Sign in to create or edit a product review. The Ur-kasti Deta or Taken of the Unborn is by itself an interesting concept with many role playing possibilities... of course the scenarios that come to my mind are darker than the light hearted commentaries of the designer. I see dark quests and adventure hooks that can be used both for a horror or a very dark campaign where the heroes have either to protect an unborn child or recover it. The Ur-kasti Deta are not by itself tough... but their abilities make them difficult to stop, so it can be pretty frustrating for players to confront them. It also may seem arbitrary by the DM to get the PCs pregnant... even more if its a male character... but how to use this creatures is the province of every distinct DM. I see a very concrete, complicate encounter, but it can be a lot more. a CE version of this monster can easily be agent of darker powers: The Unseelie courts as they exchange fae with mortal children, or they can be en Golarion servants of Lamashtu, delivering monstrous children into human or elven mothers, and their children into monstrous cultures. That is about the creature, the format is clear, the layout is pretty good and the image is quite evocative, it brings to mind a short story of Horacio Quiroga, "the Feathered Pillow (el almohadon emplumado)" from "Stories of Love, Madness, and Death (Cuentos de Amor, de Locura y de Muerte)". Reading Black God’s Kiss made me realize what have I lost at not knowing Catherine Lucille Moore. The five histories (and the crossover with her husband’s character) appearing in Black God’s Kiss (which is both the first story’s name in the volume and the one which marks Jiriel of Joiry as an extraordinaire and quite human character) let me taste something of what Moore really is. There is no other way to begin talking about Black god’s Kiss and C. L. Moore than analizing Jirel of Joiry, which can be defined with one word: Fire. Jirel is nothing if not passionate; rage and passion and love (in a sort of way) rule her live, more than once this deep rage, this lust for life is what lets her survive the ordeals she confronts; from dark gods, to evil men, to dark wizards and men from the future. But Jirel is not only fire in essence, but also in body, from her long red hair, her lion yellow eyes, to the passion present on the feminine curves of her body, to her expression of eternal defiance or her burly celebration after victory. That is what defines Jirel of Joiry, such passion that forces us, as it does to her men, follow her into battle and sometimes into the abyss and stranger lands. Yet still, Jirel is quite human herself. She is pasional, courageous and sometimes barbaric… yet she is also honorable, naïve, superstitious, and human in her desires. More than once she has found herself vulnerable and afraid, but most of the time her fury gives her the upper hand… other times she is as much afraid as any other girl… but in the hells she has taken to visit, who would not be afraid. From the first story to the last France, from where she reigns Joiry, is nothing but a background to give us a frame of reference to understand Jirel. As some say, “Jirel comes from a naiver era”. From this background we rarely see something more than the walls of her castle and those of her enemies, we learn that she has a cousin with a fortress close to her land, an allies and enemies too, yet we heard nothing of her parents or suitors. She is a catholic and has god in high regard, yet she wouldn’t think twice in damn her soul or leave the protection of the cross if that is what she needs to destroy her enemies. That is France… but the true stories always take… well… elsewhere. From outlandish worlds what when seen in the plain light of day will take your sanity away, fiendish and esoteric worlds that can only be understood under the veil of illusions, fae-like worlds with doors to worlds unimagined by mortal minds, esoteric places between the worlds of reality and fantasy. They all are populated by strange versions of ourselves, or bizarre creatures we hardly imagined in our weirdest dreams, where Jiriel usually travels alone, moving between alien creatures, some of which from human, only have the appearance… and usually it’s never the true one. Reading Dark God’s Kiss and many of Jirel’s stories is like reading an story of a female medieval Conan crossing in between worlds that H.P. Lovecraft would have imagined. An interesting and dangerous mixture, where she understand the impossibility of what she lives, but only has her senses to guide her and her rage to impulse her to win against, sometimes, impossible odds. But as always, her rage is a two bladed sword, as much times saving her, as making imperiling her, or destroying what she loves… more than once taking her to death’s door if not for outside forces. So, what can I said about C. L. Moore and Dark God’s Kiss? Simply, I enjoyed deeply her stories and fall deeply in love with Jiriel, so much that the last stories I drank them like sweet wine, unable to stop and taking myself a day to savor the aftertaste this story left me before beginning with something else. If you have the chance… don’t doubt it, and give Jiriel an opportunity, I am sure she will bewitch you as she did with me. The Anubis Murders by Gary Gigax it’s a curious way to begin a line about classic sci-fi writers (many of them unknown to the common reader), but as Erik Mona (in the prologue) and James Sutter (in PaizoCon 2009) exposed there is a reason.
Yes, fantasy and sci fantasy still existed, but the source that influenced lots of them and in the end the hobby in which we participate were left in the past and when reprinted... they lost much of what was worth on them. So I suppose to begin Planet Stories was a tribute to the man who brought this lost world back to us. But why the Anubis murders, considering he had stories before it? Well Erik explains it plainly in his prologue so I won't ruin a good story... but I would also think it’s like to have a fresh beginning. The Anubis Murders is presented in a world not so different than ours during the classic era, a quite defined world where Camelot brushed elbows with the "Ancient Egypt", a world where Merlin is a renowned wizard, but no more, a land where gods influence the world and an ancient evil stirs. So why began with Anubis Murders? Because, it’s a good place to begin with. The Anubis Murders is a refreshing look of the world and a refreshing read, one of the first stories in which we have a cleric (ok wizard priest) as the main hero. Not a man to take sword or "adventurous" even if he does follow adventure wherever it takes. Setneh Inhetep, servant of the pharaoh, wizard-priest, uncanny detective and a man with a rich background, made human for the fact that he not only has virtues, but also flaws he can understand and accept... if not change. Setneh takes us into the path of danger while analyzing his surroundings, seeing beyond our sight, but giving a few clues so we can arrive to his same conclusions by our own insight. The Anubis Murders in the end is a detective stories of the pulp era happening in a world not so different than ours, and where magic should have made it easy to arrive to an early ending. But taking this into account I believe Gygax arrived to an elegant performance of why would magic doesn't uncover the mystery after a few chapters. Yes, the story is NOT perfect and it has a few flaws. It falls in clichés (understandable with Gigax experience and how true he was to the classic sources) and his heroine Rachelle, even when she could easily be an heroic character he tells us early in the story that she can be as much heroine as lady in disgrace. No complains here, I did liked Rachelle. Another small detail is how in the last chapters he exchange in descriptions one character for another, I suppose Paizo left this intentionally, letting the source be as true to itself as they could. The careful and attentive reader would, by the end of the book, certainly know of what I am talking about. And if the fanatics of magic needed any more impulses or reasons to read this... you won't find a better example of 'Time Stop' anywhere; a vivid, vivid and creative use of magic. A living magic miles away of "I cast Magic Missile". All in all, The Anubis Murders is a great detective story in the middle of a Sword and Magic universe. Enjoy the reading, I know I did. Rogue’s Gallery is an interesting and original scenario for those moments in which you need a quick way into the dark and seedy side of society, and still have some kind of net under their feet… at least until they anger someone important. Maybe the most attractive feature of the Tavern would be the fact that it offers the possibility for a lot of interesting open options and alternatives beyond the hooks presented in the document… from patrons you can add… to the mystery behind the owners of the place. Something open to debate would be the narrative perspective, since it’s the 1st person of an adventurer, it lets us understand and feel the place much better, but others would complain for the lack of objectivity of the narrator. The map makes for an interesting place with lots of opportunities for cloak & dagger encounter or a noir scene. My only personal critic would be for part of the art, that while good… some of it is entirely unoriginal. An excellent sourcebook that shows us the different sides of being an elf: physically, mentally and spiritually. New options for the elven players, new equipment and the examples of how deeply is the connection between elves and the magic or the use of the bow. An excellent sourcebook for those who love the elves or plan them as antagonist, the only thing it lacks is more information on the the other elven races (its mostly the high elves of Kyoningthe ones mentioned, with the Forlorns in the mix) |