Forsooth! My hair is on fire!
Ok, I'll try not to emulate the way that the Dying Earth books are written while I'm writing this review. It'll be tough, but I think I can avoid such flights of fantastical script as flow from... hmm. Then again, maybe not.
This review is quite overdue; I received the two issues over half a year ago and lost them in the process of moving. Having just found them again, I figured I should probably write a review on them ASAP before Sandy sends the goon squad to repossess them.
Cover to Cover
First, an overall summary. The Excellent Prismatic Spray (or TEPS as it will be known henceforth) is a quasi-regularly-published periodical from Pelgrane Press, for the Dying Earth RPG. While it does not contain the floridity of verbiage that the RPG and the book it is derived from contain, it should be more than sufficient. (Translation: they use big words, but not too big, and that's ok.)
There are small illustrations on nearly every page, most of which are of very good quality. In addition, the layout Pelgrane has used makes this probably one of the most readable game supplements I've ever seen. Bonus points. Also a few bonus points for good use of space - the table of contents is on the inside cover.
Now for the meat of the supplements - what's actually written in them? Both issues contain a number of articles, which are described and graded in order below. For those of you in schools (like mine) suffering from grade inflation, a grade of C would indicate an article of average and mediocre quality.
Line-by-line: issue 2
Letters from our Readers. Whether these are real letters or not I have no idea. Regardless, some of them are pretty funny, and they set the scene. B-
Jack Vance and the D&D Game by Gary Gygax. I was glad to find this to be something other than horn-blowing by the old greybeard of fantasy RPG's. A neat piece of gaming history. B
Phasms by Robin Laws. Ever seen the old Star Trek episode Mirror Mirror? Ever seen one where people get taken over by some sort of energy being? This is both. Taglines included. A-
Arcana of Grashpotel by Peter Freeman. When spells go wrong. Very useful source of ideas for spectacular spell failures. B
Tweaks by Sasha Bilton and Phil Masters. A rather limited addition to the game, giving characters certain specialties. C
The Timeless Valley by Lynne Hardy. An interesting side-quest, which players might not catch on to immediately, but which will not doubt be completely exploited once they do. B
The Air-Cars of Ampridatvir by Nicholas Caldwell. This section further details some lost technology which appears in the Dying Earth novels (one small part of the Turjan series). Unfortunately, it could use a little more detail about the region that technology is in, and some hints as to how to keep cautious PC's from using the air-cars (incautious PC's are easy to stop). C
The Beginner's Guide to Vat Creatures by Jim Webster. This is more or less a flavor piece (sorry - flavour) which goes into more detail than the novels on how to create the weird critters. There are a few basic rules, but nothing too detailed. B
The Valley of Cages by Lizard. An adventure / region, primarily for Cugel-level characters. How to get your PC's in trouble. Also includes some appropriate taglines, including one of my favorites: "Iron bars do not a prison make. These are some type of wood." B
The Three Golden Swans by Steven Long. Lots of detail on an inn which could be dropped in any of the more "normal" regions of the Dying Earth. Nothing spectacular, but nothing too unbelievable either. C
Three Cozner's Expedients by Colin Speirs. A few entertaining, if short, adventure seeds, and some taglines to go with them. B
All in all, issue 2 is pretty good. It's what you'd expect from a periodical supplement (like the Rifter), but without the annoying advertisements you get in a magazine (like Dragon). There are ads here, but perhaps the least annoying I've ever seen.
Line-by-line: issue 3
From Our Readers...Same as last time, different letters.
Rules to Mock your Vain Ambitions by Robin Laws. A somewhat intentionally overblown analysis of why the Dying Earth works the way it does. Entertaining, and gives a bit of insight into the game. B
The Vance Integral Edition by Paul Rhoads. Essentially an advertisement for the book mentioned in the title. Whee. Good only for hardcore Vance fans. D
The Gold and Amber Cabal by M. D. Jackson. A somewhat difficult adventure designed to take high-end Turjan-level characters and turn them into beginning Rhialto-level characters. A needed addition to the game. A-
Arcana of Grashpotel by Peter Freeman. A location, some NPCs, and some taglines to go along with it. Well-written but, unfortunately, not as cool as the previous Arcana, and much of it is taken up with describing how the area became like it is now... over the course of about an aeon. B-
Inspiration from Representation by James Maliszewski, Ian Thompson, and Lynne Hardy. Three different plot hooks based on the same picture. This is part of a competition from the 2nd issue. Short, but not bad. B
The Glass World by Lynne Hardy. Another adventure, complete with taglines. Lynne really seems to have a good grasp of the Dying Earth's style, and the adventure seems well-suited to Turjan-level characters. For some reason it reminds me of Neil Gaiman's Stardust. B
Cozner's Expedients by Lynne Hardy (busy person!) and Ian Thompson. Another short set of three adventures, but only the last one has taglines. B-
The Laughing Magician by Steve Dempsey. The first of what they tell us will be a series of adventures creating a whole campaign for the Dying Earth, based around Inconnu the Laughing Magician. Relatively low on rolls (at least, not the required kind as in the Gold and Amber Cabal). Includes several taglines and a grue (almost). B
The Regions of the Sousanese Coast by Lizard. A well-detailed location with some interesting twists. A
Issue 3 is of about the same quality as issue 2, and which one you'll use more will depend on whether you prefer to have crunchy bits or adventures (or in other words, whether you prefer Dragon or Dungeon). I'm not the kind who buys adventures, in general, so I like issue 2 better, but your mileage will vary. Issue 2 is also three bucks cheaper, so lucky me.
Final Analysis
The Excellent Prismatic Spray does relatively well for a periodical, but like most gaming periodicals, the average GM won't find something they're guaranteed to use in every single issue. The writing quality is good, if Vancian, throughout, and the editor and directors did a good job of maintaining stylistic unity. I'd say it ranks a 3/5 for Substance - average work for a gaming periodical - and a 4/5 for Style - good parity with the book, fun ads, and generally good illustrations.
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