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aspekt
2015-03-17, 02:50 PM
I've been perusing various threads dealing with semi or fantasy historical campaigns. Most of them deal with tweaking current popular systems.

But I was wondering, do you have a reccomendation of a particular TRPG for this kind of campaign?

It can be whatever level of magic you wish, but my reccomendation right now us either FUDGE for developing a unique system or Pendragon, perhaps 4ed since it purportedly has a bit mire magic imbedded in the mechanics.

For the campaign I am looking at a typical party size of 3-5 players set in the early to late medieval europe, but hopefully with travel to the middle east and/or to the West.

However, I am interested in various epochs so other suggestions are welcome.

Mr. Mask
2015-03-17, 02:57 PM
Galloglaich from the Real Weapons and Armour thread had a pretty interesting historical RPG. He had a setting book for a historical game, too, which can arguably be the hardest part of a historical campaign.

Kiero
2015-03-17, 03:11 PM
Where and when in the world are you looking at? It makes a difference. So does the premise, in terms of what level of focus - is it a small group of people, a nation, an army?

I've tweaked ACKS (itself derived from B/X D&D) quite successfully for a completely non-fantastical, non-magical game set in Massalia in 300BC called Tyche's Favourites (http://wiki.rpg.net/index.php/Tyche%27s_Favourites). I could imagine tweaking ACKS again for a Vikings game, or possibly something in the age of Pike and Shot. A big draw is the fact that it has a very well done mass combat system in Domains@War which lets me zoom out from the PCs and do large-scale stuff.

But for a more focused sort of game, I could easily imagine using nWoD, without any supernatural splats, just the GMC-updated core.

BootStrapTommy
2015-03-17, 03:53 PM
*shameless GURPS plug*

Systems pretty universal, making historical campaigns easy, though you're like to have to do all the research yourself.

aspekt
2015-03-17, 04:20 PM
Lack of info corrected.

Kiero
2015-03-17, 04:34 PM
Lack of info corrected.

For the campaign I am looking at a typical party size of 3-5 players set in the early to late medieval europe, but hopefully with travel to the middle east and/or to the West.


That's still kind of thin - where in Europe and when in the medieval era - you've got a big span of time (anything up to a thousand years) with wildly differing movements, pressures and so on going on. Focusing down on something more specific might help drive out what would fit.

As to the "party" setup, the default mode that works well with that is mercenary company. Whether the PCs are the officers and leaders, or just new recruits depends on the sort of game you have in mind.

Arbane
2015-03-17, 08:57 PM
Pendragon, maybe?

Ars Magica is set in 'Medieval Europe, only all the things they believed are really true.'

aspekt
2015-03-17, 11:49 PM
Pendragon, maybe?

Ars Magica is set in 'Medieval Europe, only all the things they believed are really true.'

I've actually been thinking of homebrewing a combo of the two. Also under consideration are REIGN, Runequest, and Burning Wheel. Albeit, I've yet to play those.


@Kiero
It is true that is a broad spectrum of cultures and histories. Do you think that there is a system to reflect historical TRPG play that could be carried between these time periods? Or would that somply be too much weight on one system?


@Bootstrap
I have considered GURPS, but I'd almost rather use FUDGE and roll my own.

Mr. Mask
2015-03-18, 12:31 AM
Well, the mechanical changes probably wouldn't be too significant. You'd need to have rules for the new available technology, and you'd need setting data, but other than that it's still largely the same mechanically.


This is the one I implied earlier, Codex Martialis: http://1d4chan.org/wiki/Codex_Martialis

There's also ones like the Riddle of Steel for combat, and Harnmaster has a lot of stuff for roleplaying medieval life (not sure if it had a ton of period flexibility).

aspekt
2015-03-18, 12:58 AM
Well, the mechanical changes probably wouldn't be too significant. You'd need to have rules for the new available technology, and you'd need setting data, but other than that it's still largely the same mechanically.


This is the one I implied earlier, Codex Martialis: http://1d4chan.org/wiki/Codex_Martialis

There's also ones like the Riddle of Steel for combat, and Harnmaster has a lot of stuff for roleplaying medieval life (not sure if it had a ton of period flexibility).

Thanks I'll check them out. I've run across Harn stuff before but only in passing. And thr Codex looks interesting.

Gritmonger
2015-03-18, 01:57 AM
For really, really historical, you could try a home-brew system by H. G. Wells (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Little_Wars)

CarpeGuitarrem
2015-03-18, 08:27 AM
For really, really historical, you could try a home-brew system by H. G. Wells (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Little_Wars)
Erm, Little Wars is a 19th-Century wargame, not a medieval RPG. :smallsmile:

aspekt
2015-03-18, 09:13 AM
Erm, Little Wars is a 19th-Century wargame, not a medieval RPG. :smallsmile:

Still kinda cool though ::smile::

Arbane
2015-03-18, 07:02 PM
Erm, Little Wars is a 19th-Century wargame, not a medieval RPG. :smallsmile:

You can just RP all the things it doesn't cover.