Other D&D Variant What is your favorite version of D&D offshoot/D20 fantasy today? Tell us why it is the best!

[haakon1]

3.5e Core Rules (original round of releases only)

Best because it’s in the middle of the editions, the “last best” version of AD&D and the first (if you count 3/3.5 as one thing) of “modern” D&D with AC going up, etc.

As DM, I can draw from all of Basic, AD&D, 3e, PF1, and 5e fairly easily. (But it is annoyingly complicated.)

As a player, I can do just about any design (monsters and PC’s work the same) yet the PHB pushes me to the original classes and “species” AD&D started with. And I prefer not having subclasses.

 

[GothmogIV]

We like Castles&Crusades a lot. Has the old school feel but with some modernizations (d20, ascending AC, and a very useful bit called the Siege Engine for skill resolution). Great company, too.
I've recently purchased Old School Essentials, but haven't played it yet. Look great, though.
I ran Dragonbane and liked it well enough, but it wasn't quite it for me. It's a d100 system; a modernized (I guess?) version of Basic Role Playing/Magic World (both by Chaosium).
Dungeon Crawl Classics is a freaking blast. Pure fun, but a bit too swingy to run a long campaign (in my experience). All we do is laugh when we play it.

 

[bsss]

For me it is 13th Age. It hits the sweet spot of character options without a bunch of rule minutiae paired with collaborative narrative elements and a preference towards improv. I love that there's enough setting material in the game to go off and build on without feeling like you're beholden to "canon", while also having a solid mechanical framework to port to whatever other setting makes sense to you. I've played AD&D through to 5e, and ever since 13th Age hit its stride, I haven't looked back.

I did appreciate someone in this thread mentioning True20 --- I had some good times with that system back in the day, glad to see it's still kicking.

 

[VHawkwinter]

I am very curious about the various D&D/D20 fantasy alternatives/derivatives/adjacent games out there that are pretty popular right now. I even own several. I am wondering which is your personal favorite? Convince the rest of us why your favorite is the best!

Excluding my WIP d20 system designed to what I think is best in D&D adjacent fantasy gaming because that would be cheating:

D&D 3.0.
3.5 went too focused on minis and was generally less of a fantasy sandbox game through its supplements. It also has less of an AD&D vibe going on. I would selectively use 3.5 (and PF1, and other d20) content with 3.0 content, but IMO 3.0 has the best books (official and third party) overall, so if I have to pick one, 3.0. Compatibility with non-3.0 material for 3.X d20 is a big selling point though.

Other 'mediaeval' fantasy RPGs I've tried and enjoyed to various extents include Rolemaster 4e; Mongoose Runequest 2; The Dark Eye; Dark Ages Vampire; Dungeon Fantasy RPG.

I like a ruleset that's good for "simulationist" sandboxy games, and 3.0 is one of the better ones in that category that's in a D&D genre.

 

[timbannock]

Shadowdark. Admittedly, I "house-rule" it with Errant, replacing the torch-timer with event dice, and handling a lot of out-of-the-dungeon stuff with Errant.

It's my favorite because...

1. It's laser-focused on making dungeon crawling fast and fun, and that's what I want out of a D&D-like game experience.
2. It's got the simplest, best generation tools for dungeon crawls, wilderness hex maps, and settlements.
3. It's extremely easy to mod, and includes game modes that already dial up or down lethality included.
4. It works extremely well with The Monster Overhaul, which is the best monster book ever created.

If I want a tactical fighting game, I'd probably go with Nimble. If I want a different conceit outside of dungeon crawling for a fantasy game, I'd go with Tales of Xadia (which isn't even remotely D&D-based rules-wise).

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

Shadowdark. Admittedly, I "house-rule" it with Errant, replacing the torch-timer with event dice, and handling a lot of out-of-the-dungeon stuff with Errant.

Man, I have got to check out Errant one of these days.

 

[overgeeked]

Man, I have got to check out Errant one of these days.

It's free on DriveThru.

https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/413739/errant-no-art-edition

 

[timbannock]

Yeah, the No Art edition is what sold me on it. Immediately after reading, I tracked down a print copy right from the source and gave them all my money.*

*Not all my money, but you know what I mean. Buying from the source is nice for the creators.

 

[Radiating Gnome]

At a local con about a week ago I ran two Daggerheart sessions, and DH is a blast to run, and I love a lot of the mechanics of the game. At the last minute I threw in a Nimble session, using pre-gens and running through the new Heroes of the Borderlands D&D boxed set and adapting it to Nimble on the fly -- and after that experience, I will be pushing hard to move a more of my gaming into Nimble.

The 4-hour slot was played with a friend who had one session of Nimble under his belt and four other players who had no experience at all. They picked up pre-gen characters, learned the rules enough to start, and played through four different cavern systems in the Caves of Chaos section easily in the four hours we were there -- and we even finished a little early. By the end of the first session they were making important game choices like using off-turn actions to interpose and defend, support each other, and really leverage the teamwork that makes that game sing.

The on-the-fly conversion didn't slow the game down, and worked very well for a convention one-shot. For a longer term game I'd spend more time and actually prepare, but given how fast I was able to do it on the fly I don't think that would take the kind of time I'm used to investing in my D&D game prep.

I'll play DH again, happily. And D&D. And Savage Worlds. But I'm obsessed with Nimble and I don't think that's going to change anytime soon. The only thing slowing me down is the lack of official VTT support, since I do a lot of my gaming online, but that's not going to slow me down for long.

-rg

 

[Arilyn]

I have a lot of fun running Nimble too. I love the fact that the Boss/Solo monsters can actually threaten a group. Having them take a turn after every player turn solves the problem of Big Bads needing a lot of henchmen and legendary reactions. They're fun, easy to run and scary.