As usual I’m way behind in getting our games updated on the web site. This game actually took place a week ago Wednesday. We played the Dungeons & Dragons: Legend of Drizzt Board Game. It’s a cooperative game for 1-5 players. In it, each player picks a character, a scenario is decided upon, and then you pretty much start playing. I’m simplifying the set up a little, but not by much. There are lots of cards and chits and things to remind the players what powers and abilities their characters have. Play is pretty easy too: players move about the games tiles, sometimes revealing new tiles, sometimes fighting monsters, all the while waiting for the special tile to be revealed that announces the climatic final room.
Here’s how our games went.
Game One Goal: Find the evil assassin and claim the Crown of something or other <insert a suitable cool name for the crown. Let’s call it the Crown of Ultimate Power!>
This first game was a cakewalk for us. The monsters were easily defeated and at no time were we really in trouble.
“Let’s play a harder scenario!†someone said. “Yeah, something with a dragon!â€
Game Two Goal: Find and kill the shadow dragon. Let’s call him Mike—Mike the evil shadow dragon. Not to be confused with Mike, who was playing the game as a player.
Since I went last on during the first game AND I killed the evil assassin—I think his name was Mike—I got to go first. It was disastrous. I ended up drawing double monsters that did damage to everyone. Plus a volcanic vent did damage to everyone. Now everyone was wounded and blaming me. I mentioned how it will all be worth it when we killed Mike, the evil shadow dragon.
Ben went next. A dreaded drow duelist appeared. (One appeared on my turn too.) Now they BOTH get to attack doing even more damage…again…to several characters. Somehow everyone says this is my fault.
On Mike’s turn he kills both drow duelist! And there was much rejoicing.
Later, on another one of my gloriously bad turns, I roll two 1’s in a row (on a d20) trying to kill the drow wizard. In this game, just like in D&D, rolling high is good. Rolling low is not so good. Monster birds attack both Owen and I. This is followed right up by another drow wizard that hits us both again for more wounds. I’m at zero health. This is not good.
Thankfully by my next turn, Owen had healed some of my wounds. So I did what any self-respecting hero would do—I ran. My encounter card was to draw a monster and then I’d be moved to the start tile. We considered canceling it but Mike said he could take on the single monster that would appear by him. My monster card was to draw 2 monster cards. I drew a goblin archer and a huge feral troll! I died on the start tile.
Next turn the dragon tile was drawn. We’re doomed!
The dragon attacked Ben four separate times and missed each time. I can’t explain it either.
During the game, you earn experience points. If you roll a 20 when attacking a monster you level up, but it costs 5 XP. You can also spend XP to cancel encounter cards. After spending untold points to cancel encounters, Owen finally rolls a 20 during a battle (the first 20) but we don’t have enough XP for him to level up.
I had a chance to kill the dragon and be the hero again. I missed the dragon, but I did kill the drider beside him. This gave me a treasure card which was “Fortune Follow Thruâ€. This allowed me to do an automatic wound to the dragon—and kill it! Die Mike, the evil shadow dragon!
Yes, once again I was the hero. I’d like to thank all of the little people, my minions, who helped, in a small way, to make me the hero I am today.
Chaos Steve