Review: In Darkest Warrens Ultimate Edition

I have been following the work of Scott Malthouse for a few years now and I have been really impressed with his work. You can find his blog and website here. I was introduced to his games during my transition away from overly complicated games and In Darkest Warrens was one of the first games I picked up. When I saw the Ultimate Edition I was really excited and I picked it up right away. In Darkest Warrens: Ultimate Edition bills itself as "Minimalist Fantasy Roleplaying".

The Ultimate Edition is a revised version of the original release that provides a sharper layout, clearer language, and expanded rules. It also includes a lot of information found in two of the original supplements that were released shortly after core rules. 

Presentation: The entire game is packed into a neat five page PDF that includes the cover. The cover is formatted in portrait and the remaining pages are formatted in a four column landscape. These remaining pages include two pages of rules (includes a sample adventure), one page for a Referee Guide, and one page for a built in setting/town staring point called Darkholme. It also includes some evocative black and white art.

Character Creation: Character creation follows a few simple steps:

1. Assign Attributes: Assign 5+, 4+, 4+, and 3+ to the attributes of Brawn, Nimble, Mind, and Person. 
2. Choose a Class: The choices are Warrior , Rogue, Mage, Ranger, and Barbarian. Each class has a single ability that can be used once per combat but the effectiveness of these abilities scale with level. The class choice also determines starting wounds that range from 3 to 6.
3. Roll 1d6x10 for starting gold. 
4. Write down some interesting things about the character.

Resolution:  The core mechanic comes down to a single roll of a d6. The players roll against their relative attribute of Brawn, Nimble, Mind, and Person. If the result is equal to or greater then their rating; the character succeeds, if not the character fails. Adversaries attributes are condensed into a single rating (3+, 4+, etc) and they usually have a special rule or two. When an adversary is trying to attack or take an action that would require a roll then the GM rolls against their single rating. An example monster entry looks like this:

 Skeleton: 4+, 5 Wounds, blunt weapons take a -1 to attacks against the skeleton.

Tests (for everything - including saves) are made against the characters attribute can be easy or hard which gives the single d6 roll a -1 or +1 respectfully.

Combat follows after initiative which each player tests Nimble and those who pass act before the enemies and those who fail act after the enemies. Each character can take two actions a round - one movement (or equivalent action) and one attack action. All types of attack deal 1 wound in damage and armor adds a buffer of additional wounds.

Crunch: There is not much crunch outside of the universal d6 roll. I would like to mention a few things that was not mentioned during the resolution section.

• Advancement works off of experience points. Characters can gain 1-5 XP for killing monsters, completing quests 5 XP, and great roleplaying 2 XP. A character levels up when they reach 20 XP times their current level. When a character levels up they gain two wounds.
• Spells are able to be used once per combat and once per hour out of combat. The Mage has access to three spells; Hold, Heal, and Hex.
• Traps work off of two different rolls. The first one being a roll for the character to notice the trap. The second roll is the traps "attack roll" based off of their rating just like a monsters. 
• Advanced Options adds more depth to combat and include options such as Defense, Flee, Trip, Hold, and Unarmed Combat. These options also go into status effects like poisoned, paralyzed, stunned, pinned, diseased, prone, and frightened. 

Final Thoughts: Before I give my concluding thoughts I want to give a shout out to the Referee section. This one page gives a lot of tools the Referee can use to help add to the game. It includes traveling, mounts and vehicles, weather, light levels, breaking objects, encumbrance, traps, and player races.

In Darkest Warrens sets out to be a smooth minimalist fantasy roleplaying experience and it accomplishes this task with flying colors. I have ran the original release of this game on multiple occasions. Most of these games have been one shots but I also ran a sixteen session campaign with it. I am also currently in a play by post game using the Ultimate Edition.

Some of the high points for me are:

• The traps. I love how the Traps in this game basically have an attack roll. It is to see if the trap springs correctly and it just makes thematic sense. Especially in old castles and tombs.
• The race choices provide a thematic ability instead of any type of attribute bonus. It makes choosing a race more of an aesthetic choice then a min/max choice. 
• The resolution system is fun. Reminds me of my wargaming days. 
• The implied setting is really evocative.

I do find it interesting that Mages do not have a "Harm" spell or a way to deal direct damage. Though the magic level could be more Lord of the Rings then Dressen Files. 

All in all In Darkest Warrens is rules light enough to keep immersion strong but has the depth for extended campaign play.

You can find the PWYW pdf here but I would highly recommend supporting the author and throwing him some coin.