Legend RPG Review

A few weeks ago Mongoose released their latest RPG Legend. It uses the core rules from their previous RPG Rune Quest II. Basically Mongoose no long have the rights to RQII and decided to continue to support their system and rebranded the game without any RQ material. I never played RQII but this seems like a good move.

Speaking of good moves the Legend PDF is currently on sale over at DriveThruRPG for just £0.51p. As I'm sure is the case with many people the price is the main reason I picked it up. Now to answer the question of if I'm glad I got it or not.

First impressions of the book are good, it is well laid out and the artwork is very nice, even if it is all rough black and white paintings. Clearly a lot of thought and care has been put into the design. There is a lot of text, not surprising as there are a lot of rules, but everything is explained clearly so this isn't a problem. It goes into a lot of detail about things that many other games gloss over, going as far as having a section on downtime. This could mean many veterans would skip through much of the book but it is great for people knew to role playing.

Throughout the book they use a character called Alaric as an example to explain how everything works. This worked very well as giving a practical example of the rules within the context of the game helped clear up a lot of rules. This is something I would like to see in more game books.

The character creation process is a long one. It goes into a lot of depth, going as far as having you roll for your family and friends. This could be off putting for some but I loved it. It seems to put a lot of focus on role playing and character development, something that certain recent game iterations have steered away from. Of course stuff like that can be included in any system but putting it into the rules forces players to consider these things and gives them a starting point to develop their character ideas.  

The game is very focused on skills and it uses a percentile system to deal with them. I like the skill system here, as with everything else in the book it is very detailed but it is still simple and easy to use. Success and failure is determined quickly which keeps the game flowing smoothly. I particularly liked the Persistence and Resilience skills. These are passive and determine how well a character can defend against mental and physical pressures which may be out of the players hand. The example given in the book is that Alaric's rival is flirting with the girl he likes so the Game Master makes a persistence roll for Alaric and determines that he cannot hold his jealously at bay any longer, so there is a confrontation. I liked this because sometimes our emotions can get the better of us and we lose control, this is something I don't see often in games.

I feel that the combat rules let this game down a little bit. They all make sense, it is all very clear and well explained but there are just too many rules. It seems like even the simplest of fights could take as long as encounters in D&D 4E. It seems like combat would keep everyone involved and if everyone has a firm grasp of the rules downtime should be kept fairly short, but the sheer amount of rules would mean it would be a long while before everyone knows what they are doing.

The last part of the book is dedicated to the Game Master, giving a lot of advice on how to run a game and ways to keep track of everything. Like the rest of the book, this is all presented very clearly and is definitely useful.

Overall Legend seems like a very good game where players can create rich and detailed characters with plenty of opportunities for role playing and action. It is definitely not a game for people new to the hobby as the vast amount of rules can be intimidating. But overall it all works and lends itself to played as a long running grand campaign. If you're looking for a d20 alternative this could definitely be what you're looking for.