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In the past, I have seen Dream Pod 9's products on the shelves at gaming stores, flipped through them, and basically thought, "Well, it looks nice…" but I didn't buy anything.

All of that changed with Tribe 8.

After hearing about it online, I was on the lookout for it in the stores. I glanced through it and made a b-line for the checkout counter. I had to posses it. I had to make it mine, to feel its smooth, soft pages in my hands…oh, where was I? Oh yes, a review. Ahem.

On my arrival home, I started reading the book. Virtually the entire first half of this fine book is filled with source material. It is comprehensive enough to run with by itself (I did so after having the book for a week!) and yet it leaves lots of potential for expansions and support.

Tribe 8 is set in a post-apocalyptic future. It differs, however, from what the average role-player might expect upon hearing such a description. In the past of Tribe 8, the greater problems didn't come from nations nuking each other or any such very overused device. Rather, the "End Times" (as they are called) are linked to the appearance of demons that came pouring out of the sky, apparently in response to negative emotions which mankind had built up over time. Ooops.

These demonic entities, known as the "Z'bri", eventually herded mankind into camps – somewhat along the lines of World War II Holocaust camps. There the Z'bri satisfied their desires for things of the flesh until the Goddess (essentially the Goddess of pre-patriarchal mythologies and along the lines of the one referred to by some modern-day nature religions) took notice. Into various camps, eight "Fatimas", avatars of different aspects of the One Goddess, were born. These Fatimas linked their followers back into the "River of Dream", allowing them to perform powerful magic (called "Synthesis" in Tribe 8). The Fatimas then guided their people into a battle for freedom against the Z'bri.

Joshua, the only male Fatima, was killed in this war. Rumors abound about what might have happened to the remnants of Joshua's tribe, but he spoke a prophecy upon his death; his tribe would be remade from those cast out by the other Fatimas, and they would take vengeance upon Joshua's enemies.

The current state of things on Vimary (the primary setting of Tribe 8) is a role-player's dream come true. Those who have been banished from tribal life, the Fallen, are growing in number. Friction not only exists between the Tribes and the Fallen, but between the Seven Tribes themselves. The Z'bri still stand, mostly ensconced to the north of Vimary. Keepers – non-tribal humans who have a fascination with "tekno-logi" and its trappings – wander through tunnels beneath Vimary. Another non-tribal people, barbaric in nature, are known as Squats. They periodically raid the settlements of the Tribes and the Fallen for supplies. These are just a few of the elements that set the stage of Tribe 8 for tales of intrigue, exploration, horror, and estrangement.

The only two complaints I have with the source material as-is are minor. First, I would have preferred that they have more setting information solely for the "Weaver's" (T8-ish for "Gamemaster") use, like more "secrets" and that sort of thing (I expect this to be remedied by the upcoming

Weaver's Assistant

, due in August). Second, the tribal economy is solely based on a barter-system; an admittedly nice idea, but one which gets really awkward when you contemplate Tavernkeepers and such. ("Hey, Bob, I'd like some beer – can I trade you this pretty glass bauble for a few tankards?") This could possibly lend itself to the characters behaving like pack-rats, gathering whatever miscellaneous items they can in the hopes that they might use them for trade in the future. That's fine for some, and could be humorous – but I'd rather not have to come up with "random treasure generation" tables.

As for Tribe 8's system, Silhouette (used in all DP9's RPG settings) is used. It revolves around a single, quickly resolved mechanic, though it manages to walk a middle road between "too simple, not realistic" and "too realistic – way too complex" in a very satisfying manner. The new addition to the system is Synthesis, the tribal version of magic. Simply put, Synthesis rocks. This is the first time in quite awhile that I have felt that magic in an RPG is magical. No formulaic "spells" or any such thing – Synthesis is very free form, having a dreamy feel which is very consistent with the setting-explained origin of the powers of Synthesis, the River of Dream.

Besides encouraging extra creativity and role-playing from most players, Synthesis has an additional pleasing side effect. Unless the Weaver running the game carries around a cattle prod (in which case any player worth his or her salt will probably be none-too-pleased) it is difficult to herd players through an adventure. Campaigns intended for non-linear play should be fairly common and are facilitated by Synthesis. As an example, I had planned various methods for the players in the game I recently ran to discover a certain bit of information, all of which led through different paths. Instead of going along one of these, one of the characters used the Eminence of Death (essentially, a realm of magical possibilities which relates to death and decay) to call up the spirit someone who had died in relation to the mystery. The character then talked to 'em. My other paths can be woven back into things at a later date with little difficulty – they will just be in a different ! order than original intended, which is fine. The concept of Synthesis should lead to quite a bit of enjoyment, not only for the players, but also for the Weaver.

As a final bit, I shall ramble vaguely about the presentation of the book. In general it was very nice. The artwork was fantastic, and I actually felt that the art on a given page related to what I was reading. This was a pleasant break from reading an RPG book and wondering whether or not I accidentally spilled my dinner on it before realizing it was "artwork".

There are, however, two annoyances in the presentation. I believe these stand out to me because of the fairly spiffy general appearance of the book and its excellent content. The first is that there are no actual chapter headings. On a few occasions, I would be reading through a "chapter" and suddenly become confused about the rapid shift in what was being dealt with – then I'd notice that there had been a change in the rather unnoticable words at the top of the pages that label the various sections.

The second nit I have with the presentation is that weakness of the editing in several places. I understand that there are severe pressures these days to get things into production, but many of the errors I found on a first reading should have been noticed by professional editing without much effort. Ah well.

In closing, I recommend picking up Tribe 8. Right now. Jaunt down to your local gaming store and procure a copy for your shelf – I doubt you will regret it.

Style: 4 (Classy and well done)
Substance: 5 (Excellent!)