Warhammer RPG, Gotta love it

[Inconsequenti-AL]

Given that eight releases for WFRP are planned this year alone (!!!), I don't recommend this to anyone who doesn't have a really big budget.

On the other hand, if you can find the old "The Enemy Within" campaign (1st edition, but it should be little hassle to convert), snap it up immediately...

Quite a few years ago, when I moved out, I left all my old WFRP stuff in a box in my parents attic. It's not there any more. Guess there's a valuable life lesson there somewhere.

Have you seen the price the older material is changing hands for on ebay? Lost and Damned/Slaves to Darkness are particularly silly - although those mutation tables were very cool.

 

[Jürgen Hubert]

Have you seen the price the older material is changing hands for on ebay? Lost and Damned/Slaves to Darkness are particularly silly - although those mutation tables were very cool.

One of my friends has them. And throwing 1d100 for mutations was nice... But these days, I prefer to design my mutations myself (though they might be good for PCs too eager to experiment with warpstone - "See? You threw the dice, so it is your fault that your character ended up with his head pushed into his torso, not mine!")

But I think these books are not that useful for the RPGs anymore, especially since there is bound to be a "Chaos" book coming out for the RPG sooner or later.

 

[Hand of Evil]

But I think these books are not that useful for the RPGs anymore, especially since there is bound to be a "Chaos" book coming out for the RPG sooner or later.

Been using my old Realm of Choas book 1 mmmmmmmm.

Given that eight releases for WFRP are planned this year alone (!!!), I don't recommend this to anyone who doesn't have a really big budget.

yes, they are rather high priced.

 

[Jürgen Hubert]

yes, they are rather high priced.

The low dollar exchange rate might be partially to blame for this. But it is the quantity that scares me here is the sheer quantity of the material that's getting released for it - and which makes it hard to keep up.

I mean, how many other RPG lines (apart from D&D) manage this kind of output?

 

[Hand of Evil]

The low dollar exchange rate might be partially to blame for this. But it is the quantity that scares me here is the sheer quantity of the material that's getting released for it - and which makes it hard to keep up.

I mean, how many other RPG lines (apart from D&D) manage this kind of output?

A lot of the material has been around for years, just being recompiled and updated but it is a good list of things to come. I am happy there is a push of product, now 40K RPG!

May 2005
•Warhammer Fantasy RPG: Paths Of The Damned Volume 1 - Ashes Of Middenheim
Set in the wake of the Storm of Chaos, this first part of the Empire-spanning "Paths of the Damned" trilogy introduces a dark and twisted plot that takes place in the semi-ruined City of Middenheim. Complete details for the setting of Middenheim are included, together with seed plots.
To Retail for: $24.99

June 2005
•Warhammer Fantasy RPG: Old World Armoury MiscillaniaTo Retail for: $29.99

July 2005
•Warhammer Fantasy RPG: Sigmars Heirs Guide to the Empire
To Retail for: $29.99

August 2005
•Warhammer Fantasy RPG: Paths of the Damned Vol 2
To Retail for: $24.99

October 2005
•Warhammer Fantasy RPG: Karak Azgal Dragon Crag
To Retail for: $24.99

November 2005
•Warhammer Fantasy RPG: Realms Of Sorcery
To Retail for: $39.99

 

[Ysgarran]

This thread inspired me to go look at the 'Black Industries' website and see if I remember anything from the one Warhammer RP game I was involved in a few years back. (Everybody was dead by the second game, the gaming group just couldn't make the transition from a more forgiving combat system to one like Warhammer).

One of the previews is:
"Spells and nailing Wizards to trees".

Dark and gritty role playing indeed.

later,
Ysgarran.

 

[Ralif Redhammer]

How is converting from v1 to v2? I haven't tried anything yet, but I'd think there are some subtle differences that would need to be navigated.

Been using my old Realm of Choas book 1 mmmmmmmm.

 

[Jürgen Hubert]

One of the previews is:
"Spells and nailing Wizards to trees".

Dark and gritty role playing indeed.

There are all sorts of amusing superstitions and folk beliefs scattered throughout the book. Not just their beliefs about magic - the diseases chapter is also more fun to read than any other RPG writeup I have read on the topic.

"The Bloody Flux is a common term for any illness that causes the sufferer to void large amounts of matter from their person in a short time. [...] The cures for it are certainly foul, including the inhalation of sulphorous fumes, feeding up with blood sausage, "stopping" with cork and wax or greasing with linnet and pork fat."

It gets better from there...

 

[Jürgen Hubert]

How is converting from v1 to v2? I haven't tried anything yet, but I'd think there are some subtle differences that would need to be navigated.

Should be easy, especially since there are some fan conversions already on the Strike-To-Stun website.

The changes I can think of at the moment:

- Some attributes have gone or folded into other attributes.

- Racial attribute modifiers have changed (elves and dwarves are no longer as overpowering; halflings are no longer quite as useless).

- Almost all attributes have a percentage value now, including Strength and Toughness (you add or substract the first digit of their values to or from damage ratings).

- Weapon damage is pretty much the same (though some of them have new qualities that make them more distinctive), but the damage dice has been changed from 1d6 to 1d10 (in fact, the whole game now only uses d10s...).

- Armor is much more effective - you substract 1 for leather armor, 3 for chain mail, and 5 for plate.

- Magic has been completely rewritten. You now roll a number of d10s up to your Magic Characteristic (1 for Wizard's Apprentices or Priests, 3 for High Priests, 4 for Wizard Lords), add some points to it depending on whether you do any special rituals or use special spell components, and try to beat a certain target number depending on the potency of the spell.

The upside is that you can do this as often as you want, without worrying about fatigue or spell points. The downsides are:

- If you roll only "1s", you must succeed on a Willpower roll or gain one Insanity point.

- If you roll doubles, triples, or quadruples on your roll, Something Bad happens - the more numbers are the same, the worse it will get. This can range from "All food and water fouls within your vicinity" (doubles) to "You can a vision of the Realm of Chaos and can learn Dark Magic if you spend 200 XP" (triples) to "You are sucked into the Realm of Chaos and are lost forever" (quadruples).

In other words, it strongly discourages using magic for trivial matters - especially if you are out of Fate Points (the game's "Spend and Get Out of Lethal Situation Free" mechanic).

 

[Hand of Evil]

How is converting from v1 to v2? I haven't tried anything yet, but I'd think there are some subtle differences that would need to be navigated.

For a lot I rule of thumb changes by halfing the bonuses +20% become +10, and use the chart from http://www.babylonia.nl/wfrp/liber fanatica.htm