Review by The Viking
Last year Red Spire Press released the first book for their gritty low-magic fantasy setting, Dark Legacies. The first book, titled Dark Legacies: Player’s Guide contained a wealth of information on the setting, including the races, new and revised classes, feats, equipment and a new magic system, that all helped to create a feeling of darkness and grittiness. It also hinted at the setting behind those rules, in it’s descriptions of races and classes for instance, and in the chapter dealing with religion in Dark Legacies. What it “lacked” was any detail on the setting itself.
Now, with the release of the Dark Legacies: Campaign Guide the setting comes truly alive.
The book is 160 pages in black and white, with 1 page used for the Open Game License, 1 for credits, and 1 for a table of contents. The remaining 157 pages have two columns of text in a very readable font, with a small very stylish border giving a feeling of old documents. The book contains 55 masterfully done drawings by Paul Davidson, John Gravato, Ted Pendergraft, Adrian Smith, and Jonathan Standing. Adrian Smith, who did all the art for the Player’s Guide, including the cover, has also done the cover for the Campaign Guide, and he doesn’t disappoint. Neither do the four new artists, who manage to capture the tone and feel of the setting, and of the first book to an astonishing degree. The book is divided into 8 chapters and contain 23 tables, the largest part being Prestige Class tables.
Here follows a brief description of the chapters:
Chapter 1: Life on Earth
The book starts with a chapter detailing stuff like the calendar, a brief but interesting timeline, notes on climate and living conditions, especially in the megacities, and my personal favorites, diseases. The stuff is relevant without being too dry. It is especially interesting, in my opinion, because so much of it is remarkably similar to things from the real world (which makes sense, since the setting is set on Earth in a distant post-apocalyptic future). The part on life in the megacities is realistically harsh and brutal, unlike many “soft” fantasy versions of life in big cities. And the section on diseases, as I previously mentioned as a personal favorite! Unlike standard D&D, where you just get the rules for how diseases affect PCs and NPCs, in Dark Legacies they have been tied into the setting, so that you will actually read about cities affected by Black Lung, for instance.
Chapter 2: Geography
The chapter on Geography starts with the nations of the Corelands, Ilfernac, Precaea, and Sarlat, followed by a section on the Eastern Ridge, then the various non-human regions, ending with a section on Afflicted Territories, basically everything outside the “civilized” lands. Each nation gets a brief overview, followed by a section with more detailed looks at geography, major cities, and the like. And in this chapter the book really shows its value. Every page contains information that could make an interesting adventure, but at the same time the world seems alive in some way. Unlike some fantasy settings, where the world seems like a playground existing solely for the sake of the PCs, here you have international and national politics, intrigue, and “action”. The chapter briefly mentions some important individuals, with only race, class and level, but on the Red Spire Press forum there’s a thread with stats for most, if not all NPCs mentioned.
Chapter 3: Organizations
Then follows the chapter on some of the major organizations, from the Abominari, a group of Hybrids formed in response to the Cleansing of the Prelace, to the different inner circles of the churches, to the Seaborne, an organization of Novag merchants and traders, transporting people and cargo along the length and breadth of the Corelands, and even beyond if the prize is right. Each organization has a brief overview, followed by details on membership, goals, power centre, hierarchy, and relationships with other organizations and nations. Like the geography chapter, one needs not look far for plot ideas.
Chapter 4: Prestige Classes
The book contains 16 prestige classes, ranging from self-appointed demon lords, to agents of the four churches, to Novag Combat Inventioneers. Often when I find new prestige classes all I see is a selection of cool abilities, that do not seem to have any real place in the setting, but in this case I was pleased to see that every prestige class was a bit of the setting. Several of the organizations detailed in the previous chapter gets a prestige class, as well as a few prestige classes for some of the different non-human races. None of them seem broken, though there are some that will be better suited for certain types of playing than others. It is difficult to pick a favorite among the 16, but I have a soft spot for the Combat Inventioneer, who can build a steam-powered battle suit and is very skilled at hunting demons.
Chapter 5: Advanced Technology
The chapter on advanced technology is only 4 pages long, but it manages to capture the role of technology in Dark Legacies. Dark Legacies is an early industrial setting, with manufacturing plants, smog-covered cities, and disease-filled sewers. Technology in Dark Legacies is more a part of the scenery than of the action, similar in many ways to the technology seen in films like Bladerunner.
Chapter 6: Items of Power
The next chapter details Items of Power, this settings version of magical items. Just as magic is very rare and dangerous in Dark Legacies, so are magical items. The chapter starts with a large section on how to handle items of power in the game and on the construction of these items, followed by a list of demonic and holy qualities that can be added to items. Unlike D&D where a longsword must be +1 before it can become Flaming, in Dark Legacies, due to the low-powered nature of magic, you can have magical weapons entirely without enchantment bonuses. They will still count as enchanted for purpose of penetrating the damage reduction of demons, etc. The list of powers is quite long, and so is the list of Demonic Side Effects. Most demonic items of power have one or more flaws, depending on the skill of the crafter, so sometimes the price of an item may seem larger than the power. But this helps create the feeling of darkness that is integral to Dark Legacies. A few examples of holy and demonic items of power follow, such as the Murderer’s Mask, in the shape of a wolf’s head, that gives the wearer Scent and the ability to send telepathic messages, but at the same time corrupts the wearer in the form of daily taint points.
Chapter 7: The Abyss on Earth
The Abyss on Earth deals with monsters and combat, and with the consequences of a low-magic setting. In addition to 13 new creatures particularly suitable for Dark Legacies, it also includes one template, the Tainted meant to replace the Fiendish template from MM, and a creature type, the Demon. Dark Legacies doesn’t distinguish between demon and devil, or any other kind of evil outsider for that matter, plus most demons have fewer special abilities, making them more specialized in nature. The chapter also talks about the other creature types, how they could be used in Dark Legacies.
Chapter 8: Adventure Ideas
The last chapter presents 8 half-page adventure ideas for use by the DM. They are varied enough in both scope, level, and setting to guarantee that there’ll be something for every group of players out there. Even if you are going to do all your scenarios yourself, they are an interesting read and might give you some ideas for twists in your own plots.
Overall Impression
The book fully lives up to the expectations I had after reading the Player’s Guide. It is very well done, with tons of ideas scattered on almost every page of the book. The art work is amazing and at a cost of less than 20c per page, I think it is worth every dime. I’d have liked to see a few maps in the book, but it is not something that ruins my enjoyment of the Guide.
Note: I am one of the playtesters of this book, as well as the Player’s Guide, but I have tried to remain impartial on this review. If anyone feels I am not, all I can say is that I am only human
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