A D20 System supplement from
Sword and Sorcery Studio
Rating:
(3 out of 5 hearts)
This book describes a citadel of dwarves in the Scarred Lands setting as well as the race of dark elves living under that world.
The first part of the book is devoted to the history of the area and its peoples, going back more than a thousand years before the divine war up to the present. We discover how the divine war corrupted the dwarves and dark elves as well as the source of their enmity.
The second and third chapters describe the culture and history of the dwarves. Their way of life, the activities of the citadel's inhabitants and some of the most important members of the community are described. Plans for some of the crucial areas of the dwarven citadel are included, but we get no maps with this volume.
The fourth chapter describes the dark elves of the Scarred Lands. They are pretty different from the dark elves of other settings, in fact they are not drow. The dark elves of the Scarred Lands relocated their city underground for survival reasons. They are specialists at creating golems and are particularly adept at using magic tattoos.
Chapter five describes four new prestige classes. The first three are dwarven prestige classes. The Rune Master can pre-cast his spells and have them float around his head in the form of runes until he activates them. This ability lets him cast two spells in a single round. The Iron Guardsmen and Stone Guardsmen are the elite force that protects Burok Torn. The Tattoo Adept is a dark elf prestige class. Their powers let them bear more magical tattoos than normal people. They can eventually ignore the negative side effects of magical tattoos. Magical tattoos are described in the book "Relics & Rituals". This chapter also includes a handful of new spells and new magic tattoos.
Chapter six is an adventure guideline. These are very broad lines. The adventure does not really take into account a party's level; the DM is simply required to adjust the number of enemies and dwarven allies. It is pretty unidirectional and simply pushes the PCs into a series of events that would pretty much resolve themselves the same way whether they intervene or not.
The appendix contains three new monsters and a template, the Nalthalite. The template derives its name from the dark elf god Nalthalos, who was almost killed and is now forced to reside in a golem body. The Nalthalites are dark elves who graft construct parts to their bodies.
This is a great sourcebook for all those who use the Scarred Lands as a gaming setting. The dark elves from this setting are very interesting and refreshingly different from traditional dark elves.
Weaknesses: There are no maps with this volume, just a few plans of important areas. A general map outlining the region would have been an appropriate addition. There are many errors in the d20 stat blocks of characters and a few in the interpretation of the rules. For example, in the case of the Rune Master prestige class the term "partial action" is used interchangeably with the term "move equivalent action".
New prestige classes: Rune Master, Iron Guardsman, Stone Guardsman, Tattoo Adept.
New Spells: Damashar's Force Rune, Rock Storm, Runic Weave, Stone Window.
New Magic Tattoos: Deceptive Identity, Eyes of the Medusa, Eyes of Nalthalos, Fury of Nalthalos, Mark of Vengeance, Skin of Nalthalos, Speed of Nalthalos, Tatto Familiar, Touch of Betrayal, Withering Touch.
