Looking for a new game

[The Green Adam]

Psst...I've got a secret...come over here.


(Looks left, than right)

OK, the coast is clear...


There are thousands and thousands of role playing games. Many are free.

Sorry to sound like a jerk but seriously, I don't understand why people even play D&D. It's like there is a drug on the pages of WotC products that makes those that touch D&D books often unable to perceive other games. Normally creative and intelligent gamers can't seem to put "Fantasy RPG" into a Google search and see what they get.

I mean Pathfinder IS D&D if your reason for not wanting to play it is not wanting to give WotC any more money. Give it to Paizo.

Personally, I just don't like D&D. Got bored with it some 20-25 years ago. I mostly play Science Fiction and Superhero games but when I do want to play fantasy there's always:

Anima, Ars Magica, Barbarians of Lemuria, Faery's Tale Deluxe, GURPS Fantasy, Mouse Guard, Palladium Fantasy, RuneQuest, Tunnels & Trolls Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay, (just to name a few off the top of my head) and numerous Old School Renaissance D&D copy/spin-offs like Basic Fantasy, Castles and Crusades, Labyrinth Lord and Swords & Wizardy. And again, that's not even listing the free ones or the awesome indie stuff.

Due yourself and your gaming group a huge favor and check out other games.

This has been a slightly ranty public service message from the guys who plays other games.

Thank you,
AD
Barking Alien

 

[Philotomy Jurament]

I no longer want to buy any WoTC products, nor do I want to play D&D any longer. This includes Retro-clones and games like Pathfinder or OGL copy/paste rule sets…I love fantasy, and want to keep playing in mystical worlds full of adventure, magic, and dragons. Does anyone know of a game system that can offer all this and still be both fun and easy?

Give Mongoose RuneQuest II a look. I didn't expect to like it (being a big BRP fan and having a pessimistic opinion of Mongoose's editing and production abilities), but it's really good. I'm quite taken with it. (Just make sure it's MRQII, and not MRQI.)

Another BRP-based option is OpenQuest, which is a simpler approach to the same basic system. For example, Mongoose RuneQuest II uses hit locations, while OpenQuest uses a single hit point total. (For those familiar with BRP-style games, it's kind of like Stormbringer combat with RuneQuest III magic.)

And, of course, there's Chaosium's Basic Roleplaying, which is more of a tool-kit system full of options. It spans genres, so it's very powerful and flexible, but you have to define what rules and options you're going to use for a given campaign/game. If you're only interested in fantasy, it may not be the best choice, but if you might want to explore other genres, BRP is great.

If you like D&D-style fantasy tropes, but with a skill-based system, you might also be interested in Classic Fantasy, which is the BRP system tweaked for a "D&D approach" without D&D rules.

 

[Mercurius]

I love fantasy, and want to keep playing in mystical worlds full of adventure, magic, and dragons. Does anyone know of a game system that can offer all this and still be both fun and easy?

I'm going to try to answer your actual specifications. A few suggestions come to mind:

Pathfinder - I know, I know, you said "No Pathfinder." But if you still want to play D&D but just not support WotC, then this is the way to go. Plus if you're jaded with all the support you're used to getting from playign D&D, this is the next best thing.

Savage Worlds - If you want a "rules lite-to-medium" game, go with Savage Worlds. It is an excellent game with a fair number of supplements, including a few nice campaign settings (my favorites are Sundered Skies and Hellfrost). It also has the benefit of utilizing all types of polyhedral dice, which most "indie" games don't do.

Ars Magica - Still the best magic system out there, imo. If you don't want to play "Mythic Europe" you can adapt this to another fantasy world. Definitely mage-o-centric.

Talislanta - A great exotic fantasy game. Best of all, every book over its 25-year span is available as a free PDF here. You could easily use the system for non-Talislantan games.

Runequest II - The word is that it is a pretty good game and the best version of Runequest thus far.

Exalted - Doesn't fit your request for "easy" (especially 2nd edition) but it should be fun if you like WoD and "gonzo" fantasy, especially the First Age stuff.

Among many others...(e.g. HARP, Warhammer, Middle Earth, Agone, Artesia, Arrowflight, Legends of Anglerre, Dragon Warriors, Reign, Mage: Dark Ages or Sorcerer's Crusade, etc)...

 

[Lanefan]

And if none of the above suggestions suit your requirements, there's always plan B:

Grow yer own.

Figure out what you want a game to do and how you want it done, then design said game from the ground up. Swipe ideas from anywhere - you're not going to sell it (I assume) so it doesn't have to be 100% original - and mash 'em together to make the end result yours and yours alone.

Lan-"instant fun - just add players"-efan

 

[prosfilaes]

Let me recommend GURPS. It's got a solid simulationist base, and rules to do just about whatever you want. All the old books are coming out in PDF on e23.sjgames.com, and there's a new series of PDF/POD Dungeon Fantasy books on basically running D&D in GURPS.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

HERO, coupled with the sourcebook, Fantasy HERO, maybe Ultimate Martial Artist (to give the "Monks" some love).

Nigh-infinite flexibility. Skills. Powers. Customization.

With it and some system mastery, you can emulate any RPG's feel, should you care to- I have personally made D&D style elves and paladins and so forth, so its not a stretch to say someone could do Talisantha or Harn style PCs if they so chose.

 

[Lord Xtheth]

Thank you all for your suggestions, I have alot of reading to do now!

 

[Connorsrpg]

Another one recommending Savage Worlds...strongly! I too have played DnD for over 20 years. I still play DnD, but do have some issues (not all to do with games) and wished to branch out and try something else. In fact I read the free PDF on the why and how Savage Worlds was developed and I felt I was in the same boat as the author (Shane).

So we tried a few mini games using all free stuff from the pegin.com site. I LOVED them.

So we then ordered a LOT of books through Studio 2 (pegincs distributors) and they were amazing - both the books and Studio 2. Excellent communications and through in freebies for our large order.

The books are superb. I was not expecting such high production qualities.

The COre book is $10 (so we bought several). The Fantasy Companion is $20. Reading these 2 books alone inspired me a LOT. I want to not just run games but write again. Dnd 4E monsters would port over very easily - especially the clear individual powers (I am even considering using recharge powers with SW).

Then there are the settings. I would love to read them all. I started with 2 non-typical fantasy, but want to get those too...just to read even. But there is no real need to invest in new settings. These rules are so intuitive it is easy to use other settings and creatures.

I am sold anyway.

 

[GreyLord]

If you want something a little simpler, that's not that expensive (everything needed for the RPG is in a book) and is still an older RPG (I believe it came out originally in the 80s, in 6 booklets then...but all of that info is in one book now)

You could look into the

Dragon Warriors RPG by Oliver Johnson and Dave Morris

$31.96 on Amazon or still via Amazon, new copies from other vendors for as low as $25. The complete RPG.

 

[MortonStromgal]

If you liked WOD you may like Desolation it uses a simple dice pool mechanic with Mage like magic system using a Shadowrun style drain mechanic. The rules tend to stay out of the way by letting you take the average when in non-stressful situations (except spellcasting). The setting is fairly specific survival/fantasy type game (the races may not work well for a more generic game). It gave my Shadowrun/WOD group exactly what we wanted in a rule set for a fantasy game. I don't have the Before and After book but I think it would help run a more traditional fantasy game.