Review: Duelist

This is not a review of the old M:tG magazine, even if that that would have been a pretty fun thing to write, just going through old price lists, and “best decks of necro summer” and stuff like that.

This is a review of Duelist, which I got in a bundle a while ago and finally got around to reading. Which means that I haven’t played it, so if you’re the kind of person that think that only people that played the game can review the game, this might not be for you.

The cover is really freaking metal:

What is Duelist

The author describes it pretty well: Duelist is a combat add-on for tabletop roleplaying games, intended to add depth and variety to a wide range of most popular TTPRG games without replacing their mechanics. Instead, Duelist aims to work with the already existing game systems, to further bring out the fun of combat.

Duelist adds stances, attacks and moves to whatever game you decide to use it with. These rules add either extra damage (by dealing extra damage or bypassing armour) or subtract damage (by dealing less damage or adding armour).

There are agressive, balanced and defensive stances, as well as power, balanced and quick attacks. All of these give some sort of set bonus, like 50 % more attack (of whatever kind your system has) or 50 % more damage (of whatever kind).

Then there are moves, three offensive and three defensive ones. These give small advantages, changes who is on offense and who is on defense, creating a feel of a more dynamic combat, at least in theory.

There are six bonus moves as well, which can be used to down potions, distract opponents, that kind of stuff.

What is this product good for?

It is really good looking, so I think it’d look great in a collection. Aside from that, I could see myself using it for a one-shot. Just from reading it, it seems like the stances and attacks, as few as they are, wouldn’t add that much after a while. Oh look berzerkers, they’re gonna be in attack stance, let’s all prepare for that! And however combat would sound with this add-on. But for a one-shot, it can bring a nice dynamic to the table, and playing up the back and forth could make for some interesting swashbuckling. My only worry is that this add-on would slow things down and actually make combat more boring than it can already be for some players.

Have you tried Duelist? Let me know what you thought of it, and if I’m totally wrong.