"Why is the city so smoky, Daddy?" "Because for several years in the late '80s & early '90s TSR's editors thought it would be cool & evocative of ye olde fantasy worlde to print a blotchy orange/brown parchment pattern across the pages of many D&D books, with apparently no thought given to how difficult it would be for many people to read the text and images with the resulting murky low contrast." (Valerie Valusek -- who illustrated with clean clear lines, it's not her fault, AD&D Forgotten Realms supplement FR6: Dreams of the Red Wizards by Steve Perrin, TSR, 1988)
So excited to finally share my new DND character, Destiny! She may look like a tiefling, but she's actually an aasimar. She's an Oath of Devotion Paladin; a Thayan knight in service to her lich father and deeply protective of her charges.
There's much more to say about her, I've been obsessed, but I can't accidentally spoil my group so that'll be it for now!
Today I watched Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves, and this
reminder me of something from Star Trek: Picard:
So while we wait for the revelation on what's up with Jack Crusher, here's one more unhinged crack theory about what's on the other side of the door :D
My buddy @celestialbeautycosplay went to a promotional showing of Honor Among thieves and every member of their group got a cloth map of Faerun and I got one of the spares!
I don't mind the artistic license in the map as it compares to the 5e map shown in the books or the older ones from previous editions.
What I do mind is that it cuts off RIGHT BEFORE THAY!
Here's the 3e map for reference.
I've avoided most things about the movie but the trailer makes it clear that the RED WIZARDS have a rather big part in the story. Do they spend the whole film just referring to them by color and never mentioning where they're from?
There's a number of places the movie takes place and I can imagine that if you
The whole thing could've been shifted and cut off TETHYR instead, or maybe put TURMISH on a diet and squinch the whole thing a bit horizontally.
I'll be SYMBUL'S to blame for this. Ohhh, "No need to sail further than the Yuirwood dearies! Nothing but sahaguan and slaad in the Alamber reach, best to put in at Aglarond!"
Strixhaven Faculty Handbook II: The Return of the Strixhaven Faculty
Wait, that would be a terrible subtitle for the supplement. How about Multiversal Exchange Program?
Last year, Tom wrote a truly ginormous Strixhaven supplement for GM's Guild called Strixhaven Faculty Handbook. It's a five-star gold bestseller, so I'm not just bragging on my husband when I say it's great (although he's pretty easy to brag on).
But wait! What if it wasn't ginormous ENOUGH? Then Volume 2 is here for you!
Do you want to bring Strixhaven into Ravenloft by turning it into the University of Il Aluk? (You know we do...) How about turning it into an Ender's Game-style military academy? Do you want to run it as a villain campaign set in Dweomercore or Thay? How about a level 1-3 prelude before any of the published adventures? Tom's got you covered.
(And, pssst...if you join our Patreon, you get access to the free link!)
Okay, here's Tom's far more professional-sounding description.
Part A: Alternate Strixhavens adapts the Strixhaven setting and campaign for different sub genres of school story. Run Strixhaven as a High School story, a Military School story, a Sports School story (with expanded rules for Mage Tower), and a Mystery School story. It includes a revised version of the Strixhaven campaign and setting for each of those sub-genres (“Strixhaven High”, Fort Strixhaven Academy”, etc).
Part B: Alternate Schools adapts the Strixhaven rules, NPCs, and campaign events for other planes of the D&D Multiverse. Run Strixhaven in Ravenloft, Eberron, Krynn, Waterdeep, Baldur’s Gate, among the Arcane Brotherhood, and in the cutthroat world of the Red Wizards of Thay. It also includes suggestions for adapting the Strixhaven campaign as a shortened, level 4 prologue Adventure to the published campaigns featuring those cities. Run a Red Wizard academy as a prologue to Tomb of Annihilation, run the Arcane Brotherhood as a prologue to Rime of the Frostmaiden.
Run a Waterdeep magical school as a prologue to Dragon Heist or Dungeon of the Mad Mage. Run a Baldur’s Gate magical school as a prologue to Descent into Avernus and a Tower of High Sorcery prologue to Shadow of the Dragon Queen.
Reference sheet for my newest DnD character, Than-Rai. He’s a Thayan of Rashemani extraction. He cannot remember anything about his past- he woke up in Luskan with nothing but his clothes, weapons, and a note from a Red Wizard thanking him for a job he had done for her. Despite his amnesia, however, he’s strangely attached to his dirk. Perhaps it’s a family heirloom.
The energy of mindfulness contains the energy of concentration as well as the energy of insight. Concentration helps you focus on just one thing. With concentration, the energy of looking becomes more powerful. Because of that, it can make a breakthrough that is insight. Insight always has the power of liberating you. If mindfulness is there, and you know how to keep mindfulness alive, concentration will be there, too. And if you know how to keep concentration alive, insight will come also. So mindfulness recognizes, embraces, and relieves. Mindfulness helps us look deeply in order to gain insight. Insight is the liberating factor. It is what frees us and allows transformation to happen.
This is Destiny's father, the shadow in her mind, the man she swore her oaths to, a Zulkir of Thay and a lich. Hlarkus Baltreyo. He expects a lot out of his daughter, and he does not suffer disappointment lightly. They have a great relationship :)
Again, a lot more to say, but I don't want to spoil my fellow players!