After my first time flipping through Octavirate Entertainment?s Libris Personae, I asked myself, where were you at last week. There was just a lot more variety of NPCs in this book than I have seen in other publications.

NPC books can be helpful in a pinch and depending on which one, you have your good ones with useful NPCs and your bad ones that are a majority of creative mistakes. Libris Personae falls closer to the good side of that line. What makes it different is that instead of producing individual NPCs, the 106 page PDF presents you four very distinct mercenary groups with 36 NPCs between them. The NPCs within the group are fairly different with the kind of minor distinctions that have the potential of giving an NPC staying power. The writing emphasizes the character of the NPCs, and whereas the stat builds are decent, it is the personalities of the characters that make them more useful.

There is not too much emphasis put on setting which makes most of them easy to drop anywhere. The builds of the characters are decent, with a number of PDF only content used to make them distinct. The good thing is that nothing is over the top. All too often with a book of NPCs, there are a ton of good mega villains or mega heroes, but few basic adversaries, rivals and allies.

One of my favorite features of the book is not the NPCs themselves but the artwork attached to them. Though there is not a consistent art style, all of the art is consistently good. I would say a few pictures border on work appropriate, but you really get a lot from the personality of the characters with them.

A cool thing the writers added with one of the appendix. Sure there?s a cool appendix of monsters and spells, but it is the second appendix that is eye catching. There is a chart that of the NPCs and various stats for variants applied to them. For instance, I use armor as DR in my Egyptian campaign, there is a column listing each NPCs AC and dr under this variant. I also use a spell point variant which it also contains. They also contain stats for wounds/vitality, defense bonus, action points, magic rating, reputation, honor, taint, sanity and sanity loss.

For the Dungeon Master

There are a lot of niches these NPCs can fill in a campaign. Obviously the rival mercenary group is a given, but they also can be used as spot villains, helpful tavern folk and personal guards (what I used one of them for). Though I was not too much a fan of the Cult of the Gnoll, Vortaelen Cartography members more than make up for them. This was a very creative idea. It is an adventuring company that sets up shop in various libraries across the planes, making them useful and accessible in almost any location your PCs may find themselves. I have already snagged one for my players whom are venturing in the Astral Plane for the first time. The writers seemed as excited as I would about this group as they have a lot more print space and a ton more detail. In all honesty, this book could contain only this group and the adversaries and still be worth it. Consider the other three groups thrown in for good filler.

The Iron Word

Publishers whom are just putting books out using the same ole formats and mega NPCs should take notice. You do not have to invent personal classes and items for every NPC in the book and you certainly should try to think outside the box.. Octavirate has managed to ink out a unique publication in a crowded market by making innovations on the product in both style and artwork.

<br><br> <b>LIKED</b>: - artwork has a lot of personality. It is not just an addition but apart of the character write up

• a chart of variants is the kind of out of the box idea that really makes a publication stand out
• the npcs are not over the top and are very usable. <br><br><b>DISLIKED</b>: - the additional spells and monsters did nothing for me
• some of the earlier mercenary groups are not as written as the two latter ones<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Very Good<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Satisfied<br>

There have been a lot of creature books this past year. We have had large full colored hard bound books and smaller more focused ones. We have had books that cover creatures of a specific type or a specific environment as well as books that try to get a little bit of everything. I have seen books that cover a specific creature and books that cover a specific world. There have been books of high powered monsters and books with mostly low challenge ratings. This though is the first series of weekly monster books I have seen.

Octavirate Games is a new PDF publishing company. It seems there big works are these weekly monster books. Not that the books are big but they have released five of them at the time I am writing this. The PDF is actually not that big the zip file being a little over a meg and a half and the PDF is still under two megs. The PDF is sixteen pages of color and black and white. The text is actually a little on the small size and they might have wanted to add a few pages by increasing the size of the text a little. The art is a mix of black and white and color. There are green and blue borders as well making this a bit of an ink eater when printed. The layout looks really good except there is one page that is over half white space so it really stands out. They really need a piece of art or something there. The PDF also has no book marks.

Before I get into the creatures there is one great and very useful thing this monster books does that none others have and that is present optional rules. If one is using the wound points vitality rules they are listed for each monster. Insanity lost, massive damage threshold, defensive bonus, armor as damage reduction, honor, allegiances, and taint are all common alternative rules that are included for each creature. This makes the creatures in this book ready to be used by people using different house rules or playing d20 modern or other d20 games that use different rules. It also has alternate genres for each creature. The basic write ups are for traditional fantasy, but in this side bar it says what the creature can be in a modern game, a post apocalyptic game, or a sci fi/space opera game.

The creatures range from very interesting and creative to basically mundane. The first is the Daemon Erodaemon. The appearance is strange. It is a woman except instead of a head on her body she has the upper torso of a woman. Sort of like a centaur except a woman?s body and not a horse?s body.

Next is a Deadgem template. This template turns the creature into a crystalline race that will have either psionic or magical powers.

Then there is the platypus both regular and dire versions. Not much to say here other then of all the animals one could pick I am not sure this is one of them. Still, the write up is fine and nothing wrong with it.

The Quon Ko are a race of outsiders from a demi plane of their own. They are travelers and hunters.

Last is the Therig or robgoblins. They are from an alternate dimension and have 4 eyes are stand about seven feat tall.

The descriptions I gave are rather short as the level of detail these creatures are given is quite complete. The Therig have two digestive tracts for instance. There are few monster books that give such detailed internal descriptions. Each race is given a culture and the creatures seem easy to use and creative. Some of them are a bit on the odd side but that should appeal to many people.<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Very Good<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Satisfied<br>

Creature Weekly Volume 2: Big Bad by Octavirate Entertainment is a product detailing new and interesting monsters for D20 system games (primarily D&D/D20 Modern).

The product opens with a brief introduction from Octavirate explaining the design philosophy behind their products and how to contact them with questions and criticisms. It is nice to see a company so open for improvement of its products.

Next are the monsters, five of them, one of them a template with two versions. Each of the monsters is given a full description and an illustration, along with information for those using alternate rules such as a vitality/wound point system, armor as DR and so on and suggestion for adapting each creature to different genres (fantasy, science fiction, post-apocalyptic, and so on).

The monster included are: the Big Bad/Great Goodly template. The Borm (or Ankylotaur), a strange mix of man or dinosaur, with their good and notes to use them as a PC/NPC race! Fleshstripper (Gnoll Ghoul), that blends the gnoll?s evil with that of a ghoul into a dangerous creature with a terrible laugh. The Phobic Hunter is the sum of (a being?s) fears and an implacable hunter of such beings. And, lastly, the massive Star Titan, playable both as Lovecraftian horrors or creatures from a 1950s b-movie or monster comic.

The Big Bad/Great Goodly makes normal animals into fey creatures from the legends and story books. Four examples are presented: the classic Big Bad Wolf with terrible blowing breath, the Great Goodly Eagle and Lion, both protectors. Lastly, for those who foolishly laugh at the Big Bad idea, they may change their tone when confronted by the Big Bad Tyrannosaurus!

A leveled Fleshripper (Xeresh, a fighter) is provided as an additional bonus.

If you are in the market for unusual creatures, this issue of Creature Weekly is well worth a look, though they would be difficult to weave together into a single plot-line. A solid product, though not for everyone.<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Very Good<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Satisfied<br>

Creature Weekly Volume 5: Jabberwocky by Octavirate Entertainment is a product detailing the monster from Lewis Carroll?s classic poem Jabberwocky and four other creatures similar to it, ranging from outsiders to fey.

The product open with an introduction on the subject of why the Jabberwocky was chosen as the framing monster for this collection, the answer is essentially because it was new territory. Unlike so many other sources, the Jabberwocky has only rarely been used in fantasy games.

Next are the monsters, five of them, with the Jabberwocky having an advanced version as well. Each of the monsters is given a full description and an illustration, along with information for those using alternate rules such as a vitality/wound point system, armor as DR and so on and suggestion for adapting each creature to different genres (fantasy, science fiction, post-apocalyptic, and so on).

The monster included are: the Bioaegis, a ?living armor? that bonds with its host, represented by a very well done template (with two example creatures). The fey Femiax from Venus, an advanced all-female race inspired by 50s B-movies but quite delightful all the same. The Jabberwocky (and the more powerful Manxome Jabberwocky) which indeed do burble and possess claws that catch, as the poem says, quite an amusing adaption of Lewis Carroll?s creature though the danger they pose should not be underestimated. The Lurg?zug (also know as the Hound of Gloucester), a Lovecraftian creature complete with the tome it is described in. Lastly, the Vulgrex, or Dreadhopper, are small but dangerous pack hunters. All of the creatures are well written and look like they could be the basis for many interesting encounters.

If you are in the market for unusual, or perhaps bizarre, monsters, this issue of Creature Weekly is well worth a look. Octavirate has done a wonderful job on making this product both fun to read and easy to use.<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Excellent<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Very Satisfied<br>

Wow. Great collection of clipart. This download is everything it promises - good quality black and white images, great selection and variation, large sizes suitable for scaling to any project. An excellent choice for publishers looking to score some quick, generic, reusable pics.<br><br> <b>LIKED</b>: For us, it's perfect. The baddies are well drawn but not "in-your-face" in terms of graphic depictions of violence or nastiness. They have a "cartoonish" quality that is the perfect fit for our needs. Plus, there's just a ton of pics - 100!! For the quality, number and price, you can't beat it.<br><br><b>DISLIKED</b>: The bonus artwork is pretty basic. Probably not something we'll use. But heck, the main package is more than enough to satisfy!<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Excellent<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Very Satisfied<br>

I was disappointed with both the bland images and the lack of them.<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Disappointing<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Disappointed<br>

I was disappointed. The images are very bland and there aren't enough of them.<br><br><b>DISLIKED</b>: Not enough images that can be used in different genres<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Disappointing<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Disappointed<br>

I was disappointed. Not enough images and those that are there aren't that good unfortunately.<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Disappointing<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Disappointed<br>

A very useful art collection. Very clear line art.<br><br><b>LIKED</b>: The images are crisp and print very cleanly. Top notch work in most of the images.<br><br><b>DISLIKED</b>: Some of the images were too ... goofy ... to be used in a fantasy work. The golems looked more like robots than something one would find in a fantasy piece.<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Very Good<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Very Satisfied<br>

I purchased this product because some of the art was ideal for what I had in mind for Misfit Studios' upcoming products.<br><br><b>LIKED</b>: Good quality art and easy to use. Most of the pieces were easily general enough to act as filler (and more) in my products.<br><br><b>DISLIKED</b>: Some of the pieces were too specific for easy use. By that I mean that one can't easily use them as filler -- they actually require targeted content in the manuscript to be used, otherwise they stand out too much.<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Very Good<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Very Satisfied<br>

An interesting combination of pieces of art, with a definite (but good) "old school" feel to them. Some of these pieces reminded me of the art that Matt Wagner and Bill Willingham used to do for TSR and FGU. That was certainly a plus for me. Also, the art was a nice mix of "posed" and "scenes" that allowed for a greater deal of usability in our product. Keep up the good work, and I will most definitely buy more of your company's art in the future.<br><br><b>LIKED</b>: It had a nice mix of characters, robots and mecha (even a starship), and all of them were in clean TIFF files. I did have to convert from greyscale to bitmap, but that isn't a big deal.<br><br><b>DISLIKED</b>: The art could have been a bit more dynamic, more action. The portraits may be great for Players who are picking this art up to use on their character sheets, but more art of a more dynamic nature would be more useful for publishers. Despite this, this package is still very strong.<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Very Good<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Very Satisfied<br>

Absolutely splendid! I'd be very curious to know what kind of project it originated from and what became of it. While there does seem to be a very specific storyline running through these images, each one could be used for any number of Pulp Adventure projects.<br><br><b>LIKED</b>: Crisp, clear, atmospheric line drawings with a great ominous looming kind of feeling.<br><br><b>DISLIKED</b>: These illustrations are so specific that unless you're actually trying to duplicate the vignette they depict, you probably won't be able to use more than a few of them in any one project.<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Excellent<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Very Satisfied<br>

As far as I am concerned, the unquestioned all-star of this package was the Orlim, a goblinoid that has become so inbred that it's parent races balance their flaws, and hearken back to the noble race that degenerated into orcs/goblins/ogres/etc. I absolutely cannot wait to build a campaign world, just so I can feature them prominently in it. I would gladly pick up the rest of the series if each issue contained one entry on this level. Bravo!<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Excellent<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Very Satisfied<br>

While the character illustrations in this set will likely not be useful to me, I do expect to get use out of the 10 mecha/robot illustrations.<br><br><b>LIKED</b>: A couple of the robot illustrations were well done. I would buy a pack of robot stock art by this company.<br><br><b>DISLIKED</b>: The characters. But I can get enough use out of the mecha/robots that my opinion on the character art affects my rating at all.<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Acceptable<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Satisfied<br>

I am going to rate this product out of 5 on whether I think I would use the creatures indicated. Since their are 5 creatures in the book this will match the rating scale well.

1) Big Bad/Goodly Great Template - These creatures will serve me well in the Questing Grounds, an imagination/story driven plane where characters get swept up in the tales of old. I might extend it out of animal only kind to allow for Big Bag Beastmen or Goodly Great Dwarf King.

2) Borm - I can see these guys as taking up the role of post-apocolyptic mutation from the irradiated desert. (dropping dinosaur references)

3) Fleshripper - would be used exactly as written and my be used in our game next week

4) Phobic Slayer - definitely would move to my ogl Horror or d20 modern game. Reminds me of a villian from the BTVS show

5) Star Titan - Concept likely to be reworked as a Mutants and Masterminds/Champions/Silver Age Sentinnels villian by me. I like him but he's doesn't feel like he would fit in to my d20 game without being goofy

4 immediately usable monsters<br><br><b>LIKED</b>: Multi-genre support Alternate setting suggestions<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Very Good<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Very Satisfied<br>