Buffy RPG to d20 Modern

[tetsujin28]

Is it worth buying the Buffy RPG if I intend to do the same sort of thing in d20 Modern? It's a nice-looking game, but I'm not sure if it really adds anything beyond what watching the series and reading the comics would give you. Anyone who has a copy, please chime in.

 

[Crothian]

I don't think it really wood. It has some good ideas for using the characters at different times, but it's not anything you can't come up with from knowing the series.

 

[KitanaVorr]

There's a buffy game getting started in the IN Character form using D20Modern.

Here's the link http://enworld.cyberstreet.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=36186

 

[OusterX]

If you intend to play B:TVS, I would use the licensed product rather than D20 Modern.

B:TVS is a great RPG and really captures the felling of the TV show...the combat is quick, yet can be detailed, the drama point systems allow lower powered characterst to hang with the Slayer, and the magic system reflects the show better.

That said, you can use D20 Modern to do B:TVS, but, IMO, you will need to do some tinkering, esp. with regards to the magic system (impromptu + ritual magic need to be modeled), but you will also have balance issues to deal with since the Slayer character will need to be more powerful than the other scoobies (which B:TVS RPG handles with different drama point distributions).

I have D20 Modern and B:TVS and I like both. However, if I were going to play Buffy, I would use Buffy...

 

[tetsujin28]

I wasn't intending to run an actual Buffy game, but rather to use the stuff for Shadowslayers, since Buffy's a rather obvious inspiration. I am interested in the nuts and bolts of the magic system.

As far as PCs of different power levels, that's never been a problem for me: Ars Magica's the same way.

 

[OusterX]

Magic in the Buffyverse

I wasn't intending to run an actual Buffy game, but rather to use the stuff for Shadowslayers, since Buffy's a rather obvious inspiration. I am interested in the nuts and bolts of the magic system.

As far as PCs of different power levels, that's never been a problem for me: Ars Magica's the same way.

The Buffy magic system was designed to emulate the show, so you basically have two types of magic: ritual magic and sorcery. Anybody charater with time and inclination can cast ritual spells. Basically, the character(s) researches the spell, preforms a ritual, then <poof>, something happens, for good or for ill.

Witches and warlocks (charcters with the Sorcery quality) improve their chances to get the desired outcomes from ritual magic, and can actually case impromtu spells, maybe even in the heat of battle, if they have enough levels of the Sorcery quality.

Until characters gain higher levels, magic is definelty more a plot device than a impromtu tool for attack or defence. Generally, players will use it to reverse some curse or open a gate into another world to rescue a friend rather than fire a lightning bolt into group of ghouls....

The mojo in Buffy is fairly low key for beginning witches...Willow didn't become a full on bad-ass spell-slinger until season five.

The magic section if mostly guidelines on determining the effects, costs, and durations of rituals and spells. A few sample spells are included from the show.

There will be an upcoming suplement called The Magic Box devoted to magic, so you if you are looking to port magic from B:TVS in to a D20 Modern Game, you might want to wait for the fuller treatment.

Also, the occultist in the Shadow Slayer campaign setting is, IMO, a good gauge of B:TVS type magic in the sense are relatively low powered at first...you may want to require your players to have a few levels of occultist before allowing them to be mages, and you may with to eliminate the acolyte if you are looking to emulate Buffy (to my knowledge, the only healing magic used in Buffy was in Season Six, when Willow pulled the bullets out of Buffy....there was the resurection spell, too.)

 

[suburbaknght]

Buffy Magic

While I love the Buffy RPG I hate the magic system; it requires far too much adjucation and thought, easily becomes unbalanced, and DOESN'T reflect magic in the show (no dangers from using magic). I recommend using the Channeling system from Wheel of Time and the Ritual Magic from Relics and Rituals.

Note: Mages and Acolytes would need to be combined into one class, and you'd need to rework the rituals to work with Channeling.

 

[Gospog]

OusterX made all the points I would make in regards to this choice, but I'd just like to back him up by saying my group has played both games and they really are quite different from one another.

To wit, the Buffy RPG does a good job evoking the feel of the show while Shadow Chasers comes across very much as "D&D monsters in the real world".

Both are very cool concepts, but each has it's own unique feel not only on paper, but in actual play.

While Shadow Chasers could emulate Buffy, to a certain degree, with a lot of work, I'd be hard pressed to make the Buffy system feel like shadow Chasers.

I hope that makes some kind of sense.

Good luck and have fun!

 

[danzig138]

Re: Buffy Magic

While I love the Buffy RPG I hate the magic system; it requires far too much adjucation and thought,

Not a fan of Mage, eh?

and DOESN'T reflect magic in the show (no dangers from using magic).

What dangers are you referring to? I haven't seen the game, but so far, you are the only person I've seen who says that it doesn't accurately reflect the magic of the show.

 

[Gospog]

Danzig,

What I think Suburbaknght means is that there is no mechanic for imposing "bad stuff" on spell casters.

The book gives an excellent example of magic gone wrong in the archetype for the beginning Wicca, but there are no rules to back this sort of thing up.

It is upon the GM to decide what bad consequences magic has for its' user. This will work fine for some, but is not for everybody.

In fact, while this may be easy for fans of the show (where magic hurts a ton of people, directly or otherwise), someone reading the Buffy RPG without much knowledge of the show might suffer from this "ambiguity".

I've found the whole system to be sort of "fats and loose" like that, but I like it. I think it captures the feel of the show well. That being said, I still like the system for Shadow Chasers better (just not to run Buffy with).