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39 of 43 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
a good book if you want winter in your world, October 26, 2004
This review is from: Frostburn: Mastering the Perils of Ice and Snow (Dungeons & Dragons d20 3.5 Fantasy Roleplaying Supplement) (Hardcover)
this book has real possiblities if you are interested in doing a artic or a cold environment like in the George RR Martin series (game of thrones)
You are introduced in the opening chapter of the frostfell environments of high altitude, winter, ice age and lands of eternal ice. The dangers are listed like freezing, snow blindess, dangerous terrain, etc. There are listed specific terrain types, like tundra, frozen seas and the like.
Chapter two has the various races of the frostfell, mostly adaptations of the current ph races plus the uldra, a small fey who live in the cold. There is a section on the various classes and how they fit into this environment. There are new feats, but not alot. One of the feats is snowrunner which allows you to run at full speed, another is piercing cold which allows you to add the cold descriptor to your spells.
There are some new prestige classes which look hit or miss to me. It would depend on the DM to pick and choose. One of the prestige classes is the frostmage who gains natural armor, resistance to cold in the first two levels of the class.
There are new equipment and spells. There are several conjure ice beasts(summon monster equivilent). Ice shield gives damage reduction of 15, freezing glance which freezes subject in their tracks.
New monsters like the dire polar bear,and the wolly mammoth. The book ends with some adventures, always a good idea in my opinion.
If you are creative enough, you can do without this book.
I am planning on a series of adventures for my players and I find this to be a useful book, especially for the hazards of the cold and some of the monsters and spells
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25 of 27 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Not really about cold climates, May 9, 2005
This review is from: Frostburn: Mastering the Perils of Ice and Snow (Dungeons & Dragons d20 3.5 Fantasy Roleplaying Supplement) (Hardcover)
Apparently "the perils of ice and snow" are pretty much the same as the perils everywhere else: a proliferation of prestige classes largely suitable for NPCs and a handful of monsters that wouldn't have made the cut for the 1st edition Fiend Folio.
In fact, if you thought the perils of ice and snow might be, well, ice, snow and cold, this is not the book for you. Less than 20 pages are dedicated to discussing what life in extremely cold zones, especially in alpine regions, is like. Although there are a couple of feats designed to explain how some people (or races) might be able to survive in extreme climatic conditions, there is almost nothing about how to create the terror of an avalanche, rule on the gradual onset of snow blindness, or ajudicate the creeping psychological effects of oxygen deprivation. Hmmmm... in fact, almost nothing about adventuring in the element of cold that wasn't in the DMG and/or PHB.
I presume WotC is doing its market research and that research shows that prestige classes sell. If that's what you're looking for, this book will provide some. If you were looking for a book that would provide you with campaign insights on life in the cold, and how the 3.5 rule set can be used to ajudicate the hazards therein, you'll be disappointed. But the real shame is that with a hard look you realize that no one should really be satisfied with this supplement. Power gamers use the terms "crunchy" and "fluffy" to describe rule mechanics vs. campaign flavor. There needs to be a third term, "filler" that describes verbiage that fits into neither of the above categories. Sadly, that is where about 60% of this supplement falls.
The only upside is that there is still room for some hungry and enterprising d20 company to write a good supplement on setting a campaign in the cold.
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73 of 87 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Misses the mark, December 4, 2004
This review is from: Frostburn: Mastering the Perils of Ice and Snow (Dungeons & Dragons d20 3.5 Fantasy Roleplaying Supplement) (Hardcover)
I bought this book expecting some great rules and insights on how to really make my players suffer in the cold, I wanted them to think everytime they reached for their sword, everytime they put on armour and everytime they wandered what was for diner...and FrostBurn fell far short.
Yes it's crammed full of new prestige classes and monsters and spells, but if I wanted more of these I'd have bought a book called "Monsters, Feats and Prestige Classes for Artic Conditions".
Filling up 75% of a book with Monsters and Prestige Classes seems to be becoming a rather bad habit in D20.
The first 5-10 pages were a good start, and if the rest of the book had continued in the same vein I'd have been really happy.
Things I expected to find :
- Effects of cold on weapons and armour
- Hunting and food in the cold
- Flora and Fauna, herbs and wildlife
- Far more on cold related illnesses such as snowblindness, more detail on Frostbite and Hyperthermea (sp) in a D20 setting.
- Effects of deep snow and ice on combat
- Synergy of skills in cold environments
- More on travel.
The book seems more aimed at creating a new campaign setting (new player races are introduced) than being a Generic guide that can work for any campaign.
Certainly didn't fill the gap I needed, I'm still looking for other options.
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