Adamus Drake DM - Home of the DM's Den, GM's Corner, and Gray Owls
  • The Nexus
  • GM's Corner
    • Voidspeaker
  • DM Podcast
  • Knight Owls
    • The Gray Owls Initiative (21+) >
      • Gray Races
      • Gray Classes
    • KO Event Dates - Descriptions
    • Knight Owls Armory >
      • Protection
      • Potions, Scrolls, and Consumables
      • Weaponry
      • Rings and Wares
      • Adventurer Essentials
      • Custom Mixes and Crafting Rules
    • Owls History
    • Assets
  • Dungeons and Dragons
    • Character Creation - PF
    • Character Creation - D&D >
      • FEATS
      • PRESTIGE CLASSES
    • Magic Items
    • Spell Compendium - D&D 5e >
      • Custom Crafted
      • Expanded Invocations List
  • Amplify Your Signal

Moonriver #54 - Viking Blod

5/19/2022

0 Comments

 
This month I'll share with you something I always keep in stock for myself.

As you get into this hobby, you'll undoubtedly try a cornucopia of unanticipated flavors.  Some will rest better than others, populating your ever-expanding web of molecular gastronomy and poor life decisions.

From these experiences, we settle on a few simple truths:

1. Campari is a waste of time and ruins almost every drink it's used in, even the ones where it's supposed to be the star.  Like a drunk Aunt that just can't seem to get past the idea that men can paint their nails and still bench 250.
2. Bad Irish Whiskey is basically dirty water.
3. People have too many opinions about wine, and sommeliers are guessers with better guesses than you.
4. Stella Rosa may be carbonated, but it's tastier and cheaper than your 20-year old vintage mahogany aged piss.
5. Midori ruined my childhood.
6. Fireball is better than you remember.
7. Disaronno is the king's amaretto.
8. Jose Cuervo is garbage, liquid and business.
9. The existential dilemma of watching your hair fall out while every other member of your family rocks a full fop is a fate worse than death.
10. Viking Blod is a damn fine mead.
Picture
For those uninitiated, Mead is an ancient drink derived from blending raw honey and water and yeast.  Sometimes you warm the water and mix in the honey, sometimes you do it with room temp water and honey and a jug and a little dance for arm day, but the mixing is common.  The mixture is called a Must, and additional ingredients have been introduced over the ages.  Energizers and yeast nutrients, cinnamon sticks and diced grapes, dried orange peels and black tea.  
  Those who follow me in other venues know my own process in this old world, and I can tell you that this can be both a precise art and a crime of passion; my tastiest recipes and most refined flavors came from the most basic places - the more you add to these ideas, the more opportunity for it all to go horribly wrong.  1/2 a pound too much honey, one too many cinnamon sticks, a must without diced grapes, or a bag of the maligned Mangrove Mead yeast, and the only thing to possibly save this honey wine is a cool, dry dungeon and TIME.

My Standard

Viking Blod is everything I want out of a mead.
  It is warm in color and palette, and you can taste the fine honey notes.  They percolate at the beginning, middle, and end, and there is a subtle "wine" taste.  That latter normally wouldn't be my jam, but everything else is so good that I don't care.  In fact, after a glass or two, I don't care about much.
  This stuff is strong.  Clocking in at a whopping 19% (38 proof) per glass...  This isn't your momma's wine.  I appreciate a concentrated burst of efficiency.  If I want a tasty buzz while I sip, and I don't want to down a bunch of hard stuff, I can trust that a full wine glass of this and I'll be set.  Two in and I'm happily done; warm and tingly on the couch laughing at dumb anime and catching only snippets of Geralt's lines (god bless you, Henry Cavill).  Replace your dessert with this and you'll be dandy.
  If you're looking for this bottle of concentrated hopes and dreams, you can find it at more and more local wineries and liquor stores, and it ain't even that expensive!  


...that's it.  It's good.  Good day.
-Adamus
0 Comments

Moonriver #53 - Abbey and Adrienne in Acapulco

4/21/2022

0 Comments

 

Abbey Cocktail

The abbey is a gin and juice vehicle, and you'll encounter many variations throughout your life.  Some splash in some sweet vermouth, others an ounce of citrus vodka, and still others a plethora of strange bitters.  The additions are minute, though, so as never to detract from the original orange identity.

RECIPE
​1.5 oz Gin (I recommend Tanqueray if you've got it lying around)
3/4 oz Orange Juice
1-2 dashes of Orange Bitters


TASTING NOTES
+ Gin has always been a match for juice.  Its citrus back-burn carries the sweet of the orange juice.
+ And just in case the orange juice hanging out in your fridge is the other side of decent, the bitters will breathe new life into the flavor palette.

Adrienne's Dream

This one's weird.  Please continue.

RECIPE
2 oz Brandy
1/2 oz Peppermint Schnapps
1/2 oz White Creme de Cacao
1/2 oz Lemon Juice
1/2 tsp. sugar
1 oz Club Soda


TASTING NOTES
+ This is a strange soda.
+ Mint and chocolate always go well together...
+ ...but the Brandy is a curious goose.
+ Lemon and Sugar go well with soda, producing a nearly Sprite sensation.
+ Does it all work together?  Uncertain.  Carbonation can sometimes serve as a great equalizer in this instance.  
+ The mini cocktail of Peppermint-Cacao-Lemon-Sugar is great in the soda, and might be fine on its own.
+ Brandy *might* pull you into a trans-dimensional wormhole.  Mint brandy might ground you in reality better.

Acapulco

The Acapulco is definitively an island drink.  Garnished with mint leaves and powered by rum, there's a sophistication to the addition of egg white, but no necessity.  Considering the use of triple sec, this can be pretty low-brow if you feel like it.

RECIPE
1 3/4 oz Rum
1/4 oz Triple Sec
1 egg white
1/2 oz Lime Juice
1/4 tsp. sugar
2-3 mint leaves
*Mix all but the mint leaves into a shaker, shake like hell, strain over ice in a glass.  Stuff in the mint leaves after the fact, and sip on the beachside of Glaz Dukot, the perfect cocktail to view the End of the Age.


TASTING NOTES
+ I have thoughts.
+ Egg White is mainly used to manifest froth in a drink, and though this works, I'm not sure I like it yet.
+ Triple Sec is fine, but I actually recommend Dry Curacao instead.
+ If you feel so inclined, swap out the sugar for a splash of Simple Syrup or Orgeat, and I think that will manifest something a little more special with the mint.
+ Lime works.  Don't use Lemon - that would be bad.  The Lime and sugar with the shake makes this *almost* a soda.


So as you take in the sights and sounds of a resurrected cthulhu kraken wreaking havoc across the ocean styx, I hope you can, at the very least, get a little turnt on the way to oblivion.  
Drink up, me hearties.
-Adamus
0 Comments

Monster Of The Week: Pseudodragon

3/18/2022

0 Comments

 
Went fought the drudgentree,
Found the sight bequeath to thee,
And discovered here, a chosen three,
Beneath the hallowed wood.

Curled in twain,
A thoughtful mane,
Sleeping, the book his thane,
I reached for the spine.

And there it was,
The subtle cost, very nearly a finger lost,
As the little drak nipped here and there,
Yipping as a small pup.

I rested my arm upon the book,
The drak curling into the nook,
Between the plates and mail,
I have inherited a new friend, 
Do not fail.

            -- Sir Horace Flagstone, of Leylocke
Picture

Not Your Average Dragon

Pseudodragons dwell in the quiet corners of the fantasy realm.  Adventurers can stumble upon them in old libraries, nestled in the dark nooks behind dusty tomes.  Others will happen upon them sleeping in the hollow woods of a dense forest, curled around their subtle hoard of acorns and berries.  
  With sharp teeth, shiny scales, and a vicious hooked stinger for a tail, these tiny dragons look almost menacing while asleep, but once those eyes open, they are immediately playful.  If attacked, that stinger will be put to good use, rendering other beasts and aberrants catatonic for a few hours.  Though sometimes mischievous, a pseudodragon is not a social creature; they tend to keep to themselves and whatever makeshift hoard they have been gathering.  Magic users tend to seek pseudodragons as familiars, as their natural magical resistances and superior senses make them awesome companions.  But a dragon is still a dragon, and these little guys are no exception.  Mistreat or abuse your familiar, and they're out, severing whatever connection you thought you built.  They will not tolerate ill treatment.
  Though they cannot speak, pseudodragons understand both Common and Draconic, and may learn other languages as well.  They communicate through limited telepathy, granting simple ideas like hunger, curiosity, or perhaps affection.  They will also utilize common animal noises to indicate these simple responses; a purr for pleasure, a hiss for surprise or alarm, chirping to indicate desire, or a growl to communicate anger.  These noises and its limited telepathic imagery akins them to many as fantasy cats - which is, if you think about it, a pretty accurate analog.

By The Numbers

Seems weird to analyze these little dudes and dudettes by their stats - they're quite killable by just about anyone.
  Rocking a level 1 wizard's armor class and just as many hit points, they're not really meant for a frontline assault.  They have the rare feature of Magic Resistance, though, so saving throws are in their favor, but with such a low hit point count, anything that deals half damage might still fell them (bummer); difficult to charm, though!  Plus, their Sting attack can render an opponent poisoned if their Constitution is garbage.  Nothing to sneeze about (no, seriously, don't sneeze, it'll kill them).
 Out of combat, however, they're extremely useful.  Their telepathy reaches up to 100 feet, so they're excellent scouts and their keen senses make them ideal familiars.  Darkvision and blindsight don't hurt either.
  As a legit Familiar, Pseudodragons can communicate their senses up to a mile away from their companion, and they can share that sweet sweet Magic Resistance while they're hanging out.  The only downside to a Pseudodragon as a familiar is that if they can end that service whenever they like, and for whatever reason.  Moral of the story: treat your Pseudodragon well, otherwise they might not have your back when you need it.

Pseudodragons In My Worlds

These little buddies are so intrinsically in tune with the magical world that I have taken the liberty to codify a few with magical persuasions of their own.  Sure, you'll have the standard pseudodragon flapping around your nooks and crannies and old libraries, but if you dig deep enough and scour long enough, you'll undoubtedly run into one of these variants.
  Illusory - Pseudodragons don't have a specific language, instead communicating telepathically simple ideas.  Those that are steeped in illusion magic has found a way to interpret the innate basics of their school to help communicate better, manifesting in a sort of "thought bubble" above their heads communicating more intricate picturesque ideas.  I just love the idea of a pseudodragon with an ellipsis over its head as it ponders, and then watching it blip back and forth between steak and its studies; the ultimate SQUIRREL moment.  :)
  Evocata - a little friend who spends a lot of time around battle mages and explosives can evolve into a combustion dragon.  Highly emotional, passionate, and excitable, an Evocata will manifest its core magic in explosive bouts.  Get too excited?  Fireball.  Or Fog Cloud.  Or Plant Growth.  Get too sad?  Cast Darkness.  Get protective of their master, their binky, or their new bestest friend that they've known for five minutes?  Ray Of Frost.  Or Finger Of Death.  You know, TOTALLY NORMAL reactions.
  The list continues, and I have a feeling the more I play with this concept, the more hilarious it will become.  Does a Cleric use her Pseudodragon as her own personal lie detector because it's infused with Divination magic?  Does a diplomat use his to win over a crowd because he steeps in Enchantment?  The possibilities abound!  
(and now my players know...good luck)

See you at the table.
​-Adamus
  
0 Comments

Moonriver #52 - Burnt Bless and Bane

3/17/2022

0 Comments

 
This month we take a look at three shots I've drafted and adjusted several times over and are always hits at the table.

Burnt Honey (shot)

1/2 oz Wild Moon Birch Liqueur
1/2 oz Honey Liqueur
1/2 oz Jack Fire


TASTING NOTES
+ Big hit of gentle cinnamon and honey.
+ Slight burn at the back.
+ Honey notes continue to punctuate the taste long after the burn fades.

Bless (shot)

1/2 oz Dr. McGillicuddy's Apple Pie liqueur
1/2 oz Wild Turkey American Honey
1/2 oz Ginger Ale


TASTING NOTES
+ Bright and refreshing.
+ Apple Pie is often a win.

Bane (shot)

1/2 oz Johnnie Walker - Song Of Fire Scotch Whiskey
1/2 oz Raspberry Liqueur
1/2 oz Lemon Juice


TASTING NOTES
+ Song of Fire is a bit more burnt than other scotches.
+ Raspberry smoothes this out, though.
+ ...and then the Lemon is straight up a slap in the face...like a Bane on your senses.
+ Luckily...the lemon is over quickly.


So get your dice out and prepare for an onslaught.
-Adamus
0 Comments

Moonriver #51 - Longknife

2/17/2022

0 Comments

 
Let's get right into it.  Three recipes discovered from the archives, plus my take on it.  Use these simple recipes to warm your soul and keep the liquor cabinet well stocked.

Jack Knife (shot)

3/4 oz Jack Daniel's Whiskey 
3/4 oz Bailey's Irish Cream


TASTING NOTES
+ Easy match.
+ Warm, creamy, slight burn.  Good stuff.

Warm Woolly Sheep (shooter)

1.5 oz Scotch Whiskey
1.5 oz Drambuie
Fill the glass with warm milk (approx. 2-3 oz)
TASTING NOTES
​+ A throwback to english teas and many a nightcap, the warm milk elevates the dram well.
+ Scotch and Dram always go well together.

Scottish Jersey (drink)

1.5 oz Dewer's Scotch Whiskey
Pour into some fresh hot chocolate
TASTING NOTES
+ Not like it's hard to make hot chocolate boozy.  This is good.  That is all.

Den Original - The Longknife (shot+)

My take on the Jack Knife doesn't add much, but what it adds makes it something just for me.
1/2 oz Jack Honey
1/2 oz Bailey's
1/2 oz Wild Turkey American Honey liqueur
​1/4 oz Drambuie


TASTING NOTES
​+ I like my whiskey with honey, so the double tap of Jack and Wild mixes well.
+ Bailey's is always a win.
+ The Drambuie just smoothes it all out.


Shoot well.  Never straight.
-Adamus
0 Comments

Re-Balancing Acts: 3 Character/NPC Studies

2/5/2022

0 Comments

 
Picture
I've been running campaigns long enough that I've stacked up NPCs like Pokemon cards, ready to unleash them onto unsuspecting players.  Sometimes they work wonders, other times they suck wind through a straw.  Let's take a look at a few and see what I could have done better.  
Picture

Jedrek Remo - Blackweave Monk
Gray Owls, Book 1 - 6th Age

Core Concept: Jedrek is a one-man army.  Built by a broken monastery as a final solution, a Blackweave monk wields the power of the broken weave.  Using his skin as parchment, a Blackweave covers himself in arcane runes and tattoos, each connected to an ancient power.  By engaging a tattoo, he can cast the spell that was inscribed upon him, wielding the cosmic powers of the lost tribes of wizards.  But once the tattoo was spent, the ink burns off of him, lost forever.
  A Blackweave can add permanent augmentations to his body by inscribing runes upon the skin, and burning them over 100 days.  These marks become infused scar tissue, sewn with residual power.  One can use this technique to add extra ways to manipulate their Ki, make their bodies more formidable, or make their minds sharper.
Version 1.0: A Way Of The Long Death Monk at Level 17, with a Level 14 Gunslinger as backup VS a party of five level 10 adventurers.  Low Con saves and lucky rolls on my end put the melee friends on the stun train pretty fast, but things got pretty close.  A Tattoo of Contingency - Revivify was placed on him as a last resort by his Compendium (the order branch), which saved his skin.  Using Step Of The Wind, he escaped, healed, and returned for his quarry, killing a PC and taking the body. 
  Notes: It was a tough encounter and a decent field test for the build, but he didn't use a lot of his tattoos.  As it stood, his action economy required use of his Bonus Action to engage a tattoo.
Version 1.5: The players, now at full force: 10 characters at Level 13 VS 1 Level 18 Long Death Monk.  Taking no chances, the resident pyro cast instead Telekinesis, holding Jedrek aloft and restraining him.  As Telekinesis is a contest of checks, not saves, Jedrek's Diamond Soul (proficiency in all Saving Throws) doesn't engage.  Good job party!  However, because of one small wording technicality in Jedrek's build language...he wasn't entirely shut down.  He still had access to ALL of his Weave, so every round he'd struggle against the Telekinesis (fail), then spend a Bonus Action to engage a spell that was laced onto him.  It was a "chip damage" fight; still interesting and dangerous, but felt off somehow.  It also took a long time.  They killed him and burned the body (evidence), and felt good about avenging their ally.

Future Adjustments: We finally figured out what was bugging me.  Engaging the tattoos can still be a Bonus Action, but I propose a few limiting factors.  Certain on 1 and 2, entertaining 3 and 4.
1) He has to touch the tattoo, which requires movement.  If he's restrained, he can't do that.  Telekinesis should have shut him down completely.  It's the anti-monk spell!
2) There should be a Ki cost to engage the spell.  Either Spell Level = Ki Points spent or 1/2 Spell Level (rounded up) = Ki Points spent.  Cantrips are always 1 Ki Point.
3) I'm considering a spell level limitation.  Like no spells above 7th...  Then again, even with a 20th level monk, using 9 Ki to cast that crazy Meteor Swarm that others at my level can also crank out ...as a Bonus Action...  Yeah, no.  We're limiting this crap.  No 8th or 9th level spells.  7th I MIGHT be okay with.  We'll play with it.
4) The Runes he's burned take up attunement slots, or 1/2 an attunement slot.  They take a lot to get, including cost and training (100 days, remember), but they *are* permanent; so someone with a lot of time and resources can add on Runes easily.  They already have a maximum of 3 Runic Augments before their body can't take the strain anymore, but after that we've got Bracers of Defense, a Ring of Protection, and a Cloak of Protection (a total +4 AC, and a total +2 to all saves).  With Runes that make your Martial Arts 1d12 (instead of 1d10), allow you to Hunter's Mark, and others that grant you Sneak Attack for Ki...  Don't want anyone to get too beefy too fast.

Why?: Action economy is too far broken.  He can be a better wizard than a wizard, and still PUNCH REALLY HARD.
Is the Blackweave dead?  Nah.  But it requires more tweaking as a subclass.  Monks have A LOT of options already, so it may serve better in another class (Ranger could be interesting), open-ended to all classes (needs some secrecy), or needs a few more limitations/refinement.
Picture

Slyana Jedaya / "Sly" / Knight Of Sloth
D&D Campaign 2 - 3rd Age

Core Concept: The Daughters of Syn had been a consistent villain group all throughout campaign 2 on Tuesdays, and I'm a big fan of using common mythos and turning it on its head.  In this case, we're using the Seven Deadly Sins as our model.
  "Sly" is Sloth.  Laid back and lazy, this knight doesn't want to do much, instead opting for her familiar, Freya, to do most tasks for her.  But for all her laziness, if ever you were to hurt Freya, or try to hurt her more severely, she would finally show you her true power - frightening and efficient, she'd like to end the fight as soon as possible, so she can return to her nap.

Encounters and Impressions:  Sly was my absolute favorite side villain.  Every moment the party encountered her, they fell in love with her dry wit and lack of commitment.  She would often show up on the outskirts of a battle (showing that she was always watching for her mistress, Syndrosa), smoking a pipe and giving raucous commentary of the fight, quick to crack jokes or just shrug at veiled threats.  In fact, the first time she met the group, she helped most of them escape the Underdark (I wonder if that endeared her to them a bit).  She was really just gathering information on them at that point, but she really didn't care either way, so killing them would be boring.

Fight 1: The first real encounter with Sly involved the group trying to rescue a little girl trapped in the Underdark.  Sly had an amulet on her person with a soul trapped inside (but the party didn't know that, only that she had a nice amulet, it looked valuable).  The party turned into bugs and snuck into her room, while others tried to deal with Sly's partner, an Oathbreaker Paladin named Naz (Pride).  For most of the fight, the party simply kept Sly occupied as she played with them, always at the edge of caring.  It wasn't until Naz was killed that Sly began to show her true ferocity.  Sly's first boon involves Freya; the fire fox fuses with her form, granting her lycanthropic strength and speed, as well as some Greater Invisibility.  Couple this with the fact that she's already a Level 16 Druid by now...and we've got something serious on our hands.  The party has A LOT of close calls, but manages to kill her, her form crumbling away in strips of...ice?

Fight 2: MUCH TIME PASSES and the group assault the now Queen Syndrosa in her OWN LAIR, and are promptly defeated.  Despite this Full Party Capture moment, the players were SO HAPPY to find out that Sly was indeed alive, and the version they killed was some sort of Clone or Simulacrum.  Heck, she even helps them escape the follow-up encounter (again: she doesn't really care).  But upon returning to the Fortress of Syn, now better prepared and after taking out Lust and taking some weapons from Wrath, they come across the real Sly.  She toys with them a little...and then the Paladin kills the fire fox.
  A Storm of Vengeance, and A LOT of near-death experiences (2 deaths total, but yay Revivify), a well-timed Power Word Kill drops Sly for good (strange, she could have totally Counterspelled, but she didn't...).  The party was the SADDEST I have seen them after this fight - they didn't want it to end!


Build and Boons
Class: Druid 20, Circle of the Moon (not that she cares)
Standard Boons: Boon of Fortitude (HP +50, Temp HP Ward +20), Boon Fey Step (Movement +30 as a Misty Step)
Boon of the Fire Fox - grants the Knight a familiar in the form of a fire elemental.  This familiar can heal you from a distance and merge with you to grant extra physical bonuses and a burst of fire damage at the end of every one of your turns.
Boon of the Sloth - Aura of Relaxation (little things don't stress you out, Calm Emotions at all times, advantage on saving throws against being charmed).  Social power of Disarm (disadvantage for foes to resist your relaxed charm).  You have entertaining and informative visions involving the people you observe; you no longer sleep, but napping opens these visions to your perfect memory.  Whether you act on them...is totally up to you.
Is Sly gone for good? - Mmm.  Tricky thought; death can get weird in D&D, and resurrection moreso.  Depends on where her soul ended up, and who cares enough to get her back.  I have a feeling her return would not be an unwelcome one, at least by a few PCs. ;)
Picture

ANOX / The Immortal General
D&D Pirates Campaign - 4th Age

Core Concept: A Circle Of Spores Druid hell-bent on conquering the world of beasts, controlled by the Mantle of the General; an ancient artifact forged by the Erlking of the Feywild.  Woof.  That's heavy.
  Anox was a product of the Erlking's choices; after the Archfey took the Helm of the Hunt, his purging Valkyries decimated the forces of Anox's predecessor, Gurlanik, the Fade.  To rectify this, Anox used his only son as a lure to other beings touched by Fey energy, and used his Circle to "seed" them with necrotic powers - and his control.  The resulting Treant-Hybrid army, coupled with the stolen Mantle's innate power to call nearby beasts under his command, Anox began preaching dominion over the Wilds beyond and amassing an army of druids who shared his ideals.
  His son, Darius, finally fed up with the loss of innocent life, formed his own pack of druids - attempting first a coup, then, when that failed, an all-out-assault upon his father, while freeing those that would be hunted for his dark purpose.  This betrayal marked the beginnings of Anox's madness, and the Mantle began to wrestle control away where it could.  Soon, the two entities became indistinguishable from one another, and the more Anox used the Mantle to augment his magic, the more it took from his mortal body...but he could not die as long as it was bound to him.


Boss Fight: This fight was...problematic.  There was a spore lair with infectious actions, a whole one on one duel where the PCs made strange tactical decisions and then got mad when they didn't work out.  And this was already a difficult campaign to run; huge mix of experience levels and play styles clashing all over the place.  If I were to run this in the now, 4 years wiser, I'm confident it would have been earned.  Honestly, I was still cutting my teeth on this one.
    There were personal stakes with a PC, which, in any other case, would have made this much more charged - the end result here...was confusing.  Misinterpretations of rules and descriptions, intentions, and flow; it got pretty awkward at times.
  What I WANTED to happen was a dynamic battle of shifting landscapes and status effects, a ticking time bomb of spore growth, and a possible moral quandary of tearing the mantle free to destroy it or don it yourself.  Instead, it was a jumbled mess with a few great moments (I'll give that to my seasoned players), tarnished by that constant confusion or rules-lawyering.  Different group, different time I guess.


The Build: Druid 18 [Circle of Spores], Warlock 2 [Great Old One*]
  The Warlock element of this build required a lot of homebrew.  This Great Old One ends up being the Mantle itself, a semi-sentient immortal object (one of my "Legacy Artifacts") that has held many hosts before, and draws power equally from the Shadowfell and the Feywild.  It had regenerative properties, negated by radiant damage, and the Mantle has its own suite of innate daily spells - it could even cast additional spell effects by placing levels of Exhaustion on its user.  
  At the time, I wasn't confident with custom Legendary Actions, but a second go would simplify Anox's action economy to that of a standard druid, and the Mantle would act with Legendary Actions of its own, illustrating the dichotomy of the two entities joined.  I could then drop better hints as to the artifact's nature, and I would allow the PCs to attack the Mantle directly, adding a puzzle to this duel of fates.
  As it stands, Anox - and myself - learned a lot from this boss fight, and we haven't seen the last of his character.  Perhaps a new version will retcon the old for us all. 


Anywho.
It's important to look back now and again.  To consider where our lessons lie, and what new adventures we can craft with them in mind.  Maybe I'll do this again - I've got plenty stashed in the mental basement.

If you enjoyed this, maybe say so, or check out the Patreon (it could always use some love).  
Stay warm out there.
-Adamus


0 Comments

Monster Of The Week: Nothic

1/15/2022

0 Comments

 
Benny Jimbob Leonardo Wolfgang III was a curious boy.  Carving ingots from the congealed remains of adventurers passed in the womb of gelatinous ooze, he pondered on intricacies of their deaths.  He wore these trinkets like trophies; cursed fingers, lost teeth, errant tongues...and one very curious music box.  They shook collected in this case, jangling to and fro like percussive reminders to never mess with a wizard...
Picture
Pulling our visions into messy arcane studies, pits flanked by dangerous ooze, and dark caverns of mystery, we rest our eye upon one of my favorite little critters in this whole game.
  Sporting leathery skin and angry spikes, with claws for climbing, and a mouth often gaped, the Nothic is unnerving on its own, but its enormous, unblinking eye sets it far apart from its other cave kin.  Despite its stark appearance, though, the Nothic can form rich bonds and motivations, even spilling themselves into an industry all their own.

Common Lore

A baleful eye peers out from the darkness, its gleam hinting at a weird intelligence and unnerving malevolence. Most times, a nothic is content to watch, weighing and analyzing the entities it encounters.  Not particularly powerful, the elder evils bestowed upon the curious gothic a horrific gaze - an unblinking eye to rot the flesh from bones.

But the arcane nature and lust for knowledge has cursed the Nothic.  Once wizards of their own make, their lives are twisted by the dark curse left behind by Vecna, the Whispered One.  Vecna was a powerful lich who sought to transcend his undead form to godhood, and threatens to consume the material realm in his wrath.

A Nothic retains no awareness of their former glory, skulking amid the shadows in places rich in magical knowledge, their memories only strange dreams and hallucinations, twisted specters of liars and illusions.  It is these memories, though, that grant them a unique magical insight to extract knowledge from the creatures they stalk.  This information they may give, for a price, be it gold, magical artifacts, or secrets to be traded.

Their love of magic and obsession with artifacts drive them to infiltrate arcane sanctuaries and academies, some seeking a vague assertion that their state could be reversible, like a splinter in their mind.  They covet magical script and scry, some going so far as to organize and categorize existing spaces.  Some wizards even look upon the appearance of a Nothic as a blessing; a creature to keep safe their secrets in exchange for knowledge.  


By The Numbers

Not prone to overt violence, the Nothic isn't built for battle.  Their claws are negligible, and though they sport a decent AC (15), and a good average hit points, one can be felled by a few good rolls.  That is, if you don't get caught in its Rotting Gaze first. 
  The iconic move can severely damage a low-level PC, and outright murder your wizard or sorcerer.  And straight look at their basic numbers doesn't call into account what resources their coveted "sanctuary" may carry.  A Nothic with a Blink scroll is infinitely more dangerous than one you'd find in a field, and a DM (like myself) that chooses to build upon the striated knowledge of a twisted once-wizard may find some curious surprises to spring on a low-level party.

Ionian Variations

Like I said, the Nothic uses to be a spell caster - a creature devoted to the arcane.  This means that those cognitively aware enough of their own affliction would seek to remedy it.  Which births Nothic alchemists and artificers, brewing elixirs and constructing shadows, seeking to silence the incessant voices of their fragmented memories.  
  For those who drink the ill-made elixirs, further mutations plague their forms.  Orcish blood infuses their body with resistance; devilish magic turns their blood to smoke, their steps to shadow; Fey magic infuses the spines and spurs with wild magic that explodes with their emotions.
  On the other side, the unhinged artifice breathes new terrifying life into their visage.  An extra set of arms of offset their twitchy nature; electric infusers to inject them with strange mutagens, all the better to defend their workshop from intruders.  If you were driven to mad industry to silence the voices in your head, what would you make?


See you at the table.
-Adamus
0 Comments

Moonriver #50 - Fixing Up Your Blueberry Margarita

1/6/2022

2 Comments

 
Easy setup.  The lady in my life asked for a drink, and found this recipe on Pinterest...  
So we tested it out.

The Recipe according to the internet:
5 oz Silver Tequila
2 oz Blueberry Liqueur
4 oz Lime Juice
2 oz Triple Sec
2 cups of Frozen Blueberries
1 cup of Ice
*Toss it all in a blender, churn it up, and pray.  Makes 3-4 servings.


TASTING NOTES
+ ...this is...a rough sipper.
+ The lime is a bit too much here.  Lime is supposed to elevate the Tequila's iconic bite, but something in here makes it a weird soup.
+ Triple Sec is a decent thing, but it can't do much against the blueberry mash.
+ There's a drink here, but it seems confused.
+ I disagree with the silver tequila.


In case it wasn't obvious, this did not succeed.

So, I fixed it.

INSTEAD
4 oz GOLD Tequila (might I suggest Patron)
2 oz Blueberry Liqueur
2 oz Lime Juice (sweetened)
1 oz Dry Curacao
1 oz Sweet and Sour Mix
*Throw into a shaker with a few ice cubes, shake the hell out of it, and strain into two glasses.


TASTING NOTES
+ Lovely and boozy.
+ Dry Curacao is a beautiful replacement for Triple Sec that maintains its flavor without overpowering, and you don't need as much for the same effect.
+ Sweet and Sour with the Blueberry Liqueur creates that "blueberry juice" sense that the original was going for, and true that there's no fruit in this, but isn't better to taste good anyway?

The shaker is better than the blender.  It's a concentrated dose, so we're making and drinking less, BUT it's stronger, so take it with some food.  

Enjoy your blueberries, and happy new year.
-Adamus

(for more recipes, fiction, and content, visit my Patreon)
2 Comments

You Should Watch Arcane

11/20/2021

0 Comments

 
It is rare that I watch a show that sticks with me days after it is done.

In the deluge of modern entertainment, lasting power and rewatchability are rare properties.  We can consume content at a record's pace, and sometimes its lesser folk are a blur of drawn-out content and characters that don't grow.  We remember the best parts faintly, and hold fast to what we can, happy to discard the majority of the experience and move forward with little changed within.

It is rare that an art piece might grip us by the soul and pull our tethers to watch it over and over again, marveling at the subtle hues and colors and words and sparks hidden between the cracks of its foundation - that we might seek to dive deeper and deeper into its ocean, and drink every drop of the marrow within.  

It is rare that a series holds weight in every episode, every scene, every carefully crafted word; not a wasted frame, nothing without intention or vibrancy.  It is rare that a series might summon an endless array of discussion, documentary, analysis, and theoretical depth.

I have not felt this amount of depth since the close of Avatar: The Last Airbender.
Picture
This is high praise.  Anyone who has seen Avatar to its completion understands its mantle of the "greatest animated series ever made."  Subtle elements, powerful arcs, beautiful animation, and a maturity no one ever expected.  Avatar made a world its viewers wanted to return to over and over again; fascinating, terrifying, exquisite, mystical.

And I tell you, from the bottom of my heart, that Arcane matches this in every aspect.

A Little Background

Arcane: League Of Legends is a 9-part animated series set in one of the game's many nations.  In the industrial, stratified city of Piltover, embers of war threaten to ignite between the aristocratic "top-siders" and the undercity dwellers of Zaun, and caught between these threads resonates an emotional and driven story of two sisters driven apart and crashing back together over several years.
  Fans of the game series will find a treasure trove of easter eggs and deeper content while still being taken along for the ride of the story as it sets up characters, provides context, and develops the world.  

And yet, you don't need to know anything about League Of Legends to enjoy this.  In fact, other than my minimal knowledge gleaned from strictly music videos, I know next to NOTHING.  And I was BLOWN AWAY by this series.  I've watched it three times through already.

Not New Territory

Riot (the creators of League Of Legends) are no strangers to animation, having produced dozens of animated shorts to promote and expand the opportunities of their wildly popular game franchise, but here is something very different.  This isn't a commercial or some random flex - this is a deep story with outstanding writing, animation, and music (Riot is one of those production companies that, as a musician, I can really get behind - they GET it).
  Released in 3-episode "acts", the entire series is now live on Netflix, and it's all the animation community can talk about in recent weeks.
  If anything, this story serves as the best possible introduction to this universe as a story-scape, as anyone who knows nothing is going to get a lot out of this just as a series, and anyone who knows more is going to explode.
Picture

A Story About Relationships

As any good writer knows, the power is never in the world-building, but the relationships found within.  Our main leads hold distinct threads that bind them together in the paradigms they protect, and even if or when severed, continue to mold their own development.  
  The writers forged their story with this in mind as characters grow and change in profound and interesting ways over the course of the season - time skips included.  At no point does a character act "out" of themselves to serve a different narrative or force conflict where there isn't one; everyone's actions make sense given their circumstances, and episode to episode, each of our ensemble cast pushes beyond any hope of a trope, fulfilling fully fleshed-out characters that you are rooting for.  
  It is this attention to characterization and detail that stands out the most to me.  There isn't a character in the main squad that I dislike - even our villains - because their depth of growth and exploration imbues something tangible in them.  These are less and less cartoons, and more and more like people; they behave naturally in the world that surrounds them.  Which makes it that much more powerful when the story cuts swathes in them with broad strokes.

Give It A Shot

I know I'm speaking pretty general here, and what I am saying is all praise, but this entry is just a recommendation.  Will I be doing a deeper editorial analysis on characterization and psychology?  The answer is a resounding YES, but for now, I don't want to spoil a single drop of this for anyone.  
  If you trust my judgement even a modicum, go settle in and give it a watch.  Then...we'll discuss.

See you soon.
-Adamus
0 Comments

Moonriver #49 - Blue Island Evacuation

8/19/2021

0 Comments

 
Alcoholic bottles look pretty funky.

These bottles range from simple to scary (I'm looking at you, human skull vodka with flecks of rose gold mixed with blood), and are truly a deep dive masterclass in presentation.  Maker to maker, the micro decisions involved in the glass used, the formation of the bottle, the height, cork, top, design, and art can be game changers.  And this is especially true for new samplers of products.  You've all seen my post on the Sexton Irish Whiskey - awesome bottle, great presentation, but not my favorite whiskey; disappointing, but they got the sale.

Now, I embrace sampler bottles ("little nips" they're often called).  Tiny 50 mL bottles, some for just a buck or two, and I can experiment.  But even those decisions are still framed in the overall presentation.  The honeycomb ridged bottle of my honey liqueur drew me to its sampler, and now it's a staple on my shelf (Barenjager, for those of you interested).  This is how I discovered my love of Jack Daniel's - Original, Honey, Fire - that 750 mL bottle is cool; easy to move like a handle and a beautiful lower 2/3 block that rests well and sturdy.  

A large spread of certain "cheaper" brands tend toward the same bottle design.  Hiram Walker uses the same design for every single liqueur in their suite; 750 mL high, with all vibrant, easily read labels.  Vodka - Smirnoff, Ketel One, Grey Goose - follows a similar trend.  Bacardi has its structure on lock.  But then Wild Turkey shows up, and every pursuit is a different design; Longbranch is different from their standard which is different from their American Honey - all gorgeous bottles.

And each, though sometimes visually unique or at the very least a variation of an old design, is still industrially standardized for measurement.  750 mL for standard retail size, 375 mL for a smaller version, and 1.75 Liters (1750 mL) for those big Tito's jugs (Captain Morgan and Dewers, and many others do the same thing).  You may see some even variable 500 mL rebels, or the strange skulls of 900 mL, but those tend to be your ballparks.

What this means is that when I find something I enjoy, whether by merit of its presentation or by discovery of its imbibing worth through taste and flexibility, chances are that the bottle it is delivered in...is still in my house.  As I learn much about making bitters, wine, mead, syrups, and liqueurs all my own, I would be remiss to simply discard the numerous array of interesting bottles and containers I have collected through my personal explorations and mixology.
  So when I opened my cabinet this morning and saw a certain 750 mL liqueur nearly depleted, and a certain drink nearing the end of its secondary staging (soon to be in dire need of bottling for its final aging), a keen thought emerged.  Make a trio of cocktails, and FINALLY use up that old bottle of Blue Curacao.  

Blue Margarita

2 oz Tequila
1 oz Blue Curacao
1 oz Lime Juice
Ice, salt on the rim, and a lime wedge

TASTING NOTES
+ This is the classic margarita.  Duh.
+ Refreshing, but I actually recommend the snooty tequila - get some gold Patron to avoid some of that burn.
+ Tastes like vacation.

Blue Velvet

1 oz Vodka
1 oz Gin
3/4 oz Blue Curacao
1 oz Orgeat
Splash of Lime Juice
​2 oz soda water (recommending Soda Water with Lime)
Ice

TASTING NOTES
​+ This is super tasty
+ As a guy who can sometimes get ill with Blue Curacao, this feels like an excellent way to mitigate that triggered flavor.
+ Soda Water with some melted ice thins this into a bright lime soda; refreshing
​+ Great little spice from the Gin
+ I would easily make this for myself.

Blue Island Iced Tea

Get ready for the beast.
1/2 oz each of the following: vodka, tequila, white rum, gin, blue curaçao
1 oz Lemon Juice
Fill with Ginger Ale (3 to 5 ounces)
Definitely ICE

TASTING NOTES
+ The Ginger Ale is the defining feature here.  It elevates the entire drink.
+ Strong, sweet, easy to drink...
+ ...do be careful, sweethearts.
And with that, my Blue Curacao bottle is empty and I can get back to more important things.  ;)
Be responsible, my Smurfs.
-Adamus
0 Comments
<<Previous

    Adam Summerer

    Professional Game Master musician, music teacher, game designer, amateur bartender, and aspiring fiction author.  
    ​In short, I'M A BIG NERD.

    Mondays: Patreon Mini
    Tuesday: Lore Drop
    Wednesday: Other Corners
    Thursday: Moonriver Bar
    Friday: Podcast goes up!
    ​Saturday: GM's Corner
    ​Sunday: REST DAY
    Become a Patron!

    Buy me a Mocha CoffeeBuy me a Mocha Coffee

    Archives

    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    November 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017

    Categories

    All
    4th Edition
    Buff DM
    Builds
    Call Of Cthulhu
    Cloudsinger D&D
    Cocktail Recipes
    Custom Rules
    D&D Rules
    DM's Book Club
    Drinking And Dragons
    Drinks
    Dungeons & Dragons
    Eberron
    Education
    Feywild
    Game Mastering
    Gaming
    Group Dynamics
    High Rollers
    Homebrew
    Homeschool
    Io Lore
    John's Study Hall
    Life Lessons
    Lore Drop
    Martial Arts
    Miniatures
    Monster Of The Week
    Moonriver
    Movies
    Music
    Notes From The Apprentice
    NPC Rewind
    One-Shot Wonders
    Pathfinder RPG
    Player Tips
    Shadowfell Campaign
    Shows
    Star Wars Saga Edition
    The End Of The World RPG

    RSS Feed














    Become a Patron!

Quick Links

Knight Owls
​
Gray Owls
D&D Campaign Info

Professional Links

DM Podcast + Patron Campaign
© COPYRIGHT 2015. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
Become a Patron!
  • The Nexus
  • GM's Corner
    • Voidspeaker
  • DM Podcast
  • Knight Owls
    • The Gray Owls Initiative (21+) >
      • Gray Races
      • Gray Classes
    • KO Event Dates - Descriptions
    • Knight Owls Armory >
      • Protection
      • Potions, Scrolls, and Consumables
      • Weaponry
      • Rings and Wares
      • Adventurer Essentials
      • Custom Mixes and Crafting Rules
    • Owls History
    • Assets
  • Dungeons and Dragons
    • Character Creation - PF
    • Character Creation - D&D >
      • FEATS
      • PRESTIGE CLASSES
    • Magic Items
    • Spell Compendium - D&D 5e >
      • Custom Crafted
      • Expanded Invocations List
  • Amplify Your Signal