Pages from the Lost Grimoire – A Curse Upon You / Spoiling the Broth by Dan Coleman is a role playing game supplement published by Dan Coleman Productions for use with Dungeons & Dragons 5th Edition. As such, it is covered by the Open Game License with some parts considered to be Open Game Content as a result. This is the third in a series of supplement that introduce new content, in this case a selection of curses for magic items and a mini-adventure that can result in the characters getting a cursed item.
The supplement is available as a PDF from RPGNow as a Pay What You Want supplement as the series is funded through Patreon. There is a ten page PDF with one page being the front cover, one the front matter, one a thanks for patrons and two being the Open Game License. There are also three png maps of the encounter area for the adventure, one being for the GM and the other two being for players, one with and one without a grid.
Two pages start with some brief details on curses and on role playing curse effects, followed by a collection of new curses, seven in total. All of these curses can be given to magic items. The items in question could still have beneficial effects, just with a cursed side effect. Some side effects are comparatively minor, such as being forced to speak in a sing song, but others, such as becoming an emaciated husk with reductions in Strength and Constitution, are rather more dangerous.
The rest of the supplement is Spoiling the Broth, a single encounter. This can be run for any size and levels of characters, as it is not primarily intended to be a combat encounter. The characters will stumble across a hag who wants help brewing a potion in a cauldron of despair. The potion requires a number of ingredients, including a magical item, and if the characters help, the magic item will get a benefit, as well as a curse, suggested to be one from earlier. The cauldron itself is cursed and characters who do help the hag may end up feeling responsible for what happens with the potion she brews – this would be for the GM to develop. Attacking the hag simply causes her to curse them and flee.
Pages from the Lost Grimoire – A Curse Upon You / Spoiling the Broth in Review
The PDF lacks bookmarks and does not really require any for its length, although they would have been appreciated. Navigation could be better.
The text maintains a two column full colour format and no errors were noticed. There is a single illustration, relevant to one of the curses, and a small reproduction of the encounter map. Including the separate png files, presentation is very good.
The curses do cover a range of effects. Most interestingly, some of the lesser ones could be used as a side effect for an otherwise useful item, meaning characters – and possibly players, for effects that are role played – might have to choose between keeping a beneficial item and getting rid of it due to the side effects.
The small adventure is a useful side diversion, as it provides a non-combat encounter that could be further developed as a side quest by a GM, and could lead to characters having to deal with the effects of them helping an evil creature.
Pages from the Lost Grimoire – A Curse Upon You / Spoiling the Broth is perhaps the best in the series so far and it can be checked out for free by clicking here.
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