Pyramid Review: Advanced Dungeons and Dragons Core Rules 2.0 Expansion

Pyramid Review

AD&D Core Rules 2.0 Expansion

Published by Evermore Entertainment

$39.95 (avg.)

System Requirements: IBM 75 MHz or better Pentium processor, 16 MB of RAM or better, 80 available hard drive space, 4X CD-ROM drive or better, SVGA graphics card (800 x 600 pixel resolution, 256 color display), Microsoft compatible mouse and mouse drive.

The biggest failure of Core Rules 2.0 was its inability to add custom classes. This expansion fixes that and adds a lot of value to the Core Rules, but it's still a long way from perfect.

The disc comes in a sleeve and uses the same artwork as the original Core Rules 2.0. For $40, I expected a little more.

I started off by making a Gondsman, a specialty priest of the mechanically inclined god Gond. After all, right on the back it states, "Create characters with custom classes, including specialty priests." Over an hour latter, I gave up, not at a complete loss, but unsatisfied.

First off, Gondsman are allowed to use the arquebus, a weapon included in the first printing of the 2nd Edition Player's Handbook. Because the Core Rules 2.0 uses Combat and Tactics however, there is no general, all purpose arquebus, but only arquebuses listed under flintlock and matchlock. I added that in. Next up, Gondsman gain bonuses when using certain skills. Unfortunately, the section on powers only includes those that are usable by Skills and Powers characters, not core rules characters. Another thing to add in. Next up, while using a time . . .

This article originally appeared in the second volume of Pyramid. See the current Pyramid website for more information.



Article publication date: August 13, 1999

Copyright © 1999 by Steve Jackson Games. All rights reserved. Pyramid subscribers are permitted to read this article online, or download it and print out a single hardcopy for personal use. Copying this text to any other online system or BBS, or making more than one hardcopy, is strictly prohibited. So please don't. And if you encounter copies of this article elsewhere on the web, please report it to webmaster@sjgames.com.