Dragon Strike is a 1993 adventure board game from TSR, Inc. based on the Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) fantasy role-playing game. It was intended to be a pathway for beginners to start with, and for players to eventually play the full Advanced Dungeons & Dragons tabletop game after kindling their interest.

Overview

Dragon Strike is a hybrid between a board game and a table-top role playing game. It was designed to be a gateway into Dungeons & Dragons for new and young players. The game used a ruleset that was simpler than the basic Dungeons & Dragons rules to make it easier to play. The designers hoped to attract players as young as eight years old.

The game came with several fold-out maps, cards, dice, an instructional VHS video, and a number of plastic miniatures.

The Dragon Master controls the actions of the monsters and non-player characters. To resolve combat, the Dragon Master compares the Attack Strength to the target's Armor Class; if the Attack Roll is higher, the target loses one Hit Point. Equally simple rules cover spell casting, feats of strength, and flying.

Publication history

The Dragon Strike game was designed by Bruce Nesmith and Andria Hayday, and published by TSR, Inc. in 1993.

In August 1993, issue #196 of Dragon Magazine included an additional scenario/adventure titled "The Dragon Orb".

DragonStrike was part of an initiative by TSR to make their games accessible to young players. A 1992 introductory product called Dragon Quest and First Quest in 1994 was also part of this effort. Swan claims that "if this doesn't lure your kid brother into the hobby, it probably can't be done", calling it "perhaps the most lavishly packaged, user-friendliest introduction to role-playing ever published".

Hasbro game

In 2002, Hasbro released a board game called Dragon Strike, which was unrelated to the 1993 version of Dragon Strike.

See also

  • Dungeon Masters Adventure Log
  • Forged of Darkness
  • Non-Player Character Records
  • Permanent Character Folder & Adventure Records
  • The Silver Key (module)
  • Treasure Tales

References

  • (The 1993 game by TSR, Inc.)
  • (The 2002 game by Hasbro)
  • IMDB page for the video included with game