Type of bind: Hardcover
Dewey Decimal Number: 793
EAN num: 9780786926589
ISBN number: 0786926589
Label: Wizards of the Coast
Manufacturer: Wizards of the Coast
Quantity: 1
Page Count: 320
Printing Date: 2002-07
Publishing house: Wizards of the Coast
Release Date: July 01, 2002
Sale Popularity Level: 132109
Studio: Wizards of the Coast
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Editor's Notes and Comments:
Product Description:
Legends Begin Here
Songs are sung and tales are told of heroes who have advanced beyond most adventuring careers. They confront mightier enemies and face deadlier challenges, using powers and abilities that rival even the gods.
This supplement for the D&D game provides everything you need to transcend the very first twenty levels of experience and advance characters to virtually unlimited levels of play. Along with epic magic items, epic monsters, and advice on running an epic campaign, the Epic Level Handbook also features epic NPCs from the Forgotten Realms and Greyhawk campaign settings.
To use this supplement, a Dungeon Master also needs the Player's Handbook, the Dungeon Master's Guide, and the Monster Manual. A player needs only the Player's Handbook.
User popularity level:
Rated by buyers -
If you are planning on taking your party into epic, this is an absolute must have. That said, some things about it were good, others bad:
The bad:
-Easily unbalanced. CR are often way off the mark (ie: CR 30 Demilich that can kill you by looking at you and heal itself completely every round. There is a lot more to it than this, but suffice to say, unless you tone down its abilities a lot, or are playing with a munchkinesque party, it will slaughter them. Furthermore, the epic spells provided are weak as hell, but the ones you can potentially make can get incredibly overpowered (thus, DM approval required). Many of the magic items are way underpriced (ie: cloak of epic SR, which costs about 200,000, if I remember correctly, and gives you SR of about, what was it? 40?), and some are really overpriced (the jump from a +5 to a +6 weapon, for example).
In short, it will be necessary to double check EVERYTHING to run a balanced game, simply because epic levels were not sufficiently test run.
The good:
-An incredible amount of resources (this is a VERY big book).
-Monsters all across the epic spectrum (I ran a campaign up to level 30 and there were still monsters in the book that could have annihilated the party, and others that the party could have stepped on without noticing).
-Lots of interesting new magic items, and instructions for creating new epic level magic items/distinguishing between epic and non-epic items, etc.
-Some new artifacts, which make good additions to the game (ie: Hextor's gauntlet)
-Adventure ideas in the back, though I didn't use them myself.
-Table of epic level adventure hooks, which was quite useful.
-New, epic level prestige classes
-Of course, an epic level experience table and other little DM tools
-Information for progressing in epic levels in the core classes, as well as the prestige classes from the DM's guide. Also includes sample information for progressing any other 10 level prestige class.
-All sorts of awesome epic feats (an enormous section) for all classes.
-Great artwork (sorry, Mialee is still ugly as sin)
I'm sure there's a lot more that I'm missing, but here's an overall summary:
Great book. Definitely a must for an epic campaign. Well worth the money. Parts are unbalanced, but this can be mostly/entirely negated by a skilled DM. Lots of resources. Currently priced at $6 ($10 with shipping). If you don't have it, and intend to run an epic campaign, I would highly recommend picking it up before copies become inaccessible.
Rated by buyers 
-
Got this to give as a gift, and it was very well received !
Rated by buyers -
OK, it covers just about everything, has cool pictures, and monsters that actually challenge 21+ characters! Also, the new epic prestiege classes and magic items really work into a campaign well!
Rated by buyers -
Great book full of delightfully useful info. Unfortunately for some its in version 3.0 but with a little work can be converted to 3.5.
Rated by buyers -
My brother very first introduced me to the world of D&D back in the 80's. Loved it then and love it now. This handbook is another in a long line of handbooks which prove useful for what they're intended. Most of every handbook, each of us won't use, we'll trudge on with what we know and love. But once in a while you just want to add something new. This book lets you do that.
For the old curmudgeons out there(I'm one) it won't hurt to adapt or maybe pick and choose different approaches.
I like to play, but I like to read about it too. Found a book, new one called The Unsuspecting Mage by Brian S. Pratt. It's about a lad who reads a lot and plays D&D. He gets sent to a world where he uses his knowledge to survive and thrive. Epic Fantasy at it's best.
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