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Message: <blockquote data-quote="edemaitre" data-source="post: 6425745" data-attributes="member: 3372">Favorite SFRPGsHere are my favorite science fiction RPGs, in no particular order:1. Star Frontiers: This TSR release was one of the first role-playing games I tried back in high school, and the art and setting heavily influenced my later campaigns. Long out of print, Star Frontiers Remastered <a href="http://starfrontiersman.com/remastered.php" target="_blank">is available</a>. I also have fond memories of Gamma World and the FASA Star Trek and Doctor Who games, but later rules systems were probably better.2. Shadowrun: I've enjoyed several editions of this cyberpunk/fantasy mashup (from long before steampunk was cool). It combined high fantasy, gritty megacorporate intrigue, and shoot 'em up adventures.3. Star Wars: Saga Edition: While I've played everything from the classic West End Games D6 version to the early D20 edition and Fantasy Flight Games' latest incarnation, not to mention numerous fan conversions, I think Saga Edition did the best job of providing lots of character options, refining the D20 system, and covering the (now-obsolete) "Expanded Universe." As with the aforementioned Star Trek and Doctor Who, the familiarity of the setting helps bring people into tabletop role-playing across decades and rules sets.4. Paranoia: I've mainly played one-shots of this sci-fi satire, and ratting out traitors to the Computer has always been fun. The Red Dwarf RPG has also had its moments.5. GURPS Space: I've mostly used <a href="http://www.sjgames.com/gurps/books/space.html" target="_blank">numerous sourcebooks</a> for the Third Edition of Steve Jackson Games' Generic Universal Role-Playing System, including Aliens, Mars, Ultra-Tech, Uplift, Transhuman Space, and Vehicles. GURPS is an excellent toolkit for those who like to build their own galaxies.6. Traveller: While it's one of the oldest SFRPGs, I've mostly mined Traveller for setting ideas and ships than run it as-is. Both the classic and recent Mongoose editions are must-haves for any serious fan of "imperial" science fiction, and the D20 version, or "T20," was also pretty good. The 2300 supplements also provide more of a near-future setting, although I always found the extension of early-20th century politics a little strange.7. Stars Without Number: <a href="http://www.sinenomine-pub.com/" target="_blank">This retro-clone</a> combines the best of the old-school Renaissance for fans of Star Frontiers, classic Traveller, or FASA Star Trek with streamlined rules. It's arguably also one of the best for sandbox-style play. I'd also recommend Interstellar Patrol (<a href="http://fatesf.blogspot.com/2014/09/the-fate-library-interstellar-patrol.html" target="_blank">based on</a> FATE Accelerated Edition) and Prime Directive (with D20 and GURPS editions) for Star Trek fans.8. Jovian Chronicles/Blue Planet/Eclipse Phase: I know I'm cheating here, but these games are always associated in my mind. Jovian Chronicles combined anime-style mecha with interesting colonization of the Sol system. Blue Planet was one of the first games to look closely at Uplift (see <a href="http://www.davidbrin.com/uplift.html" target="_blank">David Brin's books</a>) and the science of colonization. Eclipse Phase artfully combines these with post-cyberpunk transhumanist fiction.9. SpaceMaster/Space Opera: Speaking of old-school games, these had detailed tables of technology, good descriptions of actual nearby stars, and lots of great ideas for SF Game Masters. The rules were somewhat more idiosyncratic and "crunchy" than GURPS, D20, or FATE, but they're easy to borrow from and adapt to, say, Savage Worlds.10. FATE 3e Starblazer Adventures/Mindjammer 2e Fantastic Adventures in Tabletop Entertainment was my go-to system for narrative storytelling (unlike White Wolf's evocative but clunky Aeon/Trinity or D20 Future). Sadly out of print, Starblazer Adventures made it easy to scale up action from individuals to starships. It was based on British SF comics and wasn't well organized, but it was easy to convert practically any space opera into it. Mindjammer, now in <a href="http://mindjammerpress.com/mindjammer/" target="_blank">its second edition</a>, uses FATE Core for a transhumanist setting.If you look at my long-running "<a href="https://vortex.obsidianportal.com/" target="_blank">Vortex</a>" homebrew, you'll see the influence of all of these. Happy gaming!</blockquote>

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