Let's chat about Fading Suns!

Spinachcat · March 02, 2011, 06:49:36 PM

I have always loved the Fading Suns setting. Very grand space opera that can be used for all sorts of campaigns. Also, I enjoy how easy the setting has been to port over to whatever RPG system I want.

What cool stuff have you done with Fading Suns?

crkrueger · March 02, 2011, 06:59:56 PM

Quote from: Spinachcat;443429I have always loved the Fading Suns setting. Very grand space opera that can be used for all sorts of campaigns. Also, I enjoy how easy the setting has been to port over to whatever RPG system I want.

What cool stuff have you done with Fading Suns?

Other then read a whole lot of it, not much. Fadings Suns for me has always been the one that got away. Thinking of taking a look at Call to Arms: Noble Armada by Mongoose to see if it's any good. If so, in another universe where I have unlimited prep time, I'd like to run it using maybe Traveller or MRQII.

Silverlion · March 02, 2011, 07:24:28 PM

Quote from: Spinachcat;443429I have always loved the Fading Suns setting. Very grand space opera that can be used for all sorts of campaigns. Also, I enjoy how easy the setting has been to port over to whatever RPG system I want.

What cool stuff have you done with Fading Suns?

Sadly nothing. I recently re-read it to get acquainted with it, but I've too many things to playtest right now.

I'd love to play it though.

Simlasa · March 02, 2011, 07:41:32 PM

I've got most everything that came out for FS... it seemed like a more playable version of the 40K setting... but alas, I've also read a bunch of it but never played. I'd always figured I'd morph it to Call of Cthulhu/BRP when the time came... which it didn't.
Bits of it did creep into a Traveller game I ran for a while... along with some SLA Industries elements.

RPGPundit · March 03, 2011, 08:09:14 AM

"The one that got away" is exactly what I was thinking. I like the very general idea but there's so much about the implementation that got in the way that I never have nor would run this game as it is (versus as how I imagine it should be).

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The Butcher · March 04, 2011, 10:53:07 AM

Read a lot about it, and had a friend who owned it, but between D&D and oWoD, we never actually got around to playing it back in the day.

I suspect it would make a bitchin' great setting for Starblazer Adventures, though.

RPGPundit · March 05, 2011, 12:47:32 AM

Quote from: The Butcher;443752Read a lot about it, and had a friend who owned it, but between D&D and oWoD, we never actually got around to playing it back in the day.

I suspect it would make a bitchin' great setting for Starblazer Adventures, though.

You know, I hadn't given it a lot of thought, but yes, it would.

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Hackmaster · March 05, 2011, 04:01:03 PM

I picked it up when it first came out and it was a great read. In the end it didn't really grab me as something I'd want to play or run as I prefer a bit more hard sci fi and less of the fantasy twist. Whenever they get around to releasing the 3rd edition, I'll probably pick it up just to read.

RPGPundit · March 06, 2011, 07:19:14 PM

Again, I think I like the idea far more than the execution: the concept of a late-universe sci-fi game where intergalactic society has basically gone on a long slow decline into obscurantism, and the stars are dying out, that's fucking awesome. The particular way they presented it in FS, not so much.

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Bloody Stupid Johnson · March 06, 2011, 07:52:42 PM

I think I'd agree with that too, though I'm not big on SF games in any case.

On the system...I've mostly forgotten but I recall thinking that character's chance of succeeding on most checks looked pretty low. I remember thinking at the time that the result point system was weird, but don't recall the specifics.

Spinachcat · March 06, 2011, 10:56:25 PM

Quote from: RPGPundit;443537I like the very general idea but there's so much about the implementation that got in the way that I never have nor would run this game as it is (versus as how I imagine it should be).

What would you change?

RPGPundit · March 07, 2011, 11:17:58 AM

Quote from: Spinachcat;444330What would you change?

I don't know if anything specific except for everything specific. I would just take the basic idea of "medievalism in space, dying universe, dark age of galactic civilization" and do it from scratch.

I think that FS has some of the ponderous splatbookosity of games made in the high period of the White-Wolf Swine's reign. Too much cleverness for its own sake, and ponderous fluff-focus that just bogs you down. The setting the way they made it is too flowery in its detail, too ponderous, and just keeps trying too hard to be "deep".

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Pseudoephedrine · March 07, 2011, 11:31:36 AM

I tried it once online. It was OK, but more fun to read about than actually play. 40K scratches the same itch more effectively.

Spinachcat · March 07, 2011, 03:03:48 PM

Quote from: RPGPundit;444399I would just take the basic idea of "medievalism in space, dying universe, dark age of galactic civilization" and do it from scratch.

Sounds like a good setting for Stars Without Number.

Werekoala · March 07, 2011, 04:23:32 PM

Same reaction as most of the rest - got it, read it, loved it, never used it. Interesting that we all have similar experiences with it...

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