- Paperback: 96 pages
- Publisher: Wizards of the Coast (18 Mar 2005)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0786936568
- ISBN-13: 978-0786936564
- Product Dimensions: 27 x 21 x 0.8 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (1 customer review)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 737,012 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Product Description
Product Description
New rules for running a d20 Modern campaign set in the past.
This new rules supplement provides everything players and gamemasters need to participate in adventures in the time period between the Renaissance and World War II, including new character options and rules for early modern firearms. It begins with an exploration of the historical period between 1450 and 1950, then provides rules for creating characters and campaigns that blend realism and fantasy. d20 Past also presents alternative campaign models, along with all the rules needed to play swashbuckling pirate adventures, Victorian horror investigations, thrilling Pulp Era escapades, and more, including three ready-to-play campaign modules.
AUTHOR BIO: James Wyatt won an Origins award for Oriental Adventures™. He has also co-authored numerous roleplaying game products, including the Eberron™ Campaign Setting, Sharn: City of Towers™, Draconomicon: The Book of Dragons™, and Book of Exalted Deeds™.
AUTHRO BIO: Gwendolyn F.M. Kestrel is a managing editor for Wizards of the Coast, Inc. In addition to editing several D&D® books, she co-authored Underdark™ and Planar Handbook™ for Wizards of the Coast, Inc.
This new rules supplement provides everything players and gamemasters need to participate in adventures in the time period between the Renaissance and World War II, including new character options and rules for early modern firearms. It begins with an exploration of the historical period between 1450 and 1950, then provides rules for creating characters and campaigns that blend realism and fantasy. d20 Past also presents alternative campaign models, along with all the rules needed to play swashbuckling pirate adventures, Victorian horror investigations, thrilling Pulp Era escapades, and more, including three ready-to-play campaign modules.
AUTHOR BIO: James Wyatt won an Origins award for Oriental Adventures™. He has also co-authored numerous roleplaying game products, including the Eberron™ Campaign Setting, Sharn: City of Towers™, Draconomicon: The Book of Dragons™, and Book of Exalted Deeds™.
AUTHRO BIO: Gwendolyn F.M. Kestrel is a managing editor for Wizards of the Coast, Inc. In addition to editing several D&D® books, she co-authored Underdark™ and Planar Handbook™ for Wizards of the Coast, Inc.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
I was a little wary of this, the first paperback supplement for D20 Modern; the previous ones have all been heftier hardback editions. I shouldn't have worried- the 96 pages are veritably packed with good stuff. The new rules are mainly alterations to existing skills and occupations, together with useful new stats for rail travel and period weaponry.
The meat of the book, though, comes in the three campaign settings. The Age of Adventure is a cracking take on the world of pirates and musketeers with monsters and magic. Shadow Stalkers is a setting of horror in the 19th century, an extremely cool period to play in and my personal favourite. And Pulp Adventures takes you to the early 20th century, Nazis, and super-science. All three settings come complete with new enemies and advanced/prestige classes.
Exciting stuff, then. The bok loses a star only because it leaves you wanting more. However, this is more than enough to kick you off on a whole bundle of quasi-historical adventures. If your players want a change from cell phones and Uzis, treat them to D20 Past.
The meat of the book, though, comes in the three campaign settings. The Age of Adventure is a cracking take on the world of pirates and musketeers with monsters and magic. Shadow Stalkers is a setting of horror in the 19th century, an extremely cool period to play in and my personal favourite. And Pulp Adventures takes you to the early 20th century, Nazis, and super-science. All three settings come complete with new enemies and advanced/prestige classes.
Exciting stuff, then. The bok loses a star only because it leaves you wanting more. However, this is more than enough to kick you off on a whole bundle of quasi-historical adventures. If your players want a change from cell phones and Uzis, treat them to D20 Past.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
7 reviews
36 of 36 people found the following review helpful
Could have been much better
9 April 2005
Format:Paperback
I had high hopes for this book. Too bad it didn't live up. Once you see how skinny the book is, you will start to be concerned.
First, what the book does well. It gives a nice general overview on how to translate d20 Modern occupations, skills, and feats to less modern eras. The book also does the best job yet for showing how to have a d20 Pirates/1600's setting, complete with a sample adventure. The various advanced and prestige classes (Explorer, Musketeer, Shaman, and Sorcerer) for that era are also well done.
Sadly, once you are done with the section concerning 17th-century adventuring, the book drops down in value fast. Instead of giving general guidelines for the eras in question, d20 Past force feeds two campaign settings that are only moderately described. (It gives 24 pages for 17th Century, but only 16 for "Shadow Stalkers" (Victorian) and 15 for "Pulp Heroes" (1930's)) Outside of the rifles rules that were presented in the first chapter of the book, there is nothing to recommend getting this book instead of prexisting d20 books like Forbidden Kingdoms from OWC or Masque of the Red Death from S&S. The adventure models are weak for those eras, and the prestige classes are nothing special.
With nothing on how to deal with the Wars of the eras (Napoleon, American revolution, American Civil War, WWI), and the exceptionally-poor-for-WotC artwork in the book, the only reason to pick up this book is if one wants to do 1600's settings using d20 Modern rules. All others should look instead at the books I previously mentioned.
First, what the book does well. It gives a nice general overview on how to translate d20 Modern occupations, skills, and feats to less modern eras. The book also does the best job yet for showing how to have a d20 Pirates/1600's setting, complete with a sample adventure. The various advanced and prestige classes (Explorer, Musketeer, Shaman, and Sorcerer) for that era are also well done.
Sadly, once you are done with the section concerning 17th-century adventuring, the book drops down in value fast. Instead of giving general guidelines for the eras in question, d20 Past force feeds two campaign settings that are only moderately described. (It gives 24 pages for 17th Century, but only 16 for "Shadow Stalkers" (Victorian) and 15 for "Pulp Heroes" (1930's)) Outside of the rifles rules that were presented in the first chapter of the book, there is nothing to recommend getting this book instead of prexisting d20 books like Forbidden Kingdoms from OWC or Masque of the Red Death from S&S. The adventure models are weak for those eras, and the prestige classes are nothing special.
With nothing on how to deal with the Wars of the eras (Napoleon, American revolution, American Civil War, WWI), and the exceptionally-poor-for-WotC artwork in the book, the only reason to pick up this book is if one wants to do 1600's settings using d20 Modern rules. All others should look instead at the books I previously mentioned.
12 of 17 people found the following review helpful
Not what I was hoping for
13 July 2005
Format:Paperback
If you are looking for new classes, vehicle stats, and Open Gaming content, then this is NOT the book for you. I was hoping to find some good stuff in this title that I could use on a broader scale, but it's pretty much just bland and useless information. The kind of information you can easily find for free online. The only redeeming section in the whole book is the part on gun powder weapons, everything else is pretty much just a miss-mash of bad ideas.
What I was hoping to find were new character classes like: Pirate, Black Smith, Sailer, Merchant, Baron, etc. Instead all the book offered was a prestige class called Explorer and another for a Shaman. There are hardly any good stats for transportation devices or anything on inventions or inventing.
Finally, what little in this book that is usable is not part of the OGL. So, for example, all the stats on gun powder weapons cannot be utilized into another campaign book or resource book to keep rules standardized. This is irritating because the content is unoriginal and part of western civilization's history and should therefore be part of the OGL, not copyright protected.
Perhaps I was expecting too much, but I felt like a lot was missing and most of the information and content presented wasn't useful enough to make the book worth while.
What I was hoping to find were new character classes like: Pirate, Black Smith, Sailer, Merchant, Baron, etc. Instead all the book offered was a prestige class called Explorer and another for a Shaman. There are hardly any good stats for transportation devices or anything on inventions or inventing.
Finally, what little in this book that is usable is not part of the OGL. So, for example, all the stats on gun powder weapons cannot be utilized into another campaign book or resource book to keep rules standardized. This is irritating because the content is unoriginal and part of western civilization's history and should therefore be part of the OGL, not copyright protected.
Perhaps I was expecting too much, but I felt like a lot was missing and most of the information and content presented wasn't useful enough to make the book worth while.
7 of 10 people found the following review helpful
Well, I bought it....
24 Oct 2005
Format:Paperback
I admit I expected a bit more...
Three campaign models are discussed here in some detail - pirates, pulp fiction and...something else - gothic stuff, I think?
The equipment list and monsters are a bit skimpy, tables are reproduced, artwork is nice, but the whole seems to lack a bit. On the good side, it contains descriptions of all sorts of archaic personal firearms (now I can equip my post apocalyptic mutated badgers with gatling guns and pepperbox pistols - but I could have figured that stuff out anyway, I suppose). The Sailing combat rules are solid also.
I guess for the price its a good buy, but not quite what I was expecting.
Three campaign models are discussed here in some detail - pirates, pulp fiction and...something else - gothic stuff, I think?
The equipment list and monsters are a bit skimpy, tables are reproduced, artwork is nice, but the whole seems to lack a bit. On the good side, it contains descriptions of all sorts of archaic personal firearms (now I can equip my post apocalyptic mutated badgers with gatling guns and pepperbox pistols - but I could have figured that stuff out anyway, I suppose). The Sailing combat rules are solid also.
I guess for the price its a good buy, but not quite what I was expecting.
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