In short: this book makes me want to run a game based on arena combat. It also makes me want to dust off my old copy of Lucas Arts' Gladius.

Fields of Blood and Honor is 55 pages, or about 51 pages of content, of systemless information about how to add interesting gladiatorial combat to your fantasy games. It discusses everything from how to build interesting arenas that are more than just wide open dirt fields to the common types of gladiators you'd find in an arena. It also discusses some new "Power Move" options you can give to your characters to spice up combat, and it also provides plenty of examples on how to win the favor of the crowd and what to do with that favor once you have it.

Fields of Blood and Honor brought back fond memories of playing the video game Gladius, and it wouldn't surprise me if that's where the author got a lot of his inspiration. That's not a bad thing either; that game was great, and it did fantasy gladiatorial combat better than any I've played. Fields of Blood and Honor talks about some of the same mechanics, such as breaking gladiators into three weight classes (Light, Medium, and Strong) and applying advantages or disadvantages to each based on the type of opponent they're fighting.

Fields also provides several examples of different types of warriors you would find in each weight class: Bandits, Berzerkers, Dervishes and others for Light fighters, Legionaires, Barbarians, Murmillos and others for Medium warriors, Centurions and Samnites for Heavy warriors, and so forth. It also gives an interesting overview of how to add archery and magic to arena fights (since those are common in fantasy games but were not common in real-world arenas) and the book provides examples of these character styles as well, such as Archers, Amazons, Gugnirs, Peltasts, Summoners, and Witches.

I'd really like to see a book like this turn into a full RPG rather than a systemless guidebook, because it provides a lot of great information that could be turned into a full-on arena combat game. In lieu of that though, I'm happy with the great information the book does provide and all of the fantastic ideas it sparked for use in my own game. That's a great sign of any successful gaming book, if you ask me.

Finally, though the book's layout is simple, it does contain bookmarks and a clickable table of contents. It reads without any errors with my text-to-speech software too, so I'd have to give it high marks for accessibility.

I wasn't even planning an arena-focused campaign before I started reading this book, and now I'm inclined to include some arena combat in my next game. I've also begun thinking of ways to adapt the concepts here to a cyberpunk setting, so I'm delighted to say the book has certainly sparked my imagination.

Even if you're not in the market for arena combat right now, I'd suggest checking out Fields of Blood and Honor. It's a great read.

Care Package #1 is an excellent addition to the Camp Myth RPG line-up. It's short, extra sweet, and to the point, and everything contained in the book will make an excellent addition to any Camp Myth game.

This PDF is only 6 pages long, or 5 if you don't include the cover. It doesn't bother with a Table of Contents because it doesn't need to--we're dropped straight into descriptions of the game's three newest races: the Gorgon, Pixie, and Yeti.

Gorgons are younger versions of the mythic sisters from Greek mythology. They haven't grown into their snake-like features yet, but they do have a tendency to accidentally petrify things when they get spooked or upset.

Pixies are "doll-sized delinquents" who are rebellious by nature. They enjoy making clothes and armor out of discarded things, such as armor welded from pennies.

Yetis are big, brutish, and don't understand (or care about) social norms. To a yeti, the direct approach is always the best approach.

Each new race comes with a nicely illustrated picture to give you a feel for what they look like, and the descriptions are up to the super hysterical and pun-tastic standard set by Chris Lewis Carter in the original Camp Myth RPG (and Camp Myth children's books).

After 3 pages for new races, we have two pages for new Charms and Merit Badges. There are 5 of each, and each adds some new item to obtain.

As usual, it's the flavor of the setting that really shines through here. I love the Harpy-Feather Pin, the M.Y.T.H. (Mythic Youth Training Handbook), the Djinn Wish Management merit badge, and the Pegasus Aviation merit badge, among others.

And that's it. Short, simple, to the point, and ultra fun. If you own Camp Myth: the RPG, you definitely need to pick up Care Package #1.

The Kobold Guide to Game Design is an excellent resource for any game designer or GM. It offers over 100 pages of essays by 11 industry-leading professionals such as Wolfgang Baur, Monte Cook, Chris Pramas, and others.

Topics cover a wide range of worldbuilding advice, from basic overviews like "what is worldbuilding?" to more in-depth analysis about different kinds of worldbuilding, how to build a "world bible," considerations when developing a pantheon of deities, mapmaking, and more.

As someone currently working on a new world, I found this book immensely helpful. It helped me think of my world in new ways and consider things I hadn't before. I came away with several pages of additional notes that I can now put to good use; I've considered the setting's geography, technology/magic level (and how the two interact), the nature of the gods, how guilds and secret societies interact, etc.

I can see this book as being a valuable reference -- something to come back to time and again as you continue to flesh out a setting. You may read it cover-to-cover like I did, but as you start to focus on one area of your new world you may find yourself coming back to individual essays for inspiration.

The book is simply laid out and logically designed. In general, each of the essays flows logically; "What is worldbuilding?" comes first to explain what the book means by the phrase, and the end of the book contains information about building on a world that is already part of a licensed property (this essay contains some really unique industry information about dealing with licensers). Three essays about religion are all grouped together, and everything else just seems to fit into place.

As a primarily text-based book, the layout is simple. There is little art, but the book doesn't really need any. The essays are really what count, and they all hit home in their own way.

Definitely check out this book if you're a game designer or GM who likes to build homebrew settings (or even build on existing settings). It's a top-notch book from start to finish.