Hi guys,
There I was just wrapping up for the day last night, and three (three!!!) books plop onto my desk - the first supplement for the Slaine RPG, Tir Nan Og, Encyclopaedia Arcane: Star Magic and, for Judge Dredd, The Rookie's Guide to Criminal Organisations.
Tir Nan Og - The Land of the Young, is a whopping 128 page sourcebook for Slaine, jam-packed (and I mean jam-packed!) full of information useful to any Games Master or player who wishes to explore this game of Celtic Fantasy. Written by Slaine designer Ian Sturrock, together with excerpts from Slaine writers such as Debbie Gallagher, Tir Nan Og kicks off with detailed information about that most famous of tribes, the Sessair. Each chapter contains detailed information not only on a tribe's history, background and doctrines, but also new rules for players and Games Masters to get their teeth into. The Sessair chapter, for example, contains game information on the Cauldron of Plenty, Arget Roth Armour, Dire Wolves and Fomorian Sea Devils. Players can immediatly get their teeth into playing warrior of the Rath Grainne, a new regional tribe of the Sessair.
Next up are the Finians, one of the great tribes of the Earth Goddess whose territory is in the Highlands above North Albion. The city of Finias is detailed, along with a very nice looking map drawn by Phil Renne, while players can visit the military academy of Skatha and learn entirely new fighting styles such as Spearrach Carden. . . The Fir Domain follow, and this chapter will be of great use to anyone planning to play through the forthcoming Slaine campaign, beginning next month with The Invulnerable King. With locations such as Oxford and Silbury Hill fully detailed, it is one of my favourites, as I live in the same area!
The Tribe of Shadows will, I think, be popular among a great many players and so this chapter will be a staple of many games. Shape-shifting spells allow players and Games Masters to replicate many Celtic myths and legends while a major artefact, the Stone of Destiny, can form the basis of an entire campaign.
Dinas Emrys and the Cambrian Mountains follow and should be popular with both Slaine fanatics and Welsh players! Dinas Emrys is a magical fortress in the Land of the Young, and just finding it can be an adventure in itself - it will also form the basis of any time-travelling campaigns Games Masters wish to create, following some of the famous Slaine comic strips. The short Gaesatae chapter covers the wandering mercenary spearmen of Tir Nan Og, and gives players a new prestige class should they wish to leave their tribes and travel with these bands. With class features such as Fearless, Skyclad Bonus, Spear Mastery, Dying Curse and d12 Hit Dice to boot, I imagine it will be popular. . .
One of the biggest chapters is Lands of the Drune Lords, the evil menace that plague the Tribes of the Earth Goddess and will prove to be the nemesis of players in many campaigns. As well as a long and detailed hiostory of the Drune Lords, Games Masters will also have new tribes at their disposal (with appropriate fighting styles), leading Sloughs (yes, including Feg!), Time Worms, Hunt Spectres, new magic and new equipment.
The Borderlands covers the territory of the Titans, and players are given the chance to play Half-Titan and Titan-Dwarf characters, as well as those from the Fir Bolg tribe. The Borderlands are a dangerous place to explore, and the full might of the Titans are covered here, with unique magic and the effects of eruptions from Mor-Alltach, a great fire mountain. There are plenty of foul creatures wandering the Borderlands and you will find extensive rules and information on Horned Hags, Mud Snappers, and Serpent Demons.
The Midgard chapter, covering the lands of the Norsemen will feature in many campaigns, I think! A detailed map of Midgard precedes rules for new Norse tribes, equipment and magic. We alsdo get to see just how nasty Trolls are in Tir Nan Og. The sourcebook wraps up with six pages of easy to use scenario hooks to get Games Masters fired up during their first explorationsof the Land of the Young, and encounter list designed to prove that no warrior should wander the wilderness alone, no matter how powerful or legendary he is.
Overall, if you are serious about the Slaine RPG, you are going to find this book extremely useful.
Encyclopaedia Arcane: Star Magic - Wisdom of the Magi is the first Mongoose book written by Shannon Kalvar, but I have a feeling you will begin to see much more work from him! At its core, this newest Encyclopaedia Arcane allows any arcane spellcaster, be they wizard, sorcerer or bard, harness the magical power of stars and entire constellations. Players will be happy to know that no prestige class is needed to begin using these rules, no new skill has to be learnt, and that they do not even need to select a feat - if you have an arcane spellcaster, you can begin using Star Magic immediatly.
The extended Overview chapter describes exactly how Star Magic works, and also how each of the arcane spellcasters may draw upon its energies. Players are then launched into the meat of the book, Star Magic Mechanics, which contains all the rules for harnessing this new power and its effects upon the game. In a nutshell, any arcane spellcaster can use the power of a single star to fuel his magic, taking up a single spell slot to release its energy - much like any other spell. However, stars can be brought together in complex constellations whereupon their power begins to expand and magnify, greatly extending the versatility of any mage skilled in Star Magic. Many stars and constellations (such as The Dragon's Maw, The Bridge of Birds and The Crown) have been included to start players off, but Games Masters are free to create their own unique constellations based on their own campaign settings - there is even enough information provided for Games Masters to track the cycle of stars throughout the seasons, and a spellcaster skilled in Star Magic may find his powers begin to wane and wax throughout the year.
Four pages of feats allow arcane spellcasters to begin specialising in Star Magic if they decide it is the right path for them (or you can just dabble, adding Star Magic to the rest of your arcane repertoire!), which lead naturally into the Star Magic prestige classes - the Astrologer, Guardian of the Secret Path, Magus and Nomad Shaman, all of whom specialise in different aspects of this discipline.
Encyclopaedia Arcane: Star Magic wraps up with a chapter on Illuminated Items (drawing the power of the stars into magic items) and Help for Games Masters, providing everything needed to integrate Star Magic within an existing campaign.
In summary, Star Magic is easy to use, will not disrupt your campaign, is potentially available to any arcane spellcaster and can get your Games Master thinking about the heavens in his own campaign world!
Last up today is the latest supplement for the Judge Dredd RPG - the Rookie's Guide to Criminal Organisations. Not much for stinking judges in this book! This supplement is designed to be the last word in setting up a huge city-spanning criminal empire that keeps its mob bosses rich and above the Law - more than a passing nod has been made to The Godfather trilogy here!
After a brief intorduction on the nature of criminal organisations and the perps (sorry, businessmen) behind them, players will be thrown right into the rules for creating and running their own little part of the underworld in Mega-City One. Players should be warned - these rules follow those in the rulebook covering the creation of street gangs, but far, far more detail has been added. You are going to want to sit down with this one!
Every criminal organisation is made up of one or more criminal businesses. However, each business must run behind a legitimate front, or it will not be long before the judges start knocking on your door! Fronts can be of any size, from a small trader concentrating on his kneepad stall, to a huge mega-corp - though players are going to need to accumulate a billion credits to set one of those up! However, the larger a front, the more dirty washing can be hidden behind it. Once the front is operational, businesses can be created behind it to start brining in the real credits, and there are plenty to choose from including (and this really is just a small excerpt!) blitz agencies, chump dumers, forgers and gambling establishments. Each has its own advantages and drawbacks, and each will need specialisec personnel - if the players do not possess the right experience or skills, they will need to hire perps from the underworld, though if you are looking for a top-ranking assassin, it can get very expensive! However, the best people for the job will, ultimately, bring in more credits.
Once a criminal organisation has been set up, players must go through a monthly checklist to ensure business runs as usual - and this is in addition to their usual scenarios, not instead of! Every business must make sure its employees stay loyal, it remains out of sight to the Justice Department and that it keeps it rivals at bay - and all that is before it can begin earning credits! Every month, players get get each business to perform one action - this may be expand into new territories, attack a rival, grant employees a bonus, and so on. However, players will soon find they have to balance their businesses Loyalty, Visibility and Activity scores and this is where the fun begins! Expanding in to new territories, for instance, will gain you more credits overall, but it will attract the attention of the judges and your rivals will not be too amused either. . . In addition to all this, many businesses have a varioety of special actions they can perform - assassins can go after a high value target, for example, drug manufactures can use cheaper ingredients, or perp-runners can sell their charges straight into slavery. One of my favourite bits in this chapter is the citizen's equivalent of the Nark feat - Corrupt Judge! While having a corrupt judge on the payroll can benefit any criminal organisation, some players may find he soons becomes more of a liability as time goes on. . .
The Businessmen chapter features a wealth of new prestige classes for citizens interested in running their own crminal organisation. The Creative Accountant may not sound too exciting, but a level or two in this can literally pay dividends! Other new classes include the Fall Guy, Family Advisor (think Godfather), Fixer, Jimp, Lowstreet Doc, Recreational Chemist, Sleazy Lawyer (essential!), Umpty Bagger and Veteran Smuggler.
Two smaller chapters cover New Tricks for Old Perps (using skills in different ways) and Reputation, the lifeblood of any mob boss. A high reputation can ensure you are never troubled by your rivals and other citizens will always do as you say - but it can lead to unwanted attention from the Law.
The Rookie's Guide to Crminal Organisations winds up with a full Rules Summary and many new Scenario Hooks which feature ideas for introducing these rules into an existing campaign, be it citizen or judge based, regardless of character level.
If you want to populate your little area of Mega-City One with the most vicious criminals, this sourcebook may be a good place to start!
All three books will be available in the US within three weeks, while gamers in the UK should be able to pick them up within a week or so.
There I was just wrapping up for the day last night, and three (three!!!) books plop onto my desk - the first supplement for the Slaine RPG, Tir Nan Og, Encyclopaedia Arcane: Star Magic and, for Judge Dredd, The Rookie's Guide to Criminal Organisations.
Tir Nan Og - The Land of the Young, is a whopping 128 page sourcebook for Slaine, jam-packed (and I mean jam-packed!) full of information useful to any Games Master or player who wishes to explore this game of Celtic Fantasy. Written by Slaine designer Ian Sturrock, together with excerpts from Slaine writers such as Debbie Gallagher, Tir Nan Og kicks off with detailed information about that most famous of tribes, the Sessair. Each chapter contains detailed information not only on a tribe's history, background and doctrines, but also new rules for players and Games Masters to get their teeth into. The Sessair chapter, for example, contains game information on the Cauldron of Plenty, Arget Roth Armour, Dire Wolves and Fomorian Sea Devils. Players can immediatly get their teeth into playing warrior of the Rath Grainne, a new regional tribe of the Sessair.
Next up are the Finians, one of the great tribes of the Earth Goddess whose territory is in the Highlands above North Albion. The city of Finias is detailed, along with a very nice looking map drawn by Phil Renne, while players can visit the military academy of Skatha and learn entirely new fighting styles such as Spearrach Carden. . . The Fir Domain follow, and this chapter will be of great use to anyone planning to play through the forthcoming Slaine campaign, beginning next month with The Invulnerable King. With locations such as Oxford and Silbury Hill fully detailed, it is one of my favourites, as I live in the same area!
The Tribe of Shadows will, I think, be popular among a great many players and so this chapter will be a staple of many games. Shape-shifting spells allow players and Games Masters to replicate many Celtic myths and legends while a major artefact, the Stone of Destiny, can form the basis of an entire campaign.
Dinas Emrys and the Cambrian Mountains follow and should be popular with both Slaine fanatics and Welsh players! Dinas Emrys is a magical fortress in the Land of the Young, and just finding it can be an adventure in itself - it will also form the basis of any time-travelling campaigns Games Masters wish to create, following some of the famous Slaine comic strips. The short Gaesatae chapter covers the wandering mercenary spearmen of Tir Nan Og, and gives players a new prestige class should they wish to leave their tribes and travel with these bands. With class features such as Fearless, Skyclad Bonus, Spear Mastery, Dying Curse and d12 Hit Dice to boot, I imagine it will be popular. . .
One of the biggest chapters is Lands of the Drune Lords, the evil menace that plague the Tribes of the Earth Goddess and will prove to be the nemesis of players in many campaigns. As well as a long and detailed hiostory of the Drune Lords, Games Masters will also have new tribes at their disposal (with appropriate fighting styles), leading Sloughs (yes, including Feg!), Time Worms, Hunt Spectres, new magic and new equipment.
The Borderlands covers the territory of the Titans, and players are given the chance to play Half-Titan and Titan-Dwarf characters, as well as those from the Fir Bolg tribe. The Borderlands are a dangerous place to explore, and the full might of the Titans are covered here, with unique magic and the effects of eruptions from Mor-Alltach, a great fire mountain. There are plenty of foul creatures wandering the Borderlands and you will find extensive rules and information on Horned Hags, Mud Snappers, and Serpent Demons.
The Midgard chapter, covering the lands of the Norsemen will feature in many campaigns, I think! A detailed map of Midgard precedes rules for new Norse tribes, equipment and magic. We alsdo get to see just how nasty Trolls are in Tir Nan Og. The sourcebook wraps up with six pages of easy to use scenario hooks to get Games Masters fired up during their first explorationsof the Land of the Young, and encounter list designed to prove that no warrior should wander the wilderness alone, no matter how powerful or legendary he is.
Overall, if you are serious about the Slaine RPG, you are going to find this book extremely useful.
Encyclopaedia Arcane: Star Magic - Wisdom of the Magi is the first Mongoose book written by Shannon Kalvar, but I have a feeling you will begin to see much more work from him! At its core, this newest Encyclopaedia Arcane allows any arcane spellcaster, be they wizard, sorcerer or bard, harness the magical power of stars and entire constellations. Players will be happy to know that no prestige class is needed to begin using these rules, no new skill has to be learnt, and that they do not even need to select a feat - if you have an arcane spellcaster, you can begin using Star Magic immediatly.
The extended Overview chapter describes exactly how Star Magic works, and also how each of the arcane spellcasters may draw upon its energies. Players are then launched into the meat of the book, Star Magic Mechanics, which contains all the rules for harnessing this new power and its effects upon the game. In a nutshell, any arcane spellcaster can use the power of a single star to fuel his magic, taking up a single spell slot to release its energy - much like any other spell. However, stars can be brought together in complex constellations whereupon their power begins to expand and magnify, greatly extending the versatility of any mage skilled in Star Magic. Many stars and constellations (such as The Dragon's Maw, The Bridge of Birds and The Crown) have been included to start players off, but Games Masters are free to create their own unique constellations based on their own campaign settings - there is even enough information provided for Games Masters to track the cycle of stars throughout the seasons, and a spellcaster skilled in Star Magic may find his powers begin to wane and wax throughout the year.
Four pages of feats allow arcane spellcasters to begin specialising in Star Magic if they decide it is the right path for them (or you can just dabble, adding Star Magic to the rest of your arcane repertoire!), which lead naturally into the Star Magic prestige classes - the Astrologer, Guardian of the Secret Path, Magus and Nomad Shaman, all of whom specialise in different aspects of this discipline.
Encyclopaedia Arcane: Star Magic wraps up with a chapter on Illuminated Items (drawing the power of the stars into magic items) and Help for Games Masters, providing everything needed to integrate Star Magic within an existing campaign.
In summary, Star Magic is easy to use, will not disrupt your campaign, is potentially available to any arcane spellcaster and can get your Games Master thinking about the heavens in his own campaign world!
Last up today is the latest supplement for the Judge Dredd RPG - the Rookie's Guide to Criminal Organisations. Not much for stinking judges in this book! This supplement is designed to be the last word in setting up a huge city-spanning criminal empire that keeps its mob bosses rich and above the Law - more than a passing nod has been made to The Godfather trilogy here!
After a brief intorduction on the nature of criminal organisations and the perps (sorry, businessmen) behind them, players will be thrown right into the rules for creating and running their own little part of the underworld in Mega-City One. Players should be warned - these rules follow those in the rulebook covering the creation of street gangs, but far, far more detail has been added. You are going to want to sit down with this one!
Every criminal organisation is made up of one or more criminal businesses. However, each business must run behind a legitimate front, or it will not be long before the judges start knocking on your door! Fronts can be of any size, from a small trader concentrating on his kneepad stall, to a huge mega-corp - though players are going to need to accumulate a billion credits to set one of those up! However, the larger a front, the more dirty washing can be hidden behind it. Once the front is operational, businesses can be created behind it to start brining in the real credits, and there are plenty to choose from including (and this really is just a small excerpt!) blitz agencies, chump dumers, forgers and gambling establishments. Each has its own advantages and drawbacks, and each will need specialisec personnel - if the players do not possess the right experience or skills, they will need to hire perps from the underworld, though if you are looking for a top-ranking assassin, it can get very expensive! However, the best people for the job will, ultimately, bring in more credits.
Once a criminal organisation has been set up, players must go through a monthly checklist to ensure business runs as usual - and this is in addition to their usual scenarios, not instead of! Every business must make sure its employees stay loyal, it remains out of sight to the Justice Department and that it keeps it rivals at bay - and all that is before it can begin earning credits! Every month, players get get each business to perform one action - this may be expand into new territories, attack a rival, grant employees a bonus, and so on. However, players will soon find they have to balance their businesses Loyalty, Visibility and Activity scores and this is where the fun begins! Expanding in to new territories, for instance, will gain you more credits overall, but it will attract the attention of the judges and your rivals will not be too amused either. . . In addition to all this, many businesses have a varioety of special actions they can perform - assassins can go after a high value target, for example, drug manufactures can use cheaper ingredients, or perp-runners can sell their charges straight into slavery. One of my favourite bits in this chapter is the citizen's equivalent of the Nark feat - Corrupt Judge! While having a corrupt judge on the payroll can benefit any criminal organisation, some players may find he soons becomes more of a liability as time goes on. . .
The Businessmen chapter features a wealth of new prestige classes for citizens interested in running their own crminal organisation. The Creative Accountant may not sound too exciting, but a level or two in this can literally pay dividends! Other new classes include the Fall Guy, Family Advisor (think Godfather), Fixer, Jimp, Lowstreet Doc, Recreational Chemist, Sleazy Lawyer (essential!), Umpty Bagger and Veteran Smuggler.
Two smaller chapters cover New Tricks for Old Perps (using skills in different ways) and Reputation, the lifeblood of any mob boss. A high reputation can ensure you are never troubled by your rivals and other citizens will always do as you say - but it can lead to unwanted attention from the Law.
The Rookie's Guide to Crminal Organisations winds up with a full Rules Summary and many new Scenario Hooks which feature ideas for introducing these rules into an existing campaign, be it citizen or judge based, regardless of character level.
If you want to populate your little area of Mega-City One with the most vicious criminals, this sourcebook may be a good place to start!
All three books will be available in the US within three weeks, while gamers in the UK should be able to pick them up within a week or so.
