Halgrad Playtesting: The Results are in!

A few weeks ago, Halgrad opened its doors to a small group of play testers, tasked with the mission of leading their Warband into the city, and putting the game system through its paces, looking for gaps and balancing issues, and reporting back. What's more, the play testers were even given the chance to put forward ideas for their own warbands, for inclusion in the game!

The Pack

Each play tester received an early access copy of Halgrad: Vanguard, featuring the core rules and a range of factions, scenarios and Character Specialisms, giving a good general feel for how the game will run.

Well, after over two weeks of testing, the results are in, and I have to say... they are glorious. Most of our play testers gave highly detailed feedback, and some even went out of their way to convert their own miniatures for the game, perfectly capturing the spirit of Halgrad. 

Here's the breakdown; the good, the bad, and the oracle-like insights.

 

The Good

Players reported that the Vanguard Rulebook given was professional, polished and easy to follow, and praised the system for its ability to be used in a range of ways, including Single Player. 

Play testers also had a lot to say about:

The Balance: Halgrad scored near perfect ratings on the balancing of its Warbands and rulesets, with no Factions or Classes being rated as poor, or game-breakingly powerful. The Character Specialisms were also praised, particularly the Soldier and Wizard, who were both popular. 

The Depth: As a skirmish game, Halgrad offers a degree of granularity that affects Player choice. For example, a Sword works differently from an Axe, and Characters work differently to the Warriors they lead. Players reported that the added depth made their choices feel impactful, and altered the way that they used certain units in game. 

 The Lore: The setting feels fleshed out and unique, and the story of Halgrad was easy to get invested in. 

The Bad

While there was certainly no shortage of praise for the system, some players did report on things that could be improved. For example:

The Accessibility: While the game system is simple enough to follow, the document it comes in is quite large, and could be intimidating for players unfamiliar with the hobby.

Lack of Maps: Players reported that the inclusion of a world and/or regional map would really help to ground the setting in the player's minds.

Profile Layout Consistency: While players found the profiles to be well balanced, some found the different layouts off-putting. For example, some profiles featured pictures of painted miniatures, some included artwork, and some had no pictures at all, which made the entries feel inconsistent, even if the layout was largely the same. 

 

Oracle-Like Insights

Finally, some players actually suggested improvements for the game packs that were already in the works behind the scenes! I'm not saying it was sorcery, but a Witchseeker is on the way to their home addresses as we speak...

Community Contribution: One player suggested that, as Halgrad is the result of a global collaboration, it only makes sense to include a 'Community Contributions' section to the main rulebook. 

Painting Tutorials: Another player wanted to know just how we painted some of the miniatures seen in the rulebook, and suggested that we add in a painting guide section, much like the old Middle Earth Sourcebooks. 

Both of these ideas are great, and were actually part of the plan going forward. Stay tuned for more updates!

Well, that's all we've got for today. Halgrad: Vanguard will be getting a full public release very soon. We can't say more just yet, but you might just see us at a large public event!