Alessandro Rocchi
In this review, we talk about Brindlewood Bay, an RPG in which adorable old ladies passionate about police stories find themselves investigating disturbing cases.
The game was created by Jason Cordova and in Italy it is located and distributed by La Compagnia delle 12 Gemme. We thank the Italian publisher for providing us with a copy to write this review. We invite you to follow them on their Facebook page, Instagram page and their official website to discover their new projects.
If you are interested, you can buy the manual in physical version (with PDF included) for 36.95 euros on the official shop. Otherwise, you can opt for the digital version for 13,49 euros, on DrivethruRPG.
Review of the Structure and Art of Brindlewood Bay
Brindlewood Bay is a boxed manual in A5 format with a 166-page thread binding. The product is light, compact, and elegant, and it is very solid and therefore suitable for transport. In addition to the rules, there are also six pre-made mysteries in the manual that are ready to be tackled.
The writing is simple and effective, allowing a pleasant and smooth reading. The entire text refers to the player who plays the Keeper (the narrator in Brindlewood Bay), and is never confusing. A point in favour of translation is that the various game terms used are feminine, as in English. This choice was made because the game is about elderly ladies and therefore helps to keep the mood even more.
Another point in favor in writing is the perfect use of bold and italics, which help to better orient yourself in the text.
Artistically speaking, Brindlewood Bay is spectacular. The illustrations are all really well done and with a very peculiar, coherent and recognisable style.
The Game System
Brindlewood Bay uses a very simple and quick system, suitable for both novices and older players.
At the base of the system, we find the Moves. Whenever the Murder Mavens (as the Characters are called in the game) perform a specific action, they take advantage of a Move. These all have a text that explains how they are activated and what can happen. To understand the outcome, you have to roll the dice.
To do this, always roll two 6-sided dice and add up the results. In addition to this, we must also add the value of the Ability that is put into play. There are five: Vitality, Composure, Reason, Presence, and Sensitivity; each of them has a score ranging from -3 to +3.
If the result obtained is 6 or less, there will be a failure; otherwise, there will be a success. The higher the result with the dice, the greater the success.
A value of the manual is that all the Moves are well explained and the effects well illustrated so as to help novices easily understand the possibilities of their character.
The Crowns
A special feature of Brindlewood Bay’s game system is The Crowns. This is a series of boxes to tick based on what happens during the narrative.
They are divided into two paths: Crowns of the Queen and Crowns of the Void. The first represents the Maven’s identity as a woman, while the second concerns the slow descent into madness. In the first one, for example, we might have to describe a flashback of the sweetest moment with the children. Instead, the second will be effects that make our Maven more paranoid, such as seeing strange figures in dark places.
The various steps of these paths can be checked in various ways; for example, based on the events that happen, or if specified in the title of a Move.
You can also use the Put on a Crown mechanic. In practice, after narrating the outcome of a Move, the player can decide to tick a Crown and decide to raise the degree of success of the Move and narrate the new outcome.
This mechanic is very interesting because it gives players a safety net and allows them to take risks; moreover, checking off the Crowns helps them to explore their Maven in depth.
Brindlewood Bay Investigation System Review
The focus of Brindlewood Bay is on solving the mystery and possibly catching the culprit.
Compared to more traditional systems, here we find a very free management and resolution of the mystery, left completely in the hands of the players. In fact, the Keeper will have to build places, clues and NPCs, but without deciding the culprit and building these bases in a very flexible way.
From here the characters (using the Moves) will go looking for the Clues and try to discover the truth. At this time, an important characteristic of the mystery comes into play, namely its Complexity, or the difficulty of the investigation.
This number is important because only if you find as many clues as half the value of Complexity can you use the Theorize move. This is particular because it allows the Mavens to discuss and try to give a solution, and then proceed with a roll of the dice. Based on the result, you will know if the solution is correct or not.
In short, we are faced with a very free and flexible system of investigation and mysteries, which allows us to prepare sessions in a few minutes. The only downside is that it requires a lot of improvisation and work on the part of the Keeper, so it may not be immediate for novices.
The Dark Conspiracy
Brindlewood Bay is a game designed to perform at its best in medium-long campaigns. In fact, the setting is set in Brindlewood Bay, a charming coastal town in Massachusetts. The manual deliberately leaves the description very vague, so as to allow the group to customise their Brindlewood Bay. The only firm point is that the locality is the centre of a dark conspiracy carried out by the Midwives of the Fragrant Void, an esoteric-Hellenic women’s organization, whose purpose is to evoke a chthonic monstrosity and bring chaos to the earth.
In fact, a classic Brindlewood Bay campaign consists of a group of Ladies who, as they solve the mysteries, begin to get in touch with this organization and then try to foil their evil conspiracies.
Even the description of the organization is deliberately left very vague, with only a few firm points so as to allow the Keeper to have maximum freedom of narration. The manual, however, also offers some ready-to-use prefaces; they are all really interesting and range a lot in topics.
An interesting element of the campaign is the mechanics of the Void Clues. In practice, during each Mystery the Mavens could find clues related to the Midwives of the Fragrant Void; as they accumulate them, they will unlock various levels of the conspiracy and discover new information and details. This style of campaign is very suitable for the theme of the game because it seems to play a real 90s TV series that has a horizontal plot to be revealed.
Finally, the manual offers many suggestions on how to set up the campaign and on the approach to be used, leaving you to choose whether to give more or less space to the emerging narrative.
Review of the Chapter for the Keeper of Brindlewood Bay
Within the manual, there is a rich chapter in which ideas, suggestions and ideas are given to the Keeper.
This chapter is really in-depth and allows you to become more familiar with the structure of the game and how to conduct it. In fact, we find various notions about mechanics and how to make the most of situations. We also find information on how to deal with and take advantage of the most delicate topics to make the sessions engaging.
Among the most interesting things we have the Reactions, that is, actions that the Keeper can carry out in response to the Moves and how the Ladies move, all to create unforeseen situations and upset the balances. These are varied and can range from dividing the Mavens to bringing up an NPC.
The most interesting of these is the Advertising Interruption; when a dramatic action by a Maven proves to be a failure, the Keeper may call an advertising interruption. From here, the advertisement will be told (just like a TV series from the 90s) and then the action will resume as if it had been a Success. Surely it is a useful mechanic to avoid uncomfortable situations.
In addition to all this, we find a chapter that explains step by step how to structure and conduct the first session. In fact, there is (also in the Game Materials) a scheme with the various timings to be used; this is also a really valuable tool for novices.
The six mysteries in the manual are perfect for starting a campaign, as they are all complete with places, NPCs and much more. They all have a really interesting and never trivial plot, with some easter eggs that will thrill fans of TV series.
Brindlewood Bay Review Conclusion
In conclusion, I find that Brindlewood Bay is an excellent role-playing game, which manages to bring a breath of fresh air to the world of detectives. Thanks to its very simple system and its way of structuring mysteries, it allows you to quickly start and play exciting sessions. At the same time, this can also be a drawback for novices or those with little inventiveness, as they will find it difficult to manage this emerging narrative.
Fortunately, the manual limits this risk in part because it manages to provide many ideas, suggestions, ideas and structures so as to best accompany players and make them feel less confused. To all this is added a first-rate artistic sector, which enhances the content even more.
I recommend Brindlewood Bay to all those who are passionate about mysteries, investigations and mystery TV series with that 90s touch that never hurts. See you next time, Murder Mavens!
