Candlekeep Mysteries

Candlekeep Mysteries

by AAG Staff

Get your copy here!! GREAT BOOKS HIDE THEIR SECRETS WELL An anthology of seventeen mystery-themed adventures for the world’s greatest roleplaying game. Candlekeep attracts scholars like a flame attracts moths. Historians, sages, and others who crave knowledge flock to this library fortress to peruse its vast collection of books, scribbled into which are the answers to the mysteries that bedevil them. Many of these books contain their own mysteries—each one a doorway to adventure. Dare you cross that threshold? Candlekeep Mysteries is a collection of seventeen short, stand-alone D&D adventures designed for characters of levels 1-16. Each adventure begins with the discovery of a book, and each book is the key to a door behind which danger and glory await. These adventures can be run as one-shot games, plugged into an existing Forgotten Realms campaign, or adapted for other campaign settings. This book also includes a poster map of the library fortress and detailed descriptions of Candlekeep and its inhabitants. Adventure authors include: Graeme Barber, Kelly Lynne D’angelo, Alison Huang, Mark Hulmes, Jennifer Kretchmer, Daniel Kwan, Adam Lee, Ari Levitch, Sarah Madsen, Christopher Perkins, Michael Polkinghorn, Taymoor Rehman, Derek Ruiz, Kienna Shaw, Brandes Stoddard, Amy Vorpahl, and Toni Winslow-Brill.   For the last few years, Dungeons & Dragons books have bordered on formulaic. There’s a bunch of narrative or rules-heavy content up front, then a few appendices full of monsters, spells, and magic items in the back. It’s been a winning formula, to be sure, boosting the original role-playing game to newfound heights. But it’s also gotten a little stale. Candlekeep Mysteries is completely different. Inside you’ll find 17 new adventures from 20 different authors, each of which could serve as the jumping off point for a home-brewed campaign or an interlude between published adventures. But, perhaps more than any other book in D&D’s 5th edition, Candlekeep Mysteries makes room for dreaming. It’s a set of one-shots — adventures that can be run in a single sitting — but it’s also a set of tools and tricks that can be placed in virtually any setting you can imagine. That makes it a resource that every Dungeon Master (DM) should have on their bookshelf. The conceit behind Candlekeep Mysteries is that it’s a book filled with other books, each one taken from the shelves of a fictional library in the Forgotten Realms, the main setting for this edition of D&D. It starts out with a hefty preamble describing the layout and customs of the titular Candlekeep. There’s also a gorgeous poster-sized map of its confines in the back of the book. But exactly where these books are hidden in the world isn’t really important. Publisher Wizards of the Coast takes care to encourage DMs to place the library and/or its collection anywhere they like — including in the world of Exandria, home to the popular new setting created by Matt Mercer for Critical Role, but also Eberron and Greyhawk. Each of the chapters in Candlekeep Mysteries is named after the title of an in-fiction book, and each one includes all of the new content you’ll need to run a single two-to-four hour game with your friends. Of course, you’ll need the three other foundational D&D books in order to run these adventures — the Player’s Handbook, the Monster Manual, and the Dungeon Master’s Guide. The titles of the books in Candlekeep Mysteries alone are enough to get your imagination churning, including gems like Mazfroth’s Mighty Digressions, Lore of Lurue, The Book of Inner Alchemy, and The Joy of Extradimensional Spaces. But these aren’t just books to be pulled down off the shelf and devoured with the roll of a single die. Many are complex magical artifacts that player characters will interact with over the course of the adventure. Some are even mechanical or physical in nature, and figuring out how to read them in the first place is often a puzzle in and of itself. While these books have a story inside, each one is treated as an object with a history of its own. That makes each book another character in the adventure. Each one gets a written description and an illustration, excellent news for anyone invested in making props for their campaigns. There are a few, I feel, that could even have a good life as hand-made products on Etsy — especially one that involves several cylinders that must be rolled atop wet clay in order to move the narrative along. The adventures themselves are tremendous, and feature some of the best writing of this generation of D&D. The complications they present are a delight, including a sketchy bookstall with an even sketchier collection of employees; an abandoned mining village with a sinister secret; a haunted house trapped in an alternate dimension; and an earworm so toxic that it forces players into quarantine. The latter adventure, involving the earworm, is actually quite clever. The book at the center of the encounter is actually an elaborate clockwork contraption, the complexities of which are mirrored by the adventure’s elaborate social interactions. There’s almost no combat whatsoever. Instead, it forces the DM to take on the role of multiple NPCs. It’s up to the player characters to tease things out, mostly through dialogue. One chapter, titled “Kandlekeep Dekonstruktion” by Amy Vorpahl, made me laugh out loud while reading it. It’s utterly ridiculous, going so far as to introduce technologies that, even given the powerful magics in play within the Forgotten Realms, would be game-breaking if they got loose. Of course, in D&D the DM is always in control. From that perspective, an adventure that causes all hell to break loose is a feature, not a bug. In addition to the writing, the art direction in Candlekeep Mysteries is unusually strong. Chapters include work by different artists, giving each one a wholly different look and feel from the next. By contrast, the maps presented throughout the book are simple, almost unadorned. That’s clearly by design, as it makes them easy to lift out and re-theme for an entirely different setting. That also makes this book an excellent resource for DMs who have gone digital during the pandemic. For bookworms of a different sort — that is, folks who love to buy RPG books and read them as others might a novel — there’s another layer of fun to be had. Scattered throughout this set of adventures are a series of subtle nods to previous 5th edition campaigns, including Storm King’s Thunder and Curse of Strahd. Even while breaking new narrative ground, Candlekeep Mysteries can’t help but wink and nod at the rest of the 5th edition canon. While structurally an outlier, Candlekeep Mysteries nonetheless fits right in with the rest of the 5th edition material. I’m excited to see where players go from here. https://www.polygon.com/reviews/22315969/dungeons-dragons-candlekeep-mysteries-review

Zombie Kidz

Zombie Kidz

by AAG Staff

THE GAME THAT EVOLVES PLAY AFTER PLAY. Zombies have overrun your school! Gather all your friends around this cooperative game and work together to develop the best strategy to drive off these horrible creatures!  Zombie Kidz Evolution is an evolving game: the more you play and complete special missions, achievements, the more the game evolves. Contents: • 1 double-sided Game Board• 1 Zombie Die• 4 Hero Tokens• 8 Zombie Tokens• 4 Lock Tokens• 8 Plastic Standees• 13 sealed Evolution envelopes• 1 Rulebook (which includes 1 sticker sheet and 1 zombie hunter passport) Zombie Kidz Evolution is part of the Little Monsters game collection.     The sequel to Zombie Kidz Evolution! Zombies are wreaking havoc throughout the town. Cooperate with your friends and find the 4 ingredients to prepare the antidote that will change the zombies back to their human form! Zombie Teenz is a game that evolves, like its predecessor, Zombie Kidz. These two games are different and independent, but compatible!   CONTENTS • 1 Town Board• 4 Hero Tokens• 4 Zombie Horde Tokens• 4 Overrun Building Tiles• 4 Ingredient Crates• 1 White Die• 1 Completely Black Die• 6 Event Cards• 10 Evolution Envelopes• 4 Accomplishment Envelopes• 11 Plastic Supports• 1 Rulebook• 1 Sticker Sheet   Come play the ONLINE campaign!!   

Catapult Feud and Iello Guild Store

Catapult Feud and Iello Guild Store

by AAG Staff

Check out what we have in stock here! READY, AIM... LAUNCH THE CATAPULTS! Two households, the Chauforts and the Cunningfields, both alike in dignity, in their fair kingdoms. If only there wasn't that ancient grudge! Build your castle, set up your troops, load your catapults and use your cunning tactics to conquer the floor! Knock down all your opponent's troops to win! CONTENTS 2 Catapults 8 Boulders 12 Action cards 32 Bricks 2 Gates 10 Figurines 1 Rulebook Build your castles, set up your troops, load your catapults and use your cunning tactics to win the day! The War for the Floor has begun once more! Catapult Kingdoms, a.k.a. Catapult Feud, is a game of last person standing. Your objective is to knock down all your opponent's troops! Starting with the youngest player, choose your family: Chaufort or Cunningfields. Then, use your bricks to build a castle to fortify your troops. Using your catapult, launch boulders in an attempt to destroy your opponent's castle and knock over their troops. When all troops of one family are knocked over, the battle is over. The winning family must have at least one troop standing upright. The game is played in a series of rounds. During a round, starting with the youngest player, everyone takes a turn. Each player's turn is divided into four phases: Tactics, Aim, Fire and Cleanup. Perform these phases in order, finishing each one before moving to the next. When all players have had their turn, the round finishes. You keep on playing round after round until there is only one player with troops on the table. Warning! This is a game of construction/destruction of plastic bricks and figures... NOT your opponent, pets, or people who may foolishly pass through the field of battle! Please play fair and be careful not to hurt each other or damage anything... other than your opponent's attempt at a impenetrable fortress!

Van Richten's Guide to Ravenloft

Van Richten's Guide to Ravenloft

by AAG Staff

Get it here! FACE YOUR FEARS Unleash the horrors of Ravenloft in this campaign sourcebook for the world's greatest roleplaying game. Terror stalks the nightmare realms of Ravenloft. No one knows this better than monster scholar Rudolph Van Richten. To arm a new generation against the creatures of the night, Van Richten has compiled his correspondence and case files into this tome of eerie tales and chilling truths. Discover the mysteries of Ravenloft, mist-shrouded lands where infamous Darklords lurk among ageless vampires, zombie hordes, cosmic terrors, and worse. Then make your choice. Will you create your own Domains of Dread, settings to host endless terrifying adventures? Or will you join the ranks of haunted heroes who embrace macabre lineages, dual-edged Dark Gifts, haunted subclasses, and other forbidden powers? Van Richten's Guide to Ravenloft contains everything you need to craft a horror-themed campaign for Dungeons & Dragons. Unleash a treasure trove of new story hooks, character options, and campaign customization to bring one of the most exciting Dungeons & Dragons settings to life! Travel (perhaps even by choice) to familiar domains and discover new ones—as Ravenloft’s expanded Domains of Dread return for the first time in fifth edition! Includes rules and advice for building custom domains and Darklords using established horror tropes or your own special blend.  Discover a host of new backgrounds and trinkets themed specifically for a horror setting, as well as new character lineages, including the dhampir, hexblood, and reborn.  Find two new subclasses, the College of Spirits for bards and the Undead pact for warlocks.  Explore Dark Gifts for characters that flesh out your place in the Domains of Dread.  Encounter a horrific assortment of creatures from the monstrous bestiary.  And includes a brand-new adventure!

Tiny Epic Pirates

Tiny Epic Pirates

by AAG Staff

Buy now! There's a lot of scallywags out there looking for adventure! So assembling your crew won't be very hard, but pulling together a winning crew... that's a different story. Your crew will play a major role in Tiny Epic Pirates. Each crew member brings different advantages to battle and to the actions you'll take.  The dice listed at the top of each crew card, and your captain's card, represent what number you'll need to roll to score a hit on another ship! Having multiples of a single number can result in lots of damage, but spreading your numbers out can result in more consistent results. The choice is yours! The icons listed at the bottom of each crew card, and your captain's card, represent bonus actions that can chain together for epic turns! If the first icon matches your chosen action, you'll get to take the action of the second icon for free. In addition to your crew, you'll have your reputation and your exploits. As you prove yourself in battle, your legend will grow and so will your ability to command your ship. Winning battles against other pirates, and against notable merchants, will increase your Legend Level. Each new level offers immediate benefits, as well as increases to your ship's movement and the number of dice you roll in battle. But enough talk, you're no landlubber. You can learn more about Tiny Epic Pirates by engaging with us in the comments, watching the videos below, or by downloading the rulebook below.   In Tiny Epic Pirates: Curse of Amdiak, rumors of the unthinkable are spreading quickly around the islands. Rumors of dead pirates returning to the sea... aboard an ominous ghost ship helmed by the legendary pirate Amdiak... Several new game elements are added to play including cursed gold, a ghost ship that haunts the players as they try to steal the cursed gold, ancient relics, haunted map cards and even skeleton crew! Players gain cursed gold by stealing it from the ghost ship and attacking other pirates who possess it. Cursed gold can be traded for an ancient relic said to hold ashes of Amdiak. Bury this relic and break the Curse of Amdiak! If the ghost ship finds catches you though, your captain becomes cursed and you lose your cursed gold. Once cursed you will be able to recruit powerful skeleton crew to mindlessly obey your wicked command! The Curse of Amdiak expansion will come in a box of the same thickness and quality of Tiny Epic Pirates. It will share the same width and height as well. Making them great for storing side by side! The Curse of Amdiak expansion is available in the 'All-In Deluxe' reward tier or as an add-on in the pledge manager service after the project.  

Vampire Rivals!!

Vampire Rivals!!

by AAG Staff

Order now!! When the sun sets, the undead awaken. To slake their Hunger, they feed upon the herd of unaware mortals. Right beneath our noses, the Kindred clash against their rivals as they vie for control of the city of San Francisco and the coveted title of Prince. Vampire: The Masquerade - Rivals is an expandable card game for 2-4 players based on the popular roleplaying game set in the World of Darkness.  Each player assumes the leadership of a coterie of vampires, using them to advance their agendas, claim titles, recruit new vampires, and perform other tasks, possibly risking confrontations by taking to the streets!  Complete your agenda or eliminate your rival and claim your rightful place of power over the city! This Core Set includes four complete ready-to-play vampire decks featuring different clans: Toreador, Ventrue, Brujah, and Malkavian—Everything up to four players need to begin their own schemes for domination.  As an expandable card game, new vampires, clans, and strategies are released regularly to delve deeper into the World of Darkness.

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