ALIEN Starter Set - RPG Review
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- Опубликовано: 5 авг 2024
- A look at the ALIEN RPG Starter Set from Free League Publishing. It's beautiful, but is it worth it?
Find it on Free League: frialigan.se/en/store/?collec...
Find the PDF on DriveThru RPG: www.drivethrurpg.com/product/...
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Guest starring Jack the NPC
00:00 Intro
00:48 What's in the Box?
03:43 The World of Alien
05:19 Game Mechanics
08:04 Stress & Panic
10:08 Consumables
11:42 Combat
15:47 Zones
16:37 Personal Agendas
19:51 Criticisms
20:54 Spoiler Criticisms
22:50 Spoilers Done
23:37 Is It Worth It? 
Игры
I love that Seth is always honest and straightup with his information. By far he's the most useful TTRPG channel.
Straight up honesty is a rare thing these days.
There are others that are equally honest and straight forward.
As an example: Prof. Dungeon Master from the Dungeon Craft channel
@@Glaswalker1001 Agreed, Prof DM has great content and is highly entertaining.
@@Glaswalker1001 He is another one I highly regard.
100% agree. He’s my go-to.
I watched AVPR in the theater and when a character said, "the government wouldn't lie to us" everyone let out a laugh, stopped and looked around, before bursting into laughter.
It's funny until you realize no one cares. Then you cry.
I couldn't help but notice that the timeline has the events of Alien: Isolation on it. That is AWESOME! It's nice to see that game get some recognition.
And some of the concepts from the infinite rejected drafts of Alien 3 made it in here too!
There's even a reference to the events of the Prometheus: Fire and Stone series from Dark Horse Comics in the setting information section of the corebook
Yes - and it has stats for even the androids from it - the Working Joe.
Missing the Kellen mining incident from out of the shadows
@@SuperG3XThe planet Out of the shadows and Sea of sorrows takes place on is listed on the star map.
It's a damn good thing that no second AvP movie was ever released. That would have been just as bad as say, someone creating a sequel to Highlander. REALLY glad that never happened too.
Love how the Starter Set actually gives you enough dice to actually play the game. So many skimp on dice that you still need more of your own if you want to play the damned thing.
One thing about using cards to determine initiative that is superior to chucking dice: nobody can get the same result, no need for roll-offs to resolve ties.
Those weapon cards are really handy as well.
Great point
Personal Vendettas & Hurt Feelings sounds like the title of a high school based RPG!
Before we go any further, I think we oughta discuss the bonus situation.
Look, you will get what is contracted to you just like everyone else.
(Anyone who doesn't get the reference is going to be very confused).
@@RandomPerson-nd2ey Yes, but everyone else gets more than us!
I have to admit, this game looks SOLID. I could imagine homebrewing a 'The Thing' scenario with it.
I can imagine them doing a Thing RPG, honestly.
I just wait for the day when Seth and Jack start a fight club... It seems unavoidable.
The First Rule requires that I cannot confirm or deny that we totally have created a Fight Club.
Is Jack my bad dream? Or am I Jack's?
20 hours to run through Chariot of The Gods? And here I thought I was doing something wrong when it took my group about 16 hours to complete it.
I like the idea of using cards to decide turn order because they can function without replacement. If you draw a 1, you're going first, and there's no chance that somebody else rolls the same as you and you have to fight over first for a second time.
I feel like the card mechanic for initiative is GREAT ! It's really different from rolling a dice ! I have yet to try it but i feel like it will be waaay faster at the table.
It clears up the time spent where everybody has to report what their initiative numbers are, writing them down, and having to put them in the proper order and whatnot.
Here you just draw a card. That's your initiative. Boom. You don't need to write it down because it's already on a card, and you don't have to compare it to make sure there are no bigger numbers, because they already are in order.
Plus nobody can tie.
That's a great system ! Makes me wanna implement it in other games
Savage Worlds handles initiative in the same way but with a standard deck of playing cards. I don't remember if it distinguishes between the jokers but it's a huge deal when a player gets one and devastating when a bad guy gets it because it comes with some heavy bonuses
All the other times you talked to yourself in some weird psychosis, I found amusing and interesting and informing. But this one, about AVP? That, I don't know, it hit a little close to home, and it actually felt like two personas within the Seth Collective talking to each other.
I knew the Seth collective was a thing! They told me I was crazy, but I knew that he was a collection of entities, he’s too powerful not to be!
Glass jr?
I believe in the Seth cloning theory myself
So is he a plural system?
This is so random. I just came home from my local game store and held this in my hands for quite a while, wondering if it's worth it. And then I come home, open YT and see this just got uploaded!
I got an emergency text that you were on the fence about it, so I threw this video together real quick to help you decide. True story.
@@SSkorkowsky thanks mate, you're the best!
Will you also make a Cyberpunk Red review? I'm not at all on the fence about it, but would still love to hear your opinion as I know you played some games of CP2020
CPRed will happen. As far as when that will be, I defer to the original announcement of Cyberpunk 2077, "Coming when it's ready" It might be some while before we can fit it in for a real play run.
@@SSkorkowsky Glad to hear that. I am looking forward to it!
Love the flag Sir Panfred. "Eala Frya Fresena!"
Biggest issue I had with the card initiative is it's more of a pain in the ass running games remotely
Yeah, we struggled with that in our Roll20 playthrough. Wound up just rolling D10s and writing it down.
A friend of mine has been talking about this for months and I never understood the appeal! This has opened me up to it a bit!
You wore the wrong shirt for this video. It should have been the Weyland-Yutani shirt.
Jack probably swiped it along with the baseball cap.
Seth has sold me on yet another game system. I've been on the fence about whether I should invest in Alien RPG for some time now, but this video has convinced me to add it to my collection (the beautiful and atmospheric artwork doesn't hurt the case, either). I probably will end up getting the starter set for the accessories and the core book for the full rule set.
Re: AvP I'm 100% with Seth on this. In terms of rights, they are two distinct properties now owned by 2 different companies and are NOT canon.
In terms of play and fandom, Predator, Blade Runner, Soldier, The Thing, and Breach are 'linked' via easter eggs and are considered Apocrypha. This is detailed more accurately in the core rules.
That's pretty neat. I clearly see how including all of those movies would be an IP mess, but also it's the kind of thing that would lead to an awesome gritty sci-fi epic action mistery-horror universe so ... players will homebrew stats for all of that anyway sooner than later.
I don't see how they're owned by two different companies. Fox owns the rights to Alien and Predator. When Disney bought them out. Those rights were bought over.
"So a vampire, an alien hunter, a soldier trained from birth, and two creatures who are dominantly biologically horrifying walk into a bar."
I have an in-universe explanation for why AVP isn't on the timeline. AVP takes place in an alternate timeline.
@@LegallyBlindGamer7926 AVP doesn't take place on the timeline because literally everyone involved either died or was quietly silenced by people wondering why aliens exist.
Not only am I sold on the starter set, but I 100% want to see more of this version of Jack the NPC. Amazing look.
People are gonna homebrew Predator so fast.
I was already thinking how to incorporate the predator in the game, maybe as extremely rare enemy type
@@rgama1173 Maybe after surviving a few Xenomorph encounters the PCs are forced to join a hunt, either as prey or honorary Predators.
Took the words right outta my mandibles.
Already doing it.
From watching the video, I want that ship (map).
The resource consumption rules are okay but I see a lot of grief over arbitrary dice rolls limiting resources unrealistically.
I like the concept of the Stress rule but I would need to test it in play.
The Personal/Hidden Agenda thing also seems neat in concept. Sort of like Paranoia in that regard.
Mostly there is a lot of presentation polish but the system itself is pretty bland looking. I can drop any lite system, like FATE, in its place and not miss anything.
Based on this review, I don't see anything that compels me to drop the money for this product.
Thanks for the balanced review.
I've seen multiple reviews of this RPG. I bought the starter set. I can say that you have one of the best walk-through out there. I really appreciate you time and effort. Thank you sir.
Looks pretty cool. I think mothership would work just as well for an alien RPG, while being much cheaper and less fiddly.
Really appreciate all the work you do bringing these other systems to light for folks! Love me some horror RPG and definitely went over to grab this after your fair and informed review! Great work, as always.
A very thorough review, one of your best videos yet! Totally convinced me to try the starter set in the new year. Thanks and keep up the great work! :)
I swear I saw this on your shelf the other day and I thought it'd be so awesome to have you review it. Alien was just released here in Brazil and I can't wait til I get my copy. I'm really looking forward to playing this game. Take care, Seth.
I keep picking up and setting down the Aliens RPG core book whenever I visit my local game store, so this was a great video to help me decide. Thank you!
Great work... and I know it must be a lot of work with such high production values and thoughtful commentary.
Very timely video for the session I'm running over Thanksgiving! Saves me explaining a few things for the first time then.
My group and I are halfway through that initial scenario and we're really digging this game. You're spot on that a higher degree of player maturity will be needed to handle the almost inevitable PVP elements too. We totally agree with your thumbs-up review and I'm really looking forward to the upcoming edition of Twilight:2000 from this publisher!
Really enjoyed this video, thank you! Learnt everything I wanted to! Also the spoiler jump ahead was perfectly timed!
Great review. Lots of great information.
I'm looking forward to the scenario review before I make up my mind completely, but this is definitely going on my "keep this in mind" list
I’m glad you like this ruleset, Seth. I’ve only had this game for a little bit, but it’s already one of my favorite RPGs, second only to my love for COC
There was no second AvP movie, just like there was no terminator movies after Judgement Day! We all agree!
And there’s only three Indiana Jones movies.
@@benjamink6778 And only Godfather and Godfather II.
There is also no Highlander II
@@metallkopf988 Oh yeah, that's so freaking true, man!
@@metallkopf988 That movie was so stupid. Why would aliens care about Earth religions? The rules for immortals only worked because we didn't know the reason for their immortality. Highlander was one of those movies that really shouldn't have become a franchise because it's antithetical to it's own premise that "there can only be one".
Also General Katana's a fucking idiot. Going to Earth and shaking McCloud's tree when he had not come back to Ziest 40 years after winning The Prize instead of shortly after and thinking he was gonna go back when no sane person would and the only reason McCloud wanted to kill him was because he fucked up his retirement.
This is so freaking sweet. You’ve got me so stoked to have this on hand to surprise my group some day when we would cancel because people couldn’t make it to the regular campaign.
Nicely done, as always. I backed the Kickstarter for this and have kept up with releases since. You're description of the game was concise and clear. I've always been a big fan of Alien and Aliens (even ran the old Aliens rpg once, though that was a bear). Thanks for the additional info.
*sees the video in my subscription list*
Yes! I'm so happy this video is out, thanks!
Awesome Seth! Thanks, keep up the spice! I love it!
Hey Seth, great Video! We wait every Week for a new episode and celebrate it. Thanks for reviewing the "alien Rpg" ! Keep up the good work! Greetings from Germany!!
Always excited to see the new Jack outfit
Really Great Review of the box set, very well detailed , cant wait for you other reviews of the books and also looking forward to Kult
I petition to have Jack the NPC join the usual rouge’s gallery of players at the table in future videos.
Thanks for the awesome reviews man! They’re always so thorough and well thought-out, I really feel like you give me a handle on what I’d be getting into. God bless you!
Seth, you’re great at explaining game mechanics in a simple and straightforward way, I wish you would make tutorial videos for all the games I run, or at least that game companies would put out good enough vids that I could point my players towards.
So far I have picked up all of the Alien Free League stuff released so far and the Fantasy Grounds Alien modules as well. Can't wait to run a campaign and see how much we enjoy it. Just flipping through the core book I am highly impressed by the depth of information and the quality of all of the printing of each book/guide.
Glad you seem to have dug it. I'm a huge fan of Free League and I cannot sing their praises enough. Just a fantastic outfit.
I've been wanting to see a review of this game ever since I spied it on the shelf a couple of videos back. Was not disappointed!
By far, the best game review I've ever seen. Like any game, any review, ever.
The consumables mechanic seems like it could be easily adapted to other rpgs with a survival focus. Still tracking, but it seems simple enough to not be tedious.
The cumsumables mechanic is in a lot of free legue games...in one way or the other ;)
It's simple but also really fun sounding
do a bit reasearch on the termn "usage dice". I think this stems from the black hack.
As a fan of the Alein franchise, this sounds awesome. Thanks for the review, Seth!
Wow that's an amazing review! Thanks! Loved the space trucker scenes ;)
I see you have a Mothership patch on your alter-ego in this video. Do you have a preference between Mothership and the Alien rules?
I'd be curious to hear this as well. Much as I was interested in the Alien setting, I really wasn't a fan of how this rule system played out in MYZ and didn't want another game with it. Grabbed Mosh and the modules and was very impressed.
Mothership seem much easier to learn/play and it’s a WAY cheaper. I would be very interested to hear Seth’s thoughts on how Alien RPG compares to Mothership.
Mothership pdf is pay what you want. www.drivethrurpg.com/product/245017/Mothership-Players-Survival-Guide
Was coming to the comments to see who else noticed this too! I love Mothership, i'd be very interested to hear what Seth thinks of it!
And another voice to the choir. Any quick comparison between Mothership and Alien please? A simple comment should do really.
"Now this game is based off of Adult Movies"
WHAT PARTS OF ALIEN DID I MISS SETH?!
Alien vs. Penetrator
Clearly I was referring to R-rated, but let's run with this. Go back and take a good look at the Geiger alien in the first film. It's got a wang for a head. Not a, "that looks kinda dick-shaped," but it's a dick. Next, let's look at the derelict ship. That was very intentional. Then there's the rape theme. Not just the part where a dude gets attacked and has a fleshy tube rammed down his throat, but the 'pregnancy' that resulted from the encounter. Then we have Ash ramming a skin mag down Ripley's throat. All in all, it's a pretty damned Adult movie.
Great, now I’ve got the idea of alien porn inside my head. Wonder how I’ll get rid of that one.
@@SSkorkowsky my mom showed me Alien and Aliens because they were must see movie that are "important to modern culture", but forbid me from watching Alien 3 because it had a sex scene in it... after watching it anyway behind her back(I was like 12 or 13, what boy that age isn't going to be motivated by that? besides my mothers tastes on what was and wasn't appropriate was all over the place, Rugrats was forbidden because it had bad grammar in it) I confronted her about how there wasn't a sex scene in the movie, she corrected herself and said that it was actually a rape scene.. but that didn't happen in the movie either, so she corrected herself again and said it must have just been an attempted rape scene... which still didn't happen or was so vague/subtle about it that I didn't notice...
the funniest part of all this is how I'd been allowed to watch Conan The Barbarian since I was like 6 or something and that has a pretty explicit sex scene with the demon/witch lady, and probably some other stuff that I'm forgetting about.
Alien is not a movie for kids. I watched it when I was 9, scarred for life.
Thanks a lot for the subtitles! English is not my first language so its always handy to have them just in case.
PD: Great videos. Thanks to you i'm trying to play CoC even before DnD. Just checking the core book (keeper) right now.
Seth, that was an excellent review. Very clear on what I would be getting if I bought the Starter set, and also a neat introduction to the mechanics with some fair-sounding criticisms. Does sound to me that they should have a third option; a Complete set; the starter set contents with the Core rulebook instead of the introductory softback. Price it just under what it would cost to buy the Starter and Core book together. Thanks. Looking forward to further videos on this game.
Looking forward to seeing some more Alien RPG content from you Seth :)
I bought this today based on your review. Keep it up.
Had no idea this game existed. As a fan of the Alien movies,I’m excited to try this game. Awesome video as usual.
Yep, my friends and I are completely on-board for the Alien RPG, it's been a massive hit! We just completed Destroyer of Worlds (note I said completed, not survived of course...) after running through the other cinematics. Looking forward to a more complete review.
Also holy crap - 20 hour Chariot of the Gods!? We are slow, RP heavy group and even we couldn't drag it out for half that time! Can't wait to hear that story!
Hey Seth, thank you for the great content. Because of you I got into the Conan rpg amd back into Call of Cthulhu
Really great review! Nice Alien NPC costume too haha. I think I'll buy this
Great review for a great game! The module in the starter set is very enjoyable and flavorful.
Wow the art and design layout in this looks beautiful
I'd be extremely interested in seeing what you think of Mothership, particularly in comparison to this.
Alien seems very aware of the OSR, and seems to borrow from a lot of OSR titles including Mothership.
I was gonna say this looks ALOT like Mothership. Like, almost a little too much.
@@P9ctMak3r could that be because... Mothership was inspired by a couple of 40-year old movies? ;)
I can't wait till the full review drops!
You are absolutely the best man, I love to watch your videos, you’re so entertaining, keep doing what you’re doing, and please, oh please, talk about the lightless beacon.
Good review and I love the artwork!
Found this video while browsing for info on the Alien game, trying to figure out if I wanted to pick it up and which version to get if I did. Found this incredibly helpful! Thank you!!
Happy to be of service.
I’ve been running Alien RPG games at conventions and Board Game Cafes for the last couple of years and it’s great. Been running two new scenarios on Roll20 during the the last six months too. A nice counterpoint to Tales from the Loop RPG too.
Mr Skorkowsky your reviews are sooo good. Cant wait for you to review the new Cyberpunk Red. Thanks for all your videos!
Cyberpunk RED!!! Woot! Let's see it buddy!
I love the costume you gave Jack for this review, just needed a tacky Hawaiian shirt to complete the look
I considered it (it requires I not only buy a Hawaiian shirt, but one with no green in it, as that would look like Jack had holes in him) but after putting the jacket together I was all, "Eh. Good enough."
I appreciate that your videos cover games that are not D&D or Pathfinder. I've been interested in starting my own channel that focuses on Champions/HERO System, as well as some tabletop crafting (because i love creating for the table), but I just haven't quite figured out how to get started or gotten around to it.
Great review Seth. I prefer to get the physical products from Free League because I get the PDF included with that price.
After stalking my RUclips subs all morning, the emotional rollercoaster of seeing a new SB upload then finding it’s only a tight 17 mins was insane 🥲
Thanks Seth,great review.
YES!!! FINALLY, SOMEONE TALKS ABOUT THIS GREAT SYSTEM!!
I love every game I’ve ran Free League had anything to do with. Mutant Year Zero, Coriolis, Mork Borg, and my personal favorite, Tales from the Loop.
AVP freaking rocked! (it was actually the reason I watched both the Alien and Predator movies later on, so I owe it a lot)
And yeah, I totally wanna try this out now, it looks fun, and I like the idea of a simplified rule set for one shots.
Thank you for the review
God this sounds soooo good, I totally need to add this to my growing list of rpgs I'll EVENTUALLY run. And just after I got the new dnd book and it reignited my desire to go back to dnd with some truly fantastic new subclasses like a fungus focused druid that can make cordyceps zombies.
Great video as always! Can't wait to hear your play through of Chariots. (Dweebles as a murderous android would be a must..."you have my thympathy") Luckily for me I was gifted the core rulebook and then purchased the starter set for the dice and swag. I do like having the starter rules on hand for quick reference, handing it out to other players to get them more into the game. My only complaint about the Starter Set was that the box is a shade too small for the core rule book to be neatly stored! That and the glue binding of the starter rules is coming undone.
I got this when It first came out. I kinda wish I waited for this because I could have got everything I needed in the starter set. I cant wait to try it with my gaming group. I really love the system, then again, I'm a BIG Sci-Fi fan. Thanks Seth!!
Hi Seth. Great review! I'm glad to see free league's games get reviews from you guys overseas.
Would you consider reviewing Coriolis from the same team? It's similar mechanically but the setting is Arabian Nights in space...
That consumables mechanic sounds really cool! Might just have to steal that wholesale for Mothership. Thanks Seth!
I've been waiting for this!
I had already purchased the main rulebook, but as you mentioned, since I was looking to pick up the dice (because what gamer doesn't want more special dice?) I realized it would be more economical to get the Starter Set. Dice, a condensed rulebook, and all the other peripherals made it a good value.
I love that you call yourself out, wittily at that.
Destroyer of Worlds is a sequel to Chariot of the Gods. They only ever mention this on promo materials, no idea why, but there it is.
Cannot wait for more Alien videos.
Hey Seth, thanks for all the work you do bringing us entertainment and insight.
It doesn't sound like Alien is handling it the same, but Savage Worlds also uses a deck of playing cards to track initiative, it does so dynamically by dealing each participant, or group of participants in the case of mooks, and then counting down.
Its hands down my favorite initiative system I've ever encountered and I constantly port and adapt it to other games.
If the Alien initiative doesn't stick with you, I recommend looking at Savage World' initiative.
I have been waiting for Seth to do an Alien Review can't wait till he give us more game play into it
Great video, Seth, I really dig the Alien universe so I might bring this up as a possibility for future games. Also Jack's Weyland-Yutani outfit is topnotch, suits him very well!
+1 on Jack’s outfit. I have serious jacket-envy!
So Fun Fact. That WY hat has become my primary cap I wear when my hair is being obnoxious. Shortly after I finished putting patches on the jacket I decided to go for a walk one evening and it was chilly. So I grabbed the jacket that was just sitting there, pulled on my cap, and went for a stroll. This has repeated now several times, and now I'm the neighborhood weirdo walking around in Weyland Yutani gear.
@@SSkorkowsky considering the Alien-verse is primarily depicted in a late 1970's-mid 1980's style, the longer hair compliments the outfit just as well. I could have done with a WY cap during lockdown to keep my overgrown mane under control.
It's great to see a good review for one of free Leagues games. I hope sometime in the future you'll be able to do a review for their other game "Forbidden Lands".
Seth, you da best! The CoC starter set has provided hours of fun, and the Alien starter set is superb too! Cyberpunk Red hasn't quite gelled with me yet, but their customer service is outstanding, Anyway, thanks for all the reliable and entertaining reviews!
I preordered the ALIEN Standard Bundle prior to launch so I have no need for the Starter Set. But I did buy the Destroyer of Worlds. The character sheet graphics that you used to explain the system is great. That really helped me to absorb the rules.
Seth i luv your channel and the work ya done here and I luv the Aliens franchines as whole .The tabeltop rpg seems like awesome idea .I hope to see ya do huge video presenting a demo game of some the rpgs game you luv .I am too hype for the Cyberpunk 2077 still and i can hope you doing a Cyberpunk game :d .Cheers mate .
When will Jack get his own channel? We love Jack.
Well, that's settled it. I shall be picking this up