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The Medieval Baltic, Volume I $12.99
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The Medieval Baltic, Volume I
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The Medieval Baltic, Volume I
Publisher: Codex Integrum LLC
by King U. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 02/18/2023 08:56:51

Very short review.

4/5 stars, as it is a very good historical resource.

I would say that this generally lacks in "gameability", which may be a positive or negative depending on the viewpoint of the individual.



Rating:
[4 of 5 Stars!]
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The Medieval Baltic, Volume I
Publisher: Codex Integrum LLC
by Andrew A. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 02/14/2018 17:22:29

This is really fun to read. Its packed with tidbits that will liven up your ongoing campaign. It is also an elaborate set and setting for a new campaign. Kind of perfect for LOFTP fans. Which I am.



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
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The Medieval Baltic, Volume I
Publisher: Codex Integrum LLC
by Alexander L. [Featured Reviewer]
Date Added: 04/05/2012 08:45:04

originally posted at: http://diehardgamefan.com/2012/04/05/tabletop-review-codex-guide-to-the-medieval-baltic/

I highly recommend that anyone wishing to become a Game Master start collecting books and forming a reference library. There are lots of books that can help any GM create a more “realistic” campaign setting, especially when playing in a low (magic) fantasy campaign world. Understanding how different people interact with each other and their environment goes a long way in being able to portray a believable setting to your players.

This codex details what 15th century life was like in the area around the Baltic sea. The codex gives a good overview of the region and “drills-down” to give some great specific details that can liven up any fantasy campaign. I’ll have to admit that my initial impression of this PDF was rather poor. First of all, it costs $15 for an electronic copy. $15 can buy a GM both Life in a Medieval City and Life in a Medieval Castle in paperback. My demo copy was marked as being draft version 2.52 and I know that the file size is now listed as larger than what I’ve received. Is the PDF finalized, or is it still a work in progress? The author also added a forum link for people to help him find errors and listed a number of people as “Casual Proofreaders“. This, along with a reference to his “smoking hot mama” wife did little to make me think this was a document I’d be happy spending $15 on.

This was all just from page 2 of 268!

The document’s index started on page three and there was almost a page and a half dedicated to listing the various terms described in the eight page glossary. Although the author describes his work as a reference document, he decided to write about the 15th century in the present tense and then going on to joke about the language used in the book before devoting a paragraph to writing about modern fantasy and science fiction terminology to illustrate his point regarding keeping period terminology and proper names in his work. A bibliography and references, with web links, are provided while at the same time this large document doesn’t have a single PDF bookmark. Navigating the document is difficult at best, and the whole thing seems to be a general college research paper that was simply expanded and put online to make a few bucks.

If you can get past these warts, the Codex can actually be a good tool for a GM. I’ve only read through this document once and I’m not sure how many more readings it will take me to unlock some of the great things I can take and bring into my game world. While most sections of each chapter of the book are rather general in nature, not unlike what you’d find in other reference books, each section has extra details that really help bring the period to life. In the small coinage section there is a listing of coin denominations and their relative values. Pretty common fare, but the information goes on to describe furs as currency. Just a page later the author gives a few wages and prices, but goes on in better specific detail other resources usually skip over, “Day wage for a Carpenter or a mason in Saxony 2 groschen and 4 dinari, plus two jugs of ‘hornet’ beer, 3 groschen per week as bath money. Monthly wage = 29 Kreuzer per month (assuming a 5 day work week and not counting the beer)”

These details really help bring the subject matter to life. I don’t know how many times I’ve had PCs spend some “down time” trying to use an auxiliary skill to make some money. Instead of simply stating they make a certain number of gold pieces for their efforts I could reduce that amount and give them some credit at the bath house and provide them with beer. I’m sure my Dwarven PCs will love the beer and hate the fact that some of their wages are baths!

I would recommend the codex to someone wanting to use the setting for their campaign or a GM who wants to be able to get a little insight into the medieval world. Personally I would like to see the PDF edited some more, bookmarked, and make available for a more reasonable price, but it is still a worthwhile GM resource.



Rating:
[3 of 5 Stars!]
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The Medieval Baltic, Volume I
Publisher: Codex Integrum LLC
by Steve H. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 02/25/2012 13:21:13

What I enjoy most is the wealth of historical detail, the research into a little known area that was a crossroads of peoples, cultures and trades. The depth adds reach detail to any gaming or other use of the material. Just fine, just fine.



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
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The Medieval Baltic, Volume I
Publisher: Codex Integrum LLC
by William W. [Featured Reviewer]
Date Added: 02/17/2012 09:03:32

A fact-filled guide to running historical roleplaying in the medieval Baltic region using the d20 system. There is little to no original art here - instead, all artwork is historical, and there are many photographs of historical weapons, ships, and more.

The text is a little dry, but puts all of the historical elements of Baltic culture, society, government, and geography in one convenient place, and there are links to further resources.



Rating:
[4 of 5 Stars!]
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The Medieval Baltic, Volume I
Publisher: Codex Integrum LLC
by Richard M. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 01/23/2012 19:08:36

This codex is jam packed with historical information regarding the Baltic in the mid 1400's. The setting includes a detailed overview of the region, politics and culture with plenty of analogies to make comparisons that are understandable to an audience.

The depth of the book is its strongest feature including, but not limited to

The landscape Laws in the town and in cities Life in the towns and cities Religion Culture groups Language Personalities Role of women and men Technology Warfare including elements fairly unique to the region, such as armored war-wagons

And much much more.

The intense work is backed up with sources, as well as plenty of anecdotes and art to enliven the pages. From a pure historical standpoint the book is a good read, having both breadth and depth and for any RPG provides ample details for a detailed, authentic setting.



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
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The Medieval Baltic, Volume I
Publisher: Codex Integrum LLC
by Jay V. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 12/29/2011 18:08:40

As a writer of historical novels, I look to many sources. I need more than just the who-did-what political history, but something that sheds light on society, law, economy, military affairs and culture. It is hard to find all that in one book for your target period or country. But Jean Chandler’s “Codex Guide to the Medieval Baltic” manages just that for the Medieval Baltic states, collecting and condensing a vast amount of information into some highly readable pages.

Chandler writes about a time of interest to many — the late medieval and early Renaissance — but focuses on an unusual location, the Baltic states of Prussia, Lithuania, Poland and Russia, and the territory occupied by the Teutonic knights. The work in fact assumes that it was written as a guide for the sophisticated traveler of 1456.

The Codex gives details of these states, their government, peoples, geography, economy, currency, their towns and countries, languages, how they fight, and more. In short, it contains just about everything you need to know about these countries during that critical but often overlooked period in history.

One of the joys of reading history is how the truth crushes your expectations. The medieval and early Renaissance are periods which we moderns usually view through prisms of preconceptions that prove to be false and misleading. Chandler does a good job of lifting the fictional veil that 19th century romanticists and 20th century ideologues have cast over this time and the culture that flourished during that period.

For example, we all have grown up with the certainty that life then was nasty, brutish and dirty. It may have been for some, but certainly not all, or even most. People took regular baths and were attentive to cleanliness, and their standard of living, even for the peasants, was above subsistence. They weren’t well off by our inflated standards, but they generally weren’t starving most of the time.

The status of women during the period is often misrepresented in modern writing. While women legally were at a disadvantage, for most practical purposes they enjoyed far more equality and freedom than writers today want to admit. For instance, Chandler chronicles how a significant percentage of masters in the craft guilds were women. And, most surprising, he documents how women even obtained knighthood — not a lot of them, but he makes the case that at least 68 women in England during the 1300-1400s were listed in documents as knights.

Most of us, however, are interested in things military, and Chandler does not disappoint. He goes on at length about the military establishments of the people in the area, and there are extended discussions of their tactics and weaponry and the relative advantages and disadvantages the various militaries enjoyed.

Aside from its treatment of military affairs, however, the book is of particular interest to the HEMA martial artist. Chandler makes a case that the Baltic states, and their free German cities, were a crucible for the development and preservation of the arts we in HEMA seek to recreate. He points out that many of the masters whose fechtbucher we study came from a Baltic free city. The culture and military situation of these free cities was important to the development and preservation of these arts. All freemen in these cities were expected and required to be armed and to know how to use their weapons in order to defend the freedom of the city. They were evidently quite skilled. Chandler quotes a future Pope who was amazed at the skill he saw displayed by burghers in cities he visited. There is even an eyewitness account of a fechtschule competition.

This helps to put the creation of the fecthbucher into context. While Chandler does not say so outright, his presentation implies that the fechtbucher were written by men in the free cities to perpetuate and communicate their martial skills so that they could better defend their guilds and their towns.

Last but not least, I should mention that the book is lavishly illustrated throughout with dozens of period drawings. This alone makes the book worth having.

Altogether, I highly recommend “Codex Guide to the Medieval Baltic.”



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
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The Medieval Baltic, Volume I
Publisher: Codex Integrum LLC
by martin m. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 08/17/2011 08:25:30

Having played this game system, I thought I would comment. This Codex is a head and shoulders upgrade over D20 based systems I have used. It has Tactical choices not seen in other systems with real world terms and techniques (and consequences). It has a much more real and gritty feel to combat that stands out over "WOW" flavored combat systems that seem to be in vogue. The magic system is plug and play from other systems allowing easy adaptability to high or low magic settings. The Baltic setting provided seems unique and as historically accurate as a DM might want (or not). However, the system itself could be applied to almost any fantasy or medieval setting. You wont feel a lack of substance with this Codex. The only negative I have might be that combat is a little deadly, but a good DM can solve with a few extra Hit points per level. The skill system allows for depth and swash buckling as you style may be. Best Codex under $20 I have seen in many years!



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
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