5 comments about Magic in the Shadows (Shadowrun RPG).

1. Magic in the Shadows, while long overdue, is most definitely worth the wait. It's a little dry in places, but anything with this much information and rules clarification is going to have that problem. Overall, the book is well worth cover price because of its excellent organization and clear writing. Shadowrun's magic system needed a major overhaul, and this does the trick beautifully. An absolute must-have for anyone, player or GM, who deals with magic in Shadowrun Third Edition.



2. Looks like FASA got their act together for this book and really gave what both players and GM's can use. The background information is clear and concise, the game effects are balanced and well-thought-out, and the new rules enhance the depth of the game. Clearly worth the money.



3. Heh. I remember my troll mage. He kicked so much, well, you know. And to think, that wouldn't have been possible without this book. So wonderful. Magic becomes so much easier with the updated rules. And rules for making your own spells? Exquisite. Although some of the combinations are so powerful that my GM disallowed them. Dam. Ah well. Anyway, the point is that I can assure you that if you're playing a magic user in Shadowrun 3rd Edition, you'll want, nay, you'll NEED, this book. Get it. Now! Enjoy!



4. I remember when I first played Shadowrun how much of a pain using magic was. Fasa has finally come out with a much needed update for the magic system. This is an excellent source book that expands the system for magic and makes it very easy to use. No longer is magic confusing and hard to understand; now it is a breeze to play a magic using character in the Shadowrun world.



5. Shadowrun, despite being my all-time favorite gaming universe, was a complete money drainer, with an excessive amount of supplements to purchase in order to flesh out your campaign.
   3rd edition and its updates however, seemed to consolidate and condense better, focusing on game mechanics and rules rather than pictures and colorful quotes from fictional characters.
   
   Magic in the Shadows is no exception, as it compiles all three previous magic books, updates their mechanics, and also introduces new 3rd edition magic rules, skills, and abilities. Although the 3rd edition books are not as colorful or fun to read as previous books, they do a much better job of actually providing rules and mechanics to streamline your game.
   This book is a must have for anyone with "awakened" characters, because it covers the rules for initiation, a process that makes a magical character uber-powerful.

1 comments about *OP WoW Alliance Players Guide (World of Warcraft the Roleplaying Game).

1. The book has a great range of new character directions, from expanding the ones that are already existant to complete new prestige classes,(i.e. Savagekin and Ursa totemic)The book contains great story lines and together with the history of the races of the Alliance it provides a big content to a new campaign hosted in the world of Azeroth. For the experiences players it is a great addition, certainly for the ones that like just a tad more diversity then the main world of warcraft rpg book already has to offer.

5 comments about Monte Cooks World of Darkness.

1. Its a new and refreshing way to look at the world of darkness, its the same feeling of dread, but in a new aspect. Aside of that it gives up open possibilities within the dark world that earth has become... which we are developing ourselves. Thanks Monte for this excellent book.
   
   We also discovered that moving a bit the intrusion zone (or just using part of the nightmare wave) we can get excellent places within our world that serve as catalyst for horror and adventure. Anyone want to visit the Catacombs of Paris or the Castles of Romania after I-D (Intrusion Day)? Well if they do, they are for a hell of a trip.



2. It's nice to see what d20 can do when it's in the hands of a team who don't let it get in the way but rather use it's strengths to great effect.
   
   I love the way this game comes across for those who already know d20. For those who don't it is a great game with simple rules.
   
   Ever have one of those doomsday-visions with vampires and demons and werewolves on motorcycles in graveyards with shotguns? It's kind of like that. Accessible and fun.



3. Although I like (and have) the Old and New WoD books, several in my gaming group do not wish to learn a new system. This is the answer to our problems because it is a solid modern supernatural game that is a great compromise. Monte did a great job with the setting and rules and although this is in no way a 100% conversion of O/NWoD game, it is a fun game and will allow my group to alternate between Medieval & Modern fantasy games. I highly recommend this book to d20 Players.



4. If you wanted a version of Werewolf or Vampires of the Masquorade but in an understandable system then this is for you. I like Monte Cook's mind and use of language in this book. He takes the indescribably strange and arcane system of the WOD and allows D20 folk like myself a useful way to look into this world.
   
   Have a great day people.



5. Monte Cook's World of Darkness (McWod) is an incredible work of transition. It's a very well thought alternate setting to that of White Wolf's original work.
   It includes the Vampire, Werewolf, and Mage factions in a single book, adding Demon and Awakaned factions. Because of this, and the fact that all these factions have only been around for 1 year, their history and background is not as detailed or profound as you might like.
   Unfortunately, it seems this is a stand alone product. I've searched the internet for any supplemental material but nothing surfaces. This leaves feeling stranded in some way. What about more monsters? The upcoming Hunter faction?
   Still, it's an interesting game. It's worth a try, a read, and atleast one gaming experience.

No comments about Baron Munchausen.

2 comments about Exalted The Fair Folk (Exalted).

1. Let me first say I was extremely excited to get my hands on this book. I have loved every bit of Exalted I have read and was anxious to see what was in store with "The Fair Folk".
   Overall I am pleased and I think it can certainly bring a new level of play to anyone who purchases the book. However, as previous critics have stated, it is difficult to understand. Shaping is abstract, as are most things in the Wyld. But abstract notions are not easily given to rules. So any rules guiding shaping and the environment can be hard to wrap your head around.
   Next is the fact that while they are masters of the Wyld, Creation is a tough place for Raksha. Not enough of their Charms or powers effect the "real world". Those that do can be seen through, as glamour is mere illusion. It becomes easy for higher essence and ability characters, villains, etc. to run over what power a Raksha does have. On the flip side of this notion is that if the Raksha are the bad guys in your campaign, your players will be challenged and will eventually outstrip their adversaries (which is after all, the point).
   The primary concept behind any storyteller driven book has always been, take what you want, make up what you can and throw out what you don't care for. This book is no exception. All in all this is a solid book with great springboard material to get your game moving and villains fleshed-out. As to an all Raksha game, I think it is best left to mature players who have the patience to understand the abstract and are not looking for a "pick-up game". Just my opinion.



2. This book had me hooked on the fae and learning as much as i could about them.its a fantastic read, with awesome artwork and a graphical breakdown thats very easy to read through. it gives you a break down of two different kinds of fae, the mountain folk and the fae of the wylds. it has a font of information if your intrested in bringing any of the wyld ones into your game. the biggest downside to the book are the charms. they seem very vague and not a lot of information to assist in the imagination.the charms themselves leave you wondering what the hell they really do, but luckily, not all the charms are that way. some you can figure out pretty easily. Other then that, its a wonderfull source book that will leave you wanting to expand the game bounderies to the wyld itself.
   Happy Shoppen..

2 comments about Mutants & Masterminds: Time Of Vengeance (Mutants & Masterminds RPG).

1. A longueur is a dull and tedious portion (usually of a book) and this adventure has plenty of them. The players are supposed to battle the 10 plagues of Egypt and solve the mystery of who is causing them but there are flaws. Here are the big ones:
   
   1. The players are supposed to investigate to uncover clues of how to defeat the plagues, but they must be in the exact right place at the right time and ask the right question and make the DC 30 roll to actually get the answers they need. It felt like trying to play one of those text based games (push the rock, no, shove the rock, no, kick the rock, no, move the rock, no, pull the rock, no, . . .)
   
   2. The plagues are very repetitive in their design. All the bugs (fleas, flies and locusts) work almost exactly the same. All other plagues have giant area attacks of everyone within 300 feet make really high fortitude save. With so many powers, the writer should have been more inventive.
   
   3. In the final fight you will either win by talking (and saying the exact right thing) or die horribly by life drain.
   
   In short you will be better off saving your money and making your own game based on the plagues of Egypt.



2. Christopher McGlothlin delivers another epic adventure for Mutants & Masterminds. My favorite parts of the adventure, beyond the plethora of exotic menaces, are its ties to Freedom City--the premier setting for Mutants & Masterminds. There's enough material in this one adventure to help you get your M&M game up and running----and for time-constrained gamemasters like myself, the availability of published adventures dictates whether or not my group can play Mutants & Masterminds at all.
   
   I hope that Green Ronin can find a format for published adventures that is profitable and allows them to publish books like these more frequently.

No comments about Suppressed Transmission 2: The Second Broadcast.

2 comments about Citadel of Fire (Judges Guild).

1. A great module! Better than the original. Lots of high powered magical encounters. An adventure to be remembered!



2. I purchased Citadel of fire because I simply didn't have the time to write my own material; all work & no play makes me a very dull dungeon master. I thought that I was going to be getting a module that was going to need a lot of tailoring; however I found this module easy to drop into my current campaign. Well written & chucked full of combat. I personally like to run a game surrounding more role-play, but Goodman Games is more of a hack-n-slash based system, which works out great because now I'm finding that my troupe likes the change of pace. A great module and easy to run.

2 comments about Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Monster Smackdown (Buffy RPG).

1. This book is packed full of colorful, eye-catching illistrations along with text true to the show. Many of the monsters included can be easily recognized by any true fan. Includes ways to make your own demon characters!



2. "The Monster Smackdown" is a supplement for the "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" roleplaying game, a counterpart to the "Slayer's Handbook" that is also available. Written by Thom Marrion, with assistance form a lot of others, this volume builds on the canon of the Buffyverse (through the show's first six seasons) and expands it to help players of the roleplaying game create new scenarios. While most of the monsters on "BtVS" were based on real world supernatural myths and legends, that is not seen as a limitation but a starting point for Directors. So while "Monster Smackdown" provides a summary of that mythology as it pertains to the darker side of the Buffyverse, it also introduces you to the rules and tools for you to expand your own neck of the "BtVS" underworld as your little (still beating) heart desires.

   The book is divided into seven chapters: (1) Welcome to the Hellmouth summarizes the major points about monsters in the Buffyverse that gives you some ideas for locating Hellmouths in other places and a quick lesson on various demon dimensions; (2) Die Young, Live Forever is a detailed look at vampires, from abilities and weaknesses to notes on the soul and mortality; (3) From Hell runs down the "regular" demons who are considered lower-tier threats; (4) Everything You Ever Dreaded Under Your Bed collects all the various non-vamp, non-demon creatures that have appeared in the Buffyverse; (5) Bads, Big and Small focuses on the "name" adversaries for Buffy, from Adam and Angelus to Sweet and Mr. Trick, in what is by far the longest chapter in the book; (6) Monster Spawning provides tips for Directors creating their own adversaries and includes some cast member monsters, new creature qualities, new powers, and new archetypes; (7) The Once and Future HST is a ready-to-slay episode containing a major turning point in the on-going Djinn Season that we have been following along in these Eden Studio publications.

   The book is filled with those pithy quotations that made "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" a test of your pop culture knowledge, boxes containing additional information and supplemental charts and tables, and fiction sections or cut scenes that give you a sense of what sort of scenarios you can play out in these games. These books are filled with photographs and illustrations, with gorgeous production values, so that they will appeal to fans of the series who are not necessarily interested in playing the game (which explains why they are on the shelf of my fancy bookcase next to my volumes of "BtVS" scripts).

1 comments about Heroes of Might & Magic ll: The Official Strategy Guide (New World's Might & Magic Series , No 2).

1. Fantastic! This book covers it all! Detailed chapters include hero generation, best and worst creatures, complete artifact tables, castle building tips, troop combat formation/placement, opening move sequences to end game strategies, and an analysis of all standard scenarios plus campaign games.

   This is a MUST PURCHASE for any serious HOMMII gamer!