Secrets of the Surface World

Overall score:

Hollow Earth Expedition is back in the exciting supplement to the core rulebook, Secrets of the Surface World. This book holds the answer to many questions that might have popped in your head while you leafed through the original. Like who would win in a dogfight between a fighter pilot and a flight of pterosaurs, or how do I build a cool doomsday device? In my opinion this book is so useful that it's indispensable, and here’s why: entire sections of the rules have been retooled to make them more useable.

The first chapter enhances character creation adding a few new archetypes, a few new motivations, new skills and new talents. The biggest change however is with resources. While the earlier resource rules work fine for a game set under the Earth's surface, they needed to be tweaked to play pulp in the surface world. The new version of resources replaces the rules in the original rulebook and add a zero or nil level of resources. The zero level represents fledgling or developing resources. Now instead of deciding which single resource the character has, players can split the point and buy 2 zero levels in separate resources. A zero level ally might be a low level beat cop you kind of know, or share an occasional beer with, while a first level ally would be a more experienced cop who you backed up in a bar brawl. This makes some of the cooler resources available earlier. It’s cool because the new rules allow a player to select a Rocketeer style jetpack at character creation (before you had to burn all of your freebies to do that) and still be able to choose other resources or talents.

Also the short list of flaws from the core book is doubled making it easier to find one that dovetails into your character concept.

The second chapter introduces supernatural powers, like psychic abilities sorcery, theurgy and Atlantean magic. While the powers are standard for any fantasy roleplaying game, it does do some things better than others. Sorcery is particularly cool, requiring ritual casting times, but allowing tremendous effects. It's also one of the skills you can add helping dice too. Finally killing the cult leaders minions does something awesome!

Chapter 3 introduces GMs and players to the movers and shakers of the world: secret societies, gangs and power groups that make things happen. Each society is presented with NPCs perfect for dropping into the game on the fly and there’s at least a page of information on their goals and motives in the Hollow Earth Universe. Not all the groups are supposed to be bad--potential allies lurk just behind the shadows too.

The fourth chapter is also aimed at GMs and delves into many of the coolest adventure sites of the surface, from the Amazon to Shangri-La to the Big Apple. While it doesn’t have any mechanics I think it's one of the more useful chapters because it shows you what can be done with the system.

Chapter 5 might be the most popular section of the book, and it’s certainly the largest. It’s an adventuring equipment catalog in the style reminiscent of good old Sears and Roebucks. Aspiring adventurers can find everything from socks to seaplanes and telescopes to typewriters. If it weren’t for the right tool gives you helper dice rule, I’d say that this section really only matters to equipment fetishists. In this game, however, having a set of snowshoes or a telescope could give you a big edge at just the right time.

A lot of things are given stats in this section, including stuff you might not have a use for right away, like the USS Arizona.
Six chapters in we get back to introducing new rules, this time for weird science. This chapter allows you to enhance items in the equipment list, build cool gadgets and vehicles and even create life itself. Finally all that time studying in evil veterinary school paid off. Imagine if you will a Nazi scientist enhancing the intelligence of a pack of velociraptors, or building an intimidating man of metal to do their evil bidding. Alternately the chapter can be used to invent a player's  jetpack or raygun. Best of all this section manages to balance complexity and simplicity.

Now that Exile Studios has introduced new boats, planes, tanks and giant robots they also introduce a way to fight them. The seventh chapter centers on the ins and outs of vehicular combat. Like combat in the original book the vehicular combat rules are simple and intuitive, allowing for spectacular results.

Finally there is another sample adventure right out of Stargate, featuring all the new rules introduced in the book, with Nazis and dinosaurs, of course.

Secrets of the Surface World is an indispensable expansion to Hollow Earth Expedition. It’s so useful that it could turn a one off game into a multiyear campaign and hook you for life.

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Written by Mad Dr Jeffe on April 24th, 2008