Category: Ring Side Report

Ring Side Report-RPG Review of Pathfinder Adventure Path #164: Hands of the Devil (Abomination Vaults 2 of 3)

~ fineyoungmisanthrope ~ 2 Comments

Product-Pathfinder Adventure Path #164: Hands of the Devil (Abomination Vaults 2 of 3)

System- Pathfinder 2nd Ed

Producer– Paizo

Price– $24.99 here https://paizo.com/products/btq027jm?Pathfinder-Adventure-Path-164-Hands-of-the-Devil 

TL; DR-Another solid piece of the Abomination Vaults puzzle  100%

Basics–  How deep is the place?  Hands of the Devil dives deeper into the lighthouse from Ruins of Gauntlight.  Players meet new people, monsters, and horrors beyond time as they delve deeper into the lighthouse’s history and people.  Are your players willing to sell someone else to the devils?

Mechanics or Crunch– This is a dungeon crawler.  You kill monsters and find loot.  Monsters are fun and new but balanced at the same time.  Solid work from Paizo.  There are also new items and character options, so this book might not be for everyone, but it does try to have materials that everyone can enjoy. 5/5

Theme or Fluff– The first book of the adventure path was very much find stuff, kill stuff, and that was fun. This one has multiple factions and people all trying to one up each other.  It’s a welcome change of pace.  Your characters can still kill everyone and take their stuff, but there is MUCH more here than the first few levels for story and interaction.  This book also has players do a lot more in town, further strengthening the roleplaying aspect.  It’s a welcome change of pace.  5/5

Execution– Solid art, layout, text, story, hyperlinks, maps, and flow all make this a BREEZE to read.  Paizo knows good books and their adventure paths are where they really shine.  5/5

Summary– There isn’t much more to say than this is well done.  Solid fun fights, good story, and excellent execution all typify this one.  I like what’s here as the players can now decide if they want to talk to the monsters instead of just kill them.  They CAN just kill them, but it is still fun to see if the monsters now want to eat them or have my players just want to kill them.  This is a solid intro dungeon crawl for Pathfinder, and one I’m glad I’m running with my group.  100 %

Ring Side Report-RPG Review of Starfinder Society Intro: Year of Redemption’s Rise

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Product-Starfinder Society Intro: Year of Redemption’s Rise

System- Starfinder

Producer– Paizo

Price– $5.99 here https://paizo.com/products/btq02c6r?Starfinder-Society-Intro-Year-of-Redemptions-Rise 

TL; DR– A simple, yet solid intro adventure. 93%

Basics–  STARFINDERS!  The society calls you to make friends?  Year of Redemption Rise is the latest intro module for the 5th year of Starfinder society.  Starfinders meet three new factions, learn the basics of these factions, and help each with a micro adventure.  It’s the standard fare for a faction introduction adventure, so let’s see how it stacks up.

Mechanics or Crunch–  This adventure is a solid balance of fights and fluff.  Players will talk with just as many NPCs as they shoot at.  The crunch here for both sections is well balanced and thought out.  It’s not reinventing the society’s basics, but it does a good job with the pieces it does have. 5/5

Theme or Fluff– What’s here is good, but there is not much here.  The major adventure beats are leading a tour group, clearing an abandoned house, clearing a greenhouse, and cooling a political discussion.  Nothing bad and it does set up for the future conflicts of tech vs. self sufficiency, but don’t expect some crazy inversion of the adventure template.  You meet new groups, make friends with them, and then finish pretty quickly.  Short, simple, and sweet. 4.5/5

Execution– Short, simple, and sweet is a good description of the execution of this book as well.  Good layout, good pictures, a map for those who don’t have the specific map for clearing the abandoned facility, and easy to master intro and outro pieces for GM in a hurry.  Six bucks is a bit steep for this, but that is my only complaint for this module. 4.5/5

Summary– This adventure reminds me of many of the other faction intro adventures.  Paizo does their execution well, but it’s a bit pricey.  The basic crunch in them all is well done and shows a mastery of the system.  And while the story is basic, it does a good job introducing new major characters to the players.  Overall is this is a solid adventure and introduction to the next year as the society heals its rifts and repairs who it is. 93%

Ring Side Report-RPG Review of We Hunt Bugs 2nd Ed Preview

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Originally posted at www.throatpunchgames.com, a new idea every day! 

Product-We Hunt Bugs

System- We Hunt Bugs 2nd Ed

Producer– Orcs Unlimited Games

Price– SOON on kickstarter!

TL; DR– A Solid Pamphlet RPG 83%

Basics–  Time to go on a hunt!  We Hunt Bugs is a SMALL rpg.  It’s honestly printed on a pamphlet and that’s the whole thing.  The GM/world guide is a slightly bigger book going 32 pages.  Let’s look at the preview of this micro RPG.

Base Mechanics- This is a d6 based game. You have two parts to a character: abilities and skills.  Abilities are like in any RPG; they are your base attributes. There are only three of them. Skills give  a bonus to dice rolls in the right situation.  For a check, you roll a number of dice equal to your ability.  If you roll a 6, you reroll and add to that six.  Then when you finish rolling, you then add a skill if you have it.  If you hit the target number for a check, you succeed.

Combat- Combat is resolved like the base mechanic above.  Turn order is determined by each acting character or creature rolling a d6 and highest goes first.  Successes mean damage and most players only have three boxes of damage they can take before they are knocked out.

And honestly that’s it.

Mechanics or Crunch–  This book honestly made me do some soul searching in a good way.    I LOVE good, crunchy, in depth RPGs.  This isn’t that.  It’s short and sweet.  It doesn’t waste time and that’s a concept at the heart of the games I love.  What is here isn’t much.  There is gear, toys, guns, and some light background bonuses, but not much else.  And it doesn’t need much more.  The crunch here isn’t deep, but it is done simply and well.  5/5

Theme or Fluff– Again, there is just enough to get you interested and help you build a world  the basic of the story is humans discover faster than light travel and instead of hell like Event Horizon, they fall into a bug dimension where bugs now join our universe and kill EVERYONE!  You play spacers who go kill those bugs.  We’ve mapped where bugs are now, but there are still bugs out and about that are killing space ships adrift.  Throw in some obvious evil space company shenanigans and a dash a cyberpunk and you got a solid game.  I like the story here.  It’s enough to help you get interested in where it goes and how you could play it next.  5/5

Execution– I’ve loved everything so far, but this is the low point of the book.  The book is a PDF.  It needs spaces, bold text, and a bit more layout work.  The player pamphlet explains things not in the book which is ok, but given infinite real estate, I want more in the book, so I don’t need the pamphlet as a GM.  It works, but some polish will help.  2.5/5

Summary– Monstrous bugs in space and a lightning fast system to deal with them and corporate evil?  Literally one page building a world and system?  SOLID FUN!  If you have d6s, you can play this on a car ride.  This might not be the 12 year campaign you play forever, but this is the fun one-night or few-week system that will be a solid adventure in the cosmos as you meet new creatures and kill them.  Needs a bit of polish to make the main book a bit nicer, and that might happen by the time the RPG goes to print for the 2nd Ed.  But overall, this is a solid game that you will easily get into and have a blast.  83%

Ring Side Report-RPG Review of Shadowrun Sixth World Companion

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Product-Shadowrun Sixth World Companion

System- Shadowrun 6th Ed

Producer– Catalyst

Price– $19.99 here https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/396661/Shadowrun-Sixth-World-Companion-Core-Character-Rulebook?affiliate_id=658618

TL; DR– If you want to build a new characters and are new to the shadows yourself, this is a solid place to start. 93%

Basics–  WHAT THE HELL IS THAT!?   Sixth World Companion focuses on how to build characters for Shadowrun players of all levels.  The book has rules for newer players to build characters with guided character build packs and blocks of gear with a simple cost like buying bundles off a shelf.  For more seasoned players you have new qualities, subraces, and methods to build characters instead of the older point buy.  Let’s dive into my thoughts on this one.

Mechanics or Crunch–  This book fills an interesting gap in Shadowrun.  Newer players are often intimidated by character creation needing a paired down method with less option paralysis, and more roleplaying heavy players want a more thematic character creation process.  This book delivers both these options to broaden the game’s appeal. Older, seasoned players get the rarer races and some newer toys but no magic options or real new gear.  What is here is good, but some players might not find anything they really want if you know what you want to build and don’t want to play some crazy creatures in the shadows.   4.5/5

Theme or Fluff– How much you like this book will honesty boil down to what you are looking for.  If you want some thematic methods for building characters or new races and lore for them, then you will love this book.  If you want a box of new net gear or some magic tomes to blast enemies with, then you will likely not get as much out of it. It doesn’t expand the main story of the universe, but it does fill in some edges on things that are missing in the sixth edition’s world. 4.5/5

Execution– Catalyst has learned many lessons on book layout and design.  This is a hyperlinked book with MANY tables to help you find what you’re looking for, as well as solid pictures, design, and text to make reading this a breeze.  I enjoyed the text and didn’t suffer through it like other books. Nor did I have any trouble finding what I wanted.  Solid book production Catalyst.  5/5

Summary– This is a book where your mileage will vary.  What you want will really determine if you will like this book.  If you need new character build guidelines or story build building options, then this is a solid book.  If you want lots of new toys, spells, or expanding the world and story of Shadowrun, then this is not the book you are looking for.  In either case, it’s a solid book with amazing execution showing that Catalyst has learned how to make books you will enjoy reading and easily navigate. 93%

Ring Side Report-RPG Review of Guns and Gears

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Product-Guns and Gears

Originally posted at www.throatpunchgames.com, a new idea every day! 

Product-Guns and Gears

System- Pathfinder 2nd Ed

Producer– Paizo

Price– $14.99 here https://paizo.com/products/btq029xk?Pathfinder-Guns-Gears

TL; DR– Solid new Pathfinder toys and toy based characters! 95%

Basics–  BRING THE BOOM!  Guns and Gears brings solid steampunk and introductory industrialization to the Pathfinder setting with new technology and themes, two new classes, a new race, and countless new character options and items. 

Mechanics or Crunch– Paizo knows their system the best and they bring the best new materials for their toys.  The new classes are fun parts of an ever expanding world. The Inventor is the steampunk inventor you may be searching for, with no magical background or ties like the alchemist. The Gunslinger brings pure boom to any encounter.  The new race the Automaton is an interesting, but well supported addition to the world of Golarion.  There is just a TON of materials with all kinds of new toys such as new guns, tools, and magic items that can help turn the tide of battle.  My only complaints are that the Gunslinger feels a bit under-powered.  It is an absolute crit machine, but guns can fall flat if a character spends a day hitting but not critting. That said, what Paizo has here is a FANTASTIC addition to the crunch of Pathfinder.  4.75/5

Theme or Fluff–  Guns and Gears is not a small book and there is just an absolute TON of new stuff here.  Now in a tool book you would think its just item lists, and there is that, but there is also a bunch of fluff to bring the new stuff into the old game.  Pathfinder 1st ed is about 10 years ago in the world of Golarion, so this helps advance the world as the fantasy world gets a bit more pre-industrial.  All that said, one thing sticks out and this may just be a me-problem: automatons.  I always hate new races in old parts of the world as if we just magically found them in the same places we were.  That and they feel out of place and honestly more like a warforged in PF2.  Not a game breaker, but something I don’t think I would have wanted in my game.  Another nitpick is there are no new spells here, and I feel that’s a reasonable, but somewhat annoying choice.  If you want some gun spells, look elsewhere.  The writers wanted to focus more on mechanics and less on magic, so while I might want some spells, it’s ok they are not here. 4.5/5

Execution–  It’s Paizo- they know solid book production.  Good layout, art, font, hyperlinking, and all the pieces I expect from a AAA RPG company.  It’s a 50 buck book, but as an evil millennial, I mostly like PDFs, so the 14 bucks for a digital file is extremely worth it.  5/5

Summary-I honestly love Pathfinder 2nd Ed.  It’s all the pieces of 4th, 3rd, and 5th Edition DnD I want.  And differentiating itself from DnD by moving to a more steampunk and pre-industrial culture will help it grow by further making its own path.  Guns and Gears is a solid step in that direction with amazing classes, items, and class options.  The missteps I see are maybe more opinion; even if they are not my favorite things, they are done well.  If you want less magic and more mechanics mayhem in your Pathfinder 2nd Ed, you need this book now! 95%

Ring Side Report-RPG Review of Doors to Darkness

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Originally posted at www.throatpunchgames.com, a new idea every day! 

Product-Doors to Darkness

System- Call of Cthulhu, 7th Ed.

Producer– Chaosium

Price– $17.48 here https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/199593/Doors-to-Darkness

TL; DR-Decent intro with some basic Call of Cthulhu adventures. 90%

Basics–  What’s in the basement?  Doors to Darkness is a collection of five simple adventures that beginner keepers can bring to the table to introduce Call of Cthulhu to their friends and get new players involved on both sides of the GM screen.

Mechanics or Crunch– What’s here is good, but I would like a bit more.  The crunch of the adventures (monsters, skill checks, basics of play) are all done well.  My one major criticism is there is not a lot of extra information to help newer keepers/game masters learn the ropes.  I would like a bit more GM box text to help a new game master run the game.  Since the players and the GM are most likely new, that would really help everyone learn exactly what they are doing.  Solid work but this book needs a bit more basics explained to the GM. 4/5

Theme or Fluff–  This book has some solid stories that may be a bit disjointed.  There are five stories that range from snake cults to undead horrors.  Nothing is bad and these are excellent introduction stories, but none of these are really connected.  It leads to a bit of a random experience that can end up being kind of a monster of the week.  Not bad, but do not expect a long running campaign, but a more introductory experience. 4.5/5

Execution–  Here is where Chaosium excels.  Chaosium makes amazing digital props and electronic resources for their adventure.  Solid layout, digital links, and good text make for an easy to read experience.  The book of notes is also an amazing piece that really helps me as a keeper draw in my players.  And there are several premade characters that any player could pick up and start playing right away.  Fantastic execution Chaosium! 5/5

Summary– Overall, this is a solid effort to help new players get into Call of Cthulhu.  For about 18 bucks you get five adventures with decent plot, solid tools and great handouts to draw new and old players in.  New keepers will have a bit of trouble as this could use a bit more tools to help newer ones with the rules.  But if you want to start Call of Cthulhu and need a good starting point, this is a great place to begin.  90%