My Two Copper Pieces

First of all I want to say thank you to Candi and Mr. Nymberg for spending so much time on creating something that we three humble gamers and Mike had the privilege of being first to utilize. Thank you very much.

Now the review: I have to echo many of the things Ademar stated in his personal review, although there are a few things I disagree with. This isn't due to a misperception on his part as much as it is a mistake on my part in clarification.

Firstly, the detail level throughout was simply incredible. From the floor tiles to the wall relief to the runic writing on the sarcophagi to the little table and chair pieces that we (sadly) couldn't utilize in our short gaming session I was simply floored by the attention and time spent putting it all together. Anyone who didn't know better would think that the entire set was lovingly crafted by lifelong gamers who worked as professional craftsmen. Seriously, and with all due respect to my friend and her father, when I opened the box and went through its contents Saturday evening I couldn't find the appropriate words to describe it to my wife who was standing right next to me, I ended up settling for "It's a gamer's wet dream." and I meant it in the best possible way. If I had had this as a kid, oh man, I would've been a legend in my gaming circle.

Secondly, the scaling was just short of perfect. Our miniatures fit exactly as they should have on each 1x1 square. The sarcophagi were the right height and, had it come into play, would've accurately portrayed the necessary positioning regarding cover. (My gamer comrades will know what I mean). I wish I had realized that the wall sections with the circle of wire (sans chain) inserted were in fact wall sconces for the torches you provided. Would've made a nice touch, but I'm an idiot. I can't wait to use the chair and table pieces.

Thirdly, generally its been my experience that you have to suffer quantity when you create a quality product or vice-versa but this is certainly not the case here. Aside from what I believed to be a genuinely purchase-worthy product in quality I could not believe the sheer bloody volume of items you created and included. I estimated, probably inaccurately, that the equivalent of Dwarven forge materials would've costed nearly three thousand gold pieces based on what I know of them. It was an experience just removing the various pieces form the (excellently engineered) packaging provided.

Lastly, the working guillotine was freakin' sweet!

And now for the sake of critique:

I agree that the coals may be impractical but I still plan to give them a go. It will be interesting to see how much of the stuff remains after being used in game sessions a few times. As a suggestion, perhaps gluing some permanently to future fire pits/funeral pyres etc might be the more practical approach. It remains to be seen however as I plan to use what we have in the near future.

Also, a little variation in color would be nice. Not so much on the walls and floor tiles because I'm aware that it was created for something I specifically asked for, but (and I didn't even notice this until I tried to take pictures of it) a different shade on the sarcophagi or the giant skulls for the sake of contrast. Nitpicking I know, but just for future reference.

I understand that they are on the way, but I agree with Cor'Nal that large pieces (varying in degree of size) would help immensely especially if they're marked in delineated 1"x1" squares like the others, when it comes to prep time. The only true drawback to the set we have currently is the investment in time required to put it together. I have theories on how to greatly reduce this that I've yet to put into practice. Cor'Nal, I believe, actually suggested Sunday that when you begin selling these sets that you perhaps create place tops of various sizes with lids (like a cake holder) to hide the pre-created set-pieces the DM puts together pre-session in order to cut down on time and preserve the surprise factor. I'm taking that idea one step further and suggesting that if created, these concealers could be made from sturdy cardstock and painted on the outside with various fantasy images a'la our DM screens. Of course this would probably drive Mike insane and I'd have to hide a security guard to keep him from peeking during my restroom/cookie breaks but I digress.

I personally thought the sarcophagi were just fine with depressions but when Ademar mentioned it raised relief and opening lids on them sounds like a really good idea as well. But I wouldn't stop creating them as you did.

Getting to what Ademar had said: About the scale of the candles, they were actually exactly what I'd requested. Reason being: Have you ever been to a Catholic ceremony of any kind? The candles are friggin' huge! My vision was for the first set Candi and Mr. Nymberg made to be that of an underground temple/church for priests and worshippers of a dark order, where black sermons and sacrifices to the gods of murder and destruction could take place. So, in truth the candles are to scale. Probably not interchangeable with future instances, but correct for the specs I provided. I didn't mention this because, frankly, you guys aren't suppose to know yet. Sorry, my bad.

In Summation: All in all on the positive side I think this was a triumphant first run for your "prototype". I feel honored to have been a (admittedly small) part of its creation as well as the first DM to put it to use. I am ashamed to admit that it was more than I ever thought it could be.

The level of immersion that this holds the potential for creating is staggering. I speak for my entire gaming group when I say that we will be thrilled to playtest any and all items that you present us with in the future. Please keep it coming (and let us know when you're ready to sell!).