The Inwo Book: Being a Compendium of Lore, Lies, Damned Lies and Statistics Concerning the New World Order of the Illuminated Masters

Rating:
Summary: Good info, but not a lot new
Review: If you're an avid fan of the collectable card game version of Steve Jackson's Illuminati: New World Order, you may enjoy this book. If you've never played the game, or are a casual player, you may not enjoy it quite as much. Still, it's useful for some details and strategies that are not readily apparent.

The main benefit of the book by fans is the designer's notes; while there isn't as much on the creation and the rules of the cards, there's a good bit about production and sales that's surprisingly interesting. There's also a note-by-note analysis of each alignment and attribute, as well as Personalities and Places. There's also game variants, beginner's tactics, and assorted tricks to pull with your friends.

The biggest disappointment is the catalog of cards--not that it isn't nice to see the text of all the cards (especially if you don't have that many), but that it eats up a good chunk of the pages. Fans would rather see rules clarifications, notes on creating your own balanced cards, tournament details, card creation stories, interviews with artists and originators, etc. None of these things are present.

Unfortunately, those things in the book can pretty easily be seen on the internet--on the INWO home page, no less! But there are plenty of nuggets that aren't in the web pages.

Not a bad book, if you're a fan, though it may leave you feeling a bit empty. Otherwise, you might be better of looking elsewhere on the 'net for info.