It took startling leaps of imagination as well as careful thought and planning to create places like these: places that readers and players want to come back to again and again.Now, eleven of adventure gaming's top designers come together to share their insights into building worlds that gamers will never forget. Learn the secrets of designing a pantheon, creating a setting that provokes conflict, determining which historical details are necessary, and so much more.Take that creative leap, and create dazzling worlds of your own!Essays by Wolfgang Baur, Keith Baker, Monte Cook, Jeff Grubb, Scott Hungerford, David "Zeb" Cook, Chris Pramas, Jonathan Roberts, Michael A. Stackpole, Steve Winter, with an introduction by Ken Scholes.

    Want to explore an epic history of your own creation, hundreds or thousands of years long, all in an afternoon? That's Microscope.You won't play the game in chronological order. You can defy the limits of time and space, jumping backward or forward to explore the parts of the history that interest you. Want to leap a thousand years into the future and see how an institution shaped society? Want to jump back to the childhood of the king you just saw assassinated and find out what made him such a hated ruler? That’s normal in Microscope.You have vast power to create... and to destroy. Build beautiful, tranquil jewels of civilization and then consume them with nuclear fire. Zoom out to watch the majestic tide of history wash across empires, then zoom in and explore the lives of the people who endured it.Mock chronological order.Defy time and space.Build worlds and destroy them.A role-playing game for two to four players. No GM. No prep."Microscope is incredible! A truly brilliant design. Also, the book is extremely well done. Highly recommended."-John Harper, designer of Agon & Danger Patrol"Ben Robbins' Microscope may be the clearest-written game text I've ever read - which is helpful, because it is also one of the most innovative games I've come across in a long time. Microscope engagingly challenges assumptions and upends long-held conventions of play while delivering a singular and satisfying evening of gaming. And "fractal role playing" is no joke - the minute you finish, you'll want to dive back in and explore some interesting sliver of the vast history you just built."-Jason Morningstar, designer of Fiasco"It's been a long time that a game captures my attention like Microscope. Bypass the hype, it's a truly remarkable well-instruction'd game"-Andy Kitkowski, founder of story-games.com

    Whether you're running a single adventure or masterminding a complete fantasy campaign, the Dungeon Master's Guide is an absolute necessity. The 2nd Edition Dungeon Master's Guide puts all the information you need right at your fingertips - in a fresh, new format, fully indexed for your convenience. Here you'll learn all there is to know about magical spells and items, as well as monsters, combat, travel, NPCs, treasure, encounters, awarding experience, and more!

    There are heists, chases, occult mysteries, dangerous bargains, bloody skirmishes, and, above all, riches to be had — if you’re bold enough to seize them.You and your fledgling crew must thrive amidst the threats of rival gangs, powerful noble families, vengeful ghosts, the Bluecoats of the city watch, and the siren song of your scoundrel’s own vices. Will you rise to power in the criminal underworld? What are you willing to do to get to the top?In this stand-alone game, you’ll find:* Rules to create your scoundrel using the following character archetypes: the Cutter, the Hound, the Leech, the Lurk, the Slide, the Spider, or the Whisper.* Rules to create your crew, built from types like Assassins, Bravos, a Cult, Hawkers, Shadows, or Smugglers.* A robust core mechanic which puts the fiction first—the strength of a character’s position (desperate, risky, or controlled) matters just as much as the character’s ability scores.* A lightning-fast mechanic for planning criminal operations to cut through the usual slog of planning at the game table.Rules for alchemical experiments, gadget tinkering, and weird occult powers—including rules for playing Ghosts and other strange beings.* A setting guide to the haunted city of Doskvol, with all the maps, factions, NPCs, schemes, and opportunities you need to run an exciting sandbox game.

     Their battles in the Overworld have spilled over to ours. Armed with abilities and weapons granted by their divine parents, the Scions stand as humanity's only defense. This book includes: • Six ready-to-play Scions—the offspring of the Gods • Rules to create your own Scion from one of more than 50 gods from six different pantheons • The adventure, "The Long Road to Heaven," using the Storytelling Adventure System Scion: Hero is the first book in a new Storytelling game series from White Wolf Publishing. 336 page hardcover.

    and More There's an old saying in Stormreach: "Great power rests in the ruins of the past." The shattered cities and vast dungeons of Xen'drik hold the secrets of countless fallen empires. Legends speak of titanic landmarks, sunken treasure vaults, and forgotten places suffused with powerful magic. Beyond the walls of Stormreach, an entire continent waits to be rediscovered. But beware! Terrible monsters rule Xen'drik now, and explorers searching for gold or glory often find death instead. Inside this book, you'll find everything you need to adventure in the shattered continent of Xen'drik: * Comprehensive overview of the continent of Xen'drik and the gateway city of Stormreach* New feats, prestige classes, spells, equipment, and magic items* Encounters and magical locations you can drop into your existing campaign* Ready-to-play adventures, monsters, and villains For use with these Dungeons & Dragons(R) products"Player's Handbook(TM) Dungeon Master's Guide(TM) Monster Manual(TM)Eberron"(R)" Campaign Setting"

    Humanity is enhanced and improved, but also battered and bitterly divided. Technology allows the re-shaping of bodies and minds, but also creates opportunities for oppression and puts the capability for mass destruction in the hands of everyone. And other threats lurk in the devastated habitats of the Fall, dangers both familiar and alien. In this harsh setting, the players participate in a cross-faction conspiracy called Firewall that seeks to protect transhumanity from threats both internal and external. Along the way, they may find themselves hunting for prized technology in a gutted habitat falling from orbit, risking the hellish landscapes of a ruined earth, or following the trail of a terrorist through militarized stations and isolationist habitats. Players may even find themselves stepping through a Pandora Gate, a wormhole to distant stars and the alien secrets beyond.

    Instead, they get Jack.This ace mech pilot contends with legendary prophecies, ancient powers, and fickle companions as he sets out on an epic task to save his planet from a baddie hellbent on destruction.Has his positive self-talk got him in too deep or will he actually pull through to do some good this time?I Am Mech is a nonstop, rollercoaster ride of an adventure full of snarky humor and more than a few spit-out-your-drink moments.

    Included as well are handy rules references, convenient price lists, and extensive random treasure generation tables, all organized to help you find what you need, when you need it. With this vast catalog of tools and treasures, the days of boring dragon hoards are over, and your hero will never be caught unprepared again.Pathfinder RPG Ultimate Equipment is a must-have companion volume to the Pathfinder RPG Core Rulebook. This imaginative tabletop game builds on more than 10 years of system development and open playtests featuring more than 50,000 gamers to create a cutting-edge RPG experience that brings the all-time best-selling set of fantasy rules into the new millennium.Pathfinder RPG Ultimate Equipment includes:- Thousands of items both magical and mundane, including the best weapons, armors, magic items, and gear from the Pathfinder RPG hardcover line and select other Pathfinder sources, as well as hundreds of never-before-seen items.- Tons of special materials and magical abilities to help you create exactly the magic item you've been looking for.- A wealth of specific magic items, organized by type to ensure your character is always wearing as much magic as possible.- An innovative new treasure generation system, designed to help GMs roll up exactly what they need, every time.- New alchemical weapons, tools, and poisons.- Kits to help your character get the most out of her skills or profession, plus new mounts, animal companions, and retainers.- Descriptions of every item, plus hundreds of full-color illustrations to aid in window-shopping.... and much, much more!Cover art by Wayne Reynolds

    Brilliant burglars and easygoing farmers. Now The Complete Book of Gnomes and Halflings reveals the secrets of these two popular races - their culture, beliefs, and subraces (including two new subraces), as well as twenty-eight new character kits, from the gnome Goblinsticker to the halfling Forestwalker. If you enjoy playing gnome or halfling characters, or if you're a DM interested in creating an all-gnome or all-halfling campaign, this is the book for you!

    In the golden age of legend, when there was enough to eat and enough hope, when there was one nation under god and people could lift their eyes and see beyond the horizon, beyond the day. Children were born happy and grew up rich.Now that's not what we've got. Now we've got this. Hardholders stand against the screaming elements and all comers, keeping safe as many as they can. Angels and savvyheads run constant battle against there's not enough and bullets fly and everything breaks. Hocuses gather people around them, and are they protectors, saviors, visionaries, or just wishful thinkers? Choppers, gunluggers and battlebabes carve out what they can and defend it with blood and bullets. Drivers and operators search and scavenge, looking for that opportunity, that one perfect chance. Skinners remember beauty, or invent beauty anew, cup it in their hands and whisper come and see, and don't worry now about what it will cost you. And brainers, oh, brainers see what none of the rest of us will: the world's psychic maelstrom, the terrible desperation and hate pressing in at the edge of all perception, it is the world now.And you, who are you? This is what we've got, yes. What are you going to make of it?

    This D&D supplement presents a fully illustrated hoard of new monsters, as well as ready-to-play variations of previously existing monsters. In addition, this supplement features maps of monster lairs, sample encounters, and tactics sections to help Dungeon Masters run the more complex creatures. Additionally, many entries contain information about where monsters are likely to appear in the Forgotten Realms and Eberron compaign settings.

    The psionicist is a completely new character class for AD&D games, both for player characters and NPCs. Explore inner space! Now you can really put mind over matter with The Complete Psionics Handbook.

    Nemo soon learns of the Convergence’s plans to transform Caen and its people to suit their enigmatic goddess, who favors machines over the living.Amid this clash Nemo must withstand the temptation of the Convergence’s message to those who, like himself, are fascinated by technology. Aurora proves to be a different sort of enemy than he has faced before—something of a kindred spirit, albeit one bent on destroying all he holds dear.

    Constantly bullied by Aiko, he eventually takes refuge with the village priest in the Kadek Temple where he studies medicinal and culinary arts, calligraphy, and ultimately, the art of Ki sword. Under the tutelage of the priest he comes to know the grim truth about his father, and is prepared to face the horrific assault of the armies of the Atlantean Empire upon his humble world.And this is just the beginning . . .