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Simply a very useful product for those who are using wetlands as either a setting or simply a location within a setting. The sections on insects interested me a great deal since that aspect is usually glossed over in other wilderness products that feature wetlands.
The overview of different types of swamps is very handy for world building and of course the bits and shards are useful for session prep (the index is a godsend for this).<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Excellent<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Very Satisfied<br>
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Bits of Wilderness into the Wildwood is a new PDF by Table top Games. These people know how to make my life easy as a DM. They have books like this on all about descriptions. They are well written, well laid out, and even have art in them when the art really is not needed. But it is really nice to see. The book is not really designed to be print out in full, and this I find really creative. They have all the descriptions organized on cards that can be printed out making them even easier to use. I print out the cards and then paperclip the descriptions I want to use to the places in the adventure they are going to be used. This saves times, makes them easy to organize, and most importantly makes sure I do not forget to use. The book is also book marked and has a great index making it useable in different ways what ever works for the DM.
The idea behind the book is simple and genius at the same time. The whole Bits of series works off the same idea. Descriptions of rooms, cities, different places the players encounter can be a bit of a pain for some DMs. I know I especially have problems coming up with descriptions on the fly when the players decide to go somewhere that I really was not quite expecting them to go. And these are not just descriptions, but well thought out information about the place. The writing and images the words bring on are defiantly better then I could come up with and present a level of detail most people just do not have the time to do. This particular book covers places in the forest. It does do different types of forest but also does the weather and different seasons. There are also two basic types of descriptions one can find here. The first are bits and the second are shards. Bits are smaller descriptions a little easier to make use of and apply. Shards are bigger and longer and still easier to use but they describe a larger section and might need a bit of alteration if a particular part does not exactly fit.
It should be no surprise that I am giving this book a high rating. It does the job it set out to do very well. It does a job that no other book or company is really doing these days. And it is very useful for practically any DM. There is really not much more one could want from a book or from a company.
<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Excellent<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Very Satisfied<br>
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Bits of the Boulevard is a new book by Tabletop Adventures. They have put out a few good books that are aimed to help the DM with providing descriptions and other ideas for the game that the DM does not have to spend time designing himself. The sixty five page PDF is written by a lot of people. This is one of those products that a lot of people helped out on and looking at their names many of them seem to be related in some way. It is nice to see a project that brings families together. The book marks could be a little better done more like the index. The index is very well done and makes finding the different pieces of information easy. The layout is good with a few pictures but they did do a nice job of the note card section. The last sixteen pages have the descriptions from the early parts of the book on note card sized sections of the page. This makes it easy to print, cut out, and organize them for the DM.
Bits of the Boulevard is a unique product. It is like a few of Tabletop Adventures other books but I have not seen anything else in role playing like them. The book consists of descriptions for a city and inside a city. The imagery is very good and it really is something I can see many people getting good use out of. There are two types of items here: Bits and Shards. The Bits are usually a bit smaller and there are a hundred of them. So, to give an example I?ll pull out the under used d100 and come up with number eighty nine:
?Flocks of doves and pigeons roost in chaotic nests in rain gutters, squawking incessantly. The cloth awnings covering most doorways are white with old bird droppings. Bits of long-forgotten bread crunch underfoot, thrown by visitors
similar to the ones you see today who come here to feed the tame street birds. Unlike most wild birds, these avians don't flitter away as you approach; instead they boldly approach you for treats.?
That is the type of description the book has to offer. They paint a nice picture with a good eye for detail. The Shards cover a little more area. Like there are some that are for street filled with leather workers or smiths on it. There are eighty Shards like that in the book and each is a little more in depth then the bits for instance one called Business Rained Out.:
?Rain falls continuously, having a negative affect on business. People throw cloaks over their heads to dash down the street if they must go out. They come in from the street dripping, leaving muddy footprints and spreading water all about. The awnings and tents of wandering merchants deflect most of the rain, but there are steady drips inside their improvised shops nevertheless. They cover their merchandise and hunker down to wait out the storm. The air becomes increasingly damp as the rain continues, so that if things aren?t wet from the rain, they are soggy from the humidity. The smells also intensify: wet horses, wet dogs, wet hair, wet wool. ?
They really do a nice job with capturing a scene and providing vivid detail. There are twenty three additional Shards that describe the gates and walls of a city. These are easy to use and should enhance any trip into a city making it come alive with detail.
The book also has some great uses for building a city. It does not offer stating out the city but for giving the city a reason to exist. The section is not as in depth and does not cover other city building books like the rules in Advanced Players Guide by Sword and Sorcery does. But the section provides some good ideas on information like laws and organizations in a city.
Bits of the Boulevard is a rare product that needs very little DM prep time. The descriptions are easy to scan for the one that a DM needs and the details they provide should enhance any game. This is a very good product and it is close to being a must have for anyone who runs city based games like in Freeport or Bluffside.
<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Excellent<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Very Satisfied<br>
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So, what is Bits of Darkness Dungeons? It is not a module or campaign setting. It is not a player resource; it has no feats, spells, items, or classes inside it. It is a book on details. Not how to create ones own details but over a hundred specific details that can easily be added to any dungeon. These details are just descriptions but a lot of time descriptions can be a hard thing for DMs to create especially when one does not have adequate time to prepare them. Now, there are some interest ideas in the descriptions. They won?t change an adventure but can add an air of mystery and suspense when used right. There are descriptions of sights, smells, and sounds. They have some for rooms, hallways, and stairs. There are descriptions to enhance moods, inspire dread, and show signs of abandonment or previous explorations, or even the possibility of intelligence inhabitants.
As I was reading through it I came across a lot of good descriptions, but wasn?t sure how easy it would be to use them. Then I came to the second half of the book. It has all the descriptions reprinted and reformatted so when one prints them out they can be cut into index card size sheets. That is a great idea. There is plenty of room for DMs to note where they used the descriptions and to flip through looking for the right one. That is a great way to use these.
Bits of Darkness Dungeons is the rare product that is there to make the DMs job a little easier. It is also one of the rare products that can be used in any game system. There is nothing here the limits it to d20. The descriptions are aimed more at a fantasy game, but there are some that can easily be used in other genres. I like the usefulness and creativity of this product. I think it can really enhance games in a nice, easy way.
<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Excellent<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Very Satisfied<br>
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Since I originally posted my review of this product, Tabletop Adventures has released a revised version of this product that resolves the ?cut & paste? problems. I cannot commend Tabletop Adventures highly enough for resolving these issues. It is with great pleasure I revise my review and, now without reservation, enthusiastically recommend this product. ?The good people at Tabletop Adventures? is indeed a most appropriate by-line. Kudos for listening to their customers!
This has really been one of the most "inspirational" products I have purchased from RPGNow. Even in cases were I did not use the ideas presented directly, they stimulated my imagination in a lot of different directions that have really enhanced my game. You owe it to yourself to check out their demo and see if it doesn't inspire you!
<br><br><b>LIKED</b>: This is a great tool for sparking the imagination of the DM AND that of the players. Too often DMs fail to make their descriptions of dungeons and caves interesting or unique from one another. The material presented here can also inspire other creative adventure ideas, or even entire plot lines for your games. <br><br><b>DISLIKED</b>: With the resolution of the "copy and paste" problems, there is nothing to dislike about this product!<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Excellent<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Very Satisfied<br><BR>[THIS REVIEW WAS EDITED]<BR>
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Creator Reply: |
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We have heard the complaints of the people, and finally the problem is corrected! In our new, revised version of this product (released 10-24-05) cut and paste is enabled. (It was never our intention to prevent it, but seems to have been some sort of software glitch.) To further enhance the product we added bookmarks, plus a new cover made specifically for our "Bits of Darkness" series.
Anyone who purchased this product is eligible to receive a free update to the revised version. If your mailing settings allow: "Accept mail about products you bought (Updates)?" then you should have received a notice about the revision. Otherwise, you can check your account history and you should find an opportunity for one more download of this product.
If you purchased this product with the new cover, then you already have the revisions! We hope these changes will increase the satisfaction of all our customers with these products.
The good people at Tabletop Adventures, and the Overlord
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Into the Wildwood, a ?Bits of the Wilderness? product from Tabletop Adventures is a comprehensive collection of descriptive text and woodland encounters designed to assist the freewheeling referee who likes to improvise plot points and story on the fly. In this capacity, Into the Wildwood is a great resource for referees who are just beginning to explore this style of play or for more experienced referees simply looking for a boost in the improvisation department.
Now, Into the Wildwood isn?t first or only product of its kind, but it is easily one of the better products of its kind. Where several other books deigned to fill the same niche are content to provide simple lists of descriptive words, Into the Wildwood provides 175 detailed, yet simple, encounter seeds that can be inserted into a scenario as written or used to jumpstart the imagination of a struggling referee. That said, it?s the other material Into the Wildwood contains that truly sets it apart from similar products.
First, on top of the 175 encounter seeds the book also contains two short essays, the first of which examines the forest as a common fixture of myth and legend, and the second of which the ecosystems of ?temperate forests? in depth. Further, three unique OGL forest creatures are presented for use in your games, as are ?forest kits? (brief, but detailed, descriptions of the different kinds of forests that may pop up in a fantasy roleplaying game). Finally, appended to the end of the document are 102 encounter cards (100 of which are fully detailed and two of which are blank).
What are encounter cards? Very simply, they?re small cards that contain various woodland encounters to be utilized on the fly. Being able to shuffle them allows for not only a different kind of random element in your games, but also allows other players to get in on the fun (i.e., other players may draw cards to influence the adventure as it unfolds). Really, these cards are a great idea that make an already good product that much better.
I only have one complaint about Into the Wildwood, and that complaint concerns the cover art. The cover art of Into the Wildwood really doesn?t do the rest of the product justice and, if I based my purchasing decisions purely on aesthetic covers, I?d probably pass up Into the Wildwood - luckily, I?ve learned not to judge a book by its cover. If you?re a referee that likes to run your games fast and loose, but doesn?t like to sacrifice detail, Into the Wildwood is for you.
[Edited to correct numerical error in reagrd to encounter cards, as clarified by the publisher. Sorry about that, folks!]
<br><br><b>LIKED</b>: The whole product concept. The encounter cards. The idea of setting 'kits' that can be used to dress up an adventure. Several of the individual encounters. <br><br><b>DISLIKED</b>: The cover art.<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Very Good<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Very Satisfied<br><BR>[THIS REVIEW WAS EDITED]<BR>
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Creator Reply: |
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Just to clarify, the cards at the end of the book do list all 100 short "Bits" from the text, plus there are two blank cards in addition to that, to be used at the GM's discretion. |
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THE FILE IS CORRUPTED, or otherwise flawed. It's very disorganized, with pages not following one another and sections confused and jumbled with each other.
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This product is well-written and edited to a professional standard. The monsters are original, but well within the bounds of 3.5 guidelines. The flavor text and discussions of different forest types are great. I have put much of this book in direct or planned use in my campaign. I'll buy the next one for sure.<br><br><b>LIKED</b>: Very useful for overcoming creative block<br><br><b>DISLIKED</b>: no complaints<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Very Good<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Very Satisfied<br>
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Great way to add some "flavor" to city encounters, I just randomly flip to a page and as the PCs wander down the street I will just add the text. So for those who have trouble coming up with "sights, smells, and sounds" of the city this is good. If your PCs are more interested in "just getting there" then this may not be your product.<br><br><b>LIKED</b>: Great Index, some fun ideas.<br><br><b>DISLIKED</b>: The "cards" section, the idea is to be able to print them out and use them as a way to "randomize" events. Perhaps a "random" encounter table would have been more useful.<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Very Good<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Satisfied<br>
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Overall this is a very sound product that gives GMs easy access to bits of narrative to spice up any cavern or dungeon. The narrative is written in such a manner that the descriptions could be easily incorporated into any setting.
<br><br><b>LIKED</b>: The entries are divided into logical groups (Shards and Bits). For example the Caverns pdf has shards for Entrances, Ascents and Decents, plus Other Settings. Additional bits include Formations and Other Features.<br><br><b>DISLIKED</b>: Neither pdf in the bundled 'Bits of Darkness' support the native cut/paste fucntionality of Adobe Reader. One reason I am such an avid supporter of PDF's is this ability to cut/paste blocks of text from a pdf into my campaign editor. I consider this flaw to be significant, and ultimately, I scored the product a 4/5 because of this problem.<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Very Good<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Satisfied<br>
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Creator Reply: |
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We have heard the complaints of the people, and finally the problem is corrected! In our new, revised version of this product (released 10-24-05) cut and paste is enabled. (It was never our intention to prevent it, but seems to have been some sort of software glitch.) To further enhance the product we added bookmarks, plus a new cover made specifically for our "Bits of Darkness" series.
Anyone who purchased this product is eligible to receive a free update to the revised version. If your mailing settings allow: "Accept mail about products you bought (Updates)?" then you should have received a notice about the revision. Otherwise, you can check your account history and you should find an opportunity for one more download of this product.
If you purchased this product with the new cover, then you already have the revisions! We hope these changes will increase the satisfaction of all our customers with these products.
The good people at Tabletop Adventures, and the Overlord
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This product is amazing as the others. Just from this product and its eventful and descriptive text, I was able to spawn an NPC and inspire some role playing as my pcs. There is a description where a kid steals a coin and the pcs see it. My pcs saw it and decided to catch the kid, but the guards whom he stole from caught him and the pcs covered for him. One even took him on as his apprenctice spawning more storylines.
It's always good writing when it inspires more writing.<br><br><b>LIKED</b>: Descriptive, useful and I can cut and paste these. THank you. <br><br><b>DISLIKED</b>: Nothing<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Excellent<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Very Satisfied<br>
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A buck an NPC. You can't beat that. THis product is under prices for the adventure threads it has already started in my campaign and can start in yours. <br><br><b>LIKED</b>: Great organization and detail again... kudos.<br><br><b>DISLIKED</b>: I wish the toc was built so i knew the class and race of the npc. I could care less about there name. <br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Very Good<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Satisfied<br>
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This is the best purchase I've made on here. The descriptions are well written and offer alot of vareity. They also inspire role playing which I didn't expect from the product. During one adventure, I used a description and it sparked some plot points that I hadn't thought of.
UPDATE
They've also added the ability to cut and paste the snippets as well as they are all now bookmarked. A must have for lap top users.
<br><br><b>LIKED</b>: The descriptions are varied and different. <br><br><b>DISLIKED</b>: ---<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Excellent<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Very Satisfied<br><BR>[THIS REVIEW WAS EDITED]<BR>
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Creator Reply: |
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We have heard the complaints of the people, and finally the problem is corrected! In our new, revised version of this product (released 10-24-05) cut and paste is enabled. (It was never our intention to prevent it, but seems to have been some sort of software glitch.) To further enhance the product we added bookmarks, plus a new cover made specifically for our "Bits of Darkness" series.
Anyone who purchased this product is eligible to receive a free update to the revised version. If your mailing settings allow: "Accept mail about products you bought (Updates)?" then you should have received a notice about the revision. Otherwise, you can check your account history and you should find an opportunity for one more download of this product.
If you purchased this product with the new cover, then you already have the revisions! We hope these changes will increase the satisfaction of all our customers with these products.
The good people at Tabletop Adventures, and the Overlord
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This reminds me of the charts in the 1st Edition AD&D City System boxed set. The difference is that each "option" is fleshed out just a little more, so as to make it more useful and aid the GM in coming up with something that fits the setting better (often with small details that are easy to overlook).
If used in a group where the GM tends to only bring up what is important, though, the PCs will have a lot of "red herrings". :)<br><br><b>LIKED</b>: As advertised, it is great for giving the game some quick facts that have logic to them.<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Excellent<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Satisfied<br>
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Thanks to the authors. This helped me a lot when I needed a quick and interesting NPC love interest. There are plenty for both genders to enjoy. the NPCs are very plug-and-play. All are illustrated in b/w.
The PCs are standard d20 but with some work could be used in any system because they are more about interaction and less about combat. I think that this would be a good book to add to your "Blue Rose, Romantic Fantasy RPG" resources.<br><br><b>DISLIKED</b>: The art has some weak spots and some write-ups are a bit shorter than I would have liked.<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Very Good<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Satisfied<br>
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