ASTARION'S BOOK OF HUNGERS - Vampires, Feats, and Baldur's Gate Treats!
RPGBOT.Podcast22 Des 2025

ASTARION'S BOOK OF HUNGERS - Vampires, Feats, and Baldur's Gate Treats!

Have you ever wondered what would happen if Baldur's Gate 3 romance options escaped into your tabletop rules? Today, we dive into Astarion's Book of Hungers, where vampires are sexy, feats are thirsty, and WotC's DLC pricing… is definitely giving "gaslight, gatekeep, vampire spawn."

The team reviews the digital-only D&D supplement Astarion's Book of Hungers, a Baldur's Gate-themed 32-page add-on focused on vampires, Dhampir characters, feats, and mini-adventures, tied to Faerûn but clearly intended as DLC-style tabletop content.

Highlights
  • Dhampir species updated, but weakened from 2014 (loss of Deathless Nature, bite now unarmed strike).
  • New backgrounds tied to vampire themes (Devotee, Survivor, Carouser) with strong roleplay hooks.
  • Feat quality varies from flavorful to "why is this here" (looking at you, Bomber).
  • Epic boons are thematically fun but situational.
  • Bestiary mostly devils + vampire variants (Infernalist, Wardens).
  • Two adventures, but they're basically the same fight twice set in Rat's Run Tavern.
Show Notes

In this episode of the RPGBOT.Podcast, the crew reviews Astarion's Book of Hungers, the digital-only supplement featuring the updated Dhampir species, vampire-flavored feats, new backgrounds, devil monsters, and two short adventures centered around the Rat's Run Tavern in Baldur's Gate.

The hosts analyze the design changes, compare Dhampir options between the 2014 and 2024 rules, evaluate feat quality, and critique the DLC-like release strategy. They share lore details about Astarion, his abusive sire Kassador, and how Baldur's Gate 3 influenced this supplement's tone and art direction.

Listeners get practical advice on when the rules matter, when the flavor shines, and whether this $15 digital release actually delivers value, or whether players are better off saving their money for bigger releases.

Key Takeaways
  • Dhampir changes are mechanical changes; same flavor, less abusable.
  • New feats range from fun to unoptimized; several needed Unearthed Arcana playtesting.
  • Bestiary is small but flavorful with devil-focused lore.
  • Adventures feel duplicated and minimal.
  • The value proposition feels overpriced for what's delivered.
  • Strong warnings that this sets an unwelcome D&D DLC precedent.
Join the RPGBOT Patreon

If you enjoy episodes like this, join the RPGBOT Patreon, where you can:

  • Listen to RPGBOT.Podcast recording sessions live
  • Get ad-free RPGBOT.net content
  • Listen to ad-free episodes of the podcast
  • And be part of every critical fail, hot take, and vampire thirst moment (purely for research purposes, of course).

Join the RPGBOT Patreon and support deep-dive TTRPG analysis with zero commercials interrupting your build planning.

Welcome to the RPGBOT Podcast. If you love Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, and tabletop RPGs, this is the podcast for you.

Support the show for free: Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or any podcast app. It helps new listeners find the best RPG podcast for D&D and Pathfinder players.

Level up your experience: Join us on Patreon to unlock ad-free access to RPGBOT.net and the RPGBOT Podcast, chat with us and the community on the RPGBOT Discord, and jump into live-streamed RPG podcast recordings.

Support while you shop: Use our Amazon affiliate link at https://amzn.to/3NwElxQ and help us keep building tools and guides for the RPG community.

Meet the Hosts
  • Tyler Kamstra – Master of mechanics, seeing the Pathfinder action economy like Neo in the Matrix.

  • Randall James – Lore buff and technologist, always ready to debate which Lord of the Rings edition reigns supreme.

  • Ash Ely – Resident cynic, chaos agent, and AI's worst nightmare, bringing pure table-flipping RPG podcast energy.

Join the RPGBOT team where fantasy roleplaying meets real strategy, sarcasm, and community chaos.

How to Find Us:

In-depth articles, guides, handbooks, reviews, news on Tabletop Role Playing at RPGBOT.net

Tyler Kamstra Ash Ely Randall James Producer Dan

Denne episoden er hentet fra en åpen RSS-feed og er ikke publisert av Podme. Den kan derfor inneholde annonser.

Episoder(695)

PROJECT_LAMORDIA REVIEW - Frankenstein Had Better Workplace Safety Standards

PROJECT_LAMORDIA REVIEW - Frankenstein Had Better Workplace Safety Standards

What happens when you take Frankenstein, replace the lightning with artificial intelligence, and let a morally bankrupt tech CEO run the whole operation? You get Project Lamordia, where death is optio...

2 Nov 46min

2024 D&D PHB Character Creation (Remastered): What if I told you there were 3-ish types of feats?

2024 D&D PHB Character Creation (Remastered): What if I told you there were 3-ish types of feats?

Creating a D&D character used to be simple. Pick a race, choose a class, roll some dice, and invent a tragic backstory involving dead parents. But the 2024 Player's Handbook has other plans. Now your ...

31 Okt 1h 1min

HOW TO PLAY SHADOWDARK 1 - CONCEPTS AND THEMES: I can promise you two things, there will be shadows, it will be dark.

HOW TO PLAY SHADOWDARK 1 - CONCEPTS AND THEMES: I can promise you two things, there will be shadows, it will be dark.

What happens when you take old-school D&D, remove darkvision, put your torches on a real-world timer, and make every spell a potential disaster? You get Shadowdark, a game where poor planning kills yo...

29 Okt 57min

NUMENERA HOW TO PLAY - AP FINALE: I just wanna see the machine do the big shiny explosions

NUMENERA HOW TO PLAY - AP FINALE: I just wanna see the machine do the big shiny explosions

The fate of La Gorge hangs in the balance. An army is approaching, the ancient defenses are broken, and the only thing standing between civilization and total destruction is a guy who can't roll above...

26 Okt 1h 2min

2024 D&D PHB WEAPON MASTERY BREAKDOWN (Remastered): If you attack something, you're going to do damage

2024 D&D PHB WEAPON MASTERY BREAKDOWN (Remastered): If you attack something, you're going to do damage

For years, martial characters in D&D have had one job: hit things until they stop moving. Wizards rewrite reality, clerics summon divine power, and fighters get to swing a sword. Again. Well, the 2024...

24 Okt 1h 10min

NUMENERA HOW TO PLAY - ACTUAL PLAY PT2: Pay attention, kids. Sometimes weird traditions are good.

NUMENERA HOW TO PLAY - ACTUAL PLAY PT2: Pay attention, kids. Sometimes weird traditions are good.

Last time, we opened a door that had been sealed for thousands of years, murdered a dinosaur, adopted its baby, and turned a crank we probably shouldn't have touched. Now the village is flooding, the ...

22 Okt 58min

NUMENERA HOW TO PLAY: Actual Play 1 - I don't know what horses do, but they seem shifty...

NUMENERA HOW TO PLAY: Actual Play 1 - I don't know what horses do, but they seem shifty...

What happens when a mysterious cowboy rides out of a deadly desert, introduces himself, and immediately falls off his horse? Naturally, you trust his god, open a door that's been locked for thousands ...

19 Okt 1h 6min

HOW TO GM ROMANCE (Remastered) w/ Sebastian Yūe and Friday Strout - Building Meaningful Relationships in TTRPGs

HOW TO GM ROMANCE (Remastered) w/ Sebastian Yūe and Friday Strout - Building Meaningful Relationships in TTRPGs

You've slain dragons, defeated liches, and saved the kingdom. But now an NPC is flirting with you, and suddenly everyone at the table is making death saves against awkwardness. Romance in D&D can be t...

17 Okt 42min

Populært innen Fritid

rss-spartsklubben
interiorradet
nerdelandslaget
mil-etter-mil-en-podcast-om-bil
livet-pa-veien-med-jan-erik-larssen
jegerpodden
jakt-og-fiskepodden
0-100-med-broom-mats-og-remi
rss-jegerpodden
rss-avskiltet
level-backup
rss-jeg-fikser-vin
fjellsportpodden
klokkepodden
menn-uten-midje-kan-ogsa-lese
villmarksliv
rss-usminka
rss-flydilla
rss-var-forste-kaffe
rss-venner-i-vinen