War of Worldcraft
Ever wondered what would happen if superheroes got trapped in a MMORPG? War of Worldcraft gives HERO System 6th Edition players the opportunity to find out as their characters fight evil (in the form of the villain robot Download) either inside a computerized world or outside in the real one. Coming in at forty-six pages, this reasonably priced HERO System adventure contains a short-but-adequate backstory, an intricately detailed adventure write-up, and numerous plot complications, rumors, side quests and NPCs.
As an introductory adventure, War of Worldcraft fits the bill perfectly. However, calling it an introductory adventure is actually a bit misleading. The adventure does work well to get players introduced to the HERO System. For instance, it has a villain who can become a recurring bad guy in future games and it has puts the heroes in a situation where they can save hundreds of thousands of people without throwing them into an Earth shattering conflict. However, the game also comes with ways to take Downloads that might be a little much for new players. Instead of “introductory,” I would say it’s more a game that works well to get a new game started, not necessarily one for new players.
After reading War of Worldcraft, one word comes to mind: detail. This should come as no surprise since it was written by Michael Satran, the same author who gave us Foxbat for President, a lighthearted superheroic romp as the players attempt to thwart the presidential aspirations of everyone’s favorite mutant foxbat.
The two books are actually written in very much the same style. Like Foxbat for President, War of Worldcraft is written with a certain lightheartedness. The writing is not as outright funny as Foxbat, but the game is able to provide Gamemasters with a lot of information without taking itself too seriously. The game seems content with the fact that the adventure is a little far fetched (Download is building a robot army using the minds of MMORPG players) and does not try to be overly dramatic.
Instead, War of Worldcraft lets the tension build naturally as the heroes move against Download. Right off the bat, there is a chance that the characters might get trapped in the game (or they may, in fact, choose to enter the computer.) On the other hand, they may manage to stay in the physical world. Either way, the tension in the game starts to build as they seek to find Download before he can finish his army of maniacal robots.
Download’s lair is well hidden, both in cyberspace and in the real world, but once the heroes arrive, the game stops being so lighthearted. In the real world, Download has built huge towers in his base which are full of hundreds of thousands of MMORPG players’ minds. Suddenly, the heroes are thrust into a situation where they have to stop Download (whose current robotic body is no slouch in a fight) and prevent Download from destroying the towers out of spite.
In the aftermath of the battle, the heroes have saved a lot of lives (assuming they were successful). The Gamemaster is also given a plausible way for Download (who can travel along information lines) to have escaped, which is a nice touch since players tend to like recurring villains.
Another nice thing about War of Worldcraft is the rumors and complications. The adventure is pretty straightforward. A big box retail store is attacked, the players counterattack, the players look for (and then find) Download’s lair, there’s a final conflict. In fact, this game could probably be run as a one-shot. However, to spice it up, the book lists several complications along the way, including an entire page of plot complications ranging from Download’s planting deadly viruses that the heroes must stop, to a computerized gladiator ring, to Download falling in love with one of the player characters.
If War of Worldcraft has any drawbacks, the tone of the writing could have been played up more. Foxbat for President was funny and the wacky silliness carried throughout the game. While War of Worldcraft did have a similarly lighthearted tone, I wish it had even more of it. With a title like War of Worldcraft, I expected a lot more MMORPG puns and general video game humor. There were numerous sections of the text that could have been used for farce and parody, something akin to Foxbat for President.
That doesn’t mean the game is not worth the cover price. It does mean that there are fewer laughs when reading it, though. However, the amount of detail in the game alone makes it a good buy for Hero System players. Even if you never end up playing the adventure as written, the details, the plot complications (many of which could be transferred to a different villain), the NPCs, and even the maps are fertile ground for any Hero System campaign.
Want to learn more about War of Worldcraft? Read on…
- Atomic Array: War of Worldcraft (Atomic Array 031)
- Game Cryer: Review by Chris Perrin
- allgeektout: What Makes War of Worldcraft Worth It
- Dungeon Brew: Dungeon Brew Review
- Apathy Blogs: Online Heroes
- Roleplaying Pro: War of Worldcraft – It’s Not What You Think
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