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Charles Phipps 08-10-05, 03:02 AM

Hey Guys, I thought it'd be neat if I could do some reviews for everyone on the various books released for the Eberron line. Phipps Review1# Eberron Main Campaign Setting Book As anyone can tell you, the main campaign setting book is the key to getting individuals interested in a setting. In the olden days, we had things called "Boxed Sets" that would contain usually 2-3 books and a map. These books were often equipped with enough to keep us interested but they were only a small sneak peak into the nature of the world itself and usually depended on a flood of sourcebooks afterwards to make the setting come alive. Forgotten Realms and Dragonlance became infamous in this respects because Forgotten Realms had literally hundreds of books you had to purchase supplement wise for a complete view of the world while Dragonlance also did, except it was the novels. My initial impression of Eberron was not favorable I admit, basically my players told me to buy this campaign setting so we could play it when I already had the very expensive Forgotten Realms campaign setting 3rd edition plus many supplements I'd spent boning up on. I had heard a few rumors here and there about airships and whole new flock of dimensions but none of them particularly seemed that interesting. It seemed to be largely like that Fantasypunk game Arcanum Nevertheless, I decided to buckle down and purchase the book anyway. The Introduction I should point out that my reaction to the Eberron introduction was biased to begin with. One, I entered the contest and two, I'm a professional game designer. Don't bother looking for anything I wrote, despite writing six or so supplements for my (and I use the term my loosely) company of Seraphim Guard, including two D20 supplements, none of them ever saw the light of day due to financial constraints. However, I was rather surprised to see anything actually came of the D&D contest that I'd at first taken as nearly a joke. It was ironic how quickly my youthful enthusiasm had faded and how it was replaced with cyncism for new designs. Nevertheless, one thing was struck when I read the introduction and that was the Ten Things you Need to know and I took a moment to pause because those affected me deeply. I'd basically suggested something similiar be inserted into our fronts and it was bitterly dissapointing when I was overruled by my editors. They were catchy, interesting, and indeed "sucked me in." Last War, Alignment Rules, Dragonmark Houses, and the like all stated upfront how this was different from regular D&D. Many of these things had been questions with fans for decades but no one had ever addressed them in official print. One of the most striking impressions I got was that this was the first D&D book I'd read that was written for an age group other than the nebulous "all ages" and more for the older consumer of late high school to college. It's hardly Conan High Fantasy but it seemed to be aiming at an experienced consumer by the issues it addressed at the start. Chapter One Chapter One The character races were my first exposure to "new Eberron" and I admit I wasn't terribly impressed with much at the start. Call it initial resistance but I questioned why the hell Elves of all races would have a Mongol Horde like Empire. You'd think the low fertility of elves and the longeveity makes a culture like the Valenar highly impractical. The Kalashtyr were also a race that seemed like they were important but honestly lacked any particular mystique to really justify their existence (I'd need more experience with the Quori to enjoy them). The Halflings also seemed to be too "Dark Sun." The Aerenal Elves just an attempt to move away from Elves=Goody Goody Tolkien and into the realm of weirdass death worshippers (the exact opposite). I confess, I've come to appreciate the subtlety a great deal more and noticed immediately that all the other races seemed to have a nice 'tweak on them.' The Gnomes were hardly the "definitive gnome" (that remains Dragonlance) but they seemed a pleasant enough midway point between regular Dwarf-clone D&D gnomes and Tinker gnomes. I also liked Dwarves as bankers. But...I can't be alone in this, it was the warforged that I fell in love with. Playing robots (I KNOW, *NOT* robots) was sooooooo incredibly awesome that I practically drooled with the possibilities of the classic Frankensetin/Data/largo crisis (Largo being Bubblegum Crisis' "Kill All Humans" icon with the Cylons being his direct descendents in the new Battlestar Gallactica). The Warforged sold me on Eberron at this point already. Chapter Two The Artificer was a thing I immediately latched onto at the start because "mad scientists" were something that I loved. I admit, I was dissapointed somewhat by the rules since they seemed somewhat unwieldy and they didn't seem particularly interesting. I actually rather enjoyed the fact that they went over each classes role in the setting though. I can't stand psionics though and I skipped completely their section on the first part. Chapter Three I liked the heroic characteristics chapter. Action Points I thought were a immitation of "Star Wars" The RPGing Game's Force points. I love West End Games, they more or less made the EU for me and Force Points were always a major point of the game. Unfortunately, its not quite such a simple system in D&D that has something of a 'clunkability factor' no matter how many times you update it, The New Skills and Feats were...alright but I admit I was intrigued by the dragonmarks if for no other reason than my inner munchkin. I've since come to enjoy using the marks for the symbolic value they represent more than the powers they give though and suggest grand iconic things with prophecy and magic that the system doesn't back up (I think it was implied this way anyway). The Religion Chapter was a pro and a con though honestly. I found the Sovereign Host to be pretty much the blandest religion in a D&D setting sadly. I got no feel for the rituals, how people viewed the gods, or the "cultural place" of them save for the Silver Flame that like Ravenloft's Ezra, you just used the word "Catholic" for in any question. But the Dark Six lacked any menace whatsoever sadly and I couldn't really see army faiths in the name of the Devourer and all that like say 'Bane' or Takhasis. The "genericness" of the gods has become a point in my campaigns and I actually have them as state created combinations of existing deities by Galifar. Some of the concepts are cool though like the Shadow and Traveller. The Undying Court I didn't much care for though because I wasn't sure their clerics got spells and the Path of Light seemed again generic. The Blood of Vol was definitely intriguing though. Chapter Four I felt these were hit and miss honestly, the Prestige Classes. Exorcist of the Silver Flame, Dragonmark Heir, Juggernaut, and Extreme Explorer (I call it a Tomb Raider) hit...everything else....miss due to genericness or just plain uselessness (Weretouched master served a good place but as a class, it stank. I use a more powerful version where you just basically become a Lycanthrope on your own terms. It's much more appreciated by my players even with stricter requirements. Chapter Five I'm not sure we can call this a failure but while Keith did a great job in establishing the magic of Eberron as equivalent to technology and some great concepts to Manifest Zones, I didn't much care for the Planes that much and thought they were a bit too mysterious for their own good. Say what you will about the Great Wheel and FR's cosmology but they both have distinct character while there wasn't that much to these except for Xoriat, Thelanis, and the Plane of Dreams. Shavanath and Lamania both could hav used ....more evocative writing I think. It was the lack of gods and centralized authorities on the plane that initially threw me though. Dolurrh though is my favorite plane hands down. Why? Because the bleakness of the afterlife is essentially something that all the character's have to struggle with in exchange for very real questions of faith along with why they do good. Necromancers also become a tad less silly as do undead. In FR, you can look forward to a paradise...in Eberron...not so much. Possession Rules...Long time overdo. Chapter Six I don't have much to really comment on this chapter since these sections aside from a bit of local color, really didn't do much for me but I was glad they were there if you know what I mean. Chapter Seven This Chapter would take up most of the writing if I were to be specific. Basically, I felt that Keith was trying to create a minature WW2 predecessor/post setting with settings evocative of each place (it's a pity that England was toasted was one of my initial thoughts). The politics seemed a bit obtuse at first but gradually came to appreciate themselves more on me. The Nation that didn't speak to me oddly was the Demon Wastes that seemed almost pointless oddly enough in the setting given the presence of the Mournlands. Q'barra also barely made an impression and I've only recently found a use for it since I started setting my Lousiana Zombie games there (you'd be surprised how many I have). Droam also felt like you were basically going to going to a gigantic dungeon too. I've come to see how they work in the greater whole largely but they remain my least favorite nations. The Lhazaar Islands also bore some enmity as I just didn't like the island's place and they seemed out of it in comparison to the other nations. The Mournland was my favorite nation though because of its' just so perfect as a reason for why suddenly everyone stopped fighting. I salute also Keith for adding in the "where warforged fit in" before any of this. The Theocracy of Thrane, the "Good Kingdom" of Breeland, and the 'it's political and stuff' of Aundair all were intriguing to me though. I was actually quite dissapointed with King Kaius at the start though because it seemed so grossly out of step with the 'classical' feel of the work to make him NOT a bloodthirsty and evil tyrant who ravaged his own people and was plotting to destroy everything. I know the irony with the Queen of Aundair and him was reversed but I have to guard myself so there aren't impaling poles randomly in Karrnath. Valenar was good though if slightly out of step (along with Elves being mongols being weird, I always wondered how they thought Horsemen were especially intimidating with the magical resources of other nations. It seemed like they'd be crushed against any of the major nations). Chapter Eight I *LOVE* secret organizations. Ravenloft and FR made my day plus the Factions of Sigil. The Aurrum seemed to be the most missed for me though. I felt it should have been more clearly SPECTER or the Illuminati and instead seemed to be more like Enron sadly. The Dragon Houses but for Cannith and Jorasco and Deneith also seemed to not make much of an impression sadly. I also felt the Twelve seemed less evocative than similiar magical societies in other worlds. The Wayfinders also seemed...there. Morgraive University or "Gintonic University" as my players call it (believing it's blatantly Miskatonic University's Branch Campus in Eberron) and the Chamber were beloved by me at first glance. The Gatekeepers I've found incredible uses for since but oddly mostly out of RENEGADES than themselves. The idea of basically the Watchers in Eberron is great but it's a lot better to have slightly more proactive people for plots. The Wardens of the Wood seemed harperesque enough that I've also used them for several plots as well. Lords of Dust, Dreaming Dark, and Emerald Claw were standard evil groups and check for them. Though I had to question keith's decision to make RAKASHASA the main villains.....it was "quirky" to say the least since I rarely recalled anyone using them extensively. Arianjji from Ravenloft was the only one I could honestly think of. Chapter Nine A Chapter on how to roleplay is a nother idea that I wated to insert in my books and is needed more by players than any amount of 'crunch', bravo. Chapter Ten Meh. I never like magical items chapters. Except for Warforged components, that was a stroke of genius I believe and gives all the fun of Shadowrun. I just wish it was allowed for people other than warforged becuase cybernetics would be even more enjoyable in the campaign. Chapter Eleven Exhaustive but only the Deathless and Dolgrims and Daelkyr really stood out. The Inspired and Quori later became essential though. Chapter Twelve I liked the Forge but it was a tad underpowered and mercenaryesque for myplayers. Overall, I really enjoyed the Campaign Setting Guide and it was a great purchase that I was glad to make. One issue I did have was the art though, it seemed to be a bit too 'animated' like for my tastes and instead of the Eberron books, I usually use Planescape art oddly to show them what Eberron locals look like. Something about the figures just rub me the wrong way, like a Magepunk Comic book. 9.5/10 NEXT- Sharn City of Towers