These pdfs follow a format similar to that found in the popular Behind the Spells series (also presented by Tricky Owlbear Publishing) so chances are good that, if you enjoy that series, this one will also strike your fancy. Each issue is narrated by Jadrin Nelv, monk of the Order of the Sacred Branch. Jadrin schools novice monks in the ways of the multiverse’s creatures and we, the readers, get to listen in. Whether you’re a player or a GM, you will find something of use within these pages.
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This is a fine little pdf, adding a bit more to the lore of owlbears. The history story is interesting and there is a new added item, but what truly won me over was the bearowl. The disruptive aura is good, and could be improved by some extra special abilities for owlbear/bearowl variants.
I have thrown bearowls at my players and they have loved it. Thanks Bret Boyd and Rick Hershey.
First, I think I found a nice and inexpensive land-mine to place in my PCs path. This free suppliment offers a lot of neat ideas, and provides good fluff with a teeny bit o' crunch.
The Good: Low price! Future products also seem inexpensive, but that didn't mean low-quality material for this .pdf. The inclusion of the bear-owl was more interesting than the owlbear piece, because of its ivocative imagry and likley addition as a higher-level wizard familiar. The overall feeling of this product was to spin something new from something too old/too familiar/too static.
The Bad: I would have preferred better layouts for the product. While sidebars were nice, I would have like some of the background story set in italics, but maybe I'm spoiled in seeing this is other products. I would have liked more art, too. Since this creature was very-much a magical creation, I hoped for a new spell about this creature, maybe for controlling it or summoning it specifically with a twist. These comments aren't a big distraction from the overall product; it's just my hopes for more good products.
Overall:
It's Wednesday night, and your gamers are coming to play this weekend. In the current adventure, you just don't like the vanilla taste of a certain monster that's listed. Changing it might take too much time- time you don't have. Drop a couple of bucks and re-read a classic monster for some good times, and a surprising twist.
I did enjoy BtM: Owlbear. At first I wasn’t impressed. I was thinking, “Great we have another wizard makes Owlbears thing,” but then you go and give me a scaring childhood experience that gives birth to the monstrosity we know as the Owlbear. This was the gold for me. I thought this was a great way to go. We all have those bizarre things that happened to us when we were younger, and it doesn’t matter if you’re a powerful wizard those experiences will still haunt you. I really enjoyed this adaptation from just the normal “wizard make weird creatures.”
I appreciated the tidbits in the boxes about polymorph, rage, and intimate, but I’m not sure they were needed. These things feel more like DM calls to me more then things deserving of mechanics. They also feel like they were last minute thoughts.
The magic items were solid fluff driven items, which in my opinion is the most important thing fluff before crunch. I really enjoyed the token. I would love to have one as a barbarian maybe incorporate the token into Owlbear totem worshiping holy symbol kind of thing.
Bearowl…GREAT…My first thought was how do I get one as a familiar? This was just a cool funny little aside that would create hilarity and confuse players. I do wish there was more information on the Bearowl. I am really curious how other Owlbears react to Bearowls, and assuming Owlbears raise their young, I would think they would, how do the parents react towards the Bearowl. Also maybe some familiar info like: a player can acquire a Bearowl as a familiar via the improved familiar feat at X caster level. All in all this was a great fluff piece that I enjoyed. I loved the new spin that was put on an odd idea. And I feel like you really knew how to add just the right amount of odd detail that makes the product really shine. Plus you can't beat the price. I would highly recommend this product, and if this is a taste of what’s to come I’d recommend the company as well.
Tricky Owlbear Publishing is proud to now be selling our wares here at Paizo.com! If you're not familiar with us, try out the free premiere pdf of the "Behind the Monsters" line which takes a look at the world's most famous fantasy game's creatures (in this case--the owlbear!).
I really like this series. Can you tell us what monsters are coming up in future installments? Personally, I'd like to see you do some of the iconic monsters that don't get a lot of love. Critters like the dragonne, ettercap, and achaierai, to name a few.
Hey there, BD. Thanks for the praise (again, as I recall you mentioning it on ENWorld)! I'm working on Gargoyle right now and noted Goodman Games DCC writer Mike Ferguson is penning demi-lich and vegepygmy. We're also thinking of expanding the pdfs to include--for example--a sample lair. Any suggestions you have for the line are greatly appreciated as well.
I'm working on Gargoyle right now and noted Goodman Games DCC writer Mike Ferguson is penning [...} vegepygmy.
Yay, the rocky and the fibrous! I'll definitely be picking them up. I'm dropping a couple of these in my cart now, and will certainly be picking the two mentioned above when they are out. One question, though, are Vegepygmy OGL?
Yay, the rocky and the fibrous! I'll definitely be picking them up. I'm dropping a couple of these in my cart now, and will certainly be picking the two mentioned above when they are out. One question, though, are Vegepygmy OGL?
Thanks, Gavgoyle. Yes, Vegepygmy are OGL (as are many other classic critters we'll be doing) thanks to Necromancer Games' Tome of Horrors.
Hey there, BD. Thanks for the praise (again, as I recall you mentioning it on ENWorld)! I'm working on Gargoyle right now and noted Goodman Games DCC writer Mike Ferguson is penning demi-lich and vegepygmy. We're also thinking of expanding the pdfs to include--for example--a sample lair. Any suggestions you have for the line are greatly appreciated as well.
Bret
No problem. I just call 'em like I see 'em. =]
I think a sample lair is an excellent way to expand the series. I would also like to see more stuff for players relating to the monsters. Can I use this monster as a mount? How much can it carry? What is the Handle Animal DC if I attempt to train it? Can I make armor out of its hide? What kind, and how much? Things like that.
Thanks to David for the newest review (and to Fizzban for the first..hopefully it was OK to repost it)! The Behind the Monsters series does try to provide new twists to these iconic creatures and I'm pleased folks are enjoying the more fluff than crunch ratio of the pdf.
You're welcome, Tricky Owl Bear! I would also like to see something about a carrion crawler, one of my favorite monsters from the good ol' red box days! Of course, I'd be willing to help with that plan :)
