#RPGaDay2025 Day 11 Flavor

Monstrous Monday Edition

Every DM has their seasoning.

Some go for high fantasy heroics. Some love swashbuckling pulp. Some dive deep into political intrigue or dungeon-crawling strategy.

 Me?

I like my monsters with a touch of horror.

Okay, more than a touch.

Call it the jalapeño principle: whatever the dish is, a little heat makes it better. And for me, that heat is horror.

Doesn’t matter what system I’m running, D&D, Pathfinder, Wasted Lands, even a more story-driven game like Daggerheart or Blue Rose, my monsters always bring a certain Flavor. And that Flavor usually tastes like grave dust, candle smoke, and old houses.

It goes back to my origin story, Dark Shadows, Hammer Horror, witch trial folklore, and that first glimpse into the Monster Manual. I didn’t just want monsters that challenged the players mechanically. I wanted monsters that unsettled them. That made them ask, What is this thing really? And worse, why does it know my name?

Even the familiar creatures, such as your trolls, kobolds, and giant spiders, get filtered through that lens. A vampire in my game isn’t just a bloodsucker. She’s a former lover, an ancient queen, or a fragment of a forgotten god, wearing a corpse like a wedding dress. Kobolds are not just a type of humanoid; they are the lost souls of miners who died underground. Trolls? They are the last remnants of an ancient species that fought the gods and lost. 

And the truly unique monsters? The ones I design from scratch?

 They’re stitched together from nightmares, folklore, and the weird corners of mythology that don’t get cleaned up for public consumption.

I like monsters that linger. Not just in combat, but in the imagination. The kind that leave players looking over their shoulder even after the dice stop rolling.

Tone matters. Flavor matters.

It’s the difference between “you fight a ghost” and “you wake up with frost on your fingertips, and realize something is weeping under the floorboards.”

That’s the Flavor I chase.

A little uncanny. A little dread. Enough shadow to make the torchlight meaningful. 

So yeah. You can run your monsters however you like. Heroic. Mythic. Comedic, even.

But me?

I’m going to keep tossing in the horror jalapeños.

 And trust me, my players wouldn’t have it any other way.

Questions

Why. Confident. Rule.

What rule are you the most confident in and why?

Yesterday I talked about the rule I was envious of. To turn it around today I'll talk about a rule I did come up with that I am most happy about. In Ghosts of Albion there are magical philosophies and these change how you learn and use magic. We playtested the hell out of these and I love how to work in the game. I'd love to do something similar for my witch classes.

https://www.autocratik.com/ • https://www.castingshadowsblog.com/

#RPGaDay2025 Day 10 Origin

Yesterday, I talked about inspiration, the strange, eerie, or mythic things that spark our imagination and send us off chasing stories in the dark.

But before there was inspiration, there was origin.

Mine?

It starts in a quiet classroom in 1979.  Washington Elementary School, Jacksonville, Illinois. “Silent reading” time. Most kids had The Phantom Tollbooth or Ramona the Pest.

I had the Monster Manual.

Or, more accurately, I had my friend’s copy of the Monster Manual, because I didn’t have one of my own yet. Not easy to come by in a tiny, near-bible-belt town. But once I saw it? Once I opened it and saw the hydra, the efreet, the demons, devils, and displacer beasts? The vampires!

I was gone.

Hooked. Claimed. Branded.

The Monster Manual wasn’t just a game book, it was a grimoire.

A bestiary of monsters that felt as real as anything I’d read in the Greek myths I was already devouring.

That was my origin point. That was the moment I became the über-geek you all know today. (And yes, I use the umlauts. That’s my street cred.)

I borrowed that book.

 And read.

 And read.

 And read.

I’m pretty sure I had the whole thing memorized before I even played my first game. The mechanics were confusing, the art was a little weird, but the imagination? Unmatched. That’s the moment that formed me.

And ever since then, every game book I pick up gets judged against what I call the Monster Manual Scale.

How close does this book come to giving me that feeling? That rush of wonder, danger, mystery, and possibility?

Some have come close. A few have hit the mark.

C.J. Carella’s WitchCraft gave me that same feeling. So did Wasted Lands, in a different, deeper way.

That’s my origin.

 But here’s the thing: everyone who comes to this hobby has one.

And your origin shapes everything:

• The kind of stories you like to tell.
• The kinds of characters you play.
• The mechanics you care about (or happily ignore).
• The tone you aim for at your table.
• The feel of fantasy that feels right to you.

Maybe your origin is Tolkien. Maybe it’s anime. Maybe it’s heavy metal album covers and 1980s horror movies. Oh, I guess I am still talking about me here. Maybe it was a family member who taught you to roll dice, or a weird little book you found at a garage sale that opened a door in your brain you’ve never quite shut again. Maybe you got here via Critical Role.

Whatever it was, your origin matters.

 It doesn’t just explain how you game.

 It explains why.

So think back. What was it? What was your Monster Manual? And have you passed it on yet?

Questions

Why. Envious. Rule. Ok...

What rule am I envious of and why? I really have been enjoying the Hope & Fear mechanic of Daggerheart and wish it had been something I had come up with myself. It is a fun narrative device for both the players and game master, who often doesn't get a narrative point device like this. 

https://www.autocratik.com/ • https://www.castingshadowsblog.com/

#RPGaDay2025 Day 9 Inspire

We all have our first spark.

Maybe it was a cousin who ran a chaotic homebrew game over Thanksgiving break.

 Maybe it was reading The Hobbit, watching Legend, or seeing Conan stride across a barren world full of swords, serpents, and sorcery.

For me? My inspiration came from fog-shrouded cemeteries, books on mythology, and finding a copy of the Monster Manual during silent reading time.

Dark Shadows.

Hammer Horror.

Witch trial folklore and tales from Medieval Europe.

Those were my touchstones. That’s the marrow in the bones of the witch books I write, the characters I create, and the adventures I run. I wasn’t drawn to mighty warriors and golden thrones; I was drawn to the outsider. The whisperer. The one who knows too much and says too little.

These are the things that inspire me.

I wanted characters who were feared for what they might be, not for what they’d done.  I wanted villages that held secrets under every root and hearthstone. I wanted magic that felt old, like it was carved into the world before the gods ever got around to naming it.

That’s the kind of inspiration that sticks. That coils around your imagination and never lets go. It shapes your choices as a writer, a referee, a player, even when you don’t realize it.

And inspiration doesn’t have to be high fantasy or heroic.

 Sometimes it’s a whisper.

 A shape in the mist.

 A name scratched into the cellar wall.

And once you find it, once you feel it, you build from there.

Because here’s the real truth:

You never know what part of your world, your blog, your spell list, or your strange little NPC is going to light a fire in someone else.

Inspiration moves in a circle.

We draw from the stories that came before, and then we send our own sparks out into the dark.

And if we’re lucky?

Someone else picks them up.

Questions

When. Grateful. Accessory.

When was I grateful for an accessory? Or something. 

Honestly, i think it might have been when I got my first PDA, a Handspring Visor. These were Palm Pilot clones created by some of the guys who had founded Palm when it was U.S. Robotics. Having something I could keep in my pocket and jot down notes whenever I wanted and then collect them all later on was amazing. 

I have gone through many of these things over the years. Upgrading to smartphones and more, but that little blue Visor holds a special place in my heart. 

I pretty much wrote my first Netbook of Witches and Warlocks, as well as Ghosts of Albion, on that thing. 

https://www.autocratik.com/ • https://www.castingshadowsblog.com/

Fantasy Fridays Review: Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting Revised

We are in the AD&D 2nd ed era for sure now, and today I am planning on finally tackling the boxed set that launched a 1000 campaigns or more. The AD&D 2nd Edition Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting Revised.  I purchased mine relatively recently to be honest. Well. More recent than 1993. This is the second Forgotten Realms Campaign setting boxed set. The first, of course, was the famous "Gray box" for AD&D 1st Edition.  It was an instant classic, but I think many of my readers will agree that it was AD&D 2nd Edition where the Realms really grew in popularity. Even me, stuck in my lonely little corner of Ravenloft knew how important the Realms was. Forget that, all you had to do was be online in the early 90s when the Internet was still a wild and untamed place to know of the Realms' popularity. 

I will be honest. Of all the Realms products out there, this one feels like the hardest to review properly. But I will carry on. 

Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting Revised

1993. by Ed Greenwood, Jeff Grubb, and Don Bingle. Art Clyde Caldwell (book covers), Fred Fields (box cover), Interior art by  George Barr, Dennis Beauvais, Tim Conrad, James Crabtree, Eric Hotz, Robin Raab, Uttam, and Valerie Valusek.

NOTE: For this review I am considering both my original* boxed set and the PDFs** from DriveThruRPG.

Ok, there is a note on my note. First, I got my boxed set in a game auction. So I know for a fact there is extra material in my box. I have a second set of maps that look different from the other set. I am not entirely sure which set belongs. This is the problem when buying collections, going to auctions, and inheriting other collections. There is a lot more in this box. SO, I bought the PDFs for this review. I figure I might as well (I didn't have them) AND the PDF version has a different cover. Now I had that boxed set for a bit, but it was beat to all hell. I didn't know which one came first. So I kept the best looking box and best books. Likely, that is why I have extra stuff. 

I learned that the "gold" cover box that had the same art as the 1st Edition set was the first, and the one I have was the second printing/version. Either way, the interior contents are the same.

Except mine that is. Mine is special. ;)

Ok, all that aside, let's jump into this bit of D&D history. The box set has three soft-cover books that I'll take in turn.

A Grand Tour of the Realms

This 128-page softcover book is the player-facing book for this set.

I think the biggest surprise for me was that this is where (at least for me) the Relams absorbed the campaign settings of Kara-Tur (previously part of Greyhawk at least in practice), Maztica, and Zakhara. Now of all these Zakhara was the most interesting to me and I flirted with buying the campaign setting a few times in the early 90s. But I was still an undergrad and there was always another Ravenloft book. Each setting gets a little overview here.

Likewise, the various peoples of the Realms are mentioned. Humans predominate, but dragons, dwaves, elves, goblins, gnomes, and more also get a mention here. The standard D&D species/races are here. Indeed, here is where many learned of these races for the first time in conjunction with AD&D 2nd edition rules. 

Up next, the standard classes are covered here. It's 2nd edition now, so Bards are not relegated to the back of the book. I would argue that is was 2nd Ed Realms where Bards got their proper due. 

Our next large section is all about Faerûn. This is the continent that people think of as synonymous with "the Forgotten Realms." The larger sections of the continent are covered briefly here. This is helpful for me since I never really know what people mean when they say "The North" for example. The map following this is even better. The large poster maps are great, but unwieldly to be honest. 

Some print is given over to the months and years, which I love. In the two Realms campaigns going on here in my house (my "Into the Forgotten Realms" and my oldest kid's "It's Always Sunny in Waterdeep") I have gotten fairly used to thinking of times in Dale Reckoning.  The current year for this set is 1368 DR.

Languages are next. It is really fun to see the Dethek writing here after seeing it the Baldur's Gate 3 video game. 

Up next are more detailed descriptions of various locales. The Dales and the Elven Courts, Cormyr, Sembia, The Moonsea, The Vast, The Dragon Coast, The Western Heartlands (including the Sword Coast), Waterdeep, and beyond (Evermeet, Moonshaes, etc.). Each gets a few pages to discuss important sites and people. There are adventure seeds galore.

There is a lot here, but not a lot of details on any one thing. This is actually good in my mind. It gives me room to work (I know... remarkably naïve on my part), but it did give some ideas for the next adventure I am going to run. 

The back cover has a list of the Forgotten Realms Adventure Backlist with prices up to that point. Still impressive by 1993, to be honest. I know I am missing a lot of these, but my Forgotten Realms buying is limited (on purpose) to what I can find via my local game auctions or Half-Price Books or other used sources.

Running the Realms

This is our DM's book. It's 64 pages and features one of my favorite Clyde Caldwell pieces ever. I have a signed print in my game room. An aside. There is something about the size of the TSR-era 64 page books. Hits my nostalgia for the BX books.

Here we get a good and proper introduction to the Realms. The voices of Jeff Grubb and Ed Greenwood ring out loud here in their respective introductions. And we learn this is the 3rd Age of the Realms. 

We start the book proper with a Campaigns for New Players. I am neither a new player nor unfamiliar with the Realms, but I found this to be a good read with some great advice. Some of this reads very similar to the 1st Edition Gray box. This falls under the "if it's not broke, don't fix it" rule. 

Wild Magic and Dead Magic zones are discussed. I am not sure how much I would have used these back then, but I am going to make an effort to use them more now. 

There is a great timeline from -2637 DR to 1368 DR. I am still in 1357 DR in my games.

After this, some News of Realms covering recent local events follows. It reads like a set of newspaper articles. 

There is a section on the Secret Power Groups. The Harpers, the Cult of the Dragon, and the like. I have learned to use these sparingly. The Cult of the Dragon can be huge and my players would want to hunt it down and take them out for good. And the Harpers can swoop in and steal all the glory. Now other groups like the Red Wizards and Zhentarim are still great to use. Likewise, there is a roster of Select NPCs. The usual suspects are here. Again, this is a season to use sparingly. BUT it is nice to have these here. It is also nice to have a picture and pronunciation guide for some of these names. Because seriously Ed? What the hell?

There is a section on Gods that is good, but will see expanded in the next few years. Gods are ever changing bunch in the realms. The names stay roughly the same, but powers and portfolios can vary. It is always fun to read these starting with Ed's Down to Earth Divinity from Dragon Magazine. 

There is some "player" information here, but I feel the idea here is that DM will parse that out as they feel necessary. 

The back cover has Forgotten Realms novels published to date.

The Fogotten Realms novels are like cheeseburgers. Some are great and really fill you up. Others are the fast food variety; great when that is what you want and often cheap and easy to get. Others are sliders. They seemed like a good idea at the time, but when you are done you are questioning your choices. Now I have not read a lot of these to be fair, and really I should not judge; I read all the Ravenloft novels.

Shadowdale

This 96-page softcover book is part location guide, part base of operations, and part adventure. 

Reading through this now I am reminded of how important the Dalelands used to be in the Forgotten Realms. It was *the* place to adventure back then. Back then I wasn't sure if it was from the novels or that's where Elminster had set up shop. I think now it must have been largely due to this book. I could be wrong, it's hard to judge cultural phenomena (and that is what is was in online D&D discourse) 30+ years later.

But, I am not here to judge this on past or perceived merits of the past. I am looking at the text in front of me. 

This book is broken up into sections detailing the history of Shadowdale and the lands including the farm lands around it (aside: growing up in the Midwest I don't think enough people understand how important farms were/are and how much land they can take up. Thankfully most of the AD&D guys are of the same background as I am.)

We also delve into the Village of Shadowdale, places of interest, and the temples. These include, respectively, Elminster's Tower (which should be a tourist location by now) and the Temple of Mystra.

About half this book is given over to the adventure "Beneath the Twisted Tower." Which was briefly profiled in places of interest. It is an adventure for parties of 1st to 3rd level and set after the Time of Troubles. The tone shifts here and I wonder if this was the contribution of Don Bingle.  To continue my BX D&D association, this would be the Caves of Chaos to Shadowdale's Keep on the Borderlands.

This book has the most "new" information to me. There is a huge underground cave system here with a lot of potential. The best part is that it gives new players a solid taste of what is in the realms. It's like a charcuterie board of Realms favorites, served in easy-to-eat sizes. The areas of Wild and Dead magics are also clearly marked, so that is fun. I gotta remember to use those more when the time is right.

Another Aside: I need to look into how and why Wild and Dead magic began here. Was it a side-effect of the Time of Troubles or did it happen before? I thought it was a side effect, but maybe I am wrong.

The adventure looks fun, but reading it is not playing it. If my party gets to the Dales I might give it a try. The one thing I don't lack is low-level adventures in the Realms. 

The book ends with a comprehensive Index of all three books. It is easy then to see what entries get coverage in which books, sometimes multiple coverage. 

Other Materials

I mentioned before that my boxed set seems to have materials from other sets and I have not identified which is which. 

There are the four large poster maps of Faerûn (I have two different sets), and the clear hex maps to place over them. This was a great idea. While I loved the maps from the D&D Basic and Expert sets, they always looked like they were drawn to fit the hexes. These are maps and the hexes come later. 

There are full color card-stock inserts of various symbols, sigils, and signs from the Realms which is great to show players what they are looking at.

And much to my pleasure AD&D 2nd Ed Monstrous Compendium inserts. My Forgotten Realms MC binder is getting quite full now.

DriveThruRPG PDFs

The PDF/Zip file from DriveThruRPG has all three books plus the Monstrous Compendium pages in one large, 312 pages, file.

The text is sharp and the tables of contents are hyperlinked. The index in not. The images are bit dark, but not so much so that they are hard to make out. I should note that some of the images are also dark in my boxed set, so that could just be how they came out in the color to black-and-white conversions.

I did print out the Monstrous Compendium pages so I could keep the originals in the box set intact and for better alphabetical sorting.

The zip file contains JPGs of all the inserts, including the acetate hex map overlays (why??), front and back of all the cards (which is good, now I don't have to cut up the ones in my boxes), the maps, and the poster that came with it. Wait a minute! My boxed set doesn't have the poster!!

Conclusion

This set is not exactly what I imagined it would be. Well, let me clarify that. This set is not what 1993 me thought it would be. It is actually better.

This box is bigger than the 1st Edition Realms boxed set. Plus the white background and 1990s trade dress make it a lot easier to read than the 1st Edition one. 

Many of the differences in terms of rules come from the shift from AD&D 1 to AD&D 2. For example Barbarians and Cavaliers are gone, Bards, Specialty Wizards and Priests are in. Speaking of which, it was in the Realms where the Priests of specific gods really shone and took full advantage of the new AD&D 2nd rules. When I get to the Faith's & Avatar series I am going to focus on this. Likewise we see in-world application of the Specialty Wizards in the Red Wizards of Thay. Yes, the Known World of Mystara also did this in the 1980s with the Schools of Magic in Glantri, but that was adding on to the rules; this was the existing rules being made manifest in the world. 

Honestly. This is one of the reasons why I associate AD&D 2nd Edition and Realms so closely with each other. The world informed the rules, the rules shaped the world.

Updates on Sinéad in the Realms

In my Realms game I have been using my character Sinéad to help view the Realms as someone learning about the world the same way I was.  One of the other reasons from the delay in getting to this product is that Sinéad and Co. have not yet caught up!

Primed 3D print and Character sheets of Sinéad

Well, for starters, Sinéad is a proper single-class Bard now. It was really 2nd Edition I had in mind for her since Bards were now a regular class. Also, I imagined she was some sort of wild-magic user, which is something I'll also explore.

Her partner in crime, Nida (who is important for some Ravenloft stuff later on) is still with her. These were my two main characters in this and my thoughts were always of 2nd Edition for them. Over the years, Sinéad has gone from a witch to a wild magic user.

What about the others?

Ok, so there some things I need to consider.

First off is Jaromir. He is a barbarian and those don't exist anymore in 2nd Ed. Well, unless I pull out the Complete Fighters Book.  Rhiannon (and I realize I am breaking my own rules here, this is my THIRD Rhiannon.) is a Dragon #114 witch.  While I could convert her to use the Witch kit in Complete Wizards Book. I might hold her off till I cover Spellbound. In fact that is a good idea.  Ok. Rhiannon and Jaromir have returned home to Rashemen. 

Argyle was a Dwarf from Mystara who got trapped here in Faerûn. He is a dwarf with no clan, family or a home. So...maybe he finds some dwarves to live with. I don't know. I am going to assume he is retired now.  I know that Druid and Ranger couple Asabalom and Maryah, eventually come to call a wetlands area their home where they protect it. I was hoping to get some more gaming in with them as NPCs so I could figure out what they were all about. I have an adventure they appear in later on to help the PCs, I just wanted to figure out how they got there. Lastly there was the young elf turned werewolf Arnell Hallowleaf. I know where he is going, but I'm not sure how he'll get there.

So for now, my main NPCs for my "Into the Forgotten Realms" are Sinéad and Nida, that is if the Players can get to the Dalelands for me to use them again. 

To say there is an entire world to explore here is cliché, but it is also the truth. My collection of Realms products is small, comparatively speaking, but it is still larger than I can ever hope to use in my lifetime. 

#RPGaDay2025 Day 8 Explore

Fantasy Friday Edition

Exploration is one of the core pillars of fantasy roleplaying.

But what does it mean to explore?

In Dungeons & Dragons, especially old-school editions, exploration often means mapping the dungeon one corridor at a time, or the world one hex at a time. Every turn is a decision, every door a threat, every torch a precious hour of light. There’s danger in the dark, but also treasure, and secrets the surface world forgot. It’s a gritty, tactile kind of exploration, and I love it.

In Pathfinder, exploration becomes more dynamic and often more epic. You’re not just crawling through ruins, you’re mapping uncharted wilderness, navigating complex cultures, and solving arcane mysteries baked into the world’s DNA. There’s a heroic scale to it. You’re not just surviving, you’re discovering your place in a mythic world.

In the Wasted Lands, the world itself is still waking up. You explore not only geography, but myth. You carve stories into the world that future ages will only dimly remember. Here, the ruins aren’t ancient, they’re being made. Exploration becomes a spiritual act. When you cross into unknown territory, you’re not following in footsteps, you’re making them.

Daggerheart invites a more emotional kind of exploration. The stories live just as much in who your character is as in where they go. The haunted forest is scary, sure, but what you fear might not be the wolves in the woods; it’s the memory of why you ran from home. Exploration here isn’t just a map; it’s a mirror. That’s no less heroic, it’s just a different kind of bravery.

Even in cozy fantasy games or weird narrative indies, exploration plays a role. Maybe you’re uncovering your grandmother’s secret recipes in a magical bakery. Maybe you’re exploring forgotten traditions in a village steeped in folklore. Discovery isn’t always tied to danger, but it always brings change.

Because that’s what exploration does in fantasy RPGs:

 It changes things.

You can’t go into the unknown and come back the same. The world shifts.  The character grows.  The player remembers.

Whether you’re following a raven into the deep woods, stepping into a glowing portal, sailing beyond the edge of the map, or just opening a door labeled “Do Not,” you’re exploring.

And that, to me, is the heart of fantasy gaming.

Not killing monsters. Not hoarding gold. But going where you haven’t gone before, and discovering what you didn’t know you were looking for.

So wherever your players are headed tonight, whether it’s a dragon’s lair, a crumbling keep, or a roadside tavern with one too many shadows, remember this:

Every great story starts with someone deciding to go a little further than they should have.

Questions

What. Proud. Lesson.

What lesson made me proud? I think it was back when I was teaching my kids to play. They both started very young and I used it as a means to teach them simple math. I think my oldest was about 3 or so, and when he finally "got it" and was doing all the addition and subtraction in his head, it was an excellent time for both of us.

https://www.autocratik.com/ • https://www.castingshadowsblog.com/

#RPGaDay2025 Day 7 Journey

"Not all journeys begin on roads. Some start on broomsticks, others in dreams, or through a mirror no one else sees."

 - From the Journal of Larina Nix

A few days back, I talked about the Tavern as the iconic adventuring location, maybe as famous as the dungeon itself. But that’s only one, very early stop on the Journey. Capital J.

When I think of the Journey for characters, I can’t help but go full myth-nerd and drift back to Joseph Campbell’s The Hero with a Thousand Faces and the whole Hero’s Journey structure. That moment of Departure, when the character leaves the known world behind and enters the realm of magic, danger, and transformation? That’s the real start of the story. Not the tavern. Not the rumors. Not the first goblin in a dark hallway. But that choice, that first real step.

Now, for most D&D-style characters, that might be heading off with sword and/or spellbook, saying goodbye to the family farm, or signing on for a job in a shady city.

But for witches? It’s a little different.

Their journeys often begin in the unknown. It’s not “go out and find magic.” It’s “magic came calling, and now you’re part of it whether you like it or not.” It starts when the moon speaks. When the cat stares too long. When you dream of fire and wake with cinders in your hair. When you start to understand what the crows are saying.

Larina’s journey didn’t begin on a trail or caravan road. It began the moment she heard the voice of the Goddess, when she could see ghosts, and when she stepped behind her grandmother’s mirror and realized she could see her own reflection walking away.

That moment, the crossing of the first threshold, is crucial. And in gaming terms, it’s one of the most rewarding to roleplay, even if most of the time we skip right past it with a background paragraph.

But what if we didn’t?

What if we slowed down and let that Journey take shape in play? What if we saw the moment a young hedge witch received her first vision, or a would-be warlock stood at the edge of the Standing Stones, whispering a name they don’t remember learning?

Journeys matter. Not just because they get you from Level 1 to 20, but because they reveal who your character is, and what they’re willing to become.

And for witches, that journey never truly ends. It just spirals onward, like a sigil carved in bone, leading deeper into the mystery.

For witches I replace the circle of the Monomyth with the Spiral Dance.  

I'll come back to this more. 

Questions

When. Proud. Adventure.

When was my proudest moment in an adventure? So many, really. When my kids discovered the plot concocted by the demons to kill all the gods of the sun to invade the world. When they killed Strahd. When *I* killed Strahd nearly 30 years prior to that. When running Ghosts of Albion Blight and one group REALLY embraced their roles as the Protectors of Ériu. It's why I keep dong this!

https://www.autocratik.com/ • https://www.castingshadowsblog.com/

Duchess & Candella for Daggerheart

 I hope everyone had a great Gen Con. Sadly, I was not there, but I heard it was fun. I also heard that Daggerheart had sold out of its print run and had no copies left by Saturday. That is pretty cool, really. It's also still the #1 selling PDF on DriveThruRPG, a spot it has owned since its release. 

I was on DriveThruRPG today looking to see if any of the new games I had heard about at Gen Con had been released yet. I didn't find what I was looking for, but I did see something in my Personalized Suggestions; a bunch of new-to-me titles from Art of the Genre (the Folio people) featuring my favorite party girl rogues, Duchess and Candella. Most of these were for the FAST Core RPG System, which I know nearly nothing about. But there are a lot of titles featuring them. 

I remembered I covered a lot of the Folio Black Label books when I did my feature on Duchess and Candella, and there were some new ones (again, new-to-me) that I had not seen. I grabbed some more of the Folio adventures featuring them and one of the FAST Core D\&C books, which I might review later, but I'd like to get the core rules first. 

I do have the core rules for Daggerheart.

While I tend to gravitate towards witches, spellcasters, and the odd paladin type, I do love these two. Again, I imagine them as two party girls who love a good time and don't mind getting into a little bit of trouble if it means they are going to get some gold out of it. Art of the Genre has stats and extensive backgrounds for them both in The Storyteller's Arcana. It works, I can't disagree with them really other than I see them more as thieves and rogues rather than fighter-types. But hey, they have given these characters a lot more thought than I have. Still, for Daggerheart, I think I want to keep them as thief-types. Thankfully, there are two different Rogue "subclasses" I can try, the Nightwalker and the Syndicate.

Duchess

Level 2
Class & Subclass: Rogue (Nightwalker)
Ancestry & Heritage: Highborne Human
Pronouns: She/Her

Agility: 1
Strength: -1
Finesse: 2
Instinct: 0
Presence: 1
Knowledge: 0

Evasion: 12
Armor: 3

HP: 5
Minor Damage: 8 Major Damage: 15
Stress: 6

Hope: 2

Weapons: Longsword, Agility Melee, 1d8+3
Dagger. Finesse, Melee, d8+1 phy

Armor: Leather 6/13 +3

Experience
I will live the life owed to me +2 (when dealing with people of higher social class or money)
Candella is my sister in crime +2 (when dealing with rolls that can aid Candella)
So much gold and it will be mine +2 (when trying to steal or acquire wealth)

Class Features
Cloaked, Sneak Attack, Shadow Stepper, Believable Lie

Candella

Level 2
Class & Subclass: Rogue (Syndicate)
Ancestry & Heritage: Slyborne Human
Pronouns: She/Her

Agility: 2
Strength: 2
Finesse: 2
Instinct: 0
Presence: -1
Knowledge: 0

Evasion: 12
Armor: 3

HP: 5
Minor Damage: 8 Major Damage: 15
Stress: 6

Hope: 2

Weapons: Shortsword, Agility Melee, 1d8+3
Dagger. Finesse, Melee, d8+1 phy
Paired (Tier 1) +2 to primary weapon damage to targets in Melee Range.

Armor: Leather 6/13 +3

Experience
Life is a game, and I plan to cheat +2 (when any rolls are considered cheating)
Duchess is my sister in crime +2 (when dealing with rolls that can aid Duchess)
Gold! Wine! Adventure! +2 (when trying to steal or acquire wealth, or a good time.)

Class Features
Cloaked, Sneak Attack, Well-Connected, Enrapture

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The great thing about Daggerheart is how you can create characters that really support each other and have that baked into the rules and rolls. 

Love how these two came out!