Customer Reviews

The Complete Book of Necromancers (Advanced Dungeons & Dragons, 2nd Edition, Dungeon Master Guide Rules Supplement/2151)

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This book adds depth to the most durable nemsis NPC your PCs could face. Evil spellcasters have long been a favorite and this book presents many new and powerful options. When used in conjunction with other books (e.g., V.R.'s Guide to the Lich, etc.) the value of this book becomes even more apparent. However, other books aren't necessary to get a wonderful experience out of this work. I definitely recommend it to any DM wishing to use priests and wizards who use the dark arts.

This is definatly a great supplement, but that is all it is... a supplement. This book is not the be all end all campaign creator. I find this book, enjoyable to read (I admire the necromancer class) and a very excellent addition to building mysterious and dangerous necromancer NPC's (this book includes an suggested necromancer dragon!).

With this book you can make an NPC to scare your players away, and show them just how powerful the dark arts really can be. The warned, this book is mainly for the DM for creating NPC's. It is not meant to be used as a Player "Class" option. However, I would possible let a player create one of these unique necromancer kits in the right setting.

A must have for magic user freaks, and a DM looking to add a twist to their adventure.

Not only odes this Suppliment provide a possible source of balance for the campaign and a number of interesting advetures. It is also a great sourse for odd Ravenloft Dark Powers. Futher the new spells and Kits allow Necromancers with a touch more character then the traditional raise dead/take over world Necromancers. As a DM I love this book! It is one of the finest supliments that I have read. As a player this is a great book as well, though it is for DM's, it can allow a player to make an in depth character that if used wisely can be one of the funnest and even "Goodest" charcters he'she has played. Very Well Done!

This is a book from my childhood days of gaming and I wore it out. Having played evil spellcasters for most of my RPG career, I can say without a doubt that this book brought me some of the best memories. I read it so much that the original fell apart and we had to buy two more before we moved on to 3rd edition. While the Book of Vile Darkness was okay, it never did hold a candle to this volume.

You know, i bought this initially just after it was released. It was stolen from me some time after that, and i couldnt ever really find another copy until years later. There simply weren't that many going around. Anyway, people are more often selling off their 2.0, 3.0, and even 3.5 edition stuff these days, and so this one is much easier to find.
This is a really great supplement defining in great detail necromancers and their impact in any game world. You can find pretty much anything you want to know about the dark arts as they pertain to your gaming experience within these pages. From role playing to equipment, spells, feats, new ways to incorporate undead inot your world, encounter and campaign suggestions...this book has it all. I consider it a must own for any DM....especially if you intend to utilize undead and the like heavily into your campaign. Are you gonna play trough Tomb of Horrors and Return to Tomb of Horrors...? Return to the Temple of Elemental Evil? Forgotten Temple of Tharizdun? There are endless possibilities.

Enjoy!

Author Steve Kurtz went out of his way to find fictional examples of the various types of Necromantic Kits, and since most of them are from such stellar writers as Mary Shelley, Bram Stoker, H.P. Lovecraft, and Clark Ashton Smith, this book -- or at least the kit descriptions -- is an excellent introduction to the literary genre of the Necromancer. The one glaring ommision was the failure to mention Robert Louis Stevenson's "The Body Snatcher," about the 19th Century "Resurrection Men" who stole (and sometimes CREATED) corpses for medical students; also missing were such creepy types as Burke & Hare, and Dr. Knox. ("Down the close and up the stair/But and been with Burke and Hare/Burke's the butcher, Hare's the thief/Knox the man that buys the beef!") And let's not forget Sweeney Todd and those delicious meat pies Mrs. Lovett made!

IF YOU ARE INTO THE UNDEAD... this supplement is, by far, the most useful and ground breaking "Complete Book" put out by TSR. It totally strips away the sterotype of the common Necromancer and shows you the dark and gruesome world of the dead from nearly every viewpoint, from Lawful Good Anatomists to Chaotic Evil Undead Masters (not to mention the other alignment possibilities of the Philosopher or Death Slayer). Not only does it do the Mage specialist class a ton of good but it also defines cults and priest(ess) hoods of the Dark and Undead! Besides fleshing out some Servants of Undead Clergys, it defines new spells too (mage and priest). All in all, this book provides enough information to be a campaign in of itself. There is THAT much usefull information... Like I said, theres a reason why this book is so rare, anyone who sees it and is into undead (if you play AD&D, who isn't), would be out of their mind not to scoff it up.

Another great by TSR. Here, a DM will find all of the pluses and minuses of being a mage of the Necromantic arts. Plenty of rewards and punishments are found within to apply to a player character assuming the role, or a villain. There are also great kits such as the anatomist, the deathslayer, and the philosopher. Needless to say, if your setting will have anything to do with undead, buy it, and use it well.

THIS IS A BOOK THAT CAN VERY QUICKLY BRING BACK SOME BALANCE TO A CAMPAIGN THAT MAYBE THE CHARACTERS ARE A LITTLE TO STRONG. THE DARK ARTS ARE POWERFUL INDEED, AND WITH THE HELP OF AN EVIL POWER (GODS, DEMONS, POWERFUL UNDEAD ECT...) NPC'S CAN GIVE YOUR PARTY REAL FITS, THIS IS ALL DRAWN OUT AND VERY EASY TO ACCESS IN THIS HANDY LITTLE BOOK. UNDEAD ARE COMMON TO AN ADVENTURING PARTY AND HAVING SOMEONE OR SOMETHING IN CONTROL OF THEM ADDS A LITTLE FLAVOR IN THE GAME. AS PC'S THIS BOOK THIS ALSO COMES IN HANDY IF YOU WANT TO PLAY A CHARACTER THAT HATES UNDEAD. ON A FINAL NOTE, THERE ARE SOME HANDY SPELLS AND POWERS (NEAT EXTA BONUSES AND PENALTIES) THAT AD A REAL TWIST TO A CAMPAIGN.

Author Steve Kurtz went out of his way to find fictional examples of the various types of Necromantic Kits, and since most of them are from such stellar writers as Mary Shelley, Bram Stoker, H.P. Lovecraft, and Clark Ashton Smith, this book -- or at least the kit descriptions -- is an excellent introduction to the literary genre of the Necromancer. The one glaring ommision was the failure to mention Robert Louis Stevenson's "The Body Snatcher," about the 19th Century "Resurrection Men" who stole (and sometimes CREATED) corpses for medical students; also missing were such creepy types as Burke & Hare, and Dr. Knox. ("Down the close and up the stair/But and been with Burke and Hare/Burke's the butcher, Hare's the thief/Knox the man that buys the beef!") And let's not forget Sweeney Todd and those delicious meat pies Mrs. Lovett made!