This book is excellent. It addressed all my bugbears with Sharp Swords, (which is also a good game). It covers everything you could need from combat and spells to rules for vechiles, with excellent examples and guides to making your own spells equipment and monsters. I will definately be using it a lot. Some lovely art and presentation too, and the tables are amazing. You coul use it to run a very wide range of games from fanatsy to sci fi.

One of the best and most easy to remember rulesets I've seen. Highly recommended.

I really like some of the things about this game, the simplicy, how quick it plays, how easy it is to remember the rules, and improvise rulings. I also really like the magic system. And the artwork. It has great potential.

However in my honest opinion, it has some serious flaws, at least in the current edition. Which unfortunately means I can't rate it more highly. I have spent much of my time since purchasing it, re-reading the book, and seaching for FAQ's or opinions of other players, to try and understand some of the basics that aren't very well explained.

Initiative: The rules as written are simply unclear. It says that initiative is determined by the order of Hit Die. It doesn't says what this means - whether this means the number of HD, or the type of Hit Die. I have seen this variously interpreted - as the type of HD (e.g Fighters with 1d10 always go first), and the number of Hit Die. E.g An oponent with 2 HD will always go before a 1st level player who has 1HD. I can't see anywheere it defines hit dice, except variously as the type of dice, and the number of hit dice.

It also doesn't mention anywhere what happens after the first round ends. Does the iniative order continue as before? Fair enough if it's set based on number or type of dice. But ties are resovled through rolling. In fact it dosn't mention what a Round is. We can assume it has a similar meaning to in D and D, but it's not stated.

Unarmed combat: There are no rules for unarmed combat. The lowest damaging (small) weapons such as daggers do 1d4. How much do fists do, presumably it has to be less. 1d3, 1d2? Fists are a "small" weapon but it seems a stretch to think they do as much damage as a dagger, or a short swords.

Maneuvers: It doesn't mention maneuvers anywhere in the rules, except that Warriors have Improved Maneuvers - and can make a combat maneuver "disarming, pushing, tripping" as well as an attack. Nowhere else including in the combat chapter. does it mentioned "maneuvers, or their effects. Confusing things further it also says in the combat chapter that in a Player's Turn, they can perform "any feasible action". No where does it define what an Action is. Or what a Turn is. Or how a Turn ends.

Luck Die: It says that the referee can call for a Luck Roll. Nowhere does it explain why a referee might call for a luck roll - as opposed to say an agility or physique check. Presumably this is to see if they can do something that effects the narrative, outside of their abilities, but I'm unclear on this. If Luck is a core mechanic, it needs to be explained why it is exists and what it is for, even as a general priciple.

Status Effects: There is are no rules for falling, yet there are rules for suffocation.

There are no rules for opponents fighting other opponents. Maybe not a biggy, it can be GM'd. But sometimes two oponents may fight -for example an opponent sorceror summons a monster and it breaks free and attacks him. I appreciate the desire not to have any monster stats, but it would be nice to have a rule of thumb.

Things like the degree of success are only mentioned in one line. This seems to me to be core to the system, but I missed it on the first couple of readings, and it seems other readers have to.

Lastly, there is no FAQ, despite this being out for quite a few years now.

It feels like this game has great ideas, but either for the sake of brevity, or because it is made in reponse to other systems, which it assumes the reader already knows, it doesn't define key terms - like Turns, Maneuvers and Hit Dice.

I think it has potential enough, that I would consider purchasing a second edition, but these things could easily be addressed sooner. I have actually purchased Solar Blades, to see if it explains the rules better. Which isn't ideal, but you can't say I haven't given it a chance! It also poins to the fact of how much I want to like and use this system in my games despite the points I raised. I would like to see some of these issues addressed in a second edition, along with:

• FAQ as mentioned previously.

• An index.

• Glossay of key terms.

• One example of at least one combat round.

• Some expanded examples of monsters, and rules of thumb to use when creating their abilities on the fly.

• Some more information on levelling up and progression. The suplliment recommends players dictate this by expressing a desire to earn a particular ability, which they receive through in-world questing. I like the looseness of this, but it would be be useful to have a guide on how to determine what is level appropriate.

• It would also be great to have a small section on how to adapt the rules for different settings, say you want to play more traditional high fantasy with healing and magic weapons which give attack bonuses. I have no idea if this would "break" the game if I house rule this.

• Related to this, it would be nice to have rules on improved or superior version of weapons - I believe this is in Solar Blades. But as written there is no indication a character can ever improve their equipment beyond the light, medium or heavy damage dice, no matter if they are wielding the Sword of Kings, or a rusty blade.

• A guide on creating new Archeypes. I appreciate vocations add possibilities, but it would be fantastic to give some pointers at creating your own, if only the special abilities should not exceed "X".