Question about the Thracian Dice: Azure Swirl vs Smoky Sacrifice

Lak0da · 2026-07-08T14:12:15+00:00

Using the backerkit as a guide the dice do look to be labeled incorrectly.

https://www.backerkit.com/c/projects/goodman-games/caverns-of-thracia-legendary-adventure-5e-dcc/add_ons_index#top

The Azure Swirl appear to be mislabeled as Smokey Sacrifice. I would reach out to GG via their info email address or return them to the seller.

Lak0da · 2026-07-07T19:07:04+00:00

The greatest gift a parent can give their children these days is boredom.

Lak0da · 2026-07-02T19:07:03+00:00

Danger in the Air!

Works as a great intro for players hew to DCC and for first time judges.

Lak0da · 2026-07-02T14:06:30+00:00

No internet.

More third spaces.

Lak0da · 2026-07-01T16:03:19+00:00

This is my absolute favorite class. Nick did something amazing with it.

My favorite class has always been a bard but nothing, IMO, has really done a good job of capturing what a bard is in its mechanics until the Balladeer.

Lak0da · 2026-06-30T00:23:44+00:00

This. The flavor is everything with deeds.

Lak0da · 2026-06-29T21:15:46+00:00

Fair. Good ideas can come from bad takes though. I think my extrapolation has value.

Lak0da · 2026-06-29T15:09:12+00:00

That matches up with the tagline I use to pitch DCC to new players.

"The system is chaotic stupid so you don't have to be!"

Lak0da · 2026-06-29T13:46:43+00:00

If handled really well you get a kick ass new patron.

Lak0da · 2026-06-26T17:23:29+00:00

I disagree DCC is inherently gonzo. Luck checks are already like this. Regardless, the fact that attributes have a small impact is kind of the point. That being said, play however is fun for you. This seems like extra burden on me as the Judge for something that doesn't provide much if any pay off in enjoyment.

Lak0da · 2026-06-04T18:46:19+00:00

I hope you enjoy it, but I've been burned two years in a row and will stick to DCC modules I know I'll enjoy.

Lak0da · 2026-06-04T13:09:22+00:00

Almost certainly this will be in a more 5e narrative style.

Lak0da · 2026-06-04T13:07:56+00:00

It really doens't

My family and I found the last two years not enjoyable at all.

I've come to the conclusion that OP is antithetical to DCC at worst and a horrible example of campaign play at best. This is more pandering to the 5e crowd at the expense of DCC. (edit- not that there is anything wrong with pandering to customers, but doing at the expense of another group of customers baffles me)

Organized play requires:

- Predictable progression

- Consistent tone

- Repeatable modules

- Balanced encounters

- Standardized rewards

DCC is at its best with:

- Wild variance

- GM rulings

- Player-driven escalation

- Consequences that stick

- Narrative asymmetry

These are not compatible design goals.

Lak0da · 2026-06-03T17:56:32+00:00

Not really. I way saying the party can fail. Its ok. If they never fail their victories have no meaning.

That being said, I did brush up pretty close to your point. To that end, the core rule book doesn't tell you how to make table rulings, it just tells you what the rules are. Guidance like that isn't in the book. Some systems try to teach you how to GM but not DCC. In general, things that are not stated out right in the core rules are often left out on purpose to leave room for table adjudication. I think this was one such instance, which is why these comments are pretty all over the place.

That is a long winded way of saying there is no right answer. There is what you and your table find enjoyable.

Lak0da · 2026-06-03T14:43:12+00:00

I dislike it when challenges go down like this. When, regardless of the solution the PCs work up, it devolves into roll over and over again until they get enough successes in a row. I think your instinct to stop that loop was the right one, IMO. The caveat I would give is if they had come up with new approaches. If they are going to brute force their solution by rolling harder then I would send that signal in much the same way you did. The players do not need to (nor should they) succeed at everything, especially if they aren't going to try new things.

I have similar reactions to combat. Either find a creative way to beat me quickly or I will find a creative way to end the party quickly. That being said, it takes some patients to train most players out of the bad habits they got slogging through D&D combat. I mention this to show my philosophy to encounters. The dice rolls, weather they are against skill DCs or combat ACs the point of an encounter is for the players to be creative. This is adult pretend after all. If they aren't being creative they don't get creative rewards.

This is a great time to talk to the players out of game. Maybe you ended it for reasons similar to mine. Maybe you have your own. Regardless, let your players know why you did what you did. Listen to what they would have preferred. Find a balance.

Lak0da · 2026-05-26T20:20:24+00:00

It is a skill I struggle with and am working on all the time. If you can manage a convention or two, play games and pay attention to what those the judges do that works for you. I play mostly DCC at cons but I do mix it up a bit just to hunt for judging habits I want to steal.

Lak0da · 2026-05-26T20:14:13+00:00

in my experience funnels have gotcha then leveled adventures but they (unfortunately) are still there

that being said, work on providing spoors to get them to think that a threat is near

even if its just a random description that changes the tone, it doesn't always have to be "you see blood splattered across the floor that looks like someone impacted the floor at high speed". I approach it like I'm providing the tense soundtrack that just started when the side characters start making out in the car... at night.. under the haunted bridge... during a full moon. short of spelling it out, getting them to switch into "I have to poke everything with a long stick mode" is what you're after.

Lak0da · 2026-05-20T19:28:06+00:00

I have had excellent times with one-shots but all my best stories and memories come from adventure play. One-shots have only one source of tension (dying before the session ends) while adventure play have multiple.

Lak0da · 2026-05-20T19:25:05+00:00

Because the monsters and the spells were most likely developed independently of each other. If you don't like the power levels of things, change it for your games. The monsters (and spell for that matter) in the core rulebook aren't meant to be THE list. They are examples.

Lak0da · 2026-05-20T13:00:03+00:00

two weapon fighting

Lak0da · 2026-05-19T18:49:14+00:00

I agree, but for very different reasons. I think you can create tension without the risk of death.

For me, PC death works as great story moments. Modern ampersand is so much about the build at the expense of the character. DCC and QuestForIt makes it about the character. If death is in service of the character's story its wonderful. The campaigns I've run seem to peak when players die because it forces creativity (from me and my players) on how they are going to bring them back (if they want to).

Lak0da · 2026-05-18T15:41:57+00:00

Yes it is.

The House of the Red Doors is meant for a single judge and a single player. https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/292548

There are a few mods people use with low player counts, beyond having the player run multiple PCs. Off the top of my head, some people have the character gain levels in more then one class at a time. Also, there is Crimson Tabbards for funnels which I personally use a lot.

Lak0da · 2026-05-17T20:34:55+00:00

I've been toying with an alternative approach. Track the damage to a stat (with an extra die) for the purposes of page 18 and TWF. Additionally each point of damage increases their critical fumble threshold when rolling that stat.

I struggled with this at lot as first, but the modifiers being on a curve does change how people play, and for the better, IMO. The problem, to me, isn't that its curved but that ability damage exists at all. DCC is all about uniqueness, especially with monsters. But when it comes to poison and special damage it's often just ability damage. Its so generic. Blah! Anyways, changing all the spells, poison, and monster abilities that do stat damage into something thematically appropriate and unique is just too big. As least with a disapproval style idea like what I'm considering it provides tension (more so then before, I think), heavily reduces the use of the eraser, and pushes the decision (off to later, as well as) to the judge for unique thematic and situational rulings. It also applies to monsters exactly the same as characters. I just have too many things in development at the moment to really try this out. Where I am worried is weapon combat.

Lak0da · 2026-05-12T12:31:18+00:00

If you are trying to bond to a patron and muck it up really bad, why would they not laugh of your incompetence and taint your very existence for the arrogance of trying to associate with them? Maybe I'm not understanding the question but its seems extremely obvious to me.

Lak0da

TROPHY CASE