Tome and Blood
A Guidebook to Wizards and Sorcerers
Wizards of the Coast
Review by Rick Hecke
I’ve played a lot of D&D in my day. Maybe too much. I never got to a place that Tom Hanks reached in the Mazes and Monsters TV movie from 1982, even though my parents thought I would. Alright, that’s neither here nor there. In my countless sessions of gaming, I’ve never played or been inclined to play a magic-using character. I always found them too weak and with never the right spell for the situation at hand. I’m officially doing a 180 on that opinion after reading Tome and Blood A Guidebook for Wizards and Sorcerers by Wizards of the Coast.
We have previously covered the 3rd edition of D&D here at GSW and I must state now that Wizards of the Coast have done an excellent job on all fronts. I’ve only played one session so far but the new rules and character attributes have improved the enjoyment level of the gameplay by leaps and bounds. What they’ve done with magic-users for Tome and Blood makes them formidable player characters with many different skills, feats, and prestige classes that enable the player to take the character to new levels of potential.
The schools of study for wizards allow the character to specialize in areas of the craft like never before. These specializations, such as abjuration, evocation, transmutation and necromancy to name a few, allow specific areas of study depending on how you wish to evolve your character. The descriptions of the various organizations your character may become a member of are interesting and cool. The Broken Wands – spellcasters who kill for money; Spellswords – experts at both arcane magic and fighting; Bleak Academy – a secret college of necromancers – and many other groups are interesting enough just to read about. New feats and skills can be cultivated towards certain spellcasting advantages and add flavor to the character. More importantly, it allows them to earn their keep during an actual campaign.
I’m dorky enough to read D&D books for sheer entertainment and not necessarily for the purpose of playing the game. The creativity and artwork alone in these books are worth it for me. I suggest checking out this book and the new Player’s Handbook if you’re a dork like me. If you’re a gamer, Tome and Blood may help you make the decision to create a spellcasting character, even if you’d never considered it before. I think the next character I roll will be a half-elven illusionist.
RH