I Have No Idea If It's Any Good Yet

Angel Tarragon · Dec 16, 2006

Theron said:
I picked up a copy yesterday, so you might want to keep your eyes open for it.

That is just the date it is supposed to be released. Doesn't mean you won't be able to find it earlier/sooner.

GeorgeFields · Dec 16, 2006

Kishin said:
There can be only one band for this: Manowar.

The Kings of Metal

HELLS YEAH!

Theron said:
Don't diss Rhapsody, man. I'll sic the world's biggest seven year old Rhapsody fan on you.

(Seriously, my kid adores them.)

I was thinking a mix of Rhapsody, Hammerfall, Blind Guardian, and Dragonforce, with a Manowar chaser.

Except for Rhapsody, you've named most of my favorite bands here. Perhaps I'll check them out.

FnordBear · Dec 16, 2006

Ill be the odd man out and listen to Rob Zombie...on 12!

*ear drums bleeding*

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD BAND!

Theron · Dec 16, 2006

GeoFFields said:
Except for Rhapsody, you've named most of my favorite bands here. Perhaps I'll check them out.

If you're talking about checking out Rhapsody, or as they're now known, Rhapsody of Fire, you need to be aware of a few things:

They're incredible musicians. Luca Turulli may be the best guitarist in metal, and that's saying a lot.

You will crack up over their lyrics. A lot. Especially on their earlier stuff. They're Italian, but they perform in English, and some of their pronunciation is...interesting. F'rinstance, they pronounce "Emerald Sword" "Eem-er-ahld sWARd." And their early narrative bits were laughable. But they've gotten Christopher Lee to do stuff on their last few albums, which lends a certain gravitas to the proceedings. Nonetheless, they are kind of dorky. No, make that a LOT dorky. They've done over a half-dozen albums telling the epic tale of one fantasy world and even have a map of it up on their website.

For a quick introduction, I recommend the following sites:

Rhapsody of Fire's Myspace Page

Their official website

Full-length video for "Unholy Warcry" (With lots of Christopher Lee. Also, keyboards in the woods!)

"Unholier Warcry", a parody of the above, because if you can't laugh at metal once in a while, you're taking life way too serious.

Drawmack · Dec 16, 2006

Theron said:
Full-length video for "Unholy Warcry" (With lots of Christopher Lee. Also, keyboards in the woods!)

Let me say up-front that I like them a-lot, so what follows is in no way intended to disparage.

If you took winger, megadeth, & J.R.R. Tolkien put them into a blender, baked a soufflé and searved with with a side dish of Bach you would get these guys.

The music is very interesting, they use some strange keys.

The guitar solo, while requireing a very high degree of musicianship to play does sound kind of korny. It is almost like a carosel on speed - I like it.

The drummer is heavily influenced by eighties speed metal. The basist plays like a cross between Cliff Burton and Lemmy (probably the two best basists ever to play metal). This makes the rhythm section one of the strongest I have ever heard in a metal band.

All in all the music is phenominal - on the other hand, they should probably release an insturmental album. Maybe they should hook up with Jim Steinman (Meatloaf's composer) that would probably create an amazing album.

Ciaran · Dec 16, 2006

Theron said:
I picked up a copy yesterday, so you might want to keep your eyes open for it.

So, what's it about?

Theron · Dec 16, 2006

Ciaran said:
So, what's it about?

So far, I've read the Player's Guide (a short little booklet) and the background part of the DM's Guide, so I've got a basic overview of the setting, if not the adventures themselves.

Warning: Potential Minor Spoilers. But I'll keep them minor and generic.

The backstory is that centuries ago, a demon prince attempted a ritual that would exchange his palace in the Abyss for a plot of real estate on the Prime Material plane. But the forces of good got wind of it and were ready when the unholy citadel appeared. A big battle transpired, and ultimately, the magics holding the demon's fortress on the Prime failed, causing a big boom.

That was about 800 years ago and hardly anyone remembers it, until the PCs come along and find a piece of the citadel that got left behind. Adventure ensues.

From my perspective, I'm really happy with what I've read so far. The setting is intentionally generic enough to drop into any setting without too much trouble, but it's also fleshed out enough that someone like myself, who's looking for a low-prep campaign to run for a half dozen levels or so, can pretty much run it straight of the box without having to figure out how it fits into an established world. It's designed to take the PCs from 1st to 7th level or so, but there's enough additional stuff going on with the setting to support an established campaign beyond that.

It's not quite as "F-ing Metal!" as the title, but it's pretty solid stuff, and one can always add more black leather and Aqua-net.

Personally, I'm considering using it as a new campaign for some folks outside of my usual gaming group. Despite my many years of RPGing, I've only played D&D on a regular basis for the past four months or so. While I tried DMing 3.x stuff in the past, I've never felt as comfortable with the rules as I believe a GM/DM/Ref/Whatever should be. The thing I like about what I've seen in this product is that it seems to be aimed at the less experienced DM without operating at the level of the Basic Set.

Emirikol · Dec 16, 2006

Indecisive GAMING Customer: They say so much, but they never tell you if it's any good... are either one of these any good?
[Randal ignores her]
Randal Graves: What?
Indecisive gaming Customer: Are either one of these any good?
Randal Graves: I don't play games. [Obviously lying]
Indecisive gaming Customer: Well, have you heard anything about either one of them?
Randal Graves: I find it's best to stay out of other people's affairs.
Indecisive Customer: You mean you've haven't heard anybody say anything about either one of these?
Randal Graves: Nope.
Indecisive Customer: [Turns around, then shows Randal the same movies] Well, what about these two?
Randal Graves: Oh, they suck.
Indecisive Customer: These are the same two adventures! You weren't paying any attention!
Randal Graves: No, I wasn't.
Indecisive Customer: I don't think your manager would appreciate...
Randal Graves: I don't appreciate your ruse, ma'am.
Indecisive Customer: I beg your pardon?
Randal Graves: Your ruse; your cunning attempt to trick me.
IndecisiveCustomer: I was only pointing out that you weren't paying any attention to what I was saying!
Randal Graves: And, I hope it feels good.
Indecisive Customer: You hope WHAT feels good?
Randal Graves: I hope it feels so good to be right. There's nothing more exhilarating than pointing out the shortcomings of others, is there?
Indecisive Customer: Well, this is the last time I buy adventures here!
Randal Graves: You'll be missed.
Indecisive Customer: Screw you!
[leaves]
Randal Graves: [runs to the door] Hey! You're not allowed to buy stuff here anymore!

JustKim · Dec 17, 2006

I found a copy today, and I like the format a lot. It has the components of the old TSR boxed set adventures, but by removing the box itself they managed to make it less expensive than the boxed sets were 10 years ago.
It says that it's "the launchpad for a new D&D campaign", and looking through the plot and dungeon politics I think that line suggests it's designed for players new to the game. Looking at one of the dungeons, in particular, I see a collection of monsters living in pretty close quarters that do not really click for me as a gamer of many years. There seems to be a bad guy/good guy mentality going on, including two PHB2 affiliations that are pretty plainly "the heroes" and "the antiheroes".
Even though it's simplistic, it's a very high-quality product. The cover is a folder for keeping all your booklets and notes, and on the inside are extensive encounter tables for all the areas described in the 500 mile Valley of Obelisks where the adventure takes place. Most of the booklets are occupied by frequent use of encounter areas (Like the ones in Ravenloft). The details are certainly there if you want to make the adventure more complicated.

Considering that I just paid $15 for Scourge of the Howling Horde, a product of this magnitude for $25 is a bargain. I hope they do some more in the same format.