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The final entry in the Monsters of Sin series concerns the sin of wrath - the unthinking destruction of the berserker, only without the focus that makes that useful to barbarians. It's a sin that's directly related to combat, and game mechanically, the concept of berserking and Rage spells covers it well enough already.
The book has 7 pages of content, although the art takes up a lot of that. As always in the series, the art is good quality, and production standards are high. The general discussion of wrath, and the cautionary tale (this time set outside the City of Zobeck, but elsewhere on the same world) take up a couple of pages, and the simple 'creature of wrath' template is pretty much what you'd expect - it's not like there's many other ways of doing it, after all.
The meat, as always, is in the creatures. They range from CR 5 to 23, plus an acquired template that can be applied to anything with at least 2 hit dice (and therefore, will give some low CRs at the bottom end). Considering that the basic theme has to be "it attacks you", which is pretty much what most monsters do, the creatures are rather fun, and effectively embody the sin. One is a harmless fey that becomes deadly when roused, another is an undead fuelled by its internal rage, and a third is your basic rampaging beast. Even the latter has an unusual edge to its abilities, but with all of the three, it's more the descriptions than the stat blocks that do the job of linking the animal to the power of wrath. Which is inevitable, but done quite well.
The exception is the CR23 outsider, which is very much powered by its own rage, so that it actually gets more powerful the longer the fight goes on. Given that it's going to be fairly hard to wipe out something with that level of ability in a single blow at the beginning of the combat (which would really be the best way of doing it) this makes it a particularly effective opponent.
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This is a nice little product from Kobold Press. For players who want to play a more traditional ranger without spell-casting abilities this class product works quite well.
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I was a kickstarter backer of this project - I had no knowledge of Midgard or Pathfinder (I'm a 1e/4e D&D DM only...) but knew of the quality of Open Design products and have been looking for more inspirational creatures for my game.
The Midgard Bestiary for 4th Edition D&D is an AWESOME resource for DMs to fill in creatures with slightly different flavor from the typical WotC monster fare, without going completely bonkers like the original Fiend Folio sometimes did. I really like the large number of mechanical creatures in this tome, along with close cousins to the usual types (Dragons, Centaur, Minotaur, etc.)
I can't wait for my print edition to arrive to drool all over the amazing artwork on almost every page...
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The Expanded Shaman is another excellent product from Kobold Press for the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game. This product takes the druid found in the PFRPG and develops the shaman which is focused communing with the spiritual side of nature. The shaman is more specialized than the druid while bringing a bit of versatility to the class as well. The PDF also comes with three archetypes and an assortment of spells, feats and other goodies.
This class first appeared in Kobold Quarterly Issue #21. This product expands on that article.
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Originally posted at: http://diehardgamefan.com/2012/09/18/tabletop-review-monster
s-of-sin-2-envy/
Introduction: This product is designed for the Pathfinder RPG, but can easily be modified for any D20 system and other fantasy games at the mere whim from a DM. This watermarked PDF contains a number of monsters/encounters that are related to one of the Deadly Sins, primarily Envy, in the case of this supplement. Not only does this supplement contain some monsters for an adventuring party to encounter, it also includes a template and a special creature that is the embodiment of Envy. There is also a section that provides information for those who are using the Midgard Campaign Setting and how to implement this product in collusion with it.
Contents: As stated earlier, this ten-page PDF contains three new monsters:
Bone Swarm – This is simply an undead swarm that has the ability to create undead skeletons if they manage to overwhelm and kill their victims. They also have a very neat grapple attack when they encompass their foes in combat.
Emerald Eye – a tiny crystalline construct that can compel other creatures to compulsively desire some object or perhaps a person via a special attack akin to psionics.
Re-echo Doppelganger – This is an interesting monster and a favorite of the group that helps me review these supplements. It has the ability to mimic perfectly not only the foe it fights, but the combat feats of foes or anyone in combat. It also has the special ability to mimic the weapons possessed by its foes, down to their exact magical properties, with the added feature of making it one size larger and one enhancement bonus greater. This was truly a neat monster, and it will be certainly be thought of later on.
The supplement also provided a creature that it describes as the Embodiment of Evil. Look and respect this creature as something akin to an avatar of a demigod or perhaps some other type of super powerful entity, like a demon lord or a devil of some kind. This is a creature to be used as a final boss monster, and probably one that can never truly be defeated, but one that can be dismissed. This is simply the physical representation of raw emotion, Envy.
The template that is provided assigns the Envy trait to player characters or NPC’s with a 2 CR added. With this ability, there are added skills with either bonuses or penalties.
Positive Notes: I really enjoyed reading this supplement. The new monsters always encourage possible new adventures and plot hooks. The templates add flavor both to player characters and possible encounters. The artwork contained within is well done, and the piece is very easy to read and comprehend. The entire layout of this supplement screams professionalism and it was certainly done in that fashion. I really enjoyed the Re-echo Doppelganger and the Embodiment of Envy.
Negative Notes: I am not a huge fan of psionics being introduced into the Pathfinder setting as of yet, so the introduction here of the Emerald Eye construct and its psionic abilities was a bit too much. I feel there are other ways for this particular creature to manipulate others, with other abilities or spell like powers, without having to rely on psionics. It was a well thought of concept and will do well in other fantasy gaming settings that utilize psionics and such abilities.
Overall Review: Excellent and well done supplement. I am looking forward to seeing more of these particular products in the future. This has a lot of promise and has piqued my interest very highly. A DM of any caliber can use this product with some excellent results.
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The Monsters of Sin series is an excellent series of PDFs written by Ryan Costello, Jr. which explores the "seven deadly sins." Although these products have been written with the Midgard setting in mind they can easily be used at any game table using the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game (or even Dungeons & Dragons 3.5).
Sloth is a tricky sin to represent at the game table because by definition a slothful character tends to not engage the world around them. To help game masters and players bring sloth to life at the game table he boils the sin down to one of two approaches; "sluggish, unmotivated monsters, and monsters that drain characters of their ability to physically continue."
The Slothful Creature is a CR -2 template which is completely detrimental to the creature on which the template has been placed. This is an interesting tool for game masters who want to introduce creatures into their game which may be a bit too powerful for the party while also adding interesting elements to the story. Or even making an average level challenge less challenging can be a nice twist.
The Flab Giant (CR 4) is a new breed of giant. The origin of this breed is left to the imagination of the game master but whatever the cause for the genesis of this race they are a nasty bunch. Overweight and lazy love to use their greatest strength against those who bother them, their sheer girth.
If drakes are lesser versions of the dragons then a Scrap Drake (CR 6) would be the drake of the drakes. Does that make sense? The scrap drakes don't care if it does or not. In fact, they don't care about much at all. The best thing about a scrap drake is once you drag them in front of something to guard the odds are good they will stay. They are too lazy to go anywhere else.
Slow Storms (CR 15) are nasty outsiders which afflict their enemies with debilitating arthritis. The abilities of this creature are a good way to get PCs to slow down and can be a very interesting story development.
The Embodiment of Sloth (CR 17) is a master manipulator who does a good job of motivating others to get the job done for them. As a giant lump of flesh it can easily be mistaken for a nasty slime or pudding but it is far, far more dangerous.
As with the other PDFs in this series this is a well written product. For $2.99 game masters will not only be provided with some interesting tools but a great deal of inspiration as well.
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The sixth installment in the Monsters of Sin series tackles Sloth. Weighing in at 10 pages, with 4 pages going to the covers, the OGL and the credit/TOC. No bookmarks, nor is the Table of Contents linked, which I'll admit bummed me a little. The cover art, as has been the standard for this series, is excellent, with interior art giving us two great pieces, one that left me at the “meh” stage, and one particular piece that really needed some color, as it looks hilariously like something else entirely (don't worry, all will be explained). Following in the standard dual column approach, I saw nothing jarring in the sense of grammatical errors.
Opening with a run down of the author's thoughts on the particular sin of sloth, the template offering this time out is for the Slothful Creature. I think I can honestly state that this template, more than any other presented in this series, is a punishment more than anything, lol. Nothing but negatives and detriment, there are no redeeming qualities in this template to make it a desirable thing...which makes it perfect as a template for this sin. I mean seriously, Sloth...there shouldn't be bonuses to a slothful creature. Well done, and well handled!
First up, we have the Flab Giant, an addition to the Giant sub-species, they are a relatively short member of the species, with their larger size translating into girth rather than height. Grossly enlarged abdomens supported on short muscled legs clothed only in the most minimal of clothing, these giants use their dangerously heavy bodies as weapons, crushing their opponents to death before eating them. An excellent monster to represent sloth as a sin.
The Scrap Drake is not only a lesser dragon in that it is a drake, it's a lesser drake. This thing is so apathetic towards life in general it prefers to push along on its stomach like a snake rather than stand up on its two legs. The perfect deterrent for an area one needs guarded, as the creature is very unlikely to actually leave the area, ever. The coolest thing about this lazy lizard is their answer to having no supernatural breath weapon. The scrap drake keeps a mouthful of debris (wood, stone, metal) ready to spit out as an improvised breath weapon. Rather unique, and kind of a cool thought that the creature would have developed this technique of attack/defense. All in all I like these guys, they have the right feel of slothfulness while maintaining a coolness about them.
OK, so two down, both of them being the artwork I thought was really good. This takes us to the Slow Storm. Now, simply looking at the artwork for this I thought to myself I am not going to like this creature. This creature is, quite simply, a bizarre looking thing. A quill-ed ball of organics at the center if a centralized storm throwing off static lightning...with eyeballs and a mouth...yup, goofy looking. But, it has a seriously cool ability that makes it seriously deadly. This thing absorbs the moisture from the joints of living creatures, causing a DEX drain, simulating the effect of aging on the living basically. Now, as cool as that is, here's where we run into problems...the presentation of this ability creates some serious confusion...as the way it is listed on the Special Attack line of the statblock it might be a special ability, or a breath weapon...but in the Special Abilities section there is no mention of it being a breath weapon...Now the breath weapon and the Arthritic Pain special ability do show the same DEX drain amount, and are both a Fort save ability, but where as the breath weapon has a limited usage, this is not mentioned within the special ability write up...and if this ability is in fact not the breath weapon, then we are left with no defining target concept for the ability, is it area? Single target? I am inclined to believe the ability is in fact intended to be the breath weapon, I just wish the wording within the description would have clarified that.
Which brings us to Embodiment. Illustrated and described as a mass of flesh, this B&W drawing far more resembles a large pile of excrement, with people sitting around it. Yes, once you read the entry you realize what you are looking at, but the initial thought upon getting to this page is a far different one than after reading the opening line. Hence my earlier observation that perhaps once, a small amount of color might have been warranted internally. So, the embodiment...a CR17 blob o' flab, with no discernible features...the ultimate in letting other do kinda critter. Has an insane leadership score that it utilizes to get others to handle its needs,defend it, or handle matters elsewhere. Ironically the creature typically chooses its agents from the least slothly of its followers, to try and guarantee that they will actually succeed in their task (this was fluff gold, loved it). Those who get to close to the embodiment and fail a Will save will find themselves chilling with the big squishy flesh mound. In return for serving its needs, the embodiment of sloth provides benefits equal to a ring of sustenance to its fellow mellows. All around, one seriously cool take on an embodiment for this sin, and an impressive design.
As always with this series, we close with some tidbits of Midgard, acting as not only extras for those utilizing Midgard as a setting, but as teasers for those who are not, enticing them to explore these lands, and the people we are being given an insight into. An expertly crafted closer to these books, the Midgard section has become one of my favorite parts of this series.
So, final thoughts. I liked this PDF, a great deal. The creatures were cool, the template made sense, the embodiment was awesome...but I keep coming back to the slow storm...and the breath weapon/special ability. The fact that the special ability has a name makes me think it is not intended to be the breath weapon, but they have the same DEX drain and are both a Fort save ability. I can't help but think this could have been worded much clearer to avoid any sense of confusion in this regard. In the end the only thing preventing me from giving this the 5 star rating it deserves is this issue, well, that and the no bookmarks (sorry, I like bookmarks). I'm going with a 4.5, rounded down to a 4. I would be happy to raise this rating if the wording of this becomes clarified...or if for that matter someone can help me see what I am obviously missing in case I am simply having a dense moment (it happens, I'm human, I'll admit it). Still well worth it folks, and this is an excellent addition to this series.
-edit.
PDF has been updated to clarify the Slow Storm's special attacks as being two separate things, and not one as it previously appeared. As this was my only problem with this PDF, I am happy to raise my rating to the 5 star from 4.5 that it deserved in the first place.
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Monsters of Sin 4, Lust continues the series with what potentially could be the deal breaker for people, the sin of lust. Lust can be interpreted in many differentiating ways, and handled with about as many different levels of maturity. Regardless of the concept of complet-ism, this style of gaming book must be handled with care by a GM, for not every group handles this type of material well. That being said, lets take a look under the sheets, shall we?
11 pages boils down to 7 after we remove the covers, OGL and ad. The standard two column approach, with the monster entries following Paizo's standard text to the left, creature to the right look and feel. Opening as always with a quick opener to explain the author's viewpoint in this particular sin, we quickly step into this sin's template, the Lust Slave. An excellently handled game mechanic translation of what one can only call a groupie, or infatuated “fan”...this template could easily see some usage around my table making sure that my BBEG's have a following within a community. Well done.
First up for creatures this time out is the Inbred Orc. Born of inbreeding, these orcs are built with mutations, both of the fortunate (giving bonuses) and the unfortunate (negatives) type. This basically works the same way as traits and flaws do, but as a physical manifestation in a birth defect. As a creature, this simply doesn't work for me. As a template, sure, to a point. They are granted a bonus to hit simply because they are unpredictable, with the justification that players are used to fighting regular orcs, not a misshapen orc with birth defects...really?
The Lovelorn is our second offering, and took me back to my childhood and the ghost stories I so loved as a kid. The classic woman in white is obviously seen here in influence, and that is a total win in my book. The long and the short of it, we have here a ghost who believes the victims she sets her eyes upon are her lost loves from life, and they are intent on possessing these loves now. Some seriously cool abilities, like the Bleeding Eye Gaze – a nice gaze attack with one seriously creepy visual. But the cherry on top has to be the Lovelorn Embrace, she literally embraces her victims like a lover and kisses them, causing CHA drain as well as being able to perform any one action available to a grappling creature....Whole new appreciation of the kiss of death. The artwork for this particular monster is excellent by the way, and the inking job clearly helps drive forth the partial manifestation ability of this incorporeal creature.
The Truffle closes us out for the monsters this time around, and I'm not entirely sure what to make of this fey. Appearing as a small genderless child, this creature is fascinated by the concept of sexual identity, and what separates the genders of differing races, to the point that they will dominate others into “demonstrating” if they are unwilling to answer their curiosities. On the one hand these creatures could be dismissed as fey with their vastly different viewpoints on social concepts. On the other, what we have here is a creature with no regard for for boundaries forcing people into sexual situations...this is one seriously steep and dangerous slope, and one that a GM needs to be very certain they want to include in their campaign world...as not everyone will react to the idea of these things as being just curious harmless fey.
The Embodiment of Lust is presented as a 10 foot tall humanoid of almost impossible to resist temptation. Surrounding itself with a constant orgy of loyal followers and lust slaves the Embodiment communicates and controls its throng telepathically, or through bodily language. Of all the various ways to embody this sin, I have to say this outsider pretty much does the sin justice for this series, and presents not only a challenge to a group due to its high CR (21), but the sheer fact that everywhere it goes it is surrounded by a willing throng of “lovers” who will kill or die in an instant for it. Not to mention the fact that all within range of it must fight the urge to join the party.
As with previous entries to this series the sin is addressed within Midgard with a bit of setting fluff detailing the Red Goddess, Marena, and an interesting bit of knowledge regarding the birth of the Seven Cities, and how Lust played its part in their origins.
All in all, I liked the Embodiment, the Template and one Monster without contest. That leaves two monsters, one I flat out was unimpressed by, and one, well, that disturbs me. Perhaps I am reading far to much into it, but any creature that, as a normal part of its behavior, “forces” people in this regard...no. Not at my game table.
So, With five items on the block, I like three of them basically. Taking into account the small section on the Midgard setting, I am going to settle on a 3 star, as the Lovelorn really is that good of a creature in my opinion.
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Expanded Shaman marks the second book in Open Designs' New Paths series. Anyone paying attention is well aware of how well received the first installment (The Spell Less Ranger) was, and what type of pressure that places upon this book right off the bat. Question here then is, did Marc Radle have another bullet in the chamber? So let us take a look.
Weighing in at 16 pages, with 10 pages of new material, 2 sheets for tracking wildshape and a spirit guide, cover, OGL, credit and ad (which would not fully load in my version of this PDF). Artwork is handled by the talented Rick Hershey, as those familiar with his style can easily recognize from the cover. Formatting follows the dual column, portrait layout with very few editing issues (an occasional extra space, nothing severe), with embedded artwork and tables. My only complaint in regard to layout is that one particular table finds itself with a full page between it and the descriptive text meant to help one read it. Now, granted by now anyone who games should have no issues using the table, but the addition on the breakdown shows an acknowledgement that those new to the game might still need some help (and I applaud that thinking, as at one point we all needed some guidance), and it being so far after the table makes it almost counter-productive.
For those loyal readers of Kobold Quarterly yes, this is that shaman, expanded upon and re-introduced...for the rest of you, it's all here, so you are not missing anything (although I still recommend you start picking up KQ).
At first glance it is far to easy to dismiss this class as another variant druid, when it is far more. There are a few familiar concepts and abilities, but there is more than enough defining concepts as well. Take for instance the Totem Secrets. Essentially working the same as talents, with the PC gaining them at 1st, 3rd and every 4 levels after, we are given 12 to work with at this point. Of these 12, I would truly have a hard time as a PC deciding on what to pick as there are some really interesting abilities here that I would love to play around with...Invisibility, Protective Spirits, automatic stabilization from 0hp if on home plane, see the incorporeal, ethereal etc., Unleash a furious attack 1/day of spirits upon a target dealing force damage, lull into a trance to commune with the spirits and gain a 20 to one Int check...or my personal favorite out of them all, intestinal divination/sign reading – flight paths of birds, sand particles in the wind...a balanced game mechanic to do what we all imagine the shaman does. Very, very cool, with a nice array of bonuses depending upon what form of “reading” is done with this particular talent.
But fear not, there are more class abilities beyond the Totem Secrets, we have the Animal Spirit Guide, Wild Empathy, Woodland Step, Wild Shape, just to name a few before we get to the more class specific...Shaman's Touch – essentially the cure spells starting at light and working its way up progressively as you increase in level, Spirit Dance allows the shaman to call to the spirits to augment their magic via dance (pretty cool story driven concept actually), Spirit Step – shaman can go ethereal as if using ethereal jaunt, and Vision Quest where upon a shaman can release their spirit from their body for a time.
The Animal Spirit Guide, whereas is pretty class specific, felt a great deal to me like the druid's animal companion, and was one of the reasons I think I kept looking at the shaman looking for the similarities, and differences. 16 base statblocks are presented covering 24 different potential animals that the shaman can pick through, with choices ranging from predatorial birds to manta rays. The list felt more designed for the min/maxer to me, as almost every animal on the list is one with an attack, one would not see as a waste on a character sheet. When I think of shamans, and their guides, I think of the turtle, the rat, the mantis. Animals who, traditionally have been presented throughout fantasy as having something to teach. Not that I am entirely knocking the animals that are here, as they are decent choices, I just would have liked to have seen a few less “combat friendly” choices is all. The spirit animals of course come with their own list of cool abilities, being the very reason one wants them in the first place, lol. Everything from delivering your touch spells to acting as an intermediary to the spirit realm, going incorporeal and granting bonus spells. The options for the spirit guide in regards to abilities is pretty decent and gives plenty of options to handle a variety of builds.
We are given three archetypes, the Elemental, Primal and Medicine Doctor. The elemental, you guessed it, is more attuned to the elemental forces, and swaps out the animal spirit guide for an elemental one, as well bonus spells and their wild shape being one of an elemental. The primal gives up some spell-casting with a smaller quantity of spells daily in exchange for an enhanced wild shape (that comes with a built in healing that is freaking awesome), as well as primal dance – altering the spirit dance to augment the wild shape ability instead of spell-casting. The witch doctor goes the other route, diminishing their wild shape in favor of more spells and a closer relation to the spirits. The witch doctor and primal both have separate tables showing spell progression.
New spells come in the form of Elemental Blast – exactly what it says, Rain of Fangs – yeah, again exactly what it says, very cool visually speaking, and River of Moonlight – transfix opponents with a line of moonlight shaped by you as you choose, hanging before their eyes in the air.
We end with four new feats, Extra Wild Shape, Improved Shaman's Touch, Practiced Spirit Dance and Prolong Spirit Dance. The first two are pretty self explanatory, the practice feat allows you to pull off the 3 full round spirit dance in 3 move actions and requires you to take prolong, which extends the spirit dance an additional 2 rounds. I am assuming this wording means that the prolong spirit dance feat adds 2 rounds to the duration of the spirit dance's benefit, not the amount of rounds required to do a spirit dance in the first place.
The addition of the two additional sheets to add to a character sheet for the tracking of information for wild shape and the spirit guide are a flat out genius move, and a great way to help sell the idea of trying out the class to someone. Clear, concise and well organized, they would be an easy addition to any character portfolio, regardless of what sheets they are currently using.
So, final thoughts and tally...I liked the class, a great deal. And I owe Mr. Radle an apology, I stated early in this review that Rick Hershey handled the art, failing to mention the Radle piece from the interior. Editorial, it is close enough to perfect to not even merit nitpicking (lol), and the presentation is beautiful. I see from End's review that bookmarks were added, so I re-downloaded my copy to check, and I still have no bookmarks. Material wise, the class abilities have some nice surprises and new favorites for me, but I did think the spirit guides were missing something, more in their variety and the theme of them than anything else. I would have liked to have seen some more specific spells for the shaman class, as well as more feats, but I'm sure someone out there *cough* Owen *cough* will do something *cough* Bullet Point *cough* about that soon...sorry, had something caught in my throat there.
OK, so balancing my issues with the animal choices for spirit guide against the new options for abilities and over all flavor of the class, as well as the lack of bookmarks, I'm going to settle on a 4 star rating.
edit- I see in the comment threads that the Paizo version has the bookmarks, so I am willing to bet this has been addressed, and am raising my rating a full .5 star, settling at a 4.5 rating.
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This mini-bestiary is 10 pages long, 1 page front cover, 1 page editorial, 1 page SRD and 1 page back cover, leaving us with 6 pages of content, so let's check this out!
Starting off with a short introduction on the concept of sin and the rules to quickly make a prideful creature, we delve into the monsters:
-Abominable Beauty: This CR 13 fey considers herself so beautiful that none are worthy to behold her and thus have to die. Her beauty blinds, her touch burns, her voice deafens - perfection that destroys all it comes in contact with, showcased by great signature abilities. Great!
-Emperor Kobold: This new type of kobold gets 2 Str, 2 Dex and Cha, an energy affinity and a rallying yelp to make for a born leader among koboldkind -inspired by megalomania and considering him/herself a descendant of the dragons, these beings make for similar roles as e.g. Lizardkings. Ok, I guess, but BLAND. How many times have we seen this type of pseudo-draconic kobold angle done? Too many times. Plus: This is not a real new creature and the abilities are not as interesting as to warrant this entry
-Mirror Hag: These deformed CR 8 hags punishes those who recoil from her appearance by cursing them with reconfigured features to teach them the superficiality of their ways and instill some humility - rather a creature that punishes vanity than pride in my book.
-The Embodiment of Pride: At CR 22, this embodiment rocks hard - a being of pure pride and superior ego, the embodiment comes with a mocking dance, an aura of superiority (linked to a summoning ability - quite cool) and two awesome signature abilities: The primary means of attack of this embodiment is an open-handed slap across the face that can deal sickening amounts of damage and the creature can ignore up to a full round of actions 1/day by completely disregarding it. AWESOME and my favorite embodiment so far.
The pdf closes with embodiment of sin traits as well as a short narrative on pride in the midgard campaign setting.
Conclusion:
Editing and formatting are top-notch, I didn't notice any glitches. Layout adheres to a nice full-color 2-column standard and the artworks for the creatures are awesome. The pdf has no bookmarks, which is a pity - by now all but BP-length pdfs should have bookmarks.
Pride. If I'm guilty of one deadly sin much more often than any other one, it's definitely pride. And why not? After from lust, it's perhaps the one closest to being considered acceptable in society and is even positively connotated. Do a corpus search and you'll e.g. get "justifiably proud" -which other deadly sin can claim ANY positive undertones apart from pride? None. That's what makes this the most viscous of the deadly sins and if we take the Judeo-Christian mythology, it is pride (and envy) that cast down the devil from heaven. Pride is enticing. We want our parents to be proud of us. We yearn to feel pride and the lack of it can just as easily destroy a man as an overabundance of it. Pride. The "King of Sins". How does this installment hold up?
Well, on the one hand, we get two of the best creatures in the whole line so far. On the other hand, two of the creatures fail hard: The Mirror Hag is one that punishes superficiality and vanity and is at best loosely connected to pride and the emperor kobold is just there for the sake of kobold fanboys and obviously unimaginative filler with a tired concept and no stellar mechanics to lift it out of the muck of "been there, done that". While I personally abhor the high kobolds from SGG's Kobold King-pdf, I consider them the vastly superior take on the concept of a high kobold. Which leaves us with the imho best 2 creatures in the line so far, but only half the content of the whole pdf. And that is not enough. With only 4 creatures per installment, I expect imaginativeness, novel ideas and cool signature abilities to justify the asking price when compared to SGG's Mythic Menagerie-line. And this pdf, while it does deliver some stellar coolness, fails as hard as it succeeds. I guess Pride comes before the Fall, after all - my final verdict will be 2.5 stars, rounded up to 3 for the purpose of this platform. I hope the upcoming installments will be of a more consistent quality.
Endzeitgeist out.
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Monsters of envy is the second entrant in this series. It's not quite as good as the first volume, probably because envy is less of motivating factor for most adventurers than avarice is, which makes it trickier to target.
The same basics are there as in the earlier volume. The artwork and layout a good. The book includes 6 pages of content, one and a half of which are taken up with discussion of the sin and a short cautionary tale.
The purpose of the book though, are the four monsters it describes. As before, these cover a good range of CRs, in this case from 2 to 18. The CR2 monster is a construct that doesn't really seem to have a lot to do with envy, but the others fit the theme rather better.
The undead is a clever idea, although, in fairness, its connection to the theme only comes from it being envious of the living. Which is pretty much true of most thinking undead, when you think about it. The variant doppelganger, that copies the abilities of its target, as well as appearance, also works well.
The best bit, though, is the CR18 outsider. This has a rather unique ability (although those of you familiar with RuneQuest will have seen something similar) that it uses very effectively against those that become the focus of its resentment. Quite a neat idea.
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Pride is perhaps a trickier sin than some others to make a real threat in a typical fantasy RPG. That's partly because any pride that a player character might feel in his abilities is probably fairly justified, which makes it not much of a weakness. One gets the impression that the writers of this series struggled more with this book than they did with the others I've seen so far.
First the basics: like the others in the series, this book has 6 pages of content, and is well laid out and edited, with good quality artwork. The copy I have, however, does have the wrong page footers, which presumably snuck through proofing.
Around a page of the text covers a general discussion of pride, and includes a cautionary tale set in the Free City of Zobeck. The remainder, and the main purpose of the book, consists of descriptions and stat blocks for four monsters built around the theme.
It's here that the sign of struggling shows through. The monsters are a good range of CRs, from 8 to 22, plus one that's a variant race, and therefore uses the CR of its character level (which is likely to be low, but doesn't technically have to be).
The problem is that three out of the four creatures don't really have a lot to do with pride. One is a tougher variant of a kobold, which is prideful, bur only for laughs (if it's low level) or sensibly justified (if it isn't). It's fair enough as a variant kobold, but the link to the theme is a bit tangential.
The two mid-level creatures seem to have even less to do with pride. One, being deadly but alluring, is more accurately about lust, and the other is more annoying than anything else. Quite why the alluring ones are said to be only ever female I have no idea... it seemed a rather strange and random addition to the text, given the rest of the description.
The Cr22 outsider is more obviously connected with pride, but some of its attacks come across as a bit silly - it does a childish dance, and then pimp-slaps you.
Overall, the creatures aren't bad, and there's some degree of originality in them. And, as I say, the quality of the production is high for a product in this price range. But, on the whole, the theme of pride doesn't come across very strongly, and perhaps proved a bit much of a challenge.
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Out of all the seven deadly sins, avarice is probably the one that motivates the typical adventurer the most. Killing things and taking their stuff is, after all, a fair description of what avarice is all about. So, even were it not for the alphabetical sequence of this series, avarice would have been a good place to start.
There is some brief description of avarice and why it's a bad thing, including a two-paragraph cautionary tale set in the Free City of Zobeck. But that's rather incidental to the purpose of the book, which is to describe four monsters on the theme of the titular sin.
Ignoring the cover, contents and licence, the book is 6 pages long in total. The descriptions are one page each, including the stat block and a fairly large piece of (good quality) art. So, basically, the sort of thing you'd get from a Monster Manual entry, rather than an in-depth discussion... but, really, that's all you need.
I give this product the full five stars, partly because the production quality is unusually good for the price, but mainly because the creatures are well thought out, and that is, after all, the point of the book.
They have a good range of CRs, from 1 to 20. Most operate by tempting an adventurer's avaricious nature, but they do so in different ways. The mimic from the MM is a classic example of this kind of thing, and, indeed, there's a variant of it here that works well alongside the standard version.
On the whole, four rather good monsters, succinctly described and linked by a theme that's somewhat relevant to dungeoneering. For the price, I'd recommend it.
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This pdf is 11 pages long, 1 page front cover, 1 page editorial/ToC, 1 page SRD and 1 page back cover, leaving us with 7 pages of content, so let's check this mini-bestiary out!
Starting with a discussion of the Sin of Lust and its destructive potential as well as a short run-down of love/lust as well as a CR+1 mini-template, the Lust-slave. After that, we're in the first monster-entry along a sidebar that explains the obvious: We are touchy when it comes to lust and sexuality and the matter should be handled with care in games - some of the subject matter may not be appropriate for younger gamers and making sure that everyone is comfortable with a given level of explicitness should be a given. That being said, in my opinion, this pdf is tame. *shrugs* Perhaps because I'm a perverted goth. ;P
All right, on to the monsters:
-Inbred Orcs: These creatures are stronger than regular orcs, but come with 1d12 beneficial and 1d12 detrimental mutations due to their inbreeding as well as health and mental issues - think mutated "The Hills have Eyes" with orcs. They come as a racial write up with a CR 2 sample statblock.
-Lovelorn: This CR 11 ghost of a being who died of a broken heart can cry blood and emit heart-wrenching moans - rather cool!
-The CR 3 Truffle is a rather weird fey - genderless, these completely innocent fey are fascinated by genders, sexual organs etc. - worse, they are not about using their dominating ability to make people show them their anatomy or do worse. I get a distinctly weird and disturbing vibe from these beings and I'm hard to put out of my comfort zone.
-Finally, we get the CR 21 Embodiment of Sin that can create whole orgies of wild men and women when manifesting and even enslave people to its euphoric touch, making them their obedient lustslaves - disturbing, sick, awesome - though the artwork is PG 13, which somewhat sucks.
The pdf closes with a tale on lust in Midgard and the embodiment of sin type.
Conclusion:
Editing and formatting are top-notch, I didn't notice any glitches. Layout adheres to a full-color 2-column artwork and the b/w-artworks are awesome. The pdf has no bookmarks, which, while not mandatory at this length, would have been nice to have.
Of all the deadly sins, the ones that hit closest to home for me personally are lust and pride and thus, I was really stoked to see this installment of the series. And then I remembered that the PFRPG-license is somewhat restrictive regarding mature content and in this instance, I feel as if that somewhat hurts the subject matter. I'm running a mature game and I would have loved appropriately mature content - and yes, the content here is mature, but I would have wanted these creatures to be slightly more explicit.
Since that's not possible, though, I won't hold that against the pdf. What somewhat irks me, though, is the fact the pdf creates a binary opposition between love in lust, all the while acknowledging how entwined they can be. The deviousness of lust, at least to me, is not the fact how powerful it can be, but rather its entwinement with one of the most driving, positive things we are capable to experience - love. That out of the way, the creatures herein deal primarily with the consequences of misplaced lust, rather than making it a weapon to wield against sinners. In the end, this mini-bestiary is a good addition to the series, but could use a slightly tighter focus on the theme rather than its consequences - thus, I'll settle on a final verdict of 4 stars.
Endzeitgeist out.
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This pdf is 16 pages long, 1 page front cover, 1 page editorial, 1 page SRD and 1 page advertisement, leaving us with 12 pages of content, so let's check this out!
The Shaman class, first premiered in KQ, finally gets its new path treatment after its predecessor, the spell-less ranger, has met with much critical acclaim -so, can the shaman stand up to it?
First, what is the Shaman? Basically, the class offers d8, 4+Int skills per level, 3/4 BAB-progression, good fort and will-saves, proficiency in light and medium armor and shields, but only non-metal ones and full spontaneous spellcasting from the druid's spell-list. Similar to the orcale, the shaman thus trades in variety for spontaneous flexibility. But is the class more than a spontaneous druid? Yes, he is! Shamans choose an animal spirit guide, essentially a nature spirit taking the form of an animal and improving over the levels, gaining up to 16 HD, (improved) evasion, the powers to share spells , become invisible and even incorporeal at higher levels. A total of 16 different sample spirit guide base-statistics are provided, ranging from obvious choices like the bird of prey to wolves, bisons and even manta rays, carps and stags, though honestly, I did miss e.g. the classic turtle. The spirit guides also grant the shamans a limited array of bonus spells
Shamans also get the equivalent of talents and may chose one at 1st, 3rd and every 4 levels after that one of them. A total of 12 different so-called Totem-secrets are provided, ranging from mundane speaking with animals to the ability to divine the future with entrails, gain bonuses by watching birds and carving marks in the dirt/stone to warning spirits and ones that can block incoming attacks and even unleash a tempest of damaging spirits. They can also enter a trance that prohibits them from taking actions for a couple of rounds, but enables them to gain a massive 20 bonus to an int-based check.
Basics like the woodland stride, wildshape etc. can also be learned by the shaman and they may also perform a spirit dance that enhances their magic for a short period of time after concluding their dance. The pdf also includes archetypes for the shaman, first of which would then be the elemental shaman, who can instead of animal spirit guides choose from one of 4 elementals and gets elemental wild shaping and improved elemental spells. The second archetype would then be the primal shifter, who only gets spellcasting up to 6th level and according to a new table, but can compensate this drawback by enhanced wildshifting and the option to utilize the primal dances to further enhance his melee capabilities with natural weapons. The final new archetype would then be the witch doctor, who is essentially a healer that is not as apt in wildshaping, but gets all the healing capabilities you could ask for.
The pdf also provides 3 new spells: Elemental blasts can do elemental damage (surprise), while rain of fangs does exactly as the spell promises and hails deadly fangs on enemies. Shamans may also transfix people in fascinating rivers of beautiful moonlight. The 4 feats grant extra wildshaping, an improved healer's touch and the options to shorten spirit dances and prolong their effects.
The bonus supplemental content is awesome: We get a one-page wildshape char-sheet and a one-page spirit guide char-sheet - both are clearly designed, easy to use and printer-friendly b/w - kudos for going the extra mile!
Conclusion:
Editing and formatting are top-notch, I didn't notice any glitches. Layout adheres to a beautiful 2-column, full color standard and we get awesome pieces of original full color artworks, which is cool indeed.
EDIT: Bookmarks have been added.
I liked the shaman when it premiered in Kobold Quarterly and I like its new path treatment, that much to start: Honestly, we've been waiting for so long for a spontaneous class with access to the druid's spell-list and the shaman is a nice, balanced class that has some iconic talents and the dance-ability rocks. However, it took me some time to realize why the class didn't elicit that much excitement from me: The answer is simple - It takes a lot of druidic abilities, instead of focusing on the new ones. I would have loved to see more talents, spirit guides and spirit dance effects and perhaps rather an archetype that makes the class a spontaneous druid - you know, the make the classes identity feel more unique. As written, I consider it a good class, but one that could easily have become a truly unique and stellar one. Mind you, this is nitpicking at a high level. EDIT: With the added bookmarks, I'll update my review by 0.5 stars, for a final verdict of 4.5 stars on the shaman.
Endzeitgeist out.
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