Take one part Dungeons and Dragons, add one part FATE, and sprinkle with Old School Hack to taste -
Welcome to 13th Age!
13th Age combines classic elements of fantasy roleplaying from D&D, especially 4th Edition, but it takes character customization to an unparalleled new level. The game uses a variant on the D20 system but makes use of modern game design concepts to provide customizable backgrounds, character relationships with the icons and factions of the world, and flexible, fast-paced combat. It's currently being developed by both Jonathan Tweet (who worked on both 3e as lead as well as 4e D&D and designed Ars Magica, Over the Edge and Everway) and Rob Heinsoo (lead designer from D&D 4e and designer of Feng Shui), and my group and I were given the privilege of taking part in the closed beta test of the system. I was under an NDA preventing me from discussing the game until today, thus providing some of the more cryptic posts I've been making for the past few weeks.
13th Age is a breath of fresh air, especially when I think most of us have seen
D&D Past 5E and are a bit dissatisfied. 13th Age is a very simplified system - unlike 5E it has a definite level curve and works with much bigger numbers, however the math in terms of conditions and attacks and defenses is actually much flatter. Movement is not based on a grid, however there is still a fun and easy to use system of engagement based on relative distance that means you can still use your gridmaps if you played 4E, just ignore the gridlines. Essentially, if you can see it, and it's not an incredible distance away and if there aren't any fun obstacles between you, go there, stand there, attack that dude, why not? Just be prepared when his buddy intercepts you, and disengaging from combat can be a challenge in itself.
Classes, at least those released thus far, are what you would expect in standard D&D - So far there's the Barbarian, Bard, Cleric, Fighter, Monk, Paladin, Ranger, Rogue, Sorceror, and Wizard. Classes in this system are a little more like 'chassis' that you can build any sort of character around - but more on that later. The playtest at least ranks each of the classes in terms of complexity, from the Barbarian to the Rogue, but you can relax in terms of questions of balance. Damage potential between classes is incredibly smooth, and trap options are nonexistent. The Barbarian doesn't have a lot of choices to make but the options he picks are reliable and effective, and he'll still serve a player who wants a simple play experience just as effectively as another's Dying Earth Magic Wizard.
Classes each get to pick at least three 'features', and most classes have some sort of signature mechanic to go along with it, from the Barbarian's rage to the Fighter's flexible melee attacks to the Rogue's momentum and the Sorceror's ability to Gather Power. Even at high levels casters only have a few spells to work with and there is incentive to use your daily abilities in many fights because most classes have the ability to regain spent abilities through different mechanics. Most martial characters either build off of basic attacks or utilize a system of flexible attacks that can trigger off of how the die rolls rather than the end number, and allow for a number of adaptable tactical options. One class, the monk, works almost like a fighting video game and specializes in martial arts that offer opening moves, flow attacks, and finishers, much like a combo system.
Skills. Are. Incredible. Forget what you know about skill systems, in 13th Age you get a number of points that you can sink into Backgrounds. Backgrounds have a value between 1 and 5, and you add them with your level and a relevant stat for all of your skill checks. These backgrounds are things like 'Former Knight of the White Rose', 'Disconcertingly Popular', 'Urban Orphan' - they evoke a history and theme to your character and allow any character to be skilled in any field that fits their character's background. One PC I've seen statted up was a fighter who used to be a wizard's apprentice - all of his skills were based around magic. This allows for incredible customization, and with some of the changes they've made to defenses means your stats are only as relevant as you'd like them to be - anyone familiar to the concept of Death To Ability Scores will like this.
Next on the subject of customization is your One Unique Thing. Every character gets it, and it can be literally whatever you would like it to be so long as it doesn't break your GM's game and make him cry. I've seen everything from 'Upon This Man's Flesh is Scriven The Name of God' to 'I Used To Be A Bird, Why Am I An Elf Now' and 'I Was Cursed To Live Forever, Help Me Find Out How To Die'. This 'unique thing' doesn't have any sort of mechanical benefit attached to it - instead it is a way to give GMs hooks, to help you flesh out your character, and to allow you to have a bit of narrative control over this medium of collaborative storytelling.
Speaking of storygames, one of the other nifty additions is the Icon system. The Icons are major figures of the gameworld - not gods, but figures and factions, real people that exert power and influence and can be aided or opposed. Every character starts out with 3 points of relationships that they can spend on the Icons of their choice to have positive, negative, or conflicted ties to the Icon - these are used in play to influence a scene by rolling a number of dice equal to your relationship. This can have straightforward positive or complicated effects, but if you succeed at a relationship roll something interesting is bound to happen.
The game itself has 13 icons already statted out, from the straightforward High Druid (hail the power of nature) to the slightly schizophrenic Elf Queen (three elven peoples have
very different agendas but only one queen) to the amazing Crusader.
The Crusader is probably my favorite Icon - he is described as the Fist of the Dark Gods. He has been sent on a quest from his dark and evil gods to wipe out all demons from the world, and will work with the humans of the Empire, the elves of the Queen's Court, and the dwarves under the Dwarf King to do it... until the world is finally cleansed and is pure enough for his gods to enter the world and corrupt it to their whims.
The setting is very cool, and it has a lot of interesting ideas - the Eastern Sea hates civilization and spawns monsters to attack us, the Inner Sea was purged of monsters long ago, Behemoths of titanic scale wander through ancient migration paths, demons fester in hellholes. It's certainly not the traditional Tolkienesque world I've come to dread.
Monsters that came with the playtest seemed interesting, and I haven't run enough games to try most of them out, but designing new monsters takes only a concept for any interesting powers and a moment's work. I've designed three or four monsters thus far, and it's incredibly simple. Combat is fast and fun, and my players have specifically requested that we switch systems because of how much faster and easier things run.
TL;DR: This game is awesome and you should check it out. My NDA's finished, I'd be happy to answer questions.
