Dylan on Dragon Age Tabletop

Once upon a time, there was a game...not just any game, but a tabletop game. This game was like no other. It pushed the boundaries of the imagination, and helped to shape the course of Role Playing Games for years to come. This game was called Dungeons and Dragons.

Years later, whilst the "D&D" franchise is still pushing forward with Pathfinder, a new "competitor" has arrived, based off Biowares hit game, the dark fantasy role playing game, Dragon Age.
Ever since beating it, I've always wondered what it would be like to play with group of friends, to challenge the Darkspawn Horde with my closetest buds, and then see which one would die to stop the dreaded Archedemon. Unfortunately such a feature won't likely show up until Biowares Dragon Age 3 hits shelves.
 But until that time I've discovered somewhat of a replacement.

Now while not many are familiar with the story of Dragon Age you don't have to worry, this game has almost nothing to do with the video games, although playing them will help you by giving you a basic knowledge of the lore. However, knowing the lore isn't always the best thing, so if you have a Game Master, check to see if it's okay that you drop those "Lore Bombs" in case the game gets it wrong.

Now for the actual game play. It seems relatively simple, you get a character sheet and 3 dice. Now the abilities are largely based off stat saves and bonuses, meaning that if you use abilities that are based heavily on your big stats, enemies tend to not make their saves. Coupled with the extremely large defence (to hit stat)
man player characters tend to go untouched...until you reach the higher ranked enemies.
The higher ranked enemies are relentless, boarding on D&D style mini bosses. A single Hurlock matched to player characters is devastating! It can kill at least 3 PC's WITHOUT SUPPORT. Meaning that typical fighting is worthless against these pseudo-mini bosses. Teamwork is what most players tend to avoid in these games at early levels and that would work in your typical table-top RPG, but as I stated the tougher enemies will simply hack through your allies. Granted it depends on the Game Master on how aggressive you want the enemies to be (I would know I tend to make my creatures overly aggressive). Sticking with Dragon Age tactics derived from the games is the best bet, 1 mage, 1 archer, 1 rogue, 1 tank, and 1 damage dealer seems to work, any difference from that in my experience, usually means you're going to have issues when facing counter classes.

Given that this game is probably the easiest to pick up and play with friends, it's surprising how much strategy is involved. Meaning that when you play, you must PLAY, or this game will be short. Really Short. With the unbalanced combat, heavy teamwork, and cunningly deseptive difficulting, Dragon Age Table Top is not a game for everyone, but Dragon Age fans and hardcore table top RPG players will find some enjoyment out of this game.