Evil Hat Productions EHP0030 Blades in The Dark RPG, Multicoloured

I purchased Blades in the Dark after getting into Powered by the Apocalypse (pbta) games, a rules-lite Dungeons and Dragons that emphasises almost improv in building the world, your adventure, your character and the relationships with fellow adventurers. At times, for me, pbta could feel a little too free form, but then going back to a rules heavy game like D&D5e felt too restrictive. Now along came Blades and I think it strikes the perfect balance for my style, it has some quite complex rules and concepts but they aim to drive the story on and add tags and descriptions to dice rolls that help describe the story and immerse you into the fiction. It definitely takes time to adjust to this style, but there are some lovely moments, like the Flashback move, e.g. you are in the middle of the robbery, and a guard steps around the corner, you tell the GM, thinking on the spot, it's okay we bribed him last week, he'll let us pass, you then play out that flashback scene, did you successfully bribe him, maybe you failed and but he sees it as an opportunity to fleece you in your moment of need, perhaps you scored a crit and the GM says not only does he let you buy but whispers the location of jewellery box. So, so far so good, but what of the settings, well nothing generic here, action takes place in The Shattered Isles, a dark Victorian, industrial fantasy setting, swathed in unnatural darkness due to the cataclysm, a rending of the fabric of the universe that let in demons to terrorise the world, retreating to their cities, the inhabitants now hunt the demons for their blood, which powers massive lightning towers which protect the cities. All Clear? Doskvol is a key city setting and is the inspiration for the Bravos, Assassins and other character types that the player selects, in addition, players group together into Crews which have their own development. Overall this is an incredibly rich and rewarding game, grab some friend, twirl that black moustache and get ready to spend time amongst the down at heel and downright dangerous inhabitants of this wonderful and macabre world!!!

Blades in the Dark is a fantastic game. This source book for the game is very nice too. The cover is textured slightly and grips well in the hand. The artwork within is very nice. The way this is written is very easy to follow and understand. Not everyone playing will need a copy and there are reminders of the links to the fabulous online resources that Evil Hat Productions provides freely. The examples of play dotted around the book are good examples of how to play the game too,nwver saying you must do something but could consider the thing. For a good review/overview of Blades in the Dark in general see the YouTube channel Dicebreaker, they also have a couple of examples of full play sessions.

Frankly it's ridiculous how easy this is to run as a system. It's like it's just been streamlined over and over, everything being run on the fly. You're always on the edge of your seat, but never out of control. The lore is grungy, but lively and the system is designed so that you can just make everything up as you go but feel as planned as it could possibly be. I don't understand how it feels as cohesive as it does woth the low level of prep. it takes.That said, it's not crazy combat heavy. If you're a wargamer, then there are definitely systems you'll find more engaging.

Bought as a gift for my son. The website from the publisher was broken and wouldn’t take my money. Amazon was able to get the book to me in time for his birthday with no issues. I’m told it’s a unique take on rpg in which one tells the story in flashbacks. He hasn’t played it yet but seems quite excited about it. Amazon dominates because it’s convenient and mostly reliable.

Arrived in perfect condition, absolutely brilliant book. It helped fill in details for an online game I watched. Also inspiration for my hobby of writing. My only complaint is that it doesn't have the player sheets included.

In this handily compact book you'll find all you need to play a group of thieves and rogues. This isn't your traditionally open world role playing in the style of Runequest or Dungeons & Dragons, instead focusing on the exploits and heists of your gang as you try to make a name for yourselves in this fantastical setting. Utilising a system of flashbacks and cut aways, you can dive straight into the action without hours of pre-planning.

This game is one of my absolute favourite RPGs right now. I've run 3 games so far and the game continues to amaze me.The mechanics are fantastically light and the premise of the game helps to get straight into the action and let's the story take full focus.If I were to have one complaint it would be that the book doesn't have enough information about which gangs operate in which areas but even that can be twisted into a benefit because it gives you the choice of which groups to entangles in your players messy little lives.If you've ever wanted to run a game about criminal enterprises then this might just be the best system and setting you could ever find.

I love this book!The narrative mechanics are really interesting - I can't wait to play!