Alignment
Alignment refers to your character’s ethics: which way does his or her moral compass point? There are two aspects to alignment: law vs. chaos, and good vs. evil. Does your character respect authority and venerate tradition? She’s likely Lawful. Does she value personal freedom above all else? Chaotic. Does your character give alms to the poor and protect the innocent? He’s Good. Is your character of a mercenary bend, willing and eager to step on others to get ahead? Evil. A character that is Neutral (or any combination of Neutral) either finds perfect balance in their worldview, or is apathetic towards the constraints of either good and evil or law and chaos. A lawful neutral character values the letter of the law above any concern for good or evil, and the chaotic neutral character is, generally, driven completely by a desire for absolute freedom. Sometimes they’re just nuts.
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.
Lunashayde –
Got this as a frimp and i must say that it lives up to its name. The vanilla and the honey give it a sweet scent, while the musk grounds it and helps make it warm and not overpowering. Definitely a fragrance you can layer/ mix with to soften and sweeten without being foodie.
mcrivellokhan –
Pure honey and musk, to the point where it smells almost animalistic. On me, it never seems to hit the sweet notes, it just amps up the musky honey smell to a stronger degree. I can’t stress enough how freaking sexy it is. It makes me smell like some kind of wild woman, exuding sex appeal. That is really, really not what I expected from this, uh, at all and judging by the other reviews it’s not a common reaction to other people’s body chemistry. But on me, my God, this is pure magic. I can’t think of a single thing to compare it to other than sex. Just smelling like sweet sexy sex all day. Yes, I just ordered a full bottle, this is the scent I never knew I needed in my life.
In a diffuser I find it really good to mix with other oils, especially sweet/foodie ones, to kind of mitigate the sweetness. That’s helpful for me! I’m not a food scent girl, but I got quite a few foodie scents as frimps in my last order, and mixing them with Good in my diffuser really took them to the next level. Pecan Pie Oud and Pumpkin Pie Musk both did incredible things with some Good mixed in, my bedroom smelled amazing without making me hungry.
So this is an all around win for me, a pure unicorn scent in my book. The funny thing is I also first got it as a frimp. I guess BPAL really knows what they’re doing when they send those out!
c.sausa0526 –
I like this scent – on me it starts out strong, complex musk with something else (maybe acacia??) and sort of fades to light musk with a bit of sugar cane and vanilla. Very light and sweet but not over-powering. I think my skin absorbs the oils quickly though…it doesn’t last very long. Still a nice pleasant scent – it smells summery and fresh to me.
Katherine –
I bought this scent because I think of myself as Chaotic Good and I was wondering what that smelled like. On its own Good is pleasant, but unremarkable. Maybe a tad on the sweet side.
Layered with Chaotic? Amazeballs. I wish I were better at describing notes and such, but it just smells good. Spicy incensy, but not overpowering. Good longevity. Decent sillage, yet also unobtrusive. The type of fragrance that evokes “You smell good” and not “What are you wearing?”
I like that.
Jae –
Delicious. Like honey comb & sugar cookies.
MFilbeck –
This is a very warm, sweet scent, like honeycomb. It’s lovely, but perhaps too sweet on its own. I pair it with other RPG scents, like Elf, to give them warmth and sweetness. This fragrance is powerful on me; I find that I have to use it sparingly so as not to overpower the oils I’m mixing it with. A little goes a long way.
Gloame –
I’ve gotten 2 imps of Good from the Lab and I didn’t quite recognize the second one, so there was at least a bit of variability in this blend. With the first imp, I remember saying to my husband, “No wonder it’s called Good!” The second imp is also nice, but it’s a lot greener than the first batch I sniffed. I do like the acacia, but it’s a bit stronger in the second imp and kind of overwhelms.
Would be beautiful layered with other white florals or something with a bit of tobacco.
Deremna –
So I mostly use this in combination with Chaotic and Fighter but I do occasionally wear it on its own. Out of the bottle, I can smell the musk and the honey. Once it’s on my skin, the vanilla and acacia take over and it smells like sugar cookies. (similar to how The Bow and Crown of Conquest smells on me). It’s too sweet for me on it’s own but it adds a nice balance to the spicy Chaotic and leathery Fighter.
heatherstraub –
Luminous golden honey throbbing like cicadas on a late summer night. Layers of sweetness with a solid musky base. Utterly Exquisite. Never thought Good would feel so good!
jessecake –
Good starts off smelling like musk with some sweet sugary scent in the background (yeah!) – but then thirty minutes later it is pure incense on my skin.
I don’t think I would try this one again.