Archmage is the opening book of the Homecoming series and the 28th book overall in the Legend of Drizzt. It’s also a book I enjoyed reading; a real relief after the slog that was Vengeance of the Iron Dwarf. The basics are as follows: The dwarven kings and their allies are marching to reclaim Gauntlgrym, a dwarven stronghold lost some decades past. Drizzt accompanies the … Continue reading Book Review: Archmage by R.A. Salvatore
G’day, folks! I’ve finally updated my Rage of Demons page with the complete list of D&D Expeditions being held this season. I hope it’s all correct – some of the values seem to have moved about. I’ve also uploaded a set of unofficial pregenerated characters designed for this season of D&D Expeditions. I’d appreciate it if you could cast an eye over them and check … Continue reading Updated Rage of Demons page
Many of my reviews are written as “capsule” reviews, which is to say, reviews where I’ve read the product but haven’t played through it. The sheer amount of product against the number of hours I have available to play games necessitates that. For products which I do have the chance to play, it’s something of a relief. My judgement as to whether it’s a good … Continue reading D&D Review: D&D Starter Set
I was still in my very early years of D&D when I first read Dragons of Hope. It’s hard to remember the exact year, but I’d say it was about 1986 or 1987, which puts me in my mid-teens. The beginning of the adventure sees the players escorting the refugees rescued from Pax Tharkas through a desolate, snow-covered landscape towards the dwarven realm of Thorbardin, … Continue reading AD&D Review – DL3: Dragons of Hope
Dellmon Ranch. The Dessarin Valley. 9th Flamerule. 591 DR. A small ranch. About thirty or forty people to defend. And a warband of 40 orcs is on their way. It’s time for the adventurers to be heroes! It’s fascinating watching a group of adventurers at work, especially when you’ve got seven of them all there at the same time. There’s a lot of damage they … Continue reading Princes of the Apocalypse, sessions 14-15
Vengeance of the Iron Dwarf is the third and final book of the Companions’ Codex trilogy, and the 27th part of the Legend of Drizzt, that is, the 27th novel about the extremely popular dark elf ranger by Bob Salvatore. It is also, I’m saddened to say, an awful book. I really wanted to like it, but I couldn’t. Salvatore is certainly able to write … Continue reading Book Review: Vengeance of the Iron Dwarf
Out of the Abyss, the new adventure from Wizards of the Coast, begins with the party as prisoners of the drow and needing to escape. Princes of the Apocalypse begins with the party sent to the region to discover a missing trade delegation. Hoard of the Dragon Queen begins with the adventurers reaching the village of Greenest to discover it under attack by the Cult … Continue reading Adventure Design Elements: Beginnings
I got in two-and-a-half board games this weekend. The half was the Mage Knight board game, which I was teaching Floyd. It’s an amazing, brilliant game that is the closest thing to the venerable Magic Realm I’ve seen that is actually worth playing. I love it, although it’s quite daunting for a new player. Certainly Floyd found it so. We’ll need to return to it … Continue reading A little weekend board-gaming
It is fair to say that the D&D Starter Set adventure, “The Lost Mine of Phandelver”, is a good adventure. I’ve run it at least four times, and each time the players are do things the other groups haven’t done. It’s a really good introduction to the game, and it manages this by just being a fantastic adventure. There’s a lot in it for experienced … Continue reading What to play after finishing the D&D Starter Set
The third season of the D&D Adventurers League is just starting. The D&D Expeditions games this year are set around the city-state of Hillsfar, a port city on the Moonsea. The official DDAL page has a great article about the State of Hillsfar, but I thought I’d go into a little more detail about the gods that are worshipped in the city and the nearby … Continue reading An Introduction to the Forgotten Realms: Gods of Hillsfar and Elventree
