Lords of Darkness

Game: Lords of Darkness
Publisher: Wizards of the Coast
Series: Dungeons and Dragons
Reviewer: Wyrdmaster
Review Dated: 17th, January 2002
Reviewer’s Rating: 8/10   [ Really good ]
Total Score: 30
Average Score: 7.50

This reviewer was not wowed by the third edition campaign setting for the Forgotten Realms. It was a good book, skilfully presented and rich in flavour but it wasn’t a great book, it didn’t have the Ravenloft rave factor.

One of my main concerns about the main Faerun book was the lack of clear theme and focus, you were given a wash of information about the hugely detailed world and even if you managed to read through to the end you were left hanging with where to start.

Lords of Darkness is a very real solution to this and if like me, you like the basis of the Forgotten Realms but wanted just a little push to get going then this book could very well be for you.

The book’s strength isn’t just that it helps give your romp through the Forgotten Realms a focus by providing a set of villains. Lords of Darkness happens to present these enemies very well indeed.

It’s a full-colour book and the aged effect of the pages is something you might expect only to see in the hardcover core rules but it works well here in the softback. The group of baddies are nicely diverse as well, ranging from religions to organisations and even whole races; the book separates them into large and medium-sized groups.

There’s more than just a list of names and some quirky skills or magic though, in many cases you’re told how the group operates, what its motivations are and a history. You’re given sample groups for encounters and some of the sections you’ll find rather pretty looking maps for bases and temples.

Where there’s the need to name important NPCs in the group then the space used is given over to describing their personality and their own motivation as well and I find this to be far more helpful than minute character sheet details (like knowing how well Elminster can dance from the main book).

I personally rather liked the colourful logos and symbols used by the groups, it’s the sort of thing that you can easily bring into your own game to produce a powerful effect.

The side panels are especially useful in Lords of Darkness and provide more useful information than just another feat or the suggested DC for being evil while balancing on a pogo stick. Early on in the book, for example, you’re given a chart of monsters that allows you to substitute monsters from the Monster Manual in the case that you don’t have the Monsters of Faerun book.

The appendix is over ten pages long and is, in fact, large enough to count as a real chapter rather than an added extra. It covers everything from specific magic weapons (Nightblade, Banesword, etc) through rings and drugs and many more spells.

If this review were to study each of the many organizations in turn and comment on them then it would probably be too long. Since the back of the book doesn’t list the groups included inside I will name them here:

• The Church of Cyric
• The Cult of the Dragon
• The Drow
• The Night Masks
• Red Wizards of Thay
• The Shades
• The Zhentarim

These are the seven larges organisations and have longer chapters in the book than those that follow; the extras include prestige classes, tips and maps.

• The Arcane Brotherhood
• Beholders
• The Church of Bane
• The Church of Shar
• The Daemonfey
• The Eldreth Veluuthra
• The Fire Knives
• House Karanok
• The Iron Throne
• The Kir-Lanans
• The Knights of the Shield
• The Krakens Society
• Malaugryms
• Mind Flayers
• Monks of the Dark Moon
• Monks of the Long Death
• People of the Black Blood
• The Rundeen
• The Shadow Thieves
• The Twisted Rune