Review of Land of Two Rivers

In the beginning there was Games Workshop, and it was good. The players had the one true book, Rogue Trader, and all was right with the world. As GW games became more popular, they started to break their product line into units that were more and more specialized, and soon the consumer had to buy many, many product units to have the complete game (see also: TSR Syndrome). Soon, heretic usurpers came out with their own products, emulating GW and trying to bring out lower-cost alternatives for consumers (read: steal GW's customers). And thus was Target Games' miniature line born.

Target Games is of course gunning for a piece of Games Workshop's pie, and what a lucrative pie it is. While not as bad as collectible card games (read: cardboard crack), miniatures gaming, especially GW's brand of it, can be quite costly. There's the main box set, and the supplement books for your forces, plus some more miniatures to augment your starting forces – before you realize it you've spent $150 and haven't even played a game!

Of course, miniatures are more than just a game – they're a hobby unto themselves. Painting the miniatures, creating scenery to enliven the battles, designing scenarios for different types of conflicts – all of these add up to a "game" they can really chew up a lot of your time. The flip side to this is, of course, that's it's all quite enjoyable and fun, and a real sense of pride can be had from a well-painted army.

Land of Two Rivers is a supplement for Target Games' Chronopia line of fantasy miniature gaming. It describes the Stygian forces in detail, and fleshes out the other character races with more detail than is provided in the main Chronopia book. It also has some cardboard counters for you to cut out for various weapon and spell effects.

The book starts with background history of the Stygians, a desert-dwelling reptilian race. They are loosely patterned after the ancient Egyptians, occupying great Ziggurats and wearing garb reminiscent of that time and place. They have presented themselves as a new threat to the One King, proving to be a formidable foe due to their heavily-muscled bodies and quick, agile movements. The geographic area they occupy is known as the Land of Two Rivers due to the two mighty rivers that split the desert, and it is on the plain between these two rivers where the One King has met up with the Stygians to settle their hash.

After the description of Stygian history and customs there is some more information on each of the races within the land of Chronopia, and details regarding that race's relationship with the Stygian. All of the "fluff" is well-written, and makes an enjoyable read.

Next up are some new rules; these describe new abilities that models can have, as well as climate effects you can incorporate into your battles.

Finally there are additions to the Army Lists for the existing armies, and a complete Army List for the Stygian. Each race has gotten some new troop types, and more spells as well. Directly after this section are two pages of heavy-duty cardboard with templates for various spell and weapon effects.

The book is gorgeous. It's done entirely in color, with some excellent artwork alongside photos of the models. My main gripe is the model shots; Target still hasn't learned how to photograph models to their best affect. We need close-ups, not semi-closeups, so that we can see the detail on the models. I refer you to any Games Workshop book – GW knows that the models are their bread-and-butter, and provide large, high-resolution pictures for the gamer to enjoy. You should also be forewarned – if you don't like the artwork on display in Target's earlier books, you won't like it here. It's similar in style, with lots of rippley-muscle guys with big shoulder pads. I like it, but I understand a lot of people don't.

If you play Chronopia, Land of Two Rivers is a must-have. The Stygian are a fun race to play, and the designers have done a great job with the models, choosing to give them a look unlike any other reptilian race I've seen. It was a bold choice, and I think it paid off. The extra rules for the various races are nice too, and will add a lot to an existing campaign. Pick it up and see if the One King can defeat the Stygian before they prove his downfall.

Style: 4 (Classy and well done)
Substance: 4 (Meaty)