Jester David
Hero
If you don’t own a prior edition’s version of the Eberron setting (or the Wayfinder’s Guide to Eberron) but the setting sounds interesting, then I heartily recommend that you buy this book. There’s multiple new mechanical options as well as a great campaign setting that can send you on endless adventures. It’s a great setting and this is a solid introduction.
Even if you’re just curious or use a homebrew setting there’s a lot of stuff here to inspire you or to steal. Changelings and shifters effortlessly fit into virtually every campaign setting. Even warforged can be made to work with a little imagination, be they tinker gnome created constructs in Dragonlance or twisted hybrids of flesh and steel in Ravenloft. And the artificer is a decent class, and arguably the best official execution of the concept. This is without mentioning the many patrons or antagonists that could be pulled out of the setting and placed in a homebrew world.
However, while it is an excellent Eberron book, I don’t think it’s the best, let alone the most comprehensive. If you have the 3e Eberron Campaign Setting and/or the Wayfinder’s Guide, then it probably depends on your financial situation. There’s a lot of original content in this book, including more on the various organizations (both good and bad) along with new monsters. But you can find equivalent amounts of world lore in Wayfinder’s Guide, and significantly more lore in books from previous editions. If you have a shelf of Eberron books then this book is going to give you little that you don’t already know. Ironically, the cheaper PDF might be the better option for those with extensive Eberron libraries. That said, you’re still not going to regret the purchase: it’s an excellent book with a focus on different aspects of the setting. You’re bound to learn something new or rediscover some old fact that you missed the first time. After reading this book you might come away with a renewed appreciation for some faction or look at a patron with a different light or even consider presenting a group you’ve never used before as the adversary of a campaign.
Read my full review here.
Even if you’re just curious or use a homebrew setting there’s a lot of stuff here to inspire you or to steal. Changelings and shifters effortlessly fit into virtually every campaign setting. Even warforged can be made to work with a little imagination, be they tinker gnome created constructs in Dragonlance or twisted hybrids of flesh and steel in Ravenloft. And the artificer is a decent class, and arguably the best official execution of the concept. This is without mentioning the many patrons or antagonists that could be pulled out of the setting and placed in a homebrew world.
However, while it is an excellent Eberron book, I don’t think it’s the best, let alone the most comprehensive. If you have the 3e Eberron Campaign Setting and/or the Wayfinder’s Guide, then it probably depends on your financial situation. There’s a lot of original content in this book, including more on the various organizations (both good and bad) along with new monsters. But you can find equivalent amounts of world lore in Wayfinder’s Guide, and significantly more lore in books from previous editions. If you have a shelf of Eberron books then this book is going to give you little that you don’t already know. Ironically, the cheaper PDF might be the better option for those with extensive Eberron libraries. That said, you’re still not going to regret the purchase: it’s an excellent book with a focus on different aspects of the setting. You’re bound to learn something new or rediscover some old fact that you missed the first time. After reading this book you might come away with a renewed appreciation for some faction or look at a patron with a different light or even consider presenting a group you’ve never used before as the adversary of a campaign.
Read my full review here.
