dungeon doll

This was inspired by my recent read-through of Holmes Basic. When I've played older versions of d&d previously, I've tended towards converting to ascending AC. To mix it up, I wanted to try an approach to the classic combat matrix that appealed to me a bit more. Yes, this could all still be done with Ascending AC and attack bonuses, but I wanted to play around with how tables/vocabulary can effect game feel.

I've had this on the back burner for a while, but reading this  post about Fighters from Evie Willems of Spider Queen finally gave me the energy to finish it! Presented here is one possible way to make fighters a bit more exciting. Inspired very heavily from a Strong ability in WhiteHack 2e. I love how this ability enables a type of diegetic advancement for fighters. The flavor I've applied to it is inspired by boss souls in Dark Souls and eating monsters in Nethack. This also doubles as my take on eating monsters. *** (For fighters) When you slay a monster and consume its flesh (or its soul), you may take on an aspect of its power. Gain bonus Hit Points equal to the monster's total number of Hit Dice, and a property associated with that monster, negotiated between you and your referee. All bonuses last until you do this again. Example:  A fighter kills an ogre and consumes its soul. She gains 4 bonus Hit Points and +2 to her attack damage (the thing ogres do). She later do...

Dungeon Doll is a year old today (at least, my first post is). I'm honestly still really excited/surprised by how positive the reception has been. If you're someone who's been on the fence about making a ttrpg blog for a while, I highly recommend going for it. I also want to thank everyone in the blog space who's corresponded with or about this blog, its been very encouraging!

If you play an elf at my table, you're actually playing a Cribswap.  They get all the same traits of Elves in od&d. Edit 2025/12/14: added Lunar and Solar aspects, based on how I've been running cribswaps in Palace of the Vampire Queen .   *** 1,000 years ago, faeries ruled the earth, draped in leaves of gold. They crossed the skies in wild hunts, slaying beasts and men with blade of glass and helm of bronze. The faeries were driven from the surface with fire and iron. The Queen of Faeries now holds her court beneath the hills, within the Underworld. It is said that faeries cannot create life, and so must reshape it. A child was snatched from its home, taken to be made an elf, and you were left in its place. You were made to die. But you didn't. Rejected by your family, cast out by your community. Under unknowable stars you quested for meaning. You lived. You learned. You wondered. Bled and cried and scratched and screamed. What could be more human then that? Aspects...

A great curved sword, hiltless. Wavy blue patterns permeate its dark steel. +1 to hit. Long ago a mighty warrior cut the Bale-Worm Sleeer in two, and a great river sprung forth from the gashed earth. +2 to hit and damage Dragons, Basilisks, and other legless creatures. Rivermouth speaks in dreams and echos. More than anything, it wants its wielder to change the lay of the land, to reorder the earth in the pattern of heaven. Second most, it wants to cut slinking things in twain and watch them wriggle in despair. When you slay a Dragon with Rivermouth, it gains a charge. These may be spent at any time to cast Move Earth, Part Water, or Lower Water. A Lawful weapon. 9 Intelligence, 8 Egoism. *** In The Caverns of Thracia there is a +2 lawful Red Dragon slaying sword. This is loosely based on a rewrite I did of that sword for a game some years back. Further Reading:  I highly recommend this recent post from Warren D. of I Cast Light! , which provides a table of demands for sentient we...