[RPG]: Dread: The First Book of Pandemonium (Unrated Edition), reviewed by C.W.Richeson (5/5)

http://www.rpg.net/reviews/archive/13/13929.phtml

Christopher W. Richeson's Summary:

Fight demons and save humanity in this complete, easy to use RPG of action and gore.

Go to the full review for more information.

[Rafael Chandler]

Thank you very much for the review! I appreciate the kind words.

Originally Posted by C.W.Richeson

Dread dazzles me with the amount of GM support it provides. In fact, I find it to be one of the very best RPGs I’ve ever encountered in terms of useful GM support.

That means a great deal. One of the (completely justified) complaints about the first edition in 2002 was that it left the GM hanging. So this time around, I made a real effort to include a lot of support material. I'm really glad that you mention it.

Originally Posted by C.W.Richeson

Finally, my favorite addition to the rules is that when a character reaches zero Life she Retires. This isn’t instant death. What it means is that the player gets to narrate a goodbye scene in the near future, and the character gets a bunch more Life and Fury to help make that happen. Disciples don’t fade away but go out in a blaze of glory worth remembering. Kick ass!

I'm glad you dig it. One of the things I've always wanted is a game that lets you go out in a ridiculous blaze of glory. I keep thinking of that scene towards the end of the Dawn of the Dead remake ("It @&%$# figures"), or any number of heroic deaths in various other films. I like the idea of a player getting to pull out all the stops on his/her way down.

Thanks again for taking the time to review Dread!

If anyone has any questions about the game, I'm happy to answer them here.

- Rafael

[C.W.Richeson]

Howdy, Rafael! You're very welcome, and thanks for letting me review it!

[mxyzplk]

Great review, as usual!

[Lethe]

Nice review. This sounds like an awesome game that takes a relatively simple idea but runs with it to make something that's fun to play. Since I usually GM, the wealth of support is a definite bonus. The rules on character death also seem pretty cool.

I only have two questions. Why have I not heard of this game before?

And it's the "first book of pandemonium," is there going to be a second book? If not, is this a reference to something in game or what?

[Lethe]

Oh, and as mentioned, most people don't have a lot of d12s lying around. How difficult would it be to convert it to d10? Would it be as simple as lowering the difficulty numbers by two or would changing die types throw off a lot of spells and weapons?

[C.W.Richeson]

Originally Posted by Lethe

I only have two questions. Why have I not heard of this game before?

Why, because I haven't reviewed it before, of course!

Given the number of reviews Dread has received, and some general forum chatter, I couldn't say. For a while there I felt like I was hearing about it all the time.

And it's the "first book of pandemonium," is there going to be a second book? If not, is this a reference to something in game or what?

Yes, as I understand it there will be more books that ramp up the gameplay. I believe the next one focuses on angels and a higher power level, but you'd have to ask Rafael to know for sure!

Unlike a lot of RPGs, though, this game absolutely does not need any supplements. So, any supplements that do come out later on really are not necessary to have a good time.

Originally Posted by Lethe

Oh, and as mentioned, most people don't have a lot of d12s lying around. How difficult would it be to convert it to d10? Would it be as simple as lowering the difficulty numbers by two or would changing die types throw off a lot of spells and weapons?

I don't think it would be difficult at all. You're just trying to hit a difficulty set by the GM, or beat an opponents roll, so as far as I can tell it would take almost no effort whatsoever to make it work with other dice. The only possible problem I can see is that smaller dice sizes will result in less of a difference on opposed rolls. I think d10s would work a-ok, but I wouldn't want to use d6s because I think it would drag out combat.

[Lethe]

I've avoided ordering from Lulu just because I've heard some bad stories about printing the covers of Reign, etc., plus their shipping is pretty damn high, but this review sold me on the book.

There's been other reviews that have got me interested in games to check them out more, but this one out and out sold the game to me. Just placed my order on Lulu, so I should be getting it within a month.

Fair warning, if this game is utter crap, or even just a little bit of crap, I will hunt you down Mr. Richeson.

...

Okay, I'm way too lazy to do that. But I will post some suitably scathing remarks on the Internet.

[C.W.Richeson]

Originally Posted by Lethe

Fair warning, if this game is utter crap, or even just a little bit of crap, I will hunt you down Mr. Richeson.

Hah, I was about to say "Please let me know if you dislike it so I can hide."

But, hey, the system and support are all clearly laid out there. I try to write reviews so folk have some factual basis to make their decisions on beyond my praise (or lack thereof).

I hope you like it, and let us all know your thoughts after you've given it a read!

[Rafael Chandler]

Hi, Lethe,

Thanks for ordering a copy! And Chris, thanks for taking the time to answer his questions! Truly appreciated.

Lethe, Dread has a very small marketing budget, so other than the occasional comp copy for reviews (here on RPG.net and elsewhere), I've had to rely on word-of-mouth. But now, you have been exposed to the Books of Pandemonium, and all hope is forfeit.

On to your questions!

Spite: The Second Book of Pandemonium is in development. It will feature additional setting info, details about new adversaries (such as Angels, which make Demons look delightful by comparison), and new character classes. In addition, the book will include new spells, weapons, vehicles, and stunts. I plan to release the book in November or December.

In the meantime, two other sourcebooks are currently available. Pent: The First Gospel of Pandemonium is a 100-page sourcebook containing over a dozen scenarios. (A second Gospel will be released next year.) You can also check out Crux: The Pandemonium Scriptures, which is a publication of content written by the fans, for the fans. It's five bucks for a 48-page magazine full of new demons, spells, alternate settings, scenarios, and optional rules. The second issue of Crux will probably be released before the end of the year (just depends on submissions).

As for running the game with d10s, Chris has it right. You can do it, but you'll want to watch for opposed rolls, and you'll want to adjust the target difficulty accordingly. Please be sure to sign up on the Neoplastic Press forums and post your results! (http://www.dread-rpg.com/forum). I've never tried the game with d10s. Probably should have. As Chris noted in the review, the d12 is a bit of a gimmick -- but they're so... so appropriate! The game's about Disciples (of which there were 12), and it's all about demons and black magic (and each face of the d12 is five-sided, just like an evil pentagram!). Besides, the poor d12 is so neglected, and damned if it doesn't feel... strange... just hefting a bunch of them in your hand.

At any rate, if you determine that the game is crap, you just let me know and I'll take care of it. I've done it before, it's no trouble at all. And if there's a printing problem of any kind, be sure to bring it to my attention. Lulu has been good about that as well (though I am happy to say that there have only been a couple of defects over the past couple of years, to my knowledge).

Thanks again for your interest!

Best regards,
Rafael