Setzer Gabbiani
15th of October, 2002, 14:10
Since these books are expensive, someone should give them a go-over, as to save money for those that don't have much (Like me ;) ). I'll cover two here The Monster Manual II.
Monster Manual II ($30 US):
For those that just don't have enough things to kill. Well drawn (As most all official books are), it brings back the gem dragons, death knights, myconoids, and other AD&D critters that masters can size up against the origional, and newbies can face off for the first time without being confused. Having the first nondragon epic CR creatures, and more 9+, it's more or less balanced for a higher-level game. Most of the time, the CRs match up well with the powers of the enemies. The notable exceptions are the Catoblepas and adamantine horror, who can use disentigrate at will with only CRs 6 and 9. Still, it's refreshing to see more magial enemies, as opposed to the heavily melee MM I.
For players that want to get as far away from normal as possible in a fantasy game, MM II includes many playable monster races, with ECL+ included (Also 99% balanced). This book has the freakiest playable monsters ever. What's really worth mentioning is the Desmodu, a much-needed addition to the incredibly slim list of naturally good monster races. Add a few race-specific items and mounts for a more defined culture in the intelligent races as well.
Verdict: High-level PCs and DMs should run out and get this one. If most of your games don't get past level 8 or so, think a little harder about it.
Monster Manual II ($30 US):
For those that just don't have enough things to kill. Well drawn (As most all official books are), it brings back the gem dragons, death knights, myconoids, and other AD&D critters that masters can size up against the origional, and newbies can face off for the first time without being confused. Having the first nondragon epic CR creatures, and more 9+, it's more or less balanced for a higher-level game. Most of the time, the CRs match up well with the powers of the enemies. The notable exceptions are the Catoblepas and adamantine horror, who can use disentigrate at will with only CRs 6 and 9. Still, it's refreshing to see more magial enemies, as opposed to the heavily melee MM I.
For players that want to get as far away from normal as possible in a fantasy game, MM II includes many playable monster races, with ECL+ included (Also 99% balanced). This book has the freakiest playable monsters ever. What's really worth mentioning is the Desmodu, a much-needed addition to the incredibly slim list of naturally good monster races. Add a few race-specific items and mounts for a more defined culture in the intelligent races as well.
Verdict: High-level PCs and DMs should run out and get this one. If most of your games don't get past level 8 or so, think a little harder about it.