Quote from: Zaph on September 04, 2022, 03:34:13 PM

Quote from: 3catcircus on September 04, 2022, 10:28:59 AM
Who says they're violating rules of good play?  There is no right way to play.  The only rule is to have fun and only play with those who enjoy playing the same way.

I've played off and on over the past almost 40 years. First was BECMI and AD&D 1e with friends from middle and high school. There was a lot of emphasis on "getting it right." "No, the rules say it's a +1 on the weapon vs armor type chart "

Next was "D&D" with classmates at Nuke Prototype where it was almost completely theater of the mind ("You guys are jolted awake during the bus ride out to the site. But not by the usual guards checking badges at the entrance, where you know you can get another 10 minutes of sleep on the rest of the ride between the main entrance to the NRF parking lot. You are instead jolted awake by a loud explosion. There is a tear in the fabric of reality. You see a man on a coal-black stallion snorting fire standing on top of the rubble where the guard shack used to be. What do you do?"

Next was AD&D 2e with other guys on my boat (always when inport, never at sea) where most of the time was spent drinking, intermixed with playing at the gaming club at the local uni.

Never played in college.

3e at game stores as RPGA events.

Then 3.5, PF1e, and 5e with my current group where we might spend an hour sitting around just talking man shit, followed by arguing out of character as dice fall on the floor. 

However you want to play is the right way, if you can find a group that wants to play the same way.

Hey I'm fine with out of character table talk, chasing dice that ran wild and all that. I know there are some deadly serious DM's and players out there, and I still think they'd recognize the tension that can come out of even those looser games.

Yeah, I tend to be that way, myself. Some of the funniest moments in the games I've been in are in what I call "Character Shadow," which is when you make a metagame joke using your character's voice. This is hilarious, but you have to have fast and loose immersion to appreciate it.

Quote from: Zaph on September 04, 2022, 03:36:45 PM

Quote from: oggsmash on September 04, 2022, 02:54:41 PM

Quote from: Zaph on September 04, 2022, 12:09:02 AM
Oh I'm certainly open to having more tools in my toolbox, for adventure oriented games, what are your other choices? My kids play more archetypal class types rather than fully drawn out characters (they're young and learning), so I'm focusing on more straightforward reliable options, but I posed this to learn more and improve.

  How old are they?  I think D&D is decent if that is your choice, but when my kids were younger (5 and savage worlds was pretty easy for them to grasp and some of the cool stuff people can do is built into the game.  Regarding book keeping on arrows...I think that will depend on your kids.  My daughter was always tracking resources and ammo and such, my son...charged in and went into a berserker rage at first opportunity every time (heck he still does this in a fantasy setting game no matter the rule set we use).  So I think that stuff can be put in or put in the background depending on what they are like and enjoy.

I really need to check out Savage Worlds, is a "universal" ruleset right - lots of potential settings? People have recommended that Index Card RPG, Forbidden Lands (fantasy specific), and the Astonishing Game Engine as rulesets that have lower barriers of entry, particularly for younger players.

  Baseline SW is super low entry, and I find the cards and poker chips do a great deal to grab and keep kid's attention in play.  They are also the most fun "meta game" components of any RPGs I have played (subjective).  I have no experience with any of those games you mention, but SW is super simple regarding success and failure (it can get deeper and much more involved if that is what you want, but on the surface pretty black and white).  As mentioned it is not exactly balanced, but I have doubts kids care about that even a little....they like fun and doing things and SW allows for that to happen pretty early and often.

I must be doing it wrong because I can track arrows and have interesting and meaningful improvised conversations with NPCs.

In a well-designed crunchy game that you've played a few times, the mechanics melt into the background. So put a tick in the "arrows used" box and get back to yelling in your funny accent.

Although I have issues with Mothership's design for other reasons, it's an example of a game that embraces both arrow tracking and improv. The setting demands both attention to resources (and the careful planning that accompanies that) and fast-and-loose interactions with NPCs and monsters.

Edit: Hey, Zaph, Mothership is a hit with the kids here, as they much prefer the Sci-Fi setting and the d99 system is dead simple if you ignore some of the fiddly bits.

Quote from: rytrasmi on September 06, 2022, 09:35:02 AM
Edit: Hey, Zaph, Mothership is a hit with the kids here, as they much prefer the Sci-Fi setting and the d99 system is dead simple if you ignore some of the fiddly bits.

Thanks for that recommendation! I saw it on KS but passed, because it seemed too horror vs sci-fi, but I'll circle back and check it out.

Quote from: oggsmash on September 06, 2022, 05:39:23 AM

  Baseline SW is super low entry, and I find the cards and poker chips do a great deal to grab and keep kid's attention in play.  They are also the most fun "meta game" components of any RPGs I have played (subjective).  I have no experience with any of those games you mention, but SW is super simple regarding success and failure (it can get deeper and much more involved if that is what you want, but on the surface pretty black and white).  As mentioned it is not exactly balanced, but I have doubts kids care about that even a little....they like fun and doing things and SW allows for that to happen pretty early and often.

I had no idea that it had cards and poker chips, those sound like great additions!

Yeah any deck of playing cards will do, and if you dont want the chips (SW has its own to represent bennies) you can use coins/colored stones/etc for bennies instead.  Kids love them.