Contrary to common assumptions, alcohol and biting on a stick were not the only solutions to withstanding surgery in ancient times. Evidence of herbal anesthetics date back to the Roman period. In 800 AD, a Benedictine monk in Southern Italy scribbled down his recipe, which involved opium, henbane, mulberry juice, lettuce, hemlock, mandragora, and ivy….
Currently, I’m in the throes of editing The Last Goddess after a wild misadventure that involved three different dev readers (that’s a doozy of a story* I’ll dig into another day). To keep me centered, I return to these five epic pieces of artwork that vibe with Roman gods running amok during the early Renaissance…
You’ll have guessed by now that I’m a little hag-obsessed. As a DM, my hags lurk in the muddy moral-gray waters rather than herald all things evil and vile. They love monkey paw bargains, comeuppance for the vainglorious, and oodles of drama. They’re old and they’re bored, and you’re the newest plaything to have stumbled…
One of my favorite homebrews is a table of 100 wild magic effects (see the free PDF below). Every effect is deliciously fey in nature and meant to bemuse, tease, perplex, rankle, or challenge your D&D players. Be warned, it’s a touch adult-themed in nature. I created this table for my Greyloss Dungeons & Dragons…