Today we are pleased to offer you the review of Saints of War, a futuristic and transhumanistic role-playing game. First of all, we want to thank Little Lab Design for sending us a digital copy of the game. With it, thanks also to the team of authors: Guido “Maicol” Campanini, Luigi “Grecor” Aversa, Matteo Ruggiero and Federico Sfameni.

If this review of Saints of War should have convinced you to try the game, you can download the free quickstart. You can find the instead full version of the game dedicated e-shop. The physical volume costs 29.90 euros, and with another 19.90 you can also take home the master screen.

Volume Review of Saints of War

The manual has 128 pages in 17×24 format, what many know as the “thesis format”. Due to its thickness, it is probably the one that offers the best consultation ability, an absolute point in favour of what is actually a manual. A handy bookmark lanyard further enhances this aspect, and above all gives class to the volume.

The strong point of Saints of War is the graphics. The team of illustrators coordinated by Lodovico Sartirana did an excellent job, but what is surprising is the layout by Luigi “Grecor” Aversa. Perhaps the choice of a single column makes a volume of this format slightly less comfortable for those who read digitally from mobile devices with small screens (such as cell phones), but it is really a trifle. The style of the pages is very refined and unique. There’s an intersection of clean geometries and symbolism is combined with the alternation of a light and dark background, superimposed on a light grid that makes reading more restful. The result has a very strong impact and perfectly conveys the futuristic and at the same time initiatory atmospheres of the game.

What Game Do We Play?

Pigeonholing Saints of War into a genre is quite difficult, but in some ways, it can fall back into Space Opera. The protagonists in fact belong to orders of warrior monks who carry out their causes, traveling throughout the entire galaxy. This game focuses on the clash as a moral dilemma, placing at the centre what the characters are willing to risk even with a mechanical weight.

The premise of the game is very simple. After expanding into the Spiral, the entire portion of space colonized by humanity, the latter began to turn against itself. Infighting and betrayal have plunged the Spiral into war. Factions inspired by the most varied natures continually compete for resources, putting systems on fire and sword.

Review of Saints of War: Characters

The Saints, the warrior monks mentioned above, they belong to different Archaic Orders, each intent on advancing their own agenda. However, the difference between the Orders and the other factions is the objective of preserving the Spiral, rather than conquering it. These are presented in the manual complete with a description of their methodologies and objectives, unlike the other factions (which are created by the GM depending on the narrative and dramatic needs of the campaign).

Each Archaic Order is guided by an Artificial Intelligence that establishes its movements and intentions. The Golden Academy, for example, is dedicated to the preservation of knowledge. Keepers of the Leaden Gate control an interstellar penal colony whose task is now to attract anyone who deserves imprisonment. The Mastery of Silver pursues peace through diplomatic solutions or subterfuge. The Hermetic Order of Arsenic he is instead one of the most merciful in his attempt to preserve the refugees of the Spiral and everything that represents an anomaly.

Worldbuilding

Ordo Ferroque it is the most warlike of the Archaic Orders and does not hesitate to use violence against those who try to conquer the Spiral. The Platinum Sun it is instead the most hermetic; its objectives are incomprehensible to most, but it is theorized that they are aimed at protecting humanity from a future common threat. First Mercurial Forge preserves innovations and scientific research. The Salt Priory finally, it has the objective of protecting all free citizens of the Spiral and eradicating evil where it meets it.

Each Arcane Order allows you to choose between three Disciplines, ancient transhuman warfare techniques. These are passive powers that make the Saints much more than human, but which also give access to an Exalt effect, with unimaginable power. Just to give an example, the Discipline of Consciences makes the Cleft Technique available, which generates weapons capable of harming matter and immaterial things. Its Exalt effect allows you to damage and destroy the very concept of an individual or object forever.

Another creation phase in the hands of the players is dedicated to worldbuilding, which has a dedicated section in the manual. Reproducing the breadth and variety of the Spiral would have simply been impossible, so it’s up to players to create Systems and Planets together. In support of this mechanic, there is a Tag system that allows you to immediately have a clear understanding of the specifications of each of them, through which the game can progress.

Saints of War: Review of the Setting

The sources of inspiration cited in Saints of War are varied. From Westworld a Star Trek, from the Foundations Cycle a Dune. The video game media also has a strong impact, but on the aforementioned Mass Effect It is Destiny 2 definitely stands out Warframe. The aesthetics of the Saints, their powers and their way of acting are extremely reminiscent of the Tenno of the free-to-play game at Digital Extremes.

Saints are nothing more than ordinary humans who have chosen to join the ranks of the Archaic Orders, renouncing the memory of their past while maintaining their personality. Their bodies were transformed with lost technologies and their minds fused with those of their predecessors. Consciousnesses become an integral part of the game mechanics, and not a simple described or acted element. The Saints thus gain enormous powers and the ability to wear Shells. Through these armour suits, they become virtually invulnerable and capable of using Disciplines.

Which leads to a key aspect of the game. The Saints are able to move the needle with ease. Injuring them is an undertaking worthy of a planetary arsenal, killing them is virtually impossible and in any case they would return to life from the matrices in which they were created. Their powers can annihilate an entire planet. So where is the challenge?

The Stakes

Saints of War uses a Canadian-inspired game system Fari RPG and even more so systems Forged in the Dark born from the mind of John Harper. Mechanics with a strongly cinematic feel, so much so that they rigorously punctuate the gameplay times in missions. Above all, we find “fiction first” mechanics, in which the die roll is made following the choices made in the game.

The outcome of the roll is determined by narrative positioning at that moment. This is measured through Effectiveness (Limited, Normal or Superior) and Risk (Low, Moderate or High). The combination of these two factors allows the GM to determine how much the outcome of an action will impact the game, and how serious its consequences will be in case of total or partial failure.

But characters like the Saints would all too often find themselves facing comfortable challenges. What makes the game interesting is precisely considering the Stake. How useful is having the power to destroy a planet to save it? What’s the point of being able to cross the galaxy in an instant if you can’t take with you a people who risk extinction? The Stake is what gives a sense of challenge to Saints of War. The meaning of the game is all here: what you are willing to put on the line to achieve success.

Gaming Tools Review of Saints of War

Saints of War provides various gaming tools. A strong emphasis is placed on the use of Clocks. Counters are widely used in the most recent narrative and cinematic games. Countdowns or progress metrics, sustained counter action logs, or resource meters; Clocks are fundamental to making sense of the narrative of Saints of War, preventing them from exhausting themselves in a simple alternation of different missions.

An entire section of the manual is dedicated to Game Masters, who will find a whole series of tips on how to manage the game. These are explanations of the best tricks to make the game flow at its best, ensuring everyone’s enjoyment (Game Master included) without bogging down the narrative; and above all without ever making it frustrating. There are also instructions to best conduct Session Zero in which to lay the foundations of the campaign, which includes the explanation and adoption of the Security Tools.

In the end, the manual presents A Solomonic Solution, a ready-made scenario with which to try the game. However, this is a situation that presents rather loose ends. The Game Master will have a lot of freedom of movement, and the characters will have the same. A Solomonic Solution presents a system in a crisis situation with major factions wanting to take advantage of it and a few key NPCs. From here it will be up to the Saints to understand in which direction to unblock the situation, and how to do it.

A Game for Experts?

If there is a note you can move to Saints of War, it is a slight flaw in the presentation of the contents. The manual is well-written, really easy to read and has two reviewers. Here the problem is that in some passages it seems written for role players already with some experience behind them. The authors spend quite a bit on defining the roles at the table, for example, but the attempt to explain what a role-playing game is seems a bit hasty.

Even the definitions of Concept, Purpose and Tone of the campaign are a bit vague, with some ideas but definitions entrusted mostly to the experience and intuition of the reader. The game then certainly requires Security Tools, given the topics covered and how crucial they can be brought into play. However, it limits itself to presenting external references to the X-Card, at the Script Change it’s at Lines and Veils. Surely referring to the words of those who designed them is useful, but it would have been even more useful to have an application of these tools dedicated to Saints of War.

Even the concept of Stake and the narrative positioning in general, although explained, could be difficult for a novice, and would certainly be clearer after reading other games that implement them. However, it is about venial smudges, which do not in any way compromise the usability of the manual. Only details to which our experience as authors allows us to pay greater attention over time, guaranteeing a further leap in quality.

Conclusions of the Review of Saints of War

Saints of War is an interesting game for several reasons. Its design and graphic line make it magnificent to browse; definitely a great manual to have in your library. The dust jacket then gives a notable added value. Another advantage of this game is the ability to take elements that are already widely exploited narrative topos, managing to frame them in an original perspective. The same goes for the mechanics, clearly taken from the open licenses of other games, but reworked in a perfectly functional way.

Lovers of stories that embrace boundless universes and science fiction that tends more towards space opera will certainly love a game whose protagonists are powerful warrior monks who cross galaxies. But especially Saints of War is a game that absolutely cannot be missed by those who love to bring the weight of each choice to the table in an epic tone without getting tangled up in too many dice rolls, but maintaining a fluid and cinematic narrative.

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