Saturday, October 5, 2013

On Swords & Wizardry Complete Hardcover

Last Sunday, I ordered the Swords & Wizardry hardcover direct from Frog God Games. It arrived today, the following Saturday. Talk about service.

I've been playing S&W for a few years, starting with the WhiteBox and Core books from Lulu. When Complete was released back in 2010, for me, it jumped to the front of the S&W pack where it was competitive with other games that I like such as Castles & Crusades, feature-wise anyway.

While Complete saw a lot of play at the table, I didn't feel compelled to get the physical book. Then along came the S&W Kickstarter with the Errol Otis cover. Oh, boy. Barely. Held. Out.

I was hoping that the book would show up at my local game store. No such luck. Finally, I asked if they could get it in. Nope. So, off I went to the Frog God website and placed my order.

A year after the Kickstarter that tempted me so, Complete was finally on my doorstep.

It exceeds all expectations.

6 comments:

  1. Brutorz BillOctober 6, 2013 at 10:06 AM

    I'm curious to hear your thoughts on how it compares to C&C, I've played a ton of C&C but don't own S&W Complete.

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  2. NathanOctober 6, 2013 at 2:53 PM

    Core covers territory seen in Monsters & Treasure, and a few small slices of the Castle Keeper's Guide.

    Here's a rundown of Core's table of contents:

    * Players Section
    - Creating a Character
    -- Attributes
    -- Classes
    -- Multiclassing
    -- Races
    -- Alignments
    -- Equipment
    -- Armor Class
    -- Weight and Movement

    - How to Play
    -- Gaining Experience
    -- Time
    -- Saving Throws

    - Combat
    -- Initiative and Order of Battle
    -- The Attack Roll
    -- Attack Tables
    -- Specific Situations
    -- Turning the Undead
    -- Damage and Death
    -- Healing
    -- Morale
    -- Quick Method for Ascending AC Combat

    - Gameplay Example

    - High Level Adventuring
    -- The Stronghold
    -- Hiring Followers

    - Magic
    -- Magical Research

    - Spell Lists/Descriptions

    * Referee Section
    - Introduction
    - Designing an Adventure
    - Dungeon Adventures
    - Wilderness Adventures
    - Special Combat Rules
    -- Mass Combat
    -- Siege Combat
    -- Aerial Combat
    -- Ship Combat

    - Monsters
    -- Reading the Monster Descriptions
    -- Monster Descriptions
    -- Monsters by Challenge Level
    -- Creating Monsters

    - Treasure
    -- Generating a Random Treasure Hoard
    -- Magic Items

    - Blank Character Sheet


    Here's a breakout of what classes are included:
    * Assassin
    * Cleric
    * Druid
    * Fighter
    * Magic-User
    * Monk
    * Paladin
    * Ranger
    * Thief

    Of course, there's nothing like the Siege Engine in S&W Complete but, the tinkerer in me likes that:

    Roll a D6

    ReplyDelete
  3. Brutorz BillOctober 6, 2013 at 8:06 PM

    Thanks for the rundown, I'm seriously considering picking this up. I don't see bard listed, my wife prefers to play bards.

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  4. NathanOctober 6, 2013 at 8:26 PM

    You're welcome. It's a very well done book, both physically and content-wise.

    The S&W Companion bard has seen use at our table.

    I've also been pondering the "OSR Bard". It's an interesting take. With a bit of tinkering to mesh with 'Roll A D6' it'd be ready to roll.

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  5. Brutorz BillOctober 6, 2013 at 9:42 PM

    Cool! One more question, does S&W Complete do the Race as Class thing or does it open things up more like in C&C?

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  6. NathanOctober 6, 2013 at 10:46 PM

    It's kind of in between. Races are distinct from class, though, by the book, not all classes are available to all races. Dwarven PCs must be Fighters or Fighter-Thieves.

    Or there may be a level limit. For example, Halflings are capped at 4th level if a Fighter while there is no limit if they are a Thief.

    ReplyDelete