TOPIC: Will I like True Grind?

My friends and I have gotten into True Dungeon after playing casually at the last two Gencon events. We now have extensive token collections and plan to do quite a few sessions at the next Gencon. We've talked about wanting to play on the higher difficulty levels but we're not clear on what the attraction is for playing True Grind.

None of us are particularly enamored with the puck sliding element of the game and my understanding is that True Grind is just a continuous combat. What is the appeal of playing True Grind to someone like us?

Andrew Haas wrote: My friends and I have gotten into True Dungeon after playing casually at the last two Gencon events. We now have extensive token collections and plan to do quite a few sessions at the next Gencon. We've talked about wanting to play on the higher difficulty levels but we're not clear on what the attraction is for playing True Grind.

None of us are particularly enamored with the puck sliding element of the game and my understanding is that True Grind is just a continuous combat. What is the appeal of playing True Grind to someone like us?

Combat, Combat and more Combat.

But some unique combat mechanics. My favorite one was the Purple Worm. One part of the party was attacking the tail, The other part was attacking the head. The tail grabbed the bard and tossed him to the other side of the room. Where he was attacked by the head and swallowed whole. We cut him out and used a mushroom on him.

I think the best part of it is you get some of the most experienced DMs and they're given more freedom to be creative than can be done in the main dungeons. This means you can actually use all the weird tokens you've collected in creative ways.

Distract a monster with a duck token? Sure, the cultist spends a round bending over to examine it, sneak attack away.

The pacing is also very different. There are multiple combats going on simultaneously so there can be less downtime for individual characters (which is further improved by having very fast DMs).

That said though, if you're more into the interacting with the puzzles than combat or role-playing, it may not be for you. It's less expensive than the normal runs though, do maybe give it a try once.

Oh, and you only get one treasure chip, no matter what tokens you use. So if you love loot, this is not for you.


As well, there is now an Epic level of difficulty for Grind.

Andrew Haas wrote: None of us are particularly enamored with the puck sliding element of the game and my understanding is that True Grind is just a continuous combat. What is the appeal of playing True Grind to someone like us?

I suppose the world needs clerics and bards too...



(I would add wizards, but they need to slide for some of their spells.)

Why would you like True Grind if the combat rooms are your less favorite part of the Dungeon? That probably depends on why the combat rooms aren't getting your favor.

Aegoce is worth repeating. The DMs of Grind are some of the most experienced in the game. So you get a better combat experience in general (there are some star DMs in the Dungeon as well, but the chances of all your comvat DMs in a Dungeon run being on par with Eric and Raven (and their assistants) is pretty impossible.

Multiple boards for sliding is another aspect. Not only can more people slide at once, but you can have a little more tactics to it. Throw your ranged attackers at the rust monster while your melee combatants take on something that won't eat your weapon.

Another aspect: Eric seems to put a lot of thought into creating scenarios where often-unused common tokens can be useful.

Something else worth repeating, Eric and Raven are great about rolling with zany ideas from the players. Just killed off a Medusa? It doesn't hurt to try carefully cutting off the head and tossing it at the next monster. You might turn it to stone.

Andrew Haas wrote: My friends and I have gotten into True Dungeon after playing casually at the last two Gencon events. We now have extensive token collections and plan to do quite a few sessions at the next Gencon. We've talked about wanting to play on the higher difficulty levels but we're not clear on what the attraction is for playing True Grind.

None of us are particularly enamored with the puck sliding element of the game and my understanding is that True Grind is just a continuous combat. What is the appeal of playing True Grind to someone like us?

I don't know there would be any appeal to you. That said besides what everyone else is said. I like doing Grind just because it is one more chance to use my tokens. It is one more chance to experience True Dungeon. But it definitely is not for everyone. In my rotating mix-n-match group we do all 4 dungeons atGen Con. A few of the folks are along for all 4 dungeons, however I only have 1 partner out of the 20ish that plays Grind with me. My recommendation though is to give it a try. You won't know for certain till you give it a try.

Some other things to consider that no one mentioned yet:

It's shorter, and you're not schlepping between seven rooms in the dark. You have one well-lot physical room, but it's broken up into four virtual rooms for "one-per-room" effects.

The combats have embedded thinking puzzles. Last year, characters sometimes had brain-swaps. There was a way to swap back.

There are more tactics than a typical one-board combat. Maybe the super-tank should battle one monster solo while everyone else gangs up on the other two. Maybe that's a bad idea. Don't send the tank against a horde of cultists, let the AoE wizards do that... But it's more interesting than everyone sliding at one critter.

The Horns of Gondor are heartless, making you stand around bored after the monster is dead, or declaring you defeated because your time ran out. Neither happens in Grind. Kill one, then move on to a new one, or help your team with theirs before another wave appears. If you're used to the frustrations standing around bored, or trying to squeeze in one more combat before the cymbals, you probably won't miss them.

IMO, some of the best completion tokens have been from Grind. Horn of Blasting, Flask of Sharing, FOP: Spider - all Grind. Sometimes they're suboptimal, but the same can be said of the normal dungeons. Lamps were awesome, though...

Full disclosure: I'm one of Eric's minions so I'm a bit biased. But I have a ton of fun DMing it, and it sells out fast every year, so... there's that.

Grind is lots of fun if you enjoy more out there encounters (unless your a bard in which case Eric will pick on you ).

Seriously though its more then just combat. Grind is the place where you can use your items creatively. Over the last few years I have bribed a satyr with a bottle of rum, seen ranger beat down a fire elemental with a pair of water skins, and watched a dragon get chased into the sky by a fighter with a grappling hook.

Its well worth it (even if you play the hated bard).

Yes, Grind is a lot of sliding. But while all the "attack" classes are busy sliding, it's always good to have someone who can step back and see the bigger picture when fighting multiple monsters at the same time. You become a much needed coordinator or air-traffic controller.

For example; "Need more people over here." or, "new monster over here that is good for someone with ranged weapons." If you're a damage spell casting class, it could also be very useful to know when and where is the best time to use those spells for maximum impact.

I think of Grind as a collaborative puzzle to be solved:

Can these 10 players overcome 12-15 monsters, and optimally allocate their resources?

The DMs allow much more "role play" than in TD - if you have a wacky idea, give it a try!

Do you think you can read a scroll of endure elements, drink a potion polymorph shark, and then swim in the River of Lava? There is only one way to find out! The DMs will make a ruling much more freely than in the main dungeon where interactions that haven't been thought of beforehand probably won't work.

Grind also often has some unique environmental effects, for instance last year there was a "fear aura" that required the entire party to pass will checks in order to not be too afraid to attack. The year before it was underground and party members needed to have some way to see in the dark, or hold torches, in order to provide illumination.

So grind is neat like that, if you enjoy mulling over your stats, optimizing your builds, thinking of creative uses for consumables, etc.

Here is what Grind doesn't have that the main dungeon does:

* Immersive, detailed sets and props - it's "theater of the mind"
* Puzzles (although there may be unique ways to approach things, all your obstacles will be monsters)
* Treasure - you get 1 chip, period (and a special completion token at some presentations).

People mention the "wing it" philosophy of Grind. I think the first reason is that TD values consistency. It's much easier to achieve that with a pool of two DMs plus a couple of assistants.

The second reason - we don't have to take time calling an Adventure coordinator because Eric and Raven essentially ARE the AGs.

The third reason - we ignore the Horns so there's time to consider strange ideas. No one is going to lose on time because we took a minute to figure out exactly how you were going to use that pair of pliers and a blowtorch.

I'm sure the main dungeons allowed more creativity a decade or more ago, but it's grown a lot in since then.