The Draconomicon (Dungeons & Dragons d20 3.5 Fantasy Roleplaying)

The Draconomicon (Dungeons & Dragons d20 3.5 Fantasy Roleplaying) | Andy Collins, James Wyatt, ... | Beautiful Book with Flawed Content

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The Draconomicon (...

	The Draconomicon (Dungeons & Dragons d20 3.5 Fantasy Roleplaying) Andy Collins, James Wyatt, ... Wizards of the Coast, 2003 - 288 pages average customer review:based on 35 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

The Book of Dragons

This title takes a comprehensive look at the dragons of the D&D world from a variety of perspectives. It includes information on playing dragons and dragon-like creatures, how to run a dragon in a fight, and how to both fight dragons and work with them as allies.

There are statistics on dragons of every type and at every age category, in addition to examples of lairs, hoards, and dragon minions. There are new rules, feats, spells, prestige classes, magic items, and other materials associated specifically with interaction with dragons including illustrated lairs and rules for creating treasure hoards. The book itself is designed in a prestige format, with heavy use of art throughout and constructed of premium materials.

To use this supplement, a Dungeon Master also needs the Player?s Handbook, Dungeon Master's Guide, and Monster Manual. A player needs only the Player's Handbook.

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good delivery and good quality

i am satisfied with the product and the delivery. Everything was good!

Beautiful Book with Flawed Content

Let me start this review by saying that this book is beautiful. The full color images throughout almost make it a coffee table book, and it is hard to NOT give it five stars just for those images.

But this book IS a roleplaying game supplement, so it has to be judged on more than just its pretty pictures.

Content in this book can be divided into three primary areas: General dragon information, player information, and DM-specific information.

- General Dragon Information. I truly have mixed feelings about this area. Dragon anatomy diagrams, descriptions of their senses, and the dragon language dictionary are all very interesting and worth an initial reading. Some of the other information, including history and religion, is disappointing - not only does it conflict with previously established sources, but it also doesn't fit with the "theories" that most people have about dragons (according to the Draconomicon, dragons die of old age, they worship strange gods, etc, etc..).

- Player Information. The sections of the book featuring player information truly shine. There are new feats for those that often deal with dragons, a good selection of new spells, intriguing new prestige classes, and numerous new magical items. The section on dragons being player characters, however, is too short and not particularly useful.

- DM Information. This is where the product once more falters. The new draconic monster section is all right, and the section on dragon feats / dragon prestige classes is also moderately interesting (though extremely limited in usefulness unless you are running a dragon-only campaign). The various additional rules and the sample NPC dragons weren't particularly captivating. The pantheon section and the dragon twilight section will not be accepted by many fans as those sections conflict with previously established content. Mongoose Publishing's "Slayer's Guide to Dragons" (written by Gary Gygax) contains better dragon rules and DM information, in my opinion, and should be considered if that is the only reason you are buying this book.

In conclusion: rating this book is extremely difficult, and depends on the desires of the consumer. On content alone, I would only give it 3 stars; when the incredible artwork is also factored in, it gets 4 to 4.5. For those that don't particularly like dragons or don't think they'll deal with them beyond one or two in an entire campaign, this product is a bit of an overkill - use the Monster Manual instead.

Side Note: Those interested in behind-the-scenes industry comments and barbs should check out the deity "Garyx" on page 33.

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Good sourcebook...

This is a great sourcebook for inspiring GMs with ideas of how dragons behave. It even offers an article on each of the "major" dragon types (the chromatic and metallic dragons.) That having been said, I was a little disappointed that it didn't mention (not even in passing) any of the other kinds of dragons in the D&D setting.

3.5 Supplement Still Worth It in a 4.0 World

Have been holding off buying into new 4.0 edition. But have been loathe to invest any more dollars or shelf space into 3.5 supplements. However, after paging through this one at the local book store I picked it up any way. Am a few readings in, and am glad I did.

This book provides, as the name would suggest, a comprehensive delve into how dragons can be fit into your campaign world. And since dragons will be with the game as long as there is a game, I found it worth the coin. There are extended sections on the psychology of each species. Invaluable for roleplaying encounters that live up to the dragon's immense NPC potential. There's also a load of combat oriented mechanics to flesh out the dragon's terrifying natural abilities. Though rooted in 3.5 these could also be updated, and provide plenty of inspiration. The inclusion of a quick snapshot for every age category of every dragon is a little dense, but I found myself still enjoying the snapshots.

All in all, a worthwhile purchase for any DM. Especially if you can pick-up a used copy at a discount.

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reviews: page 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7

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