One of these things is not like the others

jacobtothe (70)in #games • 7 years ago (edited)

Miniature Market is one of my favorite online game stores. I recently bought my youngest sister a copy of Tails of Equestria: The Storytelling Game from their site for Christmas, since she is a die-hard fan of My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic.

Since I have a little bit of time before I need to wrap it up, and she never reads these posts anyway, I thought I'd skim through it and pass along my thoughts as someone who has played a few RPGs from time to time, but is wholly ignorant of the world of Equestria.

One of these things is not like the others!

The main author, Alessio Cavatore, is a well-respected rules writer in the games industry. He has worked with Rick Priestly at Games Workshop and Warlord Games on some well-regarded games, and he wrote the Kings of War rules for Mantic Games. Under his own company, River Horse Games, he has published several other games including a licensed board game based on Jim Henson's Labyrinth. In short, this is a game designer who knows his material.

The character sheets are simplified compared to other RPGs. The main (mane?) attributes are body, mind, and charm versus the six attributes in Dungeons and Dragons, for example. Characteristics and skills are defined by the size of die you roll when using them, rather like in Savage Worlds. On any die, a 1 is a failure. If the highest number is rolled, the player gets to also roll the next higher die and add the results, somewhat like the "exploding dice" mechanic used my several games. There are official colors for the different dice, so it's easier to tell someone to "roll the black die" instead of "roll a d12," but any set of polyhedral RPG dice would work.

The rulebook is written in a simpler vocabulary than most such books, again showing its child-friendly intent. All told, it's clearly designed to be easy for younger players to understand quickly. Everything seemed to be clearly explained, and the sample adventure explains how the gamemaster can encourage the pony characters to use teamwork and a friendly attitude to solve puzzles and complete goals. Like with most of Cavatore's games, the rules are streamlined and simplified as much as possible so the players have all the tools needed to succeed, and no extra clutter to get in the way.

Skip to 41:54 for an interview with Alessio about the game from March 2016

Since this is an officially-licensed product with full support from Hasbro, the illustrations are copious and colorful. Every page is splashed with bright images and vibrant text. The paper and binding all seem to be of good quality, too. The book as a whole seems like a high-quality product that fits with the MLP brand throughout.

So, whether you're a brony, a kid who likes pastel ponies, or a parent looking for a new way to encourage creativity and cooperation with your kids, this looks like a solid option. And at the time of this post, Miniature Market is selling it at $10 off MSRP, so even after shipping, you can come out ahead!

Note: None of the links in this post are referrals or otherwise beneficial to me personally. I also encourage readers to support their local independent game stores. Besides, they're sure to have a variety of other options on hand for dice and tokens if you don't want to buy the official products, too!