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Shadowplans - Tileset 1
Publisher: Shadowplans
by Rudy C. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 11/30/2022 02:52:35

Shadowrun GM here, purchased this in order to make a few maps for my campaign. I use Roll20 VTT and thought this would be a good pack. Well, I quickly found out that the tile sizes are very inconsistent and have lots of "dead space" (no relation to the videogame lol), so it's difficult to just "drag & drop" into Roll20. The product description says you can use GIMP/Photoshop to build maps and upload to VTTs, however I haven't done so as I was hoping I could just upload the pieces individually to Roll20.

Aside from that gripe, the tiles themselves are pretty neat. Just hope the author makes them more compatible w/ Roll20 in the future.



Rating:
[3 of 5 Stars!]
Shadowplans - Tileset 1
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Swords & Six-Siders Expanded Edition
Publisher: Precis Intermedia
by Rudy C. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 02/26/2021 16:08:41

Swords & Six Siders is a very simple "rules light" RPG meant to evoke an experience similar to the very first RPG (fans of OSR will know which one I'm talking about). The game uses a single d6 die to resolve everything and is incredibly easy to learn. Don't let the simplicity fool you, there's still a very solid and fun gaming experience to be had. Character generation takes literally minutes (I'm not exaggerating, the time it takes you to roll up stats, pick a race & class, and choose a name, some weapons, armor, misc. gear, and spells is about 5-6 minutes). Characters start at level 1 and can advance up to 6th level, however there are rules that allow for progression beyond that point should everyone wish to continue using their characters. In the grand tradition of OSR, you'll find combat to be very fast yet deadly (even for higher level characters). Enemies are represented with a single stat which encompases things like how hard they are to hit in combat (their "armor class" if you will), and how many hit points they have. You'll find all the "classic" enemies like orcs, goblins, hobgoblins, skeletons, and dragons, along with high tech enemies like robots. If it's not immediately obvious, this game is very rules light, so players (and GMs) that want more "crunch" to the rules might want to look at slightly more crunchy rules-light systems like Sharp Swords & Sinister Spells. For the price of a cheap pizza you & your friends will find a nice enjoyable game to play either in-between campaigns or as a nice change of pace. Highly recommended!



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
Swords & Six-Siders Expanded Edition
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Dungeon Delving Brown Box Edition (Tablet-Digest)
Publisher: RetroRoleplaying
by Rudy C. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 02/18/2021 17:17:18

Overview: Dungeon Delving: Brown Box Edition (DD:BBE from here on out) is easily the best OD&D retroclone I've seen so far. The author compiled the 3 core booklets (Men & Magic, Underworld & Wilderness Adventures, Monsters & Treasure) into one single tome along with some of the additional classes (Thieves!) that came out in the later OD&D booklets. The writer clearly tried to maintain the same writing style & prose that Gygax used which is a very nice homage to one of the creators of our beloved hobby. I honestly forgot for a little while that this WASN'T written by Gary Gygax which really says something. Also, as would be expected, all the references to D&D's predecessor, the tabletop wargame known as Chainmail, have been scrubbed and removed. While this isn't new or innovative, it's nice to essentially have an edition of OD&D that plays almost like Gygax's original game without the inclusion of awkward wargame rules mixed with a tabletop RPG. You won't find drawings of topless Amazonian women here, but then again this isn't the 70s lol.

Heroes & Magic: This section is devoted to the player characters. It goes over character creation starting with the classic "roll 3d6 in order" for attributes. The "holy trinity" of cleric, fighter, and magic-user classes are all present, as well as an optional thief class (which honestly only die-hard grognards would view them as "optional"). I did notice one departure right away with the Thief class: rather than use clunky percentile dice to determine chances of success when it comes to sneaking, disarming traps, picking locks etc, in this game thieves use a d6 to determine success. Personally I really like that change, however some people might prefer the percentile dice system. The next chapters deal with NPCs (hirelings, mercenaries, retainers, hiring monsters) as well as reaction/morality checks, and equipment. Finally, the section ends with a chapter about Magic. Here you'll find descriptions for both arcane & divine magic spells. Clerics can cast up to 5th level spells and Magic-users up to 6th level, also some spells are reversible (i.e. cure light wounds is reversed to cause light wounds). The author has taken great pains to research and clarify each and every spell, so there won't be any confusion as to the range/duration etc. of a given spell like there was with some spells in OD&D (looking at you, Charm Person!). True to form, the author includes only the spells present in the original Men & Magic booklet, so your spellcasters won't be casting magic missile to attack the darkness unless the GM decides otherwise.

Delving & Exploration: This section is devoted to the GM, and has details regarding how to set up and populate their world along with creating dungeon or wilderness adventures just as Gygax himself would've recommended. There's even a small section devoted to angry peasants that will eventually fight back against tyrannical/vicious player characters if pushed too far. The Combat chapter deserves special mention, careful attention and detail was given to the attack tables. The OD&D booklet basically gave you exactly -ONE- attack matrix for fighters and said "if you're a cleric, then from levels 1-4 you attack as a 1st level fighter, levels 5-8 as a 2nd level fighter, and so on". It was confusing and clunky to use, fortunately in DD:BBE the author kindly gives each class its own listing so there's no confusion at all as to what a 5th level cleric needs to roll to hit an orc wearing scale mail. Damage inflicted is still 1d6 for all weapons, although fighters with a Strength of 15+ deal an extra point of damage. You'll also see options for parrying or blocking with a shield (read: you can allow your shield to be shattered in exchange for it absorbing all the damage from an attack) which is a welcome touch. The section is rounded out with chapters detailing mounted combat (jousting!), wilderness exploration, seafaring, aerial exploration (for when players inevitably acquire the ability to fly), and a Campaign chapter which deals with specialist hirelings (alchemists, assassins, etc), mass combat, strongholds, enchanting magical items, legendary artifacts, and planes/other worlds.

Monsters & Treasure: The third section of the book deals with...you guessed it, monsters and their teasure hordes. Monsters along with their combat statistics are presented in a single line as part of a long table like in the original booklets, with a more detailed individual monster description given afterwards. You'll also find entries for several high-tech enemies such as Androids, Cyborgs, and Robots, just in case your group gets tired of fighting "classic" fantasy monsters like orcs, goblins, and dragons. Treasure is handled via an alphabetically arranged table, although the A rank treasure table is subdivided into A1, A2, and A3. There are tables for gems & jewels, along with magic item tables, and treasure map tables. The section ends with a description of magical items/weapons/armor.

Optional Rules: This is perhaps the best part of the book, and in my opinion is worth its weight in gold. The author has clearly been playing OD&D for a very long time, and have compiled a list of houserules to enhance DD:BBE. "Wait a minute, why should I pay money for some person's houserules?!", you ask? Honestly, because they're VERY GOOD houserules (not to mention all the hours that went into compiling and editing the book, but I digress). They've clearly been playtested over many decades and honestly feel like something that Gygax himself would've incorporated into his own personal campaigns. I won't list them all but I'll delve more into some of the more notable ones below.

  • Advantages/Disadvantages. No this isn't like D&D 5E where you roll twice and keep the best/worst result lol. This optional rule allows players to further differentiate their characters by having either a minor boon or hindrance. For example, one fighter could be ambidextrous, while another could have a severe phobia of heights. An advantage deducts the amount of XP a character receives, anywhere from 5% up to 25%, while a disadvantage adds extra XP in a smilliar range depending on the severity of the disadvantage.
  • Allegiances. This optional rule allows characters to declare an allegiance to a person/group, nation, organization, belief system or philosophy, or only to themselves (renegades, free spirits, etc). Any time a player interacts with someone of the same allegiance they gain a bonus to their Charisma checks and/or reaction rolls etc, meanwhile interacting with someone of a hostile allegiance (two nations at war, for example) would suffer a penalty when interacting with someone of an opposite allegiance.
  • Alternative Advancement. Rather than track raw XP, players instead level up based on the number of adventures they complete. While not a new or ground-breaking idea, its still a nice option to have for those that prefer not to tally individual XP.
  • Alternative Attributes. Here you'll see options beyond the standard "roll 3d6 in order", such as the ever popular "roll 4d6 drop lowest and arrange to taste".
  • Backgrounds and Talents. Basically this is as close as you'll see to a skill system in this game. Characters are allowed to define something that they're "good at" that fits with their background, such as a fighter with blacksmith skills, or a spoony bard that really knows how to charm the ladies.
  • Class Special Abilities. These are minor additional abilities that enhance the base classes. For example, clerics can utter a minor healing prayer and sacrifice 1 HP in order to heal an ally 1d3 HP outside of combat, or fighters can choose to make a cleave attack (free attack on an adjacent enemy if the first enemy is felled with an attack). These are minor boosts to the classes that aren't overpowered and honestly really fit the classes' themes nicely. What I really like is that these abilities help keep the fighter class useful at later levels when clerics & magic-users tend to dominate the game and fighters are relegated to being "bullet sponges" during combat.
  • Variant Classes. Here you'll find the Ranger, Druid, Acrobat, Cavalier, etc. that were released in subsequent OD&D booklets.

The rest of this section is rounded out with a few other tweaks/options, such as a Hit/Wound Point system (if that's your cup of tea), a Psionics system, and a treatise on the different styles of gaming (Power gaming, War-gaming, Roleplaying, Storytelling, etc).

Appendices: There's a few appendices at the back of the book with some additional sage advice for GMs. There's also a nice discussion about running games for smaller parties, as well as rules for solo adventures. This to me is amazing because like many people there are times where it's difficult to get a group together so being able to run a game alone your only option other than just not playing at all. The author even presents some solo rules from Scarlet Heroes, which if you've never used before, work really, really well for old school solo games or small parties.

Conclusion: You're getting a lot of value from this product. In one single volume you'll get everything you need for years of OD&D campaigns. $10 is a ridiculously cheap price when you consider that buying the individual PDFs of the original D&D game will set you back around $20 for the 3 core booklets plus Greyhawk (which has the thief class), however even then you'll still have to contend with the wonky references to Chainmail (trust me, it can get a bit confusing). Can't wait to run a game with this!



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
Dungeon Delving Brown Box Edition (Tablet-Digest)
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Scarlet Heroes
Publisher: Sine Nomine Publishing
by Rudy C. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 01/21/2020 22:58:59

Amazing product, absolutely love the great ideas the author puts forth. You can run solo games or with a full group. The default setting is interesting (think Jade Empire meets Old School D&D), however it's not required and you're free to use your own setting or one already published. Have to say this game definitely rates as one of my favorites amongst the old school RPG systems.



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
Scarlet Heroes
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The GameMaster's Apprentice: Fantasy Deck
Publisher: Larcenous Designs, LLC
by Rudy C. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 07/19/2019 11:49:24

Brought my GM Apprentice deck to a game that my friend is running, used the cards in lieu of dice (didn't use them for anything else as I obviously wasn't playing a solo game). Had an epic moment where we were fighting the Big Bad Evil Guy and I stood up and said "I believe in the heart of the cards!" and legit drew a natural 20 on my attack roll. Scored a critical hit and sent the BBEG's soul to the Shadow Realm. Lookout Seto Kaiba, here I come! 10/10 would draw another crit again.



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
The GameMaster's Apprentice: Fantasy Deck
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Cyberpunk GenIsys
Publisher: GenIsys Games
by Rudy C. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 07/16/2019 02:05:10

I wanted to like this product, I really did, however it was a big let down. The reasons why I can't recommend it are as follows:

  1. Grammar errors. This book is plagued with grammar errors that could've and should've been caught with a simple editorial review of the book. It's one thing to have an error or two, even the big publishers like Wizards of the Coast will have a misspelled word or three. However Cyberpunk GenIsys is FILLED with errors. I quit counting after the 10th error and that was just within the first couple chapters. Seriously, this product needs a thorough review and grammar errors fixed.

  2. Sloppy editing. As if the grammar errors weren't enough, CP GenIsys suffers from very poor editing. Allow me to give you an example:

“Hey Jackie, how is it hangin?”. “Fine, Shida, Naran’s patrolling the neighborhood you know?” Shida giggles and says, “So!” Jack shrugs and says we need to come together on this. She smiles with a wry smile and says, “on what Jackie?” Jack with irritation, seems about to say something but thenmotions her to step closer. Jack’s hand shoots out picking Shida by the throat and pinning her againstthe light pole with her feet 2’ above the ground. Shida tries to react, but Jack’s cyber grip is sure to break her neck as it tightens its grip on her. “Look girly, I have no wish to draw you the Ace of Spades tonight, but I don’t want to play games.” He lets her go and she drops to the ground rubbing her neck and her Jander is now gone. “Sorry Jack, here is the data crystal, what’s on it?”

Yes, this is an actual paragraph taken straight from the book. Seriously, it reads like a foreign middle school kid wrote it after watching a marathon of action movies. It's just plain awful. CP GenIsys tries WAY too hard to be Cyberpunk 2020. I get that the author was going for, well, Cyber Punk, however this feels like the author just copy-pasta'd CP 2020 and changed up just enough things to claim it was distinct from the original product. The author also makes the mistake of assuming you know about certain elements before actually explaining them. For example, the author refers to Razors several times before explaining that Razors are player characters.

Final Verdict: I tried my best to be objective and like this game, however between all the glaring errors there really isn't anything that redeems CP GenIsys. If you're wanting something to scratch the itch for cyber punk genre, you're better off sticking with the superior Cyberpunk 2020 or even looking at Shadowrun.



Rating:
[1 of 5 Stars!]
Cyberpunk GenIsys
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Return of the Lazy Dungeon Master
Publisher: SlyFlourish
by Rudy C. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 07/16/2019 01:58:27

WARNING: Do NOT buy this product if you enjoy spending long arduous hours writing up campaign materials that your players will inevitably destroy when they go full murder hobo or deviate from your planning.

Ok, jokes aside this is a great product and definitely a must-own for Dungeon Masters/GMs alike, even if you're not playing "The 5th Edition of the World's Greatest RPG". This product has advice for whatever game you're playing, even if it is My Little Ponies RPG (I'm not even joking, this product works with just about any RPG). I was able to run an entire old school D&D campaign (Rules Cyclopedia!) that lasted almost 18 months because of the superb advice given in RotLDM. The author really does a great job of distilling game prep down to just the bare minimum yet still allows for maximum fun, because let's be honest, fun is what we're looking for when we all meet around the (virtual) table each and every week. Other reviews here delve more into the content of the book so I'll spare you those details, but suffice it to say that the author implements some pretty creative solutions and game prep ideas that allow you to really optimize your time. The only downside (and it's not much of a downside) is that you also will want the RotLDM Workbook as well in order to keep things better organized. It's not at all a requirement, and in fact a few blank index cards is more than sufficient, however the workbook is definitely a nice-to-have.

So the big question: "Does Return of the Lazy DM actually work?" Let me put it to you this way: I was spending about 4+ hours carefully planning/crafting each gaming session, but after I got RotLDM I was able to shorten my game prep time to just 30 mins. You might be inclined to think that surely a game planned over 4 hours must be better than one hammered out in just 30 mins, but that couldn't be further away from the truth. All the advice given to us DMs (especially if you've read the awesome 1st Edition AD&D Dungeon Master's Guide) typically goes something like this: "Start with broad strokes and fill in the little details, more detail and thought is better." While that school of thought can certainly lead to some memorable campaigns (Gary Gygax had no issues running games like that), the modern person just doesn't have that much time to commit for game preparation, and being able to prepare a super fun and fleshed out game in just 30 mins is nothing short of a miracle. Seriously, I can't sing enough praises for RotLDM.

Are you still reading my review? Okay, I'll take this opportunity to list some of the other resources I use as well in order to run some super awesome and memorable games. Seriously though, RotLDM is worth every penny, and at just $8 USD it's practically a steal. Sacrifice a cup or two of Starbucks coffee if you must, but for sure buy this product! Disclaimer: I am not at all affiliated with the publisher and receive no compensation whatsoever from my review, I'm just a normal guy that really enjoys RotLDM and the fun times I have with my players.

What I use to run amazingly awesome games:

  • Return of the Lazy DM (obviously!)
  • Campaign Fronts as explained in Dungeon World (this handles my long term campaign planning)
  • 5 Room Dungeons (great resource for creating interesting dungeons/adventure sites)
  • Mythic GM Emulator (I make the occasional Fate Roll which leads to surprises & twists even for me)


Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
Return of the Lazy Dungeon Master
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OD&D Dungeons & Dragons Original Edition (0e)
Publisher: Wizards of the Coast
by Rudy C. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 02/17/2019 01:51:54

TL;DR: Old school D&D in it's full glory, exactly the way its creator (Gygax) played. Sacrifice those two cups of Starbucks coffee and pick this bundle up, you are in for a great time!

Full Review:

This is a PDF copy of what's referred to as the "white box" or "3 brown booklets" or "OD&D", the game that kicked off the entire D&D craze back in 1974. Nothing has been altered, these booklets have everything you and your friends need to begin playing D&D the way Gygax played. Contrary to popular belief, Gygax didn't really use the Advanced D&D rules that much. In fact, the final campaign he ran for his players before his death in 2008 was using these 3 booklets. You'll find strange conventions here, such as Fighting Men (fighters), constant references to the Chainmail ruleset (not required), and the fact that every player class uses a d6 for hit points and all weapons/monsters deal a d6 for damage on a hit. As strange as all this sounds, the rules are very workable and allow for truly amazing games of dungeon delving and exploration. No feats, no rules-lawyers arguing about X rule, just you & your character against a very deadly and hostile dungeon that will eat you alive if you're not careful. Fun times, can't recommend this enough!!



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
OD&D Dungeons & Dragons Original Edition (0e)
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Shadowrun: Fifth Edition Core Rulebook (Master Index Edition)
Publisher: Catalyst Game Labs
by Rudy C. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 02/05/2019 17:28:53

TL;DR: The latest iteration of the Shadowrun universe, and arguably the best edition to date. I honestly couldn't finish the book, much less convince my group to play it, simply because the sheer volume of rules was too much.

So I picked up SR 5th edition during a sale and was somewhat disappointed. Yes, the game is at its core the same as always. You'll build a fictional shadowrunner that can either sling spells, hack into the internet, pilot remote controlled drones, or straps chrome to their body in order to become more machine than (meta)human. Nothing has been changed other than an overhaul of the rules from previous editions. At the same time, I didn't like it. Why? For one, I've made three attempts to read this book, and every time my eyes glazed over. This beast of a tome clocks in at over 500 pages, most of which are rules for various one off scenarios. The rules strive way too hard to simulate reality in a world that's anything but reality. Worse, you end up having to do a lot of actual math on the fly. For example, in order to resolve a character firing a gun in a burst or full auto, you first must calculate the recoil compensation you possess (which is your Strength attribute divided by 3), then you have to calculate the recoil penalty (subtract the total amount of bullets fired from your recoil compensation), then if that result is a negative number, subtract it from your dice pool which is a number of dice equal to your Quickness + relevant gun skill, however the max number of successes you can roll is limited at all times by your weapon's quality rating of X. Crystal clear? Yeah, I didn't think so. This has the effect of bogging the game down at times while the GM has to flip through the rules because the players invariably thought of doing something the GM hadn't quite planned for or considered. It's one thing to want to have clear-cut rules in order to prevent arguments at the game table (heaven knows D&D 5e is guilty of leaving some things up to each and every DM), however it is possible to overdo it and have rules that feel more like the game actively fights you than wants to cooperate. For example, in order to determine if your character is able to take one final action before they fall unconscious or die (a dead man's trigger), you literally have to go through a 3 step checklist, and if you fail to meet any of those 3 requirements then tough luck, you don't get to have a really cool moment of dramatic sacrifice before you're down for the count. Everything you love about Shadowrun is still present in this version, it's just become mired in a set of rules that just seem to work against you telling the kinds of stories you want to tell. One wonders what the point of overhauling SR to 5th edition is if the rules become so bloated that its in need of yet another overhaul.

In summary, get this if you're a die hard fan of Shadowrun, or if you're a simulationist freak that demands their games have rules for every single possible eventuality. The rest of us should either stick to previous editions of the game, or even take a look at the superb Shadowrun Anarchy RPG.



Rating:
[3 of 5 Stars!]
Shadowrun: Fifth Edition Core Rulebook (Master Index Edition)
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Dark Dungeons
Publisher: Gurbintroll Games
by Rudy C. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 02/05/2019 16:32:46

Overall Dark Dungeons is a solid retro clone of the Rules Cyclopedia, although it's not 100% perfect (as with most retro clones). The author chose to incorporate a few of the optional rules in the RC and made them "canon", such as removing level caps for demihumans and allowing them to attain any level desired. The only offset to this is that a demihuman requires more XP to level up than a human. In all honesty this isn't that big of a deal breaker because let's be real, who used the level caps back in the day? Get Dark Dungeons if you want to play Rules Cyclopedia but refuse to pay the price-gougers on eBay.



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
Dark Dungeons
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Shadowrun: Anarchy
Publisher: Catalyst Game Labs
by Rudy C. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 02/05/2019 16:19:44

TL;DR: Shadowrun Anarchy is to Shadowrun 5th edition as Dungeon World is to D&D 5th edition. It's rules light and focuses more on the narrative and storytelling while still preserving everything that makes Shadowrun awesome, yet at the same time does have a couple flaws that fortunately aren't deal breakers (for most people anyways).

So I've been playing Shadowrun since 3rd edition was released back in the early 2000s, but after my gaming group grew up and we all went our separate ways (we were teenagers back then) I pretty much stopped paying attention to Shadowrun until just recently when I finally got around to playing SR Returns/Hong Kong/Dragonfall on Steam. I picked up this book and SR 5th edition on sale just to see what I'd been missing. Honestly, SR Anarchy is a pleasant surprise. For one, Anarchy trims down on a lot of the rules in order to focus more on the narrative and storytelling. Players (and GMs) will still roll pools of d6s to resolve various tests, and players have the option of creating cyberware-enhanced (meta)humans or magic users like usual. What really stood out to me was how organic and simple the game is while still retaining everything that made it cool. I've made no less than three (3) attempts to read through the actual SR 5th edition book, and my eyes glazed over every single time because the rules try way too hard to simulate reality (do you really need rules to detail exactly how much damage a rat or character is going to take if you drop them and a grenade into a small enclosed space? They're dead, end of story). With Anarchy, the rules are condensed and much easier to comprehend or teach to new players, which is a huge plus to me. Also, the rules give players a bit more control over the game through essentially plot points that can be used to make minor changes such as taking damage for another character or giving yourself a point of health or armor. In all honesty, if you're familiar with how Dungeon World plays, then you'll feel right at home with Anarchy. If you're wanting something with more rules and crunch, stick with SR 5th edition (good luck though, you'll be constantly trying to look up rules for situations such as how much reach a troll wielding a katana has over a human with a similar weapon and what benefits in combat this confers to the troll).

My only real gripe with Anarchy is that some things could be explained a bit better or in further detail. For example, the rules for creating Shadow Amps (those extra augmentations that give you an edge such as cyberware or magic spells) aren't 100% clearly explained and you're left either looking at the pre-gen characters to try and "reverse engineer" those things or looking at online forums for clarity. Once you get the idea behind how it works though, it's not too complicated to figure out or use. I did take off a star because of this though, the publisher could've put in a little more time and effort to really give Anarchy the polish it deserves before rushing it out the door. Another issue I had was regarding weapon ranges. Pistols by default are only good at short range and start getting penalties if used at medium and long range. The game defines short range as anything within melee range or at most a couple feet away, medium range is pretty much out to 100 feet, and long range is anything beyond that. So according to SR Anarchy, pistols are pretty much only useful in melee combat! This is easily remedied though by giving melee weapons and guns their own separate definitions of "range", such as defining "short range" for a pistol to be say anything 50 feet away or under etc. Still, some people will find this quite bizarre.

Overall, if you're like me and can't stand how overly complicated 5th edition Shadowrun is, or if you prefer more narrative-driven games and are okay with lighter rules that favor moving the story forward over rules crunch a la Dungeon World, then don't hesitate to get Anarchy, it's well worth the price!



Rating:
[4 of 5 Stars!]
Shadowrun: Anarchy
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Advanced Labyrinth Lord (Dragon Cover)
Publisher: Goblinoid Games
by Rudy C. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 12/29/2018 16:45:53

TL;DR: Advanced Labyrinth Lord is convenient and saves you the trouble of having to flip between the core rulebook and the Advanced Edition Companion book when running LL using the "advanced" rules. There's nothing new content-wise, Goblinoid Games is selling you LL + AEC condensed into one book which is a little disappointing.

Full Review: Advanced Labyrinth Lord is basically just the core Labyrinth Lord and Advanced Edition Companion rulebooks mashed into one single, easy-to-use tome. Honestly I can't help but wonder why Goblinoid didn't publish the game in this format to begin with instead of separating them into two different books. Or at least include the essential rules such as exploration, monster stats, and combat tables etc within the AEC so people didn't have to switch between the two books in order to play an "advanced" game of LL. I'm sure looking back Goblinoid Games realized that people would've much rather preferred to have just one book "to rule them all" which is why we got Advanced Labyrinth Lord.

As for new content, you won't find anything in Advanced Labyrinth Lord that isn't already present in LL or the AEC, and honestly I was a little disappointed which is why I took off a star. If you already own LL + AEC (which are free to download here on DTRPG) then you aren't getting anything new, just the convenience of not having to jump between two books when running an "advanced" game of LL. I felt like there could've been SOMETHING new that they could've added to make purchasing this book more worthwhile, such as maybe a few new classes (Barbarian and Sorcerer anyone?) or maybe some new player races/monsters/magic items etc. Instead, Advanced Labyrinth Lord's main selling point is just the convenience of having everything you need in a single book.

Gameplay-wise, Advanced Labyrinth Lord plays exactly the way you remember it. You'll roll 3d6 in order for stats and pick a race, then a class, roll for HP, then buy equipment and send your poor PC to an almost certain doom inside a dangerous labyrinth deep beneath the Earth. As far as layout goes, the book does a good job at separating the "basic" and "advanced" elements into their own sections, and carefully explains which sections to use depending on if you want a basic game or an advanced game. The "Advanced Hit Dice" option is still present, just in case you want your PCs to be a little more robust with their Hit Points. I felt like the book did a good job at explaining and making it clear which parts to use depending on if the GM is doing a basic or advanced game, however anyone not familiar with the differences between B/X and AD&D may want to carefully read the rules until they start to understand what the differences are.

Final Verdict: I would highly recommend this book to fans of LL and anyone wanting to run an old school AD&D game without having to try and decipher the mess of rules that is the 1st edition AD&D game (especially the "High Gygaxian Speech"). If you're happy playing just basic LL then you don't need this new book at all. Alternatively, if you're tired of carrying around both LL and AEC and want just one book with the option to play either basic or advanced rules then this is also for you. Lack of new content is disappointing given we're shelling out money yet again for a product that we already own, however it's not a deal breaker either.



Rating:
[4 of 5 Stars!]
Advanced Labyrinth Lord (Dragon Cover)
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The Solo Adventurer's Toolbox
Publisher: Dungeon Masters Guild
by Rudy C. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 11/09/2018 00:17:27

TL;DR: If you're playing 5th edition D&D and wanting to try running a solo game, then you definitely SHOULD pick up this book!

I just found out about solo play D&D a month ago (incidentally this product showed up as a recommended title and I was intrigued and bought it on impulse), I honestly had no idea that it was possible to play D&D alone, yet here this product is! I'll spare you the details of the insanely creative campaign I was able to craft by using this product and simply say that it's awesome. I think what I enjoy the most is that the awesome adventures I have playing solo are easily ported over to the D&D campaign that I'm currently running. My players are none the wiser but thoroughly enjoying the campaign nonetheless!

As for downsides, this product is geared specifically towards 5th edition D&D. It's not terribly difficult to adapt to other editions of D&D (or other game systems), however I would recommend Mythic GM Emulator as it's specifically designed to be system agnostic whereas Solo Adventurer's Toolbox was built around 5th edition.

If you want to give solo games a try and are playing 5th edition D&D then by all means pick up this product, you'll be very satisfied!!



Rating:
[4 of 5 Stars!]
The Solo Adventurer's Toolbox
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Mythic Game Master Emulator
Publisher: Word Mill Games
by Rudy C. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 11/09/2018 00:10:28

Ran a solo game of 1st edition AD&D using Mythic. Game went like this:

  1. Party enters dungeon, they're supposed to locate a bad villain and distract him long enough for the town militia to thwart his forces.
  2. Party encounters a heavy wooden door that's stuck (not locked just stuck). Dwarven fighter steps up and kicks down the door.
  3. Giant centipedes behind the door surprise the party and promptly swarm them, killing the party off with their venomous bite attacks within just 2 rounds.
  4. ??? TPK ???

Honestly, even though my entire party literally died within the first 20 minutes of playing, I still had a blast and am gearing up to run more games. Mythic is system agnostic but I like old school D&D which is why I chose to run it. This book is an absolute must-have for anyone serious about running solo games or GM-less games.



Rating:
[4 of 5 Stars!]
Mythic Game Master Emulator
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D&D Basic Set Rulebook (B/X ed.) (Basic)
Publisher: Wizards of the Coast
by Rudy C. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 09/30/2018 19:11:32

The basic version of D&D, takes you all the way up to 3rd level. If you buy this book, definitely consider getting the Expert book as well (hence the name B/X or Basic/Expert). This book originally was meant to be an introduction into AD&D, however it was so successful that TSR decided to give "basic D&D" its own product line. Overall a great purchase if you're into OSR.



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
D&D Basic Set Rulebook (B/X ed.) (Basic)
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