Robotech the RPG: Shadow Chronicles Deluxe Edition Hardcover – January 1, 2008

I guess I was expecting a little more information on the movie and how it connects to the series. Having played Robotech with the old RPG book, I think my expectations were met, but there were a few details I was hoping this book had.Presentation:The hardcover is pretty nice. This version is the same size as the old books (which is also regular size for most RPG books), so that makes it fit nice with my book collection. The cover art is not necessarily impressive, but it is good. I think I was hoping a cover with direct art from the movie, but i can live with it.The book is black and white, with good layout, font size and with nice art, especially the diagrams of mechas and vehicles. That's pretty nice. I wished better pictures of the characters were present and more art depicting action scenes or imagery from the movie. On the plus side, this feels like a technical manual from the REF.Rules:This RPG uses d100 for almost everything. Depending on the character class you select, you are assigned certain skills (from a very long list) and you have a base percentage to be successful while trying the skills. Pretty simple and straightforward. If you exceed the percentage, you succeed at the skill. Not much to mention there.The game gets a little more complicated when you realize that combat varies slightly when you are dealing with either humans or mechas. For example, it is not the same to hit a person with a cannon than to hit a mecha with a cannon.So, playes and GM have to be actively keeping track of how rules change depending on the context. That's not too bad, as more than likely you are dealing with either characters or mechas, but not both.With very few exceptions, the rules are almost the same as the ones in the old book.Except lots and lots of stats, mechas and vehicles have a huge list of specifications.One long point for me are the character classes. I really don't see how any class is better than a Veritech Pilot, for example. Even Mecha pilots are not that nice as class and some others are just plain boring compared to the pilots.Advancement through the levels, experience and multiclass are barely covered, so you have to do a lot of guess work. Some people may find this irritating, but for me it is a good opportunity to be creative.ContentThis is a mixed bag. Like i mentioned, many great diagrams and specifications. Good section on Invids and Haydonites.Considering that this is based on a movie that was supposed to launch a new series, there is very limited detail on how to mix it with the New Generation era (You must buy the book for that), the Sentinels story arc (very little is presented from that story) and almost nothing of what will happen with the Icarus once they leave Earth to look for the SDF3.This is what annoys me a little, there is no mention of how the REF will deal with the lack of protoculture, so it feels like if you want to play you have to leave with Scott and the others to look for Admiral Hunter, but there is no information of the rest of the galaxy. As a GM I guess you either have to just create from nothing, and the only things that you have are either use the haydonites as enemies, use the invids as mystery and use the SDF3 as a mcguffin. I would have preferred a little more detail on what happens to the REF and what options or plots can be pursued by a group of characters. Nothing that a crafty GM won't be able to do, but still, feels lacking.I gave it 4 stars in part for sheer sentimental value, I am glad I was able to get a copy of this book and the possibility to play with my friends The book is nice looking and like any game, how much fun you take out of it is up to the group playing with it. Bakc in the 90s, with a newbie GM, we had lots of fun and my brother to this day he mentions those adventures as some of the funniest he had, so I am sure that with this book there is a lot of potential for fun. The other reason I gave it 4 stars is that for a rule book for all the Robotech series (Macross, New Generation, Sentinels, etc), you need what is in this book, and definitively, as hardcover, looks nicer than the old version.

This sourcebook contains a lot of great information not only about the game, but the universe in which it takes place as well. If you are a fan of the animated series and wanted to know more about the world then I would recommend looking at this book.It is also of course critical in running an RPG in the Robotech universe. If you like the Palladium RPG system, and science fiction, then you will really enjoy this book. A fun game even if you are not familiar with the source material.

Like many other gamers, I went on ahead and picked up the Shadow Chronicles RPG in its magna form. It was my first Palladium purchase in quite a few years and I was fairly pleased with it. It wasn't long after that when I heard that Palladium planned to release a deluxe edition. I didn't really understand the point of these really. Was this because gamers just wanted a larger, 'proper', book? Anyway, I was happy enough with my manga version and not at all interested in this book.Anyway, this past Friday night I got a call from my local game store telling me that my copy of the Macross Sourcebook was in. I happily hopped in my car and took off to get it. The owner had to find my book, so I took a few minutes to browse around to kill some time. That was when I saw this book for the first time..., and I just had to have it.So what are you getting? A larger, better bound book for one. It is a very nice looking book that feels 'right' to hold. It isn't very heavy and it is comfortable to set on your chest to read while in bed. The book has larger print and more space for pictures, so it is just much easier to read, especially for older folks like me!The layout is very pleasing. Kevin and company really did a good job with this one. Still no color pictures in the book, but that doesn't take away from from what is there.There are some new goodies inside too. For example, Kevin and company have put in stats and rules for capital ships! This was a weakness in the magna book. The book gives you stats for the three major classes of UEEF warships and you get the two Haydonite capital ships in the OVA. The rules for cap ships are pretty nice and show a lot of reworking since the original version of Robotech. Kevin took a lot more time explaining ship-to-ship engagments. In fact, you're looking at 6 full pages of rules and discussion of space warfare. I'll let you judge how effective and useful these rules are. I'm just pleased to see the time and effort being placed into such a critical part of the Robotech story.Palladium also took time to clear up a few problems such as missing stats on Haydonite fighters and they even revamped the Wolf modular weapon system. So now it isn't just a misidentified pistol and rifle; it is a modular system that is the precussor to the Gallant. Those are just the new things that I've noticed. There may be other things that I've missed.So what's wrong with it? Not a whole lot. The Deluxe version has fixed many issues found in the original book. There might be other things out there and I'll leave that to other people to find. I'm still grumbling about the lack of chapters and that the organization of the book is kind of wierd (stats for equipment in the front, rules to explain what you're reading in the back), but if you're use to Palladium then this is nothing new.On the whole, this is a nice product. The book is very attractive and has fixed many issues found in the original book. Is it worth $31? I think so. Compared to other RPG books, it's cheap! If you don't have the manga book, then grab this version. You get more for the book and it's much nicer and more sturdy than the manga book. If you have the manga, then it may be worth your while just to have a larger, easier to read book.Once again, it's a nice, solid product. Thumbs up!