The Everlasting: Book of the Unliving From: Visionary Entertainment Reviewed by: Ron McClung

The Everlasting: Book of the Unliving is a Foundation Book from Visionary Entertainment. 

Every November, I am the gaming coordinator for a small local gaming con here in the Carolinas called MACE. This year at MACE, a company called Visionary Entertainment attended and had heard that I occasionally write game reviews for GR as well as Nth Degree Magazine. By the end of the con, I had six Everlasting rule books in my lap, with someone asking me to review them. I have to be honest - I was not overly excited about reviewing them. The primary reason is that the author of the game is a former White-Wolfer, and I am not a huge fan of White Wolf games. So this game initially came across to me as a World-of-Darkness-wannabe.  

I have to say, after reading into the background and the system, I was wrong on many levels. I was also right in a few areas. It was interesting to first find out that this game has been out for a while. The copyright for The Book of the Unliving is 1994, and it apparently has had a strong resurgence because the most recent books have been released in 2003 and 2004. So this is not a new game, but a game worth noting regardless.

From the page 15: “ Do you believe in the supernatural? ”

The Everlasting: Book of the Unliving is one of the four foundation (core) rule books for The Everlasting role playing game. Reviews of the other three are forthcoming along with the two sourcebooks recently released. Each foundation book is a core rule book in and of itself, and the others are only needed if the players want to play the other supernatural beings or genets (plural for genos) available in The Everlasting universe. Each book explores an aspect of the universe. The other books are The Book of the Spirits, The Book of the Light, and The Book of the Fantastical.

Content: The Book of the Unliving, as the name implies, explores the world of the undead. This is where I get the World of Darkness (WoD) feel to the game. However, this is also where it ends. Yep, there are Vampires, but there is also so much more. Contained within this book, along with the rules to play, is a rich mysterious background of the Secret World and the dimensions within. The Secret World is a supernatural world of several dimensions and plains of existence, overlaying our real world. Very few mortals are aware of it and fewer interact with it. Supernatural creatures occasionally interact with it, while at the same time living within our modern world, some leading normal everyday lives.

The first few sections describe the type of role playing game The Everlasting is. It claims to be an interactive legend-making experience. The whole concept of "legend-making" and that role playing The Everlasting is a "higher plain of consciousness" (pg 20) is where I get turned off somewhat. It is a little too touchie-feelie for me. It is a game - nothing more. Sure, I appreciate the "art " of role playing a storyline, but it is still a game. This is what turned me off from World of Darkness - this sense that it is a more mature and better way to game when in reality, it is just another role playing game (RPGs). One of the primary books the author sites is The Hero with a Thousand Faces by Joseph Campbell, which is a classic cross-cultural study of the hero's journey which is said to have inspired George Lucas's Star Wars saga.

The Everlasting does, however, make an attempt to be different from other RPGs. One aspect is the concept of a "guide." Initially, I thought it was their word for gamemaster, but upon reading further, I realized it is more than that. The Everlasting encourages the group to share the role of guide. One person can act as the primary plot guide, while another person can control certain NPCs and another may control combat situations. It is one of their many efforts to change the standard dynamic of role playing, and I can see the pros and cons of this approach. On one side, I am not, however, 100% convinced long-time GMs would embrace the idea wholeheartedly, and I feel many would revert back to the standard way of role playing. On the other side, I can see this method developing interesting stories and adventures. I can also see the benefit of transferring the power of plot development between participants - there are some days I just run out of plot ideas and would love it if someone else came up with it.

Another concept it introduces is Protagonists as Communal Property. In essence, the characters of a party are the property of the party and can be played by anyone. So, a character may be played by a different player each session. An interesting idea, but my players had a hard time wrapping their minds around it. It could create interesting stories, but in the end, there is nothing in the game one can claim as their own, and I do not think that would be attractive to many players. One could argue, however, that the party ends up owning the legend they create and this kind of gaming takes the focus off the character and more on the story. It all depends on your GMing style, in the end. I feel that the character's role in the story is as important as the story, and it is hard to stay focused on that when the player is changing from one game to another.

In the end, these approaches are more or less optional because The Everlasting can be played like a regular RPG. However, I am sure the author would say that if you do, you are missing out on the true essence of legend-making.

Towards the end, the book gets further into the concept of legend-making, personal mythologies and several other "high consciousness" concepts that take this way out of the realm of "just a game." It includes the encouragement of rituals in your game sessions for opening and closing ceremonies, exploring ones personal mythology, achieving altered stages of consciousness while gaming, and dream control. They have asked up-front to approach this game with an open mind, and I feel that I have. However, I personally have a strong objection to this kind of new age notions invading my hobby, so I will leave that to the reader to explore. It is one thing to apply it to the game universe and it is a totally different thing to try to apply it in real life. It is almost like they are trying to turn your game session into a religious experience. It is a game! Just a game! This is the kind of stuff that some less-informed Christians like to pounce on, calling gaming evil and corrupting.  

I should note that the author appears to have a Christian background because he thanks God and the Bible in his dedications and special thanks. I do not think it was the authors intention to offend or create controversy. I do believe the author is extremely passionate about his gaming and what he would like his readers to get out of it. The book does include a strong warning stating that the game "is an experience in make-believe" and the "whole purpose is to have fun." I just feel that his notions of having fun expand out of the game-sense further than I would like, bridging in certain new age notions that some would object to and would say have no place in gaming. This is of course my opinion and may not be shared by everyone.

The background of the universe is rich and full of opportunities for adventure and "legend-making."  As mentioned above, it's called the Secret World and has many 'onion layers' of existence. The onion is called the Reverie. The layers are dimension like the Astral plane and the Dreamworlds. There are several sub-realms loosely defined that can be explored including the Collective, Menagerie, and the Netherworlds. In general, however, the majority of the action and adventuring occurs in the modern day on Earth.  

At the heart of the background is the Death Knell - an event that has brought on war and demonic terror to the many plains of the Reverie. This event threatens not only the supernatural world but the mortal world as well, so it is usually up to the players to stop the evil plots the Death Knell and its demons create. On the other hand, they could play creatures working towards this apocalyptic end. It is up to the group.

From the page 62:“ After all, neither honor nor love have any meaning in the world I come from. ...” - Vampire Hunter D

Players choose from gentes or supernatural beings. Each foundation book supplies several gentes as well as other beings that are strictly for use as NPCs. In The Book of the Unliving,  the primary gentes available are Vampires, Ghuls, and Revenants.  

Vampires are what you would expect - more like the legendary creatures than the World of Darkness version. They are divided out into bloodlines, including some more well-known lines like Dracula and the queen of the White Worm. Many of the vampire lines are from cultures that had vampire-like creatures, and their bloodlines are inspired by these legends.

Ghuls are not the ghouls of World of Darkness - those would be a type of vampire called Dhampir. Ghuls in The Everlasting are more like the Lovecraftian ghouls - creatures that feed on the dead. They have expanded the mythos of the ghoul to many different types, including those that can walk normally amongst us. They base the origins of the ghoulish races on an elixir called Anecro - the elixir of immortality.   Revenants are the dead who walk the Earth in a shroud of illusion, sucking the lifeforce out of mortals. In many ways, they are like vampires, but they are not. Revanents can hide their decaying self and walk among mortals freely. They do not feed on blood, they feed on the raw energies of life. This usually puts them at odds with the Vampires.

There are also two dark gentes players could look into - Dead Souls (ghosts) and Reanimates. Both are described in the third sub-section of the book called Dark Immortality. Although dark, they are not necessarily the bad guys - just creatures harder to role play in the everyday modern world and so considered more monstrous than the primary three. Dead souls vary in existence and form, ranging from shades and phantoms to the ankou or grim reaper. Reanimates are like your stereotypical Frankenstein's monster - pieced together and reanimated bodies. These are creatures that did not choose to come back to life, but were forced to by some other person like a mad scientist or magician. 

Each genos has its own breakdown of factions, sub-types, torment, culture, magick, weaknesses and special abilities. Torment is a measure of how far along the monstrous path the character is. An example of torment is the Ghul Torment of Degeneration representing the mental devolution and the physical deterioration of the character. All of these are defined in full chapters dedicated to each genos. The remaining sections do cover briefly the other gentes available including elves, dragons, gargoyles and manitous, but not enough really play them as characters. They are covered in more detail in their own respective books. It also covers the realms of the unliving, including the Underworld and the subterranean worlds of the ghuls.

The final section contains expanded combat and character rules as well as Guide advice in creating plots and adventures. One interesting gem from this is integrating emotion into the system to gain bonuses and penalties. It also lays out the Magick system for The Everlasting and supplies a few sample spells. It ends with a sample adventure or Odyssey as well as several adventure seeds. The short adventure is very general and vague, leaving much of the details to the Guide, but it creates an interesting plot to start the group on.

From the page 55:“ There are no 'rules' in The Everlasting, only guidelines.”

System: 

Character Generation: There are three methods of character generation - point-allocation, random card-draw, and random dice-roll. This again is indicative of the flexibility and broad appeal this game will have to gamers. It has an interesting approach to Aspects (base ability scores), Aptitudes and Skills. In the basic dice or card system, the Ability defines the number of dice rolled or cards drawn, and the Aptitude or Skill subtracts from the difficulty value. It's an interesting balance to allow the raw character ability scores to effect the situation as much as the focused skills. It is a character concept based system, with a 20-question system that helps you flesh out the history, motivation and overall story of the character. It encourages a lot of thought invested in the character and encourages a good knowledge of history to flesh out your immortal character. It is amazing how many in-depth character background stories one can get out of something as 'mundane' as history.

Game Mechanic: The approach to the game system is unique and very flexible for many types of gamers. It supplies the reader with two simple ways of playing - dice or cards. The author is one of those types of game designers that approach a system from the point of view that it is a necessary evil, which is why he supplies several different methods to resolving tasks, etc. In fact, he states upfront that there are no rules, just guidelines. I feel that this point of view is a carry-over from the WoD philosophy and can either attract players or turn off players. I am a game-player and I like some structure in my games. I like to know I am playing a game, and so I like to have rules to guide me through it. I do not consider myself a rules-lawyer however, because I've been known to bend the rules as a GM when necessary. Dice: The core die is d12 , with difficulties ranging from 0 through 13. This system is similar to the White Wolf's WoD in that each die is compared to the difficulty, and successes are counted. D12 dice are reserved for supernaturals. Mortals role d8 and mortals with supernatural powers role d10, so some things supernaturals can do, mortals can not. I liked this system. Optionally, towards the end of the Guidelines chapter, the author provides percentile dice system for The Everlasting,  for those that prefer the bell-curve of the percentage system. The only drawback to the percentage system is that it is a completely different system from the core systems (d12 dice and cards), so some conversion needs to be done as one reads.

Cards: The cards system also has two options: regular playing cards or Tarot. This is refreshing, although not entirely unique. It still works much like dice, comparing the value to a DC. Face cards have values. The duel system between cards and dice is handled well within the text because they are so similar.    

Combat System: The combat system is simple but surprisingly robust compared to other systems of this nature. Many games like this (that treat rules as a necessary evil) usually put combat in a very abstract and boring system but The Everlasting tries not to do that while still not being bogged down by some of the more clunky details that other combat systems tend to have. Based on a simple system of ten actions within a 12 second round, each player based on his Speed score, can do a certain amount of actions within that round. Some things take multiple actions, and thus take longer in a round. Actions are declared at the beginning of a round and can not be changed mid-round. In an attack, both attacker and defender make a roll (or draw cards). The number of times the attacker's successes exceeds his opponent's successes acts as a modifier to the base damage of the weapon used. The defender does get a resistance roll/draw to resist the damage. Every character has Life Points, which is what the damage is applied to.

Magick System: The Magic system is similar to the skills system with some complexity added to it. Difficulty is based on effect, target and magnitude. There are also forms of magick - spontaneous, spells and rituals. I found it interesting that added spontaneous. The system encourages the players to create their own spells through a system of turning a spontaneous effect into a permanent learned spell. I found that unique and interesting. It seems simple enough, but I would have to see it in practice.

Layout: The Book of Unliving  is a sharp looking book from cover to cover. With its very liberal use of public domain renaissance-era art and card art from the Rider-Waite Tarot Deck and a smattering of original art that ranges from really impressive to decent, it shows a lot of thought and passion was put into the art design and overall look of the rulebook. It conveys a feeling of ancient mystery and dark adventure. The cover art is very attractive and dynamic. The color use is powerful and inspiring. Everyone that I talked to about the books at MACE said they liked the cover art. 

The occasional quotes from random resources are impressive. From Joseph Campbell to Bram Stoker; from Plato to Queensryche (80s metal band), it added further flavor to a rich modern fantasy world.

In conclusion, I am torn over The Everlasting based on the first book, Book of the Unliving. The game itself, the core universe, and the opportunities for adventure and story-making all fascinate me and inspire me to at least play a game or two. I find the unique ways they try to change the gaming group dynamic inspiring and interesting and may even be worth a try with the right group of gamers.  I initially approached this game with a negative view because of who the author was and the overall look of the game, but found that I actually like the game, its system and its universe. I found it inspiring and already have some ideas for possible campaigns. It was a pleasant surprise to be proven wrong on my initial assessment.  

However, the sections that include the new age concepts and touchie-feelie aspects almost turn me off from the game, but I am glad they are presented in an optional way. I have already stated my feelings on the new ages concepts introduced in the text. I felt it was a step too far into making role playing more than a game. I do feel this is a game for more mature role players and I do not see myself buying this for someone like my 14 year old step-son. If I had read these sections alone, I do not think I would have reviewed these books or would have bought them. I am glad I read more than this, but it is this type of subject matter that gives gaming its stigma.  

Overall, however, it is a very good game with a solid game system(s) and deep background. I would recommend it to my more mature gamer friends with a wholehearted recommendation of the game itself, but a short forewarning about some of the sections I object to. There is one thing that this and all the books are - thorough and detailed. From the sidebars on some pages defining lexicons and special terms to the details on each genos, it leaves very little out. It is an engulfing world that leaves very little room for questions or confusion. It is a flowing and engulfing world with lots of room to explore, however, with its own mythos and feel.

An extra bonus is given to the writers for a quality index in the back. 

For more details on Visionary Entertainment and their Foundation Book “The Everlasting: Book of the Unliving” check them out at their website http://www.visionaryentertainment.com and at all of your local game stores.

The Everlasting: The Codex of the Immortals From: Visionary Entertainment Studio Reviewed by: Ron McClung

The Everlasting: The Codex of the Immortals is a new RPG Supplement from Visionary Entertainment Studio.

Delving back into the remaining books I have left from Visionary, I now tackle The Codex of the Immortals. A smaller book (6"x9"), it is a supplement recently put out for The Everlasting Role Playing Game (RPG). The Codex, as the back explains, provides players with tools they need to further develop their characters for The Everlasting RPG. It contains expanded information about what it means to be one of The Everlasting (characters in the The Everlasting RPG) and guidelines to help develop backgrounds for protagonists. It also contains more information about the history of The Secret World and the Fall of the Dragons, the rise of the merodachs and the Azhi Dehaka, The Death Knell and the coming of the daimons.

More specifically, The Codex has guidelines on fellowships, mentors, apprentices, honor duels, and dominions and over a hundred distinctions for players to use to further define and mold their characters. Also included are guidelines on creating custom powers.

From page #3: “The secret world, a daydream shadow of our reality, is waiting for you.”The Codex  is a very compact book with a lot of information throughout. There are four major chapters and an index. The chapters are 1: Everlasting Society, 2: Advanced Protagonists, 3: Character Distinctions and 4: Preternatureae.  

Chapter 1: Everlasting Society contains an in-depth look at the society and history of the Everlasting. From the early years of Dragons to their eventual betrayal by pre-humans that immortals called the merodach; from the growth of mortal man and his sciences to the Death Knell (the bombing of Nagasaki and Hiroshima). Also included is a timeline that goes as far back as 400 million BC when the first Dragons appeared. 

The remaining portions of the chapter is a conglomeration of subjects all relating back to life as an eldritch and all that it entails, inside and outside the mortal world. It starts out with a short piece on Fellowships (player parties) and why they form, and then a discussion on Dominions and the shared dominions of Earth known as mortal cities. The Wisdom of the Ancients is the commandments of the Everlasting, defining certain rules that all within eldritch society should follow. These include Observe the right of dominion, Do not rule over mortals, and Embrace the age in which you live.

It is also in Chapter 1 that you find the section on Apprentices. Many times, a new immortal needs a mentor to ease him into his new Everlasting life. Many of the eldritch societies allow for apprenticeships to help the new immortal deal with living longer than his mortal loved ones, keeping his nature secret, and learning the Wisdom of the Ancients. Like MacLeod was the Ramirez in Highlander, every new immortal needs their guide.

Chapter 1 ends with several short sections on the Mortal Identity that some Everlasting must take to walk among them, the subject of Sanctuaries and Sanctums of the eldritch, etiquette and honor among the eldritch, and several disjointed pieces on living an immortal life including notes on Soul-Bond (a metaphysical link between all eldritch) and Psychic Resonances - two aspects of immortals. There are also sections on fertility, family, love and romance among the eldritch.

From the back cover: “Unlock the Key to Your Destiny”

Chapter 2: Advanced Protagonists introduces the reader to new aspects of characters. Several new options are presented. This chapter starts out like the book - a conglomeration of loosely related subjects. It opens with short sections on Unusual Characters (young characters and playing yourself), Off-the-Scale score, Everyman Skills, and Skill Specializations. It seems to jump all over the place, but at least focuses on further fleshing out the character. 

The bulk of Chapter 2, however, is taken up with Ability Descriptions - uncommon ways to apply an ability to an aspect. This truly illustrates the flexibility of the Everlasting system and one characteristic I like about it. For roughly 24 pages, the authors expands on abilities and aspects in many unique ways.

Chapter 3: Character Distinctions expands on the concept of Distinctions. The one thing I have always said - if you have a classless system, you better have a good advantage and disadvantage system. Everlasting had a unique approach to this, and this book expands on it further. There are nine distinctions ranging from Biography and Resources to Psyche and Supernature. Herein lies the meat and potatoes of the character and the game. This chapter adds the gravy with some really cool options.

Chapter 4: Preternatureae takes up the remainder of the book, which is close to half. Preternaturae are the supernatural powers the eldritch have. These powers are divided out among 30 categories.  The Foundation books supply a few initial preternaturae for all the gentes, as well as a limited number of additional preternaturae abilities that characters can buy with experience as they play. This section supplies a huge number of additional preternaturae for the players to choose from. This almost makes the book a necessity for those that like to further differentiate their characters. Comparatively, some are a little more expensive then the preternaturaes seen thus far, and they range from the not-so-original abilities to the down-right interesting.  

In conclusion, I would say that this book completes the game thoroughly. Although it starts out like a strange conglomeration of notes and essays, the final chapters make the book worth the money. It is a smaller book than the Foundation books in pages and page size, and the layout is not quite as artistic as the original foundation books, but you would not buy this for the layout. If you are really into The Everlasting and in need of more expansion and differentiation of your characters, this book is a necessity.

For more details on Visionary Entertainment Studio and their new RPG Supplement “The Everlasting: The Codex of the Immortals” check them out at their website http://www.visionaryentertainment.com and at all of your local game stores.

OGL Golf From: Reality Deviant Publications, Reviewed by:  Ron McClung

OGL Golf is a new OGL Rules Supplement from Reality Deviant Publications. 

Once again, I have to say ... I thought I had seen it all. Every time I think that, something else comes out that is even more "interesting". OGL Golf is a cute little PDF that takes the OGL/d20 rules and allows you to play a round of golf at the RPG table.

From the website: “So if it's raining and you can't make your Tee-time, or you want to add a bit of wackiness to your D20 game, check this pdf out!”

The Introduction of the PDF explains that the game of golf is simplified in these rules and that it is the intent of the rules to play a full round of golf without resorting to a single skill check roll. The game uses three clubs - Driver, Wedge and Putter. Distances are reduced to allow for use on reasonably sized maps.

Opening the PDF, the author begins by explaining the stats and the point ranges the stats "will have." I am already confused. There is nothing telling you how to actually create the character. I assume there is a starting number of points to spend on stats, but there is nothing telling me this. Either that or you start out with all stats at zero and your first few tournaments are all based on dice rolls until you can level up.

There are four stats - Driver, Wedge, Putter, and Golf Balls - and each have subcategories - Insight, Enhancement, and Competence. I am not entirely sure where these stats come into play. Depending on what club you are using, you make a specific die roll, do some simple math and determine the distance you hit the ball. A roll for direction also is made. This, of course, is plotted out on the course map.

From the website: “Zap your opponents golf club with a disintegrate spell in a Kings tournament! ”

You gain experience through tournaments. Tournaments are 5 holes (1 par five, 2 par fours and 2 par threes) and you can gain between 1 and 10 points from them. The game defines 12 character levels. There are some simple special rules governing obstacles and weather conditions. There are also Player Focuses which act like simple feats and a conversion section for people that want to integrate this PDF into their d20 game as well as feats that can be used in d20. It ends with a couple of nice course hole maps.

In conclusion, this PDF, although somewhat imaginative, is also somewhat silly. It is only remotely OGL, using some common terms with d20. As I read through, I was less and less inspired by it. I like golf and have played some myself but I really do not see myself using this set of rules. The rules are very poorly explained and I could barely get through the PDF without getting completely frustrated. It's an interesting idea but poorly conceived and put together. For example I could not find any direct correlation between the stats/subcategories and the dice rolls. Also, I did not know how many points I could spend up front. I simply did not get it.

For more details on Reality Deviant Publications, and their new OGL Rules Supplement “OGL Golf” check them out at their website http://www.realitydeviants.net.

Superlink Secret Files: Organized Crime From: TPK Productions Reviewed by:  Ron McClung

Superlink Secret Files: Organized Crime is a new Mutants & Masterminds d20 Supplement from TPK Productions. This PDF is part of a series called Superlink Secret Files. This is the first of the series. This and future additions of this series will be collections of antagonists, rivals, and supporting cast members for a Mutants & Masterminds (M&M) campaign.  Organized Crime itself contains five “dark & gritty” criminal groups geared towards the more darker super hero games.Although super heroes are not my first favorite style of gaming, I have been known to do it. I have been impressed with past products put out by TPK and this one already impressed me at first glance by the layout and cover art.

From page # 3: "Know your enemy.”

As said, contained within are several crime organizations for a dark super hero gaming universe in Mutants & Masterminds. They are presented in the PDF in order of visibility, meaning the first one is the group most likely known to a given party and so on. These organizations are generally associated to the Powers That Be setting (introduced by the Escape from Alcatraz! supplement, which I also reviewed), but can be imported into any setting with a little adjustment. 

Each entry follows a similar format, starting with an Introduction (a general description of how the organization came to be); Public Knowledge (information that investigators might discover if they research the criminal organization - just use the DC vs. an investigator's gathering information roll); Spotlight Characters (which have more detailed notes on history, abilities, and appearance); General Personnel (minions and other allies of the organization); Relations (a general discussion of the criminal organization's relations with other criminal groups); and an In Play section (ideas for the GM on how to use the organization).

The Deep Six, the first and most known of all these groups, is a group of super-villains with a tragic origin. The insidious group is made up of five death row inmates and a priest transformed into walking corpses by an experimental nerve gas. When they said "dark and gritty," they meant dark and gritty. This is a pretty horrific group and include the following: Horatio R. Hades - A level 10 sociopath serial killer who now is in a state of perpetual rot and has the ability to spread the zombie disease; Femme Fatale - The level 10 queen of the Deep Six who sucks life force to keep her human appearance; Yorick - a level 12 floating skull that has the ability to animate objects including his own clothing; Roadkill - the Deep Six level 11 brick with immense strength and invulnerability; Hellmouth - psychopathic mutated and abused boy-turned-zombie; and Dominican - a zombie of an insane priest who is a sadistic torturer of innocent people. The Black Brigade is a mercenary group and revel in chaos and destruction of a military insurrection to the streets. Lead by the Black Colonel (how original...), this group of Third World military rejects and otherwise-unemployed professional soldiers hire themselves out to the highest bidder, may it be a terrorist state, drug cartel, or the mob. It is a very large army made up of a mixture of psychopaths willing to follow any order given for the money. However, there is a very interesting secret about their leader that I will not reveal here, but I find very interesting and something I can see used in a superhero game very well. This section also supplies complete stats of the standard members of the Black Brigade, Captain Bryant (an NPC a GM can use to introduce the Black Brigade to the players), and some of the hardware commonly used by the Black Brigade (for example LAWs Rocket, Hummer and Black Helicopters).

From page #2: “ ...history and identity are unknown to the general public. Even those few vigilantes and veteran cops who have heard of him have never seen him. He may, infact, be a myth ....”

The Golden Don is a Hermetic magician and head of the Balsamo mob family. His Golden Boy button-men are backed up by supernatural beings from the ten worlds of the mystic Sephiroth. He is the most feared mob boss in the city. Using his magical abilities to gain his power in the underground, Frederico Balsamo (the original Golden Don) over the first half of the 20th century strengthened his position through any means possible. Working the likes of Aleister Crowley and the Corleone mob of New York City, he became a very powerful man by mid-century. After his untimely death, his son Giovanni took over, using the same skills in magic to maintain the Balsamo Empire. Combining two super-hero genre archetypes - the mob boss and the renegade sorcerer - this antagonist creates interesting possibilities. This section contains the stats for the Golden Don as well as a standard samples of a family crony and "magical allies."

The One is a street gang made up of superhuman teens with a variety of abilities. They are led by a proto-fascist named Rule who is a mystery to authorities and controls his gang with an iron fist. The major players of the gang range from level 7 to 9 and have some interesting powers. All six superhuman members of the gang are stat'ed out and are presented as antagonists for a teen or young superhero team.  

The Mathematician is probably the most intriguing of all the villains presented here. He is a secret crime kingpin who sits at the center of a complex and sinister web that is so overwhelmingly complex that all Gather Information skills against his organization automatically fail. So strange and mysterious, you are introduced to him by first reading a long story that sounds like a huge SAT word problem. Actually, it is a long convoluted plot of unfortunate circumstances, what seemed to be small crimes and random events. In actuality, it is just another complex plot mastered by the Mathematician. This is the kind of villain I like.

For all entries, the "In-Play" section supplies enough interesting GM-insight into each group and a few good "nuggets" of inspiration to create ways to integrate the group into your campaign. I found these inspiring and useful. As mentioned above, it also supplies a box called Public Knowledge, containing the DC for an investigator's Gathering Information roll to find out information on the group. These are very handy and I like the design concept.

With regard to layout, I was a little disappointed with the art this time. Escape from Alcatraz! had some seriously good art, but this fell short of that by a mile. It is less professional and more like what you would expect from a second-rate PDF.

In conclusion, this is a good e-book for anyone looking for new antagonists in the M&M campaign. It is also good for most any superhero game if you are willing to do a little conversion, because it does have quite a bit of storyline ideas. Some of these can even be used in other genres, with a little tweaking. One of the hardest things in any game is finding a good and challenging villain for your players and these are some pretty good ones. All the ideas are reasonably inspired and idea-provoking. I would recommend this to anyone who might need a new villain.

For more details on TPK Productions and their new Mutants & Masterminds d20 Supplement “Superlink Secret Files: Organized Crime” check them out at their website http://webpages.charter.net/jtondro/tpk.html, and at rpgnow.com.

Escape from Alcatraz! From: TPK Productions Reviewed by:  Ron McClung

Escape from Alcatraz! is a new PDF Adventure for Mutants & Masterminds (M&M) from TPK Productions.

Escape from Alcatraz! is an adventure sourcebook that updates this historical penitentiary for a super-powered 21st Century of Mutants & Masterminds.

From the website: “There are plenty of super-prisons, but only one Alcatraz – the last stop for the worst of criminals.”

This e-book can be used in three ways: as an adventure, as a villain sourcebook, and as a general campaign source. In the PDF, the author has researched historical information about the real-life Alcatraz to create a fictitious super-prison complete with information on the security forces of Alcatraz (humans and supers), how that security force reacts to escapes and other security breaches, as well as the daily schedule of activities within the prison. Also, interestingly, it includes some creative ways that California puts the super-prison to use as a money-making enterprise.

After the Introduction and How to Use This Book sections, the author dives you directly in with the Alcatraz Power Prison that includes a historical brief that is accurate up to the 1990s, when the super powers appeared and forced the need for a super prison. Also included in this are interesting nuggets of knowledge and inspiration like one called the Mystical Alcatraz - a couple of historically based myths about the prison. In addition, there are several Plot Hooks as well as notes about the Lighthouse and Escape Attempts. There are also a few flavor-added "newspaper articles" that really add to the work.

Following this are the Maps and Details which include a full-color Map of the Island and Map of the Cell Blocks. They are reasonably well done but look like anything someone could get out of a tourist brochure. However, the author claims they are original, based on actual plans of the prison. Each location is described in reasonable detail. Following this is the Prison Staff with numerous NPC stats. Included are the regular staff and supers like Magnitude. Also included is a set of generic stats for several different minimum security inmates.

From the website: “In a world of super-powered madmen, mutant convicts, robotic life, and talking apes, Alcatraz still serves as the place criminals Don’t Want To Go.”

The Second Battle of Alcatraz is an adventure that revolves around the breaking out of a particular super villain - Prince Primeval - on the night of his execution.  It involves any number of the villains presented after the adventure. There are nearly 30 individual super beings (villains and heroes) that follow the adventure including Primeva (a descendant of Prince Primeval and the person attempting to break him out), Saint George (ghost of the great St. George possessing a super scientist human), White Dwarf (a dwarf gadgeteer bitter about his stature and leader of the Hollywood All-stars), The Behemoth (alien aquatic life form) , The Foo Fighter (alien 'gray' martial artist), The Mourner (spiritual embodiment of grief), La Nebulosa (Mexican thief) and of course, Prince Primeval himself. They are depicted in full color original art with complete histories and powers.  

It should be noted that all in this PDF is compatible with M&M Second Edition! I like the layout of the PDF, and the art is very well done - very comic-ish.

In conclusion, honestly, this deserves to be put into a book of some kind. It's a well-researched and laid out sourcebook for any M&M fan. And it has so many different uses. I like this in particular because it is based on something real life and projects it into a fictional world. Even if you do not play M&M, this can be useful for other super hero games like Champions or that other d20 superhero RPG.  

Dog Town Core Rulebook  From: Cold Blooded Games Reviewed by: Ron McClung

Dog Town Core Rulebook  is a new RPG Core Rulebook PDF from Cold Blooded Games.

I am not a huge fan of anything that glorifies criminal behavior or gives kids the chance to explore that side of themselves, so going into this I was somewhat negative. From page 5 of the e-book - Dog Town is not a fantasy role playing game featuring supernatural beings, magic or futuristic gadgetry. It is a realistic role playing game dealing with the adult themes of criminal and street sub cultures. It aims to be an authentic portrayal of urban life and criminality in 1970’s New York. Interestingly, the first thing that the author disclaims is not the behavior of criminals depicted in the role-playing but the language used, including racial slurs and sexual orientation slang. I guess the author was more worried about offending someone rather than encouraging criminal behavior. In defense of the author, however, he does state up-front that the role-playing game was inspired by the gangster and street crime movies of the 70s and 80s like Good Fellas, Taxi Driver and Scareface. DISCLAIMER: I first want to make it clear that I do not condone criminal activity of any kind. Secondly, I want to WARN the reader that there is some adult language used in this review that is straight out of the book. I have edited the language out in some places, however, in other places it is required because it is part of the game. This game is not for children and neither is this review.

From page # 5:  “Made it, Ma! Top of the world!” - Cody Jarrett from the classic gangster movie White Heat goes out with a bang.

Content: The setting is late 70s New York City, in a crime ridden ghetto. Players are "anti-heroes trying to profit" from a corrupt world. The background provides a relatively detailed historical account of NYC at the time. Provided is an extensive background of the crime culture of the time along with major names. It goes on to describe the area known as Dog Town - an isolated region on the East River in New York. It is broken down into neighborhoods which are later mapped out in reasonably detailed maps (that look like they were made in something like MS Paint, but they are functional).

Character generation is considerably extensive and detailed. Along with the systems for standard raw attributes, derived attributes, and skills, there are also Criminal Type (class), Special Talents, optional Flaws and Vices, a Criminal History system, and a way to generate connections. The classes are in general terms. There are ten Criminal Types including the Asshole, the Broker, the Heister, the Hustler, the Thug, and the Racketeer. More is explained about Criminal Types below.  

The criminal history is simply a guideline for the criminal's history and includes background information from early childhood to early adulthood. It also supplies lists of typical family names for specific ethnic groups and a general guide for nicknames. The character generations section goes into contacts, hang outs, considerable list of skills, combat values, Power and Respect, Influence, Back Rolls and Warnings as well as arrests and offenses on the criminals rap sheet. 

After the rules and combat chapters (covered below) is a the Director's (GM's) section, guiding a gamemaster through how to run a Dog Town adventure. Nothing out of the ordinary for this chapter - just guidelines on different styles of running the game. My comment on content - it's enough. There could be more flaws and vices as well as talents, but it works.  

From page # 31: "How do jou like that eh! You fckin Maricon. Jou think you can take me. You need a fckin army to take me. I take you all to f*ckin hell.”

System: The character generation system is a point allocation system where everything costs points. The number of points is based on the style of play - punk, gangster or anti-hero. Attributes development points are differentiated from skill points which are differentiated special talent points. The Atttributes are Bulk, Power, Toughness, Reflexes, Brains, Sense, Control, Style, Experience, and Luck. These are straight values bought by attribute points and can range from -2 to 5. Then there are Derived Attributes (Trauma Resistance, Hurt Modifier, Injury Points, Move Straight Speed, Climbing, Maneuver/Balance, Endurance Short, Long, Reaction Roll, Balls, Discipline Roll, Suss Roll, Know Streets, Coping Roll, and Hostility Rating) - which are derived from the other attributes through a series of equations. For instance, to calculate Injury Points, add power x2, bulk x4 and toughness x4.

At the outset, I was turned off by this initial part of the character generation system. There needs to be a quick reference for all the equations. This did not fair well for the overall system. Equations need to be intuitive and a GM or a player should not have to go book diving for an equation. I feared that this system was also based on equations like this.

The Criminal Type was a little confusing at first. The player can choose one or two types (multi-classing). The Criminal Type does not restrict the player to anything. It simply gives the player 20 extra points to spend on certain skills, special talents and skills which are cheaper than the usual ones. There are also Drags or Flaws and Vices that the player must take at least four of. This is an interesting and imaginative approach to a class system. Something like the d6 system could benefit from an approach like this.  

Special Talents are like d20 feats. As I said before, there could be more of them, but there is enough to make things interesting. The interesting mechanic behind these is that they are divided up into packages and if the player takes them as a package, they are cheaper. Vices and Flaws are rolled randomly, if not chosen from the Criminal type.

The system is called the Split System. It is a table reference system with a 20-sided die (d20) roll. The player must generate a value and cross reference vs. the opposing value (a difficulty or opponents ability value) to determine a value to roll a d20 over. The problem I have relates to my previous worry in character generation - the equations. The values are determined through equations like the ones referenced in character generation. For instance, skill values like Break and Enter are calculated by Reflexes x2 + Sense + Brains. Every skill is different. I have the same problem as I do with the equations in character generation - too many! They should be intuitive or there should be a quick reference somewhere. 

There is an interesting mechanic if a 1 or a 20 is rolled. However, because some of the rules read like a statistic book, I do not understand the rule. From what I can gather, in either case you role a second d20 and count that into your failure or success. However, I am not quite sure how the second roll factors into the failure. Another constant problem I had with reading it was that the rules were not clearly explained, at least to me. There were occasional examples, but they were not any more clear than the rules. It made the game even less attractive.

Another interesting aspect was the Behavior mechanic set up in the game to reflect the extreme in behaviors criminals tend to exhibit. There are three factors in Dog Town to represent this - Suss Roll, Balls, and Discipline. Suss Roll is rolled when a criminal really needs to assess his situation and his chances of success. Of course, this is not a level based system, so there is no way to measure the "challenge rating" of a situation. Therefore, it is really up to the GM whether he wants the player to survive or not - a characteristic of all no-level based systems. Balls is basically the bravery of the player (and sometimes the sanity), and Discipline is the measure of how level-headed the player is.

Another interesting aspect of the game are the rules on running a Racket - the steady income of a criminal. This system provides a detailed system allowing players to create their own business deals and see the results of the deal in games terms. It is based on the character's skill, influence and finesse, and can result in great benefit or disastrous results. There is a rather large list of rackets to choose from.

There are also rules for delegating to non-player characters (NPCs) and measure the loyalty of those NPCs, Boss bonuses, giving orders to flunkies, and putting the competition out of business. There are also rules for laying low, torture and chases. These include an interesting array of classic cars and their stats. There are many other rules relating to the criminal underworld that I could get into, but it would make this review entirely too long. Let it be said then that despite my misgivings on the rules and how they are explained, they are thorough.

However, I do not want to leave out combat. The combat or violence system is very detailed and covers a wide variety of actions. It attempts to make it realistic and break it down into eight essential steps: Balls Test, Reach, Reaction Speed, Combat Mode, Attack Roll, Injury, Stuns, and Blood Loss. There are several charts and lists to refer to in each stage, making combat somewhat complicated. Injury is more than a simple roll to be subtracted from hit points, and I found myself so confused, I did not care anymore.

A nice gem however is that it does detail some fighting styles for hand-to-hand combat like karate, boxing and street fighting. That was kind of cool. Rules on shootouts were also a nice addition, although I found combat so complicated that I had no desire to even look into it. Layout: The PDF looked nice. Art was on par from what I would expect from a PDF. Nothing outstanding, but nothing so horrible that I needed to point it out here. It is a large PDF, but it is reasonable printer friendly. The tables are hard to read (and there are a lot of them) because there is artwork behind them, so those might not look good in printouts. 

 In conclusion, I am sorry to say that I was not overly impressed by Dog Town from beginning to end. The only thing I was remotely impressed with was the thoroughness and detail. It is not a half-*ssed job. However, I simply did not like the premise, did not like the system and did not like the overall game itself. I can tell the authors have a strong passion for gaming and I wholeheartedly encourage that. I assume there is an audience for this game and to them I bid them a good luck with this game. I hope you enjoy. I know I did not. This game is not for children. It uses adult themes and adult language even in the color-quotes from the movies. I would not recommend this to anyone under 18.

Brainwashed  From: 12 to Midnight, Inc Reviewed by: Ron McClung

Brainwashed  is a new d20 Modern Horror Adventure PDF from 12 to Midnight, Inc. From the website: “East Texas is an unlikely spot for a commune, but Harmony Farm has a long-standing reputation in the community as a place for kooks and weirdos.”

Brainwashed is intended for use with the 12 to Midnight, Inc, product Fear Effects (... a quick, easy, and flexible system for incorporating the effects of extreme fear into your modern game...), but it is not required. The adventure is available in both d20 Modern (d20M) and Savage World system by Great White Games. In this adventure, the characters are contacted by a concerned father about his son. His son has apparently joined a cult called the Harmonists and severed all ties to his friends and family. The father requests help finding his son, and if he is in trouble then he is to be removed from the cult, willingly or unwillingly. The author claims the adventure "combines the classic style of H.P. Lovecraft with a little Hellboy thrown in for good measure."  

Brainwashed is a modern horror adventure for four 4th-level heroes.This adventure starts out expressing the importance of mood. Horror games are a mood-critical genre, in most cases. This adventure is one of those types of games. Set in the modern remote regions of Texas, visions of the Waco Branch Davidians siege ran through my mind. On a remote farm home to many Harmonist cultists since 1969, something strange has happened. Until now, the cult was slowly devolving into a shelter for outcasts and homeless, but after a mysterious earthquake that baffled geologists, the cult began to change.

From page 5-6: “The flesh harvester hovered over its victim. It had not intended to deal a deathblow, but these new creatures were soft and weak.”

The players are simple friends or general thugs hired by a man named Jim Simpson. His son, Russell joined the cult some time ago and the father wishes to perform an intervention. He has already contacted a "deprogrammer." Through their investigation they discover not only the cult's original relatively innocent nature, but also the dark and shadowy changes that have come over Harmony Farm. The adventure takes the characters from an un-named Texas university campus to the remote Harmony Farm, where the cults reside. I will not give away anymore about the plot, but it definitely sets up some great opportunities to creep and scare your players. Not only is the premise creepy, but the creatures are too.  

In conclusion, I am almost driven to run this adventure. It is good, right up my alley. Well written, I like the complete synopsis in the beginning. It is definitely an inspiring story written by someone who has an appreciation for modern horror and modern horror role playing. Well done.

For more details on 12 to Midnight, Inc and their new d20 Modern Horror Adventure PDF “Brainwashed ” check them out at their website http://www.12tomidnight.com.

BASH! Fantasy Edition From: Basic Action Games Reviewed by:  Ron McClung BASH! Fantasy Edition is a new RPG Core Rulebook (PDF format) from Basic Action Games.

Like the Hero System, BASH! is a system that started out as a Super Hero system and has grown into a multi-genre system. I have not had a chance to actually look at the BASH! super hero version so I can not compare and contrast. 

From page #2:  “The BASH! system was a product of my attempt to invent a role-playing game that would appeal to kids.”

Content: The full PDF (non-printer friendly) is 79 pages. It contains the basic rules of character generation, an advantages & disadvantages system, rules on powers and magic, a complete skill system, and chapters with equipment, weapons, armor, and adventuring gear. There is also a chapter on minions and monsters. All that you would expect from a RPG core rule book is included. The character in the game lies in the system and the details. 

The game has some very specialized terms, being that the general idea is that you are role-playing a graphic novel/comic book. For instance, in combat you have pages and panels (combat round and turns). The introduction includes a short glossary for these terms.   There are more than 10 pages of creatures available to the GM, from basilisk to zombie. All are more or less the standard creatures from fantasy. The PDF ends with a sample adventure, sample characters, and an appendix that guides the GM in creating his own fantasy world.

System: Character generation is simple and straight forward. It is a class-less point-spend system with suggested race packages if a player wants to be something other than a human. There are three ability scores - brawn, agility and mind - and they range in value from 1 to 5. They act as multipliers to the 2d6 dice roll that is core to the system. The races given include your standard elf, dwarf and halfling, but also include birdmen, catfolk and wolfkin. Races are basically lists of suggested advantages and disadvantages for that particular race and can be customized as the player (with GM approval) sees fit.  

All characters have a Energy Pool, which feeds certain abilities and all magic. It is a fixed number of points at character generation, but the system provides a variety of ways to get more points, to recover points and to push for more points during play.

There is only a short list of advantages and disadvantages. There is a lot of room for expansion and customization here. Supernatural powers start out with a list of mundane powers, which are basically those powers applicable to the fantasy setting carried over from the super hero genre.  Most are reminiscent of feats from d20. Like everything else, these are bought with points. Following this is the magic powers list. Tied into the superpower system, the key difference is all spells cost energy, where only certain powers cost energy. Magical powers are defined in different categories: Movement Powers, Perception Powers, Mental Powers, Combat Powers, and Bio-Manipulation Powers.  

In BASH!, one can have pretty much any kind of magic you can imagine. From low magic worlds to magic-is-as-common-as-water worlds. There are some ways to customize one's world for the type of magic he wants. One way that is suggested is the use of colleges of magic. Under each college are spells. Each spell is basically defined in terms of Magical Powers. For example, Wall of Wind is defined as the magical power force field. The Magic Colleges include Air College, Earth College, Fire College, Water College, and a few others. It is a fairly simple system with lots of room to be flexible and customize.

Skills are straight forward and simple. Of the three ability scores the character has, only two apply to skills - Agility and Mind. There are no levels to skills and there are no combat skills. One either uses the skill by rolling the associated ability score, or tries untrained at a penalty. There are also specialty skill options which allow re-rolls on attempts at that particular specialty.  

Combat is handled by straight opposed agility or brawn rolls and sometimes supernatural abilities apply. Brawn determines the number of wounds and hits are the damage system, which are calculated after armor values "soak" what damage it can.

The Game system comes across initially like a version of d6. But as I read further and got an understanding of the nuances and the subtle elegance of it, I realized it was a little more than that. It is truly not a bad system. I am surprised that this is not a hard-covered book somewhere. It has some influences from d6 as well as Hero System and GURPs.  A friend who looked at it for me said it reminded him of Fusion somewhat. The core dice for task resolution in and out of combat is two six-sided dice. As said above, ability scores act as multipliers to those 2d6. However, the Rule of Doubles say that if you roll doubles of any kind, you get to add another die. If that die comes up with the same number as the doubles, you keep adding another die - kind of like the d6 wild die.

One gem that seems to be influenced from d20 is the Danger Level of Monsters, like the challenge rating in d20. What? Challenge rating in a non-level based game. It can be done, and with the simple system like BASH! it can be done fairly easily. Because we are basically dealing with low numbers in stats, powers and abilities, a danger level can be calculated pretty quickly. The system provides the numbers for all the published creatures and gives you a simple formula for figuring it out for others that you create. The PDF also includes rules to convert characters from the Super Hero version of BASH! to this one, and it is a simple matter of multiplying and dividing. There is a certain level of scaling between the two.

From page #2: “What I found, however, was that it really worked well as a super heroes RPG for gamers of all ages.”

Layout: The file downloaded includes a printable version as well as a full version. In the full version, the layout is well-done - not too busy, but not too boring either. The art is very good.  The cover art could be a little better but it could be worse also. The layout of the text is as one would expect from a core rulebook, and everything is there that you need to get started.

In conclusion, I can easily see this as a fun system to play. It is not perfect, but what system is? There are several influences from good systems and it brings it together into a system that is simple and very fast to play. There is not a lot of number crunching, although the math is a little more advanced than just adding numbers (but only slightly). Instead of knowing your addition and subtraction, you need to know your multiplication and division. Like I said, I am surprised this is just in PDF format. I have seen a lot worse systems in print - a LOT worse. I take off points for lack of a supporting web site, at least as far as I could find.

Folkloric: Baba Yaga From: Dog Soul Publishing Reviewed by:  Ron McClung

Folkloric: Baba Yaga is a new d20 Fantasy Setting Sourcebook from Dog Soul Publishing.

This Ennie Award nominated sourcebook is one of many in a series of folklore-based settings and source material by Dog Soul Publishing. I have been really impressed with the other items in this series, so this one looked no different on the outset.  

From page 1: “In a certain kingdom, in a certain land, there lived an uncertain youth - uncertain of his place in the world, of his purpose in his village, indeed, uncertain of the meaning of life itself.”

Folkloric: Baba Yaga is a sourcebook focusing on a fantasy setting of Rassiyan, which is loosely based on Russian folklore. The Baba Yaga is a prominent figure in Russian folklore and the inspiration for this PDF source book. She appears as a witch-like being and has some strong ties to nature. Her tales are usually about the balance of nature and world of man. In the short story provided, she appears in a chicken-legged house to a boy who is lost. The Baba Yaga is many things to many Eastern European cultures, and this PDF attempts to use them all as a source book to mold a fantasy world.

Content: The short story gives you an illustration of just one interpretation of the Baba Yaga. Following that, the author supplies certain axioms of Russian Folklore and the Baba Yaga. The Overview of the setting gives you the collective interpretation of the Baba Yaga, according the the author. Centrally to the Baba Yaga is the balance of nature and man's technology and her mysterious agenda.   Beyond the Baba Yaga, the Overview also gets into Russian Folklore in general, merging it into a new fantasy setting called Rassiyan. This is a refreshing break from the Western European-centered fantasy settings, and if a GM wants to dive into the mostly cold and wet world of a Russian-like culture, this section gets you started on that path. Focusing on a village called Derevnya, it begins to describe the culture and people of Rassiyan. Along with the Baba Yaga, there are two other immortal forces at work within Rassiyan: Prince Ivan Tsarevitch and Koschei the Deathless. They are further explained in the Overview.

The sections Inhabitants of Rassiya, Monsters and Animals contain all that one would expect. There are two special sections under the Inhabitants called The Three Maids and The Three Legends containing very special inhabitants of Rassiyan. No stats are given here, just story and background. This shows that the author appreciates good story and understands the focus of a good RPG.  

Monsters include the Three Horseman (if you had not noticed, many things come in threes), Lebedinoe ("swan-folks", relatives to Elves), and the Rusalka (a type of tormented soul like spectres or banshees). The animals include Baba Yaga's Oxen (the witch's special oxen), Catkin (an intelligent cat creature and pet to Baba Yaga ), Rip and Torn (Baba Yaga's guard dogs), and Grey (a gaunt, sleek, oversized wolf who roams alone). Again, no stats supplied immediately, just story. 

All stats are actually found in the NPC, Monster, and Animal stats section later in the PDF. There are a good range of Challenge Ratings for the GM to choose from.

From page #1 : “Be wary of wolves whilst you sleep, be wary of bandits whilst you walk, and at all times be wary of the forest’s dark heart, for all that lives there is death.”

Places in Rassiya cover in considerable detail many areas within Rassiyan including the the Village of Derevna, the Tyomniy Forest (an area that Baba Yaga has known to have been spotted), Mokriy Vale (another forest of lesser note), Berioza Grove (a mysterious forest where the Baba Yaga has also been spotted), Ivansgrove (the private hunting ground of Prince Ivan), Kholadna Swamp, and of course, the Baba Yaga’s Yard. Supplied in each major area is a random encounter table, which is very handy, of course.  Baba Yaga's yard and house are also detailed area by area, room by room, as well as trap by trap. There are several traps that the characters could possibly encounter and a random table is supplied for those. Also a possibility is the random encounter with a magic item or two. Both of these tables are an interesting approach to providing variety and wide range of possibilities. Roughly 15 or more magic items are detailed after. Also detailed as well as accompanied with a table is Treasure.

Sample Expressions of Major Characters is an interesting section that supplies some dialogue or typical expressions from the major NPCs like Baba Yaga, Vasilisa (one of the Three Maids), Kookla (Vasilisa's mysterious doll who will come to life at times), Melinika (one of the Three Maids), and Natalya (the third Maid). This adds further richness to the setting, giving you an idea of the context for each of the major NPCs.

Probably the most important section to the GM is the Plot Hooks section. The text says it well when it states "the land of Rassiya is packed full of intrigue and adventure." There are seven short plot hooks supplied here that are imaginative and inspiring. Closing out the PDF are three Appendices - Lebedinoe Racial Description, Glossary and Pronunciation Guide, and Rassiyan Naming Conventions. The Lebedinoe, as mentioned above, are elf-like folks of Rassiyan and this section supplies the character stats. Their key characteristic is their connection to the cold nature of Rassiyan and their ability to change to a swan.  

What I like the most is the Pronunciation Guide. Some of these words are hard to wrap my tongue around and this helps with that as well as helps the GM add some legitimacy to his running of this universe. 

Layout: The art is very well done. It brings out the feel of Russian-folklore based fantasy. I cannot say enough about the art. It is fantastic. The PDF layout is well done, although a little more than my work printer could handle. I assume that if bought, there would be a printer friendly version, but I did not get one. The Cartography for the Map of Rassiya, Map of The Village of Derevna, and the Map of Baba Yaga’s Hut and Yard are also done well, very colorful and clear.

In conclusion, this PDF is without a doubt a brilliant piece of research and writing for all to enjoy. It supplies a fresh new world for fantasy gamers to explore. It is rich with imaginative merging of folklore and fantasy. This is well deserving of the nominations it received and dare say that it is deserving of more than just nominations. It leaves nothing out. It is complete and well done. It is inspired and well written. The author should be proud.

Anger of Angels From: Malhavoc Press Reviewed by: Ron "Seawolf" McClung

Anger of Angels is a new Fantasy d20 RPG Supplement from Malhavoc Press.

The concept of the "War in Heaven" was introduced to me by the movie The Prophecy. I thoroughly enjoyed that movie at the time and love the concept of warring angels. Sean Reynolds has put together a well thought-out and thoroughly engaging source book on this subject, from the perspective of fantasy role playing in the d20 system. It is compatible with the 3.5 version of the d20 core rules. From the Page 3: “From the dawn of civilization, people have wondered about how they came to be and what happens to them after they die.”Anger of Angels opens with a introduction explaining the core concept and purpose of the sourcebook.  The primary focus is on Judeo-Christian mythos, with the occasional mention of other religions. Because the concept of a war in heaven between angels and demons is primarily a Christian concept, I can understand it. It also comes from a monotheistic point of view, simply referencing the Almighty as God.

Chapter 1 covers the background needed to understand the War in Heaven--from the fallen angel of Satan to the jealousy angels had for humans; from the corruption of the angels into demons to the invasion of Heaven. In these two pages you get general information, with only a few specifics. It's flexible enough to fit into any fantasy game but specific enough to give you the meat of the perceived-game-universe.

The second chapter delves into the origins of angels and how they are created. It even introduces ways for other angels to create angels. It also covers issues like angels and free will, the mortality of angels, angels breeding with non-angels, the creation of half-angels, and the corruption of angels. Interestingly, death for an angel is final because they are the physical manifestation of spiritual energy. They are unaffected by raise dead or resurrection. The chapter further explores aspects of angels including angelic vessels - shells that angels wear as disguises, angelic wings, armor, and weapons.  

The bulk of the second chapter is taken up by the angelic races that are playable as player characters. Eleven races are presented here with the standard array of d20 statistics and text. Virtually every conceivable archetype is covered in these 11 angels. From Cherubim, Heaven's sentinels and Malakim, Heaven's soldiers to the fiery wheels of the Ophanim, Heaven's messengers and Seraphim, the most holy of angels, these races range from the familiar and mighty to the strange and awkward. I am just not so sure how one plays a fiery wheel or a winged serpent - but I guess that's where vessels come in. The chapter closes out with a few interesting paragraphs on creating variant angels.

The key thing to note when planning to use these races is to plan on a high starting level campaign. Level adjustments range from 3 to 9, with most being 5 or 6. So depending on the type of campaign you want to run (see Chapter 3), the mortals in the party (if any) will have a high starting level to be able to keep up. Not that this isn't expected or anything bad, but I do realize there are some players that prefer to start out at low levels and work their way up. The GM and the players just have to be prepared.

From the back cover: “The sanctity of heaven was shattered at the dawn of the world, when prideful angels rebelled”

Chapters 3 and 4 cover a lot of the material needed to run a campaign caught up in the war between Heaven and Hell. Chapter 3 is the campaign guide, covering advice on how to handle the different types of possible campaigns and how angels interact with the Material Plane, as well as background material for the angel society, angel rankings, angelic personalities, and their relationship with mortals. Of note is the beginning of the chapter where it breaks campaigns down for a GM and conveniently puts this book in perspective. The GM should decide on the type of campaign he wants to run. The author presents 4 types - Angelic, Mentor, Standard, and Adversaries. Each are well defined and make it more clear as to what kind of game this source book would fit in.

Of note within Chapter 3 is a short section on using this sourcebook in d20 Modern. In a couple of short paragraphs, it basically says feel free to use it in the modern setting or even sci-fi setting (in anticipation of d20 Future).

Chapter 4, Planer Geography, is the mappings of Heaven and Hell - the battle grounds for angels and fiends.  The seven planes of Heaven and the many facets of Hell are mapped out and described in moderate detail. Familiar things like Jacob's Ladder, Eden, the River Styx, Limbo and Purgatory are presented. Each, of course, is a supernatural realm, so they are presented in more abstract form. Chapter 5 and 6 are focused on prominent angelic non-player characters and organizations. Full of a wealth of prominent angels, Angels of Note includes some familiar names like Gabriel, Metatron, and Michael. It has statistics of the Eight Archangels, as well general notes about several others. Chapter 6 describes four very interesting angel organizations started on the mortal realm These open up new possibilities of plot and intrigue when you consider groups like the Council of Wings (a group of allied fiends and angels who have grown weary of the War in Heaven and work to protect the mortal realm from its ravages) or the Society of Godsblood (a group that protects half-celestials and their related kind).

Chapters 7 through 10 cover the d20 specific information to include angels and fiends in your d20 world. Chapter 7 covers feats for angels and fiends - a total of 45 angelic or fiendish feats to add to your d20 world. Many have the prerequisite 'angel' or 'fiend', as you would expect. Chapter 8 presents angelic Prestige Classes including ones like Angel of Death and Angel of Terror - a total of five. Chapter 9 covers Magic and Spells - all angels have spells and have immediate access to all spells in the list as long as they meet the prerequisites. Chapter 10 covers heavenly and hellish creatures as well as more angel NPCs to add to your campaign world.

In conclusion, I have to say that I am already inspired by this book and hope to use it in one of my d20 Modern games. It is well written and researched ( and includes a good bibliography for those wanting more resources of angelic legends and beliefs). Being written by what I would call one of the "big dogs" of the gaming industry, Sean K. Reynolds, I was honored to have a chance to review it. My only complaint, I would say, is that the type face was a little small - but that might be because I am getting old. The art was good, and appropriate for the subject matter. It was also well edited.  

I would recommend this for those GMs seeking to expand into new realms like this and to those GMs looking for new and refreshing inspiration.  

For more details on Malhavoc Press and their new Fantasy d20 RPG Supplement “Anger of Angels” check them out at their website http://www.swordsorcery.com, and at all of your local game stores.

EABA: The Age of Ruin From: Blacksburg Tactical Research Center Reviewed by:  Ron McClung

EABA: The Age of Ruin is a new EABA Role Playing Setting from Blacksburg Tactical Research Center.

One thing I can always depend on from Greg Porter is a unique approach to common ideas. The idea of a post-apocalypse setting is not original, of course, but Greg Porter's approach is a fresh look at an old idea. For a review of the system, see my review of the EABA role playing system on Gaming Report. I do not see Greg Porter as just a game designer but also a gaming philosopher.

From page # 1.2: “'The plague took my home and my car. It took my books and my heirlooms. It took my husband, and my children, and then it took even their bodies. It took my clothing, and my hair, and my fingernails. But the plague did not take me, though I wish that it had. Bands of naked savages roam the ruined streets, armed with shards of glass and rocks, in search for the only thing left to eat. Other people. Why, God? Why?'

• found scratched upon a pane of glass”

The setting of Age of Ruin (AoR) is Earth after an apocalyptic event. In the year 2051, man became dependent on machines. As the development of nanotechnology revolutionized everything, it also became the undoing of everything. The history of AoR tells of a declining work of technological hubris run rampant. Man had colonized the moon and Mars, and Earth was a utopia.  But then a plague of nanites befell the world of man, eating everything metal, synthetic, petroleum-based and almost everything organic. Everything was eaten by eater-nanites--clothing, steal supports, computer networks, live stock and plant life. Over time, very little of the modern age was left. Surviving scientists hiding in the Cheyenne mountain complex found a cure but not until after the world had been devastated. In time, humanity returned to a new world, newly evolved to survive the harsh environment created by their forefathers. The world is now Darwin's worst nightmare, as only the most fit survived. The protector nanites produced by the Cheyenne labs are the only reason man still exists and is thriving. 

The population of the world is significantly reduced as its ability to produce the food the population needs is reduced. Agriculture and food storage are a challenge for everyone, but it is not impossible. This is exacerbated by the energy that is required to maintain the protector nanos, which increases the intake of any living thing. Food storage simply does not exist beyond more than a couple of days because of the eater nanos. Greg (the author) is quite clever in solving all the problems a society would have where wood, oil, metal, and cloth do not exist. The cultures of the Age of Ruin, from religion to technology are also quite imaginative.  He is also pretty thorough in describing the world of Ruin and its ecosystem.

From page # 1.1: “When you get down to it, adventures and all good fiction is about exploring what we are as humans.”

The game actually gives you two options for play. You can either play in an era several generations after the Ruin (5th Generation age) or less than one generation after the ruin (1st Generation age). Characters are built with 80 attribute points and 40 skill points. For the Fifth Generation age (the primary focus of the game), the characters represent a member of a tribe and, within a tribe, a member of a clan. Game play takes place primarily on the east coast of what was the US, and the tribes originate from those regions. Tribes called Manhattan, Carolinas and Delmarva roam the ruins of the great east coast. The Mississippi River has widened too wide to cross, and the far north and south regions are now too cold to populate.

The e-book supplies the rules necessary to adapt EABA to this universe, including new skills and new traits for your characters. A lot of focus is spent on the Gifted Trait. The gifted trait linked with the character's fate represents the character's resistance against the eater nanites. With higher fate values, the character can gain paranormal abilities or mutations, like Armspikes, Bugeyes or Bearskin. These are significantly different from abilities gained from Shaping.

As mentioned there are two nanos in AoR. These are described in detail in Chapter 3, including the breaking down of the nanos to their subtypes - from the carbon-eaters that make clothing difficult and hair a lost concept to plastic and metal-eaters that make most technology difficult. Of course there are also the protector nanos that make life possible in the difficult Age of Ruin. Protector nanos are tailored for the life form they maintain. Admirably, the author attempts to explain the nanos in more realistic and plausible terms, rather than wave a wand and call it magic. This is characteristic-BTRC-Greg-Porter. Other interesting aspects of nanos are things called nodes - the ability for nanos to join together to form 'multi-celled nanite organisms.' These are explained in detail as well.

The Shaping is the supernatural powers of AoR. It is literally mind over matter, and a few gifted individuals can spend fate to change the form of matter. Shaping powers are categorized by Ways (Hearth, Warrior, Shaman, Totem, Demon, and Maker). Powers are described under each of these categories, but a player can create his own using the framework provided. Shaping powers are not so much supernatural as much they are simply extending ones ability to manipulate nanos, his body chemistry, and other organics. These shaping powers cost Fate. This can get dangerous as Fate is directly tied to a person's ability to fend off eater nanos. Some of the descriptions of these powers can get downright stomach-turning (for example super-sweet sweat used as a sweetener as well as a catalyst for fire), but this speaks to the persistence the author has to realism.

The most valuable part of this book is the fifth chapter on adventuring. At first glance, I was concerned about the range of adventures one could have in this universe, but the author supplies many nugget-ideas in Chapter 5. He explains how one should approach the Age of Ruin and gives the basis for many adventures and campaigns. AoR is a lot more rich with adventure potential than I thought. The book closes with a general gear guide as well as some notes on 1st Generation play.  

In traditional Greg Porter style, the writing is somewhat technical, but chock full of quippy phrases and solid game design. The layout is good and the art is great.

In conclusion, although not something I personally would want to run out and play, this game setting does have its attractiveness and inspiring aspects.  In fact, I would be more tempted to integrate this world into something I am running now. It is definitely a game universe that has got me thinking.

Adventurers’ Home Away from Home From: RPG Cartographers

Reviewed by:  Ron McClung

Adventurers’ Home Away from Home is a new d20 RPG Location Supplement from RPG Cartographers. Something new has entered the market giving us gamers a new online source for game play. This is the FCW file - otherwise known as Fast CAD file, created by Campaign Cartographer 2 and viewable by the FastCAD File view or the free view supplied by Pro Fantasy. RPG Cartography has started a series of map-based supplements that use this technology. These are some of the same people behind the Explorer's Guild and their line of similar products.

From the website: “Away fade the stars As the sun does rise Lighting the road We will travel by...”

Adventurers’ Home Away from Home contains details of several locations with maps and stats. Included in the ZIP file are maps and descriptions for the following: Goldenhaven Inn, some Stables, The Stag & Raven Boarding House/Tavern, Innkeep Residence, and Bear’s Skull Tavern.Included in the PDF are the descriptions of the above locations, as well as some rules for a common game of chance played in these locations called Murder of Crows. The maps are well done, using the brilliance of Pro Fantasy CC2 software. The locations are well-fleshed out and populated with several useful NPCs. Most of the PDF is made up of either black-and-white versions of the color maps or NPC stats.

Some art is just clipart obtained from various sources, and some of the original art is somewhat lacking but acceptable. The layout is well done, if not a little ink heavy for your printer. The CC2 maps are well done and very detailed.

In conclusion, this is a decent amount of handy locations for any GM to have. It can be worked in any campaign and would be an impressive addition to the campaign. The maps are very cool.

For more details on RPG Cartographers and their new d20 RPG Location Supplement “Adventurers’ Home Away from Home” check them out at their website http://www.rpgcartography.com.

A Touch of Evil: Antagonists in Your Campaign Vol. 1: Orcs From: Reality Deviant Publications Reviewed by:  Ron McClung

A Touch of Evil: Antagonists in Your Campaign, Vol. 1: Orcs is a new d20 Fantasy PDF Sourcebook from Reality Deviant Publications.  A Touch of Evil: Antagonists in Your Campaign is a series of short PDFs devoted to providing ready-made bad guys and opponents that a GM can drop into his campaign. Volume 1: Orcs, as the title implies, deals with a very common antagonist - the Orc.

From the website: “Is your gaming group tired of facing the same old Villians?”Taking an interesting position that the Orc is suffering from "bad P.R.," the author sets out to convince you that an orc is more than just a pincushion for your characters to poke swords and spears into. The orc villains include the wondering orc ranger, Grauk Splintershield; the crafty rogue, Ug’rach Bloodfist of the Ghostwalkers; the murderous half-orc, Zurl Blacktooth; and the terrible half-dragon orc, Molok Spinebreaker with his insatiable appetite for destruction. Each is detailed with a background, and their levels range from 4 to 12. There are a total of 6 NPC orc antagonists. Each NPC also has side notes from the author on suggestions for using the particular villain in your campaign.The art and layout is not bad and reasonably professional in appearance. It does not detract from the work and in some cases does adds some to it. Of note is the particularly nasty-looking depiction of the Half-dragon Orc. The cover art is well-done and atractive.

From page 2: "Edmund Burke said, 'All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing.'”I

n conclusion, aside from the slight political grand-standing and American-historical angst that the writer displays in the introduction, this PDF series has potential. It can be a relief to a GM to have a variety of NPCs at his disposal. The layout is professionally done and the art is pretty good. There is a lot of imagination put into this as well.

For more details on Reality Deviant Publications and their new d20 Fantasy PDF Sourcebook “A Touch of Evil: Antagonists in Your Campaign, Vol. 1: Orcs” check them out at their website http://realitydeviants.net.

Lizardman Set From: Arion Games Reviewed by: Ron McClung

Lizardman Set is a Paper miniatures for Fantasy Roleplaying Games supplement from Arion Games. They include mounted and ground warriors. There are 10 vertical folding basic lizard men as well as 10 horizontal tri-fold lizard men. There are also special lizard men in both varieties including Chieftain, Savant and Hatchling. There is also a human on his knees called Lizard Food.

There are different types of mounts - slow and lumbering type lizard mount as well as a quick and limber type. There are both the vertical fold and horizontal fold of these as well.

The art is computer generated 3D images which gave the artist freedom to show the creature at any angle. It is not bad, but when printed out on black and white, the detail he obviously worked hard to work in the images kind blends in. It may look better on color printer.

Included in the PDF are a variety of similarly rendered map tiles one can print out. Each is inset in a grid pattern perfect for use in D&D and other RPG systems. This set depicts several locations in some caves.

I have always liked this option to buying expensive miniatures. If you are strapped for cash, I recommend buying a few of these PDFs and printing them out on hard stock paper. The map tiles would look great as well if printed out on color. They can be easily used for any cave delving adventure.

Incursion From: Bailey Records/Winged Warrior Publishing  Reviewed by: Ron McClung

Incursionis a new MP3 Single from Bailey Records/Winged Warrior Publishing . Listening to the music as I write this review, I picture I am in some cyberpunk back alley, passing by 'net cafes and drug dens, with a deadline to meet some nefarious character. I am paranoid. I feel like I am being followed. I am taking the back allies to lose my tail but that's making me late for my deadline...

The music is very subtle and not too intrusive. It is perfect for background music in any cyberpunk game. There are moments the music is fast paces while other parts that slow and haunting. It is amazing how sometimes music can pace a game. This music could and music like it could easily make for a unforgettable game.