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Chainsaw Hobbit
2010-08-29, 09:10 PM
I've been playing D&D for 4 editions now and I feel like a change.
I'm still going to play D&D, I just want to try something different for a while.

I'm looking for something with fast-paced game-play, fun roleplaying, low on tactical combat, and lots of character options, and easy to GM.
I know that's a lot to ask, but do you know of anything that fits at least 3 of those preferences?

Ka'ladun
2010-08-29, 09:17 PM
Wushu fits all of the above, and has the rules online for free.

Knaight
2010-08-29, 09:18 PM
I'm assuming Faced-Paced means fast paced. If so:
Gurps: Character Options, Fun Roleplaying, Fast Pacedish
Fudge (Usually): Character Options, Fun Roleplaying, Fast Paced, Low Tactical
Savage Worlds (Theoretically): Fast Paced, Fun Roleplaying, Character Options
Paranoia: Fun Roleplaying, Fast Paced, Low Tactical
Chronica Feudalis: Fun Roleplaying, Fast Paced, Low Tactical
Fate: Character Options, Fun Roleplaying, Fast Paced, Low Tactical
Ars Magica: Character Options, Fun Roleplaying, Low Tactical
Burning Wheel: Character Options, Fun Roleplaying, Fast Paced Out Of Combat
Wushu: Character Options, Fun Roleplaying, Fast Paced, Low Tactical
Risus: Character Options, Fun Roleplaying, Fast Paced, Low Tactical
QAGS: Character Options, Fun Roleplaying, Fast Paced

There are more, this is just a quick off the top of my head list of games that either I like or I realize a lot of other people like. Fudge, Fate, Ars Magica, Wushu and Risus are free.

Zeta Kai
2010-08-29, 09:18 PM
You want Risus (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Risus). It's fast-paced, you can do anything with it so there's always opportunities for roleplay, tactical combat is completely optional, & I can't think of anything easier to GM (except for Fudge, which is even lighter on the rules). It's a super-fun beer-&-pretzels game.

Aran Banks
2010-08-29, 09:46 PM
Hi/Lo Heroes (http://www.scribd.com/doc/15905669/HiLo-Heroes) works if you reflavor it a little. Very basic game mechanics, takes only a few pages of reading, and you can crank out a charsheet in a few minutes. Very much a GM's game (The GM describes EVERYTHING) and the opponents you fight are created the same way you make characters.

Easy to pick up and learn, good for a fast game, but can turn into a game that you play every week if the GM keeps player interest.

Chainsaw Hobbit
2010-08-29, 09:50 PM
Thanks for all the suggestions! :smallbiggrin: :smallbiggrin: :smallbiggrin:

I was thinking about a simple system with dynamic, non-tactical combat.
Is Exalted any good?

tcrudisi
2010-08-29, 09:52 PM
I'm looking for something with fast-paced game-play, fun roleplaying, low on tactical combat, and lots of character options, and easy to GM.
I know that's a lot to ask, but do you know of anything that fits at least 3 of those preferences?

Well, I feel like I have to suggest this: Changeling: the Dreaming. You want fun roleplaying? It's crazy fun. Amazingly seriously fun. Where else do you have players bust out into a dance, a song, a kung fu katta, or start painting at the table, just to be able to cast a spell?

It's low on tactical combat - yeah, everyone has their abilities, but not everyone is combat oriented. Usually in oWoD you have one player who is combat-oriented and everyone else takes care of the other facets of the game. Combat isn't expected so much... unless everyone creates a combat-based character. But then you've got a problem with your group, not the game. :smallwink:

It has lots of character options! Millions! Trillions! Okay, maybe not quite as much as GURPS, but it definitely has a lot of character options.

As for fast-paced game play, I'm not quite sure what you mean.

But, I strongly recommend it. And since it's only been out of print for almost a decade, it should be easy to find copies of the book! /sarcasm off. But seriously, if you can find a copy of the books, it is an awesome rpg.

*edit* re: Sell me an rpg.
/emulates Mike the TV
I have a copy of the 3.0-based Everquest PHB, DMG, and MM rpg. It slices, it dices, and it makes julian fries! Only $99 99 99!
/end emulation

Chainsaw Hobbit
2010-08-29, 09:54 PM
Well, I feel like I have to suggest this: Changeling: the Dreaming. You want fun roleplaying? It's crazy fun. Amazingly seriously fun. Where else do you have players bust out into a dance, a song, a kung fu katta, or start painting at the table, just to be able to cast a spell?

It's low on tactical combat - yeah, everyone has their abilities, but not everyone is combat oriented. Usually in oWoD you have one player who is combat-oriented and everyone else takes care of the other facets of the game. Combat isn't expected so much... unless everyone creates a combat-based character. But then you've got a problem with your group, not the game. :smallwink:

It has lots of character options! Millions! Trillions! Okay, maybe not quite as much as GURPS, but it definitely has a lot of character options.

As for fast-paced game play, I'm not quite sure what you mean.

But, I strongly recommend it. And since it's only been out of print for almost a decade, it should be easy to find copies of the book! /sarcasm off. But seriously, if you can find a copy of the books, it is an awesome rpg.

Coll, what's the concept like?

tcrudisi
2010-08-29, 10:01 PM
Coll, what's the concept like?

Umh - let me go grab the book and I'll post a little bit of the flavor.

From the first page:

The gates to the Realms of Faerie are closed. Humankind has turned its back on the magical in favor of a new dream -- a dream of a sterile, banal world with no mysteries or wonder. A world where all the questions have been answered and all the puzzles of the universe solved. And yet, in the quest for this Utopia, much of humankind has lost a little of themselves. They have forgotten how to dream...

When the last trods to Arcadia closed and the gates slammed shut, there still remained a few of the Fair Folk living alongside humanity. These stranded fae were forced to adopt a new way of living in order to survive the sheer power of humanity's collective disbelief in all things magical: they became mortal themselves, sheltering their fragile faerie souls in mortal flesh. And yet these fae continue to dream of a day when humanity will once more return to the mystical. In the centuries following the Shattering, the fae have quietly fostered the dreams of mortals, seeking to usher in a return of the halcyon days when the fae were welcome and could openly walk among mortals.

Changeling is a storytelling game about the Dreaming. It's about lost innocence, about the cynicism of adulthood and make-believe come to life, about imagination taking fruit. Herein you will find an invisible world of fantasy that exists alongside our reality -- a place of delight, mystery and enormous peril.

When you play Changeling, you will come to understand that faerie tales aren't just for children (not that they ever were), and that they don't always have happy endings. You will discover what it is like to be exiled from your homeland, persecuted for your true nature and unable to express the beauty welling up from your soul. You will know what it is like to be alone in a crowd, to be aware of the power of dreams and to be able to tap the power of magic. And you will learn what it is like to be helpless in the arms of Fate and unable to stop the crushing weight of Banality from robbing your memory of all you have discovered.

Enter into the realm of the Dreaming -- a place of unimagined wonder and impossible terror.

About Changeling Kind:
You lead a double life, alternating between reality and fantasy. Caught in the middle ground between dream and wakefulness, you are neither wholly fae nor wholly mortal, but burdened with the cares of both. Finding a happy medium between the wild, insane world of the fae and the deadening, banal world of humanity is essential if you are to remain whole.

Such a synthesis is by no means easy. Mortal affairs seem ephemeral and trivial when you stand amid the ageless magnificence of the Seelie Court. When you don garments spun of pure moonlight and drink wine distilled from mountain mists, how can you go back to polyester and soda pop?

Alas, you have no choice. Although your faerie self is ageless and eternal, your mortal body and mind grow older and less resilient as you move through life. Sooner or later, nearly all changelings succumb to one of two equally terrifying conditions: Banality, the loss of their faerie magic; or Bedllam, the loss of their mortal reason.

But is this fate inevitable? Can you retain your childlike wonder while fighting against the frigid Banality that seeks to numb your mind and steal your past? Can you ride the currents of the Dreaming without being swept away in the maelstrom of Bedlam?

You stand alone in the mundane world. No mortal will ever understand the depth of your alienation, strangeness and uniqueness. Though you may try to communicate your condition through art (and many have tried and failed), only those with faerie blood will see, understand and appreciate what you are.

An exile among exiles. Lost among the lost. The stranger in every crowd.

Hail, fellow traveler -- welcome to the Dreaming.

DementedFellow
2010-08-29, 10:07 PM
Call of Cthulhu. Yes, you can make it a stark horror RPG where the Investigators try their hardest to postpone the end of the world. OR you can have a pulpy action RPG. Lots of flavor text, very easy to pick up and play, and tons of materials available.

Character generation takes less than 5 minutes. And if you want to guide the players in a particular direction, have them make an IDEA roll.

Besides, you get to fight tentacle monsters. Everything is better with tentacle monsters.

Chainsaw Hobbit
2010-08-29, 10:21 PM
Umh - let me go grab the book and I'll post a little bit of the flavor.

From the first page:

The gates to the Realms of Faerie are closed. Humankind has turned its back on the magical in favor of a new dream -- a dream of a sterile, banal world with no mysteries or wonder. A world where all the questions have been answered and all the puzzles of the universe solved. And yet, in the quest for this Utopia, much of humankind has lost a little of themselves. They have forgotten how to dream...

When the last trods to Arcadia closed and the gates slammed shut, there still remained a few of the Fair Folk living alongside humanity. These stranded fae were forced to adopt a new way of living in order to survive the sheer power of humanity's collective disbelief in all things magical: they became mortal themselves, sheltering their fragile faerie souls in mortal flesh. And yet these fae continue to dream of a day when humanity will once more return to the mystical. In the centuries following the Shattering, the fae have quietly fostered the dreams of mortals, seeking to usher in a return of the halcyon days when the fae were welcome and could openly walk among mortals.

Changeling is a storytelling game about the Dreaming. It's about lost innocence, about the cynicism of adulthood and make-believe come to life, about imagination taking fruit. Herein you will find an invisible world of fantasy that exists alongside our reality -- a place of delight, mystery and enormous peril.

When you play Changeling, you will come to understand that faerie tales aren't just for children (not that they ever were), and that they don't always have happy endings. You will discover what it is like to be exiled from your homeland, persecuted for your true nature and unable to express the beauty welling up from your soul. You will know what it is like to be alone in a crowd, to be aware of the power of dreams and to be able to tap the power of magic. And you will learn what it is like to be helpless in the arms of Fate and unable to stop the crushing weight of Banality from robbing your memory of all you have discovered.

Enter into the realm of the Dreaming -- a place of unimagined wonder and impossible terror.

About Changeling Kind:
You lead a double life, alternating between reality and fantasy. Caught in the middle ground between dream and wakefulness, you are neither wholly fae nor wholly mortal, but burdened with the cares of both. Finding a happy medium between the wild, insane world of the fae and the deadening, banal world of humanity is essential if you are to remain whole.

Such a synthesis is by no means easy. Mortal affairs seem ephemeral and trivial when you stand amid the ageless magnificence of the Seelie Court. When you don garments spun of pure moonlight and drink wine distilled from mountain mists, how can you go back to polyester and soda pop?

Alas, you have no choice. Although your faerie self is ageless and eternal, your mortal body and mind grow older and less resilient as you move through life. Sooner or later, nearly all changelings succumb to one of two equally terrifying conditions: Banality, the loss of their faerie magic; or Bedllam, the loss of their mortal reason.

But is this fate inevitable? Can you retain your childlike wonder while fighting against the frigid Banality that seeks to numb your mind and steal your past? Can you ride the currents of the Dreaming without being swept away in the maelstrom of Bedlam?

You stand alone in the mundane world. No mortal will ever understand the depth of your alienation, strangeness and uniqueness. Though you may try to communicate your condition through art (and many have tried and failed), only those with faerie blood will see, understand and appreciate what you are.

An exile among exiles. Lost among the lost. The stranger in every crowd.

Hail, fellow traveler -- welcome to the Dreaming.

Sounds great, I'll check it out.

tcrudisi
2010-08-29, 10:34 PM
Sounds great, I'll check it out.

One of the cool things about it is the Dreaming. Yes, half the game takes place in the real world (literally in your own backyard if you like) and the other half is in the Dreaming. Since it's a dream world, anything goes. Literally anything. You want a dragon? No problem. You want a tentacled refrigerator monster that runs around sort of like a crab? You've got it. You want your Troll changeling to ride around on a motorcycle with bear claws as handles and a roaring mouth at the front? You can do that too.

Even this can happen: http://www.collegehumor.com/article:1807937
That's right - a shark and bear working together to eat someone. Awesome.

Okay, I'm getting a bit silly, but that's the point I'm trying to make. It's the Dreaming. Anything can happen or exist so long as you and your players have the imagination for it. That's why I love the system so much.

Chainsaw Hobbit
2010-08-29, 10:39 PM
Where can I pick up the core book?

truemane
2010-08-29, 10:49 PM
As far as I know it's completely out of print. Has been for quite some time, in fact. You'd have to luck out and come across it in a 2nd hand/clearance bin somewhere. Or else you can buy a pdf on-line. Drivethru RPG has them. I'm sure othes do too.

I haven't played the Dreaming in a long time. I've run a few games over the years. Used to love it. If you can get the characters just right and the troupe working just so it's a wonderful game.

I tell you what, you get hold of the book and give it a good enough read through to grasp the material, PM me and I'll consider running a game for you (and a couple others even if we can find some).

Chainsaw Hobbit
2010-08-29, 10:52 PM
Hmmm, I just happened to notice that on DriveThruRPG it had a 2.5/5 costomer rating. :smallconfused:

tcrudisi
2010-08-29, 10:53 PM
Where can I pick up the core book?

Well, there is a new edition out that is easy to find. But, here's everything I know about the new edition:



That was quick. I would try to do some research and see what people say about the new edition (Changeling: the Lost) as it will be much easier to find.

I would check ebay and other re-selling sites, since you are highly unlikely to find it in a gaming store. You might (big might) be able to find it in something like a Barnes and Noble or what-not, but I doubt it. It has been out of print for a while. Also, it sold for $30 when it was brand new.

http://cgi.ebay.com/Changeling-Dreaming-Second-Addition-/200510986991?pt=US_Fiction_Books&hash=item2eaf62daef

Yay! They don't know how to spell "edition", so maybe that means fewer people will find it and nobody else will bid on it. It has basically 2 days left on the bid (which is a total of about $10 currently, including shipping) and only 7 people (including myself) have viewed it, with a total of 0 bids. I have no idea what that book normally runs for right now, so I can't say whether that's a good or bad deal.

Alternatively, if you live in or very close to Raleigh, NC, then you can borrow my copy. (Although I doubt that to be the case and I would want it back! :smallyuk: )

tcrudisi
2010-08-29, 10:57 PM
Hmmm, I just happened to notice that on DriveThruRPG it had a 2.5/5 costomer rating. :smallconfused:

Take note that there are only 3 ratings and one of them is a 1. It was a 1 because the quality of the pdf was shady, not because he did not like the game (he made no mention of that).

If you bought the book, you would not have that problem, obviously.

Ask around here. It's obviously a forum that you trust. Start a new thread asking people for their unbiased opinion about Changeling: the Dreaming.

It's the 2nd edition version, btw.

sambo.
2010-08-30, 02:00 AM
I was thinking about a simple system with dynamic, non-tactical combat.

Paranoia has THE BEST combat system EVER!

Dramatic Tactical Combat. be exciting and succeed! be boring and DIE!

The Glyphstone
2010-08-30, 08:45 AM
I like to recommend people Veggie Patch. (http://rpg.drivethrustuff.com/product_info.php?products_id=20710&it=1&filters=0_0_10030)

You play vegetables. No, really. Sentient, mobile vegetables. Your PCs are corn, tomatoes, potatoes, carrots, etc., brought to life with magic. You live in your vegetable patch, fending off attacks by barbarian Weed tribes and foiling the evil Broccoli and Cauliflowers of the neighboring garden from taking over and enslaving yours. I got it for free out from a DriveThruRPG promotion a while back, and found it hilarious.

Project_Mayhem
2010-08-30, 09:14 AM
That was quick. I would try to do some research and see what people say about the new edition (Changeling: the Lost) as it will be much easier to find.


Should probably mention that CtL is a *very* different game in tone and style. It is about playing an abuse victim basically. Somewhat less upbeat :smalltongue:

The Glyphstone
2010-08-30, 10:40 AM
Should probably mention that CtL is a *very* different game in tone and style. It is about playing an abuse victim basically. Somewhat less upbeat :smalltongue:

This.

Dreaming is about whimsy, imagination, and keeping hold of the wonder of a fading childhood. Lost is about being a PTSD sufferer/abuse victim. They couldn't be more apart in tone and feel.

Kylarra
2010-08-30, 10:44 AM
I suggest maid (http://maidrpg.com/).

You are a maid, having worked dutifully for the Saionji family for several years. You are also a shy albino princess who does odd jobs for the yakuza, and train with the three-section staff. Your peer Maya is an outgoing young maid with freckles, a streak of being greedy for sweets, and who also happens to be a military cyborg.

Your master is a kind teenager who lives in the mansion alone, but is a bit of a train otaku. He is also a cursed werewolf. With amnesia.

Somewhere between doing the laundry and preparing lunch, the master is kidnapped by evil ninjas. They escape through the basement of the mansion, which contains a portal to the Netherworld. It's up to you to get him back before dinnertime.

Chainsaw Hobbit
2010-08-30, 11:19 AM
I checked out Veggie Patch and I may use it to introduce some kids I know into roleplaying.

Can you tell me about the difference between CtD and CtL?

Project_Mayhem
2010-08-30, 12:35 PM
Why (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/ptitleagnjhdbt?from=Main.ChangelingTheDreaming) yes (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/Ptitlen4fcro73tb02?from=Main.ChangelingTheLost) I can