An unarmed combat system is provided which is actually quite workable, albeit with many case exceptions.

The blow gun, which causes 25% of total hit point damage on a hit to high level characters may look too good at first blush, but given that it has very limited range, requires a successful 'to hit', and for a character to save versus poison at +5, the prospect of a band of kobolds causing a major nuissance is limited. This distinction is reflected in character class rules, but remains a game system expression rather than a hard requirement.īefore delving into this in detail however, the game does introduce new weapons (bastard sword, blow gun, bola, heavy crossbow, blackjack, et, trident, whip), some of which have saving-throw based special results, and with increased bonuses according to level. Basic Set characters were effectively dungeon-crawlers, Expert Set characters engaged in wilderness exploration, whereas Companion Set characters are primarily involved in the development of significant lands of rulership (that is, a step up from the management of an single stronghold as per the higher level Expert level characters) or as a traveller. The opening pages of the Players Companion sets the scene and scope for the book. As can be readily determined even in review the organisation could have done with some improvement. For the Dungeon Masters Companion the top level sections are The Campaign (part I: General Guidelines, Part 2: The Fantasy World, Part 3: The Multiverse), Procedures, Monsters, Treasures, and Adventures. The major sections of the Players Companion consists of an introduction, new armour and weapons, unarmed combat, strongholds, other character activity, and class descriptions. Text organisation requires some elaboration. Both books contain a table of contents and prominent section titles. There is, of course, consistency in the typeface and physical format saddle-stapled books with cardstock covers, three-column justified with a serif font, with quality greyscale art from Elmore and Easley. However, unlike the Expert boxed set we've returned to a two-rulebook set (Player's and Dungeon Master's, at 32 pages and 64 pages respectively) and with no separate scenario. The third boxed set for BECMI D&D retains some consistency with the previous editions, at least in the physical box.

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