Centaurs of the Bleak Moor (TRIBES)
Centaurs of the Bleak Moor is an epic fantasy supplement from the TRIBES series for Pathfinder Roleplaying Game published by Raging Swan Press and written by Creighton Broadhurst.
By Aaron T. Huss
Centaurs of the Bleak Moor is the next TRIBES supplement from Raging Swan Press and fits together with the subsequent publication Minotaurs of the Black Hills. Its designed in the traditional format of the TRIBES line and is written generic enough to be placed within virtually any setting. As the TRIBES line follows through from release to release, it’s nice to see that some of the more ignored creature races are being expanded upon, giving them new life and depth.
CONTENT
Centaurs of the Bleak Moor starts out with a look at the centaur tribe within the Bleak Moor known as the Cloven Hoof. This includes ecology, names, religion, lairs and some basic tactics. Then you are move to a description of the Bleak Moor with tons of details, 2 beautiful illustrations and an absolutely fantastic looking hand-drawn map! This includes a quite large block of in-game mechanics related to the different terrain features within the Bleak Moor.
After understanding who they are and where they live, the content moves to adding new mechanics for the centaurs of the tribe. This includes new druid and ranger class features, new feats (including enhanced abilities for sling use), new druid spells and new magic items. Each one has all the applicable mechanics listed and are (as always) extremely easy-to-read. The content then moves on to describing the different encounters with the centaurs including the various warriors that may be met. This is the series of stat blocks ranging from CR 3 to 7 and include scouts, warriors, berserkers and druids. The content is capped off with two creature character personas (more leaders than major NPCs) that include brief descriptions but lots of well-laid out stat blocks. As they are not really designed to be major NPCs, the persona descriptions only cover the high-level necessities.
OVERALL
One of my favorite things about the TRIBES series of supplements is that they’re not strictly focused on providing you with new creatures to add to your games. They create fleshed out creature races with purpose, depth and a community of their own. They also provide a purpose for that creature races existence including why, how and where they could be encountered as opposed to simply “being there” for the purpose of combat. For all those looking to add a centaur creature race to their game, Centaurs of the Bleak Moor should be the top on your list of supplements to get.
RATINGS
Publication Quality: 10 out of 10
As always, Raging Swan Press sticks to a high publication quality within their TRIBES series of supplements, but this is pretty much their standard. I do want to point out, in addition, that there are some awesome illustrations in Centaurs of the Bleak Moor. I love the centaur illustrations and the hand-drawn map of the Bleak Moor is beautiful!
Mechanics: 10 out of 10
The TRIBES series are filled with great looking stats whose mechanics are perfectly inline with what the supplement is trying to convey: a series of centaur stat blocks representing various warrior types and applicable weapons, feats and abilities. But as always, what often sets these mechanics apart is how well they’re presented and how easy they are to read. Add in the range of CR from 3 to 7 plus two creature characters at CR 11 and you have a lot of usable centaur warriors.
Value Add: 10 out of 10
With 8 new centaur stat blocks, 2 creature characters, class features, feats, spells, magic items, and encounter examples, there’s loads of value here! Pending you’re looking to add more centaurs to your game.
Overall: 10 out of 10
I may be slightly biased because I really like the TRIBES line of supplements, but they always offer lots of great information for the given subject at a fantastic price! Centaurs of the Bleak Moor offers lots of great centaur variations, the environment of and around the Bleak Moor, and lots of new Pathfinder material to enhance your game geared toward the listed centaur tribe.
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