 |
|
 |
 |
 |
|
|
Wargame Rules / Misc
- Review |
|
 |
|
|
|
|
Displaying Reviews: 1 - 1
|
Average Reviewer Rating:
Number of Reviews:
1
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Very, very refreshing and fun to play!
|
Reviewer
Rating:
|
|
Reviewed by Antar Howarth (webmaster@totalmodel.com) June 12, 2003
The great thing about RPGs (Role Playing Games) is they allow you to don the persona of an alter ego and act completely out of character. The craze began back in the 70's with games such as Dungeons & Dragons. People would assume the roles of dark age adventurers who roamed fantasy realms in the hope of finding something to attack, steal or otherwise corrupt before heading off home in time for tea and crumpets. Today, RPGs have even made it as far as the workplace. Indeed it's not uncommon for companies to hold role playing seminars in which their employees get the chance to confront a range of disgruntled customers. In my day, such situations were handled by rolling a d20, chopping off a few heads and then moving on to the next encounter - but I fear we've progressed a lot since then!
Bootleggers is a set of RPG rules which allow you don the persona of a gangster. The game is set against the backdrop of 1930's America during the famous prohibition era - a time when making and selling alcohol was illegal - but drinking it was not! Players create a character based on one of a number of professions, including Bank Robber, FBI Agent, Bootlegger, and Reporter, etc. Each profession is further refined by the addition of specialist skills, such as Safe Cracking, Explosives Expert and so on. In typical RPG style, each character also has a range of ability points which determine the success or otherwise of shooting, punching, driving and pretty much everything else.
Once you've created your character, it's out on to the mean streets where only the toughest will survive! The games is devised in such a way as to allow a group of friends to play one-off encounters or full blown campaigns. Scenarios can be as simple or as complex as you like - from gangland-style shoot outs to full blown bank heists. Such games can be tremendous fun - especially as each player will undoubtedly do his utmost to ensure the continued good health of his or her character.
A campaign is a series of games which inherit the consequences of the previous encounters. This means, for example, that one hood may commit a murder in the first game and then find himself in front of the judge a few games down the line. Thankfully the rules provide guidelines for such trials and even allow players to plea bargain and tamper with the jury!!
The entire Bootleggers rule set is printed in a slim A5 booklet - which must be one of the smallest rule books I've ever seen. Even so, it contains more details and factual data than many other glossier tomes that are twice as thick. The rules are laid-out in an easy to follow format - complete with tables and bullet points. Steve Barber appears to have accounted for every conceivable eventuality - from the effects of drive by shooting to the amount of bail expected in a case of armed robbery!
If you like RPGs and are look for something really different then I encourage you to take a look at The Bootleggers. The whole premise is extremely refreshing and well executed. Better still, Steve Barber has a huge assortment of models and miniatures for you to collect, paint and use in your encounters. The line-up includes everything from individual 28mm figures to entire cast resin tenement blocks, a bank and even a restaurant!
See you on da streets, wiseguys!
Plus: Very, very refreshing and fun to play.
Minus: More of the same please!
|
|
6
out of
8
people found this review helpful
|
|
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
Reviews powered by Magpie v1.06t for www.totalmodel.com
|
|
 |
 |
|
|
 |
Tell a friend about this item!