Menzobarranzan
Menzobarranzan is an epic fantasy supplement for Dungeons & Dragons written by Brian R. James and Eric Menge and published by Wizards of the Coast.
By Aaron T. Huss
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Menzobarranzan is the ultimate sourcebook detailing the drow living within the underground city of Menzobarranzan. This sourcebook is from a narrative standpoint with no actual in-game mechanics, although it is written with a focus toward Dungeons & Dragons 4th Edition but easily usable with any edition and any game system.
One thing should be made clear is that Menzobarranzan is not a sourcebook about the drow. It is completely focused on the city of Menzobarranzan with the majority being handed over to the drow that live there, such as a look at the different factions and a timeline of the drow houses residing within Menzobarranzan. The final product presents an excellent guide to everything you can imagine in the City of Intrigue and how to better incorporate it into your adventures and campaigns.
CONTENT
Campaign of Intrigue is ultimately a GM-focused section discussing how to take the information contained within Menzobarranzan and turn it into a campaign. There are many different aspects of incorporated the city to consider such as which era is being used, who is involved in the goings-on throughout the city, and what types of campaigns are possible (obviously just suggestions, not the only possibilities).
The Way of Lolth is a player and GM section to help everyone better understand what it is that makes the drow unique, considering those living within Menzobarranzan. Here you learn about their beliefs in Lolth, drow society (matriarchy and noble houses), how the city operates (commerce, merchants, leisure, and festivals), and a look at the drow language of Deep Drow.
Drow Factions is a lengthy section discussing the different major factions present within Menzobarranzan throughout the different eras. This section is presented with generic mechanics to “quantify” what it is that makes the different factions tick (such as their might, favor, and wealth). The different factions include the noble houses and various merchant groups.
City of Spiders is essentially the gazetteer for Menzobarranzan. All districts within the city are detailed along with a listing of all the major locations within those districts. As with the factions, each one contains generic mechanics to “quantify” them for in-game use including price of items available, quality, and the threat these establishments draw.
The Northdark details the areas outside of Menzobarranzan within the Underdark including walkways, tunnels, and other passageways.
Be a Drow is a player’s look at what it means to be a drow from Menzobarranzan and how to incorporate mechanics for considering one’s worth, which rates as extremely important in the drow society.
OVERALL
Menzobarranzan is an excellent addition to anyone’s library should they wish to venture into the Underdark or pull drow from Menzobarranzan for use on the surface world. It is the ultimate guide to everything you would need to know about Menzobarranzan including a removable folding map detailing the entire city (and includes an associated guide to what is what). There are loads of opportunities for great adventures and you could probably run an entire campaign centered on Menzobarranzan.
RATINGS
Publication Quality: 10 out of 10
As is expected, Menzobarranzan is a very high quality publication on par with all other Wizards of the Coast publications. The art looks great, there’s no shortage of drow and underdark representation, and the formatting and layout are extremely easy to read (I found the book to be a very good read). However, what really stands out is the removable, folding map of Menzobarranzan, and it’s quite large. This is the absolute perfect addition to a sourcebook that focuses on a single location without having to pay extra.
Mechanics: 9 out of 10
The only mechanics are the generic ones used to provide additional information to quantify the various factions of Menzobarranzan and the major locations. This is a good implementation and of course a great way to keep it system agnostic, but it may be difficult to fully understand the various factions with only three ratings and a handful of “traits” and descriptive words. A few more generic mechanics may help to better understand how each one stands against the other. However, what is presented is easy enough to understand.
Value Add: 10 out of 10
Make no mistake, Menzobarranzan is an extremely focused sourcebook and only provides information concerning the city and its immediately surrounding areas. This isn’t a book about what else lies within the underdark and it isn’t a book describing everything you need to know about the drow race. With that in mind, it is the penultimate guide to Menzobarranzan and by being presented in a system agnostic fashion, you can use it with any D&D edition or role-playing game desired. If you have ever desired an adventure or campaign within or near Menzobarranzan or to use those from within, you really should get this book.
Overall: 10 out of 10
Menzobarranzan is an excellent guide and tool-kit for GMs (and players) that wish to bring this famed city and its occupants into an adventure or campaign. By being presenting the way it is, you will only ever need this one book and can thus reuse it time and again without worrying about what rules set you’re using. It is a definite valuable book to have and a great addition to your Forgotten Realms (and more) library.
