What's better than d20?

[Cerubus Dark]

Several things pop into my mind, but in an intrest to keep this G or at least PG.

1. Rifts - Um, was that a demon over there? "nah- its just a box"

2. MechWarrior Dark Age --Wizkids games--

3. *Alien vs Preadator 2 ----- System Failure, please reboot system.


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This terminal was locked out by MOTHER, an EVAC team has been notifed, please evacuate to POD 13, contamination on levels 1-4, and an unknown life form has been detected on level 5

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[hellbender]

I will chime in for Deadlands. It's horror, it's western, it's schlocky, and a lot of fun. I bought the original core book in a package of books from a newsgroup sale, and really liked the concept, when I thought I wouldn't. Partly mood game, it is flexible within the constraints of a western theme. It is a welcome break from d20 for the group.

hellbender

 

[Quixon]

First off-I do like and Dm a d20 campaign. Now with that said I would not say its the best or my favorite system,that honor goes to...... Hero System

Hero lets you play any genre,and best of all, lets you play it the way YOU want.

Hero does have a higher learning curve and people will tell you it math intensive,but the only real math you use is during character creation(and even then its only basic math-add/subtract and multiply/divide). So as long as you can do math at oh....a 5th grade level you should be fine,and if that type of math does bother you-I assume everyone has a calculator(even one those cheap a$$ ones comes when you buy a cheap wallet or address book-you know the kind I mean lol).

Once I had a handle on and (dare I say) mastered Hero System, I would prefer any campaign with it. But then you would have to have players who had some understanding of it as well,where as with D20 anybody who has ever played Ad&d knows the basics pretty much.

 

[SimonMoon5]

The DC Heroes Role-Playing Game (currently being sold as "Blood of Heroes").

As a superhero game, it can handle all character concepts from any sort of fiction with ease. Game mechanics are simple (every dice action involves rolling once and looking on two charts, period- no complicated arithmetic, etc), even for powers that are complicated in other game systems (don't make a character who duplicates other people's powers in Champions, for example). On the other hand, it is complicated just enough to be interesting (unlike BESM, which I think is too simple). And furthermore (modulo one or two house rules), the game system actually mimics how combats (and other situations) work in the comics-- you never have to say, "Well, that's not how things should work-- but that's what the rules say" (like D&D's craft rules).

 

[Darklance]

I'm not sure that I would say I like it better than D20,...but I do like Alternity quite a bit. Better to say I like them for different reasons.

I just started up a campaign with it and its going very well. Some of the Mechanic concepts are similar but it has a nice sliding difficutly scale system, better damage rules, better armor rules, and your PCs won't turn into super heroes. It's deadlier than D&D but not on a COC level.

It presents a more realistic system than D&D but not so much that it's bogged down like GURPS combat. I'm currently running it in a Sci-Fi Setting but it I tested it in a Fantasy world and it worked great. Very flexable all around.

 

[Tsyr]

First off-I do like and Dm a d20 campaign. Now with that said I would not say its the best or my favorite system,that honor goes to...... Hero System

Hero lets you play any genre,and best of all, lets you play it the way YOU want.

Which is exactly why I like BESM... and it's a lot easier, IMO.

 

[Ace]

Not to be afraid to wade into a possible flame war but....

There are no, IMO anyway, Best Games

Every game serves a different purpose and while they are all Roleplaying games they cater to different needs.

Now on a purpose built basis

GURPS is better for simulationist gaming and has better sourcebooks. Sorry Avalanche ;

BESM is better for rules lite, heroic gaming

RISUS is better for almost rule-less or almost silly gaming

FUDGE is a better tool kit

UNISYSTEM is better for Urban Fantasy. OK I am biased about that as I playtest for Eden but damn thats a good system and well written.


OTOH

D20 is better for actually gettting players

D20 is better for "one man army" characters

D20 is better than Palladium. although Palldium was better by far than 1e and slightly better than 2e. However Palladium hasn't evolved and D&D/D20 has. Also D20 is balanced unlike Palladium

D20 is about on par or slightly better than Rolemaster 3 or 4 Rolemaster has evolved and is still a great game but personal blind spot aside D20 is easy to set up and design characters for. Also with a few minor patches feels much the same. D20 is also widely played and faster to play as well.

D20 especially D20 SAS is better than Hero for Supers gaming. Ths will be controversial to some but D20 is so much easy to use in actual play than Hero it just isn't funny. Oh and for the record I have owned Champions 1,2,3 (when they were seperate books) Fantasy hero (very good) Beastiary, Robot Hero, Danger International and more. It is a good system but D20 beats it hands down

D20 is Better than BRP becuase of the variety. BRP (Call of Cuthulu, Elric, Runequest) has never had a basic set of genere games. While BRP is quite good, D20 with slight mods (Grim N Gritty plus class tweaks) has much the same flavor. To tell you the truth I don't like making up a lot of rules for a game and for example if I wanted to use BRP for generic Fantasy I would have a lot of work to do, not fun. Also BRP is not easily adjusted for letality. It was brutal enough that many players called it Limb Quest --- Very nasty


If I had to do the desert island thing and had to pick one game book (to go with my Tyvek copy of How to Survive, Thrive and Escape a Desert Island 3rd ed revised) it would be the hypothetical BESM expanded edition because it can do anything however D&D3e is always on my top systems list

I will make a confession to you all, until recently I hated D&D and in fact was on the bashers list. Oh I played 2e (won't play 1e) and had some good sessions but I thought D&D was highly lame.

3e cured me of that feeling, I like the rules and enjoy playing. Now I prefer Kens Grim N Gritty rules but I enjoy D&D core for the most part.

Hats off to the writers, all of 'em for the conversion. They took a game I hated, fixed it to their satisfaction and by golly even a detractor now likes it. This happened without alienating most of the play base.
No small task

 

[Phowett]

What's better? My edited S.P.E.C.I.A.L. system!

 

[N Hammer]

First off-I do like and Dm a d20 campaign. Now with that said I would not say its the best or my favorite system,that honor goes to...... Hero System

Hero lets you play any genre,and best of all, lets you play it the way YOU want.

Hero does have a higher learning curve and people will tell you it math intensive,but the only real math you use is during character creation(and even then its only basic math-add/subtract and multiply/divide). So as long as you can do math at oh....a 5th grade level you should be fine,and if that type of math does bother you-I assume everyone has a calculator(even one those cheap a$$ ones comes when you buy a cheap wallet or address book-you know the kind I mean lol).

Once I had a handle on and (dare I say) mastered Hero System, I would prefer any campaign with it. But then you would have to have players who had some understanding of it as well,where as with D20 anybody who has ever played Ad&d knows the basics pretty much.

I agree with all the above....

D&D is the only D20 I'll ever play. (ok maybe CoC)...

Hero System can be a little overwelming at first...but in the long run I believe it's the best.

 

[BiggusGeekus@Work]

Great point, Ace.

But I'd have to say Paranoia. Why? Try NOT role-playing in a game of Paranoia. Your character(s) will be rendered to component atoms faster than you can blame a commie mutant tratior for your misdeeds.

Have a nice daycycle, citizen.