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Yeah I'm really liking it. Glad I bumped it to the front of my TBR

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fight and win. I can only imagine what she will be like when she grows up. #booksky #fantasy 📚🪐

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Lastly, we must talk about the fact that Temeraire might've become my 2nd favorite dragon in the series. From the moment of her hatching, Iskierka steals the show. Her ferocious personality fits so perfectly with the idea of a fire breathing dragon in this world. I kept wanting her to actual go

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fantasy once the crew reaches Prussia is great. I kept having to look up what was actual history and then compare that with how things played out in real life. Clearly, Napoleon didn't have dragons to ferry artillery onto the heights for the Battle of Jena, so it's interesting to compare.

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when often I'm reading books a bit darker in tone. *** Spoilers *** I really like the expanding of this series into a true world (and world war) with this book. The gang's adventures in the Ottoman Empire help frame the Napoleonic Wars as much more of a global conflict. The grounded historical

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Book 50 of 2026: Black Powder War Naomi Novik. The 3rd book in the Temeraire series. Temeraire and his relationship with Laurence (and the crew) continues to be the best part of these books. There's several touching moments that just are very heart-warming. It's nice to read something like that,

The cover to Black Powder War. It features the outline of a dark city at the bottom, stylized to represent Istanbul. In top right and left corners, are the shadowy outlines of two dragons, likely the Kaziliks. In the center is another dragon with red on their face.

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seducing Baru, it's all great. Sad to see how she ended though. #booksky #fantasy 📚🪐

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her ultimately betrayal of Tain Hu and the rebellion. Being forced to let Tain Hu die horribly is a terrible finale to the book. Tain Hu is such a great character, and she really stole the show for me. The way we meet her (riding alongside the carriage), to her winning the duel, to her eventually

I almost wish we got to see a bit more of it. *** Spoilers *** I also like how initially Baru is just a girl trying to make her parents happy, even if that's impossible with the loss of Father Salm. The lengths that Baru will go to in order to free her home are pretty extreme. I never saw coming

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Brian Schaab @brianschaab.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

Book 49 of 2026: The Traitor Baru Cormorant by Seth Dickinson. The 1st book in the Masquerade series. I really like how this book opens with Baru as a child and the coming of the Masquerade. It sets the scene perfectly for how the Masquerade "invades". I also love the dynamic of Baru's family, and

The cover to The Traitor Baru Cormorant. It features a woman's face, is if it were a mask. Her eyes stare unblinkingly forward. The mask has shattered around her right cheek, and bits of chipped on the chin and forehead. The broken pieces of the mask fly through the air as if it was just dropped and shattered.

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Day 5 - Dragonknight! I just finished Black Powder War by Naomi Novik last night, so I had to include my new favorite dragon for this one. Behold, Iskierka as a level 1 Dragonknight retainer. #steeltober

Brian Schaab @brianschaab.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

Day 4 - Minions! This one isn't anything special. I'm modifying some human minions to be part of a hunting party my heroes will run into. #steeltober

I like this one. It's very simple, but feels like it would be very fun to play with.

Day 3 - Hero Tokens! These would definitely need to be tested, but here's some ideas for other uses for Hero Tokens: #steeltober #drawsteel #ttrpgpromtober

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Day 2 - Trinket! For this one, I somehow got fixated on translating one of my favorite things in fiction to Draw Steel: The Babel Fish from Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. stawl.app/community/it... #steeltober #ttrpgpromtober #Drawsteel

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Brian Schaab @brianschaab.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

My thread for @tintenseher.bsky.social's #steeltober Will be doing a bit of catch up here this weekend, since I saw this late, and then continuing on with it. For day 1, I actually posted this on its own. But I'll include it here. My first ancestry in my Guild Wars 2 overhaul for Draw Steel.

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Just saw this! I will have to catch up this weekend and then should be good. Looks fun!

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Brian Schaab @brianschaab.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

Yeah but that's okay! I'm mainly using it as a way to practice and expand some design skills. But I think you'd be surprised at how many people would want to play an ff14 ttrpg, especially if you can capture the essence of it.

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Brian Schaab @brianschaab.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

not too different from standard Draw Steel humans. Except GW2 humans don't have the Supernatural affinity that they do in Draw Steel. Instead, they have a much closer relationship with their gods. I wanted to give players the option to either lean into the god aspect or to go their own path.

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Brian Schaab @brianschaab.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

I didn't post this on here yet, but I'm currently working on a complete overhaul for a Guild Wars 2 version of Draw Steel. I ran a proof of concept playtest, and it went really now. Currently, I'm working on the ancestries. Here's the Humans v2. Let me know what you think! GW2 humans are actually

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Brian Schaab @brianschaab.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

You're always knocking these out of the park! Great job

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Reposted by Brian Schaab

DMHub @dmhubvtt.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

🩸Blood in the snow. A dark heart in the wood. ♥️ The Red Road and The Dark Heart of the Wood Quests are available NOW in the Draw Steel Codex. Learn how we're bringing these quests to life in this video👇 youtu.be/eBEm20Y-6Ho

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how the Elric brothers gather their allies together. It features magical tattoos, an evil plot to uncover, and a group of unlikely friends coming together to save the day. Check it out! 2/2 #fantasy #bluesky 📚🪐

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Wherever Ink Flows - Kindle edition by On, Keegan. Download it once and read it on your Kindle device, PC, phones or tablets. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading Wherever Ink Flows.

One of the book's I beta read just released. You can find it on Amazon here: www.amazon.com/dp/B0HKVBSYTC Wherever Ink Flows is a dark fantasy novel about a group of unlikely friends who band together to stop a growing evil inside their city. The story reminds me of Full Metal Alchemist and 1/X

amazon.com

Wherever Ink Flows

To grow old with Wen. This series is truly great. One of the best I've read in a while. It's very different from other fantasy. It would take many more words for me to dive into everything, so just go read it now! #fantasy #booksky 📚🪐 7/7

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It just shows that the Green Bone way of life is completely different from a "normal" person's. The ending is a gut punch. I really wish Hilo would've lived to see the results of everything. He stepped up and led the clan well. He deserved to see his rewards for that. To see his son take over. 6/7

to be found alive in the rubble is great. There's one small moment, where Tia, Shae's daughter is crying because mice are being killed to showcase Channeling skill. Shae thinks that she has coddled her daughter or something must be wrong. Because a 6.5 yr old is crying over mice being killed. 5/7

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Hilo, Ayt Mada, and all the other Green Bone clan leaders is a great piece of storytelling. The way Shae and Anden are each individually given the choice to kill Mada, and then the 2nd chance when they learn Hilo is alive. The way the story makes it seem like Hilo is for sure dead, only for him 4/7

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Hilo and Wen's relationship is very well-written. It painful to read of the them dancing around each other and how they navigate the loss of trust. I'm glad they're able to lean on each other after Ru's death. The part of the story with the bombing of the KJA headquarters that almost kills 3/7

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that all these time jumps and skipping better pay off, and it does. Each of the moments are worth it to build to the finale. *** Spoilers *** I really enjoyed seeing Anden come into his own and find his own path, becoming a Green Bone doctor and still being involving in the clan business. 2/7

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Book 48 of 2026: Jade Legacy by Fonda Lee The final book in the Green Bone Saga. This book is a great conclusion to a great series. This book is extremely ambitious in scope, encompassing twenty years of the lives of Anden, Hilo, Shae, and the No Peak Clan. At one point, I had the thought 1/7

The cover to Jade Legacy. It features a blue background with the same stylized golden circuitry-esque geometry. There's a man in black wearing a suit and tie. Inside of him, there is the city skyline with three riders on motorcycles, backlit by golden light.

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Brian Schaab @brianschaab.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

Yeah, I pay attention to what would outright kill someone. Also, need to consider if they have hero tokens or ways to regain Stamina besides Catch Breath. The bleeding is no joke too One thing I've noticed is once someone is dying, the whole group really bands together to see what options they have

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Yeah that's how Strahd works. Do you know anything about the campaign? I think it can be really fun to be a "random" pulled into the adventure. Or you can lean a little into what the adventure is and make yourself fit the setting.

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Brian Schaab @brianschaab.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

Yeah, talk to your director to get the hook and pitch. I actually really like making characters for premade campaigns. It's easier to be "on theme" and gives clear, strong player hooks.

have a major role to play in the final events of this story, but it's hard for me to say what. Will Lan's mercy be rewarded? Or will it ultimately be the clan's downfall? #booksky #fantasy 🪐📚 5/5

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It's really sad to see Rohn Toro killed, and Wen barely survive. I am curious how her story will evolve in the last book. One interesting thing is that this series started with Bero stealing jade, and he's still kicking around in the background doing his own thing. I think he'll eventually 4/5

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earned that reputation. I would have never expected him to kill Eyni. Anden's story in Espenia is very well-written, and I like the way Lee portrays the Kekon immigrants trying to hold onto their culture, while still adapting to Espenian ways. The end of this book is a very crazy twist. 3/5

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into. I particularly enjoyed the parts about how the rest of the world sees/treats jade. *** Spoilers *** Hilo's trip to meet Niko, and ultimately kill Eyni and steal him back to Kekon is just wild. We really only know this side of Hilo from his reputation, but he clearly proves why he's 2/5

Book 46 of 2026: Jade War by Fonda Lee. The 2nd book in the Green Bone Saga. This book is a very cool expanding of the world set up in the first book. We now get to see more of the wide world Lee has created with Anden heading to Espenia and the growing conflicts Kekon finds itself dragged 1/5

Cover to Jade War. It features a red background, with gold styling around it. In the center, is a woman wielding a katana in a light blue color. Overlaid on her, is a two storied Kekonese building with two female warriors engaged in a duel.

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like a lot of time was spent on the journey to China, and I would've liked to see more of the book devoted to their time in China. The ending is pretty crazy, and I have no idea where the story will go next for Temeraire and Laurence. #booksky #fantasy 🪐📚 5/5

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been treated in the world so far. Novik really makes you wonder if Temeraire will decide to leave Laurence to stay in China where he is practically worshipped. Laurence's battle with the hunhun is intense, and I like the way he takes command of the situation like a true officer. I do feel 4/5

I also liked the idea of the dragons learning to steal the sheep and having to herd them when they escaped. Thinking of dragons trying to herd sheep is such a great mental image. Seeing the city of Peking and how the Chinese treat their dragons is a very unique twist from how dragons have 3/5

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the books, and I can't wait to see how to develops over the rest of them. *** Spoilers *** I thought the part about dragons and Temeraire getting a cold to be funny and interesting. Of course, dragons would get sick, and I'm sure a sick dragon would be absolutely miserable to be around. 2/5

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