Keeper of Secrets
First Post
Upon hearing that Wizards of the Coast was putting out Libris Mortis, I was very excited. They did such a great job with the Draconomicon that I had high hopes for Libris, as it is a book of the undead, an extremely broad category of creatures in fantasy role playing. I fully intended to take complex and detailed notes for this review but there was a problem; I loved the book so much, that I ended up reading the whole thing non-stop and pretty much forgot to take notes. If this ends up being a poorly written review, then blame Wizards and authors Andy Collins and Bruce R. Cordell because they did such a great job of distracting me. To say that this might be the new definitive book on the undead may be an understatement as it certainly sets the standard for the way these types of books should be done.
The book is divided into seven chapters, ranging from an introductory chapter on the undead and going from there to prestige classes, spells, equipment, monsters and campaigns. Every chapter was a useful to me (and most likely useful to all GMs). Whereas the information in the book is probably geared towards GMs, even players can get some entertainment from reading the book. If a player can convince the GM to allow using some of the undead oriented prestige classes, then even better.
Before I get into the book, chapter by chapter, I would like to point out how much I really enjoyed the internal artwork, especially Thomas Baxa’s and Brian Snoddy’s. Baxa and Snoddy have some of the most eerie and chilling I have seen in a WotC book. The interior art does a wonderful job of conjuring up the kinds of images that are perfect for the kind of book the authors wanted to create. It is wonderful when a gaming book has the writing and the art work so well together. Pay particular attention to Baxa’s True Necromancer and his Plague Blight and watch for Snoddy’s Master of Shrouds and his Death’s Chosen.
The introductory chapter does a great job of setting the tone for the rest of the book. Since Libris is essentially a treatise on the undead it is necessary to make sure the reader understands where the authors are going. Details on undead psychology, physiology and the origins of the ‘unlife’ made for a nice start. I was especially fond of the descriptions of the various undead ‘spawn’ (such as the difference between when an undead causes someone to rise as an equal and as a slave).
The reader is also treated to undead gods. The reader is reintroduced to Nerull and Orcus and how they are viewed by followers and undead, but we are shown some new ones (well, they were new to me). Afflux, Doesain and Evening Glory round out a few more deities for the book and I was impressed by the creativity involved. Overall, I was very pleased by the first chapter and I think it did a great job of setting the tone for the rest of the book.
Following the introductory chapter is a chapter on character options, including feats and descriptions on how to introduce undead as player characters. I admit that when I first saw this, I was suspicious and was ready to write a huge rant on the direction or the balance involved with using undead as player characters (taking a nasty swipe at a certain other role playing game) but I was won over by the authors.
The real selling point was the system of drawbacks and benefits that was set up to make playing an undead character kind of a challenge and definitely interesting. After reading through it, I was impressed by the set up and the game balance issues I had were alleviated, but after reading it I did feel that it would work best if the entire party of adventurers played the ranks of the undead rather than one player having an undead character and the rest being standard characters. But it seemed like an interesting departure from the normal campaign system to allow a player to have an undead character. The option of playing a ghoul, vampire, mummy or wight is really an exciting and unique opportunity. In fact it made me think how it would be fun to do a mini-campaign with the PCs playing undead characters.
The chapter detailing prestige classes was probably the one that initially made me the most suspicious. It seems that prestige classes are a growing controversy in the gaming community with just about every publication having some kind of prestige class worked in somewhere. But the prestige classes in Libris are simply wonderful. Admittedly, most of them are geared towards evil characters and, as a result, are more likely to be used in the hands of the GM. However, there are some that would be excellent PC classes, such as the Master of Radiance, an individual who can channel pure positive energy (and as such, quite a bane to the undead community). The Sacred Purifier is a hardcore undead combatant, specializing in turning and battling forces of darkness. My personal favorite is an evil prestige class; the Master of Shrouds which is a sinister spell caster who seizes undead to do his bidding. This is the kind of class that could be used for an ultimate villain in a campaign. I was also impressed by the prestige classes designed specifically for undead creatures, such as the Lurking Terror, Master Vampire and Tomb Warden. Obviously, these could be used as a template for some undead villains and adding some detail and excitement to vampires, mummies, and so on.
The next chapter deals with spells. Some of the spells are ones that are used by undead (and their ilk) and the rest deal with fighting against the undead. Overall, I was impressed by the kinds of spells found in Libris. Normally, when I see huge spell lists in a book, I am let down because more often than not the spells seem to be slight variations of other spells or are dubious in the way they work. The spells in Libris work well and are great additions to the game, truly acting as enhancements rather than detriments.
What book on the undead would be complete without a section on some new monsters? Libris delivers the reader some fascinating and unusual creatures that will add some new flavor to any campaign. Of the close to 50 creatures that are detailed in the book, there is certainly something for everyone. A few of my personal favorites are the Brian in a Jar (an undead brain using mental powers), the Evolved Undead (an ancient evil with the ability to control negative plane energy), the Forsaken Shell (a disgusting husk of flesh that crawls along the floor, looking for victims), the Necropolitan (a wealthy and depraved member of the elite class that has voluntarily embraced unlife), and the Wheep (undead servants that act as messengers and agents of more powerful undead creatures). Of course, these were just my favorite creatures and there were numerous other creatures that will impress the reader, especially if the GM is looking for dark and dastardly monsters to surprise veteran players.
The final chapter is perhaps the most interesting. The final chapter is titled ‘Undead in the Campaign’ and demonstrates how to use undead in a campaign in ways that may not have been considered before, including how to integrate the undead-as-PCs section earlier in the book. Fascinating campaign hooks and ideas on how to use undead in unique ways were one of the better sections of the chapter, offering some fresh ideas for a GM to use undead creatures. Furthermore, combat strategies are given for a variety of undead monsters, really focusing on their qualities and reinforcing their strengths. For someone like me who is a horrible strategist, this was a really eye-opening section.
The final things in the chapter were pure gold. First, a variety of undead creatures were given little scenarios in which they can be used, complete with maps and suggestions on how some of the creatures can be integrated into some scenarios. Secondly, some very interesting cults and organizations are detailed which, if used properly, can be a really good series of villains and foils for the PCs. Finally, what many readers will enjoy is the fact that the writers took the vampire, skeleton and zombie and added these templates to a variety of creatures. Certainly a zombie ape or a skeleton ogre is something a GM could have thought up on his own or even created on his own but it saves a lot of time if these creatures are readily available (and some game designer having already done it for the GM). This is a section of the book which I will keep very close by.
Overall, Libris Mortis is one of my favorite gaming products put out in 2004. The amount of great information that a GM (or even a player) can get out of this book is enormous. Libris Mortis, much to the chagrin of my cowardly players, will have a special place at my gaming table.
I proudly give this 4.5 out of 5 stars.
The book is divided into seven chapters, ranging from an introductory chapter on the undead and going from there to prestige classes, spells, equipment, monsters and campaigns. Every chapter was a useful to me (and most likely useful to all GMs). Whereas the information in the book is probably geared towards GMs, even players can get some entertainment from reading the book. If a player can convince the GM to allow using some of the undead oriented prestige classes, then even better.
Before I get into the book, chapter by chapter, I would like to point out how much I really enjoyed the internal artwork, especially Thomas Baxa’s and Brian Snoddy’s. Baxa and Snoddy have some of the most eerie and chilling I have seen in a WotC book. The interior art does a wonderful job of conjuring up the kinds of images that are perfect for the kind of book the authors wanted to create. It is wonderful when a gaming book has the writing and the art work so well together. Pay particular attention to Baxa’s True Necromancer and his Plague Blight and watch for Snoddy’s Master of Shrouds and his Death’s Chosen.
The introductory chapter does a great job of setting the tone for the rest of the book. Since Libris is essentially a treatise on the undead it is necessary to make sure the reader understands where the authors are going. Details on undead psychology, physiology and the origins of the ‘unlife’ made for a nice start. I was especially fond of the descriptions of the various undead ‘spawn’ (such as the difference between when an undead causes someone to rise as an equal and as a slave).
The reader is also treated to undead gods. The reader is reintroduced to Nerull and Orcus and how they are viewed by followers and undead, but we are shown some new ones (well, they were new to me). Afflux, Doesain and Evening Glory round out a few more deities for the book and I was impressed by the creativity involved. Overall, I was very pleased by the first chapter and I think it did a great job of setting the tone for the rest of the book.
Following the introductory chapter is a chapter on character options, including feats and descriptions on how to introduce undead as player characters. I admit that when I first saw this, I was suspicious and was ready to write a huge rant on the direction or the balance involved with using undead as player characters (taking a nasty swipe at a certain other role playing game) but I was won over by the authors.
The real selling point was the system of drawbacks and benefits that was set up to make playing an undead character kind of a challenge and definitely interesting. After reading through it, I was impressed by the set up and the game balance issues I had were alleviated, but after reading it I did feel that it would work best if the entire party of adventurers played the ranks of the undead rather than one player having an undead character and the rest being standard characters. But it seemed like an interesting departure from the normal campaign system to allow a player to have an undead character. The option of playing a ghoul, vampire, mummy or wight is really an exciting and unique opportunity. In fact it made me think how it would be fun to do a mini-campaign with the PCs playing undead characters.
The chapter detailing prestige classes was probably the one that initially made me the most suspicious. It seems that prestige classes are a growing controversy in the gaming community with just about every publication having some kind of prestige class worked in somewhere. But the prestige classes in Libris are simply wonderful. Admittedly, most of them are geared towards evil characters and, as a result, are more likely to be used in the hands of the GM. However, there are some that would be excellent PC classes, such as the Master of Radiance, an individual who can channel pure positive energy (and as such, quite a bane to the undead community). The Sacred Purifier is a hardcore undead combatant, specializing in turning and battling forces of darkness. My personal favorite is an evil prestige class; the Master of Shrouds which is a sinister spell caster who seizes undead to do his bidding. This is the kind of class that could be used for an ultimate villain in a campaign. I was also impressed by the prestige classes designed specifically for undead creatures, such as the Lurking Terror, Master Vampire and Tomb Warden. Obviously, these could be used as a template for some undead villains and adding some detail and excitement to vampires, mummies, and so on.
The next chapter deals with spells. Some of the spells are ones that are used by undead (and their ilk) and the rest deal with fighting against the undead. Overall, I was impressed by the kinds of spells found in Libris. Normally, when I see huge spell lists in a book, I am let down because more often than not the spells seem to be slight variations of other spells or are dubious in the way they work. The spells in Libris work well and are great additions to the game, truly acting as enhancements rather than detriments.
What book on the undead would be complete without a section on some new monsters? Libris delivers the reader some fascinating and unusual creatures that will add some new flavor to any campaign. Of the close to 50 creatures that are detailed in the book, there is certainly something for everyone. A few of my personal favorites are the Brian in a Jar (an undead brain using mental powers), the Evolved Undead (an ancient evil with the ability to control negative plane energy), the Forsaken Shell (a disgusting husk of flesh that crawls along the floor, looking for victims), the Necropolitan (a wealthy and depraved member of the elite class that has voluntarily embraced unlife), and the Wheep (undead servants that act as messengers and agents of more powerful undead creatures). Of course, these were just my favorite creatures and there were numerous other creatures that will impress the reader, especially if the GM is looking for dark and dastardly monsters to surprise veteran players.
The final chapter is perhaps the most interesting. The final chapter is titled ‘Undead in the Campaign’ and demonstrates how to use undead in a campaign in ways that may not have been considered before, including how to integrate the undead-as-PCs section earlier in the book. Fascinating campaign hooks and ideas on how to use undead in unique ways were one of the better sections of the chapter, offering some fresh ideas for a GM to use undead creatures. Furthermore, combat strategies are given for a variety of undead monsters, really focusing on their qualities and reinforcing their strengths. For someone like me who is a horrible strategist, this was a really eye-opening section.
The final things in the chapter were pure gold. First, a variety of undead creatures were given little scenarios in which they can be used, complete with maps and suggestions on how some of the creatures can be integrated into some scenarios. Secondly, some very interesting cults and organizations are detailed which, if used properly, can be a really good series of villains and foils for the PCs. Finally, what many readers will enjoy is the fact that the writers took the vampire, skeleton and zombie and added these templates to a variety of creatures. Certainly a zombie ape or a skeleton ogre is something a GM could have thought up on his own or even created on his own but it saves a lot of time if these creatures are readily available (and some game designer having already done it for the GM). This is a section of the book which I will keep very close by.
Overall, Libris Mortis is one of my favorite gaming products put out in 2004. The amount of great information that a GM (or even a player) can get out of this book is enormous. Libris Mortis, much to the chagrin of my cowardly players, will have a special place at my gaming table.
I proudly give this 4.5 out of 5 stars.
