Modern Action RPGs

[Ahzad]

So I've got a itch to run something modern for my players, think ghost recon, gi joe, superspies, stuff like that. Now way back in the day I'd fall back to Spycraft for stuff like that, but time and age have most of my players not wanting something so crunch heavy as Spycraft was, and we do a lot of Savage Worlds but i'm looking to try something new. What's out there that might be fun to try? ideally something that has VTT support would be best, Fantasy Grounds, or Foundry preferred, but it's okay if it's not VTT supported.

thanks,

 

[Arilyn]

Outgunned is a slick modern day cinematic action rpg. It uses a d6 dice pool system where players are trying to get equal sets, rather than higher numbers, so 3 1s is better than 2 6s. It's created by 2 Little Mice and definitely not crunchy. I got a copy recently and it looks like it'll work really well, although I haven't tried it at the table yet. There's quite a bit of buzz around it and is popular. I can't tell you whether it has VTT support.

 

[Ruin Explorer]

I'd definitely also be looking at Outgunned for the proposed setup (modern action, moderate to low crunch, etc.), it's absolutely made for that, and is a pretty cool game. Apparently there's a Foundry module for it (I don't use VTTs much so know nothing beyond that).

 

[Committed Hero]

Outgunned would be the easiest. Night's Black Agents if you wanted supernatural elements (or don't mind using the mod in back for mundane action).

 

[overgeeked]

The already mentioned Outgunned would be my top suggestion. It’s a great, light system.

Never Stop Blowing Up by Dimension 20 and Brennan Lee Mulligan.

Wushu is a dead simple rules light game. Does action and gunfu really well.

 

[FriendlyFiend]

Just to add that Outgunned has official support on Alchemy VTT plus an unofficial module on Foundry. There's also a Discord bot for the dice system.

 

[Theory of Games]

Hm. Ever read or tried Wushu? It's a very narrative system where players gain bonuses to an action by describing how their character performs the action - the more dynamic and badass the description, the more points the player gets. The system is all about cinematic-style action and has kind of "mechanized" the Rule of Cool. Definitely worth a look if you want simple, fast and fun.

Wushu | The Ancient Art of Action Roleplaying

Black Belt Edition

danielbayn.com

 

[Umbran]

If folks are going to bring up Wushu, then Feng Shui is also a contender.

 

[Aldarc]

My first thought was Outgunned and SWADE. If you are excluding SWADE and want a lighter game, then Outgunned is the obvious choice from the two.

Alternatively, there is Cypher System, but I would argue that it's really only marginally less crunchy than SWADE. However, I'm also not sure how well it does "Action!" RPGs, though its fans seem to think that it can do anything.

Another alternative would be Fate Condensed or Fate Accelerated. Atomic Robo RPG leans pretty heavily into the action side of Fate Core. If characters have similar skill sets, maybe because they are all spies, then I would potentially look at Fate Accelerated.

 

[Umbran]

My first thought was Outgunned and SWADE. If you are excluding SWADE and want a lighter game, then Outgunned is the obvious choice from the two.

Alternatively, there is Cypher System, but I would argue that it's really only marginally less crunchy than SWADE. However, I'm also not sure how well it does "Action!" RPGs, though its fans seem to think that it can do anything.

Cypher system can do it, but cinematic action isn't its strong suit. Moreover, I don't know of a published or common hack that specifically sets you up for the genre - most of them lean a little more fantastical.

Same thing with Cortex Prime. Cortex can do a fine heist genre (see the out of print Leverage game), so this would only be a small step from that. I don't know of anyone having done it & made such available, though - most lean a little more fantastical, again. So, it'd take some work.

Another alternative would be Fate Condensed or Fate Accelerated. Atomic Robo RPG leans pretty heavily into the action side of Fate Core. If characters have similar skill sets, maybe because they are all spies, then I would potentially look at Fate Accelerated.

Might want to look at Shadow of the Century for Fate approaching the modern pulp-action genre.