Races
In gaming terms, choosing your character’s race means you will select which sentient species you would like to belong to.
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.
serenaclaired –
Not sure how I’d wear this as a woman since it’s quite masculine and unusual, but I like it all the same. Wet, it has a very strong metal tang (someone else said it’s not blood-y, but to my nose it is). Luckily, once dry the iron diffuses nicely into the rock and leather scents.
Overall, very manly don’t-mess-with-me vibes without being overly aggressive – might give it away to my dad 🙂
breeze2327 –
Easily my favorite masculine scent. Unlike many other scents, it’s quite unique. Metal and Stone with some leather and a light touch of hops. Very smooth.
dthornhill11 –
I bought this for my husband who loves dwarves. It’s his favorite scent so far! He loves how warm the scent is. When I go in to hug him I can’t stop sniffing his neck it smells so good. On me it smells more like pastry treats for some reason. Definitely foodie on me, but still so good smelling.
Gloame –
Wet – bright, sharp, tangy. And yet, still kind of warm and golden.
On skin – It feels unisex to me — not overly masculine on my skin. As it’s drying down, it feels softer, smoother, warmer. Reminds me a bit of Givenchy Pi?
I anticipated a kind of blood smell from the iron, but I’m not getting that at all. The tang is still vaguely there, but I smell the leather and gold more.
Husband’s interpretation: “men forward, maybe some spice.” When asked if he smells beer (he homebrews) he added, “Oh yeah, maybe!”
I think I would like this on him. It’s nice, simple, unpretentious. Just a nice, unique blend with no bells or whistles.
KatRampant –
When wet there’s a lovely whiskeyish sweetness, a tiny hit of menthol from the hops, and a round smooth woodiness. Dry it turns dusty, but not baby powdery. Stone is dominant, but I can certainly pick up metal and wood as well. It reminds me of a concrete basement from my childhood.
[email protected] –
I recently received this as a frimp with my last order. Out of the bottle and freshly wet on skin, it shouts BEER from the hops. However, after giving it about 15-20 minutes, it morphs into a very interesting leather and metal blend. It is fairly strong and masculine with a slight tinge of the initial hops but it no longer screams alcohol. It is quite unusual and pleasant. I think I will keep the imp and see how it layers with others in this series.