I ran a one-shot of deus ex parabola's Arthurian system for my Reviewvember '22 contribution. This is more of a rambling review instead of a session report.
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| Karin Villette |
My session involved two knights on the path to glory. One named Deku Saiyan Uzumaki, the other named X0∞甲. Oh the joys players bring to the table.
I immediately ran into a problem. What dire quest would these knights embark on? The document gives a few ideas and different combat challenges to try but no real work was put into the fluff department. Eventually choosing a giant-slaying adventure, the knights set off. A few highlights:
- A duel against a bandit-knight.
- Meeting the troubled Sir Lancelot in a tavern.
- X0∞甲 almost being drowned by a tempting selkie.
- The defeat of the knights at the hands of the giant Gawr.
As hinted above, I supplemented this adventure with Loch's Scots Monsters post. The non-combat challenge of talking with the selkie was nice. I feel the rules are too focused on combat when there are other aspects of Arthuriana to explore: courting, castle politics, the rising corruption of Arthur's ideals.
The actual system, opposing d6 rolls, is well executed. Diegetic modifiers help make the equipment you carry important. You could make a hack by replacing all the Arthurian references.
Overall Verdict: Interesting Arthurian combat system that needs expansion.
