Date: Wed, 18 Aug 1999 10:26:02 -0700 From: Leanne Opaskar Subject: [7th Sea RPG GM] Review of Pirate Nations I picked up a copy of The Pirate Nations at the San Diego Comic-Con. While I read it quickly, I wanted to digest it a bit before I posted the review. That being said, there may be SPOILERS here (I'm usually not careful when I'm reviewing), so if you're not sure you want to hear something, move along .... *spoiler space* I'll admit that I wasn't sure that I wanted to pick up this book to begin with. But since my players decided they all wanted to be pirates, I figured it was a good buy even if I didn't use it. Contrary to my unsure expectations, this book is very good. It features a wide array of information, from various pirate havens, to the crews of several notorious pirate ships, to new skills and a new fighting school, to a way to tell your pirate's fortune. While I don't use canned adventures, I do use backgrounds and settings. The new settings provided in Pirate Nations are pretty good. My crew will probably be heading straight for the Straits of Blood given their current situation (they've just captured a vessel that's going to get them in a lot of trouble), and it's nice to have this little haven all drawn up for me. They'll also probably be stopping off in Canguine, as they're all Avalon and they need to get back there post-haste. Canguine is an absolute delight -- a wonderfully colorful city with lots of nifty detail. I eagerly look forward to their time there. (;< While I probably won't use La Bucca much, it's also useful to hear how the Brotherhood came about. I really like the style these ports are done in -- it reminds me strongly of _City of Lies_, which I steadfastly maintain is the best AEG product to date and the best campaign setting I've ever read. (: (Will we get some sort of City of Lies for 7th Sea? I hope so!) The crews of other pirate vessels were an interesting read. I'm not sure I'll use all of them, but it's nice to see what the authors think is important about various characters. Berek will probably be making an appearance in my game (what? My whole crew is Inish, except for the lone froglet who's an Inish wannabe...), as will the Corsairs, perhaps. I'm not sure I want to use Reis just because he's soooo bad that he makes my stomach turn -- and I'm a GM! I oughta be inured by now ... I might use the Revensj, because my only non-crew-member is a Vendel guild-head's daughter who was supposed to be getting married ... wouldn't she be a prize for them! My one complaint about this section is that in looking at all of the characters provided, they are *huge*! Let's just take Berek for example -- he's got a Swordsman's school and a Virtue *and* the Noble edge, for starters. A 'normal' character could barely pay for all of those and then get maybe a couple skills. I don't really find that ... fair. Yeah, you could say that Berek's been around a while and all that -- I understand that these characters have earned some experience -- but some of these things you can't really pick up with experience, and you need to buy them to begin with. I guess it's just the ongoing problem I have with some of the AEG characters -- I found this going on in L5R too. The 'main characters' are so big and tough that normal characters don't stand a prayer of taking them down, not even with a lot of experience. I'll probably be downsizing some of these guys. In terms of new and splufty rules -- I love the Rogers school of fighting. None of my crew will take it, 'cause it's not appropriate, but it is quite cool and is a good addition to the bunch. The new skills are OK, and pretty average. I *really* like the fortune-telling section -- pay character points, get your fortune told, pick up a bunch of cool background. Neat! Looking forward to seeing more of these spreads. (: I also really like the additions for things to be found on-ship, and the new ship rules. I do wish, however, that the ship creation rules had been included in the book. I like to have all that stuff in one place, nicely formatted. Besides, not everyone has web access, and I'm sure people who don't know the rules are on the web are quite confused as to how to generate ships. By and large, this is a really good book. I'm pleased -- it was worth what I paid for it. So, when's the next one due out? (; ==Leanne ---------------------------------------------------------- Leanne Opaskar lopaskar@san.rr.com -- Contents Copyright (C) 1997,98,99 by ALDERAC ENTERTAINMENT GROUP, INC.