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[Let's Read] DM's Guild Ravenloft Sourcebooks
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<blockquote data-quote="Libertad" data-source="post: 9280250" data-attributes="member: 6750502"><p><img src="https://i.imgur.com/RmLIPqe.jpeg" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="" /></p><p></p><p><a href="https://www.dmsguild.com/product/352670/Mordenkainen-in-Barovia" target="_blank">Product Link</a></p><p></p><p><strong>Product Type:</strong> DMing Tools</p><p><strong>CoS-Required?</strong> Yes</p><p></p><p>While I usually don’t review free products, I felt that this one’s interesting enough to merit its own discussion. When it comes to the various recruitable Destined Allies in Curse of Strahd, Mordenkainen clearly stands out. Not only is he the most powerful of the lot, he is a famous icon in the game (more so than Rudolph Van Richten), and he doesn’t accompany the party on the adventure save for the final battle against Strahd. The maker of this product didn’t like this last part, still wanting to keep the legendary archmage as a traveling companion but also redoing his stat block to be less overpowered but also reflecting his unique talent. Mordenkainen’s stat block is also promised to be “simplified” so that a player can run them in combat alongside their own PC.</p><p></p><p>Mordenkainen here is effectively a 13th-level Wizard statwise, his depowerment explained as undergoing significant mental damage in his fight against Strahd. Even though the PCs may have restored his mind, his practice of Old Vancian Magic means that many spells ordinarily attained by him have been “forgotten” as a result of his prior insanity.</p><p></p><p>Mordenkainen is a CR 13 NPC, and his base stats pretty much scream “wizard.” His Armor Class is an appreciable 16 with Mage Armor, and he does have quite a bit of hit points at 87. The only skills in which he is proficient are Arcana and History, which with double proficiency are +14 each. As is to be expected, Mordenkainen has an unmatched knowledge of all supernatural things, and should know an awful lot about Barovia’s past. His high Intelligence, Dexterity, and Charisma make him decent at stealth, other knowledge skills, and social skills, but will be easily eclipsed by PCs who specialize in such fields. He has resistance to all damage from spells, which while a bit situational is pretty strong when fighting some of the more infamous magical adversaries in the module. Such as the Old Bonegrinder hags, Baba Lysaga, and Neferon the arcanaloth.</p><p></p><p>Mordenkainen’s spellcasting differs from traditional 5e prepared casters. Being explicitly modeled off of pre-4e Editions, he doesn’t use spell slots but has to prepare each and every spell individually. Unless he prepares a spell more than once, he can only cast it once before requiring a full day to get his spells back. Once per short rest he can swap any memorized spell with another spell of the same level from his spellbook, and said spellbook has every wizard spell in it. However, the text is a bit confusing on Mordy’s refresh rate, as while the spells mention they recharge once per day, it also mentions that he can replace any number of spells after finishing a long rest. While a lot of writers often use long rest and per-day interchangeably, in 5e these are two distinct things. A per-day refresh happens automatically with the passage of time, while long rests can be interrupted or foregone. If hewing to the former, this means that Mordenkainen’s spells are regained even should he somehow be unable to rest or sleep.</p><p></p><p>Mordenkainen more or less has access to every non-cantrip wizard spell of up to 6th level, but the stat block gives him a default array for when he’s in an “adventuring mood.” Mordy’s base allotment hews strongly towards battlefield control, with spells such as Darkness, Web, Ice Storm, Wall of Force, and Globe of Invulnerability, with a few utility ones such as Protection From Evil and Good, Dispel Magic, and Arcane Eye. He doesn’t have a lot of damage-dealing spells: Magic Missile, Fireball, Fire Shield, and Ice Storm. As for unique equipment, his spellbook can be summoned and dismissed into a pocket dimension as an action, and he carries a Silver Key of Portals that can spend up to 4 charges per day which can cast the Knock spell with no audible loud sound. I still presume it requires a Verbal component, so it’s not entirely silent.</p><p></p><p>Regarding the Silver Key, most locked containers and doors in Curse of Strahd take a DC 15 Thieves’ Tools check to open unless otherwise specified. There are cases where manacles or physical obstructions also prevent doors from opening, particularly in Castle Ravenloft. The item’s use is a bit situational but very useful in the Castle, particularly to overcome Strahd’s Lair Action in locking such a place. If the Silver Key is given to a familiar or other helper-type ally in such cases, one can avoid giving up an action on the part of Mordenkainen or a PC in case of combat or other scenarios where time is tracked round by round.</p><p></p><p>When it comes to Mordenkainen’s signature spells, he doesn’t cast them the Vancian way. Instead they are unique Actions of his he can use at will, have new features not present in the base spell, and don’t require concentration to maintain but he can’t have two such versions active at the same time. His Phantom Hound can detect creatures within 60 feet instead of 30, and as an action he can have the hound and an ally within 30 feet of the dog swap places, provided an enemy is within 5 feet of an ally at the time. His Planar Sword (Mordenkainen’s Sword but renamed) can be commanded to protect an adjacent ally, granting them +5 to AC and Dexterity saves until the beginning of Mordenkainen’s next turn. Finally, his Magnificent Mansion has a permanent duration but still requires 1 minute of casting time.</p><p></p><p>Being able to use Planar Sword at-will is likely the reason for his lack of damaging spells, as by default it’s his main method of offense. His Phantom Hound can serve a similar purpose albeit is a bit short-range.</p><p></p><p><strong>Overall Thoughts:</strong> Comparatively speaking, this version of Mordenkainen is less powerful than the default Archmage stat block in spite of having a 1 higher Challenge Rating. Not having at-will invisibility or the higher-end spells such as Teleport and Time Stop really sting. Also this version of Mordy isn’t proficient in Wisdom saves like the Archmage, which is a very common saving throw. But even with all that being said, some things had to be cut if he’s to be a traveling companion like the other Allies.</p><p></p><p>So how does this homebrew Mordenkainen stack up as an Allied NPC? Will he not eclipse higher-level PCs like the product advertises? Well for one, he is still extremely powerful; even with his more limited Old Vancian Magic, the fact that he can swap out prepared spells makes him different from NPC casters who are more or less stuck with their spell allotments. In comparison to the mage Allies such as Victor Vallakovich or Kasimir Velikov, Mordenkainen can cast up to 18 times per day for non-cantrip spells, while they have only 14 total slots. Victor and Kasimir have more wiggle room in being able to upcast with higher level slots and aren’t locked into casting such spells once or twice in most cases. But Mordenkainen having effectively all wizard spells can open him up to getting some unique magic for themselves and the party wizard. Major Image, Leomund’s Tiny Hut, Summon X series of spells, Polymorph, Passwall, I can go on. Of course, he still needs material components, and given how treasure-poor Curse of Strahd is, Mordenkainen will still be locked out of the more costly spells such as Clairvoyance or ones with rare components such as Evard’s Black Tentacles. His lack of cantrips may initially seem punishing, but his Faithful Hound and Planar Sword make for decent “at will” magical offensive options. An at-will Magnificent Mansion is really good in giving the party a mobile safe base and might be able to elude Strahd and his minions for a time.</p><p></p><p>For other Allies he pretty much blows most of them out of the water. The only ones that can conceivably compare are the higher-end ones. Van Richten has access to support and Cleric spells while also having a variety of skills, Sir Godfrey Gwilym is a very powerful paladin who is literally immortal and is a living Strahd Detector, and Vasilka can solo most enemies who don’t have access to magical and non-physical damage sources. As for Ezmerelda, she is kind of a hybrid in being more broadly reliable with a variety of skills, magical weapons, a curse and evil eye abilities, and some utility magic. So while Mordenkainen has access to better spells than her, Ez can afford to be more liberal in spending her resources.</p><p></p><p>Personally speaking, while this makes for a more “reasonable” Mordenkainen to take on adventures, I still feel that he can outclass PCs. Not as a group, for I can’t see him soloing some of the more powerful enemies in this module, but outclass more on an individual level. A PC wizard is likely going to feel second fiddle in comparison, and even if limited by slots Mordy can still pull out high-level spells such as Globe of Invulnerability to save their bacon. Some spells such as Legend Lore may end up altering certain plot points in significant ways. As for other classes and archetypes, bards/rogues/skill users are still going to be useful, for even if Mordenkainen can ace social or stealth challenges with an appropriate spell it will still cost him valuable slots. For straight damage, a decent martial build will show him up unless he goes all-in on damaging spells like Chain Lightning and Disintegrate. PCs capable of restoring his sanity have access to 5th level spells, so by the time they get him they will have cleared the gap a lot more (Mord can cast 5th and 6th level spells, but once per day each) to the point that he won’t feel like the star of the show 100% of the time.</p><p></p><p>As for whether his stat block is simple enough for a player to run in combat alongside their own PC, I’d have to say no barring those players who can multitask well. It still is a full page worth of text, and as he still heavily relies upon spells the player will need to look up and consult their descriptions when appropriate. It’s a lot more complicated than using a Sidekick, that’s for sure! In a typical party, the PCs are likely going to have Mordenkainen make use of his Hound, Sword, or low-level spells, saving his higher-level slots for the appropriate time. And with his spell replacement for a short rest, they can use it in case they come upon a challenge they hadn’t considered.</p><p></p><p>Personally speaking this product isn’t for me, as Mordenkainen’s placement in Curse of Strahd doesn’t feel right. But for its proposed mission statement, I think it does its job in most cases, albeit I’d still Proceed With Caution in his use as a Destined Ally.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Libertad, post: 9280250, member: 6750502"] [img]https://i.imgur.com/RmLIPqe.jpeg[/img] [url=https://www.dmsguild.com/product/352670/Mordenkainen-in-Barovia]Product Link[/url] [b]Product Type:[/b] DMing Tools [b]CoS-Required?[/b] Yes While I usually don’t review free products, I felt that this one’s interesting enough to merit its own discussion. When it comes to the various recruitable Destined Allies in Curse of Strahd, Mordenkainen clearly stands out. Not only is he the most powerful of the lot, he is a famous icon in the game (more so than Rudolph Van Richten), and he doesn’t accompany the party on the adventure save for the final battle against Strahd. The maker of this product didn’t like this last part, still wanting to keep the legendary archmage as a traveling companion but also redoing his stat block to be less overpowered but also reflecting his unique talent. Mordenkainen’s stat block is also promised to be “simplified” so that a player can run them in combat alongside their own PC. Mordenkainen here is effectively a 13th-level Wizard statwise, his depowerment explained as undergoing significant mental damage in his fight against Strahd. Even though the PCs may have restored his mind, his practice of Old Vancian Magic means that many spells ordinarily attained by him have been “forgotten” as a result of his prior insanity. Mordenkainen is a CR 13 NPC, and his base stats pretty much scream “wizard.” His Armor Class is an appreciable 16 with Mage Armor, and he does have quite a bit of hit points at 87. The only skills in which he is proficient are Arcana and History, which with double proficiency are +14 each. As is to be expected, Mordenkainen has an unmatched knowledge of all supernatural things, and should know an awful lot about Barovia’s past. His high Intelligence, Dexterity, and Charisma make him decent at stealth, other knowledge skills, and social skills, but will be easily eclipsed by PCs who specialize in such fields. He has resistance to all damage from spells, which while a bit situational is pretty strong when fighting some of the more infamous magical adversaries in the module. Such as the Old Bonegrinder hags, Baba Lysaga, and Neferon the arcanaloth. Mordenkainen’s spellcasting differs from traditional 5e prepared casters. Being explicitly modeled off of pre-4e Editions, he doesn’t use spell slots but has to prepare each and every spell individually. Unless he prepares a spell more than once, he can only cast it once before requiring a full day to get his spells back. Once per short rest he can swap any memorized spell with another spell of the same level from his spellbook, and said spellbook has every wizard spell in it. However, the text is a bit confusing on Mordy’s refresh rate, as while the spells mention they recharge once per day, it also mentions that he can replace any number of spells after finishing a long rest. While a lot of writers often use long rest and per-day interchangeably, in 5e these are two distinct things. A per-day refresh happens automatically with the passage of time, while long rests can be interrupted or foregone. If hewing to the former, this means that Mordenkainen’s spells are regained even should he somehow be unable to rest or sleep. Mordenkainen more or less has access to every non-cantrip wizard spell of up to 6th level, but the stat block gives him a default array for when he’s in an “adventuring mood.” Mordy’s base allotment hews strongly towards battlefield control, with spells such as Darkness, Web, Ice Storm, Wall of Force, and Globe of Invulnerability, with a few utility ones such as Protection From Evil and Good, Dispel Magic, and Arcane Eye. He doesn’t have a lot of damage-dealing spells: Magic Missile, Fireball, Fire Shield, and Ice Storm. As for unique equipment, his spellbook can be summoned and dismissed into a pocket dimension as an action, and he carries a Silver Key of Portals that can spend up to 4 charges per day which can cast the Knock spell with no audible loud sound. I still presume it requires a Verbal component, so it’s not entirely silent. Regarding the Silver Key, most locked containers and doors in Curse of Strahd take a DC 15 Thieves’ Tools check to open unless otherwise specified. There are cases where manacles or physical obstructions also prevent doors from opening, particularly in Castle Ravenloft. The item’s use is a bit situational but very useful in the Castle, particularly to overcome Strahd’s Lair Action in locking such a place. If the Silver Key is given to a familiar or other helper-type ally in such cases, one can avoid giving up an action on the part of Mordenkainen or a PC in case of combat or other scenarios where time is tracked round by round. When it comes to Mordenkainen’s signature spells, he doesn’t cast them the Vancian way. Instead they are unique Actions of his he can use at will, have new features not present in the base spell, and don’t require concentration to maintain but he can’t have two such versions active at the same time. His Phantom Hound can detect creatures within 60 feet instead of 30, and as an action he can have the hound and an ally within 30 feet of the dog swap places, provided an enemy is within 5 feet of an ally at the time. His Planar Sword (Mordenkainen’s Sword but renamed) can be commanded to protect an adjacent ally, granting them +5 to AC and Dexterity saves until the beginning of Mordenkainen’s next turn. Finally, his Magnificent Mansion has a permanent duration but still requires 1 minute of casting time. Being able to use Planar Sword at-will is likely the reason for his lack of damaging spells, as by default it’s his main method of offense. His Phantom Hound can serve a similar purpose albeit is a bit short-range. [b]Overall Thoughts:[/b] Comparatively speaking, this version of Mordenkainen is less powerful than the default Archmage stat block in spite of having a 1 higher Challenge Rating. Not having at-will invisibility or the higher-end spells such as Teleport and Time Stop really sting. Also this version of Mordy isn’t proficient in Wisdom saves like the Archmage, which is a very common saving throw. But even with all that being said, some things had to be cut if he’s to be a traveling companion like the other Allies. So how does this homebrew Mordenkainen stack up as an Allied NPC? Will he not eclipse higher-level PCs like the product advertises? Well for one, he is still extremely powerful; even with his more limited Old Vancian Magic, the fact that he can swap out prepared spells makes him different from NPC casters who are more or less stuck with their spell allotments. In comparison to the mage Allies such as Victor Vallakovich or Kasimir Velikov, Mordenkainen can cast up to 18 times per day for non-cantrip spells, while they have only 14 total slots. Victor and Kasimir have more wiggle room in being able to upcast with higher level slots and aren’t locked into casting such spells once or twice in most cases. But Mordenkainen having effectively all wizard spells can open him up to getting some unique magic for themselves and the party wizard. Major Image, Leomund’s Tiny Hut, Summon X series of spells, Polymorph, Passwall, I can go on. Of course, he still needs material components, and given how treasure-poor Curse of Strahd is, Mordenkainen will still be locked out of the more costly spells such as Clairvoyance or ones with rare components such as Evard’s Black Tentacles. His lack of cantrips may initially seem punishing, but his Faithful Hound and Planar Sword make for decent “at will” magical offensive options. An at-will Magnificent Mansion is really good in giving the party a mobile safe base and might be able to elude Strahd and his minions for a time. For other Allies he pretty much blows most of them out of the water. The only ones that can conceivably compare are the higher-end ones. Van Richten has access to support and Cleric spells while also having a variety of skills, Sir Godfrey Gwilym is a very powerful paladin who is literally immortal and is a living Strahd Detector, and Vasilka can solo most enemies who don’t have access to magical and non-physical damage sources. As for Ezmerelda, she is kind of a hybrid in being more broadly reliable with a variety of skills, magical weapons, a curse and evil eye abilities, and some utility magic. So while Mordenkainen has access to better spells than her, Ez can afford to be more liberal in spending her resources. Personally speaking, while this makes for a more “reasonable” Mordenkainen to take on adventures, I still feel that he can outclass PCs. Not as a group, for I can’t see him soloing some of the more powerful enemies in this module, but outclass more on an individual level. A PC wizard is likely going to feel second fiddle in comparison, and even if limited by slots Mordy can still pull out high-level spells such as Globe of Invulnerability to save their bacon. Some spells such as Legend Lore may end up altering certain plot points in significant ways. As for other classes and archetypes, bards/rogues/skill users are still going to be useful, for even if Mordenkainen can ace social or stealth challenges with an appropriate spell it will still cost him valuable slots. For straight damage, a decent martial build will show him up unless he goes all-in on damaging spells like Chain Lightning and Disintegrate. PCs capable of restoring his sanity have access to 5th level spells, so by the time they get him they will have cleared the gap a lot more (Mord can cast 5th and 6th level spells, but once per day each) to the point that he won’t feel like the star of the show 100% of the time. As for whether his stat block is simple enough for a player to run in combat alongside their own PC, I’d have to say no barring those players who can multitask well. It still is a full page worth of text, and as he still heavily relies upon spells the player will need to look up and consult their descriptions when appropriate. It’s a lot more complicated than using a Sidekick, that’s for sure! In a typical party, the PCs are likely going to have Mordenkainen make use of his Hound, Sword, or low-level spells, saving his higher-level slots for the appropriate time. And with his spell replacement for a short rest, they can use it in case they come upon a challenge they hadn’t considered. Personally speaking this product isn’t for me, as Mordenkainen’s placement in Curse of Strahd doesn’t feel right. But for its proposed mission statement, I think it does its job in most cases, albeit I’d still Proceed With Caution in his use as a Destined Ally. [/QUOTE]
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