Cyragnome
First Post
Pursuant of the standard operating procedures here is the obligitory disclaimer...I received this book, the HackMaster: Hacklopedia of Beasts - Volume II (HoB 2), as a part of a promotion sponsored by the good folks at Kenzer, in exchange for my honest and public commentary on said book...and they sent a neat comic too 
What can I say? I haven't played or picked up a HackMaster book to date. I've seen the mentions on the boards, I've read KoDT, from which HackMaster presumptively spawned, and quite honestly I've been a bit intrigued by the popularity and loyalty I've seen for the product. Imagine, in my opinion, the humor of Paranoia, the hack and slash driven dungeons of 1E, mix with ample portions of highschool kids art (not the quality, which is quite decent, just the sensibility - think severed heads, flaming people and various people in various states of being devoured, folded, spindled or mutilated). The HoB 2 details monsters for the HackMaster game, ranging from Cats (small) to Efreeti. Many of these monsters are 1E classics (even though, honestly I've never used the Catoblepas ), standard mythological fare and some interesting new creations (or at least the first time I've seen them). The writing is consistant and generally rather humorous. The centerpiece, of course, is the 32 odd pages of Dragons which are fairly well done, and entertaining, for example noting that "Brass Dragons are known far and wide for being boorish windbags..." who "...love to talk about such topics as tax law..."
Overall, if rating this book on a scale of 1 to 5, I'd be inclined to give a 3.5...The writing is clever, the artwork is humorous at times but a bit over-the-top in others, the monsters are either ones that have been done to death but deserve the special HackMaster treatment, or appear to be interesting creations that may be of use in campaigns outside of the HackMaster realm (Chaos Corpse).
The final comment worth noting, is "has this made *me* more interesting in HackMaster?" Well, I'm not sure, after recovering from my latest binge on gaming material, I'm sure to check out the main guides...but if it comes to Kalamar Player's Guide vs. HackMaster Player's Guide, I honestly think I'd get more from Kalamar...it has piqued my interest more in the HackMaster line, though...thanks Kenzer Guys
What can I say? I haven't played or picked up a HackMaster book to date. I've seen the mentions on the boards, I've read KoDT, from which HackMaster presumptively spawned, and quite honestly I've been a bit intrigued by the popularity and loyalty I've seen for the product. Imagine, in my opinion, the humor of Paranoia, the hack and slash driven dungeons of 1E, mix with ample portions of highschool kids art (not the quality, which is quite decent, just the sensibility - think severed heads, flaming people and various people in various states of being devoured, folded, spindled or mutilated). The HoB 2 details monsters for the HackMaster game, ranging from Cats (small) to Efreeti. Many of these monsters are 1E classics (even though, honestly I've never used the Catoblepas
), standard mythological fare and some interesting new creations (or at least the first time I've seen them). The writing is consistant and generally rather humorous. The centerpiece, of course, is the 32 odd pages of Dragons which are fairly well done, and entertaining, for example noting that "Brass Dragons are known far and wide for being boorish windbags..." who "...love to talk about such topics as tax law..."Overall, if rating this book on a scale of 1 to 5, I'd be inclined to give a 3.5...The writing is clever, the artwork is humorous at times but a bit over-the-top in others, the monsters are either ones that have been done to death but deserve the special HackMaster treatment, or appear to be interesting creations that may be of use in campaigns outside of the HackMaster realm (Chaos Corpse).
The final comment worth noting, is "has this made *me* more interesting in HackMaster?" Well, I'm not sure, after recovering from my latest binge on gaming material, I'm sure to check out the main guides...but if it comes to Kalamar Player's Guide vs. HackMaster Player's Guide, I honestly think I'd get more from Kalamar...it has piqued my interest more in the HackMaster line, though...thanks Kenzer Guys
