Mesopotamia -- impressions?

[Belegbeth]

Anyone look through Necromancer's *Mesopotamia* yet? I skimmed through it today -- it looks very cool. Interestingly, it appears to be pushing a bit of a "Cthulhu vibe". And the cover is very nice (it really conveys the impression of "ancient horrors").

Anyone have a chance to look through this, and willing to share their impressions/views?

(I'm kinda a sucker for ancient Mesopotamia -- ancient and mysterious, yet not as familiar as Egypt or Greece.)

 

[Mouseferatu]

I was a little bit disappointed.

Now, I need to clarify that remark. The book is very well done. The writing is good, the topic is interesting, and the world is fascinating. This is a good book.

Why was I disappointed, then?

Because it's not the book I was hoping for.

This book is, essentially, a series of long adventures, that include a few relatively short chapters on setting. I was hoping for the reverse--a book that was primarily setting, with a few short adventures at the back.

So it's not what I was hoping for, though I can certainly still make use of it. But that shouldn't dissuade anyone from getting it, assuming it's the sort of thing they're looking for. It's well done; just not my cup of meat.

 

[LostSoul]

I'd like to hear more about this product, as I've always been interested in Ancient Babylon. (Except when those stupid Archers are marching on Persepolis and I don't have any Iron to produce Immortals and the Zulus switched sides on me.)

 

[Belegbeth]

Here is the summary from the NECRO website:

"Dead Cities in the Desert
A city of unspeakable antiquity, buried for centuries beneath the desert sands, has been rediscovered deep in the accursed desert known as the Red Waste. Dare you enter The City That Worshipped a Thousand Gods, seeking the treasures and relics of its Hierophants? Beware the lurking terrors of a bygone age!

Treasures of Darkness
Ancient Kingdoms: Mesopotamia™ is a huge sourcebook with numerous new classes, deities, monsters and magic items, including a series of short adventures. Explore ancient ruins, temples and dungeons of the lost city of Ibnath, and the perilous wilderness areas that surround it. The Ziggurat of the Ghoul-Queen awaits!

New spells, new classes and new environmental challenges! Vast regions to explore and epic quests to complete. Destroy the Cult of the Pit Worm Yhath! The definitive d20 sourcebook for Mesopotamia, the land of the Elamites, Assyrians and Akkadians. Expanded desert rules and source material make this a unique offering for your gaming table. 10 related short adventures make this a single source for adventure in the lands of Babylon and Ur. Dozens of new monsters, spells, magic items and character classes, all found nowhere else."

 

[Belegbeth]

... This book is, essentially, a series of long adventures, that include a few relatively short chapters on setting. I was hoping for the reverse--a book that was primarily setting, with a few short adventures at the back.

So it's not what I was hoping for, though I can certainly still make use of it. But that shouldn't dissuade anyone from getting it, assuming it's the sort of thing they're looking for. It's well done; just not my cup of meat.

I am pleased that at least they included adventures! One thing that annoyed me about Green Ronin's Mystic Vista's *Medieval Europe* and *Testament* was that they included no adventures (okay, not sure about Testament since I never bought it, but I don't remember seeing any adventures in my read-through).

Are you suggesting that the background material (classes, setting details, etc.) is insufficient to run a Mesopotamia campaign?

If they include 50+ pages on how to run a Mesopotamia campaign, and then actually provide one, that would be pretty nifty IMO.

That is, I was kinda hoping that this book would strike the right balance between campaign background (crunch and fluff), and actual adventures. Too many books like this are simply one or the either.

 

[richard_k]

For background I would suggest buying "Ancient Iraq" by Georges Roux. It has lots and lots about mesopotamia ranging from sumer to assyria and has geographical, religion and other nice bits of info in it. I think its about $10 or so bucks off Amazon although it was printed in 1960's so look in a second hand book store (thats where i found mine).

 

[Belegbeth]

And how compatible do you think Mesopotamia will be with your upcoming Ancient Egypt thingie for GR, Mouseferatu?

It would be nice if one could construct a neat-o "ancient Middle-east" campaign with them!

(BTW: I disliked Testament, though that was simply because of its central premise. Mesopotamia's premise is more up my alley -- and I was especially pleased with its Cthulhu-esque tone.)

 

[mythusmage]

(Except when those stupid Archers are marching on Persepolis and I don't have any Iron to produce Immortals and the Zulus switched sides on me.)

You want trouble, try getting a fair deal out of Hiawatha. Mercenary!

 

[Belen]

Darn it....I ordered the book from WWonline and they still have not gotten it to me. It's still listed as preorder.

Mouseferatu: Please give more details of the Egypt book. I tried to find it on the GR website, but could find no mention of it. Any idea when it will be out?

Dave

 

[Mouseferatu]

And how compatible do you think Mesopotamia will be with your upcoming Ancient Egypt thingie for GR, Mouseferatu?

That's actually a very good question. I'll need to read through it again with an eye to that sort of thing. I can tell you this much, though. While it's probably not 100% compatible "out of the box" (since Hamunaptra involves some new rules/option not found in the core rules), it's almost certainly compatible with just a tiny amount of work. Basically, think of it in much the same way as you might combine characters from the core rules with characters from Oriental Adventures. They may differ in detail, but they're still usable together.

And I want to reiterate what I said before--Mesopotamia is a good book. I just personally would have preferred more focus on setting and less on adventure. But I don't want anyone to think I'm badmouthing it or disparaging its quality. I'm not.

Please give more details of the Egypt book. I tried to find it on the GR website, but could find no mention of it. Any idea when it will be out?

It's not up on the GR site yet, but there's some info available at Gaming Report. Essentially, it's an Egyptian setting designed specifically to work with the tropes of standard D&D. It's a spiritual cousin to Al-Qadim or Nyambe--not an attempt to be a "historical" setting, but the creation of a history-inspired setting that is still very much the game we all know and love. It was very heavily researched, so most of the cultural info is indeed historically accurate, but in those instances where gameplay clashed with accuracy, we chose gameplay.

I believe it's due out in September.