Military based D20 game

[Calico_Jack73]

Quicklink (publisher of Traveller T20) is working on a d20 version of Twilight:2000 called "Twilight". There isn't a release date yet that I know of though.

A couple of months ago I broke down and picked up a copy of Twilight:2000 on E-Bay. I just have never found a modern military game to match it. I think people like it for it's attention to detail. For example, in the demolitions rules it has a formula to figure out how much explosive force is required to destroy a structure based upon the materials used to construct it. It also then lists the destructive power of various explosives and also takes into account whether or not the explosives have been tamped down. It is a VERY easy system actually though. You skill level is the chance on a d10 to succeed at a moderately difficult task. If it is easy you double the score and roll under it. If it is difficult you half it and if it is very difficult you quarter it. Everything is skill based... if you have a Small Arms Rifle skill of 10 it means you pretty much hit the target 90% of the time (you always fail on a 10) out to the listed range of the weapon. At long range your score drops to 5, extreme range it'd drop to 2.

That's it!!! I withdraw any endorsement of a d20 modern military game. Just find yourself a copy of Twilight:2000. I played an AWESOME T2K game once where the characters were special forces dropped into occupied Texas to raise a resistance movement. Very much like "Red Dawn".

 

[Mr. T]

wow...Thanks for all the suggestions I'll be looking into some. The combat will be based on this idea. I might base the game off a modified MSRD.

 

[JPL]

The combat will be based on this idea.

Why this rather than the standard move action / attack action / full-round action / free action?

Will your emphasis be on elite units, or rank-and-file grunts?

Can you cite some movies or TV shows or whatnot that have the "feel" you're trying for?

There's a very good book called "On Killing" by a psychologist/ex-Ranger that talks about the psychological effects of combat and killing, and how the modern military deals with these effects before, during, and after combat. Worth a read.

 

[Aaron2]

You skill level is the chance on a d10 to succeed at a moderately difficult task. If it is easy you double the score and roll under it. If it is difficult you half it and if it is very difficult you quarter it. Everything is skill based... if you have a Small Arms Rifle skill of 10 it means you pretty much hit the target 90% of the time (you always fail on a 10) out to the listed range of the weapon. At long range your score drops to 5, extreme range it'd drop to 2.

That sound alot like the James Bond game although in JB, your skill was multiplied by an "Ease Factor" ranging from 1 to 10 (1 being hardest, 10 easier and 5 the default) to determine a percentage chance for success. Difficulty was accessed by adjusting the ease factor up and down. It had the added caviat that player would bid on the starting ease factor in order to win the initiative.

I played an AWESOME T2K game once where the characters were special forces dropped into occupied Texas to raise a resistance movement. Very much like "Red Dawn".

Resistance to what? Yankees?


Aaron

 

[Ranger REG]

Military game is a tricky subject. You must choose whether you want to do a role-playing game (think A-Team but going into war) or a simulation game (think Team Yankee).

If I want simulation, I just load up Rainbow Six.

For Military d20 RPG, pick up Blood and Guts, Somalia: d20, and Colombia: d20 if you prefer d20 Modern rules.

Pick up US Militaries and World Militaries if you prefer Spycraft d20 rules. It wouldn't hurt to pick up Stargate SG-1 as well (basically a military with a sci-fi twist).

You may want to look at some non-d20 products for reference source, if you're into conversion into d20, like those GURPS worldbook supplements that have both special forces as well as WW II sourcebooks.

 

[Calico_Jack73]

Resistance to what? Yankees?

Have you ever seen Red Dawn? In T2K the Russians have invaded parts of America including Texas.

 

[The Shaman]

Military game is a tricky subject. You must choose whether you want to do a role-playing game (think A-Team but going into war) or a simulation game (think Team Yankee).

I'm starting a military roleplaying campaign right now - click the link in my signature for details.

One of the keys, IMHO, is to develop missions that can be given to a small team like the adventuring party. One option of course is that the players are "special forces," which seems to be the norm in the adventures I've seen so far - IMX this doesn't work very well with low-level characters: their abilities, talents, skills and feats are limited in selection which takes away from the verisimilitude of a special forces unit, IMHO - it's hard to imagine a 2nd or 3rd level character who is "the best of the best of the best, SIR!"*

The other option is to have the players assigned to a larger unit, but this presents its own challenges, such as creating "adventures" for four or five characters who are part of a larger formation: the GM must create missions or assignments that the player characters can accomplish in the context of the squad or fire team or platoon. This is how I'm planning to run my campaign - I'll let you know how it works out...

*"He's just really excited to be here, and he was no idea what he's talking about!"

 

[Calico_Jack73]

Once again and I hate to keep beating it's drum but one of the reasons I like T2K is that it wasn't level based. Your initiative roll was probably the single most important roll in character creation. When you take damage you suffer a penalty to initative to represent the effects of shock (both physical trauma as well as shaken cool). When your initative drops to 0 you are out of the fight. You could have a 20 year veteran who never saw combat but sat behind a desk for the most part with an initiative of 1 but you could also have a 20 year old kid fresh out of Ranger school that seemed born to fight with a initiative of 6 (the max). Also, during character creation you roll after every 4 year term to see if war breaks out. That way you have a wide variety of experience between the characters. It all works very well together... check it out.

 

[Aaron2]

Have you ever seen Red Dawn? In T2K the Russians have invaded parts of America including Texas.

You threw me off when you said you only bought the game a few months ago.

I read that the game took place in an alternate 1997, how out of date are the weapons and equipment tables? Were the scenarios strictly US vs Soviets?


Aaron

 

[Calico_Jack73]

I bought it a couple months ago but I owned a copy for many years before (like an idiot) I accidently included it in a trade in lot.

As far as the timeline goes it is pretty out of date. It pretty much starts at the fall of the Berlin Wall and diverges from there. It obviously doesn't include current events such as Hungary joining NATO and so they are still considered Warsaw Pact. The main thing is that the series of events leading up the the war are believable and make sense. Equipment wise it is just fine. There are some things that were in development back when it was published that never really went operational such as the ADATS and the M2 Tank (basically a M1 with a remotely controlled turret where the crew all sit in the hull). AVgas is even more scarse than gasoline so the game doesn't really involve aircraft at all which is just fine as far as I am concerned.

http://www.army-technology.com/projects/adats/