Recommendations needed for a new system for an Old DM

[Modoc]

I am an old RPG player. I have been playing and running games for 20+ years. As of late I have only been running D&D 3.5 games. Since it has been awhile since I ventured outside of the D&D I am curious as to what's good tese days. I understand that asking the question of what's good is a loaded question.

Although my players may not want to switch things up, suggestions that have an active pbp community are even better.

I will list some of the systems I have played, read, or experimented with in the past
- OD&D
- AD&D
- D&D 3.5
- Pendragon (Chaosium)
- Witchcraft
- Shadowrun (1st edition)
- Vampire (not sure if I want to venture into this agian)
- Nephilim

Genre that might take a lot of convincing for me to play in:
- Star wars
- Futuristic
- Mech...
- anime (really do not this genre at all)

So, As you can see I have several different tastes. I love fantasy. I gre up with OD&D and AD&D. I have sampled some dark/occult games, these intrigue me. In the grand scheme of things I have not sampled very mant games. I think this is due me growing up and growing old with D&D of one edition or another. Give me some suggestions that you think may interest me. Like mentioned above if a particular system has an active pbp community that would help because my players are not gonna want to expirement with other things.

 

[smootrk]

I will suggest Basic Fantasy which is a wonderful system based upon D20 and the Red/Blue, Basic/Expert sets. http://www.basicfantasy.org/

If you want more substance, then I would go for True20 for its adaptability to many types of genres (and there already exists a pool of material to draw from).

 

[Philotomy Jurament]

You might like Lejendary Adventure. It's a Gary Gygax game, so it has themes similar to D&D, but is very different in many ways: skill-based, no classes, spell-point system for magic, et cetera.

I didn't see Call of Cthulhu on your list. I like the BRP version, with the Delta Green supplements for a modern spin. There's also Cthulhu Dark Ages, if you want to go the other way, time-wise. A bunch of Danes with spears and axes coming up against a Dark Young can be pretty entertaining.

Rolemaster can be fun, although it's a pretty "heavy" rules-set.

In the "might take some convincing" category, you might look at some of the classics like Gamma World or Metamorphosis Alpha or Traveller.

 

[tankschmidt]

You might be interested in Castles and Crusades by Troll Lord Games. It feels a lot like first edition AD&D but plays with a more modern mechanic. Combat runs quickly and intuitively, and it's immediately combatible with any pre-WoTC D&D stuff you already have. There are a few posters on the boards at www.trolllord.com who run SKYPE games as well, if that's what you are interested in.

 

[Chaldfont]

Go with Savage Worlds. You can pick up the rules for $10! Then get one of the plot point setting books.

I've played about a third of 50 Fathoms so I can vouch for it. I'm the DM and I've done so little prep for that game its astonishing. We've had a blast with it and its almost no work to run.

 

[GreatLemur]

Any feelings on superheroes and pulp adventure? Because Mutants & Masterminds is awesome (as long as you're cool with point-based character generation) and Spirit of the Century is looking like the coolest thing to happen to RPGs in years (as long as you're cool with new-school narrativist resolution mechanics).

I didn't see Call of Cthulhu on your list. I like the BRP version, with the Delta Green supplements for a modern spin. There's also Cthulhu Dark Ages, if you want to go the other way, time-wise. A bunch of Danes with spears and axes coming up against a Dark Young can be pretty entertaining.

That is a damned good suggestion. Every gamer oughta at least try Call of Cthulhu.

 

[Nikosandros]

Well, I think you ought to try Call of Cthulhu a true classic of the horror genre.

I like very much GURPS. It's a universal system that can accommodate a lot of genres and different play stiles from extremely gritty to highly cinematic.

 

[Ceresco]

For a new rules system I reccommend looking at Burning Wheel. I've yet to run it but I like the system as I read it. I especially like the Life Paths.

 

[SavageRobby]

You might be interested in Castles and Crusades by Troll Lord Games. It feels a lot like first edition AD&D but plays with a more modern mechanic. Combat runs quickly and intuitively, and it's immediately combatible with any pre-WoTC D&D stuff you already have. There are a few posters on the boards at www.trolllord.com who run SKYPE games as well, if that's what you are interested in.

Go with Savage Worlds. You can pick up the rules for $10! Then get one of the plot point setting books.

I've played about a third of 50 Fathoms so I can vouch for it. I'm the DM and I've done so little prep for that game its astonishing. We've had a blast with it and its almost no work to run.

These are my two favorite systems. Both are light, fast, fun systems with a good message board community, and both excel at letting you focus your DM prep time on the creative parts, not the mechanical bits. Savage Worlds is a multi-genre game, while C&C is definitely rooted in fantasy (and very AD&D-ish).

 

[Davelozzi]

I will third the recommendation for Savage Worlds. I am actually running D&D 3.5 myself, but that is mainly because I'm running Red Hand of Doom and don't want to deal with converting. I have played SW several times and have found it to be fast and fun.