Note: This is a capsule review meant to provide basic information and important links to otherwise widely publicized product. For a full blown review you're strongly recommended to read Paizo product review pages and ENWorld review by Steel_Wind.
#10 This is CR 20 book. It's a small Chaotic Evil construct with ability to bring forth horrors from its pages. It can also swallow human-sized readers. See page 9 for more details.
#9 The lowest CR creature is a bookworm at 1/8, while the highest, at CR 39, is Lucifer. Oh, and in between you have 749 other creatures.
#8 The creatures, and their art, were drawn from Tomes of Horrors published over the years by Necromancer Games. That means that creature art was reused and some creatures do not follow Pathfinder guidelines as to their CR or abilities ("some" as in "found only two wonky specimens"). The former is a non-issue for me (I do not own previous editions), the latter is rare to the point of non-existent, and, as a GM, I tend to read statblocks so I can deal with any potential issues on the fly.
As an anecdote - what was the second monster book of d20, the third edition of our favorite game? According to Amazon, Monster Manual was released on 1st of October, 2000, and Creature Collection came out on the Oct 3rd, 2000.
The authors of CC: Clark Peterson and Bill Webb. Sounds familiar? Yep, founders of Necromancer Games and producers of Tome of Horror series.
For more on their current endeavors: Frog God Games (Bill Webb), Legendary Games (Clark Peterson).
Digression: Bill, and Clark, if I ever meet you in person, I'll make you sign this Creature Collection of mine. Or at least strongly entreat you to do so.
#7 The book has been built to last. Cover and binding appear to be extremely durable. The pages themselves are delicate.
#6 The majority of creatures presented are horrors. That is, they are quite impossible to reason with. Unfortunately, for the players, those capable of business interactions, are most likely to be demons, devils or fey. Exceptions are rare.
#5 The PDF you get along with the book allows for very user friendly experience. The bookmarks are organized as follows:
- Cover
- Credits
- Table of Contents
- Introduction by Greg A. Vaughan
- Forward by James Jacobs
- The Tome of Horrors Complete
- - (alphabetical listing of, well, letters)
- - - (noun, adjective noun)
- Appendix A: Animals
- Appendix B: Templates
- Appendix C: Hazards
- Appendix D: Variant Snake Venoms
- Appendix E: N'gathau
- Appendix F: Planes of Existence
- Appendix G: New Feats and Subtypes
- Appendix H: Monster by Type and CR
- Legal Appendix
- Back Cover
#4 N'gathau? Have you heard about Hellraiser? And since we're talking about movie inspirations - watch Ravenous, by Antonia Bird. The template is to be found in Appendix B, page 732.
#3 Free stuff to complement the book:
- Lairs: PDF, 127 pages of sample lairs and encounters. System independent.
- Monsters by terrain: PDF, pretty self-explanatory and very useful.
#2 Think that the Tome of Horrors is going to be the biggest book of the d20 market? Slumbering Tsar hardcover is likely to be even bigger. Also by Frog God Games:
- The Slumbering Tsar Saga, a sandbox adventure set in killing fields.
Since we're talking about Frog God Games essentials, you may want to preorder
- TOAD, The Tome of Adventure Design (PDF available now, the book later) - 308 pages of tables for random stuff, like these: Ship Reputations (d100), Ship Cargo (d100) and Unusual Pirates (d100). The selling point? My players hit 14th level. They like to travel a lot... this book is going to be my adventure-in-a-bottle answer to their Wind-Walk escapades.
#1 The limited version book came with an autograph of Bill Webb. Thank you for such a personal touch. For more personal touches:
- Tsathogga, The Frog God, CR 30, page 190
- Gargax the Mighty, Master of the Dungeon Dragons, Great Wyrm Dungeon Dragon (Draco Carcer Dominus), CR 17, page 228
From Gargax entry:
"Watching adventurers explore its catacomb is the only real treasure a dungeon dragon desires."
Verdict: It's over nine thousaaaaand... ahem, five stars of of five.
Regards,
Ruemere
#10 This is CR 20 book. It's a small Chaotic Evil construct with ability to bring forth horrors from its pages. It can also swallow human-sized readers. See page 9 for more details.
#9 The lowest CR creature is a bookworm at 1/8, while the highest, at CR 39, is Lucifer. Oh, and in between you have 749 other creatures.
#8 The creatures, and their art, were drawn from Tomes of Horrors published over the years by Necromancer Games. That means that creature art was reused and some creatures do not follow Pathfinder guidelines as to their CR or abilities ("some" as in "found only two wonky specimens"). The former is a non-issue for me (I do not own previous editions), the latter is rare to the point of non-existent, and, as a GM, I tend to read statblocks so I can deal with any potential issues on the fly.
As an anecdote - what was the second monster book of d20, the third edition of our favorite game? According to Amazon, Monster Manual was released on 1st of October, 2000, and Creature Collection came out on the Oct 3rd, 2000.
The authors of CC: Clark Peterson and Bill Webb. Sounds familiar? Yep, founders of Necromancer Games and producers of Tome of Horror series.
For more on their current endeavors: Frog God Games (Bill Webb), Legendary Games (Clark Peterson).
Digression: Bill, and Clark, if I ever meet you in person, I'll make you sign this Creature Collection of mine. Or at least strongly entreat you to do so.
#7 The book has been built to last. Cover and binding appear to be extremely durable. The pages themselves are delicate.
#6 The majority of creatures presented are horrors. That is, they are quite impossible to reason with. Unfortunately, for the players, those capable of business interactions, are most likely to be demons, devils or fey. Exceptions are rare.
#5 The PDF you get along with the book allows for very user friendly experience. The bookmarks are organized as follows:
- Cover
- Credits
- Table of Contents
- Introduction by Greg A. Vaughan
- Forward by James Jacobs
- The Tome of Horrors Complete
- - (alphabetical listing of, well, letters)
- - - (noun, adjective noun)
- Appendix A: Animals
- Appendix B: Templates
- Appendix C: Hazards
- Appendix D: Variant Snake Venoms
- Appendix E: N'gathau
- Appendix F: Planes of Existence
- Appendix G: New Feats and Subtypes
- Appendix H: Monster by Type and CR
- Legal Appendix
- Back Cover
#4 N'gathau? Have you heard about Hellraiser? And since we're talking about movie inspirations - watch Ravenous, by Antonia Bird. The template is to be found in Appendix B, page 732.
#3 Free stuff to complement the book:
- Lairs: PDF, 127 pages of sample lairs and encounters. System independent.
- Monsters by terrain: PDF, pretty self-explanatory and very useful.
#2 Think that the Tome of Horrors is going to be the biggest book of the d20 market? Slumbering Tsar hardcover is likely to be even bigger. Also by Frog God Games:
- The Slumbering Tsar Saga, a sandbox adventure set in killing fields.
Since we're talking about Frog God Games essentials, you may want to preorder
- TOAD, The Tome of Adventure Design (PDF available now, the book later) - 308 pages of tables for random stuff, like these: Ship Reputations (d100), Ship Cargo (d100) and Unusual Pirates (d100). The selling point? My players hit 14th level. They like to travel a lot... this book is going to be my adventure-in-a-bottle answer to their Wind-Walk escapades.
#1 The limited version book came with an autograph of Bill Webb. Thank you for such a personal touch. For more personal touches:
- Tsathogga, The Frog God, CR 30, page 190
- Gargax the Mighty, Master of the Dungeon Dragons, Great Wyrm Dungeon Dragon (Draco Carcer Dominus), CR 17, page 228
From Gargax entry:
"Watching adventurers explore its catacomb is the only real treasure a dungeon dragon desires."
Verdict: It's over nine thousaaaaand... ahem, five stars of of five.
Regards,
Ruemere
