Glitter Grimoire, Glitter Grimoire, Glitter Grimoire…. after being recommended it a third time, I HAD to check it out! This D&D supplement made my inner Lisa Frank 90’s kid very happy, and I’m excited to share this review with you here.

Note: This post may contain affiliate links. At no additional cost to you, I may earn a small commission from purchases made using them. TTRPGkids uses this to keep the site going. Read full disclosure here.

Jump to:

• Audience
• Setting
• Characters
• Mechanics
• Overall
• Find a copy

Audience for The Glitter Grimoire

The Glitter Grimoire is pretty all-ages friendly. There’s nothing in here that I don’t think I would not show my kid (7yo)… and the humor is something that will make kids laugh AND is also there for any adult’s inner 90s child.

For being able to use the mechanics, this is a supplement to D&D, so it is going to be based on D&D mechanics which are normally recommended for ages 8+. There’s lots of fun spells here, no more complicated than anything you’d find in the D&D core books, so I’d say 8+ for using and being able to read (i.e. 3rd – 4th grade reading level min) is pretty accurate.

Setting for The Glitter Grimoire

The Glitter Grimoire is set in Candlekeep (or another library of choosing in your own campaign) and is, righfully so, part of the TOP SECRET archives. It’s a collection of potent spells and item details developed over the years by it’s various owners and has the potential to cause absolute chaos!

While set in the D&D universe, The Glitter Grimoire is bedecked with vibrantly stylized fantasy art, cool S doodles in the margins, and splashes of glitter (there had to be) that create a tone of fun mischief. Despite not being an adventure, the spells, art, and premise of the book definitely create their own whimsical setting elements to flavor whatever story you are dropping it into.

Characters in The Glitter Grimoire

Character creation for YOUR character is going to be the same as for D&D, so I’m going to instead focus here on the NPCs.

This tome is a collection of new spells and items and not an adventure onto itself, so… why are there characters? Well, someone had to write all this, right?

The book has had previous owners ranging from Tasha (the famous D&D Tasha) to a flashy performer to a deep gnome who writes jokes in purple comic sans. Each previous owner of the book has written spells and made notes throughout the book to add their personal bit of flair, and it really makes this. From commenting on trials and errors of various spells to leaving random thoughts, the contributors and the tome itself contain a lot of personality.

And there’s also the librarian!

In the forward and then via sticky notes left scattered between the pages, Master Reader Margan leaves their warnings and instructions to both help you on your journey… and jab at you a little for not taking their advice.

Mechanics used by The Glitter Grimoire

The Glitter Grimoire is a D&D supplement, so, like with the character section, I won’t be going through how to use D&D, but I’ll instead focus on what unique bits and pieces this adds to your existing games.

This is an AMAZING collection of new spells and items. Each one has unique mechanics, but they’re all themed around weird, prankster, goofy stuff kids do in that tween to early teen phase and references to memes. It is beautiful chaos.

Of the over 80 spells, some of my favorites are (with my comments):

• Catnip (great for summoning ALL THE CATS)
• World’s Smalled Violin (aw…. so sorry you have reroll)
• Akme’s anvil (this is very Wiley Coyote)
• The Cool S (cool glyph)
• Jinx! (you owe me a soda?)
• Nice. (nice.)
• Tasha’s Tantalizing Tea Room (very fun chart here)
• Chromatic Glitter Bomb (Glitter Grimoire NEEDS a glitter bomb)
• Awaken Annoying Item (oh Annoying Orange…)

Item-wise, there are 25 in total, and, of those, I also really appreciated:

• Banana Peel (it is what it says it is)
• Finger Trap (every prize counter needs these)
• Glitter Bomb (of course you need an item one too)
• The Deck of Many Silly Things (GREAT way to mess with players)
• MacGuffin (every villain wants it and every hero needs it)
• Cootie Catcher (see below)

For the Cootie Catcher, there is even a full actual cootie catcher on the last page with instructions on how to use it (if you’ve forgotten how).

All spells and items are functional and work with D&D rules, but they have a wonderfully silly twist and are a great addition to adventures that are OK with leaning into a little bit of whimsy.

Overall thoughts on The Glitter Grimoire

I loved this. I had quite a few good laughs, and I shared with kiddo who also thought it was funny (and has added to the next kiddo character skill set) despite not getting all the references. I think this is just a universally enjoyable addition to D&D that’s extra fun if you know the background and still fun if you’re seeing some of this for the first.

Also… in our house, the term “it’s from the 90s” is a whole particular joke that we have with kiddo, so I got to pull that out several times here, and that just started giggles all over again. So, it became a way to share quirky fun bits of my childhood with kiddo, and I really liked that too.

Find a copy of The Glitter Grimoire

You can find a copy of The Glitter Grimoire here on DTRPG!

If you liked this post, make sure to subscribe to the TTRPGkids monthly newsletter to stay up to date on the latest reviews, tips and tricks, game and podcast list updates, and more! Thank you for playing tabletop RPGs with your kids and sharing this awesome hobby with the next generation!