Reboots or new editions of older games don't count. OSR doesn't count unless it's radically different. Storygames obviously don't count because they're not RPGs.
Was there any RPG that first appeared after 2001 that you think was really great?
Savage Worlds I suppose.
Quote from: Mike the Mage;1039545Savage Worlds I suppose.
Ditto, including the 'I suppose' - not sure if SW is truly great, but it's interesting and different, and £6.99 full colour core book is impressive.
I have mixed feelings so far.
I bought the Delux along with the horror and Sci-fi companions and enjoyed reading them. Once I started playing SW in a fantasy setting, I started to notice the shortcomings of the magic system and invested in Shaintar: Legends Arise which expanded the magic system so as to acheive the kind of fantasy tropes I wanted. After that I invested in Shaintar: Legends Unleashed for epic level play.
I was invested, so to speak.
However, I noticed that at this point the stat blocks were massive due to the plethora of Edges. Fast and furious was looking less and less likely.
That being said, my wife played Deadlands using the SW system and loved it.
The jury is out for me too but I got the Lankhmar SW setting and that looks kinda cool.
BTW I once heard Stork on the Happy Jacks podcast really find a flaw in the combat: that it becomes an attrition game of whittling down the NPC bennies.
Genesys - out of the box I was getting creative with settings and gaming plans so definitely a winner for me (especially since I can’t say Mythras).
Tales of Blades and Heroes (http://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/100334/Tales-of-Blades-and-Heroes-Fantasy-RPG-rules), hands down.
Re: Genesys
Not a big fan of symbols instead of numbers on dice.
DCC is about as far as I will go on expensive plastic shapes, sorry.
Mythras!!
Quote from: RPGPundit;1039538Reboots or new editions of older games don't count.
Ouch!
Now seriously, I would have said Mythras is the best game after 2001 with a straight face, but it doesn't count, because it is a direct heir of RuneQuest.
So, Fantasy Age, perhaps?
Fate of the Norns: Ragnarok No dice! Use runes instead. Truly tactically engaging game play. Epic Viking superheroes at the end of the world. A breath of fresh air and an actually inovative game design.
Quote from: Claudius;1039577Ouch!
Now seriously, I would have said Mythras is the best game after 2001 with a straight face, but it doesn't count, because it is a direct heir of RuneQuest.
So, Fantasy Age, perhaps?
When I got the new Blue Rose, I looked at character generation. You need to roll about 7 characters before you get one with a negative ability modifier. I'm not sure how I feel about a game that almost guarantees your character have good stats from a random generator.
I'd say Mutants and Masterminds. The third iteration is a great tactical combat game, but it does not handle power disparity very well. If you try and emulate the Avengers, you're lower level characters are going to go squish, and builds pretty much revolve around hitting caps if you want to survive.
My choice would likely be Marvel Heroic Roleplaying using Cortex Plus. That system can be hacked into nearly anything. However I have also been sitting on a hack waiting for an SRD for over four years now. MWP didn't just drop the ball, they stabbed the ball and deflated it, doused in in gasoline then set it on fire before dropping it into the pit. Cortex Prime will allegedly be released this month, and I might get interested again when it does. Maybe. Let's just say my plans for writing Cortex powered Jadepunk were quite scuttled. The system itself was great and versatile, the marketing not so much.
Yeah, Cortex Plus would be my pick too.
Savage Worlds, Fate/FAE, Apocalypse World and it's hacks, Barbarians of Lemuria, The One Ring and Fria Ligan games (Mutant Year Zero, Forbidden Lands) deserve praise too.
Edit: oh and BLADES IN THE DARK! How could I forget this?:eek: It's among the better designed games I've ever seen, up there with original D&D and Pendragon imo.
BareBones Fantasy from DwD Studios.
Most especially their use of moral code and descriptors. Cut and pasted from a previous post of mine:
After not playing RPGs for many years, a friend wanted to learn and I looked at lots and lots of games and settled on BareBones Fantasy. We really, really enjoyed their Moral Code setup. You pick Somewhat, Very, or Totally for each Aspect and one option for each Aspect: Kind or Cruel, Focused or Unfocused, Selfless or Selfish, Honorable or Deceitful, Brave or Cowardly. Your character also has one or two Descriptors. When the descriptors come out in game play, the character gets an XP bonus. (My players used "likes needlessly complicate plans" and "loves water and swims any chance they can" in their first adventure.)
Skills are based on the character attributes plus specifics for specific skill training. Skills are broad and anything not covered can be done using attributes. It's a pretty fun and fast system.
Quote from: Tod13;1039584BareBones Fantasy from DwD Studios.
Good pick. It's a serious contender for my favourite percentage-based system (contra BRP).
Quote from: Mike the Mage;1039561I have mixed feelings so far.
I bought the Delux along with the horror and Sci-fi companions and enjoyed reading them. Once I started playing SW in a fantasy setting, I started to notice the shortcomings of the magic system and invested in Shaintar: Legends Arise which expanded the magic system so as to acheive the kind of fantasy tropes I wanted. After that I invested in Shaintar: Legends Unleashed for epic level play.
I was invested, so to speak.
However, I noticed that at this point the stat blocks were massive due to the plethora of Edges. Fast and furious was looking less and less likely.
That being said, my wife played Deadlands using the SW system and loved it.
The jury is out for me too but I got the Lankhmar SW setting and that looks kinda cool.
BTW I once heard Stork on the Happy Jacks podcast really find a flaw in the combat: that it becomes an attrition game of whittling down the NPC bennies.
Savage Worlds is my pick for this question. I actually think Hellfrost does a better job for making magic more D&D-like, as long as resource management isn't your idea of D&D.
No power points allows for spells to last long enough to have real utility uses.
Shaintar, Rifts, Supers, ect. All start getting very complicated, relatively, you end up with things that work like 3.X characters while being a lot simpler than 3.X characters but still pretty complex for Savage Worlds.
Quote from: RPGPundit;1039538Reboots or new editions of older games don't count. OSR doesn't count unless it's radically different. Storygames obviously don't count because they're not RPGs.
Was there any RPG that first appeared after 2001 that you think was really great?
Hm. I don't know for sure about 'great', so I'll fall back on 'had a great time with'.
I think the "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" game was pretty good. I had a lot of fun with it, and I thought it had a good handle on having both powered characters (Slayers, demons, magic-users) and normals able to work side by side. I was playing a jock type, and had a great amount of fun even if I wasn't on par with our slayer.
Similarly, I've had a lot of fun with "Savage Worlds", running one long campaign and playing in a variety of con games. Easy to play, easy to pick up, as long as you want to play something vaguely pulpy.
ICONS I haven't played yet, but I still really like it's take on superheroics. I dunno if it's great, but I think it's pretty good.
I'm not sure if DCC counts as 'radically different' - I think you could make a case for it with the luck economy, the spell casting system, the way fighters (and dwarves) use a die for their combat bonus and to pull off extra feats, and the unique funnel method of starting campaigns. But it's certainly a lot of fun, and I think it's pretty great.
Quote from: Itachi;1039581Edit: oh and BLADES IN THE DARK! How could I forget this?:eek: It's among the better designed games I've ever seen, up there with original D&D and Pendragon imo.
I've recounted my struggles with this game, but it's not for wanting to love the thing. The sheer ambition is
astounding, and I am confident I will grok it eventually.
Icons, Cortex Prime (despite how much MHRP put me off in play), Exalted, and BtVS/Angel/AoD.
Quote from: DeadUematsu;1039607Cortex Prime (despite how much MHRP put me off in play)
The game's development put me off more than the system itself. The best part was hiding development behind a Patreon paywall.
Barbarians of Lemuria is hands-down my favorite (and most-played) post-2001 RPG. Blades in the Dark is pretty awesome too.
Tie between Dungeon Crawl Classics and Starfinder.
The various incarnations of the AGE system.
Quote from: Ratman_tf;1039618Tie between Dungeon Crawl Classics and Starfinder.
Oh wow a Starfinder fan. May I ask why?
It's not that I think the game is bad, I just didn't see anything extraordinary about it when I read through my books.
Quote from: Rhedyn;1039622Oh wow a Starfinder fan. May I ask why?
It's not that I think the game is bad, I just didn't see anything extraordinary about it when I read through my books.
Keep in mind my first actual session is this weekend, so I don't have any table time with the game yet. It's tickling my fancy in all the right ways. I like the weapon special effects. How a crit does double damage and sets something on fire (if it's got the fire crit effect) all the weapons have things that really distinguish them from each other, aside from raw damage. It's cleaned up all the accumulated cruft of Pathfinder, (Though the game is new, and I imagine it'll get bloated enough after a few more years) It's a neat mish-mash of sci-fi and fantasy that is appealing to me. Undead as characters, Dark Elf arms merchants, Halfling starfighter pilots.
Quote from: RPGPundit;1039538Reboots or new editions of older games don't count. OSR doesn't count unless it's radically different. Storygames obviously don't count because they're not RPGs.
Was there any RPG that first appeared after 2001 that you think was really great?
Burning Wheel, though I didn't get into it until Burning Wheel Revised (and first played in 2010 after the Adventure Burner was released). Or is that a story game in your mind?
Outside of that, I really can't think of any post 2001 RPGs that I got much into.
Frank
So, this thread has cost me £$ already...BareBones Fantasy has just been added to the collection.
I've been hacking the new Cortex Prime SRD for a supers game, and have ended up with a few off-hacks. It looks good, but until the new book is here and the dice bounce I'm holding off judgement.
That leaves Fate Core, which we don't touch much these days, but that we do all credit with blowing the cobwebs off our gaming in one way or another. As GM, it certainly limbered me up and got me much more used to a bit of the old improvisational ultraviolence.
Quote from: Motorskills;1039603I've recounted my struggles with this game, but it's not for wanting to love the thing. The sheer ambition is astounding, and I am confident I will grok it eventually.
Perhaps I could help? It's some time since I last played but I think I remember the essentials.
I have a couple:
Shadow of the Demon Lord. The system is incredibly streamlined and picking your careers lets you make a crapload of different characters. I'm very impressed by this, and I've been running a campaign for a while now (PCs up to 5th level!).
FFG Star Wars/Genesys. Haven't had a chance to run this yet, so this is a capsule review opinion. :) But just reading the Genesys book has sparked a hundred ideas of things to run!
Quote from: RPGPundit;1039538Reboots or new editions of older games don't count. OSR doesn't count unless it's radically different. Storygames obviously don't count because they're not RPGs.
Was there any RPG that first appeared after 2001 that you think was really great?
That disqualifies D&D in any edition...
Does a D20 derivative count as D&D? Cuz I'd say Mutants and Masterminds 3rd edition, if it doesn't, but... Savage Worlds. I rather like it as it pretty much nails what it claims to be, Fast, Furious and Fun.
Quote from: Christopher Brady;1039666That disqualifies D&D in any edition...
Does a D20 derivative count as D&D? Cuz I'd say Mutants and Masterminds 3rd edition, if it doesn't, but... Savage Worlds. I rather like it as it pretty much nails what it claims to be, Fast, Furious and Fun.
Quote from: RPGPundit;1039538OSR doesn't count unless it's radically different.
5e is arguably OSR, and the Advantage/Disadvantage mechanic is radical enough to make it different, so in my mind it counts. :D
Mutants and Masterminds 3e is a really nice tactical combat game. It does not handle Power Level disparity well, but if you have a group with a level disparity of no more than four it usually works well. Beyond that, your lowbies are going to get squished. 3e certainly stands apart from previous editions because it is very different from other OSR titles. You could take True20 and M+M 2e, and literally drop stuff from the True20 Bestiary into M+M 2e and it would work just fine. And with a little tweaking, you could bring it into 3.Xe though you wouldn't have to since both systems are a derivative. With 3e, things are different. Effect based powers are a really good idea, letting you add the fluff that you want.
I like Savage Worlds as a player, though not so much as a GM. This could change especially if I found a local group who wanted to play a face to face game. Savage Worlds is fun. I think it works best when it's not trying to emulate D&D.
Quote from: RPGPundit;1039538Reboots or new editions of older games don't count. OSR doesn't count unless it's radically different. Storygames obviously don't count because they're not RPGs.
Was there any RPG that first appeared after 2001 that you think was really great?
Serenity. The Big Damn Heroes Handbook made it even better.
Quote from: ffilz;1039643Burning Wheel, though I didn't get into it until Burning Wheel Revised (and first played in 2010 after the Adventure Burner was released). Or is that a story game in your mind?
Outside of that, I really can't think of any post 2001 RPGs that I got much into.
Frank
I love BW, I just know my lazy group won't invest the mental energy in it. Great game though.
I like Burning Wheel conceptually. I like what Belief, Instincts and Artha try to do at the table. But the rules are too complex to my tastes. I would gladly play in a proficiency GM table though.
Quote from: Krimson;10396725e is arguably OSR, and the Advantage/Disadvantage mechanic is radical enough to make it different, so in my mind it counts. :D
OSR uses D&D as it's base, hence as I believe the question follows, disqualifies it.
Quote from: Krimson;1039672Mutants and Masterminds 3e is a really nice tactical combat game. It does not handle Power Level disparity well, but if you have a group with a level disparity of no more than four it usually works well. Beyond that, your lowbies are going to get squished. 3e certainly stands apart from previous editions because it is very different from other OSR titles. You could take True20 and M+M 2e, and literally drop stuff from the True20 Bestiary into M+M 2e and it would work just fine. And with a little tweaking, you could bring it into 3.Xe though you wouldn't have to since both systems are a derivative. With 3e, things are different. Effect based powers are a really good idea, letting you add the fluff that you want.
You're pretty right about the disparity, but seeing as I use it for it's intended purpose, where sometimes, yeah, the big bad is pretty much going to win. Batman against Darkseid, in a straight up fight? Yeah, this one is a given.
Quote from: Krimson;1039672I like Savage Worlds as a player, though not so much as a GM. This could change especially if I found a local group who wanted to play a face to face game. Savage Worlds is fun. I think it works best when it's not trying to emulate D&D.
I use it for pulp style games, which I assume is it's intent.
Speaking of, I have a game at a local con, this weekend...
Quote from: Nerzenjäger;1039586Good pick. It's a serious contender for my favourite percentage-based system (contra BRP).
I have to back this up. All of the d00lite games - I started with Covert Ops - feature a good balance of tactical crunch (offensive/defensive risk reward) and GM streamlining. In my experience, the system is intuitive and flexible (scales well from gritty to over-the-top cinema style). The latest iteration, Frontier Space, has become my go-to rules set for any modern or sci-fi action.
Has anyone had a chance to play Ryuutama? I've read it - and it seems interesting, but I haven't convinced anyone to give it a go with me yet. I'm hoping that it's lite & fun enough that I might be able to use it as a gateway drug for my wife (she likes lighter board games - but nothing with too much crunch).
Quote from: gwb79;1039732I have to back this up. All of the d00lite games - I started with Covert Ops - feature a good balance of tactical crunch (offensive/defensive risk reward) and GM streamlining. In my experience, the system is intuitive and flexible (scales well from gritty to over-the-top cinema style). The latest iteration, Frontier Space, has become my go-to rules set for any modern or sci-fi action.
We were playtesters for FrontierSpace but it was way to crunchy for my group.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_pen_and_paper_role-playing_games#2000s
Hmm...looking at the list makes me realize that I've played very few games released in the 2000's. I've heard of most of them from message boards, read a decent amount of them, but have actually played/run very few. I've run HackMaster Basic and Serenity off the list. Almost ran Savage Worlds Hellfrost campaign, but didn't.
Barbarians of Lemuria. Even if I am a bit tired of it, it is the game I play most as my defualt game.
EABA, and it's not even close. Easily the most underrated rpg system in existence, and pretty much my ideal.
Quote from: Brad;1039789EABA, and it's not even close. Easily the most underrated rpg system in existence, and pretty much my ideal.
I looked it up and I am intruiged so I am going to start a thread on it.:cool:
Quote from: Itachi;1039647Perhaps I could help? It's some time since I last played but I think I remember the essentials.
I'm grateful for the offer, truly, but it's more that I need to spend some quality time at a table with an experienced GM, and (ideally) a few experienced players. There are so many - beautiful! - interlocking elements that even knowing the rules (in theory), doesn't equate to knowing them well enough to make gameplay seamless.
COLD CITY and/or SILVER AGE SENTINELS (Tri-Stat) would be my vote for "best" post-2000 design.
However, Savage Worlds would be my vote for "most played post-2k game"...and probably the non-retro game I can see playing into the future.
SW rocks that "good enough" system factor while being truly "fun, fast, furious" at the table. Like other classic RPGs, if your table can roll with a few glitches, you can have so much damn fun with SW (if you're into minis and scenery in your RPGing).
DCC RPG
It just touches on every single thing I find interesting and fun and makes me an instant fanboy.
Quote from: HorusArisen;1039562Genesys - out of the box I was getting creative with settings and gaming plans so definitely a winner for me (especially since I can't say Mythras).
This is what I was going to post.
WOIN and Savage Worlds are up there for me. Not my absolute favorite (each has an element or two I don't especially care for), but very very good games.
Quote from: theswartz;1039879DCC RPG
It just touches on every single thing I find interesting and fun and makes me an instant fanboy.
Well if you're going to cheat, Castles and Crusades renewed my interest in D&D-like games, although it's a pastiche of AD&D and 3rd, so it doesn't count as new.
Quote from: Nerzenjäger;1039563Tales of Blades and Heroes (http://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/100334/Tales-of-Blades-and-Heroes-Fantasy-RPG-rules), hands down.
I was intrigued about this after I took a peek at the link, and have since obtained and read through a couple of related games from the same basic game system universe. While I won't offer a formal recommendation until I've played one of them, I have to say it seems like one of the freshest ideas I've run across in years. It's basically a cleverly and elegantly crafted skirmish wargame that can double as a rpg by just tracking figures over time and pasting in a mod or two here or there to help bump up the role playing elements between fights. It's the same thought that turned Chainmail into early D+D and Melee into The Fantasy Trip. And I dig it; I'd rather play this than just about any other of the newish games I've got on my shelf.
My heart says The One Ring, but my head says either PbtA or Burning Wheel.
After playing numerous PbtA games, once you understand how they're set up, they're hardly contenders for best in anything.
Quote from: Brad;1039953Well if you're going to cheat,
Indeed
Stars Without Number, suddenly becomes a contender...:cool:
The only post 2001 game I can think of that I played that wasn't D&D or clone/derivative or Marvel FASERIP was Marvel Heroic Roleplaying. Had a really good time playing it.
Quote from: Brad;1039953Well if you're going to cheat, Castles and Crusades renewed my interest in D&D-like games, although it's a pastiche of AD&D and 3rd, so it doesn't count as new.
As I stated before, I don't think DCC is cheating. There's a lot of innovation in rules and feel between standard D&D games and DCC - the spellcasting system (and the spellburn mechanic tied into it), the Luck system, 0 level funnels, the way fighters and dwarves use a deed die instead of a fixed bonus that not only is more fun to roll but which also allows you to pull off fun maneuvers without a ton of extra rules... there's a lot of new stuff in the game that really pushes it out of the shadow of D&D, in my opinion.
DCC is definitely not cheating. It is based on D+D in the same sense that all conventional table top roleplaying games are based on D+D, but it is quite innovative and obviously its own game.
I love DCC, to me it is the closest thing to a RoleMaster retro clone that I want.
Quote from: S'mon;1039556Ditto, including the 'I suppose' - not sure if SW is truly great, but it's interesting and different, and £6.99 full colour core book is impressive.
I will Xerox this for Savage Worlds. I'm not sure if it reaches the stature of D&D for me. Or other iconic systems I associate with specific genres. But it's doing a good job of taking those things and running with them in it's own direction with fidelity to me. What's better - it's doing it for most of those other games all on its own while giving me the flexibility to tune it up or down as I see fit without missing a beat. It's not perfect, but then I don't believe any system is.
And that $8 price is the middle of the bullseye for me.
Quote from: KingofElfland;1040066I love DCC, to me it is the closest thing to a RoleMaster retro clone that I want.
What does DCC have to do with RoleMaster? Either this is a sly joke about all of DCC's tables, or...I don't get it.
Quote from: Larsdangly;1040088What does DCC have to do with RoleMaster? Either this is a sly joke about all of DCC's tables, or...I don't get it.
It's been a long time since I've looked at Rolemaster, but I remember my roommate in college played it a lot. Each spell had it's own page sized table where you would roll to get spell results, and that's something that is similar with DCC, but a lot of other games don't do that.
Quote from: jcfiala;1040092It's been a long time since I've looked at Rolemaster, but I remember my roommate in college played it a lot. Each spell had it's own page sized table where you would roll to get spell results, and that's something that is similar with DCC, but a lot of other games don't do that.
Only the attack tables for spells like elemental bolts and fireballs and such. That was due to the combat system having a seperate table for weapons on each page. The rest of the spells had a roll that would effect the target's resistance rolls but the effects were not variable if the spell succeded and the resistance roll failed.
Yah, the RM tables don't have much to do with the DCC tables, other than that the both are printed on pieces of paper.
Rolemaster when it was set in the world of Loremaster had a very different feel to it. The Iron Wind, Cloudlords of Tanara and Vog Mur were all great albeit not user friendly. It felt mythical when we played it. Elves were mysterious immortals, half elves were either cruel uber men or fey-like indigenous peoples, I don't remember dwarves and humans were all very different physically and sociologically. It felt other-worldy and fantastical. Magic was slow at first but not linked to material components but energies.
Shadow World got a bit darker and grittier and imho I it lost a lot of its charm.
DCC has a very different aesthetic.
Well, college was at least 20 years ago, so I'm not surprised that I have that wrong.
T'sall good. :D
I only remember myself because I was lucky enough to get a mint blue boxed set on ebay for under £30.:cool:
Quote from: Larsdangly;1040088What does DCC have to do with RoleMaster? Either this is a sly joke about all of DCC's tables, or...I don't get it.
Well, I must admit that I find DnD 3e+ to be very RoleMastery. RM was my game (particularly MERP) as was B/X. The unified roll high mechanic (whether d20 or d100), the ubiquity of Perception, and unified XP tables strike me as things closer to RM than Classic DnD. While DCC loses the skills (and skill ranks, another aspect of RM that finds its way into 3e) it gains the charts. It is a mish mash obviously, but it reminds me of the way we played RM (which was our gonzo game).
Quote from: HorusArisen;1039562Genesys - out of the box I was getting creative with settings and gaming plans so definitely a winner for me (especially since I can't say Mythras).
Agreed.
Man, I've become such a grognard. I keep trying new game sytems, but 3-5 games in I get fed up with them, and convert them to an older system that I prefer. Most recently, I did this with Coriolis, keeping the setting, but converting to Stars Without Number.
If I count Fate as a derivative of Fudge, and OSR games as derivatives of D&D, then the only game system published since 2001 that I've stuck with is Cypher.
If we're letting DCC into the party, then I'm adding Sine Nomine's Hero-Level RPGs (Exemplars & Eidolons, Scarlet Heroes, Godbound).
EXEMPLARS & EIDOLONS is free!
http://www.rpgnow.com/product/144651/Exemplars--Eidolons
GODBOUND....also has a free edition
http://www.rpgnow.com/product/185959/Godbound-A-Game-of-Divine-Heroes-Free-Edition
Quote from: Charon's Little Helper;1039735Has anyone had a chance to play Ryuutama? I've read it - and it seems interesting, but I haven't convinced anyone to give it a go with me yet. I'm hoping that it's lite & fun enough that I might be able to use it as a gateway drug for my wife (she likes lighter board games - but nothing with too much crunch).
I have. It didn't light my world on fire, which is not to say I couldn't tell you some things about it that might be useful. Core mechanic, it's basically Coretex with a lot more emphasis on gear and non-combat conditional challenges (going in the rain without an umbrella can get you sick, etc.) So if you are looking for something to de-emphasize combat a bit, it fills that space with resource management. If resource management is not something that engages you, it might not be fun.
To the question:
I could easily say Fate, late era PbtA (Masks, City of Mist), and Mutants & Masterminds. I'm to fickle to pick just one and you can't make me.
My top three, in no particular order:
Primeval (vortex system)
Chronica Feudalis
The One Ring
I've never actually gotten to play a post 2001 system, but I've read some. Based on impressions only, I'd say HeroQuest. That's cheating a bit, tho, because HeroWars came before 2001.
Popular new systems include Savage Worlds, PbtA, and Fate. I'm not a big fan of any of them, but they're OK.
For me, Monster of the Week - which is PbtA - is probably my favorite. I didn't like Apocalypse World, but there are some interesting things to be done with the system. I did really like Cinematic Unisystem as well - as in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, but it didn't seem to catch on.
Quote from: jhkim;1040812Popular new systems include Savage Worlds, PbtA, and Fate. I'm not a big fan of any of them, but they're OK.
For me, Monster of the Week - which is PbtA - is probably my favorite. I didn't like Apocalypse World, but there are some interesting things to be done with the system. I did really like Cinematic Unisystem as well - as in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, but it didn't seem to catch on.
What did you like about Unisystem in particular?
Quote from: ArrozConLeche;1041105What did you like about Unisystem in particular?
I liked Cinematic Unisystem for being easy to run. I liked how only the player rolls, and how NPCs are easy to generate by having simplified stats. The damage system was simple and worked well. Character creation was point-based and flexible but not too complicated like GURPS and HERO. The drama point handling was a nice way to get a mix of powerful and not-so-powerful PCs that fit with source material.
For comparison to some other systems:
- Fate at base handles simplified NPCs in that either an NPC is a nearly featureless mook with no stats, or it requires a full PC write-up. I thought the Cinematic Unisystem approach was more practical, allowing NPCs to have some character while reducing bookkeeping.
- Savage Worlds damage involves characters losing actions, which contributes to a death spiral that makes fights anticlimactic and also sucks for players who have to sit around doing nothing. I prefer combat to end quickly once people start dropping.
Quote from: jhkim;1041134I liked Cinematic Unisystem for being easy to run. I liked how only the player rolls, and how NPCs are easy to generate by having simplified stats. The damage system was simple and worked well. Character creation was point-based and flexible but not too complicated like GURPS and HERO. The drama point handling was a nice way to get a mix of powerful and not-so-powerful PCs that fit with source material.
For comparison to some other systems:
- Fate at base handles simplified NPCs in that either an NPC is a nearly featureless mook with no stats, or it requires a full PC write-up. I thought the Cinematic Unisystem approach was more practical, allowing NPCs to have some character while reducing bookkeeping.
- Savage Worlds damage involves characters losing actions, which contributes to a death spiral that makes fights anticlimactic and also sucks for players who have to sit around doing nothing. I prefer combat to end quickly once people start dropping.
Cool. I'm going to check this system out.Thanks!
For me, it's Barbarians of Lemuria by a WIDE margin. It's simple, effective, adaptable, and has some original concepts that work.
DCC is cool as hell and it gets my second place vote just for concept and art. It's a great read, but I don't think it is really all that different from D&D. It's just D&D turned up to 11.
Savage Worlds could have been a contender. I wanted it to be the universal generic rules-light engine that worked for everything. It isn't. The mechanics are too wonky and gimmick-ridden. I do give it massive props for the diversity of settings.
Quote from: jhkim;1041134- Savage Worlds damage involves characters losing actions, which contributes to a death spiral that makes fights anticlimactic and also sucks for players who have to sit around doing nothing. I prefer combat to end quickly once people start dropping.
A rather important bit of recent errata is that passing a spirit roll to remove shaken let's you take non free actions immediately rather than needing a raise to take non free actions. A minor but big change that addresses this kind of complaint that I've heard a lot.
Most enemies should be extras, the fight should only drag out like that when the players are losing. But yeah, a GM can spend their bennies to overly lengthen fights. Which as a GM, I consider those bennies my pacing/fudging dice pool. I never normally fudge rolls so bennies give me that tool without making me feel like I'm cheating.
Even though Savage Worlds is my favorite RPG, I will admit that it's only OK. But for me it's overflowing with OKness across a myriad of genres and runs pretty quickly and easily. It's OK in all the right places, which is what I need more from an RPG than anything else.
Quote from: Madprofessor;1041165For me, it's Barbarians of Lemuria by a WIDE margin. It's simple, effective, adaptable, and has some original concepts that work.
I lost my copy, which is why I keep forgetting it, but man, I really do love this game. I can't choose, both SW and BoL have provided me with months of fun for a cheap price, they're not perfect and don't quite fit into other genres for me, but for what they do...
And that's the thing I don't do generic systems, I buy themed systems which usually have a setting or implied setting that goes along with it. So I can't really pick just one, but of late for Pulp style gaming and S&S, those two are the bees knees.
Quote from: Madprofessor;1041165Savage Worlds could have been a contender. I wanted it to be the universal generic rules-light engine that worked for everything. It isn't. The mechanics are too wonky and gimmick-ridden. I do give it massive props for the diversity of settings.
I prefer keeping it into a Pulp style myself
Quote from: Rhedyn;1041173A rather important bit of recent errata is that passing a spirit roll to remove shaken let's you take non free actions immediately rather than needing a raise to take non free actions. A minor but big change that addresses this kind of complaint that I've heard a lot.
Ooo, is there an official statement of this somewhere?
Quote from: Rhedyn;1041173Most enemies should be extras, the fight should only drag out like that when the players are losing. But yeah, a GM can spend their bennies to overly lengthen fights. Which as a GM, I consider those bennies my pacing/fudging dice pool. I never normally fudge rolls so bennies give me that tool without making me feel like I'm cheating.
The only time I use Villain Bennies if the players splatter the main villain in one shot. The ONLY time, I've ever used it.
Quote from: Rhedyn;1041173Even though Savage Worlds is my favorite RPG, I will admit that it's only OK. But for me it's overflowing with OKness across a myriad of genres and runs pretty quickly and easily. It's OK in all the right places, which is what I need more from an RPG than anything else.
I think it's pretty good for what it started off as, after it's Deadlands transition.
Quote from: Christopher Brady;1041181Ooo, is there an official statement of this somewhere?
https://www.peginc.com/official-shaken-updates-ready-for-download/
And the file it's referring to seems to be https://s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/peg-freebies/SW_FAQ_May_2015.pdf
Quote from: jcfiala;1041183https://www.peginc.com/official-shaken-updates-ready-for-download/
And the file it's referring to seems to be https://s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/peg-freebies/SW_FAQ_May_2015.pdf
Thanks Boss! It's going into my Ripper's folder right now. As well as Relentless...
Quote from: Christopher Brady;1041181Ooo, is there an official statement of this somewhere?
That's the rule in the current pdf of the core rule book. Printed copies are not updated with that bit of errata.
Quote from: ArtemisAlpha;1040273If I count Fate as a derivative of Fudge
Thank you. I always try to evangelize that Fate grew out of Fudge. It's kind of spooky how often even the loudest proponents of Fate either don't know or don't talk about it.
Quote from: DavetheLost;1039578Fate of the Norns: Ragnarok No dice! Use runes instead. Truly tactically engaging game play. Epic Viking superheroes at the end of the world. A breath of fresh air and an actually inovative game design.
I'll second this. I've played most of the systems people talk about. I played Savage World...it seemed to me like 3rd Edition D&D with all the 2nd Edition D&D taken out of it...it was okay. But what really got me excited was the innovation of Fate of the Norns: Ragnarok, a tremendously deep setting, truly innovative and interesting mechanics (that are also, actually, playable) and some pretty nifty art on top of all that. It's the only new game I've cared about in a good long while.
//Panjumanju