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Tome and Blood: A Guidebook to Wizards and Sorcerers (Dungeons & Dragons Accessory)

Tome and Blood: A Guidebook to Wizards and Sorcerers (Dungeons & Dragons Accessory)

List Price: $19.95
Your Price: $13.57
Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Sure...if you've never played a wizard before.
Review: I was extremely disapointed with this book. I have been playing a wizard persistantly for the last 6 years, and fellows that share this magical bakground with me will find nothing they havnt seen before in this guide. The "new' items are nothing more than seven different variations of the same thing. The prestige classes are pointless and unbalancing. The "advice" is nothing a good player hasnt contimplated before. The original 2nd Edition Wizards Handbook is more usefull in my opinion. however, if you are a beginer magus go ahead and buy it. It will be of mor use to than it was to me.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Gamers Gotta Get it
Review: If you are a DM or are RPing a spellcaster - GET THIS BOOK!!

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: This book is great, HOWEVER...
Review: Sorcerers got "The Royal Shaft" when it comes to prestige classes. Out of the 15 presented in this book, they can only take 5 of them at a reasonable level, while wizards can take them all by 7th. This includes a few classes like the Elemental Savant, which is a class that is obviously geared towards Sorcerers, yet cannot be selected by a sorcerer until 13th level, whereas a Wizard can take the class at about 7th level.

My advice to anyone considering buying this book is to go ahead and flop the cash down, but be prepared to modify some of the knowledge requirements on prestige classes, especially if someone in your group plays a Sorcerer.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Too much rules, too little RP.
Review: This book has a number of things. First, there's a supplement to the spell and feat lists in the PhB.

The most talked-about portion of the book the pretige classes, Is varried. PrCs are beggining to lose their punch. Take the Dragon Disciple: someone who has some dragon blood which they develope. Not a bad concept, but it doesn't have the coolness of say, a Greyhawk-styled assasin, infamous guild guild and all. DragDisciples just show up randomly. Others are good-Mage of the Arcane Order is a great example of what PrC's are all about. Acolyte of the Skin, who undegoes a ritual from tomes mostly erradicated is also good. But it would have all been better if some of the weaker classes were dropped and the RP section/special requirements of each PRC was expanded and improved.

The one other chapter of the book, Arcane Lore, is a misc. chapter that acctually has some of the best stuff in the book. It has the RP half of the mage of the arcane order and The Bleak accademy that represents two of the necromancy-type PrC's. There are other guilds, but some should have been cut and the others expanded. There are also to dungeons-one the home of two mages and the other the HQ of the arcane order. Mabey nothing stunning, but I've seen some pretty poorly done dungeons and these could be a nice moddel or even advanced a century after abandonment to turn into a dungeon.

Some good stuff, but not enough to be worth the [money].

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Awesome
Review: Get this book!!! It has new prestige classes such as dragon diciple, a sorcerer or who gains awesomely cool dragon powers, or Elemental Savant a spellcaster who becomes supper obsessed in one specific element, or Alienist who is a master of the Far Realm. There are also very cool new feats includin Energy Admixture and Improved Familiar. Energy Admixture lets you create acid fireballs or sonic lightningbolts, and Improved Familiar lets you get new types of familiars such as pseudodragon or shocker lizard. Also has spells and lots of other usefull info. Buy this!!!

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Half the classes are for the DM
Review: This is an awesome book for the DM who needs ideas on wizard bad guys to throw at the players. For a player, its only about 50/50. It's utterly useless for illusionists.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Pamphlet and Blood
Review: Well I just loved the sword and fist, so when the class guidebook for two other classes i like (wizard and sorceror) came out, I promptly bought it. And I must say, I'm satisfied.
Although the price was a bit too hit (say 200%) for my tastes and the NUMBER OF PAGES (hence the title of this review), the prestige classes and feats were great. Unfortunately,
The "description of a wizard's dwelling", the usual pointless advice and tables (that any player of 2 months or more already knows) was present, as in the Sword and Fist. A message to WotC: More applicable classes/feats/spells, fewer "transmutation is useful" paragraphs. The Prestige classes were interesting, fun and overall, well made. My favorites were the lucky fatespinner and the elemntal savant. A must-own for Dm's or magic-using PC's.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: I was born a Spellcaster!!!!!!!
Review: Let me say something, if you, like myself, were born a Spellcaster, you will absolutely love this book, there are very good spell, Great new feats (a pyty you can't take them all :-( ), and the prestiges classes are simply incredible.....

Regarding the prestiges classes, they may seem too powerful at first glance, but instead you must pay every single ounce of powerwith experience and a lot of time and effort...

As per spells, there are some of them that can easyly be erased by the simple use of the "energy substitution" feat, some of the others are very useful, and others can be easily taken out of you spellbook since you will find similar ones in the players handbook...

I have no other thing to say about feats besides that they are fantastics, and make your magic really really powerful, and if there is a thing about wizards (sorcerers) is that the enemy must tremble by the simple fact of seeing one.... ...

So, If you were born a spellcaster, this is the book for you, if you weren't, buy it anyway, you might find you have been walking the wrong path

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Excellent book
Review: I must say that I find this book to be VERY useful. I'll review the cons first, then the pros.
--There are wildly varying detail levels on what could have been very cool. For example, The Hallow (a sample mages' domain) is given huge detail. (In my opinion this is unnecessary, but that's a personal preference). The arcane order is given huge detail and has a reflecting prestige class. However, the beastchasers, wayfarers, and broken wands are given very little detail (which could have been VERY intriguing).
--The spells themselves and even some feats reduce things to statistics. No longer is there the exotic, unique flair of a fireball. Now, with energy substitution and "acid ball", there is much less uniquness. I sound old-fashioned, but some things should be a bit unique. This does have its plus sides though.

HAving said all that, this book is EXCELLENT. There are many pluses
--the new feats are for the most part unique and interesting. Some are redundant, but most do fill much-needed niches (for example, augmented summoning and greater spell focus).
--the magic items are fairly well thought out... there's also an EXCELLENT explanation of item-creating.
--The new spells vary... some are cool, some formulaic (Gee, there's a level 1 fire spell, let's add a level 1 ice spell).
--The best part, by far, is the section on Prestige classes. They really allow characters to be customized. No longer is every wizard the same. Beyond abilities, they allow characters to have whole new goals, outlooks, even cultures.
--Some prestige classes are better than others (the blood magus is overpowered while the candle caster is underpowered, IMHO). However, I'll say one thing about the D&D prestige classes. Even if an individual class doesn't impress you, it will make you think. "They are not so much to be thought of as to inspire thought." Many DM's may say "this class is okay, but I can come up with a better one"--and then do so. This is a talent on WOTC's part, not a flaw.

In conclusion, this is an excelent book that any D&D player should consider buying (perhaps waiting until it's on sale).

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Tome and Blood (of your Player's spilled across the street!)
Review: I must say, I have been playing Dungeons & Dragons for 11 years now. Yipes! I was very eager for the arrival of the new Third Edition and couldn't wait to get my hands on the new books. Once these came, I gobbled them up. The Player's Handbook was awesome, and the Dungeon Master's guide was actually USEFUL unlike the 2nd Edition one. The Monster Manual was very good, and included all the basics, along with some twists. Then came the Hero Builder's Guide.... Not the quality product I was expecting... However, then came the Sword and Fist Guidebook. AWESOME! Wizards had really worked magic on the first Guidebook. After that came Defenders of the Faith, which hads plenty of good material, but let's face it, there was quite a bit there that sucked. Then came the Tome and Blood Guidebook. This was one that my players were eagerly awaiting, and we simply gobbled it up. Sure, it has it's handful of useless information (for our group), but I felt there was really, really good stuff in there, and was definitely worth the purchase. Now I can't say I still agree with the jacked up prices, but I'm growing accustomed to it.


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