The Inside Scoop on Gaming

Overview

The Mystery Codex was published by Eden Studios before they put out the current edition of the WitchCraft main rulebook. However, it includes all the new and modified rules that were included in the second edition, thus making it unnecessary to purchase the main book again. 42 pages are devoted to this "patch" information. If you have the second edition of WitchCraft, you can skip many parts of Chapter Two. But not all of it: the new, expanded martial arts rules are in there, as is a short discussion of becoming Gifted during play. Also, the familiar "capsule descriptions" of the four new Associations lie within.

The meat of the Mystery Codex is located in Chapters Three to Six, respectively titled Inhumans, Associations, Metaphysics, and Supernatural. At the end one finds an appendix, which includes a glossary, some tables and an index, all of which look and feel similar to their counterparts in the main book.

New Players

Chapter Three, Inhumans, is the longest in the book and for a reason: It introduces four new character types to the game. They are divided into Spirits and Undead, both of which have two subtypes. Spirits include Ghosts and Phantasms, while Undead consist of Vampyres and Relentless Dead. All four were previously described in the main rulebook in the monster section with variable level of detail. In the Mystery Codex, the write-ups are greatly expanded, which incidentally makes it easier for the Chronicler to create unique and powerful opponents for the PCs. Those might come in handy very soon in an Inhuman campaign, as it it rightly noted that these character types can be too powerful for ordinary games.

Ghosts are Spirits who have little ability to manifest physically, but have an interesting selection of powers (and weaknesses) to compensate. Phantasms can become corporeal, have their own special abilities and can also access some of the Ghosts' abilities.

Vampyres are much as you might expect, though some of their special powers are quite nasty and might surprise a few players. Relentless Dead can at first glance be confused with common zombies, but these Undead are more powerful than your average living dead by far. For instance, the book states that "it is impossible to destroy the Relentless Dead with Mundane weapons." Characters who expect the usual headshot to drop a Relentless Dead will be most unhappy. The Dead also have a few special powers, though not nearly as many as Vampyres. The Nemesis power is probably my favorite: a Relentless Dead with Nemesis is on its own enough to build an adventure upon (and a surefire way to baffle, scare and kill PCs).

New Friends

The next chapter deals with the four new Associations. The Fellowship of Judas, also known as the Iscariots, are repentant sinners who try to make up for their past deeds. Most of them were previously "the losers of society", to quote the book; thieves, junkies, drug pushers, misfits, geeks, suicides and so on. Many Iscariots are Undead, particularly Vampyres. I quite liked the description of their history, which involves the original Judas, his Followers and the Combine (described in the main rulebook).

The House of Thanatos deals with death and its secrets, much like the Twilight Order. However, they have much more insider knowledge of the topic, since most of their members are Undead and Spirits. They try to become Immortal without becoming Undead, yet knowing that it might take them damn near forever to accomplish. In the meantime, they also help to protect this reality from outside forces such as the Mad Gods.

The Pariahs are survivors of extensive, horrific abuse, many being physically or emotionally crippled as a result. They are few in number and remain in hiding from the normal society. What sets them apart is their ability to channel their anger and anguish through their bodies, to transform themselves into gruesome (but deadly) forms. They call this power the Disciplines of the Flesh. Ruled by local Beggar Kings, the Pariahs follow the motto "Deliver others from the horrors that made you," or at least try to.

The Storm Dragons are a quite cheerful bunch in comparison. They are legendary martial arts masters devoted to combating supernatural predators. They have access to Tao-Chi, the Way of the Soul, which makes them capable of some very Feng Shui-like stunts.

New Things to Do, Places to Go

Chapter Five discusses the new metaphysic abilities, Disciplines of the Flesh and Tao-Chi. It also adds new Lesser Invocations and introduces the conecpt of Greater Invocations, which are scary. Witches can now bilocate, teleport, create magical items, restore missing limbs and so on. Necromancers also get new, powerful abilities such as Transincarnation and Soul Armor.

Chapter Six details the Sephiroth (Otherworld) of Geburah, also known as Hel or Hades, wherein lie the Death Realms. Their physical laws, inhabitants, and possible adventure uses are described. Other major Sephiroths are mentioned briefly, and finally we get a new Dark Covenant and a new monster type, the Ferals (were-creatures).

So...

What do I think of the book? In short, I like it. I feel it is not an absolutely essential product to own, as the basic book gives you plenty to play with, but it adds a good deal of variety into the world of WitchCraft and Individual Chroniclers need not use everything included at once. For example, I think that the Storm Dragons are slightly out of place among the other darker groups in the world, and will maybe leave them out of my game or modify them a little. (I've also been thinking of running a campaign focused on the Dragons, kind of a more horrific and less over the top Feng Shui, but there's never enough time...) The Spirit and Undead characters are a worthwhile inclusion, and the other three Associations were nice, especially the Iscariots.

The reason I like WitchCraft is its openness. It can closely emulate many horror novels, films or TV series and still stay within its own vision of the world. Kult still takes the prize as the meanest horror RPG I've seen, and the World of Darkness is better supported, but neither of those can be as easily twisted to your own ends - at least that's how it seems to me. The Mystery Codex is a good purchase regardless of which edition you own.

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

Mystery Codex
Author: CJ Carella Category: game Company/Publisher: Eden Studios Line: Witchcraft Cost: $23.00 Page count: 226 ISBN: 1-891153-41-2 SKU: EDN4001 Capsule Review by Mikko Kauppinen on 08/11/00. Genre tags: Modern day Horror Conspiracy Vampire	Overview The Mystery Codex was published by Eden Studios before they put out the current edition of the WitchCraft main rulebook. However, it includes all the new and modified rules that were included in the second edition, thus making it unnecessary to purchase the main book again. 42 pages are devoted to this "patch" information. If you have the second edition of WitchCraft, you can skip many parts of Chapter Two. But not all of it: the new, expanded martial arts rules are in there, as is a short discussion of becoming Gifted during play. Also, the familiar "capsule descriptions" of the four new Associations lie within. The meat of the Mystery Codex is located in Chapters Three to Six, respectively titled Inhumans, Associations, Metaphysics, and Supernatural. At the end one finds an appendix, which includes a glossary, some tables and an index, all of which look and feel similar to their counterparts in the main book. New Players Chapter Three, Inhumans, is the longest in the book and for a reason: It introduces four new character types to the game. They are divided into Spirits and Undead, both of which have two subtypes. Spirits include Ghosts and Phantasms, while Undead consist of Vampyres and Relentless Dead. All four were previously described in the main rulebook in the monster section with variable level of detail. In the Mystery Codex, the write-ups are greatly expanded, which incidentally makes it easier for the Chronicler to create unique and powerful opponents for the PCs. Those might come in handy very soon in an Inhuman campaign, as it it rightly noted that these character types can be too powerful for ordinary games. Ghosts are Spirits who have little ability to manifest physically, but have an interesting selection of powers (and weaknesses) to compensate. Phantasms can become corporeal, have their own special abilities and can also access some of the Ghosts' abilities. Vampyres are much as you might expect, though some of their special powers are quite nasty and might surprise a few players. Relentless Dead can at first glance be confused with common zombies, but these Undead are more powerful than your average living dead by far. For instance, the book states that "it is impossible to destroy the Relentless Dead with Mundane weapons." Characters who expect the usual headshot to drop a Relentless Dead will be most unhappy. The Dead also have a few special powers, though not nearly as many as Vampyres. The Nemesis power is probably my favorite: a Relentless Dead with Nemesis is on its own enough to build an adventure upon (and a surefire way to baffle, scare and kill PCs). New Friends The next chapter deals with the four new Associations. The Fellowship of Judas, also known as the Iscariots, are repentant sinners who try to make up for their past deeds. Most of them were previously "the losers of society", to quote the book; thieves, junkies, drug pushers, misfits, geeks, suicides and so on. Many Iscariots are Undead, particularly Vampyres. I quite liked the description of their history, which involves the original Judas, his Followers and the Combine (described in the main rulebook). The House of Thanatos deals with death and its secrets, much like the Twilight Order. However, they have much more insider knowledge of the topic, since most of their members are Undead and Spirits. They try to become Immortal without becoming Undead, yet knowing that it might take them damn near forever to accomplish. In the meantime, they also help to protect this reality from outside forces such as the Mad Gods. The Pariahs are survivors of extensive, horrific abuse, many being physically or emotionally crippled as a result. They are few in number and remain in hiding from the normal society. What sets them apart is their ability to channel their anger and anguish through their bodies, to transform themselves into gruesome (but deadly) forms. They call this power the Disciplines of the Flesh. Ruled by local Beggar Kings, the Pariahs follow the motto "Deliver others from the horrors that made you," or at least try to. The Storm Dragons are a quite cheerful bunch in comparison. They are legendary martial arts masters devoted to combating supernatural predators. They have access to Tao-Chi, the Way of the Soul, which makes them capable of some very Feng Shui-like stunts. New Things to Do, Places to Go Chapter Five discusses the new metaphysic abilities, Disciplines of the Flesh and Tao-Chi. It also adds new Lesser Invocations and introduces the conecpt of Greater Invocations, which are scary. Witches can now bilocate, teleport, create magical items, restore missing limbs and so on. Necromancers also get new, powerful abilities such as Transincarnation and Soul Armor. Chapter Six details the Sephiroth (Otherworld) of Geburah, also known as Hel or Hades, wherein lie the Death Realms. Their physical laws, inhabitants, and possible adventure uses are described. Other major Sephiroths are mentioned briefly, and finally we get a new Dark Covenant and a new monster type, the Ferals (were-creatures). So... What do I think of the book? In short, I like it. I feel it is not an absolutely essential product to own, as the basic book gives you plenty to play with, but it adds a good deal of variety into the world of WitchCraft and Individual Chroniclers need not use everything included at once. For example, I think that the Storm Dragons are slightly out of place among the other darker groups in the world, and will maybe leave them out of my game or modify them a little. (I've also been thinking of running a campaign focused on the Dragons, kind of a more horrific and less over the top Feng Shui, but there's never enough time...) The Spirit and Undead characters are a worthwhile inclusion, and the other three Associations were nice, especially the Iscariots. The reason I like WitchCraft is its openness. It can closely emulate many horror novels, films or TV series and still stay within its own vision of the world. Kult still takes the prize as the meanest horror RPG I've seen, and the World of Darkness is better supported, but neither of those can be as easily twisted to your own ends - at least that's how it seems to me. The Mystery Codex is a good purchase regardless of which edition you own. Style: 4 (Classy and well done) Substance: 4 (Meaty)