No comments about Promethean Storyteller Screen (Promethean).

3 comments about *OP Laws of the Wild (Mind's Eye Theatre).

1. If you want to LARP with Garou and other shapeshifters, this is a necessary supplement. Unfortunately, it is full of errors and internal contradictions as well as some _extremely_ bad mechanics. With moderate effort this can be cleaned up into a respectable and usable book, but it really needed to have been playtested and edited a lot better.



2. this book is great all around. for being small it is not only a great reference, but also a a great guide for beginers. a must have for begining MET or LARP players.



3. Thankfully, the much better thought-out and edited Laws of the Wild Revised has come out. Don't bother with this edition.

5 comments about Sword & Sorcery Creature Collection II: Dark Menagerie (Core Rulebook).

1. This is probably my favorite monster book for D&D so far. The monsters are dark, scary, and threatening to all player characters. They are interesting to read about and good to throw at players and surprise them if they are expecting standard monster manual type creatures. A pretty good investment compared to a lot of other stuff out there :)



2. I love Sword & Sorcery Studios. I've loved 'em since they came out with the Creature Collection 1, before the official Monster Manual came out. They're a high quality publisher, backed by one of the biggest companies in the biz, White Wolf, and it shows. This product is of great quality, much better than the first Creature Collection, which was admittedly mediocre in several departments. There are a huge range of monsters and other assorted things tailored for the Scarred Lands setting, but most if not all of them can be dropped into any setting with little if any change.

   Also, you get a wide range of different sorts of monsters, because the book was not just written by a few individuals. Rather, they had open writer calls, so anyone could send in a permission form and their own monsters to be included in the book, so you get the cream of the crop from the collective minds of the entire D&D community.




3. Shipped immediately. Received in excellent condition. Very Satisfied. Would do and will do business with in the future.



4. Once of those groups who have been playing for years, and they know every single monster and all their stats from all the Monster Manual books? Are you a DM who is sick of every time you start to describe a Cockatrice they already know what you are talking about before your sentence is finished? If so, you are like me, and this book plus the others from Sword & Sorcerery did the trick. Finally some monsters no one had heard of! This book has a great selection of all kinds of things, perfect for any campaign. My only complaint is that its not in color.



5. I loved this book. Lots of good monsters that fit into any game. My favorite monster is the Time Killer. A CR1 that has an aging breath weapon. This is a good buy for any DM. This book goes right up with the Monster M. series and the first Creature Collection was a great book. I bought this book never having heard of it for a great price. Good impulse buy. On the negative side it has a couple of monsters that are Scarred lands specific but any DM can work around somthing like that.

1 comments about Star Trek Deep Space Nine: Roleplaying Game (Star Trek Deep Space Nine: Role Playing Games).

1. This is an excellent book for the RPG world of Star Trek which has just so recently come out. A must have for all "Trekkies" and RPG buffs. A great sourcebook to add to your others. Excellent for MUSHes and the like. It deserves five stars.

5 comments about The HOBBIT Parchment Journal from the Collection of Sam Gamgee.

1. Hey there! Just thought you should know that this is not actually a book for reading or such. It is a journal that you write in. The pages are, however, illustrated nicely, and there are a few snipits of writing. But mostly, it's nice for a person who is going to keep a journal, not an avid reader.



2. This is as it says on the cover ' Being a blank book with some curious illustrations of friends& foes of the none companions'. It is a journal for you to write in or look at the very good artwork, by the artist Michael Green. It should certainly enrich your Tolkien experience. Some particularly great illustrations here are: ' The long wait of Arwen Evenstar', ' Bombadil', ' Another daughter of the river king', 'By the doors of Durin', ' Another notch for Gimli's ax', ' Saruman', 'Shield- Maiden of Rohan', 'The Palantir is taken', ' Oliphant', 'The darkness of Denethor', ' The trial of Gondor', 'Ghan Buri Ghan', 'The mouth of Sauron' and 'Rosielass Gamgee '.
   The drawings of Aragorn and Elrond though, seem incorrect.
   To clear up misconceptions, the book was published in 1979, 7 years after the passing of JRR Tolkien, and 22 years "before the movie hype began".
   It is a pleasant illustrated journal.
   And I just love that wonderful , wistful poem at the back of the journal , Lay of the Passing Ages.



3. This is a lovely journal with beautiful illustation of the characters in Lord of the Rings.



4. This is a nice little journal with lovely illlustrations, but the quality wasn't that great. I was rather disappointed.



5. I think this journal is great. It's small and just the right size. You do have to be carefull with the cover though since it's paperback, but other than that it's perfect! You almost don't want to write in it!

5 comments about Montreal by Night (Vampire: the Masquerade).

1. It's complete book and wonderful, because it have all you need, like complete maps, people names, all all all the things it diserve 5 stars really!



2. Real good, a lot of stuff like characters, places, plots, intrigues



3. This book has all the hall marks of a black dog book. Nightmareish pictures and well laid out storyline of the city gives this a scary look at the sabbat. Well worth the money.



4. Montreal by Night has terrific characters, intrigues, and story ideas. After reading it, you will want to run a Montreal campaign.

   What evil lurks under the mountain? A few folks know, and avoid it to the best of their abilities. Not even the Nosferatu dare visit the sewers in Montreal.

   This is a very graphic book, well-deserving of the Black Dog category. The Sabbat do some very nasty stuff, but it's often all in fun. Ever wonder how they play football? How they play bobbing for apples? Here's a hint: Montreal entertainment often focuses on a most wonderful quadripalegic Samedi midget....




5. No, it is not for the nervous or the easily offended. And yes it has possibly the grossest, most degenerate illustration in it that I would never want my mother to see. HOWEVER, this is still the very best book that I have seen in the "By Night" series. Yes, many of these vampires are sick, sick puppies even by White Wolf standards but guess what: THERE ARE WORSE THINGS OUT THERE THAN THEM! Mysterious, mysterious and very, very dark things. And there are mysterious, mysterious and very, very dark vampires here to whom it falls to combat them. Some of the packs- the Shepards, the Librarians and even the (relatively wholesome) Navigators- sound like worlds unto themselves. The Shepards even have their own twistedly mystical Path of Enlightenment, unique to this supplement. There is a very original vampiric society in this book that gives the Sabbat a whole new dimension. Even if you can't imagine your campaign ever getting to Montreal, this supplement is a must have if you want ideas for a truly Gothic atmosphere (as long as you are over 18, of course!) One drawback: the book uses the old virtues for Sabbat characters- but a creative GM can adapt. (Used to it by now, right?) Utterly fascinating! And here I thought I was a good person....

5 comments about Time of Thin Blood (Vampire: The Masquerade).

1. The part about 14th and 15th Gen Vamps was almost as interesting as it's supposed author although the "brief" format is a bit unwieldy. Although I can't actually see anyone wanting to PLAY a 14/15 gen vamp the data is good resource material. If you overlook the GLARING contrast with what is written in the KoE Companion (RE: Ravnos) the last section is VERY interesting and provides a nice bit of backdrop for any campaign.



2. This isn't the book for the gamers who want a supplement to contain more bitchin' powers and the (apparent) answers to some of the great mysteries of the game setting.

   Instead, this is jumping in at the deep end of the desperation, confusion and madness of the end of the world, as the vampires see it. Fourteen and fifteen generations later, the power of Caine's curse is wearing off, and vampires are being created who are more human and less vampire than those who have come before them. They aren't masters of the night, they aren't capable of living as humans. They're pathetic creatures living in fear and ignorance, not even knowing that there's an entire World of Darkness ready to do them in for reasons they won't live long enough to learn.

   Instead of the high Gothic opera of most "Vampire: The Masquerade" games, "Time of the Thin Blood" is a squalid, brutish and brutal game supplement that stinks of fear sweat and, along the way, gives reasons for the rest of the vampires to be sweating blood along with the thin-blooded.

   And, of course, there are some bitchin' new powers: The thin-blooded can't do much of what more potent vampires can do, but they can do some things that none of their elders (and betters) can do, including make babies. The rules for these half-human/half-vampire dhampires are also given. Would a player want to play one? Not most players in most games. But "Time of the Thin Blood" works best on its own (with the core rulebook, of course) or for the rare player who doesn't want to be a Lestat-like master of the night.

   And there's also some answers to the big questions, or at least an apparent answer that poses some bigger questions. The game master-only section at the back tells a brief tale: Something very old and very nasty wakes up in India, the supernatural world rises against it, and the world of VtM changes, getting more desperate and somewhat less populated ...

   This is the stuff of nightmares and urban legends. Good stuff. Pick it up.




3. I really liked the idea of "thin blooded" vampires, for two reasons. One, they are weaker (but they can shine) than everyone else. This is good for me from a StoryTellers point of view. One thing I can't stand is power-gamers. Since the Thin-blooded can make thier own disiplines, this gives me (the story teller) a measure of control, but can make them good characters. Second with Thin-blooded ones, they ARE weaker, so that makes them a challenge to play, and I love a challenge.

   Also this supplement was necesary. With some players being 13th Generation Vampire make their own childer, and this goes into detail on the information of 14th and 15th Gen Vampires.

   Finally Dhampirs... If I understand how Dhampirs work, they are essentally masterless ghouls, right? Now I'll admit that I don't know much about Ghouls, but that seems a bit weak for the childREN of Vampires.




4. In theory, this book is a powerful tool for any Storyteller with a mature troope. The thin-blooded are a force to be reckoned with; their power is small but they numbers are unimaginable. Are these the Final Nights? The Book of Nod would seem to suggest so (according to this book), but what of it? There are Cainites so weak that the Sun no longer burns their flesh, vampires so far removed that they can bear breathing children.

   In this book are excellent rules for designing a discipline (or powers within a discipline), a subject rarely touched before. I have odd feelings about the subject of Dhampirs, the children of the thin-blooded, but this book portrays them marvelously. So much thought is put into these systems that I can hardly restrain my chronicles from overusing thin-blooded plots.

   Why just four stars then? That draws upon the overall readability. The grammar style of the authors is different from that of most other White Wolf publications. It's choppier and harder to read. Entire pages are written like notebooks, cutting up their readability factor. And the notes are, in some ways, no less than cheasy. The authors have reached out on a limb, which subsequently broke.

   Still, don't be discouraged. The thin-blooded are a wonderful plot point and excellent chronicle focus. They have fatal flaws counterbalanced by powerful assets that strike fear into the hearts of Elders. The Final Nights are here, embrace them.




5. Ok, I love the beginning and for those who've read the "ghoul book" you'll recall the fine Malkavian doctor and his ghoul assistant as they now share their research into the "thin blooded" vampires and these strange new creatures some of them can parent. I also loved the insights from the thin-blooded themselves. However, I still had some questions such as when these 15th generation vampires first appeared and any connections to other ancients arising. Also I felt that the "story-like" sections were merely repeated in later sections and that the insights on character creation is not as strong as in other books. Also why would 13th or 14th gen kindred even be trying to make others? And why are 15th gen so interested in sex when supposedly other gens aren't? How much of this is propaganda? I know, I'm a stroyteller, I can make this stuff up, but I had hoped for better guidelines.

No comments about Slaine RPG: Invulnerable King (Slaine).

5 comments about Toon: The Cartoon Roleplaying Game.

1. This is the only rpg Ive seen that anyone can master in one or two tries. Your dreams to be bugs bunny or Daffy come true in this classic rpg. A must buy!



2. This game is the best. The only problem I have is that every page you read falls out after you turn the page. Spiral binding would be great for this game because the game master has to use the book often if he is following any of the preplaned adventures. I would give it 5 stars if the binding were better.



3. Toon: The Cartoon Role-playing Game was published by Steve Jackson Games in the mid-1980s, and many copies of the sourcebooks are still available with a little effort. This RPG primarily focuses upon American-style cartoons where truly anything goes!!! The entire focus of Toon is to be funny and to do and say things which are funny... and many anime characters and series fit quite well into this worldview: Debutante Detective Corps, Project A-ko, Otaku no Video, Galaxy Fraulein Yuna, Idol Project, the Slayers saga, City Hunter, D4 Princess, Mezzo Forte, etc.

   One of the most popular Toon campaigns is the Toon Olympics. Those familiar with the Hanna-Barbara Laff-a-Lympics series already have an idea of the premise of Toon Olympics: Bring together many animated characters from various series/genres and have them compete in a number of sporting events. When I first played the Toon Olympics, one player created his own cursed medieval knight character with a sentient sword which didn't always do as he commanded (which he later played in a Sailor Moon RPG campaign I was then running), someone else played a unicorn (who eventually had to drive a car), another played as Lara Croft, and I personally played as A-ko - truly an eclectic bunch!!!

   However, anime fans should NOT overlook Toon as a role-playing option. Granted, Toon is not as adaptable to a wide variety of campaigns (for campaign genre/character adaptability, see the Big Eyes Small Mouth second edition sourcebook); however, for a change of pace, Toon can be used to give almost any anime character (pre-existing or original) a chance to be a comedian. For example, when I played in another Toon Olympics as A-ko, I called upon B-ko to fight a Pokémon in my place, with the promise of conceding C-ko to her if she should win (that was funny enough to earn me an extra Plot Point)!!!




4. This is a great game for anyone who has ever wanted to be a chartoon character. Or just for anyone who loves cartoons. Like the best board games (Balderdash, Malarky), the important thing is having fun and making the other players laugh. ...



5. Loony Toon the RPG is wonderful fun for all ages. Prepare to laugh till you hurt.

2 comments about Dungeon Crawl Classics 28: Into the Wilds (Dungeon Crawl Classi).

1. I used this module in my first attempt at DMing 3.5 D&D. It worked like a charm. It is loosely-inspired by the classic Keep on the Borderlands, featuring a frontier keep surrounded by evil denizens. The encounters are varied and fun, and Wildsgate Keep serves as a great base of operations for the characters, filled with interesting NPCs, and potential for intrigue. I recommend this module as a fun beginning to a campaign, with many opportunities available for expansion.
   
   IK



2. Another great design bu Harley Stroh, one that re-imagines an old "classic" in clever ways. The truth is modern product like this one is an improvement on the original. It has the same great detail, but is smarter (more than a "dungeon crawl," whatever the series title may say) and more professionally done (amazing maps!). So you get to relive the past and improve it at the same time: Good deal!
   
   While modules like these may be more than Dungeon Crawls, they also keep it mind that fun is what it's all about, and that means tough fighting and smart tactics against some cool bad guys. I hate this new tendency in adventures with so much emphasis being put on negotiating with NPC's with endless back stories ("soap opera" you might call it--I think it really started back in the mid-80s with Ravenloft and its sequel). Too much today seems geared to "role-playing" and pretentious backgrounds, with what little actual fighting there is completely uninspired. So many modules the last twenty years or so seem like they are written by frustrated, would-be fantasy novel authors or amateur thespians. "Role-playing" has its place, of course, but some of us still believe that at heart the game is about good dungeon adventures: Putting one's life in peril and coming out on top. Apparently that's too "competitive" for some people today!
   
   Into the Wilds is a smart adventure, and it doesn't forget it's about the fighting. It's written by a brilliant craftsmen, who knows that dungeon creation is a craft. Goof dungeons call for someone who understands the mechanics of design: traps, puzzles, tricks, etc. If anything really revives the Old Style, it will be great works like these, by the people who remember the old classics, but have also learned from the good things in the newer works (there are some!).