Which game books most inspire the "sense of wonder" in you?

[MGibster]

Now that I've had some time to think about it, I feel as though I should mention Vampire the Masquerade which was released way back in 1991, but keep in mind that I was all of fifteen years old at the time. What wowed me was the following:

• The artwork. It was all B&W and most of it was evocative of the gothic horror they were going for. It was a little more from the heroic fantasy of folks like Elmore I was used to.
• Integrating the alleged origin of the vampires to the Biblical Caine was a stroke of genius. Like I said, I was 15, and had never seen a game integrate real world religious beliefs into a game like that.
• The number of factions in the game was complicated. You had your clans, the Camarilla, and even within the Camarilla you had the Anarchs. It just helped make the setting come alive.

 

[Tonguez]

for inspiration I go with the GURPS supplements, in particular GURPS Age of Napolean, GURPS Swashbucklers and GURPS Cliffhangers.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

Kind of like Umbran, I’m not looking for wonder from RPG products, but some have been more inspirational than others. Some that spring to mind:

Everway’s cards- along with many of those from various CCGs- were very thought provoking.

The Central Casting books

The Primal Order books

Book of the Righteous

The campaign settings for RIFTS and Space:1889

Various game supplements that focus on weapons and other gear

 

[Corinnguard]

Arcana Unearthed (Monte Cook's Malhavoc Press): this alternate PHB back in the 3e era blew my d20 neophyte mind because it wasn't just repackaging Tolkienesque fantasy but, instead, drew on other fantasy literature

I have the updated version of this book in my RPG collection. Arcana Evolved.

If you wanted to role-play in a PF1 Asian-like setting, there is Heroes of the Jade Oath by Rite Publishing. It borrows a couple of races from Arcana Evolved (the giants, the Faen, and the Verrik, for example) and some D&D races (elves, dwarves, Half-Orc) while throwing in some completely new races such as the Shinxue (the Spirit-Born).

 

[Crusadius]

I don’t experience a sense of wonder much these days, but many new games I picked up in the past did evoke it.

So back in the nineties there was: the World of Darkness games, Shadowrun, WFRP; each introducing a new setting that had me buying the supplements and novels. I was also being introduced to HK movies during this time so Feng Shui also was added to the collection.

In the 2000’s there was Exalted and Weapons of the Gods, a continuation of my interest in Hong Kong/Chinese martial arts/fantasy films.

 

[HaroldTheHobbit]

Now I’m old and jaded, but I still treasure the massive rush of SOW I got from Runequest 2e and its fantastic supplements.

 

[Theory of Games]

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Still does it for me to this day. BECMI is real D&D and reading the pages brings the writings of Tolkien, Brooks, Howard and others to life. The Rules Cyclopedia inspires me to run campaigns.

 

[payn]

Paizo Adventure Paths because they include a lot of setting info and present things in a way that makes me want to run them.

 

[Kobold Stew]

Classic Traveller has always stuck with me -- first inspiring wonder when it came out in the late 70s, and still jingling whatever bells go off inside my head when thinking about boogying around in a little spaceship.

Specifically, among the the LBBs, books 5, 6, and 7 (High Guard, Scouts, and Merchant Prince), and the supplements Citizens of the Imperium and Traders and Gunboats, and wherever it was that the lore about the Vargr began to develop (as uplifted Earth canids transplanted to a different system).