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I reviewed the first edition of WitchCraft a few weeks ago, and its first supplement, the Mystery Codex should be among the list of reviews for this week. Eden Studios was nice enough to mail me a free copy of the second edition rules so that I can familiarize myself with them and have the latest version for reference and I playtest the line for them.

Since the Eden Studios edition is such a marked improvement over the first edition, I felt that I should write another review. Because, however, this edition is largely the same text, those who want a closer look at the setting and basic premise itself should read my review of the first edition of WitchCraft. The setting itself has not changed, the second edition is a revision of the rules and a better layout and editing job.

The book is printed in the same size format as the Mystery Codex, shorter and more square than more RPG books on the market. The distinctive size is actually quite nice, not as annoying as one would expect, it handles somewhat better then the size that White Wolf is using for their Trinity and Aberrant lines, but the square look is still strange.

Most of the text is the same between the first edition and the second edition, it was mainly re-formatted and edited, something that the Myrmidion Press edition was severely lacking in, although it was much more apparent just how much when I read the Eden Studios copy.

Character creation and the system itself remain the same, except for some minor tweaks in the Skill descriptions and point costs for Qualities and Drawbacks. The major revisions are in the metaphysics section, where magic is simplified, and necromancy and psychic powers explained a great deal better. Instead of rolling to cast the spell and then rolling to dismiss the energy, both of which take penalties if you use a large amount of Essence in the spell, you simply roll to cast, only worrying about dismissal if you fail to cast properly. The increased difficulty of manipulating more Essence was dropped from the Eden edition (although it is mentioned as an optional rule) and I think that it was one of the few negative rules changes that Eden Studios made. It is, however, easily fixed using the optional rule.

The rest of the book finishes of with the monsters and game mastering advice from the first edition, with the addition of several charts and lists useful for character creation and a nice, comprehensive index. That, coupled with the long table of contents and the clearer layout and editing, make this copy much easier to navigate than the first edition book.

Not much has changed in the game content-wise, so my opinion that WitchCraft is a rather interesting game still stands, it is just that my opinion of the products and hope for high quality future supplements has increased with the nice job that Eden Studios and Carella did with this second edition.

Style: 4 (Classy and well done)
Substance: 4 (Meaty)

WitchCraft
Author: C.J. Carella, M. Alexander Jurkat and John M. Kahane Category: game Company/Publisher: Eden Studios, Inc Line: WitchCraft Cost: $28 Page count: 316 ISBN: 1-891153-40-2 SKU: EDN4000 Playtest Review by Derek Guder on 10/25/99. Genre tags: Fantasy Modern_day Horror Gothic	I reviewed the first edition of WitchCraft a few weeks ago, and its first supplement, the Mystery Codex should be among the list of reviews for this week. Eden Studios was nice enough to mail me a free copy of the second edition rules so that I can familiarize myself with them and have the latest version for reference and I playtest the line for them. Since the Eden Studios edition is such a marked improvement over the first edition, I felt that I should write another review. Because, however, this edition is largely the same text, those who want a closer look at the setting and basic premise itself should read my review of the first edition of WitchCraft. The setting itself has not changed, the second edition is a revision of the rules and a better layout and editing job. The book is printed in the same size format as the Mystery Codex, shorter and more square than more RPG books on the market. The distinctive size is actually quite nice, not as annoying as one would expect, it handles somewhat better then the size that White Wolf is using for their Trinity and Aberrant lines, but the square look is still strange. Most of the text is the same between the first edition and the second edition, it was mainly re-formatted and edited, something that the Myrmidion Press edition was severely lacking in, although it was much more apparent just how much when I read the Eden Studios copy. Character creation and the system itself remain the same, except for some minor tweaks in the Skill descriptions and point costs for Qualities and Drawbacks. The major revisions are in the metaphysics section, where magic is simplified, and necromancy and psychic powers explained a great deal better. Instead of rolling to cast the spell and then rolling to dismiss the energy, both of which take penalties if you use a large amount of Essence in the spell, you simply roll to cast, only worrying about dismissal if you fail to cast properly. The increased difficulty of manipulating more Essence was dropped from the Eden edition (although it is mentioned as an optional rule) and I think that it was one of the few negative rules changes that Eden Studios made. It is, however, easily fixed using the optional rule. The rest of the book finishes of with the monsters and game mastering advice from the first edition, with the addition of several charts and lists useful for character creation and a nice, comprehensive index. That, coupled with the long table of contents and the clearer layout and editing, make this copy much easier to navigate than the first edition book. Not much has changed in the game content-wise, so my opinion that WitchCraft is a rather interesting game still stands, it is just that my opinion of the products and hope for high quality future supplements has increased with the nice job that Eden Studios and Carella did with this second edition. Style: 4 (Classy and well done) Substance: 4 (Meaty)