[D&D] Your favorite hardbacks

Really hard question as my top five switch with what I'm actually doing. I noticed that Psion's list included a lot of material for planar campaigns. Other's I noticed had a lot of OGL goods like Conan or Mutants & Masterminds. While I enjoy those games, and Grim Tales for instance, my actual play value of them vs core d20/D&D, is minimal so despite my enjoyment of them, I doubt they'd rank as top five books for me.

In no order then...

1. Complete Book of Eldritch Might: I don't feel that it did enough to update Monte's version of the bard or his alternative version of the sorcerer, but I do use this book a lot. If I kept my old books, this one probably wouldn't be here.

2. Unearthed Arcana: Action Point? Check. Bloodlines? Check. Racial Paragon? Check. Options for Honor and Reputation if PC's want them? Check. Lots of other stuff that may make it into my campaign one day? Check.

3. Forgotten Realms Campaign Guide: Sure, the Player's Guide has a lot of stuff updated to 3.5 but the Campaign Guide is still a great book with a lot of utility to it and right now, I'm still playing a FR game so...

4. Black Company: This is purely a fans pick. I enjoy the Black Company. I trust Green Ronin. I'm in the middle of reading it and it hasn't let me down so far.

5. Advanced Bestiary: If it wasn't hardcovers, Dexlue Book of Template might be here. See, if we already assume that the Monster Manual is a given and I still need monsters, this sucker can give me thousands of options.

Not saying that other books like the Book of the Righteous or Book of Fiends aren't up there, but in terms of what I've been using, outside of #4, this is a good list of my game.
 

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No particular order:

Manual of the Planes
Dragonlance: War of the Lance
Complete Book of Eldritch Might
Beyond Countless Doorways
Draconomicon
 

I'm getting the most bang for my buck from...
Expanded Psionics Handbook
Fiend Folio
Draconomicon
Monster Manual III
Monster Manual II

I love Green Ronin's Book of Fiends and Book of the Righteous and Necromancer's Tome of Horrorsand ToH II but I don't get as much use out of them. BotR came out after I had already developed the pantheon for my game. I should get more use out of Book of Fiends and both Tomes of Horror than I do. Part of the problem might be that I often don't have minis that represent some of the new monsters in these books.

I get pretty regular minor use out of some of the Wotc splatbooks (both old and new), but I'm not very wowed by them, so I certainly wouldn't call them favorites. I also really like Manual of the Planes but haven't gone planar so haven't used it in play.
 

JoeGKushner said:
Really hard question as my top five switch with what I'm actually doing. I noticed that Psion's list included a lot of material for planar campaigns.

I don't think I could deny that what I am actually using is a direct antecedant to my list. But then, I wasn't making a general assertion of value just personal favorites. Books I actually get frequent use out says a bit about them.

Then again, I hammered out that list in the middle of playing video games with my daughter last night, so I didn't exactly put an excruciating level of thought into it. :)
 
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Psion said:
Then again, I hammered out that list in the middle of playing video games with my daughter last night, so I didn't exactly put an excruciating level of thought into it. :)

that sounds like the gamers of today. :p
 

I'd have to say, in no particular order:

1. Manual of the Planes
2. Tome of Horrors
3. Fiend Folio
4. Complete Book of Eldritch Might
5. Oriental Adventures

Honorable Mention (and why they didn't made the cut):
Draconomicon -- it is missing the Amber and Yellow dragons.
Psionics Handbook -- the psionic powers of the Expanded version are better.
Book of Vile Darkness -- no daemons ???
Races of Faerûn -- Contains Dennis Cramer (a.k.a. Crabapple) art.
 



Going w/ D+D/D20 only:

World's Largest Dungeon
Tome of Horrors
Midnight (Core book, though the whole line is excellent.)
Lone Wolf
Draconomicon

Honorable mentions to:
Beyond Countless Doorways
Expanded Psionics Handbook
Dragonlance; War of the Lance
 


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