John Cooper reviews MMIII, and finds loads of mistakes
- Thread starter johnsemlak
- Start date
It's just your phrasing, Crothian. 
About 40% of the monsters in MM3 have at least one problem with their statblocks according to John Cooper's review.
However, the vast majority of the stats contained in those stat-blocks are correct. (Say 15 lines per creature, one error in those creatures, so in fact over 95% of the stats are correct...)
Incidentally, I've just been reading your review of Eight Kings and noticed your reaction to the DC 40 Search check of the poison gas trap. I was hoping I would be able to pass that one off onto Allan's initial conversion, but it looks like it was my decision.
DC 40 is by no means impossible for a 10th level rogue - just very, very difficult. (13 ranks, +2 Int, +5 goggles of minute seeing). Within the context of the original module, there'd be no thief in the group at all, making the DC somewhat irrelevant. Of course, it probably should be lower. I was far more concerned with making sure the creature stats were correct than with the trap stats - if there's a next time, I'll know better!
(Incidentally, the original Balu Eye was a 1 HD creature with a Death Gaze attack. I'm rather proud of the final conversion).
Cheers!
About 40% of the monsters in MM3 have at least one problem with their statblocks according to John Cooper's review.
However, the vast majority of the stats contained in those stat-blocks are correct. (Say 15 lines per creature, one error in those creatures, so in fact over 95% of the stats are correct...
)Incidentally, I've just been reading your review of Eight Kings and noticed your reaction to the DC 40 Search check of the poison gas trap. I was hoping I would be able to pass that one off onto Allan's initial conversion, but it looks like it was my decision.
DC 40 is by no means impossible for a 10th level rogue - just very, very difficult. (13 ranks, +2 Int, +5 goggles of minute seeing). Within the context of the original module, there'd be no thief in the group at all, making the DC somewhat irrelevant. Of course, it probably should be lower. I was far more concerned with making sure the creature stats were correct than with the trap stats - if there's a next time, I'll know better!
(Incidentally, the original Balu Eye was a 1 HD creature with a Death Gaze attack. I'm rather proud of the final conversion).
Cheers!
Crothian said:
The organization and scale of a company should have anything to do with expectations. Rather, it should be based on price, i.e. the thing I actually have to sacrafice to get the book. The other stuff i'm in no position to judge or really affect. In other words, I hold Wotc to a higher standard because their books are more expensive.
I've just found a couple of errors that John made:
"p. 140, Rejkar: The Full Attack line should include the Powerful Charge stats, as the Attack line does. "
"p. 174, Triceratops Topiary Guardian: Full Attack line doesn't include the Powerful Charge information like the Attack line does. "
When was the last time you could charge and make a full attack? Only with Pounce, which I don't think either of these has.
"The fact that phoelarches and phoeras always leave behind an egg after death (which becomes a brand-new phoera after 24 hours) means that the phoera population will always be rising and cannot normally ever decrease in numbers. Eventually, the world will be filled with these creatures. Somebody better start sterilizing them now, or start putting them into temporal stasis or petrifying as many of them as they can!"
The entry says this happens if the egg survives. The egg will often be destroyed, and no new phoera will emerge.
Cheers!
"p. 140, Rejkar: The Full Attack line should include the Powerful Charge stats, as the Attack line does. "
"p. 174, Triceratops Topiary Guardian: Full Attack line doesn't include the Powerful Charge information like the Attack line does. "
When was the last time you could charge and make a full attack? Only with Pounce, which I don't think either of these has.
"The fact that phoelarches and phoeras always leave behind an egg after death (which becomes a brand-new phoera after 24 hours) means that the phoera population will always be rising and cannot normally ever decrease in numbers. Eventually, the world will be filled with these creatures. Somebody better start sterilizing them now, or start putting them into temporal stasis or petrifying as many of them as they can!"
The entry says this happens if the egg survives. The egg will often be destroyed, and no new phoera will emerge.
Cheers!
johnsemlak
First Post
Well, I'd say the majority of John C's corrections are 'correct'
John C's reviews may seem nitpicky but this is his standard review style and he always reviews books in this manner. He probably picked up the habit of pointing out errors from reviewing Mongoose products
Even if you don't think the errors that he points out are significant, I think you can be nothing but thankful for all the work he puts in to pointing them out--they make one very useful list of errata.
As for the title 'legendary' in my first post, well, all such words (famous, well-known) are relative of course. I think there is a small circle of people who read reviews often and are very familiar with John Coopers reviews. In that circle he is very well known for his ability to spot errors.
John C's reviews may seem nitpicky but this is his standard review style and he always reviews books in this manner. He probably picked up the habit of pointing out errors from reviewing Mongoose products
Even if you don't think the errors that he points out are significant, I think you can be nothing but thankful for all the work he puts in to pointing them out--they make one very useful list of errata.
As for the title 'legendary' in my first post, well, all such words (famous, well-known) are relative of course. I think there is a small circle of people who read reviews often and are very familiar with John Coopers reviews. In that circle he is very well known for his ability to spot errors.
diaglo
Adventurer
Non-human Resources said:
what do you consider fast?
at Gen Con last year ideas for MMIII were already in the works. rumors of the MMIII were rampant then.
some of the rumors i heard had work submitted months ago. it was the editing process that delayed the release of the book this year.
it is a shame there are so many mistakes. but i'll just agree with Joshua Dyal and Crothian.
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