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<blockquote data-quote="Messageboard Golem" data-source="post: 2011851" data-attributes="member: 18387"><p><strong>By John Grigsby, Staff Reviewer d20 Magazine Rack</strong></p><p><strong></strong></p><p><strong>Initiative Round</strong></p><p>Serpent Kingdoms is a Forgotten Realms supplement from Wizards of the Coast. Cover art by Michael Sutfin depicting a pair of adventurers finding more than they bargained for graces the wrap-around cover of this 190-page full-color hardcover by Ed Greenwood, Eric L. Boyd, and Darrin Drader. Kalman Andrasofszky, Thomas Baxa, Dennis Crabapple, Wayne England, Carl Frank, Ralph Horsley, Jim Pavelec, Richard Sardinha, and Joel Thomas contribute to the interior art. Serpent Kingdoms retails for $29.95.</p><p></p><p>Serpent Kingdoms introduces us to the sarrukh, a progenitor race that once ruled over all of Faerûn. Today, they are all but a memory, but their legacy lives on, in the form of their numerous creations (and a few surviving members of the original race). The naga, the Yuan-ti, and the lizardfolk are the most well-known of these creations, but there are others, sequestered away in dark, forgotten corners. Ideally, the scaled folk would like to see themselves as rulers once more, with all other races as their slaves. Realistically, they know this isn’t going to happen overnight, so they work in secrecy, taking subtle control of small settlements. They are nothing if not infinitely patient…</p><p></p><p>The first four chapters of Serpent Kingdoms describe, in great detail, the primary creations of the sarrukh; the Yuan-ti, the nagas, the lizards, and the hidden folk. Each chapter is quite lavish in detail, describing the power structure of the race, subraces, deities, specialized equipment and magic, their relation to other races, and also provides a handful of NPCs. The last two chapters, instead of focusing on a single race, describe several lesser scaled races, including the asabi, firenewts, khaastas (lizardfolk native to the Abyss), lizard kings, troglodytes (and their cousins, the brutish trens), the ophidians, and the pterafolk. The following chapter describes the sarrukh themselves, the progenitors that created all of the others.</p><p></p><p>A quick perusal of the Monster Manual will revela a variety of scaly menaces for use in your campaign, and with the addition of the Monster Manual II, Monster Manual III, Fiend Folio, and Monsters of Faerûn, that number increases greatly. If you still don’t have enough, then Serpent Kingdoms comes to the rescue with 27 creatures that all revolve around a serpentine theme. A few we’ve seen before, such as the banelar naga, but most are fairly new to the scene or are welcome updates from older editions of D&D.</p><p></p><p>The Realms chapter details some of the most notorious, important, and incredible realms of the Scaled Ones. Each region or locale is described in the same fashion as the realms in the Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting, with critical details presented at the beginning of the section, the moving on to life and society, major geographical features, important sites, regional history, and plots and rumors. All of this information is firmly set, of course, in the Forgotten Realms.</p><p></p><p>The next chapter discusses the prospects for using the Yuan-ti as the major villains in a Forgotten Realms campaign. Rather than having hordes of bloodthirsty Yuan-ti overrunning the land, this campaign focuses on subtlety, intrigue, and espionage. This chapter talks about the many ways of handling such a campaign, and also provides some interesting NPCs to help provide something for the PCs to face.</p><p></p><p>Serpent Kingdoms offers several new feats, almost all of them devoted to scaled races. In fact, very few non Scaled Folk will be able to make any use of these talents, but they will add greatly to a DM’s ability to inflict fear and suffering upon his party. Not so with the new equipment, magic items, and spells, however. At the discretion of the DM, most any of these could be made available to PCs, though they would do well not to let the Scaled Ones find out. </p><p></p><p>Of the six new prestige classes described in this volume, five are specific to the Scaled Ones. In fact, three are aimed at solely at Yuan-ti, and one is intended for nagas. The ancient master is a Yuan-ti that has concentrated on enhancing its mind even as its body fails, the coiled cabalist is a member of a secret society devoted to mastering arcane magic, the master of vipers is an outcast Yuan-ti that has taken to dwelling among his lesser cousins, and the naga overlord is an evil mastermind among his kind. Fangs of Sseth can be human, but have chosen to serve the evil Yuan-ti deity. Finally, the serpent slayer is a member of a non-scaled race who has devoted his life to taking the fight to the Yuan-ti directly.</p><p></p><p>A handful of short adventures involving the Scaled Ones precede an appendix that provides all manner of critical information, including the historical eras of great realms of Faerûn, data on the deities of the Scaled Ones, and a table of racial traits for the new races introduced in this volume.</p><p></p><p><strong>Critical Hit</strong></p><p>Though I don’t run the Forgotten Realms, the Yuan-ti play a large role as the villains in my campaign. I’ve long felt that the drow are overused as villains, and I wanted something different, something that would give not only the characters, but their players, the willies. The Yuan-ti filled that bill perfectly. Thus, this book was a dream come true for me. It’s offered me plenty of fodder for my own setting, as well as some valuable insight into allied races of the Yuan-ti.</p><p></p><p><strong>Critical Fumble</strong></p><p>It’s difficult to find something truly bad to say about this book, but if I had to pick a low point, I’d probably say that it was the adventures. Really, who needs them? I write my own (usually) and I’d rather have seen the space used for more spells, prestige classes, or monsters. </p><p></p><p><strong>Coup de Grace</strong></p><p>If your campaign is not set in the Forgotten Realms, then about a third of this material is going to be of questionable use to you. Of course, it’s easy enough to take even an entire realm wholesale and drop it somewhere else. The modular nature of the scattered kingdoms make it easy to place them into any setting with only a minimum of effort. Make no mistake, however, this is a DM’s book. There is very little here that would be of interest or availability to the players, and it should remain that way.</p><p></p><p>As an aside, though they are not related, Ssethregore: In the Coils of the Serpent Empire makes a fine companion volume to this one. I pity the poor PCs that run afoul of an entire empire populated by the Scaled Ones, even more so if both of these books are used in conjunction with one another.</p><p></p><p><strong>Final Grade: B+</strong></p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Messageboard Golem, post: 2011851, member: 18387"] [b]By John Grigsby, Staff Reviewer d20 Magazine Rack Initiative Round[/b] Serpent Kingdoms is a Forgotten Realms supplement from Wizards of the Coast. Cover art by Michael Sutfin depicting a pair of adventurers finding more than they bargained for graces the wrap-around cover of this 190-page full-color hardcover by Ed Greenwood, Eric L. Boyd, and Darrin Drader. Kalman Andrasofszky, Thomas Baxa, Dennis Crabapple, Wayne England, Carl Frank, Ralph Horsley, Jim Pavelec, Richard Sardinha, and Joel Thomas contribute to the interior art. Serpent Kingdoms retails for $29.95. Serpent Kingdoms introduces us to the sarrukh, a progenitor race that once ruled over all of Faerûn. Today, they are all but a memory, but their legacy lives on, in the form of their numerous creations (and a few surviving members of the original race). The naga, the Yuan-ti, and the lizardfolk are the most well-known of these creations, but there are others, sequestered away in dark, forgotten corners. Ideally, the scaled folk would like to see themselves as rulers once more, with all other races as their slaves. Realistically, they know this isn’t going to happen overnight, so they work in secrecy, taking subtle control of small settlements. They are nothing if not infinitely patient… The first four chapters of Serpent Kingdoms describe, in great detail, the primary creations of the sarrukh; the Yuan-ti, the nagas, the lizards, and the hidden folk. Each chapter is quite lavish in detail, describing the power structure of the race, subraces, deities, specialized equipment and magic, their relation to other races, and also provides a handful of NPCs. The last two chapters, instead of focusing on a single race, describe several lesser scaled races, including the asabi, firenewts, khaastas (lizardfolk native to the Abyss), lizard kings, troglodytes (and their cousins, the brutish trens), the ophidians, and the pterafolk. The following chapter describes the sarrukh themselves, the progenitors that created all of the others. A quick perusal of the Monster Manual will revela a variety of scaly menaces for use in your campaign, and with the addition of the Monster Manual II, Monster Manual III, Fiend Folio, and Monsters of Faerûn, that number increases greatly. If you still don’t have enough, then Serpent Kingdoms comes to the rescue with 27 creatures that all revolve around a serpentine theme. A few we’ve seen before, such as the banelar naga, but most are fairly new to the scene or are welcome updates from older editions of D&D. The Realms chapter details some of the most notorious, important, and incredible realms of the Scaled Ones. Each region or locale is described in the same fashion as the realms in the Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting, with critical details presented at the beginning of the section, the moving on to life and society, major geographical features, important sites, regional history, and plots and rumors. All of this information is firmly set, of course, in the Forgotten Realms. The next chapter discusses the prospects for using the Yuan-ti as the major villains in a Forgotten Realms campaign. Rather than having hordes of bloodthirsty Yuan-ti overrunning the land, this campaign focuses on subtlety, intrigue, and espionage. This chapter talks about the many ways of handling such a campaign, and also provides some interesting NPCs to help provide something for the PCs to face. Serpent Kingdoms offers several new feats, almost all of them devoted to scaled races. In fact, very few non Scaled Folk will be able to make any use of these talents, but they will add greatly to a DM’s ability to inflict fear and suffering upon his party. Not so with the new equipment, magic items, and spells, however. At the discretion of the DM, most any of these could be made available to PCs, though they would do well not to let the Scaled Ones find out. Of the six new prestige classes described in this volume, five are specific to the Scaled Ones. In fact, three are aimed at solely at Yuan-ti, and one is intended for nagas. The ancient master is a Yuan-ti that has concentrated on enhancing its mind even as its body fails, the coiled cabalist is a member of a secret society devoted to mastering arcane magic, the master of vipers is an outcast Yuan-ti that has taken to dwelling among his lesser cousins, and the naga overlord is an evil mastermind among his kind. Fangs of Sseth can be human, but have chosen to serve the evil Yuan-ti deity. Finally, the serpent slayer is a member of a non-scaled race who has devoted his life to taking the fight to the Yuan-ti directly. A handful of short adventures involving the Scaled Ones precede an appendix that provides all manner of critical information, including the historical eras of great realms of Faerûn, data on the deities of the Scaled Ones, and a table of racial traits for the new races introduced in this volume. [b]Critical Hit[/b] Though I don’t run the Forgotten Realms, the Yuan-ti play a large role as the villains in my campaign. I’ve long felt that the drow are overused as villains, and I wanted something different, something that would give not only the characters, but their players, the willies. The Yuan-ti filled that bill perfectly. Thus, this book was a dream come true for me. It’s offered me plenty of fodder for my own setting, as well as some valuable insight into allied races of the Yuan-ti. [b]Critical Fumble[/b] It’s difficult to find something truly bad to say about this book, but if I had to pick a low point, I’d probably say that it was the adventures. Really, who needs them? I write my own (usually) and I’d rather have seen the space used for more spells, prestige classes, or monsters. [b]Coup de Grace[/b] If your campaign is not set in the Forgotten Realms, then about a third of this material is going to be of questionable use to you. Of course, it’s easy enough to take even an entire realm wholesale and drop it somewhere else. The modular nature of the scattered kingdoms make it easy to place them into any setting with only a minimum of effort. Make no mistake, however, this is a DM’s book. There is very little here that would be of interest or availability to the players, and it should remain that way. As an aside, though they are not related, Ssethregore: In the Coils of the Serpent Empire makes a fine companion volume to this one. I pity the poor PCs that run afoul of an entire empire populated by the Scaled Ones, even more so if both of these books are used in conjunction with one another. [b]Final Grade: B+[/b] [/QUOTE]
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