Good System for This Type of Game?

[Vrock_Summoner]

I want to run a game that focuses on the sort of Science Fantasy type of Psionics, not sure what time period but with the whole special agents, psi-tech supercomputers and airships, quantum tunnel travel, body horror sort of thing. Preferably something with lots of "monsters" with a psychic feel, like mind-rending ghost-like creatures, actual abominations, otherworldly horrors and stuff. Maybe capitalizing on the fact that the players are usually way outmatched.

I was actually just going to run D&D 3.5 with some houserules and homebrew, but maybe you guys can provide me with better options?

[Airk]

That's... quite a mouthful you have there. It's so BROAD and unspecified that it's actually quite hard to make a recommendation. Especially when I don't know what Quantum Tunnel Travel is, or how body horror fits in the with the rest of the list, whereas you seem to think all this makes some sort of standard package. (Also "psi-tech airships"? )

That said, if you want a game in which the players are "mostly outmatched" you probably don't want to reskin 3.5, because D&D as a whole is a game that deals poorly with player defeat (usually it means "you die.")

Strangely, and this doesn't happen to me often, my first instinct says "Play this in Fate" because:

A) This has all kinds of crazy stuff that would otherwise require gruesome amounts of rules.
B) It's so broad. Fate does well with pulling together diverse stuff and making it play nice together
C) It doesn't sound like this concept needs fancy pants tactical combat at all. (another reason not to reskin 3.5)
D) Fate deals well with the general concept of 'setbacks' and otherwise being 'overmatched'.

Alternatively, there's probably some other of sci-fi RPG that might refluff well to this, but I'm not really familiar enough with the genre to make a good recommendation. Anyone know enough about Eclipse Phase to know if it would refluff well for this?

[Grinner]

Alternatively, there's probably some other of sci-fi RPG that might refluff well to this, but I'm not really familiar enough with the genre to make a good recommendation. Anyone know enough about Eclipse Phase to know if it would refluff well for this?

Probably, but that sounds like a lot of work...

I dunno. Maybe Cthulhutech or something would work?

[Airk]

Probably, but that sounds like a lot of work...

I dunno. Maybe Cthulhutech or something would work?

More or less work than refluffing 3.5? ;)

[CarpeGuitarrem]

Sounds like Call of Cthulhu or Trail of Cthulhu, but in space.

[Grinner]

Trails of Cthulhu, being based on GUMSHOE, would work well if the game is focused on investigation.

[Vrock_Summoner]

To clear up some confusion for Airk: Quantum Tunnel Travel is fancypants language for using subspace to travel faster than light. Psi-tech airships are pretty much just magitech airships, except using psionics.

I'll check out FATE, but I wanted to note that this game is going to have quite a bit of combat (though how involved that combat will be depends on the system I end up using).

[CarpeGuitarrem]

Otherworldly horrors, the ability to have lots of combat, players being outmatched--definitely sounds like Call of Cthulhu to me. Just add/remove skills to fit your setting. (Maybe take inspiration from Traveller.)

[neonchameleon]

I want to run a game that focuses on the sort of Science Fantasy type of Psionics, not sure what time period but with the whole special agents, psi-tech supercomputers and airships, quantum tunnel travel, body horror sort of thing. Preferably something with lots of "monsters" with a psychic feel, like mind-rending ghost-like creatures, actual abominations, otherworldly horrors and stuff. Maybe capitalizing on the fact that the players are usually way outmatched.

I was actually just going to run D&D 3.5 with some houserules and homebrew, but maybe you guys can provide me with better options?

What do you actually do in the game? (I'd go for Fate, or a homebrew Apocalypse World hack, but there are other options out there)

[erikun]

Eclipse Phase is pretty heavy sci-fi and psychic powers can play a pretty big part in the setting. The Exsurgent virus is a pretty big deal, coming from some unknown alien location and mutating animals/machines into monstrosities - or, in one benign strain, simply granting psychic abilities to an infected person.

Shadowrun could work as well, I suppose, although you'd need to reflavor the mage and shaman as psychics and contacting spirits.

Other than that, not much else is coming to mind. You could use D&D3e, Pathfinder, and 3rd parts with all the books on psionics, but I don't think that it would play much differently than standard D&D (which is certainly not a "players are usually way outmatched" mentality). Burning Wheel does come to mind as a system that handles challenge and failure well, although I don't know how much material in the setting you want is available.

[Knaight]

I think Psi-Punk could handle this fairly well, though I'm not hugely familiar with the system.