|
With this Second edition by Black Industries, one of the most respected RPGs has been completely reborn.
The original WFRP was a cult classic. Famed for its excellent career system, its grim and dark work, its emphasis on roleplaying, and its lethal combat system, it was played by many until its last publishers, Hogshead, went out of business.
Now, finally, the game has been brought up to date with a second edition, the first in twenty years. And what an update.
For those who have never played WFRP or its tabletop counterpart, Warhammer Fantasy Battle, fear not. There is plenty of background information and an introductory adventure in here to get you started, and even more adventures are freely available on the BLack Industries website, so you don't need to know the setting before tou start- which is quite a feat, considering the amount of published information about Warhammer's Old World.
For those veterans of the first edition, fear not. None of what you love has been removed, except possibly the 'peasant' career. But almost every aspect of the game has been completely reworked- and all for the better.
Character creation is an entirely random process- you're allowed to choose your race and gender, and everything else- from your starting characteristics to your career to your eye colour- you get to roll for. The careers are worth special mention - your character can start as anything from a hubmle rat-catcher or a simple grave digger to a wandering duelist or imperial soldier, and progress to be a mighty wizard or gladiatorial champion.
And actually, thats fun. Sure, it means some characters are weaker than others to start with- but as previously hinted, in WFRP, the emphasis is squarely on roleplaying, and by the time you've got some experience, you'll soon work out that everyone in the group has their own important role to fill... even when it comes to combat, which is the meat of many systems, lets be honest.
Combat is actually pretty simple. You have a % chance to hit based on your characteristics, and if you hit, you just roll a D10 and add your strength. Thats how many wounds the target takes, minus any armour or toughness bonus. If he drops to 0 wounds, he starts to take critical hits until he eventually dies horribly. But you won't ever have a lot of wounds to spare- its quite feasible to drop a foe with a single attack, even from a humble sling. And again, that makes the game fun- your characters are not musclebound heroes- you're just trying to survive.
Theres a fun magic system too, which few characters can access without a lot of dedication, but which offers great power- and substantial risks. Failure to cast a spell can mean your wizard gets sucked into another world, the daemonic realm of the Warp, and if hes not dead, then he's certainly insane.
What makes the whole system work so well though are its underlying mechanics. Everything in the rules *makes sense*, which is a rarer thing than it might sound- if you're ever stuck for a rule, chances are you can work it out pretty easily, because every part of the mechanics follow a central logic thats really easy to grasp for both players and GMs, and never becomes too complex or cumbersome for the game to run smoothly- and never feels too simple, either.
WFRP turns out to be, overall, a stunningly put together game. Its productions qualities are top-notch, rivalled only by the excellent content on offer here. WFRP is well worth a look for any fantasy roleplaying fan, especially those looking for something thats maybe a little darker and a little more daring than the standard D20 fare.
Rating: 9.6
Reviewed by:
splinter
|
