Pyramid Review
King Arthur Pendragon: Book of Knights
Published by Green Knight Publishing
Written by Peter Corless
48 b&w pages; $7.95
Quick Start versions of older, large, complex games have become the rage over the last year or so, and this book is Green Knight's entry for their Pendragon game. These supplements must be examined with an eye toward both experienced and inexperienced players. The book itself utilizes a small print (10 point), and there are few graphics (about one picture every three pages not counting tables), but the work is original (at least I don't recognize it from other Pendragon books) and contributes to the text, so you get a lot of words for your money.
Like other Quick Start supplements, this one includes an introduction to roleplaying, presents the world of the game, concentrates on character generation, and provides the simplest mechanical aspects of the game (combat, action resolution, competitive skill use, and a brief overview of experience). Book of Knights restricts introductory material to the first 8 pages (after the table of contents), it covers the world of 6th century Britain and the role of the knight in the world of Pendragon succinctly, and even manages to expand on the descriptions given in the 4th edition rulebook. Character generation is covered in the next fourteen pages, presenting an abridged generation sequence but reminds users that far more extensive and complete rules can be found in the cultural sourcebooks (Pagan Shore (Irish), . . .
This article originally appeared in the second volume of Pyramid. See the current Pyramid website for more information.
Article publication date: November 17, 2000
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