Wonders Out of Time

[enrious]

NOTE: The reviewer was given a free copy of this product in return for an honest review. The publishers have made no contact with the reviewer aside from obtaining the mailing address.

Wonders in Time is the second effort in Eden Studios' vignette line and it marks an improvement in the quality in the ideas and presentation over the first product, Akrasia Thief in Time.

It is a 48 page staple-bound book with a suggested retail price of $9.95. It is comprised of vignettes, generic settings that are not adventures but more of adventure seeds. This works very well for DM's to incoporate into their campaign without having to rip out information that is campaign-specific.


Artwork: The cover artwork is full color and depicts a spell caster in battle. It's nice but the most impressive artwork lies in the black and white pencil style illustrations that fill the interior. I have been a fan of pencil art ever since Twilight 2000 and this is on the same high quality scale. It mainly consists of Romanesque pictures of dailly life or buildings and seems to fit in with the text focus.


Presentation: This book introduces a thousand year old civilization through a series of vignettes. It starts off with an ancient manor and proceeds through a variety of settings such as an old farmstead and temple. It provides a lot of inspiration for introducing your own ancient culture should you choose not to use the Merithian culture, but if you're looking to introduce Roman inspired artifiacts and other material, the Merithians are a good choice.

The vignettes range in scope from low level to high level power, with a logical progression. The beauty of these vignettes is that you don't have to throw them one after the other - they could be introduced over time and lead to some excellent side adventures finding more information on the Merithians and their ruins. They should be quite easy to introduce in any campaign world and present a way to introduce a little spice in your campaign without unbalancing it.


Game Issues: This introduces a new prestige class that seems to fit in both with the flavor and balance of the book. Some of the monsters are easily adaptable, while the magic items seemed to give the party a boost without unbalancing your campaign. An example of one of these items is an item that speeds healing but isn't likely to be used in the middle of combat.

It introduces a new style of magic which may be *slightly* overpowered, but in a Forgotten Realms campaign I don't think so. Even at that, it's easily modified to fit in with your own campaign's magic levels.

Overall: The ideas presented are well done and full of ideas and flavor. I don't think there would be any trouble introducing the ideas presented into any campaign. The vignette style is great for experienced DM's but novice DM's expecting a series of premade adventures are likely to be disappointed. The vignettes range from mostly role-playing to mostly combat so there's a lot to build on either way.

 

[drnuncheon]

Overview: Another vignette book, like Eden's Akrasia, Thief of Time, but more easily applicable to most people's campaigns, and with fewer rules gaffes. Definitely designed for a thinking party - the vignettes have some tough encounters that can be avoided by clever players.

Disclaimer: This is a non-playtest review of a product provided for free (along with Akrasia: Thief of Time) by the publisher, Eden Studios, in exchange for posting a review on ENWorld. There was no pressure to write a good review.


Review

Like Akrasia, Thief of Time, Eden's Wonders out of Time presents a "vignette book" - a book of background, setting, new rules and mini-encounters that is something of an adventure and a sourcebook wrapped into one.

In the case of Wonders out of Time, the overarching theme is that of the Merithian Empire, a long-fallen nation that is designed to occupy the same sort of historical niche that Rome or Greece did in our world. The Merithians are heavily based on the Romans, providing a reasonably well-known baseline from which the DM and players can work.

Physically, the book is 48 pages long, staple-bound, with 1 page taken up by the OGL and 2 by advertisements. (Unlike Akrasia, the interior covers are not used for this purpose.) The front cover is in color, as might be expected, but is rather uninspiring - don't judge the contents by it! The interior art, on the other hand, is much better at conveying the Classical feel of the Merithian culture, especially the two 'fresco' pieces.

The first section of the book discusses the Merithian culture. Despite it's Roman roots, the designer has thrown in a few twists, from a feng shui-like mystical science called the Oracles to a unique form of magic. The section is largely divided into topics, and the information under each topic is given a DC check - succeeding on a Knowledge (history) roll at that DC allows a PC to know the relevant piece of information, much like a Gather Information roll. Bravo! I especially liked this setup and I hope its use spreads to other products. Secret cults should have at least some information available though Knowledge (religion), lost magics through Knowledge (arcana), etc. Make the players glad they spent the points on the skill - and give the DM something to go by. There are also suggestions for further adventures, expanding on the scope of the book.

Following the history section are the vignettes, short adventures ranging in levels from 1-3 to 9-12. The vignettes are lightly linked, but do not make up a complete campaign in and of themselves - they are best used scattered between other adventures.

Spoilers are ahead for the various vignettes. You know what that means.


Perinocles' Manor is the initial vignette, and also the final one, a clever way of bringing the plotline full circle. It details a wizard's manor preserved by an ancient spell, and mystery abounds - who are all of the dead people, and why are they dressed as Merithians when it's obvious they haven't been dead for long? Like the others, this vignette is full of well-done clues that reward a thinking party - evidence that allows them to avoid one of the tougher encounters or to find a hidden door.

In the final vignette - The Shade Manor - the PCs return here and unlock a hidden section of the house with their newfound knowledge of the Merithian culture, allowing them to find several treasures of the ancient Empire. The sequence of events required to unlock this area is unusual enough that DMs don't need to worry about the PCs accidentally doing it the first time they are there. Unfortunately, The Shade Manor also contains the first rules problem - there is an undisableable magic trap (I strongly dislike absolutes in things of this nature) which has a save DC but doesn't relate the effects of a successful save.

Next is the Merithian Farm, detailing a rebuilt Merithian farmhouse (no surprise there) that is inhabited by a pair of ogres and their goblin troops. The scenario provides a tenuous link with Eden's Akrasia in that the ogres are worshipers of that goddess, but ownership of Akrasia is hardly necessary.

The vignette details the tactics of the ogres and goblins, many of which are very clever - some might think them too clever and organized for a bunch of goblins led by chaotic evil (and lazy!) ogres.

This vignette also earns the prize for most unusual treasure - the farmhouse contains several sacks of high-yield grain, magically preserved. Many parties may miss this entirely, while clever ones can use it to change the world.

The next encounter is very similar: the Lost Fortress, built by Merithians and currently inhabited by brigands. The section gives a number of good hints on handling the assult, helping DMs run a very tactical game which should please players who enjoy that sort of thing.

The Merithian Temple presents a ruined temple that can provide a great deal of information about the Empire, including the steps necessary to unlock the hidden section of the Manor in the first vignette. The primary encounter is very tough for the recommended levels, but clever players will find many ways to use the environment to their advantage. The vignette discusses some of them. There's also a rather nasty "trap" in the form of the shackled spirits - if they convince a character to hold their burden "just for a moment" they vanish and the character takes their place. Fortunately the means to reverse this is within reach of the PCs at that level (remove curse), but there could be trouble if it's the cleric who takes up the shackles...

Next is the Merithian Library, situated like Troy, buried under a city that was built and rebuilt on top of it. The suggested hook is an innkeeper willing to pay 5,000 gp for the adventurers to clear out the ruins that prevent her from expanding her wine cellar - some DMs might think that 5 grand is a bit much for an innkeeper to be throwing around. The library is a short encounter with a single opponent (a royal golem) but provides a great deal of information on the Merithians, including the location of the lost city of Derimos.

Guess what the penultimate encounter is? Right. The City of Derimos, located in the last vignette, is the home of a cult dedicated to "Manar, sun god of the Merithians" and designed to provide its leader (the sorcerer Kareth Danian) with an army to conquer the surounding countryside. Highlights include the ghosts of a legendary legion that can be convinced to help the PCs defeat the cultists. A letter to the emperor points the characters back to the Manor, and now they know who it belonged to and can access the hidden Shade Manor.

Following the vignettes is the appendix, with five new monsters, a brief description of a new type of magic, and several new magic items. Unfortunately, this section shares the problems that Akrasia had - a lack of attention to the concepts behind the d20 rules.

The bone guardian is a fine concept that would do any necromancer proud - a skeletal animated hand with strength-draining ability. It is a construct rather than undead, which may throw the clerics for a loop, but some DMs might take issue with the fact that it has d4 hit dice instead of the usual d10 for a construct. Construction details are included.

The other two constructs, the bronze warrior and the royal golem, are generally better on the rules front, although bost list Evasion (or Improved Evasion) as a feat. In fact, all three constructs have feats and skills, which are normally not present for creatures of that type.

The other two monsters, as might be expected from a long-gone empire, are undead: the Shackled Spirit (discussed above) and the Ghostly Sentry, which is more of a redone shadow than anything else.

Merithian Red Magic allows characters - even non-spellcasters - to learn low-level (1st to 3rd) spells as innate abilities usable once per day, at the cost of one-time permanent hit point loss. DMs will want to carefully evaluate whether losing 6 permanent hit points is a large enough price for allowing the fighter to cast fireball or haste once a day, even if it is subject to spell failure and cast at half his level.

The items (there are 11) range from "blood scrolls" (magical devices that teach red sorcery, activated by contact with the blood) through armor and weapons to cursed items like the braingem and the ring of arachnophobia. Unfortunately, there are some more rules problems here: the bone armor items (among other effects) give a +1 bonus to strength, which is generally a no-no in the d20 world (stat bonuses should come in even numbers). There's also what I can only assume is a typo in the price of the officer's gladius - the fact that it is +1 lawful alone makes it worth more than the price given.

The final pages of the product are dedicated to a new prestige class: the Centurion Knight, which combines the best aspects of fighters and rogues. In fact, with two good saves and the ability to gain both fighter bonus feats and 'centurion training' (similar to the roggue's special abilities), it is too good. One could pick up 7 feats over the 10 levels, plus evasion, improved evasion, opportunist, and uncanny dodge. DMs would be well advised to cut back on the abilities given to the class before incorporating it as a choice for PCs.

Summary:
Wonders out of Time shares many of the same virtues and flaws as its predecessor, Akrasia: Thief of Time. However, the concepts and adventures surrounding the Merithian civilization would be easier to integrate into an existing campaign than the worship of Akrasia, and in all probability possess a wider appeal as well. The background and adventures are cleverly written with plenty of information for the DM, so if you are willing to overlook the relatively minor rules issues, this product will provide a great deal of useful background information and adventure entertainment.

 

[Psion]

Wonders Out of Time

Wonders Out of Time is a "vignette book" for a d20 system fantasy game by Eden Studios. In this context a "vignette" is a short scenario, location, or NPC that can be inserted in an ongoing campaign. All of the vignettes in Wonders Out of Time are related to an ancient empire called the Merthian Empire.

A First Look

Wonders Out of Time is a 48-page staple-bound soft-cover book priced at $9.95, though 2 pages are ads and the inside covers are not used. This gives a price per page of 21 cents. This is fairly standard for products in this price range, and somewhat better than Eden's own Akrasia: Thief of Time, which runs 28 cents per page.

The cover of the book is color, with a painting by Paul Harmon depicting some adventurers confronting constructs in Roman-style armor. I am not impressed by the somewhat simplistic nature of the paintings.

The interior art is black and white, and provided by veteran gaming artist Kieran Yanner. His works are mostly inks with gray tones, and are generally very nice.

Eden's layout is nice, compact, and readable, using a relatively small typeface. Combined with the price per page ration, Wonders Out of Time delivers a decent value based on quantity of content alone.

A Deeper Look
(Warning: This section contains some spoilers regarding material in the book.)

As mentioned, Wonders Out of Time is a sourcebook that provides short scenarios and locations called vignettes. The vignettes all center around an ancient empire called the Merthian empire. The Merthian empire is modeled after Rome, and is assume to have existed 1000 years before the campaign time. Of course, if you already know what precursors there were to your current campaign, the material in here may take some retooling to use unless your version of a precursor empire was also Roman in nature.

The book is organized into 8 chapters plus an appendix. The first chapter is introductory material outlining rest of the book. The second chapter is entitled the Mertians, and discusses some aspects of this ancient empire. The third through eighth chapters are the individual vignettes. The appendix contains new rules items such as creatures and magic items.

The second chapter details the nature and the history of the Merthians and their empire. As mentioned, they are where a fantasy society largely modeled after Rome, with references to fantasy elements added. The Merthians practiced a strange brand of sorcery called Red sorcery. The chapter provides nuggets of information that characters might know with a successful knowledge (history) check.

The vignettes all center around remnants of the Merthian empire, most of them now occupied by other threats like goblins and dire animals. They are a few hazards left behind by the Merthians. For example, there are animated skeletal hands called bone guardians and a very fast construct called a royal golem.

The vignettes are designed for a variety of levels, thus there is likely to be one that you can drop in at any point in a campaign. The vignettes are linked to details of the Merthian history and culture. For example, the Merthians are rather particular that there must always be an even number of doors facing a given cardinal direction in a building. Players armed with this knowledge can use it to uncover the existence of a secret door.

The vignettes have clues and bits linking one another. For example, the first vignette contains a secret other-planear sanctuary that can only be reached by performing a certain ritual. The existence of the sanctuary and the means to get to it are in another vignette.

The rules material in the back contains creatures and magic items from the merthian empire that you can use in your game, as well as a new prestige class called the centurion knight.

The creatures include three new constructs and two new undead creatures. Bone guardians are animated skeletal hands. Bronze warriors and royal golems are two warrior shaped constructs. Ghostly sentries resemble ancient Merthian soldiers, but have a strength drain attack. Shackled spirits are an incorporeal undead creature held in some ancient bond; they are more plot device than creature as they cannot really be hurt and can only be dealt with by volunteering to take its place or removing the curse that binds it.

The creatures are basically sound ideas, and seem to have fewer problems than those in Akrasia: Thief of Time. But they do have some technical problems. For example, bone guardians are assigned an arbitrary, incorrect HD type, and some (unintelligent) constructs are given skills.

Most of the new items look to be workable. One new item type is a little questionable. Bloodscrolls teach characters Merthian blood magic. By sacrificing 2 hp per spell level permanently, the character can learn a spell they can cast for free 1 time per day.

Conclusion

If you have a need for a lost ancient culture and you players are the factoid-collecting sort, this could make a nice addition to your game. However, the vignettes are pretty strongly linked to the details of the Merthian empire itself, so if you have a different background you need to work in, it may be difficult to make meaningful use out of the books adventure, as without the cultural references, they are pretty sketchy and plain.

Although the format and details of the creatures are better than they were in Akrasia: Thief of Time, but they still do not follow many conventions of d20 system fantasy creatures.

-Alan D. Kohler

 

[Messageboard Golem]

This review is for Wonders Out of Time by Kevin Wilson. Published by Eden Odyssey, this 48-page sourcebook retails for $9.95 and details background material on the Merithian civilization that is suitable for any fantasy setting. In addition, six short "vignettes" or mini-adventures are included.

The civilization detailed is known as Merithia and is based on Roman culture. The difference between the two cultures, however, is that the Merithians strive to perfect their bodies physically and/or through the use of magic. They are a very prideful race, which ultimately proved to be their downfall. A magically advanced society, Merithia developed golems that were superior to current ones and weapons that magically melded to their owner's body.

The bulk of the book contains six different vignettes that explore different facets of the Merithian ruins. Each short adventure has a little something that can be used to connect it to the others; creating a larger, grander adventure if a GM does some work. Each vignette comes with several good adventure hooks and is consistently structured in an orderly and easy-to-use manner that makes GM prep time minimal. The new monsters in the appendix have some game mechanics issues (mostly CRs) but they are easily fixed. The magic items are unique and mostly balanced. The Centurion Knight prestige class is an interesting class for a gladiator or roman soldier type character. It is fairly powerful, however, and should probably be modified before use.

Overall, Wonders Out of Time is a respectable offering from Eden. If you are in need of short adventure encounters, this book has some decent ones. There are game balance and mechanics issues, but a good GM can compensate for this. For the price (and especially considering the cost of other similar products), this is a good investment and will fit into any campaign world.

To see the graded evaluation of this product, go to The Critic's Corner at www.d20zines.com.