The Poor Gamer?s Almanac, by the Alea Publishing Group, is somewhat difficult to review, given that I?ve only read a single issue (issue 6, incidentally). As such, I?m going to give my general impressions of the magazine, rather than focusing on the specific articles within issue 6. First of all, I?d like to say that I think that Alea definitely has the right idea. As the magazine is published by Alea Publishing, its content is almost entirely made up of snippets of their product catalog. Granted, they do give some space to other publishers (in this issue, most notably a snippet from The Year of the Zombie by UKG Publishing), but it?s mostly Alea content that you?re looking at. This acts as a good way to advertise their upcoming products, as well as inform people about what?s inside of their current releases. Personally, I think more companies should do this. I can?t tell you how many times (and I?m sure many of you can sympathize) I?ve wanted to read more about an upcoming product, but the information simply hasn?t been there. I think that there are a lot of people out there who would pay a small fee for a regular magazine from their favorite publisher, and I?d include myself among them. That aside, however, not everything about The Poor Gamer?s Almanac is good. It?s a good idea, to be sure, but the execution could use a little bit of work. I often found the flow of my reading interrupted by grammatical errors, and there was more than one occasion on which I had to re-read a section because I simply didn?t know what the author was trying to say. I also wonder about how balanced some of the rules contained within this magazine are. Granted, I?m only looking at a single issue, and granted, some of these game rules might still be going through play-testing, as they?re from unreleased products, but I?d still give anything you read in this magazine a thorough examination before including it in your game. Of course, I?d say the same about feats and prestige classes found in Dragon Magazine, or even in some of Wizards? splatbooks, but that?s beside the point.<br><br><b>LIKED</b>: The artwork throughout was of a very high quality, and I was very impressed. The layout is clean and attractive, and there seems to be a good balance of crunch and flavor in the articles, themselves. I also like the way the ads are integrated into the magazine; specifically, the fact that you can click on them to visit the advertiser?s website. Very slick, and a good example of why PDFs are good for this kind of thing. And, of course, I really like the concept.<br><br><b>DISLIKED</b>: This magazine could use some pretty heavy editing and proofreading before it goes to press (so to speak). Some play-testing might not hurt, either.<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Acceptable<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Satisfied<br>

This issue of the Poor Gamer?s Almanac follows the tradition of some of its predecessors in being offered for free. It contains six articles of substance, with interspersed ads in the manner of a real magazine (though a significant number of the ads are for products from its parent company, as expected). The cover of this issue is an exceptionally well done gothic-style image of what seems to be a succubus. The Almanac?s stated goal is to show gamers new to PDF products what the format can do, and leading with such a strong (though perhaps slightly controversial) art piece is a sure way to do so.

The first article in the magazine is Feudal Lords Workshop. Feudal Lords is a forthcoming campaign setting from Alea Publishing. The setting is very Dark Ages of Europe in its feel, and this article talks about the low magic nature of the setting. However, while interesting, the article ultimately comes off as unsatisfying. Instead of discussing the mechanics of how to make a setting low magic, it instead talks about the various social groups of society (the church, the commoners, etc.), and why they would hate and seek to oppress arcane magic users.

While interesting, this is basically a slightly more substantive section on medieval European fears on witchcraft. There is a game mechanics section, for half-a-page, but all it really gives us is the mention that wizards must specialize in a school, and a single supernatural power (Hellfire) that a new base class can use against arcane spellcasters. Ultimately, this article was something of a let-down in that it showcased what seemed to be the least interesting aspects of a low magic campaign.

The next article, however, more than makes up for the shortcomings of the first. It presents a new prestige class, the renaissance magus. This prestige class is basically the superior version of the Mystic Theurge: taking levels in this PrC grants +1 level of existing arcane spellcasting, divine spellcasting, and psionic manifesting classes! While some readers are probably recoiling in horror now, rest assured that this does balance itself. Three levels don?t grant any bonuses to casting/manifesting (they grant abilities related to Concentration checks instead), and additionally, the class only grants one good save, and doesn?t grant any base attack bonus at all.

I really liked this article. Mystic Theurge-style prestige classes aren?t uncommon, but taking it to the next logical step seems incredibly cool, all the moreso for the fact that they balanced it so well. The article has accompanying opening text to give background for the character type that would delve into this PrC. Really, the only thing I found myself wanting was to see an epic progression chart, but that?s a minor quibble.

The next article is Backgrounds. Backgrounds are character explanations that you purchase for a small number of skill points. In return, you get a benefit. The idea is interesting, especially since it seems to almost be a merging of skills and feats. Likewise, some of the backgrounds are quite intruiging, such as the Draconic Ancestor backgrounds, which make certain skills class skills, depending on the dragon?s color. That said, there were some parts of this article that were confusing. For example, the introduction only intimates, but never clearly states, that you can only take backgrounds at your first character level, leaving it uncertain. Likewise it does explicitly state that no background can be taken more than once?and several backgrounds then state that they can indeed be taken multiple times. The idea here is solid, but the article needed to go through editing just once more.

The next article is The Lost Tribe. This is part of a continuing series examining the orc tribes from Alea?s book A Question of Honor. The article opens by talking about an innovative new mechanic: class templates. Class templates are basically templates you take, but they have entry requirements, and powers are only granted when you hit certain character levels. In effect, these are hybrid template-prestige classes. Very cool. However, the one thing I wanted to know was if the powers are given retroactively also. For example, if I take a class template at 7th level, do I gain the listed 1st- and 5th-level powers? It?s not spelled out.

The orc tribe discussed here is the Lost Tribe that titles this article. These orcs lair in an area that is experiencing a planar bleed from the Plane of Shadow, and as such, most of them have the Lost Tribe class template presented here. Of course, most of them are related to shadows. All seem balanced, though I suspect that the power that lets you regenerate 2 hit points per round when not in sunlight should be fast healing instead. Following this are a few new tribal feats that only members of this class template can take, and a map of the area where all these orc tribes live.

Following that is the Product Preview. We?re treated to a brief outline of the next several products from Alea, and general times of release. Surprisingly, the previewed product is the one that?s furthest from being released: The Book O? Death. Three new feats are given, two of which are Spelltouched feats from WotC?s Unearthed Arcana (though you don?t need that to use these). Following that is a new arcane spell. At first glance, the spell isn?t too original, since it just animates someone who dies under its effect as a wraith. However, it shows off a new spell type: immediate augmentation. Spells with that type have an outline in the description about certain circumstances where you can then cast another spell as a free or immediate action. In this case, when the target animates, you may then immediately cast command undead. This is another example of new mechanics that Alea Publishing makes that seem so natural, you wonder why you didn?t think of them first. The last bit of new crunch is a new disease?being infested with undead fleas. And you thought the living ones were bad.

The last section is also the longest. It?s a one-shot adventure set in the modern day. Titled, ?The Shafted Side? it?s an adventure from UKG Publishing?s Year of the Zombie, though you don?t need that product to run it. The premise is that the zombies have risen, and your characters and some NPCs have holed up in a building in town. Help may or may not be coming, but you can?t stay there forever. Virtually the entire product is descriptions of the surrounding areas and what the creatures there do. Very little outline for what happens when characters do something is given; the adventure is basically over when your characters escape or die.

Make no mistake, dying is more likely. Year of the Zombie zombies span a large variety, as evidenced by the three different types of zombies seen in the adventure. No quarter is given to the characters either; since they?ve been surrounded by a zombie horde for days at the start of the adventure, they begin with penalties against them. It gets worse from there. Needless to say, this adventure rocked pretty hard. If you?re a fan of zombies, or just need a quick pick up game, this one-shot is absolutely perfect. It even has several character stat blocks at the end, along with stat blocks for the zombies.

My major complaint with this issue was that a lot of the topics addressed could have had more coverage written for them; I can?t hold that against Alea though. My second major complaint is the one I have for virtually all of their products: no printer-friendly version! Even in greyscale, the gorgeous illustrations here would choke a printer. All in all though, this issue of Poor Gamer?s Almanac would be worthwhile even if you had to pay for it. And since it?s free, there?s absolutely no reason why you shouldn?t have started downloading it already. <br><br><b>LIKED</b>: The new mechanics presented boast minor tweaks that seem to open up new avenues of gameplay. They seem so natural you can't help but wonder why no one thought of them before.<br><br><b>DISLIKED</b>: Several sections don't get the coverage they deserve, letting you keenly feel how more could have been written. Also, a printer-friendly version is notably lacking.<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Excellent<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Very Satisfied<br>

The Poor Gamer's Almanac's stated goal is to show the potential for pdf products, and to try and lure fencesitters over to the dark side... err, I mean turn them into fans of ebooks. Each issue is initially released for free, rising to the price of $2.00 after two months.

The physical presentation is of the same high quality I've seen in other products from Alea Publishing. Even the ads in the front are attractive. The only thing I would change is to add the wax seal page numbers I have seen in used in other products. Some of the phrasings and constructions used throughout the magazine seem a bit awkward, and there are minor mistakes scattered here and there.

The opening article is a design diary for the forthcoming Feudal Lords campaign setting; this installment discussing magic in the world. I must confess to only skimming it. I've conditioned myself to avoid design diaries; every time I follow one it seems the parts I like the best get cut by the time a product gets released.

The Renaissance Magus is similar to prestige classes such as the Mystic Theurge. In this case combining arcane and divine magic with psionic power. The only thing about this class that doesn't appeal to me is the entry requirements. While the ability to cast 2nd level arcane and divine spells, and be able to manifest 2nd level powers is a good baseline; feat or skill prerequisites would seem appropriate additions. On the other hand, there's nothing mechanically wrong with the class as is.

Next up is a section on backgrounds. These represent experience your character has prior to taking up a class, or a hereditary trait unique to your character. These are purchased with skill points; the number varies based on which background is chosen, or you may give up a feat in lieu of skill points. I'm very fond of this idea, and have used similar systems in the past. Some of the options are also interesting: I think the Draconic Ancestor background makes an excellent prerequisite for anyone wanting to multiclass into a sorcerer down the road. I'm not quite as fond of some of the listed costs. While it's hard to tell without testing every one, some of the costs strike me as needing at least minor adjustments.

Another interesting concept is that of the class template. A class template works almost like a second class. If a character meets all prerequisites, she can accept a level adjustment and begin gaining the benefits of the template as she increases in level. The particular template given here centers on a tribe of orcs who have been mutated by exposure to energies from the Plane of Shadow. Members of this tribe gain access to shadow mutations, Hide, Knowledge (The Planes) and Move Silently become class skills, and the ability to select Tribal Feats - three of which are included, all of which focus on enhancing your shadow abilities. The only thing I didn't like here was the method which determines what shadow mutations you are able to select from: rogue levels plus Dex modifier, which is then compared to a chart. This method just struck me as off. This article ends with a map which shows the areas of influence of various orc tribes.

A final informational article starts by listing products on Alea Publishing's release schedule, some of which include a brief description of the planned contents. The bulk of the article consists of preview material from the Book O' Death (Working Title). There are three new feats, two of which are Spelltouched feats; one of these apparently requiring you to die and be resurrected as one of its prerequisites. The other feat involves ritual sacrifices, and as such might get you taken off the invitation list for some of the better parties. A new necromancy spell is previewed - it also introduces the concept of Immediate Augmentation spells. The general idea seems to be that under certain conditions the casting of one of these spells then allows the casting of a another spell as either a free or immediate action. Interesting. Undead fleas round out this offering. These are presented in the format of a disease, rather than a creature. Having grown up in a rural cat-owning household I find regular fleas are more than nasty enough; what kind of sick mind dreams up a version of them that you can't kill?

Running away from the undead fleas, we find ourselves face to face with a Year of the Zombie scenario. It seems to be a well written standard zombie situation; you're trapped and the zombie hordes wish to eat your brains. Nothing wrong with that. Any excuse to kill zombies is a good excuse, as my dear old mum used to say. With the PCs suffering fatigue the deck seems stacked in favor to the walking dead. Having only the barest familiarity with d20 Modern, (I looked at the SRD once) I'm afraid I don't have much to offer on the mechanics of this adventure.

Overall this issue of PGA is a good read. The errors that kept popping up were a bit annoying but bearable. Sure I complained about almost all the mechanics, but that just goes to show I liked them. I only bother trying to fiddle with things I like. There's no reason you shouldn't check this out.

I'm more on the fence as concerns the overall goal of the magazine. It's certainly a laudable one, but I'm not sure how well it can currently be accomplished. Designers and fans alike should write in, and see what you can do to help.<br><br><b>LIKED</b>: An interesting PrC, backgrounds and class templates.<br><br><b>DISLIKED</b>: Various errors. Articles often refer you to other AP products for further examples. Which makes me then want those products so I can have the additional info. Which is obviously the whole idea but still.<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Excellent<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Very Satisfied<br>