I recently learned about The Magic Dwarf of Happenstance Kickstarter, a collaboration between Deep Dungeon Games and Noble Dwarf Printing Co. This is a simple yet ingenious D&D 5e prop that allows one character to gain one of 20 powerful random effects. After consuming the potion.
However, the best part about this item is that it is also a physical prop for the same potion. When a user shakes The Magic Draft of Happenstance, a magical 8-ball device at the bottom of the prop tells them which effects their character has absorbed. Each effect is listed on a set of cards owned by the DM.
The effects themselves range from giving a free wishcast to accidentally dropping a stinking cloud on a group. Of course, there are many other effects, but the important thing is that it is similar to the Wild Magic Surge Table used by Wild Magic Sorcerers in that it can have both beneficial and harmful effects. .
Plus, it’s only a few inches tall, so it won’t take up much space on your game shelf, desk, or table.
The basic version of the product is unpainted, so you can customize the potion to your liking. And even if you’re not as artistically gifted as I am, the Kickstarter tier you can purchase offers professionally painted potions.
Before you start
Before I dig deeper into the review, I would like to clarify a few things.
Mark Reed of Noble Dwarf Printing Co. was kind enough to send me a 3D printed prototype of “The Magic Draft of Happenstance” for this review.
The main differences between the version I received and the final version are:
The potion instruction cards were printed on canvas instead of printed sheets. Print sheet is the material on which TCG cards are printed. (I tried to write on cardstock and had to google the name.) The cork on the bottle is removable. The prototype did not have any magical eight-ball-like devices.
Frankly, as far as I can tell, the third part is the only major difference between the prototype and the final version of the product.
To be clear, you will also receive the final version of the product once it is released. If anything changes between now and then, we’ll be sure to update this article.
With that out of the way, let’s get started!
How are you doing?
Product ingenuity
It’s true that “drafting a magical event” is a simple idea, but sometimes the simplest ideas are the best ideas. So D&D 5e has a lot of tables and random generators. Still, I’ve never seen or thought of using a magic 8 ball as a dice or random number generator. It’s a really great gimmick, and I think it’s well done.
It also helps that the random generator and effects are independent of each other. All effects are listed on the card included in the potion, and the prop itself only indicates which effect you have ingested. I think this is beneficial as it allows the DM to homebrew entirely new effects and tweak the effects of each potion.
A lot of thought has clearly gone into this item. On the surface, The Magic Draft of Happenstance may not seem like a groundbreaking idea, but the execution of the idea makes this a unique and fun product.
product quality
Ingenuity and fun are important, but as a consumer, the quality of the product itself is probably more important.
To be honest, the prototype I played with was extremely high quality. I was sent a full-sized version of the product made from similar (or the same) materials as the retail version of the product.
I didn’t intentionally drop it off my desk, but since I have two cats, it inevitably fell off my desk and landed on the hardwood floor. However, fortunately we escaped without any damage.
Overall, I’m very satisfied with the prototype version! As far as I know, there are no major changes to the items other than the addition of the Magic 8 Ball.
Product usefulness
How often you incorporate “The Magic Draft of Happenstance” into your D&D 5e game will largely depend on how your table feels about powerful items with random effects.
We’re not 100% sure if the team has determined the exact item rarity for The Magic Draft of Happenstance. This potion is very powerful overall, and most of its effects can last for over 4 hours. Because of this, I think it is probably a legendary item.
In general, legendary items can (and often do) come completely out of the blue. This is exactly why you shouldn’t introduce these types of items until late in the campaign.
When you think about it, it’s a fun item. I have no qualms about throwing it in very late in a campaign, especially in a one-shot adventure “just for fun.”
To be honest, I don’t think it’s any more “breaking” to the game than The Deck of Many Things, even if the chance of casting a wish for free with a potion is 1/20.
Basically, it’s very much a “just for fun” magic item. Depending on how your group plays the game, you can get a lot of mileage out of potions. If an item with a potentially awesome or devastating random effect isn’t suitable for the table, it probably won’t be used regularly in the game.
Is drafting a magical event worth the price?
From what I’ve seen so far, I definitely think The Magic Draft of Happenstance is worth the $20 USD Kickstarter buy-in. This is a classy and classy item!
You can use it in bulk on a regular basis with your group, or shelve it for special occasions or quick one-shots. Honestly, it’s definitely a fun accessory to display on your desk or game shelf, even if you don’t use it often (as I currently do).
It can also be used as a fun painting project if any of your tablemates are into it. I’m sure it will be a fun “thank you” or “DM appreciation” gift. Especially if someone took the time to custom paint it themselves.
If this is something you, your friends, or your entire group would enjoy, I highly recommend checking out Kickstarter. But with less than 10 days left, you might want to hurry.
