A Review of the Role Playing Game Supplement The Encyclopedia of Skill Lore

The Encyclopedia of Skill Lore by Julie Ann Dawson is a role playing game supplement published by Bards and Sages for use with Dungeons & Dragons 3.x. 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 as an 11-page PDF from DriveThruRPG for $0.99. One page is the front cover and one the Open Game License.

Questions, Answers, and Things Left Unsaid… is an opening piece of prose, related to the titular encyclopaedia.

The Encyclopedia of Skill Lore explains that the Loremaster from that prose transferred all his knowledge to books so that they could be used by anyone, not just the wealthy. The volumes in the set, and there are 23, are then listed. After this is a description of the books and a general overview of their effects. They provide competence bonuses to skills, though only for the less skilled, and require study. There are modifiers that are available for studying the books with another. Finally, there are examples in use.

The effects of the twenty-three volumes are then described. Most of them are covered individually, but those where there are several related volumes, such as a number on craft skills, have the same effect but for different skills.

Other Books From Linus’ Library covers six more books not in the encyclopaedia set are then described, with their history and game effects.

New Library Items has a variety of new items, ordinary, alchemical and magical. There are book safes and false books, wax that protects paper, a wondrous item that alters alignment temporarily, a pen that writes by dictation and a portable library.

The Encyclopedia of Skill Lore in Review

The PDF lacks bookmarks and, though comparatively short, has enough different sections that these would have been useful. Navigation could be better. The text maintains a two-column format and appeared to be free of errors. There are several pieces of colour clip art related to books. Presentation is okay.

Though this supplement was written for D&D 3.x, it should be easy enough to convert to Pathfinder and, perhaps, other similar systems. The books contained add interest, and use, to books that can be found. The Encyclopedia of Skill Lore is a nice, and very inexpensive, supplement for making books more interesting and it can be found by clicking here.