Blood & Bronze is a sword & sandal game by Cyclopean Games set in a mythic Mesopotamia. The players portray daring adventurers seeking gold and glory in a realm having just recovered from a cataclysmic flood, where monsters prowl the wilderness, resources are scarce, and the gods literally rest in ziggurats.

The setting is painted in loose strokes only. There is a pretty map (with hexes added to help measure distances), and a couple pages are dedicated to the cultures and people of the area, but it's all about providing a tonally consistent feel for the world rather than laying out precise details.

The system is a fusion of the old-school adventuring mindset and a more modern approach to rules. The mechanics are easily recognisable for most gamers (ability tests, damage rolls, saving throws, etc.); however, skills work more like Basic Moves in Powered-by-the-Apocalypse games, as they are available for all characters, and they sometimes offer choices (for instance, if Force is rolled, damage may be avoided if the target yields).

There are six classes (Mercenary, Rogue, Mystic, Desert Farer, Courtesan, and Seer) that come with unique ability choices and starting equipment. Magic is resource-based (lotus powder for Mystics and bone salt for Seers), and it is geared towards utility rather than firepower. Tests are rolled with a pool of six-siders (a handy probability chart is included to ensure clarity), whereas saves are made on a d20. Endurance is a combination of “hit points” and “encumbrance allowance”. Combat doesn’t require a grid, as distances are abstracted into zones. Advancement is based on offering wealth to a god or ruler (collectively called "covenants"), and it may provide advantages outside of one’s class abilities.

The rules are simple and generally worded clearly, and the layout is extremely good (there are a handful of typos, but they only hurt the text’s aesthetic value). Another strong point is how much advice is packed into the otherwise slim book detailing the responsibilities of referees and players (again, similarly to Agendas in PbtA games), how to get the maximum out of the light-weight system, and how to adjudicate situations where no clear rules apply (much of which is applicable to other games, too).

It is a complete game in the sense that character creation, the resolution mechanics, and a general description of the setting are included (the part of the rulebook that pertains to players is also available for free), although enemy stats can only be inferred from a sample random encounter table. There is a neat starting dungeon, Slave Pits of Sippar, while Wonders of the Wild describes a couple wilderness zones (mostly through unique random encounters) – both free. There are also a couple adventures released that you can even get in a bundle along with the core rules.

Blood & Bronze is probably not your game if you prefer tactically deep combat systems, carefully crafted character builds, or vanilla fantasy adventures. I recommend it to those who like loose rules and pulp fantasy, and those really into the DIY attitude, as many cool things are only hinted at (such as the potentials of the covenant-based advancement).

Originally published at ynasmidgardnaule.blogspot.com. Based on version 1.01.

Ballad of the Longbow is a medieval fantasy role-playing game inspired by Robin Hood, Wilhelm Tell, Arthurian mythology, and various adventure novels. It's a game about outlaws and heroes fighting a central villain (the main cause of injustice around); it's fairly down-to-earth but never really grim or gritty.

The game first provides a basic outline of its assumptions: d20 roll under or equal skill, explicitly no fail forward or fail with consequence mechanic (as a very traditional GM, I heartily approve of this choice), medieval setting (although it's fairly easy to adapt the system for other adventurous settings), and no magic system of any kind.

Player characters each belong to a character type (Knight, Outlaw, Noble, Yeoman, Clergy, Veteran, Retainer, Scholar, Forester, Entertainer, or Beggar), and each type provides a list of starting equipment and a choice between three Abilities (although more may be gained during play).

Abilities can be used once per session each. They usually work without rolling (although a few of them turn specific failed rolls into successes). Examples include the Knight's Challenge (issue a challenge to another knight or noble; backing down is certain humiliation), the Yeoman's Common fighting (turn a failed attack/defence roll into a success with a quarterstaff), or the Clergy's Long-winded speech (hold up a person for 15 minutes by expounding theological doctrine).

Skills are rated from 2 to 18. There are fifteen of them in total (ranging from Agility and Deception to Religion and Stealth). Their starting values are determined by arranging 15 given scores in any order (keeping in mind character type and background).

Aside from success/failure, the game recognises Finesse and Perfection (rolling a success with a 10+ or 15+ die roll, respectively). Fumbles are explicitly missing.

Applying modifiers, helping each other, and opposed rolls are described succinctly. A really neat idea is the handling of "weak link tests" where everyone has to succeed in order to avoid failure (like group sneak attempts) — in these cases the GM randomly determines which character has to make the test (with regular modifiers if applicable). I like it because it invisibly factors in each and every participant's score without having to compute an average skill value (whereas using only a "best" or "worst" value would disregard every other participant).

A few activities are specifically called out and described in detail (on account of being likely events in a game): picking locks, social interactions, doing physical things, building things, knowing things, searches, and languages.

Nordic Weasel Games is a miniatures wargame publisher first and foremost, so it's no surprise that the combat system is very miniature friendly.

A combat round represents 5-10 seconds of activity. A round consists of five phases: (1) Quick Action Phase, (2) Enemy Action Phase, (3) Slow Action Phase, (4) Ally Action Phase, and (5) Morale Test Phase.

Player characters must make a skill check (Agility if within 10 metres of an enemy, Alertness otherwise) — on a success they decide whether to act in the Quick or the Slow Action Phase; those who fail automatically act in the Slow Action Phase. Enemies and allied non-player characters simply act in the Enemy and Ally Action Phases, respectively.

Succeeding at the initiative roll with Finesse or a Perfect roll grants an immediate half-speed movement bonus (even if engaged in melee!) — a pretty neat reward in an otherwise simple initiative system.

Characters may move and take an action on their turn; the order can vary, but movement cannot be split (i.e. you cannot move-act-move). Characters can also attempt to defend themselves against attacks any number of times — up until they succeed once.

Attacking is a simple Fighting or Archery skill roll. Defending against an attack is either an Agility (evasion) or Fighting (parry) check — the defender must get at least an equal level of success as the attacker. A successful evasion must be represented by 1 metre of movement; a successful parry may be followed by backing down 1 metre. I like this kind of detail a lot; it creates a naturally flowing melee without relying on GM fiat.

Successful attacks are followed by a damage roll — a skill check using the regular attack skill modified by weapon and armour (although non-villain NPCs use a reduced skill value for dealing damage vs. player characters). On a success the attack inflicts a Wound. Grunts are out of action after 1 Wound; Expert characters can take 2 Wounds; player characters and villains may take up to 3.

Non-combat damage is handled very similarly, but instead of the enemy combatant's skill, a Hazard Factor is determined (e.g. 6 for falling from a horse); sometimes even more than one so multiple Wounds may be sustained (e.g. 14/10 for falling off a roof). A successful Agility or Alertness skill check is usually allowed to avoid risking damage in the first place, though.

The rules cover a lot of other action types — from interacting with the environment to giving first aid — but the one I most like is the Bravado action, which covers all sorts of swashbuckling and other dramatic activities (a neat little list of possible effects are provided).

Morale, of course, plays an important role in combat. Unless led by a villain, NPCs must roll against their Morale if they are ambushed and outnumbered, their leader falls, or a quarter of their forces are lost in a single round of combat.

Inventory management doesn't play a big role in the game, and the equipment section is mostly concerned with weaponry and simple goods and services. It's largely okay, and as the text says, suitable price lists are easy to find in other games, like GURPS Low Tech. I personally would've preferred a little more detail here.

Advancement is fairly simple. After each game session, increase a single skill by 1 point (up to 18). After 3 Good Deeds, gain a new Ability (this may be off-type if it makes sense, but only twice). Good Deeds are basically the goals of scenarios: rescuing folks from unjust imprisonment, saving the villagers from bandits, and in general foiling the villain's plans. The game assumes a medium-length campaign, suggesting that a few sessions after acquiring the third Ability is a pretty good time to wrap things up.

Stats (Attack, Defence, Skill, Morale) are provided for a number of NPCs and animals, including a few villain and ally abilities as well. Then guidelines ("The commandments") are laid out in the spirit of the game (e.g. surrenders are always accepted, villager NPCs are rarely traitorous, avoid gotchas, and never assume a fixed solution).

There's some minimal GM advice regarding impersonating NPCs (including a nifty reaction system), handling travel, adjudicating ally actions, considering loyalty, and setting up satisfying combat encounter (with regards to numbers and such). A few pages of optional rules and the obligatory design notes (the coolest recurring feature of NWG publications) end the book.

Overall, Ballad of the Longbow is a neat little game of dashing heroics. The combat system — while simple — shows just enough depth to remain interesting for the duration of a campaign, and the character Abilities help reinforce the genre in a satisfying way. At this stage the book has a bunch of typos, and it lacks a compelling starting setting/adventure. With a robust scenario generator and/or a reasonably detailed mini-setting and its bespoke villains that would facilitate quickly getting it to the table (much like how the character types accomplish the same from the players' side), it could be really good. As it stands, it's just good.

[originally published on my blog, ynasmidgard dot blogspot dot com, in 2014]

Grandpappy Cromdar's Whizbang Zoo! is a well-done and imaginative funhouse dungeon. It comes with its own little bestiary of completely new and interesting creatures, all lavishly illustrated by the author, David Lewis Johnson.

(I made sure that the review below contains only a minimal amount of spoilers regarding the adventure.)

The background of the dungeon is very simple but it properly establishes the mood one expects from a funhouse dungeon like this one. After numerous adventures around the world, Grandpappy Cromdar decided that, instead of building a stronghold like every sane high level fighter would, he would convert a dungeon to a family friendly zoo. Unfortunately for him, the zoo's monstrous inhabitants took over the place and now roam freely. There is rumour of great treasures lying in there, as well, so both the philanthropist and the opportunist types of characters have motivation to go there.

The product's first half details the 22 new monsters. They are statted for easy use with most D&D-esque games (HD, attacks, damage, ascending and descending AC, movement, and XP), plus each is gorgeously illustrated. Furthermore, each stat block includes the following information: how big the creature is, what it smells and sounds like, what its favourite pastime is, and what its turnoffs are. Thus we learn that a Gongwarped Fisherman sounds like a "conniving 3rd Reich pseudoscientist", its favourite activity is a "toss-up between vivisection and testing new mixtures of herbal remedies", and it really hates "being proven wrong".

The creatures are rather similar to the ones in Isle of the Unknown considering their appearance: a turkey with gorilla-arms, a kangaroo with an ape's face and insectile sword-claws, or a dog with a giraffe's neck and a ducky head. However, with the additional information provided in the stat blocks as well as the descriptions, I personally find them much more imaginative and appealing (although I understand the design choices behind Geoffrey McKinney's work), as the added details make the mental images in my head more vivid and well-rounded (in the sense that these creatures really have a character, and the referee is provided just enough to make them come to life, as opposed to being mere stats and special abilities).

The second half of the product details the actual dungeon, spanning over three levels and more than a hundred areas. The layout seems fairly good and the room descriptions are superbly done. Each numbered area has a name and a short description, and even the empty ones are given some nice detail (I think I found only three truly empty rooms). The monsters are always doing something, or their most probable reaction is given, instead. The treasure is mostly of weird or anachronistic items (e.g. pool table, portable gas forge, and silver statues of Cromdar in various fashion runway poses).

The dungeon is further divided into four zones, each with their own random encounters. These tables only determine the number and type of monster encountered; however, as each of their stat blocks provide insight into their character, it is quite easy to figure out what they might be doing.

Also, some of the areas include an appearance of Grandpappy Cromdar giving pro tips to the party. These may be easily ignored by the more serious referees - or, if embraced its craziness, could be used to further support the funhouse nature of the location.

The only thing that I dislike about the dungeon is that monster stats appear right after the monster's name in the middle of room descriptions. However, I understand that all of the room descriptions are fairly short, so taking note of what is happening in the room by a quick glance or checking the monster's stats might not take much effort in actual play.

Grandpappy Cromdar's Whizbang Zoo! is available in PDF format on both RPGNow and DriveThruRPG for merely 5 bucks. I whole-heartedly recommend it, especially for those who like funhouse dungeons, but it is probably worth its price for only the critters included.

[originally published on my blog, ynasmidgard dot blogspot dot com, in 2013]

Now that the final version of this game hit the electronic shelves, it is time I wrote a review of it. To be clear, I was a backer of the Kickstarter project, and I was paying much attention to the development of the game since the first beta; otherwise, I have no affiliations with the author whatsoever.

So, Arcana Rising is an urban fantasy role-playing game; it takes place in a contemporary setting to which magic has been recently brought back by Russian scientists' drilling down into Lake Vostok, apparently breaching the seal that warded the source of magic. From the first two and a half pages we get to know how the Atlanteans ruled thousands of years ago, how their kingdom fell, and how magic was locked away; then a few paragraphs about role-playing games, dice conventions, Rule No. 0, and then we get a summary of character creation.

It is worth noting that a few more paragraphs summarising the setting can be found in Chapter 13: Dungeon Mastering, along with the question "What is Urban Fantasy?" answered. I would have liked if these topics were addressed in the beginning of the book; nevertheless, these things are included but maybe at a counter-intuitive place.

Arcana Rising uses the same underlying system as Hulks & Horrors (review forthcoming), which is to say it is very familiar to players of D&D. There are the usual six stats, classes, levels, HP, and AC, etc. One perceptionally significant difference is that checks are universally of the roll-low type: stats checks need to not exceed the corresponding stats score; skill checks are made with an effectively increased stat; while attack rolls hit on a roll lower than the sum of the attacker's to-hit bonus, the defender's AC, and flat 5. Despite this difference, the game plays very much like D&D.

It is assumed that players portray the good guys (think of Buffy or Dresden) and that they are human (the last chapter includes rules for monster races). They belong to one of the seven classes:

Characters - based on their luck, Wisdom, and Intelligence - have an Education Level that grants them a few skills and restricts what Day Jobs they may choose. Day Jobs in turn grant extra skills and provide Income; for that, characters need to meet the requirements of the job and make sure their adventuring does not interfere heavily with it. The latter is handled abstractly: each Day Job has a Demand score which is checked after each session. Success indicates that the character managed to avoid being late and was generally able to do his work, while failure means his job suffered from his other life substantially. There are simple rules governing losing and applying for jobs, unemployment, part-time jobs, and freelance work.

The standard currency used in play is Astra, the currency of the planes; an Astrum coin swirls with colours of the five elements of which it is a compound, and its value is roughly that of a fast food hamburger. Equipment costs, Income, and all prices are listed in Astra for monetary exchanges are not part of the game (but for those who want it, there is a short conversion table included). In fact, it is rumoured that some banks maintain a balance in Astra.

Magic is of the spell-point variety; although Wizards cast spells of true magic and Clerics use prayers powered by their faith in the divine will, their mechanics are not substantially different. Both Wizards and Clerics are able to cast a limited number of spells/prayers that require the expenditure of Will and Faith points, respectively. Each spell and prayer has a level-dependent cost; after deciding those points from the total, a check is made (INT/Arcana for Wizards and WIS/Religion for Clerics), which determines if the casting succeeds. There is also a small chance of a mishap and a table with possible results. Spent points recover by sleep.

The individual spells are then treated by level, each having a short description. Most of these spells are your standard D&D spells, oft touched by the atmosphere of urban fantasy. There are also a few paragraphs describing cantrips, the elements, summoning, travelling between the planes, and the relationship of magic and technology.

These are followed by rules for saving throws, adventuring stuff, and combat, none of which has anything surprising. I would only like to mention what XP is awarded for (I believe reward systems are one of the defining parts of a game): killing monsters, resolving threats to the city, recovering artefacts, and acting heroically.

The next three chapters present useful advice and procedures for generating and running cities, threats, and ruins. Cities are handled abstractly; they have a list of important locations where magical creatures may dwell and treasure may lie. A city's character is further determined by what factions are present; we get a nice means of determining what kind of groups are there, how much power they possess, and how they relate to each other.

Threats are similar to cases in investigative series; somebody doing something with a purpose in mind and that is bad for others. We get procedures to determine what creature (and how many of them) poses the threat, how it surfaced, what it wants and how it tries to achieve it, plus how the different factions react to the situation.

Ruins are similar to dungeons in your standard D&D; procedures are presented to aptly name, map, and populate ruins. There are tables to determine previous functions of rooms and their contents (empty, monster, trap, challenge, artefact, or flavour), and a few paragraphs on how to involve different factions and hostile locals. The chapter concludes in describing magical artefacts in detail.

The penultimate chapter describes the Referee's duty and gives advice on a number of topics, including preparation, sandboxing, house rules, creation of new classes and spells, and on awarding XP. Lastly, it offers guidelines for converting OSR material to Arcana Rising.

The last chapter is a detailed bestiary. Monster stats are pretty self-evident, but a page is dedicated to its reading. Some of the monsters are pulled from fairy tales and folklore, while the rest - standard fantasy monsters - is given a bit more setting-specific detail (like how centaurs are nomad raiders looting and pillaging but oft hired as mercenaries, or gnolls are matriarchal creatures living in clans, originally bred by the salamanders as skirmishers in their armies). Each creature is given an origin or association with one of the elemental forces, and also a unique summoning price (for instance, goblins ask for a set of clothes, while gorgons require a head of a hero). It is interesting how much of the setting is revealed through these descriptions.

All in all, it is a great game, building off a system that provably works fine and steering it into a less explored genre. It is nice how case-based and exploration-oriented scenarios all fit the game; a little more examples would not have hurt, though: a page describing a city, another a potential threat, and few more dedicated to a small ruin.

The game is written by John S. Berry and published by his own Bedroom Wall Press (homepage and Google+ Group), and it is available on RPGNow and DrivethruRPG in both softcover and - fully bookmarked and hyperlinked - PDF.