Since I have an evening unexpectedly free I'm gonna get my read-through of #V5 Anarch on the books. Given how the Camarilla book seem to have gone over, I am not expecting much, but who knows? Into the breach once more!
Come, stay awhile, and listen!
Come, stay awhile, and listen!
As with before, let's get the authors on the record here. Fewer authors than the Cam book, which is surprising.
Wait, this introduction... it present the book's theme directly, outlines a central paradigm for the setting, talks about how to use this for a chronicle, and lays out a basic roadmap for the book. And it's all clear and well written?
WHERE DID THIS COMPETENCE COME FROM??
WHERE DID THIS COMPETENCE COME FROM??
THIS ISN'T GOING TO LAST, IS IT?
Ok a little over a dozen pages in and something that has been bugging me about the #V5 books has finally crystallized. Almost everything is delivered "in character". It's all speeches and letters and diaries, and it muddies the information considerably.
Seeing an Intro that was just, you know, the author giving information in a clear concise manner, then going back to this in character stuff, really makes me aware of how jarring this presentation is. And for a setting guide, it makes the info harder to use.
This likely helps contribute to a lot of the problems the game has had, since the authors all want to write vampires being all edgy and monstrous about their unlives when, really, we just need someone to explain the fucking rules properly.
So far, though, the stuff in the Anarch book is at least better than the Cam book. This bit on the myth of Carthage is actually really nice.
We still have the same stupid layout shit going on, though. Pages flipping between two and three-column layouts. Random switched to white text on black backhround. White space galore. Fuck, we even have multiple fonts on one page.
WHAT THE FUCK IS THIS SHIT???
That, that right there, is a fucking MASTER CLASS in how to waste a fucking page. That could have been corrected, or at least made more palatable, with ONE piece of art.
Speaking of art, it's nice to see some actual drawings and paintings in this book, as opposed to the predominance of photos we saw in the other books.
Wait was I supposed to get 3D glasses with this book, what is going on with this picture?
This Princess Leia AU fanfic is already a little questionable....
You know, I'm not sure I can properly unpack how this section begins, but I think this paragraph sums it up for me...
*Morgan freeman voiceover* It absolutely did not last...
Oh this is... oh... oh dear
As someone who regularly deals with crushing depression and the inevitable thoughts that brings, I REALLY wish this has been dealt with more tactfully. Again that "in-character-so-it's-gotta-be-edgy" problem.
I know, vampires are Darwinian monsters, yadda yadda yadda, spare me.
I know, vampires are Darwinian monsters, yadda yadda yadda, spare me.
Some of the art is really pretty though...
If this isn't about a Brujah GHOST roadie I'm fucking leaving...
Wait, a BDSM story? Really? Because that's worked out SO WELL for White Wolf in the past...
That BDSM story was so pointless and pedestrian it's insulting.
There's been way too much fluff in this book, it's getting irritating.
There's been way too much fluff in this book, it's getting irritating.
THAT IS A VAMPIRE: BLOODLINES REFERENCE AND I AM DYING XD
*five minutes of crazed babbling about fonts commences*
Some of this art is so fucking good, why is it in THIS BOOK?
"A Møøse once bit my sister... No realli! She was Karving her initials on the møøse with the sharpened end of an interspace tøøthbrush given her by Svenge - her brother-in-law..."
*sighs*
This same issue of feeding on the children you are ostensibly raising was brought up in the Cam book, too, but at least there it was creepy and brief enough to be vaguely affecting. Here it's played for laughs. Again, they are more concerned with being edgy than interesting
FOUR columns on page 79
TWO columns on page 80
WHYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY
TWO columns on page 80
WHYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY
At this point, reading this book is akin to getting caught by your wacky Aunt Marjorie at Christmas who just wants to babble about the old ladies in her nursing home.
Halfway through the book and this is all I've gathered about the Anarchs thus far...
Oh ffs
*side-eye REALLY intensifies*
THEY WROTE A VAMPIRE ANTIFA GROUP AS A JOKE?!?!?!?!
Oh greeeeeeeat a two-page eugenics pitch, this is what I wanted in my rebellious vampire fiction....
Ok I am FINALLY at the clan write-ups. This read-through so far has been an aimless slog with no coherency and no direction. The stories are mostly scattered, unfocused, and provide little actual information. There are a few good mood-setters but that's it; the rest is filler.
Page 141: two columns, THREE different fonts, including a sidebar in red text
Page 142: WHAT IS THIS TRAVESTY
Page 142: WHAT IS THIS TRAVESTY
Jesus, these write-ups are even less useful than the ones in the Camarilla book. At least those actually spoke about the clan personalities and weaknesses a bit. These are useless.
headdesk.gif
There's a bit here about dangling a "cure for vampirism" as a plot hook in a campaign of thin-blooded vampires. It's a quick one-page treatment but as a plot hook it's unique. Makes me think of Near Dark; they even mention the blood transfusion.
So the Setites have been renamed The Ministry and are given a full write-up here as part of the Anarchs. Serpentis is now just Protean. Meh
And after the usual batch of pretty nifty Loresheets, the book is completed!
Final Thoughts:
1) This book really solidified my distaste for the in-character info dumps these books have relied upon. Here, in particular, it makes gleaning useful information really difficult, and as a reference document it is completely useless.
1) This book really solidified my distaste for the in-character info dumps these books have relied upon. Here, in particular, it makes gleaning useful information really difficult, and as a reference document it is completely useless.
2) The book itself is aimless and meandering, wandering from vignette to vignette with no apparent direction. I spent about half the book rolling my eyes, wondering when the stories were going to get to the point.
I'll give it credit for at least being significantly less vulgar than the Camarilla book, but that just makes the banality of it stand out more. This book could have cut half the stories, focused on figures like Salvador Garcia and Tyler, and it might have turned out informative
It also has some VERY good art in it. More of that, please.
I just do not get the aesthetic of these books. Shoddy layouts, multiple fonts on each page, this all needs to stop. Reading this one actually gave me a headache.
Needless to say, I remain unimpressed by this line. There are so many good indie games you could be supporting that handle these same themes in a much more respectful and, dare I say, MATURE way. I'd play MonsterHearts over this drek any day.
And now I need an aspirin and a good night's sleep. Thanks for reading along!
