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Bastards and Bloodlines
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<blockquote data-quote="Simon Collins" data-source="post: 2010327" data-attributes="member: 9860"><p>This is not a playtest review.</p><p></p><p>Bastards & Bloodlines is a sourcebook on half-breeds, for Green Ronin Publishing's 'Races of Renown' series.</p><p></p><p>Bastards & Bloodlines is a 112-page mono softcover product costing $19.95. Font and margins are fairly standard, though the font used for titles and subtitles takes the equivalent of two or three standard lines. There is little wasted space (one ad at the back). As the back cover proclaims, the art is very evocative, and the various half-breeds are all illustrated alongside the text sections. The writing style is engaging, and the editing generally sound.</p><p></p><p>Chapter One: Halfbreeds In Your Campaign</p><p>This chapter looks at the logistics behind the existence of more half-breeds than just half-orcs and half-elves. Further discussion looks at the role of the half-breed in society and offers a dozen or so roleplaying archetypes (e.g. brooder, lone wolf, survivor, etc.) to back this up. Unlike Mongoose's archetypes, these have no game-related advantages or disadvantages.</p><p></p><p>Chapter Two: Specific Half-Breeds</p><p>This chapter offers twenty-eight specific half-breeds and includes information on appearance, demeanour, background, suggestions for why these half-breeds might be found adventuring, and game rules for racial traits (including favoured class and level adjustment). All of them are based on at least one humanoid parent. A set of tables at the beginning of the chapter summarises ECL, Ability adjustments, parents' races, lifespans, and height and weight. Examples include the Alicorn (elf/unicorn), Blinkling (blink dog/halfling - yes, the rumours are true!), Grendle (dwarf/troll), Lurker (cloaker/gnome), and Green Folk (human/lizardfolk).</p><p></p><p>Chapter Three: Making More Crossbreeds</p><p>Most of this chapter uses templates to create such crossbreeds as half-beholders, half-doppelgangers, half-vampires, and half-elementals. These are presented in standard monster template format along with examples such as the half-beholder hill giant, half-doppelganger lizardfolk, half-vampire human Rog3/Ftr3, and half-water elemental nymph. The remainder of the chapter gives advice on designing your own half-breeds, discussing the differences in outcome between using the template system (as this book does) or an averaging of stats (which Mongoose's 'Crossbreeding' product does). The advice mainly centres on template design with a few generalised paragraphs on melding creature's stats.</p><p></p><p>Chapter Four: Using The Blood</p><p>This chapter begins with a range of bloodline feats - feats that are usually taken at 1st level and are only available to certain races. For example, the Elven Senses feat is only available to those with some elven blood running through their veins and already have a racial bonus to Listen, Search and Spot checks. The feat increases the bonuses to +2 (max.) and adds the elf's ability to spot secret doors into the deal. There are also a number of general feats that are available to any race but give benefits related to a racial ability or quality.</p><p></p><p>Four 10-level prestige classes are presented available to half-breeds only:</p><p>* Autarkic - sly survivors with a set of class abilities designed to aid survival in combat and harsh environments.</p><p>* Brood Sorcerer - these sorcerers claim monstrous magic as their heritage and gain class abilities commensurate with their heritage such as channeling spells through innate abilities such as a gaze attack, breath weapon or touch attack. They also gain school specialisation.</p><p>* Brood Champion - the fighting version of the brood sorcerer, the brood champion uses the natural weapons and senses of his monstrous forebears.</p><p>* Changeling - variety of shapeshifting abilities capture this PrC's focus on spying and infiltration.</p><p></p><p>Fifteen new spells are also provided which require certain racial blood to be flowing through one's veins to be able to cast. Examples include harden steel (spell granting a +2 enhancement bonus to armour, must have dwarven blood) and wrath of our fathers, a touch spell that sends the creature touched into a barbarian rage (requires orc blood). Magic items with similar restrictions are offered such as the dwarven stonecutting weapon, and the gnomish ioun gem that holds ioun stones inconspicuously but still allows them to function.</p><p></p><p>The book ends with a summary of the tables from the book and an index.</p><p></p><p>The High Points:</p><p>This product really opens up the possibilities for playing half-breed PCs or creating half-breed NPCs. Mixing standard PC races and 'savage' species provides a proliferation of choice for GMs and players who like to play something a little different. The feats, spells and magic items specifically designed for half-breeds expand these possibilities further by allowing a player to revel in his choice rather than regret it.</p><p></p><p>The Low Points:</p><p>As the author decided to use the template system or otherwise create half-breed creatures, and despite the explanation of logic at the beginning of the product, I sometimes found my suspension of disbelief crashing to the ground as I tried to imagine the processes of crossbreeding between two very different species. Whilst some of the mixes seemed reasonable, others seemed to stretch the imagination to breaking point. Maybe my imagination is lacking (or maybe I just don't want to go there), but sex between a treant and an elf, a beholder and a hill giant, etc. is intimated in the descriptions and it just doesn't fit with my concept of racial interbreeding - it suffers from often using sex as a basis for crossbreeding rather than magical transmutation. But, horses for corsairs, and all that - others may find it fine. In addition, the section on creating your own half-breeds came over weaker than the actual examples given. Unlike Mongoose's 'Crossbreeding', the rules given here are more nebulous and less helpful, leaving a lot to the GM's judgement.</p><p></p><p>Conclusion:</p><p>'Bastards & Bloodlines', as might be expected, is more player friendly than Mongoose's 'Crossbreeding' with lots of choice, ideas and rules for players wanting to run PCs of unusual mixed races. Like 'Crossbreeding', it gives some unusual and interesting NPCs for a GM to play with. Unlike 'Crossbreeding', it suffers from somewhat nebulous rules for mixed race creature creation and a shaky basis for its explanation of mixed race creation for some of the more unusual creatures. The back cover proclaims "Are you ready to get freaky?" If you are, this book is worth picking up.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Simon Collins, post: 2010327, member: 9860"] This is not a playtest review. Bastards & Bloodlines is a sourcebook on half-breeds, for Green Ronin Publishing's 'Races of Renown' series. Bastards & Bloodlines is a 112-page mono softcover product costing $19.95. Font and margins are fairly standard, though the font used for titles and subtitles takes the equivalent of two or three standard lines. There is little wasted space (one ad at the back). As the back cover proclaims, the art is very evocative, and the various half-breeds are all illustrated alongside the text sections. The writing style is engaging, and the editing generally sound. Chapter One: Halfbreeds In Your Campaign This chapter looks at the logistics behind the existence of more half-breeds than just half-orcs and half-elves. Further discussion looks at the role of the half-breed in society and offers a dozen or so roleplaying archetypes (e.g. brooder, lone wolf, survivor, etc.) to back this up. Unlike Mongoose's archetypes, these have no game-related advantages or disadvantages. Chapter Two: Specific Half-Breeds This chapter offers twenty-eight specific half-breeds and includes information on appearance, demeanour, background, suggestions for why these half-breeds might be found adventuring, and game rules for racial traits (including favoured class and level adjustment). All of them are based on at least one humanoid parent. A set of tables at the beginning of the chapter summarises ECL, Ability adjustments, parents' races, lifespans, and height and weight. Examples include the Alicorn (elf/unicorn), Blinkling (blink dog/halfling - yes, the rumours are true!), Grendle (dwarf/troll), Lurker (cloaker/gnome), and Green Folk (human/lizardfolk). Chapter Three: Making More Crossbreeds Most of this chapter uses templates to create such crossbreeds as half-beholders, half-doppelgangers, half-vampires, and half-elementals. These are presented in standard monster template format along with examples such as the half-beholder hill giant, half-doppelganger lizardfolk, half-vampire human Rog3/Ftr3, and half-water elemental nymph. The remainder of the chapter gives advice on designing your own half-breeds, discussing the differences in outcome between using the template system (as this book does) or an averaging of stats (which Mongoose's 'Crossbreeding' product does). The advice mainly centres on template design with a few generalised paragraphs on melding creature's stats. Chapter Four: Using The Blood This chapter begins with a range of bloodline feats - feats that are usually taken at 1st level and are only available to certain races. For example, the Elven Senses feat is only available to those with some elven blood running through their veins and already have a racial bonus to Listen, Search and Spot checks. The feat increases the bonuses to +2 (max.) and adds the elf's ability to spot secret doors into the deal. There are also a number of general feats that are available to any race but give benefits related to a racial ability or quality. Four 10-level prestige classes are presented available to half-breeds only: * Autarkic - sly survivors with a set of class abilities designed to aid survival in combat and harsh environments. * Brood Sorcerer - these sorcerers claim monstrous magic as their heritage and gain class abilities commensurate with their heritage such as channeling spells through innate abilities such as a gaze attack, breath weapon or touch attack. They also gain school specialisation. * Brood Champion - the fighting version of the brood sorcerer, the brood champion uses the natural weapons and senses of his monstrous forebears. * Changeling - variety of shapeshifting abilities capture this PrC's focus on spying and infiltration. Fifteen new spells are also provided which require certain racial blood to be flowing through one's veins to be able to cast. Examples include harden steel (spell granting a +2 enhancement bonus to armour, must have dwarven blood) and wrath of our fathers, a touch spell that sends the creature touched into a barbarian rage (requires orc blood). Magic items with similar restrictions are offered such as the dwarven stonecutting weapon, and the gnomish ioun gem that holds ioun stones inconspicuously but still allows them to function. The book ends with a summary of the tables from the book and an index. The High Points: This product really opens up the possibilities for playing half-breed PCs or creating half-breed NPCs. Mixing standard PC races and 'savage' species provides a proliferation of choice for GMs and players who like to play something a little different. The feats, spells and magic items specifically designed for half-breeds expand these possibilities further by allowing a player to revel in his choice rather than regret it. The Low Points: As the author decided to use the template system or otherwise create half-breed creatures, and despite the explanation of logic at the beginning of the product, I sometimes found my suspension of disbelief crashing to the ground as I tried to imagine the processes of crossbreeding between two very different species. Whilst some of the mixes seemed reasonable, others seemed to stretch the imagination to breaking point. Maybe my imagination is lacking (or maybe I just don't want to go there), but sex between a treant and an elf, a beholder and a hill giant, etc. is intimated in the descriptions and it just doesn't fit with my concept of racial interbreeding - it suffers from often using sex as a basis for crossbreeding rather than magical transmutation. But, horses for corsairs, and all that - others may find it fine. In addition, the section on creating your own half-breeds came over weaker than the actual examples given. Unlike Mongoose's 'Crossbreeding', the rules given here are more nebulous and less helpful, leaving a lot to the GM's judgement. Conclusion: 'Bastards & Bloodlines', as might be expected, is more player friendly than Mongoose's 'Crossbreeding' with lots of choice, ideas and rules for players wanting to run PCs of unusual mixed races. Like 'Crossbreeding', it gives some unusual and interesting NPCs for a GM to play with. Unlike 'Crossbreeding', it suffers from somewhat nebulous rules for mixed race creature creation and a shaky basis for its explanation of mixed race creation for some of the more unusual creatures. The back cover proclaims "Are you ready to get freaky?" If you are, this book is worth picking up. [/QUOTE]
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