The Northern Reaches
The Northern Reaches is an accessory for the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game. The book describes the land known as the Northern Reaches, which lie on the eastern seaboard of the D&D game's Known World,[1] also known as Mystara.
| Authors | Ken Rolston and Elizabeth Danforth |
|---|---|
| Genre | Role-playing game |
| Publisher | TSR |
Publication date | 1988 |
Contents edit
The Northern Reaches features guides Helfdan Halftroll, Onund Tolundmire, Saru the Serpent, and Dwalinn the Dwarf who provide a tour of the land known as the Northern Reaches.[1] The accessory details the Viking-style lands of Ostland, Vestland, and Soderfjord.[2] The thirty-two page Players Book provides a description the lands of the Northern Reaches, and rules for characters from this region, while the sixty-four page DM Book contains the history of the lands and their nations, and provides three adventure scenarios,[2] an epic campaign outline, and a system rune magic for clerics.[1]
The gazetteer also includes a large color map and cardstock cutouts for constructing scale model Viking buildings.[2] The complete 3-D card village once assembled is intended to be used as the setting for two of the adventures in the set.[1]
Publication history edit
GAZ7 The Northern Reaches was written by Ken Rolston and Elizabeth Danforth, with a cover by Clyde Caldwell and interior illustrations by Stephen Fabian, and was published by TSR in 1988 as a sixty-four page book, a thirty-two page book, four cardstock sheets, a large color map, and an outer folder.[2]
Reception edit
Jim Bambra reviewed The Northern Reaches for Dragon magazine No. 143 (March 1989).[1] He said that the book "introduces these cultures in a highly entertaining and informative manner",[1] concluding, "With its solid role-playing excitement and easy to digest background, this Gazetteer belongs in every D&D game collection."[1]
Lawrence Schick, in his 1991 book Heroic Worlds, felt that the gazetteer gave "an excellent feel for what the Norsemen were really like".[2]
References edit
- ^ a b c d e f g Bambra, Jim (March 1989). "Role-playing Reviews". Dragon. Lake Geneva, Wisconsin: TSR (#143): 74.
- ^ a b c d e Schick, Lawrence (1991). Heroic Worlds: A History and Guide to Role-Playing Games. Prometheus Books. p. 141. ISBN 0-87975-653-5.