Hackmaster!

[nsruf]

... the manuals however are DAUNTINGLY large.

That is exactly what has kept me from DMing it so far, although I own the two core books. Putting up with all the intricate rules just doesn't seem worth it. It's part of the parody aspect, but if it drags down play to a crawl while the DM reads up on stuff, where is the fun?

I really hope Kenzer will put out a HM Lite someday - not for newbs but for people who prefer less rules intensive games and still want all the attitude of HM...

 

[nsruf]

If you like to Game Master with the feeling that you are actually the game's MASTER, look no further.

My impression from skimming the GMG was that the GM is more of a master ACCOUNTANT. Tracking player and party honor, player and party alignment, individual and group XP awards, armor hp for npcs, etc. all sound very unfun and time-consuming to me. I wouldn't mind playing HM, but GMing it seems like a lot of work.

 

[Falstaff]

My impression from skimming the GMG was that the GM is more of a master ACCOUNTANT. Tracking player and party honor, player and party alignment, individual and group XP awards, armor hp for npcs, etc. all sound very unfun and time-consuming to me. I wouldn't mind playing HM, but GMing it seems like a lot of work.

Yeah, there's a lot to keep up with and not many would-be game masters are able to get behind the HackMaster GM Shield. That said, after a few sessions it all starts to flow together and becomes second nature. All the added features of HackMaster (like Honor, armor damage, critical hits and Alignment Infraction Points for example) are all what make it the best fantasy RPG ever, in my humble opinion.

I have (much like the rest of you guys) bookshelves and bookshelves filled with RPGs, but once HackMaster hit the road, I grabbed it and haven't played anything since. However, I am a control freak and like to be in complete control of my campaigns, HackMaster lets me do that and backs it up with mechanics also.

I agree, HackMaster isn't for everyone. It is, however, my game of choice for fantasy, sword-and-sorcery gaming. You just have to be patient with the rules. The rules are not there simply to frustrate the gamer in an attempt at parody. They're there because HackMaster is the most detailed RPG ever created. Just take a look at PC generation and you will see what I mean. There're even rules for detailing your PC's entire family clan.

Anywho, happy gaming with whatever RPG you choose.

 

[woodelf]

I agree, HackMaster isn't for everyone. It is, however, my game of choice for fantasy, sword-and-sorcery gaming. You just have to be patient with the rules. The rules are not there simply to frustrate the gamer in an attempt at parody. They're there because HackMaster is the most detailed RPG ever created. Just take a look at PC generation and you will see what I mean. There're even rules for detailing your PC's entire family clan.

Anywho, happy gaming with whatever RPG you choose.

Point of order: Dangerous Journeys has more-detailed and more-complex chargen, with way more math-ness; Aria has more-detailed chargen, and figuring out your family is a standard part of chargen, but it is considerably less math-y; Fantasy HERO can be much more complex and with much math-ness. Those are just fantasy RPGs that i can think of off the top of my head. HackMaster is far from the most detailed RPG (fantasy or otherwise) out there.

 

[ARandomGod]

Okay, now I know a large percentage of EN's readers will be a fan of Knights of the Dinner Table, personally, I can't sing it's praises high enough, it's an amazing comic.

I've had a brief flick through the Hackmaster books, as in the actual gaming handbooks for the 2nd ed spin-off they (Kenzer) produced, and I always thought that being such a big fan of the comic it'd be an awesome time playing it... the manuals however are DAUNTINGLY large.

Basically, I was just wondering if anyone here has played hackmaster or even read the books in detail, whether it's worth playing, and most importantly, whether it's worth all the cash my local store wants for the set of books! :\

Hoody-Hoo!

I've played it and I've enjoyed it greatly. It is, in my opinion, what DnD was supposed to evolve into, or at least a version of what it would have become if it maintained it's original vision.

Not that I'm saying that 3.X aren't good games in themselves. But they really don't have the same DnD feel... By which I mean: It's not DnD, it's d20. A completely different system, some of which are set within a similiar genre.

 

[RFisher]

Well, I've browsed through the books a few times, but it looks like there's so much stuff I'd want to ignore I'm better of breaking out my OAD&D books.

On the other hand, some of the modules look tasty for use with OAD&D or B/X D&D. I wish they had more original modules. The hacked versions of classic modules could be useful too, though.

 

[diaglo]

i own all the books.

but i'll probably never play it.

why should i? i have all the 1edADnD books too.

plus i have the best game... Original D&D (1974)

 

[Falstaff]

Point of order: Dangerous Journeys has more-detailed and more-complex chargen, with way more math-ness; Aria has more-detailed chargen, and figuring out your family is a standard part of chargen, but it is considerably less math-y; Fantasy HERO can be much more complex and with much math-ness. Those are just fantasy RPGs that i can think of off the top of my head. HackMaster is far from the most detailed RPG (fantasy or otherwise) out there.

Then let me clarify. HackMaster is the most detailed RPG out there, ever created, etc., in my opinion.

 

[woodelf]

That is exactly what has kept me from DMing it so far, although I own the two core books. Putting up with all the intricate rules just doesn't seem worth it. It's part of the parody aspect, but if it drags down play to a crawl while the DM reads up on stuff, where is the fun?

I really hope Kenzer will put out a HM Lite someday - not for newbs but for people who prefer less rules intensive games and still want all the attitude of HM...

Just to put this in perspective: i don't think it's significantly worse than D&D3[.5]E. Or, to use your own words, "That is exactly what has kept me from DMing it so far.... Putting up with all the intricate rules just doesn't seem worth it....if it drags down play to a crawl while the DM reads up on stuff, where is the fun?" perfectly describes my feelings about and experiences with D&D3[.5]E.

Wouldn't HackMaster Lite be Paranoia XP?

 

[woodelf]

My impression from skimming the GMG was that the GM is more of a master ACCOUNTANT. Tracking player and party honor, player and party alignment, individual and group XP awards, armor hp for npcs, etc. all sound very unfun and time-consuming to me. I wouldn't mind playing HM, but GMing it seems like a lot of work.

Do you think it's more work than GMing D&D3E? That's a serious question--i've not read HackMaster in detail yet, and never played it, but i've seen how much work my GM put in when we were playing D&D3E (enough to burn him out), and talked to plenty of other GMs who've switched to other systems precisely because of the amount of effort D&D3E required. I'd actually be surprised if HackMaster was any *more* effort to prep/run.