https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1580315595/battlelords-science-fiction-rpg-revised-edition?ref=category_newest

A gonzo space opera game that makes gearheads and gunbunnies wet to their toes. Fun in a lot of ways. Hard sf it ain't.

Seems I missed the first 6 versions of this without even knowing it was a thing.

I do hope that the new edition either modernizes the rpg. Or at the very least simplifies the math used as figuring out the proper attack roles felt like a Calculus formula to me at least. As well the new edition also needs both some decent art as well as this being the last new edition reboot for at least 10 years.

I have it, but I have no idea which edition or even, as the man said, that they had SIX editions.  I mean, I knew they did a re-release someways back, as the gun-bunny and armor-bunny books (seriously: only game to require separate gear books for guns and armor!) are not the same as the ones I had the first time around, though the contents didn't really change any.  Same people, different legal entity, I think.

Seventh?  Talk about pointless edition inflation!

This is one of those long-standing RPGs that somehow I only even know of from the Internet. I've never met anyone who spoke of owning it or playing it. I've never seen it on any game store's shelf.

This is not a bash on the game in any way, just an observation.

We had a certain amount of gunbunny fun with this in college. That was twenty years ago and I had completely lost track of the game in between.

Quote from: Gwarh;1002001Seems I missed the first 6 versions of this without even knowing it was a thing.

I was going to say the same. Never heard of this. Great name for a game, though.

I'm shocked... Shocked I say that so many of you have never experienced the wonder that is Lawrence r. Sims writing style!

BL23C has been around a long time an has improved with age. I recommend it for sheer gonzo OTP sci fi space opera. An early supplement for it, "DO NOT BE ALARMED. THIS IS ONLY A TEST" had an incredibly simple and effective set of minefield rules that I hijacked as default minefield rules.

The combat rules are a but over complex, yes. But it still has a friendly, semi professional feel to it that makes it feel like it was written by gamers for gamers, not by a corporation for profit.

Quote from: Schwartzwald;1002212The combat rules are a but over complex, yes. But it still has a friendly, semi professional feel to it

Overly complex rules are still overly complex no matter how they are written. That's not a selling feature as far as I'm concerned. In any case I always felt with the way the rules were written it should have been more a miniatures style rpg than a true rpg.

Quote from: Schwartzwald;1002212that makes it feel like it was written by gamers for gamers, not by a corporation for profit.

If you actual believe that and it makes you sleep better at night go right ahead. EVERY rpg company to a certain level wants to make a profit. Stop with the fake innocence and naivety. Just for some more than others it's more important. If your going to make such a claim first make sure the company your talking about is a non-profit rpg company. Second the company in the span of a few years has released not three not four not five but seven editions of the same rpg. Speaking for myself that a company that screams wanting to make money off it's fans.

Then again it's the usual bullshit by some fans in the hobby. If it's a rpg company they hate then they take advantage of the fans. If it's a company they like and behave the same way suddenly they are above reproach and "not in it for the money".

Since you've probably never seen a BL23C product you don't know what the fuck you're snarking about. BL products are invariably soft cover with B&W interior art on flat paper. This keeps the cost way down and makes it a lot more affordable. I find it a feature of BL products, not a flaw. I prefer it to hardcover, slick paper, full color products that cost twice as much.

Now go make up some fresh batch of snark to sneer out.

Fuck you too asshole.

If you want to continue pretending to be the clueless naive gamer stereotype it's on you. Your not fooling anyone but yourself. Keep thinking that rpg company owners don't want to make money. After all one can't let differing opinions enter the narrative soapbox can we.

I have seen and run and played Battlelords. Cheap production values simply mean the company wants to save on printing the rpg. They are doing themselves a favor not the fans. All it does is make their product look cheap and a relic from the 1980s. Seven editions into the rpg they could not keep it looking like a relic of the 1980s. If some of the art on the Kickstarter page is what they plan to use then they are on the right track. Guess what if you actually read what they plan to do the current edition art will be full colour.

 I played Battlelords and Rifts because for a time I was tired of D&D. Out of the two I preferred BL a whole much more. That they did not take themselves seriously. Uncle Ernie Minions of Doom was a invaluable resource for whomever wanted to run the rpg as it is full of ideas. The Galactic Undergrounds line of sourcebooks are a must for any and all gaming group who wants to run the rpg. What ruined the interest at our table was the complicated math needed to figure out a attack role. It was unecessarily complex until the 5th edition of the game. I can't speak for any edition after that. Thankfully from the looks of it the new edition will update the rules to make it easier to run and play as well as updating the technology. Que the "they dumbed down the rpg for the casual gamer" in 3,2,1.

Guys like you in the hobby lament that their favored rpgs don't go anywhere or are not as popular as they once were. Yet you want nothing to change. Expect a book with 1980s production values or at least the look and feel of a book written in the 1980s to be as popular if not more with a product with better, easier, designed systems with better production values. Good luck with that. Thankfully the new owners realize they need to modernize their rpg and not have it remain a relic of it's time.

I'm sure you will ignore the above and insist I never played the rpg.

Here is what they plan to do with the new edition in case you missed it copy and pasted from the Kickstarter page:

The focus of the new edition is simplifying and standardizing the gameplay without losing the original setting or feel of the game. Some of the highlights are:

-New Standard Species – New species to highlight the diversity of the setting. The revised genetically engineered, human-rabbit hybrid called the Fott. The revised Goola, now winged insects, and a new species the Keen. The Keen are a gliding tree dwelling species with a chameleon's skin.

-Updated combat rules – simpler/faster rules for managing automatic weapon fire, faster hand to hand combat, and simplified armor tracking. All of this results in faster play while simulating the deadly nature of combat in the 23rd century.

-Streamlined skills – standardized skills to simplify game play

-Sample Teams – Prefab teams at varying levels of development for examples of balanced groups for various types of game play.

-Streamlined and clarified core rules that still maintain that Battlelords feel

-Revised armor mechanics that allows for broader customization of armor, in addition to easier tracking of installed armor options.

-Ultra Armor included in the core rules.

-Spacecraft and space combat rules included in the core rules.

-New artwork!! The artwork will all be in full color.

-Updated Equipment. We've had 25 years since 1st edition to figure out where technology is headed.

-Revised setting with more information about the Arachnids and a new foe, the promethean Veayan.

Quote from: sureshot;1002366Fuck you too asshole.

If you want to continue pretending to be the clueless naive gamer stereotype it's on you. Your not fooling anyone but yourself. Keep thinking that rpg company owners don't want to make money. After all one can't let differing opinions enter the narrative soapbox can we.

I have seen and run and played Battlelords. Cheap production values simply mean the company wants to save on printing the rpg. They are doing themselves a favor not the fans. All it does is make their product look cheap and a relic from the 1980s. Seven editions into the rpg they could not keep it looking like a relic of the 1980s. If some of the art on the Kickstarter page is what they plan to use then they are on the right track. Guess what if you actually read what they plan to do the current edition art will be full colour.

 I played Battlelords and Rifts because for a time I was tired of D&D. Out of the two I preferred BL a whole much more. That they did not take themselves seriously. Uncle Ernie Minions of Doom was a invaluable resource for whomever wanted to run the rpg as it is full of ideas. The Galactic Undergrounds line of sourcebooks are a must for any and all gaming group who wants to run the rpg. What ruined the interest at our table was the complicated math needed to figure out a attack role. It was unecessarily complex until the 5th edition of the game. I can't speak for any edition after that. Thankfully from the looks of it the new edition will update the rules to make it easier to run and play as well as updating the technology. Que the "they dumbed down the rpg for the casual gamer" in 3,2,1.

Guys like you in the hobby lament that their favored rpgs don't go anywhere or are not as popular as they once were. Yet you want nothing to change. Expect a book with 1980s production values or at least the look and feel of a book written in the 1980s to be as popular if not more with a product with better, easier, designed systems with better production values. Good luck with that. Thankfully the new owners realize they need to modernize their rpg and not have it remain a relic of it's time.

I'm sure you will ignore the above and insist I never played the rpg.

Wow, a superasshole. Well, if assholes could fly this site would be an airport...

Nothing to be gained from reading your shitposts, so welcome to my block list.

Quote from: Schwartzwald;1002253Since you've probably never seen a BL23C product you don't know what the fuck you're snarking about. BL products are invariably soft cover with B&W interior art on flat paper. This keeps the cost way down and makes it a lot more affordable. I find it a feature of BL products, not a flaw. I prefer it to hardcover, slick paper, full color products that cost twice as much.

Now go make up some fresh batch of snark to sneer out.

I also prefer a cool color cover and B&W interior art. Keep the price down and make the book affordable.