I need your advice

[Squig of Darkness]

I figure, as an RPG gamer, that I will go through various stages. I have come to a stage where I want to branch out and explore new things. Essentially, I have been dating D&D for 10 years and I want to meet new people. However, I have criteria. I am looking for something that is deadly, gritty, more or less as complicated as D&D 3.5 is, and, in particular, especially good for running a party through dungeons (good mechanics for traps, gear, monsters, etc.). I have tried Pathfinder and Fantasy Craft, which are both great, but they were still, really, D&D 3.5. I would prefer something non-d20 related.

I ask of you but a minute of your time to consider what I might take a look at. Thank you.

-SoD

 

[CleverNickName]

GURPS is a versatile, easy-to-learn system. The rules aren't too terribly complicated, and there are lots of sourcebooks and materials out there to choose from.

And it's a blast.

You can download a free 32-page rules primer here.

 

[steenan]

If you want to widen your horizons, I's suggest:

Spirit of the Century - Pulp game, using the FATE system. Free SRD available. The system is streamlined, fast and simple, but has some twists. Very different from D&D.

3:16 Carnage among the stars - A game about killing all kinds of stuff for Mankind. See how much can be done with only two stats: Fighting Ability and Non-Fighting Ability.

Dogs in the Vineyard - You play a group of religious Mormon gunslingers, solving various conflicts between the Faithful. The game focuses on player choices and judgments, with a returning question about how far will you go to have things your way.

Unknown Armies - Modern occult game, where people gain magical powers from their unhealthy obsessions (like cutting themselves, taking stupid risks or watching TV for hours every day). Simple and intuitive system; it has a great way of tracking how people react to stressful events and how these affect them. It also has a combat chapter that begins with description of how it sucks to kill someone or be killed and a list of ways to avoid a fight.

Exalted - An extremely high-powered game, strongly inspired by anime. One of the best settings I encountered. The mechanics, unfortunately, is not very good. I run it using Xia system (made by Asklepios and available for free on rpg.net wiki); there are also a lot of fixes and conversions to FATE or Savage Worlds floating on the web.

Polaris - A game with an original, strange setting; a game that makes you fill that you're retelling a legend about things long past. Strong indie traits, including no GM (his responsibilities are distributed among all players) and a meta-game system (decisions about the story flow are made through formalized negotiation).

 

[Talysian]

If you want gritty try warhammer fantasy 2nd edition or Earthdawn. I think both would lend themselves well to this.

 

[Crothian]

In addition to Warhammer Fantasy which is great there is Riddle of Steel though it can be difficult to find a copy. There are the older editions of D&D, Hackmaster, Palladium Fantasy, Reign, and House of the Blooded.

 

[nedjer]

I figure, as an RPG gamer, that I will go through various stages. I have come to a stage where I want to branch out and explore new things. Essentially, I have been dating D&D for 10 years and I want to meet new people. However, I have criteria. I am looking for something that is deadly, gritty, more or less as complicated as D&D 3.5 is, and, in particular, especially good for running a party through dungeons (good mechanics for traps, gear, monsters, etc.). I have tried Pathfinder and Fantasy Craft, which are both great, but they were still, really, D&D 3.5. I would prefer something non-d20 related.

I ask of you but a minute of your time to consider what I might take a look at. Thank you.

-SoD

On the surface at least it sounds like you're after much the same game with different people. Simply patching and hacking what you want out of AD&D and getting some new players in might do that?

Or is it a different style of play - rules lighter, less crunchy but you have to think? When my players dragged me away from D&D it was pretty clear where they wanted to go. They even had a list.

So, is it new people or new gameplay you're after?

 

[pawsplay]

I'm going to suggest GURPS.

Alternatively, you could get your Unearthed Arcana on.

Suggestion 1: Armor as DR, injuries
Suggestion 2: Wound/Vitality
Suggestion 3: Armor as DR, Massive Damage Threshold = Constitution

If you're looking for the dungeon crawl experience and aren't that tied to the pseudo-medieval milieu, let me recommend Shadowrun.

 

[Nifft]

I am looking for something that is deadly, gritty, more or less as complicated as D&D 3.5 is, and, in particular, especially good for running a party through dungeons (good mechanics for traps, gear, monsters, etc.).

Shadowrun can be run as a very site-based game. It scores quite high on the Gear and Complicated spectrum, with high marks in Deadly and Gritty.

My group is currently enjoying Shadowrun 4e (20th Anniversary Edition). There's enough stuff in the core book to keep you & your players happy for quite a while, and if you want more there's a bunch of expansion books -- some of which don't suck.

Cheers, -- N

 

[Squig of Darkness]

Thank you for all your responses. I had no idea there were so many games out there. I took a look at GURPS and it is very interesting and different, so it is taking some effort to digest, especially trying to read it on a computer screen. I will take all of your suggestions into consideration and do some exploration.

As far as gritty, though, and if it is anything like the miniatures wargame, the Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay game sounds ideal. I wonder, though, is it possible to attach a homebrew setting to the rules?

@Pawsplay and Nifft - I do prefer a fantasy game. Is there a setting generic version of the Shadowrun system?

@nedjer - I have just joined the army, so I am taking it as an opportunity to meet new people to game with and to try out new rules systems.

-SoD

 

[Nifft]

@Pawsplay and Nifft - I do prefer a fantasy game. Is there a setting generic version of the Shadowrun system?

Shadowrun is a fantasy game -- it's just a futuristic urban fantasy game, rather than a pseudo-feudal Europe fantasy game. It has Wizards, Dragons and Elves.

If you want a similar system but more fantasy-esuqe, consider Earthdawn.

- - -

I'll also second Exalted. It's an amazing setting, and some of the mechanics -- like Stunts -- are brilliant. Combat isn't great, but it can work for quite a while before you notice the bugs.

Cheers, -- N