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Rating: 
Summary: New Rules for Called Shots & Crits
Review: In 3.0 and 3.5, I've always seen called shots as an oversight by Wizards. This book fixes this with powerful, but not overwelming tables for critical hits and called shots. It's got some pretty good rules for example:When attempting a called shot the player must make a concentration check unless she has weapon focus. It also gives the penalties for shooting the major body areas and critical results based on damage. It's pretty easy to use and the tables are quickly accessible.
Rating:
Summary: New Rules for Called Shots & Crits
Review: In 3.0 and 3.5, I've always seen called shots as an oversight by Wizards. This book fixes this with powerful, but not overwelming tables for critical hits and called shots. It's got some pretty good rules for example: When attempting a called shot the player must make a concentration check unless she has weapon focus. It also gives the penalties for shooting the major body areas and critical results based on damage. It's pretty easy to use and the tables are quickly accessible.
Rating:
Summary: Ow!
Review: Torn Aunder provides a simple and easy-to-use system for determining the effects of a critical hit on an opponent beyond simply inflicting double damage. This system permits a variety of different effects up to and including the loss of limbs. There are also rules for making called (aimed) shots, new (and more realistic) rules for healing and herbalism, scarification, and piecemeal armor.
There are three new prestige classes, each examined from the viewpoint of a standard fantasy campaign, the world of Oathbound, a futuristic campaign, and a modern setting. A total of 18 new feats increase the odds of making successful critical hits, make warriors better at what they do, or let characters avoid the effects of critical hits. Spells and traps can also inflict critical hits, and the rules for handling this are as quick and simple to use as the rules for critical effects from weapons. Finally, there are seven new monsters and three new templates in Torn Asunder that can make the lives of hapless player characters miserable.
The critical effects system is the heart-and-soul of Torn Asunder and the authors should be proud. They've not only created a logical and fairly realistic approach to truly damaging effects of combat in D&D, but they've carried it one step further with the variant rules for healing, recovery, and prosthetic limbs. Without the extra rules, Torn Asunder is a fine product, the extras push it over the line to great.
As good as the critical effects system is, it's the super-realistic healing rules that really stand out in my mind. It would have been easy for them to take the easy way out and simply rule that the system didn't change, but they didn't. They went the extra mile and changed the rules to handle these things, and that is what makes the product truly exceptional.
The layout of the book is good, with the sections divided logically for the most part. There are two exceptions, however. New armor, weapons, equipment, and magical items are scattered throughout the book. There is a logic of sorts to the placement, but I think I'd have rather had them all together in the same place. Likewise, there are two different selections of spells in two different places, where I'd rather have seen both put together.
Torn Asunder does add a new degree of complexity to the game, especially if all of the rules from this book are utilized. This isn't a bad thing, per say, but it is something that people should be aware of before purchasing the book. Though the methods used to determine the effects of critical hits are fairly simple, the new rules for healing can really complicate the system and may be too much for newcomers.
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