Reviewer: seishin from San Diego, CA USA

Something for everyone.
I agree that this 3rd edition is not a complete redue of the 2nd but it adds desperately needed changes: subtle but important rules changes (esp in the combat section), drastically improved artwork and an update of the situations presented by White Wolf in their ever changing world. Ex: With the destruction of the Sept of the Snow Leopard in Tibet, the Stargazers are pulling their small numbers back to the east to attempt to save their tribe, becoming more a part of the Beast Courts in the east than of the more 'western' tribes.

The new rules include those things introduced in the Vampire 3rd like different catagories of damage (bashing/lethal/aggrivated), fine tuning the combat system (which needed it) and adding/replacing new gifts and fetishes (I haven't gone through the rituals section to see if they added anything there.)

I do not agree that it is a waste of money. If you are new to the game, pick up this 3rd ed. If you have played before, leave the expanded information on cosmology and history to the vast number of suppliments that treat those subjects in detail (Rage Across the Heavens, Guardians of the Caerns, Croatan Song, the Mage suppliment Spirit Ways, etc). This book improves combat, adds more details and options for pack tactics and totem interaction plus much more.

For those of you who don't know much about the Werewolf genre it is the best gaming background I've ever experienced in an RPG; leaving itself open to give something to everyone- bloodthirsty combat, intense emotional turmoil, spiritual beauty, and what it all boils down to-characters who belong to a society whose underlying goal is something good, to defend life, creativity and beauty, even though they are loosing the war. Hack n' Slashers (roll-players), Pure Roleplayers and Storytellers of all genres (horror, fantasy, sci-fi, romance, tragedy, and more) can all find something to share in the Werewolf universe.