The early 1980s was a peak time for tabletop fantasy RPGs. Word of the new hobby was getting around and affordable, entry level games were helping new gamers of all ages to share in the fun. The first PCs had made their appearance and enthusiasm for tabletop fantasy roleplay was being shared with that platform through the early primitive PC roleplaying games such as Wizardry and Ultima, but the hobby really hadn't yet begun to lose gamers to the PC. The games of the day weren't all that good yet. It feels like we are currently again in such a peak time with the release of the Open Gaming License (OGL), the Old School Renaissance (OSR) and online (virtual) tabletop gaming all giving vitality to the hobby and increasing the market for new products. The internet especially has helped tabletop gamers enjoy the face-to-face game via technology and given the hobbyist at home alone another option other than solo play against the computer or the popular massive multi-player online RPGs.
Dragon Warriors is another British RPG that appeared on shelves in 1985. It is a small paperback that would fit nicely on the retail shelves alongside the then popular solo "choose your own adventure" gamebooks such as the Fighting Fantasy and Lone Wolf series. Author Dave Morris' Dragon Warriors, originally planned for three books and later expanded to five, offers the hobbyist rules, ready-made adventures and a setting that is both familiar and novel where mood and atmosphere practically drip from Dragon Warrior's pages. The presentation is designed to start the players off with a choice of two character classes, Knight and Barbarian, both classic fantasy tropes and both pure fighting types with no magic to worry about. The magic using classes will be added in later volumes which also include further adventures. The players become drawn deeper into the world of Legend and learn additional rules as they progress through the volumes trying out the new classes in each and playing through the adventures.
Volume One is simply titled Dragon Warriors and contains the basics of play as well as the introductory adventure. Character generation is typical of early RPGs all of which seem to use some variant of the white box system. Dragon Warriors uses 3d6 in order to generate five attributes, Strength, Reflexes, Intelligence, Psychic Talent, and Looks. Other attributes such as Attack, Defense, Magic Defense and Evasion are derived from these five attributes. Health Points start at 1 d6 + 7 and stay reality low in comparison to white box's hit points at upper levels (Ranks in Dragon Warrior). A standard set of polyhedral dice are needed to play.
Combat in Dragon Warriors is a matter of subtracting the target's Defense score from the attacker's Attack score and rolling under that number with a d20. Each weapon does a fixed amount of damage and has an armour penetration die. When a hit is scored the armour penetration dice is rolled and if the score is higher than the armour value to damage is subtracted from the target's Health Points. Dragon Warriors explains how this works with a fun little cartoon! Rules for Magical Defense, moving, exploring, falling, illumination, etc. follows. A bestiary is given for the default setting which is called Legend.
Legend is dominated by humans and the PCs are limited to that race. Elves and dwarves exist, but are more fey and of dubious morality. Legend is a gritty, dark and moody setting thick with historic medieval feel, but includes magical and supernatural elements. The introductory scenario teaches PCs about the world including the setting's feudal society where everyone is obligated to someone. The relationships each PC builds during play are central to adventuring in Legend and the Dragon Warriors game. Players are encouraged to develop their PC into a role they can play, giving the PC a personality of their own separate from the player, a unique backstory and perhaps some goals. There are no in-game mechanics for this aspect of the game, it is just explained and encouraged.
Dragon Warriors is a product of its time and definitely reflects an "old school" approach to RPG design. The format, that of three volumes, each adding rules and continuing an adventure series is somewhat unique in my experience. The setting is a strong feature of the game in my opinion and makes Dragon Warriors one of my favorite non-white box gaming products. The game was originally very hard to find in the United States, but has been recently re-released as a single volume of rules and several adventure books. As for Dragon Warriors being the ultimate role-playing game as it says right on the cover, you will have to decide that for yourself.
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