Well I have been getting into the swing of things again and looked over at what I could really get myself involved in enthusiastically to get a game going. I then came across (Because it’s so freaking huge) the Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay box I got at PAX this year. I’ve been very skeptical about it. I never played the previous edition but heard how gritty it was from friends. After getting into the miniatures, the MMO this was of course a natural progression for me. But again part of me was skeptical from some of the previews. The special dice of various colors and the use of a bunch of cards that it looked like boardgame / roleplay hybrid.
All that said of course I absolutely wanted to try this game out and give it a fair shake. So this past monday I opened the massive box. Give it to Fantasy Flight Games to make a really high quality box and of course books, cards, etc. The art is fitting for Warhammer and it helps set the mood. Of course the place to start is the main rulebook since we need to know how the rules come together. And then I discovered just by flipping through a few pages that the binding is maybe not going to be great as one page has semi detached. If there is one thing that I absolutely hate about books like these are bindings that fall apart easily.
I managed to read through only 3 chapters now and have to say that it’s making my apprehension of the rules and cards go away. In fact it is very simplistic when you boil everything all down. The character sheet is small, holds what is needed, no beating around the bush and has a purpose for everything. I don’t think any part of the sheet has any unused space. Even the dice thus far seem to flow very well in how the are implemented. Your not overly confused as to the mixture of colors as one may initial think. I know at first sight seeing 7 different colored dice can make you take a step back and think ok, maybe this is not going to go well. Have faith though.
I like where it’s heading with the party sheet and party dynamics. At first I thought that it was trying to force conflict onto players via their tension mechanic but having played mostly as a player in games and ran a few games, it’s an interesting tool to just point out that the group has some built up aggression. Your not always going to get along in a group and having a little reminder that at some point something can trigger off is good. I think it will not force the tension but help people roleplay it out.
It seem’s rather odd saying that a mechanic will help people roleplay however sometimes depending on groups you have the players who get into the thick of things but then you have the other side of the coin where they need enticement to let loose. It’s not that they are bad players but sometimes a gentle push is all they need to have some tremendous moments.
I also like how simplistic the sections are broken up into. It’s not bombarding you with histories and cultures. You get small descriptions of your races and their histories but it’s kept very player friendly with the rest to come most likely in the other books for the GM. The cards while it seemed gimmicky at first I can see their usefullness in making the game expedient. Going into this system with an open mind really helped grasp what the intention was and that’s to roleplay. The system is made to work quickly without going to flip over chapters.
My only complaint thus far aside from the binding issue would be it’s practicallity for playing online. I can see without all the cards that it would potentially be a hassle but at least now for those iPhone users (like who doesn’t have one) then you have the official dice roller application. This makes things much simpler. I ideally would love to see an official add on for Fantasy Grounds but that”s just my personal preference.
I will post more as I read along.
