporary witchy glamour perched on the moon all tangled up in the threads of fate which have become a knotted yarn ball of destiny, it’s clear you’re in good hands! Maldo perfectly captures the wibbley wobbley timey fatey vibe. This game is most certainly not serious, rather it’s as seriously silly and fun as witches, the fates (Moirai less), roam time and space to avoid disasters that would destroy reality or perhaps more importantly convince their favourite coffee place to serve pumpkin spice all year round! And that’s before you even factor in that every use of their magic unleashes more chaos in a cycling flow of magic and chaos building into “a snowball effect of consequences”. What’s not to love?!

The newt’s eye at the centre of this cauldron is “descriptive roleplay”, meaning the game exemplifies the collaborative storytelling of TTRPGs with a focus on the players describing what they want to do and the actions they take in great detail. You are witches with powerful Gifts, funky Foci with flavoured spells and, of course, mundane magic, and as so everything you do is freaking awesome and should be described with appropriate flair, detail and ridiculousness. The key tenet being: “If you can describe it, you can cast it”.

Besides a d6 for the Game Master (GM) to roll at the beginning to determine Moon Phase the game takes place in, Mundane Magic is a diceless game using the Spell Tokens, character sheet and the power of imagination for the players, while the GM uses the Chaos Tokens and Mundane Missions or their own witchy brews to set the scene and objective.

The Moon Phase determines the makeup and number of cards in the game from “Waning Gibbous (1) – Start with 2 Spell Tokens and 3 Chaos Tokens” to “Full Moon (6) – Start with 5 Spell Tokens” and everything in between. Essentially, this dictates the power level of the witches and how chaotic things start off the broom.

Witches use Spell Tokens to do the magic, using the number of tokens either previously set or agreed upon proposal of the spell with more tokens being needed for spells of greater power and effect from “[heating] lukewarm tea” to “[shielding] a town from a flash flood you probably also somehow caused.” After being used Spell Tokens become Chaos Tokens, which the GM then spends to cause chaos and hijinks to ensue from nosy neighbours all the way to “[introducing] a curious demon lord who tiptoed through a tear in reality.”

“All crones have certain Gifts that represent their natural strengths and talents and inform how they tackle challenges.” These are represented by three attributes, “MINUTIA” for the studious and perceptive who wield the power of knowledge, “MUSCLE” for the supernaturally honed and changed physically with tiger’s teeth or the snout of a bloodhound, and “MOXIE” for the charming and glamorous with honeyed words and uncanny influence. A pool of points is split between these three Gifts determining their potency and the Gift Points available in those areas. Each Gift has a special ability “Minutia can be used to ask the GM one question. Muscle can be used to remove a foe. Moxie can be used to avoid double the Chaos Tokens”. Otherwise, Gift Points are used to cast simple, basic spells that “must do no harm’, avoid Chaos Tokens or “do mundane shit”, which covers significant non-magical actions. Gift Points are earned back by using Spell Tokens for “mundane shit.”

There’s a sidebar that focuses on Foci, your required and bonded...Focus for casting spells. In Mundane Magic the nature of the Focus dramatically effects the signature spells at your fingertips. It’s made clear that the list of seven examples, ranging from a “Green-Flame Candle” with fiery magic to using a Familiar for animal magic, through my personal favourite, the empathic and healing Besom, is not exhaustive and working with your GM to create and balance your own unique Focus is encouraged. Examples are given for using one, two or three Spell Tokens to cast from your focus, with one from the Candle “heating lukewarm tea” (an ability I sorely wish I had!), two from the Familiar “[Summoning] a swarm to your side” (buzzy friends), and the absolutely glorious suggestion, “you might shield a town from a flash flood you probably also somehow caused” for three from Besom. Creating your own Focus could be a really fun part of a session 0 and/ or character creation to make the actual item and flavour of magic just right for your witch. I was thinking glasses that allow you to see through solid material and into other dimensions, but then I realised I need to play a witch based on the Australian comedian, Demi Lardner (@DemiLardner) with a Secret ‘stache. No idea what or does, but it’s a bit ole fake moustache!

The game begins with the GM laying out the goal of the witches’ Mundane Mission, along with the setting and situation where appropriate. “Perhaps reality hinges on the crones inspiring a 1920s writer with the confidence to pen her first poem, or ensuring Jasmine wins her student body president election, or simply matchmaking dinosaurs.” A supplement containing three hilarious Mundane Missions is included, but more on that later.

The witches then have some time to prepare and plan, possibly pick just the right spot for Grimsby in 2001 or wherever they end up, not to mention having excuses and explanations ready for when things inevitably get chaotic.

Arriving in the time and space forewarned and Foci-armed the witches do their best to fulfil their goal in style, using their gifts and casting spells, leading to a build up of chaos, which the GM then cashes in to create chaos and present unique fun and vexing challenges.

“With 1 token, the GM might have a snooping neighbor spy the crones’ witchcraft. With 2 tokens, the GM might cause the crones’ spell to cool a drink to freeze all liquids within 5 miles. With 3 tokens, the GM might introduce a curious demon lord who tiptoed through a tear in reality.”

From here the spell cards and chaos flip back and forth as the game progresses, building to a crescendo of chaos and the success or failure of the mission. In all honesty this could keep going back and forth and building and building, and getting more chaotic, though Penrose does advise the GM to “avoid adding additional major challenges (Alas, the game must end eventually.)”

That’s it! The simple fact of flipping up to five cards from one side to the other, making up glorious nonsense and describing it in style is the essence of the game. I absolutely love the ludicrousness of the power scale which ramps up so quickly and how it’s just so simple, fun and silly!

Character creation and the Crone Card character sheet are extremely quick and easy to complete. The game asks nine easy bullet point (or rather teeth point) questions, including your witch’s name, an “adjective to describe their personality”, a “fatal flaw”, allocating Gift Points, choosing or creating a Focus, and two fantastic questions to have you thinking about your covenmates: “What do you owe the crone to your left and why? The crone to your right has an annoying habit. What is it?” Such simple, but insightful questions to get you thinking about your character and the group.

The sheet itself is a small and clear, easy to fill in and read. A form fillable version is also included, as well as Online Play Resources, which provide a Google Doc with all the Crone Cards and Spell/ Chaos Tokens, which can be set allowing for easy online play. This is a lovely addition and very much needed these days.

Mundane Magic is certainly going to bring the smiles, silliness and cackling in cauldrons full, which is something we can all do with right now!

Remember “If you can describe it, you can [do] it”

Mundane Missions

“Quibbling quests for Mundane Magic, a magical storytelling game of escalating consequences. The chaos inside these pages include suggestions of people, places, challenges, and consequences for your games of Mundane Magic. But crones are as creative as they are powerful—let their hapless actions guide the story, and don’t be afraid to toss away these guidelines as true chaos unfolds. There are many ways to complete a Mundane Mission... for better or worse.” There are dinosaurs in period costume on the cover! There are freaking dinosaurs by Kenny Web (@Volfmyr) on the flipping cover! This supplement contains three Mundane Missions that truly show the farcical fun and stupendous silliness to be had in Mundane Magic. Penrose has a delightfully wicked and wonderful sense of humour, which radiates from these pages and had me giggling and snorting trading them.

The first mission, “Wanda for President” is a high-school drama set in 2360 in which it’s essential the eponymous Wanda must become student body president, so she can go on to eventually become president of Cascadia. There’s a lot working against her, not least of which is a broken heart. What could be simpler than ensuring a favourable outcome, you are witches and this is high-school, right? Oh, there is a chance Wanda’s ex could crash her speech, revealing herself as a “giant ghost demon”...

The second mission, “Breakfast at Rex’s” takes place in Victorian England in a timeline in which dinosaurs take the place of humans with all the pageantry and propriety one would expect. This is a mission of love, Virgil Raptor needs a lot of help to be ready for the Rex Breakfast Ball and make his true love notice him. If that’s not enough, tensions between herbivores and carnivores are escalating... What’s the worse thing that could maple happen? ...an asteroid...

The third mission, “Best in Show” finds the witches in New York in the peak F.R.I.E.N.D.S era 90s with a mission to ensure a vaccine be available for an emerging disease in 500 years’ time. How? Well, you just need a cat named Zuzu to win the Great American Cat Pageant. Only problem is Zuzi is hideous, “This author thinks all cats are cute. But Zuzu...” [This reviewer adores cats and is aware of Penrose’ love of cats which is widely known, so I shudder to think what the poor wretch looks like...]. First things first, you must get Zuzu a presence on the Internet, and pray there isn’t a full moon!

While these three everything but mundane missions are bloody brilliant, what might be even better is the perfect formula for creating a mission for Mundane Magic in how they are laid out:

Problems to Solve This gives you some direct things to present the players to overcome.

World Facts Add some flavour, context and detail, such as “Everything hovers. Everything.”

People & Places Important and interesting places and important NPCs – The who’s and the where’s.

Extra Special Chaos Sauce A personalised three tier chaos-o-meter for the mission with appropriate flavour and irony.

1. “It’s love at first sight. Temple grows infatuated with one of the crones.”
2. “Someone let loose carnivorous leeches in the Extreme Aquatic Obstacle Course!”
3. “In the middle of Wanda’s speech, Hazel Vo “unzips” her flesh suit to reveal a giant chaos demon, who accuses Wanda of being a sham.”

It’s such a delightfully simple and effective way of providing just what you need, as once you start playing it will be improvised chaos. This is a seriously impressive, silly, fun and well thought out game that takes so little to play, but provides unquantifiable amounts of joy and ridiculousness. I’m blown away and have been giggling to myself over the missions and thinking up my own, realising this is the perfect one shot game to palate cleanse between campaigns, when you can’t get the whole group together or when you just want to have a really good laugh. Also, due to the relative simplicity of the rules and mechanics, this would be a great game to play with family or friends unsure about roleplay and learning tomes of rules. A phenomenal back and forth of collaborative storytelling and descriptive roleplay with witches bumbling through time and space, causing chaos, dealing with their consequences and trying to achieve their goals, so reality, time and space don’t come afoul of the knotted mess the skein has become!

It takes a whole lot of smarts to come up with something so simple, silly and super duper fun!. Must be witchcraft!

Credits Game design & layout by Lysa Penrose (@lysapenrose) Editing by Jessica Ross (@writejessr) Mundane Magic Cover art by Maldo Illustration (@maldo_art) Mundane Magic Interior art by Thora Ford Mundane Missions Cover art by Kenny Web (@Volfmyr) with background by Maldo Illustration Mundane Missions Interior art by Thora Ford Special thanks to my playtesters: Celeste Conowitch, James Introcaso, LaTia Jacquise, TK Johnson, Rin Marigold, Dustin Miller, Hannah Rose, Jessica Ross, Kelly Shaver, & Jen Vaugh

My Affiliate Link: https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/337120/Mundane-Magic-RPG?affiliate_id=1507682

THE DARK PEAKS: DEEP MAW CORE Rules by Kieran Mathers (@TalesPeaks)

“Paring down the RPG combat system to a single attack roll, and adding lethality back into a single strike, THE DARK PEAKS: DEEP MAW is a game all about taking risks and surviving them.”

In the Dark Peaks: Deep Maw you are no stalwart hero of renown, you aren’t born with innate magical abilities (though through sheer bloody-mindedness and luck they may live to gamble with their life beseeching the Idol for the Art), and you most certainly don’t come from a background of wealth, privilege or education. You are poor as dirt farmers, poachers and shepherds wielding the tools of your former trades as weapons against monsters in the Deep. Common folk swept up in the Festival of Blades and protection of your home from the evil spilling out from the dark below!

A simple, yet robust system that allows for frenetic and exciting combat that will have everyone at the table gripped and panicked with all actions from both sides occurring simultaneously. These wild melees truly feel like a battle between life and death, managing to capture the vicarious excitement we feel when reading or watching ordinary folx risk life and limb. There’s almost a feeling of chess and tabletop wargaming in the strategy that goes into so many moving parts at once. It’s impressive to feel the danger and the odds stacked against, without it feeling too hopeless, and your options for combating your enemy being limited without losing the fun of playing.

The lore and setting are at once rich and vital, while asking questions of the players and GM encouraging world building.

The resources for the Games Master are detailed, covering all aspects of managing the game, discussion of roleplay and helping the players build up their PCs and bonds, expedition, encounter and campaign design, as well as a huge range of monsters and minions of the Deep all presented with aesthetic and easy to reference Creature Cards from the thugs and rogue adventurers, the myriad Taur of Deepmaw, the warped Dusklings, the terrible and horrifying Nightchoir, and the truly terrifying Monsters of the Black, as well as in depth advice for creating your ow. Deep Dwellers!

A Developer’s Commentary allows greater insight into the game’s design, and an extremely helpful Appendix has absolutely everything you could ask for in quick reference in the back.

This is nearly 100 pages of stygian doom and dungeon-crawling fun crafted by someone who has clearly been playing all the games, taken notes and used all that experience to make something that will not only appeal to the OSR crowd, but to anyone after some serious fun that doesn’t have to be taken too seriously! It’s impressive to feel the danger and the odds stacked against, without it feeling too hopeless, and your options for combating your enemy being limited without losing the fun of playingplaying

I will be back with an in depth review this deserves in the future! CREDITS LEAD WRITER AND SYSTEM CREATOR: KIERAN MATHERS HEAD ARTIST: GEMMA DASS MATH BRAIN: TOM HALLAM EDITOR: CYNTHIA BUTOR CREATIVE CONSULTANTS: ADELEEN, JANS, INSPIRATION TAKEN FROM DUNGEONS AND DRAGONS 5TH EDITION, WORLD OF DARKNESS 2ND EDITION, PATHFINDER 1ST EDITION, DUNGEON WORLD, INDEX CARD RPG, AND THE DUNGEON CRAFT YOUTUBE CHANNEL. PLAYTESTING SERVICES PROVIDED BY GEMMA, KRIS, NADZ, JANS, ETHAN & GARETH. ILLUSTRATIONS ARE PROVIDED UNDER NON-EXCLUSIVE LICENSE BY DEAN STOCKTON, JACK HOLLIDAY, ERIC LOFGREN, DANIEL COMERCI (DANIELCOMERCI.COM), MAD GOBLIN GAMES, USED WITHIN TERMS OF LICENSE, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. DUNGEON ART ASSETS CREATED BY DUNGEONARIUM AND USED WITH PERMISSION.OTHER UNCREDITED ART USED UNDER SHUTTERSTOCK.COM COMMERCIAL LICENSE.

My Affiliate Link: https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/338697/THE-DARK-PEAKS-DEEP-MAW-CORE-RULES?affiliate_id=1507682

If you want to try before you buy – check out the Festival of Swords, a PWYW stand-alone adventure in the Dark Peaks: Deep Maw setting, with a full set of rules and enemies to take on in a deadly dangerous dungeon! https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/338698/THE-DARK-PEAKS-FESTIVAL-OF-SWORDS-SECOND-EDITION?affiliate_id=1507682

Supes and Sorcery from Cameron Day (@daylightpub1066) & Adam Hancock (@AdamMakesTTRPG)

This is just the tiniest glimpse of my joy, love and excitement at getting my hands on this project and taking a brief look while my breath caught in my chest and my heart beat a bass drum rhythm to my palpable excitement and awestruck amazement!

This is over 200 pages of BIFF POW ZAP SCHLOCK, wonderful ideas lore, new races, classes (I NEED AN ARCHON RIGHT STAT NOW!), subclasses for all the standard classes, feats, spells, origins/ backgrounds, alter egos, Sidekicks, gazetteer of the World of Heroes, organisations, notable NPCs, advice on running various super moods and themes magic items, villains and monsters, lairs and strongholds, kaiju and THREE FREAKING EPIC ADVENTURES, introductory, mid tier and ultimate beat down with the flipping HYPER DEMON! I am too excited to think!

There’s just so much here presented so beautifully with some truly astounding artwork.

The folx working on this have poured their hearts, souls and radioactive spiders into this and it truly shows! They should all be so proud! I’m in another dimension of Hype outside the material plane! Gobsmacked!

I will be back and vengeance this thing in detail when I have the capacity and free time!

Credits Producers: Cameron Day, Adam Hancock Writers: Robert Beverly, Bianca Bickford, Drew Dawes, Cameron Day, Jackson Lewis, Sadie Lowry, Jimmy Meritt, Steve Pankotai, Noah Simpson, Lydia Van Hoy Editors: Adam Hancock, Sadie Lowry Layout & Graphic Design: Anne Gregersen Cover Artist: Dheeraj Verma Artists: Mariana Bergo, Dana Braga, Ruben Cardenas, Claudio Casini, A.E. Coggon, Daniel Comerci, Matthew Ross Crafton, Travel Dawn, Emilie Lind Damkjær, DenniiStar Illustrations, Dungeon Secrets, Lin Enling, explodingcrayon, Wouter Florusse, David Frasheski, grandfailure, Grim Press, My Đinh Hà, John Latta, liuzishan, Anna Perci, Eden Sanders, Carla Puerta, Purple Duck Games, Bruno Rodjak, Roselysium, thanawong, Lydia Van Hoy, Dheeraj Verma, Quico Vicens-Picatto, Frankie Washington, Simon Wong, Laura Zi Cartographers: Abbie Hines, Dyson Logos Sensitivity Readers: Michelle Churchill, Andrew Headley, James John Additional Writing: Chris Bachelder, Francis Bagley, Ben, John Bookwalter Jr., Michael Bronson, Billy Carpenter, Brandon Corey, Lewis Coyne, Kristy Dalangini, Brittney Hay, Will Kitcher, Luke McClung, Magnus Rock, Brice T., Drew Wood

My Affiliate Link: https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/338169/Supers--Sorcery--5e-Campaign-Setting?affiliate_id=1507682

A Caravance Carol by Andrés Lillo (@AzzaelUlbrinter)

The rivalry between the Old Carvas and Krampus reaches a climax when a grumpy old gnome turns the balance between good and evil deeds in favour of Krampus, allowing the sinister archfey to take over the Candy Throne! It is up to the characters and some of Old Carvas’ helpers to teach a lesson to the greedy Eberdeb Stooge and save Caravance!

Grab a Candy Wand and make ready to A Christmas Inception Scrooge’s gnomish counterpart because the Candy Throne is in jeopardy, Old Carvas (Santa) has been turned into chocolate and Krampus is just itching to Snap the Naughty List like a festive Thanos! Climb into Stooge’s mind and play an integral part in this at once familiar and traditional, and yet a totally bizarre, fun and inspired take on Dickens’ classic, A Christmas Carol.

There are many fun and silly holiday adventures, which wre perfectly splendid, but this actually puts you in the centre of the story with the power to influence it, tell it and teach Stooge the meaning of the Holidays in your own way!

CREDITS Designer: Andrés Lillo, instagram.com/azzael_ulbrinter/ Cover Illustrator: Ricardo Riveros, instagram.com/tandel21/ Interior Illustrators: Most of the art in this supplement was made by Ricardo Riveros, with the only exception being the art in page 3 which was made by Josefina Maige. Template: Simple Microsoft Word Template by Laura Hirsbrunner Based On: A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens

My Affiliate Link: https://www.dmsguild.com/product/338918/A-Caravance-Carol-A-Fey-Adventure-for-Christmas?affiliate_id=1507682

Allies & Antagonists Free Sample (5th Edition) by Grim Press (@TheGrimPress)

“209% Funded in 24 hours! Join our Kickstarter Campaign here: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/grimpress/allies-and-antagonists-a-big-book-of-dnd-5e-npcs Allies & Antagonists was successfully funded! Final orders will be fulfilled by DriveThruRPG and include: Over 200 Pages of Content 100 Non-player Characters (before stretch goals) Lore, Art, and 5e Game Statistics for Every NPC Professional Product Layout PDF & Hardcover Print options Created for the world’s greatest roleplaying game! Note: The samples provided in this PDF represent early work for this project, and final production of Allies & Antagonists is expected to look much different than the free sample we are providing here — but the content will be similar!”

I’m so ridiculously excited for this Kickstarter! The Grim Press (@TheGrimPress) are phenomenal creators with the most truly transcendent takes on NPCs! I’ve said before & will say again “every one of them filled with enough flavour to grow an encounter, adventure, arc and/ or campaign”

The quality of the writing, lore, artwork and abilities is incredible and utterly inspiring! I need to see the full project so badly! This taste has me very, very excited indeed!

I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the Silvasirenis caused me some concern with the wording and elements of the concept, which is inspired by the mythological siren. I raised these with Armstrong (@Grim_DM) and his response was truly encouraging and inspiring, welcoming my comments.

I am truly reassured knowing that this is but a sampler, with the project being committed to sensitivity consultants for the final product. It’s wonderful to see folx becoming more welcoming of critique, as well as the normalisation of sensitivity reading. I have a great deal of faith in Armstrong, Allies & Antagonists, and the Adaptable NPCs series that precedes this mammoth project. The Adaptable NPCs series being some of my favourite and among the most beautiful in TTRPG supplements.

The series is firmly in my Eternal Pantheon of the bestest things in TTRPGs!

See my previous in-depth review of the Adaptable NPCs series that precedes this https://www.dmsguild.com/m/product/300586?affiliate_id=1507682

Adaptable NPCs 2 Truly an incredible tome full of every kind of NPC, BBEG & BFF from the lowliest vagabond and deserter, through warriors, mages, heroes, Demons and Devils of every stripe, flavour, setting and magnitude, all the way to an Archfiend, Deity, their minions, messengers, champions and dark lords; every one of them filled with enough flavour to grow an encounter, adventure, arc and/ or campaign. Full review: https://www.dmsguild.com/product_reviews_info.php?&reviews_id=387884&products_id=299072

Adaptable NPCs of the Guild Since my discovery of this series with the release of Adaptable NPCs II I have been completely spellbound and this latest entry has somehow defied logic and physics by improving on perfection! I have said before that each of the NPCs contained within any of these books could inspire a side trek, adventure or an entire campaign, and while this holds true, the sheer beauty and detail in this latest instalment is quite frankly absurd. Is it possible to be angry with a thing for being too wonderful? Full review: https://www.dmsguild.com/product_reviews_info.php?&reviews_id=454181&products_id=319815

Join the Kickstarter Campaign here: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/grimpress/allies-and-antagonists-a-big-book-of-dnd-5e-npcs

Blood of the ice by Stephanie Farrow (@TheStickyHunter)

Full in-depth review this deserves coming when I have capacity!

It’s truly awesome to see one of the most exciting artists turn their talons to writing...cartography, layout, EVERYTHING besides editing!

Farrow is a one person creation sensation

It’s a phenomenal achievement and magical to see the strange beauty and earnest whimsy to their mystery horror! Bravo!

Credits: Written by Stephanie Farrow, otherwise known as StickyHunter (@TheStickyHunter) Edited by Frederic Walker, otherwise known as Kor-Artificer (@korartificer) Artwork by StickyHunter

Author’s Notes / Acknowledgments: Kor-Artificer was the one who pushed me to do this project, having worked alongside my bestie since he joined the guild as an artist on his products, suggested the workshop so I can build on that side of content creation. He also taught me how to make stat blocks, and is the editor on this piece! You can find his work on DMs Guild as Kor-Artificer, and find him on twitter as @korartificer.

The RPG Writer Workshop had some fantastic lessons, all put into simple lessons over the course of the month. Even as a refresher on some things, the instructors give fantastic instructions and good succinct fillable sheets to help you on your way.

Neil Cicierega, otherwise known as Lemon Demon is a content creator and grand music man. Many of his songs helped influence this work, namely ‘Spring Heeled Jack’, and ‘Aurora Borealis’.

Special thanks to GM Binder, for giving me a way to make this document look very snazzy.

Author Bio: StickyHunter is a freelance artist with a Bachelor’s Degree in Games Development. They were the art director on the best-selling Odyssey Anthology series. You can find their work on DMs Guild as StickyHunter, and on Twitter as @TheStickyHunter.

My Affiliate Link: https://www.dmsguild.com/product/337788/Blood-of-the-Ice?affiliate_id=1507682

12 Christmas Slays from Lucas Anderson

From the shining example of festive cheer that is the electrum dragon, Santa Claus and white elephant to the unholy humbugs of the gilded treat, grumbler and Krampus, and the queen of the in between, Jacquie Frost, this is a supplement filled with the spirit of the season! The tongue-in-cheek Holiday cheer will be enforced by the snowman-at-arms if necessary!

With such thoughtful and fun hooks as gift-wrapping presents for a demanding dragon, an incongruous team up with Krampus to save Santa Claus or wrangling or even redeeming unruly Yule lads, rich and creamy lore and truly gorgeous and playful artwork this is truly the gift that keeps on giving!

Credits Project Lead Lucas Anderson Art & Layout Cita A F Design & Lore Aaryan Balu Bum Lee Daniel King Jack Weighill Jonathan Swadley Lucas Anderson SharkSide Vivian Vanderkolk Editor Bum Lee

My Affiliate Link: https://www.dmsguild.com/product/337922/12-Christmas-Slays?affiliate_id=1507682

Full in depth review this deserves coming when I have capacity!

MacSaylor has created something with such a vitally warm heart beneath the rime of ice, snow and sadness, has descended upon Icewind Dale and Auril that reading this has genuinely given me shivers. This is something truly special and I sincerely hope to see more of their work, and frankly wish I could commission a supplement like this for every official campaign and beyond!

I’m always hype, but this has me excited and fervently wishing to run RotF more than anything before or since its release.

“This, what you’re going through, it is your winter. It is not good, nothing can make it good, but it has happened and now it is a part of you. This pain will shape you. It will help you grow. It will give you strength in the darkness, it will help you grow, it will give you compassion for those who suffer. If you survive this, you will know you can survive anything.” This is going to be essential for anyone planning to run Rime of the Frostmaiden and if you're not already planning, reading this is going to make you fervently want to!

https://www.dmsguild.com/product/337599/Caul-of-Winter?affiliate_id=1507682

Full in depth review this deserves coming when I have capacity!

Zeuch has a phenomenal understanding of what works with and enhances a setting and campaign. Here he stakes his claim as Lord of Barovia even above those of the Von Zarovich and Perkins. Add some awesomeness to your time in Ravenloft, you will fangk me.

My Affiliate Link: https://www.dmsguild.com/product/337503/Encounters-in-Barovia?affiliate_id=1507682

Archetypes of Good & Evil by Peter Polak & Sven Truckenbrodt

This year it doesn’t matter if you’re on the naughty or nice list because Saint Peter and Sinner Sven are here with a sack full of subclasses for all the good and a bad folx!

This is an admirably impish undertaking filled with fun and flavour, light and dark, platinum and fungi, the redeemed and fallen, and most importantly, style and substance!

Full Review coming soon

My Affiliate Link: https://www.dmsguild.com/product/337693/Archetypes-of-Good-and-Evil?affiliate_id=1507682

Across the Planes The Feywild from Jackson Lewis (@HoneyBadger3495)

I normally include the credits at the end, but look at this ridiculously STACKED Team Supreme®!

Credits Project Management & Class Design Jackson Lewis (@HoneyBadger3495) Subclass Design Jessica Marcrum (@Miss_Jess03) Monster Design E.R.F. Jordan (@ERFJordan) Adventure Design Chai Powers (@ChaiLatteMusings) Lore Writing Matthew Whitby (@whtibyWrites) Editing Chris Hopper (@chrishopper2) Layout Lydia Van Hoy (@LydiaVanHoy1)

The Team Supreme® are a fantastic band and throughout the supplement each get to have their solo moment. ...give it up for Chris Hooper on drums virtuoso editing clickity clacks and Lydia Van Hoy on bass gilded face melting layout solo

A truly beautiful, bountiful and bloody lovely book absolutely bursting at the seams with everything you could want to learn, plan and play in the realm of the Fey. Presented in a spectacularly gorgeously gilded layout and wonderful design, this is a sumptuous and special supplement to match the wonder and mystique of the Feywild.

Whitby’s (@whtibyWrites) way with words lend the lore the luminescence of a lilting lullaby, at once engaging, captivating and informative without ever being dense, enabling the conveying of the mind-bending and esoteric aspects of the plane and people with aplomb. The information flows like a twinkling stream with the beautiful floating leaves in the form of Fey Tales, tables of ideas and optional rules, among the histories, factions, locations and notable figures of the Feywild. CW: Torture (referenced in one seed)

Powers’ (@ChaiLatteMusings) presents a plethora of seeds and hooks for Feywild follies, which work as individual inspirations, as well as weaving together to form the basis of a full level 1 to 20 campaign, “Feywild’s Last Winter”. These budding adventures span the length and breadth of the plane of Fey, running the gamut of tiers, trials and tribulations, featuring all manner of people, creatures, locales and personalities. A perfect collection of inspiration for a little or lot of Feywild forays, though to create the campaign a fair bit of parsing and thread are required. This comes from there being such a wealth of concepts and quandaries that need some DM creativity and player interaction to bring them to life.

This is a treasure trove of ideas and inspiration, rather than adventures ready to roll right off the page. While rich and interesting, elements of the story seeds seem a little confusing and convoluted, which is not unusual for the Feywild, but there is a little disconnect between the tone and accessibility of the lore the book presents and the density and timbre here. So much of this book is of essential use for all levels of experience with the Feywild and DMing, but I believe this aspect calls for a more maturity and experience, which could be a little overwhelming for never readers.

Jordan’s (@erfjordan) unique and truly inspired creatures come with rich lore grounding them in the Feywild with their lair, lair actions and regional effects (where appropriate) brimming with character and flavour.

The mirage dragon, “said to be descended from green dragons that settled in the Feywilds”, are a whole new class of dragon utilising illusion and confusion.

The Mother of Witches is a title for the head hag honcho who resides “in the depths of the gnarled, thorny heart of the Feywild.” A CR 21 hag with the ability to summon up to three night hags from their coven! That’s enough to give witches nightmares!

Grandfather Ogre is a huge “unique fey spirit that belongs to the wild fey with a penchant for sleeping under fields and violently opposes lies and deception.

Rumour has it The Crucified were “created when the corpse of a dead god crashed into the feywild, the rotting slab of divine energy fused with the landscape, and from its flesh” they emerged. These extremely rare fey almost seem to reflect chain devils in a number of respects, though they save their vitriol for the faithless alone.

Greater redcaps are “simply an elder redcap, one that has absorbed so much violence and blood that it has grown into a form that is much more suited to walk among the mortal races.” They are also horrifying raging, dervishes of malevolence and terror! The Atavist

“A magician that records and keeps the stories of the Feywild” A wholly original class that justifies its existence is a rare thing indeed, but Lewis’ (@HoneyBadger3495) Atavist has me the most excited about a class I’ve been in a long time! The concept is absolutely wonderful and intrinsically part of the Feywild, so fully realised and rooted in the realm of the Fey as to have seemingly always existed.

“As wise as they are crafty, Atavists keep the stories and legends of the Feywild alive through their actions and words while protecting both fey and mortal alike from the machinations of each other.”

The Atavist wields the power of story, bringing tales, legends and secrets of the Feywild to life with the very magic that infuses stories and suffused the Fey Realm. They “summon facsimiles of these stories to aid them in battle” and can tap into the intrinsic magic of the plane and the fey themselves.

The Atavist chooses a storytelling genre as their subclasses created by Marcrum (@Miss_Jess03), choosing between Big Bad Wolf, summoning “more than just beasts...monsters [that] are the living incarnation of fear, punishment, and fate itself” that howl, rend and devour their enemies, Melodic Monarch, the power of happy endings, romance and friends to foes, summoning an enchanting and beguiling humanoid companion to see them through thick and thin, and Shining Knight, who summon the heroic, chivalrous platonic ideal, a “Shining Knight [who] rushes into battle on the atavist’s behalf, healing their friends and making quick work of their foes.” Their chosen genre and summoned companion also lend the power Atavist of the qualities found within their stories.

CW: Charm, Loss of Agency

While I have fallen in love with this class, the Atavist has a feature called “Kowtow” they unlock at 15th level that allows them to “attempt to bring the various creatures of the Feywild to heel”, which I have some complicated feelings about.

Firstly, the choice of the of the word “kowtow”, a loanword from the “叩頭 (Cantonese kautàu, Putonghua kòutóu), meaning “knock head”, in reference to the act of kneeling and bowing to show great respect, seems an incongruous choice.

“The word “kowtow” came into English in the early 19th century to describe the bow itself, but its meaning soon shifted to describe any abject submission or groveling. The term is still commonly used in English with this meaning, disconnected from the physical act and the East Asian context.” (South China Morning Post, 2017)

If the ability is establishing a rapport and mutual respect, evoking the original meaning and prevalent courteous customs of East Asian cultures as with Japanese bowing that is one thing, in spite of the questionable nature inherent in the Charmed condition and the bypassing of immunity to the condition. This could be interpreted as sharing a bond of understanding that makes the fey in question amenable to the atavist, which I genuinely believe is Lewis’ intention. However, the context is further informed by the language of ‘bringing to heel’, referencing the obedience training command for dogs. This moves away from the respectful origin of “kowtow” to the Anglicised “abject submission” as described by Professor Lim. With this ability affecting all fey within the level/ CR parameters and bypassing their immunity, Charming the target/s on a failed save, this raises issues agency and free will of the many sentient and sapient fey that fall within the scope of this ability.

I would like to be clear that I am not casting aspersions, but rather feel this is an unfortunate combination of word choice, phrasing and, semantic and cultural weight. This is something that seems baked into the design philosophy of D&D, which has until more recent discourse been par for the course. What I mean by this is that cultural appropriation and misappropriation of culture exist within D&D at a foundational level, and the onus is on us to address this going forward. Again, I want to be clear that I do not think there is any intentional insensitivity here, I simply feel that it is my responsibility as a reviewer to raise these issues and ask questions to attempt to open a dialogue and the chance to consider design philosophy and the mindful use of language, hopefully for the betterment of the game as a whole.

The handling of the atavist and their journey to understanding and communion with the Feywild, seemingly portrayed as coming from an outsider’s perspective in the wording of the class, “Tall Tales: Your research into the Feywild...” and “Fruitful Observer: you gain the ability to learn from the fey...” is something to be mindful of, as there is potential for a character to develop a colonial aspect if they believe or are assumed to have a greater understanding and/or connection to the realm of the fey than those native to the plane – a problematic trope to actively be avoided.

I do not know exactly what to suggest and, as previously stated, I can see the intention of this ability, a bond or accord between the fey and the atavist based on a mutual understanding and the wealth of knowledge and experience the atavist would have gained in 15 levels.

Bloodline, Blood Divine

CW: Mind/ Dream Manipulation, Threat of Loss of Agency/ Put to Sleep (including children), Kidnapping, Gaslighting

This adventure is designed for a party of 4-5 characters at 4th level.

“An archfey of the Gloaming Court once traded one of her children for a mortal baby to let her child learn about the Material Plane. Years later, she comes to miss her child, and asks the characters to escort the traded mortal back home and swap the two children to their proper places. She promises handsome rewards if they succeed.”

This adventure is laid out differently to the previous seeds/ campaign, though it is another kind of minimalist presentation with chapters, loose descriptions with some checks and, important information and developments (though due to the options and chaos anything could happen), as we well as ideas to carry on the chaos.

The loose, chaotic approach certainly fits the absolutely calamities of chaos all over the Feywild and back. There’s so much to play with, be inspired by and see where the faerie dust lays. Essentially, it’s the reversal of the classic baby switch, with the arch fey wanting their baby back, baby back, baby back...

From the impressive way to quickling get things going if players are reticent to accept the call to adventure, the torch paper is lit and this cavalcade of calamity and capers all over the Feywild and back is off like a runaway mine cart barely able to keep to the rails!

The frenetic, random and optional nature of the adventure is certainly put across, even in the reading (which is an impressive wild ride) and the two similar, but different approaches to adventure writing in this supplement definitely make getting an overview of the story as a whole easy, with a clear view of your options. Personally, I’m a sucker for a full adventure with sexy boxtext and/ or the bullet point information. I think I personally struggle a bit with this approach, but this is from an organisation and visualisation personal preference.

I think with my strained relationship with my family and the subject matter and actions of the awful archfey parent were a little difficult for me to enjoy. I was unsure and probably over tagged my content warnings for the adventure, but I do think the supplements adventures, particularly this one would have benefitted from them, along with a nod towards safety tools.

A final criticism is a difficult one to lay at the Team Supreme® being that it’s an inherent part of the source material, but still, it is unfortunate to see bio-essentialism and monolithic cultures with regard to people and creatures of the Feydark, fomorians and goblinoids, as well as hags above ground. There is some discussion of the differences between Feywild goblins and their material plane cousins, but I feel just a simple nod of the ‘evil’ creatures not all necessarily being evil, and this description of what happens to the ‘evil’ brought before the Great Gark was an interesting read: “through manipulating the very fey magic of the realm, individuals who are evil in heart have their bodies warped to become goblins themselves, bolstering Gark’s unending numbers.”

It might be a big ask, but I’d just love to see a fabulous, fun and friendly fomorian having some fun in the sun, rather than being stuck in the Feydark like a FOMOrian...

I have had a lot to say when it comes to some critiques, which is something I am trying to bring to my reviews because I truly think it’s important to talk about these things. It doesn’t change the fact that I love this and believe it’s really important to be critical of the things you love. I absolutely cannot wait to see, which plane this Team Supreme® pitter patter across next!

A truly beautiful, bountiful and bloody lovely book absolutely bursting at the seams with everything you could want to learn, plan and play in the realm of the Fey. Presented in a spectacularly gorgeously gilded layout and wonderful design, this is a sumptuous and special supplement to match the wonder and mystique of the Feywild.

References: Lim, L. (2017) South China Morning Post opinion. Available at: https://amp.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/article/2101547/how-kowtowing-acquired-negative-connotation-english (Accessed: 24 January 2020).

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To Undo the Glue by Alex Niederberger (@soundsofbones)

This is my short, sweet review. I’d love to return and give this the in depth treatment it so thoroughly deserves in the future!

This is why reviewing D&D and TTRPG supplements never gets old! This is why the RPG Writer Workshop is so important, exciting and bloody brilliant!

A truly thoughtful and goofy adventure in all the best ways that shows the light in the Dark, appearances and motivations can be deceiving, and you better wish you don’t get yourself stuck together with sovereign glue.

Hooks on hooks on hooks for backgrounds and more, absolutely gorgeous stained glass artwork from Eli Depper, a thematic soundtrack and a church that won’t half give you grief.

CREDITS

As always, huge thanks to my partner Hannah Renea Bumgarner who is constantly supportive. Also thanks to Ashley Warren for the RPG Writer Workshop and Scribemind communities! Writing,Maps,Music. Alex Niederberger, (@soundofbones on Twitter) Cover,SpotArt,Borders.Eli Depper, (stainedglasshoard on Tumblr) Template.Nathanaël Roux, (http://www.barkalotdesigns.com) Editing.Lucas McLeod, Erin Niederberger Playtesting.Hannah Renea Bumgarner, Jessica D. Garland, Jason Ghiglieri, Moor McKenna, Kate O’Donnell, Abigayle Scadden

My Affiliate Link: https://www.dmsguild.com/product/337075/To-Undo-the-Glue?affiliate_id=1507682