Kingbeast's Lair

-== What is it? ==-

Enchanted Items is a book of magical items for Fantasy Hero (5th edition) from Hero Games. It was written by Jason Walters in May 2007. The book starts with a brief introduction then has sections for different types of items. For example, Amulets, Armor, etc. The last section is full of miscellaneous items that do not fit into one of the other categories.

The book has a color cover and an entirely black and white interior. The book is 8.5? x 11? and is 240 pages in length. I am reviewing the print AND PDF copies. I bought the print copy and was given the PDF copy for services rendered. See below for details. 😉

-== What I Like ==-

The book has a great diversity of item types and they are divided into smaller subsections to make finding an item for that pesky PC easy. For example, if you have a mage you could go to the staff section then decide if you want Offensive, Defensive, Sensory, Movement, Miscellaneous, or Unique staffs. At the front of each major section there is about a page of text describing that type of item. These section are often quite good. The introductory text in the Potions section is exceptionally wonderful. 🙂

I also liked the approach of presenting first mundane items then moving up to more powerful unique items. This way you can also get something at the correct power level. The Unique subsection items are typically VERY powerful. These items often contain detailed stories that can be used to drive adventures and such in a campaign.

-== What I Don’t Like ==-

A large percentage of the items in Enchanted Items have the same game effects with different “window dressings”. For example, how many items do you need that give Armor? Or aid Strength? etc. Some folks might not consider this bad but at times it felt like the book could have been shorter and cheaper if these repetitions were left out. I almost wonder what the book would have been like if it was constructed with a section on limitations for item types then a different section with effects. For example, here is a section on limitations that would typically be applied to Amulets. Next would be a section on Defensive Effects, Offensive Effects, etc. I would still like some fully constructed items but this approach might have been interesting and useful.

The printed copy of Enchanted Items has many printing flaws. I tallied up roughly 30 areas in the printed copy where text was missing. Unfortunately the missing text is typically in the rule detail material. When I brought it up with Hero they let me know that ALL copies of the book were in this state. I then offered to detail all of the locations where text was missing if they would give me a copy of the PDF. They kindly obliged. If you are interested in getting copies of the text that is missing send an email to Hero. With the document I sent to Hero it should not be too hard for them to write up an errata sheet for the product. 😉

I would have liked to see more information about creating items and item related characters in Fantasy Hero. The big example here is the alchemist character. It might have been run to have a detailed section on creating a magic item related character with a write up.

The cover artwork is downright ugly. It depicts a simple yellow shield on a solid background. The graphic is juvenile and just plain unattractive. Interior artwork is primarily comprised of pieces from other documents and is fair at best.

-== Summary ==-

Even though Enchanted Items is by far the best coverage of magic items for the Hero System it is very hard to recommend unless you are a GM that really has trouble coming up with ideas. I really love a lot of Jason’s RPG products (check out Scourges Of The Galaxy) but this product is not one of his best. The best option for GM who wants to get a copy of the book is to look for a PDF copy at a cheap price. Wait for that DriveThruRPG sale if you can. 😉

The cover price for the printed copy is $26.99. You can get a copy on Amazon.com at this URL for $26.97. Noble Knight Games has it at this URL for $20.00. You can get a copy of the PDF from DriveThruRPG at this URL for $23.00.

I give the printed copy 4 out of 10 paws. I give the PDF copy 6 out of 10 paws.

The polls are open! Head on over to this URL and vote for your favorite products and companies.

I personally voted for all of the Hero Games entries, the stuff by Ken Hite (Day After Ragnarok and Armitage Files), and Kerberos Club. I think you should vote for these too! 🙂

GAME ON!

-== What is it? ==-

The Scourge Of Raftport is a D20 fantasy adventure written by C.A. Johnson. It is intended for characters of 8th or 9th level. The basic plot involves disappearances at the village of Raftport that lead to a much darker plot. This review will have some minor spoilers so if you are a player turn back now! 🙂

The book has a color cover and an entirely black and white interior. The book is 8.5? x 11? and is 40 pages in length. It includes a one page table of contents. There are two additional pages spent on the OGL and advertisements. I purchased the PDF which is what I will be reviewing. I have converted the adventure to Fantasy Hero and run it twice for two completely different groups of players.

-== What I Like ==-

I liked the fact that the adventure was very easy to adapt to my campaign setting and to convert to Fantasy Hero. There are really only a couple of major players in the adventure. These major factions can be easily stripped out and sanded down to fit any campaign. The adventure itself is not overly loaded with elements that are specific to D20. Thus it was also very easy to adapt to Fantasy Hero.

I enjoyed the dungeon layout. There is a bit of work in the village of Raftport, a small excursion into the wilderness, then on to two medium sized dungeons. The variation in environment is nice and the size of the dungeons are great. They are not too large and not too small. I also like the volcano element of the dungeons quite a bit.

The various encounters had quite a lot of flavor. Dervish and Sly comprise one encounter that is particularly memorable. These are two brigands from the adventure that I enjoyed quite a bit. I changed the final encounter in the second dungeon area but the presented big baddies are also quite memorable.

The PDF is well done and includes accurate and complete Acrobat bookmarks. I especially liked having extra links to the maps. This makes is easier to jump back and forth from the text to the room encounters.

The cover artwork by Alan Pollack is exceptional. I love the sadistic looking demon guy under the pier. Very nice. 🙂

-== What I Don’t Like ==-

Do not expect a cerebral adventure. This adventure is lean and will not confuse anyone. I added a bit more plot when I integrated it into my campaign but that is not required.

Unlike the cover artwork the interior material is mediocre at best. Some of it could have been excluded completely without impacting the quality of the product.

-== Summary ==-

The Scourge Of Raftport is a fun little fantasy adventure that has some flavorful encounters. If you need an adventure to add to your existing campaign this one should be on your list. At a $2.50 price point this sucker is a complete and total steal! 😀

You can get it on Amazon for $9.99 at this URL. It can be obtained at DriveThruRPG for $2.50 at this URL. $2.50! Are you kidding me! Go out and buy this please! 😀

I give it 7 out of 10 paws.