D&D 5E Should D&D 5E be GURPS D&D?

[Argyle King]

BTW, GURPS Lite is a free product which shows how the GURPS rules work.


e23: GURPS Lite (Fourth Edition)

 

[Argyle King]

Glad you made the caveat. My disdain comes from actually playing it. Apparently, my teacher was a fairly well respected GM, but that game was potentially the least fun I've ever had gaming. I've tried to play it a couple of times, but never cared for it. Pity. The system complexity doesn't bother me (I'm a huge Hero fan, after all). It just does play well, IMO.


I tried out both Hero and GURPS, along with many others, when I got sick of some of TSR's political failings in the early/mid-nineties (stuff like "don't use the term 'armor class' on your web site or we'll sue"). Hero made pretty good sense to me, from the start.

My experience is, however, that people with knowledge of both systems tend to be firmly in one camp or the other. I may have met one or two people in the last two decades who were happy playing both. YMMV, of course.

I was thinking about what you said here a little more, and it hit me that you might be familiar with a different edition of GURPS than I am. I didn't pick up GURPS until a few years ago (within the lifespan of D&D 4th Edition.)

 

[keterys]

I'm not sure that gurps changed a lot between editions, but it's a fair point. I actually played many years of GURPS (DM and player) and I applaud their sourcebooks, appreciate the ability to play _anything_ with their system... and kinda deplore the actual gameplay.

That said, I'm partially convinced the problem exists more at higher point levels where the system kinda falls off the 3d6 too easily - it may be that it handles grittier fantasy at lower point values with some options restricted much more capably than I remember.

Either way, I find the system itself to be very dry and overly predictable, so I'd much rather play something more freeform or something with more swing.

 

[Argyle King]

I'm not sure that gurps changed a lot between editions, but it's a fair point. I actually played many years of GURPS (DM and player) and I applaud their sourcebooks, appreciate the ability to play _anything_ with their system... and kinda deplore the actual gameplay.

That said, I'm partially convinced the problem exists more at higher point levels where the system kinda falls off the 3d6 too easily - it may be that it handles grittier fantasy at lower point values with some options restricted much more capably than I remember.

Either way, I find the system itself to be very dry and overly predictable, so I'd much rather play something more freeform or something with more swing.

Fair enough; not everyone enjoys the same things -hence different games exist.

For me, I enjoy it because I like playing in games where heroes are leading armies instead of fighting them. As far as predictability, I'd say part of the issue lies with (in my opinion) GURPS focusing on different areas. Swinginess/chance/whatever you want to call it doesn't come from the system; it comes from the players, their characters, and the actions they take. For me, that's a model I highly prefer.

You may be right about the system not changing much. I currently play 4th Edition, and I still sometimes buy the books from 3rd. It's rather easy to convert. On the other hand, I'd also say that sometimes the small changes make a world of difference. In particular, I think getting away from PD (passive defense) makes the game run a little smoother. The concept of PD makes a lot of sense, but I'm ok with sacrificing it in the name of a smoother running machine.