This article originally appeared in d20 Weekly
The Shaman's Handbook
Published by Green Ronin Publishing
Written by Steve Kenson
74 b&w pages; $16.95
One of my biggest complaints about d20 supplements currently on the market is that few publishers push the envelope with core classes. While there are exceptions, such as Kenzer with its Kingdoms of Kalamar and Sovereign Press with Sovereign Stone, most focus on prestige classes. Now Green Ronin Publishing's new Master Class series augments the core class range, and provides new prestige classes at the same time.
The Shaman's Handbook is broken up into five chapters. Chapter 1, "The Way of the Shaman," provides the basic shaman class, a divine spellcaster whose spells are granted through his partnership and dealings with spirits. Information on which races make the best shaman, how shamans get along with the standard classes, notes about multiclassing, and penalties of leaving the shaman class are provided. One of the unique special abilities that the shaman receives is that he can have a spirit familiar, which is a standard familiar with the spirit template. Shamans can also rebuke spirits, similar to clerical turning ability but with a tighter focus. In a vein similar to the Player's Handbook, the Shaman's Handbook provides starting packages for the standard races.
The shaman prestige classes focus on the material introduced in this book; while particularly apt for the shaman, so too will druids, rangers, and barbarians benefit from the expanded selection. The prestige classes include: . . .
This article originally appeared in the second volume of Pyramid. See the current Pyramid website for more information.
Article publication date: July 3, 2002
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