Dragon 333 has arrived!

qstor said:
Jason,
When are you going to get around to writing another LG mod in Dungeon? Hunh :)

Mike

There may be something in the works, but not within the next 6 months, I've got much bigger fish to fry, but that is a story for another thread.

Jason Bulmahn
Associate Editor of Dragon
 

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Steel_Wind said:
On the Paizo message boards, Erik Mona confimed that for the next 12 issues, Dragon will run a coincidental Age of Worms companion piece focussing on player resources, maps and other cool and groovy add-ons which tracks the unfolding Adventure Path in Dungeon.

As a result, I am going to subscribe to Dragon. A magazine that - but for such a feature - I would not regularly purchase.

We are glad to have you aboard. I hope (and believe) that you will find plenty in Dragon to use in your campaign. We are just getting started.

Jason Bulmahn
Associate Editor of Dragon
 

Steel_Wind said:
On the Paizo message boards, Erik Mona confimed that for the next 12 issues, Dragon will run a coincidental Age of Worms companion piece focussing on player resources, maps and other cool and groovy add-ons which tracks the unfolding Adventure Path in Dungeon.
Thanks for that Steel_Wind!
As a result, I am going to subscribe to Dragon. A magazine that - but for such a feature - I would not regularly purchase.
And with that answer, so am I. I let my subscription lapse in December, but with this (and even moreso if Ed Greenwood's article is regular/semi-regular, as well as the nice Demonomicon articles) I'm back again.

Curse you, Paizo, for your cross-marketing genius!
 



arnwyn said:
It's in the first post.

Yeah, but it's not stylish, like so:

NEXT MONTH IN DRAGON
DRAGON August #334

Cities of the Realms: Crimmor
by Ed Greenwood

First in a new series by the master of the FORGOTTEN REALMS, Ed Greenwood presents the city of Crimmor, central hub for trade in the merchant kingdom of Amn. Explore the city's every facet, from a sampling of its fine cuisine to its unique merchant symbols. Do your adventurers dare oppose the Dragonlady, or might they find themselves working alongside the mysterious Shadow Thieves?

The Fires of Alchemy
by Paul Leech

As one of the most common alchemical items, alchemist's fire has myriad uses. Historically, more than one type of alchemist's (or Greek) fire existed. This article presents new types and delivery methods for this classic volatile substance.

Monsters of Arabia
by Wolfgang Baur

Six new monsters pulled from the depths of Arabian myth and legend. Match your players against the demonic three-armed stone asag, the mischevious and cruel flying monkey, or the stoic golden clockwork eunuch.

Plus!
The Ecology of the Kraken, part two of Wormfood, and of course, Class Acts, Bazaar of the Bizarre, Spellcraft, First Watch, Scale Mail, Sage Advice, and comics.
 


It goes without saying that this issue is another winner. Here's a breakdown of what's undoubtedly the most popular article in this issue:

"Demonomicon of Iggwilv: Fraz-Urb'luu" is second in the hit series by James Jacobs. The format here is the same as with Pazuzu. After the opening text summarizing who Fraz-Urb'luu is, it immediately launches into his stats, giving us the powers for this CR 28 demon lord. It's interesting to note that these stats are not in the new stat block format that premiered in this month's Dungeon (and the DMG II), but those for his aspect are.

Fraz-Urb'luu's stats are rather frightening, but that's to be expected of a demon lord of his caliber. Interestingly, he doesn't seem to have any innate healing abilities; the lack of regeneration or fast healing is noteworthy. However, given that his stats reflect that he always has greater magic fang on himself, and always uses a 15-point Power Attack, most PC's probably won't last long enough to notice that.

His special attacks are where he really becomes frightening though. Fraz has the ability to summon a demon once per day as a free action, and also make it believe that it was summoned by a mortal instead. Worse, this works even for unique demons, including other demon lords. As if that wasn't enough, he has the ability to disjoin magic items and spell effects by touch, up to and including artifacts (though there is a reduced chance for them, and a possible penalty; it would have been nice though if they told us whether that was for all artifacts, or just greater artifacts). Somewhat oddly, he has a Demogorgon-like ability to be able to make or use any magic staff.

There's a sidebar on Fraz-Urb'luu's staff, which is a major artifact itself. It details its powers and current sketch rather nicely, but doesn't mention that the staff's greatest power is that it is what allows the wielder to instantly reshape Fraz-Urb'luu's layer of the Abyss with just a thought. You only pick that up as you continue reading the article.

Following this is a quick section on Fraz-Urb'luu's aspect (a la the Miniatures Handbook).

The next section outlines Fraz's goals. While still a master of deception, he now harbors and intense enmity of the Prime Material Plane, mortals, and especially humans. He wants to invade the Prime and kill all the mortals there, but can't even begin until he regains control of his layer, something that is slow going without his staff.

Following this is information on Fraz-Urb'luu's cult. While you may expect it to focus on deception, it's hard to describe how insidious this cult is. They masquerade as a cult for a good-aligned church, and encourage heroes (though they encourage them to do acts with evil repercussions)...only to then say that their god is displeased with them, and they need a sacrifice (they'll even say they'll raise the sacrifice if necessary). The sacrifice's soul goes to Fraz's realm, where he slowly lets the illusion of paradise fade, letting the trapped soul know how badly it erred.

Following this is the section on the Thrall of Fraz-Urb'luu PrC. This ten level prestige class also focuses on deception, with it's ultimate power being alter reality; this is when they cast an illusion spell (of 3rd level or higher) they can then alter reality to make the illusion real (it has a few limits on what can normally be done with that spell).

Fraz-Urb'luu's minions described the monsters who serve the demon lord. Of particular importance are the Hollow Rajah rakshasas. Fraz long ago convinced a number of rakshasas to serve him, changing their alignment to CE. They all eschew the tiger form most of their kind has, looking like other animals instead. There's also a new tanar'ri called the skurchur.

A sidebar, "Fraz-Urb'luu in the Real World" explains the demon lord's metagame origins, telling how he was created whole-cloth by Gary Gygax to deal with Ernie Gygax's character having two vorpal swords.

Finally, Fraz-Urb'luu's Realm describes Hollow's Heart, the 176th layer of the Abyss. It describes several points, describing conditions and those who rule there.
 

Alzrius said:
It goes without saying that this issue is another winner. Here's a breakdown of what's undoubtedly the most popular article in this issue:

"Demonomicon of Iggwilv: Fraz-Urb'luu" is second in the hit series by James Jacobs. The format here is the same as with Pazuzu. After the opening text summarizing who Fraz-Urb'luu is, it immediately launches into his stats, giving us the powers for this CR 28 demon lord. It's interesting to note that these stats are not in the new stat block format that premiered in this month's Dungeon (and the DMG II), but those for his aspect are.

Fraz-Urb'luu's stats are rather frightening, but that's to be expected of a demon lord of his caliber. Interestingly, he doesn't seem to have any innate healing abilities; the lack of regeneration or fast healing is noteworthy. However, given that his stats reflect that he always has greater magic fang on himself, and always uses a 15-point Power Attack, most PC's probably won't last long enough to notice that.

His special attacks are where he really becomes frightening though. Fraz has the ability to summon a demon once per day as a free action, and also make it believe that it was summoned by a mortal instead. Worse, this works even for unique demons, including other demon lords. As if that wasn't enough, he has the ability to disjoin magic items and spell effects by touch, up to and including artifacts (though there is a reduced chance for them, and a possible penalty; it would have been nice though if they told us whether that was for all artifacts, or just greater artifacts). Somewhat oddly, he has a Demogorgon-like ability to be able to make or use any magic staff.

There's a sidebar on Fraz-Urb'luu's staff, which is a major artifact itself. It details its powers and current sketch rather nicely, but doesn't mention that the staff's greatest power is that it is what allows the wielder to instantly reshape Fraz-Urb'luu's layer of the Abyss with just a thought. You only pick that up as you continue reading the article.

Following this is a quick section on Fraz-Urb'luu's aspect (a la the Miniatures Handbook).

The next section outlines Fraz's goals. While still a master of deception, he now harbors and intense enmity of the Prime Material Plane, mortals, and especially humans. He wants to invade the Prime and kill all the mortals there, but can't even begin until he regains control of his layer, something that is slow going without his staff.

Following this is information on Fraz-Urb'luu's cult. While you may expect it to focus on deception, it's hard to describe how insidious this cult is. They masquerade as a cult for a good-aligned church, and encourage heroes (though they encourage them to do acts with evil repercussions)...only to then say that their god is displeased with them, and they need a sacrifice (they'll even say they'll raise the sacrifice if necessary). The sacrifice's soul goes to Fraz's realm, where he slowly lets the illusion of paradise fade, letting the trapped soul know how badly it erred.

Following this is the section on the Thrall of Fraz-Urb'luu PrC. This ten level prestige class also focuses on deception, with it's ultimate power being alter reality; this is when they cast an illusion spell (of 3rd level or higher) they can then alter reality to make the illusion real (it has a few limits on what can normally be done with that spell).

Fraz-Urb'luu's minions described the monsters who serve the demon lord. Of particular importance are the Hollow Rajah rakshasas. Fraz long ago convinced a number of rakshasas to serve him, changing their alignment to CE. They all eschew the tiger form most of their kind has, looking like other animals instead. There's also a new tanar'ri called the skurchur.

A sidebar, "Fraz-Urb'luu in the Real World" explains the demon lord's metagame origins, telling how he was created whole-cloth by Gary Gygax to deal with Ernie Gygax's character having two vorpal swords.

Finally, Fraz-Urb'luu's Realm describes Hollow's Heart, the 176th layer of the Abyss. It describes several points, describing conditions and those who rule there.

Thanks for posting the write up. We are still tinkering with some of the elements of the article series so please feel free to post your feedback. We are listening.

Jason Bulmahn
Associate Editor of Dragon
 

IuztheEvil said:
Thanks for posting the write up. We are still tinkering with some of the elements of the article series so please feel free to post your feedback. We are listening.

Jason Bulmahn
Associate Editor of Dragon

Best. Feature. Ever.

I cannot express how much I dig the Demonomicon, and still retain my mortal soul. :D
 

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