Spell Compendium (Dungeons & Dragons d20 3.5 Fantasy Roleplaying)

List Price: $39.95 Discount Price: $25.56

Customer Reviews:

A Decent Compilation [Posted on 2008-02-11]
This book was the 6th D&D book I purchased for our group. As I did not have access to the vast majority of various other books, from which these spells are taken, the book was a 'bargain' for me. It is also a shrewd purchase for gamers who are less interested in the flavor of some Wizards books and just want the game info. There is no page index for the book but the back of the book lists the new spells by class & level. Virtually the entirety of the book is the spells listed in detail alphabetically so the lack of pin-point page citation is not a big deal.

The only complaint I have with the product is minor. They renamed some spells (primarily took out the 'Bigby', 'Mordenkein' etc). As an original matter having simpler spell names is probably a good idea, but to change them in a spell supplement is just a hassle for those gamers who want to go to a specific location for a spell. This change is only asking for compatibility trouble and confusion. The spell name changes are listed in the book.

Decent, worth it if not at cover price [Posted on 2008-03-04]
Few of Wizards of the Coast (WotC)'s books are worth the cover price (over-inflated due to glossy full-color pages - even on almost entirely B&W books (such as this one)) and this is no exception. However, what this book has going for it is a ton of new magic spells.

There are all sorts of spells for the D&D game in this book and most work flawlessly into almost any and every style of play without any concern or specific review by the GM at all. There's little to cause a game to become unbalanced in this book (a nice change from some of the books WotC was putting out at the time this came out).

The only significant drawback to this book is that it lacks the spells of the Player's Handbook and Campaign Setting rulebooks. It would have been nice if the book included all the spells from such books (at least the "SRD" (System Reference Document) spell materials) so that the "compendium" book would have been more complete and allowed for new ideas and avenues of magical ability into any D&D game a little more easily. The lack of some of these means this is another book you'll want to carry around (instead of replacing one, two, or more books you will have to carry around) with you.

New tricks for the old mage [Posted on 2008-03-25]
The Spell Compendium contains a wealth of new spells and spell ideas for any of your spellcasting characters. Some of these do edge towards the overpowered, while some go the opposite way, but regardless, they offer some special variety and uniqueness for your spellcaster to take advantage of. Many of them have appeared in one form or another in numerous modules or other sources. Now they are collected for easy reference. Some are certainly great utility spells that have been missing since 2nd edition. I even found one that was very similar to a spell I once created from scratch for a campaign I was in that I felt my character needed as part of a divinatory/investigative tool (Object Read).

Also, the collected listing of Domains, their powers and spells is a welcome addition. So if you are looking for some potentially signature spell or style that will set your spellcaster apart from the usual, or want to throw something totally unexpected at your party of adventurers, this book may have it.

Great Book For All D&D Fanatics [Posted on 2008-09-03]
I have been playing Dungeons and Dragons since 1st edition and have always wanted one book that encompasses all the spells there are out there all though it dosen't have spells from the PHB it has all the rest ranging from Draconomicon to Vile Darkness and everything in between anyone who plays any type of character in D&D would do well to buy this book and even if you don't play a player it's good for making a memerable reacurring villian that your players will always love to see what he pulls out his spell book next

Useful but not all-inclusive [Posted on 2008-09-16]
Spell Compendium is a solid resource for spellcasters of any class. Its major downfall, however, is that it does not include core (Player Handbook) spells. That said, it's fairly easy to navigate and contains a plethora of new, useful, and interesting spells from a variety of other "splat" books. A bit pricey, but worth it for serious spellcasters with the understanding that core spells aren't included.

Click here for more details and discount information...