The Draconic Archeologist: Just Have a Sip of The Dragon #2

Well, the PDF looks better then this blown up thumbnail.  It's actually a fairly cool Conan-esqe type cover.  I like it better then Hippie Dragon from issue 1.

Let use take a look at what issue 2 gives us, the D&D player.  Oooooo... Look, Monkish Combat in the Arena of Promotion.  Three pages of some combat system for monkish combat that I can't make heads or tales of.  Still, it just goes to show you can tack any system to D&D and someone will try and make it work.

More fiction, including fiction that continues from Dragon #1.  I assume somebody was reading it.

Moving on to one of the regular features - Hints for D&D Judges Part3: The Dungeons.  Here, we are given a nice random table for trapped chests.  Looking at the chart, half the chests in the author's campaigns are trapped.  Hmmm... spring loaded daggers... poisoned gas... poisoned daggers... acts as Mirror of Life Trapping... when opened and enraged spectre comes out?... all members within 5' lose one level of experience... WTF?... all members within 5' lose one magic item... you have got to be kiddin'.... chest is intelligent and acts as if a 2nd - 9th level magic user?... show me the somatic components it can do...wait... 60,000 chocolate centered gold pieces worth a copper each?  This DM is going DOWN!  Well, he does mention some less usual magic items too.  Leaving out the Stoner Stuff - Ring of Magic Missiles, Bag of Infinite wealth (that might be a Stoner Item) - ideas to change forms of magic items (a dagger that acts like a Wand of Fireballs and such) round out the article.

Fiction from Gardner F. Fox.  Might be great stuff.  Skip.

Interesting article on Quetzalcoatl.  Not sure how it fits the medieval fantasy setting of D&D, but interesting non the less.

Creature Features give us the Remorhaz and an awesome Erol Otus full color piece from 1976.  Pretty cool.

Holy crap but there is a lot of fiction in this issue.

Finally!  There we go, a new class for D&D.  The Alchemist.  The dude makes potions.  Making potions is really useful in the middle of a dungeon.  Why is his title for 2nd level "Cleric"?  They may use only one-handed weapons (except magic swords).  Do magic swords jump from their hands?  Interesting as a class for NPCs, maybe.

D&D Option: Weapon Damage - A  system of weapon specialization for fighters and thieves.  It increases the weapon damaged rolled (not a straight add).  This could work.  I may have to yolk this.

Alright, wrapping up so I can peek at Dragon #3 tomorrow.