ACKS II vs. C&C Remaster

I don't like horse-racing Kickstarters, but halfway through the Castes & Crusades Remaster Kickstarter (which I am on), they are about a third of the ACKS II ending amount. I love C&C, and it is the best AD&D-like game and 3.5 clone out there. I also hope they have a strong finish! I am rooting for Troll Lord since all of their books are A+ in quality.

If you aren't participating in the C&C Kickstarter, consider supporting it. Every publisher outside of the monopolies needs our support.

Yet, I can't help but ponder the potential of a non-OGL Castes & Crusades compared to ACKS II. The lack of excitement for the C & C remaster may stem from people already having what they need with the current books. The OGL and SRD elements are readily available, allowing players to seamlessly replace any version of D&D with this game. In its current form, it's a game that just works.

The original Castes & Crusades will always hold a special place as a masterpiece. However, I'm filled with anticipation for the remaster. Games often evolve and improve once the SRD and OGL are removed, allowing designers to fully express their vision without these constraints. I believe the remaster can potentially take Castes & Crusades to new heights.

I hope it gets there.

But this feels different than the ACKS II Kickstarter. We knew we were getting something new. We were throwing off the chains of oppression. ACKS II broke all sorts of records. There was excitement about throwing out the SRD and OGL. We were getting something new.

Part of what held back the original ACKS was that it was too similar to any B/X game on the shelf and could be easily replaced by Old School Essentials or Labyrinth Lord. Why do we need another B/X version? The other games have more players and a better foothold in the market for adventures and add-on books. Why play ACKS?

ACKS II provides a compelling answer to the question of its necessity. It discards the mundane, immersion-breaking elements and focuses on the heart of the game - the official ACKS II world. This laser-like focus on the game's theme and setting results in a concentrated experience rich with monsters, treasures, and spells that bring the world to life.

You can't walk through a dungeon with ESP potions, wands of secret door and trap detection, and "safe" your way through an adventure with the same old tripe tactics. You must use your mind, not SRD garbage, to safely work through a dungeon.

We are losing a generic B/X game and getting a game built to play in a compelling and fascinating world.

Where C&C's remaster feels like we are losing or replacing things, ACKS II feels like we are getting something entirely new.

ACKS II, Preview PDFs

 I really like the ACKS II rules, and I have been following the Kickstarter and have the art-free PDFs to read. They removed all OGL content from the game, and the game is better for it. D&D has enshrined certain immersion-breaking tropes into the genre, and I noticed all ESP is gone from the game. Displacer cloaks, invisibility 10' radius, and detect secret doors are gone. Wizard eye and spell storing (spell and item) are gone. Wands of detecting secret doors and traps are gone.

A few ability scores have been renamed; intelligence is now intellect. Wisdom is now willpower. Clerics are now crusaders. The race-as-class entries are thematic and tighter-tied to the world.

One of the most exciting aspects of the changes is the removal of problematic, game-breaking spells and magic items. This shift requires players to engage in more strategic dungeon-crawling, relying less on spells and magic items and more on their own wit and skill.

If you make the SRD a golden idol over fun gameplay, you will inherit all of its flaws and weaken your game. If you approach fantasy gaming with a "completist" attitude, where you must have everything, you will bring broken things into your game and hurt the player experience.

Another improvement here is tightening the official world to the rules and eliminating the assumption of a generic world. I have enough generic B/X systems, and seeing something different is refreshing.

Of all my B/X games, this one looks like my "last one standing" after I put many in storage.