The Witchlight Carnival Dice & Miscellany Review

Review copy courtesy of Wizards of the Coast.

Pros

• They’re a complete set of dice. There’s even a pair of D20s for advantage rolling.

• The card box with inner felt is nice, and closes well.

• A very nice map. I really like this.

Could Go Either Way

• If you’re already an expert on the Forgotten Realms, the cards are going to be of no help to you. The same goes if you enjoy crafts and can just make cards yourself. And include whatever you want. The map is still nice though.

Cons

• The set can be a bit pricey, especially compared to other dice manufacturers. The Wizards of the Coast sets often go on sale, but the MSRP is rather high when you can buy sets for 10 bucks at your local game store.

• The colour is very Halloween-y. I prefer the colour scheme and designs of the previous sets.

* Denotes nitpicking.

So, a large part of this will be duplicated from my previous reviews. That’s because this set is almost identical to the other sets. Below are a list of differences, but I’ve also written my thoughts out in full.

Differences

• The D20s are both normal size. I really do prefer it this way.

• The map has a reverse side with maps of locations found on the big, overall area map. Also a good choice. It would be cool though if it was printed on small cards. That way you could place them down as they arrive, and also gives the Dungeon Master more freedom to choose which maps they want the players to see and when.

• Everything is Witchlight themed and meant to go with the adventure.

• Previous cards had the description of the character on one side, and the picture on the other. Both are now on the same side. A marked improvement.

Introduction

Another set of new books, another set of dice. This time the dice set is released to go with the release of the The Wild Beyond the Witchlight adventure. Well, more specifically, the carnival itself I'd say. The set features 4 d6s, 2 d20, 1d12, 1d10, 1d8, 1d6, and 1d4. The dice are pretty standard, are really quite nice. There’s also a box included, and cards relating the adventure. The box is what we’ve come to expect from these sets, so the question that’s left is how are the cards? The price is quite high, so your need for dice and the miscellaneous part of the set is what will probably determine your need.

The Specifics

The dice are good and roll well. It’s what you’d expect from D&D dice. But the colour really doesn’t do it for me on this one. There are many other dice sets, specifically from Wizards of the Coast, which look much better in my opinion.

The price continues to be a big barrier. For the price of two such sets, you can buy a new book at full price. That said, the addition of handouts and pages helps to add value to the sets.

The Box

There’s a card box that comes with the set as well. As was previously, this is very nice looking. It has a padded inside, and artwork on the outside. I’d be concerned about damage. The box is something I think that you keep on your shelf, and you move the dice into a dice bag when actually going to play. Of course, if you’re playing at home it’s not an issue. I’ll never say no to more dice of course.

Cards

Included are a range of cards with descriptions of characters, factions and enemies found in the adventure. This time, they also include some of the carnival games, and the prizes for winning the carnival games. They are nice aids for running the adventure. Of course, they aren’t really needed. They’re an aid for running the adventure itself. In terms of style, they’re more like the Rime of the Frostmaiden set. There’s a title card that has a design, and then a description on the back. This is where Descent into Avernus had the card with the infernal script. Perhaps the card could’ve been better used for Sylvan.

Map

There’s a small player safe map included of the carnival itself. In general, it’s a smaller version of the map at the back of the book. Which makes it a bit less useful, but that it’s player centred is nice. That way I can keep it in front of my players as they explore. The real missed oppertunity here is that the other side simply has a piece of artwork on it. It’s a nice piece of people attending the carnival, but I can’t stop the thought that a map of some sort would be well suited on the other side. It looks nice in general though, and in terms of feel it’s the same sort of thinner map as the previous sets.