[Mass Effect] Yet another "what system" thread

[Kiero]

I know this has been done many a time before, but this is rather more specific than a general "recommend your favourite system" thread, because we have some particular tastes.

For some background context, in my group we have two types of games: main games and break games. Main games run for a couple of years or so, and form the bulk of what we play. But to stop things getting stale with any one system/setting/premise/collection of characters, we have intervals where we play something different for a break. Often with a different GM too.

We were talking at the end of this week's session, and it seems that while we're all keen to reprise D&D4e Icewind Dale, the prospective GM is feeling cooler about the prospect. On the other hand, we were all quite psyched (even the player who isn't really familiar with it*, possibly swept up by our enthusiasm!) about doing a Mass Effect game.

First up, the following games are categorically ruled out, not interested in being sold on them:

• FATE - because our main game is DFRPG right now, everyone was emphatic that they want to do something different for a break
• D20 anything - everyone is leery of going near any of them ever again (which is a shame because I think a cut-down True20 or Saga Edition might work well...)
• Savage Worlds - I've never played it and am ambivalent, but my group have played it and dislike it
• Anything significantly crunchier than FATE; this is for a short run of 6-12 sessions, we don't want to spend most of that trying to get familiar with a system. That means GURPS, HERO et al are out.
• Ultra-lites in the vein of Wushu, Risus, The Pool, InSpectres, There Is No Spoon and so on. Too light for anything more than a one-shot.
• Anything that requires multiple books to play, we're not looking to splash out a load of money for a short game
• Anything with random-only chargen. Meaning chargen where random is the only option.

Bonus marks for

• Freely available online
• Shorter than 30 pages in total
• Characters that can fit on a single sheet of A5

Some basic criteria in a system:

• Be able to distinguish the three main areas of focus (and thus also allow the hybrid roles) - combat, technology, biotics - in some way. Especially because with five players that immediate creates six distinct niches without even having to try
• Make all three of those equally interesting and viable as a means of solving physical conflicts
• Feature (actual rules for) social conflict and possibly some reflection of the Paragon/Renegade morality concepts
• Distinguish aliens from humans in some way (possibly mechanically)
• Have equipment that matters at least a little (in terms of there being a difference between wearing no armour and being geared up for trouble at the minimum); shields and such - but that doesn't get bogged down in shopping-list-focused gear-porn.
• Be able to handle ranged combat and possibly skirmish-scale set-pieces in a way that's both swift and fun
• Have characters who can be competent from the off - and everyone is a combatant to some degree

Some things I've been prodding to give an idea, PDQ and Project Vanguard. In the case of the latter, I'm not entirely sure how you'd handle big firefights.

My group also likes nWoD (I'm less keen myself, but if that's what they want to go with I'll go along with it), so if there are any good hacks please point me in their direction. On a related point, I don't know if there's a way you could hack Qwixalted to do the job, something tells me you might.



*As an ancillary point, is there a simple and brief introduction/overview of the Mass Effect setting for someone who hasn't played the games? What I mean here isn't simply a link to the massive wiki and saying "read this" because that's intimidating and useless. Everything that matters in a page or two, that sort of thing.

[LibraryOgre]

Again, d6.

You can get d6 Space for free (check Drive Thru RPG). There's a free Mass Effect conversion on the web that handles the 3 areas, and keeps them dynamically equal (IIRC, it's designed around Biotics beat Combat beats Tech beats Biotics). Character sheets are the FRONT of a single A5 sheet, so you've got lots of room on the back.

Using the assigned dice system, you can usually introduce people to the game and have them make simple characters inside of 20 minutes, assuming enough familiarity with the world. 24D to various attributes, and 7D to various skills, with each D being available as a full die, three +1's or a +2 and a +1 (so if you have 4D over two choices, you can do it as 2D/2D, 1D/3D or 1D+2/2D+1, depending on how you want them).

Roll Skill + Attribute, total everything. Wild die adds some spice, but is also easy to remove from the system. Built-in Hero Points in two sizes (Story Points and Character Points). d6 Space even has options for HP, to make things easier to run. If you've got some templates, it goes even faster ("Ok, here are the six classes.")

Also, it's compatible with a bunch of old Star Wars stuff.

[UserClone]

[NOT A REPEAT OF AN OLD RESPONSE TO THE SAME THREADS] I'd give Apocalypse World or Lady Blackbird a try here.

AW is not free, but it is insanely hackable, and well worth the bit of money it would cost you for a copy, both in order to play itself and to play various hacks such as Dungeon World Hack (Old-skewl D&D), Goblin World, (fantasy from the monsters' perspective) Dragon World (anime comedy/fantasy) and World of Algol (Kind of like somewhere between Gamma World and Expedition to the Barrier Peaks). I've also seen it do teen monster drama (Monsterhearts, currently being funded on IndieGoGo) and Monster of the Week, a monster hunting and investigation game where you can play as different types of hunters such as a Buffy analogue, the guys from Supernatural, X-Files, Hellboy, and Constantine.

LB is indeed free, and also ridiculously hackable, and has done everything from Jedi to post-apocalyptic, from Alien (as in the film) to gothic horror to steampunk to space rednecks.

[Yora]

And yet again, Star Wars Saga. ME is KotOR with new fluff. SWS has pretty much everything you need.

[Kiero]

Again, d6.

You can get d6 Space for free (check Drive Thru RPG). There's a free Mass Effect conversion on the web that handles the 3 areas, and keeps them dynamically equal (IIRC, it's designed around Biotics beat Combat beats Tech beats Biotics). Character sheets are the FRONT of a single A5 sheet, so you've got lots of room on the back.

Using the assigned dice system, you can usually introduce people to the game and have them make simple characters inside of 20 minutes, assuming enough familiarity with the world. 24D to various attributes, and 7D to various skills, with each D being available as a full die, three +1's or a +2 and a +1 (so if you have 4D over two choices, you can do it as 2D/2D, 1D/3D or 1D+2/2D+1, depending on how you want them).

Roll Skill + Attribute, total everything. Wild die adds some spice, but is also easy to remove from the system. Built-in Hero Points in two sizes (Story Points and Character Points). d6 Space even has options for HP, to make things easier to run. If you've got some templates, it goes even faster ("Ok, here are the six classes.")

Also, it's compatible with a bunch of old Star Wars stuff.

d6 is way crunchier than FATE, it fails on that hurdle, I'm afraid.

There's some good ideas in that hack, but the system is just way too involved.

[NOT A REPEAT OF AN OLD RESPONSE TO THE SAME THREADS] I'd give Apocalypse World or Lady Blackbird a try here.

AW is not free, but it is insanely hackable, and well worth the bit of money it would cost you for a copy, both in order to play itself and to play various hacks such as Dungeon World Hack (Old-skewl D&D), Goblin World, (fantasy from the monsters' perspective) Dragon World (anime comedy/fantasy) and World of Algol (Kind of like somewhere between Gamma World and Expedition to the Barrier Peaks). I've also seen it do teen monster drama (Monsterhearts, currently being funded on IndieGoGo) and Monster of the Week, a monster hunting and investigation game where you can play as different types of hunters such as a Buffy analogue, the guys from Supernatural, X-Files, Hellboy, and Constantine.

Alright, but what about AW lends itself well to Mass Effect specifically?

LB is indeed free, and also ridiculously hackable, and has done everything from Jedi to post-apocalyptic, from Alien (as in the film) to gothic horror to steampunk to space rednecks.

I've seen Lady Blackbird and Jedi Blackbird. Has anyone specifically had a go at Mass Effect with it? Or something else sci-fi-ish?

And yet again, Star Wars Saga. ME is KotOR with new fluff. SWS has pretty much everything you need.

As I said in the OP, D20 anything is out. We've tried Saga Edition before and it didn't go down well.

[Jerthanis]

I've been thinking of making my own system with the gimmick of the basic damage calculations of weapons, Biotic powers and so on just being the F = ma and related basic Physics formulae. I haven't gotten around to it, but considering how simple the formulae for Work, Power, Acceleration and Force are, and the restrictions you face, it might be somewhat workable.

It's a terrible idea, don't do it.

(do it)

Incidentally, I'm not sure why no one has made an RPG using these formulae yet. (If someone has, please direct me towards it)

[UserClone]

RE: Apocalypse World - It's a great game in its own right, which I highly suggest checking out.

As for Lady Blackbird, here is a LIST of most of the hacks I've seen.


I don't know if there has been a hack specifically for Mass Effect for either game, but it would be really easy to make one once you've dipped your toe into either ruleset. They're both a sort of moderately crunchy system which lend themselves well to hacking. They have a similar experience system, too.

LB uses Keys, which are basically triggers, and when you hit that trigger, you gain XP. All Keys have a buyoff which is essentially the opposite of the Key. When you choose to buyoff a Key, you gain a large amount of XP, but lose that Key forever, and may never take that Key again.

AW uses Highlighted Stats. The MC (GM) of your group will highlight one of your stats each session, and so will the player of the character with the most Hx with your character (more on that in the quote below). Then whenever you roll a highlighted stat, you gain 1 XP. When you gain 5 XP, you level up. Every time you level up, you gain one thing, such as a +1 to a stat, a new Move, a Move from a different Playbook (class), or switching Playbooks altogether.

The thing that makes rolling highlighted stats great is that they aren't your typical stats. They are the following:

• Cool, meaning cool under fire,
rational, clearthinking, calm,
calculating, unfazed.

• Hard, meaning hard-hearted,
violent, aggressive, strong-willed,
mean, physically and emotionally
strong.

• Hot, meaning ****ing hot,
attractive, subtle, gracious, sexy,
beautiful, inspiring, exciting.

• Sharp, meaning sharp-witted,
clever, alert, smart, perceptive,
educated, skilled, trained.

• Weird, meaning a weirdo,
psychic, genius, uncanny, lucky, strange, prophetic, touched.

• Hx, meaning history (like Rx means prescription and Dx
means diagnosis), particularly shared history, how well one
character knows another. It doesn’t mean how well your
character likes the other, just how well your character knows the
other. It’s also asymmetrical: my character might know yours
very well, like Hx+2, while yours doesn’t know mine well at all,
like Hx-1.

The maximum for any stat is +3, and the minimum is -3. Most
will be -1 to +2.

So each Playbook is essentially 4 stat sets to choose from and a set of custom moves. The main difference between AW and a hack of AW is in the playbooks.

[Gamgee]

Saga edition has a conversion already. It's pretty good, going to need some google fu to find it though.

[UserClone]

I have to assume you didn't actually read the OP. Kiero specifically removed any and all D20 games from the running.

[Gamgee]

I have to assume you didn't actually read the OP. Kiero specifically removed any and all D20 games from the running.

Oh I assumed those were suggestions he received. Oh, well I can't think of any simple systems that would do Mass Effect well. The setting doesn't lend itself to that.

Free form role playing with a game master to arbitrate? It could be in your best interest. It doesn't sound like as a group your all that invested in this game, so I have to wonder why even bother. Your criteria is so strict I'm not sure there's any systems out there like what your looking for. Also yes there is a Mass Effect wiki, but I don't think it's well maintained as say the Star Wars wiki with its vast database of lore.

So no, I don't really think there is. Could try the Mass Effect TV tropes page for inspiration. That's about all I got on this one.

[Kiero]

Oh I assumed those were suggestions he received. Oh, well I can't think of any simple systems that would do Mass Effect well. The setting doesn't lend itself to that.

Free form role playing with a game master to arbitrate? It could be in your best interest. It doesn't sound like as a group your all that invested in this game, so I have to wonder why even bother. Your criteria is so strict I'm not sure there's any systems out there like what your looking for. Also yes there is a Mass Effect wiki, but I don't think it's well maintained as say the Star Wars wiki with its vast database of lore.

So no, I don't really think there is. Could try the Mass Effect TV tropes page for inspiration. That's about all I got on this one.

Just because we've exhausted your evidently rather narrow collection of games, doesn't mean "just freeform it" is the only option remaining.

There are scads of rules-medium to rules-light-medium games out there, and I don't see what bearing those criteria have on my group's level of investment.

[UserClone]

Forgive him now, he knows not what he is talking about. As near as I can tell, you have a heck of a group running, and DFRPG is quite far from "just freeform it."

Not that freeform doesn't require dedication.

In any case, I'm just going to keep throwing Apocalypse World out there, in the hopes that you will be wise enough to join me on the dark side, and come to realize the power of this deceptively deep and flexible system.

[UserClone]

TODD ZIRCHER'D!