D&D 5E Stargate RPG Announced from Wyvern Gaming

Enevhar Aldarion · Jun 14, 2019

Just reading some of the negative comments here, I see people who are ignorant of the well-written Adventures in Middle-Earth and Esper Genesis, both successful at adapting the 5E core rules system. If this new product is done as well as those, it will be a great book.

Lord_Blacksteel · Jun 14, 2019

Mechanics issues aside, I'm a little surprised we're seeing a new company publish a tabletop RPG based on a license that's been dormant for 10 years. I haven't seen a big outcry for it online and it's not like there was a long string of successful predecessors that had established it as a popular gaming universe. Are there plans for a new movie or TV series that this might tap into? Checked the wiki and all I see is comic book activity. Anyone else know anything?

Getting back to mechanics one of the primary reasons for using a class and level system is to present a zero to hero progression within the game. Stargate never struck me as that kind of story or setting. It seemed - in my limited experience with it - to be more about reasonably competent seasoned professionals solving problems and continuing to be reasonably competent seasoned professionals. It wasn't really about unlocking new powers or developing new abilities. This is why I suspect a lot of people were thinking something more like Traveller and less like D&D.

The designer mentioned above trying 5-level prestige classes which sounds like a balance nightmare and was not well-liked in Star Wars d20's first two editions. If you can come up with something classless that would probably fit the material better but then it doesn't look much like 5E does it? If you can make a full class progression with say ten levels or more then it at least looks something like 5th.

It will be interesting to watch at the very least.

Aldarc · Jun 14, 2019

Enevhar Aldarion said:
Just reading some of the negative comments here, I see people who are ignorant of the well-written Adventures in Middle-Earth and Esper Genesis, both successful at adapting the 5E core rules system. If this new product is done as well as those, it will be a great book.

Reading through just one comment here, I see a poster who is making a massive assumption right now. :erm:

S'mon · Jun 15, 2019

Stargate benefits from a default episode structure that fitd well with DnD - go to new place, kill baddies/befriend goodies, take the good stuff, repeat. SGC notably levels up during the series as new stuff is acquired, and the power level also increases over time in contrast to most series. So I think DnD works better for this show than for eg Star Trek, Star Wars or most superhero settings.

Jacob Lewis · Jun 15, 2019

I don't think the question is why use 5e, but is 5e the best fit. Maybe? Maybe not.

I can certainly understand why any company would choose this route. More exposure, larger market, brand name recognition, etc. And as mentioned, the past has shown good and positive results. It is easier to sell a familiar set of rules with a different theme than it is to present a whole new set of complex rules to do essentially the same thing.

Another huge factor we often overlook regarding games like this is how many other people are willing to play if we decide we wanted to for ourselves. An original Stargate the RPG could be phenomenal, innovative, and the best thing ever. But if everyone is still playing D&D for whatever their reasons, its not going to make much of a difference.

That said, I have seen more than a few opinions circulating through various circles that some folks are already tired of 5e D&D. Not an alarming number, but those who've been playing since it came out are ready for something new or different. The timing is ripe for new ideas and alternative experiments while the next wave of new players rotate into the 5e frenzy. If this is how the industry thrives and brings about more innovations, then I would say I am a much bigger fan of this edition despite having little interest in the system.

Circling back to Stargate and Wyvern, it is up to them to make this work. 5e could work for this. But don't just reskin everything and call it a day. Break the mold! Keep something if it works for the setting, but otherwise toss it out. Don't just shoehorn it into the system to make it compatible.

I think fans of the series would rather see Stargate the game, but 5e fans might prefer 5e: the Stargate edition. Your call. Good luck!

5ekyu · Jun 15, 2019

"Mechanics issues aside, I'm a little surprised we're seeing a new company publish a tabletop RPG based on a license that's been dormant for 10 years. I"

So as a partial update.

In 2018 Stargete Origins (now Stargate Origins Cstherine) was released as a web series thrn repackaged as s feature.

Since then, last I saw, in Frb 2019, Brad Wright has claimed to be in further talks with the studio about a new Stargate product.

So, this may still be in the hope-ware phase but it seems there is at least the chance of a rsise dead on Stargste in done form.

thundershot · Jun 15, 2019

Mack Martin said:
Thundershot, I'm not at liberty to delve into what all we're using or when we're setting the adventure and core, but I feel confident that you'll be able to make the minor adjustments necessary to go off book with ease. A lot of Stargate, at least from a gameplay mechanics view, is pretty consistent over the entire property.

While that’s true, having stats for all of the various Stargate baddies would make it easier... (Wraith, Ori, etc) and not just Gou’ald and Jaffa and Asgard.

Thanks!

Dragonblade · Jun 15, 2019

5e is a good base if you make the proper adjustments. M&M and Spycraft 2.0 are great examples of cool games that took d20 and did some excellent things. I own the entire Spycraft d20 line, both 1.0, and 2.0 and the original Stargate d20 RPG.

Savage Worlds is also a good option if you are going outside the 5e paradigm. I've heard good things also about Modiphius 2d20 system, but haven't played it. WEG d6 is ok if you stay in the sweet spot.

But no FATE, please. FATE is really a terrible system and its why despite being huge Dresden Files fans, none of the gamers in my extended circle (about 20 of us) will touch the Dresden Files RPG.

Greg K · Jun 16, 2019

Dragonblade said:
WEG d6 is ok if you stay in the sweet spot.

WEG d6 was, originally, going to be the system for a Stargate-SG1 rpg before something happened to the license and it went to Alderac Entertainment (AEG). The author released online what he had of the manuscript to date. There were no characters write-ups, aliens, or weaponry. If recall correctly, the only references to the show were a letter "written" by O'Neil and a few uses of the terms Stargate and Go'ald.

stadi · Jun 16, 2019

Dragonblade said:
5e is a good base if you make the proper adjustments. M&M and Spycraft 2.0 are great examples of cool games that took d20 and did some excellent things. I own the entire Spycraft d20 line, both 1.0, and 2.0 and the original Stargate d20 RPG.

Savage Worlds is also a good option if you are going outside the 5e paradigm. I've heard good things also about Modiphius 2d20 system, but haven't played it. WEG d6 is ok if you stay in the sweet spot.

But no FATE, please. FATE is really a terrible system and its why despite being huge Dresden Files fans, none of the gamers in my extended circle (about 20 of us) will touch the Dresden Files RPG.

Same here. I was really disappointed that Dresden Files turned out to be Fate, I really wanted to play it but not with Fate. Unfortunately I had the same with Star Trek. I find 2d20 horrible, so I also did not touch Star Trek from Modiphius. What's even worse, Dune will probably be 2d20 as well.

Back to 5E. I have nothing against it if done right. What I really need for me to work though is that they completely change the skill system. I'd like to have more skills than the usual list and also to manually raise them every level.