Game Review: Crown and Skull
Runehammer's home grown masterpiece tabletop roleplaying game
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Introduction
Crown and Skull Volume I is a fantastic artifact to behold. Under the name Runehammer games, Brandon “Brandish” Gillam is the dungeon-tuber and all around creative behind this project. Known for excellent game mastering advice and an art style all his own in his previous work Index Card RPG (bestseller on Drivethrurpg), this is an ambitious 350 page first entry into a masterwork tabletop roleplaying game.
In this book is the entirety of what a game needs to be complete in a single tome - a player’s guide section including the rules of play, a game master’s guide section, comprehensive magic system, badass art pieces, and an entire campaign setting introduction with enemies to throw at the players across a substantial multi-region hex map.
The following review will touch on each of the sections and provide overview with enough depth to understand what makes this game unique.
What is this game?
What is this game? What makes it different than everything else that’s out there on offer? Great question! The game-defining features are:
D20 roll under - be at the target value or below
Phases and Rounds
There are 5 phases in each combat round, players will pick a phase, and monsters will activate in one or many phases with a variety of tactics!
Player facing - players roll 3x more times than DMs in this game and they have the trust and responsibility of that implication
Skill system - need a skill to be able to roll certain things, and roll the skill value or lower to succeed on a D20 roll.
Slot based inventory - no HP Pools - you cross off and lose items or abilities as you take different kinds of “attrition damage” based on attack received
No to-hit rolls - Players and Enemies alike will automatically hit, but both can use their defense stat to avoid damage
Player characters are built and upgraded via “Hero Points” there’s not treasure or money currency, just options, imagination, and customization by getting enough hero points
Custom magic system - create your own spell effects using hero points
Other cool features of the book:
All lists are presented as numbered value equal to a type of die. So all options tables can be randomly rolled as well.
One of many, many lists/roll tables Custom weapons, armor, spells, items with hero points! Using a system of effects, limitations, and upgrade options, anything you can think of can become one of these.
Includes three ready-baked home towns in different biomes with just enough information to spark the slingshot of a game into existence. Mountain/Forest/Desert - this reminds me of the approach of the MMORPG Final Fantasy XIV’s starting areas.
Simple character creation. Pick Concept, Flaws, Core ability, Skills, Equipment, Spell, Go!
Delve just a little bit deeper…
I find the combat phases idea very interesting. Instead of rolling initiative, the order in combat is chosen by the players and then enemies will activate in one or more specific phases and activate one or more tactics. This seems to both make for very simple yet very deep options for both tactical combat differences between the exact same creatures AND allows for varying levels of deadliness based on when in the round they activate.
The features listed in the first section of this review serve as a shortlist of the defining rules of the game and some what makes this game unique. In addition to this particular mixture of D20 roll under, phase-based combat, slot-based inventory, and hero points customization system, there is also the conceptual story choice of the Crown or the Skull. After some time in The North Holds, after some amount of hero points have been earned in play, each character will be given a choice to either join the Crown or the Skull, and for the life of that character they will be locked into a new set of skills and items that can be purchased with hero points.
The Crown: Honor bound followers of the ruling order of the land
The Skull: Masterless rogues set to their own path
There are 12 thematic skills and equipment unique to each path. Once a character chooses a path, they can never have access to the skills or equipment of the other path. What I like about this is it is an mid-level/mid-range choice that has great effect on the flavor of the campaign that your character will be playing through. It has narrative AND mechanical effects that are interesting.
Which would you choose?
I’ve become a big fan of slot-based inventory, a feature shared by my personal favorite Shadowdark. (If you are careful you can find art from Gillam in that book) When it comes to the vibes of the game, I am a big fan of the style of game that slot-based inventory brings to the table. Along with the removal of HP completely makes for a completely different experience. I have not tried it yet but I think it would be fun. HP can get old as just a number. I’ve seen descriptions of HP as just life value like in video games, but i’ve also seen HP as a representation of morale and ability to deflect damage like an action movie until the HP is gone and then real hits start coming in. Without HP value at all, any hits your character is taking is based on the type of “attrition” the attack does in the enemy stat block. Truly deadly creatures will do hit multiple slots/skills with a single blow!
Player facing rolling is an interesting concept. At first glance, I really enjoy rolling dice as a game master, so I usually feel a little meh about the thought of games where the GM rolls NO dice, but this system still has the GM rolling, just not rolling in combat for the enemies. This system though, where the player is just making a defense roll to avoid assumed incoming damage, it makes sense for the player to be rolling it. Combat also seems fast moving and charged. The tactical combination of spatial location with the phase activation timing makes me think that combating large creatures will feel a lot like big monster hunting board games like Kingdom Death: Monster - but I am curious how it feels in practice.
Conclusion
Since getting my hands on a copy of ICRPG, I’ve been a fan of Runehammer games. The game master advice is worth the price of admission alone, but both of the books I own from this studio are filled with well thought-out and well-tested tabletop game concepts, art, and interesting play. It is very obvious Crown and Skull was born from actual gameplay at the table and is the well-loved output of a small community.
I love the ideas in this book and really want to try this game.
Volume two: The Age of Dragons, supposedly just as big as volume one, is on sale for pre-order now and will be available soon. Check it out here.
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This game sounds really cool and thank you for the review! It’s so helpful when you think you want to purchase something. 😊