For some odd reason I missed the Green Ronin booth at GenCon this year, so when I saw this hardback in a South Carolina gamestore it was new to me. Dragon Age as shown in the picture is a tabletop RPG that shares a world/setting (Thedas) with the Dragon Age computer game series. A spin-off game from a computer RPG is not what I normally am attracted to, but I think Dragon Age designed by Chris Pramas (who also did the 2nd ed. reboot of the Warhammer RPG) is something worth writing about. It fits nicely into my white box mentality, partially because it's more of a "rules lite" system and there are some similarities in the three classes (Warrior, Rogue and Mage) and three races (Human, Dwarf, Elf), but that's not what prompts me to write about Dragon Age.
In the first few pages Mr. Pramas writes that Dragon Age is somewhat similar to the computer game game, except that "you do it all in your imagination instead of on a computer." Yeah, imagination, that's what I am all about in my white box gaming. Imagination is a recurring theme in Dragon Age and is one of the things that sets the mortals apart from "spirits". Spirits, who inhabit the Shade and are separated from the real world by the Veil don't have imagination, they can only copy what they see (and do so rather poorly). Spirits can be part of the bad guys when they cross over drawn by negative emotions and feed on the living mortals.
Originally released in three boxed sets which were broken down to cover character levels 1-5, 6-10, and 11-20, reminding me of the old Basic, Expert...etc. Dragon Age is now available in one big 440 page hardback (much like the Rules Cyclopedia). In either format Dragon Age is closely tied to the setting Thedas, but the Adventure Game System (AGE) can be used in other settings and a separate book is soon to be released sans setting titled Fantasy AGE Basic Game.
For anyone who has played the computer game (I have not, but I am think I would like to play this tabletop version), in that format the player starts with a hero called a Grey Warden, the heroes that save the world from the Blight (bad guys). The Grey Wardens are available to join in the tabletop game, but only after one reaches level 6 or above. Yeah, we PCs start as low-powered characters not much better than "normals" and must build our way up to hero, old style! Dragon Age play centers around the DM asking the player "What do you Do?" and players are encouraged to use their imagination to come up with solutions to challenges. The game uses a universal mechanic of rolling three six sided dice (one a different color called the dragon die) and adding the total together with an attribute score and any specific focus or talent the PC might have which applies to the situation. If doubles are rolled on any two of the three dice, the Dragon Die is used to power a stunt, or special action that favors the PC.
Dragon Age is a modern RPG despite my comparison to older games and this is evident in a number of ways (use of a universal mechanic, etc.) including asking the player to develop their PC's personality. Players choose from a number of backgrounds which helps establish the character's personality as well as setting their race. There is an emphasis placed on group activity and dynamics, both the player group and the adventuring group. The GM section describes player types, GM styles and other modern game sensibilities, information that while maybe not new, definitely rings true.
Dragon Age describes itself as Dark Fantasy. What that includes according to the book is that life isn't fair, there is racial oppression, character death and betrayal, a religion (the Chantry) that seems oppressive, especially regarding magic which is feared, actions have consequences sometimes unintended evil consequences and the evil Blights are a result of human pride rather than some supreme baddy. Evil resides in men's hearts, is not the plot of a villain and therefore can never be totally defeated. Giving hope to the world is described as the role of the heroes! ...and the princess pleads, "Help me...you're my only hope!" Sounds like the start to a great adventure to me.
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