First of all I want to thank Jon Brazer Enterprises for sending us a review copy of Book of Beasts: Monsters of the Forbidden Woods, a bestiary for Pathfinder Second Edition. This manual belongs to a collection (precisely the Book of Beasts) which contains the typical creatures of specific places.
In case you are interested in buying it, you can find it (only in digital edition) on the official Paizo store, DriveThruRPG and Open Gaming Store at a cost of $3.95 (currently around €3.65); keep in mind that it’s also available for D&D5e at the same price on DriveThruRPG and the Open Gaming Store.
The Structure of the Manual
The low cost is justified by the fact that the number of pages is not abundant too: 17.
After an introductory page with credits and reference manuals, we immediately start with the real protagonists of the work: the monsters!
They are grouped into categories and for each of them we have 3 to 6 creatures available. There is a description of each category, but not of the single elements that compose it; in any case, I didn’t perceive this lack much, since the general indications already give a very precise context to the creature. Moreover, the manual also offers us other very interesting information. In fact, we can read interesting tips to manage the behavior of monsters, especially their tactics in battle. But what intrigued me the most are the narrative hooks; in a few lines the author recommends some situations in which it is easy to insert the creatures. Sometimes this also happens in first person, through the words of some NPC; in this case we can also find nice nicknames with which people define the beast. And let’s not forget the specific and themed loot!
Book of Beasts: Monsters of the Forbidden Woods then concludes with the cover, previously included in this review. Honestly, I would have liked the presence of an index, even better if in multiple versions (in order of page number, alphabetical and creature level). The manual is not difficult to navigate, but filling this gap would have further benefited from this point of view.
Review of the Monsters Included in Book of Beasts: Monsters of the Forbidden Woods
As already mentioned at the beginning of this review, Monsters of the Forbidden Woods is part of the Book of Beasts series of manuals and as such focuses on the typical monsters of a given location; I’m referring to the Forbidden Woods, not belonging to the official PF2 setting but teeming with truly peculiar flora and fauna.
This bestiary contains 22 creatures, grouped into 5 categories. The variety is great and originality abounds. Moreover these are creatures that can be easily inserted into a multitude of adventures. Their level ranges from -1 to 10 and therefore, also thanks to the Weak and Elite templates, they are proper enemies for characters up to about level 14; unfortunately there are no monsters suitable for higher levels, but they tend to be less played too.
- Addanc: a strange marsh cross between a beaver and a fiendish crocodile, presented from the youngest to the more mature and deadly specimens.
- Druidic Guardians: Protectors of the wilds sometimes guard their natural home with stone sentinels, water hounds, animate vines, and more.
- Giant Animals: nature can decide to create animals of disproportionate size (and strength) for the purpose of self-preservation. An owl as tall as a human is a prime example of this.
- Knaerk: the worst enemies of dwarves and anyone living underground. These gruesome crosses between a spider, a goblin and a stone specialize in collapsing tunnels and burying those who live inside.
- Spiderbears: There’s not much more to add: what can terrify more than a creature as violent as a bear and as creepy as a spider?
All monsters precisely follow the PF2 creation tables, resulting perfectly balanced; at the same time they don’t fail to be original too, without ever giving the feeling of reskin of classic creatures.
Review of the Aesthetics of Book of Beasts: Monsters of the Forbidden Woods
The layout differs slightly from that of the official PF2 bestiaries. Instead of being organized with a single column and extra notes in the margins, Book of Beasts: Monsters of the Forbidden Woods has two columns where all content, including stat blocks, is arranged. The fonts, on the other hand, are very similar to the official ones and share their simplicity and clarity in reading.
The cover does not have a template or a frame, but only presents a beautiful full-page color image. What better way to present the manual than with a very nice Spiderbear intent on hunting unfortunate adventurers?
The internal illustrations are very basic, but effective. In fact they are sketches on parchment backgrounds, an approach that on other types of manuals could have been too minimal, but in a bestiary it makes sense; after all, the feeling is that of observing the diary of an adventurer who takes not of the creatures he encounters.
Last Thoughts
Book of Beasts: Monsters of the Forbidden Woods sets itself a very specific goal and, as can be seen from this review, it fully achieves it. At a very affordable cost, it provides interesting elements to be included in any story that takes adventurers into mysterious forests; this aspect certainly also benefits its reusability. Furthermore, the presence of extra information for each creature makes it a perfect manual even for novice masters.
If you want to expand the list of creatures to throw at your adventurers, I suggest you consider this product. And remember: for every party, there’s always a Spiderbear lurking!