I really like the game line Demon The Descent, it offers amazing characteroptions and if you enjoy spy missions, a secret war, unreliable allies and a universe fighting you, this is a good game for you.

I have run this jumpstarter at least two times. It brings good advise, makes sure everything goes smoothly and actually can be played in one session, if you want to. As an European I had no idea why the last location would be choosen as the place for the final confrontation. After a google search I could see the visual appeal but yet. It took me quite some time to make the connection because on the surface absolutly nothing says techno angle revoloution in this place. We had fun, drama and at least one finale in which shit went down, tension was off the charts and powers clashed. 4/5 would rebell again!

Fine enough for rules. I just didn't like the game world around it and the conceit. It seemed to remove the magic from mythology.

A nice return to the Storyteller system. I'm not quite a fan of the Machine God/Deus Machina/Matrix feel of the background, but it is intriguing.

Above all,it's free,something for nothing. Then,it's the rulebook of the New WoD's Demon series, the one I've been looking forward to for long. So I grasp it at the first sight. I love this type of typeface, and the illustrations are beyond incredible. I never feel a grain of regret of getting it.

It looks awesome, but if you didn't look at The God-Machine Chronicles first, it may be wise to do so just to get a better idea of how angels and demons fit into the world. Furthermore, The God-Machine Chronicles explains how the new system (i.e. beats, integrity, conditions, aspirations) works in better detail. Personally, I love the new perspective this game brings: in the cold eyes of the God-Machine, the world is like a massive computer, and any program that gains a will of its own is no different than a virus or glitch, meant only to be "fixed" or purged. I also find it interesting that the morality system has been scrapped for Demons in favor of Cover, suggesting that the only virtue that the Unchained universally care about is freedom. In the final version, however, I'm hoping that they explain (at least a little bit) how the Unchained and the God-Machine fit into the world alongside other supernaturals a bit better than they did in TGMC. In particular, the Demons from Inferno and the Quashmalim from Promethean. Don't get me wrong, I love that the World of Darkness writers don't provide any definitive answers about supernaturals, instead preferring to leave them in obscurity, but it would at least be interesting if the Unchained had a perspective about the rest of the World of Darkness that is unique and enlightening, even if it were just as marred by obscurity or outright falsehoods as the other denizens' perspectives. The answers they provide could lead to new mysteries. Anyway, this is definitely a solid demo, and it is at least worth a look, even if the demo game they provide is a bit short.

As a new initiate into the World of Darkness, I really enjoyed being able to get a glimpse into how the Storytelling System works and how a game session might play out. I highly recommend these Quickstart rulebooks for anyone who is thinking of trying out World of Darkness.

Easy to use and a fun and rebellious way to play WoD. Great to start out with, especially if you don't like status quo!

Love the setting, love the game, adore the embeds and exploits. My only quibble would be that the power level among them is a bit wonky.

Demon the Descent is shaping up to be a really great game! What it means to be a demon, what kind of things demons get up to and what they can do are all very well fleshed out, even though this is only a quickstart guide.

It does have some minor issues though- people hoping to play as the pop culture notion of a "demon" might be disappointed- players do take on the role of fallen "angels", and can look very much like the common image of a demon (though they don't have to), but were once "angels" of the monstrous, mechanical God Machine rather than any kind of Judeo-Christian God (So you're more like Agent Smith from The Matrix than Lucifer from the Bible), and the entire game is filled with references to mechanical devices and computer programming as a result- I personally love this theme, but it definitely isn't what a newcomer would expect.

The only mechanic that I don't like personally is the fact that demons have a sixth sense for "linchpins", the weak points in the God Machine's plans. This seems counter-intuitive, since it robs the great and terrible God Machine of its mystique- how can its plans be cryptic, insidious and unknowable if the weak point is always obvious?

Another issue I have with this quickstart guide is the fact that the story is over-simplistic and gives you some really nice lore about demonic energy, but no way to explain it in the game, short of having the big bad come out and explain it at the end, like some kind of moustache-twirling kid's villain- but even that seems to be ruled out, since he's supposed to be the quiet type. However, a simple story is good for an introduction.

But hey, there's a reason that I gave this thing a five-star rating! It's artwork wonderfully conveys the sense of dark, powerful, mechanical, reality-warping forces at work, the God Machine is given a great description and I love the setting- White Wolf have really taken this project in their own direction and made it something special and unique, rather than doing the obvious thing- like I said, newcomers won't expect this, but maybe they'll be pleasantly surprised?

The powers are good too- the sample demons each possess a load of impressive, clearly described abilities, all with strong ties to the demonic-magic-crossed-with-the-matrix setting.

And the morality system is improved immensely from other White Wolf lines by not existing. Usually, White Wolf games are weighed down by a cumbersome morality system which dictates exactly what is right or wrong and tells you that really evil characters must always be insane to the point of being unplayable and then goes on to stipulate fixed game mechanics for that insanity, rather than leaving it up to role-play. Thankfully, Demons don't need to worry about any of that! Instead, they have a much more thematic problem- they have to disguise themselves with a human identity, which comes complete with a house, a job and other stuff, but if they do enough weird, inhuman stuff, then that "cover" breaks down, becoming more and more like a bad computer simulation than a real identity- this degradation can also come with "glitches" that interfere with a demon's ability to blend in (like changing their hair colour or limiting the kinds of food that they can eat). I find this kind of theme-reinforcing mechanic much more appealing than strictly limiting the player's behaviour with "morality". On top of this, the Virtue and Vice mechanic has been altered slightly, making it more appropriate for strange, inhuman creatures.

Another thing that I love is the number of factions and demon types that are available- they're pretty nice individually, and together they provide plenty of nice, open-ended directions to take your characters in, so that they can have unique goals and methods, rather than being cookie-cutter characters.

All in all, this game provides plenty of cool options to let you play as something vaguely like a cross between Agent Smith and the devil, and has the mechanics and story in place to make it a truly unique experience- as long as you can let go of your preconceptions and embrace the weird, wonderful, flavourful setting, you're sure to enjoy yourself!

The New World of Darkness continues to develop, and this introduces the re-tooled Demon to add to the range. And it starts with a real bang, something that grabs interest from the off!

Leave your theology behind: here Demons are former Angels who have got fed up with doing God's bidding. They now have to operate in a manner akin to old-school cold war spies operating deep behind enemy lines, but with no hope of coming out of the cold... Oh, and they have to come to grips with being flesh and bones, rather than beings of spirit as they were before as Angels.

It starts with a concise yet comprehensive exposition of the background and setting, and then moves on to an overview of the rules. If you are familiar with the New World of Darkness a lot will be familiar, although of course Demons have their own special talents and other things which you will need to understand. Don't worry if you have never played New World of Darkness, though, everything is explained clearly.

Next come four pre-generated characters. They are very detailed, and there is loads of explanation about precisely what they can do. The only problem is the page layout - you cannot readily hand each player the notes about their character alone. OK, it's a freebie so they can each have their own copy and promise not to read the adventure, but...

Finally, the adventure: Honey and Vinegar. The plot is exciting, and it is a good introduction to the depth of the setting. There's plenty of material to help the Storyteller take ownership of the story, and suggestions as to various things the characters can get up to as well. It will serve as a one-off, or as the start of a whole campaign if the group decides that they like this game. One neat touch is the provision of quick-reference cards for each scene, for those who don't want to print out this product in its entirity, however each is placed at the end of the scene in question rather than on a page together at the end, rather defeating the purpose.

A good start to what promises to be an excellent game!

This -- THIS is the setting and background that Mage: the Awakening should've had!!

The introduction describes the theme as "Techgnostic Espionage", and that both fits perfectly and is something the New World of Darkness has needed for a while. Player Characters are rebelling against a nearly omni-present, inhuman God Machine that is manipulating almost everything behind the scenes of humanity for purposes unknown -- and only PCs (and those like them) can see the strings pulling mortals (or can I say -- Sleepers?) around like puppets. The description of the principles behind demonic powers -- Embeds and Exploits -- are in terms straight out of the Matrix: demonic powers are based on exploiting a meta-reality, created by the God Machine itself, that lies invisibly behind the day to day reality most people (again: Sleepers, again: great for Mage) take for granted. I even like the concept of Cover, a stat that measures how plausible a PC's day-to-day identity is (and with the God Machine and its Angels scouring the system for anomalies like the PCs, maintaining Cover is important). Now, I'm personally not wild about what sounds like PCs devouring mortals to maintain their cover, or the "searching for Hell, a place I can belong" part, but besides that, there's a lot here to like.

This line should have a lot of appeal for oWoD Mage fans. Myself, I'll be getting the main rules ASAP, and cannibalizing this setting and background to make Mage: the Awakening rock!