Publisher: White Wolf
Date Added: 01/02/2024 16:11:11
Got my set today (1/2/2024). I'm extremely satisfied with the product. The print and paper quality are better than expected and of the same/similar quality to a standard Rider-Waite tarot deck. As for other reviews mentioning the lack of booklet, there is a free PDF that comes with the purchase, but I would suggest also looking up tarot tutorials on YouTube or going to your local bookstore or occult shop and pick up a few tarot books. Even if you don't practice occultism/Paganism, having the basic knowledge of tarot layouts adds a sense of realism to your game. It also might not be a bad idea to learn how to stack a deck so you get the cards you want every time. As for what the cards mean esoterically, you can either pick up a tarot book (particularly for the Rider-Waite deck) or just make it up for the purposes of your story....
I get the feeling there's a good idea hidden in this but it's such a jumble to read through. The background images and background colours make reading it very difficult. I imagine I'll struggle on but I was very dissapointed.
The Scarred Lands was a creative and impressively detailed setting that was brought to a close far too soon. With 5th edition the setting has been thankfully revived, and with that revival comes a beefy novel to provide us with a closer look at the setting.
The first thing to note is that the synopsis and opening chapter are misleading. The reader is led to believe that this book serves as an adaptation of the "Serpent Amphora Cycle" adventure modules that were published for the original setting. In actuality, the majority of the book is focused on the career of the Vigilante Eochaid Lenahr.
It's easy to see that this book was written by a huge fan of the setting. References to the gods, the setting's history, locations, creatures, spells and even prestige classes can be found throughout the book. It's exactly what I'd want to see in a book for the Scarred Lands and I love getting to explore the setting from an on-the-ground perspective. The banter between the characters is excellent...
Publisher: Greg Stolze
Date Added: 12/18/2023 12:52:56
We're in the closing days of 2023 and this was certainly the best horror book I've read in 2023, but I think it's the best cosmic horror novel I've read in quite a few years.
There's a real challenge in horror to writing capable protagonists while maintaining the tension and fear, and Greg Stolze absolutely nailed that balance here. The characters are likeable (though interestingly flawed) and competent, they are not just one-dimensional cyphers the writer pushes from one peril to another. They make a lot of good decisions (some bad, too!) and they would probably breeze through a lot of other difficult situations.
A particular shout out to a passage about young lovers exploring an abandoned town, which had the sides of my e-reader groaning because I realised I was squeezing it from the tension.
...
Publisher: Aconyte Books
Date Added: 12/11/2023 13:59:07
Incredibly disappointed in this as a digital product. The art chosen is nice but the image resolution doesn’t hold up, which is particularly problematic with the maps which are often unreadable. L5R’s art has always been its strong suit and that’s on display here, but the low res images make the digital version not worth a purchase. Go for the physical copy if you mean to buy it at all.
Publisher: Greg Stolze
Date Added: 12/09/2023 07:33:02
I read this across a few sittings in one day. The stories were all interesting takes on well worn topics. I wouldn't say it's utterly perfect, but it's good enough that drive thru having no reviews at the time of this writing is unfortunate.
I got this book through the original kickstarter. My copy was delivered in great shape. The pages are matte, which I wasn't expecting, but that might be similar to the original? Because of that, the colors are a bit muted. However, on my first readthrough I didn't notice any glaring scan artifacts; the art is clean and well reproduced.
The book itself and the art within is a definite classic, showing some of the best "vintage 70s" sci-fi art and a great near-future military space setting. The influence of these artists on games like No Man's Sky and Homeworld (among others) is obvious.
4 stars because I would have loved nice glossy reproductions of these images, but it's a solid book regardless and if this is the only way you can get it, every serious sci-fi fan or artist should take a look. The material itself - when adjusting for it's age - is easily 5 stars. ...
Publisher: Chaosium
Date Added: 11/23/2023 08:25:18
I really wanted to like this book. I always imagined what the actual Al-Azif would be like to a reader instead of always witnessing the after effects of someone who read the book. Some things however, are better left to the imagination because I don't know what the actual prose and poetry of The Necronomicon entail, but I know it is not this.
The good - the short stories that begin the book are good; they are both horrific and hilarious in turn, and feature stories from Lovecraft contemporaries of Lovecraft to modern storytellers.
The bad - almost everyting after the fiction. It all starts with Lin Carter's take on the Dee translation of The Necronomicon. It reads as a travelogue, and not being a huge fan of Carter's fiction, not a great one at that. Other retellings suffer the same problem as they serve more as retellings of Alhazred's journeys and adventures and less about the contents of The Necronomicon. This may be my bias coming in here because my imagining of the blasphemo...
Publisher: Mongoose
Date Added: 11/12/2023 17:24:03
This is basically the story of how a player group came together.
Set in the Trojan Reach sector, a group of random individuals who are just passing through the Thebus highport suddenly find themselves in the middle of a pirate attack. In order to survive they have to learn how to work together quickly, and they take the only available ship in the port - the abandoned Subsidized Liner Dimenos.
If you are into elementals and Jade Falcons, this one is for you. The story is decent up until the end when one of elementals turns way to wimpy after twenty years of training and preparing for the Trial of Position. Still, it was ok quick read.
The FATE system lends itself nicely to the Dresdenverse, particularly allowing a very appropriate magic system. Mechanically, the rules are very good. Play balance is also good, allowing different sorts of characters to shine.
The rules are the final draft of a game (intended to be educational) written by some major characters, and include marginal notes. The rules are more fun to read than usual, due to this.
This issue includes the EXCELLENT narrative games Swords without Master! Swords without Master created a new mechanic where the tone of each scene is rolled and also and an interesting way to determine who's turn it is. If you have any interest in narrative fantasy games, you should look up reviews of Swords without Master and then pick this issue up!
What a fun surprise! Each story is unique making a nice collection of stories. I especially enjoyed every few stories that Andy Lucas wrote a short essay about writing and his inspirations. I’m looking forward to reading the follow-up volume two collection of stories.
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