DM Product Review and Advice

Nightcloak

First Post
wolf70 said:
IB = International Baccalaureate

It is a high school diploma program based on European models. It is an intensive and grueling program that is internationally based and recognized and carries the potential of college credit. It is rigorous and involves a core curriculum and electives above and beyond a standard high school diploma.

DM

Interesting. I never knew such a program existed.
 

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Complete

Yo,

I have seen and sort of read Complete Divine....that actually lloks pretty good, other rumors have established that Complete Adventurer is "really cool".....The "Lord of Madness" is a nicely done book, (dont own) It has some nice details to make some Aberations your Heavys in a developing campaign, or long story arc...I tink of it as a nice "Desk Reference" on Aberations. If you are a "Mind Flayer Freak" or just love Beholders (who doenst?) It is a good purchase...There are some Nifty Prestige Classes too... If I had the bucks Id buy it.

:(
 

lonesoldier

First Post
Yo [offensive word]

I'll be reviewing "Complete Adventurer: A Guide to All Skillful Characters of All Classes" tonight!

First we start with the new base classes:
Ninja, Scout, Spellthief.

My D&D group used all three in one campaign. Not only are they really kewl (with kewl mechanics), they are actually useful in a fight! The ninja, as one might expect is the best. With his slick ninja moves, invisibilty and sudden strike (like sneak attack, more NINJA-FUL!!) he is the master of striking from the shadows. phear.

The scout is just what it's name implies. This stealthy skirmisher is a cross between the rouge and ranger, with amazing results.

The spellthief actually steals spell from casters! They also have trapfinding and sneak attack!

Prestige Classes:
I won't go too deep into this, but there is a wide variety of "PrC"s that accomadates everything from assassins to Inquisitors. Good stuff all around.

Skills:
This is the guide to skillful characters, as such many skills have been expanded. Craft (Poisonmaking), Diplomacy to haggle down prices and the more urban usage of Hide are very appealing!

Feats:
Okay, but not something to buy the book for. (Unlike the ninja class!!!) Some memorable feats are Oversized two weapon fighting (Allowing to use non-light weapons offhand without hideous penalties) and Devoted (blank) and Ascetic (Blank) series. The first applies to paladins and the second to monks, they allow them to specialize with other classes. So monks with the Ascetic Rouge are more sneaky and so forth. Wild and Bardic music feats finish the section, giving druids and bards more choices, (and making them more appealing than they currently are)

Tool and Equipment:
Lots of new weapons, items and equipment. Things like theives tools that work at a 5ft range (traps are sometimes rendered ineffective), and weapons like the barbed dagger or elven quickblade stay in my memory and always have a place in my character's sheath.

Spells:
Good selection, I'm not much of a spellcasting person, but there are kewl new spells. Not something to buy the book for (Complete Arcane for that).

Organizations:
Offers some good premade ones for plot hooks and teaches you to make your own. A little useless, but at times (when you need to make one quickly) useful.

Summation:
I believe that this is the best complete book. But that's just me.
NINJAS!
 
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DarrenGMiller

First Post
SyrinxNymph said:
So....it's like AP credit, except better?

Its like AP credit, except different.

The "better" part is that there is a whole diploma program instead of just an assortment of classes. There are core requirements that are not part of standard high school requirements, such as Theory of Knowledge and there is a requirement of Creativity, Action and Service, as well as an extended essay. There are also science, math, English, foreign language classes and electives such as visual art, music and ITGS (an information technology survey).

That said, it is tough on students who are not excellent time managers.

DM
 

SyrinxNymph

First Post
Kewl.

A suggestion on saving money (obvious, but I missed it..):
Go and check at the local book stores for a used section. I finally got coerced into buying a DMG and found a used one at a store here, in perfect condition, for 16 bucks. It'll save you the Ebay shipping.

Just my little spiel for the day.
 

SyrinxNymph said:
Kewl.

A suggestion on saving money (obvious, but I missed it..):
Go and check at the local book stores for a used section. I finally got coerced into buying a DMG and found a used one at a store here, in perfect condition, for 16 bucks. It'll save you the Ebay shipping.

Just my little spiel for the day.
ACK!!!!

At the risk of sounding like a snob, I can't imagine buying a D&D book used. Then again, I'll buy Champions of Ruin before worrying about my car payment, so... OK, so I'm weird :D .
 

SyrinxNymph

First Post
Lol. Yeah, I can see where you're coming from. I just don't see the point of paying the extra 20-something bucks when you can get it, in the same condition, for that much cheaper.
 

Well, as usual, I have sated my compulsive lust to purchase the latest Forgotten Realms tome (Champions of Ruin) and ravenously devour it multiple times. After the third good skim (I read books in skims. It takes longer, but I retain more, so go figure :) ), I can positively say this book reaffirms my belief that no FR product could possibly suck.

The three new races look great, particularly the new Extaminaar (essentially quasi-yuan-ti from House Extaminos of Hlondeth), which are just the thing for an evil Yuan-ti campaign I've been thinking about.

The PrCs look useful and well balanced, but nothing yet screams USE ME!!!!

The feats revamp some of the Vile feats from BoVD, and introduce some new initiate feats (which I just can't get enough of. They've even got one for Varae! Joy!). Node feats are re-introduced to go along with two new types of nodes: Shadow Weave, and Evil nodes.

My personal favorite chapters are the ones detailing various evil groups (like the Eldreth Veluuthra and the Cult of the Dragon that we touched upon in Lords of Darkness, but really merited a more thorough examination) and the chapter on the Elder Evils.

What really sets the book apart is that it does what the Book of Vile Darkness couldn't: It shows evil PCs as playable characters who don't just run amok slaughtering allies and townsfolk willy-nilly. Yes, your PC can be evil, but he doesn't have to be an idiot about it.

All-in-all, a good read and yet another great FR product. I'm hoping that I can get the whole book asimilated before Waterdeep hits shelves next month. If that book is anything like Serpent Kingdoms or The Shining South books, I'm going to be a very happy man :D
 

Urgh!!!!..Champions Of Ruin!

:)

I just cracked the cover at the store......I was strong and I did refrain...

"be strong be strong!'

Guiding Priciple: "Anything in those stone grey covers is GOLD!".

Why does the FR product blow Core Greyhawk product out of the water?

Why wouldnt all the WOTC stuff be of this calibre?
 


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