5 comments about Faiths and Pantheons (Dungeons & Dragons d20 3.0 Fantasy Roleplaying, Forgotten Realms Setting).

1. If you play a creric in the Forgotten Realms setting this book will help you expand your character in may ways. it has all the deities that affect the life on Faerun, including demihuman and monster panteons, several intriguing prestige clases and a few magical items that will make your game more enjoyable.

   For a DM it is a must as it explains all the churches and the deities motivations to interact with the people of Faerun.




2. first i'd like to say that i find this book fascinating. the level of detail thats put into everything forgotten realms related has always awed me, and this book is no different. the amount of information on each deity is astounding and has stat blocks down to stats and feats and personality quirks. HOWEVER
   i cant imagine being in a campaign where 1% of this information would come into play. if you're running a forgotten realms campaign its a good (though not necessary)accessory, otherwise its useless. thats my rationalization for my mediocre rating, being that i run a campaign that exists in a different world, i never have reason to pick it up, and even for a campaign in faerun its not required.



3. This book would be a waste of money for most people. Almost all of the important information about human deities has been extensively presented in the Second Edition softcover perfect-bound books, "Powers & Pantheons" and "Faiths & Avatars," with information on non-human deities available in the Second Edition "Deities & Demigods" (a.k.a. "Legends and Lore"). Adapting the abilities of the deities to Dungeons & Dragons 3.$ edition stats is fine for those people who run games in which the player characters interact with divine avatars on a regular basis, but for those who leave the gods in their heavens (or home planes), that information is of only incidental importance.
   
   The Second Edition books may all be purchased on Amazon or eBay for a COMBINED price less than the $33 pricetag of this edition.
   
   Something which every potential purchaser should be warned of is that the book CLAIMS that it and another previously published book list ALL of the deities of Abeir-Toril (the world of the D & D Forgotten Realms campaign setting). That's a bold-faced lie. The publishers, Wizards of the Coast, have just come out with a new book listing a bunch of new non-human deities, and they are in the process of re-engineering the Forgotten Realms to drastically alter Lolth, the famous spider-queen demon/goddess. This $33 book is ALREADY obsolete in the Forgotten Realms campaign setting.
   
   There are a few new magical spells and gew-gaws in here and some new prestige classes (which are easy to write and take up lots of space as filler material), but there's not enough of that to justify the exhorbitant price. There are some divine feats and abilities listed, too, but much of the "original" material there is already available in the D & D Third Edition book, "Deities and Demigods."
   
   Unless someone is running a Forgotten Realms D &D campaign in which the gods or their avatars are very active participants, a book-buyer's money would be much better spent buying the three second edition books I mentioned and just doing a few mental calculations to adjust the deities for Third Edition. Those three together cost less than this book alone, and provide twice as much information, nearly all of it still relevant to the Forgotten Realms.
   
   The book has almost no use to non-Forgotten Realms D & D campaigns except as a sourcebook from which to derive divine characters for other campaigns.
   
   The art of the book is nice. The overall "look" is nice." The lay-out is comprehensible. Nevertheless, the total of all its virtues is worth far less than its listed price. As a fifteen dollar softcover this would be a good deal. As a $33 hardback it is for die-hards only.



4. This book is good for getting info for clerics and dm's, or anyone who wants a better ide of the forgottens realms.



5. The first thing I noticed about this book was how beautiful the art was. The pages were nice and gloss-smooth with a hint of texture. I really loved the cover art. I really loved the interior art. That said...not the greatest source for DMs and players. There were a few books written for 2nd edition that already covered most of these gods. The problem arises that you have to convert 2nd edition to 3.0 or 3.5. (All I want for Christmas is a conversion book from WOTC.) This book does not introduce any new gods to players/DMs. Nor does it introduce any worth while gods. I'm reading the entries for these "gods" and I'm thinking "These guys are totally killable by 2-3 epic level characters". What kind of "gods" can be killed in the first place? Let alone by 2-3 28+ level characters? Now I know what you're thinking...."Wow this guys campaigns must be high level or hack and slash". Not so. I/we have played our current campaign for almost a year, at 8-10 hours a Saturday, every Saturday, we wouldn't have lasted as long if we played those types of games. Hack and Slash campaigns historically last about 2 months then they fizzle like a caster's spell when they fail thier concentration check. In 2nd edition you had max abilities. That meant if you had a 25 in something, nothing was stronger than you. In 3.0/3.5 if you have 25 in str there are about a million things out there that are way,way,way, stronger than you. If WOTC wanted to expand the D+D game to include cosmic(Epic) level characters, the least they could have done was ensure the dominance of the gods by making them a little higher than Epic level. This book is a waste of time/money for anyone who doesn't want to kill a "god", or for anyone who wants to keep the integrity of thier campaign intact. Gods are not to be slain by mere mortals! If your in a campaign that has killed or is going to kill a god, think about this; Should we as players be able to kill a GOD? This entity that grants up to 9th level divine spells to his/her priest's? This enigma of power? I say no! I say add about 15 levels and 35 stat points and throw in a few custom 10th(thats right I said 10th)level spells. Then and only then will you see an example of a true "GOD" of Faerun!

4 comments about Dragonlance Knightly Orders of Ansalon (Dragonlance Sourcebooks).

1. As a suplement to the Dragonlance Campaign Setting, this is a good book.
   It explains in-depth about knighthood in general and also specifically about the orders for which it's named.
   The most notable thing this book does is it fixes the Solamnic Knight prestige classes. As it is in the campaign setting, if you wanted to make a high-level sword or rose knight, you would be highly restricted and you'd have no room for feats you want to take outside of prerequisites and the same goes for skills depending on your character's INT score.
   The Legion of Steel is also fixed, from a simple 3-level prestige class to four 10-level classes--a marked improvement.
   The Knights of Neraka's three core classes; Lilly, Skull, and Thorn, aren't affected by this book, though a few new prestige classes are introduced to compliment the Dark Knights' armies.
   I give it 4 instead of 5 only because I think the prerequisites for the Solamnics are still too strict, however they are a lot better off than the ones outlined in the campaign setting.
   Overall, the book has a much better layout than the campaign setting and Age of Mortals books; the margin is only 1" instead of the ungodly 1.5" margins in the other two, and they didn't leave half-pages of white space either. There's a good amount of artwork in the book which is worth admiring as well, especially a full-page print at the end. I won't spoil it for you, but anyone who's read the Chronicles will reccognize the scene.
   Reccomended buy.



2. This is a damn good sourcebook if you wish to play one of the three Knightly Orders in your Dragonlance game. It details the history of each knighthood very well. The Prestige Classes are excellent, though I was hoping for an updated set of Knight of Neraka/Tahksis (Lily, Thorn & Skull) PrC's. All in all it is another excellent book from the people at Soverign Press/Margaret Weis Productions.



3. Good book if you would like to know a lot of information about the three major order of chavalry in Krynn



4. This book is a great resource for anyone wishing to enhance their fighter in the world of Krynn. It gives a nice set of options for making knights, either dark, or Solamnic as well as Steel Legion and various others. Knightly Orders also provides an array of options in feats and customizations that will make any fighter or fighter-type better in battle and able to hold his own against the challenges thrown against him.

3 comments about The Blood (Vampire).

1. I anticipated this product as soon as I heard of it. I purchased the Rage for my werewolf game and expected the book to treat it as a good players handbook to help expand characters and develop them fully. While the essays and articles on character conceptualization are good the book has some major egregious mistakes (vampire fangs doing aggravated damage?!?). Nevertheless it is a good book if you want a further explanation on the vampiric condition, expanding on the physiology and psychology of vampires. The artwork is also very well done. A definite addition to the vampire game line.



2. This isn't like other Player's Guidebooks you've read. You'll find no juicy character options here; no optional Disciplines or spell lists or new Clans. (That's what the Bloodlines books are for.)
   Instead, this book focuses on the Storytelling aspect of being a player in the Vampire game. The conceit of the book is that the drama of personal horror is in the players' hands; the Storyteller is there to take your lead and give you situations and characters against which to play out your story.
   
   This book is laid out into three "essays", each written by a different author. The ground these essays cover is familiar, and it is intended to be. Essentially, each chapter covers a different set of rules from the Vampire: the Requiem core rulebook (character creation, vitae and other mechanics, and the psychology of a Vampire's unlife respectively). The intent is to give the mechanics of the games more emotional depth for a player to work with. If you are going to really play a vampire, how can you start to identify with one?
   
   1) Kindred Characters (25 pages)
   This section is probably the most practically useful. It covers each step of character creation, but where the core rulebook covers the "what" of the character's attributes, this chapter digs into the "Why". Why does this character have Social Attributes over Physical? Why does she have a higher Blood Potency than normal? Why did this group of vampires get thrown together?
   
   This section gets past the "dots" on the character sheet. It gives a player a lot more to think about as far as character cohesion and story hooks to give the Storyteller that resonate with the player. Rich stories come from rich backgrounds, and the Kindred Characters chapter gives players plenty of tools to add depth to her character before the first Scene even begins.
   
   2) Properties of the Blood (63 pages)
   This section should be called "A Year in the Life of a Vampire". It is a deep analysis of the mechanics of the game that the players would use every night: each rule for vitae is described from a story perspective. What is each stage of the Vinculum (enslavement through a blood bond) like? How do different kinds of vampires choose to use it? What does it feel like to use blood to fuel Disciplines or to heal wounds? What about feeding?
   
   This section also covers the non-mechanical aspects of other non-vitae systems like Torpor, Frenzy and Humanity.
   
   More than any other chapter in this book "Properties of the Blood" vividly illustrates how the various rules detailed in the core rulebook can be dramatized in play.
   
   Vampire Psychology: (28 pages)
   I was a bit confused by the title of this chapter, since the previous chapter seemed to cover "vampire psychology" quite thoroughly. What this chapter actually covers is "Landmarks in the Requiem" and "Psychology of the Disciplines".
   
   The Landmarks detail all of the significant experiences that all kindred who survive their Requiem share. This section proves very useful as it gives a Storyteller a list of all of the events to weave into each character's chronicle, and for the player it describes what impacts it could have on her psyche.
   
   The Disciplines section covers the psychological impact of each Discipline, dot by dot, with an emphasis on the related Derangements that could develop with inappropriate use. Again, the intent of this section is to give the players more options to wring every drop of drama from each game mechanic.
   
   This book is strictly for the "storyteller" and "method actor" gamer types (as opposed to "power gamers" or "action seekers", etc). There is plenty of mental cud to chew when thinking of character development. Since I land firmly in the "storyteller" camp of gamer (clearly the intended audience of the book) I loved it. One of my biggest challenges with any game is dramatizing the game's mechanics in a meaningful and entertaining way. Since the popularity of Vampire: the Requiem relies so heavily on this capability, this is an essential book for the product line.



3. The more and more I read Ray Falk's books the more I don't want to play Vampire anymore. Half the book is an exact "reprint" of stuff out of the core. How big is that text font? It is fine if you want to make this an expert with "Vampire for dummies"...or maybe a free PDF for those having trouble with depth in their stories..BUT a "players guide" for $25.00??!! This book is Awful, ridiculous, and completely unnecessary.

No comments about Caves of Carnage: Dungeon Tiles Set DU3 (D&D Accessory).

1 comments about Kids Classics-Slap Jack.

1. One of my elderly neighbors wanted so badly to have a new set of Slap-Jack to enjoy with her great grandkids. We looked everywhere and then I found this item on Amazon. She was thrilled to get the Classic Slap Jack cards and said they are the perfect old time set. And her great grandkids are enjoying playing with her. I was pleased to be able to locate the item. And quick shipping and no problems with the order.

1 comments about Cbt Mercenaries Supplemental Update (Classic Battletech FPR35028).

1. I just plain like Battletech supplements like this one. Let's you flesh out your opposing force a bit.

2 comments about Miskatonic University: A Sourcebook (Call of Cthulhu Horror Roleplaying).

1. Miskatonic University...that renowned institution of higher learning made famous (or infamous) in the tales of the Cthulhu Mythos by H.P. Lovecraft and others, comes to life in this fantastic supplement for the Call of Cthulhu role-playing game from Chaosium. Within these pages you'll find everything you'll need to attend, work at, or investigate the hallowed and haunted halls of Miskatonic. This is without a doubt a long awaited supplement for this horror RPG. The designers of this supplement have brought Miskatonic to life and created a setting that will excite players for a long time.
   
   The first chapter begins with a lengthy history of the university and its founding in mysterious Arkham, MA, in 1690. Noted is the role that the town of Arkham played in the witchcraft hysteria of 1692 as some residents fled Salem to come to Arkham. Even one of Miskatonic's founders would be accused of witchcraft. Miskatonic's history and expansion is traced from its founding right up through the 20th century. A campus guide and detailed map notes the locations of all the buildings on campus including the dilapidated "Witch House" at 197 E. Pickman St. There is a lengthy section on Orne Library, one of the most important buildings, which provides maps of each floor, profiles of employees and frequent visitors as well as the noted collections housed there. These include some of the most famous tomes of dark lore in the world including The Book of Eibon, the Malleus Maleificarum (Hammer of the Witches), Nameless Cults, and, of course, the Necronomicon. Stats are provided for each book that detail sanity checks for reading them, weeks to study, and the spells/benefits gained once the book has been completed.
   
   Thinking of attending or working at Miskatonic? Then chapter two gets you started with details on campus life, where to live and dine, social life, student organizations, honor societies, academic clubs, and secret societies. For those looking to join the Miskatonic staff there are details on faculty tenures and salaries. Each school is briefly profiled along with the important staff members. Chapter three further fleshes out life in and around Miskatonic with detailed information on topics such as tuition, financial aid, student employment, grades and report cards, academic requirements, and more. New skills such Cryptography and Zoology are included as well. There's even a section on creating a student investigator character.
   
   All this leads up to chapter four, the Miskatonic Secrets! There are mazes of sewers and tunnels under the school, many predating the schools founding. What lies within those tunnels is up to the players to find out. Tunnel maps and the various entrance and exit points are noted. Information on known occultists, secret cults such as the Esoteric Order of the Dragon and The Witch Cult, and various legends and mysteries are included and can make for great adventures. There are over a dozen adventure hooks in all in this chapter and the Keeper should have no trouble coming up with his or her own.
   
   Chapter five is a lengthy introductory scenario as players, either students or faculty characters, investigate the mysterious death of a student who was found dead in the Orne Library. The adventure moves briskly and gives players a great feel for the Miskatonic atmosphere and its abundant secrets. Finally the appendices include over two dozen new spells, as well as additional skills and playing information.
   
   One of the things I loved about the book is the interior art. Interior art in a role-playing game supplement is often unimportant and thus sometimes done haphazardly, but note here. The artists did a magnificent job of capturing the look and feel of 1920's/30's New England. Further, and maybe it's just me, but the character in most of the portraits look a bit crazy if not outright sinister which only adds to the dark mood of the setting. While the information is abundant, the designers didn't make it all encompassing. There is still a lot of room for the Keeper to improvise and shape Miskatonic anyway they desire. Bottom line: this is a fantastic setting that truly captures the essence of Lovecraft's work. Highly recommended!
   
   Reviewed by Tim Janson



2. The Miskatonic University sourcebook is a VERY useful item for anyone who plays Call of Cthulhu and wants an 'intellectual' character. I know that the information provided on Lovecraft's signature school provided a wealth of background for my CoC investigators. This book, combined with HP Lovecraft's Arkham (ASIN 1568821654), provides all the information you need to adventure in the shadow haunted city of Arkham.

5 comments about The Wheel of Time Roleplaying Game (d20 3.0 Fantasy Roleplaying).

1. I love this game, Read all the books and am a huge fan of this world. The game truly lets u move around in this world (with a good GM that knows his stuff). The rules are clear, characters are very accurate, which gives the overall view an authentic Wheel of time feeling. Only one thing tht pretty much bothers me. There are absolutely no rules in the book about creating ter'angreals or anything in that direction, where players should be able to do so (or DM's). Cause of this I give it a 4 star rating instead of a 5 star rating.



2. I really enjoyed the flavor of this campaign setting. I am a fan of the books, even if they do drag on a bit later in the series. I have little intention of playing in robert Jordan's world, but the ideas this book presents make it a valuble addition to my library.
   The two best ideas in the book are charater creation and presitge classes.
   The Prestige classes are not just a collection of powers, they form sociteies which dominate the world. This is what these classes should be. That said some are unnessarly difficult to get into (4 ranks in balance ???) but they are essential to society and most characters will aim to join these elite groups.
   The character creation process is lovely, requiring the human's free starting feat to be dependant on the area of the world where they grew up. Additionally each reason has favored skills that are treated as class skills. These add real impact to a charaters personality.
   The game uses new classes well designed to fit with the setting, nobles who have bard like inspiration and favors to call in.
   Both trained and wild channlers and wanderers instead of thieves.
   The world itself lends to low magic campaigns, with any magic item (i.e. ter'angreal & angreal) being very rare and monsters so rare they are considered imaginary. The book lists the main charaters stats of course, which make intresting reading. The city and country descriptions are well detailed and full of flavor. The channeling magic system is complex and limited at the same time, and while it works well with the books I am uncertain how it would play. My primary irritation with the book is the amount of reprinted material from the core rule books, such as feats, skills and combat rules.
   While low magic is stressed the PC's could become movers and shakers of the world's politics. If I was to run a campaign it would avoid the dragon reborn, mabey by 300 years, and the book gives a few guidelines for playing in other times.
   The channeling magic system is complex and limited at the same time, and while it works well with the flavor of the books I am uncertain how it would play. A comprensive list of each weaves would have been nice. There are 52 total, 15 are lost (only known by forsaken or dragon reborn)
   Overall The Wheel of Time is a good source book for ideas and methods, but has the flaws of any game based on a book.



3. I've been playing D&D 2nd edition since I was 12 yr's old. I didn't (and still don't) like 3rd edition. I bought this book because I was seduced by the books and I flipped out and NEEDED to RP in the WOT world.
   
   They list all the hero's but what about the Forsaken? How do you make those terangreal's? (prob. spelled that wrong)
   
   Despite these little problems, I HATED 3rd edition, and this book has converted me. I am a 3rd edition Mormon...now! So, if this book can change how I feel, you 3rd freaks and WOT freaks will love this!



4. It's got a fantastic game engine, unfortunately it came out in a bad year and it was eclipsed by the release of a couple of other games.
   
   It also doesn't really work that well for roleplayers, insofar that there are characters in the game which can 'channel' and shouldn't be able to.
   
   (...)



5. I'm not sure if this is a game or a book... If it's a game, why does it say hardcover 320 pages or whatever it was. And if it's a book, or guide of some type, where can I get the game?

3 comments about Steve Jackson Games Super Munchkin.

1. The Munchkin crowd is at it again with a series of silly superheroes, crazy villians and odd powers to wind your head around.
   
   The system is much like Munchkin Bites with the powers based on levels but other than that it is the same basic premise that makes the other munchkin games fun.
   
   It is not my favorite of the batch (Munchkin-Fu wins that honor) but it is well worth your time and money.



2. I have 4 teenage boys and the neighborhood of friends that go with them, and they all love this game! It seems easy to pick up as there's always a new kid at the playing table. Some of the cards are boyishly offensive, but you could pull those ones.



3. This is rather unorthodox, but it is this game that really compelled my reluctant reader, 8, into wanting to read more. He loves this game. We all do, which is amazing to find a game that grabs the interest of everyone from 8 to 80. The rules are simple enough for kids to understand but funny and strategizing enough to keep adults entertained. What's great is a a lot of strategy has to do with help- so you can't piss off the top player by adding a "date to his monster" and than expect him to help you the next turn, not unless he's an elf anyway! We have several different sets now and each one is near and dear to my son's heart.

1 comments about Lost Leaves From the Inn of the Last Home.

1. This book works good not only for avid roleplaying gamers. Actually, it works even better for the romance-fan, with descriptions of many things, like new secret societies from the War of the Lance, new tales (the Crucible in the war of the lance was a great way to link present and past of the Dragonlance timeline), the description of one kind of characters I've liked to read from the romances (wülfbund), more lore in one book, and for the not-gamers, it comes with no game-statistics - just lore, and good lore. Again, my best rate goes to MW Productions! It's different when it is made with more than "profit" in mind, and every page shows the love the writers have for the setting.
   Just a shame, this is the last game product from MW, because the game license has no renew from the Wizards. A real lost for the Dragonlance fans around the globe.