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[Roleplaying Games] The Old Thread Has Been Slain, A New One Rises From Its Ashes

VanguardVanguard But now the dream is over. And the insect is awake.Registered User, __BANNED USERS regular
edited September 2014 in Critical Failures
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This is the thread where we talk about getting sweaty with dice and pretending to be Elves.

If you've never pretended to be an Elf, we will tell you the correct way to do so.

Maybe you've been dreaming of escape from the Gygaxian torture chamber you've been trapped in since 1974.

We know the way out.

Maybe you've been dreaming about better ways to use the Gygaxian torture chamber.

We know that, too.

Let's start with the basics.

What Is A Roleplaying Game?

A roleplaying game is a more structured version of what you did when you were young. Part improv-theatre, part board game (though usually without the board), it typically involves a group of people taking on the role of one of more characters and acting out their actions in a shared fictional setting. Most games designate one player as the Game Master, who arbitrates the rules, describes the setting, and narrates all of the non-player character's actions. Additionally, most games use a chance-based method to determine the outcome of conflicts and actions, dice being the most common.

Not All Games Are Created Equal

We are truly living in a golden era of roleplaying games. With so many options, it can be hard to know where to start and which game is the right fit for your group. Before going to your friendly, local game store (FLGS) and plunking down on the hot new game of the week, it might be useful to start by sitting down with your group and discussing the kind of game you want to play. Is there a particular setting you want to explore? Genre? How rules-heavy do you want the game to be? All of these are important questions and there are no right answers. Each group is different and you will likely have to experiment before finding what works.

Additionally, this thread is full of people with a wide variety of gaming tastes and tons of experience. Use us a resource! It's more than likely someone in this thread has played whatever game you're interested in and can answer any questions you may have.

Gamer's Dictionary

Below are the definitions for some common and not so common terms you might encounter in this thread.

Chargen: Character generation; the act of making a character for a game
Crunch: Rules, mechanics; the opposite of Fluff
Crunchy: Math and/or rules-intensive; the opposite of Fluffy
GM: Game master; see also Judge, Dungeon Master
Fluff: Setting/ambience; the opposite of Crunch
Fluffy: Relies on fiction for explanation more than numbers; the opposite of Crunchy
IC: In-Character; typically used in PbP games, this designates that a character is acting
Metagaming: When a player makes in-game decisions based on information their character does not have
NPC: Non-player character; everyone who is not controlled by one of the players at the table
OOC: Out-of-Character; typically used in PbP games, this designates table chatter and things not said by the character
OSR: Old School Renaissance; refers to games and/or playstyles that emulate the experience of the early editions of Dungeons & Dragons
PbP: Play-by-Post; games played via message boards
Storygame: A game that has rules to facilitate storytelling
TPK: Total Party Kill; when every single player character is killed during an encounter

Games, Games, and More Games

Key

-: Rules Light
+: Rules Heavy
Ω: d20-based
§: Storygame Elements


Fantasy

13th Age + Ω
In the 13th Age of the world, adventurers seek their fortunes in the Dragon Empire while powerful individuals known as Icons pursue goals that may preserve the empire from chaos, or send it over the edge.

Players decide which Icons their characters ally with, and which ones they oppose. These relationships, along with a personal history and a unique trait chosen during character creation, help define an adventurer’s place in the world of 13th Age and lay the groundwork for epic stories that emerge through play.
There are also fun new rules for hitting orcs and making them go splat.

Burning Wheel + §
Burning Wheel is a fantasy roleplaying game first published in 2002. Since then, the game and its supplements have gone on to win critical notoriety, a handful of awards and respect from the RPG community. In 2011, we published the latest edition, Burning Wheel Gold. There are 3200 copies of the current edition of Burning Wheel in print, but over 12,000 copies of the game overall. There are three supplements for Burning Wheel: the Monster Burner, the Magic Burner and the Adventure Burner. There are also two setting books, Jihad — an homage to Dune — and The Blossoms Are Falling — an historic setting for Heian Era Japan.

Burning Wheel uses a simple D6 die pool system at its core. Grab a handful of dice equal to your skill or stat. Roll the dice. Any 4s, 5s or 6s that result are considered successes. You need a certain number of successes to pass tests. The system builds on that simple core to create deep, dynamic results.

During play, the GM challenges a player’s Beliefs. The player overcomes these challenges and drives the story by testing his character’s abilities. A test can be resolved in a single roll or decided in an extended conflict, social or martial. The GM doles out the consequences for failure based on what the player was trying to accomplish. You want to find a woodsman to guide you through the forest — make a Circles test. If you fail he’s suspicious of thieves so he’s shooting first and asking questions later. You want to get some gear — make a Resources test. If you fail you can’t afford it but your rival comes forward with the offer of a loan and a suppressed smirk. You want to convince your enemy to let your friends go — engage him in a Duel of Wits. Structure your argument well, because if you fail, he might just convince you to take the place of your friends in exchange for their freedom. You want that bastard dead? Draw your sword and take him out in a blow-by-blow melee — Fight! Don’t fail this time, though, because it might be your last. You the player decide how far to take it. You reap the rewards and weather the consequences.

In this game, the consequences for failure lead to the next conflict. There are no dead-ends in Burning Wheel, unless it’s a dead-end alley with your enemies lying in wait. The story told is about the path that gets you to your goals. Whether the game is political, military, or a classic sword and sorcery adventure, you decide. You write your own Beliefs about what you want and Instincts that describe how you react. You advance your skills to help you get there and you earn traits that describe how you come out on the other side. One way or another, when you play Burning Wheel, you’re playing with fire.

DCC RPG + Ω
You’re no hero.

You’re an adventurer: a reaver, a cutpurse, a heathen-slayer, a tight-lipped warlock guarding long-dead secrets. You seek gold and glory, winning it with sword and spell, caked in the blood and filth of the weak, the dark, the demons, and the vanquished. There are treasures to be won deep underneath, and you shall have them.

Return to the glory days of fantasy with the Dungeon Crawl Classics Role Playing Game. Adventure as 1974 intended you to, with modern rules grounded in the origins of sword & sorcery. Fast play, cryptic secrets, and a mysterious past await you.

Dungeons & Dragons + Ω §
The first Dungeons & Dragons game was played back when Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson chose to personalize the massive battles of their fantasy wargames with the exploits of individual heroes. This inspiration became the first fantasy roleplaying game, in which players are characters in an ongoing fantasy story. This new kind of game has become immensely popular over the years, and D&D has grown to include many new ways to vividly experience worlds of heroic fantasy.

The core of D&D is storytelling. You and your friends tell a story together, guiding your heroes through quests for treasure, battles with deadly foes, daring rescues, courtly intrigue, and much more. You can also explore the world of Dungeons & Dragons through any of the novels written by its fantasy authors, as well as engaging board games and immersive video games. All of these stories are part of D&D.

We have a dedicated thread for Fifth Edition here.

Dungeon World - §
Combining high-action dungeon crawling with cutting-edge rules, Dungeon World is a roleplaying game of fantasy adventure. You and your friends will explore a land of magic and danger in the roles of adventurers searching for fame, gold, and glory.

Dungeon World’s rules are easy to learn and always drive the action forward in unexpected ways. A missed roll is never a dead end—failure introduces new complexities and complications. Life as an adventurer is hard and dangerous but it’s never boring!

Designed to be ready for you to hack, remix, and build new content, Dungeon World includes systems for changing everything to suit your group including creating new races, classes, and monsters.

Iron Kingdoms RPG +
It is a land like no other, a place where steam power and gunpowder meet sword and sorcery.

The Iron Kingdoms possess a rich history—and a tumultuous future—full of unique monsters, deities, heroes, and villains. Immerse yourself in the detailed world of gritty conflict and sorcery with the Iron Kingdoms RPG. Unleash the power of mechanika, the fusion of magic and machine. Take on the persona of unique character classes, like the gun mage who combines powerful magic with a deadly acumen for firearms or the steamjack-commanding warcaster. Travel through a fantastic world that takes classic fantasy concepts and gives them a new twist with a high-octane rush of steam power and industrial engineering.

Prepare yourself for an experience like no other.

The world of the Iron Kingdoms awaits!

Lady Blackbird - §
Lady Blackbird is on the run from an arranged marriage to Count Carlowe. She hired a smuggler skyship, The Owl, to take her from her palace on the Imperial world of Ilysium to the far reaches of the Remnants, so she could be with her once secret lover: the pirate king Uriah Flint.

HOWEVER, just before reaching the halfway point of Haven, The Owl was pursued and captured by the Imperial cruiser Hand of Sorrow, under charges of flying a false flag.

EVEN NOW, Lady Blackbird, her bodyguard, and the crew of The Owl are detained in the brig, while the Imperial commander runs the smuggler ship’s registry over the wireless. It’s only a matter of time before they discover the outstanding warrants and learn that The Owl is owned by none other than the infamous outcast, Cyrus Vance.

How will Lady Blackbird and the others escape the Hand of Sorrow?

What dangers lie in their path?

Will they be able to find the secret lair of the pirate king? if they do, will Uriah Flint accept Lady Blackbird as his bride? By the time they get there, will she want him to?

Go. Play. And find out.

http://www.onesevendesign.com/ladyblackbird/

Pathfinder + Ω
Enter a fantastic world of adventure!

The Pathfinder Roleplaying Game puts you in the role of a brave adventurer fighting to survive in a world beset by magic and evil. Will you cut your way through monster-filled ruins and cities rife with political intrigue to emerge as a famous hero laden with fabulous treasure, or will you fall victim to treacherous traps and fiendish monsters in a forgotten dungeon? Your fate is yours to decide with this giant Core Rulebook that provides everything a player needs to set out on a life of adventure and excitement!

This imaginative tabletop game builds upon more than 10 years of system development and an open playtest involving more than 50,000 gamers to create a cutting-edge RPG experience that brings the all-time best-selling set of fantasy rules into the new millennium.

Torchbearer + §
Adventurer is a dirty word. You’re a scoundrel, a villain, a wastrel, a vagabond, a criminal, a sword-for-hire, cutthroat. Respectable people belong to guilds, the church or are born into nobility. Or barring all that, they’re salt of the earth and till the land for the rest of us. Your problem is that you’re none of that. You’re a third child or worse. You can’t get into a guild—too many apprentices already. You’re sure as hell not nobility—even if you were, your older brothers and sisters have soaked up the inheritance. The churches—they’ll take you, but they have so many acolytes, they hand you kit and a holy sign and send you right out the door again: Get out there and preach the word and find something nice for mother church. And if you ever entertained romantic notions of farming, think again. You’d end up little more than a slave to a wealthy noble.

So there’s naught for us but to make our own way. There’s a certain freedom to it, but it’s a hard life. Cash flows out of our hands as easily as the blood from our wounds. But at least it’s our life. And if we’re lucky, smart and stubborn, we might come out on top. There’s a lot of lost loot out there for the finding. And salvage law is mercifully generous. We find it, it’s ours to spend, sell or keep.

Torchbearer is a riff on the early model of fantasy roleplaying games. In it, you take on the role of an adventurer seeking his or her fortune. To earn that fortune, you must explore fornlorn ruins, brave terrible monsters and retreive forgotten treasures. However, this game is not about being a hero. It is not about fighting for what you believe. This game is about exploration and survival. You may become a hero. You might have to fight for your ideals. But to do either of those things, you must prove yourself in the wilds. Because there are no jobs, no inheritance, no other opportunities for our deadbeat adventurers. This life is their only hope to prosper in this world.

Sci-Fi

3:16 Carnage Amongst the Stars - §
3:16 CARNAGE AMONGST THE STARS is a high-octane Science-Fiction role-playing game for 2 or more players. Your Space Troopers will kill bugs all across the Cosmos. You'll advance in rank, improve your weapons, slay civilization after civilization, and find out who you are through an innovative 'Flashback' mechanic. Terra's plan is to kill every living thing in the Universe to protect the home world. See where your tour of duty in the 3:16th Expeditionary Force takes you and your friends. Revel in the kill-happy machismo and enjoy a campaign of Carnage Amongst the Stars. Featuring a stunning cover by Paul Bourne, and interior art by writer/games designer Gregor Hutton, 3:16 is a bloody triumph of games design.

Eclipse Phase +
Your mind is software. Program it.
Your body is a shell. Change it.
Death is a disease. Cure it.
Extinction is approaching. Fight it.

Eclipse Phase is a game about Transhumanity and the horrors, conspiracies, and hard times that your character lives in. Set in a place where people have abandoned Earth thanks to the nanobots called Titans, you now spend your days living on space stations, colonized planets, and space ships. Usually you are called to help some shadowy organization called Firewall protect the solar system from some terrible threat, but you may also belong to another organization that wants something else. And when you are tasked to do something that may pit you against one organization or another, the game really gets interesting.

You are really made of two parts, one is called your Ego and it's your personality and all the things that make up you. The other part is your Morph, which is your body. In EP, death is not final for your character, however, it isn't without penalty. Anything you have done since your last "save" could be lost, and your character might wake up in a new morph, weeks later, wondering what happen the reason you died and what will happen to you now. The whole group dying is not only enjoyable, but is sometimes the best option for your character.

Shadowrun +
There are cracks in the world. They’re slender, dark, and often cold, but they are the only things that keep you hidden. Keep you alive. They are the shadows of the world, and they are where you live.

You are a shadowrunner, thriving in the margins, doing the jobs no one else can. You have no office, no permanent home, no background to check. You are whatever you make yourself. Will you seek justice? Sow seeds of chaos? Sell out to the highest bidder? It’s up to you, but this much is certain—if you do nothing, the streets will eat you alive.

You can survive—even flourish—as long as you do what it takes. Sacrifice part of your soul for bleeding-edge gear. Push the limits of your will learning new and dangerous magic. Wire yourself into the Matrix, making your mind one with screaming streams of data. It’ll cost you something—everything does—but you can make it worth the price.

Star Wars: Edge of the Empire + §
Participate in grim and gritty adventures in places where morality is gray and nothing is certain. Ply your trade as a smuggler in the Outer Rim, collect bounties on the scum that live in the shadows of Coruscant, or try to establish a new colony on a planet beneath the Empire’s notice.

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Posts

  • VanguardVanguard But now the dream is over. And the insect is awake.Registered User, __BANNED USERS regular
    edited September 2014
    Genre-less

    Kingdom - §
    Kingdoms are all around us. They are the communities that unite us.

    Your Kingdom can be any group or organization that interests you. You could play a Wild West frontier town, a colony ship crawling to a distant star, or a sprawling Empire holding conquered peoples beneath its thumb.

    As you play, you'll confront your Kingdom and your characters with Crossroads, critical decisions that may change your community forever. What will your Kingdom do? What will it become? Strive to make your Kingdom live up to your ideals... or watch as it burns.

    The Kingdom is in your hands. The question is: will you change the Kingdom or will the Kingdom change you?

    Includes over twenty sample Kingdoms to get you started quickly, from the mercenaries of the Banner of the Black Serpent, to the galactic weapon-smiths of Starfall, to the wealthy dilettante mystics of the Eye of Osiris, to the devoted doctors of Sawyer Memorial Hospital.

    Kingdom was designed by Ben Robbins, creator of the award-winning role-playing game, Microscope.

    For two to five players. No GM. No prep.
    Fate - §
    Grab your plasma rifles, spell components, and jetpacks! Name your game; Fate Core is the foundation that can make it happen. Fate Core is a flexible system that can support whatever worlds you dream up. Have you always wanted to play a post-apocalyptic spaghetti western with tentacle monsters? Swords and sorcery in space? Wish there was a game based on your favorite series of books, film, or television, but it never happened? Fate Core is your answer.

    Fate Core is a tabletop roleplaying game about proactive, capable people who lead dramatic lives. The type of drama they experience is up to you. But wherever they go, you can expect a fun storytelling experience full of twists…of fate.

    Microscope - §
    Humanity spreads to the stars and forges a galactic civilization...

    Fledgling nations arise from the ruins of the empire...

    An ancient line of dragon-kings dies out as magic fades from the realm...

    These are all examples of Microscope games. Want to explore an epic history of your own creation, hundreds or thousands of years long, all in an afternoon? That's Microscope.

    You won't play the game in chronological order. You can defy the limits of time and space, jumping backward or forward to explore the parts of the history that interest you. Want to leap a thousand years into the future and see how an institution shaped society? Want to jump back to the childhood of the king you just saw assassinated and find out what made him such a hated ruler? That's normal in Microscope.

    You have vast power to create... and to destroy. Build beautiful, tranquil jewels of civilization and then consume them with nuclear fire. Zoom out to watch the majestic tide of history wash across empires, then zoom in and explore the lives of the people who endured it.

    Mock chronological order.
    Defy time and space.
    Build worlds and destroy them.

    Gothic/Horror

    New World of Darkness
    The world is not what you think. Beneath skyscrapers' leering gargoyles, factories belching smoke and streets packed with the human throng lurk things we are not meant to see. Creatures dwell in the shadows and hidden places. They watch you, stalk you and prey upon your body and soul. The life you lead is a lie. Your darkest fears aren't make-believe.
    They're real.

    In the World of Darkness, there are urban legends whispered into the ears of autistic children by invisible spiders.

    What Is The World Of Darkness?

    We can’t know when humans first started telling stories, or why. But it’s a safe bet that the first tale tellers used their craft to explain the mysteries going on around them. Indeed, some of the most ancient stories that are still told today grapple with the biggest mysteries of all — life, death, creation, redemption and the ongoing struggle of good versus evil. The World Of Darkness is a Storytelling game, because it’s an opportunity for you to participate in the deeply human endeavor of telling stories.

    The stories told in this game are set in the World of Darkness. It’s a place very much like our world, sharing the same history, culture and geography. Superficially, most people in this fictional world live the same lives we do. They eat the same food, wear the same clothes, and waste time watching the same stupid TV shows. And yet, in the World of Darkness, shadows are deeper, nights are darker, fog is thicker. If, in our world, a neighborhood has a rundown house that gives people the creeps, in the World of Darkness, that house emits strange sighs on certain nights of the year, and seems to have a human face when seen from the corner of one’s eye. Or so some neighbors say. In our world, there are urban legends. In the World of Darkness, there are urban legends whispered into the ears of autistic children by invisible spiders.

    Old World of Darkness
    The world is more corrupt, the people are spiritually bankrupt, and escapism often replaces hope.

    Superficially, the World of Darkness is like the “real” world we all inhabit. The same bands are popular, violence still plagues the inner city, graft and corruption infest the same governments, and society still looks to the same cities for its culture. The World of Darkness has a Statue of Liberty, an Eiffel Tower and a CBGB’s. More present than in our world, though, is the undercurrent of horror - our world’s ills are all the more pronounced in the World of Darkness. Our fears are more real. Our governments are more degenerate. Our ecosystem dies a bit more each night. And monsters exist.

    “Gothic-Punk” is perhaps the best way to describe the physical nature of the World of Darkness. The environment is a clashing mixture of styles and influences, and the tension caused by the juxtaposition of ethnicities, social classes and subcultures makes the world a vibrant, albeit dangerous, place.

    The Gothic aspect describes the ambience of the World of Darkness. Buttressed buildings loom overhead, bedecked with classical columns and grimacing gargoyles. Residents are dwarfed by the sheer scale of architecture, lost amid the spires that seem to grope toward Heaven in an effort to escape the physical world. The ranks of the Church swell, as mortals flock to any banner that offers them a hope of something better in the hereafter. Likewise, cults flourish in the underground, promising power and redemption. The institutions that control society are even more staid and conservative than they are in our world, for many in power prefer the evil of the world they know to the chaos engendered by change. It is a divisive world of have and have not, rich and poor, excess and squalor.

    The Punk aspect is the lifestyle that many denizens of the World of Darkness have adopted. In order to give their lives meaning, they rebel, crashing themselves against the crags of power. Gangs prowl the streets and organized crime breeds in the underworld, reactions to the pointlessness of living “by the book.” Music is louder, faster, more violent or hypnotically monotonous, and supported by masses who find salvation in its escape. Speech is coarser, fashion is bolder, art is more shocking, and technology brings it all to everyone at the click of a button. The world is more corrupt, the people are spiritually bankrupt, and escapism often replaces hope.

    Gothic-Punk is a mood and setting conveyed during the course of the game. The greatest share of creating this ambience falls upon the Storyteller, but players should consider their characters’ stake in it as well. The ambience is also a matter of taste. Some troupes may prefer more Gothic than Punk, while others may want equal amounts of both elements, or little of either. In the end, it’s your game, and you are free to make of it what you will. Simply bear in mind that experiencing the world is a shared endeavor, and everything the players and Storyteller do helps make that world more believable. Actions, settings, characters and descriptions all convey the Gothic-Punk aesthetic.

    Vampire: The Requiem
    Since time immemorial, the Kindred - vampires - have stalked their prey, unseen by the mortal masses. Their world is a xenophobic nightmare, populated by tyrannical despots, wildeyed heretics, bloodthirsty rogues and scheming manipulators, all unified by the mysterious curse of vampirism. And you would join them? You would live forever? To play the lusts of mortals like a violinist plays the strings? Then beware, the price is steep to enter the neofeudal hell that the Damned have wrought.

    Welcome to Undeath

    Join the revival of the Storytelling tradition. Vampire: The Requiem invites you to tell your own stories set within the world of the Kindred.

    Werewolf: The Forsaken
    Full Moon Rising

    The world is in shadow. To one side stretches the forest, to the other the city. Your claws are stained with blood. Your senses whisper of prey that runs before you, and of predators who stalk even the likes of you. You hear the howls of your brothers and sisters. Luna rises. Your blood boils. It is time to hunt.

    Wolves at the Door

    Werewolf: The Forsaken - the game of bestial violence and supernatural terror - is the second core setting sourcebook intended for use with White Wolf's new Storytelling System . Werewolves are creatures of original sin, tainted by ancestral crimes and driven to hunt by the shame of being abandoned.

    Mage: The Awakening
    magecover.jpg
    Magic exists. Once upon a time, it was the driving force behind ancient societies, and was wildly practiced in public and secret alike.

    However, something went wrong. A select few aspired for more, and attained powers beyond earthly comprehension. In so doing, they left the mortal planes torn asunder.

    The few who ascended gained godlike powers and rose to the station of The Exarchs. Shortly after ascending, they cast the rest of humanity down into the fallen world. Separating the fallen and the higher realms is a vast maw called The Abyss; where shadows, beasts, and all manner of unclean entities reside.

    Anyone practicing magic in the fallen world without proper regard for the limitations of normalcy and reality can expect to get backhanded by a nasty force from The Abyss known as Paradox.


    This means magic, once widespread amongst all, is now only practiced by a scarce few, and has to be done largely in secret. Worse, the servants of The Exarchs are many, and seek to keep magic away from the common people. These servants, known as the Seers of the Throne, believe common people are sheep and lack both the right and capacity to use magic.

    Player characters take up the role of Pentacle Mages; those who were left behind when The Exarchs ascended, and want magic to be brought back to the common people.

    This is no easy feat, of course, since Pentacle Mages not only have to contend with the machinations of the Seers and a magic-ignorant populace, but also the ever-present threat of Paradox, the Abyss, fallen Mages known as Scelesti, and all manner of unknown mystical threats.

    . . .

    Tenra Bansho Zero
    TENRA BANSHO ZERO is a Japanese Storytelling Game of "Hyper-Asian Fantasy", in the author's own words. Conceived, designed and illustrated by famous manga author Junichi Inoue (and featuring gorgeous art from illustrators Hiroyuki Ishida, Rasenjin Hayami and others), Tenra Bansho Zero is one of the most recognized "Made in Japan" tabletop role-playing games.

    On a distant world in the far future, the Sengoku (Feudal/Warring States) period of Japan is happening all over again- But this time with high-tech weapons, magically powered mecha, taoist magic masters and super-powered samurai.

    The focus of the game is on acting out the characters, their backgrounds and, and their destiny in the world of Tenra. The players get bonus points by acting in character and entertaining the other players, which can be spent to boost powers and gain abilities. Creativity, energy, and comraderie is physically rewarded in the game. Spend these gains recklessly, though, and you lose control of your character as they spiral down the Path of the corrupt Asura.

    Finally, TBZ is a fast RPG. It was designed to play out like a theatrical production, complete with Scenes, Acts, Intermissions and Coming Attractions. And like a play or movie, an entire story or campaign can play out in its entirety within one 4-6 hour gaming session.

    TENRA BANSHO ZERO is one of the first fantasy Role-Playing Games to be translated from Japanese and released in English! It was created, designed, written, and largely illustrated by the popular game designer Junichi Inoue and F.E.A.R. It is currently being translated into English and published by Kotodama Heavy Industries, in cooperation with F.E.A.R. Stay tuned to the Blog for updated release information and news.

    Vanguard on
  • ArdentArdent Down UpsideRegistered User regular
    You wrote so much I now feel compelled to read it all.

    Steam ID | Origin ID: ArdentX | Uplay ID: theardent | Battle.net: Ardent#11476
  • Hahnsoo1Hahnsoo1 Make Ready. We Hunt.Registered User regular
    Yay! New thread.I haven't had my usual Shadowrun game in a couple of weeks, so I'm getting a bit antsy. Ever have that feeling when you haven't played a Pen and Paper game in a while, and you feel like you absolutely need to get your RP/diceroll on?

    8i1dt37buh2m.png
  • Ken OKen O Registered User regular
    We finally start Shadowrun tomorrow night! We did a handful of quick combats just to get used to the new system, but the actual game starts tomorrow. I'm excited.

    http://www.fingmonkey.com/
    Comics, Games, Booze
  • Grunt's GhostsGrunt's Ghosts Registered User regular
    New Thread Smell. Kinda like BBQ Goblins, extra cripsy!

  • DarkPrimusDarkPrimus Registered User regular
    I preferred the older edition of the Roleplaying Thread!

  • Dex DynamoDex Dynamo Registered User regular
    I have a new gaming group to go with the new thread! I'm going to be hosting a Dungeon World game, I think in mid-October.

    That's the good news.

    The bad news (for me at least) is there are seven player. I am... nervous, to say the least.

  • VanguardVanguard But now the dream is over. And the insect is awake.Registered User, __BANNED USERS regular
    Hey people of the thread, I am making some changes to make it more friendly to new people and to just be a better all around resource. I added a "Gamer's Dictionary" to define some of the common terms we throw around. Make suggestions! I just did a quick list. Please note that these are for general terms, not anything game specific, Like AC or Fate Points.

    I'm also going to sort our games list by genre and designate each as rules-lite, rules-heavy, gmless, diceless. . .any other designations I should throw out there?

    I feel like I should have reserved more space.

  • ThomamelasThomamelas Only one man can kill this many Russians. Bring his guitar to me! Registered User regular
    Vanguard wrote: »
    Hey people of the thread, I am making some changes to make it more friendly to new people and to just be a better all around resource. I added a "Gamer's Dictionary" to define some of the common terms we throw around. Make suggestions! I just did a quick list. Please note that these are for general terms, not anything game specific, Like AC or Fate Points.

    I'm also going to sort our games list by genre and designate each as rules-lite, rules-heavy, gmless, diceless. . .any other designations I should throw out there?

    I feel like I should have reserved more space.

    If there is space it might be nice to have various resources. Stuff like various Podcasts, DTRPG and what ever the indie acronym is. Maybe Wizard's store.

  • SteelhawkSteelhawk Registered User regular
    edited September 2014
    This thread needs more Iron Kingdoms RPG.

    Its a steampunk fantasy world with steam powered giant robots and pygmy trolls mounted on the backs of giant trolls with a Gatling gun. Which is as awesome as it sounds.

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    Steelhawk on
  • VanguardVanguard But now the dream is over. And the insect is awake.Registered User, __BANNED USERS regular
    Thomamelas wrote: »
    Vanguard wrote: »
    Hey people of the thread, I am making some changes to make it more friendly to new people and to just be a better all around resource. I added a "Gamer's Dictionary" to define some of the common terms we throw around. Make suggestions! I just did a quick list. Please note that these are for general terms, not anything game specific, Like AC or Fate Points.

    I'm also going to sort our games list by genre and designate each as rules-lite, rules-heavy, gmless, diceless. . .any other designations I should throw out there?

    I feel like I should have reserved more space.

    If there is space it might be nice to have various resources. Stuff like various Podcasts, DTRPG and what ever the indie acronym is. Maybe Wizard's store.

    Oh, for sure! Like I said, should have saved more space.

  • ArdentArdent Down UpsideRegistered User regular
    DarkPrimus wrote: »
    I preferred the older edition of the Roleplaying Thread!
    I feel like it was mechanically superior, although I have been assured this thread offers superior role-playing opportunities.

    Steam ID | Origin ID: ArdentX | Uplay ID: theardent | Battle.net: Ardent#11476
  • ArdentArdent Down UpsideRegistered User regular
    edited September 2014
    Vanguard wrote: »
    Hey people of the thread, I am making some changes to make it more friendly to new people and to just be a better all around resource. I added a "Gamer's Dictionary" to define some of the common terms we throw around. Make suggestions! I just did a quick list. Please note that these are for general terms, not anything game specific, Like AC or Fate Points.

    I'm also going to sort our games list by genre and designate each as rules-lite, rules-heavy, gmless, diceless. . .any other designations I should throw out there?

    I feel like I should have reserved more space.
    Might want to hit the most common dice engines as well as touching upon whether the particular iteration we're talking about is what style of game.

    d20 (OGL et alia), Roll-and-Keep, D6, Storyteller, FUDGE/FATE, GURPS, Hero Engine, X World Engine...etc.

    Ardent on
    Steam ID | Origin ID: ArdentX | Uplay ID: theardent | Battle.net: Ardent#11476
  • DarkPrimusDarkPrimus Registered User regular
    Ardent wrote: »
    DarkPrimus wrote: »
    I preferred the older edition of the Roleplaying Thread!
    I feel like it was mechanically superior, although I have been assured this thread offers superior role-playing opportunities.

    Pfft, I don't need a new thread to tell me how to role-play!

  • Hahnsoo1Hahnsoo1 Make Ready. We Hunt.Registered User regular
    Pfft. Back in the OLD old thread, we had lookup tables! And we liked it!

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  • Super NamicchiSuper Namicchi Orange County, CARegistered User regular
    edited September 2014
    i just go to the first roleplaying thread and post there since it does everything i need it to

    Super Namicchi on
  • Hahnsoo1Hahnsoo1 Make Ready. We Hunt.Registered User regular
    Can't you just hack the old thread into a different system? I mean, really. :)

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  • ThomamelasThomamelas Only one man can kill this many Russians. Bring his guitar to me! Registered User regular
    My new thread is gonna be just like this one but all of the magic items talk!

  • HuddsHudds Fool Just Outside TimeRegistered User regular
    Hahnsoo1 wrote: »
    Can't you just hack the old thread into a different system? I mean, really. :)

    Agreed. Why don't you just put a little FATE on it?

  • Grunt's GhostsGrunt's Ghosts Registered User regular
    Look, Vanguard put a lot of work into this thread. Converting it to FATE is stealing.

  • VanguardVanguard But now the dream is over. And the insect is awake.Registered User, __BANNED USERS regular
    If this thread was a Fate game you would all have "The Worst" Aspect.

  • jdarksunjdarksun Struggler VARegistered User regular
    FFG Star Wars (Edge of the Empire, Age of Rebellion, Force and Destiny) should probably be + §.

  • VanguardVanguard But now the dream is over. And the insect is awake.Registered User, __BANNED USERS regular
    Thanks jdarksun! I wasn't sure what to classify those as.

    I'm going to work on the thread over the coming weeks to get it into good shape. For things like podcasts, how should we go about including them? The obvious idea is to have a "podcast" section, but how do people feel about me linking to episodes for actual play of these games for each respective game (ie, Torchbearer actual play podcast would be linked in the Torchbearer section under Fantasy RPGs)? Trying to make this as user friendly as possible.

  • ThomamelasThomamelas Only one man can kill this many Russians. Bring his guitar to me! Registered User regular
    Vanguard wrote: »
    Thanks jdarksun! I wasn't sure what to classify those as.

    I'm going to work on the thread over the coming weeks to get it into good shape. For things like podcasts, how should we go about including them? The obvious idea is to have a "podcast" section, but how do people feel about me linking to episodes for actual play of these games for each respective game (ie, Torchbearer actual play podcast would be linked in the Torchbearer section under Fantasy RPGs)? Trying to make this as user friendly as possible.

    That's awesome. Maybe link to some APs either here or RPG.Net? That always seems to big issue with people, and designers. Explaining what a game of X plays like.

  • GlaziusGlazius Registered User regular
    So, point of order? Microscope is not an RPG, it's a storytelling game. I mean, there's no reason why they can't be in this thread too, it's just that Microscope is just about tellin' stories, and the conflict resolution mechanism is "would this make a better story?" You can zoom into a scene where you roleplay off each other to answer a question, but again, pure story.

    Additional storytelling games:

    Fiasco
    (from the makers of Fiasco) Durance
    (from the makers of Microscope) Kingdom
    Our Last Best Hope
    Do: Pilgrims of the Flying Temple
    Happy Birthday, Robot!
    The Quiet Year
    How to Host a Dungeon
    A Penny for My Thoughts

  • VanguardVanguard But now the dream is over. And the insect is awake.Registered User, __BANNED USERS regular
    Microscope is an RPG. Why? Because it calls itself one. Same with Kingdom. I don't think we need to get into definitional arguments beyond that. If the game bills itself as an RPG, it is one.

  • DevoutlyApatheticDevoutlyApathetic Registered User regular
    I would really like to here a meaningful difference between and a Role Playing Game and a Storygame.
    They're ALL story games.

    Nod. Get treat. PSN: Quippish
  • jdarksunjdarksun Struggler VARegistered User regular
    One could make the argument that the difference between a roleplaying game and a story game is that an RPG has a narrower focus; a player takes the role of a specific individual (or small group), while story games are focused on a larger set or more abstract concept.

    A game like The Quiet Year certainly plays differently than, say, Dungeon World.

  • gtrmpgtrmp Registered User regular
    Storytelling games are role-playing games by any useful definition of the term.

  • VanguardVanguard But now the dream is over. And the insect is awake.Registered User, __BANNED USERS regular
    edited September 2014
    I would really like to here a meaningful difference between and a Role Playing Game and a Storygame.
    They're ALL story games.

    I was actually going to update the OP with this, but I think the meaningful difference is that a storygame has rules to facilitate storytelling. What I mean by this is rules that push the narrative in certain directions as opposed to rules for things like climbing ropes and picking locks. Beliefs in Burning Wheel, Aspects in Fate, etc.

    Vanguard on
  • AkimboEGAkimboEG Mr. Fancypants Wears very fine pants indeedRegistered User regular
    edited September 2014
    It's been about twelve years or so since I've last played a tabletop game. I think it's time I fix that.
    I gathered a bunch of friends, all without any RPG experience, and we'll be playing weekly/biweekly sessions.
    I've asked around, and none of them have any preferred (or disliked) genre or setting.

    Originally, I thought I'd start with D&D 4e, since the very video-gamey rules will probably be easy for new players to get into.
    I've since abandoned that idea. Mostly because I felt the amount of research and balance work I'd have to do to come up original material would be stupidly high, having not played D&D since 2e.
    I've looked around, and Fate looks like a very straightforward system that can fit whatever setting I want it to. It's also ridiculously easy to tinker with, in case I feel like something isn't working quite how I want it to.

    Since I'm no longer bound to D&D, I've also changed the setting from a purely Fantasy one to a crazy amalgamation of all my favorite genres and tropes. I'm thinking of a mostly Steampunk world, with elements thrown in from from fantasy, cyberpunk, Firefly, Gaiman, Pratchett, GotG, and some Dishonored (whale oil woo). The players will likely be muscles for hire, or some C-list superhero types.

    Some significant elements within the game world include a Worm-based underground transport system, sky pirates, a street-sized mechanical computer, dirigibles and balloons, mad science (and possibly alchemy), etc.

    This is obviously all still very much in its Infancy. I don't have a ton written down yet, and nothing is set in stone. Still, I'd love to hear some input re: Fate or the concept. I'm especially interested in hearing from people who've had experience running Fate games.

    AkimboEG on
    Give me a kiss to build a dream on; And my imagination will thrive upon that kiss; Sweetheart, I ask no more than this; A kiss to build a dream on
  • DevoutlyApatheticDevoutlyApathetic Registered User regular
    Vanguard wrote: »
    I would really like to here a meaningful difference between and a Role Playing Game and a Storygame.
    They're ALL story games.

    I was actually going to update the OP with this, but I think the meaningful difference is that a storygame has rules to facilitate storytelling.

    I can see RPG's as a subset of storygames and admit the term "storygame" means what you're talking about when people talk about the different emphasis systems place on different aspects of gameplay. I just balk at the concept that role playing games aren't about taking up a role in some sort of story. Even if it isn't an intentional story what you do will become stories you tell.

    Nod. Get treat. PSN: Quippish
  • VanguardVanguard But now the dream is over. And the insect is awake.Registered User, __BANNED USERS regular
    edited September 2014
    Vanguard wrote: »
    I would really like to here a meaningful difference between and a Role Playing Game and a Storygame.
    They're ALL story games.

    I was actually going to update the OP with this, but I think the meaningful difference is that a storygame has rules to facilitate storytelling.

    I can see RPG's as a subset of storygames and admit the term "storygame" means what you're talking about when people talk about the different emphasis systems place on different aspects of gameplay. I just balk at the concept that role playing games aren't about taking up a role in some sort of story. Even if it isn't an intentional story what you do will become stories you tell.

    Oh, for sure. At the end of the day, roleplaying games, whether or not they are storygames as I defined them above, are about creating a shared fictional experience.

    Vanguard on
  • ThomamelasThomamelas Only one man can kill this many Russians. Bring his guitar to me! Registered User regular
    New Bundle of Holding is up. It's Ptolus: City by the Spire. No mechanics, just straight setting which is where Monte Cook isn't bad. Also I assume it's the heaviest PDF you will ever own.

  • HuddsHudds Fool Just Outside TimeRegistered User regular
    At 800+ pages, it's a monster. Cool setting, though. It's geared toward D&D 3.0, but the fluff is easy enough to shift to any sort of fantasy system you dig on.

  • MusicoolMusicool Registered User regular
    Whatever Microscope is, it's a fascinating idea. I'm curious: has anyone here played it? What was it like? Has anyone used the resulting setting for something? A novel? Another RPG? Nightmare fuel? Something to tell your psychiatrist?

    Burtletoy wrote: »
    I disagree completely.

    hAmmONd IsnT A mAin TAnk
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  • GlaziusGlazius Registered User regular
    edited September 2014
    I would really like to here a meaningful difference between and a Role Playing Game and a Storygame.

    Storytelling game. Keep in mind that this isn't some universal thing. When someone uses a word it means exactly what they want it to mean, no more and no less. But here's the difference and why I draw it.

    The rules of an RPG specify how the players interact with each other and two broad classes of objects called the props and the plot. The plot is everything related to the story the players are telling. It can include physical reminders of story elements, like character name cards or a list of notable people in the setting. The props are the purely game objects: randomizers like dice or event decks, game constructs like hit points or armor class. The rules allow for the props to affect the plot, and vice versa. They also mediate interaction among plot elements - how the plot advances and who takes responsibility for what - and among prop elements - make an attack roll, make a dodge roll, make a soak roll, adjust the wound track.

    Say you're playing a fantasy roleplaying game and your party's attacking a goblin encampment. There's a guard tower with goblin archers in it. That's plot. But it affects the props - the archers up in the tower might get a bonus for being on higher ground, and you've got to account for the obstacle of the guard tower before you can attack the goblins. And likewise, an interaction in the props - the fighter succeeds on a Strength check to break one of the tower supports - has consequences in the plot - the tower is a heap of splinters and/or rubble.

    In a storytelling game, there may not be any props at all, as in the case of Microscope. Everything on the table is a plot reference. If there are props, they exist to shape the direction of the plot; the plot doesn't have much of an effect on the composition of the props. There's nothing you can say in The Quiet Year, for example, that will affect the event deck or any of the countdown dice - only the event deck does that.

    Glazius on
  • GlaziusGlazius Registered User regular
    Musicool wrote: »
    Whatever Microscope is, it's a fascinating idea. I'm curious: has anyone here played it? What was it like? Has anyone used the resulting setting for something? A novel? Another RPG? Nightmare fuel? Something to tell your psychiatrist?

    I haven't used the results for anything, but I've brought Microscope out for a couple of plays on an indie-exposure night at my friendly local game store. 2-hour slot so we didn't really get too far with it, but even with the little bit there we were playing off each other pretty well. Microscope is an exercise in deliberately leaving blank spaces for other people to fill in, and I can definitely see using it to collaboratively build a history you then go on to play in.

  • VanguardVanguard But now the dream is over. And the insect is awake.Registered User, __BANNED USERS regular
    Here is a very brief summary of one of my Microscope games:

    One of the first parts of Microscope is creating a list of things that are allowed and not allowed. Our game was about the appearance of magic in a magic-less medieval world. We disallowed any fantasy creatures of any type from existing natively (that meant no Orcs, Dragons, etc) though they could arise through the use of magic.

    One of our earliest epochs was one in which two children with brightly colored eyes were born who had strange gifts. This fit the prophesy with the coming of great evil. We zoomed in and did a scene in which the local guard showed up at their house to collect them and execute the children. I played the bailiff and another player played their uncle. The uncle refused, killed the bailiff, and ferried the kids to a neighboring country.

    Later, in another epoch, a mage-king executed all of the non-gifted people in his kingdom and went to war with all surrounding countries seeking to make them meritocracies. Through one of the scenes we learned that this king is the descendant of one of those children.

    Our game ended when, after executing thousands for non possessing the gift, our spells tore a rift in reality and summoned hordes of demons and monsters who overran the planet, wiping humanity out.

    It remains one of my favorite games to this day.

  • Dex DynamoDex Dynamo Registered User regular
    My wife and I played Microscope once, and ended up with a distant apocalyptic future which was rebuilt around pro wrestling VHS tapes, the only living remnant of the old world, misinterpreted and taken as high gospel.

    It was fun.

This discussion has been closed.