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I am a great fan of Arthurian myth, legend and history. This game hits a fantastic standard for that. Where King Arthur Pendragon takes Mallory and Morte d'Arthur as its starting place Age of Athur reflects Cornwell, Whyte and the Mabinogion.
This is not the Arthur of High Chivalry, this is a gritty, savage Dark Ages Arthur. The world of Age of Arthur is a world in darkness. The light of Rome has gone out of Britania, the savage Saxons threaten invasion, and petty kings and warlords bicker over the ruins.
The game runs on he Fate mechanics, derived from FUDGE. I am familiar with the latter, but this is my first encounter with Fate. I was very pleased by how well the game mechanics seem to support the style and feel of the game. This is a game about characters and their stories, with few if any arbitrary limitations imposed by dice or game points. Begining characters may be princes or beggars at the players' choice. Powerful wizards, apprentice Druids, knights, hunters, even scribes and clerks.
The game includes several styles of magic, which may be accessed by characters depending on their backgrounds. As befits the dedication required to work magic such characters will have fewer potencies in other areas.
I may not entirely replace King Arthur Pendragon with Age of Arthur, but they definitely will sit side by side.
And it is hard not to enjoy a game with such specialisms (special character bonuses) as "Be where the arrow isn't"
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This game is Edwardian Science Fiction done right. I hesitate to call it "steampunk" although it has a very dark, dystopian setting.
What I like best about Dark Harvest is that it remains focused on its central conciet. This is not a kitchn sink steampunk world with magic and steam lords and secret societies and smoke and steam and... Instead thE focus is on King Frankenstein's brave new world of Promethea.
The first half of the book is system agnostic setting material. The works of fiction are very evocative and set the mood well. The details of Promethea are nicely done including maps of each county.
The game makes no assumptions about which side teh Players will be on. There are at least three major factions and the campaigncould feature any of them as central. These options are the opressive regime currently running the show, the Resistance, and the "true Prometheans" who follow Victor's original utopian viswion.
The game system is a d6 based dice pool system and includes the feature of Black Dice which represent situations and factors acting against the players. GMs and Players who favor a different set of mechanics should be able to use the setting with no difficulty.
This is a game fornhorror afficinados, buit offers plenty of politics, intrigue, and action as well as the horror.
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At Michael's advice I also purchased and played this. This adventure is no walk in the park.
The Viper is the scariest villain since Big Erik. Beware! He is coming...
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Rot World is 65 pages of information dense zombie RPG.
The book contains almost no background, flavor text, setting or "fluff". It is almost solid rules, mechanics and examples of play.
The heart of the game is the Action Table, a single table that can be used to resolve any action or conflict. Much of the rules text is examples of how to implement and interpret this table in play. Everything from determining the contents of the Kwik-e-Mart on the corner to combat against a horde of zombies.
I am not a fan of crunchy games, but in this case I will make an exception. This is not crunch for the sake of adding extraneous detail or rules for the sake of rules. Every rule and piece of crunch is here for a reason and will likely be used in play.
The sections on creating zombies and the breakdown of civilization are gems. A very wide variety of options and styles are presented with individual gamers being free to mix and match to suit their own tastes. Fast zombies created by a toxic waste spill out to eat your liver in a slow spreading infestation? Radioactive, intelligent, but slow shamblers consuming all flesh in a fast moving apocalypse? Psychic zombies from outer space? Take your pick.
Rules describe the rate of spread of the infestation, and the effects on various aspects of society. Very useful for those who wish to set their games at the beginning, middle or end of the outbreak.
This is the best product to come out of the OSR I have seen yet.
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A fun fantasy romp. Very much a Ken St Andre adventure.
Some good laughs, plenty of choices, and the deadly Marshkeetos. My one real complaint is that it is too short. But for a free adventure it is well worth the price of admission.
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BEAN! Goes Gothic. This fun little solo brings a gothic horror dungeon crawl to BEAN.
"Zombeans" and ghosts a plenty, a horrible secret to uncover. Chills, thrills, and even a few laughs.
This is an excellent little solo and well worth the price of admission.
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| Slag! |
Publisher: BTRC
by David C. [Verified Purchaser]
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Date Added: 03/12/2010 14:39:01 |
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Probably my favorite space combat game.
Easy to learn, quick playing, flexible and diceless!
This version is not simply a pdf reprint. It is in full hypertext and includes new optional rules and real space science as well as the game it self.
Slag works best for mid-sized fleets of small to medium sized starships. The system does not have the detail for a satisfying fighter duel. Supersized ships such as the Galactica or Imperial Star Destroyers while possible are a bit cumbersome.
Highlights for me include the dice-less (but not rock-paper-scissor) combat and the flexible design system. A range of tech levels and system types are included. The game also includes example designs so you can play right away.
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The Good: A nice selection of types. the 4 main faeries, some common adversaries, humans, and several animals and insects. Well drawn and modeled. The three assembly options offer GMs a choice of presentation styles. the Sprites riding insects are very nice.
The Bad: All the weapons are forged, a pine needle, sewing needle, nut shell helmet etc would have been good. The goblins are somewhat generic looking.
The Ugly: All the figures are the same size. I understand why this was done, but I would have prefered that the Dragon and the Giant at least have been *BIG*.
Overall: if you like Faery's Tale and are looking for figures to represent character location etc during games these are a good set. If you are looking for true to scale representations you would be better served by other sets. I would be interested in more sets of similar subjects. Perhaps sets based on classic fairy tales.
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Publisher Reply: |
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Thanks for the review.
In answer to your comment regarding scale, we have just updated the product so that you now have the option of downloading the Powerpoint version of the file. This will allow each purchaser to quickly and easily change the size/scale of any of the figures as required. It also allows the easy creation of custom sheets, with whatever minis are required for a particular game. |
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Two adventures, one of which is solitaire, and complete basic rules would make this product an outstanding value even if it were not free.
The included rules while far from being the full rules of the game are enough to play the included adventures, the other solos available for download here and elsewhere on the web, and to design and run simple continuations.
The style of the game is simple and straighforward. Instead of layering on many layers of complex rules for task resolution T&T uses the simple Saving Roll mechanic.
Begining characters may not be able to use every weapon, cast every spell, and defeat every monster in the game, but as they progress and gain experience they will also improve their abilities.
Designing monsters and magic items for this game is a snap. the GM simply decides what he or she wants their abilities to be. Pure creativity and fantasy are encouraged.
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