Acquisitions Inc. switching to Daggerheart

[Agamon]

So has Jerry or Mike confirmed this since pax west was D&D like the 15 plus year (4e and into 5e) for Aqc Inc. and that number of years, who wouldn’t want to try something new? I’ve done it numerous times in my rpg playing days. D&D, merps, D&D, GURPS, D&D, rifts,D&D, PF D&D…etc. For me it’s the banter and such is why I watch aqc Inc so I’ll way\tch if they switch for a season to give daggerheart a try. I may not know what is going on character ability or rules wise but I’m sure it will be entertained

I watched a 15 minute video about one GM rule from the game before going to Demiplane to make a PC. I had no trouble understanding most of it, aside from knowing the difference between the different resources (hope, stress, etc). It's not rules-light, but it is fairly intuitive if you are an RPG vet.

 

[MichaelSomething]

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[aramis erak]

2025 and some people are still like "People watch other people play D&D?!?!?"

I've had listeners-in since the mid-80's in some of my groups.
Two of my group-hosts lived with one or more parents. LH, elderly mother & roommate of one of my gamers, who hosted, never played, but would often give me ideas. DB's mother loved to listen in most of the time... She occasionally would fire a question in from the kitchen...

 

[aramis erak]

I have heard people talk about it being a potential problem but I don’t recall anyone noting it in play.

It is a problem for my online group, but not a big one. Whomever I heard first (being the GM) gets to go first, and the other next, barring fear or failure.
This group really digs the options for gridded play and for the 3 activations per round...
I'm still learning the interface of the Forge ruleset and the nuances of setting up the Forge.

I would argue that DH is not a "narrative storytelling engine" but a traditional heroic fantasy RPG with some narrative design influence.

Some fairly heavy narrative design influence.
What makes it distinct lies mostly in borrows from those narrative games it draws from.

 

[kermit4karate]

I mean, it is already an order of magnitude bigger than Shadowdark: not to diss Dhadowdark, but it has a customer base just over 12,000, based on the Kickstarters: Daggerheart seems to be in the hundreds of thousands, based on the Demiplane data. Still a fraction of the overall market, but significantly huge.

I bought Shadowdark from a game store where they said they couldn't keep it in stock. Selling like hotcakes.

Think it's selling outside the Kickstarter.

 

[kermit4karate]

I think it probably has SHadowdark-esque legs: popular, but not going to replace D&D in the marketplace, even if it replaces D&D for some people. (I am some people, for both games; when I want gritty D&D, I run Shadowdark, and when I want heroic D&D, I run Daggerheart now).

My guess? DH is a fad on its way to niche status within 2 years. Core niche of ppl will continue to love it, but it'll fall out of mainstream favor. It relies too heavily on players to drive the story, too much effort to invest for most players, and too prone to chaos.

My unsolicited two cents.

 

[Parmandur]

I bought Shadowdark from a game store where they said they couldn't keep it in stock. Selling like hotcakes.

Think it's selling outside the Kickstarter.

Sure.

Even given thst, we are talking orders if magnitude here.

 

[Reynard]

My guess? DH is a fad on its way to niche status within 2 years. Core niche of ppl will continue to love it, but it'll fall out of mainstream favor. It relies too heavily on players to drive the story, too much effort to invest for most players, and too prone to chaos.

My unsolicited two cents.

It doesn't really, though. It doesn't ask anything more of players than 5E does, except some extra attention during combat and to count a couple extra resources. The narrative elements are almost completely optional. No one ever has to "yes and" in DH if that group doesn't want to. It isn't a hard coded rule.

 

[kermit4karate]

It doesn't really, though. It doesn't ask anything more of players than 5E does, except some extra attention during combat and to count a couple extra resources. The narrative elements are almost completely optional. No one ever has to "yes and" in DH if that group doesn't want to. It isn't a hard coded rule.

I've heard it characterized as being able to be played like 5E before, if someone doesn't like the narrative bits.... I'm sorry, then what's the value proposition? It's either different in ways that create a barrier to entry for many people, or it's like 5E. Why not just play 5E, or go with something truly different?

It may be a solid game by itself, but the videos I've seen relied on a level of player involvement I rarely see with any type of game, almost like some of those players auditioned for it. That makes them actors, not regular players.

I don't see it disappearing, but how big can the market for it be alongside D&D?

 

[kermit4karate]

Sure.

Even given thst, we are talking orders if magnitude here.

Shadowdark has a smaller core rulebook, an easier hook to explain (torch time), solid execution of a simple premise, smaller and cheaper to print and ship, and it builds upon the most popular TTRPG in the history of the world.

I bet $2 it's still chugging along a year from now while most Daggerheart players will have moved on to something else.

Fad IMO but time will tell.