GURPS, Whitewolf, Werewolves, and Vampires Oh MY!

[beeber]

i would go gurps if you wanted the more "realistic" version of a garou nation. if a more cinematic (or even laurel hamilton take) is what you want, then just keep the WoD ruleset.

 

[malichai]

Someone else mentioned "realism" and I'm not quite sure what you mean. Are D&D 3.5 rules considered realistic, like GURPS? or would you classify 3.5 closer to World of Darkness? (or new World of Darkness)?

 

[beeber]

usually when i mention realism in games it translates to combat lethality. no growing pool of hit points as one's character advances. a sword blow, if it connects, could kill your character almost as quickly as it could IRL. my old traveller campaigns were extremely lethal but just as much mayhem and enjoyment ensued.

 

[Jürgen Hubert]

Well, GURPS doesn't have to be played in a realistic mode. But in general, tactics that work well in Real World combat work well in GURPS, too - and something that would be a very stupid idea in Real Life is probably difficult to pull off in GURPS as well. This is more difficult to do in d20...

I've GMed GURPS in fantasy campaigns, and in general I'd say that as long the characters are taking the proper precautions, GURPS combat isn't that much more lethal than mid-level D&D. On the other hand, if the PCs get into combat while not wearing any armor, or charging into the midst of a few dozen goblins, then it's not too surprising if they get hurt.

Wear armor, devise some tactics, and watch your back - and you will last for a long time in GURPS...

 

[malichai]

The more I've been examining the Revised Werewolf: The Apocalypse book I have here the more I think it just might work for what we want to do. It's certainly not a tenth as complex as 3.0/3.5 were to learn, the only issue could possibly be that the the rules are TOO simple. People saying that the new world of darkness made combat even simpler isn't a huge vote in favor of that system.

 

[Calico_Jack73]

I say you can't go wrong with the real thing... go with Werewolf Revised Edition. I think the White Wolf version captures the feel of the game but as I haven't seen the GURPS version I can't say anything about it.

White Wolf has a more detailed combat system... it is a separate book called "Combat". I really like it quite a bit though it does play a bit like an arcade game. You create "Combat Cards" with your different maneuvers on them with different bonuses to initiative, accuracy, and damage. You roll your base initiative and modify it by the maneuver on the card. If your "Block" maneuver doesn't add up to an initiative higher than your opponent's attack maneuver then you just flat out aren't fast enough to even attempt to block it. Check it out, a well played character can beat one that is more powerful but not played as well. When my old group tried out the rules I created a mortal martial artist who went up against a friend's Akashic Brother (from Mage). I wiped the floor with him and my character couldn't do a single supernatural thing... it all came down to choosing the best maneuvers. This is just the thing for folks who hate abstract combat systems.

http://www.pen-paper.net/rpgdb.php?op=showbook&bookid=986