 |
|
|
|
 |
Review: The Dead and the DamnedA Warhammer Novel The Dead and The Damned Johnathan Green Black Library Publication Games Workshop Pages: 280 ISBN 1-84154-266-0 Released: 12/15/02
Introduction: Torben swung his sword at the inhuman noble. The stroke opened a great gash across the vampire's chest through his shirt. The man stumbled backwards at the blow and collapsed over a gravestone. 'One down,' the mercenary said to himself with a grin, and span to face the other creatures. Torben suddenly found himself hurled to the ground with the hissing nobleman furiously tearing at his mail armor with its talons. Twisting to one side, the warrior used his bulk to throw the clawing vampire from him. Quickly getting to his feet, he watched open mouthed as the wound he had dealt the man closed bloodlessly before his eyes. 'By Queen Katrain's sword!' he exclaimed. 'What does it take to stop these things?' The Book: Growing up on pen and paper games, I have l always known about the Warhammer games by Games Workshop. To me, it was the other fantasy miniatures game that required a sizable income to collect the figures needed for large-scale battles. Having spent a sizable amount of cash collecting Grenadier and Ral Partha miniatures for use in the fantasy games my gaming buds played, we only dabbled with Warhammer rule-sets. It was not until much later with titles such as Blood Bowl, and Epic Space Marines did we become true gaming addicts collecting all things Games Workshop related. With the announcement of Warhammer Online, the Massive-Multiplayer Game taking place on the Warhammer universe, I needed a primer to the games world that all us as players would find ourselves adventuring within. The best way to reintroduce yourself, without spending thousands of dollars on a hobby, is to begin reading novels related to the game. Thanks to Games Workshop they referred me to Johnathan Green's novel published in-house titled “The Dead and The Damned." Johnathan Green is a writer who was known for his stories in Warhammer tales within the pages Inferno! Magazine, prior to joining Games Workshop in 1994 penning a number of articles for White Dwarf magazine and a number of short stories for the Black Library. The Dead and the Damned is his first novel in which he tells the tales of "Badenov's Band," a group of mercenaries battling their way across the Ostermark reaches in the hopes of attaining riches and glory as they due battle with skeletons, vampires, skaven, trolls, shamans, necromancer's and the spawn of Chaos as dark gods attempt to gain entry into the worlds of men through corrupting souls. Badenov himself is one of those leaders whom you can relate to as he questions himself on what will occur to the band of heroic mercenaries should they fall in battle, or if he was to end his career, even in the event of an untimely demise. Just enough emphasis is brought upon each of the several members of Badenov's band to give you a personal attachment to each character, and wanting to ensure they do not fall. The life of a sell-sword is hard though, and the fast action of the plot has new characters being introduced just as you see one of your favorites fall to their death in a heroic battle of epic proportions to not only save their own lives, but their very souls as they fight those who are dead and, damned as the title of the book suggests. In the opening chapters, one of the band looses the groups horses, and is mysteriously written off while being replaced with a distraught nobleman with a dark and brooding personality over the demise of his one true love. Being a novel based on the Warhammer games, favorites make their way into the game, as we see the story introduce Dwarven Cannons, Preist's of Sigmarr, Bandits, and Witch Hunters interacting in the world with thier belifes and motivations. Without going further to detract from the enjoyment of the read, I found myself having read the book cover to cover inside of a day, and wanting to learn more. The twists and turns of the story will leave you asking, "What happens next," in anticipation for the next novel. Final Thoughts: This is one of those books that will go on our Recommended Reading Lists for all fantasy enthusiasts, as well as MMO gamers or pen-and-paper gamers. The book is flowing from adventure to adventure with a fast pace which has you eager to follow the development of the characters and story-line as it progresses. It's also an excellent introduction to the Warhammer Universe if you are new to the genre and plan on playing Warhammer Online in its release. This is a great read, and Johnathan Green does a great job! Discuss: Read a good book lately??
|
|
|
Advertise
Privacy Statement |
Back
Main
Top
|
© Copyright 2001-2004 GameRifts.com - All Rights Reserved. All trademarks used and referred to are acknowledged as belonging to their respective owners. Use of this site in no way constitutes any special rights or exemptions from copyright and trademark laws. Content from this site may not be used or duplicated in whole or in part without the express written consent of the owner(s).
