what have you done with Grim Tales?

[GlassJaw]

I don't really know a lot about GT (yet) but I was interested in hearing about how people have used it and what kinds of campaigns they are running. I've read the reviews and posts about GT and I know that it's more of a guide rather than a campaign setting in and of itself.

So what type of campaign do you run with GT?
Do you use material from other d20 sources?
Did it take you a long time to adapt GT to whatever setting you wanted to create?
What types of characters have your players created?
Any other info about your gaming experience with GT you want to add?

 

[Bran Blackbyrd]

What have you done with Grim Tales?

Nothing I swear! It's right where you left it.

It certainly sounds like an interesting book, but right now I have no room in the old budget. :\
People seem to like it quite a bit.

 

[Turanil]

I don't really know a lot about GT (yet) but I was interested in hearing about how people have used it and what kinds of campaigns they are running. So what type of campaign do you run with GT? Do you use material from other d20 sources?

If you don't mind that I tell my story once more time on these threads (must be the 101th time...)

Well, I am preparing a setting heavily inspired from Moorcock's Elric, Corum, and Hawkmoon series (as well as Conan). The main reason is that Chaos will be a good excuse to throw atrocious monsters against the PCs once they go past 12th level.

In fact I have Dragon Lords of Melnibone d20, but I really think their adaptation of the D&D classes to that world is a failure. However, I thought that on the other hand, Grim Tales would be perfect.

For this campaign I also bought Serpent Kingdoms, Ancient Kingdoms Mesopotamia, and Legends of Avadnu. I have also added a couple of very minor houserules. Players will be able to play the Grim Tales classes, or D&D non-spellcasting classes (with a few AU and UA added, it makes in fact a dozen). Only GT classes get action points, defense bonuses, spellcasting (GT fashion), and free multiclassing; they are called "adventuring classes" (Strong adventurer, Fast adventurer, etc.). Fighters, rogues, etc. are as per D&D, and cannot be multiclassed with GT classes (so no action points, no GT magic, etc.); they are meant to be NPC classes (a basic soldier is a fighter, not a warrior for example). There is also a few prestige classes; I know that my players will probably not be interested in them, but I created them mainly to tell about the setting and create organizations.

I have currently almost written the first book detailing all the 30 classes available. Players are in fact required to read it to understand more the setting. And of course there are those who don't have the GT book for their PC. Now, more work to write the setting description, and to do a small website. Of course when it is done, I will scream it here so all can go and see it by themselves.

 

[Gospog]

Shadow Chasers

Well, apart from reading the book (neat!), I've been reaching for it to use thier Action Point suggestions for D20 Modern.

First, we used it for Iron Lords of Jupiter.

Then, just last weekend, I used it for my (somewhat) regular Shadow Chasers game.

Goos stuff, that Grim Tales.

 

[Karl Green]

I have had a bug to do something with Bughunters or ShadowRun for the last couple of weeks and I am thinking of using Grim Tales as the base for them (with some mod's)... part of it because I want to change some of the rules and I think I can modify Grim Tales easier then I can D20 Modern.

For both I want to change the Autofire, Burst Fire, Double Tap like rules (really don't like them right now). With ShadownRun had some ideas for Cyber and how to make magic work with Drain etc. Plus, while I like AdC/PrC I kind of like the idea of not using them at all...

Still forming ideas but so far I really LOVE Grim Tales

 

[ThoughtBubble]

Might be a bad place to ask this, but I didn't want to make a new topic. Has anyone tried using Grim Tales on top of an existing D20 Modern game? I've got a game that's just starting, and I don't want to hit people with too many rules changes, but I'd like a consistant way to handle a lot of the more offscreen elements (like magic).

Thanks!

 

[Hammerhead]

I've used it to run a two-session pulp game set in the days of World War 2, with the heroes as daring Allied agents of espionage and destruction. The cast of characters included a suave and seductive British spy modeled after James Bond, a Viking king frozen in a block of ice for hundreds of years, a tommy-gun toting, demon-hunting nun, an ex-ninja, and an archaeologist patterned after Indiana Jones.

The game worked quite well; everyone had a lot of fun, although the use of action points took some getting used to. I found the chase system enclosed in the book to be needlessly complicated and clunky (just like in Spycraft). The weapons and firearms design system can also be exploited, in case one lets the players design their own weapons (I didn't, but a fellow GM made this mistake) to create their own super weapons. I also found that while automatic weapons provided a significant advantage, they didn't overpower pistols and the like.

The use of magic was nice, although undead easily exploit the rules system. He he he.

The use of Grim Tales instead of d20 Modern shouldn't cause any jarring changes: perhaps the biggest is the elimination of the vastly overused Advanced Classes, as well as the tightening of certain rules and feats.

 

[Turanil]

I've used it to run a two-session pulp game set in the days of World War 2, with the heroes as daring Allied agents of espionage and destruction. The cast of characters included a suave and seductive British spy modeled after James Bond, a Viking king frozen in a block of ice for hundreds of years, a tommy-gun toting, a demon-hunting nun, an ex-ninja, and an archaeologist patterned after Indiana Jones.

Sounds interesting!

The use of magic was nice, although undead easily exploit the rules system. He he he.

I would houserule undead spellcasting on Charisma then...

 

[GlassJaw]

just ordered GT!

Woo hoo! I just ordered GT last night. Not really sure what I'm going to do with it but I just felt it was my solemn duty to get this book.

A Cthulhu meets Conan campaign does sound pretty cool though. I would love to run a game where survival is the main motivation rather than gaining power and wealth. I kind of had an idea of a world that was slowly dying but no one really knew why or actually noticed at all. The players gain some piece of knowledge and set out to find out what the deal is. Maybe some Great Old Ones are imprisoned somewhere in the world but the magic that binds is slowing failing (over thousands of years) and has corrupted the world. The corruption has brought about weird mutations and weird magical effects. Horror, insanity, and the GT magic system would all fit the bill as well as Cthulhu d20. Sweet. Players be afraid, be very afraid.

 

[Turanil]

Woo hoo! I just ordered GT last night. Not really sure what I'm going to do with it but I just felt it was my solemn duty to get this book.

When I bought mine, I thought it would quickly add weight to the shelf, and lets see what to buy next. But when I got it and did read through it, I immediately began to write a campaign for it (I had not such an incentive for my precedent campaign, that I did run because the players did ask forcefully for it, and I designed a setting from their wishes).