Please note that this is an updated review based on the current updated version of "Hammerax - The Ancient World" with an improved layout. This layout change was made to resolve a title font legibility concern I had raised in my original review which is no longer available since it no longer reflects the currently available version of this product. It is also worth mentioning that any publisher who is this responsive to customer feedback is sure to keep me as a loyal customer.

Now onto the review...

"Hammerax - The Ancient World" is another excellent product from the folks at Greywood Publishing. This is a complete roleplaying game powered by Greywood's excellent QUERP game engine paired with a classic fantasy world setting that covers all of the bases for a long campaign. At around 175 pages it is almost three times the size of the original QUERP rulebook and those extra pages are filled with lots of fantasy goodness. After a generic introductory chapter we are thrust into a lengthy chapter on the history of the Ancient World followed by an enjoyable gazetteer of the lands of "Hammerax - the Ancient World" as seen through the eyes of a professional explorer named Jarn the Wanderer (who reminds me of Volo). Now, my favourite part of reading any fantasy RPG are the pages dedicated to the various kingdoms & lands that make up the fantasy setting, and "Hammerax - The Ancient World" does a nice job of giving flavour to each land without being too detailed as to limit the imagination of the gamemaster who plans to run adventures in these lands. However, I was a bit disappointed to find that no world map was provided so I really can't visualize where all these wonderful lands are "supposed" to be in relation to each other although that can be seen as an opportunity to fit things in where you need them. Hopefully a Hammerax world map is forthcoming for those who really need to know where everything "officially" belongs. One kingdom named Aralor does get more detailed treatment (and a map) as the main campaign area to get the dice rolling as it were. The kingdom of Aralor looks to be a thinly veiled Arthurian Camelot/Albion type of place so anyone with even the most basic knowledge of Arthurian lore will feel right at home. All of the things I have mentioned thus far gets us through the first third of the book.

The next third of the book presents a decidedly "Hammerax" flavour of the QUERP roleplaying rules including some character types (classes) tailored to adventuring in the kingdom of Aralor. The QUERP rules are quick, flexible, and easy to learn without being incomplete so no complaints here. These Aralorian(?) character types seem to be evenly matched with the existing QUERP character types so mixing & matching will not be a problem for those who want to play their favourites from the original QUERP rulebook or the very useful QUERP Player's Companion.

The final third of the book covers monsters, magic items, and 2-part adventure to kickstart a campaign in the kingdom of Aralor. Once again the monsters are on par with existing QUERP critters from the QUERP rulebook and the QUERP Bestiary (another great product) so all is good. It is also worth mentioning that I found the starter adventure to be a good read and it's theme fits in very well with the "Arthurian feel" of the land of Aralor so its inclusion was a welcome choice to close out this product.

Once again the folks at Greywood Publishing have cranked out some great content for a nice price so I have to rate "Hammerax - The Ancient World" a solid 5 out of 5.

The QUERP Player's Companion is a mixed bag of goodness for the QUERP system. If this book was published 20 years ago I would have given it a solid 5 out of 5 without second thought but I guess my gaming desires have changed quite a bit since those days. Back in the 80's & 90's I was always looking for more detail & options in my quest for the perfect RPG but nowadays I am looking for simplicity & flexibility without too many rules or com plications. The QUERP Player's Companion adds 14 new character classes and 9 non-human races to the game and all are fitting additions to the game but the book also includes an "Advanced Characters" chapter which I can't really buy into (but still well worth the purchase price). Now to be completely fair this chapter does contain a clear warning that these advanced character options are not quick & easy so there is no reason to even read it if you want to keep things simple (like me). It is also worth mentioning that the advanced characters chapter is well done and keeps to the simple jargon-free wording that is present in the rest of the QUERP product line so if you really want to add some complexity & options to the game you can do it with these tools without breaking the system. For me, that "red box" feel I often babble about faded a bit as I read the advanced characters chapter but it did not keep me from enjoying the product as a whole. All in all, the QUERP Player's Companion serves up a nice set of additional options for the QUERP game without any of it being required reading.

That classic "red box" feeling that QUERP instills in me continues with QUERP Bestiary. Within it's pages you will find close to 100 familiar fantasy foes for your adventuring pleasure with simple stats and decent descriptions. You won't find anything overly original in this creature collection but then again I think we all know what to expect from a RPG monster book by now. Overall, it's a worthy addition to the QUERP product line at a reasonable price.

QUERP is a truly surprising little RPG. It has all of the basics that you need to have a fun fantasy romp without bogging down gameplay with needless complications. The game system is simple but complete enough to cover all of the classic fantasy adventure you can throw a goblin at. The provided character classes do an excellent job of giving special abilities to each class to provide each an iconic feel without getting complicated. This game really captures that classic "red box" feeling without being a retro-clone by being both classic & original. Now admittedly QUERP does not do anything revolutionary with it's ruleset but it definitely delivers on it's promise of being quick & easy while also managing to be a lot of fun. Another thing worth mentioning is that since the game system is built on such an easy to digest & logical set of rules, it practically invites custom character classes if for some reason the 6 provided classes aren't good enough for you. This is one game that is worth a lot more than the $5 asking price.