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Becoming: A Game of Heroism and Sacrifice
Publisher: Dangerous Games
by Andy H. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 04/18/2014 16:27:38

"Becoming" is an incredibly different role-playing game. It popped up because there really aren't RPGs that focus on a solitary hero, unless you want to play a one-on-one game. But sometimes, you want to see a classic lone protagonist, but involve more of your friends. This is the game that lets you do that.

The main game is designed for exactly four players (although there's variants to let you play with other numbers). One player is the Hero; the other players are Fates, the abstract forces which pull and push the Hero, demanding prices and offering great power at the same time. Fates use supporting characters as proxies, but aren't tied to any one character.

The main theme of the game is the price of heroism, something which (to me) evoked stories like the ones in The Dresden Files. The Hero begins with the best of intentions, moving forward with a number of Assets: advantages such as core beliefs, allies, and particular skills. The Hero moves through a series of scenes, facing ever-escalating challenges. The consequence of failure: they begin to lose their Assets, losing the things which were most important to them. Their allies falter and turn their backs, their core principles degrade, their skills become liabilities.

To counter this, and to stand a chance against the massive threats posed by the ever-larger challenges, the Hero has to strike bargains. The Fates offer deals, letting the Hero gain extra strength in exchange for letting some of their Assets fall away--a bad outcome, but not as bad as the future might hold. When Fear is wheedling against Power, both of them trying to gain your ear, which will you choose? Will you choose either? And when your Hero reaches the end of the line, will they still be fighting for good?

The game itself is set up with great structure: you choose a Quest to play through, and each Quest has a pre-determined collection of scenes. The Hero will go through that sequence, but how they choose to respond to the challenges in each scene is up to them. This might not be something everyone wants, though; but if you play, you have to accept that the Hero's path is set in stone--but not the choices they make along the way.

The game is also limited to the Quests provided (and any you want to write yourself), but I've found that to be acceptable when the rest of the game is so powerful and enjoyable. I highly recommend you look into it. Few games do what Becoming does, and few do it as well.



Rating:
[4 of 5 Stars!]
Becoming: A Game of Heroism and Sacrifice
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A Wanderer's Romance
Publisher: Stargazer Games
by Andy H. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 07/01/2011 14:35:03

There's very few times when I attribute the word "gorgeous" to a game. This is one of them, and I could tell it from the first look I had at the rulebook. My first impressions were very good, and the book continued to maintain my expectations, even as it went onward. The book makes and keeps a very distinct feel: it treads a nice line between the philosophical and the tangible, between freeform and concrete, between structured and abstract. It feels like something completely in line with a film such as Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.

The book begins with a very up-front statement about the core mechanic: roll 2d6 and compare it to a target number. It even gives the target numbers you use for regular, difficult, and very difficult tasks. I love this straightforwardness. It then jumps into the main character attributes (the classic elements of Air, Earth, Fire, and Water, which the designer chose because of their familiarity in many, many cultures) and the core mechanics. There are no skills. In order to do anything, you add two of your Elements to the 2d6 roll, something which reminds me of Legend of 5 Rings.

The next aspect which strongly impressed me was the combat philosophy. AWR outlines an intriguing warrior's code which is essential for use of the combat styles contained within. It's a philosophy that shapes armed conflict on all stages, including rationalizations of one-on-one duels to resolve wars, and honorable assassination. The combat styles flow right into that, carrying their own flavors, and with very cool abilities, such as the style which lets players gain an effective permanent bonus to all fights taking place in the darkness or in moonlight.

The interplay of the four elements is everywhere in this book, and it serves as an incredibly good theming device. The author ties each one in with a solid characterization, and also steers away from flashy Avatar-like displays of elemental ability. In fact, the magic section is specifically made -not- to lend itself to flashy elemental powers. Instead, far more subtle and mystical effects are achievable by elemental magic...although they're no less impressive. Mastery of Fire Magic, for instance, allows you to make a test to resurrect yourself.

There's also Designer Notes scattered throughout the book, which provide a keen insight into how the system works. This is a touch which belongs in more rulebooks. It makes them more personable, and allows for another perspective on how to run the game.

If this game were more fleshed-out, I would probably consider paying $10 or even $20, and in its current form it's worth at least $5 to $10 to me. The fact that it's free is a remarkable steal. Highly recommended, especially for anyone who wants to emulate the philosophies of wuxia.



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
A Wanderer's Romance
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Badass
Publisher: Stargazer Games
by Andy H. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 06/30/2011 14:45:11

"Kick logic to the curb and DO THE IMPOSSIBLE!!" ~ Kamina from Tengu Toppu Gurren Lagan

"Badass" is what it sets out to be: lite on the details, heavy on the badassery. Like promised, it kicks logic in the teeth and leaps onward in pursuit of higher things. It doesn't have particularly ornate or intellectual goals. It knows that its sole aim is awesomeness, and it does a good job of pursuing that.

The rules complexity of this game (which, by the way, is free, which is also awesome) is interesting. It doesn't have aspirations of being a toolkit like Wushu Open; instead, unlike many rules-lite systems, it has a very, very specifically geared focus. I like that, a lot. You won't necessarily be able to run different types of games with this system, but that's okay. You don't need to.

Character creation is very simple. You give your character a Defining Moment (the moment that made them become AWESOME) and a type (Kickass, Smartass, or Wiseass....or, fighters, thinkers, and smooth talkers). Then, you add "Flavas", which are more or less somewhere between classes and feats. They further define your character. Then you get Badass Points, which you spend to activate Flavas or to add to your roll (or, as the combat section notes, to increase your Initiative in the middle of a fight). That's it.

The core mechanic is equally simple: roll 2 six-sided dice...AND MAKE A FIST WHEN YOU ROLL IT. (Otherwise, you lose a Badass Point and the roll doesn't count.) Try and beat a target number. There's another important thing to note, though. Whenever you do something that is A: logical or B: fearful, especially if you want to save your own skin, that causes you to lose Badass Points. Because logic and fear are not (usually) badass. You also regain Badass Points through badass actions...or other things, such as having a flashback scene during downtime.

Character advancement is also simple. The only way that you gain XP (or, rather, Awesomeness, because "XP" is not a badass enough term) is by spending Badass Points. The more Badass Points you spend, the more Awesomeness you get, and you spend Awesomeness to get new Flavas or develop new Contacts.

That's it. Where this game truly shines is in the specific rules, particularly the Flavas. Take, for example, this Flava...

"Teacher - To teach an Average Joe to be a Badass is Badass in itself. Some Badasses actually spend time teaching in colleges, teaching courses like Archaeology when they’re not busy whipping cultists and punching Nazis in the face. Benefit: Once per game session, you may perform any form of deliberate or careful planning without losing a Badass Point."

Oh, and there's also a Flava that lets you arm wrestle the GM to change something in the game.

That's Badass. And did I mention it's FREE?



Rating:
[4 of 5 Stars!]
Badass
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Cortex Classic System Role Playing Game
Publisher: Margaret Weis Productions
by Andy H. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 11/09/2010 17:45:34

This is a marvelous RPG, a balance of fluff and crunch. As the author puts it, it's an attempt to have a lot of fun. Is it mathematically balanced? Not really. But that's not the point. The point is to roll a bunch of dice around, and make them do stuff. It's a step down from the intense simulation of GURPS, but it's no lightweight rules system either. It strikes that middle sweet spot, making for a game that's fun while full of options.

The book lays out the system well, stepping from point to point with adequate explanation. It's a game for players, by a player.



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
Cortex Classic System Role Playing Game
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Initiative Cards (Free)
Publisher: The Game Mechanics
by Andy H. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 07/11/2010 17:21:25

Fantastic cards! They're roughly system-independent, even though they were designed to work with 3rd Edition OGL. They work with 4th Edition D&D as well, though. In fact, these are easily on par with the cards made by the 4th Edition Character Builder, but more flexible, allowing for DMs and players to write in their own values. And it's free--who can complain?



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
Initiative Cards (Free)
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Compacts and Conspiracies: Malleus Maleficarum
Publisher: White Wolf
by Andy H. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 05/15/2010 00:43:55

This is definitely a nice little product, but it feels quite lightweight in many respects. True, it's only 75 cents, and it's definitely worth that much. Still, I would have liked to have a $2 product that felt heftier.

There's a nice bit of information here on the Malleus Malificarum. It gets a little more complex and nuanced, with the introduction of factions within. No longer is it the ironclad sanctimonious conspiracy (the vibe I got off of it for the core rulebook)...there's factions within it that oppose the hypocrisy of some of its leaders. I like that.

I also like the new Benedictions introduced. Unfortunately, there's only two of them. Like I said, it would've been nice to have more. The two they have are pretty cool, but I keep reading, and my first thought is "that's all there is? Where's the rest?"

In short, it almost feels like an errata to the Malleus material found in the core book. Don't get me wrong, it's good stuff...just...there's not a lot of it.



Rating:
[4 of 5 Stars!]
Compacts and Conspiracies: Malleus Maleficarum
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MECHA - Quickstart
Publisher: Heroic Journey Publishing
by Andy H. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 03/23/2010 19:49:47

I've seen products which attempted to emulate the anime genre by taking some generic system and slapping the "anime" label on it. Yes, some systems do add in features which resemble anime elements...but there's still something missing. I was somewhat expecting more of the same from this product, but something in me was curious, and so I took a look. The cover alone was enough to grab my interest. That's one hardcore mecha.

In my mind, any system which attempts to emulate anime (when I say "anime", I'm using it as the standard American uses it, being the action-centered shounen variety of anime) should be quick and snappy, with plenty of room for cool, and the ever-essential "character berserk drive mode", where a character has a burst of intense action and epicness.

This system fulfills all of that. It's a dual-dimension dice pool mechanic. Stats give you dice to roll, skills give you a difficulty to roll against. The elegance of the system is stunning. There's also a resource called "Overdrive", which you get for rolling lots of successes at a time. Roll enough successes, and you actually get a "moment of awesome" to narrate, and some bonus oomph to boot. But that's not all...

The actual game structure is brilliant. It's divided up into episodes, just like any good anime. In the first part of each episode, characters roleplay character-interaction scenes. The characters do stuff, and in doing so gain resources which can be used in the second half of the episode, which is combat. So, you have character development first, and follow it with a conflict. This snap structure to episodes does a great job of emulating the feel of the anime genre. It's also a very short structure. The rules suggest that you could play through 6 to 8 episodes in a session, which means that over four sessions, you can play through a 26-episode plot arc.

As for Combat? Slick and streamlined. The game uses an abstract "Bullseye Battle Map" to mark battlefield position. I think that's very cool. It makes for tactical decisions, and lets you describe actions in a vague sort of manner, which befits a genre where giant robot suits are constantly maneuvering around one another. No bogging down in strict realism here! Total annihilation is also not required to win the conflict, another plus.

All in all, this looks to be a superb product. I can't wait to see what it looks like in its final form.



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
MECHA - Quickstart
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