[RPG]: Shadow World: Master Atlas Fourth Edition, reviewed by Joe Sala (4/4)

http://www.rpg.net/reviews/archive/12/12890.phtml

Joe Sala's Summary:

Has the Shadow World endured the test of time?

Go to the full review for more information.

[Lev Lafayette]

I haven't read through fourth ed myself, but fondly remember the beautiful cover art by Tony Roberts in 1st and 2nd edition as well as the contents.

Terry K. Amthor really did an excellent job with Shadow World. It does have a strong science fantasy feels about it, at least partially assisted by described the flow of magic in a manner reminiscent of meterological data and, of course, the extra-dimensionality of the demons and the Lords of Orhan.

Does 4th ed go into much detail concerning climate, weather and formation of those rather oddly-shaped landmasses? These certainly required more elaboration in the early editions.

[arokh]

Good review, Joe.

Two questions for you (or anyone else familiar with 4th ed.).

1. I picked up a copy of (I think; the one with some Fantasy Hero stats in it) 2nd ed. when it first came out years ago but never did anything with it. I have been recently thinking about revisiting Shadow World and possibly picking up the latest edition. Is it worth it if I already have a previous edition?

2. Which area suppliment(s) do you recommend for someone intersted in starting a Shadow World campaign?

Thanks!

[Lev Lafayette]

Originally Posted by arokh

a suppliment(s) do you recommend for someone intersted in starting a Shadow World campaign?

Personally I would recommend, The Iron Wind, Tanara, Jaiman and Vog Mur. Mind you, there's about two years of gaming (at least) in those four alone.

[arokh]

Originally Posted by Lev Lafayette

Personally I would recommend, The Iron Wind, Tanara, Jaiman and Vog Mur. Mind you, there's about two years of gaming (at least) in those four alone.

Excellent, thanks, I will make a point of checking those out. Can I impose on you for a bit more information about those four? Are they set in roughly the same area of Shadow World? I guess what I'm hoping to find is at least one small-ish portion of Kulthea that's been fleshed out pretty thoroughly. It would be a bonus if any or all of those could be linked with a minimum of additional effort.

[Lev Lafayette]

Originally Posted by arokh

Excellent, thanks, I will make a point of checking those out. Can I impose on you for a bit more information about those four? Are they set in roughly the same area of Shadow World? I guess what I'm hoping to find is at least one small-ish portion of Kulthea that's been fleshed out pretty thoroughly. It would be a bonus if any or all of those could be linked with a minimum of additional effort.

Well, they're all (pretty much) based on the single continent of Jaiman, with the exception of Vog Mur which is a group of islands to the south. The Iron Wind is a small group of islands in the far north, with a sort of climate that reminded me of Iceland. It was dense; our gaming group spent nine months playing in that one location and we gamed every week! Not bad! Tanara is pretty damn fine as well; I recenlt reviewed it here. Finally Jaiman spans several lands in a high-powered romp - lots of fun, lot less work for the GM, but "only" 10-15 sessions in it.

[Akrasia]

Nice review, Joe! This is one of my favourite campaign settings, despite the fact that I never managed to actually run it. Someday ...

[Akrasia]

Originally Posted by Lev Lafayette

... Tanara is pretty damn fine as well; I recenlt reviewed it here.

Also, a revised version -- updated by Terry Amthor himself -- is available as a pdf from ICE.

Originally Posted by Lev Lafayette

Finally Jaiman spans several lands in a high-powered romp - lots of fun, lot less work for the GM, but "only" 10-15 sessions in it.

Sure, but Jaiman also includes a decent overview of the entire continent. I would recommend using Jaiman along with the book Halkitaine (which provides a lot of information on the Rhakhaan Empire, the main political force on Jaiman) and Norek (which describes a city-state on southern Jaiman, and includes 6+ adventures).

[arokh]

Originally Posted by Lev Lafayette

Well, they're all (pretty much) based on the single continent of Jaiman, with the exception of Vog Mur which is a group of islands to the south. The Iron Wind is a small group of islands in the far north, with a sort of climate that reminded me of Iceland. It was dense; our gaming group spent nine months playing in that one location and we gamed every week! Not bad! Tanara is pretty damn fine as well; I recenlt reviewed it here. Finally Jaiman spans several lands in a high-powered romp - lots of fun, lot less work for the GM, but "only" 10-15 sessions in it.

Great information, thank you! I also checked out your review of Cloudlords of Tanara. Sounds like a good supplement. I think I may pick up the PDF of Jaiman as a start. The re-release of Rolemaster has inspired me to take another look at their classic setting.

[arokh]

Originally Posted by Akrasia

Sure, but Jaiman also includes a decent overview of the entire continent. I would recommend using Jaiman along with the book Halkitaine (which provides a lot of information on the Rhakhaan Empire, the main political force on Jaiman) and Norek (which describes a city-state on southern Jaiman, and includes 6+ adventures).

Thanks, I think I will pick up Jaiman. Assuming I like what I see, I'll pick up the other two supplements you mentioned. Thanks again for the recommendations!