Fantasy Craft (CFG01001) Hardcover – August 31, 2010

Fantasy Craft is amazing if you are looking for a tabletop RPG with a solid mechanical framework. Classes built around social interactions feel like they are still useful in combat in a natural way, classes built around combat still feel like they can competently navigate a social or covert situation if needed. Spellcasters are fun to play, and don't feel like they are overpowering melee or ranged fighters. GMing for it is sublime compared to D&D. This game is phenomenally balanced and well crafted. You can almost always find some combination of specialty, class, and feats to make the concept you want come to life. I switched away from D&D to FC about a year and a half ago and the only reason I would play D&D again is if I couldn't find enough people interested in FC to play. So do yourself (and me!) a favor, get this book, learn the game, and play some Fantasy Craft!One thing I will complain about, the book layout is a little annoying. Your first time playing you will probably have some difficulty finding what you want in the book. But trust me, it is worth learning this game.

This is the perfect D20 FRP game system. It is streamlined where it needs to be and is meaty everywhere else. There are literally hundreds of variations on each class. No 2 fighters will ever be the same. The class system is akin to the Spycraft system so if you are familiar with that, it will come as no surprise that this is even better. The races are great as well with splinter groups and variations to make them all playable but each can be unique. The Rootwalkers seem to be the strangest race, that and drakes. But there are what you would expect. Should be interesting to see how it unfolds in a campaign. There are about 11 classes and the basics are covered and again if you have played Spycraft you will see a few crossover classes that fit much better here. Also the cleric; what a neat idea and when you think about it, it is just the way a cleric should be. The skills are much more streamlined, even more so then Spycraft or Pathfinder. The fighter gets a good # of skills and skill points to be useful. The gear system is great and easy to use, as down time is handled really well. Magic Item creation seems pretty simple and we have yet to really get our teeth into it, but we will. The rewards are great, with reputation and renown; you can buy favors, prizes, places to live, titles and various other things that characters can really enjoy getting and they are useful and not a burden to the player. NPCs and monsters: For those of us familiar with Spycraft this will be no surprise that they follow that same scaling TL to caliber (Now called Menace). This of course helps balance your encounters. You can fight mastermind (Adversary) Dragons and Liches right at first level. Of course you will want to save those for a more juicy time but you get my point. Well that is it. If you find an opportunity to play this system do. I absolutely love it.Scott

There a a lot of reviews of this book online so I'll try to put my own spin on this.Fantasy Craft combines the best of older games with the latest in game design. Don't get me wrong this is not an 'old school' game. Fantasy craft is state of the art. What I mean is that the core book gives you everything you need to play and takes the cuffs off allowing you to create a world and tweak the rules to suit your style of play. This is your game to make of it what you will, gone are the restrictions of rules ro suit one and only one provided setting, instead you get a toolbox. For those who want a world look at the Adventurer's Companion book or check out Wrymstone online.Cover: the illustration focuses on combat and dungeons with no real hint of the world building and potential for social events and other kinds of play. Its good though.Chapter 1 Hero: I never liked describing characters as heroes, what if you want to play someone like Bilbo? That niggle aside the options here will allow you to create almost any fantasy character in the modern-post tolkien era. All the core fantasy folk are here: Elves, dwarves, golems, giants, dragons...(rewind) wait giants? Dragons? Well yes. These odd species are balanced by thoughtful changes to the d20 rules elsewhere in the rules. Encumbrance and oversized weapons for example are altered so you no longer have to worry about balancing the super-strength of giants.Chapter 2 Lore: this is all your skills feats etc. All of this has been really reworked. There are less skills covering more ground each and carefully divided to ensure the skills will see use in play.Chapter 3 Grimoire: spellcasting as a skill and spells from spellpoints. No 'memorising' (unless you as a referee want it)Chapter 4 Forge: This covers equipment but also the character's reputation and ways to call on it. Want to climb the social ladder? Use reputation to buy renown. Magic items are also downplayed compared to standard d20 putting the focus back on the characters. Just another way FC gets us closer to fantasy films, novels and myths than D&D.Chapter 5 Combat: You don't NEED miniatures or a grid. You can use then if you like. Combat plays a little like AD&D 2 but without all the confusing bits. Also comnined with the skill rules everybody will have something to do in combat. Say your a coutrier/pollitician with a tiny knife, you can taunt, intimidate, offer advice etc right inside the core combat rules.Chapter 6 Foes: a super fast way of generating all the monsters and NPCs you want and a good number of examplesChapter 7 Worlds: Nice guidence for building a world (yes you have seen similar stuff before) followed by ways to tweak the rules to match your world. You don't have to have clerical magic, you can make combat more or less deadly, do you want stone-age or renaisance? are the characters struggling survivors or powerful heroes etc. After this advice on writing adventures.Online: Still can't build what you want? Can't find someone to play with? want a sounding board? Fantasy craft is supported by fellow fans on the forums and wiki of the Crafty Games site. Come join us we're a friendly bunch.Ok so I love this.With that in mind what can't it do? Well FC can't do gritty simulation ala GURPS. FC suits a cinematic or fast paced narrativist style without being quite as avante-garde as say FATE. FC walks in the middle ground. Unlike Fate the rules do provide enough foundation for players and referees to share unfamiliar worlds. An FC game should have some fighting to get the most out of the system. Purely social/pollitical plots would work better in FATE.Overall, a very solid game freakin' great at what it is designed to do.

Neat amd useful book

I purchased this book a couple of years ago as an electronic book. I loved the way they handled races and character classes. It is what I feel that D&D 3.5 and Pathfinder could have been. I highly recommend this book.

My favorite RPG system, and yes I've played 5th edition D&D.

Fantasy Craft provides a lot of options even within the same character class to give everyone their own character experience. So much detail is provided. There was a lot of thought put into how rules would interact together. You won't regret this purchase!

Initial impressions are very positive. It is a d20 system offering many options to create a character tailored to your particular vision. The character is clearly the main focus with various feats, tricks and skills making the character more than the sum of the magic items carried. The system clearly is about offering opportunities rather than restrictions with no two characters the same. The book contains all you need to start gaming, no need for other books to get started. Its a nice hardback book. For people who enjoy the fantasy setting its certainly worth a look.

I bought this game after I read a review telling me that it presents an interesting alternative for Pathfinder and D&D 3.5. This was certainly true, I like the approach this game takes to the D20 system, it does away with quite a bit of the traditional backage of D&D.

Got here in a timely manner, exactly as advertised. Great quality.