Now, I've come to love D&D, thanks to the joys of 3rd Edition.  

I love the playstyle, killing things, takign their stuff, collecting XP which can then be used to turn your character into a total badass, through the use of a character system that's a near perfect blend of guided and customizable.  (Note here though, that this isn't ALL D&D is about, there's more than enough room for roleplay, you just get to roleplay AND be a murderous badass at the same time)  I love the psuedo-setting-ness of things.  There's a distinct and detailed mythology to the D&D game, all the specific magic trinkets and spells and things.  

But the thing is, I'm not a huge fantasy fan.  And I'm also getting moderately tired of said mythology.  I know all the classes, I know all the gear, there's nothing "new" left in it.

So what I'd like, is a game that takes that same approach, the D20 rules and all, and the same playstyle and approach to the game mythology, and does a sci-fi game with it.

But I know of no such game.  In fact, I know of no games, period, that really do what D&D does.  That wierd combination of generic and specific, the mechanics, it's all awesome to me.

So where the fuck are the clones?  Where the fuck is my +4 laser pistol of disintegration?  

You'd think that with a game as phenomenally successful as D&D 3.0 would've had a sci-fi clone by now, something that's just the same game with a coat of laserchrome paint slapped over the top, like the old Buck Rogers game or Gamma World did with 2nd Ed.

But it ain't there that I know of, and it makes me sad.

Um. D20 Future?

Quote from: mattormegUm. D20 Future?

No.  Not the same thing as I'm thinking at all.  If they'd actually done "D&D in the future" instead of "D20 Modern in the future with some halfassed campaign settings ripped from old Amazing Engine supplements" then yeah, great.  

But D20 Modern and D&D are not the same game, and worse still, D20 Modern sucks.

Have you tried Dragon Star?

It sounds right about what you're looking for.  It IS D&D in Space.

Good call. I had completely forgotten about Dragonstar.

Quote from: joewolzHave you tried Dragon Star?

It sounds right about what you're looking for.  It IS D&D in Space.

I might have to check that out.  It still has a lot of the fantasy stuff still in it, but if it actually does enoguh new and sci-fi flavored stuff whilst still feeling like D&D the game, it could be a lot of fun.

DragonStar is a good choice for you, J, as it is just D&D in space.  You can use all the core D&D rules (it was made for 3.0 but I don't see a problem using it with 3.5) and the new stuff introduced in DragonStar without any trouble.

While you are less interested in d20 Future, I really think you might like Dawning Star.  While it's not quite my cup of tea, there are a lot of abandoned ruins, space stations, ancient alien weapons, and other things that pretty much make the game D&D in space.  I have a review of it up here if you're interested.  A review of Dawning Star: Helios Rising, covering the whole system, has been submitted and should be posted within the week.  It really expands the science fiction aspects of the setting.

QuoteDragonStar is a good choice for you, J, as it is just D&D in space. You can use all the core D&D rules (it was made for 3.0 but I don't see a problem using it with 3.5) and the new stuff introduced in DragonStar without any trouble.

I think with this comment, you perhaps misunderstand what I mean.  In a way, I do want D&D in space, but not in the sens of the mythology itself, but in the sense of the playstyle and mechanical approach.

I want D&D the game in space, not D&D the setting transplanted into space.  For the latter I can just rip off the old Spelljammer setting.  Dragonstar though, does intrigue me, because it does appear to add some actual scifi- flavor to it, while keeping a lot of the D&D setting stuff.  

I guess the best comparison for the kind of similarity I'm looking for might be comparing Diablo II to Space Hack or Restricted Area.  At their core, the gameplay is the same, it's the setting and the specifics that are different.  That's sort of what I'm lookign for.

Then just take the blasters, cyberware, spaceships, magi-tech, and other elements from DragonStar and run it as D&D the system in space.  The actual setting isn't that detailed and is pretty much an updated Spelljammer with high technology.

The premise of DragonStar is that one prime material world finally developed space flight, spread it throughout the galaxy, and now dragon noble houses rule over all of known space.

Quote from: C.W.RichesonThen just take the blasters, cyberware, spaceships, magi-tech, and other elements from DragonStar and run it as D&D the system in space.  The actual setting isn't that detailed and is pretty much an updated Spelljammer with high technology.

The premise of DragonStar is that one prime material world finally developed space flight, spread it throughout the galaxy, and now dragon noble houses rule over all of known space.

Oh I'm definitely going to check out Dragonstar, I just wanted to be a bit more specific as to what I was looking for, in case there were any other recommendations people had.  

I think that this will be your best bet. Just remove the elves n' shit and you're ready to roll.

It isn't D20 rules, but the XXVc game from 1990 sounds like it fits the general bill.

There's always "star frontiers", and you can download the PDF version of it and most of it's mkods for free, legally.

Quote from: GabrielIt isn't D20 rules, but the XXVc game from 1990 sounds like it fits the general bill.

The Buck Rogers game is actually one I've already some intention of tracking down.  I've played the Genesis game based on the rules, and it was kinda cool.

And I didn't know about Star Frontiers, I shall have to check that out.

Quote from: J ArcaneThe Buck Rogers game is actually one I've already some intention of tracking down.  I've played the Genesis game based on the rules, and it was kinda cool.

And I didn't know about Star Frontiers, I shall have to check that out.

It's got a website with the rulebooks and modules available, they're old school but weren't bad for a basic rpg.

BTW, I remember seeing "J Arcane banned" at the commie game site a while back. What got you banned there if I may ask?