Hall or Nothing Productions Ltd: Fantasy Quest - ND's First Session Report

Friday, July 22, 2011

Fantasy Quest - ND's First Session Report


I’ve been hesitant to put down a session report for Fantasy Quest so far, because I’ve been tweaking and tinkering and concentrating on the mechanics a lot as we go, which may have read as quite dry and unfocussed.  And the last thing I want is for people to find the game uninteresting!  But there has been quite some demand for more info and development time scales and such, so I hope the following is of interest to a few of you.  We played another two player competitive game of Fantasy Quest last night.  With a few interruptions it took about two hours, which is perhaps going a little long - but we were playing the full length game with Sagas and an Ancient adversary.


I randomly drew a Werewolf Male Hero, Assassin class.  Assassins are great at Sneaking and Hiding and get an extra bonus die whenever you make a Surprise Attack.  For my starting Skill I took Foraging, which allows you to heal 1 Wound if you end your turn in a Forest.  Initially this Skill would prove not very useful, but towards the endgame where every location becomes dangerous and falls into Gloom, it became nothing less than essential to counteract the effects of the Gloom.  The purpose of my Hero’s Saga was to ‘Take the Fortress’!  If I was able to infiltrate and overcome this Fortress I would be able to claim the powerful ‘Stronghold’ Totem as my own.  The Stronghold contains three Items which you can immediately put into play, and like all Totems it boosts your Hero’s Hit Points by 4, giving you double the number of Actions you can use in a turn.  And you will really need these extra Actions and Hit Points by the end game, believe me.

Mmzomba drew an Orc Female Hero (which he nicknamed Princess Fiona due to the uncanny resemblance), Knight class.  Knights are honourable folk who foster their reputation based on the number of demons and undead they vanquish, gaining an extra Gold for each of these Enemies that they destroy.  His starting Skill was Swift, giving him an extra Move Action every turn, which meant his courageous Knight was nipping around the Map more nimbly than my sneaky Assassin.  His Saga was to Steal the ancient artefact: The Sceptre of Power, which is, well, a powerful sceptre really. 

For my starting Reward I drew a Minstrel, who likes to sing and dance around the Verdant Fields, which gave me my first direction to head towards to go and enlist her.  Meanwhile the Orcish Knight went out hunting for a cult who might lend her mastery of the Dark Arts.  Not a very noble or Knightly endeavour, but one that would net Mmzmoba a vital keyword for his Saga.  As we explored the map numerous Strangers revealed themselves and the Night deck threw out Enemies here and there, with Orcs and Demons arising from the darkest corners of the world.  The Weather changed frequently, with Storms (Strangers closing shop) turning into Rain (limited Movement), turning into Warm Sunshine (bonus Actions for Heroes).

Each Hero’s Saga requires eight Keywords to complete, and (currently) two of these are always more difficult, more specific Keywords to find.  For example, a line from my ‘Take Fortress’ Saga reads: “To DESTROY the outpost you must determine the nature of the ENEMY concealed within...”  Now, ENEMIES are fairly plentiful, and you shouldn’t have too much trouble tracking down one that you can take on.  But to learn how to DESTROY something you must successfully complete a Quest with the same keyword.  Luckily for me the DESTROY DONJON quest showed up very early on.  Unluckily for me, it is a Quest which requires intensive STUDY to complete.  My Werewolf was a Sneaky blighter, but not the brainiest Hero alive.  This meant that whilst my Knightly opponent was wandering the world slaying and plundering I spent my time on working out my Quest, and even had to throw down a few precious FATE points (which you can never replenish) to positively influence the outcome of my efforts.

Ultimately this tactic paid off - I destroyed the nasty Donjon and claimed my prized keyword.  My next tricky keyword was STEED.  But I was quietly confident about this one because as soon as I had amassed some wealth I could simply purchase either the Horse or the Camel Steed cards from the Market back at Sprawl City.


GAME NOTE – Amend Fantasy Quest rulebook to include suggestion of using ‘pen and paper’!  It’s much easier to write down your Keywords and tick them off as you go to keep track of where you’re up to.  This may be considered ‘hidden information’ in future games but for the time being we shared the same pen and treated it as bragging rights whenever we got a keyword we needed.


The Orcish Knight meanwhile had claimed a formidable Spell (the dreaded Battle Elemental) during his Questing and had stockpiled a respectable hoard of Gold too.  This was partly due to Mmzomba’s worthy desire to see if Gold was really all it was cracked up to be.  Feeling confident, and with a Battle Elemental in tow, the Knight raided the Dark Mire where Demons were feasting upon the land and its residents.  A hectic battle ensued and with a blurted incantation the Knight summoned his Battle Elemental into being.  Boosting his Fight with a whopping eight extra bonus dice Mmzomba took seemingly all the dice we had into hand and rolled.  It was awful!  We picked out maybe two hits from the carnage and then the Demons fought back.  Wounded and downbeat with her elemental vanishing from this plane of existence, the Orcish Knight finally managed to win and claim her reward...  Only to realise that Gloom had taken the Mire, and she was no longer strong enough to leave.  With just one Hit Point left the Gloom took its toll and the Orc Knight was defeated.  Discarding a card was bad enough but Mmzomba was gutted when he realised he’d have to discard twelve Gold (a record amount so far for both of us) before heading back to Sprawl to recover!

This gave me the opportunity I needed to catch up and I began to make good use of the Werewolf’s ‘Wolf Form’ ability.  This allows you to get about the Map more quickly but prevents you from shopping, chatting to Strangers or going shopping.  Before long I had accumulated a modest amount of Gold and turned home towards the Sprawl to go and collect my Steed.  Then disaster struck!  The Night brought us a Tribal Tithe: the good people of Sprawl City had to make a donation to the Barbarian tribes in order to keep the peace so two market items were drawn randomly to be discarded from the game.  I kid you not, Mmzomba gleefully drew the Camel and – you guessed it – the Horse.  Through my tears I could see him laughing at me as I watched them go.

My only hope now was to explore Places every turn to try and earn a Title.  Steeds are a form of Title and Places (which reward you with Titles) can most commonly be found in Forests.  This meant I finally began to explore the Forests I had shied away from for most of the game.  Though most of the Forests were now deadly and Gloomy, I foraged for Herbs to keep myself alive in the growing darkness.  As my Assassin hunted for a fabled Steed, the Knight ransacked the Plains looking for a Villain (a type of Stranger - Strangers being most common to the Plains locations) essential to beating her own Saga.

All the while the Days turned into Nights and time ticked on.  The Orc garnered more wealth again and this time was clever enough to spend it on a Gilded Sword and also to enlist a Corsair from the Sprawl.  I despaired as Mmzomba cheerfully ticked off another two keywords and passed me the first player token.

At this point the city of Sprawl was now besieged by the forces of evil.  We both continued to explore and collected a number of allies and spells and keywords and some extra cards to boot.


GAME NOTE – We’ve learned that it’s always worth keeping back a ’spare’ card in hand which you don’t necessarily need for your Saga, so if you get knocked out you don’t have to discard an essential keyword card.  Though it’s not always easy to decide which card can be considered ‘spare’...


Eventually, after exploring the Blessed Shrine I chanced upon a fine Horse and with joy proclaimed it as my own.  On the same turn I discovered a Villainous Gypsy, which I would have liked to Influence or Fight, just to prevent Mmzomba from obtaining his final keyword.  But with just three days to go before game’s end I didn’t have the time or resources to deal with her.

On my newfound Steed I raced to the towering peaks of Spire Tor and finally Took the Fortress which was my destiny, claiming the Stronghold and its treasures as I did so.

As word of this legend spread through the land, the Ancient finally revealed itself to be the Doom Lord, arising from the Badlands, coincidentally near Spire Tor.  Transforming into Wolfen shape and utilising the extra Hit Points from my Totem I rushed to engage the Doom Lord in combat.

The Orcish Knight deployed her newfound Boots of Speed and raced through the land – which was by now almost completely beset by Gloom - over to the Gypsy to try and defeat her and Steal the Sceptre of Power.

The Doom Lord was understandably unhappy about my assault on his keep.  My initial Surprise Attack paid off, but after recovering he smote my assassin and knocked him all the way back to Sprawl City.

The Orc reach the Gypsy Villain and tried to persuade her to part with the Sceptre of Power.

The Final Day dawned.  With the game finishing at the end of this turn, I raced forth from the Sprawl once again and again Surprise Attacked the wounded Doom Lord.

As the Orcish Knight brought negotiations with the Villainous Gypsy to an end by drawing her sword, the Werewolf Assassin - in wolf form - bared his teeth and leapt onto the throat of the Doom Lord, ripping his head from his shoulders.  The land was freed the Ancient’s tyranny and the game was mine!



GAME NOTE – Totems are worth 20 Victory Points, which means successfully completing one will almost certainly net you the win if playing just for VPs/Sagas.  Since we were also playing to defeat the Ancient, this was another factor to take into consideration.  Excluding my Totem however, and going on VPs alone, it’s worth noting that Mmzomba actually beat me by two points.  It has to be said, in terms of closeness and balance in Fantasy Quest, I found this game to be extremely encouraging.  Hope you enjoyed reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it!


19 comments:

JayJ said...

Phenomenal Report! Very enjoyable read.

I like how the luck really turned the tables a couple of times without wreaking too much havoc.

All that Gold for the Orc, boy that must of hurt and the timing of that Gloom nasty and then you had to watch your two Steeds disappear from Sprawl because you waited, OUCH!

Game has SOOO much potential, congrats for creating a beaut!

Cheers

jayjonbeach

Ninjadorg said...

Cheers JayJ - it's great to know that someone is reading these reports!

I was really pleased with the way those events ran their course, even if in game turns I was occasionally getting screwed over. It never felt like it was too out of control or random, even though it is essentially a rather random game.

Luck is clearly a factor, but you definitely need a game plan. I'll maybe need to develop a cheat sheet for newbies to give them an idea of where to be heading and what to be doing. Although I guess we'll soon see how quickly people do or don't pick this sort of stuff up for themselves.

Just had another game of Fantasy Quest with my non-gamer wife tonight. She was very encouraging and even said she enjoyed it! We played the short version of course, and it was very close until I got my arse kicked by a Reaper in the late game and she stole the win.

JayJ said...

That is great news first getting her to play and then her enjoying it, damn good job (and probably a VERY good thing you played with other people first, if its one thing that turns my wife off its unclear rules, another one is her losing so good job there too! *-)

Hehe I was thinking after that although it was really great to read and entertaining, I hope I still kind of feel that way when the shit hits the fan when I'M PLAYING! LOL

Chris said...

Very nice. Keep us updated on the progress with the game. I look forward to hearing more about it.

If you do get to the stage where you are looking for publicity let me know, I run a board game blog (www.unboxedbgb.blogspot.com) but I am also one of the founding members of the UK Gaming Media Network (http://www.boardgamegeek.com/guild/935). I'm happy to help you out if you need it.

Chris

Ninjadorg said...

@JayJ - The moment I was most proud was when I forgot stuff and my wife would pick me up on it. At one point she was in a Plains space and I was busy telling her how she’d have to use up Actions if she wanted to Rest and heal, meaning she wouldn’t get to move that turn. To which she pointed to an ability card and said, “But it says here I get an extra Action if I start in a Plains space.” Sweet!

I think I’m going to make another card which breaks down the Actions available each turn on one side, and a list of all the keywords on the other.

And if you’re finding the competitive game too competitive, you can always jump in and play cooperatively!

Ninjadorg said...

@Chris – Thanks for your support too mate. I’ve joined your group on BGG and am now following unboxedbgb. If you subscribe to Fantasy Quest over there and/or Follow this blog you should have all the latest information available on the game. And yes, I’ll be leaning on you in the future to help me out with publicising the game, so thanks for your kind offer!

Chris said...

Cool. It is worth noting that I'm actually in your area (I live in stockport) :) If you need to contact me my email addy is on the home page of the guild or under the contact me link on Unboxed.

Also, if you get to a stage where you are looking for an outside plytest group I can put you in touch with our resident playtester, Robin Harris. I also have good links with various companies, publishers and bloggers so don't hesitate to let me know if you need anything :)

Ninjadorg said...

@Chris - PM sent mate, thanks!

Leberus said...

Hey Ninjadorg!

I've actually purchased the cards you created for DnD boardgame for the campaign quest and thoroughly enjoyed it, but Fantasy Quest is MUCH more up my alley. Really enjoyed ready your write-up.

Much like Chris I wanted to offer any assistance in play testing the game. I have a pretty solid group of buddies down here, we tinker with making games and always playtest for others. Let me know if I can be of any help....cause I of course wanna try this one out! :)

Ninjadorg said...

Thanks again Leberus - also, is that your BGG username? You can PM me your email address too and I'll pop you on the list of first round play-testers.

Cheers!

ND

Leberus said...

I PMed you buddy. I do have the same name on the BGG. Also, I have been workin on a game to that I would love to get some of your insight on. Cheers

T

Leberus said...

Thanks buddy. I PMed you on BGG. I'm really excited. Also wanted to let you know that i've been working on a game that i would love to get some of your insight on. Cant wait for FG though

T

Ninjadorg said...

Thanks Leberus, added you to the list and PM sent.

Thallos Silverfang said...

You don't know how much I am cheering for you bud. This game looks incredible, and I really hope that it gets off the ground and running. It has so much potential. You probably get a ton of these offers, but should you ever need additional beta testing, or input, please don't hesitate to email me. I would love to help you out. I am a RPG/CCG player for a very long time. I have played my share of CCG's, and have a good foundation and understanding of card mechanics. A good solid core group of friends who live for stuff like this, and we could give you some honest feed back. Just let me know!

Ninjadorg said...

Thanks for your input and support Thallos - it's really appreciated! Fantasy Quest is way ahead of where it was when this session was first posted and version 2.0 of the rules will be available to download soon.
Hopefully.
Some time this year at least! :)

Thallos Silverfang said...

Can't wait to see what you come up with. Have you ever seen or played a CCG called Dragon Storm? It's an older game, originally came out in mid 1990's I believe.

Ninjadorg said...

I can't say I have mate - I'll research it on BGG when I get a mo. Is it any good?

Thallos Silverfang said...

Dragonstorm was very unique when it came out. It had characters (shapechangers) that the players leveled, and advanced. Treasure cards, storage capacity, and abilities ect, similar to that of your table top RPG's. Someone also had to play as the "DM" of sorts, and would determine a quest, and the area's needed to search.

The DM would lay out terrain and locations in a grid pattern, say 3 x 3, or any other configuration. The larger the grid, the longer the game. Upon completion of the quest, treasure cards would be handed out.

I remember the colors of the decks as neon orange and purple. Player vs DM. The exploration of the area's was such a new twist on card games at the time, it has always stuck in mind. The locations had different effects upon the characters. The rules were not fully fleshed out though, and many things had to be dealt with by using house rules. This is many years ago, and I am sure my memory is not perfect on it, but I thought you might want to take a look at it. I believe it was put out by "blackdragon press", I may even have some of the cards laying around somewhere. As I played the DM people tossed me the extra cards to help build the adventures.

Anyway, its very late here, and I am tired and rambling. Your game has had me thinking all night while I was at work. I am really enjoying reading about it, and can't wait to see what the next update brings to the table. Your work is inspiring, please keep at it. I can honestly tell you that from what I have read this far, if it was at my local hobby store, I would throw down some money to take a look. Can't wait!

Ninjadorg said...

Dragonstorm sounds intriguing, if unavailable now. It also sounds like a fair amount of work for the players, like in an RPG. With time at a premium I tend to prefer games that deliver the experience for you these days, rather than requiring you to work as you go. Although it does sound pretty unique too, and there are some interesting reviews and information about it on BGG.

Thanks again for your support with Fantasy Quest – if only real life didn’t get in the way I’d have those version 2.0 rules ready by now!