Ben loves a good what-the-frack-accessory now and then. And the twisted crew over at Harcos Laboratories obliges with their simply red invention of the Blood Energy Potion line.

This stuff is frightening real in its appearance. The color and texture are remarkable. The picture hilarity is endless (as we expect the Larper crowd to come loose at the seams).

The product packaging is also worth a hearty chuckle: “not for use with transfusions,” and “garlic free.” Ben especially likes the bloodied thumbprint and smiley vampire face on the back of the label.

Ben’s group used it for a recent DM fumble penalty. You heat it up in the microwave for 14 seconds-ish so you get the blood consistency. It tastes like a wacky and warm fruit punch but includes a bonus four-hour energy surge.

Go ahead and mix things up a little by tossing a bag of blood energy potion on your game table…who knows what will happen next

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Experts say once you build one custom terrain game piece, you’re hooked. Well, those guys sure are right. Ben’s got the fever now and there’s no sane end in sight.

As the group plays Thunderspire Labyrinth, Ben wanted to introduce a more credible connecting plot line to the Pyramid of Shadows D&D module. Thus, a prison block was placed within the Horned Hold to introduce the hook.

The key jail cell components included:

▪ A custom hand-painted miniature to play the main character
▪ A new NPC card for identity and key data points
▪ Floor Terrain and Accessories: Hirst Arts molds (#701, #282, #203, #75, #76, #70)
▪ Chain: Michaels Craft Store
▪ Paints: (Graveyard Earth, Silver, Blood Red, & Chaos Black)
▪ Flock: Dirt from Skullcrafts and dead grass from Citadel

Ben focused on more ornate touches for this piece. It’s the little things like the torches/sconces, tiny buckets, bit box minis, and steel cell doors that really makes this unique build work.

You can learn more about this build by watching the video flyover on our YouTube channel.

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Stop Ben if you’ve ever heard these joyous questions around your table:

• “What? Where’s my sunrod radius again? Can I see that square?”
• “Sorry, still confused – which area on the map is on fire?”
• “I don’t get it…what mysterious rock is protruding out of that wall?”

Son of a B@tch! Yes, these are all valid questions but they often deflate a DM’s initial storytelling rhythm. Ben always wants a game accessory that pops and better translates his module vision.

Three Sage Games has answered Ben’s cry for help with some crafty Crystalline Counters. They come in all different shapes, sizes, and colors to help you better organize your game map and story components. Of course, Ben recommends the combo pack for starters as you get a nice trial mix.

And there are plenty of color applications including:

• Black: Call it a special mineral, coal or mining material.
• Red: Place it on a base to denote a bloodied creature.
• Orange: Rejoice as you now have the perfect fire source.
• Blue/green: Use ‘em to mark a gem stash on the map.
• Purple: Search for the magic stone.
• Clear: Uncover a great raw diamond find.

Ben got fixated on the very affordable orange as the practical in-game fire uses are abundant (so consider picking up a dedicated pack of that color). Remember – the best game accessories occasionally spark great encounter ideas. So why not pick up some Crystalline Counter packs for your Battlemat and see what new plotlines unfold?

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Dungeons and Dragons teamed up with Jones Soda this holiday season for a little beverage hilarity.

There’s lots to belch about here. The artwork is top-notch and fitting of WotC’s 4E book cover art. Tasters will also dig the cool label descriptions such as Dwarven Draught’s “It’s good for what ales you” and Bigby’s “You gain thirst immunity for 2d10 minutes.”

Cream Soda was Ben’s top pick (went down like liquid candy) and Pure Cane Cola was the wackiest (just didn’t taste right). Enjoy six fun flavors and labels in all including:

• Sneak Attack (Cream Soda)
• Potion of Healing (Black Cherry, Sugar Free)
• Bigby’s Crushing Thirst Destroyer (Pure Cane Cola)
• Illithid Brain Juice (Grape)
• Dwarven Draught (Root Beer)
• Eldritch Blast (Green Apple)

Approaching our first anniversary, Ben felt a Pile soda was appropriate (and they make great gifts). If you’re feeling especially adventurous, try crafting your own label. Sadly, you can’t mix and match flavors in a single case and that text input box can screw ya on line breaks…but all and all, Jones D&D Soda was the toast of the year.

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Does a DM ever really have enough beds for his room set-ups? They have many uses ya know including a typical barracks’ setting, a comfy room at the local Inn or an item of stature in the Captain’s quarters.

With so many possibilities, we manned up and took a daring stab at creating our own cot mold. Of course our home brew beds will never measure up to Dwarven Forge (our favs). Still, we feel our option is a respectable item in the perennial do-it-yourself bargain bin.

The paint job was a bit of a head scratcher – particularly the blanket. Ben tried several colors but the green had a nice army-issue-kinda feel to it (for the average minion).

The bed surplus has already come in handy several times. Most notably during our Friday Night Strike game when we played the Bloodtower on the Moorland delve from the Open Grave book.

Keep looking for ways to take chances in your own Dungeons and Dragons projects. Don’t let the usual creative hesitations and doubt hold you back. You will be surprised at the results.

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D&D publishes its third and final miniatures set of 2009 in the new box format – Monster Manual: Savage Encounters.

Ben digs this Monster Manual theme as it reaps an absolute bountiful harvest of miniature goodness. Each booster mini count is still the same as its 2009 predecessors (5 per pack, 1 visible, 8 different packs in all).

So here’s our Savage top five: Sorrowsworn Reaper (put the “bad” in “bad ass”), Tiefling Necromancer (total package: great pose, paint job and detail), Zombie Hulk (green is in), Death Giant (an adventurer’s first instinct is to run away), and the Angel of Valor Legionnaire (perfect use of clear plastic).

And here’s our un-saveagely bottom five: Bloodspike Behemoth (dinosaurs are for dime stores), Bodak Skulk (looks like an alien sighting from the deep south), Githyanki Mindslicer (enough already on this lame race), Legion Devil Legionnaire (think a toy eraser from the school store), and the Skeletal Tiefling (a total leaner – too thin).

With no Players Handbook Heroes III set anywhere to be found (last released on July 2009) but rumored to be set for release in February 2010, it seems likely that a shuffle of the overall format might again occur in 2010. Still, it’s been a great year and let’s just hope miniatures stick around for another one.

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The constant flipping and um’ing of one’s stapled character sheet printout is enough to drive poor ol’ DM Ben to (finally) drink. He wants bing, bang and boom-like speed in his precious games. Fear not – enter Daniel of 4E Fan Publishing and his amazing Power Card customizable creation.

He’s masterminded a handy program (with slick video tutorials) that allows you to build your own Power Cards. Daniel’s invention actually preceded Wizards of the Coast’s own cards but we prefer to utilize both (see our May 27th entry for that review).

Ben’s assembly process is quite simple. Get some Ultra Pro Deck Protectors. Find the applicable D&D Power Card as a base. Create and print out your customized card. Assemble and…wallah! You’re well on your way to creating your own character deck.

We owe a heavy thanks to Yosho and his supporting Imagine Games fan site. He’s created a slew of existing templates for you to import and tweak.

You can even create your magic item power cards (but finding the supporting thumbnail pics can be a bit of hunt). Still, do yourself and the DM a favor – give these heavenly cards a try.

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Ben believes a kill on the battle map needs to be celebrated and properly noted. Sure, you could just tip your mini over and crudely call it a dead body but where’s the proper bliss and recognition in that? You own that square – now show it!

Dragonfire Laser Crafts makes the perfect corpse marker. Their death symbol is part of their RPTiles series and more specifically, comes in their Crypt Tiles set. Ben got sneaky though and was able to purchase an extra clump of singles out of their “bit box” by visiting their booth at GenCon earlier this year.

To mix it up, we also use the coffin marker (also part of the Crypt Tile set) to symbolize the bigger kills on the board. After all, those bosses or especially pesky monsters earned the right to have a fancier tombstone.

The Dragonfire corpse tile also allows for easy stacking of multiple bodies. This function is key as our game group’s house rule says two or more bodies in the same space makes it difficult terrain.

Great stuff, fellow gamers…and remember, it’s the little accessory touches that ultimately set your game board apart from the others

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Every DM reaches a point in their game where they decide to throw up a terrain Hail Marry. For Ben, he wanted to seal the deal on his Thunderspire Chamber of Eyes dungeon with a memorable piece of terror.

The assembly components touched on all the building basics including:

▪ Dire Vampire Wolf: D&D Miniatures Unhallowed.
▪ Rocks: Concrete Rubble Mix from GaleForce nine.
▪ Floor terrain & Accessories: Hirst Arts molds (#203 & #85)
▪ Chain: Michaels Craft Store
▪ Paints: Games Workshop series (Graveyard Earth, Silver, Blood Red, & Chaos Black)
▪ Flock: Grass and Dirt ground cover from Skullcrafts.

Ben’s finishing touches included body parts from the land of misfit minis (the bit box at Gamers’ Inn). He also grabbed an old toothbrush (and not his wife’s existing one) for the ominous blood spatter effect.

So now Torog’s Shrine has a focal terrain piece that is sure to make the party shat themselves. Pick a big battle in your own module and one up, Ben. If he can do it, so can you.

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We got a lot of praise and such from our first home brew installment so Ben decided to double its pleasure with a review of our game group’s initiative board. Alas, Ben once again can’t take credit as this master craftsmanship is the work of our GenCon DM, Jeff. The board in this review is a spinoff of that original creation.

Sure, there are many, many initiative trackers out there including the GameMatery Combat Pad. However, Jeff has always taken a “Why buy it when you can build it yourself” stance. Of course, Ben doesn’t share that philosophy but it does ring true for many a gamer.

All of Ben’s homemade game aids are designed to increase game speed and combat efficiencies for the sole purpose of having more time to play. And everyone at the table has a task. McBeard runs our initiative roles at his end of the table.

The pegs are labeled with each character’s initials along with each monster number. We also built additional pegs for big battle expansion and keep several blanks on hand for additional numbering.

So, now it’s your turn to drill some holes, cut some pegs, and roll for initiative.

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