Harsh. (When Darkness Comes)

It took quite a while to actually get to play When Darkness Comes.

I'm not sure if this can be called a good first take on the game, but it surely taught some valuable lessons about the nature of the game.

We had two players and we created our own characters.

We entered the city hall, both players separately. First mistake. This game really needs coordinated teamwork most of the time.

No-one really bothered to make a perception roll to check for one random encounter that was next to door that had to be walked through. Second mistake. That encounter happened to be the second-toughest adversary in the game (if we don't count the mega-adversary).

Combat proved to be horrifically brutal and merciless. Maybe it gets easier if you have some items and victory points in reserve, but as it happened, the adversary number 5 brutalised one of the characters to 1 health remaining.

The other character ran to rescue him and managed to survive the beasts attacks with only one wound taken, so the other character was able to escape.

Next round it was the rescuers attempt to escape. Failed and she was killed outright. And because other character lose one health when someone else dies, it was game over for us.

So, really.

It's not a walk in the park when darkness comes.

Because if there is no time limit, you really must take every precaution you can before entering into the unknown.

Also, the "pseudo roleplaying" style of the game was a tough nut to crack for someone who has played mostly miniature games, where "on the go" house rules are a big no-no. But to counter that I think it would be good to come up with a list of skill uses that are "approved" within my box of When Darkness Comes.