Divinity: Original Sin 2 Previews "Game Master Mode" With Lost Mine of Phandelver

Divinity: Original Sin 2 is a turn-based RPG video game which was Kickstarted in 2015. I don't usually cover video games here, since tabletop RPGs are a big enough subject on their own, but this one's a little different because the developers recently revealed a "Game Master Mode". Not only that, they used that mode to play Lost Mine of Phandelver - the adventure in the D&D 5E Starter Set - at WotC's offices. It has overtones of Neverwinter Nights, a game of which I have very fond memories. (thanks to Søren for the scoop)

Divinity: Original Sin 2 is a turn-based RPG video game which was Kickstarted in 2015. I don't usually cover video games here, since tabletop RPGs are a big enough subject on their own, but this one's a little different because the developers recently revealed a "Game Master Mode". Not only that, they used that mode to play Lost Mine of Phandelver - the adventure in the D&D 5E Starter Set - at WotC's offices. It has overtones of Neverwinter Nights, a game of which I have very fond memories. (thanks to Søren for the scoop)


[video=youtube;sj9cPK2_qKU]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sj9cPK2_qKU[/video]


Matt Mercer also played the game in GM mode in a 4-hour session you can watch on Twitch.

The GM mode is "inspired by" Dungeons & Dragons, but it's not actually D&D. Not that that's a problem, of course, but don't go in expecting a faithful recreation of the 5E ruleset (this system uses action points). It includes a level editor with the ability to create creatures, items, import your own art assets, and more, all of which will be shareable via Valve's steam Workshop.

The Lost Mine of Phandelver module hasn't yet confirmed to be shipping with the game, but the developers have indicated they hope this will happen.
 

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smiteworks

Explorer
Divinity Original Sin is a very well done turn-based game, which I prefer over real-time. The base mechanics behind the characters and the game system seem to be about as far from D&D fifth edition as Sword Coast Legends were, though, and anything short of 100% fidelity to the rules seems to fall short for many in the community. If they were looking to make a modified version of their engine to fit D&D mechanics, that would be awesome. I keep hoping for someone to come along and do a series of modern games that harken back to the old SSI Goldbox series but with modern UI, graphics and rules.
 

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Quickleaf

Legend
Our group has been looking for something like this for a while, since we are splintered across several states. After watching Matt Mercer's run-through I am very impressed. Despite key differences from D&D (different six attributes and no Charisma; a mix of recognizable and unknown classes; races including humans, elves, dwarves, and "lizards"; an action point based system and spells/abilities being unique to Divinity Original Sin), the overall vibe and the GM tools totally screamed D&D.

The only downside: Matt Mercer said he spent about 12 hours learning and prepping the 4-hour live-streamed session. A 3:1 time investment is just too much for many of us, and I'll be looking for future live-streamed sessions that bring that time investment down to 1:1 or less (i.e. no more than 1 hour of prep is spent per 1 hour of actual play).
 

Azurewraith

Explorer
The first game was amazing me and the wife played it co-op. Definitely worth backing well written and thought outplay scenarios with plenty of humour
 

Shayuri

First Post
Hopefully some of that 12 hours was long term investment - system education and familiarization with the toolset, that doesn't have to be repeated every session. I've been waiting for the day when people can RPG via cool video-game style clients.

NWN and NWN2 were good for the time, but very limited in terms of what could be done within the engine. Nice to see this line of game design hasn't completely vanished.
 

Kaodi

Hero
After watching Matt Mercer's run-through I am very impressed.

Is this the one with Jesse Cox, Dodger, Strippin, and whoever that other guy was, or has Mercer done more than one four hour stream?

Edit: Nevermind, I did not see the hyperlink initially in the OP.
 
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Quickleaf

Legend
Is this the one with Jesse Cox, Dodger, Strippin, and whoever that other guy was, or has Mercer done more than one four hour stream?

Yep, that's the one. I shared it with one of my gaming buddies, a lapsed DM busy with family life and he's intrigued.

There's some things about the Original Sin game system that don't map perfectly to D&D, but the GM tools look really flexible.

One limiting factor may be the number of players you can have at one time...it may be limited to 4...which was also an issue with Sword Coast Legends (albeit that had a whole other set of problems).

Overall, sounds very promising.
 

Kaodi

Hero
I watched the video of it Jesse posted on his channel. It was pretty off the wall, and I genuinely laughed out loud at some of the critical rolls.
 



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