I was going to do a review initially, but…

Alas, I am still waiting for my physical copies. For some silly reason, I thought they were going to have dropped by now. However, the PDF did drop with the preorder, so I’m going to chat a little bit about it. I see a lot of things in this book that I think we all were hoping for. It’s also inspiring to me as a GM and writer to see some of the awesome crossover potential being thrown out there for us to enjoy. The only hitch is I’m not sure if I’m supposed to be writing a full review yet with the physical copy not being out yet, so we’re going to do this as a preview with a little extra oomph.

I was stoked about this book the instant I saw it was coming. I’ve been wanting to run the Transformers/GI Joe crossover since the 1980’s. I’d also been toying with Transformers/Power Rangers for a while before the RPG ever came out because Cybertronians are very similar to Zords. Then, Renegade Game Studios went the extra mile and put in all of the GM guide info that was sorely lacking from the Power Rangers RPG.

The artistic highlights.

I have to give my usual kudos to Renegade for the art and layout of this book. Their art for all three Essence20 action games is stellar as always. The presentation is clean and easy to read. The overall presentation is amazing. For legal reasons, I can’t really put any of the actual artwork in this preview, but trust me, it’s A grade art all around.

I always say, “Art sells TTRPG books.” My friends, the art in this one could stand on its own in many cases. The GI Joe/Transformers pieces alone could be excellent wall posters. I’m only reading the medium and low res PDFs for easy access on my phone and computer, but the images in the high res PDF are mind blowing in many instances. Renegade used high end IDW or Marvel Comics style images in this book. They inspire the imagination and really make me want to run more games.

The crunchy bits are so tasty.

Renegade Game Studios fulfilled my fondest wishes with this book. There are rules for using all three games—Power Rangers, GI Joe, and Transformers rules for Origins, Perks, Equipment, and so on with the other games. Heck, at one point they even mention My Little Pony RPG (also an Essence 20 game,) as alt forms for Cybertronians. It’s a stretch, but I guess it’s do-able. (*I could also see Pony Rangers, but it gets bizarre at that point.)

There are also numerous new character options unique to this book. They cover some bases that were perhaps missing from the Core rules of each game. I’m dying to add some things such as Strategist and Skeptic into Power Rangers. I’m also going to rework a character into a Gridthropologist. Some of the new factions are cool and I kinda want to experiment with the Envoy role, too.

Then we get to my favorite part of the whole book.

There is an entire, gorgeous, well written section on Game Mastering. It’s full of great advice from sources such as D&D, Critical Role, and I even noticed a bit that looked like Cartoon Action Hour from Spectrum Games. It’s got information to really encourage new GMs and even benefit some of us old timers who might just need a bit of a boost. The GM portion of this book serves as an example for the TTRPG industry, not just Essence20 games.

There is also a fair amount of information on running crossovers to the various games. It goes through systematically and talks about running Rangers in a Transformers game, Joes in a Rangers game, and so on. It also drops good advice on running the games by themselves a little more. The Core books for Transformers and GI Joe had better GM sections, but this book really solidifies and adds to that GM advice. Way to go, Renegade!

The ultimate crunchiness: Threat Creation.

Holy buckets has this part ever been overdue for Power Rangers. Renegade freebies and bonus PDFs aside, there hasn’t been much on creating threats for the Rangers up until now. (Bearing in mind Finster’s Monster-Matic Cookbook is also coming out later this year.) This has been super helpful.

They also talk about creating threats for the Joes, the Autobots, and various crossovers as well. What excites me the most about this is it provides clarity and guidance on how the various forces from each universe can be combined. I also think new GMs will be inspired to create their own monstrous masterpieces more going forward.

There is also a lovely chapter on Scene creation. Some of this advice is stuff I wish I’d known 40 years ago starting out. It sets up a lot of good GM info as well as specifics for each RPG line. I would recommend it and the next chapter on creating adventures to anyone in any game.

The next chapter is all about creating adventures. This section might raise some eyebrows in the older gaming crowd because it deals a bit in what we call “railroading,” but really isn’t that what most published adventures do anyway? Especially new GMs are also going to follow a flow chart a lot better than trying to create an elaborate matrix of NPCs and monsters for the group to sorta sandbox around with. It just works better with the way Renegade organized this section.

Wrapping up.

The whole book ends with a really nicely composed crossover adventure. Again, there is a lot to take inspiration from here. I can’t wait to do some crossover adventures, not just with Essence20 games, but with other Intellectual Properties as well. (*Including IP that can never crossover due to real world legal reasons.)

I can’t recommend this book highly enough in either PDF or print. I’m super excited about the official release whenever it happens. The link to the Renegade site is here. Please go check it out.

Thank you for being here. I hope you’re having fun with your game regardless of the system or setting. I appreciate you. Keep rolling those dice. Huzzah!