Looking for new fantasy RPG - story & roleplay oriented !

[paulewaug]

Here's a link to the
Dying Earth Roleplaying
that may be of use? You can download the quickstart rules if it sounds interesting. It seems to put emphases on role playing.

I also recently picked up the rulebook for The Savage Worlds and I have to say I am pretty excited to run this game, It looks to be very flexible and fun.

And there is also Monte Cook's Arcana Unearthed . Not necessarily along the lines of what you were looking for probably but worth a look?

Also I think the newer version of Dragonlance sounds like it may be worthwhile,
I do agree that a lot of games and their implicated settings do come with a certain amount of baggage.
I have looked at various rulebooks for different games and thought about using them for "something else" but didn't feel it was worth it to me to try to get around the implied setting or convince my players to give it a try. For lots of Gm's it's probably not a problem but if I tell my players that we are using Star Wars to play a Sci-Fantasy game they will only think in terms of "StarWars" and I probably would too.

Also I think that Decipher's Lord of the Rings is a nice system, but mostly for a different take on the use of magic. If you can get your hands on a copy to look at check it out though. And I Do feel you could easily remove any and all references to LotR and just have a "Lotr-like" setting. Kinda like what was done with Shannara and Mythgar.
But it can easily keep the game from feeling like you are playing a hack-n-slash monster hunter.

And I followed that link to HARP and it sounds like that game has potential.

And "classic D&D" is a heck of a lot of fun for taking a break from 3.#. I would recommend trying to find the older Basic and Expert rulebooks with the Erol Otis (sp?) covers as they have a wonderful atmosphere.

There is nothing wrong with taking a break from DnD and it can even make playing DnD more fun to come back to later.
Cheers and Good Luck!

 

[kengar]

I'll throw in another vote for Savage Worlds. I've been extremely impressed by the system. Enough so that my group and I have completely shelved 3e & d20 indefinitely and are running SW exclusively now. Most of us have been playing over 20 years each and we love SW. Setup is quick and easy and a combat with 30+ participants can be run -in full tactical detail if you want- in less than an hour. Rules for mass battles (think Helm's Deep) and vehicles, magic and technology; it's all there.

Also, check out the new dark fantasy SW campaign "Evernight"; extremely cool.

 

[paulewaug]

yeah I am going to check Evernight out, it sounds good.

I am planning on using SW to run my group to play through the Witchfire Trilogy and the Freeport Trilogy.
As these are excellent adventures and don't seem like they readlly Need to be DnD adventures so much as just a really cool Fantasy system.

IN fact S.W. defiantly seems better suited to running a sort of techno-magical/steampunk style game (Final Fantasy, Battle Chasers,etc.) than DnD, and The Iron Kingdoms excludes certain things that are a gimme in DnD.

 

[Anavel Gato]

And what do yoou think of Sovereign Stone? Is there a big storyline running through the setting, is there a goal?
SS keeps all stereotypes like elves & dwarves but adds a twist. Is this hard to grasp? Would they better have dropped those stereotypes altogether or kept them as they were instead of keeping 1/2 and changing 1/2 ?

well, some of the stereotypes have changed. Elves are bigger more like humans, but retain thier lithe appearance. Dwarves are plains people who ride horses. Their is a new race that replaces halflings and gnomes. I suppose it could be the "kender" of DL except they have different style ears. There are books (like DL) that go along with this setting, but most of the information you need as a player is in the Soveriegn stone campaign book. There are some new classes and all of the old. New classes included the Archer, and the Stalker. Magic is different. Schools are based off of the elements. Like you are an Earth mage (or something like that--I don't have the book in front of me). As far as a goal, Iam sure there is some undercurrent running through it, but I haven't really had a chance to get into the setting as much as I would like to. I love DL and figured this was by the same people so I'd give it a shot. If you have more specific questions I can find my book and get more specific at a later time. And I know the Wizards of the Coast store near me has these all of their RPG's other than WotC specific on sale so you can get these books pretty cheap if you have such a store near you.

 

[Golem Joe]

PS: Since DL is D&D but always had an epic feel, putting the stress on story, and having a strong novel line, what do you think of the SAGA system? No dice, no books, all story & RP. I know some of you didn't like what changes the 5th age brought, but leaving that out, is it worth a try?

I LOVE SAGA!! Definately one of the best games TSR ever produced and was pretty innovative for the time. Still is, I suppose. It's a snap to run and a blast to play.

But it does have a flaw -- a critical one in my opinion. Combat breaks down when you start fighting bigger monsters, like ogres, demons, etc. This makes it impossible to run a classic swords and sorcery campaign, unless you chunk the DnD conversion rules or create a variety of magic items that make these creatures beatable. Even with the team options from Heroes of Steel, it still doesn't quite rise to the level required. Because of this, warrior types will ALWAYS be in the shadow of more versatle spellcasters. At least, that was the situation in my campaign. Even with that flaw, however, SAGA was damn fun. It would work great in a more intrigue-based campaign.

 

[Trevalon Moonleirion]

Despite of D&D's popularity, it isn't the best RPG. D&D has become, or always has been, a game with lots of combat that often takes place in dungeons.

For me, RPG is more than that, much more. Thus I'm looking for an old-school RPG that emphasizes roleplay and is story centered instead of filled with numbers & stats and combat oriented.
Combat is fine, but it's only a small part of an RPG to me, and rules should be short, easy and flexible. The "holy rule balance" shouldn't restrict good stories and unforgettable game moments. As long as it's believable.

I'm not looking for a drama game without any dice rolls, but I need something else than "level based free attack bonuses & HP" etc. The world where the (epic) stories take place should be more important than micro-rules for accomplishing things.

IMPORTANT: I'm not interested in any manga/anime, oriental, gothic or sci-fi RPGs; I want a classic medieval fantasy RPG. Can you help me find it?
It should preferably come in only one or two corebooks, with moderate support, not the zillion of books as in D&D or GURPS.

I hate to respond to threads that I haven't totally read yet, but I must completely disagree with you. D&D doesn't have to be played a certain way--the styles of play are truly limited only by the GM and the players of the group. It can be the mind-numbing combat-heavy number crunch that you speak of, but it could also be a campaign of heavy political intrigue where the only time dice are rolled are to see how well a cleverly-used charm person spell works. If you think that D&D is nothing more than the rules, I think you should give it another try. Rule Zero pretty much says that whatever you don't like, you can throw out--remember that mantra!

If you're looking for a good place to start, I'd recommend Creative Mountain Games--as the author himself plugged on the first page of replies. Mark is a fantastic GM who writes some high-quality stuff. While he spends time on rules (and he should... they ARE d20 products) he takes special effort to make his NPCs very playable and very believeable. He gives GMs quick keywords to find an NPCs personality, has developed his own way of measuring how NPCs interact with the world using various ratings--in politics, religion, etc. His worlds also live and breathe--things change, people respond to you and your characters.

I again say that D&D can be whatever you and your group wants it to be. All it takes is a little emphasis here or there. If you're the GM of a game, then write a scenario that is entirely involved with NPCs, with lots of conversation and roleplaying--it can very easily be done! (For some help making your own, I'd recommend Johnn Four's GM Mastery books--specifically on NPCs. I'd also point your towards his website and weekly e-newsletter-- www.roleplayingtips.com)

In the end if you still don't think D&D suits you, then best luck in finding a system that does!

 

[kenjib]

Re: Re: Looking for new fantasy RPG - story & roleplay oriented !

I hate to respond to threads that I haven't totally read yet, but...

Hehe. I think your post is a pretty good example of why.

 

[Trevalon Moonleirion]

Re: Re: Re: Looking for new fantasy RPG - story & roleplay oriented !

Hehe. I think your post is a pretty good example of why.

Hrm....yes I feel smrt now. I think I'll just shut myself up before I look like more of an asshat...