The game that came out 40+ years ago was called Dragons and Demons. It was a black A5 book with wonderful pictures in it. It was the D100 that was used. I still have it.
2 things : 1 not a starter box, it is the full game [but others have mentioned that]. 2 you can also buy the full rules as a hardback book, these are exactly the same rules, but come with only one adventure [which is a different one to those included in the box set. My advice: GM’s buy the core box set, and then the bestiary [which also gives more player race options]; players buy the hardback, which gives them a durable book and no spoilers if your gm runs the box set campaign. I come from a BRP background, so for me this is a great , simplified version of that style of system. It looks robust, which is important [some games that are more level based, can unravel at higher levels]. The deadliness keeps you on the edge of your seat way more in combat, and the random initiative and 1 action turns, while might sound strange to some, actually work great for player engagement, and more interactive group play. Really loving this game excited to try it out more.❤.
Nice review. The fun thing is a lot of adversaries aren’t run as monsters, but as NPCs, so the GM can choose their actions. The fun thing is, the original game was a Swedish translation of a Chaosium game which used the d100 system.
Great review, as usual. I do want to point out to others (and you’re not the first reviewer to do this) that you do not have to roll for monster attacks The GM can just pick one if they don’t want to roll, or if there is an obvious choice. I love having the option of rolling, and it makes sense that all monsters don’t necessarily make optimal choices all the time. The roll’s not a straight jacket.
We did miss that! Thanks for that catch. I do really like the roll aspect personally because it makes the tension heightened for the GM as well in my opinion. I especially like the roll when a monster might be injured or takes damage from a weakness it has, leading to that fear and frustration of the party hurting it causing the random actions
@@StartYourDungeons In my mind the question of whether to roll or to just pick an attack depends on both how intelligent the creature is and whether you as the DM have a good idea of what to do. If you don't have a clear idea of how the creature would react to the current situation or if it's a creature that's just kinda flailing and lashing out, i roll. If i feel like a particular attack would be perfect or the monster has some sort of built-in strategy(something i tend to design in my own homebrew monsters), i pick.
Just one thing: Ir isn´t a starterbox.... this is the full game.... that it comes in box is a homage to the original versions of the game in the 1980s
The game that came out 40+ years ago was called Dragons and Demons. It was a black A5 book with wonderful pictures in it. It was the D100 that was used. I still have it.
So cool, I would love to see some videos on the older editions!
2 things : 1 not a starter box, it is the full game [but others have mentioned that]. 2 you can also buy the full rules as a hardback book, these are exactly the same rules, but come with only one adventure [which is a different one to those included in the box set.
My advice: GM’s buy the core box set, and then the bestiary [which also gives more player race options]; players buy the hardback, which gives them a durable book and no spoilers if your gm runs the box set campaign. I come from a BRP background, so for me this is a great , simplified version of that style of system. It looks robust, which is important [some games that are more level based, can unravel at higher levels]. The deadliness keeps you on the edge of your seat way more in combat, and the random initiative and 1 action turns, while might sound strange to some, actually work great for player engagement, and more interactive group play. Really loving this game excited to try it out more.❤.
Nice review.
The fun thing is a lot of adversaries aren’t run as monsters, but as NPCs, so the GM can choose their actions. The fun thing is, the original game was a Swedish translation of a Chaosium game which used the d100 system.
It has OSR vibes. I'm glad to see the attention is getting. Hopefully, with WotC immolating itself, Dragonbane will become much more mainstream.
Pro Mallard fan!
It takers a good four or five sessions in the DMs chair to get a good grip on the flow of Dragonbane encounters and options.
Great review, as usual. I do want to point out to others (and you’re not the first reviewer to do this) that you do not have to roll for monster attacks The GM can just pick one if they don’t want to roll, or if there is an obvious choice. I love having the option of rolling, and it makes sense that all monsters don’t necessarily make optimal choices all the time. The roll’s not a straight jacket.
We did miss that! Thanks for that catch. I do really like the roll aspect personally because it makes the tension heightened for the GM as well in my opinion. I especially like the roll when a monster might be injured or takes damage from a weakness it has, leading to that fear and frustration of the party hurting it causing the random actions
@@StartYourDungeons In my mind the question of whether to roll or to just pick an attack depends on both how intelligent the creature is and whether you as the DM have a good idea of what to do. If you don't have a clear idea of how the creature would react to the current situation or if it's a creature that's just kinda flailing and lashing out, i roll. If i feel like a particular attack would be perfect or the monster has some sort of built-in strategy(something i tend to design in my own homebrew monsters), i pick.
This is a great game.
Not a starter box.
I am pro-🦆!