Before I get started on this review, I would like everyone to know that my knowledge of the SW universe is limited to what was in the movies and more recently what is in the SW RPG. I have not read any of the books or comic books so please keep that in mind.
When I first saw the Darkside Sourcebook, I was intrigued. Here at last was what seemed to be a book that would provide some information on what was supposed to be "Darkside of the Force". The price put me off a bit but then considering that I know people who will pay over $100 for a pair of Nikes I figured what the hell.You get what you pay for.
The overall production is slick and quite stylish. The interior art actually matches the text about 90% of the time which is a welcome change. The page layout is good with the page numbers being easy to read. The cover is good but not quite as striking as the say the one for PEG's "Weird Wars". At first glance, it gives the impression of being some coffee table book.
The writing, while not brilliant, certainly gives a good basic view of the underlying morality, if you will, of the Star Wars Universe. It is easy to read and understand which is important for people like me who want to get a feel for the SW universe without having to wade through interminable novels, anthologies, and whatever. I walked away from this book with the certain knowledge that the SW Universe was very much the "Good vs Evil" universe with some room for the Gray Middle as it were.
I found the gaming information to have some problems. Quite frankly I couldn't figure out the purpose behind the "Darkside Marauder" or the "Dark Force Witch" classes as seperate classes. It seems to me that all you would have to do is take the Force Adept from the basic RPG and darken him or her up(or is that down). I realize that the d20 system is class based but this may be putting too fine an edge on it. The same can be said for the "Dark Jedi" class.
The other problem that I have is with some of the mechanics of going over to the Darkside. According to the DS Sourcebook, if your character accumulates Darkside Points equal to at least half of his Wisdom score than he should be considered an "evil" character. Once his Darkside Point total exceeds his Wisdom score then he is pretty much a spiritual goner. I dunno...this reminds of my Roman Catholic upbringing where we learned that there were various kinds of sins and that you could get time knocked off your stint in Purgatory for saying the right prayers. It's sort of like God/the Force is a Master CPA and you're one of the beans that He's counting. I realize that some game mechanics are necessary. This one in particular struck me as a bit odd and out of place considering the subject matter.
The Galactic History essay was short but helpful. One of my favorite parts of the DS Sourcebook is the section on how to run a campaign set in the Old Republic. It is well written and gives enough basic information to get a "Good Ol' Days" campaign off and running. I also liked the concept of the Darkside Spirits. You could really get a good horror adventure going using these along with the "Haunted Places".
Overall, I think that there's enough good material in Darkside Sourcebook to balance out the bad. I feel that I got my money's worth
Go to forum!
(Due to spamming, old forum discussions are no linked.)