Bedlam in Neverwinter is a D&D-themed escape room board game for 2-6 players.

Which is a lot of stuff for designers George Feledichuk, David “Duvey” Rudow, and Leo Taylor to cram into one box.

If you’re not familiar with the escape room board game genre, the basic format is a box filled with hidden cards and sealed containers or envelopes. Players are presented with a series of puzzles, and the solution to each puzzle will indicate which card to draw or sealed box to open in order to find the next puzzle.

In the case of Bedlam in Neverwinter, this primarily takes the form of a card deck and map boards. Each card has a three-digit number on the back. The map boards, on the other hand, depict different locations that the players can explore, each labeled with a three-digit number which indicates which card to draw when you go there. In addition to advancing the narrative of the story, each card may also include instructions (to draw additional cards, for example) or a puzzle (the solution of which will be a three-digit number indicating which card to draw).

If you’re not familiar with D&D, then… Wait. Really?

In any case, D&D is a fantasy roleplaying game in which players create characters by selecting their race, class, and ability scores. The actions taken by these characters are resolved by rolling a 20-sided die, adding a bonus from a relevant ability score, and comparing the result to a target number. There’s also a combat system in which damage is tracked and characters die if they lose all of their hit points.

All of these elements are also found in Bedlam in Neverwinter, albeit in a heavily modified form: Players will create their characters by selecting from a familiar range of races and classes, each of which will grant them proficiency in one of the six ability scores. Each class also has a unique, themed skill/power and will gain additional abilities as they level up at the end of each adventure.

Various cards will require either solo checks (which the current player rolls) or group checks (everyone rolls and at least half the group must succeed). Each check has one or two ability scores associated with it, and if you have a matching ability score you add +1d6 to your d20 roll.

Combat is resolved via round-robin skill checks against the monster’s target number. Weapons and other items can be equipped, granting additional bonuses if your attack roll is high enough. (For example, if you roll 17+ with a Sword of Sharpness, you deal +1 damage.)

And that’s basically it: Bedlam in Neverwinter consists of three adventures, each with a separate deck of cards and map boards. As you play through each deck, you’ll discover and overcome puzzles and monsters. The box states that each adventure takes about 90 minutes, but our experience was closer to 2 hours. (But we did have an ultra-excited 7-year-old playing with us, which may have prolonged things a bit.)

IMPRESSIONS

There will be ONE MINOR SPOILER in the discussion that follows. It will have no impact or insight into the puzzles or other hidden secrets of the game, but ye have been warned.

My overall takeaway from Bedlam in Neverwinter is that it’s an extremely easy game. The box lists a difficulty of 4 out of 5, but at no point did the group I was playing with feel remotely challenged: The puzzles were all trivially dispatched and the combat never once made us feel in danger for our lives.

As a result, it really felt more like an activity than a game. I mentioned that we played it with a fairly young child, and that may be an ideal use case: A pleasant way to pass some time with your friends and/or family. We certainly enjoyed it as such.

The biggest question I have about the game is why, if it’s called Bedlam in Neverwinter, is the entire story set in Icewind Dale? It’s quite baffling, honestly. My best guess — and it’s just a wild guess — is that somebody said, “Don’t we have a movie coming out in 2023 that’s set in Neverwinter?” and a few references to Neverwinter were shoved in and a new title pasted on the cover.

(I’m not going to get more specific than this because, again, I’m trying to avoid spoilers. But it’s very baffling.)

Bedlam in Neverwinter’s biggest flaw, however, is the map boards. As I mentioned before, the idea is that you put a map board on the table and then each player chooses where they want to explore, places their miniature there, and reads the associated card describing what they find. Unfortunately, the illustrations on the map boards don’t match the card descriptions. The first sentence on a card will be something like, “This body appears to have been…” and you’ll look back to the map board in confusion because there’s nobody there.

The first few times this happens, you may think you’ve made a mistake, but you haven’t. The bigger problem, however, is that this failure is so pervasive that selecting map board locations is basically just random noise. Other decisions make this even worse. For example, there’s one map where a clearly Dexterity-based activity is depicted. So you send the Dexterity-proficient character and… ha! ha! Nope! The skill check here is a Charisma-based check where you encourage the most dexterous character in your group to do the activity. (The most dexterous character does not actually contribute to the check in any way.)

I’m not certain if this sort of thing was a deliberate bait-and-switch or just more bad design, but either way what could have been — and arguably should have been — the most significant interactive element in the game is needlessly rendered meaningless.

Like the rest of the escape room genre, once you’ve played through the content once, you’ll be done with the game forever.

Which, ultimately, brings us back to what I said before: The game basically plays itself, but the activities along the way are a pleasant way of passing the time.

You’ll want to keep in mind, though, that like other escape room board games, Bedlam in Neverwinter is not designed to be replayed: You’ll play this once and then never again. (Unlike some games of its type, however, Bedlam in Neverwinter is not destructive, so you could reseal the envelopes and pass it along to someone else easily enough.) You’ll want to keep that in mind when deciding whether or not to grab a copy.

BUY NOW

Join me on the RPGBOT.Podcast and Get Ready For Epic Sessions!

No more searching for ways to become a great Game Master! If you’ve ever wanted to unlock your potential to create unforgettable tabletop roleplaying games, then the new book So You Want to be a Game Master by ENnie Award-winning and USA Today Bestselling Author and game designer Justin Alexander is the perfect guide for you! With step-by-step tips, tricks, and strategies for running incredible sessions on any game system, this book is a must-have for aspiring Game Masters. On this episode of the RPGBOT.Podcast we talk with Justin Alexander and learn about the secrets of crafting amazing encounters, battles, and dungeons.; and find out how you can make your gaming nights even more fun and memorable!

Spotify – Apple Podcasts – Amazon Music

As we enter the new year, I’ve got some updates on what’s going on with So You Want To Be a Game Master.

To quickly bring everyone bring everyone up to speed:

• The book arrived at the publisher’s warehouse in mid-October and was immediately shipped out.
• The street date was November 21st, but stores stocked them in mid-November as they arrived.
• For many overseas countries, the books were still in shipment on the North America release date: Either in container ships, hung up in customs, or processing through local distributors.
• The book almost immediately began selling out. Domestically, this meant rapid fluctuations in estimated delivery dates until, shortly before or just after Christmas, most online retailers reported the book to be completely out of stock.
• Overseas, the pattern was more complicated: Initial release date was usually conservatively listed as January (since they didn’t want to over-promise on the vagaries of international shipping), but in many cases the books arrived in December. But they would then almost immediately sell out — so people would see delivery estimates go from January (cautious promise), to December (it’s here!), and then to June (we’ve waiting on international shipping again!).

Obviously, everybody involved — me, Page Street, Macmillan, the bookstores — want to be able to sell you the book. So what’s happening?

First, some people have told me that the publisher “obviously” shorted the initial print run. This is not the case. The initial print order was quite large for a first time book, and reflected both their confidence in the book and the amazing success the book had in preorders.

(Tangentially: Thank you to everyone who preordered the book. It has an exponential effect on a book’s success in the modern book market, and it’s also the reason we have an audio book!)

The book was just INSANELY successful. Literally no one expected it to become a USA Today Bestseller, but it did!

This is what followed, and where we are now:

• Within three days of the book’s release, a second printing had been ordered.
• This second printing was then MORE THAN DOUBLED in size.
• It was not enough, and a THIRD PRINTING of the same (more than doubled) size has been ordered.

The second printing has come off the presses and is now in the bindery. Within days, these new copies will be shipped to the publisher’s warehouse. From there they’ll be shipped into distribution.

The third printing is slightly behind the second printing, but should arrive in the publisher’s warehouse by the end of January.

In North America, this makes it likely (but not certain!) that new copies will start reaching readers by the beginning of February. I am sorry to say, however, that international retailers are going to face the same wait with international shipping that they did with the first printing. (We are very hopeful, however, that the new supply should be sufficient that the book will not immediately vanish from shelves again.)

BUT I WANT THE BOOK!

Of course you do!

If I was forced to pick one problem for the book to have, “unexpected runaway bestseller” would certainly be the one I would pick. But it still sucks, and I feel awful that so many people haven’t been able to get the books they ordered.

So here’s the deal:

1. Barnes & Noble currently has 700 copies. We don’t know how many copies are in their distribution center for online sales vs. how many are on shelves in B&N stores, but if you’re looking for a copy of the book RIGHT NOW, check your local B&N and/or their website.
2. Call around to other local stores, including game stores. There could very easily be a copy sitting on a store shelf near you.
3. If you have a preorder with a retailer you trust to honor the preorder, keep that preorder (at least until you have another copy of the book in hand). It should give you priority when the second printing resupplies the distribution channels, and will likely be the quickest way for you to get a physical copy in many cases.
4. Otherwise, place a preorder ASAP. Again, this will give you priority in getting a copy ASAP when the second printing arrives.
5. There is both an e-book and, in North America, an audio book edition, available from all the places you’d expect to find e-books and audio books available for sale. If you just can’t wait (and I don’t blame you!), there’s no faster way to get it.

I know this is immensely frustrating, but I’d like to thank all of you once again for your support. And I hope you all find the book worth the wait!

At 2:00pm CT today, I’ll be making an attack with Roll for Combat! as we share tips for becoming the best GM you can be!

We sit down with award-winning author Justin Alexander from The Alexandrian, who just released a must-read book for all TTRPG players, So You Want To Be A Game Master, where he will give you tips and tricks on improving your TTRPG game!

If you can’t join us for the livestream, you can always check out the video later!

SAVE THE DATE!

Recently I’ve posted a few ultra-short scenarios that I’m referring to as quick shots. (You’ll find links to them down below.) I’ve had a few people express confusion over what the “point” of these scenarios was, so I wanted to take a moment to talk about that a bit.

Something I think about a lot is how to make RPGs more accessible as a hobby. We have a vision of what it means to play a roleplaying game in our heads: It’s a group of maybe a half dozen people sitting at a table for four to six hours. Maybe, if we’re feeling really ambitious and a little “rules light” about it, we imagine a “lightning-fast” two or three hour session instead. It’s more likely to go the other way, though, with the same group of people doing a long session once a week for several months or years. If you close your eyes, you can probably see them huddled around the table in your dining room or the corner of your local gaming store. Heck, they might be there right now! They’re probably having a great time!

But this is a vision — a preconception, if you will — that makes it hard to sell people on a new RPG. The typical RPG player is missing out on all kinds of awesome games that they would really love if they ever tried them, but they haven’t because trying a new RPG feels like a big commitment. This is even more true for people who have never played an RPG before!

Compare this to a typical board game, where the play time is rarely longer than a single evening. Many board games, in fact, can be played in less than an hour, providing an easy gateway for new and casual players to get hooked on the board game experience, thereby creating the next generation of gamers interested in longer and more complicated games. At a game store or convention, in fact, we even have an expectation that we can run or play short demos showcasing the basic gameplay of a game in just a few minutes.

If you’re interested in a board game (or board games in general), it’s easy to get a taste of it. If you’re a GM or a game store that wants to let people know about a cool new game, it’s easy to give them a taste of it.

How much is our vision of “how RPGs are played” getting in the way of actually discovering cool new RPGs? Can we change the way that we think about RPGs?

One solution to this problem, of course, is an open table, and I talk about that in the Open Table Manifesto.

But is there a way we could also give people a “casual dip” into an RPG? Is it possible to give them a taste of an RPG in twenty of thirty minutes?

Yes.

I’ve been working on these basic ideas for a few years now, and I’ve heavily playtested this concept in a variety of settings — at my home table, in game stores around the country, and at gaming conventions.

And it works.

SETTING THE SCENE

Since RPGs generally aren’t set up to support this kind of play, you will need to do a little prep.

RULES: If the players are already familiar with the rules, that’s great. If you’re planning to introduce new players to the game, though, you’ll probably have more success with relatively simple games. Or, with more complicated games, you’ll want to give some serious thought to how you can strip the game down to its most essential mechanics.

Either way, I recommend having a cheat sheet prepped for the game (and enough copies so that every player can have one).

It can be very effective to literally script and practice a 5-minute introduction to the game. For my introductory scripts, I’ll often prep a short outline with bullet points that I can easily run through.

CHARACTERS: If you’re using an RPG in which characters can be created even by completely new players in 5 to 10 minutes, then you can easily include that in your quick shot session. Examples of this include the original 1974 edition of D&D, Magical Kitties Save the Day, and Technoir.

Tip: Something that will often trip you up here is buying equipment, which can turn into a huge time sink. I recommend prepping prebuilt equipment packages to simplify and speed up the choices being made. Of course, RPGs in which equipment is handwaved or can be handled through preparedness/load mechanics are also great.

What you’re often looking for here is a game in which characters are generated, rather than being built. These usually includes key decision-making by the player, which has the positive effect of getting them creatively invested in their character, but keep that decision-making focused through the generative elements.

If character creation in your system of choice isn’t lightning fast, you’ll want to have a stack of pregen characters that the players can choose from.

SCENARIO: In designing and running quick shot scenarios, what I’ve found works best is basically one complex scene with (a) a specific goal or problem, but (b) no prescribed solution for achieving that goal or solving that problem (so that the players have to engage in some creative problem-solving).

A micro-raid is often the perfect fit for this: A simple, secured location with multiple access points to choose from and a couple or three defensive measures that need to be confronted or overcome. Also take a peek at The Art of Pacing: Running Awesome Scenes for practical tips in structuring non-trivial scenes.

An easy trap to fall into here is just running one big combat scene, particularly in a system where the typical combat encounter takes 20 minutes to run. In practice, for a quick shot, this creates a very monotonous and unsatisfying experience. Combat can certainly be part of the equation (particularly in a system where it can be resolved quickly), but you’re going to get the best experience from a scenario that offers a more diverse range of options.

Finally, adding some sort of unexpected twist or surprise to the scenario goal is ideal, since it will help you nail the landing.

OTHER SUPPLIES

In addition to the rulebook, cheat sheets, character sheets, and scenario sheet, you’ll also want pencils, paper, and dice. I’ll keep all of these together in a file folder or small box, so that I can, for example, pull out my Over the Edge: Hijack Express pack as easily as I might snag a board game off the shelf.

DEMO GAMES

If you’re running a quick shot as a demo at a game store or convention, you’ll want to take a little extra effort to give the RPG an attractive, eye-catching display. This is something that often happens naturally with a board game when you lay out the board and other components, so it can be easy to overlook. But this is an approach I’ve had success with.

• Stand the book upright so that its cover art can do the selling for you.
• Lay out the character sheets, pencils, and dice in a well-organized way.
• Try to find some sort of graphical centerpiece to tie the whole thing together. Over the Edge, for example, features a poster map of the Edge that you can place in the center of your demo area. Monte Cook Games, on the other hand, has Numenera game mats you can use.
• The GM screen for a game is already designed to stand upright. I recommend not using the screen for a quick demo like this (as it cuts you off from the person you’re sharing the game with), but having it set off to one side is usually a great visual showcase.

If you can, create a standee for the game which clearly states the intended length of the demo. Something like, “Have an adventure in just 20 minutes!” (In our playtests, we found that if we just announced an “RPG Demo,” people’s preconceptions would assume a multi-hour commitment. Even verbally saying that it only takes twenty minutes seems less effective than displaying it in print.)

RUNNING THE QUICK SHOT

A quick shot is, quite obviously, a fraction of the length of a “typical” RPG session. To make the experience fun and worthwhile, you absolutely have to (a) hit the ground running and (b) keep the pace fast-and-furious.

The scenario goal should be big, bold, and clear, and it will help give both you and your players focus.

• Don’t dither — make, quick decisive rulings.
• Make big, bold choices.
• Push the players hard and, if possible, put them on the clock.
• Remember that there are no long-term consequences, so take big chances.

I also like to use a kitchen timer: Set it to 20 minutes and go, go, GO! It’ll keep you focused and help shape the pacing of the session. You might even find it effective to put this where the players can see it, reminding them that they’re literally on the clock.

Good gaming!

QUICK SHOTS
Magical Kitties Save the Day: The Witch’s Hut
Over the Edge: The Hijack Express