Spy-genre Poll

[Pbartender]

Depends on the licensing requirements. I'm not sure if True20 or Spycraft allow "shared" products, since they're supposed to be branded for the system.

I wasn't necessarily thinking of dual stats in the same module... The three systems are different enough where that might be difficult.

But if statting up characters, encounters and other such stuff is all that really needs to be done, why not make three versions of the same adventure, one for each system?

If nothing else, you can start with the most obvious and popular system for the genre, Spycraft, and if it takes off make a conversion for D20 Modern as well.

 

[Masada]

D20 Modern has its own mechanics for vehicles... So that one is taken care of. The other dramatic scenes are harder (i.e. Seduction, Interrogation, etc). If a module called for one of those, then you'd have to wing it. But that wouldn't be different for any other d20 Modern product... they don't have any rules for how to handle an Interrogation... You could reference something like a Complex Skill Check (but even that is a rule varient for d20 Modern).

As a publisher... you probably would have to suggest True20 and d20 Modern rules for Dramatic Conflicts if you wanted to your product to be readily usable by all systems. I think Complex Skill Checks would be the way to go for the most part.

 

[Jim Hague]

In that case, I'll change my recommendation - Spycraft 2.0, with D20 Modern support...which's easier than you might think, thanks to this:

http://enworld.rpgnow.com/product_info.php?products_id=7371&

 

[Psion]

D20 Modern has its own mechanics for vehicles...

I realize it has a system, the question is how suitable is it. To me, a chase scene in spycraft seems like something exciting I would look forward to. The same scene might play out very differently if you used the d20 modern vehicle rules to represent it.

 

[Henry]

I realize it has a system, the question is how suitable is it. To me, a chase scene in spycraft seems like something exciting I would look forward to. The same scene might play out very differently if you used the d20 modern vehicle rules to represent it.

Modern chases as written I have found to be very unexciting. I wound up when doing chases in modern handling it a bit more off-the-cuff. In all the Spycraft scenarios I've run (for first and second edition), right out of the box, the system is very vibrant and cinematic to me, with fluid but relative positioning, the focus on the drivers and the passengers/gunners, the emphasis on speed, etc. With Modern, the exact positioning really drug it down, and lost focus on the very chase itself.

Now, there are plenty of bolt-ons for Modern, Hot Pursuit (by Adamant, nudge nudge) being the best one to give it the Spycraft touch of fluidity and drama, but without some of the ecomplexity that the Spycraft 2 dramatic conflict system seems to drag down into.

 

[Masada]

Absolutely, Psion. I would say the Dramatic Conflict scenes in SC are a shining addition to the modern genre. I'm merely saying that if you were locked in to playing only d20 Modern mechanics you could leave out the Spycraft "good parts" and fumble through with the normal d20 Modern rules. I would highly encourage all d20 Modern gamers to at least look at the Dramatic Conflict rules from SC. It might even be worth encouraging Crafty to publish them separately for use with Modern.

 

[The_Universe]

I say straight-up D20 Modern, or Mutants and Masterminds (like you did with the Pulp Archetypes .pdf).

A new chase system would be a welcome addition. We ignore the base D20 modern rules for chases in our Modern game, and use the Grim Tales version of the Spycraft rules, instead.

 

[ValhallaGH]

If you don't use magic then that limits it to only 2 roles to choose from. I guess you could create more. I don't think there are enough poeple on the True20 wagon.

Bull-hockey.
Combat Sense, Enhance Self, Heart Reading and several other powers are perfectly viable even in a no-magic setting.
"Entering the zone", getting "amped", and just deciding to stop messing around are all acceptable flavor for suddenly being cooler than you were. All are easily modeled, in True20, by the use of certain powers.
There's not enough to make it worthwhile to go a full twenty levels in Adept but there is enough to make it worthwhile to get three to eight levels.
[/diversion]


Since the adventure was written for James Bond action then I'll have to throw my vote towards Spycraft 2.0 (even though I don't own it). Modern is great but it just doesn't do Bond very well, what with all those cross-class skills and anemic vehicle rules. Sure, you could use Skill Groups and Hot Pursuit to fix those issues but not everyone does that sort of thing.

 

[GMSkarka]

A new chase system would be a welcome addition.

We already did one! Hot Pursuit: The Definitive D20 Guide to Chases.

 

[scourger]

Other, specifically Savage Worlds. I just don't groove on d20M or SC. I don't know enough about T20. But I already really want to run a Savage Worlds spy game. And anyone who can write a pirate D&D adventure with a talking monkey can do a good James Bond type module.