Respen’s Marvelous Game Turns Players into Mini-figures for D&D Gaming Delight

Cryptic Studio’s Neverwinter MMO April Fool’s event is up right now, preview Respen’s Marvelous Game on the website, or go into the game right now and play the game.

It’s worth it, if you have time to get in before it ends.

This event hearkens Neverwinter right back to it’s Dungeons & Dragons roots by placing the player on a map actually on a tabletop. From the get-go the skybox is filled with characters from Neverwinter sitting around a table, looking down at a grid-map, including props such as dungeon walls, and tokens, as well as giant multisided dice. Players also find themselves turned into miniatures replete with round platform that they stand on and are frozen in place—instead gliding across the table as they move as if pushed by some invisible finger.

Respen himself narrates what comes across as a very geeky game of D&D and explains why the players have joined together to enter this “dungeon” on the tabletop and must fight their way through.

The enemies stay about the same each play through, but the story seems to change ever so slightly. One game I played the expectation was to rescue a noblewoman from the clutches of evil demons—and once rescued she was grateful and gave us a reward; on a second play through she turned out to be a succubus that we had to strike down (much to my surprise, and hers when we pummeled her face.)

The game is fairly short, only two “floors” and one map. Potentially 5-6 total fights, each of which can get rougher than the last one. It’s a standard D&D module, narrated by Respen, and quite fun.

The big prize that comes fro playing Respen’s Marvelous Game is a green slime companion that costs 45 Crystal Dice. Players are guaranteed one Crystal Die for each completion; but it’s also possible for them to be found in chests or drop from fallen enemies. There’s also a few consumables available that up damage and resistance and make the runs faster.

Green Slime Companion, photo courtesy Cryptic Studios.

The only caveat is that this instance started on the 1st and ends on the 4th. It’s an absurdly short event that means many players will miss out on it entirely—it doesn’t even cross a weekend. Anyone who can run the event the huge number of times needed to get the slime pet will be with a treat indeed, but everyone else with tighter schedules will be left out.

Hopefully Cryptic Studios will choose to return or extend the event for casual players who want the slime.