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<blockquote data-quote="Mouseferatu" data-source="post: 155796" data-attributes="member: 1288">Well, I was one of the winners of last Tuesday's Kenzer products contest.&nbsp; (My review of Deathright, a KoK module, will be forthcoming in a few days.)Before I discuss Quest for the Unknown, a Hackmaster module, there are a few points and disclaimers.One:&nbsp; I do not own, and have never read, the Hackmaster core books.&nbsp; I'm familiar with the game from KotD, these boards, and flipping through it at the store.Two:&nbsp; I never read the original D&amp;D module, Into the Unknown, on which this is based.&nbsp; So in both cases, I'm really going into this blind.Quick &quot;plot&quot; summary: the heroes investigate an abandoned dungeon lair of two missing adventurers, and loot it for all it's worth, killing many critters in the process.That's all there is.&nbsp; That's all you should expect from Hackmaster; even I know that much. <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f600.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":D" title="Big grin&nbsp; &nbsp; :D"&nbsp; data-smilie="8"data-shortname=":D" />Now, one of the reasons I've never really looked into Hackmaster is that I could never think of a good reason why.&nbsp; I've always been a little unclear on whether it's intended primarily as a parody/joke game, or whether it's intended as a recreation (with modifications, of course) of older editions of D&amp;D, with some various bits of humor tacked on.Judging by Quest for the Unknown, even the writers aren't entirely sure.&nbsp; It tries to be both, and in so doing, falls short at accomplishing either.Don't get me wrong.&nbsp; There are good points to this module.&nbsp; If you're nostalgic for the feel of 1st edition, QftU has it in spades.&nbsp; It's actually got more 1st edition feel than Necromancer Games products.(This is not a shot at Necromancer.&nbsp; I've enjoyed several of their modules.)Unfortunately, it often accomplishes that feel through arbitrary use of dice and tables, making up numbers on the fly, and a lack of a comprehensive or consistent system for resolving checks and saves.&nbsp; Yeah, 1st edition had that.&nbsp; It's one of the many improvements in D&amp;D 3e that it doesn't&nbsp; do that anymore.The writing is moderately above average, although I cringed at the vast numbers of basic typos and grammar manglings throughout.&nbsp; (Repeat after me, please.&nbsp; &quot;An en-dash is not&nbsp; the same thing as a hyphen.&nbsp; An en-dash is not&nbsp; the same thing as a hyphen.&quot;)The problem, again, comes back to the fact that the module--and, as best I can tell, the entire game--doesn't know what it is.&nbsp; It's not funny enough all the way through to be primarily parody, although it has its moments.&nbsp; The first few times the tone of the book got arrogant and, well, 1st edition-y, it was funny.&nbsp; &quot;The setting is neither too simple nor too difficult.&nbsp; It has been well tested.&nbsp; If there is a problem it lies with you or more likely your players.&quot;&nbsp; I laughed at that.It got irritating pretty quickly, though.Many of the encounters are relatively serious.&nbsp; Too many, if the game is primarily a parody.&nbsp; On the other hand, if the game is supposed to be a &quot;real&quot; RPG--even one with substantial amounts of humor--there are too many silly interruptions.Overall, I'd say this.&nbsp; It was a relatively fun read.&nbsp; I don't know that I'd be interested in playing this module, though.&nbsp; Furthermore, I think the module's inability to decide what it really is has prevented it from reaching its full potential as either a parody or a hack-intensive RPG.I still ask myself, &quot;Why Hackmaster?&quot;&nbsp; Quest for the Unknown didn't answer me.&nbsp; If I want 1st edition nostalgia, I'll reread my old modules.&nbsp; When it comes to game play, I'll stick with D&amp;D 3e.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Mouseferatu, post: 155796, member: 1288"] Well, I was one of the winners of last Tuesday's Kenzer products contest. (My review of Deathright, a KoK module, will be forthcoming in a few days.) Before I discuss Quest for the Unknown, a Hackmaster module, there are a few points and disclaimers. One: I do not own, and have never read, the Hackmaster core books. I'm familiar with the game from KotD, these boards, and flipping through it at the store. Two: I never read the original D&D module, Into the Unknown, on which this is based. So in both cases, I'm really going into this blind. Quick "plot" summary: the heroes investigate an abandoned dungeon lair of two missing adventurers, and loot it for all it's worth, killing many critters in the process. That's all there is. That's all you should expect from Hackmaster; even I know [i]that[/i] much. :D Now, one of the reasons I've never really looked into Hackmaster is that I could never think of a good reason why. I've always been a little unclear on whether it's intended primarily as a parody/joke game, or whether it's intended as a recreation (with modifications, of course) of older editions of D&D, with some various bits of humor tacked on. Judging by Quest for the Unknown, even the writers aren't entirely sure. It tries to be both, and in so doing, falls short at accomplishing either. Don't get me wrong. There are good points to this module. If you're nostalgic for the feel of 1st edition, QftU has it in spades. It's actually got more 1st edition feel than Necromancer Games products. (This is not a shot at Necromancer. I've enjoyed several of their modules.) Unfortunately, it often accomplishes that feel through arbitrary use of dice and tables, making up numbers on the fly, and a lack of a comprehensive or consistent system for resolving checks and saves. Yeah, 1st edition had that. It's one of the many improvements in D&D 3e that it [I]doesn't[/I] do that anymore. The writing is moderately above average, although I cringed at the vast numbers of basic typos and grammar manglings throughout. (Repeat after me, please. "An en-dash is [I]not[/I] the same thing as a hyphen. An en-dash is [I]not[/I] the same thing as a hyphen.") The problem, again, comes back to the fact that the module--and, as best I can tell, the entire game--doesn't know what it is. It's not funny enough all the way through to be primarily parody, although it has its moments. The first few times the tone of the book got arrogant and, well, 1st edition-y, it was funny. "The setting is neither too simple nor too difficult. It has been well tested. If there is a problem it lies with you or more likely your players." I laughed at that. It got irritating pretty quickly, though. Many of the encounters are relatively serious. Too many, if the game is primarily a parody. On the other hand, if the game is supposed to be a "real" RPG--even one with substantial amounts of humor--there are too many silly interruptions. Overall, I'd say this. It was a relatively fun read. I don't know that I'd be interested in playing this module, though. Furthermore, I think the module's inability to decide what it really is has prevented it from reaching its full potential as either a parody or a hack-intensive RPG. I still ask myself, "Why Hackmaster?" Quest for the Unknown didn't answer me. If I want 1st edition nostalgia, I'll reread my old modules. When it comes to game play, I'll stick with D&D 3e. [/QUOTE]

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