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Erith
2011-06-15, 12:53 PM
I am planning on running a game that will be largely based on the manga claymore. I'm thinking of running it off of a modified 3rd edition dnd, simply because that is the system we are most familiar with, but I wouldn't be opposed to running a storyteller variant if that would work better.

The world will of course be changed to accomodate different races, and claymores will work in small groups instead of individually. I'm thinking of restricting classes to noncasters, and encouraging tob use. Starting level is 5.

The claymores themselves will be a template, possibly with something akin to a bloodline granting youki abilities and facilitating the awakening process.

Thoughts? Suggestions?

Tetrasodium
2011-06-15, 02:13 PM
I am planning on running a game that will be largely based on the manga claymore. I'm thinking of running it off of a modified 3rd edition dnd, simply because that is the system we are most familiar with, but I wouldn't be opposed to running a storyteller variant if that would work better.

The world will of course be changed to accomodate different races, and claymores will work in small groups instead of individually. I'm thinking of restricting classes to noncasters, and encouraging tob use. Starting level is 5.

The claymores themselves will be a template, possibly with something akin to a bloodline granting youki abilities and facilitating the awakening process.

Thoughts? Suggestions?

You might try dfrpg (dresden files rpg. It's a highyl flexible fate based system) with some stuff that fits well with the claymore/yokai side, You could basically limit playersa to red court infected where they need to make discipline checks to keep from losing it and trying to feed(which results in turning to full vamp) based on the costs of the various powers they used during a battle (or whatever). You could just say those like claire who can go all the way and stay human are full red court vamps with really good discipline or something to keep a grip on their human side. The various regenerative/morphing./etc powers can also be accommodated without needing to make any real changes beyond maybe some theme ones

Prime32
2011-06-15, 03:23 PM
If you're running it in D&D then elans (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/psionic/psionicRaces.htm#elans) make a decent base. The various claymore abilities can be represented through a combination of barbarian, ToB classes, and psychic warrior/ardent/war mind. Give everyone detect psionics as an at-will PLA, and the shapechanger subtype so they qualify for warshaper. Awakened forms can be represented by frenzied berserker or bear warrior.

Don't disallow exotic abilities like shooting bolts of lightning, just say it's a trick where you build up static charge with your sword or something.

Erith
2011-06-15, 10:04 PM
@Tetrasodium
None of us are really looking to learn a new system, as this will mostly be just filling the gap between our current hunter game and a lethality fix for exalted (fingers crossed). I'll look into that system though, it sounds interesting.

@Prime32
Good suggestions. I'm not sure how I feel about limiting races to just an elan variant, as we generally like to run a fairly diverse group, hence the template. Something to think about, though.

kts2008
2011-06-15, 10:08 PM
You might want to take a look at BESM

Gensh
2011-06-15, 10:27 PM
Without getting too far from your base, I'd go with Mutants and Masterminds. It's based on the d20 system, but with a more freeform structure. A lot of the claymores have shown powers that they developed personally, and having a class-based system would kind of ruin that. If you get the Warriors and Warlocks expansion, it actually would help a lot for that sort of game, but it's also an unnecessary expense. I actually made a claymore character in it a while back, but I think I threw out my old notes.

Arbane
2011-06-16, 10:00 PM
I'd suggest RuneQuest. It handles limb-loss better than any other system I've played. :smallbiggrin:

Or Mutants and Masterminds, for the weird Special Techniques the characters have.

Frozen_Feet
2011-06-16, 10:04 PM
I'm fairly sure one World of Darkness game or another would also work pretty well. They have the slow loss of humanity pinned down, at least.

Xefas
2011-06-16, 10:11 PM
Paladin (http://crngames.com/files/other/paladin.pdf) is a free RPG specifically designed for games involving humanoid beings that gain power from some sort of Light/Dark, Good/Evil, Calm/Rage, Human/Monster type dichotomy. I think this would work really well for Claymore, where the characters have their normal powers, but they can tap into their demonic side for extra power, but tapping too deeply can be dangerous. The mechanics are built for just that sort of thing.

CarpeGuitarrem
2011-06-16, 11:15 PM
I would actually go with the World of Darkness suggestion here, as long as you're talking New World of Darkness.

Reason? It's a very fluid, simple, flexible system. You get one die for each dot in an Attribute, one die for each dot in a skill, subtract penalties, and roll the pool. It lends itself really well to fast-paced action, because everything gets boiled into a single roll. In fact, it's the well-known system that I'd recommend for anything anime, without getting into more specialized games like BESM. It's also just a great framework in general to fit stuff into.

Not only that, but you've got plenty of options for building in the Claymore powers. I would add in a "Youma Blood" power stat, and then homebrew a few different Merits to represent the different Youma powers. Higher levels of Youma Blood generate Yoki, which is a pool of points you can spend to activate Youma powers...but spend enough Yoki in a scene, and you have to make a degeneration roll. Fall low enough in Morality, and you Awaken.

You could do a lot with the rules hack here, and it might not be balanced, but it'd definitely be fun.

Arbane
2011-06-20, 01:15 PM
ISTR someone on RPG.net was adapting Exalted for Claymore. (Using Lunar Charms.)

Ceaon
2011-06-20, 02:02 PM
Both New World of Darkness and d20 (homebrew) can easily accomplish what you want. In the end, it comes down to two things: feeling much more powerful than 'normal' humans and possessing special abilities to hunt and battle a very specific and powerful group of targets.

One of my players played a Claymore-inspired character in one of my campaigns. I renamed the enemies Vacant Ones and created a fairly simple template (called Half-Vacant) that provided some scaling abilities (like +X Str and Con, ability to wield oversized weapons, regenerative abilities etc.) based on character level. The player could be any 3.5 class and would still feel like a Claymore. The other players were playing Raki-like characters: a charisma rogue, a healer and a buffer wizard. It was awesome and really made the player's Vacant seem like something special, without rendering the other characters obsolete.

Analytica
2011-06-20, 03:19 PM
Seconding Exalted, only everyone except Yoma and Claymores are just mortals.