Month: December 2024

Ring Side Report- RPG review of SagaBorn

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Product– Sagaborn

System- Sagaborn

Producer–  Lone Wanderer Entertainment

Price– $9.95 here https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/422906/sagaborn-roleplaying-game-v-1-5?affiliate_id=658618 

TL; DR– Fun, but not beginner friendly.  83% 

Basics– Time to adventure!  SagaBorn is an old school/slighly modern RPG set in the world of Uteria.  This RPG offers an interesting mix of old and new RPG mechanics.  Let’s break this down

Basics– Know 3.5 DnD?  Then you know this.  This system is d20+ modifier vs a DC.  The modifiers are what you know and love with base attack bonus + ability modifiers + maybe magic weapon bonus to hit guy.  Its a well worn and comfortable as your favorite shirt.

Skills and levels– Characters max out at about level 8, but there are epic levels if you want to continue the game.  Characters get skill points.  You can have skill points equal to your level +1 in any area.  Then you get expertise points as well.  These are  like subskills within a skill or specializations.  So a skill check is your ability modifier + skill points in an area + expertise points if applicable +d20.  Again, it’s that same game you know how to play.

Magic- Magic is different.  This is much more like the later final fantasy games and less like DnD.  You have a pool of mana, you cast spells with different amounts of mana, and the magic happens.  DC for saves is based on the amount of mana a spell takes, so mana spent is close to the spell level/rank.

Ok, thats the basics,  Let’s review.

Mechanics or Crunch– SagaBorn is an interesting mix of DCC and DnD 3.5.  If you love 3.5, you will get the game you wanted with this one.  For the DCC crowd, you might not get exactly what you want.  DCC is more rules light.  This has more character options and such, and that might annoy the old school gamer who just wants to take 3 levels in dwarf and smash the orc int he face.  I don’t hate what’s here, but it does feel a bit like its aiming for a niche that others might not know about.  The simplicity feels a bit muddled with the complexity of some mechanics.  Again, its not bad, but its not streamlined DCC nor is it granular Shadowrun.  4/5

Theme or Fluff– SagaBorn has a world, but it doesn’t get the love that it deserves.  This book spends a lot of time on the races, but the world doesn’t get nearly as many pages.  It’s here and the world gets covered, but There isn’t as much as I would like to really know the world.  This feels like a good meal I didn’t get enough of.  Good, but feed me more. 4/5

Execution– This book does not do the sins that a lot of rules light, simple systems does, but its got some rough edges.  I get hyperlinks and easy to manage text.  There is art, but I would like a bit more.  The things I want more of are some descriptions of mechanics.  It feels a bit muddled.  Also, some of my background made this work for me, but newer players will need help to really understand what is happening.  Not bad, but this book needs more to be user friendly.  4.5/5

Summary-This is an interesting mix that needs niche players.  If you want a DCC rpg with a bit more complexity, then this works.  If you want DnD 3.5 with a little bit less complexity, there you go.  SagaBorn does exactly what it sets out to do, but make sure you want what it is offering.  Newer players maybe shouldn’t start here alone, but with some help, they will have a blast.  Check this one out if it’s exactly what you are looking for.  83 %  

Daily Punch 12-27-24 Shape Shift vampire power for DCC RPG

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He could be anyone?

Shape Shift
Level: 1Range PersonalDuration: variesCasting time: 1 actionSave: None
GeneralYou turn into another shape
Manifestationroll 1d4: (1) Your body ripples and molds into a new frame (2) Turn into a puff of smoke and reapear as a different person (3) turn to a formless goo and reform into the target (4)You just are the target
1failure, power may not be used again today
2-11failure
12-13You turn into 1HD of a humanoid creature for 1d3 rounds. You possess all the powers of that creature. Damage done to the creature does not affect you after you turn back and if target dies, you are unharmed. Any creature who knows the target can attempt a will save DC equal to your power check to see through the illusion
14-17You turn into 1HD of a humanoid creature for 1d3 hours. You possess all the powers of that creature. Damage done to the creature does not affect you after you turn back and if target dies, you are unharmed. Any creature who knows the target can attempt a will save DC equal to your power check to see through the illusion
18-19You turn into 2d3HD of a humanoid creature for 1d3 hours. Damage done to the creature does not affect you after you turn back and if target dies, you are unharmed. Any creature who knows the target can attempt a will save DC equal to your power check to see through the illusion
20-23You turn into 3d4HD of a humanoid creature for 1d6 hours. You possess all the powers of that creature. Damage done to the creature does not affect you after you turn back and if target dies, you are unharmed. Any creature who knows the target can attempt a will save DC equal to your power check to see through the illusion
24-27You turn into 4d4HD of a humanoid creature for 1d8 hours. You possess all the powers of that creature. Damage done to the creature does not affect you after you turn back and if target dies, you are unharmed. Any creature who knows the target can attempt a will save DC equal to your power check to see through the illusion
28-29You turn into 4d6HD of a humanoid creature for 2d8 hours. You possess all the powers of that creature. Damage done to the creature does not affect you after you turn back and if target dies, you are unharmed. Any creature who knows the target can attempt a will save DC equal to your power check to see through the illusion
30-31You turn into 6d6HD of a humanoid creature for 2d8 hours. You possess all the powers of that creature. Damage done to the creature does not affect you after you turn back and if target dies, you are unharmed. Any creature who knows the target can attempt a will save DC equal to your power check to see through the illusion
32+You turn into 6d8HD of a humanoid creature for 4d8 hours. You possess all the powers of that creature. Damage done to the creature does not affect you after you turn back and if target dies, you are unharmed. Any creature who knows the target can attempt a will save DC equal to your power check to see through the illusion

Daily Punch 12-26-24 Death Scene performance skill feat for Pathfinder 2nd Ed

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Such a final act!

Death Scene reaction Feat 15

General Skill
Prerequisites legendary in Performance
Frequency once per day
Trigger You are reduced to zero hit points

Your death is worthy of an award. You can attempt a Performance check when you are reduced to zero hit points against the passive Perception of the enemy that reduced you to zero hit points. If you succeed, you instead fall prone, act dead, and are at the hit point total before you were struck. The enemy believes you are dead.

Thoughts?

Daily Punch 12-23-24 Theater Hand Training performance skill feat for Pathfinder 2nd Ed

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Where’d he go?

Theater Hand Training one actions Feat 15

General Skill
Prerequisites legendary in Performance
Frequency twice per day

Used to getting onto stage but not being seen on stage. You can attempt a Performance check in place of a Stealth check. If you succeed, instead of being hidden, you gain the invisible condition to the creatures you passed your stealth check against.

Thoughts?

Ring Side Report- RPG review of Cthulhu Awakens: The AGE RPG of the Weird Century

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Product– Cthulhu Awakens: The AGE RPG of the Weird Century

System- AGE RPG

Producer– Green Ronin

Price– $29.95 here https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/454809/cthulhu-awakens-the-age-rpg-of-the-weird-century?affiliate_id=658618 

TL; DR-A few small issues keep this from a perfect book.  93% 

Basics– The end comes NOW IN AGE!  Cthulhu Awakens uses the popular Call of Cthulhu Setting and mixes it with the AGE system.  Let’s dive into how to play and then the review.

Age Basics- AGE takes a lot of inspiration from GURPS.  Basic tests are three six sided dice with one being a different color or standing out.  When you do anything, you roll 3d6+focus+ability, add, and then see if you hit the target number.  Ability is just like ability bonuses in DnD or Pathfinder.  Focus would be best thought of like feats.  That stand out die is used for multiple things, but indicates how successful you are with a 1 being barely successful on a success and a 6 being AMAZING successes.

Stunts-  The more important role of the different die is stunts.  When two of the three dice, including the stunt or standout die, are the same, you use the stunt die to get special events.   You spend the number on the stunt die to get bonus things like spraying more damage, hitting more creatures, bonus to next roll, reducing damage to yourself, and so on.  For perspective, this happens about 42% of the time on average.

Sanity- The interesting thing in this game is how the Cthulhu monsters affect the character beyond just ripping them to shreds.  The loss of sanity also means gaining in understanding the mythos.  The more you lose yourself, the more you gain in powers.  These might be Faustian bargains, but power’s power!

The rest- This system uses the 3d6 and stunts for almost everything.  It’s very fast and simple, but allows for interesting and crazy things to happen.  From there it’s just like any other RPG system with HP, damage, and sanity being drained by monsters in the world.

Mechanics or Crunch– AGE is an interesting one.  It’s fun and fast, but might not be for me.  Character growth is somewhat limited as you don’t level past 10.  It’s classless, so you can mix and match anything you want.  But you do get kind of stuck into siloes as you grow.  This is not a problem, if you want that. The notion of gaining power from exposure is fun.  Overall, this is a good system, but might not be for me.   4.75/5

Theme or Fluff– This game is less Call of Cthulhu and more action Pulp Cthulhu.  Characters fight the apocalypse, which is fun, but that is not quite what I want in a Call of Cthulhu adventure.  I want more people to go absolutely mad from seeing things, and less gaining acceptance and power from seeing monsters crawl out of different dimensions.  However, that’s more my opinion on the matter and not an indictment of the system. 4.5/5

Execution– This has ALMOST everything I need for a solid RPG book.  The book reads well and has a fun story.  Its layout makes it engaging and easy to read.  The book tackles difficult issues with care, dealing with mental health, offensive games, and HP’s racism.  The book is hyperlinked.  It’s even got not one, but TWO adventures having both a 1920s adventure and a modern day one.  It doesn’t have characters.  I’d forgive that as there is a free intro RPG, BUT that one only has pregens for one time setting.  The stuff that’s here is fantastic, but the stuff that’s missing is felt. 4.75/5

Summary– This is a good book with a fun RPG, but small things keep this from perfection.  The mechanics are not quite what I want; hoping for 40% chances to occur so you can do cool stuff can annoy you.  But when they happen, it is awesome.  The theme isn’t quite what I want.  I want more helpless horror, and this is more punching the Dark in the Face.  And lastly, the book does fantastic execution, except no pregens.  Most of my gripes are in how I want a game to be, but not necessarily in AGE being bad.  It’s honestly fun, and quick.  Not my cup of tea, but if you want to punch Cthulhu in the face with power you got when you went crazy, then this is the RPG for you!  93% 

Daily Punch 12-20-24 Inspiring Recovery performance skill feat for Pathfinder 2nd Ed

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Feel better!

Inspiring Recovery two actions Feat 15

General Skill
Prerequisites legendary in Performance
Frequency once per day per target
targets one ally, Range 30 feet

HEED ME MY ALLY! You rouse a target in range with a quick speech. You attempt a Performance check using a chosen DC as a treat wounds check. The target gains temporary hit points equal to the amount of hit points they would have gained. These hit points last for one hour or until depleted. A target can not be the target of this ability till after a long rest.

Thoughts?

Daily Punch 12-18-24 Break Down performance skill feat for Pathfinder 2nd Ed

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FEEL BAD!

Break Down one action Feat 15

General Skill
Prerequisites legendary in Performance
Frequency once per day, Duration 1 minute
targets All enemies, Range 30 feet radius from you
Defense Will

You break down your enemies. With a word, you force all enemies in range to make a Will save against your Performance DC.
Critical Success The target gets a +1 competency bonus to all skill checks, attacks, and saves for the duration
Success The target is unaffected
Failure The target gets a -1 penalty to all skill checks, attacks, and saves for the duration
Critical Failure The target gets a -1 penalty to all skill checks, attacks, and saves for the duration and is stunned 1.

Thoughts?