Upgrade your account to a Community Supporter account and remove most of the site ads.

Reply to thread

Message: <blockquote data-quote="dungeondweller" data-source="post: 2011473" data-attributes="member: 14532">Creatures, monsters, beasts... They're the primary antagonists of most Fantasy Role Playing Games and it seems like every publisher, large and small, is trying to sell you more and more of them. Truth is, bestiaries are a unique kind of product; very easy to make but difficult to make well. Complete Minions manages to rank in the top quarter of what I've seen on the market for the following reasons: It's fully illustrated. Though I generally prefer a product to have little art, monster collections are different. I need a picture to make a monster seem real. Price. Though Complete Minions is no bargain, you save a ton over the major market print products that aren't available in PDF form. For the amount of art included, the price point is about right to be fair both to the publisher and the consumer. Bookmarks. A product of this length with this much content needs bookmarks and Bastion Press does well in this regard. I don't usually use bookmarks much in PDF products, but they're implemented very well in this product, making it much easier to read and use. Media. I like the PDF format specifically for bestiaries. Not only does it keep the cost low, but it prevents me from having to lug the complete volume to a session wherein I'll only use one of its creatures. Print out the minion you want, slip it in your notes, and you're on your way without stressing the seams of your backpack. To be fair, however, there are certain areas in which Complete Minions does not fare so well. The following are some of its downsides: Heinous download size. If not for broadband, I would need to spend extra to order this product on CD. Frankly, that eliminates a good portion of the beauty of the PDF format to me. The fact that they've included several versions of the same product does not justify, to me, a download size that inconveniences so many people who might want the product but don't want to pay extra just because it's large. Lack of inspiration. This point is largely intangible and, I am sad to say, subjective; but the fact is, the creatures in this product, while well conceived and designed, did not make my blood boil as I had hoped. They did not make me ache to throw them at the next batch of PCs that wander my way. In general, they seemed rather flat. I'll keep them on hand and plug them into upcoming adventures and plots, but they're not likely to serve as the focal point for any brilliant new ideas. Font size. While some would directly disagree, I prefer a 12 point font for any product I intend to use from my laptop screen. 10 point prints nicely, but I have to zoom in on the text to read it line by line if I wish to use it as-is. I personally would prefer a larger font that works decently for both applications. Summary: If you can download 30MB or order it on CD, Complete Minions is definitely a worthy addition to your monstrous arsenal. If nothing else, the sheer number of illustrated creatures included is bound to give you ideas of your own even if you do not use the statistics provided.(As seen in the RPGNow Monthly Downloader at: http://www.rpgnow.com/ezine.php?issue=jun04&page=5#4)</blockquote>

Verification