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Enchanted Trinkets Complete--a hardcover book containing over 500 magic items for your D&D games!

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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Ron" data-source="post: 2008624" data-attributes="member: 1020">The Giant's Skull is an innovative adventure in two scenarios in which the players have the opportunity of turning sides, first taking roles of a party of Ogres and then their human enemies. Production values are good. The cover by Kieran Yanner is very good while Claudio Pozas' internal B&W illustrations range from fair to good. Pozas also contribute with some excellent color pieces in the back cover illustration and counters. Cartography, by Michael Johnstone, is utilitarian but clear. Layout is clear and easy to follow.A few extra are included. As previously reported, there are useful color counters depicting the major characters and a few monsters. The module also includes a description of alert factor, a new d20 stat representing the NPCs overall awareness of danger in a dungeon or another closed social system. Finally there are single character sheets for all Ogres characters.In both scenarios the parties, first of Ogres and then of humans, are trying to recover a minor artifact, the Giant's Skull, from their respective enemies. Although stats are provided, the Skull is nothing more of a plot device, as its extensive powers cannot be activated by any of the groups. The two scenarios can be played in any order, although that, if both successful the last party will achieve final victory claiming the Skull.I play tested the first scenario. Although innovative, this scenario is nothing more than a dungeon crawl, which may be appropriated to an ogre party. However, a main problem is that the Ogres' leader, a first-level Wizard Ogre Mage is quite capable of completing the quest alone. His abilities of becoming invisible and assuming gaseous form would allow him to sneak the human fortress and take the Skull with him, while his high number of hit points would allow him to survive the most dangerous magical traps. During my play test his player asked me why he couldn't try it alone. Although I think he could succeed better than the party in a sneak operation I didn't wanted to spoil the fun from the other players and told him that he could foresee that the remaining ogres wouldn't wait him too much before starting to storm the castle's walls. As a good leader of his tribe he returned to command them in a better-conceived action plan.The second scenario is less interesting, as it basic describes a routine dungeon craw at the ogres' lair. There are few surprises in this scenario and a combat oriented party should have no problems in completing it. Unlike its predecessor, there aren't any ready to play characters, the players should introduce their own tenth level ones.Regardless of the original feature of playing both sides of a conflict, especially by allowing the players to role-play evil monster characters, both scenarios are quite mundane. Although dungeon crawls can be exciting, both scenarios aren't that difficult to be completed. A interesting feat to the DM is keep in control a party of ogres, I have to constantly remember some players that their characters are impulsive and not that smart, as they tried to get along with some clever tactics during the attack of the Citadel. Despite the shortcomings, my group of players and I had a lot of fun playing the first scenario, although it wasn't sufficient to keep interest to play the second one.</blockquote>

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