Agon

I personally very much enjoy the work of John Harper and Sean Nitter. This rpg is extremely easy to pick up and play. It offers hours of entertainment and a very enjoyable play experience. However, I do find the rules a bit too simplified. Harper does an excellent job of cutting right to the core of the game play concept and generally this is excellent, but in this boon it does feel a bit bear bones as far as character creation and hard rules. This is great for narrativly driven games, but if you like a game with a bit more depth in its rules then you may not find exactly what you are looking for.I personally very much enjoyed this game and the concepts it explores. I highly recommend it if you like games that are derived from Powered by the Apocalypse or Forged in the Dark.

Evaluating TTRPGs is always subjective - just look at the D&D "edition wars".I think I can say pretty safely, though, that Agon is very different from D&D/Pathfinder games, as well as games like Call of Cthulhu, as far as mechanics go. This is a much "looser" system that is much more focused on storytelling and collaboration between the players and the gamemaster.If you want a more simplistic "I want to roll dice, kill things, and take their treasure" gaming experience, you won't like Agon. If you like that more collaborative and narrative experience, and/or you're tired of playing more typical games, this could be a breath of fresh air for you.Agon's ruleset really isn't for me, and this sort of story-driven gaming isn't really my thing. That said, I think even people who prefer more classic TTRPG game designs can use this as an idea-mine. The adventure hooks are interesting, and some of the game design concepts could be interesting if brought into D&D/Pathfinder-type gaming.Rules aside, this book is freaking gorgeous. The artwork style is distinct, and I absolutely love it. Quite possibly one of the prettiest RPG books I've seen.2 stars for the ruleset (for me), 5 stars for the art design, rounding up to 4 stars (well, 3.5...)

I'm very excited to try this game with my TTRPG group! In the description of the product it says 1+ players; it cannot be played with only one person. The book suggests at least 3 people are needed to play.

Amazing game

Game terms are a bit much. Difficult to learn.

Well made book with an art style inspired by the ancient greek vases and murals but with a modern touch.This is a story based rpg that feels a lot like Amber Diceless (though you do roll) and the story focused part of the genre. If you're expected a war game or dnd style hack n' slash then you will be disappointed as this is a role playing story focused game not a simulationist style game.The cool thing about this is that the structure allows for and makes it easy for the troupe to switch "Strife Player" who in dnd format would be the equivalent of the DM or GM.You really get the feel that the game encourages a larger than life experience and success and failure are handled by just a very small number of rolls. The fun part is describing what happens regardless and in fact failure can be a blast.It is easy to make up new islands for the players to visit with each island being a "module" or adventure and the troupe as a whole should help sort of invent at least some elements of the island as collaborative storytelling.

Agon is not a traditional RPG in the sense that it has no classes, levels, feats, skills, etc in the traditional sense. Rather, it seems aimed at recreating the flavor of ancient Greek heroes in something of a poetic flair, reminding you of The Odyssey, Homer, and the Iliad. The premise is that your Greek characters are traveling home from some distant conflict (Troy?) and become lost in a series of islands that you must traverse to get home. Each of these islands represent a challenges to overcome. The game is highly narrative in nature, and there is sufficient framework here for an inspired GM to build quite a story from. The physical book is small, with about 156 pages. It seems very well made, glossy good quality paper and artwork that really brings to life the immersion of ancient Greece. All told, a worthwhile addition to your RPG library, though for an inflexible thinker the learning curve might take a bit of effort as it steers away from your D&D 5E, Warhammer, and similar game systems and ventures into new territory.

Was hoping for a true RPG (gain xp, levels, fight monsters for real, solve mysteries, etc) but this one is more of a 'make anything up as you go' story creator. Not much in the traditional sense (Hit points, armor class, using skills like 'backstab' and such). This is more of a 'make-your-own-story' than a true RPG. Was hoping for D&D style but in the Greek mythology setting