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Designed by: Gabriel Hatcher
The Dragonlance world of Krynn is rich with history, conflict, and larger than life heroes and villains.
And sweet, sweet loot.
Asitnus’ Ledger of Unknowns features dozens of trinkets, magic items, and legendary artifacts tied to the war-torn world.
Astinus is the mysteriously age-less master historian and librarian of Palanthas. Though this ledger bears his name, it was actually written by Jacob Bilstone, a traveler who happened upon this mysterious tome of information.
Jacob’s commentary is seen throughout the pages via prefaces and sidebars. His commentary is a delightful little addition as the poor man descends into paranoia over his findings, even reaching a satisfying conclusion by the final page.
The book is divided into three sections, each detailing a different category of magical items: Minutiae, Arcana, and Mystica.
Minutiae are better known in 5e as trinkets, items that bear no magical power (or perhaps a very minor one) but are still noteworthy or unique.
Minutiae include a gnomish life quest scroll, the sawed-off horn of a minotaur, a shell engraved by a Dimernesti (Krynn’s sea elves) craftsman, and the worn boots of a kender.
A total of 50 trinkets are presented, and I appreciate they’re not just left up to a table with a few words. Each minutiae is given a full paragraph of description, and almost all of them are heavily tied to the Dragonlance setting. These could easily replace the standard trinket tables found in the Player’s Handbook (or in various 5e campaign books) for Dragonlance campaigns.
The Arcana section provides the most interesting material: nearly 50 new magic items. There are some clever ideas in here, such as the Death Nail dagger automatically raising its victim into an undead servant, as long as it stays embedded in their chest.
Shove the Fangs of the Dragon blade into the ground and watch it sprout multiple sword-like limbs and attack everything in sight. Use the Staff of Draconian to mimic the awesome death effects of all five different kinds of draconians. Impress your players with a necklace of pills with up to 100 different effects with the Carcanet of Fate.
Unfortunately, some of the Arcana items are plagued by underdeveloped rules. The Quiver of Concealment allows the wearer to fire a magically hidden crossbow on their forearm, but there are no rules as to how that attack is made or the damage it deals. Fizban’s Fabulous Wand is an artifact-level item that allows its wielder to cast a random spell they know without components — but most spellcasters already forego components via their focus. Perhaps it meant spell slot?
The Plate of the Fetch attacks anyone who looks at the mirror in the armor with a unique creature (statblock provided) but does that creature roll initiative? Is it stuck in the armor, or can it emerge, Samara-style? Can the attacker avert their gaze, like with a Medusa?
The Rings of Avarice dive so deep into their lore and history that they seemingly forget to include actual magical stats — nowhere in the half-page description does it say what kind of abilities or benefits they confer upon the wearer!
Speaking of items without benefits, we come to the Mystica section. Mystica items are unique, rumored, or legendary artifacts that exist somewhere in Krynn, such as a strange stone found at the top of Mount Nevermind, or a gigantic egg that rests at the bottom of the Courrain Ocean.
None of these Mystica items include any stats or abilities. Instead they’re designed as possible adventure hooks, which plays to the designer’s strengths of descriptive text married with a wide knowledge of Krynn’s history and various factions.
The Mystica artifacts are a nice addition, though I would’ve preferred fewer entries and more expanded adventure ideas.
Despite some notable complaints, the overall ratio of good to bad items is still very favorable. The designer absolutely nails the Dragonlance flavor. The ledger falls just short of a must-have for Dragonlance campaigns, which is still pretty darn solid.
Pros:
- Over 100 magic items and trinkets.
- Excellent use of Dragonlance locations, characters, and history.
- Flavorful sidebar commentary.
Cons:
- Some underdeveloped magic items need more concise rules.
The Verdict: Astinus’ Ledger of Unknowns features dozens of expertly-themed Dragonlance trinkets and magic items, though the Great Lorekeeper should’ve spent a bit more time designing some of them.
A review copy of “Astinus’ Ledger of Unknowns” was provided by the publisher. Find more DMs Guild Reviews on my website and YouTube channel.
Support my work by using my affiliate links and pledging via Patreon.
RogueWatson 