Grade the Silhouette System

[jdrakeh]

As I recall, the main mathematical issue with the system is that a stat of +3 had a pretty dramatic effect, especially when it was in Dex, and it was relatively easy to acquire. The game played best with stat values no higher than +2, possibly allowing a +3 for absolutely elite, best-of-the-best.

That seems to match my recollection, yes.

 

[Wofano Wotanto]

It might have still more of a presence in the tactical miniatures game space as that is what is mostly what is being produced, and maybe with the release of the new edition of the HG RPG it'll begin to creep back in.

Up until a few years ago (pre-COVID) I was primarily a minis gamer by self-definition, and I can safely say DP9 is much better remembered in that crowd. Still quite niche and folks who think GW is all there is will be clueless about it, but for many folks it's at least something they're aware of even if they've never played - or played so long ago they only the larger-scale RAFM figs. HG in particular crops up pretty regularly when folks are looking for anime/mecha rule systems, and until recently were usually favorably compared to Battletech (which is definitely not niche these days) in terms of sculpts and aesthetics. With the new higher-quality redesigned plastics BT is pulling to a more even position there, which is further marginalizing the Pod to a company that's mainly selling to an established fan base rather than seeing much growth.

As I recall, the main mathematical issue with the system is that a stat of +3 had a pretty dramatic effect, especially when it was in Dex, and it was relatively easy to acquire. The game played best with stat values no higher than +2, possibly allowing a +3 for absolutely elite, best-of-the-best.

Stats can be negative too, so the actual spread is wider than just a +3 would suggest.

 

[Kannik]

Up until a few years ago (pre-COVID) I was primarily a minis gamer by self-definition, and I can safely say DP9 is much better remembered in that crowd. Still quite niche and folks who think GW is all there is will be clueless about it, but for many folks it's at least something they're aware of even if they've never played - or played so long ago they only the larger-scale RAFM figs. HG in particular crops up pretty regularly when folks are looking for anime/mecha rule systems, and until recently were usually favorably compared to Battletech (which is definitely not niche these days) in terms of sculpts and aesthetics. With the new higher-quality redesigned plastics BT is pulling to a more even position there, which is further marginalizing the Pod to a company that's mainly selling to an established fan base rather than seeing much growth.

Cool, thank you for that confirmation. That latter bit is one of my biggest concerns that it isn't finding a way to announce itself to a newer crowd. :/

(Something I wasn't able to really do either with the fanzine, though my marketing skills are... well, I might well have a negative stat there )

 

[Kannik]

Well, this one seems to have run its course. I'm a bit surprised at the low score, I guess it must have rubbed some the wrong way.

Though the unfortunate about it not being introduced to newer/expanded crowds isn't so much about the rules (myself I would likely use a different system now) but the potential loss of the great campaign worlds and their world building and designs. There's a lot of great and expansive stuff in the base games and sourcebooks.

 

[Wofano Wotanto]

There's a lot of great and expansive stuff in the base games and sourcebooks.

The Pod is quite good at establishing interesting worlds, yes. Even the lesser-supported flops like Core Command and Gear Krieg had a certain appeal and some unique elements, with CC being particularly high concept. And HG at least is still expanding within the minis community, although at this point it's really fallen far behind its old rival Battletech.

Going by what customers were saying in my days behind the FLGS counter a quarter century ago, part of the Pod's failure to grab more market share may be their pricing. They've always be adamant (I would even say arrogant) about charging what they thought products were worth regardless of the rest of the market, and people tended to look at their (mostly) B&W, rather slim books and compare them to other companies' work that offered a higher page counts and more color and opt right out. There was also a perception that they put out too many small books that made them expensive for completists, although I'm honestly not sure they were particularly bad about that - especially in the 90s when countless splatbooks were king.

 

[Thomas Shey]

Other than Heavy Gear, its probably just a case that its out of the hobby's eye for the most part, and even Heavy Gear is not as well known as it once was. As compared to most of the other survey targets which have a much bigger footprint.

 

[Voadam]

I got a bunch of the PDF d20 or dual stat d20 versions of their books too in the d20 era. I keep eyeing the d20 dual stat Core Command Big Nasty Aliens book PDF which I have not gotten yet.

 

[jdrakeh]

Yeah. Wil (the lead creative) posts regularly about it on Twitter. It's still in the works and actively being developed.

And now that I've finished my first editing pass on it, I can confirm that it's also amazing.

 

[Kannik]

And now that I've finished my first editing pass on it, I can confirm that it's also amazing.

Cool to hear! Any word on when it or the next preview will be released?

 

[jdrakeh]

Cool to hear! Any word on when it or the next preview will be released?

Nope! That's above my paygrade (I wish I knew because I can't wait to get it to the table).