Ultimate Equipment Guide vs. Arms & Equipment Guide: Which one to buy?

[Knightfall]

Neither. Wait another month, and go for MonkeyGod's "From Stone to Steel."

And no, I didn't work on the book; that's not why I'm hyping it. I've seen pages. It's got everything. It's got weapons, and armor from just about every historical and cultural period you can imagine, including Polynesian shark-tooth weapons. And it talks about their use and history, rather than just giving a bunch of stats.

Trust me, it'll be worth it.

You know, the more I hear about this book, the more I want it. I mean, Polynesian shark-tooth weapons... cool!

I want it! I want it!

For those that haven't checked it out yet: http://www.monkeygodenterprises.com/stone.htm

April/May cannot come soon enough! (Cuz of FFG's Sorcery & Steam too.)

Cheers!

KF72

p.s. Now if only I didn't have to wait for Frost & Fur: The Explorer's Guide to the Forzen Lands. Bummer, delayed until 3.5E comes out.

 

[Iron_Chef]

but then it would have been more expensive, larger and people would have complained about that. sometimes i feel sorry for WotC, damned if they do, damned if they don't and often by the same people!!!

That may be so, but the precedent for including the material in question is there from the previous DMGs. I would have gladly paid the xtra $ for those rules in the 3e DMG. The reason I'm bitchin' about A&EG's price is because it is hardcover and not full color and the page count is too low, all valid criticisms voiced by a large number of gamers, whereas my complaint about the content may not be shared by everyone. AE&G feels like price gouging for something that is basically just another splatbook. Yes, the paper is nicer, but not nice enough to justify the price increase.

 

[kenjib]

i don't see why people are so mad at WotC about this. Kenzer knew the deal when they decided to go for some meaningless 'official D&D' logo to help them sell their products, so it's as much their fault as it is WotC's.

You might already know this, but the deal predates the advent of d20 and the OGL.

For those that haven't checked it out yet: http://www.monkeygodenterprises.com/stone.htm

Wow, thanks for the link. I've really been wanting a book exactly like this description!

 

[Jody Butt]

Wimple?

I bought WotC's A&EG. I was not impressed. [My "F"LGS keeps everything shrink-wrapped.] There was no listing for "wimple". What the heck?! No wimples?

Does Mongoose's UEG have wimples?

 

[Iron_Chef]

No wimpels in UEG either.

 

[WizarDru]

Most of the new equipment and items aren't all that interesting and are too "exotic" for no reason other than to be "exotic".

There's actually a several page discussion of why all the new weapons are exotic, and it's a darn good one. You'll notice a couple of pages with charts of many of the weapons of antiquity, and their analogues within the D&D system. They argue, credibly, that D&D doesn't need any more simple or martial weapons and go into the details behind that reasoning.

Mind you, quite a good bit of the new items aren't exotic (as I see the term), unless you consider things like a climber's kit or dwarven still to be really exotic. It's also nice to see many of the classic Greyhawk magic items get translated over, such as the weapons of White Plume Mountain. I'm not sure where the Rod of Seven Parts is from (other than some novels).

Personally, I'm glad they didn't include material from other sources. I've only found two publishers who consistently put out rules-balanced material, out of the three non-WotC publishers I'll pick up on name alone (based on reputation and experience with them). Mongoose doesn't make that list.

 

[Zander]

Mongoose always towing the "munchkin" side of things, with more powerful classes...

I think you're being a bit unfair. I have six of their Power Class booklets and if anything they're underpowered not over. Take the assassin for example. It could so easily have been a munchkin's dream, but in fact it's probably less powerful than any of the core classes in the PHB especially at higher levels.

 

[Vaxalon]

I'm not sure where the Rod of Seven Parts is from (other than some novels).

1e DMG artifact listing, and later on a boxed set megaquest.

 

[Olive]

You might already know this, but the deal predates the advent of d20 and the OGL.

actually i had enver heard that before. that helps explain a huge amount actually... it always seemd like such a strange thing to do, although I've seen kenzer advertising and msg board comments from their staff that seem to be trading on the 'officialness' of it all.

thanks!

 

[Krug]

From Stone to Steel details here:
http://www.monkeygodenterprises.com/stone.htm
352 pages, hardcover, retail $39.95.