Adventuring Gear
A growing selection of adventuring gear, character-specific items, and dungeoneering accessories to further personalize your character!
RPG Series
Illustrations by the inimitable Julie Dillon.
PERFUME OIL BLENDS
Presented in an amber apothecary vial
“You all meet at an inn.…”
Pen and paper role-playing games have been a tremendous influence in my life since my formative years. My parents bought me the magenta D&D boxed set back in 1982, along with the Player’s Handbook, Dungeon Master’s Guide, and Monster Manual. My lifelong passion for fantasy, science fiction, war games, and mythology was well-channeled through RPGs, and I credit playing D&D with helping me sustain my imagination and sense of wonder through adulthood.
I played with one particular group through the bulk of my late teens and early 20s, and this series — along with the atmosphere tools that Black Phoenix Trading Post has introduced — was inspired, specifically, by the time that we spent campaigning together. Our group was somewhat prop-driven in our gaming: we felt that setting a mood was conducive to our style of gameplay. Little things like changes in lighting, minor sound effects, and music made a world of difference, and we found that utilizing miniatures, model railroad scenery, and other tools in order to physically illustrate strategies and provide visual cues was tremendously useful. How much more immersive would it have been if we’d been able to smell the crypt we were crawling through? Or the stench of steel and blood that permeates a warrior’s cloak? What do the wizard’s spell components smell like? What does winter in the desert smell like? Or spring in a druid’s sanctuary?
Pen and paper role playing games are, to me, dynamic stories that are propelled by the active participation of many individuals. You can’t have a strong storyline without creating characters of some depth. When you create a character, you generally have their personalities, priorities, and history in mind, along with a clear vision of what your character looks and sounds like. But how does she smell? What does the world around her smell like?
In most pen and paper fantasy RPGs, three of the primary attributes that you must choose for your character are race, class, and alignment. Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab’s RPG scent series was designed to emulate the character creation process, and are meant to be layered in order to create a character concept. In short: you layer your class, race, and the two fragrances that compose your alignment to construct your character scent. RPGs in all their myriad forms — CRPGs, MMOs, and old school pen and paper — have brought me immeasurable joy. This is my homage. This series is dedicated to my first DMs — my parents — for laughing off the nutter-perpetuated AD&D Satan Scare of the 80’s. Thanks for taking the time to play with your little girl. I miss you, and I love you.
suntannedcactus147 –
I received this as a freebie sample with my order. I gotta say, it definitely suits the name. This is one you could really cleanse with (a space or your own energy if needed). It’s pretty sharp, so I would keep that in mind if your nose is bothered by things that are strong or soapy. I don’t think it smells like soap, personally, but it definitely makes me smell like I just took a very luxurious bath! Warm spring water with floating rose petals, citrus rind, epsom salt, bubbles, a cold glass of sparkling juice, and a very exciting book… Oh yeah, this is a good one. If you’re looking for something “gender neutral,” I think this is a pretty good pick.
Claire –
I can’t quite tell you what the individual ingredients might be but I’m really enjoying this scent! It smells very clean and fresh, a bit like soap. There’s something cold to the scent and a bit powdery as it starts to set. Even thought it’s not what my first guess for Holy Water would be I would definitely say it matches the description!
Gloame –
Smells green and clean. No idea what the notes are! Also smells kinda cold.
VetchVespers –
Clean and cold with a nosy tingling antiseptic quality – so very appropriate for the name. I think I detect a hint of mint and a tad of white tea. Aquatics never work on me, so this is a really nice alternative that has the clean feel of an aquatic, without all the icky soapiness that always happens when my skin meets all those “watery” scents.
Forest –
* In the bottle: Clean, clean, clean. A whoosh of something like fresh-cut mint and the tang of bitter citrus. The crisp white cotton of a brand new dress shirt.
* On skin: A dewy, bright white floral emerges. Pristine powdery musk. The featherlight citrus now ripening to a juicy yellow.
* Dry down: Pale dried lavender in an offertory bowl carved from sacred sandalwood. Grey stone still wet from a lightning storm.