Backdrops
A D20 supplement from Penumbra, but really suitable for any medieval game.
Backdrops is a little 31 page, $8.95 supplement from Penumbra. It consists of 14 sets of 2-page spreads... each one describes a location on the left-hand page and has a map of it on the right. The idea is that Backdrops gives you maps and descriptions of 14 typical locations in a fantasy campaign.
I picked it up, not for D20, but for my Ironclaw game. Most of the locations are suitable for any fantasy RPG, so it seemed like a nice (and cheap) investment.
I'll go through the locations really quickly; they are:
1) Bazaar. A big map showing dozens of little stalls strewn not-quite-haphazardly around a field. Everything lines up on a square grid; it seems a little odd that none of the stalls are diagonal, but there you go. Probably a software limitation- all of the maps are like that.
2) The Athenaeum (basically a library) is more interesting. The map reveals a wealth of small details... statues, chairs, the librarian's weapons (stored away in his little abode), even a globe on a stand. The map is very nice, and the athenaeum is very suitable for most any fantasy game.
3) The Public Baths. A nicely done and intricate map, and a good description of the area. This is a bath house for a major city; it has four public baths (with different temperatures of water), four private baths, changing rooms and even a kitchen.
4) Ship. A typical merchant vessel. This one could really use a secondary map for the hold, but it's nice enough.
5) Wharf (actually a fisherman's wharf). This is a small maze of docks extending haphazardly out into the water.
6) Stables. Typical city stable- lots of stalls, lots of hay, lots of equipment in big cluttered piles.
7) Smithy. A nice sized smithy with a large forge.
8) The Toll Bridge is really more of a heavily fortified bridge/fortress. This is a major piece of construction, heavily guarded, with defensive traps and magical devices.
9) Temple. A small, non-denomination-specific temple. There are 7 pews and a good bit of statuary.
10) Caravanserai is a little fortress structure built along a desolate road for the use of passing caravans. This would make a decent single story inn, too.
11) The Tavern. A nice, straightforward single-floor tavern. Some of the sidebar text on the left is cut off, but overall it's good.
12) Alleyway. This gives you a section of town consisting of winding streets, lots of small buildings, a sewer grate, and what I assume are supposed to be overhead walkways between buildings.
13) Merchant's District. A street filled with lots and lots of small, usually single-story shops. Like the bazaar, this map isn't too impressive. I'd rather see a close up of a single shop than a street view of little featureless buildings.
14) City Dungeon. Yeah, a lot of PCs who explore the other maps are gonna end up here in the end.
Okay, so that's the list. What's my impression?
Good. Overall, good. The maps are very well done, and a number of them have little details that I would never have thought to include if I had to sketch one out on the fly. I bought it for the maps. Each area also has a decent length text description on the facing page, explaining what it is and describing the area in more detail. Very nice. There are also "twists" to most of them... each one has at least one box with text describing some special data, like how to handle balance checks on the ship during stormy weather, a new kind of magical horse available at the stable, new magic items, etc.
What's bad? Well... I didn't buy it for the D20 rules. And I'm glad. Some of these seem really extreme. The bazaar offers a new combat rule where every miss in combat causes a random amount of damage to an adjoining stall. The athenaeum has an example of a really powerful (and rather odd) cursed tome. The rules for handling the scattered litter (broken glass, hooks, harpoon tips) in the sludge underneath the wharf pier um... well, if you hit bottom you suffer 1d6 attacks at d20 plus 10 vs your AC, each hit inflicting d4 damage. Don't let low-level people fall off the docks.
The toll bridge has a pretty darn impressive enchantment... there's a magical alarm that tells the guards whenever anyone who is Chaotic or Evil passes underneath. Then the guards interrogate them. Um. So, personally, I'd figure that's about 1/3 of the people going through the bridge. Not to mention that I was under the impression that the "know aligment" spell didn't exist in D&D3. Anyway, it's easily changed to something more reasonable... say the alarm detects anyone going through with a spell on them, or any extraplanar creature.
Anyway, all in all, this is still a really nice product. I'm iffy on some of the D20 rules, but that's okay, because I wasn't interested in them, anyway. What I wanted were the location maps, particularly with all of those wonderful little details that I'd never think to include myself. The private baths at the bath house. The tiny shrine in the caravanserai. The pits in the city dungeon. These are really cool.
And some of the suggestions are really nice. The tavern has a table of difficulties for earning your keep as a bard. It has some cute details, like telling an entertaining story is easier if it rhymes, or if the villain gets his just penalty at the end. They don't care for mimes much... a mime act has the highest difficulty, which, ya know... suits me just fine. The merchant district has a table of 20 random traits that a given merchant could have, like favoring a particular race of customer, refusing to sell to people who don't share his religion, or being partially deaf. These little suggestions will add a lot of color to your game.
Final rating: 5 for style and 4 for substance.
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