160 pages, 2007, $29.95
Content	8
Organization	10
Consistency	13
Intelligibility	10
Overall 10 Near Miss
Review Scoring

   The Forge of War purports to be a history of the Last War and a guide for playing characters who have been scarred by that war. But for those who believe 4th Edition was announced because Wizards of the Coast had run out of good ideas to print, The Forge of War serves as ample evidence supporting that claim.

It is not that The Forge of War is bad, per se, but more that it is unneccesary. Fully ninety percent of the information provided should have been either included in the Eberron Campaign Setting, or released as an online supplement to the setting.

The bulk of the book is divided into a chronological history of the Last War and a guide for different influences the war may have had on a character. The history might prove useful, for a Game Master looking for a way to tie his present day Eberron campaign into the Last War, or running a campaign set in the last war, but the influences are another matter altogether. The influences, which could have been by far the most useful part of the supplement, fail to be little more than common sense. While there is the occasional Eberron specific bit that would not be straight forward, the section seems little more than a regurgitation of 30 years of roleplaying.

On the whole, The Forge of War fails to live up to anything the name inspires, instead quickly descending into the realm of web enhancement, albeit on a much larger scale. In addition, it is hard to ignore the idea that this book might be little more than a last minute money grabbing attempt for an edition that is winding down.