With the veritable plethora of superhero games either out of print but still available through eBay or a similar source, games in print and currently on the shelf, and upcoming titles, Deeds Not Words is taking on some mighty healthy competiton. Add to that the fact that it's in PDF format, and that it's a D20 game, and some will be turned off of it immediately. They shouldn't be. Deeds Not Words is a fine package, a game that embraces the D20 system and charts new territory for it without breaking its boundaries.
Character creation is similar to what one would expect in a D20 game, but with interesting differences. Races are not chosen, for example; instead, a player picks an origin for his character. The origins are an attractive feature which can set your character in motion from the outset, and there are 14 of them to choose from. Will he be a Human, with only his skills and natural abilities (and feats) to carry him through? Or will he be an Avatar, servant of a higher power just bristling with super-energy? Mutants, Supernaturals, Aliens...there are many options here and picking the right one is just the beginning of the fun.
Complications are next, followed by Advantages. Complications are difficulties that your hero has to deal with in life, and range from standards such as Overconfident (requiring a Will Save to back down from any challenge or danger) to Elitist (your hero refuses to use his powers on lesser beings). There's quite a list of complications, some limited by origin, and they can certainly aid in fleshing out your character. They are also good for gaining your character extra feats, skill points, attribute points or advantages. Advantages are beneficial to your character, and cover things such as Connections, Wealth and Trusted Assistant.
Classes are a staple of the D20 system, of course, and Deeds Not Words gives you even more interesting choices here. There are 15 character classes to choose from, and since no origin has a favored class it's a pretty interesting experiment to mix & match a bit. Some of the classes have origin restrictions, which precludes your android from becoming a Psion, for example, but the restrictions fall within the limits of their comic book origins. It's also interesting to note that Playboy is a class here, rather than an origin, a similar idea to that of the Noble class in the D20 version of Star Wars. Also included are such classes as Martial Artist, Armor Adept, Vigilante and Sidekick...yes, Sidekick is a class, and one that is actually playable. Mystics are also present, and draw upon the spells of the Player's Handbook as well as some new spells. Like other superheroes in the game, however, they draw upon Power Points to use their powers, and spells are not forgotten after their casting. The Power Points themselves are of a die value that, like Hit Points, increase as a character increases in levels. It's interesting to note that there are, as of yet, no Prestige Classes in the game, but certainly the existing classes, and the ability to individualize your character through multi-classing, minimizes the general need for them.
From there characters are very similar in construction to their other D20 brethren. The aforementioned Hit Points are in use, as are skills (with some minor modifications), saving throws, alignments and Armor Class. In addition to AC, there is also the possibility for a character to have Damage Resistance, which decreases the damage taken on a hit. The game also utilizes Backgrounds, a set of three statistics which indicate how well-known the character is (Fame), how well-respected he is (Reputation) and how wealthy he is (Resources).
To say that DNW adds new feats would certainly be an understatement. The book is simply packed with them. Like skills, some are in use already or have minor genre modifications, but there are many new ones here to whet your appetite as well. An entertaining class of feats, Tongue-in-Cheek Feats, has those special abilities that no self-repecting do-gooder can afford to ignore, such as Glasses of Disguise (wearing a pair of glasses in your normal identity makes you impossible to connect with your unmasked superhero persona) and One-Liner (in which a character may gain a bonus to all rolls in a round by delivering a glib wisecrack or pun). There are many, many choices here, and developing a balanced nonpowered character from the array given is certainly a viable option.
Powers are covered in the next 90 pages of the book, and they're certainly given a thorough treatment. The author does not attempt to mimic the generic power potential of Champions here, instead preferring to concentrate on more specific powers and their usage. The list of available powers is still more than impressive, however; over 180 powers are presented, with many of them available in varying levels. If that's not enough, guidelines are presented to design new powers. Add to that the separate chapters on powered armor, psionics and magic, and there is a healthy amount of material for one to draw upon here. Super-science is also given a chapter of its own, with rules for allowing a character to develop gadgets that would make Dr. Reed Richards green with envy.
The final 60 pages of the book have chapters on super pets and familiars, vehicles (and how to improve them), weapons and equipment, and general information and rules on running DNW in a variety of modes (Classical, Modern and Gritty). Special attention is paid to super-strength and its effects, as well as forming a super-team. There are also a few handy tables included, such as the "What Can I Hit This Guy With?" table, that are both fun and in the mood of the genre.
Making a D20 game that allows game-balance between powered and non-powered characters is certainly a challenge, and the author rises to it here by utilizing what he calls an Experience Tithe. Basically, the number of powers taken must be paid back through an expenditure of experienc points as the character progresses. Half of his earned points go toward progressing, the other half towards the tithe. A very elegant system, and one that ensures an advanteage to being a normal human in a world of supers.
The game is certainly a hefty one, weighing in at 318 pages. My printing cost on it was about $15; $12 for a black ink cartridge and about $3 worth of 28 lb. paper so that it could be printed dual-sided. Add to that the initial $10 to buy the game in its PDF format and you have a $25 book. Is it worth it? My answer would certainly be a hearty yes. This is a good, fun game meant to capture the mood and setting of superhero comics. Will it replace Champions? Probably not, nor is it meant to. Deeds Not Words is not a generic game, but rather an attempt to bring the fun and action of comic books to the role-playing table. While the PDF format may be a hindrance to some, it does have its advantages. The author promises that "your purchase of a Cryptosnark PDF entitles you to *all* future
revisions of that PDF for free." Try getting that from a print book...
In any event, this is a real gem and it deserves all the attention it can get. It's also easy to check out the free downloads at Cryptosnark Games , so do yourself a favor and take a peek!
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