The Other Steve recently picked up his Escalation Edition copy of 13th Age and can’t believe he waited so long as, in his words, “13th Age is, hands down, the most exciting modern D&D variant I have encountered.” In a detailed review over on BoardGameGeek, he explains how 13th Age:
…sits at the nexus not just of 3E and 4E – which has engendered much discussion from D&D fans – but also of the “story games” movement. It brilliantly melds the approaches of these three games into a cohesive, and fascinating, whole.
Then, on top of all that, it adds a new and compelling take on an RPG setting – defined by the game’s 13 icons – that provides dramatic conflict, ample room for GM and player input to the story, and makes the PCs themselves prominent.
The bottom line, he says, is that 13th Age:
…retains the strength of [the d20] system – a rich tactical landscape with vast space for character customization – but adds more freedom, and a well-designed toolbox, to add narration to the game. Toss in an exciting new style of setting design – centered around conflicts rather than places – and some simplification and abstraction to the combat mechanics, and the result is a beautiful game almost perfectly matched to my tastes.
You can read The Other Steve’s well-reasoned explanation of why he thinks he’s in love with 13th Age in the full review here.