Messageboard Golem
First Post
By Steven Creech, Exec. Chairman d20 Magazine Rack
Sizing Up the Target
Aerial Adventures Guide Volume Three: Monsters, Magic and Sky Ships is a 32-page book written by Mike Mearls and illustrated by V. Shane with the logo being designed by Andy Hopp. Part three of a three-part series by Goodman Games, this 32-page book retails for $11.00.
First Blood
Airships are up first with a rundown of necessary term and definitions along with ship designs. There are six basic designs that are size-related followed by four different templates that add a more fantastic quality to the ships. Example ships using these templates follow as a guide for applying them.
New monsters are up next and makes up the bulk of the book. There are eleven monsters, two of which are dragons. A representative of nearly every type of monster can be found here (plant, outsider, aberration, construct, etc.). Aerial magic and equipment follow with mundane items, alchemical items, and magical items including armor and weapons. As one would expect, the focus is on air-related or flight-related powers.
Wrapping up the book is a three page mini-adventure designed to provide first or second level characters an introduction to sky realms. The adventure uses monster/races that are detailed in this book and is highly focused on role-play rather than combat.
Critical Hits
The information in this third book complements the first two books quite well. GMs who don’t want to get into a lot of variables regarding air combat and travel can use the sky ship information here easily enough.
Critical Misses
The lack of details and even missing information plagues this book just as it did the previous two. There is a strong sense of incompleteness and brevity with this work. I would have liked to have seen more on the skyships regarding design, construction, and options that exhibit more specifics than the generalizations given. The mini-adventure does not contain the information for scaling it as promised. It also comes across more like and adventure hook or brief synopsis of an adventure rather than the adventure it should be.
Coup de Grace
If you own the first two books, you will likely want to add the third just to further flesh out the information for a sky realms setting. In many ways it falls short as a solid stand-alone product and is not some of Mike Mearls’ best work. As I have said previously, the three-volume set should have been combined into a single 96-page or even 128-page book with more attention to details and completeness of information. There are just too many cases of generalities and glossing over to make this a really valuable book in and of itself.
To see the graded evaluation of this product and to leave comments that the reviewer will respond to, go to Fast Tracks at www.d20zines.com.
Sizing Up the Target
Aerial Adventures Guide Volume Three: Monsters, Magic and Sky Ships is a 32-page book written by Mike Mearls and illustrated by V. Shane with the logo being designed by Andy Hopp. Part three of a three-part series by Goodman Games, this 32-page book retails for $11.00.
First Blood
Airships are up first with a rundown of necessary term and definitions along with ship designs. There are six basic designs that are size-related followed by four different templates that add a more fantastic quality to the ships. Example ships using these templates follow as a guide for applying them.
New monsters are up next and makes up the bulk of the book. There are eleven monsters, two of which are dragons. A representative of nearly every type of monster can be found here (plant, outsider, aberration, construct, etc.). Aerial magic and equipment follow with mundane items, alchemical items, and magical items including armor and weapons. As one would expect, the focus is on air-related or flight-related powers.
Wrapping up the book is a three page mini-adventure designed to provide first or second level characters an introduction to sky realms. The adventure uses monster/races that are detailed in this book and is highly focused on role-play rather than combat.
Critical Hits
The information in this third book complements the first two books quite well. GMs who don’t want to get into a lot of variables regarding air combat and travel can use the sky ship information here easily enough.
Critical Misses
The lack of details and even missing information plagues this book just as it did the previous two. There is a strong sense of incompleteness and brevity with this work. I would have liked to have seen more on the skyships regarding design, construction, and options that exhibit more specifics than the generalizations given. The mini-adventure does not contain the information for scaling it as promised. It also comes across more like and adventure hook or brief synopsis of an adventure rather than the adventure it should be.
Coup de Grace
If you own the first two books, you will likely want to add the third just to further flesh out the information for a sky realms setting. In many ways it falls short as a solid stand-alone product and is not some of Mike Mearls’ best work. As I have said previously, the three-volume set should have been combined into a single 96-page or even 128-page book with more attention to details and completeness of information. There are just too many cases of generalities and glossing over to make this a really valuable book in and of itself.
To see the graded evaluation of this product and to leave comments that the reviewer will respond to, go to Fast Tracks at www.d20zines.com.
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