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2 years ago ::
Aug 12, 2011 - 10:06AM
#31
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1. D&D 4E
2. Mutants and Masterminds 3E or 2E (a very close second)
3. Legend of the Five Rings 2E
4. 7th Sea
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2 years ago ::
Aug 12, 2011 - 10:57AM
#32
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Date Joined:
Jul 30, 2003
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As far as my favorite systems go mechanically:
1. Saga ed Star Wars
2. nWoD (changeling in particular, not mage)
3. Gamma world (D&D 4e)
4. Pathfinder
5. BESM (an oddityand not silver aged sentinels... boo!)
As far as my favorite settings and themes go:
0. * for D&D, my favorite setting is Dark Sun, all the way*
1. Exalted
2. Cthulhutech
3. Gamma World
4. Star wars
5. Eclipse Phase
6. nWoD (any release, especially mage and changeling)
7. Robotech
8. Rifts (and palladium systems in general)
I am a huge fan of the 1 roll to rule them all philosophy. d20 systems and the nWoD where the same rules apply to all rolls so that there is little confusion makes difficulties and probabilites easy for me as a DM and as a player.
Sadly, I haven't had a chance to play Cthulhutech or eclipsephase much, so I can't speak to their mechanics (cthulhutech has a sort of ...oddness... to it's rolling system at higher skill levels). Their themes and world building are great and I love the genres where the players are HEROES, fighting the GRAND FIGHT (though not necessarily the good fight or the most important fight). I am intrigued by Anima, though the core rules are so dense it's hard for me to just crack it open and enjoy.
in any case, I like post apoc, where the heroes have hard choices and a dangerous foe/s to face, where thre is danger but also possibility, and a larger world just outside their horizons. And I like mechanics that make it easy for me to display that world.
My Blog, mostly about D&D. I imagine that Majestic Moose plays a more "A team" type game than most of us. By that I mean he allows his players to make tanks out of a backyard playground set since the players have more "fun" that way.
Actually I much prefer The Losers.Spoiler:
Show
When I and my friends sit down we want a game of heroic fantasy. Rare is the moment when I have cried out in a video game or RPG "that's unrealistic." (Unless there is no jump button. Seriously makes me mad, single handedly ruined the N64 zelda series for me, but that's a digression of a digression.)
I mean, we play games with the force in galaxies far, far away, with supernatural horrors, dragons and demi-gods, alternate cosmologies, etc.
Reality and it's effects hold little sway to what makes a Heroic fantasy game fun IMO.
Just repeat after me:
You are not a beautiful or unique snowflake.
You are not how much you've spent on WotC products.
You are not whatever RPG you play.
You are one of tens of thousands of people that spend money on a hobby.
You will not always get what you want
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2 years ago ::
Aug 12, 2011 - 11:54AM
#33
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I thought it might be fun to see what people's favorite RPGs are, and what their relation to 4e is (in terms of personal, subjective, enjoyment).
D&D 4e is definitely my favorite game. Like a fine scotch, it still has some aging to do, to enrich and resonate the options.
I care about the integrity, elegance, and robustness of the gaming system. Few other games can compete.
I strongly require customizability in any game, and actually prefer freeform characters that mix-and-match any features. But I also care deeply about balance and fairness among the players. My understanding is, the modular powers of D&D 4e started off as a freeform system, but pulled back because of balance issues. In development, they described the early playstyle as fast and ferocious, because of different kinds of ultra-specialists. A 4e mechanic that pleasantly surprised me is the half-level bonus, that forces every character to be at least somewhat competent at everything. This allows players to customize specialists that still remain relevant when out of their element. While it is possible to simultaneously improve customizability and balance, it is a difficult and conflictive goal, and so far D&D 4e is on the right track.
Some aspects of the gaming system still need finetuning. Devs announced plans to make essential-style classes more customizable and miscible with original-style classes and I eagerly await these plans to reach fruition. One of the goals of 4e is to streamline and minimize complexity, unnecessary bookkeeping, and 'fiddliness'. These same goals now need to return to revamp the myriad of situational bonuses. All part of maintainance of gaming system.
I also feel reemphasizing the improvisation mechanic will go a long way to personalizing the gaming experience of the character and the campaign.
In sum, D&D 4e is a fantastic system. Many people feel a need to flesh out the skeleton, with more narrative focus, such as adventures. The gaming system is robust and worthy of the best narrative experiences. D&D 4e brings the gaming industry to the next level.
Another gaming system that impresses me for its simplicity and power is the vintage Marvel Superheroes game. It works around d100 percentiles, and orders of magnitude, to resolve virtually any conceivable conflict, with simplicity and fairness. Great game.
Im also excited about the Dresden Files. I love the flavor of modern magic - and wizards who are allowed to get haircuts! LOL. I havent looked at the game yet, but will do soon. For me, that game will live or die by how good its mechanical system is. People say the system works well, so I look forward to it.
Cyber-Dave, your appreciation of Warhammer for its non-numeric conflict resolution system - with pictographic dice - inspired me. Being a purist, I explored how to resolve all conflicts by means of a coin toss. I game up with a system of coin pools. I had to go thru some wild (and fascinating!) calculations to come up with a system that is balanced at any level. I did it. For all of its extreme number-crunching calculations, the end result made me a appreciate the power of the d20 system in a new way. The granularity of coin toss system is about the same as of the d20 system, except the d20 is more consistent. Even so, I have to admit there is something appealing, pure, and addictive about resolving conflicts with pictures of heads or tails. It really does evoke a different state of mind.
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2 years ago ::
Aug 12, 2011 - 12:31PM
#34
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Date Joined:
Sep 20, 2004
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D&D 4e is definitely my favorite game. Like a fine scotch, it still has some aging to do, to enrich and resonate the options.
Oh dear god. That made me cringe. I mean, I really like 4e too. I am a bit burnt out on it right now, but it is still in my top 4 list (tied with Star Wars Saga). But calling it akin to a "fine scotch"? What a cheesy cliche simile... :P
[Don't mind me. I am wearing my Oscar the Grouch/literary device police shirt today. I think I might be wearing my hypocrite hat as well. I am sure I have used similes that are at least half as bad in the past. I am merely poking fun.]
I care about the integrity, elegance, and robustness of the gaming system. Few other games can compete.
Considering how many other people favor other games before 4e, including amongst those that happen to really like 4e, and that in a thread written on a forum that will obviously be biased in favor of 4e, I can't agree. Don't get me wrong, its a great game system. But, I think there are quite a few other game systems out there that can compete quite competently... unless you meant competing towards the goal of meeting your personal preferences, and not competing towards some sort of empirical set of qualities labeled integrity, elegance, and robustness of gaming system, in which case please ignore this paragraph.
Cyber-Dave, your appreciation of Warhammer for its non-numeric conflict resolution system - with pictographic dice - inspired me. Being a purist, I explored how to resolve all conflicts by means of a coin toss. I game up with a system of coin pools. I had to go thru some wild (and fascinating!) calculations to come up with a system that is balanced at any level. I did it. For all of its extreme number-crunching calculations, the end result made me a appreciate the power of the d20 system in a new way. The granularity of coin toss system is about the same as of the d20 system, except the d20 is more consistent. Even so, I have to admit there is something appealing, pure, and addictive about resolving conflicts with pictures of heads or tails. It really does evoke a different state of mind.
Warhammer's gaming system is a little more complicated then merely tossing coins. Indeed, it uses 6, 8, and 10 sided dice. It merely happens to utilize dice with pictures instead of numbers. The end result is something that I happen to think is both statistically consistent, granular, and manages to evoke the "different state of mind" you are describing. The fact that dice rolls in warhammer manage to convey so much more information than merely "you succeed/critically succeed or you fail/critically fail" is key. The amount of variable results possible as a result of any single roll are so much more robust than what is offered by any other game system I have seen. It isn't my favorite game (that honor goes to Eclipse Phase, because I think it has one of the most interesting/intelligent settings I have ever seen, because sci-fi is my first love, and because its rule system seems quick and easy to use), but I do think it has the best, or at least most interesting, dice mechanic of any game I have played (Eclipse Phase has a very strong/neat and simple dice system, but ultimately it is still only capable of resolving situations via the standard "you succeed/critically succeed or you fail/critically fail" options that numeric resolution systems are capable of providing).
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2 years ago ::
Aug 12, 2011 - 1:11PM
#35
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Date Joined:
Apr 21, 2003
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1) Eclipse Phase
2) Pathfinder
3) Shadowrun
4) Cthulhutech
Shemeska the Marauder, Freelancer 5 / Yugoloth 10
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2 years ago ::
Aug 12, 2011 - 1:14PM
#36
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Date Joined:
Sep 20, 2004
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1) Eclipse Phase
2) Pathfinder
3) Shadowrun
4) Cthulhutech
Pssst... you are supposed to keep listing until you hit 4e D&D. :P
Though, I do find it kind of neat that your first and 3rd choices are the same as my own.
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2 years ago ::
Aug 12, 2011 - 1:41PM
#37
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1) Eclipse Phase
2) Pathfinder
3) Shadowrun
4) Cthulhutech
Pssst... you are supposed to keep listing until you hit 4e D&D. :P
Though, I do find it kind of neat that your first and 3rd choices are the same as my own.
I've seen Shem's other posts. Probably aren't that many numbers ...
Another day, another three or four entries to my Ignore List.
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2 years ago ::
Aug 12, 2011 - 2:35PM
#38
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Date Joined:
Feb 11, 2006
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I'm glad someone else posted Earthdawn (although I haven't read the 3rd edition yet). If you ever want to play a fantasy RPG where the rules of the world and the rules of the game seemlessly intertwine, that's the game.
1. Earthdawn
2. D&D 3.x / PF
3. M&M SECOND EDITION (not first, not third)
4. D&D 4th
5. TSR's Dragonlance SAGA system
6. FATE (2nd and 3rd)
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2 years ago ::
Aug 12, 2011 - 2:35PM
#39
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Date Joined:
Jun 16, 2004
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It also has to be hands down the best sci-fi RPG I have ever seen (both in terms of mechanics and setting).
Is there:
A.) Power armor?
B.) No chance of your character dying during character creation a-la Traveller?
Gold is for the mistress, silver for the maid Copper for the craftsman, cunning at his trade." "Good!" said the Baron, sitting in his hall, "But Iron -- Cold Iron -- is master of them all." -Kipling Defenders: We ARE the wall! I've replaced the previous Edition Warring line in my sig with this one, because honestly, everybody needs to work together to make the D&D they like without trampling on somebody else's D&D. Miss d20 Modern? Take a look at Dias Ex Machina Game's UltraModern 4e! I am a hero, not a chump.
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2 years ago ::
Aug 12, 2011 - 2:47PM
#40
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Date Joined:
Jul 30, 2002
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For those who are interested in Eclipse Phase I recomend you download the books for free (and it's legal!) from one of the dev's website, Rob Boyle, here. There is no escuse to miss out on this phenominal game. 
-I got ran over my a squirrel the other day.
-I'm going to steal my own idea.
-My fruits of labor are not fruits... *sniff* they're vegetables. *sobs*
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