Sidebar #37 – Ruinous Runes by Ismael Alvarez is a role playing game supplement published by Fat Goblin Games for use with the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game. As such, it is covered by the Open Game License and some parts are considered to be Open Game Content as a result.
The supplement is available from DriveThruRPG as a 4-page PDF for $1 although it was purchased at a reduced price as part of a special bundle. One page is the front cover and one the Open Game License.
The introductory paragraphs explain that some symbols evoke fear, evil and ruin. Ruinous Runes are symbols harnessed by dark forces. They can be used on people who have sold their destiny to evil and represent the toll of such a bargain, or they can be used on foes too important to kill. The runes expand on the concept of evil runes in Pathfinder. Runes are magic items that are inscribed directly onto the body – not dissimilar to tattoos – and have their own slot, rune.
Inscribe Rune is a new feat for tattooing arcane runes onto a person’s flesh or the flesh of others.
Rune of the Doomed bestows a permanent curse on the target.
Rune of Taming can prevent the bearer from attacking a specific type of creature, selected from the same list as a ranger’s favoured enemies.
Rune of the Unwitting Spy makes the rune bearer become a magical conduit for scrying.
Voidlink Rune calls forth a creature, with different runes summoning different creatures. The default creature is a shadow jackal, whose stats are given.
Sidebar #37 – Ruinous Runes in Review
The PDF lacks bookmarks and, with only two pages of content, does not need them. Navigation is fine. The text maintains a two-column colour format and appeared to be free of errors. There is a single colour illustration on the front cover. Presentation is fine.
This is a short and simple supplement. It provides four new runes that can be used by evil NPCs or characters, none hugely powerful, but none really helpful for the person with the rune inscribed on them. It’s a shame there aren’t some more details on potential creatures called by a Voidlink Rune, but the information given on the shadow jackal is adequate. Sidebar #37 – Ruinous Runes is a nice little supplement and it can be found by clicking here.
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