Iron Heroes or 7th Sea?

[Dsurion]

In my gaming group, we always play E6 D&D with little to no magic - and like it that way - but we're trying to find a system that we don't have to fiddle with to get that style of game. Basically, after a long and arduous process, we've been steered towards Iron Heroes and 7th Sea.

Iron Heroes sounds like what D&D SHOULD be like if you've removed magic from the system, with the bonus of being able to stay within the 3.5 ruleset for the most part. It also has a badass quote that sets the theme for the book:

You are not your magic weapon and armor. You are not your spell buffs. You are not how much gold you have, or how many times you've been raised from the dead. When a Big Bad Demon snaps your sword in two, you do not cry because that was your holy avenger. You leap onto its back, climb up to its head, and punch it in the eye, then get a new damn sword off of the next humanoid you headbutt to death.

7th Sea seems to be all about swashbuckling and high adventure like Pirates of the Caribbean or any Errol Flynn movie. I also like that it's basically a very thinly veiled Europe, and not in a sarcastic way. My whole group seems to agree.

My only issue is that Iron Heroes looks like a game that I'd like to play, while my best friend, who I game with constantly, says he thinks he prefer 7th Sea. The rest of the group are casual and don't really care as long as the group is together and doing something.

Anyone have any opinions to share? I mean anything. Comments on availability, stories to share from experience, mechianics, whatever. I'm just looking to get some info.

[dsmiles]

My personal preference would be Iron Heroes, but give both a shot and see which one you all agree on.

[TroubleBrewing]

I'm currently playing in a 7th sea game while reading through iron heroes. 7th sea is cinematic as hell, very much in the style of 1940's hollywood: iron heroes is a lot grittier and more Robert E. Howard style. Honestly, it depends on your play style.

[hamlet]

7th Sea is essentially designed around replicating an Errol Flynn movie. It's cinematic, wild, plot heavy, and very mechanically encouraging "flair." The more style you invest in your actions, the more rewards you get from the rules.

Iron Heroes, which I've not played, but own somewhere in the game closet, is essentially D&D with much, not all, of the magic stripped out. There's a magic using class, but he has problems if he relies heavily on his magic.

[Tyndmyr]

My personal preference would be Iron Heroes, but give both a shot and see which one you all agree on.

My person preference is 7th Sea, but his advice? Spot on. Give them both a shot, and see what sticks.

7th Sea IS a very europe-based world. It's intentional. Alternate world that looks fairly similar to an era of our history. It has the advantage of everyone being decently familiar with the general flow of things. The deeper you get into the metaplot, the more apparent the differences are, and the more they matter. For instance, the secret societies are a big thing, let alone the Syrneth.

Edit: System wise, 7th Sea is definitely the most different from D&D. This is both good and bad. Longer to pick up(though still not long at all), but provides more variety.