1 comments about Tradition Book: Virtual Adepts (Mage: The Ascension).

1. Tradition Book: Virtual Adepts took what was presented in the original tradition book and brought the most modern tradition up-to-date. The Adept attitude was still there as well as their contempt for the Technocracy. A lot of old information was given a lot more space and coverage.

   The section on the Adept's history was about the same as the old book except for a few big revelations such as the Technocracy's secret T-Virus and how some historical figures from World War 2 may have been members of the Traditions rather than the Technocracy. The section basically talks about the origins of the Adepts from the Technocracy, what they did, why they left, and what they're doing now. My only complaint regarding this section is the total disregard for Iteration X's accomplishments in the computing field and how they worked side-by-side with the early Adepts.

   The next chapter was about Adept society, culture, subdivisions, paradigm, rotes, and wonders. This was an interesting section and treated every aspect with much more detail than the old book. You'll learn all the ins and outs of being an Adept after going through this section. The only issue I had with this section was the paradigm. The Adept paradigm made a lot of sense in theory, but in practice it just didn't seem to work. This could have been fixed with some examples of rote casting. A step-by-step casting with a good explanation would have been nice. The rotes themselves should be useful to players and storytellers.

   The final section covered notable Adepts, a sample cabal, miscellaneous thoughts, and template characters. The noteworthy adepts were interesting, especially the twin Adepts who became enemies of society. The sample cabal had members that were a bit over-powered, which was a common theme in the book. The idea was nice and should definitely be explored by players and storytellers. The template characters were okay, but not too interesting.

   There was a lot of talk about the Technocracy and how it is bad for everyone; the reader will probably get the feeling that the Virtual Adepts' want what they have but are just bitter since they don't have it. In the end, it sounded like both groups just wanted control. Reality 2.0, the Adepts' big project to enlighten humanity sounds good in theory but it will destroy society if it is implemented. Whatever you may think it was interesting to read about. The Technocracy was still portrayed as the enemy despite the end of the Ascension War and it looked like the Adepts had no intentions of keeping a ceasefire with their old associates.

   The book could have benefited from a section on important realms such as the Crystal Palace and other popular hangout aside from the Spy's Demise. A better paradigm explanation and a more unbiased look at the world from the Adepts' view would have been nice. Still, maybe it's their whole look and culture; despite the flaws, I still enjoyed the book a lot.

No comments about Jeremiah the Roleplaying Game.

1 comments about Car Wars.

1. A must buy! Car Wars comes with everthing you need to play, and the gameplay is easy. You race around the city, blowing other cars up, it's so awesome! They only slight problem, is the directions aren't the greatest, but it has all the info so you can just make up how to play is you suverely don't know how to play.

5 comments about Midnight: Forge of Shadow: A Sourcebook for Steel Hill [d20 system].

1. This is the second release of this line since it's come under a new developer, and frankly, I think FFG needed to end the line if they weren't interested in producing it in house. The writing is flat and listless, and the feats and prestige classes are unbalanced. The authors seem to be trying to create a whole book out of what should be a small area in a main book, and I'm wondering why the push for all these new books, if a new edition of the main book is forthcoming. This information could have easily been put in there, instead of a freestanding item. A waste.



2. Forge of Shadow is an incredibly detailed look at a whole city. Filled with gritty details of a conquered city, this book allows you to generate dozens if not hundreds of plot hooks and storylines. It is complete with descriptions of city districts, organizations, locations (`The Burning Elf' is my favorite) and personalities. In some ways it reminds me of the Freeport setting- dark and gritty, but under a unified oppressive yoke. While meant for the Midnight setting, I don't see why this can't be adapted to any other setting. If you want dark brooding city adventures, this is a must-have.



3. I don't find this book worth the cover price, especially not with a new edition coming out soon. The authors try to portray gritty reality, but it comes off sounding like some sort of dime store novel. I found it to be overly dramatic, and very limiting on the GM. The NPCs are pretty much unbelieveable, and the product itself is lightweight. At least it's not as overpriced as some of the other products. Not reccommended.



4. Forge of Shadow is a sourcebook/slash adventure novel for Fantasy Flight's outstanding Midnight RPG setting. I've raved in previous reviews about how outstanding the Midnight setting is and Forge of Shadow is no different. This sourcebook takes the players to Cruach Emyn, known as Steel Hill. Once the site where great weapons were forged in the battle against the hordes of the Dark Lord Izrador, it has now been corrupted and fallen under the control of the Shadow. The former ruler, Lady Eden, found herself betrayed by her own subjects led by Aushav Falan, now known as the Traitor Prince of Steel Hill and the new ruler.
   
   Steel Hill is an important location for both the forces of the Shadow and those free peoples struggling against his tyranny. Slaves now work day and night in the mines to supply iron to equip Izrador's legions of orcs and other minions. The free peoples of Aryth will do anything to wrest control of the region or, at the very least, do what they can to hinder the mining and forging operations. Steel Hill and its surrounding areas, including the mines are described in great detail. Individual maps of each city ward are included as well as entire area maps. The maps detail the important buildings and locations that PCs can visit if they come to Steel Hill such as Inns, Taverns, Guard outposts, brothels, etc. Notes are also included on the system of law and justice, such as it is, in Steel Hill. Justice usually comes at the point of an orc-held sword in the city and visitors are advised to not step out of line. Other buildings are placed on the map as blanks allowing the DM to create Steel Hill in their own way.
   
   The source book also provides large number of adventure hooks and details on areas that the DM can uses to create their own adventures. Enough detail is given in the book to provide weeks of adventures in and around Steel Hill. Notable characters and troop types are described in full. As in their other products, the characters in Steel Hill are well designed and fleshed out for the DM. Among the new material in the book are two new prestige classes although they are designed for the forces of shadow and thus would work best as NPCs. There is the Blood Rider prestige class. The Blood Riders are the elite forces of Steel Hill who are mounted forces that have such abilities as the Deadly Charge allowing them to do triple damage with this mounted charge. The other prestige class is the Sword Brothers, those who wield unholy blades and protect the temples of Izrador. There are also few feats, spells, and a new monster.
   
   Steel Hill is another well-written sourcebook for Midnight. Midnight's unique, wholly evil and desperate setting continues to set the bar high for fans of fantasy RPGs. When you read through the Midnight material you truly feel immersed in the setting the writers/designers have created. The art throughout the book is very good as always. Another wonderful supplement!
   
   Reviewed by Tim Janson



5. Foge of Shadow is a supplement for the excellent Midnight setting about a small, yet very important, city: Steel Hill (or Cruach Emyn). The main purpose of the book is to describe the city of Steel Hill, but in doing so the authors also give us dozens of possible adventures ideas.
   
   Art: The cover art is as dark and brooding and fits well with the book and its contents, and the interior art is excellent as well. The maps of the different wards and of the whole city are nice and clean, and not overly complicated.
   
   The book has four chapters:
   
   Chapter 1 divides the city into three general areas, with each area containing several wards. Each ward is mapped and detailed, with enough distinct and interesting locations such as the Jolly Orc Taver, Ironhammer Foundry, and the Garden of Death, and personalities to go along to provide any DM with enough ideas to run his party through the dirty and dangerous streets and alleys of Steel Hill.
   
   Chapter 2 goes outside the wall and describes the immediate surrounding area. Chief among these places are the iron mines (ever hungry for more slave labor) and Tarish (the town at the base of the mines catering to those who can), with the authors describing the politics of the Great Mine and Tarish (and their relations with the authorities in Steel Hill) as well as giving ideas on possible adventures in the mines. I also love Morgatha's Cave (and Morgatha herself is excellent as well), and the Ancestor Stones.
   
   Chapter 3 is all about politics and intrigue: who's against whom, who's betraying who and who is working with whom (at least, until they get what they want). And that's just the Shadow's minions. Also described are several resistance forces and local legends that could be real... or not. As with every book in Midnight, everything is left purposefully gray in order to allow the DM to run amuck.
   
   Chapter 4 gives us a more detailed look at the important characters in Steel Hill including their stat blocks and personalities. This chapter goes hand in hand with the previous chapter, since it describes some personalities that were already discussed, but goes more deeply into their reasoning of why they act in certain ways. Also provided here are the forces that are in order in (and around) Steel Hill including numbers and examples of a typical individual from among the ranks.
   
   The Appendix includes two new Prestige Classes (both for evil characters), one of them created especially for the forces of Steel Hill: the Blood Rider; a new monster; and a template for a Shadow Servant, those evil individuals who have given their souls to Izrador.
   
   The book is very well written, and the authors have managed to capture the dark spirit of Midnight and put it into this book. It's interesting how every time I read it I get new ideas for adventures to run. Intrigue plays an important part in Steel Hill as the various factions vie for control and power giving DMs plenty of ground to play around in, fertile with mistrust and paranoia (exactly what a Midnight adventure should have).
   
   In short, this is another very good supplement for Midnight. And as another reviewer has written, with a few modifications Steel hill could be dropped in another campaign and easily provide a dangerous and gritty city to run around in.

1 comments about Adventure I (Dungeons & Dragons d20 3.5 Fantasy Roleplaying).

1. Twenty four adventures catering for characters level 1 through to level 12.
   Previously released material under "Adventure Keep". Brushed up, modified for V3.0 and V3.5 and presented in an excellent value book.
   If you're short of time but wanting sound adventures then this book is a real asset and a real bargain to boot.

3 comments about Hunter-Book: Avengers.

1. The first of the Creed Books for Hunter: the Reckoning has a good mix of in-character rumors and philosophies and out-of-character rules and goodies (the new traits and edges are especially nice). Excellent insight into the Avengers of the WoD and worth a look by any Hunter STs and players.



2. O.K. I like to play Avengers, This book lets me define them as more than a killing machine. New Powers too. You can mix them up so when you have a few Avengers around they aren't all copycats. Also the other ways of playing an Avenger are great to roleplay.



3. I purchased this book for one of my players, who is playing an Avenger. His character is far from the gun-slinging killer we expect from the creed from the beginning. We have been turning him into one by having monsters systematically everything he holds dear, filling him with rage. This book has helped me as a storyteller develop a better sub-plot to accomplish this transformation without going completely overboard and just slaying everything in one go around. As a player, my friend has managed to use this book for insight into how Avengers deal with his role in his group, as well as in society in general. For a character with two kids and a job as a high school Lit teacher, that seems important. This book makes it possible to create an Avenger who is more of a complete person than just a hard-core killing machine. I would suggest any of the Hunter books, but this one and perhaps Martyr and Innocent are the most vital.

2 comments about The Mother Of All Encounter Tables (Dungeons & Dragons d20 3.5 Fantasy Roleplaying).

1. This book has tables and tables and more tables. It has a lot of leeway in that a DM can easily replace something on the tables with something of their own invention. Have a favorite monster manual? Insert crearures from it onto the table. Don't have access to some of the creatures listed on a table? Just remove them and replace them with your favorite monsters. This book is more then about monster encounter tables though. Weather, strange occurances, finding some mundane item at the campsite the PC's chose, all can be encounters. Dms will find all kind of things they can use, some things they don't like and can easily be changed, and ways to customize various tables to suit their gaming needs. This book easily gave me dozens of idea's on things to bring into my campaign and that was just after the first reading. I find this book as important to my campaign as the core books and use it in planning every game session now.



2. Hated it. This book was too convoluted to understand well. they made the sections too large. You have to read thru so much material to use in a random encounter that is becomes unusable in a game situation.

No comments about BLACKMOOR The Wizards Cabal *NOP (Dave Arnesons Blackmoor).

1 comments about Hyperconscious: Explorations in Psionics (Dungeons & Dragons d20 3.5 Fantasy Roleplaying Adventure, 7th Level).

1. With the Expanded Psionic Handbook comes new rules and slightly different version of D&D psionics. Hyperconscious not only adds new content, exploring the Region of Dreams, but also updates the previous Malhavoc psionic books. So you get an adventure, a bunch of Prestige Classes, many feats (including some missing psionic feats) and lots of powers (all updated to XPH rules with Augmentations) all within one book.

5 comments about Dino Crisis (Prima's Official Strategy Guide).

1. Don't buy this book. it is the worst strategy guide you will ever see!



2. It had the answers, but was not easy to follow. Getting all the endings were very difficult to follow. Average strategy guide.



3. prima hasnt let me down yet. i dont use strategy guides much(every 9th game or so), but when i do i use prima. they r great help in the "impossible" situations. go prima!



4. Book is sweet as, with everything that you could possibly want to kno about the game in it. buy it and dont play without it and if you dont have the game, then get off your arse and get it fattys.......its a killer of a game and way better than resident evil



5. I have never used a guide before. This one is easy to read. It gave so much and I was very impressed. Great pictures and maps. It doesn't take a genious to follow this one. Prima is the BEST!