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Decoy Lockbox
2009-06-07, 12:02 AM
So I heard about this game about 4 years ago, and have wanted to give it a try for a while now.

Does anyone have any experience with this game, and if so, what did you think of it?

FoE
2009-06-07, 12:06 AM
The Riddle ... of Steel ...

Yes, you know what it is, don't you boy?

Shall I tell you? It's the least I can do.

I love that movie.

Glimbur
2009-06-07, 12:06 AM
Knock knock!

Tsotha-lanti
2009-06-07, 07:26 AM
The Riddle of Steel is an amazing game - unfortunately, it's no longer in print since the company disappear mysteriously (taking a bunch of pre-order money for their upcoming fae & magic book with it, apparently).

It combines a drama- and motivation-based character creation and advancement system with an ARMA-approved combat system that models melee combat better and more realistically than any game ever, but is smooth and easy to use and learn.

The magic system is very interesting - in the default setting, sorcerers are incredibly rare, and magic really is magic. There's no pretense at balancing magic with anything else (other than the fact that character creation is priority-based, and being "gifted" and able to use magic require a high priority). Sorcerers can summon and bind demons, fly through the air, and kill you with a gesture. The thing is, however, that magic can be too slow to use if you're already engaged in combat, and using any magic ages you (the time is measured in months, which add up to years very fast with really powerful magic, or repeated uses).

TROS comes with a few dozen pages of detail on a medieval-fantasy world that's like a 1500s version of the Hyborian Age, with many blatant real-world analogue nations. The system is incredibly well suited for playing in the real world, in basically any period from dynastic Egypt to the 1700s (firearms are in The Flower of Battle, which is pretty much a must-acquire for playing the game); I'd also recommend it for things like playing in Conan's Hyborian Age, playing the Song of Ice and Fire, and generally playing any low-magic medieval-styled fantasy game.

I can not over-recommend the game. It is the single best system I've run into so far in 15 years of gaming.

Pharaoh's Fist
2009-06-07, 07:30 AM
Yes, you know what it is, don't you boy?

Shall I tell you? It's the least I can do.


Nay. Let him find out for himself, so that when he goes before Crom, he is accepted or cast out by his own merits.

elliott20
2009-06-07, 09:51 AM
The Riddle of Steel is an amazing game - unfortunately, it's no longer in print since the company disappear mysteriously (taking a bunch of pre-order money for their upcoming fae & magic book with it, apparently).

It combines a drama- and motivation-based character creation and advancement system with an ARMA-approved combat system that models melee combat better and more realistically than any game ever, but is smooth and easy to use and learn.

The magic system is very interesting - in the default setting, sorcerers are incredibly rare, and magic really is magic. There's no pretense at balancing magic with anything else (other than the fact that character creation is priority-based, and being "gifted" and able to use magic require a high priority). Sorcerers can summon and bind demons, fly through the air, and kill you with a gesture. The thing is, however, that magic can be too slow to use if you're already engaged in combat, and using any magic ages you (the time is measured in months, which add up to years very fast with really powerful magic, or repeated uses).

TROS comes with a few dozen pages of detail on a medieval-fantasy world that's like a 1500s version of the Hyborian Age, with many blatant real-world analogue nations. The system is incredibly well suited for playing in the real world, in basically any period from dynastic Egypt to the 1700s (firearms are in The Flower of Battle, which is pretty much a must-acquire for playing the game); I'd also recommend it for things like playing in Conan's Hyborian Age, playing the Song of Ice and Fire, and generally playing any low-magic medieval-styled fantasy game.

I can not over-recommend the game. It is the single best system I've run into so far in 15 years of gaming.
speaking of which, how is the PbP game going?

Tyrrell
2009-06-07, 09:53 AM
I have the game but I've only played in demo for a few hours a few years ago. What most impressed me about the game were spiritual traits. A character got bonus dice for playing to his character's goals and only got experience for playing tot the character's goals. This bit of game mechanics made everyone at the table play in character and play interestingly, more so than any other bit of rules I've ever seen.

Tsotha-lanti
2009-06-07, 11:29 AM
speaking of which, how is the PbP game going?

Overlong set-up and moved onto another forum, didn't take part. (That, and I didn't really feel it was taking advantage of the style of the game.)

Once I get my current LOTR game wrapped up or at least well under way, I might do a naval-themed 1600s or 1700s TROS PbP here, but that won't be for a while.


I have the game but I've only played in demo for a few hours a few years ago. What most impressed me about the game were spiritual traits. A character got bonus dice for playing to his character's goals and only got experience for playing tot the character's goals. This bit of game mechanics made everyone at the table play in character and play interestingly, more so than any other bit of rules I've ever seen.

In the basic rules, you also learn skills by using them, although the Companion rules remove that (and change up skills quite a bit).

Decoy Lockbox
2009-06-07, 01:04 PM
Overlong set-up and moved onto another forum, didn't take part. (That, and I didn't really feel it was taking advantage of the style of the game.)

Once I get my current LOTR game wrapped up or at least well under way, I might do a naval-themed 1600s or 1700s TROS PbP here, but that won't be for a while.



In the basic rules, you also learn skills by using them, although the Companion rules remove that (and change up skills quite a bit).

Well, if you ever decide to run it, I'd totally be down for it.

In terms of skills, I like the idea of skills iimproving with use. Did the game designers decide that this was untenable? Why did they change the rules, and what did they change them to?

I'm sorry to hear that the game is no more, and honestly a bit surprised. Does anyone know what happened to the game designers? Maybye the building they worked in was hit by a meteor or something.

So what would be the best way to start playing the game? I have the core book, flower of battle, companion, and the quickstart. I was thinking of having my DM friend run the "caravan adventure" that was contained in one of the books.

Tsotha-lanti
2009-06-07, 01:39 PM
In terms of skills, I like the idea of skills iimproving with use. Did the game designers decide that this was untenable? Why did they change the rules, and what did they change them to?

There's a big ol' sidebox in the Companion on this; basically, the designers and fans* didn't think it made sense that improving attributes, combat proficiencies, sorcery, etc. required Spiritual Attribute points, but skills improved (only) through use. In the Companion rules, one of the many changes to skills (all good and necessary, IMO) is that they're now increased just like everything else: with SA points (2 SA points per rank, 3 if you're in the new Grandmaster ranks; the skills got vamped so that 10 is completely untrained and once you reach 4 you can't lower the TN but can buy GM ranks to get more dice).

* TROS had a small community but very active contact between designers and fans online, like 93 Games Studio has with the Twilight fanbase - it's a common trait with small game companies.


I'm sorry to hear that the game is no more, and honestly a bit surprised. Does anyone know what happened to the game designers? Maybye the building they worked in was hit by a meteor or something.

I couldn't get anything out of their forums (http://www.trosforums.com/), but I didn't look all that hard. I guess the company folded and/or everyone flaked. I don't imagine they made that much money off the game, frankly - they might just have run out of money to keep people working. Odds are that like 93 Games Studio, these guys were working without being paid, hoping to make enough money off sales to make it worth the trouble. I guess a few books in it may have stopped paying off.


So what would be the best way to start playing the game? I have the core book, flower of battle, companion, and the quickstart. I was thinking of having my DM friend run the "caravan adventure" that was contained in one of the books.

Quickstart and/or the introductory adventure sounds good, sure.

I started my players off with just a practice fight. They got premade characters, a list of the maneuvers for their primary combat style, and I'd describe the maneuvers briefly and remind them of everything if they asked. They got into the rhythm of it quite fast. Then we played a little adventure with some thinking, some RP, and a fair bit of combat. (One of the PCs ended up with his face cloven in two, and the other PC had to grapple and strangle the enemy who did it... fun times!)

OverdrivePrime
2009-06-07, 01:55 PM
Crom's pitiless heart, this game sounds incredibly good. I'm ready to crucify myself on the Tree of Woe for not having heard of it before!

Seriously though, anyone know where to find a copy outside of hitting the jackpot at Half Price Books?

Tsotha-lanti
2009-06-07, 02:02 PM
The PDFs were available for download at the trosfans.com forums last fall, but no longer. I've seen The Flower of Battle and (I think) the Companion at my friendly local game store, but that's it. It's not in print and there's no company left, so there's only really one easy, sure way to find them. I'll say no more, but it's easy enough with Google.

Zeta Kai
2009-06-07, 02:37 PM
I have the game but I've only played in demo for a few hours a few years ago. What most impressed me about the game were spiritual traits. A character got bonus dice for playing to his character's goals and only got experience for playing tot the character's goals. This bit of game mechanics made everyone at the table play in character and play interestingly, more so than any other bit of rules I've ever seen.

That sounds so cool, I think I'll be forced to steal it for the RPG I'm designing.

This threat piques my interest for a copy of the game. Where can it be found now? Amazon? EBay? Warez torrents?

Decoy Lockbox
2009-06-07, 03:42 PM
The PDFs were available for download at the trosfans.com forums last fall, but no longer. I've seen The Flower of Battle and (I think) the Companion at my friendly local game store, but that's it. It's not in print and there's no company left, so there's only really one easy, sure way to find them. I'll say no more, but it's easy enough with Google.

I believe you are referring to something that rhymes with "smit smorrent"?

Are out of print games actually legal to download via things like that? If they are, that would be good news for my playgroup, as we could all just get the books for free.

I've talked a friend of mine into running an introductory oneshot this summer, so lets hope this goes well. So far I've made one test character, a swordsman/gigolo (in order to pick up the "read body language" skill on the cheap), and he looks pretty good.