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Band of Blades
The Legion is in retreat following a failed battle against the armies of the undead. You are a member of the Legion, your bonds to one another forged in the dark by bone and blood.
But time is running out as more fall to the indomitable forces of the Cinder King. As Legionnaires, you must make it to Skydagger Keep before you’re cut off or overtaken by the undead. Paying horrifying costs, you’ll employ offensives, maneuvers, unwise bargains, and desperate gambits as the ever-ticking clock nears its final hour.
Do you have what it takes to outwit, outrun, and outlast the endless hordes of the undead, or will your band of blades break beneath the Cinder King’s iron fist? Play to find out in Band of Blades, a stand-alone, Forged in the Dark RPG of dark military fantasy.
But time is running out as more fall to the indomitable forces of the Cinder King. As Legionnaires, you must make it to Skydagger Keep before you’re cut off or overtaken by the undead. Paying horrifying costs, you’ll employ offensives, maneuvers, unwise bargains, and desperate gambits as the ever-ticking clock nears its final hour.
Do you have what it takes to outwit, outrun, and outlast the endless hordes of the undead, or will your band of blades break beneath the Cinder King’s iron fist? Play to find out in Band of Blades, a stand-alone, Forged in the Dark RPG of dark military fantasy.
464 pages, Hardcover
Published January 1, 2019
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
December 18, 2024
Qualità manuale:⭐⭐⭐
Ambientazione:⭐⭐⭐
Sistema regole:⭐⭐⭐
Band of Blades è un boardgame che si spaccia per un gioco di ruolo. Ogni elemento del manuale è identificabile in una caratteristica come una carta o una regola o un percorso fisso, anche la scelta dei personaggi di una missione è decisa dal gioco.
Utilizza il regolamento derivato da Blades in the Dark che reputo ottimo, ma la struttura di questo manuale e ciò che propone è molto lontano dalla mia concezione di gdr. Immaginate di giocare a risiko interpretando i tokens. Limitato in tutto e ripetitivo nelle meccaniche. Il metagaming sommerge il gioco, ogni azione decisa dai giocatori è intrisa di termini e regole da menzionare.
Le fasi di gioco seguono esattamente i turni di un gioco da tavolo. Meccaniche e fisse.
L'ambientazione non aggiunge nulla di nuovo, si tratta di un fantasy horror. Abbiamo la descrizione di un territorio e i suoi luoghi principali da raggiungere e superare. Si parte da un punto di partenza e si arriva al punto finale prima delle legioni dei non-morti. A me ricorda il gioco dell'oca.
Tre stelle solo perchè lo scheletro del regolamento in mano ad un master e un gruppo con molta esperienza e fantasia può garantire un buon gioco se sviluppato a dovere.
Ambientazione:⭐⭐⭐
Sistema regole:⭐⭐⭐
Band of Blades è un boardgame che si spaccia per un gioco di ruolo. Ogni elemento del manuale è identificabile in una caratteristica come una carta o una regola o un percorso fisso, anche la scelta dei personaggi di una missione è decisa dal gioco.
Utilizza il regolamento derivato da Blades in the Dark che reputo ottimo, ma la struttura di questo manuale e ciò che propone è molto lontano dalla mia concezione di gdr. Immaginate di giocare a risiko interpretando i tokens. Limitato in tutto e ripetitivo nelle meccaniche. Il metagaming sommerge il gioco, ogni azione decisa dai giocatori è intrisa di termini e regole da menzionare.
Le fasi di gioco seguono esattamente i turni di un gioco da tavolo. Meccaniche e fisse.
L'ambientazione non aggiunge nulla di nuovo, si tratta di un fantasy horror. Abbiamo la descrizione di un territorio e i suoi luoghi principali da raggiungere e superare. Si parte da un punto di partenza e si arriva al punto finale prima delle legioni dei non-morti. A me ricorda il gioco dell'oca.
Tre stelle solo perchè lo scheletro del regolamento in mano ad un master e un gruppo con molta esperienza e fantasia può garantire un buon gioco se sviluppato a dovere.
April 18, 2020
This is a rulebook for a pen-and-paper RPG, but it still has some very good storywriting in there. The descriptions of the different locales are quite evocative, and the diary entries that flank each section are very well written. Plus, it seems like a really cool pen-and-paper system (will give it a shot with some friends very soon)
August 17, 2022
This is honestly an incredibly designed game. I am working on my own Forged-In-The-Dark game and I have found this so inspiring. Its amazing how much it keeps so much of the soul of what makes Blades in the Dark one of the best RPGs, but also makes so many bold changes to the structure and formula that you could not confuse the two for a second. I do not know if my Blades group is a good fit for grim, military fantasy, but I hope that they are willing to try at some point.
December 13, 2020
I really like Blades in the Dark, so much so that I'm running two games of it right now, and it's my go-to system. But it's tightly focused on a group of scoundrels doing crimes to survive. Band of Blades stretches the BitD core to cover a gruesome game of military horror and survival, and does so with aplomb.
You are the Legion, a military unit with a storied pedigree. The world is beset by an army of undead lead by the Cinder King. Your unit, along with the divinely gifted Chosen, must brave the hazards of Aldermark to make it to Skydagger Keep. The setting is low magic gunpowder fantasy inspired
by Glenn Cook's Black Company series and Game of Thrones, where muzzleloading muskets, swords, and unsettling and uncertain magic face off against human and inhuman foes. It's nicely generic, easy enough to say "oh, this is like that from popular culture", while still having its own unique flavor.
The mechanics are inspired. Players serve as the major officers of the Legion, commander, marshal, quartermaster, lorekeeper, and spymaster, making strategic decisions about where to advance and what missions to pursue. On the front lines are squads of rookies and soldiers, aided by elite specialists. This is emphatically not a game about getting attached to people. War is hell. War against the undead is literal hell. Casualties will be high. Your job is to get the mission done.
The core of the game is much the same as BitD (d6 pools, Stress & Pushes), but characters are more fragile with only 6 Stress. Gear has to be picked before leaving on a mission, you are not devilishly lucky scoundrels. To compensate, Specialist actions aren't rolled-they're just declared. But you'll need these abilities to even stand a fighting chance against powerful Elite undead and fearsome Lieutenants.
Scene to scene, it's BitD and it's going to be good. Having read through, I can't be as confident in the meta level of casualties and resources. Secondary missions seem particularly punishing, given that they're resolved with a single toss of the dice and can have whole squads and specialists killed and missing. There's a fine line between 'desperation' and 'death spiral', and this may be a game where failure even on the campaign scale is an option. The Legion solves problems in part by throwing bodies at them, and the game requires a fair bit of buy-in for people who will likely be playing a different character every session. This is also a combination rulebook and campaign; you will be making your way to Skydagger Keep, and assuming you survive, you'll be scored (possibly for a future Season 2 expansion), so GMs looking to tell a 100% original story will have to do more work, compared to the more sandbox nature of other BitD variants.
But it looks good, reads great, and has lots of neat ideas. In particular, X-COM the RPG is a definite possibility.
You are the Legion, a military unit with a storied pedigree. The world is beset by an army of undead lead by the Cinder King. Your unit, along with the divinely gifted Chosen, must brave the hazards of Aldermark to make it to Skydagger Keep. The setting is low magic gunpowder fantasy inspired
by Glenn Cook's Black Company series and Game of Thrones, where muzzleloading muskets, swords, and unsettling and uncertain magic face off against human and inhuman foes. It's nicely generic, easy enough to say "oh, this is like that from popular culture", while still having its own unique flavor.
The mechanics are inspired. Players serve as the major officers of the Legion, commander, marshal, quartermaster, lorekeeper, and spymaster, making strategic decisions about where to advance and what missions to pursue. On the front lines are squads of rookies and soldiers, aided by elite specialists. This is emphatically not a game about getting attached to people. War is hell. War against the undead is literal hell. Casualties will be high. Your job is to get the mission done.
The core of the game is much the same as BitD (d6 pools, Stress & Pushes), but characters are more fragile with only 6 Stress. Gear has to be picked before leaving on a mission, you are not devilishly lucky scoundrels. To compensate, Specialist actions aren't rolled-they're just declared. But you'll need these abilities to even stand a fighting chance against powerful Elite undead and fearsome Lieutenants.
Scene to scene, it's BitD and it's going to be good. Having read through, I can't be as confident in the meta level of casualties and resources. Secondary missions seem particularly punishing, given that they're resolved with a single toss of the dice and can have whole squads and specialists killed and missing. There's a fine line between 'desperation' and 'death spiral', and this may be a game where failure even on the campaign scale is an option. The Legion solves problems in part by throwing bodies at them, and the game requires a fair bit of buy-in for people who will likely be playing a different character every session. This is also a combination rulebook and campaign; you will be making your way to Skydagger Keep, and assuming you survive, you'll be scored (possibly for a future Season 2 expansion), so GMs looking to tell a 100% original story will have to do more work, compared to the more sandbox nature of other BitD variants.
But it looks good, reads great, and has lots of neat ideas. In particular, X-COM the RPG is a definite possibility.
April 21, 2022
Band of Blades es un pony que sólo sabe hacer un truco, pero qué pedazo de pony y qué pedazo de truco.
Cosas a su favor: A las pocas páginas estaba dentrísimo de la historia y dispuesto a unirme a la Legión en su desesperada ruta hacia el último bastión. Está bien escrito, los temas están bien perfilados y te hace desear saber más todo el rato sobre este mundo. Por otra parte, dos de mis cosas favoritas del mundo son el videojuego FTL y la serie Battlestar Galactica de 2004, y esto es lo más cerca que vas a estar de recrear sus sensaciones en una mesa de rol (o un servidor de Discord).
Mecánicamente es exigente: aunque ya me he leído algún PBTA y muchos conceptos me sonaban, este es mi primer contacto con un Forged in the Dark, y uf. UF. Si bien hacen mucho esfuerzo por explicar las reglas con claridad, se manejan muchos conceptos y me he visto recorriendo el texto adelante y atrás varias veces para revisar definiciones y aclararme. Las interacciones entre posición, efecto, escala, amenaza, potencia, forzar, etc. no son sencillas de interiorizar.
Después de dirigir Old School Essentials con su énfasis en la organización y usabilidad del material, y de encontrarme buscando cosas en las páginas de Delta Green con más frecuencia de la que quisiera, estoy prestando mucha atención a este aspecto, y aquí veo complejidad. Soy consciente de que se apoyan mucho en los playbooks y en que se distribuye entre todos la responsabilidad de llevar el control de los registros, pero esto exige un grupo de jugadores dispuesto a aprender bastantes reglas con soltura para sacarle partido.
Sus diferentes niveles de juego, misión, campaña, escenas de campamento me parecen muy bien resueltos, pero nuevamente, requieren bastante trabajo y jugadores activos para que la campaña no se convierta en una tarea ingente para el Máster.
Como los personajes pueden ser interpretados por distintos jugadores de una sesión a otra, creo que requerirá un esfuerzo particular para que la caracterización de personajes no se diluya y evitar que se convierta en un puro juego táctico. Uno en el que estás dentrísimo, eso sí.
Y es una pena que ese énfasis en la ficción que declaran explícitamente pueda perderse si te dejas arrastrar por la táctica, porque se plantean muchos temas interesantes, como la multiculturalidad y la inclusión, las religiones en un mundo de dioses reales pero que no se preocupan demasiado por las personas, y los diferentes tipos de terror que se generan en esta ambientación bélica.
En resumen, BoB quiere contar una historia concreta y lo hace fenomenal, con todas sus decisiones enfocadas como un láser en apoyar el tipo de experiencia que busca. Si la fantasía militar oscura te interesa y la mecánica y la gestión de recursos no te arredran, te va a fascinar.
Cosas a su favor: A las pocas páginas estaba dentrísimo de la historia y dispuesto a unirme a la Legión en su desesperada ruta hacia el último bastión. Está bien escrito, los temas están bien perfilados y te hace desear saber más todo el rato sobre este mundo. Por otra parte, dos de mis cosas favoritas del mundo son el videojuego FTL y la serie Battlestar Galactica de 2004, y esto es lo más cerca que vas a estar de recrear sus sensaciones en una mesa de rol (o un servidor de Discord).
Mecánicamente es exigente: aunque ya me he leído algún PBTA y muchos conceptos me sonaban, este es mi primer contacto con un Forged in the Dark, y uf. UF. Si bien hacen mucho esfuerzo por explicar las reglas con claridad, se manejan muchos conceptos y me he visto recorriendo el texto adelante y atrás varias veces para revisar definiciones y aclararme. Las interacciones entre posición, efecto, escala, amenaza, potencia, forzar, etc. no son sencillas de interiorizar.
Después de dirigir Old School Essentials con su énfasis en la organización y usabilidad del material, y de encontrarme buscando cosas en las páginas de Delta Green con más frecuencia de la que quisiera, estoy prestando mucha atención a este aspecto, y aquí veo complejidad. Soy consciente de que se apoyan mucho en los playbooks y en que se distribuye entre todos la responsabilidad de llevar el control de los registros, pero esto exige un grupo de jugadores dispuesto a aprender bastantes reglas con soltura para sacarle partido.
Sus diferentes niveles de juego, misión, campaña, escenas de campamento me parecen muy bien resueltos, pero nuevamente, requieren bastante trabajo y jugadores activos para que la campaña no se convierta en una tarea ingente para el Máster.
Como los personajes pueden ser interpretados por distintos jugadores de una sesión a otra, creo que requerirá un esfuerzo particular para que la caracterización de personajes no se diluya y evitar que se convierta en un puro juego táctico. Uno en el que estás dentrísimo, eso sí.
Y es una pena que ese énfasis en la ficción que declaran explícitamente pueda perderse si te dejas arrastrar por la táctica, porque se plantean muchos temas interesantes, como la multiculturalidad y la inclusión, las religiones en un mundo de dioses reales pero que no se preocupan demasiado por las personas, y los diferentes tipos de terror que se generan en esta ambientación bélica.
En resumen, BoB quiere contar una historia concreta y lo hace fenomenal, con todas sus decisiones enfocadas como un láser en apoyar el tipo de experiencia que busca. Si la fantasía militar oscura te interesa y la mecánica y la gestión de recursos no te arredran, te va a fascinar.
January 27, 2020
Intriguing new RPG. The setting is a grimdark military fantasy, with a legion of mercenaries retreating from an undead horde, trying to keep hope alive. Unlike many RPGs, though, this is more collaborative and "fiction-led" than run by a GM with players taking on individual roles. Instead, the group run the legion as a whole with individual players taking on duties as "commander", "marshal", "lorekeeper" etc outside the run of play. In missions, they may play recurring "specialist" characters, playing different people each time, or round the group out with rookies and grizzled veteran soldiers.
The game has some interesting mechanics - a "clock" to represent ongoing projects or increasing dangers, and balances between Harm and Stress to mitigate situations. These are well-explained and good examples of their use given.
The setting is well-presented, with atmospheric descriptions of the supernatural enemies ith an emphasis on horror and lots of story hooks in the descriptions of the enemies players might encounter.
Much mention is given to "rolebooks" and "playbooks" for characters. these and other play aids seem missing from the book but presumably are available to download somewhere. If not, I expect players may have produced their own.
Artwork in the book is adequate if not inspiring. The cover illustration is excellent and in the spirit of the game.
The game has some interesting mechanics - a "clock" to represent ongoing projects or increasing dangers, and balances between Harm and Stress to mitigate situations. These are well-explained and good examples of their use given.
The setting is well-presented, with atmospheric descriptions of the supernatural enemies ith an emphasis on horror and lots of story hooks in the descriptions of the enemies players might encounter.
Much mention is given to "rolebooks" and "playbooks" for characters. these and other play aids seem missing from the book but presumably are available to download somewhere. If not, I expect players may have produced their own.
Artwork in the book is adequate if not inspiring. The cover illustration is excellent and in the spirit of the game.
February 5, 2026
Another Forged in the Dark game (based on the same engine used for Blades in the Dark, which is itself a modification of the Powered by the Apocalypse engine). This game is clearly inspired by Glen Cook's Black Company series, as well as the early 2000s redo of Battlestar Galactica. I like that it's definitely an "opinionated" game. This is built to do something specific. While your individual game may vary quite wildly, there is a core concept here. You take on the roles of various members of The Legion, a storied group of mercenaries. The game is meant to take what I assume would be about 10 or 12 sessions. When things begin, the Legion just took part in a massive battle against an army of the undead...and lost. The Legion is fleeing east, hoping to reach Skydagger Keep before winter arrives and before they're caught and consumed by the forces of darkness. Great set-up. How you get to Skydagger Keep, what you win and lose along the way, who you are, who you become, and how you change? That's up to you.
Here's the thing. I think this is a really cool game. And I very, very much want to play in a campaign of it. That said, this is not a game for me, as a potential game master. It's not something I think I'd enjoy running at all. I've sort of got that sense from a lot of the PotA and FitD games I've read. They're cool. I'd love to play. I don't think I'd want to run them. Though there are a lot of cool ideas that I'll definitely be lifting for games I DO want to run.
Here's the thing. I think this is a really cool game. And I very, very much want to play in a campaign of it. That said, this is not a game for me, as a potential game master. It's not something I think I'd enjoy running at all. I've sort of got that sense from a lot of the PotA and FitD games I've read. They're cool. I'd love to play. I don't think I'd want to run them. Though there are a lot of cool ideas that I'll definitely be lifting for games I DO want to run.
September 16, 2023
Another Forged in Darkness system for me.
System is farily easy to pick up and learn for even those completly fresh to Roleplaying games. But what might be a bit daunting to some newbies is the idea of having several characters in one game. As you are playing a company of soldiers and at times the need for different skill sets arise. And the need to split the party.
Overa i loved the game, i have only gotten to play a shorter campaign of this myself. I have yet to run it. But there is much entertainment to find in games like this. My only issue with the book is lack of lore and it at times is a bit messy to navigate, but that mess is one you get used to fast if you are used to most Roleplaying books, but several newer members in the game i was in, struggled with it.
All in all, can recommend for those wanting to use this as a framework for any band of mercenary games. Or even a World War 2 Band of Brother's style game. Which is what id love to do with it.
System is farily easy to pick up and learn for even those completly fresh to Roleplaying games. But what might be a bit daunting to some newbies is the idea of having several characters in one game. As you are playing a company of soldiers and at times the need for different skill sets arise. And the need to split the party.
Overa i loved the game, i have only gotten to play a shorter campaign of this myself. I have yet to run it. But there is much entertainment to find in games like this. My only issue with the book is lack of lore and it at times is a bit messy to navigate, but that mess is one you get used to fast if you are used to most Roleplaying books, but several newer members in the game i was in, struggled with it.
All in all, can recommend for those wanting to use this as a framework for any band of mercenary games. Or even a World War 2 Band of Brother's style game. Which is what id love to do with it.
January 13, 2022
Another great example of the FitD system applied with a rich and thematically interesting setting and premise that invokes the best elements of the gritty military fantasy genre that is a staple favorite of mine.
January 15, 2025
This was a fantastic read and if you are looking for a change of pace from the typical Dungeons and Dragons or other D20 based systems, this is definitely worth a look.
May 11, 2025
The world of this game is so impressive and cool. I'm so excited to find an opportunity to play this with a group.
February 24, 2020
4/5 - An interesting read, with flaws...
I love the idea of this game, like a fantasy Battlestar Galactica.
My only issue with it is that there is not ENOUGH information about the world, the people's and the gods.
I get that we're expected to come up with it ourselves and create our own canon, but I like discovering new lore...
Otherwise, looking forward to trying to wrangle some stable players to try this one out.
I love the idea of this game, like a fantasy Battlestar Galactica.
My only issue with it is that there is not ENOUGH information about the world, the people's and the gods.
I get that we're expected to come up with it ourselves and create our own canon, but I like discovering new lore...
Otherwise, looking forward to trying to wrangle some stable players to try this one out.
November 23, 2019
Great game, hamstrung only by my dislike of the Forged in the Dark system. If love to have seen a little more departure from the base Blades game, but that's fine.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews