In the Company of Lurkers
In the Company of Lurkers is an epic fantasy supplement for the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game written by Steven D. Russell and published by Rite Publishing.
By Jan Sebestyen
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Rite Publishing’s In the Company of Lurkers by Steven Russell and crew for use in the Pathfinder system brings to the table a fully developed character race concept that began some years ago with the Bastards and Bloodlines supplement by Owen K.C. Stephens. Lurkers are a combination of gnomes and cloakers.
This is a very good product. There are descriptions for three different sects of lurkers, the racial traits and appearances of the race, the race’s society, racial traits and alternative racial traits, favored class options, racial feats, and three archetypes.
CONTENT
Within In the Company of Lurkers you will find three different sects of lurkers. Those that are of the Mullaglem are flamboyant and excessive and are the most public of the lurkers. The majority of the race are Mullirog – the stealthy who accumulate secrets to further the race’s agenda. Lastly, are the dark Balrafang, lurkers that celebrate and participate in amoral behavior. One of the racial traits of the lurkers is the tail slap. They have the cloaker tail that can be used in battle and the fearful scream which can make an opponent shaken. The alternative traits are for those lurkers who follower their gnomish ancestry more than the cloaker. Alchemist, shadow assassin, sorcerer, and wizard are just a few of the favored classes for a lurker.
OVERALL
Very good product for both players and GMs. It gives the GM a new race of spies and assassins to throw at the PCs and it gives the PCs a new race to play. This is a product that anyone who likes gnomes will either love or hate. It detracts from the pure-blooded gnome but it adds so much more than what it takes away. If you like odd combinations – half breeds – you will like this race.
RATINGS
Publication Quality: 9 out of 10
Very good descriptions and some good artwork to support them. It is 12 pages of really good material. There are some typos – words omitted or misspelled and some missing spacing – but they do not take away from the playability of this product, they just hamper the readability slightly. Also, the product is written in the 1st person perspective of a lurker. Some of the text is quite well written and some of it is very simplistic – like there were two hands doing the writing. Whether this was intentional or not I do not know but it is noticeable in the reading.
Mechanics: 9 out of 10
The product sticks very solidly to the Pathfinder game mechanics. The only issue I have is the favored classes section – I think the lurkers are short changed a slight bit in some of them. For example, in the Ranger favored class, the lurker adds 1/3 dodge bonus to the AC against the favored enemies. At low levels this amount is negligible. This system of favored class benefits is given as an option instead of adding a skill or hit point as favored classes normally do. Additionally, this race could be very easily adapted into any campaign.
Value Add: 10 out of 10
Absolutely great value added to the game with In the Company of Lurkers. Players and GMs alike are going to want this product. This product will make players want to play a gnome-like character or a stealthy character just to try out this new race and the new archetypes.
Overall: 9 out of 10
Very good product. Gamers of all types will want it, especially those that like unusual races. The production quality, game mechanics, and value added to the game in general are very good and will make for a great addition to a gamer’s collection.
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