#RPGaDay2019: Unique
Something I've enjoyed doing while working on Dungeons & Delvers is reimagining monsters, giving them a unique spin that I've not seen elsewhere. Also some aspects of classes, like making paladins more than just a fighter/cleric combo. But mostly it's been the monsters, of which myconids are a favorite.
In Dungeons & Dragons they're basically humanoid-shaped fungus people that live underground. I'm not a fan of the humanoid shape, because it just seems kind of lazy. Like Star Trek aliens, where from what I remember almost all of them look like humans, just some part of the head or face looks different.
With myconids it feels like they just took a human and plopped on mushroom traits. Appearance-wise. Their key feature is emitting different types of spores, which I think is interesting. To be clear I'm just talking about the overall appearance, and really that only bugs me because I couldn't find any real justification for it (not even a wizard did it).
But in Dungeons & Delvers I unintentionally came up with one while thinking on how to change them up: they are mostly "born" by growing around the corpses of other creatures, incorporating the remains. Mostly this means the skeletal structure, but even muscle mass and brain tissue can provide some benefit (fresher corpses result in stronger, more intelligent myconids).
This changes up their appearance, but can also have some ramifications (such as where they're getting the corpses to make more myconids). Here's some art I did for various myconid categories so you can see for yourself:
You can now get a physical copy of Dungeons & Delvers: Black Book in whatever format you want! We've also released the first big supplement for it, Appendix D, so pick that up if you want more of everything.
The first issue of The Delver, a magazine featuring fungal-themed content for both players and GMs (including an adventure in which myconids find religion), is available!
Our latest Dungeon World class, The Ranger, is now available.
Dwarven Vault is our sixth 10+ Treasures volume. If you're interested in thirty dwarven magic items (including an eye that lets you shoot lasers) and nearly a dozen new bits of dungeon gear, check it out!
By fan demand, we've mashed all of our 10+ Treasure volumes into one big magic item book, making it cheaper and more convenient to buy in print (which you can now do).
In Dungeons & Dragons they're basically humanoid-shaped fungus people that live underground. I'm not a fan of the humanoid shape, because it just seems kind of lazy. Like Star Trek aliens, where from what I remember almost all of them look like humans, just some part of the head or face looks different.
With myconids it feels like they just took a human and plopped on mushroom traits. Appearance-wise. Their key feature is emitting different types of spores, which I think is interesting. To be clear I'm just talking about the overall appearance, and really that only bugs me because I couldn't find any real justification for it (not even a wizard did it).
But in Dungeons & Delvers I unintentionally came up with one while thinking on how to change them up: they are mostly "born" by growing around the corpses of other creatures, incorporating the remains. Mostly this means the skeletal structure, but even muscle mass and brain tissue can provide some benefit (fresher corpses result in stronger, more intelligent myconids).
This changes up their appearance, but can also have some ramifications (such as where they're getting the corpses to make more myconids). Here's some art I did for various myconid categories so you can see for yourself:
Announcements
You can now get a physical copy of Dungeons & Delvers: Black Book in whatever format you want! We've also released the first big supplement for it, Appendix D, so pick that up if you want more of everything.The first issue of The Delver, a magazine featuring fungal-themed content for both players and GMs (including an adventure in which myconids find religion), is available!
Our latest Dungeon World class, The Ranger, is now available.
Dwarven Vault is our sixth 10+ Treasures volume. If you're interested in thirty dwarven magic items (including an eye that lets you shoot lasers) and nearly a dozen new bits of dungeon gear, check it out!
By fan demand, we've mashed all of our 10+ Treasure volumes into one big magic item book, making it cheaper and more convenient to buy in print (which you can now do).
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