Ring Side Report- RPG review of Dreadnought RPG

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Product– Dreadnought RPG

System- Dreadnought RPG

Producer– Liminal Artifact

Price– FREE here https://liminalartifact.com/  

TL; DR– Rules light horror. 90%

Basics– Don’t worry, you are already dead.  Dreadnought is a simple RPG of horror and monsters beyond the waves.  Players attempt to solve problems, get gold, and serve the gods in this simple RPG.

Base mechanics– This game has VERY simple mechanics.  Players roll 2 d8s when they want to do anything.  This action is called a move.  The Dread maker (DM, nice!) rolls a die: either a d4, d6, or a d8, and you compare.  If one of the player’s dice is a larger number, they succeed.  If both succeed, it’s even better, and if none beat the DMs dice, the player has a problem!

Characters– Players get four different archetypes that range from pirate, aboriginal fisherman/warrior, fleshwizard, or paladin.   You have NO stats.  The archetypes give you different moves that other characters don’t have.  You also have the same number of hit points called wounds as everyone else.  When you get four wounds, bad things start to pile up quickly!

And that’s it.  It’s very rules light, but action forward!

Mechanics or Crunch– This is a simple RPG with simple mechanics.  I don’t hate what’s here.  It almost feels like a GMless system with how few rules there are.  It’s got all the elements of a standard RPG, but with almost no rules to it.  I’d like a bit more description of things, but it works.  Then again, I think the goal is to be as rules light as possible.  4.5 /5

Theme or Fluff–  This book feels like Mork Borg had a baby with Scary Stories to tell in the dark and it was raised by Lovecraft.  I like the art and tone.  It feels dark and dreary.  And it’s supposed to.  5/5

Execution– This book choose style over substance, and it might have hurt the overall project.  I like what’s here, but I also have been playing RPGs for almost 30 years.  I know what to expect.  If you are completely new, this might not be the best book for you.  The theme is everywhere, but the flow of ideas is a bit off if you don’t know what each section generally is.  I can follow, but newer players might need a few read throughs to understand.  I also feel some sections are not as clear as they should be.  Furthermore, it’s all digital, but there are no hyperlinks.  Help me navigate this book!  Lastly, I must commend the book as it’s got an adventure that you and your friends can start playing in about 20 minutes. This book is rules light, and the adventure reflects that.  Good, but help the newer players see what this is about.  4/5

Summary– Style and execution are a hard mix.  I love what’s here.  The atmosphere and crazy mechanics are a fun way to approach challenges.  It’s random as hell, but that can be fun.  However, I feel this book needs some editing to really help newer players get into it.  This is more indy rock and less top 40 pop.  If you love that kind of thing, you will absolutely love this.  Especially if you love horror!  However, if you want nice clean tables and combat flow charts, then you will be a bit lost.  But, don’t fear the nonstandard.  Check this one out even if you’re not sure you’ll like it because it’s free!  90%

Daily Punch 8-15-25 Undead Strength power for DCC RPG

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BULK UP!

I’m coming back to make more DCC RPG content! Here is something for my undead character book!

Undead Strength
Level: 1Range SelfDuration: perminentCasting time: actionSave: none
GeneralYour body grows
Manifestationroll 1d4: (1) You swell with power (2) Your pure wiry strength (3)Your skin is taught with muscles (4) you grow bigger and bader
1failure; gain a drawback
2-11failure
12-13Your strength score increases by +1
14-17Your strength score increases by +2
18-19Your strength score increases by +3
20-23Your strength score increases by +4 and you deal an additional point of damage on all melee attacks
24-27Your strength score increases by +5 and you deal an additional 2 points of damage on all melee attacks
28-29Your strength score increases by +6 and you deal an additional 3 points of damage on all melee attacks
30-31Your strength score increases by +7 and you deal an additional 4 points of damage on all melee attacks
32+Your strength score increases by +8 and you deal an additional 5 points of damage on all melee attacks and any hit by you must make a Fortitude save equal to damage dealt or be knocked prone

Daily Punch 8-12-25 Double Fist general feat for Pathfinder 2nd Ed and Starfinder 2nd Ed

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THIRSTY!


Double Fist one action Feat 7

General

It’s what you crave! When you take an action to consume a consumable item, you may choose to consume two items instead. These can be two of the same or different ones. They also can be consumed in different ways. You can also elect to administer two consumable items to another ally instead as a single action.

Thoughts?

Daily Punch 8-6-25 Divine Savior cantrip for Pathfiner 2nd Ed

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DON’T DIE!


Divine Saviour Reaction cantrip 1

Healing Manipulate Vitality
Traditions divine
Bloodline angelic
Catalysts Healer’s Gel
Range 30 feet; Target 1 dying ally
Trigger An ally is reduced to 0 hp

Stay in the fight! When an ally is reduced to 0hp, you can instantly heal the target 2d4 hp. The target does not have any abilities that would end if the target falls to zero hp, and itis not counted to have been reduced to zero hp. The target is then immune to this spell for 1 day. 

Thoughts?

Ring Side Report- RPG review of The Electric State

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Product– The Electric State

System– The Electric State

Producer– Free League Publishing

Price- $24.99 here https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/467022/the-electric-state-roleplaying-game?affiliate_id=658618 

TL; DR- Missing some crunch, but full of story 93%

Basics– Ready for a road trip?  The Electric State RPG is a rules light, alternative 90s setting. A decaying America where AI, political intrigue, and the basic fight for real survival all combine to make either the worst or best road trip in history.  Let’s look at the game

Base mechanics– The Electric State follows many of the same principles of Free Leagues’ other games, with players rolling six sided dice and aiming for a 6.  The 6 is a success.  The player typically rolls between 2 and 6 dice.  A character has only four attributes, making up the bulk of a character’s dice.

Pushing/rerolls– Players can push rolls when they fail.  Pushing means rerolling the dice and taking the new result.  However, any ones rolled result in either damage or mental trauma to the character.

Combat-Combat is very simple.  One side, determined by the GM or an opposed dice roll, goes first.  Each character on that side gets an action and a move.  If you want to defend or dodge, you can, but that will remove you next turn.    

Neurocasters– A big part of the setting are neurocasters.  These are helmits you can wear and enter their version of the matrix/internet. You can use this to hack, learn, and pilot drones.  If you push rolls in the internet, you gain bliss.  And when your bliss gets too high, you are too addicted to leave.  Many people die on this internet!

And that’s really it.  It’s VERY rules light.

Mechanics or Crunch– This is the most pure of Free Leagues’ products for mechanics.  It’s very rules light, and maybe even too rules light. What’s here is good, but I would like more.  I think I need a bit more crunch to my RPGs to really get the most out of this game.  Then again, this game focuses much more on the journey and not the destination even for its mechanics, meaning it’s more hand-wavey about how things happen.  If you want the dice to tell a story like a critical success, then this is not for you.  If you play RPGs and just roll dice, then you could speed through most of The Electric State missing its pieces.  But, I still need a bit more crunch to my game.  4/5

Theme or Fluff–  This is where the game shines.  If you want a travel RPG, then this would be it.  The characters are literally called travelers.  You go on an adventure in The Electric State where anything from a cult, to a serial killer, to a robot with hundreds of neurocaster- wearing human zombies on strings follow it around.  There is politics, a world falling apart, drug/internet addiction, human misery, and a whole host of other themes in this game.  The authors have many things to say about the human condition, and this RPG reflects the world well and says volumes at the same time.  5/5

Execution– Free League knows books.  This book has solid production, art, and layout.  It reads easily and fast.  The rules are laid out well enough that I could just pick them up and start reading right away with no confusion.  It’s a good story mixed with solid math, making it an easy read.  It’s also got four pre-gens and several adventures, so if you and your buddies want to play, you don’t have to guess how to run, prep, and plan this adventure or what the designers thought characters should look like. 5/5

Summary– The Electric State is an interesting one for me.  I don’t hate it, but I don’t know how often I’ll travel in it.  I need a bit more crunch in my usual games.  But, the crunch that’s here is pure Free League with pushed rolls and consequences.  The story of the world is interesting and poignant.  I can’t tell how much the designers are luddites against tech or people embracing the tools needed to keep the modern world alive, and maybe that’s a solid trick to pull on me.  The book itself looks good and reads well.  I know I might not visit this world often, but if you offered, I don’t think I would turn down an afternoon in The Electric State.  93%