After two weeks of heavy table time, Daniel (@dungeondive) delivers a 12-point review of League of Dungeoneers, plus a Patreon Q&A. The headline: this is the closest thing currently in print to a Warhammer Quest 1995 reprint, with random card-driven dungeon exploration, an Overland hex map, settlement phases, and a survival-style campaign of incremental character growth.
The praise is specific. Diverse builds with luck-based progression (roll 1–5 on a stat check and you can buff that stat). One of the strongest bestiaries in dungeon-crawl design — top three, alongside Dungeon Universalis and the original Warhammer Quest. Tactical, dynamic combat with facing, spacing, and shoving rather than corner-camping. A loot system that grows through enchantment rather than draws. A questing layer that is the whole point of the game.
The criticisms are equally specific. The first-printing rulebook is riddled with typos and rules contradictions — climbing tests that no longer exist, sign-flipped line-of-sight charts, missing constitution stats on companions, bestiary entries out of sync with revised initiative rules. A second edition is needed. The standee holders are abrasive enough that he replaced them. Card art is largely absent. And LoD insists on a four-hero party — which makes solo play heavy on bookkeeping.
Does the size of the rulebook errata make a game un-recommendable, or is published errata just part of the deal with small-press epics?