Amethyst - New campaign setting

[Locksathy]

This is a great product and I really want the gaming community to be aware of it.
(I know, I know theirs a review section. I'm waiting for them to update their database)

Its a campaign world for D20 3.5 set in a not so far future on earth. Simply put, magic is back with a vengeance and as reclaimed most of the globe. Some humans have adapted and may now cast fireballs and flirt with elves. Other reject this new reality and have banded together in great cities called Bastion where they defend their technological way of life.

TECHAN (the tech guys) must be wary when they stroll outside their bastions. Spells, magic items and ECHAN (magic people) generate an EDF (Enchantment Disruption Field). This can jam or break tech it comes in contact with. The more advanced the more fragile.

I wont go into further details. All this was really well thought of and the background and fluff makes sense. This is an important point. This book is full of details and reminds me of the way White Wolf presents its product. Theirs a lot of background stories sprinkled in the book witch helps define and envision this great new campaign setting.

On the crunch side, several of the base class have been retooled. This is always done with taste and never goes overboard. The bard is gone and the Ranger and Paladin are now prestige class. 7th lvl spells and higher are now very rare and require a feat to learn. Necromancy will really corrupt you. Clerics who can actually use magic are rare. Most races have also been redone and again its all good. On the Techan side you have 8 base class to fulfill all your needs. They are all well done with interesting abilities that are well explained.

Rpgs are like movies, video games and music. We get a load of trash every year and about one or two really great products will surprise us. This is one of them. The great art will lure you in. The well constructed rules will make you stay and the FANTASTIC setting will make you come back for more again and again.

Go check it out at: www.diasexmachina.com

You will enjoy this.... thrust me.

 

[Khuxan]

This reads a little like a promotion instead of a review.

What were some of your favourite parts of the book and how do you anticipate using it in your home games?

 

[Locksathy]

I must confess I did get carried away at the end... Just to clarify things a bit, I don't work for that publisher or know them personally.

I will use this book in its entirity. At 390 page, its not a supplement, its a core book. I have already asked my regular gamers to tell me if they would play a Tecan or a Echan and will be starting to juggle with ideas soon.

My favorite part would be the clash of the classic fantasy and modern/sci-genre in one setting. After you have red how all this came to pass, it really makes sense and seems believable.

Well I hope this helps a bit.

 

[Soel]

You will enjoy this.... thrust me.

Gonna hafta like it A LOT to do that...

Sorry, couldn't resist.

 

[Blackrat]

At quick glance I don't really see anything that distinguish it from Shadowrun. Idea is good, well I love Shadowrun so ofcourse I like the idea, but I don't see it as much more than a clone using d20 system and that was already done by WotC with the D20 Modern Urban Arcana setting. If you have either, could you perhaps compare this to those and tell us what sets it apart?

 

[Cergorach]

Amethyst isn't Shadowrun, it's more like an post-apocalyptic fantasy setting. While Shadowrun is a world advanced 50-60 years into the future and most of the world is generally recognizable (save for the fantasy aspects). Amethyst is an advanced earth that was overrun by fantastic creatures, a thousand years have gone by, and very little of earth is recognizable anymore (except maybe the shape of a landmass or two). There are a few 'Bastions' of technology (giant cities ranging from 2 to 35 million inhabitants), and with a few I mean that there are only half a dozen on a continent like North America (and none in South America). Beyond those 'Bastions' of technology the Amethyst world is more like your 'average' fantasy setting. There is a catch however, technology and magic don't mix. Get hit with a Fireball or touched by an Ogre and all your technological possessions need to start making saving throws, failed saving throws range from equipment failure for a few rounds, to equipment exploding violently).

With Amethyst you have humans armed with high tech on one side and on the other everything else (including other humans) that are armed with magic. A Fireball throwing Mage might wield a 'shielded' machine pistol, but that thing is going to breakdown often.

The Amethyst setting looks very interesting and might appeal to a wider audience then Shadowrun, mostly because it separates Tech and Magic. As far as I can see you can play three types of games in this kind of setting, a High-tech one, a Magic one, or one that combines the two (which would be the most rewarding imho).

The art I've seen is extremely good and fires up my imagination, I hope it does well and allows for the game line to expand (within a reasonable time frame).

[edit]
I hit on post, without reviewing the text. Corrected spelling errors and some sentences that didn't come out right.
[/edit]

 

[Blackrat]

Ah, that clears a few bits Cergorach. Now I'm intriqued . Seems my first impression was quite wrong then. Thank you for clearing that out. I might even check it out when I next look for rpg's to buy .

 

[scourger]

Same question as in other thread: how is the print quality?

 

[Turanil]

I was pondering buying this book that looks great. Now there is two things I don't like:
1) Additional classes, feats, and what not. I have no use of 200 pages of rules, even if I would still use d20... So, these would be useless pages for True20, SW, or C&C that I much prefer nowadays.
2) I don't like the "inspired by fact" page in the intro (read on the preview), unless the book was released on 1st April... (Dr Rudolph Stapp never existed. I thought this was a weird alien conspiration theory that I would have fun reading, but it never existed at all. Why tell us it is "fact", instead of just adding it into the setting's fiction intro?)

Well, waiting for a True20 or SW version. Both would be really great, and I would buy immediately.

 

[Dias Ex Machina]

Like I mentioned in the other post, 200 pages of rules is not actually accurate. There is enough detail through those pages to argue about the quantity of narrative.

I do want to address the subject of these other systems. We had talked it over with our last podcast and realized we would rather create our own OGL complete game rather than employ another system. This is because there are a lot more people who play D&D than True20 or C&C and adopting a variant system we would have to modify again seems like some kind of frankenstein's monster. So on that, I doubt we would empoly C&C or True20 to create future publications. At best, we would probably run an OGL and a 4.0 version.

Now, don't let this stop anyone from taking our Open Game Content and creating a conversion. I would consider putting that on our website.

OHH...Cergorach...thank you very very very very very very much. Its so hard sometimes to convey to people what's unique of the setting without being accused of being Shadowrun. I very much appreciate the post.