“There can be only one god of the apocalypse, and their name is Wezsu the Devourer of Gods”
This was my first Rugose chapbook. Odd to start with the second, but it was dropping when I was getting in on the Zine craze, and honestly the “On the Island of Dying Gods” really struck a chord with me!
Physical Product: 6
This zine feels so much better than the first chapbook, just in terms of quality, the bright pink front cover and high quality paper makes me feel like this one was printed to last. There is also far more color on the inside.
Art: 7
The zine is full of original art, almost every page has some art on it and it’s a delight, again it just elevates the entire work to a new level.
Writing/Editing: 8
No typos or major issues that took me out of the moment reading this.
World/Fiction: 9
- Design: Rather than being a collection of adventures, this chapbook is one large setting. It takes place on an island in which there can be a lot of adventures, in a lot of varied locales.
- Originality: I felt this was spot on, Rugose included plenty of interesting adventure hooks that touch on a wide variety of quest styles and story telling tropes, meaning that on this one island there are a myriad of ways to both play and tell stories.
- Fleshed out: So good, the entire chapbook revolves around on space, really letting Rugose get into all the nooks and cranies.
- Engaging: I read it cover to cover in one sitting.
- Mechanics: Not much new here, a few of the encounters and stories do have their own mechanics allowing for some puzzle solving from the adventurers.
Overall: 8.15
Final Thoughts: One thing I like about this is that the locations and the life breathed into this chapbook feels far more like a solid setting. You can pop your players down and really have an answer for whatever they want to do. The book is also full of cool maps, which I think Rugose has incredible skill at designing. All in all this book is less aligned with running a quick one-shot and more suited for a small adventure between mainline quests, or maybe as a jumping off point (or ending poing) for more established characters.
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Wandering Monster 