2. What is Frostgrave?

After a longer-than-planned introduction, let's dive into Frostgrave!

What is it?

• It’s an easy to use, cheap to start fantasy skirmish (so small amount of individual figures) tabletop game with roleplaying and storytelling elements (although, it’s not a must to use them). Thanks to the writer, Joseph A. McCullough for this!

How does it play?

• The players are controlling a wizard and his small warband (max. 10-11 figures), to collect treasure in the long lost ruin city of Felstad.

Easy to use? What does that mean?

• The rules are pretty simple, very streamlined, but still complex enough. That’s why I choose it in comparison with other systems: I don’t say, that all the other systems are bad, but because of the complexity-simplicity balance (the more complex is a ruleset, the more difficult is it to use, so you lose the fun, but the more simple, the more like an brainless dice-rolling it is), it’s an optimal system (for me). It’s a D20 ruleset (so it uses a 20 sided dice), but don’t want to dig deeper into it, there are a plenty of superb reviews out there.

D20? Is that not a very luck-based system?

• Partially, yes. It´s not a big secret, that a 20 sided dice has more sides, than a 10 sided or 6 sided (I don’t want to write side ever again. Nailed it.), so the outcome of a roll has a wider variety. But it´s still important how you play, it can be exciting until the end, and so it’s not a struggle to play with less experienced players (like kids and wife), because really everybody can win! If you want a tournament ready, competitive game, you are wrong, but if you only want to have a fun game, and don’t take a defeat too seriously, give it a try!

Roleplaying, and storytelling?

• Yes, you can decide, if you want to play a simple game, with basic wizards, and without any story (and that’s perfectly fine and fun), or a series of games, with the wizards learning, and getting stronger, the warbands evolving with hiring better soldiers, and the whole campaign leaded by a story line.

What is needed to play?

• The rulebook, some figures (for two players: 4 wizards and 16 soldiers), some place (around 90x90cm, but at least 60x60), some terrain elements (books, boxes and so will do at the beginning), and some usual wargaming stuff (tape measure with inches, D20 dice, markers or pen and paper).

How much does it cost?

• It can be started with approximately 75€/2 people: rulebook -28€, wizard plastic box -17€ (8 figures), soldiers plastic box -22€ (20 figures), tape measure, dice, lets say -8€. Is this a lot? Not really, because you get the full game for it for two people, no need for any more for the full experience. Most other games sell only a taste with the starter boxes. And, if you already have figures (official figures are not a must, we played our first games with Lego figures…), and some measuring device, you will only need the book, and a dice. That’s not much… There are a lot of additional books, which can widen up the options of the game, and they are really good, but you won’t necessarily need them.

As said, I don’t want to analyze the rules, you can find such articles elsewhere. I just want to show, why I like this game. I will continue with the most important figures, the wizards! After the other protagonist of my blog, Oathmark.

P.S.: There is a brand new second edition of Frostgrave, but I don’t own it yet, so everything I write, is about the first edition.