Demon Driven to the Maw (2021) is an adventure for Cairn. It wastes very little time or energy on presentation — the design is sparse, the map minimal and unadorned. Interior art is sketchy or pulled from historical sources. All the stuff that usually attracts me to zines — unusual art, lush graphic design, physically […]
Dungeons & Dragons ReAction Figures
Toys, toys, toys.
Dragon 163 (November, 1990). “Dichara’s Tree,” by Larry Elmore. This evokes a similar vibe to me as his October, 1989, cover. Again, I only wish she didn’t have a perm.
Dragon 162 (October, 1990). “Lost Soul,” by Michael Weaver. Solid Halloween cover.
The more D&D stuff I read, the more I feel relief and maybe a little enthusiasm when I see Rick Swan’s name in the credits. He’s a reliable writer who almost always delivers solid material that lands squarely on the premise. Such is the case with Caravans (1994), the final box in the Al-Qadim line. […]
Cities of Bone (1994) is Steve Kurtz’s second Al-Qadim box (elements of which, like Ruined Kingdoms, reappear in the Necromancer’s Guide). I don’t really like Ruined Kingdoms or Corsairs of the Great Sea much, but Cities of Bone put the brakes on Al-Qadim’s decline. Up until now, all these skinny boxes have included source material […]
Oh hey, more boats! This is Corsairs of the Great Sea (1994) and the first real obvious thematic repetition in the Al-Qadim line, coming not that long after Golden Voyages. Despite focusing on pirates, there are still no ship combat rules. Granted, it is the sea on the other side of the Zakharan peninsula from […]
Ruined Kingdoms (1994) is odd. It’s a pretty substantial expansion of the world of Al-Qadim — the cities (ruined and otherwise) and jungles of eastern Zakhara — and an adventure frame to encourage its exploration. There is a sort of cultural mixing here I don’t quite know how to parse. The overriding aesthetic is still […]