Why did I buy this? What did I actually get?
Having some exposure to Alluria’s products, I hold them in high regard. As a hit-and-run style combatant, it’s a simple class using familiar concepts, but I haven’t seen implemented in quite this way.
Have I used this, or will I use this?
I haven’t implemented in play, but I did put together a 14th level character utilizing this class in part. It’s a fortunately simple class, and if I wanted to build NPCs with it, I wouldn’t find myself needing to reference the PDF in play to use.
How is the fluff?
Present, but not in the way - we are told that “nothing is as swift and sure.” A product of intense training, marauders are set apart by their speed. As for the archetypes, the fluff remains light and to the point.
How are the mechanics?
I like the feel of this class; full BAB and good Reflex saves, they gain bonus feats at first and every 3 levels - these feats must be selected from a list of speed-related feats spelled out in the PDFs. Now while the list you can select from here here could be modified with some common sense, it, like casters with new spell lists, isn’t technically forward compatible. The selection itself is pretty diverse though - which is good for Sudden Strike. Sudden Strike is a type of precision damage that you can apply to the next attack you make, up to one round later, after using one of these selected bonus feats. On top of this, you get more of what’s familiar: fast movement, evasion, and speed stunts, which are essentially marauder talents.
The four archetypes cover a good variety of concepts. Beast Runners gain one or more animal companions, Fleetfoots specialize in stealth and overland movement rather than combat, Quicklings gain a ki pool, and Shadow Sprinters are as adept at moving up a wall as they are across the ground. Finally, we have 10 feats, about half of which require the sudden strike feature, while the others can be used by classes with Fast Movement/Improved Evasion. I do like all of these feats, and don’t see that any scream overpowered, with the exception of Marauder’s Momentum.
How’s the artwork?
Real cool piece on the cover. The artwork inside is all of high-quality and fits the image of the marauder - even if I’ve seen most these in other books.
How’s readability?
Two column approach, I noticed a hiccup here or there, but the page backgrounds are simple, and the text wraps around art well. No problem here.
Was the price fair?
At $2.50? A steal.
Favorite part?
Despite noting it’s potential for abuse, the image is too cool for me to gripe about. Marauder’s Momentum allows you to take an extra turn when you successfully take no damage from attack originating from a viable target (aka not a trap), as long as you attack someone in that turn. You have to have improved evasion in order to take it, so you won’t see 2nd level characters running around breaking the action economy.
Least favorite part?
The Quickling archetype seems well-done, but the ki mechanic doesn’t hold a lot of interest for me, so I personally wouldn’t ever use it.
Why did I buy this? What did I actually get?
On a whim, to check out the company’s products.
Have I used this, or will I use this?
I don’t know that I will ever implement this. That isn’t a criticism on the PDF directly - I enjoy seeing different kinds of feats, but when it comes to building statblocks or characters, poring through feats becomes a chore for me.
How is the fluff?
None to speak of.
How are the mechanics?
There’s 9 feats in here, most of which are on the conservative side. Guarded Spell, a metamagic feat that lets you take a full-round to cast a spell and use total defense at the same time, is pretty neat - especially considering spontaneous casters, who generally have to use a full-round action for metamagic anyway. The other feats provide various options as well, but a few build a chain I don’t see myself using.
How’s the artwork?
None to speak of.
How’s readability?
Simple layout, but I’m not a big fan of landscape format, which this is in.
Was the price fair?
99 cents works out to 11 cents/feat. Even if you don’t use them, I think that’s pretty fair for discovering if you would want to, especially knowing the supposed focus.
Favorite part?
Overwhelming Dispel, which adds your bonuses from Spell Focus (abjuration) & it’s Greater variant to the dispel check, as well as adding some minor damage on a successful dispel.
Least favorite part?
Arcane Ward, which serves a similar (though not the same) purpose as Arcane Shield, becomes a prereq for a couple other feats herein - the versatility of which seem pretty neat, but I don’t know if I would justify spending three feats to get these rather minor abilities.
5/5 - This product is as-advertised. If you need that niche filled, look no furt
Why did I buy this? What did I actually get?
I’ve always enjoyed the 152-crayon box approach to monsters, and I was excited to see the same variety applied to those animals tied closer to human society. And we get exactly what’s advertised on the front, plus equipment!
Have I used this, or will I use this?
I haven’t busted this out yet, but I’m currently running a Paizo AP - once I start a new one, I would hope to incorporate some of this into whatever the campaign turns out to be. I may mine this for ideas to convert to my recently started Dungeon World campaign as well.
How is the fluff?
Enjoyable: each breed gets a little info about personality, and its interactions with nature and societies, without implying a setting - and I consider that a plus with this type of resource. Though illustrations are nice, it’s still a little disappointing that the statblocks are without the descriptive sentence or two at the top.
How are the mechanics?
Each statblock comes with it’s own unique ability or spin that presents a lot of variety, while keeping it in a low CR range. Sometimes, it’s the Khyang Wild Ass, who’s sure of foot and thick furred, or the Coon Cat, who’s Intelligence (not the score, but an ability) makes it easy to train. Some are less distinct, but still serve their purpose. Chapter 4 offers equipment, both mundane and magical - one of the neater non-magical items is a scrollcase harness, fitted for a dog with two bone scrollcases attached. Animal prices, as well as rules for familiars and animal companions bring the book to completion.
How’s the artwork?
The book is well-illustrated, and has distinct artwork for each breed. Though I prefer color illustrations because I do most of my gaming through VTT, I really enjoy what’s presented here, and the style would make it easy to color quickly myself.
How’s readability?
The layout is simple, printer-friendly B&W. No complaints here.
Was the price fair?
I paid $5.59 for this, which for 65 pages of content (72 total) is a great price in my book.
Favorite part?
The elven dog, and it’s terrifying bark! On top of combat mechanics, the bark can be heard up to 5 miles away.
Least favorite part?
From a personal perspective, I’m not big on horses. Nothing to detract from the book itself, but that chapter doesn’t grab me in the same way the cats and dogs do.
Why did I buy this? What did I actually get?
At this point, I own a couple PDFs from Rite Publishing's new 101 Spells series, and have dug the terrain focus. Though this is not aimed at terrain, I still felt confident it would be a cool product, despite numerous takes on shadow magic already existing.
Have I used this, or will I use this?
These have not yet seen use in my game, but for every one of this, I'm sure I will have occasion for it - very cool & thematic curses are my jam, and there are plenty within.
How is the fluff?
Fluff is tied to the mechanics in a PDF like this, and this does it well. As I mentioned about, cool curses exists, and others: Heavy Shadows uses your enemies shadows to entangle them - provided you succeed at the ranged touch attack to throw a lead pebble into their shadow. Rules are included to calculate the touch AC of someone's shadow. Another one is Twilight Ghosts - an illusionary ghosts appearing in rays of light fascinate creatures, convincing them they are seeing visions of their own death. There are also spells that work on the dark-cold interaction, polymorph spells, shadow manipulation spells, and divinations about reading the stars. To make it even tastier, many spells become more powerful if cast under the right conditions, as seen with the others in the 101 Terrain Spells.
How are the mechanics?
Extremely thorough. The PDF opens up with a discussion of light and darkness, including new categories of light to mirror the dark - utter brightness and supernatural brightness, which are blinding in their own way. This becomes important, as I'd say 50% of the spells are complicated enough in their interactions where the above summary becomes quite helpful. There are also neat places where spells interact: the obvious places is spells that attack or grant movement through shadows, and others that manipulate shadows. Another is Shadow Conduit, which makes shadow conjuration/evocations whose effects begin within a bubble around the caster slightly more real! I'd find a lot of these spells overpowered, except that the author Dave Paul did a good job of including effective protection spells that can reduce or negate the otherwise more-problematic spells. I don't necessarily have a great eye for what's appropriate on different spell lists at this point, so I won't comment much on that, but it seemed to be on the level.
Hows the artwork?
It's fairly sparse but professional quality. My complaint with the artwork in this PDF is that of the twelve distinct pieces I found, about three of them depict shadowy, dark figures - considering how cool some of the other pieces in the PDF are, it would have been nice to see a little more variety. It perhaps grinds me more than it otherwise would because those pieces show up consecutively as the last 3 pieces in the book.
How’s readability?
Good - there's a couple points where I see spotted editing errors - the spell Cloud of Fire and Shadow is called Cloud of Shadow and Flame underneath the artwork that appears on the same page. A little worse than this, Sunrise Aura specifies that if it is cast during twilight hours around sunrise, living creatures gain 1 hp/caster level when first exposed to the aura - not 'heal', not 'gain temp hp.' Now this isn't troublesome because the next spell, the counterpart Sunset Aura, does specify the similar effect for undead grants temp HP; if it hadn't been there though, we might have been a little worse off.
Was the price fair?
At $5.99, we're at a more-than-fair price. I feel Rite Publishing always asks the right amount for their general above-average quality products.
Favorite part?
I love curses, and Seeing is Believing is a great one. The victim loses the ability to believe anything but what he sees - gaining amnesia about anything they're not currently looking at - and they cannot be convinced otherwise. They also gain a phobia of the darkness - if exposed to complete darkness or blinded, they must save again or they gain schizophrenia as their mind cracks.
Least favorite part?
Even at 1st level, Alert to the Unnatural seems to be a mostly-useless spell: you gain the ability to detect Frightful Presence, Fear Aura, or Unnatural Aura within 30 ft. - but don't most of these have a range of at least 30 ft. anyway? I understand that this would detect it when you can't see it, such as a mummy hiding in a sarcophagus, but Detect Undead is 1st level and has double the range, even if limited to a cone and one creature type. Also, it seems that the spell omits a "Target: You" line.
As an aside, shadow magic has been done in 3PP Pathfinder a few times, and pretty well in most of those cases. There is some overlap between this PDF and things you find in Deep Magic, Ultimate Antipodism, and Path of Shadows - however, this is a very complete resource of shadow magic for DESIGNED for existing Paizo casters. Shadow magic is but a small part of Deep Magic, and Ultimate Antipodism brings new classes and systems to the table. Path of Shadows is a bit better than this, but it still definitely encourages you to play the accompanying class. So if you're looking to add shadow magic to your campaign starting TODAY, this would be the PDF for it.
Why did I buy this? What did I actually get?
I have been growing a bit tired of Vancian magic for a while, even at the point when I bought this, but it seemed like it would have something interesting to offer. And it did... I had no idea.
Have I used this, or will I use this?
I have not yet implemented this in game, but come tomorrow, I imagine at least one of my players will be getting a Friend of the Forest tattoo from an allied tribe of werewolves...and there's nowhere to go but up from there.
How is the fluff?
Not a lot of 'independent' fluff to speak of in this book, but there's definitely cool imagery invoked in the spells, and in the way they tie to the mechanics. As a simple example, Winter Hag Form says that you have an urge to worshipped, and eat warm raw flesh (especially that of children); if you're actively pursuing these goals, you get a hefty bonus to a number of skills. Many of the spells work on this 'mechanics-meets-narrative' platform, and it's utterly refreshing.
How are the mechanics?
Nothing in this PDF jumped out to me as OP or out-of-control; especially when you factor in an introductory paragraph, explaining that a lot of these spells will be very powerful within to forest, but may be useless outside of it, and therefore may be better suited towards NPCs. But there are many cool categories of spells featured here in - many Aspect of the <blank> or <specific creature> Form polymorph spells, altered core spells in the form of Mass Barkskin, Leaf on the Wind (a Feather Fall variant) or Bones & Branches, a lower level version of Animate Dead that creates weaker undead through the substitution of natural materials - dirt, sticks, leaves, etc. The aforementioned Friends of the Forest spell is a cantrip that leaves a simple magical tattoo on an ally - where this gets cool is the OTHER spells that work off of it: Friends Defend the Forest gives marked creatures combat bonuses, whereas Gather Friends teleports those creatures to your side from anywhere on the same plane. And I always appreciate useful cantrips, like Gather Kindling - everything in this PDF just looks like FUN, rather than work, which is how I've started to view more traditional Vancian spells (though Occult Adventures did something right with Explode Head).
How's the art?
It adds a lot. Rite Publishing products often include cool, evocative art, but it doesn't always seem like it fits. That is not true in this case; I don't worry too much about art outside of monster books, but this would absolutely be a lesser PDF if any piece were absent.
How’s readability?
As per usual, Rite Publishing has some great editing, a simple, easy to read layout, and a practical font. No problems here.
Was the price fair?
I was hesitant to drop $5.99 at the time, not sure I wanted to pore through more spells under the Vancian system. But I'm glad I did - it was more than worth the cost. If you're not sure you'd ever see use of this in your game, go look at others in the series that might match up with your game better. Or maybe you're like me, and even if it never sees the table, you have fun reading cool mechanics and ideas; if so, I also cannot recommend this enough.
Favorite part?
Like DaVinci, the Wright Brothers, and other inventors of old, the sky captures my imagination, but I'll never know it like a bird does. Wait, Host of Sparrows lets me do exactly that, AND take my friends with? Sold.
Least favorite part? Unicorn's Prowess is a cool idea for a spell... but I don't know if I need to spend 10 minutes casting a combat-focused spell that lasts for 1 round/level, even if I'm at least 13th level before I gain.
Why did I buy this? What did I actually get?
Been meaning to throw more dreams at the characters in my campaigns, and for the price point, it was hard to say no.
Have I used this, or will I use this?
I've been as of late not running short on ideas for what kinds of dreams characters should be having, but if I start to, I know where to look.
How is the fluff?
The table entries are a little more generic (6-8 word dreams) than I had expected, but I think if you roll on the table a couple times and combine those elements, it will make more of an interesting dream. Trying it out in this way, I got "On a hunt and are the prey" and "Missed a ferry/boat", which is something I could work with, either combining those elements or just bumping them together, completely non-sequitur.
Hows the artwork?
None to speak of except the cover. It's a fine design, but nothing to write home about, and it's not blended in with transparency or anything. Kind of an ugly pdf.
How’s readability?
There are some small visual artifacts present, but it's not distracting. Otherwise, it's black text on a white background, with a pleasant page border, and no typos jump out at me.
Was the price fair?
At $.75, I absolutely cannot complain.
Favorite part?
A nice little d6 table is included at the end to determine the meaning if you don't already have a better idea.
Least favorite part?
"39: found a mountain made of bacon" - that's just too cartoony for me.
Why did I buy this? What did I actually get?
I really enjoy the Village Backdrop series by Raging Swan Press, and I trust Rite Publishing's product quality. So purchasing this, despite knowing the focus and level of detail would be different, was still a no-brainer for me.
Have I used this, or will I use this?
I'm hoping that one of the next campaigns I run can incorporate Ultimate Campaign's kingdom building rules. This would be, as of this writing, the first place I turn for a starting settlement.
How is the fluff?
This is the lynchpin of a product like this right? Well, it delivers, each settlement sporting a paragraph or two summary, two or three buildings, and three rumors. Every settlement here has something cool to offer, whether it's Butteroak's double palisade with assassin vine's planted between to keep out the wildlife, or Garrant's copper jewelry trade, based on leaf molds taken from red-leaved trees. Moreover, this fluff is dense. The longest of these barely spills into the next page. Very good.
How are the mechanics?
I didn't take the time to match qualities to the corruption and etc scores, but the stat blocks are all present, including stuff like Notable NPCs, Marketplace, and even Terrain Type.
How’s readability?
Layout, font, and page backgrounds are all good.
How's the look?
Art is sparse, but well done and appropriate. The covers certainly my favorite.
Was the price fair?
At $1.49, this PDF is a steal.
Favorite part?
Butteroak deals with troublemakers by making them run circuits of the aforementioned assassin vine palisade. A deliciously evil punishment.
Least favorite part?
The rumors are kind of weak. They may have been better presented as a d% table at the end, as they all come off a bit generic as is, and I don't see that any but one or two of them couldn't be used for other settlements with a slight wording tweak.
Why did I buy this? What did I actually get?
I've always found a disconnect in the default High Fantasy Pathfinder playstyle where magic is commonplace, but magic items that are a practical price for low-level characters is non-existant. Having enjoyed the Loot-4-Less series by (then) Super Genius Games, I was imagining this product to be along a similar line. Surprisingly, there is number of high price point items in here as well.
Have I used this, or will I use this?
I bought this around the time of it's release, and have yet to incorporate these items into a game. However, I would like to believe that they will see some use in a future game; neither of the characters I play, nor the campaign I presently run, have an obvious place for anything.
How is the fluff?
The fluff is a blast to read, following the tale of Mellan the bard, creator of the items herein. Learning the history of the items have DCs as well, making sure the fluff not only keeps from interfering with game mechanics, but actively complements them. This is something Rite Publishing always does well.
How are the mechanics?
In a word, fun! These items cover a lot of bases, from commonsense items in a magical world (a spoon that can detect and then purify poison) to iconic (Lightfoot Shoon allow you to double jump, while the Mantle of Unremarked Passage is a perception filter a la Doctor Who).
How’s readability?
Probably the only item I take issue with is the Arcane Anthology, as it seems to refer both to a specific book and a general type of enchanted book at the same time. It works in either sense, but I found it a little obtuse. Otherwise, editing is good, and font and layout render the PDF readable.
Was the price fair?
Absolutely.
Favorite part?
Gauntlets that protect you from the heat of forging weapons - they fall not only it the "duh" category, but they're perfect for baking, too!
Least favorite part?
Since I'm making myself pick, we'll say the bridle that prevents the rider from falling out of the saddle. Nothing wrong if it's your jam, but it tastes a touch too cheesy/exploitable for me.
5/5 - not quite what I expected, but it's probably a better product for it.
