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SciFi tabletop Roleplaying game recommendations?
NWK
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
Hey all,
So several friend and I started playing Dark Heresy a couple weeks ago. It's the first time RPing for pretty much all of us but we've had a good time so far.
The problem is, one of our players doesn't really like the Warhammer 40k universe. Her main issue with it is that the universe is so hopeless, there's no chance for things to get better and the whole Imperium is mired in medieval-times ignorance. That grimdark hopelessness makes it difficult for her to connect with her character and really get into it. We're not that far into our DH campaign and the rest of us are flexible, so it's not a problem to try a different game.
Dungeons and Dragons is the obvious big alternative, but most of us (myself included) would prefer a scifi universe. The idea of Rogue Trader sounded really cool to us. My friend who can't really get into the 40k universe was getting a Firefly vibe from it which she loved, but that's not the case. Rogue Trader is more grimdark 40k.
Can anyone recommend/share some information about other good scifi tabletop RP games? DnD in spaaaaace?
If it's relevant, we're pretty spread out across Europe so we've been playing using skype and roll20.net for our sessions which has worked really well so far.
Thanks
So several friend and I started playing Dark Heresy a couple weeks ago. It's the first time RPing for pretty much all of us but we've had a good time so far.
The problem is, one of our players doesn't really like the Warhammer 40k universe. Her main issue with it is that the universe is so hopeless, there's no chance for things to get better and the whole Imperium is mired in medieval-times ignorance. That grimdark hopelessness makes it difficult for her to connect with her character and really get into it. We're not that far into our DH campaign and the rest of us are flexible, so it's not a problem to try a different game.
Dungeons and Dragons is the obvious big alternative, but most of us (myself included) would prefer a scifi universe. The idea of Rogue Trader sounded really cool to us. My friend who can't really get into the 40k universe was getting a Firefly vibe from it which she loved, but that's not the case. Rogue Trader is more grimdark 40k.
Can anyone recommend/share some information about other good scifi tabletop RP games? DnD in spaaaaace?
If it's relevant, we're pretty spread out across Europe so we've been playing using skype and roll20.net for our sessions which has worked really well so far.
Thanks
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Star Wars: Edge of the Empire has been pretty popular lately. It uses special dice (which should be supported by roll20), but it's pretty easy to pick up.
For crunchier fare, there's Eclipse Phase, but be prepared to read a LOT of rules for that one. Not as easy to pick up.
When you say Science Fiction, do you mean only "space exploration and space opera"? Or are you looking for near-future, transhuman, and/or cyberpunk things, too? What sort of settings in film and TV and other media appeal to you? Or do you simply want something that isn't sword and sorcery? (Super Hero RPGs are pretty fun, too, as are other settings like the Old West or Pirates)
Also, do you like "crunchy" combat? Which is to say, do you like to run combat simulations (like a video game, with hard stats that govern actions) or do you prefer to have more improvised scenes instead of combat (like improv acting or LARPing, less stats and more description)? There are games that cut out the "crunch" entirely, but they tend to be less satisfying for folks who want to build up combat monsters and fight against NPCs. There are also games that are heavy on the simulationist stuff that do not appeal to folks who want to "just wing it" without worrying about rolling dice.
The Serenity RPG is, as Hahnsoo said, based on the Cortex game system. The Cortex system was used wonderfully well in the Marvel Heroic Roleplaying game which did a really nice job of capturing the comic book feel.
While I like it and it's cool it is the exact opposite of something like the 40k games. The 40k games are kinda simulation-y. To do a certain thing will always involve the same rolls of the same skills. Cortex is more narrative-y, the same action could be resolved in a number of different ways depending on the hows and whys of it being done. There is a big difference there and people can definitely like one over the other.
For a horrible metaphor the simulation-y games are more like having expanded options for a board game while the narrative-y games are more like putting someway to resolve conflicts on Cowboys and Indians.
Star Wars is probably the best suggestion for a middle of the road suggestion. The version called SAGA is basically D&D rules but IN SPAAAAACE!!!! The new stuff (Edge of the Empire and Age of Rebellion) put out by Fantasy Flight is more narrative-y but I think is still a little simulation-y. That last bit is totally second hand though. Take it with a big grain of salt.
Im not sure this is a good suggestion for a group that wants a scifi setting with hope
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If you go Star Wars, I'd really heavily suggest trying Edge of the Empire, if only because its dice system sounds really interesting whereas Star Wars Saga Edition just kinda fell flat with my group. We gave it our best, but it kind of falls apart the way d20 Modern does in comparison to D&D, and force-users are predictably overpowered. I'm also biased that way because Edge of the Empire focuses on characters that are about on the level of a smuggler, and smugglers are just the best.
When I say Scifi, I mean all of those things. Doesn't have to be space exploration, can be planet bound (like the DH campaign is). Near-future/cyberpunk stuff is also all good. I can ask the other players for settings they really like, but as I said before Firefly is definitely one of them. I personally don't think I'd really be into Old West/Pirates but the others might be, I'll ask.
re: crunchy combat, I think so yeah. I mean like others have said Dark Heresy is all about the dicerolls and we're okay with that. It's cool and it provides a nice framework for us/the GM to tell the story about how we succeed/fail at stuff.
Yeah, that was the original idea behind us trying out RT because we'd be less (or not at all) beholden to the Imperium and could go have adventures in spaaaaace! I know what you mean about the different view on the tone of the universe, I've read all the Ravenor/Eisenhorn/Gaunt's Ghosts books and enjoyed them a lot. We didn't even go full grimdark and hopeless though. I think the issue was compounded by my friend choosing a Techpriest, which I think is a fairly challenging first character to play, especially for someone new to the lore. So she wasn't all too sure about what she could and couldn't do. When I explained how most tech works in the universe, how it's largely ritualistic and not well understood, that was a turn-off.
The idea of characters who aren't very good at their jobs/have a certain level of ignorance baked in doesn't appeal to her. Which I get.
I'll see what people think about the Star Wars games. I saw that Edge of the Empire uses custom dice, can that work with roll20?
No personal experience with Edge of the Empire, though I've heard it's good.
Though I like the special dice, I do acknowledge that it is an extra cost to play. However, the rulebook contains a table so you can use regular dice (if you don't mind the extra mental effort) and there's a free app for Android phones for dice rolling.
My group has been having a lot of fun with it. It's a fun system and it's Star Wars, so it's pretty great.
There are various roll20 scripts for Edge of the Empire, so it is supported to various degrees.
But really, Serenity RPG should be fine, if you all like Firefly. It's not heavily crunch-based, but it is light on the rules and the dice do matter when it comes to conflict resolution.
Another suggestion would be Diaspora, which is a FATE-based system.
There's also the great granddaddy of all sci-fi spacefaring RPGs, Traveller. The new Traveller Core Rule book (2008) has condensed and simplified the rules. It is notable in that character creation is actually a narrative story (set by various tables in the book), where you accumulate skills as your character is squeezed through several careers/histories.