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Lalaithion
2013-04-30, 11:30 PM
I'm looking for a ruleset for a game I want to run- The problem is, I would like it to be a low-magic style setting and have had no luck. Does anyone have any low-magic, middle ages or roman style game that they could recommend to me?

Grinner
2013-04-30, 11:41 PM
We might need a little more information than that...


What kind of game do you want to run? Do you want a focus on tactical gameplay? Or do you want to skip over that and get to the plot?
How low-magic are you talking? Can the players play spellcasters at all? Or is sorcery reserved for an elite few?
Are you looking for a system or a setting? Your post is awfully vague as to whether you're looking for a set of rules or a premade setting (or both!).


If you're just looking for D&D without the overpowered casters, just ban all of the Tier 1 and Tier 2 classes.

Lalaithion
2013-04-30, 11:52 PM
I don't quite want something that is purely tactical- I tend to prefer plot-driven games, but I wouldn't mind something further towards that end than I normally go.

I want magic to be something that is available, but not omnipresent- I don't want it being in the hands of lower classes, but it's available to the rich, educated, and powerful.

I have a Setting. If there is a system that comes close to my requests, but with a pre made setting, I wouldn't mind having to adapt it a bit to fit my setting.

Deffers
2013-05-01, 12:07 AM
E6 is pretty good if you've got the DnD rulebooks and don't wanna waste money.

Kilbourne
2013-05-01, 02:19 AM
Do you like weapons? Do you like historical weapons? Do you know the difference between an arming sword, a side-sword, and a longsword (or do you want to?)

Do you like combat to last three intense moments, ending with one dead man and another missing a finger? Do you want to only gain experience by acting on your character's motivations and beliefs? Do you want magic that is bizarre, difficult, and more mystical and rare than James Bond's belly-laugh?

Do you want to see one man punch another man's skull inside out?

THEN LOOK NO FURTHER

You want Riddle of Steel (http://tros.thewestwinds.net/index.php?title=Main_Page), the most grittiest, combatanest, bone-crushingest RPG ever made (that went out of print).

And oh my god it's free.




On the other hand you could just play the E6 variant of 3.5e or Pathfinder, if, you know, you're into that sort of thing.

Actana
2013-05-01, 03:06 AM
Do you like weapons? Do you like historical weapons? Do you know the difference between an arming sword, a side-sword, and a longsword (or do you want to?)

Do you like combat to last three intense moments, ending with one dead man and another missing a finger? Do you want to only gain experience by acting on your character's motivations and beliefs? Do you want magic that is bizarre, difficult, and more mystical and rare than James Bond's belly-laugh?

Do you want to see one man punch another man's skull inside out?

THEN LOOK NO FURTHER

You want Riddle of Steel (http://tros.thewestwinds.net/index.php?title=Main_Page), the most grittiest, combatanest, bone-crushingest RPG ever made (that went out of print).

And oh my god it's free.




On the other hand you could just play the E6 variant of 3.5e or Pathfinder, if, you know, you're into that sort of thing.

+1 to this entire post. Riddle of Steel is amazing, and that page is amazing and I did not know of it before.

If you're looking for d20 systems, I recently mentioned Iron Heroes on another thread. It's a low-magic 3.5 variant. Overall though, it depends on what kind of system you want and how much effort you want to go through to learn it. Riddle of Steel is fantastic, but has a bit of a learning curve. There are also a dozen games about low magic settings, or take a more generic system and tweak it to your preferences.

But really, TROS is yummy.

Totally Guy
2013-05-01, 04:10 AM
You want Riddle of Steel (http://tros.thewestwinds.net/index.php?title=Main_Page), the most grittiest, combatanest, bone-crushingest RPG ever made (that went out of print).

And oh my god it's free.

Oh wow, I have heard good things about the Riddle of Steel but I always thought it was unavailable because it was out of print. I guess that changes everything.

I know there was a Kickstarter for a guy doing a TRoS remake but I didn't have the confidence to put money into that one.

Edit: I'm assuming that you have to challenge a few of the things you think you know about RPGs in order to fully understand it.

Kilbourne
2013-05-01, 04:24 AM
That kickstarter is a few dudes who ran all of the RoS quests on /tg/ for awhile (called Fecht-threads), and they're rebuilding the system to include better multi-combatant rules, monsters, and more accessible minor majicks. I've put my money into it just for the amount of communication they've had with their customer base on their forums, and the /tg/ board.

Also, they've said multiple times they'll release whatever they make for free if the KickStarter doesn't go through. The KS is so that they can print it, afford art, get licensing for pictures and historical essays, etc.

Rhynn
2013-05-01, 05:36 PM
Wow, TROS is available on a Wiki now? Awesome. And it looks like it even integrates The Flower of Battle, which is a must. Does it integrate the Companion rules? Those are also kind of a must.

HârnMaster. Low-magic, great and pretty realistic rules. HârnMaster Gold and HârnMaster 3 are both for sale still AFAIK, and you can get older editions if you want. HM3 is simpler and more straightforward, HMG is more fiddly and detailed with "extra realism." Ignore weird tales about starting as one-legged beggars who get gnawed to death by dogs - those are from people who just look at the tables, assume you have to always roll on all of them, and ignore all the text. If you have your own setting, you just don't buy any of the HârnWorld material (although it's one of the best settings ever).

RuneQuest 6 is very flexible and adaptable.

Any of the D&D retroclones in my sig, pretty much. Many are free, download them and check them out.

Knaight
2013-05-03, 01:37 AM
Chronica Feudalis - It's very medieval, it's on the rules light end without being anywhere near free form, and it covers social situations, stealth/espionage, and chases with all the detail it covers combat, right up to solid mechanics for tool use. Magic can be added, but it's not necessary at all, and the system as a whole is light enough that home brewing is easy.

Man on Fire
2013-05-03, 03:48 AM
I'm looking for a ruleset for a game I want to run- The problem is, I would like it to be a low-magic style setting and have had no luck. Does anyone have any low-magic, middle ages or roman style game that they could recommend to me?

savage Worlds does low-magic well.

magwaaf
2013-05-10, 10:01 PM
PATHFINDER!

that's all the explanation needed. it's just fantastic

Grod_The_Giant
2013-05-10, 10:26 PM
PATHFINDER!

that's all the explanation needed. it's just fantastic
Erm, 3.5 really doesn't do low-magic well, and I don't think Pathfinder is different enough to overcome that...

FATE is pretty good, and you can find the basic rules free. It's not specifically geared towards fantasy, though.

CarpeGuitarrem
2013-05-11, 10:12 AM
Green Ronin's A Song of Ice and Fire RP is actually very nice as a generic medievalish ruleset.