Playing sports with RPG?

[Jon_Dahl]

One thing I've wanted to try for the longest time is to play sports as RPG, preferably fantasy.

Some ideas:
- Apocalyptic Salute of Jugger
- Interplanar violent sport tournament or football (a.k.a. soccer or calcio) in D&D
- Olympics
- Mortal Kombat but with DECENT rules about fighting (i.e. MMA)

I know that there is Blood Bowl, but I've never tried it. From what I've understood it's more of boardgame with almost no RPG element to it.

I've also looked for a system, but it's difficult... I think for instance 3.5 translated poorly into football...

[Jon_Dahl]

Maybe this would be best done just as freeform playing? For instance I don't think it's possible to use rules of any system to simulate football. Just one example out of millions: How to simulate offside trap with D&D rules? Defenders ready action when attacker comes too close to them, then step forward. Midfielder fails to roll successful "pass"-roll against DC ? and pass is too late, leaving attacker to commit offside offence. But assistant referee fails his Spot-check (blind ****!) and attacker scores a goal from offside position. But how complicated is this and can you finish even one game in 24 hours?

[Kelb_Panthera]

Football doesn't seem like it would be too hard, with 3e. Use experts for all the players, maybe marshal for the coach. Use rules from CW for bonuses from the crowd, then it's mostly just bull-rushing and the occasional trip. Initiative works normally. A pass is a ranged touch attack where the reciever uses his dex as a penalty to ac instead of a bonus. If you want a little more of a bloodsport feel, add weapons and loosen the football rules on excessive roughness.

Announcer: Johnson fades back..... passes toward brown...... and....... OW! brown is skewered on Heinemen's spear.... that's gotta hurt, sports fans!

[bosssmiley]

Weren't there (several) WWE Werestling RPGs?

And Bloodbowl is sooooooo much more than just a boardgame. Most of the fun and action happens off the field.

[valadil]

Football doesn't seem like it would be too hard, with 3e.

I dunno. Turn based movement seems like it wouldn't represent sports very well at all.

I think you'd have to abstract away movement. Say what yardage the ball is at and have each side pick a maneuver. I'm picturing the maneuvers being similar to Spycraft chase scenes. Compare moves and roll dice. How you roll determines how the play goes. Depending on what happens it might make sense to do some micromanagement of individual players (ie tackling the guy who caught the ball) between turns.

[Asheram]

Weren't there (several) WWE Werestling RPGs?

And Bloodbowl is sooooooo much more than just a boardgame. Most of the fun and action happens off the field.

Seconding Blood Bowl... Makes me realise that I'd Love to play a D&D campaign based on it..

[Person_Man]

Blood Bowl is my favorite non-D&D tabletop game, even more so then Heroclix, MtG, or Catan. Although it can be as simple as a board game, it has many official and unofficial optional rules for adding various other elements, such as recruiting, injuries, weapons (chainsaw!), magic, weather, etc. If you can get 8+ friends together and run a season, you will fall in love.

[Zeta Kai]

1) Take Blitzball.
2) Port it over to a land-based 2D plane.
3) ???
4) Profit.

[Paul H]

Hi

Suggest you look at real life sports and their history - Polo was traditionally played with the heads of your enemies!

Cheers
Paul H

[deuxhero]

Blowing people up is typically considered poor sportsmanship.

[Project_Mayhem]

'All flesh must be eaten' had a supplement focused on various types of pro wrestling. The zombie part was almost incidental.