Wik
First Post
Savage Worlds - I don't see how it can be considered "hard", plus, as others have said, the rulebook is dirt cheap (I own three, and it still cost me less than a single PHB - it means there is never a shortage of books at the table).
I love DMing the system, and it's very fast in play. The big problem I've found is that my players are not fond of the damage system, and that big monsters tend to fall down a lot easier than they do in other games.
But the plusses! I've converted settings into SW with ease, and made up my own, and it's very easy to make things fit. The PDF Toolkits are great, and the settings seem rather original. And there's a huge SW community that you can easily borrow from.
See, I have both books (SW and Chaosium), and I've found the Chaosium's rules overly complex at times and very wishy-washy ("This rule can be used, or the GM can use this alternate rule, or this alternate rule... ask your GM before you select any skill. Ever"). Plus, the XP system is not my cup of tea.
The card initiative system of SW is amazingly fast in actual play, and I find that, even with dealing initiative every round, it runs faster than the cyclic initiative in D&D (because there's no writing up of an initiative list, and no having to refer to said list). Disadvantages worked fine in our group, but possibly because no one went overboard and they helped facilitate RP. They might not fit with every group.
SW has a wonky spell system at times, with even a character with d12 spellcasting failing a spellcasting roll fairly frequently. That being said, I'm fine with any system that downplays magic and puts power in the hands of the more mundane folk.
Seriously, though, SW is a game of choice, for both players and GMs. Players can take an edge that is good for their character, and dress it up to make the character they envision - and there's enough edges available that there can be real mechanical variety between PCs. Meanwhile, GMs can introduce game elements easily and design what's necessary with little stress.
The game gets 5 out of 5 in my book.
I love DMing the system, and it's very fast in play. The big problem I've found is that my players are not fond of the damage system, and that big monsters tend to fall down a lot easier than they do in other games.
But the plusses! I've converted settings into SW with ease, and made up my own, and it's very easy to make things fit. The PDF Toolkits are great, and the settings seem rather original. And there's a huge SW community that you can easily borrow from.
See, I have both books (SW and Chaosium), and I've found the Chaosium's rules overly complex at times and very wishy-washy ("This rule can be used, or the GM can use this alternate rule, or this alternate rule... ask your GM before you select any skill. Ever"). Plus, the XP system is not my cup of tea.
The card initiative system of SW is amazingly fast in actual play, and I find that, even with dealing initiative every round, it runs faster than the cyclic initiative in D&D (because there's no writing up of an initiative list, and no having to refer to said list). Disadvantages worked fine in our group, but possibly because no one went overboard and they helped facilitate RP. They might not fit with every group.
SW has a wonky spell system at times, with even a character with d12 spellcasting failing a spellcasting roll fairly frequently. That being said, I'm fine with any system that downplays magic and puts power in the hands of the more mundane folk.
Seriously, though, SW is a game of choice, for both players and GMs. Players can take an edge that is good for their character, and dress it up to make the character they envision - and there's enough edges available that there can be real mechanical variety between PCs. Meanwhile, GMs can introduce game elements easily and design what's necessary with little stress.
The game gets 5 out of 5 in my book.
