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This 96-page Legend of the Five Rings d20 sourcebook contains extensive information for Dragon Clan campaigns, featuring details on Provinces, customs, history, important characters, and untold mysteries of the Dragon.
Secrets of the Dragon
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Secrets of theDragon
Secrets of the Dragon is a sourcebook for AEG's Rokugan setting detailing various families and personalities of the Dragon clan. As with all of the Legend of the Five Rings products since Way of the Samurai, the book has statistics for both AEG's Legend of the Five Rings 2nd edition system as well as the d20 system using Wizard's Oriental Adventures as a baseline. This review deals primarily with the utility of the book as a d20 system product.
The book is written Rich Wulf, Shawn Carman, Seth Mason, Kim Hosmer, Travis Heerman, Fred Wan, Chris Hand, and Jed Carleton.
A First Look
Secrets of the Dragon is a 96-page perfect bound softcover book priced at $24.95. Even now that prices are trending upwards, this is still somewhat pricey for the format; typically a monochrome book of 128 pages can be had for this price. AEG's own Stargate SG-1: Fantastic Frontiers, Stargate Season One is 2 dollars more, but is 176 pages and full color.
The cover follows the format of the prior "secrets" books. The art by Matthew S. Armstrong depicts the face of a warrior (in this case, a bare shouldered and tatooed Dragon clan monk) with a dark green background. The picture is a wrap around, with the part of his face on the front cover and a minor part on the back.
The interior is black-and-white, with some blue lettering and margin tabs. The interior art is by Chris Dornaus, whose sketch-like pencil style you should be familiar with if you are familiar with the L5R product line.
A Deeper Look
(Warning: this section includes spoilers to secrets revealed in the book)
Secrets of the Dragon is split into six numbered chapters plus a significant introductory chapter with rules and other important notes of its own, effectively giving the book seven chapters. As with all Rokugan books, flavor text is considered important, and a story is woven through the beginning sections of all but the last two chapters.
The introduction chapter is, unlike many such sections of gaming books, somewhat significant. The chapter provides a variety of details applicable to the clan as a whole, including background information and mechanics. The background information includes a history of the Dragon clan and customs among the Dragon clan. The Dragon clan is known for its two weapon stylists, its sects of martial monks, and its strained relations with the Phoenix clan.
The mechanics for the d20 System include new feats, a feat list appropriate for Dragons with cited sources, and new courtier abilities.
The first three chapters detail major families of the Dragon clan: the Kitsuki, the Mirumoto, and the Tamori. Wach of these chapters details provinces and holdings (along with adventure hooks for each location), important NPCs, and new ancestor feats associated with the family. The first two clan chapters feature new prestige classes and the third features new spells.
The new prestige classes (5-level classes typical of the clan books) include the Jotoman's Shinrai and the Nemuranai seeker. The Jotomon's Shinrai is a samurai dojo class of the Kitsuke; it features a technique of throwing the wakazashi and fighting with an empty hand, as well as drawing benefit from knowledge of Bushido in battle. The Nemurai Seeker are a more investigative class dedicated to scouring Rokugan for lost items of power. As discussed in Magic of Rokugan, nemuranai are spirits that give magic items their power.
The fourth chapter is a bit of an oddity among clan books, which reflects the oddity of the Dragon clan. The fourth chapter describes not a family per se, but the Three Orders. The three orders actually families in their own right, but they are really monsastic sects. The chapter has many of the same features of the family chapters, with discussion of the lands and a few key NPCs (some fleshed out). In the way of new mechanics, it provides dojo rules for the three orders, as well as new tattoos for Dragon clan characters.
The fifth chapter covers the feature location of this book, the Tamori tunnels. A bit different than most previous featured location, the Tomori tunnels is basically a dungeon crawl involving Rokugan creatures and elements.
As with the prior books, the Behind the Veil chapter presents GM-only details for secrets of the Dragon clan. As with most clans, the Dragon get their own "Nightmare" oni. The unexpected secret, however, deals with those tattoos you see that cover the iconic Dragon characters. It seems they exact their toll in madness. Though rules are provided on how to handle and deal with this madness, I am a little vague on when to inflict this madness on a bearer of the tattoos.
Conclusions
I did like the Dragon book better than some of the prior clan secrets books, but would still recommend it primarily for Rokugan enthusiasts. There is much practical material herein, but much of the book is devoted to fiction and minor details of the clan.
Overall Grade: C+
-Alan D. Kohler
Secrets of the Dragon is a sourcebook for AEG's Rokugan setting detailing various families and personalities of the Dragon clan. As with all of the Legend of the Five Rings products since Way of the Samurai, the book has statistics for both AEG's Legend of the Five Rings 2nd edition system as well as the d20 system using Wizard's Oriental Adventures as a baseline. This review deals primarily with the utility of the book as a d20 system product.
The book is written Rich Wulf, Shawn Carman, Seth Mason, Kim Hosmer, Travis Heerman, Fred Wan, Chris Hand, and Jed Carleton.
A First Look
Secrets of the Dragon is a 96-page perfect bound softcover book priced at $24.95. Even now that prices are trending upwards, this is still somewhat pricey for the format; typically a monochrome book of 128 pages can be had for this price. AEG's own Stargate SG-1: Fantastic Frontiers, Stargate Season One is 2 dollars more, but is 176 pages and full color.
The cover follows the format of the prior "secrets" books. The art by Matthew S. Armstrong depicts the face of a warrior (in this case, a bare shouldered and tatooed Dragon clan monk) with a dark green background. The picture is a wrap around, with the part of his face on the front cover and a minor part on the back.
The interior is black-and-white, with some blue lettering and margin tabs. The interior art is by Chris Dornaus, whose sketch-like pencil style you should be familiar with if you are familiar with the L5R product line.
A Deeper Look
(Warning: this section includes spoilers to secrets revealed in the book)
Secrets of the Dragon is split into six numbered chapters plus a significant introductory chapter with rules and other important notes of its own, effectively giving the book seven chapters. As with all Rokugan books, flavor text is considered important, and a story is woven through the beginning sections of all but the last two chapters.
The introduction chapter is, unlike many such sections of gaming books, somewhat significant. The chapter provides a variety of details applicable to the clan as a whole, including background information and mechanics. The background information includes a history of the Dragon clan and customs among the Dragon clan. The Dragon clan is known for its two weapon stylists, its sects of martial monks, and its strained relations with the Phoenix clan.
The mechanics for the d20 System include new feats, a feat list appropriate for Dragons with cited sources, and new courtier abilities.
The first three chapters detail major families of the Dragon clan: the Kitsuki, the Mirumoto, and the Tamori. Wach of these chapters details provinces and holdings (along with adventure hooks for each location), important NPCs, and new ancestor feats associated with the family. The first two clan chapters feature new prestige classes and the third features new spells.
The new prestige classes (5-level classes typical of the clan books) include the Jotoman's Shinrai and the Nemuranai seeker. The Jotomon's Shinrai is a samurai dojo class of the Kitsuke; it features a technique of throwing the wakazashi and fighting with an empty hand, as well as drawing benefit from knowledge of Bushido in battle. The Nemurai Seeker are a more investigative class dedicated to scouring Rokugan for lost items of power. As discussed in Magic of Rokugan, nemuranai are spirits that give magic items their power.
The fourth chapter is a bit of an oddity among clan books, which reflects the oddity of the Dragon clan. The fourth chapter describes not a family per se, but the Three Orders. The three orders actually families in their own right, but they are really monsastic sects. The chapter has many of the same features of the family chapters, with discussion of the lands and a few key NPCs (some fleshed out). In the way of new mechanics, it provides dojo rules for the three orders, as well as new tattoos for Dragon clan characters.
The fifth chapter covers the feature location of this book, the Tamori tunnels. A bit different than most previous featured location, the Tomori tunnels is basically a dungeon crawl involving Rokugan creatures and elements.
As with the prior books, the Behind the Veil chapter presents GM-only details for secrets of the Dragon clan. As with most clans, the Dragon get their own "Nightmare" oni. The unexpected secret, however, deals with those tattoos you see that cover the iconic Dragon characters. It seems they exact their toll in madness. Though rules are provided on how to handle and deal with this madness, I am a little vague on when to inflict this madness on a bearer of the tattoos.
Conclusions
I did like the Dragon book better than some of the prior clan secrets books, but would still recommend it primarily for Rokugan enthusiasts. There is much practical material herein, but much of the book is devoted to fiction and minor details of the clan.
Overall Grade: C+
-Alan D. Kohler
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