Steampunk Fantasy

[Catavarie]

I was sitting here going through my stacks of RPGs today trying to find something of intrest to read and I found myself wanting a good steampunk fantasy game, but I don't currently own one.

So I was wondering what Steampunk Fantasy game would the people of Enworld suggest I go out and pickup right away? and for what reason? Of course they will all be cool to read and probably have great artwork, but what specifically makes one the best?

 

[gamecat]

Goodman Games' Dragonmech has wonderful rules for steamtech, but the campaign setting itself is a bit wonky.

 

[Henry]

Castle Falkenstein (now out of print, but still findable) is probably your best bet.

Steam and Steel from EN Publishing is an awesome d20 work, but focuses more on the mechanics of making a Steampunk game happen. It's not a setting in and of itself, and is therefore not as good for "idle reading," but it is a "toolkit" work on the mechanics for making your own Steampunk game come alive.

 

[Khairn]

Although Privateer Press uses the term "Full Metal Fantasy" to describe their Iron Kingdoms setting, it has all the steampunk fantasy elements you could ever hope for.

The setting is incredibly well written, with fantastic artwork and flavor. I can't reccomend it highly enough. The IK players Guide and World Guide are the only RPG's that I would read just based on the quality of the writing and the stories it generates.

 

[Wombat]

Gotta go with Henry on this one -- Castle Falkenstein was probably the single best rpg for getting across a Victorian steampunk feel that I ever ran across. I still love the concept that "Gentlemen do not play at dice", thus introducing the playing card randomizing element. Space 1889 had some nice concepts for a slightly later date, though I loathed the mechanics of the system. Avoid Victoriana -- that was a sadly ill-concieved game. And from what I've seen Iron Kingdoms is great for something that splits the difference between the bright, shiny hopefulness of Castle Falkenstein and the dark, brooding spirit of Warhammer; if you want to stay more or less D20, it could be a great way to go.

In the end a lot of this depends on what you mean by "steampunk" and what you want out of a game. Are you looking for "Us against The Man"? Are you looking for wild, wacky inventions? Are you looking for something that feels "period"? Are you looking for something D20? Do you want Babbage Difference Engine proto-computers? Are you looking for exotic locales or grim inner cities? Any combination of these factors could lead to a very different choice in the kind of game you are looking for?

 

[The Cardinal]

go for Iron Kingdoms or Warhammer - avoid Falkenstein (unless you prefer Steamdisney instead of Steampunk...)

 

[DMH]

IK is not steampunk- it is magitech (and complex magitech at that). Goodman has one that is coming out in the near future (Etherscope) and I have no idea about Dragonmech since I don't like mechs.

Of the sourcebooks that I have read, Steam and Steel from EN Publishing is D&D with steamtech whereas Sorcery and Steam from FFG is more Victorian in feel. But neither are settings.

 

[GlassJaw]

Ahh, another subject I know and love...

I'm working on a steampunk campaign right now myself. I highly recommend the Iron Kingdoms stuff. It's not as dark as I would like but it's a great setting right out of the box. Some of the mechanics are a bit wonky and cumbersome but Privateer's writing and fluff and second-to-none in the industry. Most of the mechanics can improved with very little tweaking as well. I'm borrowing heavily from the IK stuff.

I also highly recommend Steam & Steel from EN Publishing. Great set of rules, that. I've also perused FFG Sorcery & Steam. It's decent - I grabbed a few things from it here and there - and you can probably get it on the cheap.

the dark, brooding spirit of Warhammer

Hmm, I've been meaning to pick this up.

Wombat, you seem to know a lot about this genre (including the music ). I wouldn't mind picking your brain on some additional steampunk-related stuff for my campaign.

 

[ZeroGlobal2003]

Goodman Games' Dragonmech has wonderful rules for steamtech, but the campaign setting itself is a bit wonky.

I'm not really sure what you mean by wonky.... its a little bit out there as far as standard campaigns, but that is what makes it interesting.

I can't say I've tried much of the other books mentioned, but Dragonmech is a solid set of rules (1-2 minor glitches, but they are easy to fix). The setting is out there, but its fun to read, and you might even want to use it. Avoid FF's Sorcery & Steam like the plague: no setting and the rules are the most convoluted 2nd ed set of rules I've ever seen.

Zero

 

[Desdichado]

I've homebrewed it, with a lot of borrowed elements from Iron Kingdoms and Steam & Steel and Sorcery & Steam.

I'd recommend the first two categorically, but as someone else said, it really depends on what you mean by steampunk. Neither is particularly Victorian, for example, and Iron Kingdoms is steampunk combined in equal measures with more traditional D&D, rather than simply straight-up steampunk. That actually suits me just fine, but if you're more strict about your definition of steampunk... well, if you're really strict, I don't know of any product out there that caters specifically to you, actually.

One really cool advantage of using IK "borrowings" is that you can also use the incredible range of IK and Warmachine minis. There's nothing quite like putting a big Khador steamjack on the battlemat to convince your players to step carefully.