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Wu Xing: The Firebrands
 

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Average Rating:4.7 / 5
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Wu Xing: The Firebrands
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Wu Xing: The Firebrands
Publisher: Third Eye Games
by Aaron H. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 06/23/2011 21:27:37

The Firebrands is a clan sourcebook delving deeper and expanding upon the Blazing Dancers and Virtuous Body Gardeners clans. The publication is a combination of narrative source material, in-game mechanics, and short adventure with a storyline that times from beginning to end. In addition, there are three new clans introduced in the same fashion as the core rulebook and a landslide of new mechanics to coincide with the narrative source material. The Firebrands is an excellent sourcebook that really encompasses a great amount of valuable material to expand upon these two clans.

OVERALL

The Firebrands is a sourcebook with an interesting presentation. With a combination of storyline, narrative, and in-game mechanics that presents the reader with a lot of options for Blazing Dancer and Virtuous Body Gardner characters, adventures, and campaigns. And in case you’re wondering, I asked the author Eloy Lasanta about using the title The Firebrands in which he explained to me that The Firebrands represents chaos and change, which encompasses these two clans. In addition, they are both the fire-aspected clans within the system. It made perfect sense to me and I really like the title in addition to how the content is presented. Highly recommended!

RATINGS

Publication Quality: 9 out of 10 The Firebrands is a beautifully assembled publication. Not only is it laid-out well and filled with awesome illustrations, but the narrative sections all flow very well. When I read them (excluding the prologue Confessions), I get the feeling of the method one would use when introducing someone new to their world and their surroundings. Somewhat like a tourist guide but in a fashion similar to training. I can visualize myself asking this person questions, and then I read their response. Such as “What is that large building there?” and the content begins to point out that building, explain its purpose, and give a bit of history or detail or simply description. It reads like a story. Once you read through the narrative, you come upon the section where it’s all brought into the game with real in-game mechanics including character creation options. The Firebrands really ties the content into the system very well.

Mechanics: 10 out of 10 The Firebrands contains a great number of new mechanics. However, the way in which these new mechanics shine the most is how they directly tie into the source material, giving the storyline purpose. I especially like how these two clans are brought to life and given new options to coincide with the depth and color being painted in the narrative.

Value Add: 9 out of 10 The Firebrands is a great addition for GMs and players, not only for those who wish to run characters from one of the two clans. There is a large amount of source material here detailing the lands in which these clans live along with some of their background and history which can be directly used for adventures and campaigns. The only thing that is out of place is the three new clans simply introduced. This small addition to the publication is completely outside of the context and purpose of the bulk of the content and would fit better elsewhere. This doesn’t reduce the value but rather means if you desire the ability to play one of these new clans, you need to purchase this clan sourcebook even if you don’t want to use the rest of the content.

Overall: 9 out of 10 The Firebrands is a definite must for anyone player who wants to be a Blazing Dancer or Virtuous Body Gardener character and GMs who want to run adventures or campaigns within the lands of one of these clans. There is so much valuable content concerning these two clans that you can fully flesh out all the details and add a wealth of depth to your game.



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
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Wu Xing: The Firebrands
Publisher: Third Eye Games
by Thomas B. [Featured Reviewer]
Date Added: 05/10/2011 19:05:19

What Works: The adventure is very well done if you don't mind a fairly linear adventure, and is keyed to the strengths of the Inks and Dancers (ESPECIALLY the Dancers). The extra information on the clans is great, from the different sects inside the Dancers (and the mechanical support in the form of Gifts) to the different types of body modifications for the Inks, and the new Wushu is some pretty great stuff. The Gracious Illustrators and the Winds of Aion are interesting extensions spinning off of the existing clan concepts, providing more options for players. The production values take a step up here with tighter editing than the core book had and a GORGEOUS cover. Having the "perspective" characters from the Wu Xing corebook as narrators in the Clan chapters was a very nice touch.

What Doesn't Work: I'm not a fan of large chunks of books written from an in-character perspective, and many of the voices felt so similar that I didn't realize at first that we were switching narrators on my initial read-through. The Grey Tigers are a cool concept, but just seem very out of place to me in this book...seeming like they would be much more at home in a book about the Recoiling Serpents or the Pack of the Black Moon. In fact, the only link I could see to the Dancers or Inks was that they count Way of the Fire among their Favored Wushu.

Conclusion: The Blazing Dancers are not one of my favorite clans, but this book does a lot to make them very cool. While there is some room for improvement, the basic template for future clan books is in place and looks great. Like any great supplement, there's nothing in here that you ABSOLUTELY NEED in order to play Wu Xing, but if you like Wu Xing, you will have a lot of cool stuff you can use, especially if you are a fan of The Blazing Dancers or Virtuous Body Gardners. Great start to the Clanbook series...I can't wait to see what's next.

For my full review, please visit: http://mostunreadblogever.blogspot.com/2011/05/tommys-take-on-wu-xing-firebrands.html



Rating:
[4 of 5 Stars!]
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