Here Comes The STRAHD DM SCREEN

As usual, Gale Force 9 has a DM Screen to accompany the latest Dungeons & Dragons adventure. The Curse of Strahd DM Screen can be pre-ordered now for $15, with an April release date. "This screen is the perfect companion for those Dungeon Masters running the Curse of Strahd adventure, or any trek through Barovia. The front includes contrasting images of Count Strahd von Zarovich while the back provides maps for Castle Ravenloft and surrounding Barovia, as well as random encounter tables for both." Click on any of the below images to go to the product page in GF9's web store.

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[jamesjhaeck]

Looks decent. The green panel on the front of the screen looks out of place, compared to the uniformly purple backgrounds, though. I probably won't get this, but it does look better than any of the other GF9 screens.

 

[JeffB]

I wonder why they do not coordinate the release of these screens with the adventures.

 

[Greenstone.Walker]

I wonder why they do not coordinate the release of these screens with the adventures.

And the tarokka deck.

 

[Patrick McGill]

Unlike the other gf9 screens, I like the backs but not the front. The front looks very sloppily thought out. The info on the back seems like it'd be useful though.

 

[EthanSental]

I'll grab this one as well. Wish I knew it was coming out so it would ship with the deck I ordered earlier.

 

[Olaf the Stout]

I wonder why they do not coordinate the release of these screens with the adventures.

Yeah, I totally get WotC licensing out all their accessories such as DM screens, unpainted minis, spell cards, etc. to GF9, but they really need to coordinate their releases so that everything is released at the same time.

I wonder if it is a WotC problem (not getting their stuff to GF9 in time to put together) or a GF9 problem (missing deadlines in order to hit the WotC release date).

In any case, I bet sales get left on the table as a result.

 

[Halvard]

Wow, these really look terrible. Once again, there aren't enough reference tables to help prevent scouring the DMG and PHB, and slowing down play. The front is really sloppily put together. No cohesive, artistic direction. Just a mishmash of art from the book, and that ridiculous banner at the bottom that creates a bunch of useless, dead space.

And let's talk about their release schedule. I preorder the Tarroka cards, and they won't ship (according to GaleForce9 customer support) until MAY. May, people. Let that sink in. Two months after the module comes out, a key piece of the gameplay finally gets released. Not to mention that half of their other supplemental cards are also on backorder until JUNE.

So, the few items that they make people actually want are in grossly short supply or poorly scheduled for release. Fantastic business model GF9. I'll be printing my own cards, and will just do without the cleric spellcards.

 

[timbannock]

What others said. Gale Force 9 really hasn't come through yet, and we're on the 4th adventure release that they can't seem to coordinate, not even counting the other products (spellbook cards, etc.) that they've released. I like the spellbook cards, but it took them an iteration before they even got that right.

Wizards needs a new partner on this stuff, or needs to leverage something to bring them in line. If you're going to reframe yourself as a "multimedia" company/game line, you gotta get it right. We're 2 years in, folks.

 

[Tyranthraxus]

Its almost like the relationship between WOTC and GF9 is a 'I know the Manager over at GF9, they do good stuff. We should use them!.'

'But their costs are too high and they never seem to get stuff out on'

'You dont understand, thats my wifes cousin you are talking about. WE ARE using them!'

'Whatever you say boss!'