Rating: 
Summary: Oriental Adventures is back!
Review: A lavishly illustrated and easy to read book, Oriental Adventures should appeal to anyone that wants to run a Dungeons & Dragons campaign based on Kurosawa samurai movies or Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. This book includes new classes, new prestige classes, new weapons, new feats, new monsters, new spells and lots of great pictures.A sample campaign setting is included by way of the Legend of the Five Rings campaign setting called Rokugan, though the references to the setting are so comingled with the rest of the book, that you would think that this was the LOTFR role-playing game. That's why I gave it four stars instead of five. I was hoping for a more generic treatment of the rules as in the other three D&D core rulebooks. Otherwise, this is a great book.
Rating:
Summary: Oriental Adventures is back!
Review: A lavishly illustrated and easy to read book, Oriental Adventures should appeal to anyone that wants to run a Dungeons & Dragons campaign based on Kurosawa samurai movies or Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. This book includes new classes, new prestige classes, new weapons, new feats, new monsters, new spells and lots of great pictures. A sample campaign setting is included by way of the Legend of the Five Rings campaign setting called Rokugan, though the references to the setting are so comingled with the rest of the book, that you would think that this was the LOTFR role-playing game. That's why I gave it four stars instead of five. I was hoping for a more generic treatment of the rules as in the other three D&D core rulebooks. Otherwise, this is a great book.
Rating: 
Summary: Really, 3 and a half stars
Review: Almost a four, but after reading the book i have a few reservations. The presentation is great with robust artwork and the detail we've come to expect from 3rd edition. That said, i think the books lacks the edge of the orginal OA. Also, the world of Rokugan, while not bad at all, just doesn't perk my interest quite as much as Kara-Tur did. In fact, much of the book describes which elements Rokugan does NOT incorporate, but still provides the rules so that DM's and players can use them in their own campaigns. This to me just seemed silly. If you are going to through the trouble of using this Oriental universe then why not make it compatible with all the rules presented?
I suppose it's a minor quibble, and otherwise the book does have some good material. The monsters are great and have a lot of flavor, and there is so much info about the Shadowlands in the book it would be a waste not to use it, even if you ARE playing in Kara-Tur.
For those DM's and players who want an Oriental feel to their games, you can certainly use this book and pick elements from it. A good product, just not quite all i had hoped for.
Rating:
Summary: Nostalgia and Misremembered Memories
Review: As I buy more of these source books, either campaign settings or class books, I'm finding myself kind of missing the 1st and 2nd edition books. While this 3e version isn't bad, it isn't as memorable as the 1st edition was. Maybe I missed the heading, but I'm still not sure if a Samurai has to pay an extra feat slot just to be able to use their Katana (an exotic bastard sword, per rules) one handed. Some of the prestige classes are cool, but some of the old classes are now relegated to prestige classes, which makes them more of a hassle to attain than before. I'm pretty sure the maps they use in the book for the minor lords house and temple are straight xeroxes from the 1st edition. All in all, somewhat useful, definately better value on Amazon than paying full price at some gamestore though.
Rating: 
Summary: Oriental MISadventures
Review: Back in 1985, the father of Dungeons & Dragons, E. Gary Gygax, released the original Oriental Adventures, a tome packed with new spells, classes, and monsters; with the idea being to bring a far eastern flavor to the heavily western European-askew AD&D game. This original book unintellectually and schizophrenically combined Japanese, Chinese, and Korean cultures into one barely coherent, mispronounced porridge, yet still had some features that made it worth holding on to. Now, here in the 21st century, Wizards of the Capitalism brings us a ludicrously overpriced new version of Oriental Adventures. Like its namesake, this tome is quite unintellectual and quite schizophrenic, only to make matters worse the insipid and vastly overrated Legend of the Five Rings game has been integrated in and made the official campaign setting! For those of you who don't know, Legend Of The Five Rings began as a collectable card game designed by a group of individuals who clearly had no knowledge whatsoever of the medieval far east beyond a few kung fu movies, and gradually progressed into a dullard roleplaying system unto itself. Now, its an official Dungeons & Dragons campaign setting. Kami help us. Oriental Adventures 2K constantly jumps back and forth (sometimes in mid-sentence) between this corny Rokugan setting and (poorly) generalized D&D far eastern rules. A major disappointment is that the more interesting character classes from the original OA- kensai, yakuza, and ninja- have been relegated to the idiotic 3rd edition "prestige classes", one of the many aspects of the 3rd edition I do not appreciate. Still, Oriental Adventures has lots of new spells, monsters, and items for a 3rd edition campaign and could be a good resource for DMs that are out of ideas of their own (that is, if there are any DMs left that had original ideas to begin with!). However, DMs and players that have actual knowledge of oriental matters are going to have to do a LOT of work- a "bakemono" is simply any kind of ghost or spook, not a specific goblinoid race; "mamono" is a word that means "demon" or "devil", NOT a goofy looking cycloptic thing with blades for arms; "nezumi" simply means "rat" or "mouse"; and so on and so on and so on, ad nausem. This book is clearly targeted towards multimedia-hypnotised video gamer, dubbed anime fanboy teenagers that know nothing about anything, don't want to know anything about anything, and just want to roll some dice and kill stuff because they can't get a date for the weekend- that is, the target audience of the entire D&D 3rd edition product line. *sigh*
Rating: 
Summary: A Whole New World, A Whole New Challege
Review: Did you know that the tanar'ri aren't the only demon race there is? Ever wonder what makes a samuri's katana better than your old longsword? And what use does a D&D character have for skill in origami? All these questions and more will be answered when you delve into the magical world of Rokugan, a place where honor can be more vital than life. Not only must you choose a character class - with new character classes to choose from - but you must choose where your loyalty lies. Do you belong to the steadfast Crab Clan? The elegant Dragon Clan? Maybe the stealthy Scorpion Clan is more to your liking. Of course, you'll still be fighting monsters, saving princesses, and uncovering priceless magical items and secrets... But its a cool way to do it.
Rating:
Summary: A Whole New World, A Whole New Challege
Review: Did you know that the tanar'ri aren't the only demon race there is? Ever wonder what makes a samuri's katana better than your old longsword? And what use does a D&D character have for skill in origami? All these questions and more will be answered when you delve into the magical world of Rokugan, a place where honor can be more vital than life. Not only must you choose a character class - with new character classes to choose from - but you must choose where your loyalty lies. Do you belong to the steadfast Crab Clan? The elegant Dragon Clan? Maybe the stealthy Scorpion Clan is more to your liking. Of course, you'll still be fighting monsters, saving princesses, and uncovering priceless magical items and secrets... But its a cool way to do it.
Rating:
Summary: Worth it
Review: Even for some of you who HATE Asian elements in your games, it's still worth it. A lot of it is pretty jank (cool), for those who lke monks, this is a must have. It adds a bundle of Martial arts feats. The races are a bit odd, but they are creative. I like the Nezumi the best; they are small rat people. The classes are great, except I dislike the Shugenja, but the Sohei is cool. The Samurai could have been done beter though he needs more special abilities.
The monsters are strange, but the Pennagolan (Oriental Vamps), Hopping Vampire (A feral version of the vamp), and the Oni (Oriental Demons)are great.
The biggest letdowns were the religious system. The system was kind of like Shinto, the native religion of Japan instead of doing it the D&D polytheism way. The other letdown was the fact that they did Rokugan instead Kara-Tur.
Overall, It was worth it , though it did cost a lot.
Rating:
Summary: Mixed feelings about the new edition
Review: First of all, I confess to being a 3rd Edition devotee. I love the new rules, adore the new Manual of the Planes, and avidly collect all the class sourcebooks. That having been said, I can't help but get the feeling that this thick book is a lot of chaff and very little wheat. The 1st Edition Oriental Adventures was probably half the size of this, and I can't help but feel that it still managed to hold more useful material than this product. Classes like the Shaman and the Shugenja overlap way too much for my tastes, and most of the prestige classes are way too focused and overlap way too much. It's very difficult for one not to confuse the Iaijutsu Master from the Weapon Master (the noble Kensai, once the most exciting class in the game, is now nothing more than an unexciting prestige class). I also have to say that I am not of fan of the Legend of the 5 Rings game world, and the new races are just don't turn my crank. However, the production values on this book are so great, the spell lists have a very exotic feel (and didn't neglect my favorite Wu Jen spell ever, Steam Breath!), and the monsters are just full of Oriental Adventures spirit. I don't regret the buy, I was just hoping for a treatment that rivaled the 1st Edition counterpart - which it most certainly doesn't live up to, in my opinion.
Rating:
Summary: Worth every penny.
Review: First off, I am a diehard fan of the new edition. Simplified rules are the key to a fun game of D&D. Now, as for this product, I think James Wyatt is a genius. The classes and prestige classes have been done well, and in a way that does not interfere with the classes presented in other books. In the D&D 2nd Edition, every "supplement" would supercede a previous set of rules, so that people who had purchased different books would have totally different sets of rules. I always hated that.
As with all 3E products, players are empowered, while DM's are given new "toys" and monsters to throw at the players as well. I don't want to go into more detail, but I could write all day about how great this book is. If you're playing 3E, this book is a must-buy. If you're playing a previous edition and need some ideas to spice up or add things to an Oriental campaign, this book is also a must-buy for you.
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