The_Universe said:
I see that DMG II is out in stores today, and based on WotC's recent proclivity for releasing books in pairs, I thought perhaps D20 Apocalypse might have fallen into someone's greasy paws, as well.
Is it out? Is it good? Share!
I managed to get it, but not read it through. Based on what I've heard about d20 Past, this one seems to hit closer to the mark, not surprising since the Post-Apok genre has a narrower definition than "the entire past." But you will need the d20 Future book to make full use of it.
I've skipped the "how to make your own apocolypse" section. It covers stuff more experienced GMs can figure out, but is not spelled out. An example would be that in a Post Apok game, the TL level suggests the upper limit of what has been saved or salvaged compared to what is openly available. Laptops and the Internet may have been resurrected, but only in the highest tech towns and bases. Out in the badlands, you not going to find a Starbucks WiFi spot.
On the other hand, it's nice to have them spelled out for when you have the player who wants to take advantage of the literal wording of something.
We now finally have the complete rules for mutation, including how to give them as a XP rewards and expend them attribute bonuses. There is also a cool class
Evolutionary that now available.
The are three gameworlds that tag along for the ride. Two are pretty standard, being the Rapture and nuked world scenarios respectivley and compete with angels and mutants.
I really liked the third setting,
Plauge World , which is a alien invasion gone wrong for both sides. A desparate lobster/praying mantis species attacks us with it bio-gear and weapons only to have their manufauctured plagues put them and us back into the Iron Age. Two more twists are that the PCs are cryonaughts frozen for 300 years and this is also the "home" setting for the Evolutionary AdC.
There's other odd and ends like jury rigging your wheels Mad Max style and radiation hazards. The book also has a intellgent sidebar that reminds readers that the mutations are really comic book style and suggests how to run the more leathal, real effects of radation and mutation.