There’s a wide world of RPGs out there. In that world, Dungeons and Dragons represents a small sliver of the gameplay experiences and stories that are possible, but a disproportionately large slice of the games that are actually played. It’s from this juxtaposition that comes the frequent and often irksome question “how do I hack D&D to play [insert genre]?” However, when you mix D&D mechanics with a designer who has actually played other games and given thought to how the mechanics must change, you can get something rather good. Carbon 2185 has taken 5th Edition D&D mechanics, given them a solid restoration to work better in the Cyberpunk genre, and then added some bolt-on systems which take inspiration from the best of sci-fi roleplaying.
Tag Archives: D&D
Unearthing Fighters, Rangers, and Rogues
A fighter whose armor and weapons glow with the power of runic magic, granting the strength of giants. A ranger who can call upon a swarm of spirits to aid them and tear their enemies to shreds. A rogue who is back from the dead but has no idea how they got there – or why. Unearthed Arcana completes the set for its latest wave of character options for 5th Edition Dungeons and Dragons with one each for the fighter, ranger, and rogue. Whether using the strength of titans, swarms of bees, or the knowledge of the dead, let’s see what they have to offer!
Unearthing Sorcerers, Warlocks, Bards, Paladins, Clerics, Druids, and Wizards (Oh My)
We’ve gotten so much Unearthed Arcana content for Dungeons and Dragons 5th Edition lately that, I’ll admit, I had a hard time keeping up! I’ve got a lock on it now, though. First we got a sorcerer with an aberrant mind and a warlock who lurks in the deep. Then we got an Eloquent bard and a Heroic paladin (capitalization deliberate and important). Finally we got a twilight cleric, a wildfire druid, and a name-calling wizard. I think my speculation from the barbarian and the monk is proving true: we only see a swath of content like this when another book is on the horizon. So lets Unearth some Arcana and see what our new varieties of adventurer can do!
Unearthing the Barbarian and Monk
A raging warrior influenced by a realm that abounds with beauty, unpredictable emotion, and rampant magic. A contemplative who focuses their meditations inwards, bringing forth their true self. We’ve been given some new player character options for 5th Edition Dungeons and Dragons in this week’s Unearthed Arcana, and neither one of them is tied as tightly to the Material Plane as your bog standard characters. How do they shape up, and what might their appearance on the playtesting table mean? Let’s find out as I go through feature by feature to examine the Path of the Wild Soul for the Barbarian and the Way of the Astral Self for the Monk!
Acquisitions Incorporated Review
Tired of the same old routine in the dungeon? Sick of fighting giant rats every day for a few measly copper coins? Ready to make a change and chase Opportunity™? Then Acquisitions Incorporated is the perfect fit! After years of adventuring across Faerûn and even the multiverse, our company is now offering franchise opportunities near you. Seize the chance at amazing profit by applying at the Head Office today, because there are always positions open . . . just try not to think about why. Not convinced? Then how about a chapter by chapter review of the Acquisitions Incorporated book for Dungeons and Dragons 5th Edition, brought to you by Wizards of the Coast and Penny Arcade!
Elaydren’s Magewright Primer Review
A halfling darts about the kitchen of a House Ghallanda inn, literally moving in a blur as he serves up dishes at a supernatural pace. An adventurer dons an amulet of true face, and finally sees the person they’ve always felt like in the mirror. A goblin pulls on a pair of gloves and sends lightning crackling into the chests of three muggers who tried to jump her. House Cannith (and the DM’s Guild) is proud to present Elaydren’s Magewright Primer, a comprehensive guide to the magic used in daily life throughout Khorvaire and around the world of Eberron, brought to us by Nausicaä Enriquez!
Bargain Bin Gaming: Knave
It’s that time of year again: Memorial Day has come and gone and school is out, or soon to be. Maybe you spent a bit too much preparing for a party, or have found yourself at loose ends with the changing of the seasons, or need to save up to be able to take that vacation you’re planning. For whatever reason, the idea of dropping a decent chunk of your paycheck on a new sourcebook is…well, not your top priority. Well, fear not, because we at Cannibal Halfling Gaming know what it’s like to be at loose ends. Let’s take a dive back into the vault for a cheaper, but no less entertaining find in a set of mechanics entitled “Knave”, a cheap, short, and easy to understand ruleset that allows GMs and players to convert nearly any OSR, and more importantly, multiple games into a single cohesive system.
The Artificer Returns: The Unearthening
You can’t keep a good Artificer down, especially when there’s Arcana being Unearthed. That’s right, this very day we’ve got a new version of Eberron’s magical mechanical manufacturer for 5th Edition Dungeons and Dragons to check out, including a pair of completely new builds for the class! So prepare your infusions, craft your gear, and get ready to see what new frontiers of magic-as-science are being explored!
The Independents: Snowhaven
“Snowhaven has hosted a theocracy, two civil wars, a magi uprising, been partially burned to the ground, and had one small bout of cannibalism, yet still, she shambles on.” As opening lines to a setting book go, you can do a lot worse. I came across Snowhaven on Kickstarter a while back. The authors described it as “snowpunk”, a new genre they were trying to make stick. The way that the authors described it, they wanted to take the steampunk elements of technology and apply it to a fantasy setting, but also keep the sense of “grim isolation” that winter brings. Rather than having your standard bright, optimistic theme of “gaslamp fantasy”, the people of Snowhaven dwell in a brutally harsh cold water port, filled with intrigue between the noble houses and the Illuminate Church. Technology has not been soaring by leaps and bounds because of a new age of whimsy, discovery and exploration; it has advanced because it is the only way for them to survive (they weren’t kidding about the cannibalism thing).
Naturalist’s Guide to Eberron: Volume 1: Aarakocra to Azer
“Everything has a place in Eberron.” Despite the many unique features of Keith Baker’s D&D setting, this has actually been one of its most common taglines. There are enough mysterious corners of the world, enough factions and forces and peoples, that pretty much anything can find its way into the setting. I’ve embraced that idea myself, to a point: standard evil deities instead become demonic Overlords, strange species pop up in the Eldeen Reaches and Xen’drik and Argonnessen. that sort of thing. But how do you go about literally giving everything a place in Eberron? Well, you might start by reading the Naturalist’s Guide to Eberron: Volume 1: Aarakocra to Azer by Matthew Booth on the DM’s Guild.
Continue reading Naturalist’s Guide to Eberron: Volume 1: Aarakocra to Azer
Cannibal Halfling Gaming 