Some friends and I have recently Skype-played a game using some older D20 systems, but I'd like something a bit better.  We already have our setting, I'm just looking to see if there's a better system for it.

Alternatively, if you can think of a better way to play it out- I'm all ears.

Overview:

It's an alternative-reality mashup of grimdark Victorian-Era Europe and Weird West USA.

Elements of the supernatural are well-known and accepted as part of reality, to some degree.  A man may know that fae creatures exist, but he's never seen one and may believe it to be the same as an old storybook drawing.  

The heroes are agents of an organization that's existed since the Roman Empire, under a variety of names.  Supernatural elements have constantly tried to destroy the organization- so a decentralized system works best.

Weird science is a very real part of every day life.  For example, there's electrical locomotives and lights.  A good example of what this would look like would be the Dishonored video game.

Dr. Van Helsing is long-dead, but he's left behind an extensive manual for slaying the undead and other creatures.  However, his studies are only 'physiology' and very little mysticism is involved in his tactical doctrine... unfortunately, this is not always helpful.

The Dracula family is very much alive, though their patriarch Vlad has been laid to rest.  They're sort of a heavy antagonist, but act by proxy in many ways.  Also, the family is politically divided between those who want to keep the supernatural world balanced and those who want to rule humanity. Wallachia, Romania maintains a strong political presence in the world as a superpower in its own right.

The 2nd edition Ravenloft setting box has some good bits. About curses and gothic horror spin on D&D. I really liked the idea of the powers rules, corrupting players who do bad stuff.

Lamentations of the Flame Princess, the dungeons are gonzo wierd fantasy gore horror. The system itself has some worthwhile stuff, but the modules are where the meat of the game is.

In fact, LOTFP is a pretty good example of how to use the old d20 systems to good effect in a specific setting, by how you approach adventure creation and play.

Quote from: Ratman_tf;898044The 2nd edition Ravenloft setting box has some good bits. About curses and gothic horror spin on D&D. I really liked the idea of the powers rules, corrupting players who do bad stuff.

Lamentations of the Flame Princess, the dungeons are gonzo wierd fantasy gore horror. The system itself has some worthwhile stuff, but the modules are where the meat of the game is.

In fact, LOTFP is a pretty good example of how to use the old d20 systems to good effect in a specific setting, by how you approach adventure creation and play.

You know, I still have an old Ravenloft book somewhere that looks like it survived some kind of war (I was a kid, cut me some slack).  

Does this LotFP have rules for things like firearms, and if not- does the D20 system rules for things like revolvers, lever-actions, etc. work well with it?

Rippers Resurrected for Savage Worlds is very close to what you are doing; the changes you'd want to make would be more along the lines of downplaying or removing elements than adding them.

Quote from: Crüesader;898045You know, I still have an old Ravenloft book somewhere that looks like it survived some kind of war (I was a kid, cut me some slack).  

Does this LotFP have rules for things like firearms, and if not- does the D20 system rules for things like revolvers, lever-actions, etc. work well with it?

I don't remember if LOTFP has firearms. I don't think so. (My PDF of the rules is on my backup HD right now.)
Looks like the Player Core Book has rules for old flintlocks and the like.

http://therpgpundit.blogspot.com/2014/03/rpgpundit-reviews-lamentations-of-flame.html

Quote from: Ratman_tf;898057I don't remember if LOTFP has firearms. I don't think so. (My PDF of the rules is on my backup HD right now.)
Looks like the Player Core Book has rules for old flintlocks and the like.

http://therpgpundit.blogspot.com/2014/03/rpgpundit-reviews-lamentations-of-flame.html

I downloaded the rules as soon as I saw that they were free, LOL.

Is Pundit's game workable with a D20 system?  Those monsters I saw on the pages look interesting.

Quote from: Crüesader;898059I downloaded the rules as soon as I saw that they were free, LOL.

Is Pundit's game workable with a D20 system?  Those monsters I saw on the pages look interesting.

That, I cannot answer. Hopefully Pundit or someone will field that one.

First step of my suggest-a-system algorithm is to gauge expectations.

What do you want the system to do? What do you want your game to play like?

In this case, you already have a system; what is it, and what would you say are its strengths and weaknesses as it applies to your game in particular?

Content-wise, Leagues of Adventure + Leagues of Gothic Horror seems like it would be a good fit. And it's a nice little system to boot.

As a supplement, I think Masque of the Red Death would be a good one to check out. As for system I think I would use Sabres and Witchery. It might require a hacking, so to speak to add more modern firearms. But that's pretty minor IMHO.

The 2E Van Richten Guidebooks are a great resource. He is basically Ravenloft's Van Helsing and the guides are manuals for hunting different types of monsters. A lot of resources in them for GMs to help make monsters unique and interesting.

This. There's already a 2nd edition out, afaik.