Oathbound: Domains of the Forge (d20 System; BAS1005) [Hardcover]

Greg Dent (Author)

Book Description

Series: Oathbound | Publication Date: September 1, 2002

Prepare to immerse yourself in a new world, one that has existed since before the consciousness of most cultures yet still holds mysteries that baffle mortal minds. Pulled from worlds across the cosmos, the Domains of the Forge serve as a strange mixing grounds of cultures, races, and ideologies. Those who visit the world come away forever changed, their hearts, souls, and bodies marked by their experiences while within the world of the Oathbound.

The Forge is a bizarre and godless orphan world in which only the greatest can hope to survive. Seven mysterious figures watch over the Forge and populate it with ambitious souls from thousand of different worlds and planes, pitting them all against each other in an eternal battle for ultimate power. For eons upon eons, mortals have battled on the face of the Forge, gradually building a rich world of powerful magics, massive ruins, forgotten secrets, and complex politics. Now it is your turn...

Seven Bound...
They are the four-horned Feathered Fowl, once great champions of a god lost to memory. Now, they have been turned against him and bound to serve as jailors of a divine prison. Straining against the confines of their Oaths, they scour the multiverse seeking the ?greatest of the grand,? ripping them from their homes and bringing them to the Forge.

Domains of the Forge
The divine power of the trapped god seeps into the land and its heroes, imbuing them with great powers and abilities. Unique prestige classes give insight into the world?s mysteries and allow heroes to thrive within its borders, leaving them forever changed.

A countless wealth of races, cultures, magic, and knowledge has been pulled to the land from millions of other worlds, woven into a unique tapestry that is the Forge. You will be forever altered.

Oathbound: Domains of the Forge is a capstone setting designed for use with any d20 campaign world (or even as a world unt

Product Details

• Hardcover: 352 pages
• Publisher: Bastion Press (September 1, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0971439265
• ISBN-13: 978-0971439269
• Product Dimensions: 10.8 x 9.1 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.7 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,215,502 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This book was a great surprise., October 10, 2003

By 

EvilNight - See all my reviews

This review is from: Oathbound: Domains of the Forge (d20 System; BAS1005) (Hardcover)

I picked it up at a booth at Gencon last year. I started reading it during lunch and I couldn't put the thing down. This is a vast, complex, and massively detailed campaign world. Check the publisher's website if you want more information on the story... it has a fantasic metaplot and backstory to set your own adventures against and supports every genre and style of play, except perhaps the low level. The campaign is very high powered, so those who prefer low level, low power games will probably not want to use this setting. I will say, however, that as a fan of high level games, I've never once seen a setting geared towards high level play that is comparable to this one. This is a truly epic setting.

Highlights include an imprisoned god of unimaginable power and his servants, now cursed to become his jailers... a city with a population of 40 million with the most complicated (and awesome) politics I've ever seen, thousands of feet high built upon the ruins of previous incarnations of itself... a war torn desert with limitless riches buried beneath the sands... a pit of darkness miles deep that makes Ravenloft look like disneyland... lands, magical items, and beings drawn into the world from every other conceivable game world... and a grand conspiracy to hide the truth of the world from its inhabitants.

The reason it is $30 is because the book is dripping in full color artwork. It's gorgeous, and worth the price for the content alone. The eye candy is just a nice bonus. Pick up a copy at your local gaming store and just read the first few pages. It'll hook you. It is nothing like any other published campaign setting... it is far more rich and deadly than any I am familiar with... it has Ravenloft's evil, Dark Sun's grit, Dragonlance's epic feel, and the personality and familiarity of the Forgotten Realms, all in a mix that is entirely its own. The best part about it... the world is designed to have your characters ripped from any setting and thrown into the mix.

The catch is that you can never leave, although it is hard to imagine why anyone would want to.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Simply stunning., March 21, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: Oathbound: Domains of the Forge (d20 System; BAS1005) (Hardcover)

This book is one of the finest RPG products I have bought in nearly 25 years of gaming. It is a complex and detailed setting with great depth and immense possibilities. In fact, even if you never play a game in The Forge this book has enough ideas and immagination to be worth the price.

The setting supports every style of play, from backstabbing politics, warring kingdoms, vast wildernesses to explore, strange and arcane mysteries to uncover, winding underground complexes holding the secrets of lost civilizations. And this list isn't exhaustive.

But what about new game systems and mechanics? you might ask.. there are a slew of new prestige classes that open up even more options to adventurers, a passle of interesting new races to ADD to your games, and the crowning jewel: Prestige Races.

Prestige races represent physical transformation of your character as they aquire new traits to help them on their quests. WOTC was so delighted they optioned the idea for an issue of Dragon!

This setting plays to the best D&D has to offer, tailored to it's strengths and letting it's weaknesses fade into the background. The setting offers good reasons for all the expected adventure foils to be present. It is an interesting read even if you never play D&D.

In short: Wow!

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Truly Unique Book, February 7, 2003

By 

septnai "septnai" (U.S.A) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Oathbound: Domains of the Forge (d20 System; BAS1005) (Hardcover)

Bastion Press has outdone themselves with this book. They have created a fantastic well-thought out setting with interesting character races, thought-provoking prestige classes and, best of all, one of the most unusual worlds ever to be created for D&D (Although it can potentially be used with any d20 game). In addition the artwork is very nice and complements the book well.
That being said, this book is not your typical D&D "medieval" setting. It has more of the feel of the old (out of print) role-playing game Skyrealms of Jorune in that Bastion Press has created a truly unique world.
It has a tiny flavour of Ravenloft in that characters are brought and imprisoned here, but it is not a horror roleplaying game otherwise.

Because it is so unique some people may not like it, but if you want something which is definately not your run of the mill "medieval" fantasy realm then give this book a try.