Bloat Games has been putting out some quality games for a little bit now and they are certainly the new "It" company in the Old-School scene right now. Their newest Kickstarter is now up,
The Blackest of Deaths - A Dire Old School Fantasy RPG and I have been given access to the "Ashcan" copy of the rules. Let's have a look and see what this Kickstarter is all about!
There is
The Blackest of Deaths - Dire Old School Fantasy RPG - KS Sneak Peek on DriveThru now. It is free so have a look.
The Rules
We are greeted on the very first page with a "Caution" and "
YOUR CHARACTERS WILL DIE." I think that sets the tone for the game quite well. The aesthetic reminds me of Dungeon Crawl Classics mixed with HackMaster to be honest. Not my usual vibe, but I like what I am reading so far.
My favorite is the line "yes, this is the type of game your grandparent’s preachers warned them about in the 70s & 80s!" Ok then!
We start out with what are the two big "rules" of the game;
1. "Rulings vs Rules", there is no rule for everything in that can happen in the game. The GM is in charge and will make up what they need to make up to keep the game going.
2. The Core Mechanic. Roll a d20 and d6 at the same time. If the d6 comes up 1 you get a Hinderance. If it comes up as a 6 then you get a Benefit. 2, 3, 4, or 5 are ignored. There are also Advantage and Disadvantage rules.
The character Attributes are the same, but instead of a range of 3-18 you just have your pluses or minuses. Max is 3, the lowest is -2. You start with 10 hp +/- your Con score. The only way to get more is via magic! There is no leveling up! This is you.
To offset this all characters have some Luck points.
Armor and Dex scores don't add to "AC" but reduce damage given.
There are four races, elf, dwarf, goblin and human. Races can raise or lower your scores.
There are six classes, Assassin, Barbarian, Monster Slayer, Necromancer, Ranger, and Street Rat.
They work as you expect, each one with a specialized purpose. Monster Slayer has a unique talent for killing a particular monster you choose for example.
There are a limited number of spells (no levels) and most deal with combat.
Equipment and weapons finish off the Player's Section.
The GM's section is the other half of the book.
We go over the basic rules again and discuss some difficulty checks. This is where the game's "New School" roots show from under their "Old School" dye job! But in truth, it all works great.
There is a good sized monster section with the monsters in a very distilled format. Just the essentials.
All the favorites are here and it is easy to see why and how these monsters will mow through most characters.
There is also a good-sized section on treasure and magic items.
The game is fast to pick up and lethal. It is close to an OSR "Beer and Pretzel" game to be honest. Great for a single night or weekend or even as a side-quest with a "Magnificent Seven" style adventure.
The Kickstarter
Well, one thing you know. The rule book is finished and ready to go, it's now all about those stretch goals. And there is a good set of those!
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/ericfrombloatgames/the-blackest-of-deaths-a-dire-old-school-fantasy-r?ref=theotherside
As of this writing, the game is funded (in the first 2 hours!) and they are at the first stretch goal of 20 more monsters. There are plenty more where that came from too.
Really looking forward to seeing what this game does.
