Wargame Design: Abstraction is the Name of the Game

Recently, I reviewed Mike Hutchinson's latest game; Pacific Command.  This reminded me that Mr. Hutchinson is a master at using abstraction to focus game play on the key elements of the game that he wants to emphasize.  His abstraction technique has two parts to it: 

1. Focus on what the Game is intended to focus on

2. Reduce the energy need to complete everything else

I think he has only refined this ability as he has gone along.  I would say, it might even be considered his "signature" game design style.  This is a real skill and one of his key strengths as a designer.  Well, at least in my humble opinion.  Not all of the 4Ms.  Need to be given equal weight during a game.  

Wars of the Republic

What is Abstraction?

There has been a surprising amount of digital ink spilled on this topic.  Abstraction is surprisingly hard to pin down!  My definition of Abstraction is pretty straight forward. 

Abstraction = Reducing Complex Realities into Simple Game Procedures

For example, the process of flying an airplane is a very complex procedure involving a lot of physics and calculations.  It is so complex that I don't have the faintest idea of how it actually works.  It has a wide variety of factors involved in order to do it well and not doing it well can lead to the death of the people in the aircraft! 

We see the challenge of Abstraction when you look at many modern aircraft games.  There are complex maneuver cards, speed and altitude changes, stalling, and other complex rules.  The action that takes seconds in real-life can take half-a-day to play!  I love to play these types of rules sets because they often tax my brain tactically, but they are nothing like an actual dogfight.  These are very complex realities involved. 

Therefore, Abstraction would be taking these abstract realities and reducing them down so that the only decisions for the player are the ones the game designer intends them to make.  Taking a look at the air combat example again, Blood Red Skies abstracts most of the Physics of flying.  Instead, it focuses on decision to move your planes into a position where they can or can not shoot at the foe to reduce enemy morale.  The rest of the game is secondary to that main focus. 

Ork Fighters for Aeronautica Imperialis

Why Abstract? 

This is much easier to answer.  

Complex processes may more accurately reflect the reality of a given situation, but typically such complex procedures bog down the game, require a higher mastery of game play to execute, disrupt the pace, requires more resources, and makes a game less interesting to play.  Players spend more time operating the controls of the game than interacting with the experiences the game is trying to recreate.  This puts cognitive distance between the game and the player.  This cognitive distance is often considered to be "less fun" by large segment of wargame players.  

Of course, what is FUN is another question all together, and not easy to answer. 

Odin's Ravens

Abstraction in Wargame Design

There is a lot of debate about whether abstraction is: 

1. A compromise forced on game designers to make games playable 

2. Abstraction is the whole purpose of game design in the first place

The first argument basically believes that Wargames should be mostly simulation in nature.  They are trying to recreate a space and time as closely as possible in order to mirror the decision making of the participants.  The purpose of the game is to create an experience that can be used to teach, draw conclusions, or otherwise as a learning tool.  This approach is more commonly a mindset in "professional" wargaming community, the historical Hex-and-Counter community, and some Historical games.  

The second view is more of a gamist or narrative approach.  The focus is to create a game experience to either "find out what happens" or to entertain as a game.  In these approaches, the abstraction is necessary to make a game playable by a layman or leisurely hobbyist.  The abstraction is to allow players to resolve a scenario or game with a plausible conclusion in a timely manner.  Lessons and learnings can happen, but the focus is more on delivering an entertaining and satisfying conclusion to and for the players.  The main focus is on playability rather than completeness. 

Now, I am not doing either of these positions any justice.  Both are equally valid and useful ways to think about abstraction.  However, I have a strong bias towards the second for a simple reason, I am designing Hobby wargames with a more Gamist and Narrativist slant to them.  The Simulation is secondary for me.  

Since I lean into the second category, I tend to ABA- Always Be Abstracting.  Therefore, I am trying to create the shortest possible procedure to resolve a process in a way that I find satisfying and gets a solid result.  

Battle of Kadesh using In Strife and Conflict

Abstraction Tips and Tricks

 Here are some tips and tricks to help you think about abstraction in your game designs.  

1. Have a Point of View on how things work in your game world or historical setting.   

2. Decide which parts of your game you want to emphasize and put more rules and detail there. 

3. When you create a process to achieve a result, always try to strip it down to the fewest steps possible.            

4. At the point of emphasis, do not leave the rules flavorless.  This is the heart of your game, if it has no bite; than no one will want to play your rules.  

5. Not all processes need to be given equal weight. 

6. Just because it happened one time doesn't mean you need rules for it, focus instead on what your rules are trying to do. 

7.  Be ruthless in streamlining your game.  Kill your favorite rules. 

8. It is always easier to add complexity via Special and Advanced Rules later.  

9. Abstracted rules give your more design space if you want to expand later

I talk more about this with Mark's Game Room

Final Thoughts

To me, the difference between good wargame design and not-so-good wargame design is often determined by how well it can abstract the core concepts into playable rules.  For my money, good designers should ABA- Always Be Abstracting.  Emphasize the key aspects of the game or period and abstract the rest even further.  

Abstraction is the name of the game.  

Until next time! 

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Heroquest: The Dread Wizard Wardoz

 

The Fellowship of Destiny had been broken.  It could not be reformed.  Its pieces could not be reunified.  All that remained was the young wizard Aerlin, Mentor's own pupil.  The rest had been lost to the power of Zargon.  

Time was of the essence.  The King's former wizard Wardoz had delved too deeply into the secrets of Magic.  He had been consumed and possessed by the powers of Dread.  He was Wardoz in name only.  He was now a living husk driven only by the power of Dread.  Sir Ragnar's spies had reported that once the Fellowship had been broken, Wardoz was forced to leave his secret underground lair and he fled into an abandoned keep on the border near the Wildlands.  There his malignant power began to attract Dread followers.  He had to be destroyed before it was too late. 

Concerned by this growing evil within their lands, the Druids sent an emissary to Mentor for aid.  The fae-druid Rosemary made the long quest and Mentor quickly introduced her to Aerlin.  From there, the two began to search for new heroes to go to the borderlands.  On their journey's they met two other members willing to help. Barco Hamilcar, the cousin of Magos and one of the Hamilcaroid line; came from the halls of the Mountain dwarves.  From the east he brought his mentor and friend Lin-Min Maye from the Sacred Temple of Way.  

With four heroes, they dubber themselves "Hope Reborn".  They soon found themselves journeying to the Wildland themselves, and on a collision course with the latest threat to the Kingdom; Wardoz.  

A Quest Returned! 

Faithful readers, you will recall that the Fellowship of Destiny was broken during the quest of The Lost Wizard.  Neo-wulf, Magos Hamilcar and Alathursa of the Green were all killed and their valuable loot lost while investigating the fate of the king's wizard Wardoz.  Only the wizard escaped, and that was by the skin of his teeth! 

With three of the four party members dead, it was time to rebuild my adventuring band.  The first would have to be the only surviving member, Aerlin the Wizard.  He would retain his Wizard's Staff and Cloak.  

I wanted to add a Guardian Knight, but I do not have the rules for the model and did not want to wait to pick-up the Rise of the Dread Moon Expansion before I went back on the Quest.  Therefore, I needed to pick from my existing heroes.  I decided the Barbarian as my heavy-hitter was not working out as I had gone through two all ready!  

This time, I was going to stretch and make a Wandering Monk my main "frontline" fighter.  It is a bit of a stretch, but with the elemental powers they might be able to pull it off.  To replace the Elf, I decided to try the Druid character.  Finally, I did not have a good anti-trap model, so decided to go with the Dwarf once again.  However, this time I would use my First Light version of the model. My new band of heroes had been selected..... and I was not entirely confident they could manage it!    

Hope Reborn led by Aerlin the Wizard

Creating the Dread Wizard Wardoz' Keep

I went back and read what to do if the party fails a quest.  Oh dear!  They recommended that you make a new quest to replace it and introduce your new heroes.  However, I am playing solo using the App.  I had a few choices.  I could try to select an opening mission from First Light of a different supplement such as Kellar's Keep or Rise of the Witch Lord.  I could also try to build my own level, which would be fun; but I could not use the App to run.  I wanted to keep some element of discovery.  

Therefore, I decided to try to put together a way for me to auto-generate the dungeon to keep up the exploration and surprise.  However, I only needed it for a quick, 1-off game and not a complete quest.  Therefore, something quick and simple I could run using simple charts would be best, and allow me to help provide some of the equipment the party had lost during their failed mission.  

First, I decided that Wardoz himself would use the stats for a Dread Wizard instead of a Zombie.  For spells I would randomly draw from the Dread deck on his turn.  However, I also decided that Wardoz had recovered the Talisman of Lore and that would be a reward for the Heroes when they defeated him.  

Here is how I decided to randomly generate the dungeon: 

1. The beginning was in the center room, all corridors from the main room were blocked.  There was one door at the opposite end of the room to leave. 

2. At each room wall that a Hero could see, I would roll a combat dice.  On a skull it would have a door to the room.  I did this first in each room/hall a hero entered.   

3. I would roll for furniture with the red movement 2d6 and counted off each piece of furniture in my collection.  If I got to a number higher than the furniture there was no furniture.  I placed it where no doorways existed.  

4. For monsters, I limited myself to the Undead foes so Skellies, Zombies, Mummies, and Stone Golem Dread Warriors, and Wardoz himself.  For foes I would roll 5 combat dice, with each Skull indicating a foe.  If you scored 3+ Black Shields you encountered Wardoz and a single Stone Golem guardian.   

5. Finally, I rolled 1 combat dice per skull in step 4.  Another skull meant a skeleton, a white shield meant a Zombie, and a Black Shield meant a Mummy.  These would be placed in the room in the available squares furthest from the enemies.  

6. If the players never encountered Wardoz via rolling, the two main baddies would face them in the main stairway room before escape could be possible.  

7.  Whenever a player tried to detect traps, I rolled a Combat dice.  On a skull, there were no traps.  On a White Shield there was a spear trap, and on a Black Skull there was a Pit trap.  These traps were blocking any other exits first, and if not we randomized the position in the room with a d6 and counting squares away from the detecting hero.

8. For treasure, I decided that any chests opened we would roll a white combat dice.  On a skull it was 2d6 x10 gold,  White Shield it was armor (shield or helm player's choice), Black Shield was a Healing potion.     

9. Secret Doors would be discovered on a roll of a Black Shield and would only go to rooms without other doors. 

With this basic order of operations in place, Hope Reborn was ready to attempt to explore the Keep on the Border of the Wild Lands   

Here is how the map developed during the game: 

In Pursuit of the Dread Wizard Wardoz

Hope Reborn made the dangerous trek to the edge of the Wildlands.  There, they found the entrance into the keep and ascended the ancient, carved stairs and towards danger.  Aerlin was the leader, and he chose to be cautious.  He did not wish to see yet more companions fall.  

They moved out carefully, mindful of any of Wardoz's minions.  Barco identified a spear trap in front of the far door.  The party approach the first door and quickly discovered their first challenge!  A Mummy and two Zombies!  A battle broke out where Lin-Min May quickly proved her worth as she skillfully ducked into the room and covered the others as they fell back.  She was able to defeat the beasts.  However, her search for treasure proved costly as she took an arrow to the knee! 

The rest of the party moved on.  They quickly discovered more spear trap protected doors.  Barco disarmed two of them by taking a spear to the face!  Ouch!  Not so good at disarming these things yet! 

The group found that the Keep was now crawling with re-animated skeleton guards!  Wardoz and the power of Dread had been busy!  

Barco managed to find Wardoz' secret study.  There, Lin-Min May in a whirlwind of destruction took out three skeleton guards in a moment!  Barco and Aerlin exchanged glances as they had never seen such a display of martial prowess before.  Soon after, the Monk again impressed by taking on a Mummy single-handedly with the aid of a Courage spell and easily man-handling the horror and its escorts!  Aerlin was wondering why Mentor had kept the Warrior of the Way on the shelf prior!  

 The heroes of Hope Reborn slowly and carefully made their way through the undead infested rooms of the Keep.  They stumbled upon the Guardroom, where they bested more Skeleton and Undead guards.  However, Barco was able to find a serviceable shield and claimed it as his own.  Elsewhere, Lin-Min May discovered more monsters and spear trap protected doors.  Even Aerlin was getting in on the Skeleton busting, as his staff proved deadly at an angle against the foes.  

However, a toll was being taken on Hope Reborn.  Barco had taken injuries from terror and trap.  Lin Min May had also been injured.  Thankfully, Rosemary and Aerlin had come prepared with spells to boost their comrades!   The wizard hoped it would be enough. 

The Quest became difficult near the Keep's treasury, as monsters spilled out from nearby rooms to attack the party.  Barco managed to secure a room, while Lin Min May defended a doorway from multiple attackers.  Again, her ability to strike hard paid off against another Mummy.  Soon, the Keep appeared to be cleared, but there was no sign of Wardoz and his closest minions. 

Hope Reborn headed home, with the loot from the Treasury.  However, Barco was halted in his tracks as he went to go back up the stairwell.  In front of him was the twisted and inhumane visage of Wardoz.  Along with him were his last Stone Golem guard and a Mummy.  (This was very lucky as I used the normal random monster generation + Wardoz and his Golem and only rolled 1 additional Mummy monster).  Immediately, the Dwarf was struck by an unnatural Dread Magic-induced fear as he fell back from the Mummies' raking claws. 

Rosemary transformed herself into her Wolf form and attacked the Mummy, tearing it apart before it could finish off Barco.  However, the Stone Golem ambled forward and the two wrestled.  Aerlin's summoned a Genie to blast the Golem, causing it to reel back, but not destroy it.  It dealt a grievous blow to Barco who was barely hanging on.  Rosemary got the better of it and finally smashed the Dread Construct into small stone rocks.  Lin Min May used the chance to rush forward towards Wardoz! 

However, she was too slow as a blast of crackling lightning blasted from his fingertips.  The Monk was barely able to avoid the shot thanks to her elemental powers, but Rosemary and Aerlin were not so lucky.  They were caught in the blast!  

With a last gasp, Aerlin cast Tempest to tie up the evil wizard in a magical storm.  This gave the Heroes of Hope Reborn a few precious seconds!  Rosemary summoned a Pixie to heal Aerlin.  Lin Min May channeled her inner Chi and unleashed a beam of red-hot heat that sliced into the evil wizard, he cried out in pain as it seared him with her inner strength.  Barco, terrified; threw his axe and managed to crack the wizard in the skull, embedding it deep in his forehead.... killing him.  

The terror of Wardoz had been defeated.  He was an abject lesson to those who tried to delve too deep into Dread Magic.  The foolish often think they can learn Dread's weaknesses, or master it; but all too often fall into Dread’s corrupting grasp.  Lin Min May scooped up the Talisman of Lore from the body of the fallen monster and claimed it as her own.  

Conclusion

The severely twisted and damaged head of Wardoz was all the proof Prince Magnus and Sir Ragnar needed.  They concluded that the King's former wizard had indeed fallen and that the Heroes of Hope Reborn had put an end to his reign of terror.  They were awarded the reward.  

In addition, Rosemary had discovered a Heroic Brew in the Keep.  The group also had found 70 gold coins, a few gems, and to be combined with the 100 for the reward; and the Heroes had a solid nest egg.  Barco was also happy with the shield he had found in the Keep and kept it.

However, the respite was only temporary.  Loretome all ready foretold of the next danger to the kingdom, as the power of the Fire Wizard was growing in the mountains.  

Final Thoughts

Well, that was fun.  The dungeon generated worked well for the most part.  However, it did lack some of the "Gotcha" that Heroquest scenarios are known for.  Traps and Secret Doors were especially tough, as they only became a "thing" if searched for.  Therefore, if you never searched there would never be any.  Therefore, that part of the generator has to be re-worked.  I also need to re-work enemy placement when generated as again, it lacked some of the "gotcha" and lethality of pre-made Quests.  However, it was no push-over as Aerlin was 1 wound away from dying, Barco got down to two wounds left, and Lin Min May was at half, while Rosemary had taken 2 of 6.  By the end, I had used up all of my healing abilities and many of my spells, so I guess it turned out relatively hard.  

A note about the Monk's powers.  I played a slightly altered variant.  In my variant, the Monk had to use their activation in prayer and meditation to "re-center" and regain access to their Elemental Powers when no other Monsters were on the board. This was a good addition, as even if all the enemies were dead, the Monk had to choose between exploring further, getting treasure, or re-charging.  It forced some decision making and balanced her out a bit.  However, she seemed like a perfectly good front-liner for this dungeon! 

Until the next Quest!  I am now back on track with the original Quest Book with my new band of Heroes.  Wish them luck, because I think some of them will need it to survive!               

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RPG Review: My Little Pony: Role-playing Game- Renegade Studios

 

My wife got this as a gift for her birthday, so technically this is not my copy.  However, it resides in our household so I decided that I could give it a read and let you all know what I found.  I am somewhat familiar with the franchise, as I was a watcher of the O.G. version way back in the late 80's.  I have also seen the re-booted Friendship is Magic show.  However, I would not call myself a Brony by any stretch of the imagination.  

My Little Pony has proven a popular enough I.P. that this is not the only My Little Pony (MLP) RPG on the market, and it probably won't be the last.  However, the version I have is published by Renegade Studios and uses their proprietary Essence 20 system.  This is the same system they use for Transformers, Power Rangers, and G.I. Joe.  You can read a lot of my thoughts on that system in my G.I. Joe review, and those thoughts pertain to this game too.   

To me, it looks like a modified D&D 5E system but instead of straight bonuses to checks, it uses a bonus dice that gets larger the better you are at something.  It has a lot of other similar yet appropriately re-named mechanics as 5E after that.  For example, instead of Advantage/Disadvantage they call it an Edge or a Snag.  

This has a couple of advantages.  First, it is easy to transition established D&D players to this system as it is essentially the same.  Second, all of Renegade's systems are cross compatible.  You can have G.I. Joe characters, MLP Characters, and Power Rangers all in the same game without any real issues if you wanted a Saturday Morning line-up adventure.  However, the disadvantage is that the game system can be a bit crunchier than you might want for a cartoon-based game.     

So, since a lot of that was recap to what I said about the other Essence 20 systems, let's take a closer look at what this game does to make it feel like Friendship is Magic! 

Things I Like

The introduction chapter is narrated by Pinkie Pie, which changes this section up a lot for those who have read a lot of these types of "What is an RPG" sections before.  Keeps it a bit fresh and really highlights the tone of the game.  What is that you say?  Well, this is a game about telling a story where you work together as a group to solve problems and to explore the world of Equestria with friends. Simple really. 

Sometimes, I think the Essence 20 system Renegade uses can be a bit much for someone new to RPGs.  I imagine some of the folks who get this book might be beginners.  To help facilitate them, they have a set of 6 pre-gen characters at the end of the book called the Renegade 6 that you can print and play with right away.  In addition, the game comes with a first adventure called "Stealing Thunder".  This is a good way to help players learn by doing instead of sitting down and reading an entire book.  In the Intro, they go Chapter by Chapter to give a summary and let newbies know which chapters should be read by who and why.  For example, the Game Master and any players who have Magical powers should read Chapter 8: Magic.   

There are two special mechanics to encourage Ponies to work together.  The first is some simple rules for Group based tests, where Ponies make skill tests appropriate to a challenge.  If half or more succeed that is a success.  The second Mechanic is that all Ponies can use a resource called a Friendship Point to create a Friendship circle, that gives all the Ponies in it benefits when they are a part of it.  By working together, they have a better chance of assist, help, and heal. 

Modifiers take the form of Dice Shifting in this game.  As you assign ranks in skills, these ranks give you additional dice to roll with a d20.  Modifiers increase the size of these bonus dice up or down to add (or subtract) from you d20 roll.  There is a nice ladder on page 113, that goes from Auto-success to auto-fumble!     

The basics of a Character are the 4 Essences.  However, if you want to be a spell-caster you need to use a single point of essence to create or improve your spell-casting ability.  Therefore, magic is a sacrifice from other physical capabilities to create a trade-off.  In addition, spell-casters can always try to dispel another casters magic as a contested skill check.    

Wealth and acquiring gear is an abstracted concept in this game.  Most day-to-day items you can just assume you have available.  Wealth and resources are a standard test where some Perks, Roles, and backgrounds might give you an advantage. There is also a section on having pets as well.  I am a bit sad, because I know at least 1 of my players MUST HAVE A PET in every game.    

The game has a really good breakdown of how to create Conflicts in the game including the Goal, Obstacles, Rewards and Consequences, Participants, and Scope of the challenge.  It also breaks down that a challenge may cause physical Health damage but is more likely to cause stress that reduces a character's Essence temporarily.  This represents mental stress.    

Since a big part of the game is exploring Equestria and the setting, I am glad to say that this book has two sections on the topic (Three if you include the enemies section).  There is a whole section on Exploration and what that means.  This includes diseases, the environment, and other details.  Then, there is a chapter on key locations in Equestria to be explored!  Often times, this pillar is overlooked in a game, but not in this one!  The Friends and Foes section also lays out NPCs from the show and some potential threats to Ponyville.  These all help populate the world.  

The section for the GM was not very helpful.  It was better to read the starter "Stealing Thunder" adventure to get an idea of how the game was to be played.  It had good examples of conflicts and combats that made sense in the world of the Ponies.  It also was useful to understand difficulty levels and various tests.  

I was also disappointed that there was no dedicated section about resolving or using Social skills, even though it is obviously a key part of the rules.  They seem to just the same as standard checks with no meat beyond that.  Since a few Roles lean heavily into Social as does the game itself I felt like this was a big omission.  The section on Conflicts helps, but the core of the Social Pillar focused on standard checks only. 

Things I Don't Like

This game has too many rules and is far too crunchy for a game of My Little Pony!  For example, the core concept of Cutie Marks giving a higher skill dice when it applies to a situation is a good, solid, simple rule.  However, what makes up your Pony is so much more!  There are a lot of skills and a lot of special rules for a new person to recall.  The higher the level the more to recall! 

For example, they have 6 sample characters to get you started.  Looking at one of them there are..... 8-10 special rules per character from a combination of sources.  Many times, these can be somewhat specialized or situational bonuses.  They really needed to streamline this down for ease of play into core ideas.  This is before you even get into Essences, Defenses, and Skills to recall as well.  Too complicated for what this game is trying to be.  You should not need a front-and-back page character sheet for this type of game.   

There are a couple of pages for rules about weapons!  I think the focus in on using them as equipment more than against other creatures, but the rules do cover it.  Seems a bit Un-Pony like to me, but I guess bad guys can use them too. 

This game talks about using battle maps!  AHHHHHHHHHHH!  This does not feel like it should be a game where tactical elements and positioning should be a thing.  The Combat section is far too long for a game like this with a level of detail that should not be required.  However, it does specify that when you go to 0 Health that doesn't mean you are dead, just defeated.  However, this whole section seems more complex than a Saturday Morning cartoon about Friendship should really be.   

Meh and Other Uncertainties

Like other Essence 20 systems, character creation is actually pretty simple.  Your character needs an Origin, Influences, and Role.  Origins are if you are an earth-bound Pony, a Pegasi, or a Unicorn in this game.  Influences are like backgrounds that helped shape your character that comes with some situational bonuses and some ideas for RPG.  Your Role is basically your class that comes with various Class features.  

Unlike the G.I. Joe RPG, the Roles in this game do not match 1-for-1 as closely to D&D classes.  They take the form of a "Spirit of...." and grant situational bonuses.  Most of these are more social focused and conflicts in this game are more about social interactions than actual ficticuffs.  They have:

1. Spirit of Generosity - More of a Buffer character

2. Spirit of Honesty - A Social class

3. Spirit of Kindness - A healer and de-buffer of foes

4. Spirit of Laughter- A battlemaster of performance with a variety of tactics using expendable resources. 

5. Spirit of Loyalty- A sentinel and bodyguard type of class

6. Spirit of Magic - A Caster class

This game uses a Fumble and Critical Success rules.  Fumbles are on a failed test with a d20 roll of 1.  Criticals happen when you roll a success and the highest number on your bonus die. A bit different than D&D.  

There are three spell levels but only specialized Ponies will get to the third level of spells.  The basic level has about 12 spells in 4 categories, the next level has about 8, and the last, most difficult level has 8 as well.  There is also rules for making and using Magic Baubles like Healing Salves and more powerful items.    

The game has a very simple meta-currency called Friendship Points.  These allow players to re-roll dice, trigger special effects by class, active a Friendship Circle, avoid hits, and get hints as needed.  The GameMaster is encouraged to hand them out based on good role-playing and other generally playing in a way where Friendship is Magic!    

Final Thoughts

To quote the introduction: "How can fate be so cruel?  All I ever did was love you, my shiny clicky magical math rocks!" 

This game showed some development and improvement compared to the G.I. Joe. rulebook from Renegade.  It did a better job explaining Conflicts and non-combat oriented parts of RPGs.  I think it also broke-away from the usual Essence 20/D&D 5E framework a bit more than usual.  The Roles especially seemed more thought-out for the type of game being played.  

However, this game is still a bit too complex for beginners, a bit too rules-heavy, and way too focused on combat for what I was expecting.  I would imagine combat should be resolved by a few simple dice rolls and decisions more like a Powered by the Apocalyspe style game, and less like a tactical combat focused-game like D&D.  I think it makes too little of the Social and moral issues of MLP to focus on the easier "physical" conflicts.  However, very rarely do they settle conflicts in MLP this way.  This is not a Military Fantasy show like G.I. Joe!  

My wife would be a first time GM and my group is asking her to run this.  As a first time GM, I think this game needs to beef up the GM section AND make it a bit simpler to run for newbies.  As it stands, I think it will be a challenge for her to run all the mechanics and manage all the character abilities as presented in the book.  Afterall, she is a casual fan of the show and mostly likes it for the color palette and more of a casual RPGer.     

That said, I think this could be a nice change of pace for a short campaign or palette cleansing 1-off for a long running group of RPGers.  I could also see the reliance on the known Essence 20/D&D 5E framework could also make for some fun Convention games of this.  However, as written it is more of a game for experienced RPGers than I expected.   

Until next time!

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Review: Pendragon Gamemaster's Handbook - Chaosium

Sometime last year, I picked up the Pendragon Core Rulebook for 6th edition.  That review had some critiques about what it was missing, and that the Core Rulebook did not give me everything I needed to run the game.  After doing some research, it appears that others felt the same way and that the Core Rulebook was more of a Player's Handbook.  As the Gamemaster, you needed a different level of detail and that seems to be what this book is intended to provide.  

For those who do not know, Pendragon is a role-playing game where you attempt to take up the mantle of a Knight from the Arthurian Legends.  This is a semi-mythical time period of British history that was greatly influenced by other European takes on what it meant to be a good Knight through-out the Middle and High Middle Ages.  There are various versions of the Legend of King Arthur had his Knights and most of them dwell on the later period.  However, the actual roots of the Saga take place over a 150-year legendary time span, and this game lets you play characters and lineages from the opening to the end of the Myth Cycle. 

I really am a fan of the "idea" of Pendragon as it puts players into an actual society and then asks them to role-play what life in that society may look like.  This is a very different feel for a game where you are character who is semi-lawless out on the frontier.  Here you are the one that represents civilization and its changing ways, and it your job to uphold what civilization you can.  Sure, you can become a character of legend, but the focus is very different from what you see in a typical frontier style RPG.  I have a soft spot for these types of games where players must act within a society, including its constraints and limitations. 

Now, let's strap on our armor, hoist ourselves up on our chargers and grab our lance.  It is time to go out on a quest into the heart of the Pendragon Gamemaster's Handbook..... 

Things That I Liked

First off, there was a lot of things I wanted covered in the Pendragon Core Rulebook such as Feasts, Magic, Foes, Religions, and intro adventures.  Thankfully, this book covers all of those topics very well.  It really fills in the blanks in a way that I think I can actually run the game now.  Yippee!  

The mechanics for Feasts are really fun!  I often joke that Legend of the Five Rings is the game of dinner parties, but Pendragon takes it to another level.  In this game, your main success measure is Glory.  You gain Glory a variety of ways, but you also earn Glory at Feasts!  Characters earn Glory based on where they are seated compared to their Lord, actions they take, and if they do not have a "for sure" agenda; they can draw Feast Cards.  These are essentially random events that act as a spring boards to Trait Tests and/or role-play.  All of which can gain you Glory as a Knight.  This game has a mechanical benefit for engaging in the Social Pillar of the game, and not just a Narrative benefit.  This is a very cool mechanic. 

There is a nice section about running the game as the GM.  This includes advice about moving through time, navigating technology changes, and other items unique to the setting.  Unlike many settings, this one is NOT frozen in time.  In fact, technology improves as you move forward in the Myth cycle.  You start with chain mail, spear and simple shields, but end with full plate armor, horse barding, and dedicated lances.  However, I think my favorite piece of advice in the GM section is this, "When running a scenario, it you have a plot planned out; avoid random events."  Music to my Trad/Neo-Trad ears!  West End Games: Star Wars my favorite GameMaster section, but the advice given in this book is probably my second favorite.  I have an excellent idea of how this game should be approached and played.  

Appendix A gives a very handy summary of Glory rewards for a variety of situations and PC/NPC types.  This is helpful as Glory rewards are often scattered in the rulebooks.  This helps consolidate them into a few pages.  Since this is a key measure and main success metric in the game, you can bet Players will want GMs to get this right.    

Things I Did Not Like

One thing that stands out with this game, is that it is a rather roll heavy game.  Many times, situations in the rules are abstracted down to a Trait test or series of Skill Rolls.  Success is based on the dice rolls more than anything else.  The narrative is shaped by these rolls, so luck can play a big part in what will develop and where the plot may go.  There are ways for players to mitigate the roll of luck using Passion checks, but there is also a risk.  In addition, rather complex situations that may take a few hours to role-play out fully, are designed to be resolved with a few rolls and a few moments of dialogue.  This allows the game to pack 1 year into a session or two.  However, it also leads the game to be a relatively streamlined experience, and some key events are not allowed to breath.  The game itself moves briskly from challenge to challenge, but this can disrupt the Narrative.  However, this game is designed to be more simulation of Arthurian Legend.  

This simulation also leads to a variety of "rituals" in how the game is played.  I.e. when you meet foreign Knights on patrol you do X.  If you end up at a foreign castle you do Y.  If you are flirting or courting you do Z.  The rules cover the most common situations and quickly and easily systematizes them into a Trait test.  This makes the game almost feel more like a series of pre-set rituals rather than creative role-playing.  The characters themselves are trapped a bit, which is one of the games strengths at recreation, but also a constraint on innovative role-play. 

The focus of this book is to put the Player-Knights in the County of Salisbury from the start of the time of the Boy King through to the end of Arthur.  Therefore, much of what is written tends to focus on that time period.  However, there is a great deal of time and geography that can not be covered in this book.

I was also disappointed that there was not a small section on Estates and Estate management in this book.  The main player-state seems to be as Household Knights.  However, I am very interested in running a Campaign (at least partially) as landholders and said responsibilities.  Half the fun of the game seems to be creating a family and lineage to grow over the full 150+ years of the Arthurian Myth cycle.  Also, I could see a fun campaign revolving around the adventures of a Conroi (10-15) of Mercenary Knights as well, but that is hardly touched on here.  Most of the Mercenary Knight detail comes from the main rulebook.  This book seems to want the focus to be on the last 50 or so years of the Arthurian Saga as Household Knights.    

The starting Scenarios also feed into this idea of Household Knights of Salisbury at the end of the era of Anarchy between Uther's death and King Arthur pulling the Sword from the Stone.  The Starting scenarios start the players as Squires, arranges for them to be promoted to Knights, and then allows them to get involved dealing with Saxons and border fights.  These scenarios slide easily into the Starter Set, the Grey Knight, and the Great Pendragon Campaign.  However, they are "mundane" adventures and years focusing on Saxon foes and battle, with a flavor of feasting.  It does not touch on magic or Fae or the more "wonderous" sides of the setting.  However, they do give an example of how to structure a session/year for a GM and serve to get Player-Knights stuck in.       

Meh and Other Uncertainties

There is a very detailed description and section on the various religions of the people of Arthurian Briton.  This section would have been really useful in the Core Rulebook as well.  However, the detail and history of each is fascinating.  This includes Roman and British Christianity, Heathenism(Spirit Worship), Paganism, Wodanism(Norse), and even Evil for NPCs.  As a history guy, this was really interesting to read!  

Of course, these religious traditions also have access to different Magic traditions and Miracles too.  Each of these traditions also has different spiritual foes such as fae, fiends, and Angels as well.  Of note, only fiends (agents of Satan) can use true illusions.  Illusion-like effects from other creatures like glamour change and warp reality itself.  Fiends may not change parts of God's creation as punishment so therefore their works are pure illusions.    

There are detailed rules for running Mass Battles.  These can be applies in tournament style Melees or in actual field Battles and Sieges as well.  These reminded me a bit of the Legend of the Five Rings or Dune: Adventures in the Imperium rules for Mass Battles.  However, the Pendragon rules for Mass Battle seem to be a bit more detailed.  

There are two full Chapters on NPCs and Beasts that the Player-Knights might encounter.  This ranges from standard Pictish warriors, to Saxons, to animals, to Witches, to Giants, and other Fae and Fiends.  They also offer some ideas on how the more bizarre creatures appeared in Arthurian Legends.  They also give Stat blocks for some Key NPCs, mostly from the later periods of the Myth Cycle.    

Appendix B is pretty cool as it has a lot of detail for expanded reading.  This ranges from Academic works, Traditional Folklore, and all the way to modern fiction.  A solid list to help you get a feel for the genre.        

Final Thoughts

If you plan on running Pendragon this is really a must have book.  The detail if gives for the various religions of Briton alone is amazing and worth the read.  The Feasts rules are also really cool and a great look at how to systematize the Social Pillar.  The Bestiary and discussion of Magic helps build on what a complete and interesting world Pendragon lives in.   

That said, 6th Edition still has a few blindspots for a fully developed campaign.  The first is there is very little discussion or talk about the "Exploration Pillar".  Granted, much of the region is "Known" but not to the Player-Knights.  There is some discussion about visiting foreign lands, but those lands are left largely blank.  In addtion, Knights are often Nobles and Land-holders and this book does not touch on that aspect of the setting/campaigns at all.     

With this and Core Rulebook, you now have enough to play Pendragon.... mostly.  Afterall, the GM can fill-in the rest of the Map as they see fit beyond Salisbury.  Afterall, Your Pendragon May Vary!  If you make your Player-Knights Household Knights you have everything you need for a good campaign.  If you want to explore some of the other possibilities of the setting, this will lead you to more books to buy. 

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Battle Report: Castles in the Sky - Visiting the Sudova Riviera!

 

Oh boy, after painting up the Austro-Hungarian Fleet that I picked up from Scale Creep Miniatures, it was time for them to hit the table.  Freshly painted miniatures are always a joy to take to the field, even if they often get hammered on the table.  

The Dual Monarchy of the Austro-Hungarian Empire often treated the Balkans as their Sphere of Influence.  The Dalmatian Coast and the Sudova Riviera in Montenegro were both claimed to be their own airspace.  The Concert of Europe never officially agreed to this, but it was a defacto Fait Accompli.  Therefore, it was not unusual for airships from the Dual Monarchy to be found patrolling the area.  

However, the British Empire had been toying diplomatically with an Entente Alliance with Italy.  The Italians and the Austrians were part of the Triple Alliance along with Germany.  However, Italy craved the Dalmatian coast and the territory on the other side of the Adriatic.  In order to curry favor and potentially cause a rift in the Triple Alliance, the British decided to test the Austrian resolve above the Sudova Riviera. This area is well known for its beaches and tourism, rather than its military importance.

The Forces: 

Austro-Hungarian Empire

Kaiserin Class Armored Cruiser- SMS Maria Theresa - Command 3

Zenta Class Cruiser - SMS Aspern - Command 1

Novara Class Cruiser - SMS  Saida - Command 3

Huzsar Destroyer- SMS Salamander  - Command 2, Air Torpedo

British Empire

Indefatigable Battle Cruiser- HMS New Zealand - Command 4

Warrior Class Cruiser - HMS Armstrong - Command 3

Duke of Edinburgh Class Cruiser- HMS Regent - Command 2

Active Class Light Cruiser- HMS Antigone - Command 3

Mission

Today we will be playing a Patrol mission per the rules in the main rulebook.  There will be no Complications.  

Set-up

Today, we will be fighting on a 48 MU by 48 MU table.  1 MU will equal 1 inch.  

The British are the Attackers and will be deploying approaching the coast.  The Austro-Hungarians will deploy on the opposite board edge.  Both sides are up to 12 MU in from their board edge. 

The terrain is a coastline cutting across at an angle.  The coastline has some cliffs and mountains of various heights of 1-3 at the coast, with two larger mountains at 4 and 6.

The British are coming in at an angle, looking to cut across from Southwest to the Northeast.  They are at speed 5 and altitudes between 4-6.  The Battle Cruiser is leading the way.   

The Austro-Hungarians are coming in from the same edge but moving Northwest to Southeast.  If no one changes course, the two sides will cross paths in the center of the board.  They are at altitudes 5-7 and at speed 4 across the fleet.       

As usual, I will be breaking the game down into three general phases to make it easier to document and follow the battle.  I won't be detailing every ships movement or altitude change.  The first two turns are the Maneuver phase, the middle turns are the Battle phase, and the final two turns are the End Phase.  This is a 6-turn game.

Maneuver Phase

The HMS New Zealand picked up speed and moved to cut off the Austrian ships, while the rest of the squadron turned towards the enemy.  The Austria-Hungarians turned away and stayed tight, with their Destroyer shooting out ahead and starting to turn back into the fray to snipe.  

The HMS Regent opened the battle with some bow shots that rang off the hull off the SMS Maria Theresa, leaving three friction.  The Maria Theresa returned fire and clanged a shell off the British cruiser as a warning. 

Battle Phase

The British aggressively press forward, with the HMS New Zealand dropping to the same altitude as the Maria Theresa to attack.  However, the Austro-Hungarians make an aggressive turn into the oncoming British and manage to Cross the T of the Cruiser squadron.  

The HMS New Zealand and Regent Fire for Effect and rock the Austro-Hungarian flagship with 8 friction and 2 hits.  The HMS Armstrong and Antigone fire at the SMS Saida, but their bow guns only manage to cause some friction.  The Austrian command ship's rudder is jammed from the barrage.   

The Austrians give as good as they get, with the Maria Theresa and Saida returning fire on the HMS Regent and landing two hits and some friction.  The Regent's Air Screw is fouled and her Rudder jammed in the exchange.  Air torpedoes from the Dual Monarchies flagship manage to strike home on the HMS New Zealand as well, causing a hit.  

The shot was a lucky one as the New Zealand explodes in a cataclysmic chain of explosions!  The explosion is so large that it hits the SMS Salamander and causes her screw to be fouled.  It also further damages the HMS Regent!  Promising careers are cut short as the New Zealand goes down with all hands! 

The Captain of the HMS Regent takes command of the fleet, despite having his own issues.       

With the British Flag gone, the battle quickly devolves into a general melee.  The British elect the Austro-Hungarians to go first.  The Maria Theresa is stricken and flies straight her rudder jammed.  The SMS Saida uses a Command to Come About and turns to go straight down the throat of the British fleet, who scramble to get out of the way.  Meanwhile, the Aspern and Salamander try to get into the fight.  The HMS Regent is stricken to move slowly forward due to a jammed rudder of her own.  The HMS Armstrong moves to engage the SMS Saida on equal terms.      

The Captain of the Saida lets loose amongst the British cruisers with disappointing results.  He manages to cause a hit on the HMS Regent, which damages the Bridge!  Fire from the Aspern misses the Armstrong, but the Maria Theresa has better luck putting shells on target.  The HMS Armstrong takes two hits and is Crippled in the exchange!  The Captain calls for all hands to abandon ship as she starts to sink.  The Salamander misses the HMS Antigone or has her Air Torpedoes swatted away.   

Things look rough for the Brits, but it didn't go all the Austrians way as the Saida is pounded in her position between the two British ships.  In return she is also Crippled and has her screw fouled.  The SMS Saida is also sinking.  

For their troubles, the SMS Saida and the HMS Regent strike their colors.  They are too busy managing their damaged and sinking ships to keep going.  However, the HMS Armstrong refuses to strike.  At the end of the turn, their is still Friction on the HMS Armstrong and the HMS Antigone.  

End Phase

In an attempt to cut-off the SMS Aspern, the HMS Antigone collides with the Austrian ship.  the two ships become entangled.  They are both stricken with 3 and 1 friction respectively.   The Maria Theresa is content to gain altitude and try to move away from the battle, while the Salamander re-loads Torpedoes and moves in towards the last British ship.  

Nobody has any shooting due to being entangled.  Friction clears, but the HMS Armstrong was immobilized and stalled due to Friction last turn. This time, the captain strikes the Armstrong's colors. 

The Antigone and the Aspern trade fire, with the Aspern getting the worst of it and losing some armor.  However, the SMS Salamander manages to sink two Air Torpedoes into the stern of the HMS Antigone and causes her to lose armor and her rudder to jam.  The Maria Theresa also fires a parting shot with her stern battery, but fails to cause further damage.  

With that, the battle comes to an end. 

Conclusion 

Of course, the British Foreign Office quickly condemned the attack on the Sudova Riviera at the Concert of Europe.  It was easy to blame it on a rogue Captain.  Afterall, he was dead.  He could not defend himself or claim otherwise.  His ship and all its records were destroyed and lost.   

The HMS Regent managed to limp back to British Egypt, but it was touch and go.  The crew's effort was immortalized in harrowing ballad by some country wag.  The crew of the HMS Armstrong were detained and the remains of the ship impounded by the Hapsburg government.  However, SMS Saida ended up ditching in the Adriatic just off the coast, attempts to refloat it would be impossible.  The crew of mixed ethnicities mostly survived, and the families of those who did not were given a pension in their post-humous honor.  The Dual Monarchy pressed for the SMS Saida's replacement costs plus a ransom for their crew and the British gladly turned it over.

The Italians were not swayed to leave the Triple Alliance.    

The Austro-Hungarians managed to defend their shores admirably.  The British lost 21 Armor to the Austro-Hungarian 10.  The British had their Flagship blow up, a Cruiser sink, and a second cruiser sent scurrying with her Colors struck.  The Austro-Hungarians had 1 cruiser start to sink and strike her colors.  

For the Austro-Hungarians, the star of the battle was the Maria Theresa who blew up the HMS New Zealand and did severe damage to the HMS Regent.  The Saida deserves honorable mention as well.  For the British?  Well, something was wrong with their bloody ships today!  

The key moment was when the Austrians managed to Cross the T of the British cruiser squadron while the New Zealand tried to cut them off.  Instead, they turned into the attack at the last moment.  Good show! 

This battle had a lot of fun!  Disentangling, Commands, Sinking, and Striking of Colors!  There was so much Friction at a couple of points that it was not all cleared in the End Phase, which is unusual in a battle of this size.   

Until next time. 

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