"A collection of fantasy short stories from noted fantasy game designers and authors James M.Ward, Frank Mentzer, Christopher Clark, and Tim Kask. Walk with an elf masquerading as a human, discover the story behind Lich Dungeon and The False Prints, explore the world of Tim Kask and much, much more. This anthology is guaranteed to entertain you for more than a few trips on the plane."
Since I've been reviewing all of the products by Eldrith Enterprises lately. I thought I would revisit one of their first offerings that happened my way. The pdf of Heroes & Magic is big & clocks in at 311 pages. There are 17 stories in all. The stories run from very interesting to plan weird. There's something that really needs to be explained about these.
The stories are preludes to some of the mysteries of the campaign world that's lurking in behind the scenes in
Eldritch Enterprises worlds.
There are metric ton of James Ward's efforts here from Smallish Chamber of Doom to The Luck of The Dauntless. Each story hints at a separate element to his on going world/campaign. These stories might shed some light on his design work for upcoming products. Their entertaining, retro, & somewhat nasty in a way. There are some elements for the DM to lift from for a campaign background. Mr. Ward is one of the most prolific authors for this book. If there is a tone for the Ward efforts it would be Rpg old school adventurer.
There's only one story from the pen of Tim Kask & I'm a bit disappointed that there wasn't more. The story When Bhanas Fly is coming of age story which reveals lots of little details about the Burning Sands region of his world. The story is short, sweet, & to the point. An enterprising DM could well use it as a Jump off point for an encounter or adventure.
There are metric ton of James Ward's efforts here from Smallish Chamber of Doom to The Luck of The Dauntless. Each story hints at a separate element to his on going world/campaign. These stories might shed some light on his design work for upcoming products. Their entertaining, retro, & somewhat nasty in a way. There are some elements for the DM to lift from for a campaign background. Mr. Ward is one of the most prolific authors for this book. If there is a tone for the Ward efforts it would be Rpg old school adventurer.
There's only one story from the pen of Tim Kask & I'm a bit disappointed that there wasn't more. The story When Bhanas Fly is coming of age story which reveals lots of little details about the Burning Sands region of his world. The story is short, sweet, & to the point. An enterprising DM could well use it as a jump off point for an encounter or adventure.
Chris Clark's three efforts reveal bits & pieces of the ideas behind some of his adventures & offers a glimpse into the mind at work behind Forrest of Deceit.
JF Mentzer's efforts round out the book. They really give some cool pieces of background, little hints here & there about things in the upcoming campaign universe of the Ohio based company.
Using Heroes & Magic In An OSR Setting
With any book of fiction or fantasy the bottom line for the book is, " Is there enough material here to create a campaign or adventure over the long haul." The answer is yes. The authors know their stuff. There's enough here that's different to add to the old school material already available from Drivethru rpg.
Is the material gameble & able to create memorable or usable NPCs from the characters presented in the story. The first time I read the book it wasn't clear where the authors were going with this. However after a second read through the answer is yes. The characters make excellent NPCs as jump off points for further adventures into the worlds of Eldritch.
There's even enough within these stories to create a few interesting & entertaining combat situations.
The cost of the pdf is 8.00 but for a 311 page book that's not bad. I personally want a paper copy but I'm very old fashioned that way. My only complaint if you want to call it that is that I wanted more on Mr. Kask's world.
I'm still peeved at Mr. Mentzer's dungeon for killing my PC but all things heal with time. Pick this one up if you enjoy old school fantasy/gaming material. We don't have Dragon magazine anymore but this will do in the meantime.
You can find Heroes & Magic right Here
Still not convinced that this is a good anthology of short stories? Want to know more? Hmm well how about the chance for more background & insight into it by reading some of the notes of James Ward & the story SMALLISH CHAMBER OF DOOM
You can read the whole thing right over Here
Heroes & Magic 311 pages by Frank Mentzer, Tim Kask, Jim Ward and Chris Clark
With any book of fiction or fantasy the bottom line for the book is, " Is there enough material here to create a campaign or adventure over the long haul." The answer is yes. The authors know their stuff. There's enough here that's different to add to the old school material already available from Drivethru rpg.
Is the material gameble & able to create memorable or usable NPCs from the characters presented in the story. The first time I read the book it wasn't clear where the authors were going with this. However after a second read through the answer is yes. The characters make excellent NPCs as jump off points for further adventures into the worlds of Eldritch.
There's even enough within these stories to create a few interesting & entertaining combat situations.
The cost of the pdf is 8.00 but for a 311 page book that's not bad. I personally want a paper copy but I'm very old fashioned that way. My only complaint if you want to call it that is that I wanted more on Mr. Kask's world.
I'm still peeved at Mr. Mentzer's dungeon for killing my PC but all things heal with time. Pick this one up if you enjoy old school fantasy/gaming material. We don't have Dragon magazine anymore but this will do in the meantime.
You can find Heroes & Magic right Here
Still not convinced that this is a good anthology of short stories? Want to know more? Hmm well how about the chance for more background & insight into it by reading some of the notes of James Ward & the story SMALLISH CHAMBER OF DOOM
You can read the whole thing right over Here
Heroes & Magic 311 pages by Frank Mentzer, Tim Kask, Jim Ward and Chris Clark
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