MongooseMatt
First Post
Hi guys,
The latest release in the Classic Play line, The Book of the Sea, written by Gareth Hanrahan, is now out!
The Book of the Sea is a 256 page hardback, designed to be _the_ comprehensive resource for all things wet and nautical in fantasy d20 games. A good companion to fans of Master and Commander!
It kicks off with a look at Seafarers & Crew, the characters who live their lives out on the sea. Two new core character classes are presented (the Pirate and Mariner), along with crew who can be hired for voyages at your local port. These range from press-ganged crewmen, to veteran seadogs, officers and specialists. The nautical world is a wholly different environment to your nearest dungeon and so a spread of new feats are also available to bring characters into line with ships and water-based warfare, including Ship's Luck, Courage Lads! and Salt in my Veins.
The Ship Design chapter provides a complete ship construction system, allowing players and GMs alike to build their own, very special vessels, from rowing boats, through fat merchantmen, right up to dreadnoughts! As well as the ships of 'standard' fantasy-fare, there are many different options for vessels of truly fantastic origin. These include hulls made of coral, flesh, force, plants, and mithral (among many others), regenerating hulls, and ships towed by creatures or arcane engines.
Equipment & Weaponry allows players to completely fit their new ship out. From mundane items such as anchors and crow's nests to ballista, hull hammers and the ever popular ram, a player's ship will now be unique and distinctive on the waves. Mundane and magical enhancements are also covered, allowing vessels to be shielded, diving, ghostly or homefinding.
Ships of the Sea puts all this information to use and presents the GM with some ready made ships, ready to populate the seas of his world. These are backed up with some of the best maps and artwork we have yet commissioned for nautical rules. Vessels include the War Galley, Exploratory Ship, Dwarven Ironclad, Elven Swanship (as featured on the front cover of the book), Undead Bonecage, as well as the ever popular Merchantman.
Once you have your ship, you will need to learn how to travel from A to B. The Travel By Sea chapter does just that, providing all the rules required for navigation, getting lost, pursuing other vessels, manoeuvring, the weather, visibility, seaworthiness, luck (very important on the sea!), random disasters and conditions on board. It will soon become clear that sea monsters are not necessarily an adventurer's worst enemy on the sea.
Rum and the Lash looks at how players should handle their crew and the whole problem of discipline and morale. Events and players' own actions can all have a profound effect on the crew and harsh adventurers may well find themselves at the wrong end of a mutiny!
The Ports chapter presents comprehensive rules for managing and creating ports in the campaign worlds, grading each one and providing a range of facilities from defence and dry-dock to recruiting new crew or even hiring a whole ship. This follows on to Trade, another important aspect of life at sea and one which enterprising players will no doubt take to like, well, a duck to water. A full system for trading and economics is provided allowing players to not only sell their hard won cargoes but also to buy and sell for (intended) profit. There can be plenty of exciting game sessions in the offing with players merely trying to get through to a port with a highly-prized cargo while pirates circle in wait. If you are a competent GM, you may not need an actual scenario for a few weeks! Sample ports (which have their own stat blocks) and merchants have been provided, ready for inclusion in your games.
The Battles at Sea chapter may be one of the most used in the book, knowing how quickly most adventurers attract trouble! The system used in Book of the Sea is a variation of the OMCS2 (Open Mass Combat System 2), as first presented in the Book of Strongholds & Dynasties. With these rules, you will be quickly manoeuvring ships and engaging in boarding actions, as the system follows normal d20 conventions very closely. Entire mass combats can be resolved with just a few dice rolls, allowing the GM to focus on the actions of the players.
Naval Magic looks at the effect spellcasters can have on the ocean and the men that sail upon it. New rules are provided for some existing spells and their effect on rules covered so far, and on the presence of Sea Druids in the party but the bulk of the chapter is taken up with new spells that spellcasters will be eager to get their hands on before venturing out to sea. Ranging from Animate Crew to Weatherblindness, these castings are geared towards making life on your ship easier and life on an enemy's ship harder. Magic items are also detailed, including buoyant armour, the rapier of undeniable style and the Admiral's Rod (?). Ships themselves can also be granted magic items, such as the anchor of immovability, an armed figurehead, invulnerable sails or a wheel of agility.
Prestige Classes are provided in this book, allowing players who have chosen the sea as their home to specialise in the environment. Here we have the Arcane Artillerist, Master Mariner, Soulfarer, Marauder of the Waves, Seachanger, Weatherworker, Legendary Captain, Merchant Prince, Waverider, Storm Knight and Seasinger.
The next chapter, Undersea Realms, will take your scenarios beneath the waves to a whole new world ripe for exploration, adventure or plunder (your players' choice). The chapter begins with looking at how life is fundamentally different in this environment, as well as the races that dominate it - for those GMs interested in setting a campaign completely beneath the sea, full character details are provided for each race. This leads on to Underwater Adventuring, which illustrates just how difficult it is for surface dwellers to function properly in the sea. They will have to contend with poor visibility, depth and pressure, and restricted movement. Various types of underwater terrain are detailed (it is not just flat!) and the effects of being underwater on character class special abilities are well documented. This is alleviated somewhat by the Underwater Equipment chapter which will make a surface dwellers life, at least, a little easier. These include weapons that are useable underwater (such as the harpoon or flukehammer), armour that will not send you straight to the bottom and general adventuring gear that players would be well advised to investigate (shark repellent alone is worth the asking price).
Undersea Magic inspects the difficulty surface dwellers will have in casting spells (as well as ways to avoid the difficulties) but also provides rules changes for some spells that were clearly not meant to work in the same way when submerged, and entirely new spells that have been researched by the undersea races, such as Sonic Sense, Rapture of the Depths and Steelshell.
The Bestiary provides some new characters and foes for players to encounter when on (or in) the sea. These include the Abyssans, Arcane Jellyfish, Armour Crab, Godhusk, Maleficent, Dancer Shark, Shadow Siren, Thrashing Serpent and the intelligent Yellow Ninja Squid. . .
Sea Campaigns attempts to bring all the previous chapters together for the Games Master and looks at how an entire campaign can be set on the seas and oceans of his world. Different styles and settings are covered, together with jump off points from which a GM can launch a new campaign and be set with ideas for months to come.
The book winds up with a complete (and I mean complete!) Random Naval Encounter Generator, a Ship Design Worksheet, Crew Sheet, and Log Book.
The Book of the Sea is a 256 page hardback priced at $34.95 and is available from all good games stores and book shops right now!
The latest release in the Classic Play line, The Book of the Sea, written by Gareth Hanrahan, is now out!
The Book of the Sea is a 256 page hardback, designed to be _the_ comprehensive resource for all things wet and nautical in fantasy d20 games. A good companion to fans of Master and Commander!
It kicks off with a look at Seafarers & Crew, the characters who live their lives out on the sea. Two new core character classes are presented (the Pirate and Mariner), along with crew who can be hired for voyages at your local port. These range from press-ganged crewmen, to veteran seadogs, officers and specialists. The nautical world is a wholly different environment to your nearest dungeon and so a spread of new feats are also available to bring characters into line with ships and water-based warfare, including Ship's Luck, Courage Lads! and Salt in my Veins.
The Ship Design chapter provides a complete ship construction system, allowing players and GMs alike to build their own, very special vessels, from rowing boats, through fat merchantmen, right up to dreadnoughts! As well as the ships of 'standard' fantasy-fare, there are many different options for vessels of truly fantastic origin. These include hulls made of coral, flesh, force, plants, and mithral (among many others), regenerating hulls, and ships towed by creatures or arcane engines.
Equipment & Weaponry allows players to completely fit their new ship out. From mundane items such as anchors and crow's nests to ballista, hull hammers and the ever popular ram, a player's ship will now be unique and distinctive on the waves. Mundane and magical enhancements are also covered, allowing vessels to be shielded, diving, ghostly or homefinding.
Ships of the Sea puts all this information to use and presents the GM with some ready made ships, ready to populate the seas of his world. These are backed up with some of the best maps and artwork we have yet commissioned for nautical rules. Vessels include the War Galley, Exploratory Ship, Dwarven Ironclad, Elven Swanship (as featured on the front cover of the book), Undead Bonecage, as well as the ever popular Merchantman.
Once you have your ship, you will need to learn how to travel from A to B. The Travel By Sea chapter does just that, providing all the rules required for navigation, getting lost, pursuing other vessels, manoeuvring, the weather, visibility, seaworthiness, luck (very important on the sea!), random disasters and conditions on board. It will soon become clear that sea monsters are not necessarily an adventurer's worst enemy on the sea.
Rum and the Lash looks at how players should handle their crew and the whole problem of discipline and morale. Events and players' own actions can all have a profound effect on the crew and harsh adventurers may well find themselves at the wrong end of a mutiny!
The Ports chapter presents comprehensive rules for managing and creating ports in the campaign worlds, grading each one and providing a range of facilities from defence and dry-dock to recruiting new crew or even hiring a whole ship. This follows on to Trade, another important aspect of life at sea and one which enterprising players will no doubt take to like, well, a duck to water. A full system for trading and economics is provided allowing players to not only sell their hard won cargoes but also to buy and sell for (intended) profit. There can be plenty of exciting game sessions in the offing with players merely trying to get through to a port with a highly-prized cargo while pirates circle in wait. If you are a competent GM, you may not need an actual scenario for a few weeks! Sample ports (which have their own stat blocks) and merchants have been provided, ready for inclusion in your games.
The Battles at Sea chapter may be one of the most used in the book, knowing how quickly most adventurers attract trouble! The system used in Book of the Sea is a variation of the OMCS2 (Open Mass Combat System 2), as first presented in the Book of Strongholds & Dynasties. With these rules, you will be quickly manoeuvring ships and engaging in boarding actions, as the system follows normal d20 conventions very closely. Entire mass combats can be resolved with just a few dice rolls, allowing the GM to focus on the actions of the players.
Naval Magic looks at the effect spellcasters can have on the ocean and the men that sail upon it. New rules are provided for some existing spells and their effect on rules covered so far, and on the presence of Sea Druids in the party but the bulk of the chapter is taken up with new spells that spellcasters will be eager to get their hands on before venturing out to sea. Ranging from Animate Crew to Weatherblindness, these castings are geared towards making life on your ship easier and life on an enemy's ship harder. Magic items are also detailed, including buoyant armour, the rapier of undeniable style and the Admiral's Rod (?). Ships themselves can also be granted magic items, such as the anchor of immovability, an armed figurehead, invulnerable sails or a wheel of agility.
Prestige Classes are provided in this book, allowing players who have chosen the sea as their home to specialise in the environment. Here we have the Arcane Artillerist, Master Mariner, Soulfarer, Marauder of the Waves, Seachanger, Weatherworker, Legendary Captain, Merchant Prince, Waverider, Storm Knight and Seasinger.
The next chapter, Undersea Realms, will take your scenarios beneath the waves to a whole new world ripe for exploration, adventure or plunder (your players' choice). The chapter begins with looking at how life is fundamentally different in this environment, as well as the races that dominate it - for those GMs interested in setting a campaign completely beneath the sea, full character details are provided for each race. This leads on to Underwater Adventuring, which illustrates just how difficult it is for surface dwellers to function properly in the sea. They will have to contend with poor visibility, depth and pressure, and restricted movement. Various types of underwater terrain are detailed (it is not just flat!) and the effects of being underwater on character class special abilities are well documented. This is alleviated somewhat by the Underwater Equipment chapter which will make a surface dwellers life, at least, a little easier. These include weapons that are useable underwater (such as the harpoon or flukehammer), armour that will not send you straight to the bottom and general adventuring gear that players would be well advised to investigate (shark repellent alone is worth the asking price).
Undersea Magic inspects the difficulty surface dwellers will have in casting spells (as well as ways to avoid the difficulties) but also provides rules changes for some spells that were clearly not meant to work in the same way when submerged, and entirely new spells that have been researched by the undersea races, such as Sonic Sense, Rapture of the Depths and Steelshell.
The Bestiary provides some new characters and foes for players to encounter when on (or in) the sea. These include the Abyssans, Arcane Jellyfish, Armour Crab, Godhusk, Maleficent, Dancer Shark, Shadow Siren, Thrashing Serpent and the intelligent Yellow Ninja Squid. . .
Sea Campaigns attempts to bring all the previous chapters together for the Games Master and looks at how an entire campaign can be set on the seas and oceans of his world. Different styles and settings are covered, together with jump off points from which a GM can launch a new campaign and be set with ideas for months to come.
The book winds up with a complete (and I mean complete!) Random Naval Encounter Generator, a Ship Design Worksheet, Crew Sheet, and Log Book.
The Book of the Sea is a 256 page hardback priced at $34.95 and is available from all good games stores and book shops right now!
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