Best system for Sword & Sorcery

[Philotomy Jurament]

Systems I'd use to run a swords-and-sorcery campaign:
- OD&D (1974) + house rules (mostly to cover altered magic and thieves).
- OAD&D (i.e. 1E) + the 1E Lankhmar supplement (the rules for magic work very well, I think).
- Stormbringer
- Savage Worlds
- Iron Heroes
- C&C
I'd also consider using Green Ronin's True Sorcery as the basis for a magic system.

For settings, I'd use one of the following:
- the Wilderlands of High Fantasy
- Homebrew
- Nehwon
- Hyborea

 

[Vigilance]

I would go with Conan OGL. It's a great emulation of the feel of Conan books, especially since Conan was one of D&D's big inspirations, it's a good fit anyway.

Some of the tweaks to d20 that Conan makes are options that make combat more exciting and changes that make magic more dangerous.

Also, the book has all the setting material you need as well.

For what you're looking for, I think Conan OGL would be the best fit and require the least amount of work.

 

[Aus_Snow]

Conan OGL ftw. It's awesome. Just get the main book (Atlantean Edition) and Road of Kings, or wait a month or so and get the main book (2nd edition) and Return to the Road of Kings.

It does S&S very well. Sure, it doesn't do anything else much, but that's really the whole point of it. A perfect match, I would say.

Check out some reviews though.

FWIW, you could use True20 for anything - this also runs more quickly and smoothly than most d20/OGL systems out there, IME. Also, Grim Tales for just about anything.

I hear Savage Worlds is quite cool (but non-d20).

 

[Capellan]

Without offering advice on which system to buy (since my bias should be obvious from my sig!), there was one thing I wanted to clear up:

Iron Heroes has several books out, including a new Companion book. Some of the books will have to be purchased as PDF, however, as the printed copies have either sold out or go for top $.

The original IH core book and Mastering IH are both available in print at discounted prices. The revised core book should be available by Gencon. The Player's Companion should also be in print by then, too. The IH Bestiary is currently listed as out of stock but we're taking steps to make it available again.

So getting IH in print should not be an issue.

 

[GlassJaw]

Another vote for Conan and/or Grim Tales. Those are my two favorite d20 books (although Spycraft 2.0 is closing in).

I recently ran a short Conan campaign using the Tales of the Black Kingdoms module. It was new to the players but everyone had a blast. Combat is fast and furious and the rules emulate the style of the stories very well.

Grim Tales is a generic toolkit but it's perfect for S&S if used as-is.

For me, Iron Heroes is a little too over the top for a "traditional" S&S game. IH is more like Conan meets Crouching Tiger.

 

[Jim Hague]

Grab Conan d20 and Road of Kings, run with True20. While I loves my Conan d20, with the True20 rules-set, you get the furious action of the genre without bogging down in rules...and, after a bit of playtesting, you can incorporate the Maneuvers from Conan d20 with zero problems.

 

[Azgulor]

Without offering advice on which system to buy (since my bias should be obvious from my sig!), there was one thing I wanted to clear up:



The original IH core book and Mastering IH are both available in print at discounted prices. The revised core book should be available by Gencon. The Player's Companion should also be in print by then, too. The IH Bestiary is currently listed as out of stock but we're taking steps to make it available again.

So getting IH in print should not be an issue.

That's great news!

 

[YourSwordIsMine]

GURPS 4th Edition
or
Mutants and Masterminds

 

[Flynn]

Grim Tales is a generic toolkit but it's perfect for S&S if used as-is.

I use Grim Tales as the basis for my own Sword and Planet campaign, and it works wonderfully. I highly recommend it. The game plays very well, from 4th to 17th level and still going.

Sadly, it is not available in PDF, which might be a hinderance for the OP.

With Regards,
Flynn

 

[Angel Tarragon]

I happen to like Relics & Rituals: Excalibur.