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<blockquote data-quote="Messageboard Golem" data-source="post: 2011619" data-attributes="member: 18387"><p>Valus </p><p></p><p> Campaign settings have always been of interesting in the fantasy market. Setting is one of the few things that every game needs; the problem though has been not everyone needs a published setting. Most people it seems homebrew one, that is create their own setting. Also with the Wizards setting search that went one there area lot more setting in print or in search of getting in print. While everyone needs a setting, few people actually need two. People do borrow rules from setting sand use bit and pieces to enhance their own setting. This may be the most popular way to use a setting. Valus is a new setting and it does have a few things that make it different from the others. </p><p></p><p> Valus is possible the first setting that originated from EN World. The author, Ryan Smalley aka Destan, has had a very popular story hour posted in the EN World Forums for a while now. It is called Sins of Our Fathers. I have not read the story hour so going into this review I really did not know what to expect. The cover is a really nice shade of blue faded in white with the map of the sub continent on Valus on it. It is important to note that while this is a campaign setting all it covers is this 600 mile long island. Setting it seems usually like to cover a large area with the first book, giving a broad overview of everything. Valus instead does things a bit differently. It covers fewer things but in a great deal more detail. There are still many things for the DM to fill in but over all the setting feels more real then others because of this detail. It really enhances the flavor and feel of the setting. While many people use setting to mine rules from, I believe Valus to be the best to mine ideas. There are a few things done differently in the setting like relations between races, how the gods work, and alterations to a few classes. There are some rule alterations but mostly it is just the ideas that really make the change. It is these ideas that I can easily see people borrowing for their own worlds.</p><p></p><p> Valus is a paper back book. The binding seems good and durable. It has one hundred and seventy six pages and while that is a little smaller then many campaign setting books, the books does not read as incomplete like some of the others. The book has a good table of contents but no index. I really like to see both in a book because finding things quickly in a book during a gaming session is very important. The art is pretty good but there is not a lot of it. The maps though are well done and it would be great to see these as released on the web so people can print them, mark them up, and use as hand outs. The layout for the most part is good, but at the end of chapters there can be up to three fourths of a blank page. A little more art or something would have really helped limit the extra white space. </p><p></p><p> The books starts with a short introduction but then gets right into the history and the map. There are a lot of nice little details that I really like. The seasonal epochs are really a cool idea and I like how it is brought to use by the scholars of the world and occasionally their personal thoughts and theories are raised. For instance the current Epoch, the Winter, they say must surely be the final one. Two calendars are presented and they are important. The gods themselves gain and loose power as time goes on. Each god has a month were they are winning the god war and loosing it. During these months the abilities of the gods’ shifts and thus their clerics also are in the similar position. </p><p></p><p> The races are a nice change from the norm. The races of Valus do not really get along with each other. There is racism and hatred between them. There are a few different type of humans along with elves, dwarves, halflings, and half orcs. But each of them is nicely defined and different enough from the core books to really give them individuality among other settings. There are a few new races presented as well like the Pems, a burrowing gnome, Roven a canine race, and Trulls a variation troll. The ideas in the racial descriptions though are great. There is built in conflict and it seems natural and not forced. </p><p></p><p> The classes are also a little different. Well, some are just flat out changed. Clerics are recommended to have modified spell lists for instance. Druids are feared as they follow the old faith and not the new gods. And the Paladins have belief in angels and for this most people dislike them. The world that Valus inhabits is a gritty place filled with conflict and troubles. </p><p></p><p> A majority of the book is on the many different places. There is so much information packed into these locales that it really makes the world seem alive. And through out the book are little snippets of fiction. These really do a great job of pulling the setting together and giving it another level of feelings. The writing through out the whole book is very solid. The ideas are thoughtful, provoking, and complete. They work together as a whole world and not a mish mash of places some setting can feel like. </p><p></p><p> Valus is a setting for less powerful characters. There are not many high level people wondering around and the amount of treasure that characters have should be less then the DMG suggests. On the back cover one of the points the books makes is a dark and brutal world with a high mortality rate. Valus may not be high fantasy but it really does seem like a place that can have high adventure. It is also more then a great setting book; Valus is also a very good read.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Messageboard Golem, post: 2011619, member: 18387"] Valus Campaign settings have always been of interesting in the fantasy market. Setting is one of the few things that every game needs; the problem though has been not everyone needs a published setting. Most people it seems homebrew one, that is create their own setting. Also with the Wizards setting search that went one there area lot more setting in print or in search of getting in print. While everyone needs a setting, few people actually need two. People do borrow rules from setting sand use bit and pieces to enhance their own setting. This may be the most popular way to use a setting. Valus is a new setting and it does have a few things that make it different from the others. Valus is possible the first setting that originated from EN World. The author, Ryan Smalley aka Destan, has had a very popular story hour posted in the EN World Forums for a while now. It is called Sins of Our Fathers. I have not read the story hour so going into this review I really did not know what to expect. The cover is a really nice shade of blue faded in white with the map of the sub continent on Valus on it. It is important to note that while this is a campaign setting all it covers is this 600 mile long island. Setting it seems usually like to cover a large area with the first book, giving a broad overview of everything. Valus instead does things a bit differently. It covers fewer things but in a great deal more detail. There are still many things for the DM to fill in but over all the setting feels more real then others because of this detail. It really enhances the flavor and feel of the setting. While many people use setting to mine rules from, I believe Valus to be the best to mine ideas. There are a few things done differently in the setting like relations between races, how the gods work, and alterations to a few classes. There are some rule alterations but mostly it is just the ideas that really make the change. It is these ideas that I can easily see people borrowing for their own worlds. Valus is a paper back book. The binding seems good and durable. It has one hundred and seventy six pages and while that is a little smaller then many campaign setting books, the books does not read as incomplete like some of the others. The book has a good table of contents but no index. I really like to see both in a book because finding things quickly in a book during a gaming session is very important. The art is pretty good but there is not a lot of it. The maps though are well done and it would be great to see these as released on the web so people can print them, mark them up, and use as hand outs. The layout for the most part is good, but at the end of chapters there can be up to three fourths of a blank page. A little more art or something would have really helped limit the extra white space. The books starts with a short introduction but then gets right into the history and the map. There are a lot of nice little details that I really like. The seasonal epochs are really a cool idea and I like how it is brought to use by the scholars of the world and occasionally their personal thoughts and theories are raised. For instance the current Epoch, the Winter, they say must surely be the final one. Two calendars are presented and they are important. The gods themselves gain and loose power as time goes on. Each god has a month were they are winning the god war and loosing it. During these months the abilities of the gods’ shifts and thus their clerics also are in the similar position. The races are a nice change from the norm. The races of Valus do not really get along with each other. There is racism and hatred between them. There are a few different type of humans along with elves, dwarves, halflings, and half orcs. But each of them is nicely defined and different enough from the core books to really give them individuality among other settings. There are a few new races presented as well like the Pems, a burrowing gnome, Roven a canine race, and Trulls a variation troll. The ideas in the racial descriptions though are great. There is built in conflict and it seems natural and not forced. The classes are also a little different. Well, some are just flat out changed. Clerics are recommended to have modified spell lists for instance. Druids are feared as they follow the old faith and not the new gods. And the Paladins have belief in angels and for this most people dislike them. The world that Valus inhabits is a gritty place filled with conflict and troubles. A majority of the book is on the many different places. There is so much information packed into these locales that it really makes the world seem alive. And through out the book are little snippets of fiction. These really do a great job of pulling the setting together and giving it another level of feelings. The writing through out the whole book is very solid. The ideas are thoughtful, provoking, and complete. They work together as a whole world and not a mish mash of places some setting can feel like. Valus is a setting for less powerful characters. There are not many high level people wondering around and the amount of treasure that characters have should be less then the DMG suggests. On the back cover one of the points the books makes is a dark and brutal world with a high mortality rate. Valus may not be high fantasy but it really does seem like a place that can have high adventure. It is also more then a great setting book; Valus is also a very good read. [/QUOTE]
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