Games Inspired by 4e D&D (+)

[Aldarc]

This is just a humble thread about games that take inspiration from 4e D&D in some way, shape, or form.

Explicit 4e D&D Inspiration in Credits or Book

• 13th Age 1e & 2e (Pelgrane Press)
• Fabula Ultima (Rooster Games)
• Gubat Banwa (Joaquin Saavedra)
• Daggerheart (Darrington Press)
• Beacon RPG (Pirate Gonzalez Games)

4e Inspiration Stated by Author/Designer

• Lancer (Massif Press)
• ICON (Massif Press)
• Strike! (Jim McGarva)
• Trespasser (Tundalus Games)
• Draw Steel (MCDM) - could be explicit in final product

4e Inspiration Unstated but Present

• 5e D&D (Wizards of the Coast)
• Pathfinder/Starfinder 2e (Paizo)
• Shadow of the Demon Lord (Rob Schwalb)
• Shadow of the Weird Wizard (Rob Schwalb)

4e Retroclone
* Orcus

Honorable Mentions
* Stonetop (Jeremy Strandberg): a hack of Dungeon World that came out of a 4e D&D campaign

IMHO, one of the more interesting aspects is the significant overlap of games above also inspired by Powered by the Apocalypse and Forged in the Dark games: e.g., Fabula Ultima, Daggerheart, Lancer/ICON, Beacon, Gubat Banwa, and Strike!

 

[payn]

This is just a humble thread about games that take inspiration from 4e D&D in some way, shape, or form.

Explicit 4e D&D Inspiration in Credits or Book

• 13th Age 1e & 2e (Pelgrane Press)
• Fabula Ultima (Rooster Games)
• Gubat Banwa (Joaquin Saavedra)
• Daggerheart (Darrington Press)
• Beacon RPG (Pirate Gonzalez Games)

4e Inspiration Stated by Author/Designer

• Lancer (Massif Press)
• ICON (Massif Press)
• Strike! (Jim McGarva)
• Trespasser (Tundalus Games)
• Draw Steel (MCDM) - could be explicit in final product

4e Inspiration Unstated but Present

• 5e D&D (Wizards of the Coast)
• Pathfinder/Starfinder 2e (Paizo)
• Shadow of the Demon Lord (Rob Schwalb)
• Shadow of the Weird Wizard (Rob Schwalb)

Honorable Mentions
* Stonetop (Jeremy Strandberg): a hack of Dungeon World that came out of a 4e D&D campaign

IMHO, one of the more interesting aspects is the significant overlap of games above also inspired by Powered by the Apocalypse and Forged in the Dark games: e.g., Fabula Ultima, Daggerheart, Lancer/ICON, Beacon, Gubat Banwa, and Strike!

I think it makes sense when you consider that the choice seems to be use 5E and reskin or make your game something else. In this case 4E being the D&D something else and PBtA being non D&D something else. Mixing the two seems like a good idea.

 

[payn]

This is just a humble thread about games that take inspiration from 4e D&D in some way, shape, or form.

Explicit 4e D&D Inspiration in Credits or Book

• 13th Age 1e & 2e (Pelgrane Press)
• Fabula Ultima (Rooster Games)
• Gubat Banwa (Joaquin Saavedra)
• Daggerheart (Darrington Press)
• Beacon RPG (Pirate Gonzalez Games)

4e Inspiration Stated by Author/Designer

• Lancer (Massif Press)
• ICON (Massif Press)
• Strike! (Jim McGarva)
• Trespasser (Tundalus Games)
• Draw Steel (MCDM) - could be explicit in final product

4e Inspiration Unstated but Present

• 5e D&D (Wizards of the Coast)
• Pathfinder/Starfinder 2e (Paizo)
• Shadow of the Demon Lord (Rob Schwalb)
• Shadow of the Weird Wizard (Rob Schwalb)

Honorable Mentions
* Stonetop (Jeremy Strandberg): a hack of Dungeon World that came out of a 4e D&D campaign

IMHO, one of the more interesting aspects is the significant overlap of games above also inspired by Powered by the Apocalypse and Forged in the Dark games: e.g., Fabula Ultima, Daggerheart, Lancer/ICON, Beacon, Gubat Banwa, and Strike!

It’s like the chocolate and peanut butter of not D&D 5E.

 

[Aldarc]

I think it makes sense when you consider that the choice seems to be use 5E and reskin or make your game something else. In this case 4E being the D&D something else and PBtA being non D&D something else. Mixing the two seems like a good idea.

That's an interesting way to think about it, though B/X is probably the more popular "D&D something else," particularly for the OSR crowd.

 

[payn]

That's an interesting way to think about it, though B/X is probably the more popular "D&D something else," particularly for the OSR crowd.

Oh sure, OSR is something I neglected to mention as another option in general.

 

[timbannock]

Orcus, the 4E retroclone

 

[Wofano Wotanto]

It's a bit more of a stretch, but I can see an awful lot of 4e's fingerprint's on Aether Nexus. The earlier Mecha Hack was obviously drawing from Black Hack, and Aether Nexus still has a lot of BH's DNA, but it's also pulling a lot of elements (even graphic design stuff) from 4e and blending the two pretty successfully IMO.

I would file it under "Unstated But Present" myself, since AFAIK they've never said anything about it - and for all I know, it may have been fellow mech game Lancer that provided the direct inspiration.

Oh, and you didn't mention the King of Dungeons stuff, which uses the Archmage Engine and is therefore closely tied to 13A, and through it to 4E. Pretty much a 13A variant in a setting where adventurers' guilds compete against one another for prestige and the best jobs while trying to get horribly killed carrying out those jobs. Pretty good, kind of a shame it hasn't grown beyond teh core book and a couple of loosely-connected adventures that help illustrate the theme.

 

[Aldarc]

Orcus, the 4E retroclone

Retroclone would probably be its own category.

 

[mamba]

4e Inspiration Unstated but Present

• 5e D&D (Wizards of the Coast)
• Pathfinder/Starfinder 2e (Paizo)
• Shadow of the Demon Lord (Rob Schwalb)
• Shadow of the Weird Wizard (Rob Schwalb)

what in the Rob Schwalb games do you think is inspired by 4e?

 

[Fanaelialae]

Monsterpunk is a fantastic game inspired by 4e. Monsterpunk, via @Kickstarter https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/ggwp/monsterpunk?ref=android_project_share