The Slayer's Guide to Derro

[Messageboard Golem]

Kicking off with an overview of Derro Physiology the author, Joseph Miller (also responsible for the forthcoming EA Familiars), delves into their origins, diet, lifestyle and psychology of these Dwarves. He also studies physical variations within the race, which manifest themselves as a range of new Derro-only feats, such as Sun-Braver and Shade-Stalker which can easily give seasoned adventurers who think they know everything a nasty surprise.

The Habitat chapter takes a look into the realms the Derro prefer and the rare occasions they are forced to move residence (often due to disastrous volcanic activity) before launching into Derro Society. Here, we are introduced to the highest caste of Derro, the Savant and the councils they form, as well as the Chosen of the race (the Sun-Bravers and Shade-Stalkers) and the Persecutors, who form the religious backbone of the Derro. Their technological abilities are also studied, along with their religious beliefs and the way this all drives their whole society. New magical items unique to the Derro are featured, such as the Mask of the Tormentor (a powerful religious item), Bonding Whips and the Tome of Forbidden Names, which greatly increases the magical capabilities of both arcane and divine Derro spellcasters.

Methods of Warfare covers ways Derro fight, both individually and as large groups - there are plenty of ideas here on how to launch attacks on other settlements or making your players lives miserable! New Derro arms and equipment are fully detailed, including new poison types, climbing saddles, knockout bolts and the Akave, a popular Derro weapon that combines the benefits of both the warhammer and the battleaxe.

After this, the Roleplaying with Derro chapter fulfils two functions - first, it provides the Games Master with plenty of hints and tips on how to portray Derro to his players without risking them becoming just another bunch of evil Dwarves (or like Duergar but a bit 'different'). It also provides new prestige classes to flesh out Derro characters and villains, such as the Persecutor, Savant and Taskmaster. New Derro spells will give this race a great advantage over players, as well as provide player arcane spellcasters with an impetus to uncover their spellbooks - after all, a human or elf wizard with access to this magic is likely to be one of only a very tiny number on the surface world who can cast them. Great for building a unique character!

Scenario Hooks and Ideas gives the Games Master a set of jump off points to build scenarios upon so he can introduce Derro into his campaign immediately, and in a believable manner, and this is followed by a complete Derro lair, Finnius' Mine, which should challenge any mid-level party.

This book is wrapped up with a complete Derro Reference List, which provides stats for several Derro characters, from lowly warriors to their Savants and great leaders.

 

[Messageboard Golem]

When it comes to roleplaying, it is often best to keep things simple. The Slayer's Guide series from Mongoose Publishing exemplifies this perfectly. Each of these 32 page booklets covers the physiology, psychology, habitat and society of a specific monstrous race from the d20 game material. This simple approach has creates a series of crisp and clearly written books, each of which gives players and game masters alike, an insight into the lives and motives of a variety of monstrous creatures and it is little wonder that the Slayer's Guides have been a successful and long running series. The Slayer's Guide to Derro turns the spot light on that underground menace, the Derro.

Few campaigns that have ventured into the underground caverns or the vastness of the underdark have not encountered the Derro. These degenerate dwarves, with the pale complexions, a strong aversion to sunlight and terribly malicious attitude toward other creatures, and even their own people, have hounded, killed and slaughtered adventurers for years, throughout the many incarnation of the Dungeons and Dragons game. The slayer's guide to Derro does not re-invent these creatures but instead clearly outlines their many nuances and adds depth to their culture and society.

The first chapter of the book, Derro Physiology, starts by describing the appearance of the Derro, with specifics for the male and female of the species and a few theories as to the origins of these dwarven variants, including the traditional human-dwarf crossbreeding that the Derro are themselves supposed to believe. The chapter moves onto such niceties as the Derro's diet and their life cycle with specific attention to the survival of the young in a society made up of totally selfish creatures that will not give the time of day to those that they consider weaker or inferior to them in anyway. The chapter than introduces two Derro variants or genetic aberrations, the Sun-bravers (able to withstand the light for a time) and shade-stalkers (with senses that make them more attuned to their environment in total darkness). These variants are not templates or separate races but instead outlined at Feats. There is the suggestion that the Derro as a whole are beginning to evolve beyond their allergy to sunlight. Finally, the chapter completes with a description of Derro psychology.

Habitat, the second chapter, outlines how the Derro live and the Derro view f the world as being composed of the overearth (above ground) and the underdeeps (or underdark). The Derro are described as too weak to hold their own in either world and instead settling in the caves and abandoned mines that connect these two worlds, hoping to one day take both at their own domain. There is a description of Derro settlements and the chapter finishes by describing how the Derro go about moving their settlements when circumstances demand it.

Derro Society describes the rigidly levelled society of the Derro, starting at the top with the Savants and the Sava council and moving on down through privileged sun-bravers and shade-stalkers, through the clerical persecutors with their masks, to the taskmasters that control the slaves, into the ill-considers works and warriors that make up the mass of each clan and finally the children, the women, the lame and slaves that are barely considered a part of the clan at all. There are descriptions of Derro technology, their approach to farming and slaves, discussion of their religion and their relation with other races.

Methods of Warfare describes the approach the generally physically weaker Derro take to combat and describes the role of their Martial Leader, the Mandare in matters of warfare. The chapter introduces new poison, equipment and weapons for the wary Derro warrior to carry with him into the shadows and the laws that govern the sharing of spoils after war. The next chapter, Roleplaying with Derro provides a number of tips on introducing Derro and fleshing out their character during the game and than provides three Derro prestige classes, the Persecutors (The clerics of the Derro), the Savants (their wizards and leaders) and the Taskmasters that use whip and minor magics to keep the Derro slaves in line. The prestige classes are all well written and perfectly balanced and will make encounters with the Derro more dangerous and challenging. The chapter finishes with a selection of spells, all perfectly balanced and well written and all easily incorporated into the game without any effort at all.

Scenario Hooks and Ideas outlines some story seeds for GMs interested in using Derro in their games. Finnus's Mine details a whole clan and their Mandare leader in full with guidelines and history for using the clan in any standard game world. Finally, the Derro Reference list outlines some basic stats for easy use during game when encountering average Derro.

This book is short and well paced with a great deal of information crammed into an easy, convenient and relatively cheap book. Quickly perusing the pages stirs any number of ideas for Derro orientated adventures and will give a Game Master everything he needs to make the Derro more than a faceless menace for his players. The rules additions are all completely balanced and easily incorporated into the game and the background manages to be rich and detailed without contradicting any of the preconceptions the Game Master might have about how he wants his Derro to be. This is a well devised book that will slip seamlessly into any game where Derro are to be encountered in all their selfish and devious colours. . . a must purchase for any Game Master wanting to introduce Derro as a major adversary into his game.

 

[Simon Collins]

This is not a playtest review.

Slayer's Guide To Derro is next in Mongoose's guides to under-rated monsters.

Slayer's Guide to Derro is a 32-page mono softcover product costing $9.95. Both inside covers are used - one for an ad, the other for a full colour illustration of the skeletal and muscular structure of derro. Layout has an airy feel to it common with other Slayer's Guides but there are no chunks of white space. Artwork is generally appropriate to the accompanying text and one artist is used for all the mono internal artwork providing a similar monster concept throughout. The front cover shows a line of chained slaves trudging through the underdark guarded by derro - its both atmospheric and succinctly shows the focus of the race. Writing style is literate and engaging, and editing average. There seems to be slightly less flavour text than normal for a Slayer's Guide and the spacing between paragraphs unfortunately strings the text out a good bit, but the quality of writing is good.

Chapter 1: Derro Physiology
Discusses such aspects as the appearance of derro, particularly their magic-resistant skin (and its possible origins), diet (mainly fungi, but with a predilection for flesh), and the derro life cycle (essentially a fight for survival with a 2 in 3 child mortality rate). Two new variants of Derro are described - Sun-bravers (who have a reduced susceptibility to the sun) and Shade-stalkers (who have increased ability to perceive in the dark). Four new feats are provided to match these variants - two which give the variants their abilities only at 1st level, whilst the other two offer an improved version of the original feat as the character develops their innate ability. The section on psychology reiterates the hard life that toughens the derro, their dislike of direct combat, and some of the reasoning behind their arrogance and love of power.

Chapter 2: Habitat
This chapter discusses the likely location of derro settlements, along with the complicated procedure the derro go through to relocate a clan in the face of local hostility of environment (e.g. volcanic activity) or threat (e.g. drow attacks).

Chapter 3: Derro Society
This chapter looks at the derro caste system from the sorcerous savants at the top of the ladder through Mandare (clan chiefs), Sun-bravers and Shade-stalkers, Persecutors (clerics), Taskmasters (slave masters), workers and warriors, children, women, elderly, and lame, right down to the slaves. The information on each level of caste is interspersed with magical items - a tome that records the names of dead derro and is a powerful spell focus, a mask that grants darkvision and divining spells, and a barbed bonding whip used to magically initiate taskmasters. The chapter also discusses technology and industry (similar to dwarves), religion (the derro worship The Tormentor, whose stat block is not provided, though there is information strewn throughout the book on the deity), and relations with other races (pretty poor).

Chapter 4: Methods Of Warfare
This chapter discusses the role of the Mandare (clan chief), the different types of squads and platoons formed for battle dependent on the task, and how spoils are divided between the different castes after a successful battle. There is also a section on new arms and equipment, including a new poison and crossbow bolts with a knockout gas concealed in a clay tip.

Chapter 5: Roleplaying With Derro
After a section discussing general behavioural traits, there is an exhaustive section on the different castes and their personality traits and attitudes. There are a few example derro names with some guidelines for creating your own. Three new 10-level prestige classes are offered:
* Persecutor - a cleric of The Tormentor with good Fort and Will progressions, average BAB, limited access to spells, domain access, spontaneous 'inflict' spells (and other class abilities involving damage by touch), rebuke undead, and a couple of abilities that use voice to enchant victims. Suffers from odd prerequisites (3 ability score minimums, can be accessed from 1st level).
* Savant - derro sorcerer, gains +1 level of existing spellcasting class and are proficient in making magical items through various abilities and have a similar ability to bardic knowledge, enhanced by progression. No mention is made of the prerequisite of 5th-level sorcerer mentioned in the MM.
* Taskmaster - whip specialist with fighter-like bonus feats, BAB and save progressions but a d4 hit die, and again odd ability-based prerequisites allowing entry at 1st level.

Five new spells essentially recreate the sun-braver and shade-stalker feats on a temporary basis, plus access to ancestral wisdom through a speak with dead-like spell.

Chapter 6: Scenario Hooks And Ideas
Four one-paragraph plot hooks that tie in with the information provided earlier in the book.

Chapter 7: Finnius's Mine
This is a more fleshed-out adventure idea introducing the lair of a derro clan, with stats for the clan leader.

Chapter 8: Derro Reference List
Generic stat blocks for various derro castes plus stats for the reptera (giant lizard, no illustration), which is used as a mount by derro outriders.

High Points:
I liked the way that the basic idea of the savant mentioned in the MM was taken and expanded into a full-blown caste system for the derro, and the way the theme of the caste system was mirrored in other sections. Unlike some of the other Slayer's Guides, I thought this one managed to strike a much better balance between flavour and crunch, with the crunch backing up and clarifying the engaging descriptive information elsewhere in the product.

Low Points:
It was a shame that the crunchy bits had a few inconsistencies and weaknesses to them, particularly the prerequisites for the prestige classes. I was also disappointed at the lack of space given to Finnius's Mine, which I was expecting to be more fully described rather than the extended plot hook it actually is.

Conclusion:
An illuminating and well-written account of derro with some good ideas that will still need some work from the GM before she can use them in her campaign or adventure.