non d20: Barbarians of Lemuria.

Uh, just because he doesn't like 4e, doesn't mean he doesn't like D&D.

Try digging out the 'old' 3.0 or 3.5 books, or even the earlier stuff. It's a completely different game than 4e.

Quote from: Zachary The First;401454I recently did an article about 101 Fantasy Games That Aren't Pathfinder or D&D (or close cousins of D&D, like C&C).  It might provide some options you didn't already consider.

Awesome list. I was going to say like others: it heavily depends on what one exactly dislikes with 4E, and most importantly, what kind of gaming fantasy one is searching for in the first place.

Also, do you want other OGL/d20 propositions, or just non-d20 propositions? There are a shitload of "cousins to D&D" to borrow Zach's expression that might work better for you guys, if you aren't allergic to d20.

Quote from: flyingmice;401459I can't believe Book of Jalan made that list, Zachary! Both of the guys that bought it thank you!

Besides, it's really Science Fiction. I can't write Fantasy!

-clash

There's not much difference between sc-fi and fantasy most of the time anyway, and as one of the guys that bought Jalan, I agree, thanks It's a cool game and deserves some exposure.

Stop messing around and just get Warhammer.  2nd addition for a more traditional experience 3rd edition if you want to try something different but completely awesome.

Quote from: Zachary The First;401454I recently did an article about 101 Fantasy Games That Aren't Pathfinder or D&D (or close cousins of D&D, like C&C).  It might provide some options you didn't already consider.

No mention of Legend of Anglerre?

Also OP, a really obscure one is Fantasy Concepts. It's a sword and sorcery re-skin of the Star Wars Saga Edition rules.

Check out Talislanta- it's free!

Quote from: Doom;401472Uh, just because he doesn't like 4e, doesn't mean he doesn't like D&D.

Yes, and just because he doesn't like D&D...doesn't tell us much.

The OP suggests that the friend is okay with D20 mechanics, just not the setting.

If you like mechanics but not the setting, then Pathfinder won't help much; it's got the same setting assumptions as D&D going all the way back to 3.0 and probably into 2e, maybe even farther. (Depends on what you want to focus on.)

FantasyCraft might help; the setting is a little more focused and less clearly bog-standard kitch-sink D&D-fantasy. On those grounds Conan OGL would also be a good or better option, if you can find it.

If you like D&D-ish fantasy but want something different from 4e, maybe even different from 3e/OGL, then Runequest isn't a very good choice since it has very different setting assumptions. (Note: I like all versions of RQ, but it's not D&D-type fantasy. I think there might be an RQ dungeon fantasy add-on though; if so then Bob's your uncle.) Rolemaster/MERP/HARP, Warhammer, Dragon Warriors, Palladium Fantasy, GURPS (with the right tweaks), Fantasy HERO (with the right tweaks), Legends of the Ancient World (aka, an update of The Fantasy Trip), Tunnels and Trolls, and Forward to Adventure! are all readily-available and roughly fill that niche.

Some other possibilities that I don't know so well: Iron Gauntlets, Dragon Age, Epic Role Playing.

About Talislanta: great setting, not very D&Dish on the surface, but probably can be played in a bunch of ways. Regarding the system, I'm partial to 2e and 3e over 4e. YMMV but bear in mind that the magic system changed quite a bit from 2e to 3e, and then even more radically with 4e, so different tastes will gravitate to one or the other. I think 3e is the most D&D-like in that it has extensive spell lists.

Mazes & Minotaurs
http://storygame.free.fr/MAZES.htm

Why M&M?

1) It's free.  Free is good.  
And I don't mean just the core book.  M&M has a stack of free supplements.

2) It's not JRR FauxTolk like most FRPGs.
It's FauxGreek Myths and wildly fresh.

3) There is something different about M&M in actual play than other FRPGs.  I don't know how to quantify it, but it encourages a different roleplay experience at the table.

Quote from: Spinachcat;401524Mazes & Minotaurs
http://storygame.free.fr/MAZES.htm

Why M&M?

1) It's free.  Free is good.  
And I don't mean just the core book.  M&M has a stack of free supplements.

2) It's not JRR FauxTolk like most FRPGs.
It's FauxGreek Myths and wildly fresh.

3) There is something different about M&M in actual play than other FRPGs.  I don't know how to quantify it, but it encourages a different roleplay experience at the table.

It's the only 'old school' system that I have ever read that has peaked my interest.

Quote from: Zachary The First;401454I recently did an article about 101 Fantasy Games That Aren't Pathfinder or D&D (or close cousins of D&D, like C&C).  It might provide some options you didn't already consider.

I see a lot of games in your list that I like. Great list.

Quote from: Phantom Black;401461Your article is flawed, because it only lists the Fantasy Companion for Savage Worlds, but not the toolkits.
Did you just plain miss that?

Nah. I had 101 spots. I'm not going to have everything on there.

Well, some of the things joe said was that he does not the way 4e seems to be becoming a miniatures tabletop game and the rules seem to be written to push people towards miniatures and maps.
He also doesn't like the way the classes got redone, with every class now self healing and multi classing removed.

Not being into d20 or D2D I don't understand the last bit, I can understand not wanting to play a game that's going like GW and trying to sell overpriced miniatures.

Have you considered Forward... to Adventure!?

RPGPundit

Mazes and Minotaurs or Talislanta.