Upgrade your account to a Community Supporter account and remove most of the site ads.
Rocket your D&D 5E and Level Up: Advanced 5E games into space! Alpha Star Magazine Is Launching... Right Now!

Reply to thread

Message: <blockquote data-quote="Keeper of Secrets" data-source="post: 2011668" data-attributes="member: 13836">When the Sky Falls, by Malhavoc Press and Bruce Cordell is an ‘event book’ providing information on how to incorporate a destructive meteorite into a campaign.  A light streaks across the sky, the meteor slams into the earth and results in . . . well . . . the choice is up to the GM.  The book presents several options to the GM, depending on the kind of campaign they want to use.  In the words of the author, “When the Sky Falls is an event book providing advice and rules support for DMs wishing to incorporate a continent wide physical effect:  the impact of a meteorite large enough to change things.”  That sums it up nicely, actually.  And it certainly delivers on its promise.One thing that I have noticed in recent years is an attraction towards disaster films, whether the disaster be the forces of nature or something man-made.  Volcano, Sum of All Fears, Armageddon, Twister and most recently, The Day After Tomorrow, all show the aftermath of a terrible disaster unleashed on humanity.  Without being completely certain how much of When the Sky Falls was inspired from this genre, I can certainly say that anyone who enjoys those types of films will certainly enjoy this product.The book begins by describing the three different kinds of meteors that the GM can could use, selecting whichever one best suits their tastes.  Mundane, Thaumeteoric, and Engram Arks are all described, each representing a different type of result.  Mundane, of course, means that a ‘normal’ meteor impacts, while Thaumeteoric suggestions something more unusual (such as a dead god, an imprisoned being, a piece of raw magic, etc.  The Engram Ark is something different than the other two yet it combines features of them both.  The Engram Ark is best described as, ‘other.’  The Engram Ark is the one that the GM could probably take the most liberties with but it was a little hard to conceptualize when compared with the other two.One of the things that really impressed me is that Bruce Cordell clearly has a deep understanding of science (which is great because a college geology course I slept through was about my level of ‘expertise’), giving realistic and scientific explanations to the resulting damage and destruction, known as the Afterfall.  This section details grand zero, the radius around it and the likely results of the devastation.  By explaining the kinds of damage that has affected the area in question, GMs get a fairly good idea of what types of things are in store for characters or creatures caught in the area.  Frankly, its not pretty, as you may be able to imagine.  There a dust clouds, radiation, utter destruction and a plethora of unhealthy conditions that PCs would have to contend with if they venture closely.Chapter 2:  Integrating the Event, really is the most important substantive chapter of the book as it goes through the steps needed to make When the Sky Falls a memorable part of the GMs campaign.  After many of the important sections there is a checklist in the gutter that outlines the major points of the sections, allowing the GM to keep track of which events will be used or which events they intend on bringing in.  I really enjoyed the checklist and hope that this is an increasing trend that gamers see in event books, adventures and other source material.As I read through this chapter I was reminded of the tragic story of Warhammer’s (Games Workshop) city of Mordheim.  The city was destroyed by a meteor’s fall, the ensuing chaos and destruction that followed was something that may have inspired When the Sky Falls.  In any event, since I was always attracted to the story of Mordheim this may have been one of the reasons why When the Sky Falls was so inspiring for me.  Anyone who decides they may want to run something presented in When the Sky Falls should really research the Mordheim history as it could provide some interesting insight and inspiration.Something I would have liked to seen explored more is reaction of the surrounding area.  Not necessarily the physical reaction of the environment, as that was done very well in the introductory chapter.  I am curious how the average person would have reacted.  I would like to have seen some kind of discussion of a world gone mad as this is the closest thing to post apocalyptic fantasy I have seen.  I realize it is something of a stretch but the frenzied excitement of the crazed mob from the last story in the film, Heavy Metal was along the lines of what I was thinking.  The material that Cordell focuses on is great; cults that would spring up, astronomies that would have preached the oncoming doom, etc., but something that would have really captured the fear and paranoia would have been a really nice touch.  Regardless, this is a product that will be able to help a GM create or destroy a campaign.  By beginning the campaign with the backdrop of the meteorite or by ending a successful campaign with the final story revolving around it, there is a lot of room for great storytelling.The prestige classes, feats, spells and the monsters presented in chapters 3-6, really do a lot to make the event book come alive.  By adding these details to the book it brings the prior material together, showing that there are certainly some practical applications of the book.  Surely, whereas the subject matter presented in When the Sky Falls is interesting, anyone could have come up with a similar idea.  What really matters is being able to synthesize the great idea into great expressions of the idea; in this case the ‘crunchy’ bits that go with it.  And When the Sky Falls does that beautifully.The prestige classes, feats and spells all revolve around a common theme.  They relate specifically and directly to the events that are present in the book.  As I may have mentioned several times in previous reviews, I tend to stray away from products that load the reader down with endless prestige classes and endless feats without putting them in the proper context.  When the Sky Falls beautifully crafts the prestige classes, feats and spells as logical extensions of a meteorite that has pounded the earth.The chapter on the monsters, while certainly interesting, left a little bit of emptiness for me.  When I got to the monster section, I had this idea that I would get to see some really interesting creatures that had been mutated by the meteorite and evolved into something different (sort of like how in science fiction stories and comic books ‘radioactivity’ gives people and things unusual powers).  Whereas the monsters were certainly well thought out, I had hoped for just a little more, really.When the Sky Falls is definitely a unique product.  Obviously, unless you have need for a world-altering event, you won’t get much use out of this product.  On the other hand, it is so well written and so well thought out that after purchasing it, the GM may decide that the campaign world needs something world-altering.  Yes, it is that much of a great product with an excellent execution that it could convince you to integrate it into your campaign.I give When the Sky Falls 4 out of 5 stars.</blockquote>

Verification