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Donjon playtest review

Donjon is an old-school RPG with new wave sensibilities, written by Clinton R. Nixon. It is available directly from the author for $17.95 at Anvilwerks.

Physically speaking, Donjon is an 80-page spiralbound A4-sized book with a color cardboard cover. It has several interior black-and-white illustrations, most of them quite nice. It is simply and clearly laid out and has no glaring typos or spelling errors. It does lack an index, but due to the rules-light nature of Donjon, this is not a fatal omission.

The author also graciously grants buyers access to a screen-formatted PDF of Donjon, quite useful for printing out player handouts or for gamers who use a laptop for their bookkeeping and campaign records. This PDF is easily searchable, alleviating the need for an index.

The premise

The basic premise of Donjon is as old as fantasy role-playing itself: You assemble a gang of cutthroats and sociopaths ('adventurers'), go to the nearest dungeon or cave complex, beat the crap out of everyone there, steal their stuff, and go back home to bask in the afterglow. What makes Donjon stand out from the crowd is the execution of this premise: Donjon allows the players much more narrative control than other, superficially similar, games. A whole lot more narrative control.

As the back cover blurb puts it: Donjon has a unique dice pool system that provides for multiple successes on every roll. Every success you get is one statement that you, the player, get to declare about your action. Want to find a secret door to escape from the horde of trolls coming your way? Look for one - if you succeed, it'll be there. Want to find a magic sword on that dead adventurer over there? Loot the body - you'll find it with a success. Wondering what's on the other side of that door? Bash it down - with enough successes, you'll tell the GM what's there.

The rules

Donjon is class- and level-based, but with a twist: You get to define your characters class (or race) as well as his/her skills and abilities. For details, I refer you to chapter two of Donjon, available here. In short, the character generation process is like a hybrid of Over the Edge and classic D&D -- which works a lot better than it sounds.

Here is a sample character from our playtest:

Name: Vernon Widowmaker
Class : Serial killer
Level: 1

Attributes Virility- 5, Cerebrality- 4, Discernment- 2, Adroitness- 3, Wherewithal- 6, Sociality- 1

Abilities
Stalking - 4 (stalking victims, getting positioned for an ambush) Ambush with Sadistic Glee - 2 (adds to damage when victim unaware) Chop-Chop with Axey-waxey - 2 (skilled with axe) Destroy Forensic Evidence - 2 (cover the tracks) Detect Ambush - 2 (it takes one to know one)

Saving Throws
Save vs PP&T- 2
Save vs I&C- 2
Flesh Wounds- 4
Wealth- 5
Possessions - 3

Please take note of the last two stats, Wealth and Possessions. Donjon does not force players to do bookkeeping chores. Need an item? You only have to make your Possessions check, and your character -- being a well-prepared delver -- will pull that studded tuba out of his backpack. Need more money? Make your search check while looting a dead nippleripper, and your Wealth will increase.

So how do you resolve conflicts? I'll use Vernon, above, for an example:

Vernon is trudging along in the Desert of Desolation, when he is suddenly feels the urge to kill. He decides to Detect Ambush. His player rolls 2d20 (for his Detect Ambush) plus 2d20 (for his Discernment) for a total of 4d20. He rolls: 5, 9, 16, 19.

The Donjon Keeper (DK) sets the opposing difficulty to Easy (3d20) and rolls for a result of 2, 8, and 14.

Vernon's highest roll is 19. DK's highest roll is 14. Vernon wins. As Vernon has two dice that beats DK's result (16 and 19 versus 14), Vernon gets two successes. He may elect to keep them, but instead decides to use them to determine two facts that the DK will have to take into account.

Vernon's player: 'OK, here's the deal: First: There are several guys hidden under the sand just ahead. Second: They're Ninja.'

DK: 'Hmmm... suddenly the very desert sand moves, and out pops three black-clad figures -- Ninja! One has a matching set of steel-studded clubs, the other holds a katana reverse left-hand style, and the third ninja has a gruesome set of steel claws. They sneer and attack you!'

(This example used an uncontested action -- contested actions are usually opposed by the appropriate skill of the opponent.)

For maximum fun, the author recommends that all characters choose at least one ability that will allow them to narrate facts, and as player control is the point of this game I wholeheartedly agree. Sadistic players will have much fun with the traditional paladin ability 'Detect Evil'.

The free-form magic system must be seen in action to be believed. It is based on keywords; you choose a number of words and when you cast a spell, the effects are tied to the words. If you have seen movies like 'the Last Hero in China' or 'Iron Monkey', substitute 'magic' for 'kung-fu moves' and you know how it works. The magic system is flexible, fun, and powerful -- almost too powerful, in fact. However, it is easily tuneable by adjusting the difficulty degree of spellcasting.

Such narrative freedom means that you cannot design your scenarios the old-fashioned way, and fortunately Donjon provides plenty of DK advice regarding this matter. The free-form and rules-light aspects of Donjon are nicely showcased throughout the rules, but especially so in the later, DK-oriented chapters.

Our game of Donjon -- a fist full of d20's

I ran Donjon for four of my friends, hardcore D&D-heads all. Donjon includes a starter scenario, 'Donjon Pak A1: A Fungus Among Us', so that is what I used.

Character creation went well enough, as my guys all wanted characters that would 'kick ass', and some of them had had the time to generate their characters in advance. It must be said that it is easy to abuse the char-gen process, and the DK should not be afraid to say 'no'.

In town we became familiar with rules for money and equipment, and they really work quite well. The rules for this aspect of the game are abstract, yes, but it is dull to tally endless sums of gold pieces. In our opinion Donjon's way of doing it is more fun.

As soon as the party left town, they started to use their various narrative abilities to get into a fight. My guys loved the fact that they could always drum up some target practice, simply by making a skill roll. As one of them put it: 'Now I can get all the experience points I deserve!'

The actual fights went pretty well too, although the amount of d20's rolled is unbelievable. We ran out of d20's, and the players had to pool their resources to get enough dice. You can elect to carry over any successes to the next relevant roll, and this led to situations where up to 15 dice had to be rolled and compared to maybe 10 dice on my side of the screen... For the individual player it is a non-issue, but for the guy running the game it is a goddamn liability. Comparing these huge handfuls of dice took up a great deal of handling time, and we did not get to the end of the adventure that evening.

Overall I would rate it a success. People had fun with the rules, they enjoyed the fact that they determined large parts of the adventure, and they liked the simplicity of the looting/wealth system. The handfuls and handfuls of dice, though... Jesus wept! Even hardened HERO fanatics would blanch at the thought of a high-level Donjon campaign.

The verdict

Clinton R. Nixon states that Donjon is about regaining that sense of wonder you had the first time you played D&D. Donjon is not as much a parody of, as a homage to, classic old-school D&D.

To a large extent, Donjon succeeds in meeting this lofty goal. The excessive use of dice is a feature, not a bug, but it is a feature that I could personally live without. Nonetheless, I recommend Donjon; it is an original take on an old favorite.

Style: 4
The Donjon book is a bit skimpy, but coupled with the PDF copy -- and great internet support -- it rates above the norm.

Substance: 4
An old mainstay, updated with new and original mechanics allowing for player narrative control, all in a complete and rules-light package -- only the insane amounts of dice holds Donjon back.

Donjon
Donjon Playtest Review by Powergamer on 19/09/02 Style: 4 (Classy and well done) Substance: 4 (Meaty) Donjon is guaranteed to have more d20's than any other game system, plus more classes, more monsters, more spells, more levels - more of everything except rules. Product: Donjon Author: Clinton R. Nixon Category: RPG Company/Publisher: Anvilwerks Line: Donjon Cost: $17.95 Page count: 80 Year published: 2002 ISBN: n/a SKU: n/a Comp copy?: no Playtest Review by Powergamer on 19/09/02 Genre tags: Fantasy Other	Donjon playtest review Donjon is an old-school RPG with new wave sensibilities, written by Clinton R. Nixon. It is available directly from the author for $17.95 at Anvilwerks. Physically speaking, Donjon is an 80-page spiralbound A4-sized book with a color cardboard cover. It has several interior black-and-white illustrations, most of them quite nice. It is simply and clearly laid out and has no glaring typos or spelling errors. It does lack an index, but due to the rules-light nature of Donjon, this is not a fatal omission. The author also graciously grants buyers access to a screen-formatted PDF of Donjon, quite useful for printing out player handouts or for gamers who use a laptop for their bookkeeping and campaign records. This PDF is easily searchable, alleviating the need for an index. *The premise* The basic premise of Donjon is as old as fantasy role-playing itself: You assemble a gang of cutthroats and sociopaths ('adventurers'), go to the nearest dungeon or cave complex, beat the crap out of everyone there, steal their stuff, and go back home to bask in the afterglow. What makes Donjon stand out from the crowd is the execution of this premise: Donjon allows the players much more narrative control than other, superficially similar, games. A whole lot more narrative control. As the back cover blurb puts it: Donjon has a unique dice pool system that provides for multiple successes on every roll. Every success you get is one statement that you, the player, get to declare about your action. Want to find a secret door to escape from the horde of trolls coming your way? Look for one - if you succeed, it'll be there. Want to find a magic sword on that dead adventurer over there? Loot the body - you'll find it with a success. Wondering what's on the other side of that door? Bash it down - with enough successes, you'll tell the GM what's there. *The rules* Donjon is class- and level-based, but with a twist: You get to define your characters class (or race) as well as his/her skills and abilities. For details, I refer you to chapter two of Donjon, available here. In short, the character generation process is like a hybrid of Over the Edge and classic D&D -- which works a lot better than it sounds. Here is a sample character from our playtest: Name: Vernon Widowmaker Class : Serial killer Level: 1 Attributes Virility- 5, Cerebrality- 4, Discernment- 2, Adroitness- 3, Wherewithal- 6, Sociality- 1 Abilities Stalking - 4 (stalking victims, getting positioned for an ambush) Ambush with Sadistic Glee - 2 (adds to damage when victim unaware) Chop-Chop with Axey-waxey - 2 (skilled with axe) Destroy Forensic Evidence - 2 (cover the tracks) Detect Ambush - 2 (it takes one to know one) Saving Throws Save vs PP&T- 2 Save vs I&C- 2 Flesh Wounds- 4 Wealth- 5 Possessions - 3 Please take note of the last two stats, Wealth and Possessions. Donjon does not force players to do bookkeeping chores. Need an item? You only have to make your Possessions check, and your character -- being a well-prepared delver -- will pull that studded tuba out of his backpack. Need more money? Make your search check while looting a dead nippleripper, and your Wealth will increase. So how do you resolve conflicts? I'll use Vernon, above, for an example: Vernon is trudging along in the Desert of Desolation, when he is suddenly feels the urge to kill. He decides to Detect Ambush. His player rolls 2d20 (for his Detect Ambush) plus 2d20 (for his Discernment) for a total of 4d20. He rolls: 5, 9, 16, 19. The Donjon Keeper (DK) sets the opposing difficulty to Easy (3d20) and rolls for a result of 2, 8, and 14. Vernon's highest roll is 19. DK's highest roll is 14. Vernon wins. As Vernon has two dice that beats DK's result (16 and 19 versus 14), Vernon gets two successes. He may elect to keep them, but instead decides to use them to determine two facts that the DK will have to take into account. Vernon's player: 'OK, here's the deal: First: There are several guys hidden under the sand just ahead. Second: They're Ninja.' DK: 'Hmmm... suddenly the very desert sand moves, and out pops three black-clad figures -- Ninja! One has a matching set of steel-studded clubs, the other holds a katana reverse left-hand style, and the third ninja has a gruesome set of steel claws. They sneer and attack you!' (This example used an uncontested action -- contested actions are usually opposed by the appropriate skill of the opponent.) For maximum fun, the author recommends that all characters choose at least one ability that will allow them to narrate facts, and as player control is the point of this game I wholeheartedly agree. Sadistic players will have much fun with the traditional paladin ability 'Detect Evil'. The free-form magic system must be seen in action to be believed. It is based on keywords; you choose a number of words and when you cast a spell, the effects are tied to the words. If you have seen movies like 'the Last Hero in China' or 'Iron Monkey', substitute 'magic' for 'kung-fu moves' and you know how it works. The magic system is flexible, fun, and powerful -- almost too powerful, in fact. However, it is easily tuneable by adjusting the difficulty degree of spellcasting. Such narrative freedom means that you cannot design your scenarios the old-fashioned way, and fortunately Donjon provides plenty of DK advice regarding this matter. The free-form and rules-light aspects of Donjon are nicely showcased throughout the rules, but especially so in the later, DK-oriented chapters. *Our game of Donjon -- a fist full of d20's* I ran Donjon for four of my friends, hardcore D&D-heads all. Donjon includes a starter scenario, 'Donjon Pak A1: A Fungus Among Us', so that is what I used. Character creation went well enough, as my guys all wanted characters that would 'kick ass', and some of them had had the time to generate their characters in advance. It must be said that it is easy to abuse the char-gen process, and the DK should not be afraid to say 'no'. In town we became familiar with rules for money and equipment, and they really work quite well. The rules for this aspect of the game are abstract, yes, but it is dull to tally endless sums of gold pieces. In our opinion Donjon's way of doing it is more fun. As soon as the party left town, they started to use their various narrative abilities to get into a fight. My guys loved the fact that they could always drum up some target practice, simply by making a skill roll. As one of them put it: 'Now I can get all the experience points I deserve!' The actual fights went pretty well too, although the amount of d20's rolled is unbelievable. We ran out of d20's, and the players had to pool their resources to get enough dice. You can elect to carry over any successes to the next relevant roll, and this led to situations where up to 15 dice had to be rolled and compared to maybe 10 dice on my side of the screen... For the individual player it is a non-issue, but for the guy running the game it is a goddamn liability. Comparing these huge handfuls of dice took up a great deal of handling time, and we did not get to the end of the adventure that evening. Overall I would rate it a success. People had fun with the rules, they enjoyed the fact that they determined large parts of the adventure, and they liked the simplicity of the looting/wealth system. The handfuls and handfuls of dice, though... Jesus wept! Even hardened HERO fanatics would blanch at the thought of a high-level Donjon campaign. *The verdict* Clinton R. Nixon states that Donjon is about regaining that sense of wonder you had the first time you played D&D. Donjon is not as much a parody of, as a homage to, classic old-school D&D. To a large extent, Donjon succeeds in meeting this lofty goal. The excessive use of dice is a feature, not a bug, but it is a feature that I could personally live without. Nonetheless, I recommend Donjon; it is an original take on an old favorite. Style: 4 The Donjon book is a bit skimpy, but coupled with the PDF copy -- and great internet support -- it rates above the norm. Substance: 4 An old mainstay, updated with new and original mechanics allowing for player narrative control, all in a complete and rules-light package -- only the insane amounts of dice holds Donjon back.