Dumbest rpg idea ever?

[aramis erak]

Ohhh I didn't know they existed - I want them now

They're not uncommon... about $1 to $3 per in most venues.

 

[aramis erak]

I don't know a single person who played V&V using that chargen method.

Well, know you know at least 7 existed, because I and 4 players did so, and BillD used "we" and wasn't part of my group.

We only did so once... but then again, my group only played V&V twice.

No, like the stuff FASA went thru with star trek, for example.

FASA didn't have to work too hard - the franchise wasn't really that valued at the time. TWOK was just releasing, TMP had outperformed the expectations of the critics, but underperformed the execs expectations; there was no TNG in the works, Phase II had been cannibalized into TMP, Shatner and Nimoy were threatening not to come back... It was a perfect time to get the license. RPGing wasn't expected to bring a lot of money, and the ST boardgame rights weren't consolidated, so none of the deals was terribly expensive from a studio perspective. Any "we can probably make a profit" attempts, especially since the RPG interest before was scared off by the requests in 1978...

They helped build momentum for/with ST III, as well. It was only later, after ST III and IV (TSFS and TVH) that Paramount started looking to turn the screws... but FASA's deal, much like the 1986 Star Wars deal for WEG, was a super sweet deal... at the perfect time.

Also: they were not exclusive licensees on the board game side; I suspect the same was true of the RPG side. That alone drops the costs. Not that anyone else was challenging for the first octave... and that was an even cheaper license via a back door route...

 

[aramis erak]

There have been some fairly successful licensing with with WEG's Star Wars in 1987 being a prime example. They held the license for about twelve years producing tons of excellent books and it seemed to be profitable for WEG.

FASA held the ST License from 1982 to 1989... when they exceeded their license with TNG material... which wasn't resolved in the courts until 1991 or 92...7 years, 50 products. (took them a year to get to print, from what I've heard, hence the 1982 license date, cited in some coverage of the litigation, both Paramount v. Task Force Games and Paramount v. FASA.)

 

[Sanguinarious]

Well one reason I heard parasite studio closed fasa's game was it revolved too much on combat, kinda violating the ideals of trek not being a war in space show. Of course TWOK was just a couple major shipfights and a few years later DS9 became the dominion war show...

 

[aramis erak]

Well one reason I heard parasite studio closed fasa's game was it revolved too much on combat, kinda violating the ideals of trek not being a war in space show. Of course TWOK was just a couple major shipfights and a few years later DS9 became the dominion war show...

It was purely licensing violation. Paramount v. FASA was when TNG was declared as a matter of law a separate IP than TOS & TAS. After all, Paramount HAD renewed the license, just prior to the TNG Officer's Manual and First Year Sourcebook...

Further, the next license was years away...

 

[MNblockhead]

Uh. Rahowa was dumber and more horrible that fatal, I checked and it was mentioned here. At least fatal could theoretically be played, rahowa lacked essential mechanics.

Speaking of dumb but not horrible, anyone ever use a d30? Or the awfully unstable and generally unreadable single d100?

Yeah, I have a d30 and a PDF for medieval world building that, for some reason, was designed around using a d30 in its random generation tables. I don't know that it is any dumber than any other die. I like dice, even those with less common numbers of faces. I do agree with you somewhat about the 100-faced dice. Two d10s just roll quicker and are easier to read.

 

[DeviousQuail]

Yeah, I have a d30 and a PDF for medieval world building that, for some reason, was designed around using a d30 in its random generation tables. I don't know that it is any dumber than any other die. I like dice, even those with less common numbers of faces. I do agree with you somewhat about the 100-faced dice. Two d10s just roll quicker and are easier to read.

D10 inside a D10 dice

Have you ever had a lovely pair of D10 dice only to lose one of them? No? Well this product solves a problem you never had by placing one dice inside the other. That way you'll only ever lose them both at the same time. Available in Clear, Red, Green or Blue Also, they look cool. Price = p62...

mathsgear.co.uk

I have a buddy that has one. Not sure it's any better than 2d10s but I'll take it over a d100.

 

[MGibster]

I remember advertisements in Dragon magazine circa 1990 for some RPG system that used a d30. I can't recall the name of it, and I'm not sure I ever saw it at ye local game shop.

 

[MNblockhead]

D10 inside a D10 dice

Have you ever had a lovely pair of D10 dice only to lose one of them? No? Well this product solves a problem you never had by placing one dice inside the other. That way you'll only ever lose them both at the same time. Available in Clear, Red, Green or Blue Also, they look cool. Price = p62...

mathsgear.co.uk

I have a buddy that has one. Not sure it's any better than 2d10s but I'll take it over a d100.

I have one of these. Don't really like it, but more because the one I have is very cheap plastic and gives a poor tactile experience. Perhaps a better crafted one would be better appreciated. But I still think I'd prefer two d10s.

Oh, I was recently gifted with a d1. It is a heavy brass ball with the word "one" stamped into it. Dumb in a fun way. I'm thinking of using it for the lucky feat--or the new One DnD rule of inspiration for a critical failure. You have to roll the d1 into the d20 you rolled a one on and if you manage to hit the d20 then that is your new roll.

 

[Teo Twawki]

Star Frontiers: New Genesis (or whatever that flaming dumpster beta version is called).