Simple, solid, flexible, rpg rules system for adult beginners.

[Sticknia]

I need suggestions for something I'm almost certain doesn't exist in a form I can use. I'm looking for a generic, simple, very solid, and flexible RPG rules system. It needs to have a minimal amount of additional rules subsets.
It needs to have great balance between character builds with little opportunity for "power builds" or useless classes.
It needs to have a large amount of flexibility in regards to what a creative player (Or GM) can cook up on the spot with simple resolutions.



Primarily I am asking because I am about to begin a game with an entire group of non-gamers who are all brilliant and creative people. The catch is, none of them are interested in learning a bunch of complex rules, buying a bunch of books, or totally geeking out on RPGs in general.
What they want, is to come together, create a character driven story, and role play (Act) at the table together. Think of their expectation as more of "Action improv with dice" not "Optimized D&D dungeon crawlers".


Any suggestions?

 

[darjr]

There is Risus

http://www222.pair.com/sjohn/risus.htm

There is a very simple one page rules system that is designed to play old AD&D adventures. but for the life of me I can't seem to find it. I'm looking. To go along with that you could use the various dungeons from the one page dungeon contest.

http://www.enworld.org/forum/showthread.php?270934-One-Page-Dungeon-Contest-2010

 

[darrell_uk]

Savage Worlds?

 

[darjr]

Here it is.
https://sites.google.com/site/wizardinabottle/searchers-of-the-unknown

And then there is also this thread

http://www.enworld.org/forum/showthread.php?276731-Lightweight-RPG-Systems

 

[Dioltach]

I don't know what the later editions are like, but the original version of The Dark Eye would seem to fit the bill.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

Savage Worlds?

Seconded.

 

[edemaitre]

I like FATE (Fantastic Adventures in Tabletop Entertainment):

http://evilhat.wikidot.com/fate-rpg
http://www.ukroleplayers.com/downloads/free-fate/
http://www.faterpg.com/
http://www.evilhat.com/home/fate-core/

It's based on FUDGE and relies on shared narration. There are crunchier variants for those who want them, but the Game Master's judgment is key.

 

[Umbran]

The answer will depend on what genre of game you want to play, and how much supporting information for the GM you want already in print.

For example, for a bunch of creative people who aren't interested in lots of rules fiddly-bits, I might recommend things based on FATE - but FATE Core isn't out yet. There are a few games based on FATE - notably Dresden Files (which is urban fantasy based on Jim Butcher's "Dresden Files" books), Spirit of the Century (which is 1920s pulp heroes), and the upcoming Atomic Robo (based on the comic of the same name). None of which is helpful if what you want is D&D fantasy, for example.

Cortex is another root upon which a coupe of nice games are build - Leverage (based on the TV show of that name - this is modern "caper movie" style stuff), and the new Marvel Superheroes game.

Savage Worlds has several genres it works well for - "Weird west" in Deadlands, and there's also Fantasy, Superhero and Horror flavors of the game.

So, what genre are you looking for?

 

[Sticknia]

So, what genre are you looking for?

The intro game will be Fantasy, but there is opportunity to go modern zombie survival, or Dystopian Sci Fi.

Thanks for all the suggestions. I'm looking in to them now.

 

[innerdude]

The intro game will be Fantasy, but there is opportunity to go modern zombie survival, or Dystopian Sci Fi.

Thanks for all the suggestions. I'm looking in to them now.

Savage Worlds. Period. End of discussion.

Seriously, I've been running various Savage Worlds campaigns for about 2 years now, and hands down, this is the system that meets all of your criteria.

"simple, very solid, and flexible RPG rules system. It needs to have a minimal amount of additional rules subsets"

Savage Worlds Deluxe is a wholly self-contained, complete rules system that supports all of the genres you described out of the box with minimal "shift" in mindset. You can go for the fantastic hardcover book for $30, or you can spend as little as $10 for the paperback, "explorer" size rules. In either case, you're getting the exact same rules system.

It needs to have great balance between character builds with little opportunity for "power builds" or useless classes.

The system is classless, meaning each character chooses their own unique sets of skills / edges (feats) and areas of focus. There are no "dump" stats in Savage Worlds, and the dice mechanic keeps average abilities close enough together that it's almost impossible for any one character to completely overshadow another.

It's also incredibly easy to learn---one of my current players had never played a table top RPG before; one had played maybe twice EVER as a teenager over a decade ago. We're now 4 sessions in to our campaign, and both of these players have already quickly caught on to the basics, and are already moving into more "advanced" stuff in the rules.

Every single player and character has meaningfully contributed in every session and encounter, played to their strengths, and generally had a great time.

It needs to have a large amount of flexibility in regards to what a creative player (Or GM) can cook up on the spot with simple resolutions.

Once you understand the basics of the resolution system, you can literally come up with entire encounters THE SECOND the players engage them, without having a single enemy pre-generated before hand. Obviously you can create more dynamic terrain and interesting encounter "hooks" if you pre-generate them, but if it's literally just a, "Oh hey, looks like there's 8 orcs here you weren't expecting!" you can do that EASILY without spending a SECOND before hand preparing the encounter.

And don't let anyone fool you into thinking that because it's "generic" that it won't run fantasy well. Savage Worlds emulates "classic" fantasy so well I hardly believe it at times, while being more consistent in terms of rules structure, easier to adjudicate, and with more dynamic, interesting combats than the "old school" D&D rules systems.

It's very rare for me to universally recommend something, but you couldn't have matched your criteria to Savage World's strong points any better than if you had written the game yourself.

Start here, or switch to the paperback version on the same page.