AAR/Review-The Walking Dead: All Out War- Impressions From The Outside

[gattz]

The following is an excerpt of a blog article.  Read Full Article

Hello all! Some relatively new blood here, and this is my first blog post on this site, of which I hope to write more in the near future as time enables. I participated in the Walking Dead All Out War playtest this Memorial Day and wrote up some impressions, which may or may not be in line with what others have prepared; but for me the potential for discussion and analysis is part of the fun of the gaming hobby.   "Carl! Carl!" And that, my friends, is where my Walking Dead knowledge ends. Well, there's some badass woman with a sword, but ...

[Fiveangels]

Excellent write up. I have spent a bunch of time and money on this and have played 2 solo matches, I hope it holds up.

[Eilif]

Dang, that sounds awesome. I've been skeptical of the game since some of the club members bought it, but it really seems like this could be the zombie ruleset we're looking for.

We haven't had our annual zombie mega-game for the last couple years. Could this be the ideal ruleset for that?

[jlopatin]

We haven't had our annual zombie mega-game for the last couple years. Could this be the ideal ruleset for that?

I have been saying this since I picked it up. It absolutely is.

[Eilif]

Yep, good to have some more confirmation.

"The mythical middle ground" between skirmish games and board games sounds pretty darn good.

Where did that great subway entrance come from?

[gattz]

It's a very good game; in terms of longevity, I don't know if there's a campaign system, as we just played a playtest game. It seems like it's very easy to make custom characters, scenarios, and perhaps even zombie types. So as long as you and your friends dig the zombie genre, I can see this game sticking around for a while. I would assume there's ~some~ kind of campaign element added though, since the show is about long term survival and progression. Josh could probably tell you for certain since he owns it.

Let me elaborate on the "middle ground" statement. This game is a very solid zombie game. I don't have much experience with Zombie based minis games, but I've played a bunch of zombie board games that try to do the horde mechanic, and up the tension through various built-in mechanisms. This is obviously a simple skirmish minis game at it's core, very much like Frostgrave's - run out there, grab the loot, and get out...while others are trying to do the same thing, possibly by trying to kill you. What makes it board game like, is that there is much that involves what's built in to the game system itself, like an AI that ALL players are trying to use to their advantage or avoid. You can't escape it! The zombies WILL catch up to you, they WILL amass as a horde and do mega damage given some clumsiness or bad luck. Your moves are just as calculated against the system as they are against the other players. I really dig that aspect. Straight up "you vs me" conflict can be intimidating, or offputting at times...but you throw that third element of the system itself fighting both of you in there, and the game suddenly has more appeal. It feels like you're watching a little movie, as well as interacting personally with it.

[jlopatin]

There is not currently a campaign system, although I expect they will be adding one in an upcoming expansion.

It would be fairly simple to add a homebrew one. Tim and I are going to discuss that this weekend.

[Eilif]

A solid-but-fast zombie system sounds like a good bedrock for a game like this. We've tried ATZ in the past and that was ok, but perhaps more involved than we liked. IIRC, Tim and Josh worked up a pretty good homebrew overlay for Nuclear Rennaisance as well.

However, an effective and fast system that can be used as-written would be great. Sounds like this nails it. As for a campaign system, I'd be curious to see what you guys come up with.

[jlopatin]

I think the one thing that holds this game back are the equipment and supply decks, and the custom dice. They all work really well, but are needed for gameplay and custom character generation.

All items live on a card, and each model can only carry a certain number. there are 4 equipment slots (head, body, and each hand), and you can equip the character with a pack that can have space for up to 3 additional items. You really only need one person to own the game and expansions...

The character creation rules are in the Days Gone By expansion box, and I think that it's almost a required add on in addition to the starter box. The creation is simple enough that a group could sit down, build guys, and then get a couple games finished in a single evening. It also supports more than 2 teams of survivors reasonably well, although as usual, more than 3 would probably bog things down.

There is also a solo box starter set, that is a good value. it comes with a full set of dice, as well as additional gear, and characters, and a handful of models. There is a nice little solo campaign that can help to teach the rules. It's a smaller buy in if you want your own set of dice, and you know someone who already has the starter box.

[Eilif]

I had no idea there were character creation rules. I didn't expect that from a game based on a specific IP and it's certainly a point in it's favor. I'll be looking forward to seeing the rulebooks.