Single System Monogamy

[HaroldTheHobbit]

Like the OP, I am monogamous towards Savage Worlds, but have some flings on the side with WHFRP, CoC etc. But SW is flexible enough to do everything me and my players want, while the systems mid crunch has become very transparent for us. So I see no reason for a divorce in the foreseeable future.

With that said, I plunder many other systems for settings and ideas.

 

[Warpiglet-7]

Most games take at least 3, usually 5-7, sessions to get to really get the flow and scope... the worst aspects can come out in the first session or two, but the nagging minor pains take familiarity to notice...

The advertizers, the investors in the baseball team, Bob's roommates and/or neighbors...
For some, such as the neighbors, that he holds his beer-n-ballgame with the boys on mondays while they do their baseball parties on saturdays is a good thing...
For the advertisers and investors in the Baseball and Basketball teams? Him being only a football guy is a thing they'd like to overcome...

For the games industry - everyone but WotC has an interest in people finding their way away from D&D... because the more who find a second game system, the more who will be encouraged to do so...

I did not see me on the list

If a session is 6 hours, even 4 it would take 20-40 hours then to see if I like a game. I am not playing a game I am lukewarm about 20-40 hours to make sure I don’t like it. Maybe not fair but life is too short. A session or two is enough of an investment for me.

This is especially true when I am happy with my main rpg game.

I don’t think that I hated any particular game I have played. Phoenix command was a bit laborious for the payoff…

I think marvel superheroes was the biggest “hit” but we just did not stay into it for example. We could have kept at it I guess. It was fun enough. But why?

I am in dead horse territory. People can feel passionate about the need to have many rpg game they love. They can feel x y or z game is good for a and not b and they need to see more games to get that satisfied.

I think that is cool but not a necessity and surely not a virtue. Play what you want and it’s fine. If it’s one game, and you love it, it’s a win.

 

[GrimCo]

Until last year i was in happy threesome relationship with PF1 and D&D 5E. Because of timing schedules PF had to go, so i'm kinda monogamous with 5E. I did recently GMed a two session game of Cairn for what is worth.

It suits our needs very good. We have very good mastery of the system so new characters can be generated very quickly and all 3 of us that DM can improvise whole session on the fly if need arises. Plus, enough published material for ready use.

I run mostly grim dark gothic horror with splashes of cosmic horror in 1-3 session stories, dm2 runs high fantasy complex character driven campaign with 3 sets of characters in 3 parallel story lines that twist and directly impact on each other and the game world ( we been playing in that campaign for almost 10 years now, finished 2 of 3 basic arcs) and dm3 runs high fantasy meets settlers meets norse mythology mix. For most parts, 5ed accommodates all of the above decently well.

As a group of friends, we play together for almost 17 years. We tried bunch of different systems (2ed ad&d, 3.x/PF, 7th sea, FATE, Window, old and new WoD). My all time favorite is oWoD. But for the last 8 years, we play 5ed because it scratches all the itches and is easy enough to run. We have our regular Sunday morning 9:30-13 session and that's it.

 

[TGryph]

I see a lot of back and forth about "One Type of Music" or "One Pizza topping" and so forth. I put it to you that, even though a person might only play one system., that in no way shape or form means they only play one way...that every time the Flavor is the same. I have run and played in numerous campaigns using the same system that varied as much in tone and feel as if we were playing a different system. A sea-based piratical campaign is going to have a different flavor from a group of Knights defending a realm vs a Thieves Guild committing various crimes and capers vs a more light-hearted, less serious almost comedic campaign or even one-off. As example, I give you 2nd Edition Edition AD&D settings Dark Sun vs Birthright vs Ravenloft vs Forgotten Realms. All use the same base rules (with modifications) yet all felt very different.
If you like using different rules, great ( I do myself on occasion). But I think you are doing a great disservice to those who prefer one system, stating it has the same tone and feel as eating the same meal every time you go to a restaurant. Just an Old Guys 2 cents worth...

 

[Thomas Shey]

If you like using different rules, great ( I do myself on occasion). But I think you are doing a great disservice to those who prefer one system, stating it has the same tone and feel as eating the same meal every time you go to a restaurant. Just an Old Guys 2 cents worth...

I think that'd be an overstatement, but I still maintain any rules set is going to color play in certain ways, and badly support doing certain things, so there's going to be some borders on variety of play that can be conducted. That's true even of universal style systems that actively try to stretch that.

 

[TGryph]

I do not disagree with your sentiment. For instance, I would not use 5th Edition D&D for a gritty swords-and-sorcery feeling campaign. I was merely pointing out that System Monogamy is not necessarily monotony. Even the Generic systems (Gurps etc) have strong and weak points, but can feel different depending on the setup.

 

[Jack Daniel]

I'm definitely system-monogamous at this point, and I have been for close to twenty years now. I use OD&D for everything. OSR hacks make this possible across setting genres (fantasy, sci-fi, etc.). It works for me, because I'm only interested in running one gameplay genre (sandbox exploration).

The thought of constantly starting new one-shots and short campaigns, always dabbling in different rules-engines and play-styles like a game-system sommelier, holds no appeal to me whatsoever. I honestly find the attitude that variety for variety's sake is an intrinsic good to be quite baffling.

 

[Squared]

I am most definitely not system monogamous. I bounce around a lot. That being said I do try and not bounce around too much for my groups sake.

^2

 

[Ath-kethin]

I'm pretty sure I haven't played anything except Dungeon Crawl Classics in two years or so. It's not just the system, it's the approach of the game and the fantastic team that produces it.

 

[Skytheen]

Not as monogamous as I want to be. I do tend to prefer generic systems with maybe someday the hope of publishing something for one of them. Lately I jump around between BRP, Free League (the T2K flavor mostly), and Savage Worlds.

However, I feel like someday my obsession interest in the hobby will fade and I'll settle in with FUDGE as the go to.

(please brain, just stick with one game)