As a geek and a lover of all things 80’s, I absolutely loved Netflix’s series “Stranger Things”. I loved the old school D&D, and it made me hungry to do some good old fashioned dungeon crawling. Well, armed with a ton of Descent and some flyers, I hit the FLGS (Friendly Local Game Shop). 2 Months later, I received NO interest. Not one text or email. The gaming community around here is pretty large, and somewhat inclusive, so I was surprised that nobody wanted to game regularly for a game that all you have to do is show up.
So what is a busy dad to do? Enter solo gaming. But what would capture the spirit of the old D&D, and allow me to play in an hour or so. That is when I found Four Against Darkness by Andrea Sfiligoi. This game (technically a board game) filled the void perfectly. Armed with 2 six sided dice, a pencil, and the rules, I was ready with my four heroes to take on the evil forces that lay in wait in the vast, dark labyrinth of the dungeon.
The old wizard sighed as he handed the lantern to the slim, cloaked figure standing next to him. “No telling what foul creatures lie in wait for the unwary traveler, however the knowledge contained in the ancient halls of the deep is quite valuable.” The cloaked figure looked at him warily.
“You said there will be treasure, and untold riches.” the elf said ruefully.
“But not without cost.” the wizard smirked. His long beard blew slightly in the breeze as the barbarian picked up his axe and hefted it onto his shoulder with a “huff”.
“As long as my foes will be driven before me and I am victorious, I care little about the treasure.” He said as he widened his stance as if preparing to enter battle right there.
The young warrior stepped up and clapped a hand on the barbarian’s bare shoulder. “Steady on, the evil within this wretched place will surely know justice!”
“Shall we then?” the cloaked figure stepped towards the entrance to the dark maze below.
So for my first game, I picked a wizard, an elf, a warrior and a barbarian. The entrance room held a trap that my elf attempted to unlock the secrets to and failed, allowing 2 spears to come shooting out of the walls and hurtle towards her. Deftly, she was able to avoid both!
The next couple of rooms held no riches or monsters, but the third room contained a secret door which led to another area of the dungeon. Fearing nothing my brave heroes stepped into the corridor beyond finding 6 Mushroom Men! Dispatching them quickly, the moved forward and were ambushed by a medusa. Succumbing to the gaze of the foul beast, the barbarian turned to stone! Discovering a chamber beyond the dreaded snake-haired creature, the four brave explorers found a small chest of coins and gems!
Retracing their steps, the heroes discovered an altar, which promptly led the elf to see what she could discover only to find it cursed. Reaching further into the depths of the dungeon, the explorers faced Orcs (which the wizard killed all 5 with a single fireball spell!), Hobgoblins, Skeletal rats. But it was the dreaded vampire frogs that landed enough wounds onto the mighty warrior to cause his demise. Venturing further, the remaining heroes easily defeated 3 Hobgoblins, and decided discretion was the better of valor, and began to make their way out of the dungeon.
Once in the village, the found they obtained enough wealth to receive a blessing allowing the barbarian to return to his old self.
All in all, this is a great game! I was able to play and interact in conversation and watch TV with my family. So much fun!
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