I was recently convinced to pick up a copy of Lamentations of the Flame Princess, and I have some questions.

As the thread title says, I have some questions:

*(Note: I have just now started to flip through the core rules, so forgive any confusion)*

1. Some of the effects of a Summon spell seem rather broken. For example, Lust of a Spurned Lover is a basically a roll-or-die effect with a horrific flavor. I know that the game's flavor is "weird fantasy", but this seems a bit odd from a game design perspective. Also, the illogical equation listed as one of the effects is just that: illogical! How can the "Referee" adjudicate the Illogical equation, and how can players hope to escape the other effects without a lucky roll?

2. Why do ability scores have different modifier values than in D&D? In almost every D20 game I've seen, the modifiers are the same. Does this change actually work with other elements in the game? Is it arbitrary?

Thanks!

That game seems to be more of an OSR style game than the more 3.x/5e d20 systems. As such, it has more of its own ways.

1 - OSR games did not shy away from save-or-die as much as the latter editions did. So, what you describe would be not necessarily broken as much as fitting the style.

2 - OSR used different stats - not just the current "evens up by one" math. Ever hear of 18/50 strength?

It's a very OSR retroclone. So it uses old modifiers and saves and so on.
As such doesn't appeal to me.

The adventures, however, are mind-blowing.... and adult. Not too hard to run with any d20-ish system.

LotFP is very nihilistic. There are literally scenarios where the universe ends if the DM rolls something on an encounter table. And many screw the players for making the obvious or heroic choice. The rules also reflect this. (I would also disagree that its are "adult", usually its scenarios are crude and very attention seeking, rather than genuinely disturbing or thought provoking. More like an RPG version of David DeCotaeau)

It's based on the Basic/Expert D&D line from the early 80s...it uses the same ability modifiers as that.

trancejeremy said:

LotFP is very nihilistic. There are literally scenarios where the universe ends if the DM rolls something on an encounter table. And many screw the players for making the obvious or heroic choice. The rules also reflect this. (I would also disagree that its are "adult", usually its scenarios are crude and very attention seeking, rather than genuinely disturbing or thought provoking. More like an RPG version of David DeCotaeau)

It's based on the Basic/Expert D&D line from the early 80s...it uses the same ability modifiers as that.

Click to expand...

Thank you.

I agree that, from what I've read, the game seems very punishing.

Honestly, that doesn't seem very fair, as players may expect that they have to be heroic if they haven't played LotFP before.

Then again, thanks for the warning!

Aebir-Toril said:

Thank you.

I agree that, from what I've read, the game seems very punishing.

Honestly, that doesn't seem very fair, as players may expect that they have to be heroic if they haven't played LotFP before.

Then again, thanks for the warning!

Click to expand...

Currently playing it. Let the players know that their characters will die. We’ve lost.... 6? It’s just what happens. Given that XP is rewarded(I believe) by acquiring and getting gold back to a place of civilization remind them that defeating the boss monster is not the goal. The goal is to get what you’re after and get out.

It is an olde timey style game.

From what I've seen of LotFP adventures, they are basically someone who read 'Tomb of Horrors' and really dug the "if you touch something you die" aspect of the dungeons and so they heavily punish player interaction with the environment. But the assumption that they make that players have particular perverse motivations and that knowing that if they touch something and interact with it, everything will just get worse, that they'll still persist at playing the game the writer assumes that they'll play despite having no encouragement or motivation to do so, doesn't seem like a very strong assumption to me. You literally have adventures that offer no gameplay unless all players play murder hobos who kick doors down thoughtlessly, and that despite not playing a game the rewards that in any way, they'll still keep doing just that. I suppose the module might at a metagame level bore players into stupid actions because this is game and we might as well have it, but I kept thinking that most players I've played with would simply bypass the module as the unrewarding trap that it was and look for play elsewhere. And if they can't, because by golly this is what we are supposed to play, well that's not very old school by my way of thinking.

Also, violence, sex, and squick is not maturity or adult. It's like a game for junior high students trying to be edgy. But, I suppose your mileage can vary. I did learn that the style of game you are playing is basically based on whether the encounters are mostly fair, and as such every system can be run as horror if you just give the characters situations that they can't reasonably be expected to face and conversely every horror game is a beer and pretzels adventure if the characters have the power to solve it by kicking down the doors.

I need to check this game out.

If you disregard the implied setting and jut use the barebones rules, LotFP is a VERY solid, streamlined, reinterpretation of B/X. The Specialist is a much more versatile Thief, the Fighter, being the only one whose THAC0 scales with level, is a force to reckoned with, and magic is inherently dangerous if you include the Summon spell. Which you don't have to. Also, the encumbrance rules are nifty.

I was using a very broad and warning version of the term adult..
Some are actually quite awesome, some are puerile.
I don't rate the core rule set, but YMMV if u want a B/X style system.