Critical Role sent me their book! | Candela Obscura RPG Review

Sometimes mail is really exciting! Let's check out the Candela Obscura core rulebook by Critical Role's Darrington Press! ▶️ More below! ⏬
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Thank you for all your support, and keep building :D
00:00 getting a package from critical role
00:57 unboxing the goods!
02:46 very serious review of Candela Obscura dice
03:36 top quality book-feel
05:08 enhance your roleplay with dScryb! (sponsored)
05:54 Candela Obscura rules flip-thru
08:19 a few personal highlights
09:55 skimming Candela Obscura's lore
10:35 i found a typo that no one else will care about
11:04 some excellent RPG design!
#criticalrole #candelaobscura #dnd

[@BobWorldBuilder]

💥 dScryb 43%-off with code BOB this Black Friday: dscryb.com/bob ✅ PATREON: www.patreon.com/bobworldbuilder

[@f.a.santiago1053]

Bro... I LOVE Smaller books for games. It's actually a deciding factor for me on whether or not I buy the physical or PDF versions.

[@BobWorldBuilder]

Literal game changer!

[@thedoom1772]

lol same I like pocket edition sized books my dm journal is smaller than that too 😂

[@f.a.santiago1053]

@@thedoom1772 I LOVE the Fabula Ultima core rulebook because of the same reason. It feels SO MUCH like a strategy guide for a PS2 game I absolutely LOVED.

[@CountryBwoy]

My favorite smaller size book is the Hard City noir roleplaying book. And I've got a couple of Post Modern Giallo books. Micro RPG has great sizes too.

[@f.a.santiago1053]

When I saw that PATHFINDER... PATHFINDER has pocket-sized books of their core rules, I was so disappointed in WotC. lol We need pocket versions of the 2024 books.

[@EunoiaRPG]

For those interested Demiplane (from the original owners of DND Beyond) is the official digital ruleset and online character creation tools. And right now has $10 off as an introductory offer.

[@BobWorldBuilder]

Thanks for pointing that out!

[@BouncingTribbles]

You sounded really surprised Brennen LM got a shoutout. After seeing how much they flirt professionally it would be surprising if they hadn't sent him the rules to read over before sending them to the printer. Besides how much they've worked together on each other's shows, he's also working directly with Marisha on Worlds Beyond Numbers. Dimension 20 and Critical Role are family now

[@ZYR47]

Worlds Beyond Number. Worlds Without Number is a game system, a good one too. Still confusing to me why they would name their new show basically the same thing as a family of game systems. It's not exactly a niche family in rpg spaces either.

[@davidjennings2179]

​@@ZYR47Yeah, initially I thought it was because they were going to be playing world's without number

[@Rksimmons]

BLM played in Chapter 2 of Candela Obscura on their channel. Looks like they gave thanks to all the non-designer players (though wouldn't be surprised if he had some input too)

[@victorsimon4545]

Bob, thanks for this. I was already leaning to acquiring it, but this help me make a firm decision.

[@quark12000]

Another reason not to buy it.

[@petebyrdie4799]

I had the CC on and when Bob said 'you can use code BOB' the close captions said 'you can use code boob', and I chuckled because I'm such a child. Also, that limited edition book is so beautiful, I'd almost consider buying it just for that reason.

[@Batterydennis]

I have the quickstart. Enjoyed it. Got an email inviting me to buy the book on their store. I was like maybe... then this video was posted and I purchased the book before it was finished. So great job Critical Role, Bob sold me on the book :D

[@BobWorldBuilder]

Thanks for the support and the testimonial! :D

[@johdo_lodet]

I got to play this at Gencon this year (along with Daggerheart), and this ended up being the better Con experience. I was also pleasantly surprised that they gave all of us that entered to play a set of those dice. Very cool indeed. The game went well, and i really enjoyed how your "investigator group" can level up as you keep playing. Characters are usually short-lived, so if you are looking for some long attachment, you may want to have a conversation with the GM prior to play. :)

[@brandonrodriguez5670]

Genuinely curious, what was your experience with Daggerheart like?

[@johdo_lodet]

@@brandonrodriguez5670 My Daggerheart experience (at GenCon mind you) was mixed. I really enjoyed the Character Creation process. It was streamlined, easy, and your choices mattered. There was also a mad-lib kind of story you as a group filled out, so it felt like everyone had a hand in the game as a whole. Decent enough choices so if there were 2 "fighters", they could feel and function very different from each other. The parts that soured me on the game wasn't the game itself, but the way the events were handled, and the GM i was assigned to. I realize the rules are still in flux, but you should understand them at that moment in time if you are going to run an event at a Major convention for an IP that was getting A LOT of attention due to the people involved with it's creation. The GM also didn't seem like they ran too many games. Pacing was bad, no energy, no enthusiasm, nothing. The guy fell asleep waiting for us to tell him what to do next. Huh? Your the GM for Christ's sake! Dice rolls almost felt meaningless. The lack of knowledge on the rules at that time was disheartening. We all signed up to learn and experience and what i got was something my 9 year old daughter could have ran, and she's never played an RPG in her life. TL:DR I'm excited and interested in Daggerheart and i'll gladly wait for them to get it right, but if they decide to run another event at a convention i sincerely hope they vet their GMs. If im not interested in the game, i want it to be because the game doesn't speak to me and not because your volunteer wanted to be somewhere else doing anything else... Feel free to DM me if you like. I realize this is an incredibly long post, but i could keep going... :)

[@MatthewBreck]

This system leaves a lot up to the players to the point that you might as well just make your own rules and save your money.

[@Stephen-Fox]

"Play to find out" - That goes a bit further than what you suggest of 'don't ask the GM what's going on but figure it out through play.' That's a core tenant of Apocalypse World, and games (both PbtA and otherwise) that share that game's core philosophy. It's short for "play to find out what happens," and is a reminder that the GM shouldn't go in with a predecided end point in mind, but instead to be responsive to what the players are doing (though what that means, specifically, will vary heavily from game to game - Monster of the Week, which I think is relatively prep-heavy for PbtA, has you going in with basically the entirety of the mystery already planned, and what will happen if the PCs don't interfere written out, but IIRC you wouldn't dictate where the climax happens, or the route the investigators are going to take to get to it within that game), but also for the players to not pre-plan how their characters will develop, but let their character development respond organically to what's happening. It's the PbtA (and related game) equivalent of OSR/NSR's 'story is what we tell after the game' and the general advice of 'prep problems not plots'

[@fufu1405]

Big fan of the art direction they went for.

[@shaunhall6834]

The ribbon says it all. ❤

[@BobWorldBuilder]

Bingo!

[@echosnake1]

There's uh... 2:05 There's a typo on the back of the book... > the Fairlands and it's sprawling, turn-of-the-century capital They uh... used the wrong its,, That aside, been excited for Candela Obscura for a while and this genuinely looks awesome! I just,, can't unsee the typo,,

[@kohakuaiko]

😂 Internet copy editors find everything 😂

[@BobWorldBuilder]

Oof can't believe I (and they) didn't catch that

[@michaelsbagley]

I was already intrigued by this book... now I'm even more interested in acquiring and trying it out.

[@BobWorldBuilder]

Yeah if you're interested in the genre, or just curious to see what Critical Role's first full rpg is like, I think it's worth picking up! But start with the free quickstart guide.

[@74gould]

Love it! Definitely excited to pick this up :)

[@ArtsyFartsy470]

Boy, Matt Mercer could mail you a dead cat and get a glowing review.

[@KnicKnac]

Definitely picking this up. Looking for new systems to add and learn to my collection

[@graemebloodworth8991]

ooh the limited edition with the gold foiling is SO SLICK. Loving this video!

[@Hjac27]

Classy all around! Thanks for the walkthrough Bob :)

[@maxarcanum5309]

I love your intro man!! So good!

[@BobWorldBuilder]

Thank you! :)

[@tenacioustadpole]

He'll yeah on being sent a copy! Enjoy! Excited to play!

[@psychophipps]

The OSR has introduced me to digest-sized RPG books, and I wish it had become the standard yesterday.

[@ezrawoskes8499]

Those books look amazing! Great review Bob!

[@BobWorldBuilder]

Yeah I'm a fan! Thanks for commenting!

[@jackhelm9852]

Even though my players and I are not really big into the horror genre, the details that were put into this game are impressive and I am delighted to see CR working toward this kind of game. Thanks for all the previews of the game and its materials.

[@megasquidd]

I ordered the foil version and am excited to dig into it. I like giving money to not-WotC. If it ends up being a great book.. even better.

[@Slo-Mode]

Those are some really nice looking rules books. Definitely gonna have to pick this game up.

[@supersonicsauropod]

Good job on this ad... The SECOND I saw the limited edition I had to get it lol

[@MackeyD3]

I usually skip the ad read, but I stayed because of the big ol cat

[@JAH711]

Always enjoy your lightheartedness. If you want rules light horror I’d also heavily recommend Mothership by Tuesday Knight Games!

[@EarnestEgregore]

So excited for this book… my party is interested in running candela episodes when members of the dnd campaign can’t make it but everyone else can

[@BobWorldBuilder]

That's a great way to try out other RPGs! My group just decided to play a different RPG each week for October and this was one of them :)

[@Tr4shGoblin]

I love seeing all these new trpgs coming out. Its good to be a gamer right now. I hope these new games flurish.❤

[@RIVERSRPGChannel]

Cool That’s nice Hope you enjoy them.

[@stephenwells2464]

I’d love to see you and a couple of others play with lighter rp and detailed descriptions of the rules that come up as you go to get a feel for the system. Maybe even something like your DoIP series. Do what’s best for your channel but I can guarantee that would get at least 1 view!

[@isaacgraff8288]

dude, that is awesome congrats!

[@hcpookie]

Interesting. Seems a bit like the game system that Free League uses in their games (dice pool). Currently reading the Alien rulebook and it has some interesting takes on the dice pool management. Thanks for the vid!

[@mattieglover2356]

thanks for the video! Sadly the book hasnt made it to Ireland yet, but i'll snag one from my LGS as soon as they get one in!

[@gmjeremy3627]

I love(d) how some of the Vampire TM books had three ribbons. Ribbons in RPG books are awesome!

[@Icosiol]

Sooo….when are you going to be a guest on Critical Role?

[@The2bros-qj4cf]

Could you do two follow up videos on how to create a character and how to prep an adventure

[@efg-smca]

This channel has gone in a great direction, thanks in some part b/c of the hooey at the start of the year, so thanks for the entertainment & exposure to games I usually can't afford. Also, Saga is f****** brilliant. Probably my favorite series in the last couple of decades!

[@s66iw]

I hear you. I buy most of my games on Bundle of Holding at steeply discounted prices (they currently have 16 Shadowrun 3e PDFs for 24$, and the whole collection for ~42$ IIRC). I also got Shadow of the Demon Lord and 13th Age for comparable prices, and have learned of many others through them. You may already know about them, but I thought I'd give them a shoutout anyway.

[@TacticalReaper56]

Good on crit role sending you one. I know from a business side id want my game in your hands for at least onereview.

[@Bolano75]

Gotta love KZbin adding the Kevin Sorbo ad to your video

[@razorboy251]

Thanks for the review, although I am naturally very hesitant about any reviews that are either sponsored or based on shiny review copies (and sponsored reviews) sent to reviewers. I read through the quickstart, haven't played it yet, but came away unimpressed (except by the artwork). It didn't seem to do anything new I haven't seen done before in other Forged in the Dark games or in Vaesen (which has a very similar premise to Candela Obscura).

[@Las0mbr4]

Umm I am not sure if this can be considered rules light/lite, atleast when compared to games like Shadowdark, Cairn, Knave, etc. My initial impression is that it has the same amount of crunch as Forged in the Dark games. Still it seems like a game I would enjoy playing! Thanks for the review!

[@JainaSoloB312]

Yeah as someone who's making my own ttrpg I'd love to hear more opinions, is 64 pages really considered rules-light? That seems dubious to me. If not, what would be considered rules-light?

[@NothingKingKN]

It's not rules-light. It's rules-absent.

[@EpicRandomness555]

Wow it’s awesome they sent it to you. AND with the limited edition one!?

[@BobWorldBuilder]

Yes it was super kind of them. Didn’t know they would send the dice either!

[@TheUglyGoblin]

Oh this is an exciting video to have pop up in my feed! Thanks for the food :D (Dope intro :D ) Um- really random side question, when did your channel really start blowin up? :3c I've just hit over 2000 and I was wondering what I should expect in the months to come :,3

[@BobWorldBuilder]

Thanks! It happened pre-KZbin shorts, so it's a whole different world out here now, but at around 15k I believe is when I had a couple videos in a row get a lot of views and gained a sudden bunch of subscribers

[@TheUglyGoblin]

@@BobWorldBuilder oh gosh yeah, so true. That must have been quite the journey! Daaang 15k is crazy and seems so far off :,3 thats so cool though and thank you for taking the time to reply to me :,) I've been watching your stuff for years and just love it so much. You're such a big inspiration. And I love that you seem to have just remained You the whole time :3

[@twothirdsanexplosive]

Aren't bookmark ribbons par for the course for omnibus/collected issue hardcover publications of comics/graphic novels? At least all of mine have them.

[@Mastattak]

2:11 is it just me or is there a typo there? Shouldn’t it be “and its sprawling” instead of “and it’s sprawling”? 👀 Mind you, years of people online confusing “your” and “you’re” may have affected me 😂

[@WendyGa]

There is indeed a typo. Unfortunate to have one on the back cover (plus the one Bob found). I'll probably wait until another print run fixes it, as those grammatical errors are off-putting for me personally. Hard to unsee once you know it's there.

[@kevoreilly6557]

Never thought you were a critter. This book is an unholy (no pun) piece of dross - pretty as hell 10/10… re nice all the rules and leaving the pages blank would have made this book much higher in quality 1/10 Sorry …. Been a long time since I spent money on a book I wanted to through in the trash after reading

[@israelmorales4249]

bob the naturalist....yes i skip the capitals too

[@LeeCarlson]

I'm glad that you got the book. I paid for a PDF copy for my own birthday and I have YET to see the book. However, everybody involved is saying that it is not their fault and pointing me toward someone else.

[@joemacleod-iredale2888]

Looks like this may be a good system to use to play in the Arcane work…

[@takanobaierun]

Have you played it yet? I'm asking because some KZbinrs surfaced that claim it's unplayable and even call it - in conjunction with the Candela Obscura shows - a scam because the rules aren't anything like the show.

[@TheConfessor]

Smaller sized books are my preferred gaming book size. Takes up less real estate at the table.

[@Slit518]

Bob, those dice must be used to roll up characters in the TTRPGs you play!

[@myromm]

Hey, isn't showing the usps tracking number a bad Idea?

[@surlycanadian]

Neat. Keep the limited edition and Patreon go away for the standard edition?

[@samchafin4623]

Five years?! That can't be right, can it? I remember when this channel started. it was so recent! Oh, where has the time gone?

[@paulunderhill550]

Its amazing how much a boomark excites people. I really wish WotC would put bookmarks in their books.

[@PaulGuy]

It's not even about the usability of it, as a single bookmark in something like this is only so useful. But it shows an attention to small details, premium finish, and classic publishing that's nice to see, instead of just cost-cutting for maximum profit. When people buy a physical book, they want it to _feel_ good.

[@RockingJDesign]

Just got my order in this morning and eagerly await the hardcover. The pdf is beautiful, but my only complaint so far is - no additional resources. No character sheets, field or circle sheets. Heck, even an extra file of the city map would be nice. :(

[@Olooriel]

The character and circle sheets are available as a free download though?

[@RockingJDesign]

@@Olooriel I guess? I didn’t see them when I placed my order or afterwards. Maybe I’m overlooking them.

[@Ambers128]

As soon as i can fit it in my budget.

[@defleshedbuttocks]

The worst thing about Candela Obscura is that it's a game that hates itself, simultaneously a world written to induce horror and deathly afraid of creating discomfort for the people playing within it.

[@SylverQrow]

3:48 omg Saga!! I want the next Volume now T_T

[@DirtballJones]

Babe hold on bob just uploaded

[@darjr]

Is the paper glossy?

[@JellyBelz]

Oof that typo, though. (Meaning the one at the start... on the back cover.)

[@DyrgeAfterDark]

the red light district took me off guard

[@ddobrien1]

Only two typos? I think there may be more.

[@claylewis8233]

that cat tried to eat you!

[@Keovar]

10:40 - I, for one, respect that attention to detail. Some of the more cultist-like critters on Reddit will be up in arms, though.

[@kyleweir689]

Hopefully they correct the “it’s” to “its” in the full production of these books.

[@TheLordWinter]

Shout-out for Saga!

[@charliebee5154]

8:07 for a quick Matthew McConaughey impression. ;)

[@brunofranchini]

I see Saga Comics, I press like.

[@jay_caspian2050]

Just wanted to say thank you for doing this video. I was on the fence of “do I need 1 more rpg book” and this was helpful. My wife likes games with less rules, more intrigue, and she’s excited now since I got the book. So again, thank you!

[@therifftones2198]

You Rock-world builder.

[@somefrenchguy2091]

This review convinced me to get the book

[@Manuelomar2001]

I'll stick with Blades in the Dark for my rules-lite needs. Better and more polished book and game, for half the price.

[@shasta_creates]

Lol leave it to the ranger to point out the flaws in how the genus of a tree is presented.

[@PhilipDudley3]

No bullet pointed BLUF and prose? bah.

[@Marhathor]

I hate to be that guy, but the grammatical error on the back is killing me. The official Candela Obscura rulebook deserves proper grammar. ;-; For the 99% of people who missed it, look up 'its vs it's' and take a closer look. My phone isn't much better, keeps auto-correcting its to it's as if it's not a word. Also, Brennan gets special thanks, I imagine, for appearing on the show in Candela Obscura's second chapter.

[@RockingJDesign]

D'oh - now I can't unsee it.

[@Shonosh]

bonus points for SAGA love

[@DarklordofBarovia]

That intro was SO cheesy, I loved it

[@mattgardner185]

I really appreciate that you are so positive on your channel, and haven't jumped on the the clickbait train of simply shitting on a certain company. I applaud you sir, and hope you get all the credit you deserve.

[@quark12000]

You could have just bought "Blades in the Dark".

[@VeronicaWarlock]

Blades In the Dark is heavily, HEAVILY mechanically tied to its theme of a punk-Victorianesque gang criminal underworld maneuvering. The core philosophy of all Forged in the Dark style games is to center roleplay and simulate the emotional experience of a point of view through mechanics. Many of us are used to 5e which seeks to lessen the importance of themes to give players a more universally applicable system (although of course it is NOT universally applicable, and does have a genre bent through its mechanics, it’s just been de-emphasized over time), so we may forget that some other mechanical systems are not smoothly reskinnable. A huge amount of the BItD rulebook is location and faction information for the city, and the society of the specific world that results in a pressure cooker of poverty, discontent, and crime. Another huge chunk goes in great depth to describe the structure of a cinematic heist and how to embrace the nature of a scrappy, short-lived scoundrel to push yourself to claw your way to the top, and how those tie together. The bulk of the rules descriptions are about setting limitations on your character in the context of heists, crimes, and negotiations to try to put pressure on you to look cunning and scrappy. The rules about dice pools could almost entirely be described by the character sheets themselves. So no, not really. If you want to play Candela Obscura, a game about investigating the dangerous and unknowable paranormal in an atmosphere of oppressive mystery, Blades In the Dark would be quite inadequate to your needs. I can tell you this simply as a GM of Blades. Perhaps a different Forged in the Dark system would get you close, but we are allowed to have similar experiences with different systems. For instance, I just bought the Dishonored RPG, which I anticipate to deliver a similar experience to Blades, which lists Dishonored as an atmospheric reference.

[@Galinarig]

@@VeronicaWarlock Vaesen.

[@frankbelmont1565]

Honestly the more I play dnd the more I prefer to use rules lite systems. I prefer easy rules with few numbers and honestly one book for all your needs is the way to go. Wotc should ditch the 3-book edition concept and really print one that has everything.

[@meander112]

Candela for the candela god! Obscura for the obscura throne!

[@FuzzyBunnyofInle]

They capitalized the species epithet?! Throw it in a fire. *wink*

[@destroso]

Between this and your glowing review of Peril in Pinehill I won’t be watching you again

[@wizardsofthetower3802]

Small books... harder for old eyes to read.

[@milesnorsworthy946]

CAT

[@Akeche]

How much did they pay you then, Bobby?

[@jefimeyerhoff999]

Thank you for, like me, being triggered by improper binomial nomenclature

[@ColonelHazard]

Noticing the lack of capitalization on the genus name and being bothered by it was such a mood. I promise you aren't the only one who is irked by that!

[@ludwigvannormayenn8657]

nice

[@talscorner3696]

That bayonette looks suspish as hell, chief... I know you're careful with it, but please be careful with it xD

[@Joshuazx]

2:00 Magic is spelled without a k. 0/10.

[@takanobaierun]

CR (and others): Here's a free copy, talk about out book. WotC: Sign this 200 page contract to hand us over your soul, so we don't sue you... yet.

[@tabletopgamingwithwolfphototec]

This is not a review. At best it's a overview. An at worst a advertisement. But it could get away with preview.

[@snappa_tv]

As much as I have to commend them from the artwork, the rules for this game are awful. Death is practically nonexistent due to the ludicrous amount of dice you can add to rolls to fix bad rolls, there is no rules for combat (especially pvp combat. The game literally tells the GM to just make something up), it takes a lot of rules straight from blades in the dark, the worldbuilding and setting is practically a utopian society, and many many other flaws Save your money on this one people as there are much better options. If you want a game set in this theme that’s horror themed just go buy Call of Cthulhu. It’s better in almost every single way. I am VERY worried for daggerheart after actually getting my hands on this game…

[@JacobOphir]

In my opinion, I prefer rules heavy game