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This
massive book clocks in at no less than 323 pages, 1 page front cover, 1 page
editorial, 2 pages of ToC, 4 pages of SRD, 1 page back cover, leaving us with 314
pages of content, so let's take a look!
This review
was moved ahead in my reviewing queue as a prioritized review at the request of
my patreons.
Well, first
of all, I will deviate from my usual take on detailed analysis of the
individual pieces of content herein
-why? Because that would take AGES and bloat this review beyond the
page-count where this would have any semblance of help for anyone of my
readers. Beyond that, there is another factor - I have written detailed reviews
for each and every NPC (apart from the new one) sported in this massive
compilation - combining them would result in more than 30 pages, so there you
go. If you're interested in one particular NPC, you can have a detailed
analysis of said build in my individual review of the respective pdfs. If you
have read them, here's a general summation of what sets the NPCs apart.
Fluff-wise,
the Tarnished Souk can be considered an interplanar nexus situated on the plane
of dreams, right outside the legendary Coliseum Morpheuon, where the most
powerful mortals and immortals duke it out under the auspice of the khan of
nightmares, all hoping to gain the cusp of desires. Oh, and yes, the tarrasque
is actually part of the competition's challenges, to give you an inkling of the
level of expertise required in this competition. Dreams are a vaulable currency
in Coliseum Morpheuon and thus, they actually carry relevance beyond the
story's basic requirements for the characters in question. As such, they may
actually be found by PCs and provide a level of background information one
regularly does not expect. Dreams are more, though - they are power. While
dreamburning rules from Coliseum Morpheuon are not required for this book, it
does add a nice further dimension and honestly, Coliseum Morpheuon is the best
high-level module available for Pathfinder, so you definitely should have that
beast anyways.
So what is
special about the NPCs herein? Well, regarding crunch they are special to me
because they don't suck. There. I said it. Pathfinder's high-level gameplay and
the general experience of many a DM that high-level gameplay comes apart, at
least partially, is due to just about all published books simply having an
impossible job at their hands: The directive is to create adversaries that a
casual gaming group can vanquish and the more the levels pile up, the bigger
the discrepancy becomes between people that exhibit a high degree of system
mastery and those who don't. At high levels, this ultimately leads to whining
I've seen on boards about ACs of 36 in high level-ranges where that is not an
insurmountable defense. At the same time, posts complain about 1-round
curb-stomping BBeGs, a problem exacerbated by the mythic rules, famously being
quoted by Alexander Augunas as the Rocket-launcher-standoff.
In my main
campaign, I run next to no unmodified published modules - why? Because, if I
took Karzoug against half my group, they'd mop the floor with him. Yes, I'm
talking about the enhanced Anniversary Edition. Playtesting published modules
only VERY rarely results in any PC deaths at my table, even in Frog God Games
killer beasts. And I'm not alone in this issue. While my group may be an
extreme example, it is a trend that is exacerbated with each new release, with
each slight power-creep. In 3.X that resulted in me wearing down my Advanced
Bestiary and templating EVERYTHING. In PFRPG, I follow a similar modus
operandi, though one supplemented with many, many base classes, archetypes etc.
So that would be problem No.1.
Problem
number 2 is a more pleasant one to have - ultimately, there are MANY awesome
3pp-products out there -glorious base-classes, exceedingly fun subsystems etc.
- and yes, I'm using more 3pp material than Paizo material at this point. Alack
and alas, there is no big 3pp NPC Codex and that means making A LOT of NPCs and
monsters from scratch. Faces of the Tarnished Souk did something rather unique
- it provides a vast array of templates,. both original and from the best of
sources and combines them with unique classes - taskshapers and time thieves,
malefactors - whatever your heart desires, there is a good chance you'll find
some of the unmitigated stars within these pages. Add to that unique,
custom-tailored magic items and you get an array of NPCs that is ACTUALLY
CHALLENGING.
Now that
would be awesome in and of itself, but it becomes even better when you take
into account the vast imaginative potential that lies at the roots of the
characters provided herein - you won't find "Human Paladin 20" herein
- instead, you'll find, for example, Nameless Nil, the Beggar of Self. An
imaginary friend turned killer turned beggar, whose wonderful class/template
line reads "Bloody Maw Half-construct horrifically overpowered hungry
nightmare unfettered eidolon savant 10." This is, as the back cover
proudly proclaims, NOT your pappy's NPC book. Nameless Nil's prose and
background story ranks among the best pieces of character writing I have seen
in ANY roleplaying product, btw. - this guy is my favorite NPC for Pathfinder.
Yes, I'm talking about all-out number 1 spot. Oh, and have I mentioned that,
for example the legendary bulwark Ahnkar-Kosh has an AC of 64? This should put
an end to the smirk on your level 20 min-maxers face...
But wait,
before you put away this review - no, not all NPCs in this book exist only in
the CR ~20-range - instead, each of the NPCs herein comes with a build for low
levels, mid levels and high levels, allowing you to introduce the NPCs at any
level you like and depict their progression to greatness- or utilize the
statblocks of the lower iterations for servants, creatures or whatever you like.
Another issue you may expect to face would lie in the aforementioned presence
of a lot of 3pp-content utilized in the truly beautiful builds created herein.
Well, approximately the last 100 pages of the book are used to provide all
rules used in the builds of this massive cadre of glorious CHARACTERS. For,
thanks to the interplay of glorious prose and superb crunch, the NPCs become
more than the sum of their respective parts.
If you are
not inspired by the glorious write-ups of the respective NPCs, many of which
can spawn multiple adventures (or even campaigns!), boxes with pieces of advice
further help using the NPCs and integrating them into the mythos of your
campaign. Have I btw. mentioned Smiles-Under-teh-Bed, the legendary Cheshire
cat that is pretty much a psychotic, playful killer that clocks in at CR 19 in
its most powerful iteration? The eidolon that is the summoner that wants to be
mortal? The goblin time thief convinced that things between the seconds are
gearing up to tear time and reality asunder? If you have ANY joy contemplating
high-stakes games, personal tragedies, captivating NPCs and a level of
imagination I have not seen since the heyday of Planescape, and there only in
its better products, then this compilation should be considered a ridiculously
glorious must-buy.
How can
this be further enhanced? well, the original pdfs sported some artwork which
has since been used by other supplements as well - this has been expanded by
new pieces that seamlessly fit with the respective character portrayals, with
Juan Diego Dianderas and Kamil Jadczak delivering great pieces in the fitting
b/w-standard this book offers and adding to the talents of illustrators that
not only include master of the creepy Mark Hyzer, but also Tamás Baranya and
Hugo Solis and many, many more. How can this be made better on a content-level,
you ask? Well, what about adding a brand new NPC by none other than legendary, Ennie-award-winning
design Ben McFarland? This would be Strai Tkossirk, the whispered word of
dream. This would be, in his highest CR-iteration, a psychic (telekinetic)
vrock oracle (aetherurgist) - and the level of imaginative potential of this
NPC in no way falls back behind the ridiculously high standard of the series,
utilizing for example a magical drug-addiction in the mid-level version. And
yes, as per the tradition with this series, vivid prose, GM-advice and tactics
combine to create a creature that is more than the sum of its myriad parts. On
a nitpicky side - I think it would have made more sense to include him in the
NPC-roster instead of in the appendix, but that is ultimately one design in a
huge book....and remains the only true gripe I can muster against this tome.
Conclusion:
Editing and
formatting are very good, especially for a massive tome of this size. Layout
adheres to a printer-friendly two-column b/w-standard with elegant borders and
the artworks provided, as mentioned above, are thematically fitting and, in
many cases, awesome. The book comes fully bookmarked for your convenience.
I have all
individual pdfs printed out. I want this book in dead-tree. This is not
"an" NPC collection - to me, this is THE NPC collection. Faces of the
Tarnished Souk epitomizes what made me a fan of Rite Publishing in the first
place: The combination of awesome prose and imaginative fluff that goes one
step further. I guarantee that the vast majority of characters herein, once
encountered, will remain the talk of your gaming groups for years to come.
Beyond the cool mechanics, this series has pretty much defined what I consider
apex-level NPC-crafting and remains my point of reference for any such book. It
should be noted that exactly ONE pdf can claim to adhere to this level of
awesomeness beyond the series - LPJr Design's Cyrix. That's pretty much it.
When anyone
asks me for challenging or simply evocative NPC builds, this book immediately
comes to mind. When someone asks me for the spirit of truly uncommon fantasy,
this book is what I think about. Whether as antagonists, allies or both, the
characters herein pretty much define my campaigns in subtle ways - by the
legends they have crafted, by the guidance they provide, by the growth my PCs
can witness. Matt Banach, Justin Sluder, Steven D. Russell and Ben McFarland
have quite simply created THE NPC collection for the discerning game-master,
the remedy for players bored with standard builds and, via the builds herein, a
great toolkit for GMs to use themselves.
Even if you
never plan to run any of the characters herein and are not interested in
Coliseum Morpheuon, this book provides so many iconic characters that it
remains my honest belief that this book can serve as an inspiration for other
settings as well. If my gushing diatribe before was not ample clue, I consider
this quite frankly the best NPC collection out there, one distinguished by
excellence in the beautiful statblocks AND the prose that draws vivid pictures
of truly unique characters that deserve the moniker while epitomizing the key
strengths of Rite Publishing as a publisher. This book, unsurprisingly,
receives a final verdict of 5 stars + seal of approval as well as being a
candidate for my Top Ten of 2015.
Endzeitgeist
out.
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