Recent content by Swanosaurus

Maybe I'm misled by the fact that typical "D&Dish"games tend to have a lot of hardwired assumptions, so it seems hard to me to use them for any setting that is high concept in the sense that it isn't open to random elements. It might not be an integral thing about class/level based design, and...

This is one idea for describing two possible and rpg paradigms that seem to run counter to each other; not sure if it makes any sense, so let's see: I have the notion that a lot of people tend to prefer either class/level based games or games that have neither. There is, of course, a...

This makes an interesting point, because it is probably the right way to play 5e and probably also a lot of similar rpgs, but it is also a way of playing rpg's that I can't really bring myself to. I'm usually motivated by a setting (it can be vague, but it must be well-defined in one way or...

Not a big one. Mainly it's that a few years ago, I was still interested in and at times buying 5e settings (Redsky, Eberron), and I had the thought that, since I'm not a big fan of doing conversions, I might just start playing some 5e to try these settings out. I kept looking at 5e stuff and...

So I guess "5e oversaturation", if at all, only applies to gamers who consider multiple systems for playing and might end up saying: I feel overwhlemed by all the 5e material, I'd rather just play Dragonbane/Cypher/BRP or whatever. Makes sense!

I'm talking about 5e compatible here, thanks for pointing that out - I have clarified it in my original post. Good point though that there are probably a lot of people who will ONLY have a closer look if its 5e compatible ... I'm looking at it from an outsider perspective, and while for some...

Disclaimer: I've never played 5e, and I've hardly played any other edition of D&D. Still, a lot of 5e products got my attention for a long time: Interesting settings that I thought might make me give 5e a try or that would be good for conversion. But lately, I feel that there's such a constant...

I just realized that I have a weird little nitpick with the series: As we have seen, at least the Xeno doesn't really sleep in cryo. So did they have all of their specimens in Jars for 30 years? And they all survived? On whatever they've been fed? I'm fine with the xeno eggs staying fresh, but...

I think I never played any edition of Traveller beyond chargen, though I always wanted to ... but yes, it was hard to figure out what kind of campaign to actually play with it, and the trade game is definitely not for me, and I yet have to encounter anyone remotely interested in it. Another...

Okay, now I''v found something that really makes me question whether I understand the system - maybe there's some people who are experienced with WEG's old Star Wars, I seem to remember that dice numbers there occassionally went extremely high, and this seems to be a similar problem ... There's...

I just received the books from the Kickstarter and am trying to prepare a quick one-shot skimming through them. It looks nice, and I like the writing, but I'm stumbling over unclear rules: p132, Full Defense: It is unclear to me whether the reflex/instinct die code I can add to damage...

To me, this sounds like pre-orders from the days of yore. Which is great, because I really prefer them to crowdfundings. I'd rather give my money directly to MAC than a share to Kickstarter/Backerkit. Also, if you pre-order, your right for a re-fund is a lot more clear-cut than with...

A first post that sings the praise of an as of yet unknown RPG someone just happened to stumble on, but it's the best EVER, and why isn't EVERYONE playing it? I won't even click that link.

I'd differentiate between being special and being powerful. Okay, if you're more powerful than most people, that makes you special in a specific way. But being special without being powerful is absolutely possible ... Frodo is special, but he's not powerful. Now, in terms of power, I tend...

When it comes to violence and consequences, I must say I have a special beef with car chases. Because most of us won't wield automatic weapons, grenades or katanas, but what most of us will probably do quite frequently in their lives is drive a car. And I actually think that movies projecting...