Thundernerds are Go!

Posted by pookzilla on August 23, 2009

Ok, time to get nerdy. RPG nerdy at that – the very purest form of the disease.

First up, my impressions of Geist: The Sin Eaters from White Wolf. Capsule one line summary for the uninitiated : Sin Eaters are humans that have died (or nearly died) and were brought back from the brink by Geists – ghosts who have shed some degree of their humanity by becoming iconic aspects of death itself. I haven’t absorbed it well enough for a proper review (something I’m terrible at under the best of circumstances) but at first blush my impression is quite positive. The book design and layout is superb, almost certainly the best of the new World of Darkness lines. Similarly, the mechanics behind the Sin Eaters feel novel and flexible, and the particulars of the underworld feel very usable (contrary to previous attempts at this space by White Wolf, which have been frankly a bit of a mess). The Key/Manifestation system in particular is wonderful and I can only wish that they had used something similarly dynamic for Changeling a few years back (which, IMO, is gaming frickin’ Nirvana – it’s near flawless).

The first downside for me is the art. The art is frankly underwhelming. After the first read through there isn’t a single piece that has stuck with me enough to mention whereas I can still recall artwork from previous games (Changeling and Promethean from the new World of Darkness reboot in particular and damn near EVERY piece of artwork from the original Wraith). It’s not terrible by any means, just kind of boring and forgettable. Sin Eater culture, such as it is, is heavily influenced by marti gras and day of the dead imagery which are both very lively and iconic – absolutely none of that character was brought through to Geists artwork, which is a downright shame. Secondly, Sin Eater society is intentionally vague and without any kind of real history (beyond some admittedly superficial poaching of Krewe culture). This is usual to some degree for the new World of Darkness games which shun the weight (and obligation) that the metaplot of original WoD placed on its inhabitants. However, previous games in the new WoD seem to have found a sweet spot – just enough structure to motivate and add believability. Sin Eaters, however, seem almost entirely devoid of any kind of shared history. Even Prometheans, creatures who are forced to keep moving as the world turns against them, have hobbled together something resembling culture and a consistent mythology. Yes, there are provisions and mechanics for large scale Sin Eater conspiracies but those mechanics act to undermine any kind of long term and shared experience – these systems rely on Sin Eaters effectively making up their own mythology. In many ways Geist: The Sin Eaters has taken the toolbox philosophy of the new WoD to the extreme and I’m not convinced it’s a good thing. Finally, (and this is tied to the lack of a shared culture), is the lack of motivation. I don’t have a good feel for what Sin Eaters are supposed to DO. I get that many of them police the dead (or the boundaries between the living and the dead), but that doesn’t explain all of it. I’m just not sure why these critters would get together.

I know I’ve written considerably more on the negatives but I have to reiterate that my impression is overall very positive. The direction White Wolf has chosen to explore death and the underworld in the new WoD is incredibly refreshing and while there are gaps in the story they feel like they could be addressed quite easily in subsequent supplements. The problem with this is that they’ve gone on record saying that they don’t intend on doing any supplements for Geist beyond one (which is a generalized supplement dealing with the underworld). While they can certainly change their mind (and likely would if Geist is a financial success) it’s still a bit distressing that they’d release Geist with these gaps present knowing that they would never address them.

Non review rating of 4/5. 3/5 if I was petty and decided to dock them a point for threatening to sue my friend.

Next up at the nerd buffet, Eclipse Phase. The PDF ebook was released yesterday and it’s being offered as a bundle with the print book when it’s released. There are so many things about this game that are exciting not least of which is the license. It finally feels like a gaming company “gets it.” Let’s hope this experiment succeeds in such a way that the others take notice. I may or may not get the bundle – the price is pretty steep and after you factor in exchange rate and shipping it’s approaching the grotesque – but one day that book will indeed be mine. Oh yes.