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Magic Mini-Review
Well the main reason I picked it up, and the main item I am going to be using it for, is to present a number of alternate magical traditions in my world.
As is I like to have a variety of arcane societies focusing on different paradigms of magic, and this particular book allows me to implement those paradigms easily.
These are the magical styles covered in the book:
Chronomancy:
An arcane spellcasting class that focuses on manipulating time to cast spells. They have access to nine chronomancy spells (each of which cause damage to the caster because of his causing stress to the time stream) and can manipulate probability 1 day/4 levels (with a bonus manipulation at 1st level) to reroll a particular action before he knows whether it succeded or not. They lose access to a familiar and the wizard's bonus feats (except for scribe scroll).
Elementalism:
Arcane spellcasting by manipulation of elements. They cast spells as wizards but get a bonus list of elemental spells associated with one of the traditional elements (they don't use the whole acid/earth association used in the core rules). The elementalist gains an additional spell per day from the elemental list he chooses and at 3rd level gains a special elemental familiar which is basically an elemental of the type associated with which sort of elemental mastery they are pursuing.
This elemental gains power as the elementalist gains level advancing as far as an elder elemental at 20th level.
In addition they get special abilities associated with their particular element. Air, for example gets the ability to progressively ignore higher and higher falls. Fire elementalists gain fire resistance equal to their class level.
They also gain the ability to banish an elemental as a cleric turns undead once per day. +1/4 levels.
In exchange they lose the wizard's bonus feats.
Their is also a prestige class for Elementalists (The Elemental Adept) and some new feats and magic items.
Personally, I think this particular one is a bit overpowered. I would probably let them pick either the elemental master combo or the elemental familiar and banishment combo in exchange for the bonus feats.
Also I was kind of disappointed that the mechanics of the class did not follow through from the description.
Fetish Magic
Basically, magic through totems.
They have the spontaneous spellcasting and progression table of a sorcerer, gain the bonus feats of a wizard, and can use light armor and simple weapons.
They also gain a +1 bonus to intimidate and bluff checks due to their reputation as powerful wise men touched by the madness of the gods.
They have special totems that they can use to focus their spells a number of times per day dependent on level adding a +2 caster level for one particular aspect of the spell. This has a chance of angering the god in a totem and having their totem destroy itself.
Unfortunately, whenever they cast a spell there is a flat 10% chance that the totem they use breaks and they will have to build a new one.
There spell list is also a merging of some spells from the wizard and clerics lists that is appropriate to more tribal cultures. For example they have cure light wounds but lack magic missle.
Overall I did not find anything overly unbalancing about this class. The limited spell list, lack of familiar, and loss of scribe scroll make up for the bonuses gained by the class.
The Charm Master prestige class is very balanced. The special abilities seem to be mostly continuations of the Totemist core class and the new special abilities it gains aren't really that much more than a regulary Totemist has.
Two new feats, two new spells, and a bunch of new charms (a type of magic item) are also presented.
Flesh Magic
Flesh Magic is all about the bending of your own and other's flesh.
Flesh Mages cast spells as sorcerers but get d8 hit dice progression and an average attack progression. They use wisdom for spell progression
Flesh Magic has a number of differences from normal arcane magic:
1) All spells cast upon others require successful melee touch attacks even if they normally have a range.
2) Dispelling attempts automatically fail when cast by other types of spellcasters unlee they are via limited wish, wish, and miracle. Spellcraft checks to identify works of flesh magic are thus at -5.
3) Flesh magic does not work on aberrations, constructs, elementals, oozes, outsiders, plants, and undead.
4) Material components aren't required to cast flesh magic.
5) They are not subject to arcane spell failure chances
6) Flesh Mages may not use metamagic feats to alter their spells
7) Flesh Mages can build flesh golems without knowing the normally required feats.
They also have the ability to make certain effects semipermanent on themselves by spending a number of experience points equal to its levelx100 a day per spell level and 100 gp per spell level. He must however spend an hour tending each of these semipermanent changes otherwise there is a chance they begin to fade. The changes are always obviouly alien and magical.
They retain the ability to summon familiars but lose the scribe scroll and bonus feats.
Every 5 levels they can pick one of the previously unaffected creatures to affect with their magic.
They have a limited spell list, mostly centered on spells that change an individual's form.
Their prestige class, the Beast Maker, basically enhances their ability to affect other creatures. They also have fourteen new spells.
I think that if I did use this I would have them associated with a very, very exotic group of spellcasters.
That is about as far as I have gotten in my reading.
The other ones included in the book are
Forge Magic: magic through items. They are forgemages with a special focus on making magical arms and armor.
Ki Magic: magic through ki. Basically they are arcane monks with a mixture of traditional monk abilities and a limited spell list.
Madness Magic: Magic through tapping into one's own unhealty mental aspects. Adepts of the Awakened Eye have their own take on casting spells and slowly gain more and more abilities that take advantage of their altered mental state. Unfortuantely they also slowly pick up more and more signs of their mental unhealtiness.
Number MAgic: Magic through cause and effect, mathamatics, and relations. Number mages have a limited control over probabilty and can prepare their spells with certain levels of definition (ranging from a creature type to the true name of an individual) in mind in order to gain potency.
Rune Magic: Magic through runes. Runewrights use runes to power their spells rather than words of powers, creating similar effects but also having its own flavor and implementation.
Shadow Magic: Magic through tapping shadows. Shadow Mages are both weakened and strengthened by their great connection to shadow. They have their own spell list and a series of special abilities but are also slowly tainted by the shadow.
Technomancy: Tinkerers use their magic to create a variety of magical constructs and inventions. (This is one of the longer sections)
Thaumaturgy:
Focusing on the similarities between different types of magic rather than the differences, thaumaturges slowly gain the ability to use arcane versions of divine spells.
Theurgy:
This is one of the few chapters without a new core class. Theurgists are arcane spellcasters who are specifically devoted to their faith, whether it is good or evil.
Witchcraft:
Witches are basically designed to hilight the spontaneous magic and spell point systems in the book. They use a more primal sort of magic, less refined than modern sorcerery and wizardry.
The last chapter is a grab-bag of material including a new spell point system, a system for creating spontaneous magic on the fly, a more in-depth system for desiging spells, a section on arcane deuling, a section on making intelligent magic items more interesting, a section on legendary magic items (which is basically a prestige class for intelligent magic items), templated magic items, infusing souls in items, some new spellcasting gear, prestige classes, and a bunch of new feats and magic items.
If you want any more detail on any of these sections let me know and I will focus on them.
Well the main reason I picked it up, and the main item I am going to be using it for, is to present a number of alternate magical traditions in my world.
As is I like to have a variety of arcane societies focusing on different paradigms of magic, and this particular book allows me to implement those paradigms easily.
These are the magical styles covered in the book:
Chronomancy:
An arcane spellcasting class that focuses on manipulating time to cast spells. They have access to nine chronomancy spells (each of which cause damage to the caster because of his causing stress to the time stream) and can manipulate probability 1 day/4 levels (with a bonus manipulation at 1st level) to reroll a particular action before he knows whether it succeded or not. They lose access to a familiar and the wizard's bonus feats (except for scribe scroll).
Elementalism:
Arcane spellcasting by manipulation of elements. They cast spells as wizards but get a bonus list of elemental spells associated with one of the traditional elements (they don't use the whole acid/earth association used in the core rules). The elementalist gains an additional spell per day from the elemental list he chooses and at 3rd level gains a special elemental familiar which is basically an elemental of the type associated with which sort of elemental mastery they are pursuing.
This elemental gains power as the elementalist gains level advancing as far as an elder elemental at 20th level.
In addition they get special abilities associated with their particular element. Air, for example gets the ability to progressively ignore higher and higher falls. Fire elementalists gain fire resistance equal to their class level.
They also gain the ability to banish an elemental as a cleric turns undead once per day. +1/4 levels.
In exchange they lose the wizard's bonus feats.
Their is also a prestige class for Elementalists (The Elemental Adept) and some new feats and magic items.
Personally, I think this particular one is a bit overpowered. I would probably let them pick either the elemental master combo or the elemental familiar and banishment combo in exchange for the bonus feats.
Also I was kind of disappointed that the mechanics of the class did not follow through from the description.
Fetish Magic
Basically, magic through totems.
They have the spontaneous spellcasting and progression table of a sorcerer, gain the bonus feats of a wizard, and can use light armor and simple weapons.
They also gain a +1 bonus to intimidate and bluff checks due to their reputation as powerful wise men touched by the madness of the gods.
They have special totems that they can use to focus their spells a number of times per day dependent on level adding a +2 caster level for one particular aspect of the spell. This has a chance of angering the god in a totem and having their totem destroy itself.
Unfortunately, whenever they cast a spell there is a flat 10% chance that the totem they use breaks and they will have to build a new one.
There spell list is also a merging of some spells from the wizard and clerics lists that is appropriate to more tribal cultures. For example they have cure light wounds but lack magic missle.
Overall I did not find anything overly unbalancing about this class. The limited spell list, lack of familiar, and loss of scribe scroll make up for the bonuses gained by the class.
The Charm Master prestige class is very balanced. The special abilities seem to be mostly continuations of the Totemist core class and the new special abilities it gains aren't really that much more than a regulary Totemist has.
Two new feats, two new spells, and a bunch of new charms (a type of magic item) are also presented.
Flesh Magic
Flesh Magic is all about the bending of your own and other's flesh.
Flesh Mages cast spells as sorcerers but get d8 hit dice progression and an average attack progression. They use wisdom for spell progression
Flesh Magic has a number of differences from normal arcane magic:
1) All spells cast upon others require successful melee touch attacks even if they normally have a range.
2) Dispelling attempts automatically fail when cast by other types of spellcasters unlee they are via limited wish, wish, and miracle. Spellcraft checks to identify works of flesh magic are thus at -5.
3) Flesh magic does not work on aberrations, constructs, elementals, oozes, outsiders, plants, and undead.
4) Material components aren't required to cast flesh magic.
5) They are not subject to arcane spell failure chances
6) Flesh Mages may not use metamagic feats to alter their spells
7) Flesh Mages can build flesh golems without knowing the normally required feats.
They also have the ability to make certain effects semipermanent on themselves by spending a number of experience points equal to its levelx100 a day per spell level and 100 gp per spell level. He must however spend an hour tending each of these semipermanent changes otherwise there is a chance they begin to fade. The changes are always obviouly alien and magical.
They retain the ability to summon familiars but lose the scribe scroll and bonus feats.
Every 5 levels they can pick one of the previously unaffected creatures to affect with their magic.
They have a limited spell list, mostly centered on spells that change an individual's form.
Their prestige class, the Beast Maker, basically enhances their ability to affect other creatures. They also have fourteen new spells.
I think that if I did use this I would have them associated with a very, very exotic group of spellcasters.
That is about as far as I have gotten in my reading.
The other ones included in the book are
Forge Magic: magic through items. They are forgemages with a special focus on making magical arms and armor.
Ki Magic: magic through ki. Basically they are arcane monks with a mixture of traditional monk abilities and a limited spell list.
Madness Magic: Magic through tapping into one's own unhealty mental aspects. Adepts of the Awakened Eye have their own take on casting spells and slowly gain more and more abilities that take advantage of their altered mental state. Unfortuantely they also slowly pick up more and more signs of their mental unhealtiness.
Number MAgic: Magic through cause and effect, mathamatics, and relations. Number mages have a limited control over probabilty and can prepare their spells with certain levels of definition (ranging from a creature type to the true name of an individual) in mind in order to gain potency.
Rune Magic: Magic through runes. Runewrights use runes to power their spells rather than words of powers, creating similar effects but also having its own flavor and implementation.
Shadow Magic: Magic through tapping shadows. Shadow Mages are both weakened and strengthened by their great connection to shadow. They have their own spell list and a series of special abilities but are also slowly tainted by the shadow.
Technomancy: Tinkerers use their magic to create a variety of magical constructs and inventions. (This is one of the longer sections)
Thaumaturgy:
Focusing on the similarities between different types of magic rather than the differences, thaumaturges slowly gain the ability to use arcane versions of divine spells.
Theurgy:
This is one of the few chapters without a new core class. Theurgists are arcane spellcasters who are specifically devoted to their faith, whether it is good or evil.
Witchcraft:
Witches are basically designed to hilight the spontaneous magic and spell point systems in the book. They use a more primal sort of magic, less refined than modern sorcerery and wizardry.
The last chapter is a grab-bag of material including a new spell point system, a system for creating spontaneous magic on the fly, a more in-depth system for desiging spells, a section on arcane deuling, a section on making intelligent magic items more interesting, a section on legendary magic items (which is basically a prestige class for intelligent magic items), templated magic items, infusing souls in items, some new spellcasting gear, prestige classes, and a bunch of new feats and magic items.
If you want any more detail on any of these sections let me know and I will focus on them.
Crothian
First Post
I just posted a review of the BotR.
http://www.enworld.org/d20reviews.asp?sub=yes&where=active&reviewer=Crothian&product=BOTR
It's a little on the short side, as covering a book of this length in my usual detail would have been a small book in itself. The important thing is, this is one of the best books I've seen. I'm not just talking d20 stuff either. While it would be difficult to make a small list of the best role-playing supplements I've seen in the past twenty years, this book would be in the top 5.
Next up, I'm trying my hand at some pdf's. Some of the nice people at Silverthorn Games and Creative Mountain Games were kind enough to send my copy of some of their stuff. Ordinarily, I'm not a fan of pdf's just because I don't have a way to print them, nor do I have a lap top to use them at the gaming table. So, nothing against the format, it's just not useful in my current situation.
Then after that I'm going to get back to some print products doing Quint Monk and Magic. Hopefully, these won't take as long as BotR. Nothing against any of these books, it's just the sheer size of the BotR made it a little more time consuming to review.
As always, anything you'd like to see a review of I'm more then happy to take suggestions.
http://www.enworld.org/d20reviews.asp?sub=yes&where=active&reviewer=Crothian&product=BOTR
It's a little on the short side, as covering a book of this length in my usual detail would have been a small book in itself. The important thing is, this is one of the best books I've seen. I'm not just talking d20 stuff either. While it would be difficult to make a small list of the best role-playing supplements I've seen in the past twenty years, this book would be in the top 5.
Next up, I'm trying my hand at some pdf's. Some of the nice people at Silverthorn Games and Creative Mountain Games were kind enough to send my copy of some of their stuff. Ordinarily, I'm not a fan of pdf's just because I don't have a way to print them, nor do I have a lap top to use them at the gaming table. So, nothing against the format, it's just not useful in my current situation.
Then after that I'm going to get back to some print products doing Quint Monk and Magic. Hopefully, these won't take as long as BotR. Nothing against any of these books, it's just the sheer size of the BotR made it a little more time consuming to review.
As always, anything you'd like to see a review of I'm more then happy to take suggestions.
Crothian
First Post
Book of Templates is reviewed here:
http://www.enworld.org/d20reviews.asp?sub=yes&where=active&reviewer=Crothian&product=btem
It's nice when I have time to devote to this stuff.
http://www.enworld.org/d20reviews.asp?sub=yes&where=active&reviewer=Crothian&product=btem
It's nice when I have time to devote to this stuff.
Mark
CreativeMountainGames.com
Crothian said:
I'm not sure why I can't seem to get an Email through to you, Cro, but I had another one bounce. I read your Whispering Woodwind review last night and I must say that I appreciate the time and energy that you put into it. If you don't mind sharing your thoughts on future CMG products, I will definitely be sending more your way for additional reviews. Thank you very much.
As a side note to everyone in this thread and in the community, please do keep writing reviews. If you haven't tried your hand at it, but have opinions on products, give it a go.There's no doubt that every review that gets written is a huge help not only to d20 publishers that are looking for exposure but to the community as a whole. With the great number of d20 publishers now in existence, and the limited number of fulltime and/or staff reviewers, it simply isn't feasable that they can cover absolutely everything that is released. I've been very fortunate to have four reviews so far, all well done (IMO), by community members and am grateful for every one of them. Thanks!
Crothian
First Post
I don't know why you can't send me any e-mail either, as far as I know your the only one that it bounces for. Anyone else want to send me an e-mail and see if it bounces?
I'd be happy to review anything for you guys in the future. Anychance of you guys doing more with the Trundlefolk? I really liked these guys.
I'd be happy to review anything for you guys in the future. Anychance of you guys doing more with the Trundlefolk? I really liked these guys.
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