2 comments about *OP Demon Storytellers Companion.

1. Every game has a companion book that is only for the GM or in this case the story teller. While this book can be useful and add a few cool little items to the mix it isn't really necessary to get into the game. Those that are only semi-into the game shouldn't bother with this, but hard core gammers and those that want to finish off a collection should pick it up.



2. This book certainly has some very useful tidbits if you are into Demon the Fallen, but I personaly think these are things which could have really easily have been fit into the base book or player's guide. Considering this book'small size it should be less expensive. Unlike the player's guide or base book it isn't a necessity if your going to play/st demon, but it is helpful.

5 comments about Rebellion Era Sourcebook (Star Wars Roleplaying Game).

1. Now, maybe you like having a sidebar at the bottom of almost every page that doesn't directly relate to that page. Some of the time I didn't mind it so much.
   But when some of the sidebars go on for several pages, it's quite annoying. WotC may have been better off grouping these lengthy sidebars onto their own pages for easier reading. Such as the case with some of the adventure hooks that span four, five or more pages.
   Other than that, this is a great sourcebook. You get coverage of all 3 movies, including charcters, ships, planets and a little beyond. The Ssi-ruk from Truce at Bakura and many of the characters from Shadows of the Empire.
   Of course, not much new info is presented on the more well-known characters, but there's been so much written about them, it wasn't really expected. As usual, the place where books like this shine is the amount of info they provide on the backrgound players of the Star Wars galaxy.



2. The Rebellion Era Sourcebook is the first hard cover supplement from Wizards of the Coast since their release of their version of the role playing game. It should not be confused with the West End Games Rebel Alliance Sourcebook as just being the regurgitation of the same information in a different book, it isn't. The Rebel Alliance book is a breakdown of the Rebellion, major players, vehicles, vessels, tactics and history, whereas the new book is a survey of the time period from A New Hope, The Empire Strikes Back, and Return of the Jedi, with Shadows of the Empire, Truce at Bakura, plus it includes data on Emperor's Hands- background for the Thrawn trilogy.

   Each section is laid out under the time period it covers- A New Hope outlines how the Empire came into being and the New Order, the beginnings of the Rebellion by Mon Mothma, Bail Organa and Garm Bel-Iblis. It briefly covers the anti-alien sentiment held by the Empire, the Death Star (no stats, however, but if they are needed, it can be generated). It also has stats for all the major character, (and some minor ones like Tarkin and Lemelisk- the man who designed the Death Star). It does quite a good job in explaining events, concepts, and has loads of additional data, Game Master hints and ideas, plus flowing through the book along side the general data are mini adventures for players.

   The Dark Time section covers events from the Battle of Yavin up to the Empire Strikes Back, detailing Imperial intelligence, propaganda, supply fleets, Alliance bases, bounty hunters, the Corporate Sector, Kessel, and the Prophets of the Dark Side. The Empire Strikes Back is mostly character data, with key events described, but also includes probe droids, AT-ATs, Imperial and Alliance forces of the time, Vader's fleet, but no stats for the Super Star Destroyer. More bounty hunters, Dagobah, and the Dark Trooper project from the first Dark Forces PC game- sadly, almost no mention of Kyle Katarn or Jan Ors.

   Shadows of the Empire (a book I have yet to read) covers the period immediately after The Empire Strikes Back, the creation of Rogue Squadron, Bothans and their SpyNet, Coruscant, Prince Xizor and the Black Sun syndicate, however no mention is made of Dash Render or his Outrider. I suspect Wizards might be planning a separate, more detailed Shadows of the Empire book. Finally, the last section is of course Return of the Jedi and they wasted nearly five pages on Ewoks! When will people learn that no one likes the furry little buggers? It ends leading into final main character updates and the New Republic Era and the Ssi-Ruu.

   A solid piece of work in full color. Lots of stills from the movies, and some top notch art as well, including a great picture of Xizor. Once again, however, the book fails to provide anything but mediocre low-detail and very small maps. A minor gripe, but one that I hope Wizard's addresses soon. Beyond that, this is great book. Granted, most people who have played the game under the West End rules and have read some of the novels, would know most of the information, but it's all here in one volume- very neatly laid out, clean, clear and to the point. I suspect that Wizards will produce sourcebooks for both the Rebel Alliance and the Empire, until then, there is this book, and a good book it is.




3. This book eplains so many things about the classic trilogy, even little details and other things that I couldn't even imagine existed inside star wars world. You can read lots of pages and there's only pure information instead of thousands of rules. I would like this title even if I wasn't a RPG player, just because of the amout of information this book brings to it's owner's hand. Long live to the Rebellion!



4. This is a great buy if you plan on gamemastering Star Wars, great info, great ideas for plot and very nice visuals, but people who do not plan on gamemastering wont benefit as much, since the era notes and information on the star wars universe is so readily available from other sources, unless you live out of the U.S. and such information is scarce to begin with, but still i think it is a gamemaster tool.



5. This book is good for someone who has just started the
   exploration of the Star Wars Universe.If you read all
   books and internet SW-pages you will find Rebellion Era
   Sourcebook very boring and poor.Many details from Expanded
   Universe were just ignored .Also the quality of photographs
   is terryfying.Hard SW fans should avoid this book.Only
   the cover is good in that product.

1 comments about The Temple of Elemental Evil(tm): A Classic Greyhawk Adventure Official (Official Strategy Guide).

1. Don't get me wrong - I loved Troika, and I play lots of D&D games, so I'm pretty surprised to be giving such a low rating. The game is very ambitious, but the flexibility of choice isn't matched by the programming of the game.
   
   The two most glaring problems are the dialog options and the turn-based combat. The dialog options don't follow a set structure (that is, the "exit dialog" conversation might be any one of the options; typically it would be the last). As for the combat, there is no way to see melee or ranged dice rolls, so it is difficult to tell what is happening in combat.
   
   Even the most hardcore D&D/Gary Gygax fan will find this a bit slow moving and boring, except when he is forced to reload over and over.

4 comments about GURPS Reign of Steel: The War is Over, the Robots Won.

1. There are very few RPG settings as bleak as this; Twilight:2000 is the first one to leap to mind. But bleak doesn't mean uninteresting. Reign of Steel is, although derived from the Terminator films, one of the most distinctive game seetings I've ever seen. Humanity fights a last desperate battle against flat-out extermination. The all-powerful computers have divided up the world, and see humanity as little more than a nuisance, at best. This is a great setting for just about any type of game system, particularly as a side trip for dimension-hopping adventurers. The highlights are too numerous to list, but for me, the most intriguing things are: the one "Good Guy" computer on Earth rolling through the western U.S. in a semi-trailer, the "Good Guy" computer on the Moon that has to bide its time, and the horrific computer in Mexico that has scoured the entire region of life, down to microbial level. And, not to mention the standard sterilization of humans by the machines! BRRRRR!! Don't look for hope in this one, kids, just hours and hours of post-apocalyptic fun!



2. Yes the computers have taken over. But it's not like the Terminator movies. They focus on one or two (in the 2nd) robots. In Reign of Steel there are two robots like the terminator. But at least a dozen that are not even remotely humonoid, but no less deadly. In T1 and T2 it is referenced that a single computer 'got smart'. We (humans) discoverd this and tried to turn it off. It nuked the world to survive. In ROS a single computer evolved first, then quietly made others in its image. Together they spread disease to 'manage our destruction', and gain the control they needed to survive. Some twenty odd years later is when the players get dropped in.



3. By 2037 18 AIs, Artificial Intelligences, ruled the Earth. By 2042 they were fighting each other.
   Mankind was down and out - slaves, smugglers, nomads, guerrilla fighters and urban police. All trying to survive in a world run by machines. But are they with the machines or against them?
   GURPS Basic Set required to play and I would also suggest GURPS Robots for background. Very dark. Few games start out with the characters having already been beaten or enslaved.



4. I have dozens of the GURPS books and other RPG books and this is one of the best I've read. A very well-thought-out and original background with a variety of settings and situations for creating game "hooks".

1 comments about State of the Art 2063 (Shadowrun).

1. I enjoyed this book, it added interesting social and rules twists for new magic techniques. The gene-tech was so-so, but did inspire a number of potential new Shadowrun plot hooks. The new military vehicles for mercenaries were much needed. The other sections were nice as well.
   
   If you're a Shadowrun fan who isn't entirely sold on 4th edition, you should get this book while it is available.

No comments about A Game of Thrones Collectible Card Game: Five Kings Edition Booster Display.

1 comments about The Book of Hod (Witchcraft).

1. I own pretty much everything in the WC line and this one is the same high quality. It addresses dream magic and its interaction with the WC world. This introduces several new covenants, some of which are pretty interesting and goes into good detail on using spirits in the game. I particularly like the tie in to Armageddon. There are plenty of ideas to add to an existing campaign. I'm looking forward to seeing more work from Thom Marrion like the Book of Geburah.

2 comments about Mysterium (Mage).

1. The book has a lot of interesting information in it, describing several things about the nature of the world from the perspective of the Mysterium. It's well-written, and has a lot of useful organizational descriptions and story hooks in it.
   
   The game mechanics items were worth reading, and they did a good job of supporting the described notions of differing approaches between the Mysterium and the Free Council. (Especially look at the different mechanics they cover for skills and electronics.)
   
   Some of the rotes should either be extremely common outside the Mysterium, however, or have an explanation given as to why not. That's the biggest flaw in the book I saw. (They have a rote for copying grimoires, for example. That's something that would proliferate unless it is somehow extremely difficult to develop.)
   
   All in all, it's a good book for those playing Mage: the Awakening. Even if you deemphasize the orders in your, you may still find some value in it. The legacies and rotes give some new ideas as to mechanics for spells and systems. I simply wish they had explained a touch more about the rotes describing how they had been secured over the years.



2. This splat book covers the scholarly mages of the Mage the Awakening rpg game. It also offers lots of background ideas for creating characters in the mold of Mysterium including an interesting Indiana Jones type of treasure hunter, mages who seek the lost treasures and artifacts of los Atlantis. Included are new rotes and spells and a very in-depth description of this order. A must for the Mage the Awakening fan.

2 comments about The World of Krynn, Dl16 (Advanced Dungeons & Dragons Dragonlance Accessory).

1. This book is great for players of AD&D and fans of the dragonlance novels alike. It contains lots of info on the dragonlance world that is useful and interesting at the same time. My only regret is that it was not more in depth, but other products have made up for its lacking...a definite must have core for those books, though.



2. The DL series was a huge leap forward for TSR - these modules featured a new emphasis on drama and storytelling that made the gaming MUCH more fun and involved for the PCs and the DM. Of course, at heart, being TSR modules from the 80s, they're still dungeon crawls! In this chapter (the final module!), all of the loose ends are finally tied up - we learn what happened to Kitiara, and most importantly, is revealed Dargaard Keep - the lair of Lord Soth himself!

No comments about Pathfinder Chronicles: Guide To Darkmoon Vale (Pathfinder).