General RPG DiscussionDiscussion of all RPGs and non-system-specific topics. DM/GM/player issues, settings, etc. Rules discussion belongs in one the forums below.
Green Ronin is releasing it soon with it's own game system. Under the current GSL there is no way that a company could release a 4e setting for something and then use it with another game system.
That said, I can't imagine a fantasy ruleset I've looked at the would work less for SoIaF's gritty historical-fiction-with-a-touch-of-magic setting than 4E.
If I had to do it and didn't want to buy the existing giant SoIaF rulebook, I'd probably use the heroic mortal rules in Exalted without the setting, Savage Worlds, heck, even 3.5 rather than 4e.
4E is a great system - for fantastic sword-and-sorcery, hack-and-slash dungeon crawl type games. If the setting involved requires any large degree of realism however, I'd go elsewhere.
__________________ Robots, assassins, hobgoblins, the Ashen Tower, polite beholders, land pirates, gnome genocide, the Corpse Ramp, artifacts, exploding zombie dragons, flying islands, dying heroes, blood feuds, vanished races, the Black City: Rise of Felskein.
Last edited by Iron Sky; 14th November 2008 at 06:49 AM..
Check Green Ronin's website for their quickstart rules (about 36 pages with a short mini adventure) for this. I downloaded it yesterday and was very impressed. It really does look quite good.
I agree with Iron Sky though that D&D 4E would be a strange fit for SoIaF. Great series though - I wonder when the next book will be released?
Best Regards
Herremann the Wise
__________________ Want to see through my crystal ball and what's in store for 5E? Take a glance at my Dreams of 5th Edition
He who is certain he knows the ending of things when he is only beginning them is either extremely wise or extremely foolish; no matter which is true, he is certainly an unhappy man, for he has put a knife in the heart of wonder. Tad Williams
I have read through the preview at Green Ronin, but I'm not looking to introduce a new game system.
I am comfortable with using 4E in a grim, lower-magic setting of my own fashioning, and I would like to use the setting material for 1-shots if only to prove that 4E & SoI&F can go together.
If asked by my players, I could probably do a little aSoIaF one-shot using 4E rules.
The ruleset would work with minimal changes for such a story, too. The changes will be:
1- Only Humans.
2- Any and all martial classes are allowed. Barbarians allowed only if wildlings beyond the wall or people from the mountain clans are going to be part of the story.
3- Jousting, politicking and other stuff will be handled by skill challenges
4- Everybody except PCs and important NPCs is a minion
5- Everybody who is not a minion gets half the regular hitpoints
Edit: Ah, and of course, it would be a Heroic-Tier only game!
__________________ "I am King of the Romans and above the rules of grammar!" - Sigismund, Roman Emperor and my new hero
"Craft and profession skills are a tax on people who believe characterization and back-story are important." - Obryn
"Another thing to keep in mind is that the typical D&D party is to medieval armies what the A-team is to modern police." - Eamon
"I realize falling isn't specifically a push, pull, or slide, but I'd heavily argue that gravity is forced movement." - Old Gumphrey
Last edited by Amphimir Míriel; 14th November 2008 at 06:31 AM..
Another option (other than Green Ronin's A Song of Ice and Fire game, as mentioned) is Guardians of Order's A Game of Thrones setting book - either OGL [d20], or deluxe, the latter being dual-statted in d20 and Tri-Stat. This was released a while back though, and might be difficult and/or expensive to purchase. Not sure. Regardless, it's rather good - as far as d20 variant systems go - and does a decent job of matching system to setting, to the extent that said base system allows.
Personally, I find 4e distasteful enough as it is, but can see types of settings for which it might prove adequate. . . A Song of Ice and Fire certainly not being one of them, however. YMMV, etc.
While 4e certainly could work with some tweaks (I view grit as less a rule-issue and more a descriptive one) a system devoted to historical or near-historical would definitely fit it better.
Actually now that I think about it, Jon Snow would work pretty well as a Beastmaster Ranger :P
We will even be having a show of it coming out too, HBO has greenlit the first book to be made into a series.
We will even be having a show of it coming out too, HBO has greenlit the first book to be made into a series.
Not quite, the intention is to do one book per season and they have greenlit a pilot for the first book - presumably the first episode of that season. Checkout Not A Blog
Back to the 4e question, I'd probably start with the Guardians of Order d20 Game of Thrones and convert to 4e as that looks the simplest route that preserves all the goodness in that book. If you don't have one, I'd suggest setting up a saved search on ebay and getting one. Truly impressive and a must have for a SoIaF/D&D fan.
Another option (other than Green Ronin's A Song of Ice and Fire game, as mentioned) is Guardians of Order's A Game of Thrones setting book - either OGL [d20], or deluxe, the latter being dual-statted in d20 and Tri-Stat. This was released a while back though, and might be difficult and/or expensive to purchase. Not sure. Regardless, it's rather good - as far as d20 variant systems go - and does a decent job of matching system to setting, to the extent that said base system allows.
4e could work fine for the setting with some tweaks.
Yeah, but the GSL won't support such tweaking. You gonna have to take the CONCEPT (not text) of 4e and make it OGL.
To tweak the game to suit a setting like ASoIaF properly goes beyond the purview of the GSL. Any less tweaking effort would just be half-assed (not to mention lazy on the part of the wannabe designer).
Thank Gawd for AGoT OGL-based RPG, from Guardians of Order.
__________________ Anyhoo, just some random thoughts...
My philosophy is "you don't need me to tell you how to play -- I'll just provide some rules and ideas to use and get out of your way." --Monte Cook
Yeah, but the GSL won't support such tweaking. You gonna have to take the CONCEPT (not text) of 4e and make it OGL.
To tweak the game to suit a setting like ASoIaF properly goes beyond the purview of the GSL. Any less tweaking effort would just be half-assed (not to mention lazy on the part of the wannabe designer).
Thank Gawd for AGoT OGL-based RPG, from Guardians of Order.
No need for fearmongering, you can run a 4E game in any campaign setting and with any houserules you want, without having to muck with the GSL or any other license... as long as you do not make that into a book and sell it.
__________________ "I am King of the Romans and above the rules of grammar!" - Sigismund, Roman Emperor and my new hero
"Craft and profession skills are a tax on people who believe characterization and back-story are important." - Obryn
"Another thing to keep in mind is that the typical D&D party is to medieval armies what the A-team is to modern police." - Eamon
"I realize falling isn't specifically a push, pull, or slide, but I'd heavily argue that gravity is forced movement." - Old Gumphrey
Linear Mode
And yet another word from our sponsors
