Author: roguewatson

Freelance Writer

DMs Guild Review – Mordenkainen’s Tome of Marvelous Magic

A compendium of 200 wondrous magic items from the mad mage.

A review copy of “Mordenkainen’s Tome of Marvelous Magic” was provided by the publisher. Find more DMs Guild Reviews on my website and YouTube channel.

Support my work by using affiliate links for shopping and pledging via Patreon.

Designed by: M. T. Black

The only thing I know about Mordenkainen is that he’s a powerful wizard, a bit of a nutter, and has his own sprawling mega-dungeon complex under Waterdeep.

It makes perfect sense that the mage mage would also have a vault of magical items. Mordenkainen’s Tome of Marvelous Magic includes 200 wondrous magic items, and you won’t find a single +1 sword among them.

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Dragon Quest Your Story Review [Pixelkin]

Read the full review at Pixelkin

I’m a latecomer to the Dragon Quest series, having played through and enjoyed Dragon Quest 9 and 11, and bits of 7 and 8 via the semi-recent 3DS remasters. But I’m completely unfamiliar with Dragon Quest 5: Hand of the Heavenly Bride (1992), from which the new feature-length animated film Dragon Quest Your Story is based on.

Turning a 40+ hour RPG into a 100 minute film is a daunting task, beginning with the well-known stigma of adapting any video game onto the big (or small) screen, yet Dragon Quest Your Story distills all the game’s major events and fun characters into a film that should please fans and newcomers alike.

Read the full review at Pixelkin

Goodreads Review – Blood, Sweat, and Pixels

Blood, Sweat, and Pixels: The Triumphant, Turbulent Stories Behind How Video Games Are MadeBlood, Sweat, and Pixels: The Triumphant, Turbulent Stories Behind How Video Games Are Made by Jason Schreier
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I don’t usually read nonfiction, preferring to escape into genre stories amidst all the news and feature articles I read on a daily basis, but Blood, Sweat, and Pixels is an absolute gem. Jason Schreier is one of the best gaming journalists in the business and provides an excellent compilation of ten feature-length, source-based articles, each focusing on a different game around the 2012-2015 era.

Video game development is incredibly complicated and challenging, with big-budget titles zooming into the tens of millions with hundreds of employees and years of labor, some of which is grueling overtime. Challenges include company mismanagement, corporate takeovers, and technology woes, all in the vein of triumphing over adversity.

Even as a freelance writer who covers much of the gaming industry and has interviewed many developers, the stories and quotes in here are sobering. Yet Schreier always maintains an aura of positivity and hopefulness about game development, including how initially mediocre games (like Diablo 3 and Destiny) can be vastly improved years later.

Blood, Sweat, and Pixels is easily accessible even for complete gaming neophytes, and highly recommend for anyone interested in the enriching stories of modern game development.

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DMs Guild Review – Oath of the Voidwalker

A new Paladin Sacred Oath powered by the Void.

A review copy of “Oath of the Voidwalker: A Paladin Sacred Oath” was provided by the publisher. Find more DMs Guild Reviews on my website and YouTube channel.

Support my work by using affiliate links for shopping and pledging via Patreon.

Designed by: Justin Handlin and Austin Sargent (Crit Academy)

I’ve reviewed plenty of compilation supplements that feature multiple new subclasses, races, feats, items, spells, etc. It’s rare that I like everything featured in those bundles, which makes me appreciate something smaller like Oath of the Voidwalker, a 6-page product featuring a single subclass – and it’s a darn good one.

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Tomb of Annihilation Session 67 Recap

During the Yuan-ti ritual, the other half of the party battles their way through the underground river to reach the throne room.

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Previously on Tomb of Annihilation

Starring:
Mannix, level 8 Yuan-ti Inquisitive Rogue/Divination Wizard
Khaless, level 8 Half-Drow Assassin Rogue
Gillian, level 8 Triton Bard of Whispers
George, level 8 Tortle Battle Master Fighter/Rogue
Therin, level 8 Hill Dwarf Druid of the Moon

While Mannix was in the middle of his drug-fueled blood-ritual of transformation last session, the rest of the party fought their way through the Underground River to reach Ras Nsi’s throne room.

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