Yeah I know Kickstarter backers got the PDF’s a couple of weeks ago. Heck I backed it and am so pleased and I’ve been going over it as time allows. And yes for the few who have given the podcast a listen, I mentioned it there too. Now, I’m also going to mention here that I hate doing reviews and this isn’t going to be the normal review. Chances are if you’re a DCC fan then you probably backed the Kickstarter or you’re waiting anxiously for it to hit the shelves and your mind is already made up. This rant is more for the folks who aren’t DCC fans. Because the boxed set has stuff you can use not matter what your favorite set of rules may be.
Up first, there’s Lankhmar: City of the Black Toga. Coming in at 48 pages, it’s about 80% system neutral. Heck, a lot of could be considered setting neutral. It’s mostly various tables and charts for city events, street names, encounters, and the flavor text. So if you mix it with Vornheim, you’re going to have an interesting city for the players. Now there some NPC’s statted for DCC but it’s relatively a small section of the book. And because of DCC similiarites with other d20 based games conversion shouldn’t be too much of a problem.
Next up! The Judges Guide. AKA GM/DM’s Guide. So yeah stat heavy. There’s still fluff but this deals with world overall. There’s some DCC specific spells and Patrons along with bestiary. The Carousing table is here and pretty good but does have links to DCC mechanics (but if you’re play something else that’s easy to ignore.) So if you don’t play DCC, this would probably be the least overall useful but could inspirational at least. As always, YMMV.
Finally, my favorite. The Compendium of Secret Knowledge. Why? Because it’s all the rules tweaks to DCC for a much down-to-earth and less gonzo type of Sword & Sorcery game. The big thing that’s been the buzz for a while is Fleeting Luck. Yes, it works the mechanics of DCC but once again can be easily adapted. My first thought is borrow Inspiration Points from 5E for games that don’t have a built in Luck mechanic. Oh and the thing about Fleeting Luck. It’s just that. Any of the PC’s roll that Natural 1 and they all lose it. There’s also an interesting take on the Unarmored Warrior. And nifty little thing called Benisons and Dooms. Benison is special extra for a PC. How a Magic-User that’s just a wee bit better with sword. A stealthy fighter and so on. And the Dooms. Well, they are called Dooms and there ain’t no such thing as a free lunch. There’s Spell Stipulations which replace Mercurial Magic. For those who don’t play DCC, this is a catch or side effect when Magic-Users casts spells. Like I said, Lankhmar is less gonzo than your standard DCC. And of course, there’s Corruption too for when spell casting goes really wrong.
Let me say this again. YMMV. But for me, I can see using this for 5E, Swords & Wizardry, or any other retroclone. But deep down, I think really want to throw this stuff into Lamentations of the Flame Princess game. But hey. That just may be me.