tomhjh

[tomhjh]

Battlefront II - The Nadir of Star Wars Gaming

It has been some time since I purchased a video game only to find myself tiring of the subsequent play-through in less than two hours. Unfortunately DICE's latest attempt to create a meaningful gaming experience in the Star Wars galaxy is the latest in a rather long and depressing line of unspeakably boring Star Wars games. There has been plenty of fan outrage about the latest Star Wars film, The Last Jedi, but one couldn't really criticize the move for refusing to take risks. The latest Star Wars film explores the force, the Skywalker legacy and the gathering conflict between the Resistance and the First Order in an interesting and satisfying manner (granted, there are some missteps along the way). Unfortunately Star Wars video games have rarely been noted - at least in recent times - for their invention. Instead relying upon regular visits to various locations from movies both good and terrible, hoping that their audience will gawp in awe once more at a soulless recreation of the interior of the Most Eisley cantina, or the streets of Theed.

Star Wars: Battlefront II promised to bring an intriguing new Star Wars story with a supposedly expansive single player experience pushed right to the fore - albeit alongside the cookie-cutter multiplayer experience we have come to expect from the various Battlefield and Battlefront titles released in recent years. As I settled in for an evening’s gaming though, It became clear that this content wasn't going to be the story-driven single-player experience Star Wars fans have longed for since the heady days of the Knights of the Old Republic series. Linear missions, dull dialogue and stodgy game-play make the whole experience unsatisfying in the extreme.

A common problem when multiplayer-focused games such as Battlefront attempt to venture in to single-player territory is that the game engine is an inappropriate vessel in which to traverse a single-player story. In a multiplayer environment, one may be willing to overlook a slightly unresponsive and dull first-person shooter if they are able to transition to piloting vehicles and waving a lightsaber around whilst battling hordes of screaming teenagers. In a single player experience however, these individual game-play elements really show their limitations, as you are not faced with the intelligence and unpredictability of a human opponent. The shooting sections of Battlefront II’s single player campaign are neither well-designed nor paced well enough to hold the player's attention, whilst the space-combat portions are laughably basic and offer no challenge to the player. In addition to slightly unwieldy and simplified game-play, Battlefront II takes absolutely zero risk with it's story locations, sending you on a whistle-stop tour around various recognizable locales from the Star Wars movies. The few new locations that do make an appearance are hardly inspired in their design. There are moments of interest, the introduction to the Bespin mission comes to mind, the two minutes spent floating amongst a herd of tibanna gas-farting sky-whales providing perhaps the most interesting visual experience in the entire game.

The single player element of Battlefront II is again hampered by a severe lack of risk-taking as the plot progresses. We are introduced to the protagonist of the story – Iden Versio, a straight-laced hard-as-nails diehard Imperial commando leading a group of the Emperor's most fanatical warriors. She walks amongst a circle of dedicated Imperial warriors who have spent their lives indoctrinated into the mighty New Order. It is therefore rather inexplicable that it only takes one brief meeting with Luke Skywalker (the hated enemy, no less) and a single (albeit rather large-scale) act of savagery against a civilian population for two of the three man squad to immediately abandon their service to the Imperial cause and align themselves with their most hated of enemies. These are hardened Imperial soldiers, killers and saboteurs - they are assigned to a star destroyer named The Eviscerator for christ's sake. It takes a monumental suspension of belief to assume that they would never have seen civilians sacrificed in the name of the Emperor and immediately balk at their orders. Early showings of the story seemed to suggest this would be a chance to get to grips with the dark heart of the Empire, exploring the fanatical devotion of it's warriors, a la the excellent TIE Fighter. Unfortunately what we are left with is a rather predictable story whereby the protagonist aligns herself with the morally upstanding New Republic, rather than seeking revenge for the destruction of the Empire she held so dear. Another annoying decision is to intersperse the story missions with various cameos and appearances from legendary Star Wars heroes. Somehow the game manages to make blasting Stormtroopers as Han Solo a depressingly dull and distracting experience. The voice cast do their best with the limp plot, and the Duros character Shriv does provide some levity to proceedings - he's probably the best character in the game, and his brief team-up with Lando Calrissian is the only hero-focused mission that was in any way enjoyable. Paul Blackthorne does his usual best with the ally-turned-antagonist Hask and Iden Versio is a generally likable character, even if I would have liked to see her have a darker edge.

Counter-intuitively, the most irritating thing about Battlefront II is that it is in not actually a terribly bad game, merely a product of a game development juggernaut with no time for invention or artistic license. DICE is a studio built to make the same game year on year, so at least on the surface the multiplayer elements contained within tick all the right boxes. There is nothing fresh here, though, everything contained within can be found in superior form elsewhere. Battlefield 1 is a better multiplayer shooter, whilst even now dated games such as X-Wing, TIE-Fighter and Dark Forces provide a better action-packed single player Star Wars experience.

It's hard to know who to blame for my general disappointment. Perhaps DICE for thinking that they key to an excellent Star Wars game is just cutting and pasting a few star wars locales into their game-machine. Perhaps it is EA who are to blame for chasing more profit with the much maligned in-game purchases now plaguing every multi-player title, rather than attempting to create a product of any real quality. Perhaps Disney are the culprits, peering over the developer's left shoulder, nyxing any creativity for fear of entangling their product in complex canon issues. What is certain is that in the four years that EA have held the exclusive license to produce Star Wars games, all we really have to show for it are two middle-of-the-road multiplayer shooters and a cancelled project. Here's hoping Respawn manage to reverse the trend and actually put out a good game in 2020. Until then I'll be trying to forget about Star Wars Battlefront, and digging out my West End Games Star Wars role-playing books – at least I've still got the imagination to craft a real star wars adventure.

[tomhjh]

Dungeons and Dragons 5th Edition - Initial Thoughts

Dungeons & Dragons is known the world over as the progenitor of modern fantasy role-playing, the first mainstream game to delve into the fantasy worlds created by authors such as J.R.R. Tolkien, and now a brand known the world over. D&D has, in its time, amassed a long and chequered history of reboots, (awful) spin-off movies, novels and miniatures games. Rule updates and edition changes have always been difficult for D&D, transferring from AD&D to 3.0 was not entirely popular (It also suffered from design issues and was quickly patched with the release of D&D 3.5), and 4th edition split the community in half, resulting in a large portion of the market being siphoned off by Paizo and their excellent Pathfinder RPG.

The latest edition of D&D attempts to go back to its roots in fantasy role-playing, ditching the computer-game influenced, combat heavy rules that bogged down 4th edition, and alienated a lot of the player base. While the game has always retained its d20 basis, and many of the changes made to the systems may seem minor to outsiders, role-players are often a strange breed who dislike change, preferring to stick to tried and tested rules. The buzz around 5th edition feels different, customers seem to be genuinely glad to have D&D back on the shelves, the sense of negativity felt with the release 4th edition has not been in evidence. Having had a look at 5th edition myself, and having started actually playing the game, I am happy to report that D&D is back with a bang, and has every chance of sticking around for a long time.

In 5th edition, Wizards of the Coast have taken the most popular elements of various different editions and blended them together, stripping away any needless complexity in order to leave us with the tools to run adventures that cater for everyone from beginners, to hardcore role-players, right through to combat-loving dungeon delvers. In this article, I will attempt to break down the changes at a basic level, to give any potential new players (or veterans pondering a return) an overview of the strengths and weaknesses of 5th edition.

Character Creation:-

The basics of character creation remain relatively similar, players have six attributes that grant them a bonus or a penalty to any skill or ability related to them. The six attributes are strength, dexterity, constitution, intelligence, wisdom and charisma, these are unchanged from previous editions and will be familiar not only to D&D players, but fans of any fantasy RPG, tabletop or otherwise. These statistics can be generated by rolling d6 dice, by taking a basic set of statistics, or via a point-buy system. Once these statistics have been generated, players must choose a race, races provide bonuses to the various ability scores, as well as various other flavourful traits. Neither of these sections of character creation have changed overly much, although humans will probably be less popular now, due to the changes to feats and lack of skill ranks in 5th edition, which I will explore later.

Most of the classes on show are old favourites, barbarian, bard, cleric, druid, fighter, monk, paladin, ranger, rogue, sorcerer and wizard are all in the Player's Handbook. The warlock class survives from 4th edition, returning as a core class. I won't go in to each class' individual abilities, but suffice to say each has at least two distinct kits they can take, in the vein of 2nd edition AD&D class kits. Prestige classes are gone, with eldritch knight and arcane trickster surviving as kits for fighter and rogue respectively. The abilities for each class are interesting, with a bare minimum of dead levels. The theme of 5th edition is simplicity, and the base classes are easy to understand, while all being equally useful.

Backgrounds are a new addition in 5th edition, a player could now pick a Fighter who is a member of a thieves guild, giving him access to thieves tools and a secret guild sign language. A bard could be an itinerant entertainer, or a folk hero, champion of the common man. This attempt to make each character distinct is a welcome change, thieving wizards, heroic rogues and noble druids, all are possible.

Another feature of the background section is Inspiration. Players have personality traits, ideals, bonds and flaws, these can be randomly rolled for on the charts assigned to each background, or decided between player and dungeon master. If players play to their personality, effectively role-playing the background they have chosen, the dungeon master may grant them advantage – the ability to roll any check twice and keep the higher result. This is a fantastic way of encouraging players who would normally be reticent to role-play to really get in to character, giving them a tangible bonus for doing so. It can also lead to some epic moments as players react to the story playing out around them.

Equipment:-

Ahh, the adventurers armoury, the first place your players will visit, eyes bulging with imagined riches. Equipment has been somewhat pared back, gone are your exotic weapons, kukris, bastard swords and the like. The list of weaponry is much smaller than in previous editions, although sure to be expanded in future supplements. Lighter weapons can now be dual-wielded without penalty, and any ranged weapon or melee weapon with the finesse quality, will allow the player to substitute his strength modifier for his dexterity when rolling to attack and damage. This very simple refinement is an excellent way of removing any reliance on feats to build a viable dexterity-based fighter. It also has the effect of making those pesky goblins you are liable to encounter at first level much more deadly.

Armour now provides a bonus to your base armour-class, touch armour-class has been banished. Spellcasters suffer no arcane spell-failure, but will be forced to invest feats in order to wear such equipment. Heavier armours impose disadvantage on movement, meaning your burly fighter is going to be clanging round dungeons alerting all enemies to his presence. The various types of shield have been removed, there Is now only one shield, which provides a flat +2 bonus to armour class.

Most classes now start with a choice of gear, and will gain access to either a dungeoneer's kit, an entertainer's kit, or a traveller's pack. This saves time picking through equipment lists to make sure everyone has enough rations or torches, it also means that with a decent spread of classes, groups will rarely find themselves without essential mundane equipment.

Magical equipment is not listed in this book, It seems likely that we will have to wait until the release of the Dungeon Masters Guide before we can see how magical weapons and armour have changed.

Skills: -

Skills are gone. Players now add their proficiency bonus (listed under each individual class) and ability modifier to any skills with which they are proficient. This cuts out the awkward business of adding skill ranks between levels, and modifying these ranks every time your intelligence improves. This is perfectly in line with the attempt to streamline everything, and limit the numbers where possible.

Feats: -

Feats have long been a key part of character building, forcing players down long chains of feats in order to unlock a powerful keystone ability. Feats have been changed dramatically, they are now an option open to players rather than a key part of the game. Whenever a character reaches 4th, 8th, 12th, 16th or 20th level, he has a choice of adding +2 to one ability score, +1 to two ability scores, or taking a feat.

Feats will often grant a +1 bonus to a single stat, as well as granting another ability, such as being able to reload a crossbow several times in a round, or gain extra damage dice on a critical hit. All of the abilities are well designed and useful, players will face a tough decision between buffing stats and taking some of these extraordinarily useful feats.

Combat:-

Our first session of the game reminded us of the brutality of combat at low levels, three players found themselves swiftly dispatched by a goblin ambush and only dungeon master fudging stopped us from being wiped out at the first hurdle.

Combat is, however, far simpler. Attacks of opportunity are now only triggered when moving out of an opponents area. Attacks can be made at any point on a characters movement, lending a far greater feeling of fluidity to proceedings. The combat grid so commonly used in 3.5 and 4th edition also seems far less essential, giving the game a less static feel.

With the reduction in feats, players have far less to remember, and combat flows a lot faster than in previous editions of the game. Those coming from a more wargaming and character building background may find proceedings here fairly light, but I found it far more conducive to quick player, while still encouraging players to gain the upper hand on enemies through intelligent play and thinking outside the box.

The removal of base-attack also gives every class the chance to contribute in a melee when forced to, whilst reducing the amount of addition and subtraction that needs to be done between rounds. Situational advantages and disadvantages are more likely to result in players or monsters being given combat advantage or disadvantage, rather than imposing numerical penalties of bonuses. While this can make combat fairly deadly, it is another excellent method of speeding combat.

Gone are the days of monsters with +20 to hit, and players with an armour class of 30-plus at tenth level. Almost everything can be hit by a first level character, it is just a matter of how hard he gets hit in return. Monsters and players are unlikely to ever have a to-hit bonus of more than +15, even at 20th level.

Spells:-

Spells work similarly to those in 3.5, spellcasters usually being required to have an 8 hour rest period before regaining any spent spells. The theme of simplification is clearly in evidence here as well, spells that previously granted bonuses to abilities and statistics now mostly provide advantage or disadvantage on checks. Cantrips and low level spells can now be cast at higher levels, rendering them useful once more, rather than being largely ignored as in previous versions of the game. Cantrips are 0-level spells, and can now be cast at will, without need for rest or recuperation. This gives wizard and sorcerer both something to contribute, even when their more potent spells have run dry.

Another notable change is the removal of various levels of cure wounds, now replaced with a single spell that can be scaled or prepared at various different levels. This frees the cleric to prepare far more interesting spells in his higher level slots. It also means bards and druids are far more viable as healers, particularly as bards now have access to 9th-level spell slots.

Instant-death spells have taken a hit, a trend that started with Pathfinder, where save-or-die spells were replaced with save-or-take hideous amounts of damage. 5th edition follows this model, which is preferable to players and enemies alike having the ability to outright kill each other with one poor save.

Dungeons & Dragons 5th edition takes the best of the various iterations of 'the world's greatest role-playing game' and brings D&D fully into the 21st century. Previous editions have been fairly inaccessible to new players, a mess of numbers that required patience and time to learn before the game could be enjoyed to it's fullest extent. 5th edition is truly easy to play, while still feeling like the same D&D we know and love. Those who are fans of Pathfinder may find the rules slightly light, but many of us crave simplicity. 5th edition allows veteran players to squeeze campaigns in around work and other social commitments, while still retaining that Dungeons & Dragons feel.

A definite return to form after the disappointment of 4th edition, and a welcome addition to my RPG collection.

[tomhjh]

Invisible Inc - thoughts on the Early Access

Please be aware that the following 'review' is merely my opinion on the current state of the game, pre-release. These views are subject to change as and when full release occurs.

Story and worldbuilding are given only minor consideration in Invisible Inc, and this seems to be the intention. You play as The Agency – a shadowy but (possibly?) altruistic organisation who are combating the “Corporation” (ok, originality may not be a strong-point either) by forcing entry to their various offices around the world, tazering any guards who happen to be on the night shift, looting every safe and hacking every server in the building, and then attempting to get escape before you are gunned down by the remaining security. As far as story goes, that's your lot, but of course that isn't really the point here, this is a game of wits and strategy, thinking several steps ahead in order to get away with as much corporate espionage as possible.

Movement in Invisible Inc. is grid-based, similar in style to X-Com, but perhaps more reminiscent of Shadowrun Returns, with movement and interactions with the environment taking up action points. When you come across computer servers, cameras and various other pieces of technology, you can hack into the building's computer system and de-activate or unlock them. This part of the game feels very light, visually it is again reminiscent of Shadowrun's matrix areas, all white lines and holographic representations. Unfortunately there is no ability to jack-in, no mini-game to complete, merely clicking on red boxes to disable the various systems. In more secure areas, you will find your hacking disrupted by computer viruses, but this side of the game does feel like an afterthought compared to the tense business rifling through corporate safes, dodging guards and sentry robots while your stun-weapon recharges. There is no ultimate objective in each building, the only goal is to obtain as much cash and perhaps some nebulous corporate information, and then hot-foot it to the elevator before you get collared by security.

The lack of any clear objectives to be achieved feels slightly odd, but there is a healthy amount of risk-reward involved in clearing each level. Staying around to explore the entire level may be beneficial, as more dollar means more ability to upgrade agents, making future missions that bit easier. Hang around too long, however, and the security level will creep up until the corporation begins spitting more guards at you, potentially cutting off escape routes. The security meter will tick down for each round you are crawling around the level, when it reaches level 4, extra security will begin spawning in. The reinforcements are often much swifter, tearing around the level at such a speed that escape begins to look impossible. One quirk with this system is that the exit elevator's location is never revealed to the player at the start of each level, if you want to escape and avoid the dreaded game-over, you will have to find the elevator first. This is slightly irritating, as you are forced to blindly stumble around the building, with security tracker ticking, not knowing where your eventual exit will be. If you are lucky enough to find said exit early, then it becomes much easier to balance risk and reward, looting a healthy amount of cash with less danger of being caught due to heightened security. Just as often you will explore an entire half of the level, loot an impressive amount of cash from the corporation, and then find yourself randomly opening locked doors in a desperate search for the exit.

The cash looted during missions can be used to purchase upgrades for your two-person infiltration team, allowing them to move further, pickpocket guards and hack terminals from further away, as well as various other minor buffs. It is also possible to unlock additional characters for use in your particular agency, although only two of the four available at present can be used during each run through. Each character has a special ability, be it opening secure doors without obtaining a pass card, hacking terminals from several squares away, or having more action points. It's always nice unlocking bits and pieces in single player games, and everything on offer presents a different way to play the game. Hopefully after full release, the amount of unlock-able items and characters will increase, as I seem to have everything on off after only a few extremely brief attempts at completing the game.

Combat is present in Invisible Inc, but merely as a tool to help you along the way, fighting your way through any of the levels I played never felt a realistic possibility. You are able to render any un-armoured guards temporarily unconscious with your neural disruptor, but tougher enemies are impervious to your non-lethal weaponry. Some levels will have terminals that can be hacked, allowing you to purchase pistols and other lethal weaponry. One of the unlock-able characters also starts with a rifle, but ammunition is always at a premium and the sheer number of guards in the more guarded buildings means fighting is rarely a viable option beyond the earlier levels. This is unequivocally a stealth game, and besides, murdering security guards left right and centre would seem rather out of kilter with the charming cartoon style of the game.

The opening levels in Invisible Inc provide a reasonable challenge, but are solved quickly enough, three or four missions in, however, and the difficulty curve becomes a difficulty cliff. After completing two or three fairly easy levels, you will quickly find yourself tasked with infiltrating offices that seem more like fortresses than corporate buildings, replete with laser fences, sentry turrets, and machine-gun wielding soldiers. Despite the difficulty, the game never feels explicitly unfair to the player, when I put some time into experimenting with the various pieces of equipment available to me, I was able to get out of some seemingly impossible scrapes.

I have some misgivings about the decision to make the game rogue-like in nature, this may be personal opinion, but with a slower paced game like Invisible Inc, some element of story is needed in order for me to become invested in completing the game. Spending hour upon hour desperately dodging angry security guards has the potential to become tiresome fairly quickly. This is a small issue though, the game is enough fun that most players should get more than their moneys worth for the relatively small price.As previously mentioned, the matrix-inspired hacking element of the game is poorly implemented, feeling to me like an additional chore, without any real test of the gamer's intelligence.

Despite these minor criticisms, Invisible Inc is an fine game, one of the best stealth based games I have played in the past year or two. It knows where its strengths lie, and makes excellent use of its grid system, encouraging a great deal of concentration and forethought from the player. I look forward to the full release.

[tomhjh]

Online Gaming, It's dead to me.

When I started gaming in the early 2000's it was largely a release, an escape from the pressures of school, exams and awkward social interactions. It was a place where I could meet like-minded people, play games, have fun without leaving my bedroom. I wasn't exactly anti-social at that age, but it was far easier to go play a game of counter-strike than do anything productive. Competitive gaming at that point were underground, it a counter-culture, and while I was never particularly good at it, I was good enough to be a part of a healthy competitive gaming scene. At the time I would have defended online gaming and its benefits tirelessly, It was my hobby and I loved it.

Oh how times have changed, I can barely load a game of DoTA 2 or Counter-strike without a feeling of malaise and apathy instantly overtaking me. Multi-player online gaming now leaves me cold, unable to fulfil my desires any longer.

The reasons for this shift in attitudes are legion, but the predominant one is the lack of positivity and friendliness in the online gaming community. Sure there are some great people out there, who are amiable and funny and I'm sure I would get on with. The problem is, as people play more and get better at a game, their level of contempt for others increases. I sympathise with some of these angry people, I got to a level with first-person shooters in particular, that meant new players, who lacked any discernible skill, would send me into an internal rage. I, for the most part, have the self control and general tact not to immediately insult the parentage of said players, something half the internet seems to exist. This poisonous atmosphere is so evident at all levels of these games that they just aren't fun to play any more. Even DoTA 2, a beautiful game with some of the deepest combat and meta I have ever seen, is plagued with abusive morons who make the whole experience dreadful for everyone involved.

There is no fix to this problem, give humans any degree of anonymity and a large minority (predominantly adolescent males) will immediately resort to juvenile behaviour in a vain attempt to assert authority. I'm sure this has always been the case, but with the increased number of gamers now playing, coupled with my decreasing tolerance for such behaviour, I can no longer spend more than 10 minutes in any such game without disabling the in-game chat system in a vain attempt to prolong my play.

It's a shame, some of these games I really do enjoy - DotA 2 is one of the finest games I have ever played (even if I am terrible at it) and Counter-strike still has a place in my heart - I just cant put up with people any more. Instead I have found a new love, tabletop gaming. Role-playing games have been part of my life for many years, and I have had endless fun with many different friends adventuring through many fantastic worlds using the power of our imaginations. I have now discovered X-wing and other boardgames, the ingenuity, art and design in this field is so incredible that I feel I am missing little in being driven from multi-player gaming.

I guess I have realised that it's far more fulfilling to sit in a room full of friends with whom you can talk, laugh and play. Online gaming is an escape, but for the most part it is nothing more. It lacks the depth, the laughs, the social interaction of an evening spent with actual people. Couple this with the fact that someone across the table is far less likely to call into question your parentage and unleash a torrent of abuse at you, and you can see why the tabletop hobby scene is a far more attractive prospect.

[tomhjh]

Cannot wait for the next album

[tomhjh]

I'm going to have to eat every fucking chicken in this room

Sandor Clegane.

[tomhjh]

A Song of Ice and Fire - Game of Thrones Edition Review

A Song of Ice and Fire has spawned a couple of tabletop role-playing games, both released before the television adaptation shot George R.R. Martin's creation to global fame. The first attempt was produced by a little-known company named Guardians of Order and published by well-known rpg publisher White Wolf Games. By all accounts this was a fairly straightforward d20 system game (although a version compatible with the Tri-Stat dX rules was also released), and won a silver Ennie in 2006. Critical acclaim was, however, unable to save Guardians of Order, and the company soon folded.

Gallant Ser Martin wasn't about to let the gaming world suffer for Guardian's misfortune and quickly set about re-obtaining intellectual property rights and handing them over to Green Ronin games, now famous for their well received RPG based on the Dragon Age computer games.

I first purchased the first edition of Green Ronin's rpg in 2012, but ongoing struggles to complete City of the Spider Queen (a struggle finally completed after almost 3 years), as well as a series of long running Edge of the Empire campaigns somewhat delayed any attempt to get stuck in to it's meaty rules. I must admit I was filled with a certain amount of excitement at running adventures in such a rich world of treachery, brutality and deceit.

It is somewhat of a shame, therefore, to report that Green Ronin's effort is incredibly frustrating to GM. It started well enough, creating a player house filled an entire session on its own and not once did It feel a chore. Over the course of our first three hours of play, House Shale was created, its history one of lost riches and mad lords, misfortune and war. The history of your own house generates statistical penalties and bonuses that affect the fortunes of its current members. Your lands also receive statistical advantages and drawbacks depending on location – for example, the wild north is sparsely populated and lawless but land is plentiful, while the reach is verdant and green but its lands harder to defend. You may then invest in terrain features and buildings that provide defensive bonuses and benefits to your indentured peasants. Several pages are devoted to heraldry, from rampant badgers to griffins regardant and bends sinister, its all there in full colour. This section of the game really is excellent and grounds the players in the world, automatically they begin to care for their own lands, proud to fight under the banner of their house's silver dolphin.

Player creation is also well done, I particularly like the way younger characters start with less experience to invest, and can master fewer skills, where as the older members of the player's house will start with a great deal more skill – reflecting their years of experience. Those that choose to be middle aged will begin to suffer penalties to their physical scores, showing wear and tear picked up in countless battles and adventures. Destiny points are also affected by age, they offer characters the ability to increase the likelihood of success when making skill checks, to hamper opponents, gain new abilities or save themselves from certain death. Younger players receive more destiny points, reflecting their potential for greatness and giving them a cushion against the myriad dangers of Westeros, older characters are grizzled veterans who have been kept alive by luck and skill and so they receive far fewer destiny point. Skills are purchased with starting xp, and enhanced with specializations that allow bonus dice to be rolled. All rolls are made from a pool of d6 dice, for example a character who is fighting with a longsword may have a fighting ability of 4, he would roll 4d6. If he then invested xp in training with long blades, he may roll a number of bonus dice equal to his level of training. A character who has one level of training in long blades would therefore roll 5d6 and drop the lowest die, all skills are dealt with in this fashion.

Combat is suitably brutal, most combat encounters rarely lasted more than 4 rounds, armour generally providing damage reduction but at the cost of agility and the ability to evade hits. Oddly, it often felt that those who were heavily armoured were more susceptible to critical hits (doubling the opponents defence with your attack roll and rolling at least one six). Intrigues (social encounters) are run in a very similar way to combat situations, this does lead to tense encounters for the more diplomatically inclined, but can feel like a chore at times. Characters with a more diplomatic leaning are too often sidelined in tabletop rpgs, and this game does its best to rectify this situation by making social interaction an encounter, and assigning rules such as initiative and hit points (these are represented in-game by Status and Composure). Unfortunately these encounters tend to turn in to awful slogs with players quickly running out of snappy comments and trading weaker and weaker barbs, before throwing dice around in an attempt to force resolution.

The issues with combat and intrigue are not entirely insurmountable and indeed some groups may enjoy the slower pace of play that they provide. What really kills any enjoyment of any such situation is the layout of the rulebook. The combat section lists the various actions that can be taken, but the advanced combat section, which provides extra actions for combatants, is listed several pages later and after another section that explains jousting and tournament combat. It is these odd decisions with the layout of the book and various tables within that really irritated me as a games master. I spent far more time engrossed in the index of the book and inspecting the minutiae of the rules than I am comfortable with, complex rules are fine, but they must be well laid out and explained in a clear manner, I do not feel that is the case with this game.

In conclusion, I find it hard to recommend A Song of Ice and Fire role-playing game. Its relative complexity and poor layout and design will put off new players, and it doesn't have enough in the way of creativity to entice veterans. Having said all this, the game is by no means a dismal failure and has some genuinely good ideas, as well as some interesting sections on heraldry that I would be more than willing extract and use in various other systems. I would also point out that both players seemed to have a lot more fun than I did, but I would argue that is more due to the fantastically rich world that George R.R. Martin has created, rather than these rules being particularly well written. It is a shame that what potential there is for an rpg classic has yet to be realised in the way that other intellectual properties such as star wars have in recent years. I may be forced to get hold of the Dragon Age rpg and see if the lessons learned in this game have been refined in those rules.

It would seem that Green Ronin are no longer creating fresh content for this game, I for one hope another company takes up the reigns before too long, for there is certainly adventure to be had in the Seven Kingdoms. Heres hoping one of the big boys (most likely Fantasy Flight) gets hold of the license and puts something fantastic out for the multitude of new fans of the tv series and novels to get their teeth into. A well made rpg in this setting has the potential to bring hordes of new players into the role-playing market, and that can only be a good thing for the industry and the community as a whole.

Keep an eye on our blog, as we intend to put out some form of podcast to really discuss in depth out thoughts on the game, and get the perspective of the two players involved as well as delving deeper into my own thoughts on running games with this particular system.

[tomhjh]

Edge of the Empire - A Review

Star Wars RPGs have always had an oddly small player-base, West End Games produced a d6 based game in the 80s that rode high on the then burgeoning role-playing scene carved out by the success of Dungeons and Dragons, but since the demise of that particular game all we have had is two moderately well supported but fairly unpopular efforts from Wizards of the Coast. Thankfully, things have changed. Last year I purchased the starter set of Fantasy Flight Games' new Star Wars RPG (ok, not brand spanking new), Edge of the Empire. Since then I have had the pleasure of playing a weekly game and immersing myself in the rich Star Wars universe, adding the core rule book along the way. The game is a real pick up and play RPG, far less intimidating than the previous efforts from Wizards, players are blasting off into hyperspace and make their fortune in mere minutes. The production levels are - as you would expect from FFG - quite fantastic. Artwork and layout are exquisite (a sharp improvement on the recycled artwork and lazy design of the various Wizards of the Coast efforts) and all the products have a real quality to them that can be lacking from tabletop role-playing games.

By now most of the RPG playing world is familiar with FFG's dice mechanic for their series of Star Wars games, players build a pool of dice depending on their skill, natural ability, and any situational or atmospheric bonuses and penalties. Success and failure is signified by the various symbols on the dice rolled, the system makes it possible to pass a check while still suffering some slight setback, or fail miserably but still gain some potential benefit. In theory it is a fantastic idea, and works best when players play fast and loose with the rules, adding their two pennies to every encounter and riffing with the games master in order to create fast paced and epic encounters. This works perfectly if all the players are theatrical and in tune with each other as well as the GM, but it is rare for this to be the case for an entire evening, let alone multiple sessions. When running the game as a GM, I often felt pressured to find a way to explain every combination of success, failure, despair and triumph results. This quickly becomes a burden on the GM, as players will naturally want to see their successes rewarded at every turn, even if the check involved is something as mundane as picking a lock or climbing a wall. The rule book does provide some default benefits for rolling a certain amount of advantage, as well as suggested penalties for rolling threat, the problem with this is that it removes the one thing that makes the game special – these dice pools contributing directly to the storytelling. There are of course going to be be some groups who are able to keep improvising on the fly, but I would suggest they are in the minority.

Character classes are fairly standard, each base class branches off into three distinct talent trees, for example the Bounty Hunter can be a technology-obsessed Gadgeteer, a brutal Assassin, or a hardened Survivalist. The other base classes – Colonist, Explorer, Hired Gun, Smuggler and Technician also have a varied choice of paths to take, each with flavourful and useful talents. Expansion books have also added various extra specializations for some of these classes to choose. Players can mix and match from the three specializations within their class, but each additional specialization will cost a hefty chunk of xp. Multi-classing is possible - a Doctor-Assassin could find good synergy between his knowledge of pressure points and his propensity for extreme violence for example – but choosing a speciality outside of your base class comes with an even heavier experience cost. There aren't a great deal of exciting talents and abilities, but each specialization is well rounded and thought out, and players will have fun picking talents with good synergy.

Of the various other mechanics, obligation is perhaps my favourite. Players may start play owing a crime-lord a great debt, having betrayed or been betrayed by a third party, having a family responsibility to take care of, the list goes on. This obligation is represented by a number between 1 and 100, and during each session the DM rolls d100 to check if the obligation comes back to haunt the players, this could lead to encounters with bounty hunters, angry creditors or spurned lovers or a myriad of other problems. This really enhances the various player's back stories, and deepens their involvement in the setting. The only downside to this system is that it also heaps another load of pressure on the GM in order to come up with story hooks that fit around a plot without de-railing an entire adventure. Thankfully for players and games masters alike, this obligation can be reduced with the liberal application of credits, or investing time and effort in solving each other's personal problems in any adventure down-time.

One rather large misgiving about the game would be the slightly woolly rules for space combat. Epic aerial duels are slightly confusing, a brief chase sequence works well, but any protracted battle with multiple vessels quickly becomes a mess of baffling range bands (close, medium, long?) which left my players irritated rather than involved. This problem could be related to our past experiences with role-playing games – we have always played games that translate well to grid based combat. Saga Edition (Wizards last attempt at a Star Wars RPG, and, incidentally, the best version of a 3.5 system I have played outside of Pathfinder) was particularly reliant on grids and numbers, which can feel onerous but also lend a great deal of clarity to proceedings – everyone knows where they are, where the enemy is, who they can shoot and how fast their enemies are moving. A lot of the time the space battles in Edge of the Empire seem to descend into confusion and frustration fairly quickly. One of my players was also fairly annoyed that his pilot skill had no meaningful effect in most dogfights, while there are a few actions that pilots can perform in order to give slight bonuses on attack and defence, it seems this section has been skimped on considerably. The problems with space combat are present in ground battles, but a small map and some good description pretty much eliminates the problem at this level – it is much easier to visualise a shoot-out in an abandoned warehouse than a high speed starship furball in the vast expanse of space, involving ships of varying speeds and agility.

Our group has also obtained several of the source books, all of them are similarly pretty, well laid out and useful to player and GM alike. FFG have really committed to Star Wars and can only be commended for their commitment to bettering the franchise. A real bonus for games masters is the fact that they are producing adventures for the game, a great time-saver for the working GM. To me this is key to the success of the modern RPG, while there are those of us out there who will slavishly craft out a long involved story-line for their players to get involved with, an equally large amount of groups simply do not have the time. FFG, like Paizo with Pathfinder, seem aware of this, with two full-length adventures already published. Age of Rebellion has also recently been released, and while I have only skim-read the new rulebook, the rules are very similar, the main difference being game geared towards those who want to be directly involved in the galactic civil war. Rebellion also provides expanded rules for budding Jedi, with more advanced talent trees for force-users. Both games are compatible with each and characters from the grittier side of the Star Wars universe could easily become involved with the rebellion or vice-versa.

Despite the few issues I have with Edge of the Empire, I do recommend it to all gamers, it is a very good entry-level RPG with clearly explained rules that shouldn't frighten new players but has plenty to offer veteran gamers, particularly those who prefer a focus on group interaction and role-playing rather than pure combat. Whether purchasing Age of Rebellion or Edge of the Empire, I can almost guarantee a good few months (at the very least) of fun for any role-players.

[tomhjh]

In Praise of DotA 2

I first came to play DotA at the back end of 2012, when a gaming friend of mine gave me a spare key for the beta. While I was no stranger to competitive PC gaming (I had played Counter-Strike:Source for a team sponsored by Ebuyer, and travelled to various tournaments - with varied results), I had never played a multi-player online battle arena (commonly known as a MOBA) game before. The concept of a MOBA is quite insane to the uninitiated, and incredibly difficult to explain to newcomers, when the friend who provided me with the key first starting blathering on about last-hits, jungling, hard carry, support players and Roshans I must admit I began to lapse into a jargon-induced coma. I will refrain from going to deep into the rules, roles and strategies of DotA 2, I am not qualified to do so, and that is not the intention of this piece. My aim is to spread the word of DotA 2 to the masses, to testify to the beauty of this expertly honed masterpiece of multiplayer game design and balance. At its very highest level players show a deftness of touch, timing and audacious skill that is a wonder to behold. But even at its lowest levels, this game can be great fun and provide endless entertainment. Yes, DotA 2 has a learning curve so steep that a few poor souls will risk falling away before they reach true enlightenment, I can only offer one piece of advice to you - persist!

Part of the enjoyment of any game comes from learning how to play, and seeing marked improvement from day-to-day, DotA 2 can provide this experience in absolute spades. The match-making system is incredibly robust and should generally place you with players of an equivalent skill level, rarely have I played a game where the opposition have felt unbeatable, and usually if I do lose It is immediately obvious why (usually my own incompetence). Players may queue to play solo, but the true fun comes when playing with friends, it is obviously possible to make new buddies in the match-making system, but learning together with people you know and picking up the intricacies of the game together is a far more enjoyable way to play. It is far easier to play with people you are comfortable with than brave the angry hate-filled realms of the internet alone. It is true that competitive games have a habit of bringing out the worst in people, I have no doubt at some point you will be told via the in-game chat to delete DotA 2 by an anonymous seething ball of teenage angst – don't be put off. The abuse behaviour of an internet stranger should not stop anyone enjoying a game of this quality. DotA 2 is like any great gaming experience, it should be open to all, regardless of whether they are any good at it, and to miss out on an title such as this this because of a few abusive fools would be a desperate shame.

The full release is now much more user friendly, with tutorials and videos explaining the ins and outs of every character, and the gold-mine that is Youtube absolutely filled to the brim with videos that will get anyone landing their ice-paths and black holes in double quick time. The first thing new players will notice is the sense of humour this game has, considering that the game player is incredibly deep and tactical, wonderful voices and sound effects are provided for all the ninety-plus characters, some of which had me chuckling at my screen like a maniac when I first heard them. Certain characters, for example Tide-hunter and Kunkka, will begin belittling one-another due to a shared back-story. Little touches like this really bring a new player in to the world, you quickly pick up favourite characters just as much for their personality as for their abilities. Re-playability is ensured with regular updates, fixes and balancing patches, as well as the constant addition of new heroes. Even at the professional level, new combinations of heroes are always on show as old favourites are nerfed and lesser used heroes buffed.

The popularity of DotA 2 in the Asian market is staggering, crowds can fill entire arenas and particularly in China - where the following is gigantic – professional players are often mobbed by their fans. To understand why this game is so popular, play it. Whether you aspire to compete at The International, or just want a few hours of fun with four friends, this is essential gaming. Whatever time you invest I virtually guarantee you will not regret it.

Anyway, I haven't played for a few months, no doubt there a plethora of new heroes to play, I'm off to punch Roshan in the face – I expect to see you in my lane, rookie.