Month: May 2019

Roll20 Review – Ghosts of Saltmarsh

Embark on a series of high seas adventures in this collection of updated classic D&D adventure modules.

A review copy of the module was provided. Read more Roll20 Reviews and watch the video reviews on my YouTube channel.

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Ghosts of Saltmarsh is similar in concept to 2017’s Tales of the Yawning Portal, a collection of seven classic Dungeons & Dragons modules updated and converted to Fifth Edition. Instead of a dungeon-crawling theme, we’re on a boat!

MAJOR SPOILERS – DM’s only!

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DMs Guild Review – Those Lost in Madness

Four new Far Realm-touched subclasses. Why should Warlocks have all the fun?

A review copy of “Those Lost in Madness” was provided by the publisher. Find more DMs Guild Reviews on my website and YouTube channel.

Support my work via Patreon.

Designed by:  Milosz Gawecki

Thanks to the magic of Public Domain, eldritch horror has become pervasive in fantasy, sci-fi, and supernatural horror, and Dungeons & Dragons is certainly no exception. In 5e it’s mostly regulated to a single subclass of the Warlock, The Great Old One. “Those Lost in Madness” adds four new Far Realm-themed subclasses for Barbarian, Cleric, Druid, and Rogue.

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Tomb of Annihilation Session 35 Recap

We battle pterafolk and gravity as we grab the loot and make our escape down the rocky spire of Firefinger.

Streamed, recorded and uploaded every week. Subscribe for our weekly adventures. Join us live on Fridays at 7pm Pacific/10pm Eastern!

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Previously on Tomb of Annihilation

Starring:
Mannix, level 5 Human Inquisitive Rogue/Wizard
Khaless, level 5 Half-Drow Assassin Rogue
Gillian, level 5 Triton Bard of Whispers
George, level 5 Tortle Battle Master Fighter/Rogue
Therin, level 5 Hill Dwarf Druid of the Moon

With advanced scouting and careful planning, the party kicked all kinds of ass in the climactic fight against the pterafolk atop the pinnacle of Firefinger. The real challenge was getting back down.

Continue reading “Tomb of Annihilation Session 35 Recap”

DMs Guild Review – Advanced Arcana

The 160+page Guidebook adapts creatures, items, spells, and an entirely new mana-based spell system from Magic: The Gathering into D&D.

A review copy of “Advanced Arcana – Alternative Mana-Based Spellcasting System” was provided by the publisher. Find more DMs Guild Reviews on my website and YouTube channel.

Support my work via Patreon.

Designed by:  Ken Carcas, Justyn Johnston, Luke Monroe

I’ve never been a big fan of Dungeon & Dragons’ unintuitive spellcasting system, with leveled spell slots and having to memorize spells. Give me a universal mana system or simple limited number of uses per day or per encounter any day.

“Advanced Arcana” attempts to translate the mana system from popular collectible card game Magic: The Gathering. This is particular relevant with the still semi-recent release of the official Wizards of the Coast published supplement, Guildmaster’s Guide to Ravnica, which finally adapted at least some of Magic: the Gathering‘s content into Dungeons & Dragons Fifth Edition.

But there’s still a lot of room for M:TG content, including its actual magic system. Unfortunately Magic‘s system is also a bit of a pain for different reasons, and combining it with D&D results in needlessly fiddly spellcasting that’s already giving me nightmares of some of the worst gameplay aspects of the card game.

Thankfully the new spell system is only a fraction of the content available in this massive 150+ page guide book. With new magic items, creatures, and even adventures, “Advanced Arcana” is practically the Xanathar’s Guide to Everything: Ravnica Edition.

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The Legend of Grimrock devs on Druidstone, their new tactical RPG [PC Gamer]

Read the full feature article at PC Gamer

I was surrounded on all sides. I’d managed to rescue the prisoner, but now we had to fight our way back out of the dungeon. Reinforcements poured in from the south, so I sent my beleaguered party north. When we made it to a room with pressure plates and fireball-spewing statues, more reinforcements spawned at the entrance and quickly closed in.

What followed was a harrowing, tense turn, as I carefully positioned my warden for a whirlwind strike, blasted out a fireball with my acolyte, and tried to figure out what I could do with a useless unarmed prisoner. That’s when I remembered the pressure plates, and smiled as I noticed the bad guys were standing pretty close to those statues. He may have been unarmed, but his legs were working just fine.

That wasn’t the first dungeon escapade I just barely scraped through in Druidstone: The Secret of Menhir Forest, a new tactical RPG from the creators of Legend of Grimrock.

Read the full feature article at PC Gamer