It’s been a while since I have done an On The Table article, but it’s not because I’m not playing games, it’s BECAUSE I’m busy playing games.
I cover two months this time, and there is plenty to discuss.
Great Western Trail
While dubbed a heavy Euro game, while there is a lot going on and the strategy goes deep, it’s surprisingly easy to get into.
My experience with Great Western Trail has been a rather turbulent one. When I first reviewed the game back in 2017 I’m not sure I painted an entirely flattering picture of the game scoring it at 3.1 in my review, giving it weak scores in the area of Theme and average scores in Gameplay. Looking back at that review, I can say here and now that I think this game deserved a little bit better.
For starters, I think it captures the theme of being a rancher driving cattle quite well though the theme here is really not a critical component of enjoyment of the game. I also criticized the game for lacking interaction and while the game doesn’t have “take that” mechanics, the obstructions of buildings, the race along the rail lines, and the forced actions to player actions is a constant in the game. In the end it is a lot more interactive once you play the game at a higher skill level where those sorts of elements (obstruction in particular) become quite critical to winning the game.
I initially got back into this game because of my daughter, but ultimately I spent a great deal of time playing Great Western Trail on BoardGameArena.com, a site where you can play both the 1st and 2nd editions of the game including the expansions.
Now personally I own the 1st edition and have played enough of 2nd edition to say plainly I think they got it right the first time. The 1st edition of the game is a bit harsher and it was clear that in 2nd edition they softened things up a bit. There are only slight changes but most of the changes make the game in a sense, a bit easier on the players.
The cities where you place your round tokens which represent locations you have delivered to are less penalizing, while the bandit track (formally known as the Indian track in 1st edition) doesn’t have any penalties either when claiming the tokens. The new and adjusted buildings in 2nd edition are also a lot more generous.
Regardless, 1st or 2nd edition, Great Western Trail is a really amazing strategic game that takes planning, resource management and clever maneuvering to come out on top. It’s a challenging game that really delivers a great victory point salad without overburdening you with tons of options with one always being an obvious and really only good one. Every choice you make in Great Western Trail means you have to give something else up, so it’s always a decision between many great choices and your decision ultimately rests on your long-term strategy, while very often being driven by your desire to outpace or obstruct your opponent’s efforts.
I play Great Western Trail games several times a week and have become quite competitive at it and despite repeated plays I’m still discovering new strategies and finding clever ways to improve old ones.
Fantastic game, and comes highly recommended by me.
Caesar: Rome vs. Gaul
Caesar: Rome vs. Gaul has proven to not only be a great strategy game in the CDG influence control genre but has deepened my love for historical war games in general.
I had two separate opportunities to play Caesar: Rome vs. Gaul and my opinion of the game has only improved with additional plays since I originally reviewed the game back last February. The game even made my Top 20 list for 2022, sitting very comfortably in the number 5 spot.
What does that mean? Well simply put, I love this game and for so many reasons.
For starters, it’s infinitely replayable which I honestly didn’t think would be the case given the very static starting setup and the very firm goals of Caesar in particular who has a very clear set of tasks to accomplish each game. This is a card game however and from this are born all of the dynamics and nuances of play that really re-write the circumstances with each game and though the first round might be a bit “standard” as players are likely to have their favorite opening moves, like chess, that does not result in a repetitive game at all.
Caesar is really a game of chicken and pushes your luck in a lot of the strategy that ultimately plays out. Caesar and his powerful army can easily crush any Gaul opposition well into the late game and while mobile, the map is just big enough that obvious gaps in defenses are exposed when he leaves the safety of Provincia.
As such a big part of the strategy for the Roman player is to know exactly when and for how long Caesar’s army can leave his supply lines exposed.
For the Gaul player its an entirely different game. There is less precision and a lot more gambling, as well as the constant need to put influence pressure on the Rome player to keep him concerned about what is happening on the board. Left unchecked, the Gauls explode in the late game and can even become strong enough to oppose Caesar himself in the final rounds.
The game has great tension, and relatively simple rules, it looks amazing on the table despite the use of chits (notably this is a game that deserves some pimping) and above all else it has that “let’s setup again” feeling to it.
Absolutely adore this game though it is not my favorite CDG Influence Control game, that honor falls to Imperial Struggle, but this game doesn’t play second fiddle, it really is its own thing and happily shares a shelf with Imperial Struggle in my humble opinion.
A must-have for CDG Influence Control fans and especially those that have a love for Roman History!
Game of Thrones: Hand of the King
A quick and thinky filler with a fun theme.
This silly little abstract game has virtually nothing to do with Game of Thrones beyond familiar art and names and has been a hit with my family, in particular, my daughter over the course of the last year. It hits our table regularly and is always a must-bring on any outing that might offer an opportunity to steal a few minutes to play a game.
It’s a simple game of collecting cards of the major Game of Thrones houses represented by characters from the Song of Ice and Fire story. Nothing too fancy, it only takes 10-15 minutes to play but it is a bit think, definitely a little puzzle to solve here but there are some take that cards in the game which create some rivalries at the table and it even has some occasional teamwork triggered when one player is getting ahead. Very tight game, rarely does anyone win until the final moments which gives the game a sense of urgency.
All and all for such a simple and fast game it is a lot of fun. Usually, we end up playing 2-3 rounds every time it comes out. If you’re looking for a great group filler that works one on one, this is a great one.
My City
The only legacy game I ever finished and would happily have a second go at.
I’m not big on legacy games, in fact, to date with this one exception they have all been disappointments and not because I didn’t like the game, but because I never get the chance to play out the entire legacy. Legacy games seem to wear out their welcome before they are done and are regulated to the classic “One of these days we need to finish X game” conversations; eternal. I’m looking at you Vampire: The Masquerade – Heritage!
My City is different because not only is a great game, but it’s pretty fast, the legacy adaptation is pretty simple to understand so you don’t have to re-learn the game after each play and you can usually sit down and play 3-4 games in under an hour so you kind of zip through it. In fact, you kind of wish it was a bit shorter, although when the legacy game is done you are left with the core game which in on itself is actually quite fun. Since my daughter and I play it just the two of us and it’s a four-player legacy game, we actually run through it twice with the same set though the game is so cheap that it’s no problem to buy a second copy if you want to do a second run through.
Really enjoyed this one, so far as legacy games go this is the only one that I have actually finished and without feeling like I have to “suffer” to get to the end.
Age of Civilization
A Civilization building filler? Yes please!
Age of Civilization is what I like to call a micro version of Through The Ages even though the two have little more in common than a theme.
This is a simple and fast-moving card game where players are moving through time and taking one of three actions per round available for any given period. There is war, there are civilizations with special powers, and it’s a point grab to a rapidly approaching ending. A Civilization building game in under 15 minutes! I don’t know if anyone asked for that, but they made it and frankly, it’s just short enough not to wear out it’s welcome and it does tickle that Sid Meier Civilization G-spot.
It actually reminded me a little bit of Nations: The Dice Game which I actually think is one of the best Civilization building game fillers on the market today, but this one is actually even faster!
This little gem is a blast from the past, I actually used to play this one daily online for months and its big brother Nations is an awesome game in its own right.
I like it enough to play it for free on BoardGameArena.com and if it was available I would buy it but this Kick-Starter went fast and seems to have disappeared from the marketplace.
A Feast for Odin
The jury is still out on this one, my initial experience I would describe as “confusing”.
I played a “learning” game of A Feast For Odin and oh boy is this a mind-fuck of a beast. I mean I don’t want to say anything negative about it, learning experiences are not a good basis for reviews and frankly 90% of the time playing this game for the first time I had no idea what was going on.
Part puzzler, part worker placement game, part resource management…. and a whole bunch of other stuff. There is a lot going on in this game, just the amount of worker placement options is mind-boggling and man is it unforgiving. You place one thing in the wrong place and you can potentially screw yourself for the entire game.
All I’m going to say at this point is that it certainly piqued my curiosity, I will definitely be getting this one to the table again but I have to say it might be a bit much for a Euro game. I mean I get it, it’s for Mega-Euro fans that want some meat on the bones, the Terra Mystica crowd as I like to call them, but for me, the fun bit of a Euro game is that they are short and thinky. The longer heavier stuff tends not to be my thing in the Euro-Game scene even though big epic board games are definitely my thing. I need theme and player interaction however for long games to stick the landing. This one felt a bit like we were all playing a solo game, the bulk of the interaction was in stealing each other’s worker placement spots.
We’ll see how it goes, but at least unlike Terra Mystica which left a pretty poor impression on me, I recall my conclusion to Terra Mystica review was …and I quote “The entire game just felt like I was waiting for a dentist appointment, I was neither enjoying my wait nor looking forward to my turn, I just wanted the whole mess to be behind me.”
Over-hyped and overrated snooze-fest not worthy of your shelf space or table time. There are far better-cube-pushing Euros out there. Perhaps Feast For Odin will be one of them.
This one fared quite a bit better, but it’s on my “try again and see” list.
Ark Nova
I did not care for this game one bit, long, ugly with stock photography as its primary art asset and a complete absence of any meaningful interaction between players.
I’m going to take a lot of shit for this one given its high status on BoardGameGeek, sitting pretty in the number 4 spot but…. god I hated it.
This was just a pointless game of collecting and trying to house animals which as a theme in on itself was not terrible but you had to look at this really crap stock photography the entire time and the game was just way too long. It says 90 to 150 minutes, you can safely double that. This is a 3-4 hour game that really just doesn’t have the nuts to warrant table time with virtually zero interaction between players.
I don’t usually rush to judgment after one play, but having played this game once I not only never want to play it again, I actively avoid being put in a situation that might result in me having to out of social graces. It’s games like these that cause me to ask “what games are we playing” before accepting an invitation to board game night.
Conclusion
Of course, these weren’t the only games I played in the last couple of months, but they were the ones that stuck out.
2022 was a very busy year for me and unfortunately, I probably played fewer board games this last year than I have since the late 90s. Still, I played quite a few compared to what I think most people actually play and of course, I made quite a few new discoveries that were worthy of consideration for this list.
This year’s list sees some shuffling around and a couple of new editions as a couple of games exit, but there were no shocking revelations. With that out of the way, let’s talk about some board games.
20. Root
Root is a curious little game that gained a massive following after its 2018 release resulting in quite a collection of expansions and a digital version by 2022 when I discovered it. It didn’t make my list last year, namely because it was a very new game to me at the time, but having played it quite a bit over the last year, mainly using the online app, I can safely say it earned its place on this list.
Root is effectively a quirky, asymmetrical war game in which players attempt to complete unique victory conditions depending on their chosen faction, which notably differ wildly from faction to faction.
The tricky element of Root that I think registers with gamers in addition to the very highly asymmetrical play is how it’s a game that you really can’t win alone, even though that is exactly your goal. To win in Root you must help and rely on the help of your opponents to put you in a position to win, yet, not help your opponent so much that they run away with the game and knock you out. In a sense, at times it’s a cooperative competition. A player that tries to strike out on their own and simply win by outplaying everyone is not likely going to be successful in this game, the reliance on your opponents to help you in your pursuit of victory is really a requirement to be in the running. This quandary is in a sense, the central theme of the game.
This combined with the highly asymmetrical gameplay gives Root it’s very unusual yet, addictive replayability, as well as this extreme balance that is provided by the player’s actions rather than the game system itself. Once you have played a few rounds with the same people, you start to realize who the good players are (people you help-less and oppose more) and who the weak players are (those who you help-more and rely on for their help to give you, your victory).
The interesting thing that I noted is that the more you play, the more you adapt your strategies depending on the current atmosphere of the group you are playing with, and this conversation about “who the threats at the table are” is constant, debated, and almost like a sort of Texas Hold’Em table where people accuse each other of bluffing. It’s very much a game of chicken.
I really didn’t love this game right out of the gate because the rules explanation for this game is a real hurdle, it requires that all players understand all factions well and since each faction has an entirely separate set of rules, the entry point is tough. Once you “get it” though, the more you play it, the better it gets. It’s a slow burn well worth the investment.
19. 1830: Railways and Robber Barons
This one is slowly slipping from my list, but not because my feelings about it have changed, but because this is one of those games that is sort of like sex. The first time is amazing, after that it’s a lot of fumbling about until you get really good at it, then it gets fun again. Well, it’s hard to coordinate a gaming group in such an effort and the game really suffers greatly when player skill levels are not synched up.
Simply put, when everyone is playing the game for the first time, everyone is making the same mistakes, it’s a complete cluster fuck and it’s super fun. Then you play the game a second and third time, and suddenly the game clicks for one or two people and they are crushing you mercilessly. After a while, you will have one or two players that are just unbeatable and you either give up or get used to losing.
R&R is an unforgiving meat grinder that has zero tolerance for foolishness. One bad move and you could spend a 6+ hour game being a victim under someone’s boot, worse yet, one weak player can cause another player to win while everyone else watches helplessly which can create some frustration among more veteran players.
That said, in a group where everyone gets it, where the game “clicks” for everyone, this game is just pure magic. So competitive and cutthroat, so intricate, so many ways to move and counter move, its capitalism at its finest.
I adore this game, but I struggle with the idea of trying to properly teach people the intricate, but absolutely necessary understanding of how this game executes. Learning the rules is one thing and that is complexity personified in on itself, but learning to play this game competitively, that takes real dedication and that process is kind of miserable, to be honest.
18. Star Trek Fleet Captains
Slipping a bit to the number 18 spot is my beloved Star Trek Fleet Captains. I rarely get to play this one in large part because there are not too many Star Trek fans in my gaming circle, but this year a buddy of mine indulged me and we dusted this beauty off and put it on the table.
All I can add to the review I did for Star Trek Fleet Captains back in 2015 is that It should have scored higher than a 3.9 and it would have, had it not been for some of the component quality issues I had and continue to have with the game. Let’s just say that things are a bit flimsy.
Where it really counts with this game and where it really nails it is in the theme and the gameplay. This is the entire Star Trek franchise in a box, it’s a game for fans clearly made by fans. All of the nuances of the shows and movies, crossing the barrier of the various generations of the franchise and connecting everything into a unique bundle of scenarios and variability are all here. What you end up with is a Star Trek game with endless replayability that really reaches into the depths of the franchise, all those things that make it tick.
I love this game, It has been on my top 10-20 list for many years and I just don’t see it going anywhere any time soon.
If you love Star Trek.. this is your game.
17. War Of The Ring
In a sense, War of the Ring is to Tolkeins Middle-Earth what Star Trek Fleet Captains is to Star Trek. Its Middle-Earth in the box, chock-full of amazing themes and gameplay, it is designed without question exclusively for Lord of the Rings fans.
To be honest the only reason this game isn’t higher on the list is that it’s just complicated enough that unless you play it with some regularity, you are going to forget the rules. I play this game once every year or so and each time I dust this bad boy off, I pretty much have to learn the rules from scratch which is a colossal pain in the ass.
It’s always worth it mind you and I would love to see this one hit the table way more often than it does, but it’s a two-player game with some very niche elements, not the least of which is the fact that its a solid 4-6 hour game and frankly, it’s not terribly balanced. I have played this game a lot over the years and never have I seen a free-people victory, doesn’t matter which side I play or how experienced the player I play against.
I know there is a 2nd edition of this one and my understanding is that they have addressed the balance issues, but frankly, I don’t have a problem with the balance issues and I don’t play it often enough to warrant buying a second copy. If you do get it, make sure you get the 2nd edition though, no reason not to.
This is a fantastic game, it falls into the realm of “experience”, more than a competitive game, it really tells great stories and I have never once regretted playing it, win or lose.
If you’re a Lord of the Rings, this is your game!
16. Tide of Irons
Historical War Gaming has one core issue and that is that most of the time, at least compared to modern game publishing, the components are weak. Like there is a context of historical war games of what qualifies as great components, but when you pull it out of that context and compare it to the heights of modern game publishing, historical war games look like trash (sorry I know I’m a mean guy!).
Tide of Irons however is a huge exception and while it would be counted as a “low complexity” historical war game to historical war gamers, even though it’s moderate to high complexity to the rest of the mass market world, it is in fact, a genuine and very historically rich, historical war game.
Tide of Irons is a tactical, scenario-based and squad-based war game. It uses some very traditional mechanics, in untraditional ways, has some very clever and extremely flexible components for near-infinite setups and… most importantly, it’s a total blast to play.
While highly complex in comparison to your typical modern board game, so far as games board games go, this is one you can pull out, teach someone and play without a lot of fussing about. It has increasingly complex scenarios that use more advanced rules and features as you progress in the game, but the scenario complexity starts very low and ramps up slowly. All and all, for an old dog like me, it’s a fairly straightforward war game with lots of strategic and tactical elements to make it fun and challenging.
It’s also visually spectacular and I think I love that about Tide of Irons more than anything. This is a game that rocks it on the table, it just looks amazing, giving it that rich thematic presentation that will get you in the mood. Who doesn’t love playing with little green men, it’s not someone I want to know!
15. Western Empires
Western Empires debuts on my list in the number 15 spot and I’m going to fess up here and now that despite this game being one of the toughest games to get to the table, so much so that so far I have only played it online, there is no question in my mind that it deserves to be here.
Based on the classic Advanced Civilization, a stone-cold classic from the Avalon Hill days, Western Empires is best described as “an experience” more than a game. This is an event game that takes you through the history of human civilization and like the foundation of human history, infuses human nature as a core feature of the game. You and your players aren’t just going to be playing the mechanics, this is very much about manipulating each other.
The core gameplay in Western Empires is player interaction, namely trading, negotiating, and deception and like human history, conflicts that arise are resolved on the battlefield in the cruelest of ways where war is won by the most un-sportsmen-like actors. The game has no equity, there are no balancing mechanics or attempts to ensure fairness, instead, there is just the cruelty of history and the ambitions of the players that drive the game forward.
This is a tough game where stuff will just happen to you outside of your control. Volcanos erupt and destroy cities, floods kill millions, rebellions crumble empires and all other manner of disasters natural or otherwise. All you can do as a player is navigate through the turbulence and hope that by the end of the game your civilization rises above the others in what I think is one of the most raw games I have ever played.
Western Empires is a long game, easily exceeding 10 hours and while the mechanics of the game are not complex, the nuance of player interaction is so deep that most players will see this as one of the most challenging games you could ever try to win. If you love huge, epic games for those big all-day events, this is without a shadow of a doubt in my mind, one of the best on the market. Combine Western Empires with Eastern Empires to make Mega Empires, a game that can house up to 18 players!
There is gaming and then there is Western Empires, that is all I’m going to say about that!
14. Dune Imperium
Dune Imperium is a Euro game and in my experience when it comes to how much I like Euro games, depends on when you ask me. They fluctuate and the primary reason is that they always feel hot to me until they are not. Dune Imperium however is a Euro that has really had a lot of staying power, I keep coming back to it over and over again and while it’s dropped on my top 20 list a bit from previous years, it’s still one of my favorite worker placement games.
The reason is that this is a game that comes with a really great theme, the use of worker placement here is not just about collecting resources and scoring points, but rather, its the fuel for the other far more important and decisive elements of the game, the deck building and combat elements. It’s also an incredibly tight game, I have never played a game of Dune Imperium that wasn’t super close and Dune has great versatility thanks to the great asymmetrical setups. It’s just a really well-designed game, easy to learn, yet very competitive.
This year we added the expansion, Rise of Ix to the mix which I thought, contrary to some of the reviews I have seen, added a lot of great elements to the game. It actually made the game a bit faster and allows players to specialize their strategy a bit more. The next expansion, Immortality is also out now and though I have not tried it yet, it does put more fuel in the tank for this one because I’m certainly excited to give that one a go as well.
It is worth mentioning that these expansions are luxuries and not necessities. Dune Imperium really doesn’t need these expansions, they are clearly made for fans who already love the game and just want to add some new playstyles into the mix.
Fantastic game, still my pick for one of the best games to come out in 2020.
13. The U.S. Civil War
I’m working on a detailed review of this new addition to my list, so more details coming soon, but The U.S. Civil War is another foray into the historical hex and counter-war game genre for me and it’s been a really fun ride.
This is a game, as the title suggests, about the entire Civil War. It’s a deeply meaningful and detailed grand strategy gaming experience in which two players play out one of the most defining conflicts in US history. It’s a moving armies on a map style of game, but the game has a way of presenting each side of the conflict with historically accurate problems to solve like the vulnerability of the coast, supply lines, the difficulty of the terrain, the variable availability of generals, the political atmosphere of the nation and of course the unpredictable results from the battlefield.
This is one of those games where you must think many moves ahead, and execute plans as you made them while trying to predict the intentions of your opponent. It’s uniquely balanced in that the South (Confederate Army) has little chance of actually winning the war, the North (Union Army) clearly has an advantage in the battlefield, but the North must execute a really successful war or the political situation at home may force a concession, which is how the South can win the game.
It’s historical, it’s strategic and it’s chaotic. Just a really great game, certainly not for the faint of heart, this is definitely a historical war game made for historical war gamers, specifically for historical war gamers interested in this particular conflict, so its quite niche, but if you’re a fan like me, this is the premier Civil War-war game, it’s a must own!
12. Peloponnesian War
Mark Hermans Peloponnesian War is without question one of my favorite solo games for many reasons, from the subject matter itself, clever mechanics, the unique way the game balances the solo experience and its outrageously challenging gameplay.
I have been trying to win at this game for over a year now and it still kicks my ass and each time it does, I learn, I adapt, I find new strategies to try and it all refreshes the experience. I find the game absolutely addictive, I just can’t put it down. I want to solve it and the crazy thing is that, I’m still just working on the first scenario, there are several others waiting in the wings for me so I don’t think this game is in any danger of slipping from this list anytime soon.
I will say that this game is so unique, such a white elephant even in the historical war gaming space that I find it impossible to recommend it even though every instinct in my body says that if you are a board game fan, of any kind, this is just one of those games you have to try. It’s just way out there in left field, the sort of game that results in either you seeing the absolute brilliance of it, or leaving you wondering, what the hell it actually is. Read my review for more details on this absolute gem of a game.
11. Lord of the Rings The Living Card Game
Lord of the Rings The Living Card Game has enjoyed a very long and very illustrious position on my Best Games list since its initial landing back in 2017, enjoying the number 1 spot in 2018 & 2019. In 2020 it finally slipped from its top position but it has remained and likely will remain on my list for a long time. It slips a few spots now, but only because I played it so goddamn much at this point, that I actually, for the first time since 2017 took a break from it.
I adore this game for so many reasons, but ultimately I just think it’s one of the best deck-building card games I have ever played and I have played a lot of them over the years. I have a complete collection and no matter how many sets have been released for it, each time I pick up a new one, I find myself back at the table completely engrossed in trying to figure out how to beat the latest challenges. This game is just so much fun, I have talked about it endlessly on this site and of course, you can read the review from 2016. I’m the content owner of the fantastic Lord of the Rings Companion and Lord of the Rings Campaign utility just in case there is any doubt about my fandom.
If you’re looking for a great deck builder that you can play solo or with friends, this is the one and if you happen to be a Lord of the Rings fan, I mean, this is a must-own game…period. This is my island game, no doubt about it.
10. Washington’s War
Washington’s War has one benefit that the other CDG’s (Card Driven Games) on this list don’t have which is that it’s very newbie friendly, meaning you can take a non-gamer or casual gamer, teach them how to play and they will be beating you at it pretty quickly. It’s a very easy game to pick up, while remaining exciting with a deep, meaningful strategy that will keep veteran players interested. It’s actually a really great introduction to a historical war games game and definitely one of the best CDG introductory games on the market.
Now that is the meta, but what makes Washington’s War really special is that it captures the revolutionary war in an abstract way, while maintaining the nuances of the historical period. It’s thematically rich and it houses mechanics that are very much standard in a lot of CDG’s and historical war games, so it has this very easy-to-recognize familiarity as you play the game, things work, as you kind of imagine they should.
9. Through The Ages: A New Story of Civilization
Through the Ages: A New Story of Civilization is game about human history from the stone age to the future age, but unlike Western Empires which it shares topics with, Through The Ages is very much a mechanical experience and a Euro one at that.
Through The Ages is a very long strategy game where you must not only go into it with a plan, but at each stage of the game, really with each decision in the game you are binding yourself with the impact of those choices resinating all the way to the final scoring round. It’s without question, one of the deepest strategy games I have ever played, one of those games that you can analyze endlessly.
Despite this fact, there is a certain level of randomness in the game, so even though you can walk into it with a strategy in mind, you are also placed on the defensive quite often and will need to scramble and make do with what becomes available to you rather than what you really want. This gives the game incredible replayability because no two games will ever be alike and no amount of theory crafting is ultimately going to matter as you approach this games incredible dynamics. Not that this knowledge will keep you from theory crafting, but ultimately it’s as much a game about planning as it is reacting.
It’s so robust, so challenging and so well thought out that it’s no wonder that Through The Ages has enjoyed one of the longest stretches in the top 10 on boardgamegeek of any game ever released. Even today, nearly two decades of being on the list it still manages to be in the number 13 spot as of this writing, a testament to its amazing design.
Through The Ages has a great digital version which makes this game a lot more accessible and I highly recommend that if you’re a fan of this one to get that, it’s a worthwhile investment to get to play this gem more frequently. For me personally, I love to see this one one the table, it is one of the best games ever made.
8. Eclipse: Second Dawn For The Galaxy
I’m currently writing an article series about space civilization-building games (HERE is part I) and obviously, Eclipse is one of the contenders. When I was building this list however I knew both Twilight Imperium and Eclipse would make it onto the list, but I ultimately had to decide which one would rank higher and which lower.
Now before I explain why Eclipse has been one-upped by Twilight Imperium, let me just say that Eclipse: Second Dawn For The Galaxy is an absolutely fantastic game, capturing the genre from a very unique angle that deserves all of the accolades this latest edition of Eclipse has gotten.
The way the game gets right into the action, the pacing of the game throughout, fantastic combat, amazing technology and resource management, it really just nails it in so many ways. Frankly, in almost all cases I would actually recommend Eclipse over Twilight Imperium to the overwhelming majority of gamers. You could say from a mechanical and modern design perspective, it’s the better game.
So why does it play second fiddle to Twilight Imperium for me? The answer is simple, player interaction. When it comes to big, epic, event-level games from which both of these games plant their roots, player interaction is a key factor for me. Despite some really amazing mechanics, the level of player interaction in Eclipse is strictly regulated to mechanical execution. You are not going to be negotiating, there is no politics, and there isn’t much in the way of making deals with and then betraying players, at least not if you are paying attention to how the game executes.
Despite being part of the “event” genre of games, Eclipse is actually a quite short game and this is a game about scoring points and there simply isn’t enough nuance or time in the game to fumble around with politics and negotiation. You do what you need to do to score points, you start doing it from round one and by the time player interaction would make any difference, the game is over and you are counting VP’s to see who won.
This is very much a Euro version of a civilization-building game, it’s about managing resources, executing mechanics, calculating odds, predicting actions and so on. All good stuff mind you and it makes for an excellent game, but it just lacks that human interaction factor upon which games like Twilight Imperium are based and for me personally this feels like a missing element in the game.
Eclipse makes up for this in countless ways and it didn’t make it on this list because I felt sorry for it, Eclipse earns its stripes, it’s an amazing game, it’s just no Twilight Imperium.
7. Twilight Imperium
Twilight Imperium has been on my best-of list as long as I have kept one which at this point is nearly a decade. Now in its 4th edition, this space opera remains the premium grand strategy civilization building in space game on the market and while there have been plenty of challengers, I’m yet to find one to dethrone it, though arguably Eclipse: Second Dawn For The Galaxy came pretty bloody close and might just one day surpass it.
I think the crux of it is that Twilight Imperium has a strategic depth that no other game in this genre can touch. It’s a game of subtle moves, of grand plans and of player-driven politics and interaction. TI4 draws on the personalities of the players and infuses it with gameplay in a way that very few games do and to me this is a mark of a true masterpiece.
The game mechanics in 4th edition have been perfected to such a degree that I actually rejected the expansion for the game (The Prophecy of Kings) because I felt that it was messing with that perfection. Some swear by the expansion, but for me, Vanilla 4th edition Twilight Imperium is the mecca, the final and best version of the game, not to be messed with.
This is a 6-10 hour monster, clearly an event game and so it doesn’t see a lot of table time and in a way, this is the one thing Eclipse has over Twilight Imperium and why I believe someday I might get to a point where I admit defeat and allow Eclipse to rise past Twilight Imperium, but it isn’t going to be on the 2023 list, better luck next year Eclipse!
6. Empires: Age of Discovery
Empires: Age of Discovery is to me, from a design perspective, the single best worker placement game ever made. It combines a great theme, very clever use of the worker placement mechanics that go beyond simply plop and score and boasts an incredibly tight competitive atmosphere. This is just really good gaming and really good game design.
It’s very easy to teach and learn, looks absolutely amazing on the table, it’s paced perfectly keeping everyone engaged and doesn’t overstay its welcome, really hitting that sweet spot in terms of playtime.
I did a review of this one way back in 2005 and to be honest while I agree with the score for the most part, one thing haunts me about this review and that is my complaints about the deluxe edition cost vs. component quality. I was being quite harsh and have since really changed my tune about the value of this game. This deluxe version of the game I think is well worth the 100 dollars I spent on it, but I suppose 100 dollars was a lot more money in 2015 than it is today.
To me, if you’re a fan of worker placement games, this is a no-brainer, they don’t get any better than this.
5. Caesar: Rome vs. Gaul
A new edition to the list, the impressive Caesar: Rome vs. Gaul makes its debut in my top 5 and I can’t help but feel this game might deserve to be higher on the list.
This game initially hit me kind of so-so. I didn’t love it right out of the gate and I saw some flaws with it compared to some of the other CDG’s I was playing at the time, but like a fine wine, this thing aged for the better with time. Looking back at my initial review of Caesar: Rome vs. Gaul where I scored it a 3.85 I feel like I probably should have played it more before doing the review. I think it deserved a bit better, not that I disagree with anything I wrote about the game back then as compared to today, but I should have scored it higher.
I think the main difference after dozens of plays for me has been that this game is so much more diverse and dynamic than I first thought. Certainly, the number of different strategies and the way some of the more chrome-rich mechanics affect the game and how they can be used as part of a larger long-term strategy are things that at that point when I wrote the review had not clicked for me the way they have today. Having played it quite a bit over the last year, boy let me tell you, this game is a veritable forest of awesome and dynamic gameplay. It has so much more depth than I initially gave it credit for.
While I still stand by the fact that Imperial Struggle is my favorite CDG, this is a taste thing more than a design thing. I consider Caesar: Rome vs. Gaul one of the most well-designed CDG’s on market today. It hits the historical and thematic elements with precision even within its abstraction, it’s challenging with player skill playing an important role in deciding outcomes while bringing that chaos factor that makes card and dice games so much fun.
It is burdened with a bit of a learning curve but unlike games like Twilight Struggle, which has a tough climb for players to learn to play it well, Caesar: Rome vs. Gaul’s learning curve is in learning the rules of the game. Once you get past that hump which I would argue is moderate, learning to play it well comes naturally and relatively easily. There is a fundamental core to the game that makes it easy to spot potential, viable strategies. I find that is a preferable setup as finding someone to play the game that is ready to get past the mechanical learning curve of Caesar: Rome vs. Gaul is a lot easier than finding someone who is ready to put in the 30+ games it takes to become competent in something like Twilight Struggle.
Amazing game, that keeps getting better the more I play it, one of the biggest surprises for me of the last couple of years.
4. Paths of Glory
Paths of Glory is to me, THE, premiere historical war game, it is to historical war games what Pandemic or Settlers of Catan is to the general board gaming community. It’s just one of those games that, until you have played it, you can’t really claim you know historical war gaming, it is a fundamental must-own and play.
That said, it actually is quite a niche, but that shouldn’t be surprising to historical war gamers, quite literally every game in the historical war game genre is a niche thing in most respects. World War I is a very specialized topic, with unique nuances and context that create very unusual strategic and tactical challenges. That could actually be said about almost all historical war games as well, but I think Paths of Glory’s execution is done with such precision and the game mechanics are so fine-tuned, I can easily put this game into the category of a masterpiece.
In this game you are not just contending with the historical complexities of the period both on and off the battlefield, but it’s done in a “what if” setup which to me is the absolute best way to ensure historical war games don’t lose their luster over multiple plays. What if Italy shows up late to the war, what if the Americans join the war earlier rather than later.. so and so forth. The game allows for the adaptations of history but in believable ways, meaning the things that are a-historically possible, really could have actually happened that way.
That however is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the true greatness of this game. The attrition warfare, the subtle manipulation of resources, the intricate point-to-point map and the absolutely engrossing way unit positions play into the strategy of the game all combine to make this one of the greatest historical war games in existence.
Absolutely adore this game and it’s a great mid-way point for the education of a fellow would-be historical war gamer, it has some complexity but this is a game that with a bit of dedication can be learned and learned to play well by most people.
3. Empire Of The Sun
If you read my blog even in passing, it is no secret that I’m a huge Mark Herman fan, the designer of Empire of the Sun and that I consider Empire of the Sun his Mona Lisa, a true masterpiece.
My biased love for the history of the war in the Pacific surely plays a role here, but really Empire of the Sun is a combination of everything I love about historical war gaming all rolled up into mechanical perfection.
Empire of the Sun is a grand strategy war game in the pacific on an operational level, it’s a card-driven game, played on a large hex map that really focuses on large-scale military movements and reactions. The game is very intricate, without question one of the most challenging games I have ever learned to play, but the strategic depth, variability and dynamics of the game are so well the time investment this game demands.
Empire of the Sun has a really great solo bot as well which means that you can take your time learning the rules, really getting the nuances down before you consider challenging opponents and thanks to a very robust community supporting this game you will find no issues finding an opponent online.
That said the personal, one on one, the experience of playing this one on the table is absolutely unmatched. This is a timeless classic that earns its accolades, everything you have heard about it is true. It’s deep, and complex with a steep learning curve and it’s an absolute joy to suffer through it to get to the heart of this beast. When the lights come on and you get to that point where you know how to play, it’s as good as board gaming can ever be.
2. Imperial Struggle
I place Imperial Struggle in the number two spot of this list without reservation, I didn’t even blink really. This is one of my favorite games to play and it really isn’t for any particular mechanic or thematic reason, this is just one of those games that you play and love and.. well it doesn’t really matter why.
That said I feel like I owe some explanation and so I will be brief and to the point. Imperial Struggle is a culmination of everything that makes CDG Influence games like Twilight Struggle, Caesar. Rome vs. Gaul and Washington’s War great done with exceptional style and mechanical brilliance that simply results in this one being the best of the bunch. It is one of the most competitive and challenging games in this genre I have ever played. It has charisma, it’s absolutely gorgeous on the table and despite reluctance to try it coming from almost everyone I have ever taught it to, I am yet to meet someone who played it and didn’t instantly love it.
In my review in 2021 of Imperial Struggle I did point out that I didn’t think Imperial Struggle would cross over to the mainstream and it really hasn’t. It tragically sleeps on boardgamegeek.com in the 542 spot which makes this without question one of the most underrated games on the geek to date. It’s absolutely criminal that this game does not get more love given the fact that it’s the offspring of Twilight Struggle, in my not-so-humble opinion, a far inferior game.
In my eyes, your board game collection is incomplete with Imperial Struggle in it.
1. War Room
To no so surprise at all, War Room is my number 1 game on the best-of list for the second year in a row and frankly I can’t imagine a future in which this won’t always be true.
Check out my preview and my review of this epic grand strategy world war II game. I don’t know how else I could possibly praise this one short of saying, it is everything I love about this hobby in an oversized and very elaborate box.
I love this game and true love lasts forever!
Exits & Honorable Mentions
A few games exit the list and there are a couple that were up for consideration that I would at the very least call honorable mentions.
Shogun (Dirk Henn version) has been on my last lingering in the backfield for many years and frankly for good reason. I love this game, that crazy dice tower is just so much fun, in particular in the context of a think strategy war game. It was a tough fight between Root and Shogun, to be frank, I chose Root mostly just to have something new on the list, I don’t know that I believe that Root is a better game than Shogun. Its actually quite brilliant.
B-17 Flying Fortress Leader also exits the list, though I was a bit more sure about this one than some of the others. I love this game, but it’s so niche, it’s purely solo and honestly, though I play it every year like clockwork, I think this is just one of those ME games. I love the Leader and Field Commander series of games, they are a sort of almost alternative pastime for me. Field Commander Napoleon leaves the list for the same reason.
Ikusa makes an exit and probably should have quite a long time ago. This one lives on nostalgia for me and though I haven’t played it in a couple of years and really do appreciate it, it’s hard to justify a game for a best-of list you don’t really play.
Three major contenders for the list I discovered during last years annual big board gaming weekend, in no particular order, Hansa Teutonica by Pegasus Spiele 2020, Smartphone Inc by Cosmodrome Games (2018) and The King Is Dead by Osprey Games (2020).
Hansa Teutonica is just such a really clever Euro game that really struck a chord with me and I honestly think the only reason it didn’t make my list is that I have only played it twice and I don’t own it, so little opportunity to get it to the table. I think it will make an appearance at this years big board gaming weekend and if it leaves a similar impression the next time I play it, it might not only make it to the list, but into my collection as well.
Smartphone I have played several times and honestly, even as I write this I struggle to justify not putting it on my list somewhere. It really is one of the smartest (no pun intended) game designs I have seen in years. Super fun, really competitive and just brilliant from a game design perspective.
The King is Dead I think has so much potential, it just needs more table time to make the list. This is a game that I put in the vein of Condottiere, which is also a very difficult to pass on consideration for the list. It has that, my brain hurts, an element to it that is both addictive and inspiring. Really enjoyed this one and I think one of these days I’m going to make a top 10 games that make you think list for which both The King is Dead and Condottiere I think would do really well on.
I thought the timing for writing an article about potential RPG’s you could get into to replace 5th edition Dungeons & Dragons is quite perfect. Lots of people are upset with Wizards of the Coast after their completely disastrous handling of the franchise in the recent year and recent weeks in particular. I think a lot of people are looking around to see what else is out there and while I already have plenty of lists and information about other RPG’s on this site, I wanted to make one specifically for 5e players looking for alternatives.
Now one consideration for this list includes “logic” for the replacement of 5th edition. What I mean is that I don’t think “I’m mad at Wizards of the Coast” is really a reason someone might stop playing 5th edition, but I do think there is a wide array of logical reasons why a group, DM or individual player might. As such this list isn’t just about games that replicate 5th edition as a replacement but includes other RPG’s that do certain elements of the tabletop experience in a more focused and better way than 5th edition. As such I have included a “If you don’t like….” logic section for each game that describes an element of 5th edition you might not like and how the listed game does that particular element better. Hopefully, this helps to make the list more focused.
Enjoy the list and good luck in your hunt for a replacement for 5th edition D&D. Note that while this is a top 10 list, I have not put them in order of quality or anything like that. These are all great games for different reasons so it’s just a list of 10 games rather than a top 10 list of games to replace 5th edition D&D.
Pathfinder 2nd Edition
If you don’t like….
If you don’t like a game that has poor rules coverage and constantly asks you to make rulings where you wish there was rules coverage, I think Pathfinder 2nd edition is a great choice.
I think if you’re talking about replacing 5th edition Dungeon and Dragons, the most common, rightfully so, piece of advice you will get is to switch to Pathfinder 2nd edition. I think this is more of a competitor driven advice than necessarily good advice, which is not to say its bad advice. It really depends on what aspects of 5th edition you enjoy as to whether or not this will be the right choice for you.
Be warned that while Pathfinder 2nd edition does a lot of elements a lot better than 5th edition, it is a very focused game with a very specific style of play built into it that is not terribly flexible if you want to focus on other elements and styles of play outside of its focus.
Pathfinder first and foremost is an incredibly robust and option-rich game with an extremely focused effort on balance and mechanization of gameplay. What that really means is that this game has massive rules coverage, has very heavy character optimization which results in a focus on the execution of rules rather than rulings premise. 5th edition D&D is quite a bit different in this regard, many of 5th edition rules assumed a lot of D&D intervention and hand waving of rules in favor of narrative storytelling.
This is an adventure game in which any action you take has a rule associated with it and character options that can improve that effort. Now this does not mean you always execute every rule in the game when you do something, it just means you have the coverage, the option as a DM, to include some sort of execution when players do anything. Hand waving is certainly a part of the game, but unlike 5th edition, hand waving is rarely done out of necessity because of an absence of rules, it’s done as a preference. The rules always have your back in Pathfinder 2nd edition and this is one of the really distinct differences between the two games.
There is a firm consistency in how actions and execution work in PF2nd, rules are very explicit and clear and there is little left to interpretation. The consistency of the rules is such that once you get used to the system, you can pretty much always guess how an element works and be correct, so despite a 600+ core rulebook, most of the rules work exactly as you expect based on the precedence of the standardization of rules and the purpose of outlining each one is for unique circumstances and cases of specific action to ensure you are rarely put in a situation where you must rule something yourself.
This however is only a small part of Pathfinder 2nd edition despite it being a core feature and while the ruleset is incredibly consistent, balanced and easy to use, the best part of Pathfinder is that it comes with an incredibly detailed fantasy setting with a rich history and total support for it via its mechanics. Every class, race as well as unique fantasy trope, like spell sources, magic items etc.. are built into the world and have an explanation in terms of where in this world that thing comes from.
Its a wonderfully satisfying thing for a DM when a player picks Goblin as an ancestry for example and you can look up where goblins come from, what is there culture like, what are some of the unique aspects that feed into and bring to the table, the narrative of that race. It’s so well fleshed out, and well written and there are so many fantasy/story rabbit holes to crawl into it’s amazing. It all brings Pathfinders Golarion setting to life and makes it feel real. You have this really firm basis on which the game is set and while of course, you have the option of using homebrew or other settings with Pathfinder, Golarion is so well done, so perfectly matched up with the content of this system you are likely to discover that you won’t want to do this extra work. It’s a fantastic setup.
Finally and probably most importantly there is absolutely no question in my mind that Pathfinder Adventure Paths (adventures written for Pathfinder) are absolutely top-notch quality. Paizo is an absolute legend when it comes to creating adventures and campaigns for their game and for this reason alone it’s worth making the switch in my opinion.
One great example is Kingmaker, one of Pathfinder’s premiere adventure paths that have players not only going on a grand adventure of exploration but establishing their own kingdom. This one was so popular it got its own video game, arguably one of the best CRPG’s to come out since the Baulders Gate series.
One additional sort of bonus with Paizo and Pathfinder 2nd edition is that they achieved a long time ago the communities desired inclusivity of the game and developed the game with a modern morale compass that has escaped Wizards of the Coast for so long. Paizo is in a word, a prime example of what a modern company’s political stance should be, which is simply to do the right thing without being asked to and without making it a political stance constantly brought up as a marketing ploy. They simply just act right without all the morale signaling and politics unlike Wizards of the Coasts that is not only constantly shoving politics in your face, but also constantly screwing it up and releasing racist and sexist crap in their books despite any messaging.
Pathfinder 2nd edition is a great game and Paizo is a fantastic company that stands with the player community. They understand their audience, they understand their community and they know how to support their game. Pathfinder 2nd edition is without question the most well-supported game in the market today.
Castles & Crusades
If you don’t like….
The idea of switching systems and having it impact your style of play as a 5e player or DM, Castles & Crusades is the perfect system for you. It is very much in the same style & vein of play as 5th edition with an incredibly robust and flexible game system that allows for a very easy transition from 5e.
While the 5th edition community may not necessarily be up to speed on the evolutions of the game since the original 1st edition AD&D, it is a fact that D&D branched off into different directions since those early days. I think most might not be aware that the true descendant of the original AD&D game is Castles & Crusades. In fact, Gary Gygax himself played Castles & Crusades and it is actually the true successor to Dungeons and Dragons, not 2nd or 3rd edition D&D which evolved the game into the modern 5th edition game you are familiar with. Still, while the mechanics certainly differ, the core premise is the same.
In fact, in an alternative timeline where the franchise was not bought out by Wizards of the Coast, today everyone would know Castles & Crusades simply as D&D.
Upon opening the player’s handbook the first thing that will strike you about the game is how familiar and very D&Dish it is. This is a game that stuck to the classic tropes of the game but don’t mistake it as an OSR game because it most certainly is not part of the OSR even though many will claim it to be. This is a modernly designed game, that takes into account all of the evolutions of D&D and the RPG hobby as a whole in its design. In its 8th printing, this game has continued to be supported since 2004 and though it too has evolved over time, it has also remained consistent and compatible with all material that has ever been printed for it as Troll Lord Games is dedicated to creating a stable and consistent gaming environment for its fans long term.
Castles & Crusades plays as you probably already imagine D&D to be, its going to be oddly familiar if you have played 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th edition D&D and this is because much of the evolution of the hobby has been hit and miss with the Wizards of the Coast versions of the game, while Castles & Crusades has hand-picked the things that have been established to work well and fine-tuned those elements over decades of focused testing.
Like Paizo’s Pathfinder, Castles & Crusades has a default built-in setting called Aihrde, but unlike Pathfinder this setting is sort of intentionally designed to be a bit of a generic D&D world to allow players a tremendous amount of customization. Castles & Crusades is incredibly flexible, in fact, you can take any classic D&D setting and use C&C as a rule system with little if any additions or changes to be made to make it fit. It is very organically designed to be D&D and as such, all of the core races and classes you are accustomed to are there as you would expect.
More than that though Castles & Crusades via expanded books has continually made sure that those elements in official D&D settings that are created for those settings are also released in expansion books for C&C. Meaning there are books like the Crusader Companion which are available for free that give you races like Dragonborn, classes like Berserker and concepts like Multi-Classing. Castles & Crusades has kept up with all of the modern fantasy tropes and though they do not include these in the base game, ensuring D&D has a clear and very classic starting point, these expansions allow the game to be expanded easily to include any sort of fantasy you want to run. Everything I wished Wizards of the Coast would do with D&D.
Castles & Crusades is also a very open-source game, meaning the licensing of the game is designed to support the community and 3rd party efforts and this aspect of the game is fully leveraged making this an extremely well-supported game both officially and unofficially. Whatever you are looking for, whether it be rules on mass combat, kingdom management, expanded spell systems, alternative combat systems, conversions of classic adventures, system conversions… whatever it is, you name it and Castles & Crusades has your back. What makes the C&C community so great is that most of this material is available for free, which includes the Players Handbook itself. For example, there is a 5th edition conversion guide if you wish to take your 5e game and convert it to Castles and Crusades available for free.
I think the thing that makes Castles & Crusades really special in the market is the high level of quality of the books and the content itself. This is not a company that just splashes source books willy nilly and while the library is large at this point, this is because the game has been in operation under the same, stable and consistent system for over 2 decades. The result is consistently high-quality content that you can rely on.
Castles & Crusades is without question one of the premier systems and comes with the highest of recommendations to 5e players looking for an alternative mainly because switching from 5e to Castles and Crusades is not going to ask you to change your style of play.
Forbidden Lands
If you don’t like….
If you are finding D&D adventure modules and running pre-made stories that tend to rely on rails for the players to stay on a bit dull and you like your game to be gritty and tough, Forbidden Lands is a great choice.
I have talked about the award-winning Forbidden Lands many times on this blog and there is a very solid reason for it. It is a hidden gem in the rough waters that often accompany the OSR.
Let’s be honest here for a minute. The issue with the OSR is that, in part at least, it’s about playing old-school editions of the game and while that may strike a note with many, for 5e players, going back to playing B/X or AD&D isn’t exactly what they are looking for. 5e players like modernization and that is not only ok, but arguably it’s to be encouraged. Not everyone shares in the nostalgia of playing the classics as they were, much of the D&D community is forward-looking and Forbidden Lands is one of the few OSR games that says “hey we like old school gaming, we just don’t like old school rules”.
Forbidden Lands however is more than just a throwback to the classic play style with modern rules, it is a uniquely focused game that targets a very specific sub-genre of D&D play. Namely, the concept of the hex-crawl and survival D&D built are the premise of emergent gameplay.
In Forbidden Lands, you and your players are living in a kind of post-apocalyptic area and era of this world. The dust of the tumultuous past has settled and you are asked to venture out into the unknown and forgotten lands to make your own way.
In this game you explore the world that is dynamically generated by the DM using a very clever set of rules which generate what I would call emergent gameplay. Meaning that even the DM doesn’t fully know what is going to happen and since this is very much an open-world game by design, everything that happens is entirely driven by the players own motivations. What do they want to do in this wild open space? Whatever that is, the execution of that becomes the story of the game and everything about the game is designed to support that endeavor.
Now Forbidden Lands itself does have a back story so in a sense, eventually, you uncover enough information about the world around you to pursue what is effectively a “main campaign” of the game itself. So while the whole place is a dynamically generated playground for the players to pursue any endeavors they like, the games story does have a resolution and all of the dynamic content of the game that is generated in the course of play is tied into this piece of the game.
While the game is not a d20 system that 5e players might be familiar with, it does boast Free League Games premiere custom mechanic on which many other great games are based like my personal favorite, Aliens RPG. It’s a simple, very abstract system that will be a snap to learn and yet is incredibly entertaining as it relies on more than simply pass-fail states.
All and all I think Forbidden Lands is one of those games you must experience to appreciate fully but for the DM’s out there looking for something interesting to run, this game is as much fun to run as it is to play. The story writing here is absolutely amazing and the setting itself, dark, ominous and full of mystery, is everything you want in a great RPG experience.
One of my favorite games to come out this side of the century.
The One Ring
If you don’t like….
If you have grown tired of the generic, anything-goes fantasy that 5e has grown into and want something with a classic fantasy feel that is focused on role-playing, The One Ring, based on Tolkien’s middle-earth is going to get you there!
The One Ring is simply, Lord of the Rings the RPG, but it’s so much more than that simply because it’s a game that understands on what it is based and mechanically aligns itself to ensure your adventures play out like the Lord of the Rings books and movies.
This game has an incredible focus on making sure that middle-earth in all its epic glory comes to life at the table, not only by having a very strong game mechanic that really pushes for this to be true but because The One Ring has some of the best writers in the business working on it.
Ruins of The Lost Realms is a taste of what I mean here, we are talking about work that fits the term literature in my opinion, setting you up to have adventures that players don’t even realize are possible in an RPG. You are going to feel things as The One Ring focuses very heavily on the premise of RP with the G taking a bit of a back seat.
The hallmark of a great RPG is that it’s supported by well-written adventure modules and Ruins Of The Lost Realm is sooooo much more than just a great adventure module, it is so well-written, it deserves a place right next to The Silmarillion.
In short, The One Ring, as you would hope it would be, is focused squarely on storytelling and on personal relationships all with a backdrop of epic, world-shaking, questing that makes the players feel like they are a character in the Fellowship of The Ring. It does this organically, in a way where even players that are ordinarily not the story-focused kind will find themselves sucked into this one, not unlike what happens when you binge-watch the latest hit from Netflix.
To me the One Ring is the definition of what an RPG should be, it puts you right in the middle of one of the greatest fantasy stories ever told and hands you the reigns. Easily the single best RPG to come out 2022, I dare say no RPG fan should miss this one, especially a Lord of the Rings fan. Grab that starter box and check it out!
A Song of Ice and Fire
If you don’t like….
If you are finding D&D to be a bit unrealistic, with too much focus on adventures and not enough focus on the premise of believable characterization and wish to play something more gritty, A Song of Ice and Fire is for you.
Let’s be a little frank about D&D. The premise of the game is that you are a supposed “adventurer”, a bit of a do-gooder, that goes around exploring dungeons, fighting monsters and generally doing things no actual person, even in a fantasy setting is likely to volunteer to do. It sort of requires a level of suspension of disbelief in the context of a fantasy that I think is very often a bit of a stretch, almost cartoony.
Modern fantasy writing like the Game of Thrones saga is a good example of what happens when you look at a fantasy world from a more realistic perspective and use human nature as a guide to creating a world in which people act more like you might expect them to.
Based on George R.R. Martin’s modern classic world, A Song of Ice and Fire is dark, gritty, violent and sometimes a bit too real, but for fans, despite the need to sometimes look away, we love it and Song of Ice and Fire the RPG brings all of that to the table.
In what I can only describe as one of the most unique setups in RPG’s today, in Song of Ice and Fire you and your friends not only create characters all belonging to one of the houses in the story, but part of the game is creating and managing that house yourself.
This is a game that puts you in the driver’s seat in the political struggles in the Game of Thrones story where you try to raise your house to prominence by participating in the cutthroat Game of Thrones where you win or you die.
Beautifully designed to suit the gritty nature of the game world, this is a game where fighting is absolutely lethal and a last resort, while simultaneously the political stories are not much refuge as they are equally brutal. It’s a game in which you are either a wolf or a sheep, but of course the game encourages you to be a wolf and so you struggle against an endless barrage of political maneuvering, some of your own creation, others thrust upon you.
There is never a dull moment in this game as it provides the DM with so much ammunition to keep the stories going, not only that, you can do all of it in the backdrop of the story of the unfolding setting itself, changing events and creating your own version of the Game of Thrones story.
My friends and I played this one a few years back and to this day we talk about the politics, people and events of that game. This game just has a way of imprinting on you as it plays out in such a vivid and believable fashion.
Absolutely adore this one, I would only caution players and DM’s that this is definitely a far cry from an “adventuring” game. It’s a political thriller, the kick-down-doors and kill-everything approach simply does not work here. It’s a game where finesse, political strategy and calculated moves must be executed with surgical precision, its a game for planners. It’s wonderful and painful at the same time, but this game creates stories you will not soon forget.
Alternity RPG
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Many D&D players that are currently looking around for an alternative, may be doing so simply because they have grown tired of the fantasy genre as a whole and a natural switch is to check out science fiction. If that describes you, let me tell you about the greatest science-fiction game ever made, Alternity!
Before I do that, however, let’s get on the same page. Fantasy and Science-Fiction are very related genres, in fact, to a point, they are the same. Both genres were born from the same place, arguably, the first science-fiction-fantasy book ever written was Frankenstein by Mary Shelley and for a long time after that, the difference between what is fantasy and what is science fiction was a murky construct that would only be split decades later.
Now with that said I bring you Alternity, a game that not only is the precursor to the entire d20 system but may in fact, despite decades of D20-based games, be the best example of the system done right. This well-oiled machine was designed by TSR and Wizards of the Coast alumni Bill Slavicsek and Richard Baker and is without question in my mind one of the best science-fiction RPG’s ever published and remains so to this day.
It is designed to allow a GM to create every kind of science-fiction setting from the ground up from post-apocalyptic wastelands to space operas, from Blade Runner-style future earth to X-File style horror-mystery science-fiction. It is all-inclusive and does it with such elegance and style it pains me that this final TSR release which in my opinion is one of the best RPG’s to come out of TSR ever, which includes all versions of D&D, went under most people’s radars.
This game is mechanically a fusion of a skill-based and class-based system allowing for maximum customization and it boasts clear rules for all of the major science-fiction tropes from Cybergear, Mutations, Hacking, Space Combat, Space Exploration, Virtual Reality and even Magic.
There is literally nothing you can think of in the vein of science-fiction or fantasy that cannot be done with this system and it can go from high end super powered science-fiction to gritty reality with only the most minor adaptation, all work done for you and laid out in the Gamemasters Guide.
Not only is Alternity the unquestionable king of science-fiction in RPG’s, it also has two of the best non-franchise science-fiction settings ever written made just for it. Darkmatter, an X-Files-style alien conspiracy setting and Stardrive, a massive, Star Wars-level space opera that is based on very gritty and believable predictions about the future.
Stardrive, in my humble opinion, remains one of the best settings ever written for any RPG. How this is not a movie at this point I don’t know, it’s a masterpiece.
I love this game and have been using it for the better part of 2 decades and while there are many fantastic science-fiction offerings out there today like the amazing Aliens RPG (more on that later) and the highly thematic Star Wars Edge of the Empire, to me Alternity is the best of the best, the king of kings, the ultimate and only RPG true science-fiction fans should even be considering if you are going to consider sci-fi as an alternative to 5th edition D&D.
Astonishing Swordsmen and Sorcerers of Hyperborea
If you don’t like…
If you have grown tired of your games feeling like easy walk-throughs for your players and you want to present them with a tough and gritty challenge there are actually quite a few RPG’s to pick from that do this, in fact, it could be a list of its own. The reason I think Hyperborea stands out when assuming 5th edition players is that this game is what a fantasy RPG might look like if a modern gamer tried to create a classic D&D clone with one exception (I will get to that in a minute).
Technically Hyperborea falls into the OSR space as, at its core, this is a B/X based game, but unlike B/X there are some adjustments made to the setting to make some of the B/X concepts that might offend modern gamers a bit more palatable and better suited. More importantly, it’s a bit crunchier and feels much more complete than B/X ever did.
For example, this is a game where you simply choose a class, no race selection (same as B/X rules) but it’s because this is a human-centric world and while other “things” exist in the world, as players, you play only humans. Now there are different cultures of humans so you can select your race in the sense of choosing a unique human culture like Amazon, Kelts or Vikings for example, but you aren’t picking Elves, Dwarves or Halflings.
You get a very wide selection of classes and sub-classes to pick from with a good level of crunch, 22 in total, each with a unique set of abilities that will ensure every character is unique and each class is built into the context of the setting which itself is a kind of almost post-apocalyptic medieval fantasy with some science-fiction elements in the backdrop.
What makes this a great transition game for 5e players is that it takes into account the sort of focal preferences that modern gamers enjoy. It’s a simple-to-learn, easy to get into game and It focuses on rulings over rules, while offering the brevity of crunchy mechanics so that you have something to lean on. I would describe it as having the exact same amount of crunch as 5e.
Personally for me, what I love about it and really what I ultimately love about most RPG’s is that it takes a story-first sort of approach and does so by leading by great example with the setting. That is the sort of game that speaks to me. Hyperborea, the default setting for this game, just hits so many unique fantasy tropes, approaches fantasy a bit out of the box and has some really fantastic presentation so all of the material is easy to absorb and make your own.
It’s what I would call for 5e players, a really great rut buster. Like if your finding your 5e games are becoming uninspired if you are seeing patterns emerging and you want to do something different, switching to a setting that really re-writes fantasy as you know it is a really great way to break that cycle and Hyperborea not only does that, but provides you with what I think 5e players will find is a very familiar yet fun new system to learn that produces this very gritty reality. This IS D&D, don’t doubt it, but it’s got a bit of an edge to it.
Now I should mention one of the drawbacks here and that is by default, Hyperborea uses THAC0 (combat matrix) as its primary combat resolution system with descending armor class. I don’t know why the publisher chose this method over the much simpler attack bonus, ascending armor class structure, it’s a mistake and they shouldn’t have done it. Not that this is a deal breaker for me and frankly, it’s not that difficult to flip the math yourself but, if you think THAC0 is stupid and I agree with you, you have to decide for yourself if this is going to be a deal breaker or not. It is what I would call a chink in the armor of what is otherwise a fantastic game.
On the plus side, the system is used to great effect and Hyperborea really captures the gritty battle sequence with perfection. It’s a unique combat system that is based on B/X but expanded upon to try to bring some realism to the fight with some welcome cinematic bits. Melee combat in this game is vicious and it will create that much-needed stress and sense of danger that 5e is so often missing with consistency.
In my book Hyberborea is a real gem in the rough, it’s definitely a bit edgy and will require some know-how by the GM to make good use of the system, so there is a learning curve here, but it’s got a crunch in all the right places and has really good coverage for elements of fantasy adventure you really need including more expansive topics like Naval Battles, Mass Combat and Sieges, so you can play this game in different scales at different times. Just a really well-written, well-thought-out system that really brings gritty fantasy to life.
GURPS (Generic Universal Roleplaying System)
If you don’t like..
If you wish Dungeons and Dragons fantasy had a bit more realism in it, GURPS is undoubtedly the master of bringing the simulation of reality to life in a fantasy RPG and has been for decades.
I know that for many D&D players and DM’s the draw to D&D is the abstraction, the cinematic world in which fantasy exists quite a ways outside of the premise of realistic world and functions more like a cinematic movie with CGI-infused action… but… For some players, they want to create some gritty reality and though I would still recommend Hyperborea for most, for those that really want to get into the nuts and bolts of reality to a point of simulation, for that GURPS is one of the most robust, most flexible and without question one of the most expansive systems in existence.
Not only does GURPS have every conceivable element of fantasy covered, in truth, GURPS really lives up to the name universal because you can effectively run pretty much anything you can think of using this system.
This is a skill and skill point buy system, so character creation here redefines the word expansive. You could take a million players and ask them all to make a Fighter and you are going to have a million unique Fighters. This is a game that does not repeat and two characters are never going to be alike.
The simulation element here is very detailed and as such, execution of most mechanics like combat is going to be slow. This is a game that zooms in on every slash and parry, you track things like location of your hits, damage to your armor, cuts and bruises and everything in-between.
It’s extremely visceral and definitely a big departure from the abstraction of Dungeons and Dragons, but I would be remiss not to include it in this list as GURPS ability to create a truly unique gaming experience is unmatched. I can’t think of any game systems on the market, past or present that produces the sort of focused gaming experience that GURPS is capable of.
For me, GURPS is often my game of choice when I want to do something extremely specific when it comes to a campaign using elements of play normally not covered by other systems. For example, a few years back I wanted to run a western and I wanted to have a really great, very detailed mechanic for gun fights that was realistic to the real west, not the one you see in movies. GURPS performed wonderfully bringing that surprising reality of gunfights of the old west to the table.
When it comes to fantasy, the nice thing about GURPS is that the level of detail you want to include in your campaign is up to you. This is because everything in GURPS is very modular and almost all the rules are optional. At the core of GURPS is an extremely simple system and you simply add layers of rules like legos to get that perfect amount of detail you’re looking for.
If nothing else, for DM’s it’s a great read as simply exposing yourself to this system, will plant ideas into your head you probably would never have considered before. It’s a gold mine of inspiration, both mechanical and narrative which, even if you never play the system is worth reading.
Great system, and definitely a worthy addition to this list.
Old School Essentials
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If you wonder what D&D was like back in the 80’s and what to try something super classic, Old School Essentials has you covered.
Ok so I know I plug Old School Essentials quite a bit and so do a lot of nostalgic D&D fans who love the old days, but I’m also painfully aware how difficult reading and coming to grips with the old D&D books can be. Basic/Expert D&D and Advanced D&D 1st edition are not the most approachable games, in particular, if you are a 5th edition player and accustomed to a certain level of organization.
I think this is what makes Old School Essentials and it’s expanded book, Advanced Genre Fantasy Rules such a great core system. It gives you the old-school game, but with a measure of modernization that 5e players will understand and expect.
This is an amazing re-edit of the classic 1st edition D&D game (both basic and advanced) and delivers that old-school gaming experience minus a few of unwanted warts like THAC0!
I have been running Old School Essentials for nearly two years now with a gaming crew and we have had an absolute blast with this one. It’s simple and straight to the point and while very structured, delivers a great space for some amazing storytelling.
This game is, in a nutshell, everything that old-school gaming is about so if you’re looking to give that classic D&D experience a try, this is the game you want to do it with.
What makes old-school D&D so much fun. Watch stranger things.. its that.
Alien RPG
If you don’t like..
If you are unsure what to do about the whole Wizards of the Coast-D&D fiasco and you just need a break but don’t want to commit to anything long-term but still want to run something fun for your gaming group while you decide, Alien RPG is the KING of One-Shots.
Ok so it’s science-fiction and not fantasy and I get maybe this is a bit of a stretch for this list, but Alien RPG, voted #4 of Best RPGS in 2023 by GamersRadar to the surprise of no one, is without question in my mind, one of the most fun one shots I have ever run.
With Alien RPG there are two modes of play. Campaign mode, which is your standard way of running RPG’s where you run an episodic… campaign as the name suggests and Cinematic mode which is a mode designed to give you that Alien movie feel, perfect for one-shots or short mini-series campaigns.
What you get with Alien RPG is a gritty, yet easy-to-run system similar to the one used in Forbidden Lands (already mentioned) but you get to horse around in the Alien universe.
Horror, suspense and action wrapped up in what I believe to be one of the best franchises in existence.
Now I will admit, being a super fan, I’m a bit biased here, but the popularity of this game is not a fad, there is real substance here as the writing and design for this game is absolutely top-notch. You have never seen a gaming book this gorgeous in your life if all you know is D&D. They spared no expense anywhere, it’s so well supported, so beautifully designed and illustrated, the writing just melts off the page.
I love this game, it’s without question the game I grab if someone comes to me and says “let’s run a one-shot”. This game delivers on all pistons, it is pitch-perfect in bringing an exciting one-shot experience.
As I was putting the finishing touches on what would have been an entire post dedicated to the history of D&D editions in the Wizards of the Coast era from 3rd edition to One D&D… this happened (The OGL 1.1 by Wizards of the Coast).
Now if you are a D&D fan as I am and you understand the importance and critical role the OGL license published with 3rd edition of Dungeons and Dragons (the first Wizards of the Coast edition of the game after the TSR era ended) is, you know how vital to the health of the game this license is.
As a part-time content creator for D&D, the leaked OGL 1.1 and the follow-up response from Wizards of the Coast regarding the upcoming OGL was so jarring, such a betrayal, and such a greedy, lie-filled and despicable move by Wizards of the Coast that I can’t in good in conscious promote Wizard of the Game products anymore.
From this point forward 5th edition and any Wizards of the Coast products will no longer be mentioned, promoted or reviewed on this site. This is a permanent boycott of Wizards of the Coast and its parent company Hasbro by Gamersdungeon.net.
I encourage you to go to https://www.opendnd.games/#open-letter and support the tireless and selfless content creators that have made Dungeons and Dragons such a success and join me in boycotting Wizards of the Coast content!
We continue where we left off in part I of our article series where I talk about past editions of Dungeons & Dragons and why you may consider playing them even today. In today’s article, I will cover my take on 1st edition BECMI (Basic, Expert, Companion, Master & Immortal) rules and 2nd edition Advanced Dungeons.
Enjoy the article!
1st edition BECMI D&D Rules
I will say here and now that to me BECMI was and still is a revelation, hands down one of the best systems with the best style and theme for D&D in existance. That said, its really part of the B/X line of games and I kind of see it as an expanded part of the same thing.
In our first article, we talked about 1st edition Basic & Expert, a rule system that was intentionally easy to learn and run, designed for new players, but there was a wrinkle in the plan. Despite its design goal of being an introduction to D&D and an entry point to Advanced D&D rules, the B/X system took on a life of its own. Not only because it gained its own following but because despite any effort to make it new player friendly, the game was obscenely difficult to be successful in as players with some of the toughest challenges and heavy-handed death rules to exist in any version of D&D (0 HP = Dead).
The game was ultimately adopted by a community that went from newbies trying to learn the game to seasoned gamers who preferred Basic & Expert to Advanced Dungeons & Dragons and didn’t want to switch. Instead what they wanted were more robust rules sub-systems that offered more coverage within the framework (B/X) they were accustomed to.
There were other reasons for B/X to be continued and expanded on which related to legal matters in TSR that involved the franchise name, who controls it, and who collects royalties on the D&D name, but we are not here for a history lesson, rather we are here to talk about the game itself.
With this growing community of Basic/Expert rules players wanting something more robust, but unwilling to switch to the AD&D game space, TSR started producing more advanced rules for the B/X system, in a sense creating advanced Basic/Expert D&D. TSR in the 80’s was a confusing time.
Between 1977 to 1944 there were quite a few different versions of the 1st edition Basic game and this makes going back today trying to figuire out what’s what kind of confusing as it was back then. To be clear, BECMI is based on the 1st edition Mentzer Basic edition of the game released in 1983. Depicted here is the 1991 release known as “The Black Box” which is not the same thing as one example.
There was a total of 3 additional supplements that expanded the game starting with the Companion set, then moving to the Master and Immortal sets. Each new set added new rules complexity as well as addressed the required adjustment needed for previous sets to accommodate higher-level play (longer character progressions). By the time they finished releasing these 3 new supplementary rule sets, the maximum level for characters was a whopping 36th level!
All five sets (Basic, Expert, Companion, Master & Immortal) were later released in a single-volume book called The Dungeons & Dragons Cyclopedia and this earned the system which was seen as separate from both B/X and AD&D the name BECMI.
The Rules Cyclopedia is the final and most complete version of the BECMI system and I think few would argue that there is any reason beyond nostalgic collection to chase after the 5 box set volumes if you wish to play BECMI. It’s all here and it’s all you need and more.
BECMI was in a lot of ways very similar to the 1st edition B/X rules but unlike B/X it was actually a much closer match to AD&D itself in terms of rules coverage. It was a bit of both but it was modular which meant that unlike AD&D it was designed specifically so that you could use some or all of the companion rules, picking and choosing the mechanics that you liked or were relevant to your campaign and excluding those that weren’t.
While there were several very notable subsystems that were added to the basic and expert rules, BECMI ran and played very much like the standard B/X system.
The Companion Set added rules for elements like unarmed combat, the creation and management of strongholds (Dominion Rules) which coincided with the increased levels of character classes possible, capping off at 25th level. This of course meant that spell-casting characters had access to higher-level spells which are also included in the companion set, as well as all the amenities needed to accommodate higher-level play (hit points, saving throws, etc..)
One important addition of the companion set was the addition of new sub-classes which for the 5th edition crowd should sound familiar. You might think 5e invented this concept, but the truth is that sub-classes is actually a 1st edition D&D concept, arriving with the companion set.
Clerics that reached 9th level could choose to become a Druid sub-class which came with its own benefits including new spell lists for the Druid class.
This wasn’t the only new sub-class option included as each class after reaching 9th level had some sub-class options, though when the companion came out it was only the druid that was identifiable as a fully-fledged sub-class.
Finally, the companion set gave us mass combat which worked with the dominion rules and the henchmen, hirelings & follower rules of the base sets. It also expanded a great deal the types of adventures that were created for the system, notably some of my all-time favorites like Test of the Warlords which made full use of the companion set rules.
The Companion Set was supported by the Companion Module series which kicked off with Test of the Warlords showing off its kindom management and mass combat rules. It was a great adventure that really was a self contained campaign set in the remote region of Norwarld in the Mystara setting. For modern games this was the Pathfinder Kingmaker of its time.
The Master set was perhaps the most important addition to the increasingly more complex format that became BECMI. Aside from more growth for all classes, capping out at 36th level, the master rules brought quite a few new optional and expanded rules that in many ways made this a more advanced game than advanced D&D.
Weapon Mastery was probably the most widely appreciated element of the Master rules, though equally the most complex set of rules. It created what is even to this day one of the most robust melee and ranged combat systems for warrior classes available for D&D, in a sense fixing all of the complaints about the power levels of late game fighter and melee classes in general. It allowed characters to acquire unique fighting styles and moves, improve the damage with the weapons they used and allow them to be quite competitive with classes like the Magic-User and Cleric on the power scale.
Additionally, we got rules for Siege Equipment and running sieges, a natural extension of the mass combat and dominion management rules found in the companion set and much appreciated for those of us that didn’t shy away from the expansive kingdom management content available for the game by this time.
The Master box set was probobly one of the least frequently used sets simply because really high level play was quite rare. That said, I think BECMI had a really great approach to high level play and it was quite viable, just not often done.
There was lots of good stuff in the Master rules, in fact, of all the things added to the basic/expert rules, this was it was the Master rules that really filled in the finishing touches on gaps typically found in D&D games. Things we often ran across like players wanting to raise armies, build castles and conquer lands that just weren’t in any other D&D system at the time.
The final set, The Immortal rules in essence did two things. It explained where gods come from and it defined the concept of ascending to a higher plane of existence as a player, aka, becoming a god yourself.
It was an interesting read but to be honest I have never met anyone who played a D&D campaign so long that they achieved 36th level let alone having a need for rules on how to become a god. It’s a cool concept but really lacked purpose in your typical D&D campaign.
There were very few immortal level modules made to support this level of play and I don’t know anyone who ever actually ran or played in them, but actually they were really well done. In particular The Immortal Storm was very clever.
One cool thing in the Immortal set was descriptions of various immortal gods and this lore I always found to be quite useful for inspiration. From Orcus to Demogorgon, the Immortals book gave you some really great lore for your fantasy campaign.
The final book, The Rules Cyclopedia was mostly known to be a consolidation of the rules found in the BECMI sets, but under closer inspection, there are quite a few things that were unique to this book not found in the other companions.
Several sub-classes were added including the Mystic, a sort of Monk as well as variations on the fighter like Paladins and Rangers. At the time I don’t think anyone really considered these missing elements of the game as AD&D was fully compatible with BECMI so if you wanted to play a Ranger for example you could just use the one in AD&D as written. Still it was nice to have all the classes available in BECMI consolidated in one book.
The book also included a lot of corrections and frankly, it was much appreciated as there were quite a few quality issues and conflicting rules in the original BECMI companion books which are corrected here. Most notably the Rules Cyclopedia gave explanations and maps for The Known World, officially named Mystara at this point further solidifying BECMI’s rule system as a foundation for the setting. This was later further expanded on by the Mystara Gazetteers, a book series that dove into the details of the setting, notably including several new classes and character options for players with each book.
While the compilation of BECMI rules into a single book was the point of the Rules Cyclopedia, the best thing to come out of it really was the establishment of Mystara as a full setting that would later see unmatched support in the D&D Gazetteers that followed.
The Rules Cyclopedia to me is a foundation book for D&D in general as many of the rules sub-systems like Mass Combat, Sieges, Dominion Rules, and Weapon Mastery system are completely system agnostic. As such, there is a lot in this book that can be used with any D&D system, past and present and despite the age of these rules, they are still the most applicable and thorough rules on these subjects, far more expansive, detailed, and usable at the table than any others that came before or since. The Rules Cyclopedia is only second to the 1st edition AD&D DMG as far as D&D resource books go in my opinion.
Collectively what made BECMI a premier version of D&D was how well it covered every aspect of D&D play. No matter what your players wanted to do, this system had your back with clever mechanics, clear rules and though quirky at times, great system-agnostic sub-systems that have really stood the test of time. Like AD&D, taken as a whole it’s quite robust but unlike AD&D, it is a very modular system so you can start out with Basic rules and simply add supplements as your campaign matures and you have new requirements.
Why Play It Today?
I’m biased, but I have to say it, why wouldn’t you play it today? BECMI to me, no matter what aspect of D&D play you look at is one of the most effective. flexible and straight-to-the-point D&D systems available today. It eases you into the game one step at a time, and grows in both complexity and depth as you proceed into higher tiers of play, while remaining very easy to balance and extremely playable even at really high levels.
If you are like me and you want to run a D&D campaign as a lifestyle game, one that goes on for years and years, most D&D systems really can’t do that well while keeping character progression as a constant in the game. In particular in modern systems, but even AD&D, once you reach a certain level, usually around 6-10+, the game becomes unwieldy. Characters become too powerful and trying to create balanced gameplay becomes impossible. With BECMI your characters can be 25th level and they can still die at the hands of a Goblin horde, the game never ceases to be dangerous or challenging.
Now I will grant you 36th level is kind of overkill, I can’t even imagine how long of a campaign you would need to run to reach such heights, but the sweet spot, unlike most D&D games, isn’t between 1 to 9th levels. This system continues to be extremely useful while remaining challenging even at the highest tiers of play. I have personally run campaigns for BECMI that reached as high as 25th level and the game remained every bit as good as it was at 1st level.
The thing however I find most people enjoy about the game is that it is so universally applicable and adaptable as a fantasy adventure platform for RPG’s. While at its core is a setting, Mystara, the troupes found in this system are extremely flexible and modular. It really doesn’t take much effort to come to conclusions on how one might adapt this system to other settings and because it is compatible with 1st and 2nd edition AD&D as written, by association you have most of the major D&D settings compatibility built in.
This has been my system of choice for D&D fantasy adventure for decades, its harshness and focus on resource management as well as its presentation is a great foundation for Dungeons & Dragons. I have played all of the D&D systems pretty extensively and I enjoyed those games, but whenever I think about running D&D, this is the one system that really speaks to me. To me this is real D&D.
Now the question isn’t why would I play the game, the question is why would you. I think the best sales pitch for this game is that its universally agnostic and modular. You can take this system as a DM and mold it in any way you want, including adding rules from other D&D systems, and without changing a word use those systems without issue. In a sense, BECMI is universally compatible with all D&D editions that came after it with perhaps the only exception being 4e.
Hands down the best version of D&D in my opinion… period.. no discussion.
2nd edition Advanced Dungeons & Dragons
Just like 1st edition AD&D, 2nd edition AD&D was reprinted in collectors edition a few years back.
2nd edition Advanced Dungeons & Dragons had some pretty big shoes to fill after the explosive success of 1st edition, but it also had to contend with some of the fallout of the satanic panic and the many complaints from the player base about the inconsistency and quirkiness of the 1st edition AD&D rules. It was a game born out of the need for correcting the past.
1st edition AD&D was really complex and 2nd edition AD&D really entered the scene with an attitude that while it would be backward compatible, which I think it very much was, it was also going to be considerably easier. TSR I think wanted the game to be a bit less Advanced and perhaps this was because they wanted to consolidate the two forms of D&D that existed at the time BECMI and AD&D under one roof. It would also be the first edition of the game that would be created without Gary Gygax’s influence for better or for worse.
With that as a framework 2nd edition AD&D I think was very successful in what it wanted to achieve but not particularly successful as a product. A lot of the issue with this version of the game had to do with the declining quality control at TSR which was starting to flounder as a company. By the end of the 2nd edition run, TSR was basically bankrupt. I would argue however it was not the fault of the game system so much as the company running it.
2nd edition AD&D also had a starter box for new players, arguably the quality control on this thing was pretty terrible. Unlike all the starter sets that came before that are still admired today and considered “classic”, this is a relic no one bought then, nor is it a collectors thing today. It was just really terrible.
AD&D 2nd edition had three core elements that actually made it an evolutionary step up from its successor.
For one, it was considerably easier to run. The rules were more digestible, easier to understand and far more consistent. It was still a system that relied heavily on adjudication with rules still having that “up to interpretation” style of writing more often than I think it should have but it was still a very broad system with great coverage and far fewer restrictions. Unlike 1st edition you really could run 2nd edition AD&D RAW, there were many rules and many moving parts as such you would not typically use the system in its entirety but thankfully the system made a clear distinction between rules that were core rules and those that were optional. This modularity was an important feature of the game.
In fact, it’s modularity that really defined 2e AD&D, a concept of the system that would be regrettably abandoned in future editions to the detriment of the game. At this point, D&D had established itself as a game that could be run in a wide range of styles with a really wide range of player preferences, so having a huge chunk of the rules be optional was a really great aspect of the game that allowed all of these styles to live harmoniously under one system. Less fuel for table arguments, it was understood that the DM would decide which optional rules to or not to use.
The great thing about 2e was that it used blue boxes to identify optional rules and it used the space to explain why you might want to use the optional rule and how it could affect the game. This was extremely useful and made the system feel really well constructed.
The second thing that made 2nd edition really great was the “Complete X” book collection which brought in a concept called Kits that allowed for really far-reaching character customization. These books were largely theme-based class option books and there was one book for each class which made 2nd edition AD&D a game system with a much bigger broader character creation element than we had ever seen before with a bigger focus on the narrative of the character rather than strictly mechanics, even though it was actually quite mechanical nonetheless.
These kits not only gave you many examples of the unique handling of different classes but gave you the tools you needed as a DM to create your own custom kits to serve whatever setting or story you were working on. Now I will say these kits often had poor balance, there were clear winners and losers here, but D&D at this point was still very much an “up to the DM” focused game so it was natural for DM’s to see any mechanics in these books as “here is a cool idea, use it if you like it, change it if you don’t”.
The Complete Handbooks were in my opinion one of the greatest things to happen to D&D as it allowed players to create really unique backstory elements and align them with their mechanical characters. You could be an investigator, bounty hunter or smuggler rather than just the very plain Thief. These books also included really specific narrative constructs, for example in the Complete Thieves handbook thieves guilds were explained in great detail as well as really detailed rules for how to use thief skills and much more.
This principle continued in other rules expansion books like the Tome of Magic, Player Options: Skills & Powers and Player Options: Combat & Tactics. These books were actually poorly received which should have been a warning sign to future editions as much of what would become 3rd edition Dungeons & Dragons were based on these books.
Personally, I always liked these books, in the same way I like the Complete X collection, they were inspirational and optional rules that with a bit of DM intervention formed some great core mechanics that allowed the creation of many unique styles of play.
While all of the options books had clear balance issues and suffered from quality control problems, with some DM intervention they offered increadible expansion to the game for those players who wanted more mechanical gears to pull on.
The final thing that made 2e AD&D really quite special was the fact that the game for the first time in the history of D&D considered magic-users and magic, in general, an intrinsic part of the game. It was clear from previous editions that Gary Gygax did not like Magic-Users or magic in his game and it really showed in how he treated them. With 2e AD&D, TSR made magic & magic-users fun, versatile and diverse. You could play specialist mages like Necromancers and Enchanters, the spell system and spells themselves had far broader effects with a lot of narrative flare and perhaps most importantly you had more diversity in spell-casting classes.
Magic was further supported by the Complete of Books which included specialization books like the Complete Necromancer. This was an amazing level of detail that would set a new standard for how players viewed and what could be done with their magic-user class.
I have always felt that 2e AD&D was a clear and much-needed fix for 1st edition AD&D. Today, without question if I was going to run AD&D in any form, it would be 2nd edition. In fact, I would argue that objectively, even though I prefer B/X and BECMI, 2e AD&D was the best of the TSR versions of D&D. It’s a very robust, very modular and very flexible system. It got a pretty bad wrap largely because of terrible mismanagement of TSR and probably could have been a much better system if quality control was a bit more stringent but it was the last system that we would see that was actually backward compatible with classic D&D content and so for many, it is the final version of true and real D&D.
The D&D franchise would be purchased by Wizards of the Coast after 2nd edition and through this act, the classic era of D&D was over.
Why Play It Today?
For me personally 2nd edition Dungeons and Dragons is a great system because it’s quite easy to run, has fairly clear rules while retaining that classic D&D feel. Now like all the classic versions of D&D that came out of TSR it is a mechanically flawed system, there is no disputing that, but its philosophy, its concept, its spirit as a D&D game is beyond reproach. It is D&D as it was meant to played, as it was designed to be experienced.
To me everything that followed starting with 3rd edition was an improvement on how D&D works mechanically, but in those mechanical evolutions a hole was punctured in the spirit of the game and it would turn out to be a major over correction where mechanics became favored over philosophy and concepts of the game missing the point of the many expanded concept introduced in 2nd edition AD&D. The soul of D&D would soon be diminished and by 4th edition D&D totally abandoned.
I say this here because 2nd edition was probobly the best game mechanically that TSR came up with, meaning, it had the cleanest gameplay, it was the best mechanical version of D&D that still retained the spirit of the game.
For modern gamers this is the edition I would actually recommend if your curious about what people mean by “Classic D&D”. Sure you will find some of the mechanics a bit quirky but it will be familiar, it will make sense, you will know how to play intrinsicly if you have played modern versions of the game. Mechanically its all here, even as flawed as it may appear to you (because it actually is flawed), but you will get to experience the classic nature of the game, that gritty D&D spirit that really doesn’t exist in modern editions of the game.
