Thanks to a fanatically loyal audience and the supernatural nature of the source material, the Buffy franchise has been squeezed and molded into all kinds of related products and merchandise. Toys, video games, soundtracks... you name it, Buffy's face is probably on it. While I'm not normally a fan of relentless franchise-milking, the world o' Buffy lends itself quite well to the table-top RPG format. Thankfully, the developers didn't drop the ball, and they've managed to create an interesting game system that captures much of the television show's charms, from the vampire face-kicking to the offbeat humor. The game lacks a lot of the 'hard numbers' stuff that many hardcore types prefer, and I doubt it will have much pull for anyone that isn't a devotee of the show. But for Buffy fans and anyone hunting for a quirky RPG that isn't a typical dice-fest, this would be a fine choice.

What I liked best about the Buffy RPG is how it shines a spotlight on my favorite character type: the average Joe/Jane. While many will be keen on role-playing as a Slayer, said Slayer will have a supporting team (just like Buffy) that helps her fight the forces of darkness. With that in mind, you can be a Xander-type who has no special powers and astonishingly mediocre fighting prowess, yet you can still contribute in your own way. The game uses a cute gimmick called Drama Points which allow characters to pull off feats beyond their normal capabilities. There's a special satisfaction in having your loyal little sidekick survive (and even thrive) in near-death situations, as opposed to being a monstrous sword-waving barbarian that kicks down doors and beheads every beast in sight without breaking a sweat. You can be a supporting character with special powers, of course, like a witch or a Watcher. You don't even have to have a Slayer, if you don't feel like it. But the game works best if you emulate the Scooby Gang model, and most gaming groups probably will. A good Director (the person running the game) will create situations where the non-Slayers can use their unique talents or quirks to solve dilemmas that supernatural strength alone can't handle. (Don't leave the Slayer hanging, though... toss in a demon or two that needs a good beating.) Needless to say, so-called munchkins who gauge their RPG enjoyment on how 'powerful' their guy is will not be overly fond of the game, unless they always get to be the Slayer.

Another of the game's strengths is the character creation method, with the excellent Quality/Drawback system. Qualities are positive traits or powers that you 'buy' with points, and Drawbacks are negative traits that you take on to give yourself more points to buy Qualities or statistic points with. Qualities/Drawbacks run the gamut, from physical prowess to glaring personality defects. Some of these are very well thought-out; for example, the Honor trait is considered a Drawback, because it can hamstring your character in certain situations. (For instance, Buffy would never take a pile of money if it came from a nefarious source, even though she'd theoretically use the money towards noble ends.) What makes this system so appealing is that it really helps the players define their characters right off the bat. Many role-players (especially rookies) have a lot of trouble coming up with interesting personalities for their new creations, and end up being 'some fighter guy.' The Quality/Drawback system will alleviate a lot of this, as players will find all kinds of interesting quirks to choose from, and will inevitably take on some entertaining Drawbacks to pay for a Quality they really want. Some players might even take on some Drawbacks for fun (lechery or greed, for example), which will make the game more enjoyable for everybody. Good stuff.

If the game has a weakness, it lies in the somewhat vague presentation of the overall rules. Many sections of the gameplay dynamics seem to boil down to 'the Director's discretion,' which adds a lot of flexibility, but puts a lot of weight on the Director to come up with reasonable rules decisions on the fly. Characters can have a lot of basic skills like driving or computer use, but by the end of that section, the manual basically shrugs and throws in a 'wild card' category that includes anything and everything. And adjucating Drama Points can be quite tricky. If these are supposed to create minor miracles, what are the limitations? The book does a pretty good job of outlining the power of the Drama Point, but players will inevitably come up with new possible uses that seem perfectly reasonable. Unless you want the game to come to a screeching halt during a major combat, the Director will need to have to make a serious yes-or-no decision pretty quickly. A Dungeon Master in Dungeons and Dragons has dozens of tables, charts, and piles of numbers which answer almost any question that arises with simple, hard data. "You're a Level 8 wizard suffering from a poisonous snake bite? Here's the number you need to roll to survive." A Buffy game Director doesn't have the same luxury. A good mantra is "it's just a game. Do whatever makes things more fun, as long as reasonable game balance is preserved." Even with that in mind, the Director should be someone with considerable RPG-running experience.

The overall presentation of the book is excellent. The production values are high, tons of memorable Buffy quotes are sprinkled throughout, and you get character sheets for every major character from the show's seven-year run. Buffy fans will enjoy thumbing through the book even if they never intend to play the game. Of course, many chapters (monster types, spells, etc.) seem underfed... so the developers can sell you supplement books, of course. This is par for the course in table-top gaming and I'm not going to whine about it, but if you plan on getting serious about the game, it will involve a fair amount of money.

When all is said and done, this is an easy product to rate. If you and your friends really enjoy the Buffyverse and role-playing, this is an easy thumbs-up. If you prefer combat-intensive games with a lot of dice-rolling and 37 kinds of swords, you'll probably be underwhelmed. Having a group of easy-going, creative people would help a lot as well. Nice work from C.J. Carella and company.

This review is meant for a specific audience. That is, people who have played the BtVS RPG before or own the original BtVS core book. I will focus on the changes that have been made.

The primary changes are to the rules and the character templates. This isn't BtVS 2.0, more like 1.5.

I like all of the rule changes (the majority are to character creation. Ie, changing the cost of qualities and attributes so that PCs advance a little more reasonably. Some are combat changes such as clearer mass combat rules).

The other major difference is all the templates (except Riley, which is done away with in favor of a Riley quick sheet) are completely redone. Instead of giving the stats of the main cast at the end of Season 5 (or at the end of their last season as with Cordelia and Angel), they give the stats of each character at the beggining of Season 1. Then each character gets a page or so to themselves that gives their seasonal adjustements (and episode by episode adjustments)all the way through Season 7 (even people who just guest star). Some of the quick sheets on villains also have seasonal adjustments (see Johnathon).

Overall, it includes everything I wanted excpet one thing. The Angel RPG core book contains rules on how to create your own qualities. Other than a real brief paragraph that just scratches the surface of quality creation, the core revised misses where Angel hits. This is a HUGE dissapointment for game masters that do not own the angel core book, making this book 4 rather than 5 stars.

Buffy: Alright, I get it. You're evil. Do we have to chat about it all day?
-3.10, Amends

The book opens with a double introduction to the concept of role-playing games and the show. This includes a general synopsis of the first five seasons of the show, stopping there because the sixth season was currently underway at the time of writing. This section starts in using short quotes from the show as part of section headers and the like that is used through out the book to help provide plenty of Slayer feel to the text. Given that quotes are a means of gaining experience in this game, it could also be considered game play training. The second chapter turns to the main bulk of player concerns with the character creation system. The character creation uses a point system with separate base points dependent on character type for attributes, qualities, and skill points. Character type also defines base drama points, which can be spent in play for bonuses, and set limits on how many points worth of optional drawbacks that can be used to earn points for the other elements. There are six basic, open-ended stats with a nominal maximum of five for normal humans, forty-nine qualities and drawbacks, and eighteen relatively broad skills with one wildcard for potentially very specialized training not covered by the defined skills. The attributes are split between three physical and three mental statistics, which is fairly normal. The qualities and drawbacks, which are listed together, range from acute senses (a good thing) to zealot (a bad thing). There are even some package qualities like Slayer and vampire that give both bonuses and disadvantages. All of these are worth varying points, sometimes based on the severity of the condition, specific variants, relative inherent potency, or as levels of power. The skills are generally broad and loose, making for ease of play and reflective of the natural fluidity of skills portrayed by many television characters as is only fitting. They also have entertaining names like Gun Fu and Getting Medieval, although some have more basic names like Driving and Knowledge. In addition to the creation system, there are two sub-sections to the chapter, the first providing twelve basic character types completely detailed and the second twelve of the cast members as of the end of the fifth season or their last appearance. These last are also given guidelines for modifying to reflect their potency in earlier seasons.

Chapter three and four rounds out game play for players, providing the rules, weapons lists, and the basics of magic. There are some game master elements included as well, such as the introduction to the Quick Sheet format for foes and non-player characters. The basic Unisystem conflict management uses a d10 plus a relevant attribute and a relative skill for all checks against a target number of nine or an opposing target's relative defense value. For checks not involving a particular skill, such as lifting a body, sometimes double the attribute is applied the specifics given in this chapter. The greater the total of the roll and relevant character bonuses over nine the more success levels one has to really impress (or damage) the other characters. Combat is kept simple with basically two rolls per round, one for attacks and one for defense with modifiers for dealing with multiples in either case. There is some complication of different attack combos or weapon uses having different modifiers, but these are recorded during the character creation stage to keep combat fast. Rules for using drama points for heroic feats or reducing damage and gaining more to replace those used are given, as well as some for giving and using experience points to improve characters as they survive whatever adventures befall them. The magic system is similar to the combat system in that there is a fair bit of set up to create a spell, but it is a fairly versatile system with guidelines for crafting spells in any shape or form to produce a resulting power level. A spell caster must roll enough success levels to match a spells power level or things go awry. It is a fairly basic system, but it gives a feel for the magic seen from the show, which is the aim. Those who want greater detail can buy the supplement or use a magic system from another Unisystem game.

The remaining four chapters turn to game master details. It starts with a review of sites, organizations, and people from Sunnydale, the setting of the show. The people included cover three generic character types, students and cops, and several supporting characters from series. The next chapter provides a broader focus of the game, introducing vampires, demons, shape shifters, robots, and assorted undead. Some general rules for creating different beasts and using them in general are discussed. There is little detail on creating monsters systematically, but enough general rules are given to get a game master started until a proper supplement on beasts is printed. This chapter includes several samples of each group of villains and the six of the more prominent villains from the first five seasons. Again, it is not entirely thorough, but enough to get started. All of the characters listed in these two chapters use the Quick Sheet, a simplified description for secondary characters that covers basic game needs without as much work. The main shift here is that the extensive combinations of attributes and skills for various contests are reduced to three relevant statistics. The seventh chapter gives general game running suggests, emphasizing the episodic nature and style of play that should be run for a Buffy game. There is some excellent advice here for any game master using any game here. The last chapter provides a complete sample adventure. An appendix provides a little more flavor with some guides to speaking like characters from the show, some conversion guides to other Unisystem games, helpful tables and charts, and a glossary of show terms.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer Core Rulebook provides everything a starting playgroup needs to play this game. There is plenty of source material from the show to aid in a game that truly captures the slightly gritty fun with a gaming system that is fast and easy to use for the fast pace of television combat. While the magic spells and bestiary are quite limited for a complete game, this book contains enough to get started and enough explanation to allow the more creative individuals to make their own. With numerous sourcebooks already released, what need there might be for more is pretty well covered. The editing and layout are good, using clear fonts, headers, and full color to the best effect and a light narrative tone similar to the style of the show. The use of different color page edges in each chapter is also a nice touch in speeding reference searches. The majority of artwork is just images of characters, locations, and monsters from the television show. There are some illustrations of archetype characters in the character creation section and a few of the generic character types, also in color format. If there is a downside to this product, it might be that it is a little more expensive than competing products and there are occasional publishing errors. The sample reviewed had the last two pages glued into a folded back cover page. Still, given all the positive features, this is still a book to stake out on some evening. Stormy weather is optional.