I have seen excited threads about the re-launch / re-do / re-print of Dragon Warriors and I am not familiar at all with this game.   When I have asked people who have played it, they just say it was "like D&D and fun" their Alzheimer's kept them from giving any more details.

So...what's the big deal about Dragon Warriors?

I love Dragon Warriors and have been waiting for the reprints. That said, I think that some who weren't there the first time around might be a little underwhelmed at first. The system is a simple D&D clone, with a couple of nifty features and some bugs, and is definitely clunky and dated at this point.

The strength of the the game is in its atmosphere. The writers were steeped in English folklore, not to mention Oxford graduates who know how to write. (I hold Dave Morris as one of the top three or four masters of the English language to ever turn his hand to RPGs.) The game feels very medieval, in the sense of a folkloric sense of mystery rather than the geeky details of polearms and mead. The monsters and world are just cool and subtly different from other fantasy offerings. The spells and magical items quickly became iconic in our group. It defined what a fantasy RPG should be, for me as a 12-year old.

The Jon Hodgson art commissioned for the new edition is the perfect fit. Check out some of his work on the thread on these boards somewhere. Feel the misty, gritty atmosphere. That's Dragon Warriors.

I am now intrigued.  Thanks for the overview.

As am I.

The cover is pretty damn cool as well, from what I remember... now if only Google Images will cooperate and stop giving me this videogame shit.

Goodness me, Dragon Warriors?! I used to have a little boxed set with the first three books.  Not sure where or why I got it, but for a long time I was convinced I was the only person in the world to have a copy.

The only remarkable features I can recall were (1) the books were regular paperback sized (2) the setting had much more feudal feel your average, generic high fantasy game, more like a jazzed up King Arthur than Lord of the Rings. Other than that it was pretty much what you might expect of an early D&D clone.

More info on on wikipedia for anyone that is interested
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dragon_Warriors

Quote from: The_Shadow;251391The system is a simple D&D clone, with a couple of nifty features and some bugs, and is definitely clunky and dated at this point.

Is the game being re-tooled or just re-printed?

What were the nifty features and what were the bugs that make it clunky?  

Quote from: The_Shadow;251391The game feels very medieval, in the sense of a folkloric sense of mystery rather than the geeky details of polearms and mead.

Tell us more about this.

Quote from: Spinachcat;251670Is the game being re-tooled or just re-printed?

What were the nifty features and what were the bugs that make it clunky?  

The different magic-using professions had slightly different rules, which led to nice differentiation without too much complexity. For example, the Mystic (psychic/priest type I always liked better than the DnD cleric) rolls for psychic fatigue after each spell; if he passes, all is well, if he fails, no more spells for the day. Simple and flavourful alternative to magic points.

In fact, the system wasn't all that clunky, come to think of it. Just limited in the manner of Basic DnD. Some didn't like the fact that weapons did fixed damage. In practice, the game held up very well.

The main problem was imbalance between professions. Sorcerers could soon overpower the fighters, and the new professions from later books were either overpowered or underpowered.

It's playable and very intuitive, just be aware that this is a game from 1985 designed for younger players, and while it does that job excellently it isn't a modern RPG.

Quote from: SpinachcatTell us more about this.

It's very definitely British in origin, not California fantasy at all. The Dragon Warriors world was not high fantasy, but Dark Ages where the village abutted the haunted forest. Some of the published scenarios had pagan/celtic imagery that truly frightened me as a youngster, and remains powerful even now.

There are creatures that lurk at the bottom of wells, and creatures that curdle your cow's milk. I think there are orcs, but nobody used them. Instead there were creepy goblins, and living skeletons aplenty.

I'll do my best to capture some of this feel in my DW PbP, check the sig...

Quote from: The_Shadow;251937It's playable and very intuitive, just be aware that this is a game from 1985 designed for younger players, and while it does that job excellently it isn't a modern RPG.

It's very definitely British in origin, not California fantasy at all. The Dragon Warriors world was not high fantasy, but Dark Ages where the village abutted the haunted forest. Some of the published scenarios had pagan/celtic imagery that truly frightened me as a youngster, and remains powerful even now.

Indeed. A lot of British gaming output during the '80s - Dragon Warriors, WFRP, various TSR UK Modules - were geared toward a more low key, 'dark' fantasy that drew its inspirations from history and folklore over literature. DW was a great example of how a well executed and atmospheric setting could command gamer attention. I know it did mine.