The map is a bit too small, but for one page, it does enough to get a game started and is basic enough that running it has no difficulty, even if you have to improvise or modify some of the dangers. It's meant for labyrinth lord so it's more focused on exploration and treasure than fighting monsters (and I didn't mind not having any wandering monsters since it was short), but my group was able to get through in three sessions and we had a decent time.

While arguably surpassed by the rise of OSE and its Advanced rules option - this book remains vital for anyone interested in a B/X style 'Avanced Labyrinth Lord' retro-clone. Its layout and text may not suit some, but I find it a very useful resource for rules, monster ideas and options and other inspirations for my games. I like the art choices and this editions cover is phenomenal. I can't wait for a second edition when it is ready. (So is the Otis cover too.)

edit got a replacement for the misprint in half the time :) 5 star oh and props to the drivethrurpg team best customer support i have ever had.

OSR does what 5e cannot, have a soul. It's got simpler rules while still showing off what makes DnD neat, going into old abandoned places and finding more than you bargained for. Or helping people. Or being force of utter chaos. Does it have less than other editions? Maybe. But what it has is to the point and good enough and spells are organized by class and level.

A great game for zombie one shots or longer games. It uses the excellent pacesetter system. The action table is easy to use and chapter zombie creation is fun.

A great addition to the pacesetter system. Most modern gamers will complain about the "clunky rules" but if you give it a chance runs smoother than most games of a similar concept such as mage the ascension or awakening. it's a solid game.

I bought and played this game when it first came out. A thinly-disguised game version of classic Star Trek, it was nonetheless simple to learn and remarkably fun to play. If you're after bells and whistles, look elsewhere -- but it's a surprisingly satisfying RPG that could easily given some latter-day complexity.

Clone Farms Goblinoid Games

3.5/5 stars

The book is 30 pages, the first 15 being cover, table of contents, and details about the scenario. The second half is general rules of the Pacesetter system and maps.

I picked up the book because the premise and the 80s sci-fi B-movie vibe sounded fun. My group played it last night and we had some fun with it.

The book starts with several pages of exposition about the scenario, what society is like outside the cloning facility and other world building. However it's not clear exactly which information is known to the players, which should be kept secret, and which should be revealed later (and how).

The players seemed to enjoy diverting and distracting the androids and causing low level chaos, mostly on the level of high school pranks. This took up the majority of the game time. In hindsight I would've like to have some kind of ticking clock mechanic with a deadline by which the terrorists were going to strike, and incremental increases in pressure before that to encourage the players to build up to it by taking more chances.

The endgame scenario is where the most frustration set in because despite it being the big breakout that everything is building to, it's quite vaguely defined. What kind of team is meeting the clones in the sewer (I settled on 3 semi amateurish infiltrators, Greenpeace types)? How many explosives are they offering? Where do they want the clones to place the explosives? I decided the targets were the laser cannons on the roof, oxygen tanks in medical storage room 17, and the genetic database console in the cloning room.

Then the question came up whether the terrorists would detonate the bombs as a cover for the clones to escape, or vice versa.

Finally the text says that the events culminate in a chaotic bloodbath, but we don't have much info about what type of combat tactics the androids use (when presumably alarms start going off). There's only one way out explicitly given in the scenario, and the elevator is intended to be a bottleneck. Thus it would be great to know exactly how many people can fit in the elevator at once. Also some clear mechanics on how to resolve 1000 clones fighting 150 androids at once would be appreciated. The chaos sounds fun as an outline, but not so much when you're staring down the barrel of hundreds of dice rolls.

Some map issues:

The maps are at the end of the book, but the room descriptions are at the beginning. I would have liked to see the room descriptions mention if key tools or weapons could be found within (eg how many keycards are there and who's carrying them?).

My players were also looking for a laundry area so they could pull some uniform switching shenanigans.

The question came up whether the androids need to charge and where the majority of them can be found if there are meant to be 150 of them.

I think it might make sense to add a maintenance level to the map where androids charge or go when they're not needed, or need minor repairs. This could also be where things like mops, buckets, and ladders are kept. Laundry could also make sense to be on this level, as well as HVAC equipment. I might move the armory to this level as well.

Would have liked to see the different levels of the map clearly marked as such. It wasn't clear whether the medical rooms were above or below the ground level. Also they didn't seem to have a bathroom? The quarters appear to be account 5'x5'. Logically to fit a bed in there let's call it 5'x6'. So it doesn't seem each room can have its own bathroom. This came up because my players spent a large amount of time trying to find bathrooms and cause flooding.

The roof is noted to have laser cannons on top, which was an interesting detail but when would it ever come into play?

The map of the main level shows the elevator taking 2 squares, but on the next page the elevator is aligned BETWEEN grid squares. Why?

…

The scenario ran a bit long, partly because it's our first time using the Pacesetter system, partly because my group is just really slow, and partly due to the above issues we needed to resolve. Despite a bit of confusion, we had fun overall. It's a fun idea but needs some refinement

Love it! The art and colors remind me of faerie tales, the writting is clear and concise, and the new content is interesting! Please keep this going, and dont be afraid to make this as you see fit.... so far this rocks!

I gave it 3 stars. As of right now, the big detrators for me are the border on the pages. Way too distracting. I do like the sections on optional rules and notes from the author. Einclops: I don't understand the point of this race, let alone the name. Why not call them cyclops? IMO, if you wanted a race like this, I would have gone with Half-Orge. Overall layout is good. I like the races and classes are short and concise. Artwork: IMO, it looks a bit too amateurish, but I do understand trying to go for the "old school" feel. I do think some other artwork from other artisits would make it more appealing.

an updated and streamlined version of one of the best implementation of the classic game

A tweaked reimagining of the original B/X clone that wasn't afraid to make changes. back, and better than ever!

Big fan of 1e, can't wait for LL 2e! Preview looks nice, a fresh change!

Looks great. Labyrinth Lord has always been much more interesting than any other Retroclone out there, mainly because it has its own identity. It seems second edition is going even further along this path. I really look forward to the full release, and Advanced LL 2nd edition.

oh, another BECMI clone :) Ok, it is just another BECMI clone, but, it isn't mired in clutter. It's free, so for Lord's sake stop complaining :)

The no art version is nice. Not because of printing ink, who today does their own printing? It's 140 pages if you add a few PC sheets. The low art just means it reads easy. Use the occasional blank space for some notes.

I am uncertain this is a 30 dollar hardcover purchase. It's competing with the likes of Basic Fantasy role play at 17 bucks for hardcover. But this likely would do well enough on a tablet. And remember, it's free. If you want to go all in, my advice, buy the Companion pdf, and have both printed as a single item and spiral bound.

The thing is, once you reach 300 pages of black and white printing cost, you are likely better off to buy the Rules Cyclopedia colour hardcover print on demand and play real BECMI.