Pyramid Review
Libris Mortis: The Book of Undead
Published by Wizards of the Coast
Written by Andy Collins & Bruce R. Cordell
Edited by Michele Carter, Kim Mohan & Cindi Rice
Illustrated by Tom Kidd, Thomas Baxa, Steve Belledin, Jeff Easley, Steve Ellis, Wayne England, Emmanuelle Hunter, Jeremy Jarvis, Chuck Lukacs, David Martin, Michael Phillippi, Steve Prescott, Wayne Reynolds, Brian Snoddy, Dee Barnett, Dawn Murin, Trish Yochum, Dennis Kauth
192-page full-color hardcover; $29.95
Hell is full and the dead walk the streets of your game world. They may not be easy to pen up, but at least the gamemaster can get a handle on widespread evil with Libris Mortis: The Book of Undead from the vampire wranglers at Wizards of the Coast.
Assuming everyone loves the undead (a pretty safe bet given the state of popular culture), such a volume should come as no surprise. Neither, for that matter, should the layout. Undead creatures? Of course. Feats? You bet. For PCs and NPCs? Natch. Some specific observations, then.
There's a little more campaign advice here than in previous Wizards of the Coast products, though not a whole lot. You get a short introduction to what undead are and how they unlive, eat (eww), and procreate. Theories on whence they come, examples of cities and religions for the cosmopolitan zombie, and advice on strategy when facing (or being) the dead (especially the self-aware threats) make good reading, but these are sadly brief.
Too much "campaign" advice is just lists. Sure, there's . . .
This article originally appeared in the second volume of Pyramid. See the current Pyramid website for more information.
Article publication date: March 11, 2005
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