Little-known Systems

[Malfunctioned]

So what system do you know and/or play that you feel are under-represented in general?

For me it's pretty much Swashbucklers of the Seven Skies. It runs off the PDQ# (Prose Descriptive Qualities Sharp) system. Very easy to learn, very easy to use. It's quick, cinematic and rewards role-playing with in-game benefits. The world that comes with it is very detailed and one of my favourite worlds to play in so far. It is simply an incredible system.


So, what are yours?

[Cahokia]

I'm a huge fan of Spirit of the Century (http://evilhat.wikidot.com/spirit-of-the-century). It's probably my favorite rules-lite system.

[Ravens_cry]

Ghostbusters (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ghostbusters_%28role-playing_game%29)
Strap on your proton packs, folks, it's time to kick of ectoplasmic ass!
Very rules lite and Rule of Funny/Cool. Responsible for some key innovations in role playing games and goofy to boot.
And it's about being ghostbusters.
That in itself means deserves awesome.
I so want to try running a game this Halloween.

[Magnema]

Kobolds ate my Baby. (http://www.koboldsatemybaby.com/)

[Knaight]

I'm a huge fan of Spirit of the Century (http://evilhat.wikidot.com/spirit-of-the-century). It's probably my favorite rules-lite system.
Its reasonably well known though. Now, it traces back to Fudge, which is fairly obscure.

That said, my chosen favorites are Blood Sweat and Steel and [topsecretnametobeeditedinlater], though neither of them are out yet.

[The Rose Dragon]

Faery's Tale Deluxe and Pandemonium (Spite and Dread, to be precise). If you have heard of or play either one, give me a call.

[Knaight]

Faery's Tale is a pretty cool game, though not to my taste by any means, and Pandemonium is brilliant, particularly Dread.

[Pyre_Born]

In my area, and really, on most forums it seems like True20 and Besm are not represented often.
They are well known however, but it seems like a lot of people try to make systems that look or feel identical on homebrew forums, yet people rarely seem to mention these two systems.

But other than those I usually play well known games, 3.5e, Pathfinder, Champions, Mutants and Masterminds, Rifts...and a few more that aren't popping into my head at the moment for some reason

Pyre

[SurlySeraph]

Twilight 2013 (http://www.93gamesstudio.com/site/node/7). Too bad I've never had a chance to play it.

[Vortling]

This is amusing. PDQ in general is my favorite little unknown system. Everyone seems to know about Risus, but few know about PDQ.

[genericname]

The new Song of Ice and Fire rpg. Its rather fun, but its tough to play with people who don't know the world.

[Glimbur]

Wuthering Heights (http://www.unseelie.org/rpg/wh/index.html). Whenever I run it everyone goes mad.

[Chambers]

HOL. I have never gotten a chance to play the game, but simply reading the book was very amusing.

[Urpriest]

There's a little local game called Deity that might get released someday. It can be best described by the following analogy: as D&D to Oblivion, so is Deity to Spore. Also, it's played with crayons.

The same group also is playtesting a rules-light system with some fun bits called Dramatis.

[Greenish]

The new Song of Ice and Fire rpg. Its rather fun, but its tough to play with people who don't know the world.The world is pretty easy to summarize: all your plans amount to naught, and you will die an inglorious death, for which you are grateful since everyone's screwed.

At least, that's very much the feeling one gets from the books. I love them! :smallbiggrin:

[genericname]

The world is pretty easy to summarize: all your plans amount to naught, and you will die an inglorious death, for which you are grateful since everyone's screwed.

At least, that's very much the feeling one gets from the books. I love them! :smallbiggrin:


We actually ran a game where the party were a sub house of Lannister and were tasked with holding a siege at the Trident.

The players got dead and actually enjoyed it. Mostly because it worked in the story.

[Tengu_temp]

Earthdawn. A great, exotic and unique setting that's as far from Generic Fantasy Realm #43 as possible while staying coherent and natural, not forced and completely alien, focus on heroism and epicness, and an interesting overlap between fluff and crunch - your class, abilities, even level exist in the game world, and have a logical explanation! Very few people are familiar with this game, though - Shadowrun, from the same developers, is much more popular.

[Cahokia]

Its reasonably well known though. Now, it traces back to Fudge, which is fairly obscure.

That said, my chosen favorites are Blood Sweat and Steel and [topsecretnametobeeditedinlater], though neither of them are out yet.

Yeah, but SotC has this wonderful aesthetic that's just written into the mechanics I just don't feel as much in FUDGE. I guess I'm just not indie. :smallwink:

[Urpriest]

Earthdawn. A great, exotic and unique setting that's as far from Generic Fantasy Realm #43 as possible while staying coherent and natural, not forced and completely alien, focus on heroism and epicness, and an interesting overlap between fluff and crunch - your class, abilities, even level exist in the game world, and have a logical explanation! Very few people are familiar with this game, though - Shadowrun, from the same developers, is much more popular.

By the way, would it be fair to say that Earthdawn is like Shadowrun's version of Exalted? I think I've heard it referred to and I'm trying to see if I remember it correctly.

[Tengu_temp]

I don't think if they're too similar. Both are exotic and epic fantasy worlds, but Earthdawn is lighter (despite taking place ~100 years after an apocalypse) and more geared towards adventuring and exploring the mysteries of the world. Furthermore, in Exalted only special, superhuman people/creatures can really achieve anything worthwhile, while in Earthdawn anyone can become an Adept with enough dedication and a proper mindset. Adepts aren't as superhuman as Exalted, either - they start mortal and stay mortal.

These are just some of the differences. These two systems surely are more similar to each other than any of them is to, say, DND 3.5, but they're not as close as one might think. Both are awesome though.

[Urpriest]

I was thinking less in terms of mechanics and more in terms of setting. The idea that Exalted is sort of WoD in ancient times when magic ruled, and that Earthdawn is the same sort of prequel world to Shadowrun. Would that be a fair characterization?

[Tengu_temp]

And I was talking about the setting as well. But what you're saying is more or less true - what Exalted is to WoD, Earthdawn is to Shadowrun. In fact, even moreso - WW has officially announced that Exalted is not a prequel to WoD, while Earthdawn and Shadowrun still seem to take place in the same universe, just with thousands of years in between.

[Socko525]

I'm also a big fan of the Ghostbusters RPG. If you're looking for the source material, gbfans.com has scans of almost every book in the series. I also love this game because character creation is so simplistic. http://www.gbfans.com/games/ghostbusters-RPG/

I'm also a big fan of the old Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Other Strangeness/After the Bomb RPG. That was the first RPG I ever played/GM'd. Also I love the Changeling the Lost RPG as well. I realize that it's more well known than the other one's I've mentioned but I feel that it is underplayed in comparison to the other WoD games(Mage, Vampire, Werewolf). I feel that to play Changeling you need a very active imagination and it offers some opportunities for great role-playing and intricate character backgrounds and interesting gaming sessions

[Crossblade]

Corporation (http://www.corpgame.com/)
Originally published in Europe it only made it's way over the big blue wet thing about a year+ ago.
It takes place in the future, 26xx; the world's major continents/countries are now run by big name corporations (NAmer, Europe, Africa, Asia, Japan) and while officially they are policed, they all have "secret" (everyone knows they exist) super human agents that do their dirty work; and you the players are those agents. Everything from espionage to gun/sword fights.

The game uses 2d10 for deciding rolls. To do something you add your appropriate ability score to your appropriate skill, and have to roll below that. For example, to shoot a gun is perception + gun type (heavy, light, tactical), roll lower than that total and it's a hit, roll higher and you miss (armor gives damage reduction).
Upon minimum starting level, your 7 stats can been between 5-10, but you're giving 49 points to alter between that range as you desire.
.... actually, here's a review that describes the game better than I could.
Gnomestew Review Corporation (http://www.gnomestew.com/reviews/a-review-of-corporation-rpg-fast-brutal-and-gm-friendly)

[The Dark Fiddler]

It can be best described by the following analogy: as D&D to Oblivion, so is Deity to Spore.

So, very incredibly ambitious, delayed several years to the point people doubt its existence, and then a shadow of what was promised when it finally is released? :smalltongue:

Still, sounds pretty interesting. Especially crayons.

Sadly, I don't know many little-known systems... the most obscure I'm aware of is Maid RPG (which is awesome).

[Morty]

Riddle of Steel is as obscure as it's great, I think. It contains a very detailed, gritty combat system that's ARMA-approved and gets as close as an RPG game can get to realistic combat simulation, IMO. However, since the developers seem to have vanished from the face of the Earth some time ago, it's no wonder it's not widely known.

[Urpriest]

So, very incredibly ambitious, delayed several years to the point people doubt its existence, and then a shadow of what was promised when it finally is released? :smalltongue:

Still, sounds pretty interesting. Especially crayons.


Sadly, that part of the analogy also appears to be largely correct...like I said, it's sort of an abandoned project.

[Satyr]

It's interesting what some people consider to be obscure - Earthdawn for example is in my opinion while not a huge game, quite a well-known and vibrant one (I also think it is quite good, even though I seem to be cursed to never actually play it). Song of Ice and Fire is likewise not unknown, mostly thanks to the influential book license behind it.

Unknown Armies is a pretty little known game, even though it is also pretty good (if one likes the whole "the world is not what it seems to be" modern age supernatural RPG).
Artesia: Adventures in the Known World is also a widely underestimated game, especially since the whole world - from the comic it was based on to the actual game - was created by one single guy. Incredible artwork. Even more incredible complex and fascinating inner world mythology.
Harnmaster is another game people tend to ignore, despite its quite venerable age and consequent rules (it is by the way one of those game which are better suited for A Song of Ice and Fire than the original licensed games).
The Riddle of Steel has somewhat become a Holy Grail of games. It is a highly praised game, and nigh impossible to get.

And of course there are tons of independent games, some very good ones, which are unfortunately little known, and a few which are very justly quite obscure.

[The Glyphstone]

Veggie Patch?

[Raum]

So, what are yours?Over the Edge is probably the least known system I've played. It used to be better known...it just got old. Strange how that happens. :smallwink:

To answer an earlier question, Earthdawn was a prequel to Shadowrun as far as the metaplot goes. However there were some significant differences in the systems.

[tahu88810]

Sadly, that part of the analogy also appears to be largely correct...like I said, it's sort of an abandoned project.

Do you think maybe we could somehow get our hands on the rules, anyways? If only because it's played with crayons?

[Morty]

Harnmaster is another game people tend to ignore, despite its quite venerable age and consequent rules (it is by the way one of those game which are better suited for A Song of Ice and Fire than the original licensed games).


I've heard some stuff about Harnmaster actually; it was advertised as a good system for realistic low fantasy. Of course, the fact that I forgot about it when responding to this thread proves your point.

[Knaight]

Riddle of Steel is as obscure as it's great, I think. It contains a very detailed, gritty combat system that's ARMA-approved and gets as close as an RPG game can get to realistic combat simulation, IMO. However, since the developers seem to have vanished from the face of the Earth some time ago, it's no wonder it's not widely known.

Burning Wheel is just about as realistic if not more so, with the notable exception of wounding, where Riddle of Steel is significantly more realistic.

On obscure systems, The Shadow of Yesterday is a frequently forgotten one, which is a shame. While it is largely a narrativist piece of junk, it contains one mechanic (Keys) which is brilliant.

[Urpriest]

Do you think maybe we could somehow get our hands on the rules, anyways? If only because it's played with crayons?

I can't find the rules...I was asked to comment on them at one point, but apparently that copy disappeared in some past computer transition, and I can't find a posting of them online. Here's (http://www.goplaypdx.com/forum/index.php?topic=181.0) a link to a thread discussing the game.

[Delusion]

Ikuisuuksien laakso. A roleplaying game about penguins. Not available in English though.

[Aran Banks]

Hi/Lo Heroes (http://www.scribd.com/doc/15905669/HiLo-Heroes) is a free superhero RPG. Really quick to set up and has FANTASTIC roleplaying opportunity.

Highly recommended with 14 million stars.

[Morty]

Burning Wheel is just about as realistic if not more so, with the notable exception of wounding, where Riddle of Steel is significantly more realistic.


I'm not familiar with Burning Wheel. It might be more realistic than RoS for all I know, which is why I added "IMO". But yeah, Riddle of Steel focuses on combat as far as realism is concerned. Non-combat stuff seems to be handled in a rather similiar fashion to other systems.

[The Dark Fiddler]

Ikuisuuksien laakso. A roleplaying game about penguins. Not available in English though.

Yet. We had a group that was going to translate it... from this very forum, in fact! Thread where it was discussed (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=141073). Haven't heard much about the project in a while though... maybe it's time to shoot Grey_Paladin another PM.

[DaragosKitsune]

Little Fears and Anima: Beyond Fantasy

Little Fears: You play as children and fight monsters that came from all of the worst parts of humanity. You are basically the lowest point on the food chain for the entire game. It isn't a game about beating every monster, it's about surviving.

Anima: A high power setting. Everything can and will kill you, and you can already spam superpowers by third level. Also, every class has the potential to do everything in the game, albeit not particularly well in some cases.

[Knaight]

I'm not familiar with Burning Wheel. It might be more realistic than RoS for all I know, which is why I added "IMO". But yeah, Riddle of Steel focuses on combat as far as realism is concerned. Non-combat stuff seems to be handled in a rather similiar fashion to other systems.

I'm saying that Burning Wheel is every bit as accurate as a combat simulator. Wounds form the single exception.

[Ravens_cry]

Dogs in the Vineyard (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dogs_in_the_Vineyard) was a lot of fun when I played a game at a local convention. The fluff is interesting, though I can see the rules also been good for a Mafia style game.

[Werekat]

Shadows in the Fog, by Chris Lehrich. The man knows his occult and Victorian Era stuff. A Tarot mechanic is also fun to play.

Unfortunately, his own website seems down and out, but I think a copy of the rules can be found here.

http://www.darkshire.net/jhkim/rpg/shadowsinthefog/

Our group is also very fond of The Mountain Witch, which is essentially one adventure, but with an interesting Dark Fate mechanic.

[Psyx]

SLA Industries and Pendragon.

[tahu88810]

I can't find the rules...I was asked to comment on them at one point, but apparently that copy disappeared in some past computer transition, and I can't find a posting of them online. Here's (http://www.goplaypdx.com/forum/index.php?topic=181.0) a link to a thread discussing the game.

Alrighty, thanks. I'll see if I can't contact Julian about it via email or something.

[Arbane]

Nobilis: A diceless game where characters are the living embodiments of the fundamental concepts of the universe, such as Gravity, Love, Money, Heroism, Cheese, and so forth. It's famous for being brilliantly written, utterly groundbreaking, and nearly unplayable (since it's so unlike everything else).

[The Rose Dragon]

Nobilis: A diceless game where characters are the living embodiments of the fundamental concepts of the universe, such as Gravity, Love, Money, Heroism, Cheese, and so forth. It's famous for being brilliantly written, utterly groundbreaking, and nearly unplayable (since it's so unlike everything else).

And hardly little-known, just near unfindable.

[Togo]

My favourite obscure game is probably Lace & Steel by Paul Kidd. Best fencing system in any rpg ever, a great game world, and some facinating system ideas. I was particularly fond of the 'verbal fencing' rules.


I was quite fond of Teenagers from Outer Space.

[Frosty]

Well the Dresden Files RPG (http://www.dresdenfilesrpg.com/) is still relatively unknown, but I hope it won't stay that way for long. It is made of win and based off of the FATE system. Closest thing to Free-form that isn't free-form, but still loads of fun!

[Knaight]

FATE is much further from freeform than many, and DFRPG is pretty heavy by FATE standards. Plus, its not that obscure, the sales on it are pretty nice, Evil Hat is going to overtake White Wolf pretty soon if they continue as they have. Which would be awesome, but that is entirely besides the point.

[ajkkjjk52]

Dogs in the Vineyard (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dogs_in_the_Vineyard) was a lot of fun when I played a game at a local convention. The fluff is interesting, though I can see the rules also been good for a Mafia style game.

Gotta second Dogs. It takes a highly skilled GM and a group of players who are really willing to view the game as cooperative storytelling more than just "shoot-it-and-loot-it," but if it works it's a role-playing experience unlike any I've seen elsewhere.

And it is adaptable, like said above. I've heard of it being used for a modern-day supernatural mystery game and even space opera.

[Amphetryon]

Tales From the Floating Vagabond (http://tffv.vagabond-network.com/index.shtml). Don't know how 'obscure' it is considered compared to other systems named, but it's rarely discussed these days on the forums I see, and tons of fun.

[Frosty]

FATE is much further from freeform than many, and DFRPG is pretty heavy by FATE standards. Plus, its not that obscure, the sales on it are pretty nice, Evil Hat is going to overtake White Wolf pretty soon if they continue as they have. Which would be awesome, but that is entirely besides the point.
It's obscure compared to DnD, and rules-lite enough compared to 3.5 that it's almost free-form for me.

The Aspects system is just so...rich and colorful...I'm looking for someone on this forum to DM it!

Oh? You have the sales data? Can I see it? I am interested.

[Knaight]

The sales data is publicly released, on the website. That said, some quick benchmarks.

Fudge is estimated at 3000 sales per run, considered fairly high.
DFRPG had a 90,000 copy first run, which sold out in under a month.
Every sanctioned electronic vendor of the mass produced Fudge dice is completely out of stock.

As for aspects and GMing, can you do chat? I'm currently helping create a Fudge-Fate 3 Sword and Sorcery game, and the lead designer is a talented GM with a D&D background. I can GM his game and get some playtesting done, though I'm not all that wonderful with S&S.

[Frosty]

I don't have experience with the system really. DFRPG is my first exposure to the FATE system and I have had no actual play in it yet. Charcter creation has been fun though.

[dsmiles]

HOL. I have never gotten a chance to play the game, but simply reading the book was very amusing.

HoL is awesome. We tried to play it once. It turned into a laugh riot, then we all went out for pizza.

Favorite under-represented system? Maybe I'm a little out of date, but Gamma World and KAMB are good.

Not a roleplaying game, as such, but fun for the whole family: Illuminati.

[Comet]

Ikuisuuksien laakso. A roleplaying game about penguins. Not available in English though.


Yet. We had a group that was going to translate it... from this very forum, in fact! Thread where it was discussed (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=141073). Haven't heard much about the project in a while though... maybe it's time to shoot Grey_Paladin another PM.

I'm still waiting for the other translator to send in his part of the job so we can start putting the book together with the original author. Again, sorry for the massive delay on this project. We will see this through, though, even if we need to bash through walls of stone with our keyboards! I'll put up a party thread here on GiTP once the game is released :smalltongue:

edit: ooh, just to be nitpicky: it's actually "Ikuisuuden Laakso" or "Valley of Eternity". No plurals needed, one eternity is plenty.

[The Dark Fiddler]

I'm still waiting for the other translator to send in his part of the job so we can start putting the book together with the original author. Again, sorry for the massive delay on this project. We will see this through, though, even if we need to bash through walls of stone with our keyboards! I'll put up a party thread here on GiTP once the game is released :smalltongue:

*Hands an adamantine hammer* For the wall smashing.

I still await eagerly, even after these months. :smallsmile:

[Knaight]

I don't have experience with the system really. DFRPG is my first exposure to the FATE system and I have had no actual play in it yet. Charcter creation has been fun though.

We need to fix this. I can PM you the Fudge chatroom link if you want.

[Togo]

I've not played Dogs in the vinyard, although people keep inviting me to do so. 'Ikuisuuden Laakso' i've never heard of, although it sounds great!. I've played all the other games mentioned:smallfrown:.

What about Maelstrom? Published as a book in the style of the fighting fantasy books, and sold in bookshops rather than hobby stores, it was the best recreation of 15th century society I've seen. I was never sold on why I'd want to set my game in such a period though...

The most obscure game I've ever heard of was a homebrew called 'No other Blue', where each player was a concept, and the only stats were colours. The game consisted of trying to create the universe on one's own terms, opposed by the other players. Success or failure was down to comparing the most relevant colour. The PCs were Big, small, Space and <yingyang symbol>. The first creation was void, followed by sand, followed by the inferiority complex, followed by war.

Has anyone played Yosagi Yojimbo? A game based on the comic strip of the same name?

Or Talislanta? Great concept, never convinced it would make a good game though...

[0Megabyte]

I have no idea how well they're known, but...

Bliss Stage is something really messed up, and looks like fun. Very rules light.

Maid: The RPG looks hilarious.

[a_humble_lich]

We had a great Talislanta campaign quite some time ago. I was quite young then, and looking back I see that the system has a flaw or two, but we had a whole lot of fun. I went and bought the basic book when it was bought rerelesed by WotC. There were a lot of good ideas in the setting, and while it may not have been as original as they claimed at the time, it sure wasn't Greyhawk either.

As far as obscure games go, Bard games also made the Atlantean series (The Arcanum was the player's book). The rules were similar to Talislanta (or Paladium), but again there were some good ideas (lots of different classes, several different magic systems, detailed alchemy rules). By modern standards it shows its age, though.

[dsmiles]

We had a great Talislanta campaign quite some time ago. I was quite young then, and looking back I see that the system has a flaw or two, but we had a whole lot of fun. I went and bought the basic book when it was bought rerelesed by WotC. There were a lot of good ideas in the setting, and while it may not have been as original as they claimed at the time, it sure wasn't Greyhawk either.

As far as obscure games go, Bard games also made the Atlantean series (The Arcanum was the player's book). The rules were similar to Talislanta (or Paladium), but again there were some good ideas (lots of different classes, several different magic systems, detailed alchemy rules). By modern standards it shows its age, though.

The latest version of Talislanta is a significant improvement. Although there's still like a billion race/class combos to go over.