Kingdoms of Kalamar Question

[Reshy]

Hello, I was reading about the Kingdoms of Kalamar (3.0-3.5) and I was wondering what the status of it is. How legitimate is using material from it? I found it on some lists saying that it is official material, but others have said it's not and I can't seem to find a good answer regarding it, which is a bit disappointing. Any help would be appreciated. The book I'm looking at specifically is the Dangerous Denizens: Monsters of Tellene book as they have some interesting critters in them.

[torrasque666]

All I can say is that it does say "Wizards of the Coast Official Licensed Product" on the Table of Contents. I'm assuming that its legit.

[The Glyphstone]

Complicated answer.

As mentioned, it is technically 1st-party (or 2nd-party, really) material - rather than use the OGL, the company who published it just paid for the licensing rights, so its official standing would be equivalent to any non-core splatbook written by WotC.

However, it tends to be mildly to poorly regarded in a lot of circles, because it's not balanced well and is the source of things like Irresistible Spell.

[Biffoniacus_Furiou]

The Kalamar books were written and published by Kenzer and Co, not Wizards of the Coast, but they all bear the official D&D logo due to an agreement Kenzer had with TSR prior to WotC acquiring D&D.

Compare that to the Dragonlance books, which were published by WotC but do not bear the D&D logo, only the d20 logo.

The Kalamar books are officially D&D books and usable in any D&D game, despite being 3rd party. The Dragonlance books are not officially D&D books and should only be usable in D&D games that take place in Dragonlance, even though they're 1st party (or 2nd party, depending on the writers).

Most groups accept any 1st party material regardless of whether it has the D&D logo, and reject 3rd party material regardless of whether it has the D&D logo. There's a lot of 3rd party d20 material out there, most of which is horribly unbalanced, thus the blanket rejection of everything 3rd party. Most will reject the Kalamar books due to a lack of familiarity with the material, like most 3rd party resources.

From a strictly rules-as-written standpoint, the Kalamar books which have the D&D logo on the cover are legal for use in any D&D game, and books which do not say "Dungeons and Dragons" on the cover are only usable in D&D games which take place in that particular setting, or in a setting which touches that one. For most gaming groups, the Kalamar books are not acceptable simply because they're 3rd party. They do contain a few overpowered mechanics, namely the Irresistible Spell metamagic feat, but they have fewer of these things than the core rulebooks. At the end of the day, it's up to a given gaming group to decide whether or not to use them.

[CyberThread]

stuff.


To put it simply, in the play by post world, kingdoms is not recognized as an official dnd book .

[cosmonuts]

Kalamar = Ew, Miser with Magic

[Pluto!]

The book I'm looking at specifically is the Dangerous Denizens: Monsters of Tellene book as they have some interesting critters in them.

There's no good reason that a brand logo should stop you from using content you like in a game that's mostly make-believe. You just need to apply some basic scrutiny, just like with WotC's products.

[Reshy]

There's no good reason that a brand logo should stop you from using content you like in a game that's mostly make-believe. You just need to apply some basic scrutiny, just like with WotC's products.

This is for he purposes of making a guide/handbook.

[afroakuma]

This is for he purposes of making a guide/handbook.

Same answer. I've never seen a guidebook or handbook that referred to Kalamar materials as though they were an acceptable source. Skip 'em is my vote.

[Zanos]

Kalamar = Ew, Miser with Magic
Only works on casting stat mod spell levels per day. Very strong at low-levels, but does not scale well, and you might actually fail the spellcraft check at earlier levels. It requires CL 7 as well, so it's not like you can cast your best spells all day.

Irresistible spell i believe was errata'd to +4 slot adjustment, +10 Save DC, and requires maximize spell and envelop the wall, I believe.

[Vedhin]

For fun read the Villain Design Handbook. The Darklight Wizard PrC in there is incredibly broken. Both kinds at once. Look at this gem from the class features:


Death Touch: Once per day, a Darklight wizard of 4th level or higher may attempt to use this spell-like ability. The wizard must succeed at a melee touch attack against a living creature. If successful, the death touch causes 1d4 damage per caster level. If the total equals the target's current hit points, it dies. Death touch is a supernatural ability.

You also get 9th level casting by ECL 10, full BAB, Animate Dead at will at 5th level, an aura that gives EVERYTHING EVER -2 to saves, and other random things. Also, entering the class makes you lose all HD and class levels, but you keep ability scores, skills and feats.