HERE at Game On Aus, we love gaming – and that includes tabletop RPGs!
Whether you want to fight dragons, blast xenomorphs, thwart sinister cults serving ageless Cosmic Old Ones, survive World War III or experience life at an arcane university for magic-users, we’ve got a supply of suggestions here for that special table-top RPG player (or even yourself, for that matter!)
FIZBAN’S TREASURY OF DRAGONS (Wizards Of The Coast)
Given they make up half the title of the world’s most popular roleplaying game, it’s about time dragons got a dedicated sourcebook for Dungeons & Dragons 5th Edition – and now they have.
Fizban’s Treasury of Dragons contains a hoard of information on dragons, their life stages, and motivations as well as information for roleplaying dragonborn characters, dragon-related subclasses for monks and rangers, a complete dragon bestiary, magical items, and all the other stuff you’d hope to find in a D&D sourcebook about dragons.
If you know someone who really likes their D&D, they will almost definitely appreciate a copy of this (assuming they don’t already have it, that is!)
RRP: AUD$59.99
CULTS OF CTHULHU (Chaosium)
Cthulhu might be a quasi-omnipotent Cosmic Old One, but he still needs minions on Earth to do his hideous bidding – minions who tend to operate as cults.
This indispensible reference for the Call of Cthulhu table-top RPG has pretty much everything players could want to know about cults in the Cthulhu Mythos, from ancient times to the present day, and even comes with three in-depth adventures involving some of said cults – along with advice on how to create your own for gameplay sessions.
It’s a surprisingly detailed sourcebook, to the point where its appeal goes beyond the RPG elements and it would be interesting reading for any fan of the Cthulhu Mythos – making it an appealing gift for the Lovecraftian Horror fan in your life.
RRP: AUD$35.769 (.pdf from Chaosium)
ALIEN RPG (Free League)
Based on the iconic sci-fi/horror movies, the Alien RPG goes well beyond the movies to create an expanded universe of gritty cassettepunk spacefaring.
Designed to be run as either a cinematic style Space Colonists/Marines vs Aliens action event or a full-length campaign exploring the mysteries, opportunities and terror life on the very frontier of space offers, the Alien RPG is an engaging and atmospheric and well worth experiencing.
The Colonial Marines Operations Manual is an essential add-on to the core rules, because obviously the big attraction for an RPG in the Alien universe is being a Space Marine, and the two of them would be a welcome gift for the bookshelf of any RPGer with a taste for horror and/or gritty sci-fi.
RRP: AUD$35.71 (.pdf from DriveThruRPG); AUD$28.56 for the Colonial Marines Operations Manual (ditto).
STRIXHAVEN: A CURRICULUM OF CHAOS (Wizards Of The Coast)
It’s Dungeons & Dragons at a university for magic users and astoundingly, it doesn’t feel like a Harry Potter rip-off. This is the latest sourcebook for D&D, and is set at the titular university (which is physically located wherever suits the DM best), drawing from the worlds of both D&D as well as Magic: The Gathering for its material.
The focus is on spellcasters but stretches to anyone with magical affinity and includes a campaign designed to encompass four years of (in-game) study at the university, the new Owlin race, academic challenges, on-campus interpersonal relationships, and even extracurricular activities and jobs.
Strixhaven would be a pretty appealing sourcebook for a teen/young adult audience – although a group of older gamers wanting to go for a more Van Wilder: Party Liaison or 21 Jump Street vibe could potentially make use of it too with some creativity and an agreeable DM.
RRP: AUD$59.99
TWILIGHT: 2000 (Free League Publishing)
Its tagline – “Roleplaying in the World War III that never was” – sums up the premise perfectly. NATO and the USSR have nuked each other and most of Europe in 2000, and the survivors are trying to make their way home (or create a new one) in the rubble of Europe.
Probably the most believable post-apocalyptic RPG I’ve encountered, Twilight: 2000 Fourth Edition manages to combine traditional table-top roleplaying with military wargaming and offers a range of rules covering everything from tactical combat to dealing with radiation to converting a tank to run on ethanol fuel.
It’s nothing like Fallout – but for anyone wanting a role-play experience of what might have happened if World War III actually kicked off, this is highly recommended.
RRP: AUD$42.85 (.pdf format from DriveThruRPG)
