It's Dangerous to Go Alone

Monday, February 19, 2018

Okay, so I need to get this off my chest. We all know the classic line from the cave hermit at the start of The Legend of Zelda. "It's dangerous to go alone! Take this." Cool. But how does taking a sword address the fact that Link is still going alone? Sure, he has something with which to fight the danger inherent in solo adventuring, but wouldn't it be better for the old dude to also advise Link to take some friends along? That worked really well for 15 core Final Fantasy games.* I'm just saying.

Well, when you venture into the Jungle of Despair in May, I advise you to take allies in addition to your swords, boomerangs, bombs, and whatnot. And when you build your expedition party, you're going to need some miniatures to represent them. That's where today's blog comes in!

What jungle expedition is complete without a ranger to cut a path through the thick underbrush, to listen to the calls of nearby fauna warning of pending danger, or to gauge the best time and place to make camp during the annual monsoon, when the threat of flash flooding could ruin your much-needed 8 hours of rest. Enter the human hunter, a Medium uncommon figure, and your savior when you need a high roll on that next Survival check. Equipped with a ghillie suit, soft leather boots, and a knocked arrow ready to let fly, the human hunter won't make a sound as she blazes a trail to adventure at your side!

"But," you might inquire, "what's our guide's final destination? Where are we going?" Why to find that lost magic anvil from the blog two weeks ago, silly! And who better to accompany such an expedition but the dwarf explorer? No one. There is no one better. If you don't believe me, this curmudgeonly companion will remind you at every opportunity. He's clearly planning on doing some spelunking, what with his rope and grappling hook, but even aboveground he stands to be a stalwart ally with his short sword and heavy crossbow. The dwarf explorer is a Medium rare figure.

Rounding out the party is some magical support—a companion capable of deciphering ancient runes and dispelling arcane wards that protect your prize from plunder. The human arcanist looks like he could hail from the esteemed magical academy of the Magaambya deep in the heart of the Mwangi Jungle, where acolytes of Old-Mage Jatembe still mix the traditions of arcane and druidic magic to keep the forces of evil at bay. And if his magic fails, he can always literally throw the book at his enemies. Look at that thing! It has to weigh 20 pounds! The human arcanist is a Medium rare figure.

When the dangers of the deep jungle become too much for even these capable adventurers to handle, they can always call upon the help of outsiders (maybe that giant book is full of true names used for planar binding and other summoning spells). But the arcanists of the Magaambya would never treat with the likes of devils or demons. Only the forces of good are, well, good enough for our magic warriors! The azata wilder, a CR 6 outsider capable of being summoned via summon monster V, relishes the thrill of battle, and would be more than happy to come to your aid. Since higher level variants of the spell could result in as many as 1d4+1 of the azatas, this is a common figure, enabling you to represent an entire host of Elysian archers on the battle mat. As a Medium creature with distinct elven features, the figure can also serve as a player character in a pinch—I could see this as an aasimar or a sorcerous elf arcane archer with the celestial bloodline.

Next week we'll look at the antithesis of today's previews: creepy, crawly creatures from the dark places of the earth (and at least one outer plane), as well as a thematically related piece of dungeon dressing! I look forward to continuing the conversation with you then, friends!

Mark Moreland
Franchise Manager

*Yes, I know there are like fifty Final Fantasy games at this point. I said "core"—like with a Roman numeral in its title. You don't get to out-pedant me, nerds.