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Colonial Gothic: Gazetteer
 

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Colonial Gothic: Gazetteer
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Colonial Gothic: Gazetteer
Publisher: Rogue Games, Inc
by Timothy B. [Featured Reviewer]
Date Added: 12/02/2014 14:19:04

This book calls itself a Gazetteer, but "Campaign Sourcebook" might be more appropriate. Written for the 1st Edition of Colonial Gothic it works just fine under 2nd Edition. Chapter 1 covers the history of the colonies from early English and Dutch colonization right on up to 1775. Principle wars are discussed and colonial growth covered. Chapters 2 through 14 cover the original 13 colonies in detail including basic demographics and major towns. Points of interest are also featured in each chapter as well as anything out of the ordinary. Chapter 15 is devoted to the Native American people. An overview of their history and cultures is given, but by necessity it is short. In truth an entire Colonial Gothic book could be done just on the various Native american tribes and nations. Te last chapter is a ready to run adventure, "A Surprise for General Gage". There are two Appendices. First a Glossary and then a Bibliography. I want to take a moment to point out that all of the Colonial Gothic books always feature a very robust (for a game book) bibliography. This one is no exception to that rule. This one includes books, game books and even some online resources. Certainly worth your time to investigate a few of these.



Rating:
[4 of 5 Stars!]
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Colonial Gothic: Gazetteer
Publisher: Rogue Games, Inc
by Alexander L. [Featured Reviewer]
Date Added: 02/14/2013 06:58:22

Originally posted at: http://diehardgamefan.com/2013/02/14/tabletop-review-colonial-gothic-gazetteer/

Of all the Colonial Gothic material to review, this is an odd one to do later in the series because it is such essential setting information for the core book. Gazetteer was released in 2010, after a smattering of modules and after the revised edition of the core rulebook the year before. While some setting information sourcebooks had been released, this book had a broader scope that covered the colonies you would probably play in using the core book. Most of the colonies get their own chapter, with a few additional chapters dedicated to things like native tribes and an adventure.

Essential History

The book kicks off with a chapter on the basics of Colonial American history: wars, settlements, and the various acts (laws impressed upon America by the British). After that, each colony basically does the same, giving a brief history first followed by various nuggets of knowledge concerning the area. For instance, there is a section on the geography of each area as well as important locations and a few notable local legends or areas that might be adventure seeds. The only break from this pattern is in the section on Native American tribes, which turns out to be fairly comprehensive as far as I can tell. While not giving you a ton of information on the tribes, each one is given page real estate according to their presence in colonial life. The last chapter is an adventure involving the players intercepting a letter and then being asked to infiltrate a British fort.

Low Detail, More Overview

For a game master who is serious or wants to get serious about his commitment to a more historical Colonial Gothic game, this book is a must. It takes a bunch of necessary facts that are easy to grasp and organizes them by colony, then presents them according to type. It’s definitely not exhaustive, and the level of detail is more of a bird’s-eye view than anything else, but unless your players are hardcore into the historical detail aspect, it will suffice. Rogue Games continues to expand upon certain events or locations with entire sourcebooks so, while you will have to buy another book if you really want finer detail, you can get it if you want and you can pick and choose where you want your graininess. I find it a nice quick reference for historical timelines and important cities, I don’t use the mysteries as they tend to be sort of old-timey-American-legends type of things, and many of them I find silly. If you already know your American history cold or have other reference books around you want to use, you might skip this book. Otherwise, it’s a nice reference to have and read through for a general picture of each colony and its history.



Rating:
[3 of 5 Stars!]
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