(The exception is the art for Gear Krieg, which is more on the realistic side.) None of it knocks my socks off, but none of it turns my stomach, either. Ghislain Barbe, Bobbi Burquel, and John Wu provide plenty of anime-style illustrations to go with the mecha stats. (See the end of this review for more info). Unfortunately, the specific rules and Mecha Point costs for mecha construction are NOT given you either have to stick with the pre-designed mecha, extrapolate your own construction system, or wait until d20 Mecha comes out from Guardians of Order (GoO). The basic idea is that you get a certain number of Mecha Points to spend on designing your machine, as decided by the DM/GM, and you can get bonus Mecha Points by taking defects or restrictions with your mecha. There are plenty of mecha and weapon perks and drawbacks to choose from. All of the various mecha characteristics and abilities are explained in detail at the beginning of the book. Ideas for modifying mecha from one setting for use in other settings are offered. The text is usually clear and well-written. (Gee, I thought the United Nations prohibited the use of child soldiers.) There’s something here for everyone, if the DM is willing to do the work of fleshing out the campaign settings. The most original setting besides Gear Krieg is Outworld Changelings, sort of like Star Trek: Deep Space Nine’s Dominion War story arc with mecha piloted by child warriors. Space Ranger Ouroboros is a must for fans of Macross (also known in the USA as Robotech: The Macross Saga). The Heavy Gear and Jovian Chronicles d20 adaptations should work nicely for fans of Votoms and Mobile Suit Gundam, respectively. I’m not sure which anime fans would most enjoy the d20 conversion of Gear Krieg, but if you like the idea of an alternate-history World War Two with giant robots, hey, this setting’s for you. Fans of Sakura Taisen (or anyone who ever wanted to play D & D in a steampunk setting) should get a kick out of Cities and Empire. (Magical powered armor-cool!) Lovers of Bubble Gum Crisis, Ghost in the Shell and Appleseed can enjoy the cyberpunk-ish Phoenix Rising. Fans of shows like Panzer World Galient, Aura Battler Dunbine and Vision of Escaflowne will probably like the medieval Guardians of Divinity and/or Golemsuit Warriors. You’ve got your Dancougar/Voltron–style robot-animals-that-combine-into-a-really-big-honkin’-super-robot with Beast Lords. You’ve got the giant-robot-as-superhero setting of Great Machine Decander (a la Giant Robo, Tranzor Z/Mazinger Z, Danguard Ace, etc.). Mecha Compendium is impressive for its breadth, if not for its depth. 1, which provided mecha stats but very little background info. In that respect, it’s an improvement over Talsorian’s MMM v. Other settings merit two to six pages each, usually two to four. The most detailed background descriptions are reserved for d20 adaptations of the Dream Pod 9 (DP9) games Gear Krieg, Heavy Gear, and Jovian Chronicles. However, while Mecha Compendium is fun, it could be better.Įach of the eleven campaign settings (compared to ten in MMM v.1) receives two to fourteen pages of background description in addition to the descriptions of its respective mecha. It also includes definitions and explanations of various mecha terms, abilities, and limitations.
#Macross compendium manual
Talsorian’s 1994 release, Mekton Mecha Manual Volume One (MMM v.1), this book describes a number of basic campaign settings and includes appropriate mecha for each of them. Those who favor the d20 System and who also like Japanese animation (known as anime to fans) and its ubiquitous high-tech vehicles and giant robots (also known as mecha) may like this book.
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