The Black Circle details three of the major villains of Deadlands: Baron LaCroix, Mina Devlin, and the Whateley family. The sourcebook is divided into three sections like many other Deadlands books. The 1st part, Posse section, is the edition of the Tombstone Epitaph. The fictitious author, Daniel Clark, tells of his investigation into a possible conspiracy among some major villians of Deadlands. The 2nd section, No Man's Land, deals with a new character type as well as new type of magic called Blood Magic. This section essentially provides the rules for players to play a Whateley character. The 3rd section, Marshall's Handbook, delves deep into the history of each of three villains making up the Black Circle and goes onto explain the truth behind the Black Circle. Also, more black magic spells are given. Of particular interest is the full history of the Whateley clan and the updates of what happened to them since the Doomtown or Bust Sourcebook.
The Good: The sourcebook is very well written and organized. Each major villain is given their own subsection within the Marshall's Handbook. John Goff has written a very entertaining and engaging story that ties the 3 major villains together. He even managed to tie in the stories from other Deadland products such as the Doomtown CCG and the Doomtown: RangeWars (a DiskWars game). The covor art by Pete Venters is great. The interior artworks ranges from good to mediocre. The best part of the sourcebook is the rules to making and playing a Whateley character.
The Bad: None comes to mind. The only disappointment, although no real surprise, is that the stats for Baron LaCroix or Mina Devlin are not given yet.
Overall, the sourcebook should be a very interesting read and informative to those familiar with the events in Deadlands. These three villainous groups were fleshed out more. The most interesting being the Whateley clan. It is now possible to play a Whateley character struggling to do good despite the inherent evil that is in his blood. It should make a Deadlands campaign much more interesting and enjoyable to play in. I recommend this sourcebook highly!
