Customer Reviews:
This is how Oriental D&D books should be........2004-12-01
The only fault in this book is that it is written in archaic 1st Edition D&D rules, which is not that easily adapted to 3.5. But this book is worth a translation, because it is far superior to its modern counterpart.
The rules for new races & classes (including ninja and kensai) are much better presented. The martial arts system is a munchkin's dream (It's pathetically easy for anyone to start doing 3d10 punches), but unlike it's 3e successor, its rich in flavor and easy to advance in a far more logical manner. The Wu Jen have never been done as well since this edition, and they have many great spells in the book. As an added bonus, they used a new setting for OA, instead of retrofitting everything to Rokugan, which severely crippled the 3e book.
A must have for any RPG collection.
One of Gygax's last rulebooks.......2000-05-02
Here it is, the most coveted AD&D hardcover in existence - not only for its rarity, but for the excellence of its rules! Here, you get 128 pages of how to play ninjas, samurai, wu-jen, and more; the elaborate Honor system, oriental magic, and the unique monsters and treasures of Kara-Tur, all in one beautiful reference! The golden age of the 1st edition game, here in one volume.
The Best Forgotten Realms book ever........1999-12-26
This book is fantastic, and adds so much depth to the campaign. It has everything you need to run an Oriental Adventure, or make characters in an oriental setting. TSR has yet to duplicate in any other book the remarkebly well balanced rules of this book. For example, the Ninja in Oriental Adventures is more inetersting, better devolped, and more enjoyable to paly with only a few pages of coverage than anything in the 2nd edition complete book of Ninjas. IF you can find it, buy it, you will not regret it. The only drawbacks are that A) the book is out of print, and B) AD&D is moving to 3rd edition, and Oriental Adventures exists solely as a 1st edition book, so the rule converstaion may or may not proove difficult.
Book Description
Join Lin and Larry on board their self-built 24-foot, 4-inch cutter as they voyage along Ulysses wake, through the strife-torn Red Sea and across the typhoon-tossed Bay of Bengal. In the fourth of the Seraffyn series, the Pardeys have reached a turning pont - halfway around the world, eight years into a meandering voyage. Their routes had always been determined by the need to find work to support their cruising, or the desire to see an island spoken of by some favorite writer. Now they have to decide wheter to turn back westward or continue eastward and complete the circle to the place they once called home. The intimate details of life on a small boat, along with the interesting people the Pardeys meet in each exotic port, fill this book. But the underlying theme of Seraffyn's Oriental Adventure is the demands of passagemaking as they sail up through the China Seas and across the north Pacific.
Customer Reviews:
Great series - a fantastic, enjoyable, read.......2000-02-26
This is the fourth and final book in the Seraffyn series that chronicles Lin and Lary Pardey's meander around the world in their 28 foot wooden cutter. They have a very comfortable and easy going writing style that pulls you into their story. This is a wonderful series whether you are a sailor or not. - Regarding the previous reviewer's comment about storm tactics - The Pardey's have a newer book "Storm Tactics Handbook" which includes and adds a great deal to some of the chapters from this book. It is a must-have book for the ocean cruiser.
Excellent study of storm survival on a small boat........1999-02-26
The description of storm survival while hove-to during their northern Pacific crossing makes this book a must purchase for anyone planning (or dreaming of) a voyage across any ocean.
Book Description
Silk, Steel, and Magic
Oriental Adventures introduces the infinite worlds of fantastic Asia to the
Dungeons & Dragons game. In these pages, you'll find:
5 new races, including hengeyokai, nezumi, and spirit folk.
5 new classes, including the samurai, the shugenja, and the wu jen.
Over 25 new prestige classes, including the ninja, the tattooed monk, and the yakuza.
100 new spells.
75 new monsters.
A complete campaign setting: Rokugan, the world of the
Legend of the Five Rings trading card game.
To use this supplement, a Dungeon Master also needs the Player's Handbook, the
Dungeon Master's Guide, and the Monster Manual. A player needs only the Player's Handbook.
Customer Reviews:
Well done and filled with interesting details.......2007-08-08
Of course, it would help if you were knowledgeable about the L5R thing. I am not so some of this detial is allot to remember! But it is worthwhile. Next time your regualr group is getting defeated by the bad guys, don't kill or capture...Do what I did, send them to Rokugan! Great fun was had by all as the group struggled to find their way home.
Brings ye olde Japan and Orient to your home.......2006-06-30
Konichiwa.
I've been playing DnD for about three years now and most of the time I played the regular simple setting. My friends and I played also Forgotten Realms and then I bought Oriental Adventures 3rd edition.
Personally, I enjoy watching old kung fu and samurai movies so that was another reason to buy this book.
At this time, I am Dm-ing a story set in Rokugan and to anyone that will try that out I recommend watching James Clavell's Shogun, The Seven Samurai, Rashomon and reading Usagi Yojimbo,a comic book that will warm you up for this excellent setting.
Anyhow, I recommend this rulebook, but if you're sceptical, check out the PDF version. Then you'll know what I'm talking about.
Too intertwined with Lot5R/Rokugan.......2006-06-18
I once had a copy of the AD&D 1st Edition Oriental Adventures, which I later sold. Later I wanted the information again, and I purchased this.
Much like the 3.X core books, Oriental Adventures is too intertwined with a particular setting, when it should be a rules variant. That is not to say that I don't like some of the information from Lot5R/Rokugan, only that there is too much of it.
Given that, it was able to give a Japanese flavor with some of the races, and the majority of the classes. I like the takes on old races I liked, and even the Nezumi and Vanara are interesting. Despite the connection with the Lot5R/Rokugan setting, I like the idea of the Shadowlands Taint.
In all, I'm pretty satisfied.
BUY IT - YOU ONLY LIVE ONCE!!!!.......2005-09-23
The long-awaited revision of the classic "Oriental Adventures" book (I once had the original copy, then foolishly sold it), the latest Oriental Adventures version is a definite thumbs-up.
Players are given new races, character and prestige classes, skills, feats and spells. For those wanting a preprepared campaign, a map of the Japanese-oriented land of Rokugan is included.
If you liked the first Oriental Adventures, you will definitely like the second.
As for the price - who cares? It's only money, and you only live once!!!
This Book Rules.......2004-07-10
Awww yeah, now that's what I'm talking bout. Oriental Adventures rules... one of the better books ever made. Now you can be a ninja and/or a Samurai, and when you're being one of these classes as a player character, you can say things like "You dishonor me...!" before you roll your D20 sided dice for your attack.
But, perhaps if AD&D wanted to be more politically correct, they might consider changing the name of the book from the slightly insulting 'Oriental Adventures' to the much more PC 'Asian Adventures'. LOL. Buy this one.
Amazon.com
This is the most colorful and entertaining history of Hong Kong action cinema available. Bey Logan traces the genre from its genesis in the late 1940s until the 1990s, enhancing his story with biographies, select filmographies, and 10-best lists. Though Logan focuses on superstars such as Bruce Lee, Jackie Chan, and John Woo, he also takes time to describe how Hong Kong action cinema blends with other genres. He devotes chapters of his book to Hong Kong comedy, horror, and fantasy as well as to the series of action films that feature female protagonists. Logan concludes the book by looking toward the future of this cinema and the "New Dragons Rising" who could be its next stars.
Customer Reviews:
(does backflip to papery rustling sound).......2006-06-17
Realizing (again) that i don't have to settle for american crud, i dug this book out and marveled again. Color, b/w photos, comprehensive listings (to '95), good taste, smooth and infectiously enthusiastic writing - A+!
ONE OF THE BETTER ONES ON THE SUBJECT.......2006-01-18
This is easily one of the better books out there on this particular subject.Written by a westerner,the author has a fairly impressive amount of information here that doesn't usually get mentioned in books like this.It is obvious that he really loves the material,this isn't a dry scholarly read - a fun book!
My only complaint is not enough space devoted to the Shaw Brothers - entire chapters on Bruce Lee (yawn...),Jackie Chan,Sammo Hung,etc.. Otherwise,worth your time
Another fine guide to the Hong Kong Cinema........2005-06-26
Hong Kong Action Cinema by Bey Logan is another good guide to one of the most innovative film corporations. The films that have come out of Hong Kong are a lot of fun and a lot more creative than the cookie cutter homogenized celluloid clones that Hollywood continues to crank out ad nasuem. Although Bey Logan doesn't go too deep into the history of the cinema (he's very opinionated) he gives the reader enough to go out and seek out the movies and other information themselves.
The book doesn't capture the wealth of information and humor that he showcases on his audio commentaries for D.V.D.s (such as The Fist of Fury and the Celestial releases). A world a difference compared to the crappy books that have been released about the same subject matter (i.e. Asian Cult Cinema). I would also grab a copy of Hong Kong Babylon as a supplement.
If you're looking into this genre, I would strongly recommend this book.
shaw brothers (1970-1999.......2001-04-04
I would like more information on shaw brothers martial arts films from 1970-1999.Starting with the actors,directors and shaw brothers them self.A brief biogarphy about each one.
Not perfect but an interesting read..........2000-09-12
An insight into HK flicks with occasional errors.
Average customer rating:
|
Adventures Of Hamza, The
Ebba Koch ,
Antoinette Owen ,
John Seyller , and
Wheeler Thackston
Manufacturer: Sackler Gallery/Azimuth Editions
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
 Asian
| Regional
| History & Criticism
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Instructional & How-To
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
Calligraphy
| Instructional & How-To
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
Calligraphy
| Graphic Design
| Design & Decorative Arts
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
Decorative Arts
| Design & Decorative Arts
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Painting
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
India
| Asia
| History
| Subjects
| Books
| Ancient
Islamic
| World
| History
| Subjects
| Books
Similar Items:
-
The Last Mughal: The Fall of a Dynasty: Delhi, 1857
ASIN: 1898592225
Release Date: 2002-07-02 |
Book Description
A fantastic adventure story, based loosely on the exploits of Hamza, an uncle of the prophet Muhammad, who travelled throughout the world spreading the doctrines of Islam, The Adventure of Hamza--also known as Hamzanama--tells of encounters with giants, demons, and dragons; of abductions and hair-raising chases; and of believers, as well as those who resisted the truth. The excitement of these ancient tales was best captured in public recitations at coffeehouses from Iran to northern India. Each oration was given a particular flavor by the storyteller, who departed freely from the written text, which itself varies in composition and structure from manuscript to manuscript. An illustrated version of the Hamzanama was commissioned early in the reign of the Mughal Emperor Akbar, in the second half of the 16th century, by the teenage emperor himself. Consisting of 1400 paintings of an unusually large format, it was one of the earliest products of the royal Mughal painting atelier, and perhaps the most ambitious. The enormous size of the illustrations, which are nearly two feet high each, can be explained by their role in complementing the recitations; their sometimes broad and animated style conveys the vigor of the tales. Just over a tenth of the 1400 paintings from Akbar's commission survive today, and this publication of The Adventures of Hamza brings together 60 of the greatest of these works from collections all over the world, and places them alongside new translations of the related text passages.
Customer Reviews:
Excellent Background and Setting.......2007-08-08
It's interesting to have a campaign set in the Asian lands of any world. Honor is key above the traditional good and evil. This Rokugan sourcebook excells at giving you a great setting for the adventures. Filled with politics and intrigue, as well as the traditional kill the monsters stuff. It really has something for everyone. Maybe it has too much detail, because it causes me to worry if I will remember everything on the fly. Take notes!
d20 Rokugan: Inspiring, yet lacking..........2004-07-09
Having played D&D since the Basic Set, and having played the L5R RPG when it was still in 1st edition, I was excited by the announcement that L5R was going d20. I wasn't thrilled with the Oriental Adventures book, as the rules were either unclear, or didn't fit well at all with the theme of L5R.
So I picked up Rokugan as soon as I found out about it.
At first glance (in the store), it was really detailed. Each family in each clan has it's own bonus class skills, favored classes, and starting packages (which were a nice touch from the previous versions of L5R RPG). There are individual shugenja schools for each clan/family, full classes for courtier and ninja (courtier is especially useful for Oriental games), probably two dozen prestige classes (most are very good for other games, as well), and a plethora of feats (which included new Clan and Kiho feats).
The background material on Rokugan is also very good, giving a new-samurai's view of the Emerald Empire, up to the time of the Emperor Toturi's death. There are details of the wars, along with a timeline filled with seemingly-innocent historical anecdotes (perfect for helping DMs create adventures).
Unfortunately, the book is not without flaws.
There are issues with the starting packages (some with contradictory equipment, others that simply don't make much sense or use), lingering questions on exactly how shugenja work in certain cases (especially the Isawa), the fact that the samurai ability to "awaken" their swords contradicts much of known L5R material (i.e., only shugenja typically do it), and several other issues.
Individually, these things wouldn't be a problem, but altogether, make the book practically unusable. This in and of itself could likely have been corrected if the designers had created a FAQ and/or errata to explain or correct issues. But they have not, and there is almost certainly no plan to do so for the foreseeable future.
There are smaller things I would alter, like making courtiers somewhat more useful, perhaps, but they are mostly flavor issues rather than game balance, mechanics, or setting issues.
Should you buy this book? Yes, actually. The book is useful, but requires a complete overhaul, especially to make it v3.5 compliant (and no, there is no v3.5 update out for it yet, and there seems no plan to make one). The Complete series may handle a lot of these problems; though I have not read them all, they have incorporated the OA classes, with some or no modifications.
I say buy it, but don't pay full price. Get it used, borrow one from a friend, but don't pay $20 for this thing. The lack of polish and user-friendliness should not be rewarded.
Oriental Excellence.......2003-11-06
I've been playing D&D for a couple of years now, but was just recently exposed to Oriental Adventures and the L5R setting a couple of weeks ago. Wow. What have I been missing?
The Rokugan setting is just amazing, adding tons of depth to the Oriental Adventures setting and just providing a great atmosphere, chock full of politics, rivalries, and Three Kingdoms-esque intrigue. The additional clan-based suplements (Secrets of the Unicorn springs to mind, mainly because after only a few minutes of reading, I gained a ton of insight into my Water-based Unicorn Shugenji), are great, providing a huge amount of background on the cultures and personalities of Rokugan.
If you're a bit tired of Greyhawk and Faerun, now may be a great time to trade your longsword for a katana and your cleric for a shaman. Check Rokugan out -- you'll like it.
An outstanding D20 Conversion.......2002-12-26
AEG never fails to deliver the goods, and in this case they give them to us in spades. Rokugan is an excellant conversion from the classic 'Legend of the 5 Rings' RPG system to the highly successful and popular 'D20' system. While not a stand-alone product it is still very meaty with dozens of feats and several excellant new classes with the 'L5R' flavor.
All in all a very solid book and an excellant followup to the Oriental Adventures book (which I also highly recommend if you intend to run L5R using D20 rules)
Something I would like to point out. This book isn't just a new collection of feats and classes and skills. This book presents one of the most dynamic asian fantasy settings roleplayers have ever had the pleasure of gaming in. It is rich in history and culture (and as much as I don't like the most recent history, it's still largely entertaining.)
In short, 2 thumbs up. Way up.
a great supplement to Oriental Adventures.......2002-10-06
In my opinion, this book is great. It has a lot of excellent feats, spells, skills, classes, and information for any Oriental D&D campaign. I recommend it equally as much as Oriental Adventures.
Average customer rating:
|
Adventures in Oriental Cooking
Janeth Johnson Nix
Manufacturer: Ortho Book Division, Chevron Chemical Co
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
General
| Baking
| Cooking, Food & Wine
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Cooking, Food & Wine
| Subjects
| Books
ASIN: 091710224X |
Book Description
The people in ancient times the phenomenal world was teeming with life; the thunderclap, the sudden shadow, the unknown and eerie clearing in the wood, all were living things. This unabridged edition traces the fascinating history of thought from the pre-scientific, personal concept of a "humanized" world to the achievement of detached intellectual reasoning.
The authors describe and analyze the spiritual life of three ancient civilizations: the Egyptians, whose thinking was profoundly influenced by the daily rebirth of the sun and the annual rebirth of the Nile; the Mesopotamians, who believed the stars, moon, and stones were all citizens of a cosmic state; and the Hebrews, who transcended prevailing mythopoeic thought with their cosmogony of the will of God. In the concluding chapter the Frankforts show that the Greeks, with their intellectual courage, were the first culture to discover a realm of speculative thought in which myth was overcome.
Customer Reviews:
An examination into Mythopoeic truth.......2001-07-24
The collection of essays in this book are by far brilliant examinations with fit evidence. It is great for the reader interested in Ancient religions of Egypt and Mesopotamia, it provides fundamental views on ancient mans perspective of the world, gods, and himself from myth. This is not a text book, nor a history book but it does provide adequate literary evidence and footnotes. I wish I had read this before studying ancient philosophy, it would have greatly helped my understanding of the mind of these ancients. It's amazing to read about the development of mans theories through mythopoeic tales. Well worth it for the Philosophy-, religion- or ancient studies - student. Or if you really enjoy myths, find out how man came about with these stories. Covers Egyptian, Babylonian and Assyrian (in some detail) and Mesopotamian thought and myth.
Pretty Helpful.......2000-04-26
I used this as one of my references for a course in Jewish Studies. It was very helpful for a basic overview of some Near Eastern thought patterns.
Books:
- Paranoia XP: The Traitor's Manual
- Pizza Tiger
- Pokemon Diamond & Pearl: Prima Official Game Guide (Prima Official Game Guides)
- Product Innovation Strategy, Pure and Simple: How Winning Companies Outpace Their Competitors
- Professional Poker: The Essential Guide to Playing for a Living
- Psychic Circle
- Relationships for Dummies
- Roger von Oech's Ball of Whacks: A Creativity Tool for Innovators
- Shadowrun: Street Magic (FPR26004) (Shadowrun)
- Shadows in Bronze
Books Index
Books Home
Recommended Books
- The Wisdom of Crowds
- O'Donnell + Tuomey: Selected Works
- Les juifs, le monde et l'argent
- Latin American Dancing
- Never Suck A Dead Man's Hand: Curious Adventures of a CSI
- Something Blue
- Mycelium Running: How Mushrooms Can Help Save the World
- The CMA/CFM Exam: An Introduction to All Five Parts of the CMA/CFM Exam, Featuring Questions, Answer
- Principles of Microeconomics, Fourth Edition
- Protector of the Realm
Deities and Demigods Cyclopedia (Advanced Dungeons and Dragons)
Wilderness Survival Guide (Official Advanced Dungeons and Dragons)
Advanced Dungeons and Dragons Monster Manual II
Player's Handbook (Advanced Dungeons & Dragons, 1st edition revised)
Fiend Folio (Advanced Dungeons and Dragons)
