Game: Dark Inheritance
Publisher: Mythic Dream Studios
Series: Spycraft
Reviewer: Wyrdmaster
Review Dated: 16th, June 2005
Reviewer’s Rating: 7/10 [ Good ]
Total Score: 15
Average Score: 7.50
I like the idea of a godgene. Maybe I have it. Maybe you do? It’s easy to see the attraction to Dark Inheritance. This is a modern setting d20 game with a good twist or two. This is a Spycraft game but rather than being another d20 RPG from the AEG production presses this is an offering from Mythic Dreams Studios. You’ll have to look closely at the hard cover to notice the Mythic Dreams logo though.
Dark Inheritance announces there are no story arches as if it was a good thing. The plot behind the game isn’t going to evolve… That’s not generally what I want to hear. Then again it’s a rare game which actually evolves. Fair call to Dark Inheritance – most games do actually just introduce plot characters who then never change. In the worse cases we have settings defined or completely overshadowed by NPC plot/story characters. I don’t like that all. I like a story but I like the setting to help inspire my own story – I’m no fan of piggy backing on someone else’s coattails. Dark Inheritance is all about a setting and an idea and from there.
The godgene is the Dark Inheritance idea. Here we have the hero PCs – characters with a gene passed on to them through their ancestors since the mythic ages. These godgene possessed characters are known either as Titans or the Inheritors. A good example of what it means to have the godgene can be seen in the Wild Bloods. The Wild Blood lineage are shapeshifting hunters and hark back, evidently, to the shapechangers of yore.
Other lineages include the Crimson Lords – the self appointed nobles of the Titans, the Hidden Suns – the scholars and healers, the Storm Crows – warriors and seers and the Void Phoenixes – chaotic creationists. I have to admit I have something of a White Wolf Werewolf flashback from both the names and the stereotypes. In fact I’m being harsh on Dark Inheritance again, there’s more ground between the Lineages than the werewolf Tribes and some overlap of shtick (Crimson Lords / Shadow Lords / Silver Fangs) is inevitable. In truth the Dark Inheritance lineages are evocative enough the game has more depth that just exploring their flavoured powers.
The world of Dark Inheritance is one where the Titans seem to have failed to fulfil their role is a prophecy. The Titans have not stopped the Daemonhost. The Cataclysm struck in Jerusalem. The even has many names; The Rip, The Tear, The Sundering or even The Day the World Cracked. In Jerusalem the fabric of reality has been torn. Parts of the city are merged with the alien landscape of the other world. There are also monsters, creatures straight from the other dangerous Otherworld and the abyss. We have everything from the demon-likes to the “are they really?” unicorns.
Unicorns and demonic horrors? These things are pretty darn usual for a Spycraft game! Yeah. The decision is slightly against the grain by Dark Inheritance isn’t a d20 Modern game; it’s a fully fledged Spycraft variant. This is great news for those of us with a copy of Spycraft but it means an extra burden for those of us tempted by an action fantasy in a modern setting it means buying a usual core rule set. This is a gamble for Mythic Dreams Studios but I think it’s a good one. Rather than be another fish in the d20 pond, Dark Inheritance is positioned as a more noticeable fish in a smaller sub-pond! Meh. Enough of the marketing ponderings… the fact is that Dark Inheritance stands out because it’s different and good.
Dark Inheritance brings the expected Spycraft extras. There are a set of new classes; the Advocate, Explorer, Martial Artist, Scientist and Sleuth. We have prestige classes too; the Edgemaster, the Genesoldier and the Witness. There are new options, backgrounds and departments (with the Dark Inheritance twist; tribal, old blood, hedge mage, etc) too.
A significant offering the Dark Inheritance makes to Spycraft are the mass of arcane crafts. Arcane crafts are spells and this hardback has plenty of them. Regular d20 players will not be confused with concepts like “Arcane Craft Domains” as a way of grouping arcane crafts into themes like air, animal, luck and knowledge.
There is more than just the Titan versus daemonhost conflict to act as a battling backdrop to Dark Inheritance. It’s with the competing interest groups – cults, societies and government agencies – that the book gets especially Spycrafty. Whether it’s the Brotherhood of the Iron Rose, Eight Heavenly Dragons, First Team, Fugu a Watu, International Geographic Society, Project: Titan or The Promethean Order acting as heroes, villains or switching between both roles and acting entirely independently of the characters there is scope for plenty of politics, intrigue and bloody conflict.
Dark Inheritance strikes me as the sort of game I’d want to play for a while. It feels cinematic to read and to play. Much like a good action film it seems to work best as a break, as an escape rather than an on-going investment. There’s every incentive to create a Titan character (or one of the furry-esq macro-species created through genetic engineering) and jump into the exciting and action packed world there’s perhaps less of a reason to do it again quickly. The jump will be the same, the themes will be the same and it’ll be a challenge for the GM to offer their players a new angle to explore. That said, the same can easily be said for most cloned fantasy games where this criticism is even stronger.
If you have Spycraft then Dark Inheritance is a good investment. It’s an interesting game in its own right and it’ll work as a superb supplement. If you don’t have access to AEG’s Spycraft then there’s more a debate. If you’re tempted by an action based spy/agent setting and also tempted by the modern fantasy-horror with a kick-butt angle then Dark Inheritance is one of the very few RPGs that’ll bridge that particular niche.
