I haven't bought anything new in a long time or kept up with the newest games. Tell me about some good stuff that came out last year. Especially interested in traditional fantasy, but don't feel confined to that (also like space opera and supers)
ACKS II is really good IMO. got kICKSTARTED END OF 23 but I got the PDFs in 24.
Won't run it soon, though, I think I need to build up to it with my current group.
A true relation of the great virginia disastrum 1633- The best thing published by LotFP in recent history, I think.
Gods of the Forbideen North Vol. 2- super verbose but pretty cool, a huge sprawling campaign ending with a megudungeon that will be kickstarted net month I think.
Khosura: King of the Wastelands- Gabor Lux does S&S, nuff said.
RE: ACKS II, I was interested in this but it looks like it's over 1000 pages in total or something for the main books; is that right?
The question then becomes WHY would I need that much stuff? Not being an ass here, just what is compelling enough about it to justify three huge books when I can use the two original B/X books or Labyrinth Lord with 1/10th the number of pages.
Barbarian of Lemuria (Mythic edition) - The PDF landed in 2024 so this counts. I'm very impressed with this game. The system is clean (2d6+stat/profession TN 9+). Really nice production, black and white line art hearkens more to Frank Frazetta than it does to Erol Otus, and just oozes S&S greatness off every single page. Single book, has everything you need to run any kind of campaign you could want. More books incoming. I'm all on board.
Savage Worlds Sci-Fi Companion - Blah Blah Blah Savage Worlds Blah Blah Does Everything Blah Blah Now with Lasers.
Legend of Ghost Mountain (Savage Worlds)- Chinese Wuxia fantasy setting. Really solid. Introduces a bunch of martial arts rules that cleanly meld right into the standard rules among other Wuxia genre options.
Quote from: a_wanderer on January 08, 2025, 02:51:28 AMKhosura: King of the Wastelands- Gabor Lux does S&S, nuff said.
Hot damn. Got to check that out.
Quote from: Brad on January 08, 2025, 09:12:53 AMRE: ACKS II, I was interested in this but it looks like it's over 1000 pages in total or something for the main books; is that right?
The question then becomes WHY would I need that much stuff? Not being an ass here, just what is compelling enough about it to justify three huge books when I can use the two original B/X books for Labyrinth Lord with 1/10th the number of pages.
Closer to 1500 in 3 books.
It's a fair question, I'm running a MUCH lighter game right now so I get your meaning but as the campaign gets longer, I find myself adding more and more to the game, looking for solutions elsewhere to bolt onto the game and it can get tiresome.
Now, I'm striving for a degree of simulation that may not be required by others, but that is appealing to me and I can say I've never seen anything more complete in this regard. From basic economic consistency to stuff I didn't even think about (like capturing and breeding rare creatures for profit)- it's all covered and works well together.
I can give you my top reasons for backing it (in PDF, as I live abroad and with shipping and taxes it wouldn't cost an arm and a leg):
1. It delivers (on paper, haven't run it yet) on the promise of a true full, rags to riches, then domain play game loop that doesn't break down,incentivizes changing up their playstyle and conquering lands when the time comes, with a support for how adventures and conflicts look like at that level.
2. Seems very modular- you can keep things on a surface level or dive insanely deep (like, excel spreadsheets deep) and it works the same, so you may not use all of the 1500 pages often, but everything is there if you decide you do, and it won't mess with your established world.
3. Grounded world- sure, I mentioned the economy but it extends to everthing in the world: how many X level wizards in a certain size army? How much grain can be grown is a certain area? It may seem superfluous l, but when you're trying to raise an army, it's relevant.
4. Flexible classes: First, it has a wide range of possible viable play niches. Second, I like knowing I have access to the blueprint that was used to build all the classes in the game, so if I need to tweak something (or build my own) I don't have to guess or hope for the best. Seemingly not a problem in simple systems, but then we get to high levels and people start grumbling about quadratic wizards, which leads to the next point:
5. It claims to have solved that problem of fighters feeling less useful or powerful in higer level play. This means more peace of mind for me in the long run and an easier time running rival parties etc.
6. I didn't know much about ACKS, stumbled across the writer's YT channel and really liked what I heard, this is actually how I came to want to buy this game. Sound game designand GMing principles (even if not everything is to my personal taste.
I'm no expert on this system by any stretch of the imagination, people on their discord could explain it much better (and probably be more succinct, this became a wall of text), but I feel this fills the niche of the campaign I dream of running.
Plus I have players that really love this aspect of the game- one of them is literally clearing pirates to secure an exclusive trade route because they took over a fishing village and aim to rival the main shipping hib of the country, in an effort to amass political power. I have to make most of it up as I go, and it's very draining.
I have OSE:A, read ALL, they seem to gloss over much of this.
Fabula Ultima was 2023, BUUUUT the Game Master's Toolkit and the Techno Fantasy atlas both dropped in 2024, so that totally counts, right?
I liked the Moria: Through the Doors of Durin sourcebook for The One Ring.
Quote from: krillin on January 08, 2025, 01:10:04 PMFabula Ultima was 2023, BUUUUT the Game Master's Toolkit and the Techno Fantasy atlas both dropped in 2024, so that totally counts, right?
I had a blast running Fabula, I even created a monster generator for it.
Endless Monsters (https://tangent-zero.com/endless_monsters.htm)
True-D6: Printable Edition.
DT-RPG - True D6 (https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/481292/true-d6-printed-edition)
Previously the game was text only. Now it's a proper RPG with art.
It's nearly the same rules as Kogarashi, a Samurai game I like.
The game is roll under your stats, but roll high because the roll is also your damage. All rolls use just the humble 1D6. Armor is also a roll to reduce damage. Stats are assigned by the player from a fixed list. Magic is a skill roll (again, roll under your stat, but roll high). Classes are customizable. Dual classing is common. A Paladin is a half warrior, half cleric.
I'm a big fan of Raging Swan Press. Classic old-school feel, black and white line art, system neutral stuff, dual format PDFs (one for print and one for tablet). If you buy a product, you get updates for free.
In 2024, they released or updated:
Dread Thingnomicon: 476 pages of random tables. System neutral.
Dread Lairnomicon: 100 different types of monstrous lairs. System neutral.
Shadowed Keep on the Borderlands: Classic old-school adventure. OSR and 5E versions.
https://www.ragingswanpress.com/free
I am also enamored with ACKS II, a splendiferous work of art and love.
Toll Lord Games Amazing Adventures came out in hardcover (Players and Chronicle Keeper's Guides)—some fun stuff here.
Quote from: tenbones on January 08, 2025, 10:14:46 AMBarbarian of Lemuria (Mythic edition) - The PDF landed in 2024 so this counts. I'm very impressed with this game. The system is clean (2d6+stat/profession TN 9+). Really nice production, black and white line art hearkens more to Frank Frazetta than it does to Erol Otus, and just oozes S&S greatness off every single page. Single book, has everything you need to run any kind of campaign you could want. More books incoming. I'm all on board.
I was just about to post about that as well! I'm waiting for the retail release so for me it'll be a 2025 release personally.
I just got the True Relation of the Great Virginia Disastrum of 1633. Not done reading it yet (its enormous) but so far it seems pretty amazing. The setting is not my thing, but the ideas in it are wonderful and I am enjoying its presentation very much.
Quote from: Joey2k on January 07, 2025, 11:25:18 PMI haven't bought anything new in a long time or kept up with the newest games. Tell me about some good stuff that came out last year. Especially interested in traditional fantasy, but don't feel confined to that (also like space opera and supers)
My How to Make a Fantasy Sandbox was released this year and I also released the example setting as it own product.
How to Make a Fantasy Sandbox
https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/470041/how-to-make-a-fantasy-sandbox
(https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjTImqCPcLA8jz69EjQnSrHlApEkUH1eRwtzi01kfOtAus0Z9A4vQvZZtOSg6EFROMGojfbDucgGJ65mhRTwVpU5Xo7guJhAx4LkfwZHiL5hZgpGQ2_2meoktbU7vlN7RRIGW5oUuoQZILbI7EbzaZdyA566QooC2mBwUlgXs8XTm6jK7BAgdgeBmenN8WL)
The blog posts the book is based on.
https://batintheattic.blogspot.com/2009/08/how-to-make-fantasy-sandbox.html
The Isle of Pyade
https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/470159/the-isle-of-pyade?src=hottest_filtered
(https://d1vzi28wh99zvq.cloudfront.net/images/2993/470159.webp)
The True Virginia Disastrum is great in its ambition and execution.
I have a soft spot for Hyena Child (LotFP) as it scratch my arabic adventure itch.