Rokugan d20 Review

 

It seems that a lot of people from China are viewing my blog, based on my blog's statistics. Although, I'm no Communist -- and I'm not for dictatorships either -- it seems that I am at least ready to review the Rokugan Campaign Setting for the d20 system.  Produced by Alderac Entertainment Group in 2001, it was written by Rich Wulf, Shawn Carman, and Seth Mason.  This is a beautiful book, lavishly illustrated like the Oriental Adventures book for third edition.  I'm reviewing a PDF copy of this book, and I do own the hardcover.

 The first thing to remember is that Rokugan isn't Japan.  It's a high fantasy land based on the culture of Sengoku era Japan and Miyamoto Mushashi's Book of the Five Rings.  There are some Chinese elements in Rokugan, but it's not China either.  Like I said, it's a High Fantasy land that borrowed a lot from Japan and some from China.  I love this book, Rokugan -- next to Greyhawk -- is a place where I would set an ongoing game.  Also, I did another review of this book on RPG.net. 

So, lets go for it.

The Introduction

The introduction of Rokugan goes on to explain  to players of the d20 system all about Rokugan, the Five Rings, and explains to players that they take on the roles of noble Samurai, mysterious Shugenja, enlightened monks, shadowy ninja, and finally wily courtiers.  Whole games can revolve around one or more of these elements. 

Next, it explains how one can use this book with Oriental Adventures. Since this book, Rokugan, expands on the information explained in Oriental Adventures.  Finally, it does explain why Rokugan is based on Miyamoto's Book of the Five Rings.  The roleplaying opportunities are endless.

Character

 This section goes over the Great Clans of Rokugan, their families, and favored classes for each major family.  Like for instance, the Doji of the Crane Clan make good Courtiers.  While the Isawa family make good Shugenja.  And the Shoshuro family produce good ninja, or so they say. After this, they talk about the minor clans and their schools, along with the Naga (an Indian aspect), and the Nezumi (Rokugan's take on ratfolk).

After this part on creating your character, the various character classes from the 3rd Edition Player's Handbook are talked about.  Along with two classes from Oriental Adventures (3rd Edition).  The Samurai and the Shugenja.  After that, the monk, ninja, and courtier classes are discussed.  

After all this, the Feats are discussed.  And yes, there are a lot of Feats here that are talked about.  Each great clan gets their own feats.  From Kakita's Techique, to Way of the Crab, to Akodo's Technique, to Way of the Unicorn.  All are included.  Especially one of note is Void Use.  This feat, which you can take instead of a Ancestor Feat, grants you two points of void.  Which of course you can use to modify your die rolls.

 After the feats, you get a discussion on Rokugani equipment.  Including new weapons, and old weapons that are expanded upon, new armor types, and other considerations.  After that, Religion in the Emerald Empire is discussed.  After that, Honor is discussed, along with the alignments of the d20 system -- and how they work together.  Like for instance, if someone is Lawful Good, he's considered to have an honor rank of 5.

After that, some prestige classes are introduced.  Although none of these are needed, some are recorded.  As prestige classes are meant for NPCs originally, players would take them.

Magic

 Magic in D&D is supposed to be presented as mysterious. For Rokugan, this is no different.  There are more Samurai than Shugenja in Rokugan. Magic revolves around the Kami, the great kami as well as the lesser and minor kami.  A shugenja learns to importune the kami to produce magical effects.  This can be from a simple sleep spell to a magnificent void spell worked by the mysterious Ishiken of the Isawa family.

Each clan has their own special magical technique.  The Crane works on Tsanguri, or magic items -- for example.  The Unicorn shugenja work with meishodo.  Finally, the Isawa family of the Phoenix teach the Ishiken-do -- or magic of the void.  There are four other examples of magic of the great clans.  Other aspects of magic are also discussed.  After that, there are some new spells for Shugenja to select, learn, and cast. 

Life in Rokugan

This chapter goes over adventures in Rokugan.  It discusses what a Samurai might be and how to act.  Also, the chapter goes over Rokugan itself, and how a party of disparate Samurai and Shugenja (and possibly ninja) might operate.

The culture and layout of Rokugan are discussed.  Along with how campaigns operate in the Emerald Empire.  Also, magic and magic items, how they are viewed -- are discussed.  Also, social hierarchy is discussed.  A lot of Rokugani culture is discussed in this book. This is the most important chapter in the whole book.  If you want to role play your Samurai as authentically as you can, you must read this section.

Geography

The Geography of Rokugan is discussed in this chapter.  This is the geography of the Emerald Empire, as of the Four Winds saga. Important details of each Clan's holdings are discussed in some detail.  Along with writeups for certain NPCs as of the Four Winds saga.

Cosmology 

This chapter teaches the cosmology as seen by the Rokugani.  There are several realms, including the mortal one, that are discussed.  These realms are discussed more simply in the Fortunes and Winds supplement (to be reviewed later).  Also, the worship of the Fortunes and who they are is presented.  There are seven major Fortunes, and thousands of lesser ones. Then Rokugan's mythology is presented.  Including the creation of the world as the Rokugani understand it.

History

The history of Rokugan is presented.  Nearly complete and up to the Four Winds saga.  It's enough to fill a Rokugani DM with adventure seeds and beginnings of a good campaign.  After that, a few appendixes discuss magic items, magical creatures, and finally an index.

Hits

 The colorful aspect of the book is definitely a hit.  There are colorful illustrations throughout the book. Including pictures of Shugenja, Samurai, and even a Ninja.  The writing is concise and well edited.  DJ Trindle, the editor, did a good job of editing the book for press.  The writing is top notch, definitely different than what you get in a modern D&D book (modern D&D books are atrocious in writing, editing, and illustration).  There is more, the layout is in two columns, and uses a ten point font.

 Misses 

 There is little that's missed in this book. The metaplot of the Legend of the Five Rings card game at the time -- used as a backdrop for the campaign -- is definitely a miss.  This book is for players and DMs to get into the setting of Rokugan, and the Metaplot does restrict some aspects.  Is it something I'd change: probably.  I would have started the plot during the Pre-Scorpion Clan Coup saga, as that is the most popular era setting for L5R rpgs.  Including the fifth edition of the L5R RPG.

 The Future

Again, the future looks uncertain.  It seems that Asmodee might keep the L5R property. However, they aren't expecting that someone might come to them and buy Legend of the Five Rings from them.  Fantasy Flight bought L5R from Alderac Entertainment Group in 2017, then Asmodee bought them. However, Legend of the Five Rings is a good property, one I wanted to purchase from Wizards of the Coast when they put it up for sale.  Looks like I'll have to buy it from Asmodee.  Oh well, cheers!

CRPGs vs. Table top RPGs

 

Something has come up.  And that is my feeling on table top RPGs and computer RPGs.  Obliviously, there has been some good ones on both sides.  For me, it's the Elder Scrolls series and the Dungeons and Dragons game.  I play both, although I have been playing table top more as of late.  And I'm still looking forward to the Elders Scrolls 6 game from Bethesda Studios.  So, the question is, which is superior to the other?

 Actually, the table top experience is actually superior to the computer RPG experience. At least, until Wizards of the Coast decided that their audience is toxic and they decided to expand their player base.  They show this with bad writing, bad illustrations, and bad editing.  So, lets talk about computer RPGs first, obviously they have the upper hand, correct?

 Computer Roleplaying Games

 Actually, I should be showing Starfield up there.  However, I don't play Starfield, I'm looking forward to playing Elder Scrolls 6.  Obviously, computer gaming has advanced since the first four Ultima games.  You've got first person view along with beautiful landscapes and modularity.  You can mod Skyrim, and many people have. I also modded Skyrim. I added new things to my Skyrim that I liked.  Skyrim, being a first person CRPG, has revolutionized leveling.  You choose your skills as you go up and you also customize your character to how you like.

With me so far?  Good.  The Elder Scrolls series is one of the best series for computer gaming.   They have four things going for them:

* Their Creation2 Engine.

 * Modified games.

* Exemplary graphics.

 * (Usually) good stories.

Skyrim is great to play and is a good diversion.  And while I can modify my game, no one Skyrim is the same (modually) as another Skyrim. However, the game gets old and it's tiring to play the same game after a few years.  So you hope that the next BethSoft game will be as good or better than the last. 

Tabletop Roleplaying Games

 So we come to tabletop RPGs.  So to me I get more satisfaction from running a tabletop roleplaying game than playing one on computer.  Sure you get amazing graphics (thank INVIDIA for that) from a computer RPG.  And sure you see amazing spells as flashy.  I mean look at your computer screen.  The difference is, with a tabletop game, I'm telling my own story.  And my players interact with that story. 

I'm currently running a Shadowrun 4th edition game and playing in a Rolemaster game.  Sure, I'm doing it over roll20, but very few people in my area have time to play face to face.  Although a face to face game is ideal, roll20 is a backup. 

So, what is the problem with Wizards of the Coast?  Well, they lie to their customers.  They treat their customers as toxic.  They consistently pay for bad illustrations, and they blame us for their shortcomings.  Still, I think that Dungeons and Dragons 3rd Edition is the best version to play.  Although other people may think that older or newer editions are the best to play from.  However, D&D 3e allows for greater player customization.  This way, my players can make different fighters, different Wizards, and different clerics.  All this based on their feat selections.  It's a win-win situation.

So, are CRPGs better than tabletop RPGs?  It's mostly how you play both games. 

The Grand Duchy of Karameikos Review

 

My first Basic Dungeons and Dragons product review.  The Grand Duchy of Karameikos is the first in a series of Gazetteers done for the Known World, the campaign setting of Dungeons and Dragons (BECMI).  It's also called Mystara, but that came later. Anyhow, is the product worth it to buy?  Lets find out.  This product was written by Aaron Allston for TSR.  Cover artist was Clyde Caldwell.  I got a hard copy from Lightning Source and also a pdf copy as well.  Note, if you buy the hard copy, you will find that the cover has a lot of red (magenta) in it.  The hard copy is paperback instead of hard back.

The Grand Duchy of Karameikos is a small book, and comes in three sections.  The Introduction: where Aaron talks about the book.  The Gazetteer Section and finally the Adventures section.  Which is for the Dungeon Master.

Introduction.

Here, Aaron says he is pleased with the book.  He mentions that fantasy worlds often grow in leaps and bounds.  The world started with a map and a few lines of text in D&D Expert.  But that has grown into the Known World through published adventures that TSR, inc. had put out.  A lot of these adventures are available on Drivethru.   He gives thanks and shout out for a few adventures that he referenced to put together the Grand Duchy. 

Part One: the Gazetteer Section

Here is where the most of the detail about the book was written.  You get into the Grand Duchy's history, some of which is for the players to read.  And you also get into region's customs, cultures (there are two human cultures: one is the Traladara culture and the other is the Thyatis culture), and also talk about the demi-humans of the Grand Duchy.  The history of the region is recounted.  How the Traladarans had a golden age, but that came to an end.  How Thyatis conquered the region, and how a duke traded favors for the land.  You also get into detail about the economy of the Grand Duchy.  A calendar was made, and a list of NPCs for the land.  A lot of information was packed into sixty-four pages.  Which was an astounding feat for writers for TSR.

The Adventures Section

 This is for the Dungeon Master or DM.  It lists some adventures you can run for your players.  They are all short form, allowing the DM to use his creativity to flesh out and present to his or her players.  At the end of the section are the maps detailing the Grand Duchy, castles, cities, and other items. 

Hits

TSR at this time, relied on a full color cover.  Inside, they use a fortified tower to add visual interest.  The book is laid out in three columns.  The type is ten points small, and the art is awesome, even though it's black and white art.

Misses 

The (new) hard copy's cover has a lot of red tones.  Which takes away from the original.  The maps are printed in 81/2" by 11" inches, and it can be a little confusing at first when you see these maps.  Otherwise, if you like Mystara content, I would start with this Gazetteer.

The Future

Again the future is uncertain.  Although I will tell you that I'm buying the trademarks and copyrights to ten (10) D&D worlds.  One of these worlds is Mystara.  So I can say with confidence that the first project we are working on is the Grand Duchy of Karameikos.  

Dragonlance Adventures Review

 Here we come to Dragonlance, the High Fantasy world created by Tracy Hickman for TSR.  Today, I'll be reviewing the Dragonlance Adventures book for Advanced Dungeons and Dragons first edition.  Dragonlance is a world of war shaped by love.  At least I'm paraphrasing what Dragonlance is about. The setting of Dragonlance is the world of Krynn.  A world smaller than our Earth.  Although I wish it could have been bigger.  Dragonlance Adventures was originally written by Tracy Hickman and Margaret Weis.  It was published in 1987 by TSR, inc.  I borrowed the book from a friend, fell in love with the setting.  Now years later, I bought my own copy of the game world (I'll be working on a review of the DLCS (3.5e) later).

 Dragonlance began as a series of modules, starting with  Dragons of Despair and ending with Dragons of Triumph.  That was forty years ago. 

 What it contains 

Dragonlance  the book is separated into chapters. The first part of it deals with the Universe of Dragonlance as the people of Ansalon see it. The dragonlance world is on three philosophic pillars: Good, Evil, and Neutrality.  There are three philosophies of these pillars are: Good Redeems its Own, or the law of Paladine, the supreme Lawful Good god; Evil Feeds Upon Itself, or the law of Takhisis the Dark Queen; and Both Good and Evil Must Exist in Contrast, which is the law of Gilean, the supreme Neutral God.  A fourth law exists that is important: The Law of Consequence: which was given by the High God himself.  A proper Dragonlance campaign is built around these four laws.  Promoting the power of truth over injustice, good over evil, and granting good consequences for good acts, and bad consequences for evil acts.

The next section talks about one's lot in life. There are three new classes in Dragonlance that are discussed: the holy orders of the stars, the knights of Solamnia, and the Wizards of High Sorcery.  A member of the Holy Orders of the Stars worship one of the eighteen true gods of Krynn. Which are manifested as constellations in the sky.  The knights of Solamnia is an order of knights dedicated to Paladine, Kiri-Jolith, and habakuk.  The Wizards of High Sorcery gain their power from one of the three moons that orbit Krynn.

Besides the dragons, which are divided into good and evil dragons; there are three races of Krynn created by the Gods to represent an ideal.  The first of these are the Elves, which are created by the good gods of Krynn.  For them, they can choose good or evil, but mostly choose good.  Ogres, which used to be the most beautiful of all the races, were created by the evil gods of krynn.  They allowed their abuse of power to warp their minds and bodies.  The last of the races to be created where the humans, created by the gods of neutrality.  They were given the right of free agency, to choose good or evil themselves.  After these races came all the others.  Gnomes, goblins, hobgoblins, dwarves, kender, and so on.  Some of these came about because of the Greygem of Gargath.  Others are offshoots of the original races. The draconians, however, are a perversion of Good dragons.  Although late in the War of the Lance, the ritual that created the evil draconians was performed on evil dragon eggs, creating good draconians instead.

  

As we continue with going into Dragonlance Adventures, one learns that alignment has a definite effect on what is available.  A Wizard of High Sorcery, for instance, has his or her spells chosen from different schools based on his or her alignment.  A White Robe is limited to certain spells which are considered good.  A Black Robed wizard is also limited to certain spells which are considered to be evil.  A Red Robed wizard has the greatest amount of spells to choose from.  Alignment is also tracked in the game based on the players' choices.  In one dragonlance game I was in, I played Raistlin and he eventually became a good guy in the game.

The new classes are eventually discussed after races.  Each new class is renumerated.  Beginning with the Knights of Solamnia. There are three orders of knights, beginning with the Knights of the Crown, then the Knights of the Sword, and finally the Knights of the Rose.  The knights of Solamnia are three orders of knights for good on Ansalon.

The Tinker gnomes come next.  Most, if not all, Gnomes are tinkers.  They constantly love to make new contraptions.  Their technology rivals that of Victorian England; and they have never seem to advance higher.  Their contraptions also prevent the other nations of Ansalon from developing technologically past the Steel age.

After that is my favorite class on Krynn, the Wizards of High Sorcery.  Basically they are magic users, but they draw their powers from the three moons of Krynn.  The Orders of High Sorcery are also divided into three: the White Robes of Solinari, the Red Robes of Lunitari, and the Black Robes of Nuitari.  Those wizards that wear the white tend to be good, those that wear red tend to be neutral, and those that wear black make wickedly evil choices.  Of course, the Wizards of High Sorcery may choose their order, and the color of their robes, after taking the Test. After that, a few new spells are described according to the D&D game.

 After that, the Holy Orders of the Stars are discussed.  There are three orders of clerics on Ansalon.  There are the good clerics, which represent the gods of Good.  Then there are the neutral clerics, which represent the gods of Neutrality.  And finally the evil clerics, which represent the gods of Evil.  Each draw their magic from these gods of their order.

 Next, the races are given statistics.  But the races' origins are explained in this section of the book.  I have already mentioned their origins before in detail.  But there are some differences that should be noted. 

 

If the Elves were united on Krynn in the past, in the present day they are divided. The elves are divided into the Silvanesti elves (high elves), the Qualinesti (wood elves), the Kagonesti (the wild elves), and the Dargonesti and Dimernesti (or sea elves).  All of them are created to be good, by the Good gods.  However, they have been divided and not united as one race.  Which is a shame, really.  However, they are one of the few races that can go up to the Towers of High Sorcery and learn magic.

The dwarves come after the elves.  The dwarves are divided into a number of clans. But for game purposes, the dwarves are divided into Hill Dwarves, Mountain Dwarves, and Gully Dwarves.  There are evil dwarves, but they aren't included in Dragonlance Adventures as a race you can choose to play.  After this, comes the Ogres as player characters.  The ogres are divided into Irda and Minotaurs as playable races.

Character skills are discussed as a final on the Character chapter. After that we get into the unique Creatures of Ansalon.  The first of these creatures are the draconians.  Starting with the spell wielding Auraks, then the Baaz, and the rest.  Each of them a perversion of Good dragon eggs. After that, we get AD&D stats of the other creatures of Krynn.  Of course, most of these new creatures are described in more detail in later products.  Of important note are the dragons. Each of the dragons of Krynn are noted, and each are power incarnate.  After that, two of the Gods are described as dragons, Takhisis and Paladine.

 Ah, so much material packed.  We go on to the world that was.  This chapter describes the world of Krynn in the past.  There is even a map provided as Ansalon as it was during the Age of Might.  This chapter goes into detail about Huma, Magius, and Fistandantilus. It also talks about Astinus (who looks like Gilean for some reason).  After that comes a section of magical items in Krynn.  Included are potions, scrolls, medallions of faith, and other items.

Then comes the chapter on the War of the Lance. Here, the heroes of the lance are described, and along with the world of the Dragonlance Saga.  While these characters are also introduced in the Dragonlance modules (and yes, I bought them from Drivethru), their older and more powerful versions are given here.  Also given is a map of the continent of Ansalon during the War of the Lance.  After that are appendices given of what AD&D monsters are in Ansalon, a race chart, a character alignment tracking chart, and other important tables and charts.

In Conclusion

In one hundred twenty-eight pages we get the whole lands of Krynn and everything you need to run a game for AD&D.  And both Tracy and Margaret has packed a lot of information about the world of Krynn and how to run it for the AD&D game.  However, the material in this book is, rather, dated.  Of course, the DM's Guild supports the world of Krynn for D&D 5th Edition.  And people have been putting out works for Dragonlance for D&D 5th.  However, with the new direction Wizards has going for 5th Edition onwards, Dragonlance seems dated and packaged for a different audience.

So, what about Dragonlance in the future?  Well the future is uncertain.  It really seems that Wizards isn't taking care of their brands very well.  They are probably changing them for their new vision of D&D.  One thing is for sure, Dragonlance classics, as this book, are available on Drivethru for print and digital.  I suggest buying a copy of both.   After all, Wizards won't change the old books (including the DLCS, which will be reviewed later.)

Strixhaven: a Curriculum of Chaos Review

 

The mission of Strixhaven University is to discover and preserve magical knowledge, to disseminate that knowledge from one generation to the next, to promote free and open study of magic in all its forms, and to enhance the lives of people through out the world through the use of magic.

-- Strixhaven mission statement

 Hello everyone, today I'm reviewing Strixhaven: a Curriculum of Chaos for Dungeons and Dragons. I received the book from Amazon and have been reading it forwards and backwards. This book was produced and released in November of 2021, and it describes a magical University setting coming out of the Strixhaven set for Magic: the Gathering.  Strixhaven: a Curriculum of Chaos is a Wizards of the Coast product.  The original designers for Strixhaven are Doug Beyer, Taylor Ingvarsson, Jess Lanzillo, Meris Mullaley, Fox Allison, Annie Sardelis, Emily Teng, Andrew Vallas, James Wyatt, and Art Zirulnik.

 Strixhaven University is a college setting that is set in the World of Arcavios.  It was originally a Magic: the Gathering product produced by Wizards of the Coast.  Apparently, the people at Hasbro felt that it was such a success that they told Wizards to cross it over in D&D.   And so they did. What we got is Strixhaven: a Curriculum of Chaos.

First of all, I think this product is twenty years too late. With the Harry Potter craze in the early nineties as well as the early 2000s, this product could have cashed in on the Harry Potter mania that swept the world with the Harry Potter movies. However, we know that Wizards did approach J.K. Rowling about doing a Harry Potter roleplaying game based on then, the d20 System.  She didn't like the idea. However, great ideas take time.  I think, while not a direct translation of Hogwarts to D&D, you can't help but wonder if Strixhaven was actually inspired by Harry Potter.

 Strixhaven, itself is divided into seven chapters, although most of the relevant information is in the Introduction.  Unlike Hogwarts, which is designed to teach very young wizards and witches, Strixhaven is an University.  Designed to teach older, college age kids.  Strixhaven's university is laid out like Cambridge or Oxford.  There are colleges mixed in a town.  Currently, there are five colleges. The first college is Lorehold, which explores the past and preserves the history for future generations.  It was founded by the dragon Velomachus Lorehold.

Second is Prismari College, and students of Prismari use the elements to practice the arts.  It was founded by the dragon Galazeth Prismari. Quadrix college is third, and it focuses on the mathematical aspects of nature.  Quandrix was founded by the dragon Tanazir Quandrix.

The fourth college of Strixhaven is the Silverquill college.  Students of Silverquill study the magic of rhetoric, poetry, oration, and writing. It was founded by Shadrix Silverquill.  The last is the college of Witherbloom.  The college teaches the magics associated with life and death. The founder was the dragon Beladros Witherbloom. 

Although the University can be placed in any world, again the University takes place on the world of Arcavios.  The world itself was formed when two other worlds collided and coalesced into one.  At least according to Arcavian legends.

Chapter One of the book goes over life on Campus. It gives an overview of the entire University.  From the Central Campus to the various colleges.  And there are maps to the whole thing.  This part of the book isn't very detailed, allowing players and DMs to fill in the blanks with their own creativity.  although there are a few locations that are given detail, DMs and players can fill in the blanks and cracks.  This is a good thing about the book, in my opinion.

 Chapter two of Strixhaven provides Character Creation details for Dungeons and Dragons 5e (2014). It introduces a new race called the Owlin, and provides character options for different characters, although I feel that the whole world is geared towards mages.  But there are options for the other classes of D&D.   Included are new feats, new spells, and new magic items.

  The next four chapters of the book include a campaign designed to take Freshmen (level 1 characters) to all the way to the end of their senior year (level 10).  Naturally, this is the part I don't like.  The adventures, which will go down in history as being classics for adventures set in a school; are not what they could be.  That is, adventures that actually challenge the characters according to the classics.  While fun (I've seen the adventures run in action), and people could have fun with it, because of space they are lackluster and lack potential.

Chapter seven includes the monsters of Strixhaven.  From the dragon founders, right down to the students.  This chapter contains stat blocks for forty different new monsters.  From those who learn to those who are trying to undermine the college.  They are all there.  In the back of the book is a map you can tear out.

 

 Hits

The art in the book is beautiful.  Taken from the Magic: the Gathering cards, the art is expressive, full color, and bring Strixhaven to life.  Wizards hits it out of the bull park with the art.  The art is expressive, gorgeous, and takes you to a world where the University of Strixhaven could exist.  The art is Realistic.  Whether oil paintings, or digital, it's very expressive.

The  layout of the physical book is two columns, with no justifications.  The book is laid out so it's a fast read.  With a simple layout such as that, I suggest getting a copy of the physical book.  I must have read it ten times before doing this review.

Misses

 The book could have been bigger.  The art of storytelling is part of roleplaying.  The adventures seem rather luckluster.  More could have been a part of the adventures.  They could have actually got real storytellers to work on the adventures and make them better.  The villain in the story is well developed, but when you see the art for him, he's rather comical.  They should have focused on the Oriq, as they are real threats to the campus than a bullywug looking for revenge.

 The Future

 So, what holds to the future of Strixhaven?  Well, that remains to be seen.  There is a rumor that Magic the Gathering might return to Strixhaven for their 2026 line up.  If you play Magic the Gathering, this is good news to revisit the world of Arcavios.  However, I must tell you that I bought the book for business purposes.  I'm going up to Wizards of the Coast to buy the copyrights and trademarks to eight campaign settings, and Strixhaven is one of them.  I'm also buying the copyrights and trademarks to D&D 3e.  I'll own Strixhaven.  I'll be able to develop Strixhaven for Dungeons and Dragons 3.0.

Is this what the future holds?  Well, I'm old school D&D, and Old School is best.  There are things that can be done for Strixhaven to improve on it.  Especially in the adventure department.  But we will see what the future will hold.  Maybe Wizards will change their mind and not let me have Strixhaven.

Savage Rifts Campaign Basics

 

On the Idaho-Utah border lies some new towns that sprang up after the world ended. These towns look like towns coming out of the Old West. People go around in dusters, long pants, full bodied underwear, stetson hats, long dresses, and other styles from the Old West.

This is the New West, a place out of time. Most of Utah and Idaho are reclaimed by nature in the wilderness. The Tomorrow Legion is hardly known out here. And most people live by the Code of the West. However, there are places of Note:

-- Cill Onchon (Tremonton) This place is settled by elves from the Palladium world. They've been reclaiming the land and planting trees. The elves have turned the small town from a small town into a small kingdom. The place has trees growing everywhere. And on the junction of old I-84 and old I-15 is a small town populated by humans. They are there to trade with outsiders. Most people who visit Cill Onchon hardly see an elf.

-- New Salt Lake (Salt Lake City) Most of what's left of Salt Lake City is in ruins. However, there are a few people who make the valley their home. Since they had forced most of their population into the Great Salt Lake Desert after the Radiation Rift opened, about a thousand people have rebuilt the city in the west of the valley. What was once West Valley City and Magna, is now New Salt Lake. Because of the great magical potential there, some refugees from Tolkeen have made their way here and settled. There is a fortress here belonging to the Tomorrow Legion.

-- Curragh (Orem) Curragh is an orc city state. Built on the ruins of Orem, Curragh trades with New Salt Lake and Sanpete County. Built by orcs from another world, the place represents orc architecture. Although some buildings are built out of the Old West. The orcs ride huge wolves called wargs.

-- Caledonia (Boise) the once proud city of Boise is in ruins. The town of Caledonia had been established. It looks like a town of the Old West, except there are many different D-Bees here along side the human population. The Shoshone tribe maintains a presence here as well.

Legend of the Five Rings 5e Review

 Before I review Rokugan, I thought I should review something a little more current.  Like the current Legend of the Five Rings Roleplaying Game by Fantasy Flight Games (now Asmodee North America). Like in my review of Oriental Adventures 3e, this roleplaying game is set in the land of the Legend of the Five Rings, Rokugan.  Legend of the Five Rings (L5R) is a colorful book that promises to deliver a good game to the masses.  Now I haven't been able to run a game in the lands of L5R, so I can't give you a review on how it plays.  But I did have some opinions on the game as well as the company itself.  I'm here to tell you that I was wrong with some or most of those opinions.  Most of my criticisms go to how the game is played now, rather than anything else.  The game was mainly written by Max Brooke and Katrina Ostrander.

Expectations

Like most games I bought on my budget, the new Legend of the Five Rings Roleplaying Game aims to be a skill based system.  Unlike Dungeons and Dragons, the L5R RPG is not a heroic roleplaying game.  This is because it retains the roll and keep system from earlier editions, and combat promises to be quite deadly.  I don't know if players of this game try to avoid combat, but I'm running an L5R game on Paizo as a play-by-post using the previous 4th edition rules by Alderac Entertainment Group.  So far, my group has avoided combat except when it's necessary.  Unlike Dungeons and Dragons (and OSR clones), where players can take more risks in combat, the new L5R RPG promises to be mainly a social game.  Don't worry, you will be able to see many roleplaying opportunities in playing the game.  One thing to keep in mind is that Rokugan is a High Fantasy land inspired by the culture of Sengoku Japan, especially the writings of Miyamoto Musashi, and his book the Book of Five Rings.

Miyamoto Musashi in his prime, wielding two bokken.

 

No Elves?!

No, there are no elves in Rokugan.  Most of the races in Rokugan are human or ratling, although there were a group of feline humanoids called Kitsu, who were changed into humans and founded the Kitsu family of Shugenja for the Lion Clan.  However, there is magic, monsters, and wonder in Rokugan that makes it the equal of any thing like Lord of the Rings has to offer.

There are seven great clans, each embodying one tenant of Bushido.  Take for instance the Scorpion clan, who embody the tenant of Loyalty.  They make up the clan you love to hate. The scorpions play the villains, even though they are in the business of protecting the Empire.

Miyamoto Musashi killing a giant creature, from The Book of Five Rings

Playing the Game

The first chapter is probably the most important.  This chapter deals with playing the game.  And there are some different aspects from the AEG versions of the game.  For instance, you are expected to use different dice.  This probably my most warranted criticism of the game.  I don't like that you have to use different dice to play the game.  I just want to use my traditional six sided dice and my traditional icosohedric (20 sided) dice to play the game.  However, how the different dice are there to help you roleplay your character. I almost got a set myself, though, then I remembered I can't run a tabletop game right now.

Before you play the game, you create a character.  Character creation goes by twenty questions.  However, if there is one fault to this game, it's that all the schools of the various clans are listed -- along with skill bonuses for your character learning in that particular school is remunerated. What sucks, and yes, it is a problem, many of the schools could have been reserved for Clan Sourcebooks (like the Way of the Lion or Secrets of the Phoenix).  Players of the new system could fork over the cash on a certain clan sourcebook they'd enjoy.  That sourcebook could contain new rules and ways of looking at your clan.  This is true when I picked up and read Way of the Crane.

However, reading through this chapter a second time, it seems that Asmodee North America has kept the high fantasy feel of Rokugan.  After that, the rest of the game deals with skills, techniques -- including magic -- and playing the game.

Contemporaneous portrait of Miyamoto Musashi (Edo period)

 

Critical Hits

You should know that at first, I thought this game didn't capture the feel of the original game I was used to.  However, like I said, the current L5R RPG isn't a heroic fantasy game.  I don't think it was meant to be a heroic fantasy game.  Of course you can run a campaign where the PCs go out on adventure and slay monsters.  And of course, you can probably run an all ninja campaign.  The rules do let you do that.  However, in keeping with previous editions, I feel that the game is more suited to social roleplaying rather than combat.  I didn't get any of the adventures for the new game to see how they interpret the RPG as they meant it to be played, though.

The art, however, is certainly colorful. The book contains examples of art from traditional Japanese Samurai art to realistic colorful art to bring Rokugan to life in the imaginations of the players or readers.  The art gives the book a five star rating for art direction.

Critical Misses

Where the game fails is that you are expected to buy a new set of dice to play the game.  This was a feature that I didn't like -- but was introduced in all the games from Fantasy Flight Games of the period. If you are like me, and run most of your games online, you would hopefully not find this to be a barrier from purchasing the game. If you are considering a new roleplaying game to give to the gamer in your family, you should get this game.

A word about Asmodee North America

If you are Christian, and are looking for a gaming company to support.  You can't do better than Asmodee North America.  The company -- and thankfully is not Wizards of the Coast -- is certainly doing its best to maintain an atmosphere of honesty and integrity.  As far as I know, the company has been supporting Christian values.  If you care about supporting a good company that you will feel good about, then Asmodee North America is that company.

Oriental Adventures (3e) Review

 Welcome to the third edition of Oriental Adventures (OA).  OA 3e contains all the stuff necessary to play a campaign centered on the Orient (again, Japanese culture is ascendant in OA 3e, but there is a reason for this).  Oriental Adventures introduces a new campaign setting for use with Oriental play, Rokugan.  Now the reason why OA was produced is because Wizards of the Coast sold the Legend of the Five Rings (L5R) card game to Alderac Entertainment Group (AEG).  However, when they put up L5R for sale, I wanted to buy it.  However, I lacked the resources to buy it -- even the resources to consistently support it.  However, AEG was a good steward of L5R for upward to 2017, when they sold L5R to Fantasy Flight Games. 

Despite that, I desired the rights to L5R, and I'm waiting for my time to buy them.  Since I have the resources right now to purchase the rights to L5R.  Plus, Fantasy Flight Games is not doing a good job supporting L5R, despite the beauty of their books.

OA brings Rokugan (L5R's fantasy land) into the d20 System.  At first, I thought that the d20 System would not be a good fit for Rokugan, however when AEG put out Rokugan later, they did a good job making the setting of Rokugan fit the d20 System.  The book was published over twenty years ago.  The writer is James Wyatt.  The book came out in 2001.

Overview

OA is a book trying to play the kid who wants to be a friend to everyone.  OA includes the setting of the Legend of the Five Rings into it's framework, but at the same time it's trying to be an update of the Original OA (reviewed here earlier).  The book tries to be all things L5R and all things Kara-Tur (in the Forgotten Realms).  Still, it's a beautiful book -- printed in full color -- the art in the book brings Rokugan, and other realms in the Orient, to life.

The book starts with an introduction, and James Wyatt did a good job of writing it.  Adventures in the Orient (although L5R takes it's primary inspiration from the Sengoku era of Japan, there is some Chinese and Indian influence).  The idea is to have adventure in an exotic land.  And Rokugan is certainly exotic.

The next chapter goes over character creation, and the players should ask their DM about the setting and rules to play in.  Then races are introduced, including humans and Nezumi (which are found in Rokugan).  Spirit folk, Koboruku (asian dwarves), Vanaras (based on Hamuman from the Ramayana) and Hengeyokai.  The last fit in a campaign that is not Rokugan.

 

Then classes are introduced.  There are few classes from the Dungeons and Dragons Player's Handbook that are introduced as a way to fit the Asiatic concepts of Rokugan and Kara-Tur.  But the book introduces two new classes: Samurai and Shugenja.  The Samurai class in the original OA is suprisingly very adaptable and flexible.  Player characters would be able to customize their Samurai character in a number of ways.  The shugenja class is the same way, although presented as a variant of the sorcerer class.  Another new class introduced is the Shaman class, which is a variant of the cleric class in the PHB.  Finally, the Sohei and Wu Jen are introduced, which are classes updated from the original Oriental Adventures.  If one is running a Rokugan campaign, then only the samurai and shugenja are the new classes to include in that setting.  After that, there are a few banned classes that don't fit in the world of Oriental Adventures.  But the NPC classes are discussed.  One, the Aristocrat, is included in Rokugan as a courtier.  However, Rokugan introduces the courtier class, which will be discussed in the next review.

After the character classes are introduced, then the prestige classes are talked about.  Of note is the Ninja Spy prestige class.  While not worked as a full class, the idea behind the Ninja spy prestige class is that a group of player ninja start out as another class, and then takes the ninja spy prestige class  when they are ready for it.  This graduates them into full ninja.

Another prestige class of note is the Yakuza, which is good for rogues, apparently.  The yakuza prestige class in Rokugan makes a perfect fit for the Kolat and other organized crime families in Rokugan. There are other prestige classes.  Some of them fit the monk class.

By Aaron Lovett

 

After that, character options: skills and feats -- are discussed.  The skill section includes on how the skills fit the Rokugan campaign setting.  Of course, new skills are introduced in the Rokugan book.  Then a number of feats are introduced.  Most of these feats are ancestor feats, where the characters in a Rokugan campaign takes an ancestor feat for their human bonus feat.  However, Rokugan has a different feat option.  And there are a few feats in OA that are regular feats.

After that there is a chapter on alignment, honor, and equipment.  In an oriental campaign, honor is better to use than alignment.  However, Alignment is discussed anyhow.  In some oriental campaigns, alignment might still be used.  In Rokugan, honor takes precedence over alignment.  Though this still discussed.  Then a number of equipment is also discussed.  After that, combat is covered in another chapter.

After that, magic is discussed.  This is an important chapter, since it goes through the Shugenja spells that are available to certain Rokugani Shugenja schools.  The new spells also update the spells from OA 1e, allowing wu jen and other spellcasters of Oriental campaigns have their magic.  The only schools missing are the schools for the Isawa family of the Phoenix clan.  This was, sort of, rectified in the Rokugan book.  After that comes a chapter on magic items.

Then comes a chapter on monsters.  While the chapter on monsters discusses which monsters from the Monster Manual fit in Rokugan, many more monsters -- such as seven varieties of oriental dragons -- are introduced.  Some of the monsters are introduced fit in Rokugan, but many do not.  After the book on monsters comes a chapter on campaign design.  Which is a good chapter, to say the least.  This next chapter provides options with which the GM/DM can design a campaign.

After this chapter comes an overview of the land of Rokugan.  Plus the setting begins the Four Winds saga (the emperor is killed, and without a designated heir, his four children try to take the throne). Also, the land of Rokugan is described in some detail, with some prestige classes compatible to each great clan.  After that, was a chapter on the Shadowlands.  Taint rules are introduced here, along with the Maho-Tsukai prestige class and a monster template.

 

Hits and Misses

Again, Oriental Adventures tries to be something of a child that wants to be your friend.  While the focus is still on Rokugan as a setting, other options fit other settings. This is a strength, although a weakness at the same time.  Some people still think that the d20 system wasn't a good fit for Rokugan, I beg to differ.  OA does a good job, and Rokugan does a better job, of fitting the setting of Legend of the Five Rings to the d20 system.

Conclusion

I do believe this book is a good book to get if you are planning a game in Legend of the Five Rings, and find the EDGE Studio's version of Rokugan to be unlikable. While the EDGE Studio does a good job (and I was reading the book for purposes of review), I think both AEG and Wizards of the Coast did a finer job of fitting the world of L5R to the d20 system.

Oriental Adventures (1e) Review

 Oriental Adventures, for Advanced Dungeons and Dragons (1e) is one of the best books for AD&D.  I wanted this book since it came out, and I managed to lay my hands on a copy during the late nineties.  My copy shows it's age, but it's my favorite AD&D book.  For it talks about the Orient in a gaming context.  It was because of this book that I wanted to learn all I can about culture in Japan, and it's the main reason why I picked up the Sengoku RPG in the early 2000's.  Oriental Adventures is credited to Gary Gygax, but David "Zeb"Cook did the writing.  It was this book that helped inspire the game Legend of the Five Rings. Without this book coming in the market during 1985, I don't think Legend of the Five Rings would have been possible.  This book is available on Drivethru.

Overview

by Hokusai

The book, Oriental Adventures (OA) allows several players to create characters in an Oriental context.  You first generate your scores, then you choose your race, and then your class.  It introduces some new races including:

• Korobokuru: an oriental dwarf.
• Hengeyokai: shape changing animals who can take human form, of which there are several types.
  
• Spirit Folk: the oriental equivalent of elves, of which there are three kinds.
   

The book also introduces a few classes.  Including the Samurai, which is a type of the Cavalier; the Shukenja, an Oriental Cleric; Sohei, a type of monk; Kensai, a person devoted to perfection of their weapon.  Bushi, a fighter variant in oriental worlds; Barbarian, a foriegner taught in the ways of weapons; Wu Jen, a magic user based on Chinese mythology; Monk, a martial artist class; Ninja, a class for spies and assassins; and Yakuza, a class for organized crime.

Of the new classes, the Samurai and Ninja was what was shown on the cover.  Plus, the whole book is nuanced for Japanese culture except for the wu jen, which was from Chinese mythology.  The idea of the book was for AD&D players could explore the realms of the Orient in their worlds.  The book includes caste and family rules, along with rules for honor, and money and equipment.  Weapons are talked about, including proficiencies -- which are skills.

After that, the spells are discussed.  Starting with shukenja spells -- which are divine spells.  And then wu jen spells, which are arcane spells. After that, they discuss combat rules and martial arts.  Then they discuss a number of monsters that exist in the orient.  Then Kara-Tur, a setting for  Oriental Adventures, is introduced.

By Yoshitoshi

 

Hits

This book was a revolution for AD&D.  It expanded the realms of AD&D from the Occidental to the Oriental.  The mysteries of the East was revealed for fantasy roleplaying and players could visit the East.  Although the book was designed with Japanese culture in mind, especially the Warring States Period (Sengoku) of Japan, the book has a few Chinese influences.  A first for the Roleplaying games, eventually after this book is published, Steve Jackson Games would come out with GURPS China,  and GURPS Japan, both of which would have Sengoku by Gold Rush Games following in their footsteps.  As for Legend of the Five Rings, which is now owned by Fantasy Flight Games -- I think OA inspired the legends of Rokugan in the first place.  OA was a revolutionary book in that it would inspire books that came after it.

Misses

I wasn't too impressed with the Martial Arts rules in the book.  This is because I'm a martial artist myself and I felt that the book didn't capture the martial arts.  I felt more could have been done with the Martial Arts rules in the book.  Especially with designing your own martial arts (which was followed in The Complete Ninja Handbook).  Also, I felt that Chinese mythology could have been represented more in the book.  Although all the monsters came from several oriental sources, the book is certainly lacking in several aspects.

Conclusion

Several of the classes could have been worked on more.  The Ninja class, for instance, didn't work until you had a disguise (multi-classed).  The Samurai class was good, but they could have done more with it.  Of course, when Oriental Adventures came out for 3rd edition, we would see an update to the original OA in several respects.  Done for the 3rd edition of Dungeons and Dragons, we would see a better treatment for Oriental Adventures as well as a new setting: Rokugan.

Way of the Ninja Review

 

The Way of the Ninja book is a sourcebook on the ninja and shinobi of Rokugan.  It was published containing mechanics for both Legend of the Five Rings second edition by Alderac Entertainment Group (AEG) and the d20 system by Wizards of the Coast (WotC).  It was published by AEG.  It was written by Shawn Carmen, Rich Wulf, Seth Mason, and Aaron Medwin.  This book is no longer available on Drivethru, and must be downloaded via torrent.

What Way of the Ninja is

It's a book describing how the ninja work in Rokugan, the land of Legend of the Five Rings. If you were expecting something like Kishimoto's Naruto, you're mistaken.  There are no mystical ninja clans with Genjutsu or even Taijutsu; just ninjutsu.  However, the ninja in Rokugan are treated as a myth and fairy tale around Rokugan, which helps the ninja of Rokugan immensely. Unlike the lands of Naruto, where the ninja operate fairly in the open, the ninja of Rokugan operate in the shadows.  However, like the ninja of Naruto, the ninja of Rokugan fulfill various contracts -- which can be anything from espionage to assassinations.

Way of the Ninja also goes into the history of the ninja and how Hantei I, Rokugan's first Emperor, was the first person to give the ninja a job.  He told his brother Bayushi to watch, and thus from this order, the ninja were born.  Of course, the Bayushi and Shosuro ninja first gathered intelligence on each of the Great Clans, and then started to strike on opportune moments to prevent terrible things to happen.  When one of the later Hantei learned of the ninja and their dishonorable acts, he called the then Scorpion champion to explain himself.  His brother, who was daimyo of the Bayushi ninja, was executed. This forced the ninja to work underground.  Splitting up into various factions and ninja families.  And they continued their tasks to watch over the Empire.  For the Hantei never rescinded his order, which was to "Watch!"

Overview 

The book begins describing what a ninja is, and of course they are more than just men and women wearing black and a mask committing the most heinous dishonorable acts.  Some of them do have access to Magic (the Shosuro), some of them work for the shadowlands (the Goju), some for the nefarious Kolat (the Kolat).  Still the book goes into other clans that might have ninja operations.  The Crane Clan, for instance, have the Daidoji harriers -- which act a lot like the ninja -- so they are included.

The book also goes into possible Ninja types that can be played, and a few contracts. Like sabotage and of course, assassinations.  This book also has various information on the dojo of the ninja families, which the Scorpion has two (two different families of ninjutsu is controlled and maintained by the Scorpion).  And also the Kolat has several ninja families working for them.  However, the book doesn't get into genjutsu or taijutsu.  But, it has suggested character classes and prestige classes that are trained in the book.

After the major ninja families are explained, minor ninja clans are covered.  Including a whole village of peasants that operate as ninja.  After this, the enemies of the ninja are explained.  Yes, in Rokugan, the ninja do have enemies.  While in Naruto the ninja war was conducted against another ninja faction, Rokugani ninja face enemies who are investigating their shadowy and criminal acts.  After this, the ninja's equipment, in Rokugan, is given.  Then new treatment on d20 skills and feats are given at the end of the book.

Critical Hits

This book is a valuable book for GMs as well as players.  The first, for information on conducting a ninja campaign within Rokugan.  The second, because it expands on the information given in Rokugan, which will be reviewed later.  While the ninja is given a full class in Rokugan, before that was the ninja spy prestige class given in WotC's Oriental Adventures (which will also be reviewed later). Much of the mystery of the Ninja of Rokugan is explained in this book.  Although to add mystery to an all Ninja campaign, the GM should read the Ninja and their Secret Techniques by Stephen K. Hayes.  Watching Naruto might give the GM some ideas on how to run a ninja campaign, but there are some high fantasy elements in Naruto that won't work in a Legend of the Five Rings campaign.

Critical Misses

The book doesn't go into Taijutsu or Genjutsu, which would frustrate a lot of Naruto fans.  However, it does what it does.  It describes how the ninja work in Rokugan and how they employ their secret arts in the world of Legend of the Five Rings.

Conclusion

You should get this book if you are planning a ninja campaign in your Rokugan game.  Although EDGE Studio hasn't put out a ninja book yet for Legend of the Five Rings 5th edition, they should because there are a lot of ninja fans out there.  Of course, you can get this book and use the information therein to convert to the current edition of Legend of the Five Rings. I would say that the EDGE Studio is missing out on an opportunity to put out a ninja book for their version of the game.  This book is useful, however, if you are running a d20 campaign based in Legend of the Five Rings.

Eberron Campaign Setting Review

 

 

Ah, the Eberron Campaign Setting.  A long time ago, about twenty years ago, Wizards of the Coast did a setting search.  I sent my proposal in, and so did thousands of others.  All hoping for a chance at fame for producing the next Dungeons and Dragons campaign setting.  Keith's setting made the cut.  Called Eberron by Bill Slavicsek, Keith Baker's setting became a new setting for Dungeons and Dragons.  Although still for D&D, it's different than what came before. The Eberron Campaign Setting describes a world that is unlike anything before.

Inspirations

Eberron is inspired by the pulp era of the 1930's. The book suggests you watch several movies inspired by the same era.  Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark was one of these. Casablanca was another (though I don't know how it was an inspiration -- but it's a classic movie).  The original Conan stories by Robert E. Howard certainly counts as inspiration. The Lensman series by Doc E.E. Smith also certainly counts. Certainly Buck Rodgers also counts, along with the classic Flash Gordon movies. However, thanks to the novel series and collaboration by others than just Keith Baker, the Eberron setting grew and evolved.

Innovations

Eberron, due to it's pulp era inspiration, brought a few innovations to the D&D game. These include Action Points, new races, dragonmarks, a new heroic class, and the philosophy that if it exists in D&D, there is certainly a place for it in Eberron.  This included psionics and other things as well.

Action points was one of the new innovations.  Eventually, Paizo would create hero points for Pathfinder (1e), which was based on the same idea.  Basically, you can spend a hero point to modify your d20 rolls.  This means, if a d20 roll wasn't the result you desired, you can spend an action point to modify your roll with a d6.  This is to reflect that in Eberron, your characters are larger than life heroes.  Which was already a thing in D&D.  Eberron characters just stand out.

 

The new races included certainly don't have dragonmarks.  But they represent something new about the setting.  These races include the changelings, the warforged, the kalashtar, and the shifters.  Changelings are beings that can shapeshift into other persons by using a supernatural ability that works like the alter self spell in D&D.  This shapeshifting is so complete that the changeling can replicate other beings exactly.  This makes them useful as spies and rogues.  They do not have dragonmarks.

Warforged are living constructs.  They were constructed by House Cannith to basically serve in the Last War.  Which, I promise, we will come back to. Anyhow, like the Changelings, the warforged do not have dragonmarks.  But they do have souls, which can be worked into adventures exploring that fact. Because of their constructed nature, warforged have bonuses to AC and living construct traits.

Kalashtar are the result of man bonding with Quori spirits in the past. Because these spirits are good and trying to be good, Kalashtar tend also to be good.  They are also beautiful persons, with an ethereal quality about them. And because the Quori are from the region of dreams, the Kalashtar also tend to be psionic.  Like the Changelings and the Warforged, the Kalashtar cannot have dragonmarks.

Shifters are the result of lycanthropes breeding with humans.  The result is a race that is capable of shifting with animal like features.  This brings into question that the Shifters represent the fusion of man with the natural world.  Like the warforged, kalashtar, and changelings, shifters can't have dragonmarks.

Dragonmarks are a new thing brought into being with the Eberron Campaign Setting.  The idea that the seven common races in the PHB (and incidentally, Pathfinder) can have dragonmarks.  They are purchased with a feat.  A dragonmark allows a person to have a certain spell-like ability depending on it's strength. indviduals with stronger dragonmarks have stronger spell-like abilities. While some races get only one dragonmark, and humans get five.  Also, the dragonmarks are tied to the Draconic Prophecy.  They are manifestations of the Draconic Prophecy and the dragons are trying to understand them. What the dragonmarks did was allow the formation of the Dragonmarked Houses -- financial, political, and social institutions that have at least a near monopoly on certain services.  Such as crafting and healing.

Artificers are another addition to D&D by Eberron. Artificers are a class that is made to represent the construction of magic items and constructs.  Artificers achieved this through the use of craft points and the various craft item feats.  In D&D 3e, however, the class was broken.  It wasn't balanced and so DMs would disallow the class in their games.  In fourth edition, they received an overhaul.  Which I didn't like anyhow.  When Paizo released the Advanced Player's Guide for Pathfinder, there was a contender for the Artificer called the alchemist.  Although the class was meant to represent something new to Eberron, it would take Advanced d20 Magic to provide an alternative to crafting magic items that would make this class viable.

If it Exists in D&D, then it fits in Eberron

This philosophy is the guiding light of Eberron campaigns.  Everything about D&D exists in Eberron somewhere.  This means that you can have exotic items from D&D in your Eberron campaign, like psionics.  Although each monster was given a certain flavor in order to exist in Eberron.  Mind flayers are aberrations from Xoriat, and orcs aren't seen as automatically evil. Alignments aren't concrete in Eberron either.  This means you can have good creatures do things that are thought of as evil, and evil creatures push for good things all around.

Eberron's History

The history of Eberron reflects its pulp nature.  There once was a continent spanning empire in Eberron, called the kingdom of Galifar.  This lasted for nearly a thousand years.  The empire of Galifar (lets just call it what it is) was a time of peace and prosperity.  It was divided into five geopolitical areas known as the five nations.  The scions of Galifar would rule each nation and the eldest of the scions would ascend to the throne.  However, there was a devastating war that split the kingdom of Galifar into thirteen separate kingdoms.  Called the Last War, it was almost every man for itself.  As each nation warred to have it's king or queen to ascend to the throne of Galifar. Due to a devastating attack on the nation of Cyre, which utterly destroyed the nation, the last war was brought to a halt and a treaty was signed.

Tensions run high, however.  It's almost like a cold war has replaced a hot one.  The nations spy on each other, and there are small conflicts on the borders of certain nations. While the dragons are obsessed with the Draconic Prophecy, they did little to halt the conflict once it began.

 

Eberron's Technology

Eberron is definitely set apart by it's high technology.  As reflected above, the most obvious example is the Lightning Rail, a train that runs on magnetic levitation.  Produced during when the Kingdom of Galifar was at it's height, the lightning rail represents what can be done with magic in Eberron. Magic is definitely seen as a tool by everyone that uses it.  Through magic, man and other races have created great wonders. But, like what happened to the Mournland (Cyre) and what happened to Mordain the Fleshweaver, magic itself is a tool that can be misused.  Although Eberron is described as medieval, it's technology certainly places Eberron in the late Renaissance era.  It's more like modern times, like the early 1920's of our history.  What else sets Eberron apart from other campaign settings is the lack of gunpowder.  There is no gunpowder on Eberron.

Looking forward to the Future

The Eberron Campaign Setting is certainly innovative. It describes a setting that is not like other settings. Unlike Forgotten Realms, Greyhawk, Dragonlance, and others -- it certainly has potential moving forward.  I foresee that the Eberron Campaign Setting certainly has potential and this has been realized in the Dungeon Masters' Guild.  Where anyone can contribute to the setting.  This has certainly been good for the setting as a whole.  Certainly more novels will be produced in the future, and more pulp campaigns will be realized. The Eberron Campaign Setting certainly has a bright future ahead of it.  Although I could have discussed more about what was in this setting, mind you this is only a review and I could not talk about everything.