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ShortQuests -- individual adventure modules! An all-new collection of digest-sized D&D adventures designed to plug in to your game.

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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Messageboard Golem" data-source="post: 2009885" data-attributes="member: 18387">By Bruce Boughner, Staff Reviewer d20 Magazine Rack, and co-host of Mortality RadioSizing Up the TargetForgotten Heroes: Paladin is a 62-page soft cover accessory published by Malladin’s Gate Press. Nigel McClelland and Ben Redmond are the authors of this focused class supplement, which normally retails for $5.00. First BloodA book based solely on the Paladin character class is a boon for any player wanting to improve their holy crusader. There are quite a number of crunchy bits for the crusading player to give spice and variety to their characters. Narrative opens each chapter, setting the tone for the topic of discussion. As per usual, the first chapter deals in sub-classes and their requirements. The Crusader, Defender, Horse Knight, Lord and Warrior Monk are offered. The Crusader is nothing new, but they do offer the twist of given the Crusader a favored enemy like a ranger. The Defender is more along the lines of a paladin that most characters play; he travels from town to town, defending the meek and helpless. The same holds true for the Horse Knight, simply a paladin with his warhorse class. The Lord class is derived from what a paladin should grow into, a respected and capable leader. This class should be a Prestige class in my opinion, not an opening sub-class. And the Warrior Monk class is more than a bit redundant. This sub-class should be better featured in a monk-focused work. More emphasis is spent on the prestige classes, 14 of them. Ranging from the Batman-like Avenger to the Lancelot reminiscent Chevalier to the divinely-inspired Devout, the prestige classes are the better of the selection. Each one plays to an archetype the player can identify with. Specialist in horsed combat like the Holy Dragoon or the Avenger-like Justicar (I found them to be similar enough to be redundant of each other, their descriptions are nearly identical and repetitive) to the gun-toting Musketeer. The classes do find an area of focus and development. A short list of old skills with new uses opens the third chapter, skills like riding, healing and diplomacy are given some new quirks with the divine bent. Then the Methods of the Just chapter move into new Feats. Feats such as Battle Cry: Fear and Divine Empower (like a Bless spell) give new power to the warriors of justice. A new feat, Test of Faith gives what I think is probably the most unique and interesting feat of the whole book. Powers of the Faithful moves the player into a paladin’s divine spells. The authors start with a spell list and draw from the Player’s Handbook and S&S’s Relics and Rituals for their basic list, adding their new prayers into this mix. Divine Warding, a spell to ward against evil forces and Exorcize the Damned are good examples of the quality of spells in the chapter. The Paladins are given a new spell-like ability, the Smite. Holy, Cursed, Redemption, Retribution and Valor Smites are given with various effects. Divine Channeling feats with spell-like effects are also described. Enhancing Weapons and Vow Quests are described in detail. Paladins then move into the Dm’s section now. It mirrors the player’s portion of the book following the same items and adding insight for playability. The book wraps up with a multi-page Paladin player character sheet. Critical HitsI have yet to meet someone who could really play a paladin and stay adhered to the precepts of the character itself, this book offers a number of ideas that could be helpful to improving this character to play. Some of the classes here are well thought out. The Musketeer as a Paladin sub-class surely should have come up before now but the outtake on this was pretty cool. The move to give a divinely, Joan of Arcish set of powers/feats/skills really sets the character up as a divine instrument. Coup de GraceForgotten Heroes: Paladins is a great resource for someone wanting to play the divine crusader. One point nearly everyone overlooks when playing a Paladin is that theses are not clerics with fighter skills, rather they are divinely empowered warriors with less of an ecclesiastical leaning to that of a warrior whose godly-inspired life is to right wrong with the power of their faith driving them rather than just a high strength rating.To see the graded evaluation of this product, go to The Critic's Corner at <a href="http://www.d20zines.com" target="_blank">www.d20zines.com.</a></blockquote>

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