By Ian Hewitt, Staff Reviewer d20 Magazine Rack
Initiative Round
The Complete Book of Eldritch Might is a 222-page hard-bound arcane sourcebook by Malhavoc Press. It is a complete compilation of the previous The Book of Eldritch Might, Book of Eldritch Might II: Songs and Souls of Power, and Book of Eldritch Might III: The Nexus. The book is written by Monte Cook, with a frighteningly gorgeous front cover illustration by Sam Wood and interior illustrations by Toren Atkinson, Talon Dunning, Brian LeBlanc, Eric Lofgren, Stephen Shephard, JD Sparks, Tyler Walpole, Sam Wood and Kieran Yanner and cartography by Rob Lee. It is priced at US$34.99.
This book is a reprint of the three previous titles, but it is also a revision. All of the rules and content from each of the previous Books of Eldritch Might are present but they are fully revised for the 3.5 rules edition and organized in a logical manner rather than reproduced back to back. In addition, all known errata has been corrected, some new material added, and an all new appendix has been included.
The book opens with ‘Chapter One: Alternate Classes’. In this chapter, core classes the Bard and the Sorcerer are not just simply revised, but rather they are re-written to fill the same role but in a manner slightly different from the Core Rules. The Bard class is taken back to its roots as a musician. Where the Core Rules mention that the bard “uses his song…to produce magic effects,” this variant bard truly demonstrates it. Bards spells are effectively divided into three levels of power: spellnotes which are single notes, allowing a bard to perform a standard action in the same round that he casts them; spellchords which are an extended combination of notes and significantly more powerful; and spellmelodies the most powerful of bard spells and the most drawn out to perform. A bard need not prepare any of these ahead of time and can weave them together (creating different songs or performances) to achieve different effects. The variant sorcerer receives similar attention, if somewhat less dramatic. A significant change to the sorcerer is the recognition that they have a small spell selection to choose from and likely repeat-cast the same favored spells – this variant offers a much more expanded spell list for sorcerers.
The second chapter offers 32 new feats, all appropriately geared toward spellcasters and spellcasting, including a new type of feat. The Eldritch Feat is a feat that confers a spell-like ability to a character who is sufficiently magically talented to meet its requirements. Although all of these feats are new, many are what you would expect from such an offering (Magical Talent gives +2 Knowledge and Spellcraft), others are satisfyingly original (Item Image allows you to bond with your magical item by tattooing its image onto your body), and others provide additional support for new elements introduced in this book (the variant bard has many feats here to benefit them including Intensify Song or Sustain Song).
Chapter Three introduces us to the eight Prestige Classes on offer. The Diplomancer is skilled at using their magic to influence people, relationships and negotiations. This is a subtle prestige class, well written and filling a valuable role, but one likely to appeal to a smaller minority of players. The Eldritch Warrior is a fighter-mage type. This is a class that has certainly been presented before by several different products, but perhaps not this well. This class can inscribe runes upon their armor, weapons or even their flesh to provide additional might in combat. The Embermage is more than a fire elementalist, his blood actually burns! This unique look at a tried and tested concept may burn you with his fingers, cut his own flesh and spill flames from the wound or breathe fire at you. Stabbing an Embermage is dangerous to all involved, due to his Burning Blood Backlash ability. Graven Ones are skin artists, able to inscribe themselves with magical tattoos. These spellcasters become almost living magical items covered head to toe in arcane art. Knights of the Chord are bardic knights dedicated to a loosely organized faith, the Guardian of Song (a new deity presented here). Mirror Masters are diviners, specialized in using mirrors for their potent scrying and dimension door abilities. Song Mages are the natural extension of the variant bard, able to sustain themselves with song alone, tap into divine magic with their music, and eventually summon a creature known as a clarity (effectively a ‘music elemental’). The final prestige class is the Starlight Mage reserved for the elves, this class draws special and unique powers from the night sky.
‘Chapter Four: Soul Magic’ is a short but powerful chapter introducing a new type of magic spell. Soul spells are intelligent, sentient spells that really want you to cast them. You can’t learn them or prepare them, but once they get inside you, you had better be prepared to cast it. These spells introduce a new and interesting concept that a clever DM could have a lot of fun with, they are presented in varying levels of power like any spells, but have the tendency to be very powerful indeed. Soul spells would be better used as the focus of a campaign, than simply within the campaign.
‘Chapter Five: Magic Locales’ presents a series of inter-connected locations ripe with opportunity to utilize the new characters, feats and spells in this book. As a platform to actually use the rules presented here this chapter is a really valuable addition to the whole. Beginning with The Nexus, a magical crossroads of portals and gateways to far-flung locations and complete with two very powerful guardians, this chapter takes us to seven different arcane locales. The locations are each written so they may be easily dropped into existing campaigns adding flavor and intrigue but without causing any disruption.
Chapter Six gives the variant bard 56 completely new spellsongs to pick and choose from and includes several more standard spells from the Core Rules which may be converted into spellsongs. Chapter Seven provides new spells for everyone else: Adept, Assassin, Bard, Blackguard, Cleric, Druid, Paladin, Ranger, Sorcerer and Wizard. This chapter is clearly the meat of the book with over 220 completely new and original spells. In a market as flooded with new spells as the d20 market is, this is no small feat, but Monte Cook pulls it off very well offering what could well serve as so complete a spell listing as to render the Core Spells almost redundant.
Chapter Eight is devoted to new magic items and these cover the full gambit from armor and weapons, potions, rings, rods, staves, wondrous items, magical vehicles, magic poisons and minor and major artifacts.
The final chapter gives an offering of new creatures, each with a magical bent, with which to test your player’s new abilities. Arcane Angels, Creatures of the Mist (artificial creatures given life by magic and shaped to appear as ethereal monsters), D’Stradi Demons, Eye Golems, Kallendine (insect-like guardian creatures), Magical Constructs, Sohr (flying whales), Thunderkin (flying snakes that live in electrical storms), and Unholy Riven (twisted mutations of once-good spellcasters) fill the line-up of new monsters.
An appendix of supplemental material including a ‘Random Rune Generator’ and an examination of how to use the new spells and creatures presented here in conjunction with the rules found in Monte Cook’s Arcana Unearthed completes the round-up and polishes off The Complete Book of Eldritch Might.
Critical Hit
This book is a beautiful book with extremely high production values, excellent layout and very good artwork. The spell chapter represents a spell collection as unique, original and versatile – not to mention numerous – as the Core Rules. Throughout the book, sidebars offer information and guidelines to aid the DM. The sidebars are written by the fictional author of the book ‘Malhavoc’ and add increased flavor to the overall product. They enhance the enjoyment of simply sitting and reading this book, too many rules books, even the good ones, fall into the dry trap of lecturing like a text book but Complete Eldritch is a joy to read.
Critical Fumble
If you already own the three individual Eldritch Might books, or even one or two of them you will be buying some content that you already own. The variant Bard and Sorcerer, although well written and designed, are ultimately going to be a matter of personal taste. Some players may simply prefer the more traditional versions as presented by the Core Rules.
Coup de Grace
There are several ‘complete wizard’-type products and books of spells, both old and new from various companies available on the market, but each should hold themselves up to the superior standard set by The Complete Book of Eldritch Might. The well-deserved winner of the 2004 EN World d20 System Gold Award for Best Revision/Update/Compilation should very quickly enjoy every-day use at the gaming table for any group that uses magic or magic-using characters of any kind and who is tired of the seeing one more magic missile, fireball or lightning spell cast.
This is quite simply the magic book by which all others should be judged.
Final Grade: A+
