Review - Cult of Diana: The Amazon Witch Tradition

Title: Cult of Diana: The Amazon Witch Tradition
Publisher: The Other Side Publishing
Author: Timothy S. Brannan
Year: 2019 (?)
Pages: 26 pages
Overall Rating: 5 of 5 stars
Text Only Rating: 4 of 5 stars

Continuing in the vein of the occult, today's review is of the Cult of Diana. This book is a part of a series on witches by Timothy S. Brannan for the Basic era D&D game. A word of warning, I play a mashup of B/X and AD&D 1e. I may let slip some observations which reference a set of rules that is not the one intended by the author of this book. 

To start, the entire series of books has excellent cover art. These are worth printing in high quality. Personally, I like to print the covers of DriveThruRPG books on photo paper. It is totally worth the effort. 

What makes witches worth of a new class in Basic era? The ideas, mainly, but also the integration within the rule set. Cult of Diana introduces some simple but powerful ideas to the rules. Mr. Brannan made sure these are carefully balanced so as not to be game breakers. Except for outward facing abilities like spells, no mechanic introduced upsets other character classes, which is very important for consistency. 

Like all characters, witches roll for HP, require certain modest ability scores (10 for INT, 11 for WIS and CHR), gain a bonus to experience for superior ability scores, and have limited armor and weapon selections. The author has provided 8 pages of new spells available to witches, none of which are unbalancing. 

What makes these characters different is their calling. Witches are part of a coven, granting them the ability to access new spells based on a particular tradition. This religiosity allows the witch to be of any alignment so long as they follow the tenants of their tradition. In the case of the Amazonian witch, their tradition is based on several gods such as Diana and Artemis. The author provides a brief section on what these beliefs mean. 

Circling back to the idea of covens, witches have access to ritual magic which requires many casters to participate in. Again, these ritual spells are well balanced. For both "normal magic" and "ritual magic" there are 8 levels of each described in the standard format for Basic era games. 

This particular set calls out BlueHolme but readers will find that it is a nice addition to any basic era game such as Labyrinth Lord or the Red box set. With a little adaption, this book could be plugged into a great many rule sets like AD&D. 

All and all this is a rock solid addition to your table. Text only is 4 of 5 stars. 

I tend to be colored by great artwork, usually shifting my rating upwards by one. In this review, I have ignored the excellent artwork and tables so as not to damage my rating scale too much. The art is superior for a supplemental book and completely inline with the Basic Era style. Considering the layout with the artwork, this book merits 5 of 5 stars. 

Reviewer's note: The date is taken from the forward, this could be the most recent update rather than the original publication date. If that is the case, my apologies but then that also means the author is providing an excellent experience by routinely updating his works. 

Review - Dragon Snack Games

The goal is to have a review a week. My idea was to do a review of books, movies, and games every week for 2021. This is week two and I have 3 already and a list of 52 on deck to go. 

This is a bonus post because I didn't set out to review stores. This post is without remuneration, I have no affiliation with Dragon Snack games but I am purchasing a lot of material from them to fuel this thing. I have a shortlist of stores I need to visit in the near future, so expect to see more store reviews in the future. 

Name: Dragon Snack Games
Location: 3908 Maple Rd, Buffalo, NY 14226
Phone: (716) 833-0740
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dragonsnackgames/
Website: https://dragon-snack-games.square.site/ (Under Construction) 

January 1st, 2021 I needed something to do. I had the chance to stop into Dragon Snack Games with the intention of making some game purchases. I had never been there before and had no idea what to expect. 

Normally, I'd call this "a trip to The Shop", Dragon Snack is much more than a "shop". It's huge. I was the only shopper probably because of the holiday and that wide open space threw me for a loop. 

On entry, there is a closeout section in front of the register loaded with stuff I want. I bumbled my way past it and on to the dozen or more racks that line the center of the store. They have a bit of everything from books to figures. I was so Woww'ed by what I saw, I am unable to process everything I saw. The outer walls are lined with shelves loaded with books, games and puzzles. Maybe some models, too.

They have a smallish selection of paints and figure supplies, but this is a highly qualified statement. It was several shelves and racks, easily enough to fill a 10 by 10 room. 

Unlike other "game shops" Dragon Snack Games is open, airy, and brightly lit. I was easily able to make up a list of 50 things I wanted on entry and ticked off a list of 50 more items I saw that I now want after browsing the shelves. To say their selection is ample is an understatement. Prices are on par with other outlets or websites. If they are more expensive than online retailers, it's tiny and worth the experience.  

The back of the store is dedicated to either in-store gameplay or some sort of DIY activities, I was not able to tell as it was not in use due to Covid. I can't wait to go back after this mess is over. 

Quirks: In addition to being brightly lit and spacious, they play Sisters of Mercy and have a large glass screen between the cashier and customer. It is completely touchless. I was surprised when the cashier asked me to turn the boxes around so she could read the price. Real, really touchless. It was one of the best touchless shopping experiences I have ever had. Probably on par with something you'd see at a massive company like Disney. 

Yeah, that feels about right. It's the Disney World of Game shops in my mind. 

Map: 

It's Here! This Artwork Now EXISTS!

Back in March of 2020, I sort of went nuts. I started drawing everything that came to mind, whether I had the skill or not. I had this idea for a drawing from The Last Unicorn. It was to be in full color ink, but in the middle of the project I realized that I didn't have the pens or the skill to make it work. 

However, I was determined to make it work. I started over with oil paint and hit another dead end. Finally, I took it digital. 

The first iteration didn't work either. Then I stumbled across a couple websites: Thisartworkdoesnotexist.com and Deepart.io. Switching back and forth between the two, with a little image manipulation on my end, I finally got it right. 

But how to get that tiny file out of the computer? 

I was just going to print it out at Walmart or Walgreens, but it didn't look right. Then I found Fractureme.com. It took a couple weeks because I ordered in the middle of Christmas and New Years. 

Fracture prints on glass, an artform that when done by hand is mind boggling difficult. Completely beyond my skills. I am not sure how Fracture works, but it looks great. No frame required and all of the mounting hardware comes with it. 

I think I am going to have to do this again. 

Fun Storage Option for Dice

I found the greatest dice storage option at the dollar store.

Little Lego boxes! 

They're kind of small for actual Legos, but these party favors are just the right size for a set of dice. 

The lid clips closed to keep them inside and the boxes stack just like Legos. Go check out the party supply section at your local dollar store. They come four to a pack in red, yellow, blue and green. Perhaps you can find other colors. 

I, Damiano: The Wizard of Partestrada (1984)

Having finished my three reviews of R. A. MacAvoy's Damiano trilogy, I thought I was done with 12th century Europe. I was wrong. 

It turns out that Bantan Software published an IF game of the series for DOS and Apple II. 

I wish I had a copy and the time to do a review. I was able to find a copy on The Internet Archive which plays in a browser, but I still don't have time. My basement flooded and while I don't mind chilling out reading a book or writing a 300 word review after cleaning up, my time is better spent saving my game books, models and other things so can do more reviews in the future. 

So, this one I will throw over to you. Go play I, Damiano: The Wizard of Partestrada. Let me know how it goes in the comments. 

Credits

Opening gameplay screen.

Raphael by R. A. MacAvoy

Title: Raphael
Author: R. A. MacAvoy
Year: 1984
Pages: 240 pages
Rating: 1 of 5 stars

This review is, unfortunately, by the numbers. 

Who is this author? R. A. MacAvoy is a wonderful science fiction and fantasy author, who by 1984 had 4 books in print. She is a careful researcher with excellent storytelling abilities. 

What is their idea? In this final chapter in Damiano's Lute trilogy, we follow the plight of Raphael as he wars with his brother Lucifer. 

How effectively does that person tell a story? Raphael is yet again a wonderfully well-researched historical fantasy novel set in 12th century Europe. This time, Raphael finds himself at Lucifer's mercy in Moorish Granada. Stripped of his angelic form and powers, he is sold in slavery where yet again, the growing cast of characters bring this story to a conclusion. 

What are the book's the strengths? The main strength of MacAvoy's writing is the careful research and blending of fantasy to bring her characters to life. The details of daily life in Granada are rich and engrossing while repellant as the main topic of this novel is slavery. Djoura was a fantastic addition to the story as both a powerful heroine and love interest to Raphael.  

What are the book's weaknesses?  Unfortunately, the book suffers from a lack of structure, where the established protagonists from Damiano and Damiano's Lute were secondary characters offered with zero development between the last installment and this one. Gaspare stands out as a very bad evolution from his prior self in other chapters of the story. 

Back in June of '85, White Dwarf Magazine offered the pronouncement that Raphael would be a Disneyfication of the series. While they probably hadn't read this particular book at the time, they weren't wrong. Many of the ideas of the series were heavily subverted by this installment and Raphael would have been much stronger had it been divorced from the rest of the series. 

What was particularly terrible was the Epilogue, which closed out the series perfectly. It was five-star writing tacked on to the end of a very slapdash work and accounts for much of Raphael's one-star rating. If the Epilogue had been tacked on either one of the prior books, on its strength alone, those titles would have been perfect. Even if MacAvoy simply copy-pasted it into each preceding piece. 

Sadly, the first 435 pages were not worthy of the last five pages. 

What made this ending so strong was the growth of Gaspare and the introduction of his family to the wild mix of history and fantasy. Viewed through a historical lens, many of the defining exploits of Damiano and his friends were mistakenly attributed to historical figures, which was an eye-opening insight into the depth of research and planning by MacAvoy. What should be a crowning achievement was twisted into a mere afterthought. 

One mourning star. 

You can search for Raphael on Abebooks.

Damiano's Lute by R. A. MacAvoy

Title: Damiano's Lute
Author: R. A. MacAvoy
Year: 1984
Pages: 254 pages
Rating: 4.5 of 5 stars

In the second of three books, R. A. MacAvoy's Damiano's Lute expands in the concepts from the first book and we find our hero being chased northwards and west by Plague and the Devil. As a sequel, it breaks the mold that follow-ups are afterthoughts. It is well crafted as the first book, rich in detail and peril of the 12th century. 

From 1983 to 1984, MacAvoy had 4 books published, an incredible achievement. 

Damiano's Lute shifts the story's location west and north and elevates Damiano's love interest from an Italian fantasy woman to a much more mature woman of the North. As the story evolves, many historical details pop out and lock this work of fiction into real-world settings. In this edition, MacAvoy explores not just Damiano Delstrego, but his companions Gaspare and Saara, who expand from sidekick and antagonists to fully formed characters with their own purposes and drives to be twisted by The Devil. Every character presented has a purpose and drive within the story of Damiano's Lute. MacAvoy adds characters at a frantic pace, but never leaves them hanging. Each one is added to serve the story with a graceful economy. 

Damiano's Lute stands strong on its own, a worthy second part to the story.

You can search for Damiano's Lute on Abebooks.

Damiano By R. A. MacAvoy

Title: Damiano
Author: R. A. MacAvoy
Year: 1983
Pages: 243 pages
Rating: 4 of 5 stars

Damiano is R. A. MacAvoy's opening book in her well-researched fantasy novel series. The titular hero begins his adventures in 12th century Italy. The author shows her craft by blending historical research with a coming-of-age story of the witch, Damiano Delstrego. 

Delstrego defends his beloved hometown of Partestrada with an unlikely crew: a dancing thief, Gaspare, Macchiata the talking dog, Festilligambe, a feral horse, and Raphael, music teacher and Chief of Eagles. They stand with honor and distinction against fear, bigotry, war, and The Devil himself. 

MacAvoy's detailed research allows magic to stand toe to toe with her chosen historical era to create an engrossing tale of drama and strife. It is rare that a fantasy novel manages to use touches history to the advantage of storytelling rather than merely remind the reader of where and when the characters are. The Devil, saints, and the Pope himself are in those details. 

Damiano is a powerful start to this three-book series. 

You can search for Damiano on Abebooks.