So I read the Book of Erotic Fantasy the other day- after getting having it surreptiously passed to me in a brown paper bag at the FLGS.
And I have to say that it was one of the better d20 books I've read this year. Not as well written and interesting as something like Midnight but more original and better presented than the boilerplate DragonLance or Unapprochable East.
Presentation and production values were really quite good, though I did wonder at the gratuitious inclusion of Mr Valterras dildo collection in the equipment illustrations..
But the real reason I liked it, was that it does what it advertised- it adds a whole dimension to the typical fantasy d20 experience that has been largely ignored up to now. I can see lusty PC's visiting a tavern after a successful dungeon crawl, and then looking for a friendly brothel to celebrate. Its much the same as the way people I work with go to the pub on a Friday night, and then look to head to a strip club if they cant score on the dance floor. Knowing the cost of a fantasy brothel, the potential for venereal disease and the chance of a pregnancy resulting are all things that could be successful used to model a fantasy game for adventurers at 'play', just as combat physics and equipment lists are vital for the 'work' aspect of D&D.
Another thing that struck me was that this book was obviously obsessesed with sex, as where the PrC's and feats presented. Now thats something that has been largely missing from d20, but means there is a gap in the personality types that you can play.
What do I mean by this? Well in my RL work, I have a number of colleagues- some are work-aholics, others are family types, but the one lad who sits opposite my desk is a lads lad. He's obsessed with scoring with women, he does everything he can do to improve his chances, from the fashion he follows to the car he drives to the constant flirting texts and emails he sends - his favourite catchphrase is that he is going to go out with someone and 'bang her right out'
So if, in real life, someone could be modelled by d20 stats then this lad would have maxed out his ranks in Perform (sexual techniques). And its the discussion that BoEF brings to this taboo subject that finally makes a PC based on his personality type a playable option in the rules 'n feats obsessed d20 system.
Would I play a character based on my colleague? No. But I might base an NPC off him, and I would respect the fact that its a valid personality type for a player to base a character around.
Plus the Sacred Prostitute makes up for in historical versimilitude a lot of what is lost in the sensationalist bondage and domination section.
Overall this is a interesting and above all, genre innovating book that I was glad to have read.
SJE
