What don't you like in your fantasy RPGS

Blackleaf · February 25, 2007, 10:02:07 PM

I don't like it when Fantasy RPGs kill the magic and mystery of their worlds by explaining too much about the ecology, history, politics, and general minutiae of everything. Non-essential statistics, history, maps, and explanations -- all should be used in moderation. I'd rather have less hard details and leave more to everyone's imagination.

grubman · February 26, 2007, 07:00:08 AM

Quote from: C.W.RichesonYeah, nothing sucks more than renaming elves and dwarves as something else. It just creates work for everyone.

I dislike pure vanilla fantasy. I want my fantasy game to do something interesting, have some sort of a twist, or otherwise give me a reason to play it over all the other fantasy games out there.

A superior and fun system that fits you like a glove

I totally agree with your first point...totally disagree with your sectnd

...different strokes for different folks I guess.

But then, I like to play in my own "vanilla" setting, so others peoples settings are just useless to me.

grubman · February 26, 2007, 07:02:47 AM

Quote from: Pierce InverarityCome to think of it, I don't like religion in fantasy games. Not if (as is almost always the case) the god in question is some anthropomorphic dude with a big hammer, or a double axe, or whatever. I can't take these figures seriously.

By extension, therefore, I hate those who do, i.e. clerics.

Ironic...the second ever RPG (Tunnels & Trolls) took the smae stance on clerics and religion.

Balbinus · February 26, 2007, 07:48:18 AM

The problem with clerics is that they are a pure D&Dism, I've read the Song of Roland, it really doesn't include clerics.

In fact, nothing does, they're not part of the sword and sorcery genre and pre-d&d weren't in other forms of fantasy either.

Nowadays, games seem to think clerical magic is a genre staple, but it ain't, it's a d&d staple.

Edit: Actually, the only magic being divine magic would work fine, as lots of sources have priests as the folk with magic, but the arcane/divine split is not from the source material.

Joey2k · February 26, 2007, 08:41:50 AM

Quote from: J ArcaneDude, the bloody Romans built sewers ages before the "medieval" era that most Fantasy goes for, I don't think it's at all a stretch to suggest some utter fantasy world couldn't have them as well.

True. Keep in mind how many fantasy adventure take the PCs into the sewers. For crying out loud, just about every thieves' guild I've ever seen has its headquarters in the sewer.

Quote from: StumpydaveVowel discrimination.

If I have to fight the demon lord Rrr'grrlyx for the mighty sword of Slycndyc so as I can defeat the demon king Brl'gwnt and then travel to the elven vale of dws, then I refuse to go on the quest until someone considers we have to pronounce this stuff.

Ah yes, and don't forget other common tricks for making fantasy names look exotic, like:

-Using the letter "y" instead of "i" (as in "Rrr'grrlyx" above)

-Using the letter "q" instead of "k" (Qarth, Jaqen)

-Throwing in an "h" after random consonants (Jhogo, Rhaegar)

-The dreaded apostrophe shotgun (as in Rrr'grrlyx and Brl'gwnt above).

Imperator · February 26, 2007, 09:20:23 AM

Quote from: Dr Rotwang!From this day on, we are as brothers.

Count me into your family.

Generally speaking, I don't like to find things that are already done in the exact same way in another RPG.

John Morrow · February 26, 2007, 10:40:52 PM

Quote from: TechnomancerTrue. Keep in mind how many fantasy adventure take the PCs into the sewers. For crying out loud, just about every thieves' guild I've ever seen has its headquarters in the sewer.

If they actually hooked those sewers up to toilets in taverns, inns, and private homes, they wouldn't be a very pleasant place to put your thieves guild, now would they?

mythusmage · February 27, 2007, 02:36:26 AM

Quote from: John MorrowIf they actually hooked those sewers up to toilets in taverns, inns, and private homes, they wouldn't be a very pleasant place to put your thieves guild, now would they?

Thieves are why they don't have toilets. Nobody wants a dagger up the ole poop chute. :haw:

Melan · February 27, 2007, 08:20:25 AM

Quest Fantasy. Unless, of course, it is the Quest spell variety, or something like Cugel's banishment by the wizard Iocounu. But anything where you have to collect eight pieces of, take to a mountain to destroy, the Magic Floozum to defeat the Dark Lord is right out.

I want my characters to adventure for its own sake, or materialistic considerations.

danzig138 · February 27, 2007, 01:13:59 PM

I cant really think of anything I don't like in fantasy. Except a lack of battle rifles, but that's only because when I finally get one of my players to run a game, they run D&D. I don't remember the last time I was in a game as a Player where I got to shoot things with guns.

No, wait, I do remember. Second Edition Shadowrun shortly after it came out.

Otherwise, I'm pretty easy-going with regards to fantasy - although I do prefer Conan/Kull-style to Forgotten Realms style.

Wil · February 27, 2007, 04:03:35 PM

Really late to the party but I've been a busy little guy...

I don't like for things to be in the setting or the game just because every other game has them.

I don't particularly like 20,000 nonhuman races.

I don't like random, stupid anachronisms creeping in ("Let's make a module about opening a fast food restaurant in The City!")

I don't like internal inconsistency.

I'm not particularly fond of Tolkienesque fantasy, even when it's done by Tolkien.

I don't like the fantasy setting to be too alien or strange. I may not necessarily want medieval knights running around faux Europe, but I don't want to have to remember what a ghertui or a ragnastrgl is either.