Argyle King
Legend
I had looked at that one. Sometimes, you just need a quick sketch to get an idea across.
-
NOW LIVE! Into the Woods--new character species, eerie monsters, and haunting villains to populate the woodlands of your D&D games.
What is/are your most recent TTRPG purchase(s)?
- Thread starter Reynard
- Start date
I had looked at that one. Sometimes, you just need a quick sketch to get an idea across.
chuckdee
Explorer
I've actually already replaced it, funny enough. I'm now using a monitor linked to my Surface.
This allows me to use Miro as a clue board and still have the ability to sketch.
My 2024 Monster Manual arrived today (but technically I purchased it a month ago). I won't have a chance to dig in until next week since I am running not-D&D games at a con this weekend. I expect my next purchase to be the MM for Fantasy Grounds unless I decide there really aren't enough changes to be worth the expense.
aramis erak
Legend
I pledged for the terrain hexagons from Inkwell Ideas.
hawkeyefan
Legend
I already have the full game, but since this is PWYW and it has a new scenario, I picked up the DIE quickstart.
DIE RPG Quickstart
I recommend checking it out for anyone who’s unfamiliar with the game. It’s a very different kind of take on D&D… but with a lot of familiar elements.
DIE RPG Quickstart
I recommend checking it out for anyone who’s unfamiliar with the game. It’s a very different kind of take on D&D… but with a lot of familiar elements.
Alzrius
The EN World kitten
I just picked up Far Distant Future Publishing's Awesome Ancestries: Variant Species Options Vol. 2 - Multiverse of Mayhem (affiliate link) for PF1.
I have to take a moment to express my awe for Far Distant Future Publishing as a company...by which I mean for Bryan Mangum personally, since as far as I can tell FDFP is a one-man enterprise. In the space of almost exactly ten months, he's put out just shy of sixty products, most of which (though not all) are for PF1. Maybe it's just me, but that's a truly staggering level of output, and I can't help but be wowed by it, as well as eminently thankful.
Of that number, nearly half of those are part of his "Awesome Ancestries" line, which present either new races or new options for existing races. While most of these books lean toward the former, this is (as the title suggests) one of those times where we get more of the latter (though even here we get an entirely new race: the gnoblin, which is exactly what it sounds like).
Part of the reason I like FDFP's material isn't just how rapidly it comes out, but also because Mangum really knows his stuff. A significant number of the options here seek to fill various niches that various races have made over the years, and there are a lot of nods to presentations that those races have had throughout the life of D&D.
What do I mean by that? Well, in a clear nod to current events, goblins (and hobgoblins) have racial variants that are of the Fey type. Likewise, there's a look back at yesteryear with an alternate racial ability for elves that lets them perform a short-range teleport, and another that gives them wings. Not to mention options for dog-faced kobolds and pig-faced orcs. Things like this are replete throughout the book.
Interestingly, there's also a section near the end with "planar" versions of classic races. These are presented as being stronger than their terrestrial counterparts, giving them extra abilities with no drawbacks; ARG-style race point totals make it clear just how much stronger these are, and while they're definitely stronger than average, none of these should upset anyone's game. Besides, it's cool to have dwarves with an inherent ability to create magic items even if they aren't spellcasters, elves who are truly ageless, orcs that are literal hulking brutes, etc.
Overall, I really enjoyed what's here, which is entirely within expectations. Hopefully Mangum can keep up this level of work, both in terms of the pace of releases and the quality of them, for a long time to come.
I have to take a moment to express my awe for Far Distant Future Publishing as a company...by which I mean for Bryan Mangum personally, since as far as I can tell FDFP is a one-man enterprise. In the space of almost exactly ten months, he's put out just shy of sixty products, most of which (though not all) are for PF1. Maybe it's just me, but that's a truly staggering level of output, and I can't help but be wowed by it, as well as eminently thankful.
Of that number, nearly half of those are part of his "Awesome Ancestries" line, which present either new races or new options for existing races. While most of these books lean toward the former, this is (as the title suggests) one of those times where we get more of the latter (though even here we get an entirely new race: the gnoblin, which is exactly what it sounds like).
Part of the reason I like FDFP's material isn't just how rapidly it comes out, but also because Mangum really knows his stuff. A significant number of the options here seek to fill various niches that various races have made over the years, and there are a lot of nods to presentations that those races have had throughout the life of D&D.
What do I mean by that? Well, in a clear nod to current events, goblins (and hobgoblins) have racial variants that are of the Fey type. Likewise, there's a look back at yesteryear with an alternate racial ability for elves that lets them perform a short-range teleport, and another that gives them wings. Not to mention options for dog-faced kobolds and pig-faced orcs. Things like this are replete throughout the book.
Interestingly, there's also a section near the end with "planar" versions of classic races. These are presented as being stronger than their terrestrial counterparts, giving them extra abilities with no drawbacks; ARG-style race point totals make it clear just how much stronger these are, and while they're definitely stronger than average, none of these should upset anyone's game. Besides, it's cool to have dwarves with an inherent ability to create magic items even if they aren't spellcasters, elves who are truly ageless, orcs that are literal hulking brutes, etc.
Overall, I really enjoyed what's here, which is entirely within expectations. Hopefully Mangum can keep up this level of work, both in terms of the pace of releases and the quality of them, for a long time to come.
Last edited:
Alzrius
The EN World kitten
I just picked up a copy of Gannet Games' Advanced Monster Abilities (affiliate link) for PF1.
I picked this up mostly on the strength of another Gannet Games purchase I made a while back, that being the similarly-named Advancement Powers. That book presented a group of new special powers that monsters could have, not as feats or the result of a template, but as something a GM could assign to monsters with advanced natural Hit Dice. The idea there is that giving a monster additional Hit Dice (with its attendant benefits of better attack bonuses, saving throws, etc.) was oftentimes not enough to make it live up to its increased Challenge Rating. Since most of those new abilities were building on or related to existing abilities, it's fairly easy for a GM to intuit what powers are good for which monsters.
Advanced Monster Abilities covers the same subject—a selection of new abilities for monsters with advanced natural Hit Dice—but with a twist. Here, the book lists twenty popular monsters (e.g. basilisks, chimaeras, dryads, hell hounds, etc.), and presents a couple of abilities that they could have after gaining more natural Hit Dice.
The book gives a slightly more systematized metric for this than its counterpart, I should note. The difference between the creature's normal Hit Dice and how many Hit Dice it's been advanced are presented as being "points," with each new power having a corresponding cost; several also have other prerequisites, such as the minimum Hit Dice that the advanced creature has to meet. Amusingly, there's a single creature (the gorgon) for whom there's a special power that weakens it, making it possible to use it at a lower CR.
Overall, I really enjoyed what was here, and wish that Gannet Games had made more of these books for other monsters. The creativity on display is matched only by the insight in how well these new powers fit with their associated creatures. Anyone who's looking to put a new twist on some old classics would be well served by picking this up.
I picked this up mostly on the strength of another Gannet Games purchase I made a while back, that being the similarly-named Advancement Powers. That book presented a group of new special powers that monsters could have, not as feats or the result of a template, but as something a GM could assign to monsters with advanced natural Hit Dice. The idea there is that giving a monster additional Hit Dice (with its attendant benefits of better attack bonuses, saving throws, etc.) was oftentimes not enough to make it live up to its increased Challenge Rating. Since most of those new abilities were building on or related to existing abilities, it's fairly easy for a GM to intuit what powers are good for which monsters.
Advanced Monster Abilities covers the same subject—a selection of new abilities for monsters with advanced natural Hit Dice—but with a twist. Here, the book lists twenty popular monsters (e.g. basilisks, chimaeras, dryads, hell hounds, etc.), and presents a couple of abilities that they could have after gaining more natural Hit Dice.
The book gives a slightly more systematized metric for this than its counterpart, I should note. The difference between the creature's normal Hit Dice and how many Hit Dice it's been advanced are presented as being "points," with each new power having a corresponding cost; several also have other prerequisites, such as the minimum Hit Dice that the advanced creature has to meet. Amusingly, there's a single creature (the gorgon) for whom there's a special power that weakens it, making it possible to use it at a lower CR.
Overall, I really enjoyed what was here, and wish that Gannet Games had made more of these books for other monsters. The creativity on display is matched only by the insight in how well these new powers fit with their associated creatures. Anyone who's looking to put a new twist on some old classics would be well served by picking this up.
thullgrim
Hero
Same
Also picked up a pdf of the Dragonbane Bestiary and Ruins of Symbaroum vol. 1 Throne of Thorns. They were on sale at Drivethru for GM’s day.
Similar Threads
