For a first foray into the world of reviewing RPG’s n such like I thought I’d have a stab at giving my impressions of the new Dragon Age RPG from Green Ronin, based on the wonderful computer RPG of the same name.

Initial Impression

Well, it’s a box set, that’s always nice to get something sturdy with a gorgeous piece of artwork adorning the cover depicting 3 heroes (human mage, dwarven warrior and an elven archer) rather graphically laying into a pack of wolves and darkspawn  Splashed across the bottom are the words ‘Dark Fantasy Roleplaying’ ok, sounds intriguing, and also ‘Set 1: For Character level 1 to 5’. Apparently it is the first of 4 box sets, each set covering 5 levels of play.

Also nice to see the box set come back into fashion after many years out in the wilderness. I understand the reasons why they vanished (they cost a lot) and why they’ve returned (you can’t pdf a box and file share it), but I’m glad they’re back as it’s a reason to add lots of cool little bits to the game, whther it’s maps, carboard standup mini’s or whatever. So with bated breath I opened the box and found …

… Well, not a great deal actually. Inside the box are:

• 2 64 page books:
  a Players Guide,  with the same cover as the box
  a Game Master’s Guide, adorned with a cover depicting what looks like Morrigam from the Computer RPG being threatened by an Ogre, it may instead be her pet, I found it hard to tell.
• A large poster map of Ferelden
• 3 6 sided dice

Ok, so there’s not a huge amount of stuff but it’s pretty good quality, but I still think it’s a little expensive for how much there is inside the box.

System

The meat and drink of any system and essentially determines how well it will stand up to player abuse (Yes, I’m a GM by heart).

The author Chris Pramas said right from the get go he wanted to use a simple bell curve progression rather than a linear one.

And that’s exactly what we get, for any test in the game, it’s a roll of 3d6 and add the relevant attrbute modifier (Strength, Cunning , Perception etc) to get a result which is compared to a target number representing the difficulty. It really doesn’t get much simpler or easier and generally results in succeeding at tasks which are easy, or in those in which characters are skilled in.

Characters

The character section of the book begins with a brief look at the region of Ferelden (the games default setting, which will be familiar to players of the Computer version), also given are brief outlooks on the Nobility, Commoners, The Chantry (the main religion), Mages and Magic, Dwarves, Elves and also Dogs. Overall I got the impression that familiarity with the CRPG is assumed as the background is only really given lip service. But it’s enough to be going on with to start.

Character generation is reasonably simple and straightforward. The 8 character abilities (Communication, Constitution, Cunning, Dexterity, Magic, Perception, Strength and Willpower) are generated randomly and range from –2 (really bad, 1 (average) all the way up to 4 (really good). The ability will determine the modifier to use with all tests based on that ability, which ability to use with a test rests in the GM’s hands, but I would imagine it’s quite straightforward which applies 95% of the time.

Next come focuses, almost like skills, you get to choose a number based on your background and race, and they cover such things as swimming, using axes, etiquette, religious lore and so on and so forth and give a flat +2 bonus to a test where the focus would be relevant

Next you choose a background, which also covers your race, so there’s the City Elf, Surface Dwarf, Circle Mage and several others each of which gives you some fixed bonuses in the form of abilities or focuses and determines which class you can choose.

Of which there are 3, the same as in the computer game, Mage, Rogue and Warrior, each of which describes what they do, what talents (things such as two weapon fighting, archery, animal training and magic styles) they get and how they progress.

Following all this there’s a chapter on equipment, which mostly goes into various lumps of iron to hit people with, and the means to protect oneself from being hit..

The magic chapter describes how magic works, how to cast a spell (3d6+Magic v difficulty) and how to work out the effects. There are about 2 dozen spells given, just about all of which were tier 1 or 2 spells in the computer game, so we have such examples as Stone Fist, Heal, Arcane Bolt, Glyph of Paralysis and so forth. Certainly enough variety to be going on with but not huge amounts to agonise over choosing.

The final part of the Players Guide is how to actually play the game, resolve tests and engage in combat. The nifty thing here is that one of the 3d6 you roll for a test is designated the Dragon Die and this can have additional effects such as determine how well you succeeded at an action, or the winner of an opposed test. Simple and elegant, like the system in general

GM Stuff

The Game Masters Book begins with a chapter on what a GM does, how to run a game, how to make stories and so on and so forth, the sort of thing that practically comes with every single RPG out there. Yet I still read them all and each has it’s own wisdom to impart and this is no exception and worth looking through even for an experienced GM. It also covers such things as information management and play styles, of both players and GM, with pitfalls and problems to look out for and avoid or how to deal with them. It’s especially helpful for a beginning GM and given that this game is aimed at new players, it covers the bases really quite well I thought.

The second chapter covers how to govern the rules and how to use them to move the story along as well as handling the more unusual situations that turn up from time to time. Again, all clear and succinct with several examples

Chapter Three is the bestiary covering such things as genlocks & hurlocks, brontos, various forms of undead, dragonlings and other beasties with which a GM can harass his heroes.

The final Chapter contains an adventure with which to begin your exploration of Ferelden. It pretty much seems to cover the basics to explore what the system can do and to introduce the players to the world. I haven’t actually played it, so I can’t say how it would go in practice but I’ve certainly seen worse.

Final Thoughts

I’m slightly disappointed there’s no mention of how characters become Grey Wardens. Apparently it’s coming in a later set along with specialisations and further spells, though I think at least touching on these subjects in the first book would have been useful – how do I go about planning a character if future information isn’t there or alluded to? So in that sense, breaking down the game into 4 box sets could be a problem. Also the cost of all 4 sets is going to be running to a fairly hefty chunk of cash which is a thought that will have to be considered by the potential buyer. On the other hand, if you just want a taster the first set may be enough, after all, who needs the rules for level 17 characters if you’re only ever going to be playing the odd session?

Overall, I felt the game set out what it set out to do, provide a simple and consistant game that doesn’t lose itself getting bogged down in a myriad array of complicated rules. I think it’s a worthy addition to the current stable of available RPG’s and I’m interested in seeing where it goes in the future.

Click on the logo to go to the Green Ronin website