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Intended to coincide with the Dune 2021 movie, the much-anticipated Dune RPG from Modiphius has now been released while the movie has been delayed. How does it relate to the movie and what is it like? Here’s an initial review. Game System Like previous 2d20 system releases from Modiphius, such as Star Trek Adventures, John Carter and Conan, Dune has the same basic game mechanic as those earlier systems: to attempt a task, the GM sets a difficulty level, the player rolls 2 or more d20 against the sum of two relevant attribute values, and the number of successes from that roll determines not only whether they succeed but how well.

It is 710 AD. It is an age of iron and ruin, a wolf-season amid the ashes of Roman Britain. The spears of the English tribes are raised against their rivals, and the Wealh of the western hills remember bitterly what was taken from them. The shattered caesters of past Roman glory litter the land, each one laden with forgotten troves hidden by desperate men of the last days. Sorcerous Arxes once sealed against a Roman rescue that never came are now cracking open, the changed refugees within now seeking vengeance for a ruin of centuries past.

In recent years, we’ve seen a lot of early RPGs, such as Traveller and Runequest, resurrected in new editions with cleaner rules and more modern presentations which, for the most part, have retained the original feel of the game. Chivalry & Sorcery has seen several editions over the years, the last almost 20 years ago in 2000 (not counting the 2011 “Essence” release which was only 44 pages). Now, following a successful Kickstarter, a new 5th Edition has returned at a whopping 602 pages.

Brass is a board game set in Lancashire, England during the Industrial Revolution, developed by Martin Wallace and originally released in 2007. The object is to use cards and cash to build mines, cotton factories, ports, canals and rail links, and establish trade routes, all of which will be used to victory score points. This review covers the newly-released Lancashire and Birmingham editions from the 2017 Kickstarter campaign by Roxley Games.