Search - Midnight Syndicate :: Dungeons & Dragons - Official Roleplaying Soundtrack

A GameMaster's Review

TheCauseMaster | USA | 10/11/2004

(3 out of 5 stars)

"I agree in great part with the review by Ryan Marshall. I'll note that I have not listened to any other Midnight Syndicate works before this one, but I am making an effort to be objective.

My favorite tracks are the two `bonus' tracks, Ruins of Bone Hill and City of Sails.



The quality of this music (if you don't mind that it's synthesized and can appreciate this sort of thing) is a 4/5, which is a fairly high rating from me.



But as far as this music can be applied to roleplaying is a 2/5 at best...



Here's the problems:



1) The music all seems to have the dark/eerie flavor that seems to be the staple of Midnight Syndicate. This severely limits the themes, moods, and instrument sets that were used. The only exception is City of Sails. While this does not detract from the quality of the music itself, it would still be nice to have more variety in a collection that is supposedly `official roleplaying music'.



2) I rarely found that the intended setting for each track actually suited the music, but the sound effects that were included made it unusable for anything else.

For example, Beasts of the Borderland seemed to me to be a great track for an army on the march, until I started hearing strange `beast' noises that seemed out of place.



3) Speaking of out of place sound effects, I found that many of the sound effects were ambiguous, unfulfilling, or outright mood-spoiling.

For example, in both Skirmish and Final Confrontation, you hear the `clash of swords' at certain times. However, these `swords' sound like pieces of tin slapping against one another with minimal force rather than actual swords. Who uses tin swords? Besides, not all `skirmishes' in roleplaying actually involve swords...



Side Note: Many portions of the melodies were familiar and some outright recognizable as being nearly identical to some of those used in older console RPGs. Perhaps it was from such games that they drew their inspiration. It would have to be a very big coincidence otherwise.



If you are a roleplayer and/or enjoy background music and aren't penny pinching or if you are a Midnight Syndicate fan, then you will probably want to buy this anyway. But I would not recommend this collection to anyone else."

Another Dungeon Master's opinion

Tim Andrews | 05/17/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This disc really delivers! Not only is it great background for gaming sessions but the music definitely stands on it's own as cool listening/driving music. Dynamic pieces, a lot of instrumental variety, and just enough sound effects to enhance the mood.



As far as it's application to a game situation - I have to say this is the best fantasy RPG soundtrack I've ever heard (that seems to be the general consensus from the other DMs I've talked to on the convention circuit). The other soundtrack attempts before this one really pale in comparison in my opinion.



When I have the time, I like to go through all of my soundtracks and piece together a custom soundtracks for my games. This disc mixed with some Conan and any of the LOTR scores makes for a powerful combo.



More than often I don't have the time to devote to that. I'm pleased to say that in every session where I've JUST played this disc in the background, it's worked very well. A bit on the dark side but for a dungeon crawl I can think of no better music."

An excellent CD

Miles Denton | Chicago, IL | 10/17/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"If you enjoy orchestral instrumental movie music with influences ranging from Poledouris' "Conan," and Williams' "Raiders of the Lost Ark," to Bernard's Hammer Horror film scores you will enjoy this disc. If you are an existing fan of Midnight Syndicate you will not be disappointed with this CD even though it is not as exclusively dark as their previous releases. Personally I found the change of pace for one disc refreshing and not too far from what I've come to expect from them.I am a regular roleplayer. We recently put this disc on a continual loop in the background during our Dungeons & Dragons session. Like their other discs, it set a good background atmosphere without distracting from the game. Additionally there were several times where the music or (in one instance) a sound effect timed up uncannily with the action of the game. Kind of a nice effect since it made us feel like we were in a movie - which I guess is the goal of the discs they produce.As with most Midnight Syndicate discs, some of the tracks are more melodic "main-theme"-type pieces. Some of my favorites of those include "Heroes' Valor," "Craft of the Wizard," and "Beasts on the Borderlands." Other tracks (often shorter in length) are more sound-effect/ambient-type tracks. In my opinion, these are the tracks that really put you in this "world" they are trying to create. "Stealth and Cunning" and "Fens of Sargath" are really creepy, suspenseful interludes that definitely set a mood. I also enjoyed "Behind Door #1" which is a 20 second bit of what an adventuring party hears behind a dungeon door before opening it. Fun track (especially for gaming sessions). So here are my closing thoughts on this disc compared to the others. It was darker than I thought it might be (which was good because that's my personal preference). It works well as a fantasy roleplaying tool (after using it that one night during our gaming session, all five members of our group ended up purchasing their own copy -- that sentiment seems to be mirrored in all the reviews I've seen in the gaming zines). I think the band shows more of its range. At the end of the disc there is a track called "Final Confrontation," a 5+ minute track of battle music (much like a chase theme from a Zimmer score). A good change of pace for them. "Eternal Mystery" also is a great Gregorian chant-type piece that put me right in a Mummy's tomb. Lastly, and most importantly, I think it's a great listen with more than a few memorable tracks. If you enjoy orchestral instrumental music that you can either listen to actively in headphones or just pop in for background as you write or do whatever, it's great."