Question:

Are they doing anything really new or did they just collect all the mechanics from any games that used the BRP System, clean them up and stick them in a book?

I am just curious

Quote from: Blue DevilQuestion:

Are they doing anything really new or did they just collect all the mechanics from any games that used the BRP System, clean them up and stick them in a book?

I am just curious

I suppose you could say it's a collection of bits from various BRP games.  However, all of he rules in the current book were reexamined, playtested thoroughly, and cleaned up where they needed minor tweaks and changes.

Essentially, there's a 'core' version of the BRP rules in the book (closest to Stormbringer 5) and then tons of optional rules drawn from numerous other BRP sources.

And the rules are very modular and easy to morph/meld as well.  For example, I've been working on combining the Sanity rules (from CoC) and the Fatigue rules (from RQIII) into what I'm calling "Stress".  This is a system for tracking stress based on constant effects of fear, paranoia and terror.  It's specifically designed to model te sorts of mental degeneration you see in a zombie film like Night of the Living Dead, etc.

Point being "Stress" is a new rule I'm coming up with, but is directly drawn from concepts presented in the core book.

How's that for a complete tangent?

Quote from: Christmas ApeMy players love percentile systems more than I do - I find them fiddly, and missing by 1% sucks - but I guess I can hack up some kind of "near miss" system for rolls within 5 of success.

Psst!  Here's a secret.  Round all percentile scores up to the nearest multiple of 5 and leave it at that.  That's how RQ did it originally.  Take it one step further by rounding up to the nearest multiple of 5 and divide by 5, giving you a score from 1 to 20.  Roll a d20 instead of percentile dice.  That's essentially how King Arthur Pendragon does it.

Just remember that it's all abstraction.  Each single percentile over or under a multiple of 5 is largely insignificant when rolling for success.  Instead, it really serves as an "experience point" for the players, giving them a sense that their character is improving toward the next incremental level of mastery.

Can I start singing the praises of BRP's experience mechanics now?

Quote from: zombenPoint being "Stress" is a new rule I'm coming up with, but is directly drawn from concepts presented in the core book.

How's that for a complete tangent?

Not nearly tangential enough.  You left out schoolgirls' panties.

!i!

Quote from: Ian AbsentiaNot nearly tangential enough.  You left out schoolgirls' panties.

i'll see that tangent and raise a set of tentacles!

ah shit, i didn't just go there. . .

I've noticed that quite a few threads lately tend to end up with discussions of schoolgirls........nicely done, kudos to you all!  

Thanks for the pre-review (or whatever the appropriate term is) Zomben, I will probably be among those who check out BRP once it is published.  I've had great experience in the past using BRP materials in my RQ games and IMO the genius of the system is the versatility.  My poor RQ players have been hit with Pan Tangians, Gran Bretanians, Great Old Ones, and even stuff from Corum, Ringworld and Elfquest (not all in one game of course).

For that reason alone, as well as my fondness for Chaosium, I'm going to pick up a copy.