It’s October, and the leaves are turning colours and falling, useless, from the timber, generally making a pool of crimson to mark their passing. The dying breath of Summer fades, and the cool embrace of the lifeless Winter beckons. Can you inform I’ve been watching horror films all month lengthy?

We’re going to try this month’s challenge of Arcadia, and I’m completely not going to let my grim fascination with cinematic terror colour my examination of the damned souls that inhabit the pages if this challenge.

Disclaimer

I acquired this month’s Arcadia as an early evaluation copy, and I’ve acquired different MCDM merchandise as evaluation copies up to now. While I acquired this as a evaluation copy, I even have my very own subscription to the MCDM Patreon, and would in any other case obtain the journal. I’ve not had the chance to make use of the fabric on this challenge on the desk, however I’ve used different MCDM merchandise on the desk, and I’m comfy with D&D 5e and each as a participant and as a Dungeon Master.

Arcadia Issue 21

Managing Editor Hannah Rose
Lead Developer James Introcaso
Production & Playtest Director Lars Bakke
Editors Scott Fitzgerald Gray, Sadie Lowry
Authors Sharang Biswas, Banana Chan, Celeste Conowitch
Layout Jen McCleary
Title Logo Tom Schmuck
Accessibility Chris Hopper
Community Coordinator John Champion
Customer Support Bobby McBride
Cover Art Nick De Spain
Interior Illustrators “Hunting a Myth”: Zuzanna Wuzyk; “The Fiendish Regulars”: Gustavo Pelissari; “Puzzling Out the Devil”: Grace Cheung
Cartographer Miska Fredman

Autumnal Arcadia Arrangement

This challenge of Arcadia is 47 pages, together with the credit web page, the desk of contents, the letter from the editor, ten pages of participant handouts, a web page of useful resource hyperlinks, a web page of creator biographies, and a full web page OGL assertion.

The daring orange and black cowl might be one in all my favourite Halloween themed gaming journal covers that I’ve seen. The inside format, formatting, and art work proceed to be a few of the most spectacular within the RPG trade.

Trick or Treats

This challenge of Arcadia has the next articles:

• Hunting a Myth (Monsters)
• The Fiendish Regulars (NPCs)
• Puzzling out the Devil (Adventure, Puzzles)

I recognize that at any time when Arcadia has a couple of article on monsters or NPCs, there may be virtually all the time a powerful thematic distinction between what the articles cowl.

Hunting a Myth

This article is all about presenting cryptids in a marketing campaign. While every of those creatures does have a stat block, there may be time taken to introduce the concept cryptids are totally different than different monsters revolving round their aura. The cryptids offered within the article embody:

• Grey Aliens (CR2)
• Shuck (CR7)
• Death Worm (CR10)
• Mothman (CR 15)

The Greys most likely soar out because the least immediately related to a fantasy theme, however given the variety of adventures up to now of D&D which have touched on alien expertise, and the early pulp inspirations of the sport, I like having these within the toolbox. I instantly considered Expedition to the Barrier peaks (which has a D&D 5e adaptation), and the way you might foreshadow occasions of that journey with Grey Aliens. They are rattling hart to have an effect on with something that targets Intelligence or Wisdom, they usually can adapt to wreck varieties, which means, simply perhaps, you possibly can reskin these items as some form of alien species in opposition to whom resistance is futile.

The Shuck is an archetypical creature that has been the inspiration for numerous creatures in D&D in previous editions. They are the black canine that seems and portends doom, however I actually just like the mechanics of this model of the creature. The Shuck can create a shadow pack when broken, creating duplicates from which it may possibly set off a chew assault. This signifies that the pack doesn’t get too sophisticated to run, however may be actually scary to cope with. In addition, it has an impact that does further harm to all creatures in vary which have already been broken, and I really like monster talents which have a unique impact primarily based on the circumstances on an opponent.

Death Worms are primarily based on legends originating across the Gobi Desert, the place massive worms have been thought to burrow out of the bottom, discharging electrical energy and spraying acid on victims unfortunate sufficient to come across them. While there are already “worm” choices to your video games, I like that these Death Worms are “only” massive, and whereas CR 10 is fairly hefty, it’s nonetheless lower than the venerable Purple Worm’s CR 15. In addition to spitting acid, their bites do acid harm along with piercing harm. They can even fireplace off a shockwave that does lightning harm and knocks your PCs on their rear ends. I recognize that it’s a worm monster that does greater than chew, swallow, and burrow.

The Mothman is a very neat singular entity. It creates a brand new foreign money, with Doom Tokens, which it assigns to those that work together with the creature. In addition to assigning Doom Tokens, the Mothman has a Penance Gaze which provides the PCs a alternative between remaining weak to an assault, or settle for a brief incapacitation. Finally, it has Villain Actions, one in all which permits it to money within the doom tokens it has assigned for large harm.

I actually like this text. Not solely are all of those very flavorful creatures, however from the Dungeon Master’s facet of issues, all of them have enjoyable mechanical toys for the DM to play with. You can’t drop these into any marketing campaign, or drop them in too usually, however after they do match the narrative, I believe they’re going to create memorable encounters and marketing campaign parts.

The Fiendish Regulars

The hook of this text is that the NPCs offered are related to a setting with a horrible ruler. While it’s not this narrowly outlined, I had a tough time not seeing these NPCs as inhabiting some model of Barovia. The NPCs offered embody:

• The Fanlord (CR2)
• Doomsday Salesperson (CR1)
• Personal Assistant (CR3)

As you might be able to inform from the titles, these NPCs are offered in a lightweight hearted method. If that isn’t evident from the title and a few of their talents, the plot hooks actually drive this residence. These embody concepts like PCs employed to isolate the nefarious ruler from the Fanlords that wish to meet them, coping with the results of a Doomsday Salesmen’s mutagenic anti-doomsday physique cream, or getting employed by the Personal Assistant to assist plan a birthday celebration for the nefarious ruler.

The Fanlord may cause characters to take ranges of exhaustion, in addition to gaining Vicious Mockery as an assault, whereas having a weak point for gathering with different Fanlords. The Doomsday Salesperson makes use of suboptimal merchandise to wreck opponents in fight. The Personal Assistant can learn minds to higher plan their actions, calm feelings, and find objects.

I’ve to confess, I’m not in opposition to humor in D&D video games, however I’m not a fan of laborious coding that humor into the mechanics of an NPC. I’m not saying that’s good or unhealthy, however it’s a bias that I’ve. The Doomsday Salesmen is essentially the most overtly humorous NPC, utilizing expired meals and bobbleheads for assaults. I’m a bit of dissatisfied that the Doomsday Salesmen goes so laborious, as a result of it seems like you might lean into humor with this character idea with out being fairly as excessive.

If you wish to use them in additional critical campaigns, I believe it’s so much simpler to reflavor the opposite two stat blocks. I can image Barovian characters that nearly worship Strahd, utilizing the Fanlord stat block, and carrying down the PCs as they wade via the obsessive villager. The Personal Assistant is nice as a sympathetic proper hand character to a villain character which will enable the PCs an “in” to be taught in regards to the villain’s plans.

Puzzling Out the Devil

There are some things that usually concern me after I see them in an journey. In this case, these considerations could be an journey that primarily focuses on puzzle fixing, and an journey that’s offered as “an adventure for any level.” Despite this, I actually like this journey.

The situation sees a well-known exorcist that dies as a result of an accident throughout an exorcism. The PCs want to assist full the exorcism and defeat the satan concerned within the possession. In the course of compiling info, the PCs discover out about pertinent relationships between characters within the story.

The satan that’s doing the possessing may be any satan that matches the CR that the DM desires to make use of, and may be aligned with a particular aspect. The satan positive aspects further talents at any time when some side of exorcism wasn’t absolutely engaged. Some analysis additionally permits for weakening the satan primarily based on their commonplace stat blocks.

The narrative of the journey has some content material that might be triggering for some gamers, and the journey addresses how one can strategy these parts. For instance, there’s a household historical past of a personality that dies in childbirth, and PCs could uncover a queer relationship that’s cogent to the decision of the plot. There are ideas for how one can keep away from dying in childbirth as a plot level, in addition to methods to make use of the reticence to disclose a queer relationship as a plot level with out together with bias in opposition to queer characters.

What stunned me essentially the most was that I actually loved the puzzle parts of the journey. I’m not an enormous puzzle individual, however what I like about this puzzle is that there are loads of totally different in world paperwork that outline the totally different symbols and gadgets to incorporate within the exorcism. The characters discover out what totally different parts imply, however they don’t know how one can use that aspect, till they’ve an opportunity to be taught in regards to the context of why to make use of the totally different parts in numerous methods.

For instance, characters could discover out that totally different symbols symbolize parts and counter different parts, however they must be taught what aspect the satan is aligned with with the intention to decide the correct image to counter that aspect. I actually just like the idea of the PCs studying in world info to resolve the puzzle.

Final Thoughts

This is a strong challenge. I believe that the journal continues to observe via on the concept the articles within the journal might be simply dropped right into a recreation and clearly actionable. I don’t have a tough time picturing how I might use numerous parts within the journal in a marketing campaign. I’m additionally fairly amazed at how a lot I get pleasure from such a puzzle heavy journey. That’s simply not regular for me.

Future Wishes

It’s simple for me to say I wish to see extra monsters, but it surely’s more durable to say “I want monsters that have a theme, and the themes that haven’t been addressed are X,” however to date MCDM has managed to each produce desk prepared monsters, and monster with a strong theme. I’ll say that if now we have different monster/NPC articles primarily based on humor, I might moderately not have fairly as a lot laborious coded into the foundations for the NPC.

I actually just like the contextual puzzle within the included journey, however what actually struck me that I might like to see in future adventures are relationship particulars that matter to the plot, in order that the NPCs aren’t simply characters that the PCs could or could not like, however that their feelings and connections are vital to how every little thing unfolds.