The Inside Scoop on Gaming

So I'm searching Usenet, and I find 17 million messages about how White Wolf hates it's customers as shown by this Hunter PR stunt, and another 12 million about how "Game X is the best role-playing game EVER and if you don't know that then you're an idiot!!!!" Meanwhile, Atlas Games' Unknown Armies just came out with another nearly perfect sourcebook, and I can't find anything about it except for the announcement from Atlas that it's being sent out. The signal-to-noise ratio has hit tragic proportions, kids. So consider this your wakeup call: Run, don't walk, to your nearest game store and pick this up.
But enough banter. On to "Lawyers, Guns, and Money," (LGaM) The New Inquisition sourcebook. And what a sourcebook it is! This is old school, kids. Written by Greg Stolze, LGaM is what you were brought up expecting supplements to be…informative, fun, and most of all, worth the price you paid. 'Cause that's what the New Inquisition is all about…
So you want to know who the New Inquisition are? They're Alex Abel's private storm-troopers, out there to steal, sabotage, and gain power for their boss. What's in it for them? They get a clean slate…a new face, new papers, and a new lease on life.
Who's Alex Abel? A millionaire who wants to join the Invisible Clergy, the next best thing to God.
But you'd know all that if you read the main rulebook. LGaM serves the dual purpose of fleshing out TNI as well as providing so much nonTNI fodder for even the most incompetent GM that you've just got to say, "Enough." Okay, maybe you don't…I didn't. But I did come away satisfied, which says a lot.

Just The Facts:
LGaM begins with a knockout bit of fiction that would've made a good piece of work anywhere, let alone in a sourcebook. It makes "Pulp Fiction" look dull, this does. It's fast, furious and funny. It also is the rarest of game-fic…it'd make a great bit of adventuring, right off the page, with no changes.
Then on to the meat…a four page history of TNI and Alex Abel, full without being dull. Two sidebars flesh this bit out, one about the symbolism of TNI's name and another that suggests a dark possibility about Alex Abel.
Next comes a chapter on the Operations of TNI. What they do, how they do it, and their feelings on the other heavy hitters of the Occult Underground. Well written, but done in such away that TNI can be fitted to your campaign. It also talks about TNI slang and security clearances.
The next chapter is a whole wad of gear, along with the security clearances that rate it, as well as stuff like safehouses and the like. It's got a lot of neat items, from pseudo-spy gear to a really nasty Bulldozer.
After gear, you get Personnel. Another great demonstration of the Unknown Armies system is the way that a lot of people with skills that depart from "standard" UA are written up comprehensively and their powers described with no fuss. And just one adept! Each group, from assassins, to con-men, to investigators, to plastic-surgeons(!) get their due without falling prey to cookie-cutter sameness.
And then, the Secrets. And what secrets they are! From dirt on Alex Abel to a hilarious kind of mystic diving rod, this is chock full of plot hooks. I can't tell you anything about them without ruining it, but this is one of the sections that would be great for GMs of any stripe, no matter the flavor of UA campaign.
Finally, you've got your appendices. You know, new skills, info on how to play out car chases, dossiers on TNI's enemies, and two adventures, one being "standard" linear fare, but still excellent; and the other being a kind of free-for-all. The skills and car-chase rules let this product be a must-have even for those without campaigns in which TNI is bad-guy or good-guy.

The Looks Another feather in LGaM's cap is the art. The cover's evocative without being as graphic as either the UA rulebook or One-Shot. The interior art is a great blend of different artist's works and some photos of the weirdest stuff. The front and back interior covers carry on the UA tradition of neat, enigmatic catchphrases and strange photos. The inside front cover bears the honor of having the most sinister depiction of Ronald McDonald or a twin of his ever.
And I didn't catch a single editing error…if you want to go hunting, do so, but I thought it bears mentioning.

Overall
"Lawyers, Guns and Money," besides being named after a great Warren Zevon song, is another average Unknown Armies supplement. Luckily, the average UA supplement is head and shoulders above the rest of the stuff out there.
And LGaM is great for other games as well…TNI would make an excellent crew in either a Delta Green or Conspiracy X game, spoken by the man who used them for the latter.
So what are you waiting for?

Style: 4 (Classy and well done)
Substance: 5 (Excellent!)

Lawyers, Guns and Money
Author: Greg Stolze Category: game Company/Publisher: Atlas Games Line: Unknown Armies Cost: 19.95 Page count: 126 ISBN: 1-887801-78-2 SKU: AG6002 Capsule Review by Eric Brennan on 11/01/99. Genre tags: Modern_day Horror	So I'm searching Usenet, and I find 17 million messages about how White Wolf hates it's customers as shown by this Hunter PR stunt, and another 12 million about how "Game X is the best role-playing game EVER and if you don't know that then you're an idiot!!!!" Meanwhile, Atlas Games' Unknown Armies just came out with another nearly perfect sourcebook, and I can't find anything about it except for the announcement from Atlas that it's being sent out. The signal-to-noise ratio has hit tragic proportions, kids. So consider this your wakeup call: Run, don't walk, to your nearest game store and pick this up. But enough banter. On to "Lawyers, Guns, and Money," (LGaM) The New Inquisition sourcebook. And what a sourcebook it is! This is old school, kids. Written by Greg Stolze, LGaM is what you were brought up expecting supplements to be…informative, fun, and most of all, worth the price you paid. 'Cause that's what the New Inquisition is all about… So you want to know who the New Inquisition are? They're Alex Abel's private storm-troopers, out there to steal, sabotage, and gain power for their boss. What's in it for them? They get a clean slate…a new face, new papers, and a new lease on life. Who's Alex Abel? A millionaire who wants to join the Invisible Clergy, the next best thing to God. But you'd know all that if you read the main rulebook. LGaM serves the dual purpose of fleshing out TNI as well as providing so much nonTNI fodder for even the most incompetent GM that you've just got to say, "Enough." Okay, maybe you don't…I didn't. But I did come away satisfied, which says a lot. Just The Facts: LGaM begins with a knockout bit of fiction that would've made a good piece of work anywhere, let alone in a sourcebook. It makes "Pulp Fiction" look dull, this does. It's fast, furious and funny. It also is the rarest of game-fic…it'd make a great bit of adventuring, right off the page, with no changes. Then on to the meat…a four page history of TNI and Alex Abel, full without being dull. Two sidebars flesh this bit out, one about the symbolism of TNI's name and another that suggests a dark possibility about Alex Abel. Next comes a chapter on the Operations of TNI. What they do, how they do it, and their feelings on the other heavy hitters of the Occult Underground. Well written, but done in such away that TNI can be fitted to your campaign. It also talks about TNI slang and security clearances. The next chapter is a whole wad of gear, along with the security clearances that rate it, as well as stuff like safehouses and the like. It's got a lot of neat items, from pseudo-spy gear to a really nasty Bulldozer. After gear, you get Personnel. Another great demonstration of the Unknown Armies system is the way that a lot of people with skills that depart from "standard" UA are written up comprehensively and their powers described with no fuss. And just one adept! Each group, from assassins, to con-men, to investigators, to plastic-surgeons(!) get their due without falling prey to cookie-cutter sameness. And then, the Secrets. And what secrets they are! From dirt on Alex Abel to a hilarious kind of mystic diving rod, this is chock full of plot hooks. I can't tell you anything about them without ruining it, but this is one of the sections that would be great for GMs of any stripe, no matter the flavor of UA campaign. Finally, you've got your appendices. You know, new skills, info on how to play out car chases, dossiers on TNI's enemies, and two adventures, one being "standard" linear fare, but still excellent; and the other being a kind of free-for-all. The skills and car-chase rules let this product be a must-have even for those without campaigns in which TNI is bad-guy or good-guy. The Looks Another feather in LGaM's cap is the art. The cover's evocative without being as graphic as either the UA rulebook or One-Shot. The interior art is a great blend of different artist's works and some photos of the weirdest stuff. The front and back interior covers carry on the UA tradition of neat, enigmatic catchphrases and strange photos. The inside front cover bears the honor of having the most sinister depiction of Ronald McDonald or a twin of his ever. And I didn't catch a single editing error…if you want to go hunting, do so, but I thought it bears mentioning. Overall "Lawyers, Guns and Money," besides being named after a great Warren Zevon song, is another average Unknown Armies supplement. Luckily, the average UA supplement is head and shoulders above the rest of the stuff out there. And LGaM is great for other games as well…TNI would make an excellent crew in either a Delta Green or Conspiracy X game, spoken by the man who used them for the latter. So what are you waiting for? Style: 4 (Classy and well done) Substance: 5 (Excellent!)