Bestiaries Are Cool

This is the last full day for The Fantasy Trip Bestiary and Foes 2 STL Miniatures Kickstarter! If you haven't made your pledge yet, this is your last chance. We have some great rewards available for our backers, including a PDF version of the Bestiary for our international friends and VTT enthusiasts. Check it out!
 
While I'm not into 3D printing, I look forward to seeing what weird and wonderful creatures will appear in The Fantasy Trip Bestiary. I've always loved flipping through books that chronicle creatures, whether real or imagined. One of my favorite Christmas memories from childhood was receiving a personalized book featuring photos of animals that lived in Great Smoky Mountains National Park. (Does that count as a bestiary?) Not long after that, I discovered Gnomes by Wil Huygen and Rien Poortvliet in my mother's collection of books. I spent hours poring over each page to learn where gnomes lived, what their houses looked like, what they did every day, and who their friends and enemies were. I was determined to use what I learned to seek out and befriend a gnome in real life. I never managed to find one – and no matter how much I begged them, I couldn't convince my parents to take me to Europe so I could continue the search. While I've obviously grown up since then, that sense of wonder has never left. Even today, there's a small part of me that hopes I'll encounter the truly fantastic while I'm out exploring nature. 
 
If you also have a fondness for the creatures of myth and folklore, you'll definitely enjoy looking through The Fantasy Trip Bestiary. The book features a great collection of creatures that are perfect for your campaign or one-shot, including wolves, ghouls, crabmen, and even something called the Bloodtree. (If that's not tailor-made for a horror-themed campaign, I don't know what is.) So head to the Kickstarter, make your pledge, and get ready for your next encounter.

-- Katie Duffy