Riffing off of the previous Zeppelin thread, I was wondering what you guys think is the best pulp system out there.
I'm guessing that Spirit of the Century is too "story gamer" for many people? Has anyone tried BRP Astounding Adventures? What about SW Thrilling Tales?
I like Mini Six RPG best for pulp adventure. Not keen on Savage Worlds combat, too dependent on the Bennies. It felt silly seeing an NPC gang leader ignore hails of bullets in War of the Dead. BRP is too gritty/realistic & generally low-powered - great for Call of Cthulhu or the short ALIENS campaign I ran, not for Indiana Jones or Star Wars.
I am happy with AMAZING ADVENTURES from Troll Lords. It's 1920s Castles & Crusades.
Here's a free Quickstart and adventure
https://trolllord.com/downloads/pdfs/TLG%2076161%20Menace%20of%20the%20Serpent%20God%20Digital.pdf
https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/106153/Amazing-Adventures
Quote from: S'mon;1123322I like Mini Six RPG best for pulp adventure. Not keen on Savage Worlds combat, too dependent on the Bennies. It felt silly seeing an NPC gang leader ignore hails of bullets in War of the Dead. BRP is too gritty/realistic & generally low-powered - great for Call of Cthulhu or the short ALIENS campaign I ran, not for Indiana Jones or Star Wars.
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A bit biased, but... Two-Fisted Tales (http://rpg.deals/2ft)
(https://www.pigames.net/2ft_p/2FT2E_catcover.jpg)
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Well I have the BRP Gold Book which covers various genres, I didn't see any indication the mechanics were a good fit for two-fisted action.
Quote from: Trond;1123316Riffing off of the previous Zeppelin thread, I was wondering what you guys think is the best pulp system out there.
I'm guessing that Spirit of the Century is too "story gamer" for many people? Has anyone tried BRP Astounding Adventures? What about SW Thrilling Tales?
There was a thrad on this a month or two ago.
Some personal favourites.
Marvel Superheroes: TSR: This is a surprisingly versatile system and can easily handle pulp era heroics.
Call of Cthulhu: This can do pulp action surprisingly well. Cthulhu LIVE has a supplement called Shades of Grey specifically to run pulp heroes with the CoC system modiefied for LARPing.
Adventure!: The pulp era version of Aberrant. Does a pretty good job via the modified WOD system.
Mercanaries, Spies & Private Eyes: from flying Buffalo. Though more modern themed. It can handle pulp era to a degree.
Justice Inc. : Hero games system for heroics in the 20s-30s.
Indiana Jones RPG: TSR version: Despite looking a bit... off... it plays fairly well. But does not have anything for running the more fantastical heroes.
And many more!
Quote from: Omega;1123335There was a thrad on this a month or two ago.
Some personal favourites.
Marvel Superheroes: TSR: This is a surprisingly versatile system and can easily handle pulp era heroics.
There is a fan-created module (by 'Dreamslayer') called "In the Shadow of Evil" - it's a WWII era adventure where the PC's globetrot around the world fighting the Axis and it's amazing. It's so over the top fun. I highly recommend MSH fans check it out. You can download it here (https://mega.nz/#!05oylAAY!WyGOuspinThXgJAfmctWukrA2LGmT-S7tQQVUXSeSDU).
MSPE is by far the most underrated pulp game out there.
Hollow Earth Expedition or Leagues of Adventure would probably top my list (both Ubiquity games).
I also like the John Carter of Mars iteration of 2D20, but I find it runs slower and isn't as intuitive as HEX. I blame the meta-currencies. It's still a good game though.
After that, I agree with S'mon on Mini Six. Except I find that using the body points (hp) option fits my idea of pulp more than wound levels does.
Quote from: S'mon;1123333Well I have the BRP Gold Book which covers various genres, I didn't see any indication the mechanics were a good fit for two-fisted action.
Although I haven't tried it for pulps, BRP is a actually very easy to pick and choose the right power level and grittiness. I once ran a very cool Kull/Conan inspired game with it for instance, and it was surprisingly successful (using high percentage values for PCs and the critical wound rules etc, similar to Stormbringer, but it is all in the Golden Book if you look for it)
Quote from: brettmb;1123332A bit biased, but... Two-Fisted Tales (http://rpg.deals/2ft)
(https://www.pigames.net/2ft_p/2FT2E_catcover.jpg)
Author, or just enthusiast? Feel free to tell about the system.
Quote from: Spinachcat;1123324I am happy with AMAZING ADVENTURES from Troll Lords. It's 1920s Castles & Crusades.
Here's a free Quickstart and adventure
https://trolllord.com/downloads/pdfs/TLG%2076161%20Menace%20of%20the%20Serpent%20God%20Digital.pdf
https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/106153/Amazing-Adventures
Agreed. AA is a really neat system, if you like C&C. The essays in the books are well written, including stuff on how to run a Howard-style campaign. Also, AA is being released with a 5E variant and that looks pretty cool, if you like 5E. ;)
Quote from: SavageSchemer;1123379After that, I agree with S'mon on Mini Six. Except I find that using the body points (hp) option fits my idea of pulp more than wound levels does.
M6 is very 'cinematic' oriented rather than literary pulp; I find the Wound Levels system is best for Hollywood pulp like Indiana Jones (or Star Wars of course) where wounds are rare but serious; Body Points gives more of an action-movie, Die Hard or John Wick, type feel.
Quote from: tenbones;1123339There is a fan-created module (by 'Dreamslayer') called "In the Shadow of Evil" - it's a WWII era adventure where the PC's globetrot around the world fighting the Axis and it's amazing. It's so over the top fun. I highly recommend MSH fans check it out. You can download it here (https://mega.nz/#!05oylAAY!WyGOuspinThXgJAfmctWukrA2LGmT-S7tQQVUXSeSDU).
Dragon magazine had a great one involving the Liberty Legion battling an Axis plot. Even sprited them for the MSH-UA project.
Also while not a TTRPG. The PC game Freedom Force has a nice street level feel to it. Though it escalates as the adventure progresses. The sequel is set during WWII I believe.
Polyhedron also had a d20m setting for playing pulp heroes.
Quote from: Trond;1123384Author, or just enthusiast? Feel free to tell about the system.
Editor and Publisher.
The system relies on D10 - D10 roll against a fixed difficulty OR ability check against a random difficulty. Various ability scales can customize your adventures for anywhere from Gritty Noir to Action-Packed Pulp to Golden Age Supers. Both basic and advanced combat keep the action fast-moving with the amount of detail needed at the time. A number of templates make creating characters and villains a snap.
Quote from: Omega;1123411Dragon magazine had a great one involving the Liberty Legion battling an Axis plot. Even sprited them for the MSH-UA project.
Also while not a TTRPG. The PC game Freedom Force has a nice street level feel to it. Though it escalates as the adventure progresses. The sequel is set during WWII I believe.
Yeah I remember that! It was very cool because of the street-level conceit at the jump. Could probably fold a lot of those elements into 'Shadow of Evil'
Quote from: Omega;1123335There was a thrad on this a month or two ago.
Some personal favourites.
Marvel Superheroes: TSR: This is a surprisingly versatile system and can easily handle pulp era heroics.
Call of Cthulhu: This can do pulp action surprisingly well. Cthulhu LIVE has a supplement called Shades of Grey specifically to run pulp heroes with the CoC system modiefied for LARPing.
Adventure!: The pulp era version of Aberrant. Does a pretty good job via the modified WOD system.
Mercanaries, Spies & Private Eyes: from flying Buffalo. Though more modern themed. It can handle pulp era to a degree.
Justice Inc. : Hero games system for heroics in the 20s-30s.
Indiana Jones RPG: TSR version: Despite looking a bit... off... it plays fairly well. But does not have anything for running the more fantastical heroes.
And many more!
I had almost forgotten that I have Justice Inc box somewhere. I wasn't too keen on it on first read through though, some parts of the Hero system just didn't gel with me. I'll take another look. I have to say I love the box art though (also used later by Savage Worlds Thrilling Tales)
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If you are wanting a more RKO Serial level near mundane pulp hero gameplay then Cthulhu LIVE's Shades of Gray is geared for exactly that. And gives some great examples of pulp heroes like The Spider, The Avenger and G-8 and his Battle Aces. That last one featuring several foes that would fit right in with a standard CoC investigation.
Always liked Justice Inc. Quite a fan of Dicey Tales too - since it uses BoL as it's baseline.
And came across another one whole looking up a CoC western book.
Pulp Cthulhu. Still undecided on picking this up yet as according to a friend they just had to drag out how racist and sexist pulps were back then because of course. But past that from the description they gave it sounds like it allows for crating a pretty broad range of adventurers from the relatively mundane to the more mystical or weird science types. Essentially a more fleshed out Shades of Gray.
Two-Fisted Tales
Airship Daedalus - XPG system
Dicey Tales - BoL system
Hollow Earth Expedition - Ubiquity system
Pulp Fantastic - Vortex system (later revived for Savage Worlds, unfortunately)
CoC 7E + Pulp Cthulhu
BRP: Astounding Adventures - not very good
Mercenaries, Spies & Private Eyes - this is a very deadly game, so arguably not the first choice for straight-up pulp adventure
Quote from: 3rik;1123617Two-Fisted Tales
Airship Daedalus - XPG system
Dicey Tales - BoL system
Hollow Earth Expedition - Ubiquity system
Pulp Fantastic - Vortex system (later revived for Savage Worlds, unfortunately)
CoC 7E + Pulp Cthulhu
BRP: Astounding Adventures - not very good
Mercenaries, Spies & Private Eyes - this is a very deadly game, so arguably not the first choice for straight-up pulp adventure
Interesting. So you think Pulp Cthulhu is better than Astounding Adventures? Something specific you don't like about the latter?
I agree that MS&PE can be a rather deadly game as the PCs tend to have very little CON which is also their health points. STR is the other one, vs poison damage. If they never put more points into CON or STR over the course of adventuring then thats all they have and a solid punch can do 1d6+adds damage - though punching damage only renders unconcious unless the attacker declares otherwise. A rapier or remmington revolver does 3+1add damage. Enough to potentially kill a person in one round. A 44 magnum does 7 die of damage. A browning bolt action rifle does 12 die.
Quote from: Omega;1123640I agree that MS&PE can be a rather deadly game as the PCs tend to have very little CON which is also their health points. STR is the other one, vs poison damage. If they never put more points into CON or STR over the course of adventuring then thats all they have and a solid punch can do 1d6+adds damage - though punching damage only renders unconcious unless the attacker declares otherwise. A rapier or remmington revolver does 3+1add damage. Enough to potentially kill a person in one round. A 44 magnum does 7 die of damage. A browning bolt action rifle does 12 die.
I really loved MSPE, but the high damage for weapons was a real bugbear. I've seen a few 'fixes' over the years, but nothing that really worked for me. As we mostly played detective games with it back in the day, it was just about OK for that, as we were only dealing with pistols - and one shot kills were quite popular on the tv shows we were trying to emulate. Then we moved to Call of Cthulhu, and MSPE went back on the shelf.
These days I like something more pulpy, where PCs can pull off the impossible. I am a big fan of BoL, so Dicey Tales was my go to classic 30s/40s pulp game for years. However, Two Fisted Tales was used where we wanted something a little less over the top and more dangerous. Everywhen uses the updated edition of BoL as its base, and there is a 30s/340s supplement being written as we speak - 'Pulse Pounding Pulp'. Not sure when this will arrive, but I've successfully used Everywhen to update Dicey Tales with no problem. Recommended.
HP of all things is the way to go then if you want to emulate that. "damage" is near misses and all that you see in movies and serials and its only that last bullet or two that actually connect and do them in. Note that in alot of these shows everyone who can tends to get behind cover. Preferrably lots of it.
That and dont end up on the business end of a machinegun or any other heavy arms as thats likely the end of you.
Anytime I have encountered players wanting a Pulp game they have who never read or even glanced at any of the source material and they just want pc's not to get injured (never mind actually die), mow down multiple NPCs with a single die roll, never surrender and automatically succeed at anything that is not combat. Pulp was a medium not a genre and characters tended not to die because they were the income of poorly paid writers and bar a few exceptions like DOC Savage not because they were all indestructible .
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Indeed and people forget that these heroes and heroines also got beat up and captured a-lot. They were not invincible or infallible.
Quote from: Gruntfuttock;1123665I really loved MSPE, but the high damage for weapons was a real bugbear.
I liked the lethality myself. When Indiana Jones shoots someone, they die. When he gets shot in the shoulder, he is seriously injured. Conan gets hit in the head with a sword, and only survives because he's wearing a massive helmet, otherwise he'd be dead. Etc.
Quote from: Gagarth;1123709Anytime I have encountered players wanting a Pulp game they have who never read or even glanced at any of the source material and they just want pc's not to get injured (never mind actually die), mow down multiple NPCs with a single die roll, never surrender and automatically succeed at anything that is not combat. Pulp was a medium not a genre and characters tended not to die because they were the income of poorly paid writers and bar a few exceptions like DOC Savage not because they were all indestructible .
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For me, "Pulp" always has more to do with the time period (usually between the wars) combined with a few other things: usually quick story arc, sense of adventure, and often "obvious" villains etc.
Quote from: Brad;1123717I liked the lethality myself. When Indiana Jones shoots someone, they die. When he gets shot in the shoulder, he is seriously injured. Conan gets hit in the head with a sword, and only survives because he's wearing a massive helmet, otherwise he'd be dead. Etc.
And by Conan's own statements barbarians tended to die in droves because they tended to not wear any armour. Over the course of the stories he upgrades his gear some. I'd have to check but I believe he had a chain or scale shirt at the very least. Moreso when he wasnt gambling his gear away.
Quote from: Omega;1123754And by Conan's own statements barbarians tended to die in droves because they tended to not wear any armour. Over the course of the stories he upgrades his gear some. I'd have to check but I believe he had a chain or scale shirt at the very least. Moreso when he wasnt gambling his gear away.
He's wearing armor in many stories. But just as often, he just happens to end up bare-chested or half-naked (kinda like many of the girls in the stories)
BTW I would love to hear more about Chaosium's Astounding Adventures, if anyone has given it a try.
Quote from: Trond;1123731For me, "Pulp" always has more to do with the time period (usually between the wars) combined with a few other things: usually quick story arc, sense of adventure, and often "obvious" villains etc.
You and Gagarth both bring up a good point. Different pulp GMs are going to focus on different definitions of the pulp genre and how they seek to emulate that aspect of the genre in actual play.
"Two Fisted Tales" as a trope is a good breakdown for a GM.
https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/TwoFistedTales
Quote from: Trond;1124200BTW I would love to hear more about Chaosium's Astounding Adventures, if anyone has given it a try.
Its not as extensive as Pulp Cthulhu in some ways. But also lacks any of the SJW undertones far as can tell. It tries to cover all styles of pulps so you have a broad range of skills, powers and gadgets.
Hate to say it. But Pulp C felt more focused and better presented. Also has more on the era. Very YMMV. AA will get the job done. PC will get the job done better... but wants to remind you that pulps were full of racist, sexist, whateverist stuff and thats just terrible.
Quote from: Omega;1124220Its not as extensive as Pulp Cthulhu in some ways. But also lacks any of the SJW undertones far as can tell. It tries to cover all styles of pulps so you have a broad range of skills, powers and gadgets.
Hate to say it. But Pulp C felt more focused and better presented. Also has more on the era. Very YMMV. AA will get the job done. PC will get the job done better... but wants to remind you that pulps were full of racist, sexist, whateverist stuff and thats just terrible.
Ok thanks!
I have bought the Lands of Mystery PDF to go with my Justice Inc. Looks like this is a very nice combo, and I'm enjoying figuring out this oldie. I have never played any Hero game before though, and sometimes I am a bit confused.
For Hero veterans: how does the stun multiplier of guns work? For knives etc the "stunx" is listed explicitly so there's no problem. But for guns it only says basically "minimum stunx is 1, +1 means stunx =1d6, +2 =1d6+1" but I fail to see the pattern here?? So I guess a stunx modifier of 0 means stunx is 1, many guns giving the same Stun as Body damage. Fine. So what if stun modifier is +3? Is it 1d6+2 or 2d6+1?
Quote from: Trond;1124306For Hero veterans: how does the stun multiplier of guns work? For knives etc the "stunx" is listed explicitly so there's no problem. But for guns it only says basically "minimum stunx is 1, +1 means stunx =1d6, +2 =1d6+1" but I fail to see the pattern here?? So I guess a stunx modifier of 0 means stunx is 1, many guns giving the same Stun as Body damage. Fine. So what if stun modifier is +3? Is it 1d6+2 or 2d6+1?
I'm only familiar with HERO from 4E onward, so there may be nuances in the earlier versions I'm not aware of, but for killing attacks, the default Stun Multiplier is a roll of 1d6-1, minimum result of 1, with any Increased STUN Multiplier added to the d6 roll. So +1 = 1d6, +2 = 1d6+1, +3 = 1d6+2.
Quote from: Armchair Gamer;1124322I'm only familiar with HERO from 4E onward, so there may be nuances in the earlier versions I'm not aware of, but for killing attacks, the default Stun Multiplier is a roll of 1d6-1, minimum result of 1, with any Increased STUN Multiplier added to the d6 roll. So +1 = 1d6, +2 = 1d6+1, +3 = 1d6+2.
Thanks! That seems reasonable. In a few sections I get the impression that Justice Inc has been cut down from another rules set (Champions?) and that they could have used some more time editing and clarifying the text.
Quote from: Trond;1124327Thanks! That seems reasonable. In a few sections I get the impression that Justice Inc has been cut down from another rules set (Champions?) and that they could have used some more time editing and clarifying the text.
Overall the same system as Champions. With Tweaks for the setting.
As for the Stun damage. It is as follows
0 = no stun?
-1= 1d6-1 (minimum of 1)
+1 = 1d6
+2 = 1d6+1
+3 = 1d6+2
+4 = 1d6+3
Quote from: Omega;1124386Overall the same system as Champions. With Tweaks for the setting.
As for the Stun damage. It is as follows
0 = no stun?
-1= 1d6-1 (minimum of 1)
+1 = 1d6
+2 = 1d6+1
+3 = 1d6+2
+4 = 1d6+3
Honestly, I don't get this one, and it doesn't seem to follow what was being implied by the other rules ("minimum stun modifier is 1").
Quote from: Trond;1124418Honestly, I don't get this one, and it doesn't seem to follow what was being implied by the other rules ("minimum stun modifier is 1").
Far as I could discern from the book the "minimum stun modifier of 1" means that even with a negative mod you cant go below 1 on a roll. Similar to how other games have a rule like that. So say you roll a 1 and have a -1 mod. Then its still a 1.
There's been some discussion of Tiny Pulp over on the Tiny Cthulhu Kickstarter. I don't know if it will be combined with Tiny Cthulhu or not.
If you aren't familiar with the "Tiny" system the Tiny Supers game is currently PWYW:
https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/274295/Tiny-Supers?affiliate_id=1446
Quote from: Lynn;1124469There's been some discussion of Tiny Pulp over on the Tiny Cthulhu Kickstarter. I don't know if it will be combined with Tiny Cthulhu or not.
If you aren't familiar with the "Tiny" system the Tiny Supers game is currently PWYW:
https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/274295/Tiny-Supers?affiliate_id=1446
Yes it will be combined. Tiny Cthulhu will include sections on pulp and noir style play.
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I had never heard of Astounding Adventures... but man that cover is great! Going google that asap!