Upgrade your account to a Community Supporter account and remove most of the site ads.
Rocket your D&D 5E and Level Up: Advanced 5E games into space! Alpha Star Magazine Is Launching... Right Now!

Reply to thread

Message: <blockquote data-quote="Messageboard Golem" data-source="post: 2010426" data-attributes="member: 18387">I bought this as the Print on Demand edition, which came with copies of the PDF also. The review is of the PDF edition, as I am waiting for the print copy to arrive in the mail. I bought this because it was written by the same people who wrote Crimson Contracts - The Assassin's Manifesto, which I consider to be the best Assassin book on the market.Arcane Strife is, first and foremost, a spellbook. Just shy of 200 arcane spells are crammed in here, with some additional supporting material.The product itself arrives in a zip file containing three PDFs. The first is the front and back covers of Arcane Strife (I feel all PDFs should be bundled this way). Then you get two copies of the contents of the book itself. The first is a 2.6 meg screen edition on a nice-looking burnt velum background with comprehensive bookmarks. The second is a larger file, black and white, without the background and with higher-resolution images. I was glad to see the art in the printer edition of the PDF, because the art is EXCELLENT. I sit in awe of Scott Purdy, Brian England and Frank Krug, who help set the dark and bloody feel of the book that is supported by the excellent choice of backgrounds and the interesting fonts chosen.As far as spell books go, this one is pretty good, superior to the other PDF spellbooks I have picked up in the past, although not as good as many printed ones (although superior to many others). Spellbooks face some stiff competition due in part to the first two on the market being Relics & Rituals in print and the Book of Eldritch Might in PDF. When compared to these two icons of the d20 spellbook, Arcane Strife can stand proud.The spells focus around those useful in combat or war, as supported by the setting refered to throughout the book, the world of Shtar. Shtar is explained as a fairly typical Dungeons & Dragons world that has been torn assunder by wars between a plethora of magically potent forces. Each spell includes a historic commentary as to its origin as well as its effects. Although these histories are very world-dependent, they would also work VERY well in the Scarred Lands or even right after the Time of Troubles in the Forgotten Realms. What sets the spells apart in my mind is a description of the visual effects of the spells including effects on the spellcaster. Like most spellbooks, the spell levels themselves are slightly hit-and-miss. A few are possibly a little too low in level, but more commonly, most are listed as being too high. I find this to be a lot less destructive than having the spells to powerful for their level, and I have less problems decreasing the level of a spell than I have qualms about increasing the level (I tend to just ban spells in that case instead of bumping them up a level or two).The four prestige classes presented are fairly interesting, but not enough that I expect to see any players picking them up in the games I run. (Except possibly the Master of the Hive, who becomes more and more akin to his insectile familiar). I was happy to see a bard prestige class, as bards are a generally underused arcane spellcaster. I would have liked an assassin in here too, but there are enough of those in Crimson Contracts. The four creature templates are all ones created by the spells in the volume - Arcane Ghosts, Balak-Mak (exceptionally dark & cruel wraiths), Bloodwraith (wraiths that drain a target's Con) and Undead Warriors which are torn from the bodies of still living combatants by the horrifically drawn Osseus Erruptus spell.At $11, this is a 'can't miss' purchase for a 66 page book. Not the best on the market, but incredible value for your money. Especially for a Scarred Lands game.</blockquote>

Verification