The First Steps on a Journey Through Legacy of Dragonholt
Set off on an adventure into the unknown with a custom roleplaying character in Legacy of Dragonholt.
When my friendly local game store had a safe sort of virtual board game swap recently, I spotted Legacy of Dragonholt. I’ve always thought the price was a little high, yet luck was on my side! I printed out some tracking sheets to mark up and prepared to begin my journey. Little did I know what I was in store for with the opening story…
Spoiler Alert
Although I don’t go into great detail, note that some of the story points from To New Roads is included below. If you haven’t yet played through this part, which is basically the introduction, skip on by this post! I love coming across surprises myself, so this is just a fair warning to those who don’t want to spoil anything. Come back at any time!
Game Overview
Game Name: Legacy of Dragonholt
Publication Year: 2017
Designers: Nikki Valens and More
Artists: A. Aparin, J. Atienza, J. Blando, and More
Solo Mode: Included in the Base Game
Hurray for adventures! This box artwork has always intrigued me. It was only a matter of time before I picked it up. Throughout a series of intertwined stories, a character has a full-fledged adventure. Although it bills itself as a board game or light RPG introduction, it’s closer to a gamebook… Which isn’t a bad thing! Not at all.
Into Dragonholt
Thank you to those who take such good care of their games! I’ve picked up a few used titles over the years, and my local community knows how to treat their games.
This practically brand new copy was simply beautiful. I spread out some of the booklets just to enjoy the art!
If I’m sharing some appreciation, more thanks go out to everyone on SGOYT who posted about their plays. I never ran across any obvious spoilers, which means a lot to me!
And this isn’t even a heavily artsy game. Aside from the covers, everything is mostly text… Just as it should be!
Finding a Character
The rather lengthy character creation book went into detail about all of the available types. I wasn’t grabbed by anything until I flipped the page to the final entry…
Catfolk?! Now this was something I hadn’t heard of before. I love playing unique characters, and the history of the half-catfolk clicked with me. That was my character.
Oddly enough, although I love lore and stories, this seemed exceptionally long for the setup process.
At the same time, the game exists in a special place that may introduce new players to the world of tabletop RPGs.
A Proper Visual
Alright. Was there a question about where I was going with a half-catfolk?! This lovely Calico Critter just fit her so well, and I was excited to have a little friend on the table.
I created her as a sage, for she grew up in a library away from the cruel views of her peers. Half-catfolk were never really accepted, so she escaped into history tomes.
Since catfolk took on a new name in adulthood, hers just came to me: Myth. Possibly corny, yet it tied into her past.
She was ready for adventure and wanted to be known for more than just her heritage. To new roads!
On the Diversity of the Characters
Despite not owning this game for a long time, I’ve seen many comments and reviews about its inclusivity. The characters go beyond the usual heroes. Not only do female characters take on strong roles, but there is a sense of acceptance in regards to gender identities and partner preferences. Awesome! It’s nice to see these individuals.
I came across some of these characters early on. There’s also no assumption about who you are as a character. Well, it’s known that you’re headed off on an adventure and probably err on the side of good vs. evil. So there aren’t wide open decisions, yet I had a pleasant introduction to the world right from the start. Inclusivity is important, even in games.
Having diverse representations in board games and tabletop roleplaying games might seem like a background element. Yet being able to relate with a character, or just play in a world that accepts one’s identity without question, is something I admire. A positive experience, even in a fantasy world, isn’t something to be taken lightly.
Deciphering a Letter
Myth began her adventure with a letter in her possession. Never mind the fact that it was comically large… That was exactly correct. Ha ha! She started reading it in depth.
I immediately knew there was a code or hidden message in there. As I soon discovered, I can’t break codes. Nope!
Combined with the letter, the prologue was intriguing. Maybe the setting was a rather typical high fantasy sort, but I felt like discoveries were on the horizon.
I’m picky when it comes to stories, although I tried to keep an open mind. Yet I didn’t find any fault as Myth set out!
Colorful Story Points
Rather than go with the recommended method of checking off any story points, I grabbed my color pencils! I wanted to create a colorful tapestry to mark my journey.
This mechanic takes away the need to take notes to remember all that’s happened. Paragraphs often have options depending on what has (or hasn’t) been marked.
Throughout the first book, I was thrilled each time I had the chance to mark a story point! I thought it went well.
And I was hooked after the first few decisions. Well, I don’t know if they were exactly decisions, but I liked them!
Skill-Based Paragraphs
Some may not like how “choices” often come down to what skills a character has. There aren’t any dice rolls to check for success, either. You’re either skilled, or you’re not. As I encountered this mechanic, I wasn’t sure if it would hold up for the entire adventure. But this isn’t supposed to be an extremely deep game: Simplicity seems to be vital.
The character creation book does include a few recommendations for how to choose starting skills, though, so I didn’t feel like I was missing out on too much. Besides, this was supposed to be fun. Half-catfolk character? Yeah!
Collecting Items
Certain story parts introduce special items from a deck of cards. I stumbled across the wooden trinket by accident, mainly because I figured a catfolk would want to climb!
The facedown deck has a letter on the back of each card to make it easy to find an item without seeing the rest.
How clever! I figured there was a little mystery to solve. Myth was in good shape with some healing potions to her name, too. I used a d20 to mark how many she had.
As this part of the adventure came to an end, I felt like I just wanted to play more and more. What a fun time!
Session Overview
Play Number: 1
Solo Mode: Included in the Base Game
Play Details: To New Roads
Required Play Space: 30″ x 26″
Setup Time: 20 Minutes
Play Time: 1 Hour
Outcome: Complete
We made it to Dragonholt! Not entirely unscathed, but Myth was only minorly worn out by a trek through the dangerous woods. This was a wonderful way to learn the small set of mechanics and set off on an adventure!
%
1 Play
Affordability
Price & Value
8
Functionality
Challenges & Mechanics
7
Originality
Design & Theme
5
Quality
Components & Rules
10
Reusability
Achievement & Enjoyment
8
Variability
Distinctness & Randomness
4
Continue the Conversation
What do you think of Legacy of Dragonholt? Did you manage to complete the adventure? I ended up printing off a list of official achievements that I haven’t seen highlighted that much. I’ll definitely showcase that with my next post! Looks like I’ll be working through this entire adventure without taking a break… You know that’s right. Ha ha!
Here are my remarks after completing a first run through this game that I sent to the designer Nikki Valens:
I’m not sure if you visit BGG much, but if so I wanted to send you a message on behalf of my partner and I about our experiences with Legacy of Dragonholt.
We LOVE this story! So far we’ve spent 14 hours playing and only have one day left in Dragonholt. While we know there is some re-playability, we’re already feeling sad that we’ll be finishing up this story soon.
We love the world, the characters and their stories. We do wish there were follow-ups to this game. Maybe spun out of the other baronies/counties in the world of Dragonholt? We’d certainly buy and play them all
Nonetheless, many thanks to you and the team who created this world. It has been bringing us great joy during this peculiar time.
I think we’re going to plan a day of food and drink based on the wonderful menu items of The Swan just for fun!
Again, thank you so very much for contributing to something that has made us so very happy!
With much appreciation,
Dan and Sarah
This is a wonderful message, Dan! I’m sure designers appreciate receiving notes like this to appreciate the time they’ve put into their games. Sounds like you and your partner have enjoyed it thoroughly! I devoured a few more hours of content over the last day or so, and I feel like I’ll be sad when it’s all over, too. Great to hear you’ve gotten so much joy out of this one!