Anons, I'm looking for some advice.
Next month, I'm going to be traveling with my board game group. There's four of us and everyone is interested in trying out a tabletop RPG.
However, none of us, including myself, have ever actually played a tabletop RPG. Since I have played things like Warmahordes, and I generally find all our other board games, they've left it to me to pick out a game. I will also be the DM/GM of the group.
I need help making this awesome /tg/. I'm willing to try any game system and/or scenario and money isn't an issue if stuff needs to be bought (minis, books, etc.).
Other info on the group that may be helpful:
-they all are familiar with and don't mind fantasy (everyone is into LotR and GoT), however an alternate setting might work better for this group. Things that could also work: Turn of the century/Sherlock Holmes/Cthulu style (1890s-1930s), Superhero, Star Wars, Cyberpunk, or Modern.
-the group is very interested in things like puzzle solving, mystery, and intrigue (we've had a great time doing escape rooms together). Does not need to be combat focused.
>>47659073
>puzzle solving, mystery, and intrigue
No RPG system really does that built in I think (except maybe Paranoia? Does that count?), the puzzles, mysteries and intrigues usually come from the story/setting/players interactions with the world etc.
For some old-school stylings but a bit more modern play, I'd recommend Dungeon World; it's very fast to start for players as well, and as beginners they probably don't require as much options. The DM's guide (basically the last 2/3rd of the book) is also really, really useful regardless of what you decide to play in the end.
>>47659229
I included puzzles/mystery more for a potential scenario than a system. Since I'll be DMing for the first time, I'm thinking I'll mostly need to rely on someone else's creativity rather than coming up with an original setting.
>>47659073
>everyone is into LotR and GoT
Try One Ring. It's relatively simple while not being vague narrative game, hitting middle ground perfectly (core rules around 300 pages, and qutie easy to get). Catches spirit of Tolkien's works - both in presentation and general feel, and with mechanics - the rules have astonishingly strong connection to the themes.
It has few flaws (generally weapons, giving little options, and few things like reputation that are solved in painfully stiff, mechanical way while really it should be left to RP and GM fiat) but those are, well, barely important details.
There's also GoT game but I don'rt really think that GoT formula would work well in RPG for inexperienced group
>>47659073
>LOTR/Fantasy
The One Ring. It's the best system for emulating a The Hobbit style adventure.
>20th Century
Trial of Cthulhu. It combines Sherlock Holmes style investigation WITH Cthulhu.
>Star Wars
Star Wars D6 if you don't mind having no prequels material. Star Wars FFG if you really want prequels in the canon.
>>47659073
I'm unrelated to OP, but I didn't feel like making a new thread so here goes.
Relatively new to tabletop gaming, I've only ever really played Dungeons and Dragons and that was several years ago. I'm looking to get back into it and I'd like to find a good system to run an original science fiction setting game set in space. Preferably not Star Wars related. What are your recommendations?
Thanks in advance! :)
>>47659229
>I'd recommend Dungeon World;
Absolutely DO NOT use Dungeon World. It's for experienced RPGers who already understand all the genre conventions, and it really needs a slick, experienced GM to run properly. It is not a beginner's game.
I recommend Call of Cthulhu. The principles of horror-mystery will be understood by your group, and the rules are fairly simple. Ignore all the spells and monster stats; they're only there for effect.
>>47662821
A new edition of Traveller just came out, that should be good for scifi.
>Mysteries
>Turn of the century
Nothing wrong with Call of Cthulhu in this case. Lots of detective noir supernatural investigation opportunities along with a straightforward system.
>>47660661
All of these look really interesting.
>>47659229
>No RPG system really does that built in I think (except maybe Paranoia? Does that count?), the puzzles, mysteries and intrigues usually come from the story/setting/players interactions with the world etc.
check out GUMSHOE and stuff built off of that.
>>47659073
I think it's more helpful to go over a basic rundown over a couple major approaches:
"Pretend with rules" games often provide rules that try to simulate a situation to some degree. D&D is the classic example of this genre, and this is what most people think of in terms of RPGs. These games create emergent stories from the interaction between player choices and some method of randomly resolving them (ex. choosing to attack a goblin). On the more complex end you might have an entire situation built out of a cascading series of outcomes - the thief triggers a rolling boulder trap as a group of goblins rounds the corner, triggering a merry chase down through the halls of the dungeon. The drawback of this is that often these games require a referee to adjudicate situations for which the rules do not cover, which will be inevitably many.
"Collective narrative" games are newer, and explicitly focus on the story element of RPGs and pay more attention to "who has narrative control". Apocalypse World and FATE fall into this camp. The rules of these games are less about simulating situations, but determining who gets to tell the next chunk of the story. The player of the thief might choose to grab the treasure, the referee might respond by springing a boulder trap, the player might then draw the goblins into the trap, and the referee might say the goblins start running from the boulder/chasing the thief, and so forth. The drawback to this style is that the emergent narrative comes more from the pure interaction of the referee and the players (although some might consider this a plus!)
Many games fall somewhere between the two but those are two major approaches you see in most RPG products. The conventions of both are very different and I've found personally they require very different attitudes and mindsets to run.
>>47659073
Since you are all first timers, I strongly recommend the beginner boxes as they are very helpful for first time players and GM/DM's:
D&D 5e Beginner Game
FFG Star Wars Edge of the Empire beginner Game
>>47659073
I would also say that the selection of a ruleset is also contingent on how much time you expect this to go on. If you're just "trying" out an RPG for the first time, I suggest sticking with something simple. Even something as simple as the one-page RPG in this picture is enough.
The ruleset you use is only the skeleton of the game - the skeleton's important, of course, since it will determine your range of motion and what it looks like, but the far larger "meat" of a game will come more from the setting and background that you and your player's prepare.
Two D&D campaigns can look very different despite using an identical ruleset due to differences to what the referee and players bring to the table.
There will likely be structural similarities but the experience will be considerably different, unlike boardgames which are meant to offer a relatively standardized experience with each play.
>>47659073
I'd recommend a D&D retroclone or an edition of Basic D&D (either B/X or BECMI).
>>47659073
The One Ring if you want to play in middle Earth.
D&D 5e if you're interested in Dungeons and Dragons.
Savage World for a more generic system that can handle many different genre's
Star Wars D6 or the Fantasy Flight RPG
Dark Heresy if you want to do 40k
WFRP 2e if you want to do Warhammer Fantasy
Wild Talents for Superhero games
Call of Cthulu or Unknown Armies for you occult investigating needs
GURPS is also an easy system but has a lot of options if you start with GURPS lite it will help ease you into the basics of the game. Once you get the hang of it though you can get really crazy.
