Ghostwalk
by Monte Cook and Sean K Reynolds
D&D Campaign Option (224 pages)
Product Code: 885660000, ISBN: 0-7869-2834-4
Wizards of the Coast, $34.95
Ghostwalk is a new D&D campaign setting in an undead city which allows players to play their dead characters as ghosts. The book proves to be a rather unique addition to the D&D game, and could change the way most campaigns are run, depending on how each DM uses this campaign option.
The basis of this book is player characters becoming ghosts in the City of Manifest, which was built on the gateway between the world of the living and the world beyond were the dead go. The character ghosts have a physical presence in and around the city, and can continue to adventure as they did in the past, albeit in a different way. The only big difference here though, of course, is that they now have ghost powers, and rise in levels as a ghost.
Included in this book are rules for playing the two types of ghosts, the eidolon and eidoloncer, the later being the type that still advances in spellcasting abilities. There are also prestige classes specific to ghosts, of course, along with ghost-specific feats, spells, and equipment.
The City of Manifest is detailed in the book, along with the surrounding lands. Four complete adventures are also included in the book, making parts of the book viewable by DM eyes only. In this respect, the product is mainly for the DM. However, I find that the players should have access to some things in the book, since it describes how to setup and run a ghost character.
As a whole, I found this book very interesting, and something that would add a unique twist to any campaign. It’s the first time I’ve come across a book that allows players to continue on after their characters have died. The book is set up for the player to use their characters around the City of Manifest, but you could easily expand the rules to have them work in other areas of your campaign as I am doing. One downside I found in this sourcebook is that it would take away some of the risk of losing a character, since the player could come back as a ghost, and then get resurrected back to a living character again. This is a part of the rules I do not like, and I will limit this in my campaign. I also found some rules in the book that are not explained as well as they could be, giving sections of the book the feel of a product that was rushed to market. Also, since this book came out just before the new 3.5 books, it is not 100% compatible with the new rules. Not a big deal, but something to note anyway.
So if you’d like a change of pace, or a player is sad that his high level character died, you can now play with ghosts in your game. Now that is what I call a new look at life in D&D
(review (c) September 2003 / David Flemming)