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“Let’s do D&D for this year’s Nerdstravaganza.”

When you’ve been playing RPGs with the same group for 33 years, every so often a friend says something like this.

Nerdstravaganza is our group’s way of keeping the magic alive.

Maybe you can relate:  In high school we RPG-ed all the time.  Mostly D&D, but also Warhammer FRP, Car Wars, Star Wars, and James Bond 007.  Almost every weekend someone was running a campaign, and many of my high school memories (the best ones) take place in stuffy basements.  We’re crowded around the table, shouting with our character sheets, stacks of rulebooks, and massive bags of dice.

As adults, our group has run a bunch of memorable campaigns.  But at least once a year we gather for the full nerd experience, a form of gaming Valhalla, really:  A three-day weekend spent at somebody’s house (still largely in the basement) where all we do is game.

Every Nerdstravaganza has a primary campaign, a focal event for the weekend, that we play at least 8 hours a day.  And the rest of the time we eat, catch up, tweak our characters, prep for the next session, and play lots of other games.

Over the course of 20 years

The Grim & Deliberate Beast was born in basements like these, at times like this.

Through the process of designing and playing in thousands of combats, we’ve noticed that themes emerge.  Themes aren’t necessarily bad, they help orient players and DMs to the vibe and the action of an encounter:  What’s likely to happen here?  What tactics are likely to work or fail?

But sometimes you need theme interruption.  The energy in the room would benefit from an unexpected change, a turn that no one could have anticipated.  You needs to shake things up.

This need for change, for pattern interruption, was the driving force behind The Grim & Deliberate Beast.

Solves combat uniformity

The first problem we set out to solve is one we eventually named combat uniformity.

It looks like this:

  • The Orcs howl with rage and charge into melee…then divide their numbers neatly between each of the player characters.
  • The Stone Giants hurl their boulders in a ferocious battle…but remain curiously unresponsive to the odds piling up against them.
  • Baalk’xar the great Red Dragon rises majestically into the sky…but never fights to his full potential.

The Grim & Deliberate Beast solves combat uniformity by introducing d100 variance into combat, for each monster species.

Our system doesn’t assume that all Goblins are Dimwitted, that all Dragons are Brilliant, and that all Orcs attack Fanatically.  Instead, our assumption is one of species variability.

To be sure, some of the Goblins you face will behave in the ways you’ve grown used to.

But depending on how the dice fall on variables like Aggression, General Intelligence, Special Units, and Special Abilities, others will act very differently.

This injects fear and excitement back into your combat, bringing your group together, and forcing fresh PC thinking and new PC tactics.

Reduces decision fatigue

The second problem we set out to solve is DM decision fatigue.

Decision fatigue occurs for all DMs at some point.  It’s normal, and it happens because running a campaign is a huge job.  Running a campaign for an 8-12 hour session is a ridiculous job.  Running dozens of such sessions over the years, with the expectation that each combat will feel scary, exciting, and new for your players is an insane job.

The Grim & Deliberate Beast reduces decision fatigue by providing DMs with a rational system of d100 variance for each monster species.  In addition, we give detailed narrative blueprints for monster actions at each stage of combat.

With a few roles of the dice and 10 seconds to note the results, DMs have a whole host of tools to use in each combat, and a fresh story line that they didn’t spend precious brainpower to create.

And these tools are flexible.  They have low repetition, high replayability, and they preserve the authentic vibe of D&D.

Our approach

Like D&D itself, our approach to solving the problems of combat uniformity and decision fatigue utilizes both quantitative and qualitative elements.  A few d100 rolls point DMs in a clear direction.  What is Aggression Level of these monsters?  What is their General Intelligence?  What Special Units are present?  What is their Weaponry?

Then, qualitative features like Culture & Psychology, Special Units, Special Abilities, and Grudges ensure that monster behavior is flexible and complex.

DMs understand the Motivations, Tactics, and Behavior of the monsters they command, from the first round of combat.

Using linchpin combat events, DMs can easily modify monster Motivations, Tactics, and Behavior as combat unfolds.  Info Boxes on our Monster A. I. Cards pair with detailed narrative blueprints in our Tome of Lore to allow for intuitive adjustments that can radically alter the flavor of combat, but take only seconds to implement.

Combat, customized.

Who is this set for?

The Grim & Deliberate Beast is for…

DMs of all skill levels who want:

  • A tactical plan and a narrative structure for their monsters before combat starts.
  • A roadmap for monster behavioral change that solves the problem of combat uniformity and reduces DM decision fatigue.

Players who enjoy:

  • Fear, and the comradery it brings.
  • Deadlier, more diverse combat.
  • Learning monster tactics and adding new tricks to their own combat playbooks.
  • Reading unique content about monster psychology, culture, and special abilities.

From our group to yours

In addition to our A. I. system, we’ve included a few other, favorite tools from our own campaigns.

If you need to lighten the mood, there’s a library of over 200 Combat Insults your saucy monsters can fling at unsuspecting PCs.  And if your group is in the mood for violence, there are extensive and brutal d100 Critical Hit and Death Blow Tables organized by weapon type and body location.

Overall, there’s more to read, more to learn, and more to integrate into your campaigns.  The payoff is more nuanced combat, and increased replayability.

From our playgroup to yours, thank you.  May your game nights be rowdy, and full of jubilance.

 

Alec Wilson (from his basement)

June, 2020

 

See the full blog here.

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