My Year in Review! This is a post about all the stuff I released in 2022. I haven’t done one of these before, so here goes nothing lol. Each of the products is listed in release order. Maps for Fantasy RPGs 3 was released in February 2022. What can I say, hand drawn, royalty-free mapsContinue reading “Laidback DM: The Year in Review 2022”
Category Archives: Review
Scurry Review
Scurry: A Game that Gathers Speed is an appealing, minimalist tabletop role playing game (TTRPG) by Brian Tyrrell, published by Dungeons on a Dime Press. In Scurry, players take on the roles of small animals in a post-titan (the animals’ name for humans) future world. Nature has taken back an environment previously ravaged by humanityContinue reading “Scurry Review”
Pathfinder 2e Review: Bestiary 2 Battle Cards and NPC Battle Cards
I know I say this all the time, to the point where I’m probably a bit like a droning LP (“What’s an LP?,” say Millenials almost everywhere), but Paizo continually puts out great products, and on such a regular basis they really put WOTC’s D&D schedule to shame. I am, I’m sad to say, somewhatContinue reading “Pathfinder 2e Review: Bestiary 2 Battle Cards and NPC Battle Cards”
Laidback DM: Dragon Warriors Review
I don’t have a lot of free time nowadays, but I ordered this game from DrivethruRPG and thought I’d (finally) post a review of it. Dragon Warriors is an English TTRPG first published as a series of paperbacks back in the mid-80s. Serpent King Games has reprinted the 2006 revival of that original game, whichContinue reading “Laidback DM: Dragon Warriors Review”
Review – Pathfinder 2e Gamemastery Guide & Advanced Players Guide
I’ve really fallen behind in reviews of the excellent Pathfinder 2e (P2e) products I’ve been buying. Here’s two brief reviews to make up for it: Anyone who has bought the P2e Core Rulebook will know it’s a hefty tome, both in size and price. I know Paizo (the company that makes the game) was tryingContinue reading “Review – Pathfinder 2e Gamemastery Guide & Advanced Players Guide”
Laidback DM: Pathfinder 2e Reviews – Bestiary Battle Cards
The Pathfinder 2e Bestiary Battle Cards are a heavy box of 450 large-sized monster cards for GMs who run live games. Every monster in the P2e Bestiary book is included, the more powerful ones sometimes spanning two cards. Each card is 4 x 6 inches and has great artwork from the Bestiary. As a DMContinue reading “Laidback DM: Pathfinder 2e Reviews – Bestiary Battle Cards”
Laidback DM: Pathfinder 2e Reviews – The Show Must Go On
Right on the heels of the Age of Ashes Adventure Path comes Extinction Curse. I’m very impressed at the way Paizo churns out adventures for their products every month, especially when they are all of such excellent quality. Each one is packed full of new monsters, spells, feats, magic items and lore, and the packagingContinue reading “Laidback DM: Pathfinder 2e Reviews – The Show Must Go On”
Laidback DM: P2e Review – Bestiary Pawn Box
I love combat on a grid, but minis are too costly and take up too much space. I prefer to use pawns for this reason and Paizo makes some of the best. I recently bought the new Pathfinder 2e Bestiary Pawn Box, which is absolutely huge. It contains 378 pawns featuring every single monster fromContinue reading “Laidback DM: P2e Review – Bestiary Pawn Box”
Laidback DM: P2e Review – Broken Promises
Time I got back to reviewing some Pathfinder stuff! I’ve been buying literally everything, so here’s my opinion. All good things come to an end, and this final adventure in the Age of Ashes Adventure Path pulls no punches. It’s for 18th-20th level characters and features some pretty hard challenges. An assault on the PC’sContinue reading “Laidback DM: P2e Review – Broken Promises”
Laidback DM: P2e Review – Against the Scarlet Triad
Time I got back to reviewing some Pathfinder stuff! I’ve been buying literally everything, so here’s my opinion. The 5th adventure in the Age of Ashes Adventure Path progresses characters from 15th-17th level. It’s time to face the Scarlet Triad in their home town of Katapesh, battling a Wendigo in the town of Flinderplain andContinue reading “Laidback DM: P2e Review – Against the Scarlet Triad”
Laidback DM: P2e Review – Fires of the Haunted City
Time I got back to reviewing some Pathfinder stuff! I’ve been buying literally everything, so here’s my (short) opinion. The Age of Ashes Adventure Path continues with this adventure for 12th-14th level characters. The PCs use one of their portals to get to the underground Dwarven city of Kovlar and the nearby haunted city ofContinue reading “Laidback DM: P2e Review – Fires of the Haunted City”
Laidback DM: Pathfinder 2e Reviews – Lost Omens Character Guide
I’ve been buying most of the Pathfinder 2e products, so I may as well review them. Paizo has a monthly release schedule for their products, which is great for those of us with collector mentalities that like to have everything (but terrible for our erstwhile budgets). I was pretty impressed with the Lost Omens WorldContinue reading “Laidback DM: Pathfinder 2e Reviews – Lost Omens Character Guide”
Laidback DM: Pathfinder 2e Reviews – Tomorrow Must Burn
I’ve been buying all the Pathfinder 2e products, so I may as well review them. Sorry it’s taken me a while to get to this adventure path. Just call me lazy. Limited Spoilers! Tomorrow Must Burn is the third part of the epic Pathfinder 2e adventure path Age of Ashes, containing three adventures for charactersContinue reading “Laidback DM: Pathfinder 2e Reviews – Tomorrow Must Burn”
Laidback DM: Pathfinder 2e Review – Cult of Cinders
I’ve been buying all the Pathfinder 2e products, so I may as well review them. Sorry it’s taken me a while to get to this adventure path. Just call me lazy. Spoilers!! Cult of Cinders is the second part of the Age of Ashes adventure path. It contains four adventures taking PCs from 5th-8th level,Continue reading “Laidback DM: Pathfinder 2e Review – Cult of Cinders”
Laidback DM: Pathfinder 2e Reviews – Hellknight Hill
(I’ve been buying all the Pathfinder 2e products, so I may as well review them. Sorry it’s taken me a while to get to this adventure path. Just call me lazy.) Hellknight Hill is the first in the Age of Ashes Adventure Path for P2e, taking PCs from 1st-4th level. The first mini-adventure sees theContinue reading “Laidback DM: Pathfinder 2e Reviews – Hellknight Hill”
Laidback DM – Lost Omens World Guide (Pathfinder 2e) Review
I’ve been buying everything Pathfinder 2e related over the past few months, so I thought I’d do a few reviews. Lost Omens World Guide is exactly what you think it is – a gazetteer of the world of Golarion, Pathfinder’s official setting. Okay, it’s actually the Inner Sea region, Golarion’s analogue of Europe, Africa andContinue reading “Laidback DM – Lost Omens World Guide (Pathfinder 2e) Review”
Laidback DM – Pathfinder 2e Product Reviews
I went a bit crazy and bought all of the Pathfinder 2e products currently available. Here’s a short review of some of them. Pathfinder 2e Gamemaster’s Screen A strong, 4-panel GM screen with great art and useful tables and reminders: conditions, actions, DCs, death and dying, monster types, etc. P2 is a rules-heavy system, andContinue reading “Laidback DM – Pathfinder 2e Product Reviews”
Laidback DM – Descent into Avernus review
I was sooooooo looking forward to getting this adventure. But like so many things in life, the experience didn’t quite live up to the expectation. I’m not going to explain the storyline—by now you would have read the advertising blurb. Descent into Avernus is a campaign adventure for characters levels 1-13. It has great art,Continue reading “Laidback DM – Descent into Avernus review”
Laidback DM: Pathfinder 2e Review
I bought copies of the Pathfinder 2nd edition Core Rulebook and Bestiary the other week, and after a solid read (they are over 600 and 200 pages respectively) here are my thoughts on the game. Pros: Great layout and design – tabs and index make it easier to find stuff. The PDF is also fullyContinue reading “Laidback DM: Pathfinder 2e Review”
Godzilla 2: King of the Monsters. A movie review.
No spoilers! If you like oversized beasties ripping buildings apart you’re gonna love this pic. Even the family drama at the centre of the movie was good. I enjoyed the first Godzilla a few years back, and then Skull Island, the Kong movie set in the same cinematic universe. This sequel works as well asContinue reading “Godzilla 2: King of the Monsters. A movie review.”
Pokémon: Detective Pikachu. A movie review.
No spoilers! I hate Pokémon. But my son dragged me to see this because of his lifelong obsession with the cute and annoying cartoon creatures, and I have to say…it wasn’t that bad. Pokémon-less Tim (Justice Smith) finds out his estranged dad has died in a car accident and travels to Ryme City, where PokémonContinue reading “Pokémon: Detective Pikachu. A movie review.”
John Wick Chapter 3: Parabellum. A movie review.
No spoilers! I’m a big fan of the John Wick movies. JW3 is another fine entry in the violent action series. Keanu Reeves is back as John Wick, the almost-retired hit man who loves his dead wife and wreaks bloody vengeance on, well, pretty much everyone over the death of the dog she left him.Continue reading “John Wick Chapter 3: Parabellum. A movie review.”
Avengers Endgame. A movie review.
Avengers Endgame has been hyped to the nth degree, and for good reason: it’s really good. The Marvel Studios movie universe has been going for 11 years. 22 movies later, and Endgame arrives as part 2 of the Infinity War saga, and a movie that keeps most of the fans happy. I say most, becauseContinue reading “Avengers Endgame. A movie review.”
The Curse of the Weeping Woman. A movie review.
The Curse of La Llorona, or The Curse of the Weeping Woman as it’s called for Australian release, is an okay horror movie that does its best to scare you with a rejigged ghost story that’s fun to watch but fairly shallow and somewhat forgettable. I don’t watch a lot of horror movies, as IContinue reading “The Curse of the Weeping Woman. A movie review.”
Shazam! A movie review.
Shazam! is an enjoyable, feel-good superhero movie reminiscent of 80’s family flicks. Billy Batson (Asher Angel) is a resourceful orphan looking for the mother he was separated from many years before. Placed with a new and quirky foster family, he meets Freddy (Jack Dylan Grazer), foster brother and roommate, who is obsessed with superheroes. AfterContinue reading “Shazam! A movie review.”
Glass. A movie review.
Minor spoilers! Glass is the sequel to Unbreakable and Split. It’s the culmination of one journey and the start of another. It’s really good, and deserves more appreciation than it’s gotten from some critics. M. Night Shyamalan is an auteur director with a reputation for ‘twist’ endings and a distinctly uneven quality to his releasesContinue reading “Glass. A movie review.”
Aquaman. A movie review.
No spoilers! A fun, vibrant and visually spectacular superhero movie. Arthur Curry (Jason Momoa) is the son of a lighthouse keeper and an Atlantean queen. His half-brother Orm (Patrick Wilson) currently rules the hidden underwater kingdom of Atlantis and plans to bring war to the surface world. Mera (Amber Heard) and Vulko (Willem Dafoe) conspireContinue reading “Aquaman. A movie review.”
Spider-Man: Into the Spiderverse. A movie review.
The best superhero movie I’ve seen. Ever. Miles Morales is a school student trying to fit in at a new prep school. He is bitten by a radioactive spider while practising his graffiti art one night (one of the same experimental spiders that bit Peter Parker), and stumbles upon Spider-Man battling Kingpin. We’re entering spoilerContinue reading “Spider-Man: Into the Spiderverse. A movie review.”
Mortal Engines. A movie review.
No spoilers! Mortal Engines is enjoyable, with nice ideas, great design and big effects, but ultimately is overly reliant on cliched plot points. London is a futuristic steampunk city on wheels that travels the countryside consuming smaller towns for resources. Tom (Robert Sheehan) is a Londoner historian who gets mixed up in an assassination attemptContinue reading “Mortal Engines. A movie review.”
Comics: All-Time Personal Faves
I looooove comic books. I’ve been reading them since I was a kid, and in my currently bereft and almost moneyless state I don’t get as many opportunities to buy them as I used to. A loooong time ago, I said I was going to talk about some of my favourite comic book stories. SorryContinue reading “Comics: All-Time Personal Faves”
Laidback DM: SteveStillStanding.com 