Category: Ring Side Report

Ring Side Report-RPG Review of Broken Compass- Adventure Journal

~ fineyoungmisanthrope ~ 1 Comment

Product– Broken Compass-Adventure Journal

System- Broken Compass

Producer– Two Little Mice

Price– $24 here https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/336888/Broken-Compass–Adventure-Journal?affiliate_id=658618

TL; DR– Good light pulp adventure game with a few flaws.  87%

Basics–  Onwards to adventure!  Broken Compass is a classic pulp RPG where the characters play adventurers like Indiana Jones as they run across the world solving ancient puzzles and surviving gun battles with groups of minions among the skeletons of those that have come before.  This is much more of a rules light, roleplay heavy game.  Let’s see the pieces themselves.

Character Build- Character generation and build is incredibly easy.  Each character has a bunch of skills that you can think of as attributes in DnD and fields you can think of like skills in DnD.  Each skill has multiple fields that are linked to it.  All players start with 2 ranks in each skill and one in each focus.  You get the skill and foci for your character via choosing two tags the describe your character in two words.  You also choose expertise that further describes what things your characters are good at.   You then get a bit of gear and you’re done.  It’s VERY quick.

Base Mechanics-Fitting quick character building, the mechanics are also very quick.  When you face a problem in this game, you choose a skill and a field within that skill.  The GM called the fortune master may give you additional dice called advantages or make you lose dice called disadvantages.  In addition, you may get additional dice or penalties depending on your condition aka how you feel.  You roll a number of six sided dice equal to this total.  The goal is to get sets of dice with the same value like three of a kind.  For basic challenges, you need two of a kind.  For challenging encounters you need three of a kind and so on.  Some conditions and events require you to get multiple sets to succeed like shooting a gun as a challenging encounter while driving a car in a storm as a basic encounter.  If you fail but have one set but not enough of that set, you can risk the result and reroll any dice you want to hopefully get the successes you need.  In addition, if you have expertise from your character background in what you are doing, you get a reroll for free on that activity.

Challenge vs danger–  There are differences between reading an ancient scroll and shooting a nazi.  This is reflected by challenges and danger.  Challenges are fail forward encounters where a player attempts something that might fail, but if they fail the story continues.  This may alert the enemy or cause you to miss a vital clue yet find the hidden temple just not notice the trap at the entrance.  Dangers are fights or traps that might hurt a player.  If you fail a check, you take damage in the form of luck.  Basic challenges cause you to lose one luck while more advanced things cause you to lose much more luck.  When you are out of luck (the book is VERY pulp heavy!), you have to spend a luck coin to stay in the fight.  Between fights, you can rest up and get back your luck. 

Let’s dig deep into my thoughts on this game!

Mechanics or Crunch-This is a fast game that is not for crunch heavy gamers.  The game is very light and lets the players just free form ideas as long as the GM goes with it.  It’s also reminiscent of Numenera as the GM doesn’t really roll dice.  Players roll dice and success or failure determines what happens, not GM rolls or attacks.  When a player is attacked, the player tells the fortune keeper how they avoid the attack.  It’s very fast.  The one problem I have is I would like a bit more complexity.  It’s solid enough, and I like rolling d6s and hoping for sets.  But, I like a bit more crunch for the system.  Feats or special abilities would help a bit here.  Also leveling up doesn’t really get you much.  That’s good as the players can hop in to basically any adventure, but it also means long term play doesn’t net the characters many gains.  The system I compare this the most to is Numenera, and in that system when you level up, you get a bit more.  Also in Numenera, there is just a bit more crunch for players to dig into.  Broken Compass is fun and light, but I want a bit more crunch in this system.   4.5/5

Theme or Fluff-Hands down this is an amazing, fluff filled game.  Every character is set up to look like a pulp stereotype, both modern and old school.  The adventures are written to be replaceable and generic but relatable in that classic way as things like OLD MAN, ANCIENT TEMPLE, RIVAL are used to be plug and play with different characters but the fortune master is given tons of different materials to help make the story.  Is the OLD MAN a survivor of the great war who saw the temple in the Jungles while on patrol or is the RIVAL a silicon valley billionaire out for world conquest with the Eye of Ra?  Its light in a good way so you can put this into any time or place with that good pulp feel.  Stories flow from Amazon adventures to exploration under the Egyption pyramids.  Every page has lots of fluff and art that makes a player or a fortune master feel like they are part of a classic pulp book in the discount bin of a grocery store.  If you want to feel like your Indiana Jones or at least someone reading an Indiana Jones story, this is a solid book to read through.   5/5

Execution– PDF? Yes.  Hyperlinked?  Yes!  I like this book, but don’t love it.  The book reads well, is well laid out, and has great art.  There are even pregens and a quick adventure where the players and the fortune master can get playing asap instead of having to figure out character generation and adventure creation on their own.  Those are all great reasons to check this book.  But, the major fault of this book is I need more on how to run the game.  There are explanations of how single players encounter things, but I need a bit more on how multiple players encounter a thing.  Does everyone face the threat or just one?  Even fighting one on many, how does that work?  A bit more would really help me better understand how to run this game.  This is a solid game, but it needs a bit more explanation to make it rock solid.   3.5/5

Summary-I like this game, but it has some small faults.  The idea of rolling a bunch of dice and hope for sets of numbers is a fun one.  The theme is great and well presented.  The book overall is a solid read and way to get into the game.  One major issue I have is I want more crunch, so players feel like they are progressing.  Good for one shots or short campaigns, but longer multi story arcs might not be as much fun.  The other major issue I have is I need more explanation on how to run this as a fortune master.  The system works, but I have questions if I’ve done it right.  That’s never a good feeling to have.  If you play with people who just want to have a good time, it will be fun.  But the power gamer out there won’t enjoy this as much.  If you want some good pulp, this is worth your golden idol.  If you need a bit more crunch and a bit more explanation, maybe look in another tomb.  86%

Ring Side Report-RPG Review of Planet Apocalypse

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Product– Planet Apocalypse

System- Dungeons and Dragons 5e

Producer– Petersen Games

Price– not out yet but will be here https://petersengames.com/planet-apocalypse/#info-tabs|1 

TL; DR– DOOM IN DND!  97%

Basics–   Time to be the only thing they fear!  Planet Apocalypse  is a DND 5e source book not for the faint of heart! This is a MASSIVE change from the other Petersen games I have played as this is straight up gore horror of the damned.  Worst parts of the Bible, rivers of blood, dogs and cats living together, mass hysteria!  Let’s dig into this foul tome.

Mechanics or Crunch– This book has a lot, but is missing just a few things.  This game is ALL about killing horrors from hell.  There is no subtlety here and it shows in every horrible thing here. The characters are hard scrabble wasteland survivors trying to eke out a life among the fiends from the pit.  There are feats, spells, and some class options, but I kind of wish each class got some love with its own class options.  The math of all the monsters work out and MAN are there a lot of monsters here.  This is a one stop shop for a game like the old world books.  It’s a solid book, but I want a bit more for all the characters to really make this the total package.   4.5/5

Theme or Fluff– You will not feel safe reading this book.  This is not a book you sit around in a cozy blanket with cocoa on a winter night.  This is a book you read and feel like the shadows are watching you and you better not mess up the circle or you will be dragged somewhere where death will be a mercy.  This book is full of well done, horrific art.  The world is BRUTAL as you have just absolute monstrosities on every other page doing horror to the poor people of this world.  You get to be the hero they need.  And considering Sandy Peterson wrote Doom levels, this is Doom in DnD.  If you were not challenged, horrified, or nauseated enough by the last expansion to Doom Eternal, this is the source book you need to fill that Demon killing itch.   5/5

Execution–  PDF?  YEP!  Hyperlinked? YES!  This is a solid book that is well written, well laid out, and reads easily.  I know that is a common refrain from me, but that’s what I want in a book!  It’s also OVER 350 pages!  This is a single serving world that with the DnD base book is a game you can start playing today!  There are even some adventures that wet your whistle and show you how Sandy wanted you to play this game.  Easy to read, hyperlinked, well laid out, and a solid intro adventure are all the things I want in a world book. 5/5

Summary–  This is the most vile thing I have ever seen from Petersen Games, and I can’t wait for more.  As a God fearing Christian, this is the vision of hell I was told about in the most twisted Sunday sermons I have ever seen and now you can be the hero to push back those horrors.  This is NOT for games where you want to save the princess from the Orcs and have tea with the Orc bandit afterwards.  If you want to plunge headlong into hell itself, rip Baphomet’s jaw off, possibly have your friends get ripped apart in front of you along the way, and end the demonic invasion, then this is the game for you!    97%

Ring Side Report-Book Review-The Anatomical Guide to Lovecraftian Horrors

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Book Review-The Anatomical Guide to Lovecraftian Horrors

Author– Luis Merlo

Book- ~$3 here https://petersengames.com/the-games-shop/the-anatomical-guide-to-lovecraftian-horrors/

TL; DR– Lovecraft forensics! 90%

Basics-What horrors lurk in the shadows?  The Anatomical Guide to Lovecraftian Horrors is what would happen if a forensic pathologist was let loose into the world of Lovecraft and wrote a textbook of his or her findings.  Monsters from across the mythos are given multi page write ups and each has detailed anatomy drawings showing how they tick. Let’s look at the pieces that are here!

Characters, Setting, and Story-This isn’t a story book.  This is a textbook, but a textbook you will want to sit down and read.  It’s one fan’s gruesome love letter to hard science and Lovecraft in one well done package.  Monsters from across the mythos get pages that you can dig into and see how the creatures work at a detailed level, even down the musculature in some cases.  This is just one Lovecraft lover’s take on things, but it is well done, detailed, and something that serious fans will enjoy.  5/5

Execution-PDF available? Yes!  Hyperlinked? No…   This is a well laid out book as the book itself reads easily, has nice pictures, and is a quick read.  You can find your favorite monster, read about it, and get great pictures that you can use in any horror game you want to run.  I do like what’s here, but I would like just a bit more.  It’s short, but considering my main components are wanting more, I think this is a solid product.  4.5/5

Summary-I’m a scientist and I’ve had to read my fair share of textbooks.  None are nearly as entertaining as this book.  I also love Lovecraft, and I enjoy the two being put into one blender.  If you don’t want detailed explanations of cosmic horrors, then avoid this book.  If you want to see how one fan explains the things that go bump in the night and across the cosmos in an extremely well done manner, then pick up this book.  90%.

Ring Side Report-RPG Review of Black Powder Rebellion – Firearms and Historical Campaigns (PF2)

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Product– Black Powder Rebellion – Firearms and Historical Campaigns (PF2)

System- Pathfinder 2nd Ed

Producer– Beyond the Horizon

Price– $6.95 here https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/350371/Black-Powder-Rebellion–Firearms-and-Historical-Campaigns-PF2?term=black+powder+rebellion?affiliate_id=658618

TL; DR– I need guns… LOTS OF GUNS. 98%

Basics–   OVER THE WALL!  Black Powder Rebellion – Firearms and Historical Campaigns is a third party book focusing on using historical settings and guns in Pathfinder 2nd Ed games.  The book introduces guns from all across the history of firearms, history and settings information for  players and GMs, and even character options to take any character and make it a gun toting hero.

Mechanics or Crunch– The goal of this book is to add guns and world history settings to Pathfinder, do so without magic being the major focus, and then give the players options to build characters in that world.  And in that, it succeeds completely.  There are LOTS of guns in this book with only one fake gun that I know of.  That’s some dedication to realism across multiple time points in history.  Character options are also solid crunch as archetypes are put to good use in this book allowing any class to pick up a gun and go to war.  Solid crunch for any group that wants to add guns to their sessions as both a GM and a player.  5/5

Theme or Fluff– How much history do you know?  I might not have majored in history in college, but I love to learn it.  I also grew up teaching hunter safety in the US.  There are gun things I learned from this book from across history that I have not heard yet!  That is some solid dedication to the gun and world history.  From old school single shot guns, to samurai with guns on horseback, to trench warfare, if you want some historical guns in your PF2 game and the story behind them, this is the accessory for you and your friends.   5/5

Execution–  PDF?  YEP!  Hyperlinked? YES!  This is a solid book that is well written, well laid out, and reads easily.  It wasn’t a slog even though this is a history book.  Heck, this book even hyperlinks out to other media to help you LEARN more.  That’s good use of the medium!  My complaints are, as always, pictures.  A few more would make this read a bit easier to read in the text chunkier areas.  Also, this book digs DEEP on some firearm types.  I would like a few more pictures, so i know what the gun looks like.  That said, for the price of less than seven bucks, this is a solid book and a good effort by the team.  4.75/5

Summary-Want some guns in PF2?  Want to play historical games in PF2?  This is the book you need.  Solid options, solid themes, and solid equipment all make a solid book.  I always want more pictures, but that is the ONLY complaint I have for this one.  Another great book at a good price for this team.  98%

Ring Side Report-RPG Review of Achtung! Cthulhu 2d20 Quickstart

~ fineyoungmisanthrope ~ 1 Comment

Product– Achtung! Cthulhu 2d20 Quickstart

System- 2d20

Producer– Modiphius

Price– FREE here https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/347802/Achtung-Cthulhu-2d20-Quickstart?affiliate_id=658618

TL; DR– Let’s kill some Cthulhu Nazis!  97%

Basics– The Weird Wars are back!  Achtung! Cthulhu is a horror/action RPG using the Achtung! Cthulhu world and the new(er) 2d20 system put forward by Modiphius.  Let’s dig into this historical horror.

Base mechanics-The 2d20 system is a roll-under system.  Every time you do an action, you use a skill and an attribute.  You add your skill and attribute together and try to roll under that total on each individual die.  If you roll under your skill, you score two successes and if you roll under the total you just score one success.  Get enough successes, you do the action.  You need between 0 and five successes.

Momentum, threat, and fortune- Since you only get two dice and you might need up to five successes, you need more dice in a hurry.  You can get more dice from momentum.  Every success above what you need earns momentum for the group.  You can spend momentum to get more dice.  You can also give the GM threat to get more dice, but threat is GM momentum.  You also have fortune.  Fortune is story candy.  You automatically crit and earn two successes.

Combat-Combat works just like skills, but if you hit, you roll six sided dice with either 1, 2, or 1 and a bonus event on them.  The bonus things might start fires or do extra damage and depends on the weapons and the person using it.  When you take damage, you subtract either armor or your resolve (mental armor) and take stress.  When your stress fills up, you are out and you take an injury.  This could be from going crazy or from taking a hit to the face.  Too many injuries and you’re out for good!

Ok, now my thoughts on this.

Mechanics or Crunch– I like what’s here.  I love Call of Cthulhu, and 2d20 feels enough like that but it has some things that feel like DnD.  There are feat like traits.  There is a more combat emphasis, and the flow of threat and momentum makes things a bit more dynamic than either parent game.  There are parts I want described more like spending threat.  This is a quickstart for free, so it’s ok if it’s not a complete rules book now, but I want more of that in the final product.  That said, the crunch here feels good and full of combat goodness with hints of story built in to keep the action rolling.  4.5/5

Theme or Fluff– Hate Nazis?  Want to hate Cthulhu Naizs?  I’VE GOT A GAME FOR YOU!  The ultimate killable bad guys are the main villains here, so it always feels fun to fight those guys. It is Weird War, so get ready for some strange elements, from spellcasting Americans to Australians with combat dogs.  But, here is where things shine.  2d20 is built on this back and forth of rolls, story, and tension.  Momentum and threat roll back and forth across the table making things fun.  There is absolutely nothing wrong with some old school gaming, but for story and theme, I love when the mechanics build into that.  This system does that well.  5/5

Execution–  PDF?  YEP!  Hyperlinked? No, but it’s a quickstart, so I’ll forgive it.  It reads well, reads quick, and has great pictures.  Now those pictures are from the original Acthung! Cthulhu, so I hope for new art, but it’s all good.  The player section is at the back and easily prints out to a separate PDF, so my players will not be spoiled.  Honestly, it’s 45+pages of good introduction to the system that you can read in under half an hour and get playing your first game.  5/5

Summary-This is a free PDF, so check it out!  It’s also a solid RPG with a great mix of theme and mechanics.  Lots of fun to be had from this quick read that you will be playing fast.  Go kill some bad guys and save the day in the Weird War!  97%

Ring Side Report-Board Game Review of Ruins: Death Binder

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Product-Ruins: Death Binder

Producer– Heavy Punch Games

Price-$49.99  https://tgg-games.com/products/ruins-death-binder 

Set-up/Play/Clean-up– 90 minutes per player (1-2 players)

Type- American

Depth-medium

TL; DR– the real card based Darksouls. 81.3%

Basics- Can you find out why they want to kill you? In Ruins: Death Binder you wake in a cave next to a body.  Monsters instantly hunt you and the people you find want you dead.  Can you find out the mystery of the cave?

Base mechanics-This game is a reverse deck builder.  You start with a MASSIVE deck of cards.  The campaign has you move from room to room and encounter monsters, events, rest areas, or a crazy combination.  When you fight monsters you are allowed to play melee attacks or spells up to an amount determined by your current value, starting with three.  Monsters take different amounts of damage depending on their vulnerability.  More vulnerability means more damage from that type.  If they are not dead, you take damage.  Events are decisions or fighting obstacles.  After you play a round of cards, you are allowed to save a few of those cards, but not all.  Just like a deckbuilder when your draw pile is done, you shuffle your saved cards, and draw again.  Monsters and events both give you experience. At fires you can spend cards to heal and experience to level up.  You will then move through the dungeon to find bosses and solve scenario cards to discover the mystery of why you are in the cave.

Mechanics–   This game is very simple, but engaging.  You quickly play cards and move through the dungeon.  It’s a fast game that isn’t overcomplicated.  The idea of a reverse deck builder is a new one for me, and I am honestly excited at the idea it provides.  5/5

Theme-Honestly, this is a great game for the emergent story as you work your way through your adventure.  It’s simple, but compared to other games, this does feel like the most Darksouls game I have seen in a long time. It’s even more Darksouls than the Darksouls card game. 4.5/5

Instructions–  These rules are not good.  The mechanics are simple, but turn write-ups are way in the back of the book, rule explanations are spread out all over, level up explanations are put in a diagram explaining the pieces, and many other things just don’t read well.  Once you understand it, it’s not bad, but it’s just a jarring start to the game. 2/5

Execution– This is a well executed game!  Check out the pieces in this video: https://youtu.be/bJk_HbNg3Y4  The box is well made.  The cards are good quality and look nice and read well.  The tableaux are well done and it feels nice to move cubes.  I love how well this is made.  One thing I think is a pain is small cards.  I always hate small cards.  That said, this is a solidly executed game.  4.75/5

Summary–  This is a great game with one major flaw.  I love the mechanics.  I have NEVER had a game where losing cards hurts as much as this one.  The theme is amazing.  It’s got great environmental storytelling.  The pieces and parts are solid and well done.  The major flaw is the rules.  It’s a  ROUGH start, but once you get past that, you will enjoy it.  Solid game with a fun theme and great mechanics overshadow bad rules in this fun game.  81.3%