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Enchanted Trinkets Complete--a hardcover book containing over 500 magic items for your D&D games!

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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Messageboard Golem" data-source="post: 2010182" data-attributes="member: 18387">By Glenn Dean, Staff Reviewer d20 Magazine RackSizing Up the TargetEncyclopaedia Arcane: Constructs is written by Alejandro Melchor and published by Mongoose Publishing. Subtitled “It is Alive!”, this 64-page softcover sourcebook retails for $14.95.First BloodThe fourth book in Mongoose’s Encyclopaedia Arcane series, Encyclopaedia Arcane: Constructs is designed to provide players and Games Masters all the information they need to design and build magical constructs for their d20 fantasy game: golems, automata, and simulacra. If you’ve ever wanted Frankenstein to be your character’s sidekick, or wanted to confront your players with an evil Geppeto and his fiendish creation Pinnochio, you may find the materials, methods, and rituals described in this supplement useful.Fantasy fiction is full of the strange and fearsome magical creations that great wizards – and the occasional divine spellcaster -- have created in their labs, but the exact mechanics of this creation process has never been divulged in core gaming material. Constructs lays out the details of different creation rituals with their magical (and game mechanic) requirements, along with the important elements of the magical laboratory required for a d20 character or NPC to create a magical creature. The focus is on wizards, but the mechanics could be easily adapted to any other type of spellcaster.A magical construct is created using a Construction Point (CP) mechanic. The base construct’s type and size determines its base CP cost of creation; this CP is adjusted as the construct is modified by adding feats, abilities, or materials, or reduced in cost by compensating with deficiencies (eliminating base abilities, handicapping, and the like). The final CP cost for the construct is then converted by a simple formula into an experience point requirement and a cost in gold pieces, and then the appropriate ritual can begin to infuse the creation with life.Three types of constructs are examined in detail: golems, automata, and simulacra (a fourth type, puppets, is mentioned but conspicuously absent from the text). Golems are semi-autonomous creations infused with elemental spirits. Constructs provides the base statistics and creation mechanics for twelve types of golems: Wood, Bone, Shell, Obsidian, Crystal, Diamond, Shard, Gold, Steel, Bronze, Mithral, and Adamantine. Automata are created and programmed for a specific purpose – like the Wilderness Scout, Animal Companion, or Assassin. Simulacra are simulations of human form, ranging from the rough Homunculus to a better-than-human Eidolon.Constructs also provides a host of construct-specific feats, deficiencies, special weapons, and special abilities that may be incorporated into the creation. Costs and methods of construct repair and reactivation are covered. There is also a special GM section, “Do Golems Dream of Elemental Sheep?”, which discusses the uses and applications of various magical constructs in the campaign.Critical HitsConstructs is a dual-purpose tool. It can provide the player with some useful ideas and game mechanics to customize his wizard character, while at the same time providing the Games Master will and ability not only to create unique NPCs but also interesting foes for his players. Constructs works directly with the base game mechanics – no special feats or skills required here – and is filled with excellent examples of how the process works. It is quite easy to price and build a reasonable construct, and the prices are high enough that only the highest-level characters will be running around with shield guardian protectors.Critical MissesConstructs is another of the Encyclopaedia Arcane series that could really be expanded further – there are certainly lots more base types of golems, for instance, that need base cost tables. Clay, Earth, Iron, and Flesh golems are conspicuously absent (though this may be due to Open Game License issues). The absence of the puppet, mentioned in the introduction, is also distressing – one wonders if there is more material out there that could make a worthwhile expansion to this supplement.Coup de GraceEncyclopaedia Arcane: Constructs provides its game mechanics as Open Content, though all the rest of its names and text are product identity. It provides a simple and elegant system for the creation of magical constructs that works seamlessly with the core rules system, though there are some distressing absences in the construct list. Player and GMs alike can find some fun ideas that will balance well with their campaign in these pages.To see the graded evaluation of this product and to leave comments that the reviewer will respond to, go to Fast Tracks at <a href="http://www.d20zines.com/html/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=index&catid=&topic=4" target="_blank">www.d20zines.com.</a></blockquote>

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