This book was needed for some time. Since first edition, the Assamites were a one trick pony. Sure, that one trick was kind of spiffy, but there are only so many Middle Eastern Vampire assassins a game can take before it just gets a bit tired. Well, at least they weren't originally a Japanese Ninja clan, those went out of style in the 80's. Well, on to the review.
Breaking a bit from tradition, this book doesn’t start with a story. Instead it has a page from the Treaty of Tyre (the treaty that resulted in the Assamites being cursed so they can't commit Diablerie). Not really much to say about this...
Chapter one is the history chapter. It's written as a public relations pamphlet to be distributed to the Camarilla, a nice touch that makes reading it a bit more enjoyable than a simple account of history. It’s here where they start showing depth. My favorite part about the history is how well it explained the difference between the way the clan is depicted here and in previous books. Instead of simply retconing the previous editions, a plausible story is presented which makes everything that comes after actually make sense.
The second chapter is the meat of the book. This starts out with a description of Assamite society. The offices and traditions of the clan are explained in rich detail. Next come the castes. Instead of being all one unified entity, the clan has the castes (bloodlines), the Warriors (self-explanatory) the Viziers (scholars and artisans) and Sorcerers (again fairly self-explanatory). The clan's laws are presented, followed by the four main factions of the clan, and internal organizations. The standard stereotypes and powers sections follow.
There is a lot to like in this chapter. The castes are well thought out and bring diversity to the clan. And if that wasn’t enough there are four major factions in the clan as well, with members of each caste spread through each faction (although not evenly). And on top of all that you have even more sub groups. All of this adds plenty of depth to the clan, but I see how it can be a bit overwhelming too. Unfortunately this is exaggerated by the fact that people and events are referenced before they are fully explained. But everything came together fairly easily for me, although having read the Assamite section of “Nights of Prophecy” helps. The Disciplines section is fairly nice with several creative powers, some more useful than others. The included Sorcery path has a nice feel and is well balanced, although I was left wanting more than just the one, and the lack of rituals was slightly disappointing. But there is a whole list of Thaumaturgy paths usable by the Sorcerers to fill out their arsenal.
The third and final chapter contains templates and notable characters. There aren’t any bad templates, but some of them just seemed rather bland to me. The Circuit Rider, Cleaner and Archaeologist templates I enjoyed quite a bit but the Character Assassin is just the stereotypical social vampire. The rest are fairly average as templates go. There is a notable lack of assassins among them, but there are a few that skirt around the idea of assassin, such as a contract negotiator and a professional kidnapper. All in all, not bad. The notable characters seem a bit flat though. Most of them simply boil down to “Old Badass.”
All in all there is a lot to like about this book. The castes and factions add lots of variety to the clan. One faction, (the Schismatics) are even petitioning for Camarilla membership, making Assamites useable in a Camarilla based game, where they fit surpassingly well. The Assamites are now one of the most diverse clans in the game. Ironic for former one trick ponies. But for some all this diversification may seem like overkill. I still think it’s well worth a look.
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