All posts by Rodney

Hi there, I'm Rodney. Writer, Game Designer, Editor, Kitbasher, Skateboarder, and Ork 'Ed Banga. But Nothing Without Christ!
General

The Skriblin — A Weird D&D Spelljammer Race

Creatures of pure imagination, the skriblin appear as moving illustrations that speak, breathe, and think like normal humanoids. Let’s find out more about this weird D&D Spelljammer race.

Pure Imagination

Skriblin appear magically in densely populated cities. Scholars believe that the skriblin are the incarnation of humanoid creativity; an overflowing of artistic energy made manifest. Although they contain similar levels of arcane and cosmic energy to other humanoids, scholars agree that these energies don’t the skriblin’s existence. Rather, they are elementals of creativity. Although many have tried to harness this creative energy for other purposes, the skriblin and the force that animates them remains as mysterious as ever.

The skriblin themselves have little interest in their source of life, and instead concern themselves with living lives that conform to their core being or essence. Scholars have noted that this odd behavior often correlates to tropes from drama, bardic sagas, and story telling.

Skriblin D&D Race Traits

Your skriblin is a walking, talking drawing. Although no two skriblin look the same, they share the following common features.

Ability Score Increase. One ability score of your choice increases by 2. Another ability score increases by 1.
Ageless. Skriblin enter life fully formed. You do not age, are immune to aging effects, and take no penalty for being old.
Alignment. Most skriblin tend to be chaotic, but there is no hard and fast rule for this diverse race. All skriblin follow their alignment without deviation, only ever changing alignment through magical means afflicted on them.
Size. Most skriblin are Small, while a few are Medium.
Speed. Your base walking speed is 25 feet if you’re Small, or 30 feet if you’re Medium.
Languages. You can speak, read, and write Common and one extra language of your choice. Skriblin usually adopt the language of the societies they live within.
Animata. You contain creative energy that sustains you. While you have no levels of exhaustion, you have advantage on saving throws you make to avoid gaining a level of exhaustion.
Animated Creator. You know the prestidigitation cantrip. Charisma is your spellcasting ability for it.
Trope*. Choose a trope that you most closely align with. You have advantage on skill checks and saving throws where your trope is applicable. For example, if you choose to be “the only sane man“, you might have advantage on Wisdom saving throws to avoid being compelled, and on Wisdom (Insight) checks to avoid being fooled. TvTropes.org has a long list of character tropes worth checking out. The Dungeon Master is the final arbiter of how your trope is used in the game.

* Trope might be the weirdest racial trait I have ever written, and the skriblin is certainly the weirdest race. Have fun, and don’t take it too seriously.

RPG Blog Carnival — Adventures in Space

This month’s first post, and especially the comments, for loads of other articles related to our theme. I’ll also have a roundup article posted, soon, so check back here in a few days.

Want More Weird Races Like the Skriblin?

The Skriblin and their friends will appear in the forthcoming Space Punks book, published by us here at Rising Phoenix Games. Be sure to subscribe to our newsletter to keep up to date about the project.

Psst, we’ll even give you free books for g up!

General

The Eu’karai 5e Race — A Spelljammer Race

Beings of energy and light, the Eu’karai are ionate explorers with a love of puzzles. Let’s take a closer look at the eu’karai 5e race and see what makes them buzz.

Birth of Stars

The eu’karai were created at the dawn of time to contemplate the ebb and flow of cosmic energy. Who their creators were is unknown, but the eu’karai have fulfilled their role dutifully, traveling the stars and recording their findings for future eu’karai to study. Although short-lived, the eu’karai discovered ways to hop from star-birth to star-birth, feeding off the same cosmic energy they were tasked to study.

Eu’karai 5e Race Traits

Your eu’karai character is an elemental being of light, with the following abilities common to all Eu’karai.

Ability Score Increase. Your Intelligence score increases by 2, and your Wisdom score increases by 1.

Age. Eu’karai live intense lives that run their course in a mere 30 years. They mature at the age of 10, then burn out over the course of two decades. Those eu’karai that manage to find a powerful source of energy might extend their lifespan by another twenty years, though very few have managed to reach their sixtieth birthday.

Alignment. Eu’karai boil with ion, and few of them can stand the restrictions of lawful society. They are most often chaotic. Eu’karai tend toward neutral, since they struggle to keep to any one moral path for long.

Size. Eu’karai range from under 5 feet to over 6 feet tall and have a wide range of builds. Your size is Medium.

Speed. Your base walking speed is 30 feet.

Bend Light. You can make short, teleporting jumps through areas of bright light. When you move, you can teleport from one spot in an area of bright light to another spot that is 10 feet away and within the same area of bright light, as a reaction to your movement. There must be enough space at your destination for you to occupy, or this ability fails.

Consume Light. As an action, you can consume the energy of a light source within 15 feet. A bright light source becomes dim light and a dim light source becomes dark. The light returns to normal after 6 rounds. During that time, you gain 1 Hit Point per turn for a dim light source or 3 Hit Points per turn for a bright light source. You gain darkvision while this effect is active. You can use this ability again after a short or long rest.

Languages. You can speak, read, and write Common and Primordial.

Puzzle Student. You have advantage on Intelligence (Investigation) checks made to solve or find clues related to puzzles or riddles.

More Spelljammer Races

If you enjoyed the eu’karai 5e race, then be sure to check out the Star Foxes. All of these and more will be in Space Punks, our forthcoming 5e race supplement.

Here’s a preview of the Space Punks cover:

Want Even More Space RPG Stuff?

We’ve got you! All month long, the Adventures in Space kick-off post, read the comments, and be sure to check back at the end of the month for the roundup.


General

The Gruune — A Spelljammer Race

The Gruune are thickset humanoids that contain the remaining life essence of a decimated plant. Meet them today, as we continue our Spelljammer-inspired magical adventures in space.

Descendants of Shattered Stars

Aeons ago, a distant planet shattered under the might of a cosmic convergence of magical energy. Although that galactic event decimated millions of species, it birthed a unique race of creatures. The gruune were created from the remaining life essence of the planet by an arcane anomaly that bound the life essence to space-bound matter. Since that event, the gruune have appeared on countless planets far from their original home. Despite the great divide in time and distance, all gruune share a collective memory of their home planet.

Now, the gruune are star farers and stewards of life who work tirelessly to protect life from the ravages of magic.

Gruune Traits

Your gruune character is robust and strong. It has the following traits.
Ability Score Increase. Your  Dexterity score increases by 2, and your Strength score increases by 1.
Age. You reach full maturity at the age of 180 years. Gruune have no known upper age limit.
Ageless. You cannot age, even magically, and don’t gain any frailty from old age.
Alignment. Gruune are the gardeners of the galaxy, sowing life wherever they go. Most gruune are good or neutral. Evil gruune wither and die within weeks. Most gruune are chaotic.
Gender. The gruune are genderless but go through seasons of sprouting flowers that are sexed. There is no apparent pattern to these sproutings, and, since the gruune do not reproduce, their use is unknown.
Size. Gruune range from just over 5 feet to well over 6 feet tall, and most are robustly built, with limbs as thick as tree trunks. Your size is Medium.
Speed. Your base walking speed is 30 feet.
Immortality. You are imbued with magical energy that sustains your life force but also alters your susceptibility to restorative magic. After you die, you are resurrected as through a true resurrection spell, for which you do not need to pay the casting cost. Because of this magical immortality, your body cannot be affected by any other type of resurrection effect, including wish. When you die a second time, your body is obliterated and 1 to 3 new gruune are born, somewhere in space.
Languages. You can speak, read, and write Common and Elven.
Sprout. You can, as an 8-hour ritual, sprout a 10-foot square area of plants on a surface. These plants are imbued with your residual life essence and can grow without sustenance, including water or air. After a month, the plant patch reaches 20-feet square, is 5-feet high, and can itself. After another month, the plant patch reaches its maximum size of 40-feet-square, the plants within it are 10 feet high, and it can itself and up to six Medium-sized creatures.
Spell Damage Resistance. When you gain this trait, choose one of the following damage types: acid, cold, fire, lightning, or thunder. You have resistance to damage of this kind from spells. Other sources of this damage affect you normally.

Spelljammer Sale!

All month long, the DM’s Guild is running a sale on Starjammer products. Looking for another Spelljammer race to add to your party, or a space-themed adventure? They’ve got plenty to choose from.

May is All About Adventures in Space!

We’re hosting this month’s RPG Blog Carnival, right here, on Rising Phoenix Games. Be sure to check in there and follow the blog for more content on the theme “adventures in space”. Check back at the end of the month too, because I’ll post a roundup of articles from RPG bloggers across the spheres.

Tips and Tricks

Spelljammer: Adventures in Space

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Space… the final planar frontier. In space, no one can hear you cast fireball. To boldly go where no gnome has gone before. Yes, Spelljammer: Adventures in Space is coming, and we thought we’d cast off, into the big black, and explore some of the possibilities of adventures in space. Three, two, one… teleport!

What is Spelljammer: Adventures in Space

To answer that question, we have a neat little promo video from Dungeons & Dragons’ own Trystan Falcone and Chris Perkins. But first, here’s the announcement trailer:

Got that? It’s basically Guardians of the Galaxy, with magic and ships instead of lasers and starships. Spelljammer is the name of one such ship, not some kind of arcane hacker (which would be an awesome character class, by the way).

Speaking of ships, Undersea campaign, though I’m not so sure I’d want to get a bunch of asteroid minis. Maybe X-Wing players will love them?

Your Adventures in Space

Space is fascinating, and, when you add a touch of magic, anything is possible. Let’s get you ready for your own magical adventures in space — in the world of Spelljammer, Starfinder, or any other system or campaign setting.

All through May we’ll be hosting the RPG Blog Carnival with the theme “Magic Adventures in Space”. RPG bloggers from across the realms will bring ideas, stories, experiences, and mechanics, then post them in the comments below. At the end of the month, I’ll do a roundup of the articles, so you’ll have a meteor storm of ideas for when Spelljammer finally… ahem… launches.

Here are some ideas of things we might see, or you can use them to inspire your own homebrew campaign:

  1. Magic Mechs. The world can never have enough clockwork creatures, especially ridable ones.
  2. Space Pirates. Guardians of the Galaxy but with magic. They’re outlaws who do good, or maybe they’re mercenaries just out to make a few space credits to repair their ship. These NPCs (or pregenerated characters) could be valuable allies or irritating foes.
  3. Space Faring Ships. We’ve already got rules for ship movement and combat, but we could always use more unique vessels. How about The Flying Duchman in space, a space snail with a helm built into its shell, 6-man boarding torpedoes for breaching ships,  an ooze space vessel made of more gooey ooze, or a sentient clockwork ship?
  4. Sci-Fantasy Weapons. Stun guns, laser swords, cannons that fire miniature black holes, EMP magic that stuns clockwork creatures… Sci-Fi is full of unique equipment that could get a fresh take if magic replaced science.
  5. New Races and Monsters. I’m hoping we’ll see some unique creations, or some re-imaginings of creatures we know and love from other Sci-Fi properties. A playable Genestealer, anyone?

Be sure to check back here, throughout May, to see what new content has been posted, in the comments.

Star Foxes – New Spelljammer Race

Star Foxes are lithe creatures with incredible cunning. They are an opportunistic race that has crossed the stars in search of wealth and personal glory. They are expert manipulators and slippery adversaries.

Star Fox Traits

Your star fox character is nimble and cunning, yet frail.

Ability Score Increase. Your Dexterity score increases by 2 and your Wisdom and Charisma score increases by 1.

Ability Score Penalty. Your Constitution score decreases by 2.

Age. Star Foxes mature a few years before humans. They live to about 80 years of age.

Alignment. Most star foxes are neutral, though their motivation to survive and thrive at all costs often drives them towards evil and chaos.

Size. Star foxes are smaller than gnomes, seldom topping 4 feet. They average around 40 pounds. Your size is Small.

Speed. Your base walking speed is 30 feet.

Darkvision. Your race has voyaged across the stars and through the darkness of space, and as such you have superior vision in dark and dim conditions. You can see in dim light within 60 feet of you as if it were bright light, and in darkness as if it were dim light. You can’t discern color in darkness, only shades of gray.

Cowering Survivalist. You can take the Dodge action as a reaction to a melee attack from a creature you can see, but you have disadvantage on your own melee attacks until the end of your next turn when you do so.

Deep Cunning. You can add your Wisdom bonus to Charisma checks you make to influence other humanoids. You don’t gain this bonus if the creature is hostile towards you.

Safe in Shadow. You have advantage on Stealth checks. You lose this ability in areas of bright light unless you have advantage from some other trait, feature, or effect.

More Starjammer Inspiration

Need even more Starjammer in your life? DriveThru RPG has a wealth of digital and print-on-demand Starjammer books, mostly from Dungeons & Dragons 2e.

Till next time, see you planetside!


General

Grimmer, Darker D&D Classes — The Witch

Hail, Adventurer!

Quick, roll for initiative!
Here’s what we’ve been up to in the past few months.

Get Dark with The Grimdark Pamphlet

The Grimdark Pamphlet is growing bigger every month. Our last updates included the penitent and black rider classes, as well as a primer on the campaign world of Azuria, the Tarnished Jewel. , if you buy the book you’ll get updates whenever we release new grimdark content for D&D.

We’re currently working on the witch class, an alternate class for the warlock. What’s the difference? The warlock relies heavily on their pact with an otherworldly being, but the witch makes no such alliances. Rather, the witch dabbles with occult truths drawn from a wide number of otherworldly patrons and ed on through their coven. The witch will include special rules for magic brooms and cauldrons, which will all be included in The Grimdark Pamphlet when we release the next update.

Painting the Pile!

Your pile of shame — all those unpainted minis — shouldn’t keep you down. We’ve been working on new paint schemes to help you paint more Space Marines and Genestealers, quickly and with a great end result. These same schemes can be applied to many fantasy figures too, so they’re worth learning, no matter what you paint or play. You can check out previews of what I’ve done on CoolMiniOrNot, and check out all existing Mini Monday posts, on the blog.

Three Stone Stories

I know many of you are waiting on news about Three Stone Stories, our unique solo roleplaying system. The game has come out of playtesting and editing finished this week, so next up is layout. There’s a good chance that we’ll take the book to Kickstarter then, because a simple truth about RPG publishing is that you have to have a strong launch. We’ll still send out copies of the game to newsletter subscribers, as promised.

Till Next Time, Be The Hero


Tips and Tricks

The Essence of Grimdark

The definition of a grimdark setting might vary wildly depending on who you ask, and certainly, the experts don’t always agree. For example, some will say grimdark fantasy lacks emotional depth, while others will say it is deeply nuanced in that respect. While definitions don’t always hold up perfectly to every example, having an idea of the common elements is useful. It will help you speak to your players, tweak your ideas, and ultimately create your own incarnation of grimdark at the table.

A Hopeless World

Grimdark settings take a pessimistic and often fatalistic world view that contrasts with the sometimes optimistic, happily-ever-after world view of other fantasy settings. The land is heading towards unavoidable disaster, war, or ultimate destruction. Perhaps the planet has gone through terrible trials already, and the survivors are clinging to what little they have, waiting for the end. If there is any hope left, it rests in the corruptible strength of people.

Corruptible Humanity

Magic may be less accessible to the everyday man in a grimdark setting, is wild and untameable, or is evil and corrupting. A man must therefore rely on his own hands, and he is doomed to fail often. So tested, his flaws are shown again and again. Every trial will try to distract him from his path, and he will encounter many who have fallen and been corrupted and wish to drag him down. This corruptibility is often based on a historical precedent.

Historical Precedent

Grimdark settings often borrow from history more closely than other fantasy settings. Kings that were the heroes of the people turn into violent despots, trusted advisors turn out to be corrupt spies—history is full of examples of such men. We can draw much inspiration from historical figures, as well as the ebb and flow of the world through time. Difficulty and consequences are ever-present, and hardship is to be expected. The rarity of resources, disease, drought, and our mortality and corruptibility are all themes that might appear in any fantasy, but they are brought to the forefront in grimdark settings. Exploring life’s trials is not a cynically minded endeavor, they highlight the morality present in a broken world.

Morality in a Broken World

Saying that grimdark settings are universally immoral misses an important point. Morality, and the sacrifices and difficulties we have in following a moral com, are brought under the microscope when contrasted with a broken world. Our own world is broken, and every religion and philosophy provides their own set of guidelines to navigate this brokenness. Moral choices are tough and doing the right thing requires sacrifice. While some characters might punch and slash their way through the trials they face, there are violent consequences for these actions.

Violent Consequences

Characters in a grimdark setting might be involved in plots, tempted by demons, dragged to the edge of madness, succumb to the lure of chaos, or flirt with dangerous entities, yet a violent end is never far away. As raw emotion and hatred boil over into violence, we see the most graphic and poignant example of our fallen world. Death is the ultimate result of our brokenness, and it is often met at the point of a blade when life is cheap. That said, it is possible to play out long, entertaining campaigns without a weapon drawn, but the threat of violence and death is usually ever-present.

What makes grimdark for you? Did we miss anything? Do you disagree? Let us know in the comments below.

 


General

Dr Fate #8 (1988) — When Comics Almost Hook You

DC’s Dr Fate #8 is next on our radar for some raw reviewing. And oh, what a ride. A lot like the taxi ride between airports, in a foreign country. Confusing, frustrating, and enticing.



Here’s the gist of these reviews: I grab a random comic, give it a read, then tell you about it. So let’s do it. Grab onto something!

The Good

Esoteric adventures, body possession, undead beings, the cosmic balance in the… erm… balance, and a hero trying to learn to control her powers. These are some of the reasons why I love comics, and they’re all here.

The Bad

Comic creators have learned that their readers have very short attention spans, and often a reader is jumping into a comic series after the beginning. None of those usual ploys they use to keep readers in the loop are evident here, so I was confused. There’s so much going on here that you feel like it’s all-important, as if you’re a five-year-old listening to an astronaut explain the physics of rockets.

And Now, an Ad Break

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The Meh

The art and colour work isn’t noteworthy, but that cover, wow. Dr. Fate delivers heaps of emotion in this cover, and it got me interested in the cover’s series as a whole. Some very unique pieces, for sure, but that’s not enough to get me to buy into this series.

In the end, I know there’s something cool going on here, but I’m not going to put effort into finding it, because there’s just so much more to read. If you are a Dr Fate fan, though, please sound off in the comments. I’d love to hear your thought’s on the series.

Overall, 3 out of 5 Chibi-Cthulhu!

 

Uncategorized

Fun for One RPG Blog Carnival Roundup

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Trumpets. Red carpets. Fireworks. It’s an auspicious occasion! Not only is it Rising Phoenix Games’ birthday (yay!), but it’s also time for the December RPG Blog Carnival roundup, just as we ring in the new year! Here’s a look back at December 2021, where our topic was “Fun for One”.

Gaming is Good for your Brain

Kim Frandsen of no stranger to regular readers, provided insights into how game designers gain inspiration from their experiences, including their experiences of other people. This includes gaming, which he says is good for you — and that’s something we certainly agree with.

Read the full article on Beyond the Horizon

The GM is the Real Star of the Show

Antony Brotherton of Dragons Keep Roleplay Club talked about that one player we can’t do without, the GM. Antony offers five great tips for new GMs, but experienced GMs will surely be taking notes and nodding their heads too.

Read the full article on Dragons Keep Roleplay Club

DriveThruRPG.com

So You Want to Solo Pathfinder 2e?

Here at Rising Phoenix Games we looked at getting into solo games of Pathfinder Second Edition. I’m sure it’s a topic we’ll be revisiting throughout 2022 and beyond.

Read the full article, right here

Fun for One — Final Thoughts

Tabletop roleplaying games are a unique beast, and Game Masters, players, and RPG designers are faced with many unique challenges in their quest to deliver the most entertaining and meaningful gaming experience possible. The key though is that everyone adds their bit to the mix, so the whole is always better than its parts. And, when everything comes together, it’s an amazing experience that is unique to tabletop roleplaying.

So here’s to 2022 and all the adventures we’ll have, the hardships we’ll overcome, and the tales we’ll have to tell.

Game on!


Uncategorized

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from Rising Phoenix Games!

Blackmore’s Night is one of our favorite bands, and their cover of ‘Here We Come a Caroling’ couldn’t be closer to our wishes for you and your family this season. Please, enjoy their cover, below.

God bless!
Rodney and the Rising Phoenix Games Team

 


General

Let’s Go Solo with Pathfinder 2e — A Quickstart

There are loads of reasons to play RPGs alone, from avoiding the plague to testing out homebrew rules, or just for the fun of focusing on a single hero’s story. These days, there’s a huge number of tools and adventures for the solo player. We’re going to look at some of the intricacies of roleplaying solo with Pathfinder 2e.

December is Fun for One!

No, I’m not being a Grinch. I mean that the RPG Blog Carnival is parked here this month, and host page, and be sure to check the comments for more posts on the topic. You can even add your own, so why not us?

Now, back to going solo with Pathfinder 2e.

The Core Appeal of Solo Play

Playing a game alone is usually fun for very different reasons that make a group game fun.

Solo games can present a puzzle for you, and you alone, to solve. In this sense, every combat encounter becomes a puzzle: how do I defeat the enemy without losing too many resources (Hit Points are one resource, after all).

Solo TTRPGs are very introspective, and you can enjoy the time alone with the character and their story in a uniquely intimate way. I love writing stories for exactly the same reason, and it’s probably why solo adventures intrigue me.

You might enjoy your solo experiences in other ways too, and here’s the point: understand that solo play is fun for a different reason and play your game to maximize that experience.

Solo Pathfinder 2e Encounters

Let’s take encounters and think about them as puzzles some more. How do we get more of a tactical challenge from encounters, if we’re a solo player?

XP Budget and Character Adjustment

In a solo game, the XP Budget is the Character Adjustment. See XP Budget, in the Game Mastering chapter of the Pathfinder Second Edition Core Rulebook. In other words:

XP Budget for Solo Play
Trivial – 10 XP or less
Low – 15 XP
Moderate – 20 XP
Severe – 30 XP
Extreme – 40 XP

This XP Budget limits what you can throw at your hero, especially if your hero is 1st or 2nd level. You might consider playing a 3rd level character right out the gate to make up for this. Otherwise, you’ll be serving up Moderate to Extreme encounters until you gain a level.

Random Monsters and Generated Dungeons

Completely random tables aren’t going to provide good synergies for building meaningful encounters. Instead, take a look at the maps, map tiles, and monster miniatures you have. What interesting combinations can you build from those?

I’ve already spoken here about building dungeons as a way to invent encounters,  where you put yourself in the role of Dungeon Keeper, using tiles and dungeon scenery as a toy to inspire you.

If you still want to randomize parts of the encounter, then create short, D4 or D6-based lists that let you swap out a few elements of terrain or change up some of the monsters in the encounter. You might have a table for environmental factors, like the level of lightning and if the ground is slippery or not.

Another option is to build decks of dungeon cards and monster cards that you can draw. Magic: The Gathering commons are great for this, if you don’t mind modifying them.

Help and Healing

Before you jump into playing the game, decide how deadly you want your game to be. Do you need to keep an NPC handy to cast stabilize, or will you have a magical item that casts raise dead on you whenever you die, up to three times? Will monsters kill your hero if you’re defeated, or will they attempt to heal your hero and keep you as their captive?

 

DriveThruRPG.com