Old Fezziwig
this is a low-flying panic attack
A Dozen Documents and Papers is a brief, 7-page PDF by Philip Reed of Ronin Arts that features documents (and papers) DMs can use as treasure. This PDF has been released in a landscape format, which makes it very easy to read, and has a very clean, sharp look. Gamers that like to print out their PDF accessories may be a little bit frustrated with the use of color, as the left margin of each page is bright red as well as some of the text (for instance, headers in the sidebars). This problem seems to have been addressed, however, in more recent similar products from Ronin Arts, as newer items in the series have no color and a much different layout. Finally, the work itself is largely free from typographical errors, save for the occasional misspelling or substitution (such as "be" for "he" in the sidebar on the Roshanta Trading Company).
The PDF essentially has one main part, the list of documents, and uses a number of sidebars to explain things in further detail. I liked the sidebars, which detailed the benefits of membership in the Roshanta Trading Company, some new modifiers for uses of the forgery skill, details on the Profession (Stock-Jobber), and a great little contextual sidebar on chocolate houses and the history of real world chocolate (included in a small bonus section that details Smithfield's Chocolate House). All of these are integrated well with the main text, appearing in appropriate, but not intrusive spaces.
As for the content, Reed presents DMs with a number of different types of documents to use as treasure and carefully details each one, including appearance, appraisal information, value, and special rules. Perhaps the best parts of each listing are the value and special rules sections, which often introduce possible adventure hooks and situations or different ways to use the document. For example, the letters of transit ([Peter Lorre]"Rick, because you despise me, you are the only one I can trust."[/Peter Lorre]) lists the value as fluctuating, depending on whether or not the borders of the countries are closed or open, an idea that is then expanded upon in the section on special rules (which mechanically, as a rules section, does suggest a skill to use when trying to use someone else's letters of transit). The nice thing about these treasures (although it could be a bit tiresome if they're overused) is the fact that they often demand plot hooks to redeem their value. To cash the mercenary payments voucher, the PCs would have to find and meet the paymaster of the Steel Shields, which could in turn dovetail into a situation where the paymaster might need proof that the money belongs to them (or not). At any rate, the items present themselves as treasure that should serve to bring PCs deeper into the world of the campaign, as they, by their nature, speak to that world beyond.
Finally, in an interesting little coda, we get Smithfield's Chocolate House, a small business that could be dropped into a campaign. DMs with campaigns in more cosmopolitan sections of their campaign world could find this to be an interesting substitute to a tavern or inn. For instance, the cities of the Sword Coast could get their chocolate from Maztica, with their nobles congregating in chocolate houses to discuss city politics and business. It may not be for everyone, and it doesn't necessarily fit in particularly well with this PDF, but I liked it and thought that it could see some use in one of my games.
On the whole, A Dozen Documents and Papers fills a neat and interesting niche, presenting useful treasures to DMs that may be sick of giving out gold and jewels.
The PDF essentially has one main part, the list of documents, and uses a number of sidebars to explain things in further detail. I liked the sidebars, which detailed the benefits of membership in the Roshanta Trading Company, some new modifiers for uses of the forgery skill, details on the Profession (Stock-Jobber), and a great little contextual sidebar on chocolate houses and the history of real world chocolate (included in a small bonus section that details Smithfield's Chocolate House). All of these are integrated well with the main text, appearing in appropriate, but not intrusive spaces.
As for the content, Reed presents DMs with a number of different types of documents to use as treasure and carefully details each one, including appearance, appraisal information, value, and special rules. Perhaps the best parts of each listing are the value and special rules sections, which often introduce possible adventure hooks and situations or different ways to use the document. For example, the letters of transit ([Peter Lorre]"Rick, because you despise me, you are the only one I can trust."[/Peter Lorre]) lists the value as fluctuating, depending on whether or not the borders of the countries are closed or open, an idea that is then expanded upon in the section on special rules (which mechanically, as a rules section, does suggest a skill to use when trying to use someone else's letters of transit). The nice thing about these treasures (although it could be a bit tiresome if they're overused) is the fact that they often demand plot hooks to redeem their value. To cash the mercenary payments voucher, the PCs would have to find and meet the paymaster of the Steel Shields, which could in turn dovetail into a situation where the paymaster might need proof that the money belongs to them (or not). At any rate, the items present themselves as treasure that should serve to bring PCs deeper into the world of the campaign, as they, by their nature, speak to that world beyond.
Finally, in an interesting little coda, we get Smithfield's Chocolate House, a small business that could be dropped into a campaign. DMs with campaigns in more cosmopolitan sections of their campaign world could find this to be an interesting substitute to a tavern or inn. For instance, the cities of the Sword Coast could get their chocolate from Maztica, with their nobles congregating in chocolate houses to discuss city politics and business. It may not be for everyone, and it doesn't necessarily fit in particularly well with this PDF, but I liked it and thought that it could see some use in one of my games.
On the whole, A Dozen Documents and Papers fills a neat and interesting niche, presenting useful treasures to DMs that may be sick of giving out gold and jewels.
