- Hardcover: 160 pages
- Publisher: Wizards of the Coast (28 Sep 2005)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0786936991
- ISBN-13: 978-0786936991
- Product Dimensions: 27.7 x 21.6 x 1.5 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (1 customer review)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 754,757 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
12 of 12 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
This book is slightly strange, and divides very clearly into two sections. The first couple of chapters are very much about how to set up a "horror" campaign. Its emphasis is very much on atmospherics, and how it is important to set up the premise of the campaign early on and ensure that the players are willing to co-operate. It talks about moral relativism, provides a mechanic for developing insanity and moral depravity, an amended Fear mechanic more in keeping with a horror setting, and it examines in detail what "horror" might mean and how to evoke it. It also suggests how a horror campaign might develop, and how to design horrific scenarios (some examples are a bit nasty, so I would give this a PG or 12A rating if it was me, though it's not explicit on the cover). As such, this bit really concentrates on mood, setting and so on, and de-emphasises rules. I thought this section (probably about half or three-fifths of the book) was absolutely excellent.
And then, with a loud grinding of gears as we change pace, you get the second part of the book: new character classes, prestige classes, spells, feats, monsters. All the usual stuff you expect from a WotC supplement. It's not that it is bad, but as the first section doesn't even really mention rules that much and concentrates much more on the "art" rather than the "science" of the DM's craft (yep, it's really for DM's this book, like Heroes of Battle) it felt like a bit of a contradiction of the book's ethos to shovel this lot in. I hate to say it, but it looks a bit like filler (very little of it strictly has relevance to a horror setting) and so I was disappointed with this section.
Nevertheless, I'm giving this four stars because I thought the first section was excellent. And there's nothing much wrong with the second section - it just feels like it was parachuted in from another volume. Ah well, caveat emptor.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
21 reviews
58 of 59 people found the following review helpful
I haven't seen a supplement this good in years...
18 Dec 2005
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
The only thing that I could say is a drawback of Heroes of Horror is that it's too short.
This book was clearly written by people who know how to do Horror; some of the examples that they give had my pulse going up, and they're just suggestions!
The main thing that I really like about this book is that the writers took many, many examples from pop culture and related them to their suggestions, breaking them down to core themes and explaining how those themes can be related to each other. It provides the important basics of horror writing (for short stories, scripts, or an RPG) without going into horrible technical terms because the writers knew they were writing to an audience that aren't pro writers. It's this down to earth, no-nonsense explanatory style that really makes Heroes of Horror a winner for a DM looking to add horror flavour to their campaign, or to write an entirely horror-based campaign.
From a rules standpoint, this is how it breaks down:
A lot of the material has been seen in 3.0 materials, and so it's really nice to see these things updated for 3.5.
The classes and prestige classes are really quite useful as well- the Archivist is a brilliant adaptation of Divine casting, and the Dread Necromancer is long overdue; a base-class necromancer was needed in this game. The spells and feats sections are also rather good, so overall the book is a great opportunity.
I was considering a four-star rating because of its shortness, but I then reread the sections on horror writing and it just so outshines other sourcebooks that it deserves the five-star rating.
Most importantly, it doesn't take the need for Horror in your campaign to use this sourcebook. This is really a guidebook to making your villains epically and cinematically *evil*, and any DM can use that to good effect. The supernatural evil effects might be creepy for a horror setting, but any DM can use the tips in this book to make his or her normal villains much more sinister and chilling.
This book was clearly written by people who know how to do Horror; some of the examples that they give had my pulse going up, and they're just suggestions!
The main thing that I really like about this book is that the writers took many, many examples from pop culture and related them to their suggestions, breaking them down to core themes and explaining how those themes can be related to each other. It provides the important basics of horror writing (for short stories, scripts, or an RPG) without going into horrible technical terms because the writers knew they were writing to an audience that aren't pro writers. It's this down to earth, no-nonsense explanatory style that really makes Heroes of Horror a winner for a DM looking to add horror flavour to their campaign, or to write an entirely horror-based campaign.
From a rules standpoint, this is how it breaks down:
A lot of the material has been seen in 3.0 materials, and so it's really nice to see these things updated for 3.5.
The classes and prestige classes are really quite useful as well- the Archivist is a brilliant adaptation of Divine casting, and the Dread Necromancer is long overdue; a base-class necromancer was needed in this game. The spells and feats sections are also rather good, so overall the book is a great opportunity.
I was considering a four-star rating because of its shortness, but I then reread the sections on horror writing and it just so outshines other sourcebooks that it deserves the five-star rating.
Most importantly, it doesn't take the need for Horror in your campaign to use this sourcebook. This is really a guidebook to making your villains epically and cinematically *evil*, and any DM can use that to good effect. The supernatural evil effects might be creepy for a horror setting, but any DM can use the tips in this book to make his or her normal villains much more sinister and chilling.
21 of 21 people found the following review helpful
A Pleasant Surprise
20 April 2007
Format:Hardcover
I honestly wasn't expecting too much from this book when I originally looked at it. I was expecting the caliber of the not-so-"Complete" series... Boy, did that get shot in the foot. This is probably one of the best supplements released in the past three years. It's very comprehensive with very little useless, extraneous information and is organized well. The sections written to be helpful to the DM are actually helpful to the DM- not just a bunch of 'no duh,' common sense information like many of the other new supplements.
The new classes are actually interesting- not merely spinoffs or mixes of other classes, and the Taint tables offer a really interesting new idea. The new creatures are also very intriguing, again, not just spinoffs. Take the Grey Jester: a humanoid that basically eats the laughter and happiness out of peoples (and PCs) to create mindless drones to do its bidding. There is also a little speckling of possible mini-adventures that help you get an idea of how to employ the concepts introduced into a campaign. While the book is really designed for a horror-oriented campaign, it would be very easy to adapt some of these ideas into a brief adventure, even just one dungeon. Pages and pages aren't wasted on new magic items or overly extensive info on adaptation into Ebberon, Faerun, etc. There's just the right about of info on both.
It would be worth the money for a one-shot Halloween adventure. It's very original, very creative, and a great buy. It would be a perfect match for anyone intending to run a Ravenloft campaign.
The new classes are actually interesting- not merely spinoffs or mixes of other classes, and the Taint tables offer a really interesting new idea. The new creatures are also very intriguing, again, not just spinoffs. Take the Grey Jester: a humanoid that basically eats the laughter and happiness out of peoples (and PCs) to create mindless drones to do its bidding. There is also a little speckling of possible mini-adventures that help you get an idea of how to employ the concepts introduced into a campaign. While the book is really designed for a horror-oriented campaign, it would be very easy to adapt some of these ideas into a brief adventure, even just one dungeon. Pages and pages aren't wasted on new magic items or overly extensive info on adaptation into Ebberon, Faerun, etc. There's just the right about of info on both.
It would be worth the money for a one-shot Halloween adventure. It's very original, very creative, and a great buy. It would be a perfect match for anyone intending to run a Ravenloft campaign.
26 of 28 people found the following review helpful
Hero's of Horror brings a new depth to the game
18 Jun 2006
Format:Hardcover
Long have I played the wizard specialist necromancer, always slightly underpowered and unable to truly maximize on the feel of the character. After picking up this supplement, all that has now changed. HoH is the best supplement from wotc in a long time, yes it is too short, but what the book does contain can really impact your playing experience in a positive way. I personally dont use the taint system when I run a game, but when I use the Dread Necromancer as a PC it truly captures the spirit of the game. Yes it is a powerful class, but it is NOT overpowered, and it encourages true role playing. "dread necromancers, no matter how neutral, are not welcome in any place, so beef up those bluff, intimidate, and disguise skills" The Archivist is literally the most interesting interpritation of divine spellcasters I have seen since the... Cleric/Druid, and is easily role played. The dread witch is long overdue, and as a 5 level class is very cool. The new monsters are great "my personal favorite being the Bog Imp, and the Phantasmal Slayer. Some new neat spells line these pages as well, and they are almost all scary. There is a lack of items/weapons, and I would have loved to see more horror related ones, but we have enough in all the other books. Will I use a tainted scholor, purifier, corrupt avenger, death delver, or fiend blooded? no, but someone will enjoy these classes. DnD is much richer for these and all the other options presented here. Adding horror to your campaign, whether it be a touch or the total immersion, brings a touch of reality or at least a flair for the dramatic. I highly encourage someone interested in this to check this out!
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