Don't forget to tune into the Mappening this coming Sunday at 2 pm EDT. Not only will I be announcing who wins the book, but we'll also be hanging out and chatting and drawing maps!
In regards to anyone having a hard time with the concept of an entire room/encounter sharing a static DC.....I think you are all missing one of the fundamental aspects of the single DC rule, the adjustable difficulty. Yes the entire encounter could be set to a DC of 12, but any individual task can be treated as hard or easy relative to the room DC by adding or subtracting 3 from the DC. It's always 3 as written. So a room DC of 12 can also have many tasks and targets that are also 9 or 15 in the same encounter based on their difficulty relative to the base room DC. Being lucky enough to have played in two ICRPG games run by Hank, this becomes incredibly fluid when used correctly. I think it can take some time for DMs and groups to adjust to this mentality, but it's pretty incredible to see in action when done by someone comfortable with it. ....also this was a really well done review Nate.
Thanks for the comment, Jeremy. For me I think it's just something that felt off to me because I was so used to playing 5e. It's something I'm sure I'd get used to, but I think others will also find it odd at first if they are also coming from 5e. But that's a great point about the hard and easy. Hankerin actually didn't use that on our final encounter with Lucifer in the game I played in.
I have played this system a little bit, and though some of my players didn't care much for the room dc aspect of the game, they had so much fun playing. They really enjoyed how the effort mechanic can instill a lot of flavor in the session. And the simplified rules make DM-ing this system extremely fun and not a chore.
Great balanced review. It's a great game. I ordered the hardcover and have it hidden away for sentimental reason. I print out the PDF when major updates happen and there has been tonnes. This game now gets played alongside 5e and Basic Fantasy RPG. For big bosses, to make it more of a challenge I just make all rolls HARD against the target DC and the target is usually higher anyway. Love your channel, keep up the great work.
Also, I totally agree that the hardcover should include the PDF. That's my preferred way to buy RPGs - get the PDF now, and a hardcover in the mail. :)
Yeah, and that's totally an option here, but it would be nice if buying the hardcopy would automatically result in a PDF download instead of having to opt up for a PDF.
I love your reviews Nate, and the system seems at best.. 'fine'. What I've been interested in finding out about the game, and what I still don't understand after watching the video is WHY this is call the "INDEX card RPG'. Even their own promo video doesn't explain it either. Still, Awesome job explaining the system, thanks!
In a nutshell: The first moves Runehammer made towards this system are the Index Card RPG Volumes, which are "Index Card" sized images to use on the tabletop, alongside/instead of miniatures and 3d pieces. Characters in ICRPG CAN fit into a Index Card as well; the are their 6 stats, Effort, Hearts and armor, Gear and LOOT. It is very slim in terms of stuff you have to write in the character sheet. I still prefer to use them as it is easier on tabletop space, of which I have little generally.
Thanks. I managed to track down some of that info. Love Drunken and Dragons, and the index system he set up looks great. Definitely see the use of that for setting up the town on a table easily. The RPG info i didn't know about, so that's handy too. Thank you very much for the informative reply!
Not to necro this thread, but... The room DC and heart variability sound essentially like a common board game mechanic. So keeping things flowing in a similar manner makes sense from that perspective.
Having read the free quick start which has the character sheet by the way. I think the rules light system may well be fine but could be written on a few brief sheets with clarity. But this is written in a confusing style that makes it hard to see what is actually meant. Reflected in this video when you aren't sure you got it. It's like all the ideas are written down in small jokey paragraphs but have never been refined into clear explanations. Maybe that reflects me, but I prefer clear rules without all the rambling.
I agree Hero Kids is certainly a much lighter version in rules. Hero Kids also lacks the option for character generation. ICRPG does appear to be a bit more complex than Hero Kids. Thanks for the review.
I'm still not entirely sure how loot and skills work, even owning a printed version of the PDF; nor necessarily how making monsters works... but I hella wanna make dinosaurs for the system now.
I remember when I wanted to play end, but I didn't know where to start, so I made a game where you have a player token, and a crap ton of tile cards, most where blank, some where items and monsters. then you have an amount of movement points(speed) to spend so you can... well... move! there were also classes and level ups. I was like 9 or 10 Lol. all of my fiends liked it :p
Andrew Kloiber came here just to ask this! I have the pdf, but I so want the hard copy, but with Denmark's postal system's extra "fines" for outside EU purchases, it would cost me three times as much. Just paying the shipping cost would be a win.
I have been waiting to get it until I can get them both. I really like having a physical copy but also want the extras and don't want it to buy it twice.
Hey Nate, love your honest reviews as always, not just because hes a friend of yours it automatically gets 12 stars, lol! Anyway i wanted to ask, do i have to be present to win? I may not be able to make the live stream. Thanks for reading this and God bless you!
im here after watchin a crap review of this RPG from a different channel thanks for doing a WAY better job! and not lollygagging about in the 3st mins of video!!
I'm a bit late.. but IMO it's a miss to review this system and not discuss the progression system -- that the are no levels, and progression mostly happens via loot. I think that's a huge part of the DNA of this system.
I think a major thing left out of this review is that there are no levels in ICRPG; all character progression is by collecting loot. I tried plugging in some ICRPG ideas into my 3.x homebrew, but Loot isn't one of them. I thought of doing the opposite, where there are levels, but no classes. Players can customize their progression by allocating skill points and feats at each new level - everything: base attack bonus, saves, hit points, spells .. are all feats.
Hankerin is an extremely creative guy, and I really enjoyed this system, especially no PC lvls and relying on loot was genius. However, his channel has turned into a lot of politics, which has turned me off (ttrpg’s are an escape) and resulted in the two books of his I bought sitting on the shelf gathering dust.
Do you know the webside heroforge.com, where you can make your own miniature. It is soo cool, you can take over 100 different weapons and poses. Please check it xd.
Don't forget to tune into the Mappening this coming Sunday at 2 pm EDT. Not only will I be announcing who wins the book, but we'll also be hanging out and chatting and drawing maps!
I accidentally entered the giveaway, but I am from Romania! Is there a way to exit the giveaway?
No worries. I can see location on entries and if I pick one outside the U.S. I'll just pick another instead.
WASD20 good luck to all......... Ive always loved dnd but this would be a good start to me playing it myself
In regards to anyone having a hard time with the concept of an entire room/encounter sharing a static DC.....I think you are all missing one of the fundamental aspects of the single DC rule, the adjustable difficulty. Yes the entire encounter could be set to a DC of 12, but any individual task can be treated as hard or easy relative to the room DC by adding or subtracting 3 from the DC. It's always 3 as written. So a room DC of 12 can also have many tasks and targets that are also 9 or 15 in the same encounter based on their difficulty relative to the base room DC.
Being lucky enough to have played in two ICRPG games run by Hank, this becomes incredibly fluid when used correctly. I think it can take some time for DMs and groups to adjust to this mentality, but it's pretty incredible to see in action when done by someone comfortable with it.
....also this was a really well done review Nate.
Also, if you want your boss to be harder but keep the same room DC, give him extra life or maybe an extra ability. Keep it fluid
Thanks for the comment, Jeremy. For me I think it's just something that felt off to me because I was so used to playing 5e. It's something I'm sure I'd get used to, but I think others will also find it odd at first if they are also coming from 5e.
But that's a great point about the hard and easy. Hankerin actually didn't use that on our final encounter with Lucifer in the game I played in.
Super thorough! Thanks man
Dude, absolutely! Thank YOU for putting so much time into making a great game!
I have played this system a little bit, and though some of my players didn't care much for the room dc aspect of the game, they had so much fun playing. They really enjoyed how the effort mechanic can instill a lot of flavor in the session. And the simplified rules make DM-ing this system extremely fun and not a chore.
Great! Thanks for the comment.
Great balanced review. It's a great game. I ordered the hardcover and have it hidden away for sentimental reason. I print out the PDF when major updates happen and there has been tonnes. This game now gets played alongside 5e and Basic Fantasy RPG.
For big bosses, to make it more of a challenge I just make all rolls HARD against the target DC and the target is usually higher anyway.
Love your channel, keep up the great work.
Thanks for the comment!
Great review, Nate! I need to get into a game of this. Hank's DM philosophy runs strong throughout the entire system.
Also, I totally agree that the hardcover should include the PDF. That's my preferred way to buy RPGs - get the PDF now, and a hardcover in the mail. :)
Yeah, and that's totally an option here, but it would be nice if buying the hardcopy would automatically result in a PDF download instead of having to opt up for a PDF.
This also gives a lot of inspiration as an artist. The drawings are amazing!! :D
It is! Hankrin's art tips have been really instrumental for me the past month or so. Even in my map drawing.
I love your reviews Nate, and the system seems at best.. 'fine'. What I've been interested in finding out about the game, and what I still don't understand after watching the video is WHY this is call the "INDEX card RPG'. Even their own promo video doesn't explain it either.
Still, Awesome job explaining the system, thanks!
In a nutshell:
The first moves Runehammer made towards this system are the Index Card RPG Volumes, which are "Index Card" sized images to use on the tabletop, alongside/instead of miniatures and 3d pieces.
Characters in ICRPG CAN fit into a Index Card as well; the are their 6 stats, Effort, Hearts and armor, Gear and LOOT. It is very slim in terms of stuff you have to write in the character sheet. I still prefer to use them as it is easier on tabletop space, of which I have little generally.
Thanks. I managed to track down some of that info. Love Drunken and Dragons, and the index system he set up looks great. Definitely see the use of that for setting up the town on a table easily.
The RPG info i didn't know about, so that's handy too. Thank you very much for the informative reply!
The ICRPG looks really awesome.
What a sweet run-through, Nate.
I can't wait to run this.
Thanks!
Very cool idea and looks like it was well done.
Not sure how much I trust Gleam, but payday isn't too far away, so I'll just pick it up from your affiliate link when I can :)
Cool. Thanks! :)
Sucks that I didn’t see this sooner to try for the giveaway. I love this game.
Not to necro this thread, but... The room DC and heart variability sound essentially like a common board game mechanic. So keeping things flowing in a similar manner makes sense from that perspective.
Having read the free quick start which has the character sheet by the way. I think the rules light system may well be fine but could be written on a few brief sheets with clarity. But this is written in a confusing style that makes it hard to see what is actually meant. Reflected in this video when you aren't sure you got it. It's like all the ideas are written down in small jokey paragraphs but have never been refined into clear explanations. Maybe that reflects me, but I prefer clear rules without all the rambling.
I agree Hero Kids is certainly a much lighter version in rules. Hero Kids also lacks the option for character generation.
ICRPG does appear to be a bit more complex than Hero Kids. Thanks for the review.
Looks like they followed your suggestions on bundling, Nate. Good deal.
I'm still not entirely sure how loot and skills work, even owning a printed version of the PDF; nor necessarily how making monsters works... but I hella wanna make dinosaurs for the system now.
I remember when I wanted to play end, but I didn't know where to start, so I made a game where you have a player token, and a crap ton of tile cards, most where blank, some where items and monsters. then you have an amount of movement points(speed) to spend so you can... well... move! there were also classes and level ups. I was like 9 or 10 Lol. all of my fiends liked it :p
What's your current favourite lightweight system? Cheers.
Is a d100 a thing where you have to roll 5 d20s?
D100 refers to two D10s in general. One die represents the tens digit and the other one represents the ones digit.
if contestants are willing to pay international shipping, may we still enter from outside the US (e.g Canada)?
Andrew Kloiber came here just to ask this! I have the pdf, but I so want the hard copy, but with Denmark's postal system's extra "fines" for outside EU purchases, it would cost me three times as much. Just paying the shipping cost would be a win.
Pru-Pruh if you have a pdf why don't you just print it?
I have been waiting to get it until I can get them both. I really like having a physical copy but also want the extras and don't want it to buy it twice.
I think this game may so well if some aspects of Cortex Prime were mixed in
Hey Nate, love your honest reviews as always, not just because hes a friend of yours it automatically gets 12 stars, lol! Anyway i wanted to ask, do i have to be present to win? I may not be able to make the live stream. Thanks for reading this and God bless you!
Hey Robert. Thanks for the kind words! You do not have to be present. I will be emailing the winner as well.
im here after watchin a crap review of this RPG
from a different channel
thanks for doing a WAY better job!
and not lollygagging about in the 3st mins of video!!
Is there any benefit to buying the hardcover vs. the softcover? There is a choice over on DriveThru RPG and both options include the PDF for free.
Nope. Unless stated otherwise, the only difference is the cover.
Is the copy you have a print on demand version from Drivethrurpg or was published in another way?
As far as I know it is only available print on demand from drivethruRPG.
I'm a bit late.. but IMO it's a miss to review this system and not discuss the progression system -- that the are no levels, and progression mostly happens via loot. I think that's a huge part of the DNA of this system.
How to get normies into tabletop gaming like a *Big Ol' BADASS*
ah so the creator is a sword art online fan. alfheim (not sure if that is the spelling he uses in the book) is one of the settings from that show.
ianmoone1412 Or probably just a fan of thousands of years old Nordic mythology? :)
or that. yea prbably more that.
Hank is your friendly neighbourhood rpg Viking
Would you care to retract your statement about the Google plus group being an important part of the game?
Lol. Yep!
I think a major thing left out of this review is that there are no levels in ICRPG; all character progression is by collecting loot.
I tried plugging in some ICRPG ideas into my 3.x homebrew, but Loot isn't one of them. I thought of doing the opposite, where there are levels, but no classes. Players can customize their progression by allocating skill points and feats at each new level - everything: base attack bonus, saves, hit points, spells .. are all feats.
Yep! Very valid critique.
I think the print stuff is free now, or super inexpensive on DTRPG.
The secound edition fixed some stuffs
Gotta go join that google plus group
Google+.... seriously? People actually use that...? Why not just use a Facebook group?
...to late to win a copy?!
Hankerin is an extremely creative guy, and I really enjoyed this system, especially no PC lvls and relying on loot was genius. However, his channel has turned into a lot of politics, which has turned me off (ttrpg’s are an escape) and resulted in the two books of his I bought sitting on the shelf gathering dust.
I don’t see any politics on his channel.
Alienated... Haha. Okay.
Notification Squad! :)
Notification Squad x2 :)
Do you know the webside heroforge.com, where you can make your own miniature. It is soo cool, you can take over 100 different weapons and poses. Please check it xd.
Nothing to say, just wanted to get the comments to 69.