Any suggestions for fantasy systems where the PCs aren't superheroes like in D&D?
(my dad suggested RuneQuest but he's from the 80s)
>>47632119
Why would you want to do that? Fantasy games are all about being the big hero guys, aren't they? Why would you want to be a dirt farmer?
It's be like running a game of V:tM, but no one gets to be a vampire. They have to be Dave the accountant.
>>47632161
No, they can be heroes. But I'd rather the players had to work to separate themselves from the group, not just be able to easily beat almost every non-magical stock NPC in the MM from level 1. To me, the players should start out marginally above average and become competent and experienced by the end of the campaign, not start out as Spider-Man and end up as God.
>>47632119
Listen to your father.
>>47632161
No.
>>47632266
>Listen to your father
The newest edition or one of the old ones?
>>47632161
>Why would you want to be a dirt farmer?
He wants a system where there is NO difference between a pc and a NPC
I wouldn't really recommend Runequest because it's rather dated. Even the 6th edition has so many archaic mechanics and sacred cows that it's more of a nostalgia trip than anything else.
If you don't like "superheroes," you can just give low level D&D 5e a try, maybe restricting the classes as well to suit your purposes. You might enjoy Runequest's Glorantha as a setting, but 5e has some very modern and refined mechanics that make it really one of the best fantasy systems to play. It has its share of sacred cows too, but it's still a well-made system that has really earned its place as the modern go-to for fantasy adventure.
>>47632311
>He wants a system where there is NO difference between a pc and a NPC
WUT?
In what kind of bullshit system a NPC is not just a pc played by the DM?
>>47632119
2nd Edition Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay might be worth a look
>>47632161
I pray this is a bait, one cannot be so dense
But if you are:
The heroes of D&D aren't your normal fantasy heroes. They are overpowered marvel tier demigods made for players to wank over their power fantasies. OP probably seeks a game when you are actual hero - a paragon of mankind, capable of heroic deeds beyond the capabilities of ordinary man, but still grounded in reality and having his limitations.
Also
>Runequest as said
>The One RIng
>Heroquest Glorantha which is basically Runequest's setting with heavily narrativist rules
>Pendragon
>Barbarians of Lemuria
>Maybe WFRP 2ed
>Maybe Harnmaster though it seems rather dull for me
>>47632463
You've never really played D&D, have you?
>OP probably seeks a game when you are actual hero - a paragon of mankind, capable of heroic deeds beyond the capabilities of ordinary man, but still grounded in reality and having his limitations.
You just described the Fighter class's niche, which it maintains as it levels up. There's also a number of other classes that fit those requirements, including most variants of rogue and barbarian, and in general the characters are not that much stronger than common folk until the reach at least 4th level, and are only "marvel-tier demigods" at levels 15 and above, depending on edition.
>>47632119
Low point gurps fantasy game, rune quest 6, wfrp 1 or 2, Ars Magica as well.
I'd suggest having your dad show you his favorite Rune Quest edition if he's got the time.
>>47632562
Also A Song of Ice and Fire
I'd recommend Burning wheel if you want to encourage roleplaying and focus on character drama and storytelling.
If you just want to do what DnD does but in a more gritty way then I don't know. I've searched for such a thing but haven't found one that pushed the right buttons:
Runequest 6 aka mythras has a classic fantasy supplement that came out recently, might be good, but Runequest combat is just a little too fiddly and a little too swingy (always a small chance you might die unexpectedly if the enemy gets lucky).
You could try gurps dungeon fantasy, but you would have to be careful else be overwhelmed by masses of rules and stuff. not to my taste either.
You could try an OSR old-dnd clone, but they are very focused on dungeoncrawling.
>>47632541
Fighter's capabilities are beyond capabilities of most of iconic fighters from fiction as soon he hits two-digit number lvl, at least in 3.X. Casters are... casters and are even worse as everybody knows.
And of course you can play keeping on low lvls, but that's waste of half the game mechanics, so why bother instead of playing something that was actually tailored for low-power style?
>>47632626
>A Song of Ice and Fire
I've found this one to actually be particularly awful. It suffers from an almost silly level of lethality, and the influence rules are cumbersome rather than helpful.
>>47632541
>'commoner' has a challenge rating of 0
>'guard' has a challenge rating of 1/8
>a second level party could probably massacre an entire village without too much effort
ok
>>47632669
Likely because even half of a D&D is still a pretty large system. And, there's actually variants of D&D that are designed specifically for low-power play, like 3.5's e6 variant.
You're right in that there's other games to play beyond D&D, but that doesn't mean to discount what D&D can do.
>>47632562
Ars Magica is only about mages or you can play a warrior in it too?
>>47632660
>>47632562
>>47632463
Thanks for the recs guys (and others that I've missed). I'm currently running a 5e game so will probably just keep adding fairly powerful NPCs with PC levels so the players don't get too big for their boots, but I'll have a look at these for next time I'm running something.
>>47632736
You can play warriors as well
how is warhammer fantasy high level play?
>>47632119
Any OSR
Warhammer fanyasy 2nd edition
most of basicroleplaying based games(Elric, Stormbringer, Magic World,Openquest)
Try out Dungeon Crawl Classics.
Basically, you start out as a level 0 loser. Actually, you usually start out as 4 level 0 losers.
You and around 15 other PCs go through what's called a funnel scenario, where you do an adventure that is hi-lariously lethal, especially since you:
only get 1d4 for hp
have shitty weapons
roll 3d6 down the line for ability scores
Anyway, if you survive the first scenario, you hit level 1. Now mind you, you're not ever gonna become godlike, but if you make it to max level, you're gonna be a skullfuck king. Maybe.
See, there's no encounter balancing rules. You make encounters and you generally don't make them all just pure combat. PCs run into enemies that can kill them in a single hit. Your party of level 5 heroes(halfway to max) may just be able to do it! But they might not. They'll have to make that guess, because monsters have fairly nonstandard shit.
Wizards are super powerful, but they dont really get that many spells, a single chance to learn a spell every level up and its randomly chosen. Wizards need to go on quests to learn new and better spells. There's no consulting the PHB for new spells after leveling up. No no no.
Clerics get spells automatically- ha ha just kidding, being a cleric is hard. you have to act within your alignment, and suck your god's dick and spread his ideaology constantly. you cant even heal people from a different alignment without annoying them. If you annoy them too much they might just explode you.
So it's a cool high lethality, low power level system.
Also, the modules released for it are amazing and also very frequent in their release - beautiful little 10 dollar 25 page adventures, they even have a couple boxed set adventures which give you little hex crawls! only issue is you need specialized dice to play it. you need:
d3
d4
dd6
d7
d8
d10
d12
d14
d16
d24 and d30
>>47634064
Please don't play this piece of trash.
Listen to your dad OP or as stated WHFRP 2
>>47634104
what is bad with it?
>>47632119
Dungeon Crawl Classics.
>>47632463
>someone on /tg/ actually mentions Harnmaster
What is this sorcery?! Also good taste anon.
Harnmaster is very good for a more grounded-in-reality play and I like the combat system a lot, though I can see how it's not for everyone. I can still very much recommend it. Just don't get too attached to your characters if you want to play any kind of dungeon crawly adventure using it. It works better for long games with a lot of in-game downtime.
GURPS is fantastic for realistic characters and such, abd I thing it's similar to RuneQuest - at least in the combat loop.
>>47634064
>dd6
explain
>>47634396
It's an overproduced retroclone with retarded, unnecessary mechanics and lelrandumb rules that adds nothing worth keeping onto the OSR formula.
Just play Basic or a more faithful retroclone
>>47634396
Not that guy, but it's kind of like Hackmaster lite. It's complicated, uses weird-ass dice just for the hell of it, it has table upon table that you roll on for stuff. (For example, every single spell has a table you roll on that adjusts its effects. Want to cast a spell? Crack open the book.)
Fans often suggest that you can work around these problems by having everyone at the table install a DCC app on their phone and use that at the table, but fuck having phones at the table.
>>47634501
Wow, when I rewrote that sentence, the phrase "at the table" just kind of multiplied.
>>47634520
When you're at the table, watch that shit at the table bro
>>47634572
It must be something to do with DCC. Because even when they were writing it, the number of "tables" kept growing.
>>47634500
It's not even a retroclone, and it was never designed to be.
>>47634501
you're overblowing the problem, considering how little spellcasting there is in DCC.
its a great system and all I've heard is:
"I haven't read the rulebook"
and
"I haven't played this game."
>>47634501
There are resources online to print every spell's chart. It is not that hard to have a wizard compile a list and have it in front of him when he casts.
The dice are used in lieu of annoying modifiers. You don't need to use new dice, you just ignore things outside of the expected range.
Your 'issues' are features of the system.
>>47634619
have you ever played the original DnD games, nigger? It's literally tables: the rolling by white wolf
>>47634754
Wow, having to print off extra fucking sheets to even play the game properly. What a great fucking system, you fucking faggot.
>>47634851
Not that guy, but I print out the character class section for each of my players so we don't need to pass around a rulebook every time someone levels up.
>>47634871
that's not necessary. With DCC, it fucking IS. It's a shit system. Stop posting. Go back to the goodman games forum or RPG.net you stupid worthless cumbucket.
>>47634763
Not Basic, the game that DCC emulates. At least, not comparatively (as opposed to the AD&D 2e tables: the tabling)
>>47634890
Can you stop yelling insults over a system you haven't even played?
>>47634890
Did the designer molest you, dude?
>>47633059
It gets pretty mechanical. Assuming your characters reach high levels they're probably not going to have a lot of fate points to manipulate the luck of the dice. Also the heavy combat classes have 3 attacks but most people can only have two reactions. Crits will hurt, and kill all but the tankiest of characters, and that may be the only way to hurt those characters (10 DR isnt uncommon at high levels). Impact is an amazing mechanic, and ranged attacks cant be dodged. High level melee fights can be really monotonous, hit, dodge, hit, parry, miss. A lot of the other options like strike to stun or disarm arnt great or dont have talents that facilitate or enhance them. Then on to the next round. Magic relies on what color you chose, your GM can always give you better spells, because some of them have spells way too situational/straight useless. Ranged is solid, because it can't be dodged, but you'll get fucked if you dont have a pistol and someone charges you. I think the game could use some houserules. Thankfully the rolls happen fast, and there isnt a ton of crunch. I also recommend you do initiative with 1d10+Agility bonus, less counting that way.
>>47634491
Seriously what the fuck is dd6?
>>47635020
Seriously! I mean, I don't care for DCC, but damn, this guy's got problems.
>>47635069
He just accidentally typed d twice.
>>47632286
RuneQuest 6 is legitimately one of the best systems made.
>>47635132
I want this system to fucking die. I am so sick of these fucking nigger-promoting, meme-tier shit systems like nUmenera and DCC. have you heard them talk? "no white males on the cover pls" like holy fucking shit who cares
fucking sjws in my hobby
GURPS motherfucker
>>47632347
What archaic mechanics or sacred cows were left in RuneQuest 6?
I have a sneaking feeling the answer is going to be bullshit...
>>47635534
i will play gurps if you give me exactly the rules i need
>>47635612
This is exactly the problem with GURPS. "Rules for everything" but you either have to read it all to know what to crib or consult a guru.
>>47635612
TL4, basic set only.
For low fantasy, no supernatural or exotic advantages
Add odder ones for a higher power level
Done.
>>47636172
>you either have to read it all to know what to crib or consult a guru.
So learn the system or get taught?
Yeah. Wow. That's so uncommon. So out if this world. Having to learn a new game...
Savage Worlds. Technically, the Wild Card\Extras distinction makes your heroes and villains larger than life compared to a average people, but only in that they get one reroll on most checks and they can take more of a beating. There are setting rules for this, or you can just make EVERYONE a Wild Card.
I would say because of its pulp roots, it's also very suited to low key action, though it does suit supers if you're ever in the mood and whimsical hijinks are a must for Savage Worlds games.
>>47636309
Most games aren't dozens upon dozens of splats and instead actually do a specific thing well.
>>47636334
Haha
Yeah, you don't know what you're talking about. The splats are optional (unlike dnd). Everything they provide is in the core books already. Hell, most of the 3e ones are just settings, not mechanics.
>>47636334
GURPS sourcebooks are rich resources for setting craft or alterations to mechanics. If you try to use one or more in their entirety for your game, you're gonna have a bad time.
>>47632119
Your dad already gave you some of the best advice to be had. Runequest 6 is very good for gritty low fantasy. WHFRP is another option, but it's much more tied to the Warhammer fluff (although you could run it in anything that's roughly analogous to 16th century HRE). World of Darkness is another possibility if you're playing mere mortals.
Also superhero D&D only applies to 3.x onward, really (maybe AD&D 2nd as well after a certain point). OD&D, Moldvay/Mentzer B/X, and Rules Cyclopedia are all pretty dangerous, as are all the retroclones based on them.
>>47632245
What you're asking for here still fits within the pattern of old-school D&D, and even 3.x and 5e depending on how draconian the DM is. A pack of orcs is pretty lethal even if they do have just d4 hp - the PCs don't have that much either.
>>47636475
>delightful hyperbole comic
Saved.jpeg
Its not classic fantasy, but L5R does a pretty good job with making the PC's feel like just another character in the world. Usually felt by dying in like 2 hits.
>>47634851
>Wow, having to print off extra fucking sheets to even play the game properly. What a great fucking system, you fucking faggot.
You need to print out shit for every D&D edition unless you are autism-tier adept with the rules as well, retard. Especially if you are a wizard.
Stop being a shithead just because people like what you don't.
>>47632119
WoD fantasy stuff from mirrors does it pretty well
>>47640127
Well, that or heroic mortals exalted
>>47632119
LOTFP
>>47634450
I never actually played it or even gave it a honest read, I have PDF of the corebook, but after seeing that it is basically table:the tabling I gave up with reading it as a whole. I'm not into games THAT crunchy.
But it has merit of being very helpful in worldbuilding, as it presents very nice descriptions of low tech, early medieval societies with enough believability and depth to be cool, without going full historical autism on the other hand.And low tech/early medieval fantasy is best fantasy. Fantasy for me is stuff of forgotten legends where the world was mostly unknown and full of secrets for its inhabitants, which well developed societies of late medieval, or even early renaissance (most fantasy games are this actually, sans the gunpowder) already past through. It is way easier to imagine Sigurd, Beowulf, or even Lancelot in a hauberk than gothic full plate for me
>>47632119
Original D&D, Basic D&D, Runequest 2, Runequest 6 and Basic Roleplaying to name a few.
>>47632286
The new one is pretty good desu, and you can take the bits you like from other brp and put them in it to make it cooler if you want.
>>47635518
>DCC
>SJW
Never even saw the slightest hint of that.
>>47632695
>CR
>as a measure of anything in a system with bounded accuracy
>and then doesn't even incorporate the CR multipliers from encounter size, for AN ENTIRE VILLAGE
I mean, there's dense, which is the first two lines in a vacuum, and there's you, which is well past the point of willful ignorance.
>>47632430
>>47633617
>>47636475
WHFRP 2e all the way. Warhammer lets you play the underdog that challenges and against all odds beats the big bad by fate or dies a gruesome death.
And you can have a big variety of underdog characters with 60 basic careers in the basic rules. Play peasants, craftmen, fishermen, charcoal burner or rat catchers with small (but viscious) dogs.
The setting is awesome but if you dont like it just refluff the magic and change the divine spell lists and you are good to go.
>>47641011
I think that was just some kind of postmodern trolling attempt.
>>47632347
I was going to call OP a retard, but your post just out-tarded the rest of the board.
OP, check out RQ6. It is glorantha-free. Works well and is very fun to play.
>>47632347
>Runequest is archaic.
Suggests D&D. If there's a huge troll, then it's you anon.
>>47641061
Why 2e rather than 3e? Not an edition war faggot, I'm ignorant of the system and would like to know more.
>>47643421
It's simpler to use and cheaper to get into.
3e is a deeper, more interesting game but it's also a very different game so it was poorly received by the existing fanbase.
>>47635473
This.
>>47643461
None of the Warhammer systems are very good. 1E was even noted later by the authors to be shaky on release. 2E is better but still not great. 3E is a fucking monstrosity. The first two are just bad hacks of Runequest. I would run WFRP with RQ6 as your best bet.
I'd also argue that feeling like "superheroes" is just a matter of tone, which the GM can easily customise just by the way he builds the scenario.
You can play 4th edition DnD as a grimdark slog just by ensuring the PCs face difficult encounters with, say, orcs or humans that slightly outlevel them and maybe toning down the availability of treasure and magic items. You can also play full-on fantasy superheroes where they punch dragons and demon kings in the face and mechanically it'll be exactly the same game.
>>47643461
>3e is a deeper, more interesting game
It's essentially a shitty boardgame, which is why it's the first edition to more or less flop.
Even aside from the ruleset issues they were charging a ton for the core game that only supported 3 players by default and sold their expensive dice separately.
>>47643496
"Monstrosity" is a bit harsh, they were trying a lot of new ideas and seeing what worked. I would like to see a new WFRP from FFG that builds on the refined system they used in the Star Wars games.
>>47643517
Well, I can't disagree there. I wish Star Wars had been the first one and WFRP the second so it could have benefited from the years of actual play that led to the refinement.
>>47634898
>AD&D 2e
AD&D 2e is AD&D - Now with Fewer Tables!. AD&D 1e is Table Edition.
>>47643517
Fuck that, FFG's Star Wars games are only good on paper. Unless you like having a PC literally fall over at every combat encounter and struggle to do anything but their very specific specialization.
>>47643496
>I would run WFRP with RQ6 as your best bet.
I did once and it was awesome. Let me tell you, a simple bloodletter becomes murder incarnate when statted in RQ6. It was also fun just watching my players running around in Altdorf trying to figure out that the man behind the man of the whole illegal warpstone operation in fact is their host.
Fun times where had, and Phobia(blood) is... an interesting choice in a WFRP game.
I'd recommend Beyond the Wall, it really captures the feeling of the PCs being human heroes rather than superhuman murderhobos
>>47643588
1st Edition really has tables for everything.
>>47643696
Someone should make a game like this and get a license from Red Hook for a Darkest Dungeon TTRPG.
A man can dream...
>>47643421
Because I like the percentile dice system and the mechanics (insanity, dice check difficulties...) of 2e.
I havent played 3e but the star wars game and in my opinion a system with fancy dice and narrative outcomes fit star wars but not the grum perilous world of warhammer. There i like cold and definite numbers.
>>47632119
Your dad is right.
Rune Quest is baller as fuck.
Lose your hand in the first combat, become a magical barbarian warlord anyway.
>>47632161
But anon I actually played a game of V:TM where I was a regular guy among vampires, I had fun.
>>47643600
>someone forgot to put any points in any combat skill whatsoever or did something retarded like try to dual-wield when they just about know which end of a blaster goes towards the enemy
>>47643696
I would do this straight away, but my group is 'tired of low fantasy' ...pussies!!
Savage Worlds is good if you want a pulpy action feel. Each hit could get lucky and kill you, trying to take on multiple enemies in melee is more often than not suicide, you actually have to contend with how heavy weaponry and body armour is far more than in D&D.
Also ranged attacks are typically better than close quarters, if you see the town guard coming with crossbows for your edgelord thief/assassin buddy you'd better fucking duck
>>47643956
The core issue with 3rd is not the special dice, it's the chits and cards and not having enough table space to hold everything. Players need 3 different components to make up their 'character sheet' and it's just too much to set up, too much to put away in the box and a huge mess at the table.
>>47643956
>a system with fancy dice and narrative outcomes fit star wars but not the grum perilous world of warhamme
Why?
Really, why does having multiple possible outcomes for a given action suit a space opera and not dark fantasy?
>>47632562
>Ars Magica
A mage fresh out of apprenticeship will fuck up mortals like nobody's business though.
A mage that has some experience under his belt can raze cities.
Or maybe you mean as playing just the normal characters?
>>47632161
>Play dirt farmers upset by the ever increasing taxes of the noblemen
>Shittalking the nobles together with your farmer brethren
>Travel to the nearest town riling up the people in taverns about these god damn taxes
>Unrest keeps increasing thanks to your efforts
>The nobles hang supporters to dissuade the rebellion
>Rise up against the tyranny with pitchforks and torches
Sounds fun to me.
>>47644041
Or crit the enemy warlock in the head, knocking him unconscious and stabbing him in the face.
Or stabbing a Bretonnian knight through the visor, instantly killing him.
Or disarming the best fencer in the city in one stroke and forcing him to surrender.
RuneQuest is so much fun.
>>47643497
I'd argue that not.
You will always have this faggot that argues that since 20 str means basically breaking world record in weight lifting by the rules, that makes his 24 str warrior superhuman. Or invoke shit about being able to make 6 attacks in 6 seconds and other of that crap.
And that's even before getting to the casters, who are able to be doing retarded shit as soon as they hit mid-lvls, shit you cannot just deny by the "tone" because the spell effects are described clearly and objectively by the rules. So no way to dimnish it with heavy homebrewing, and heavy homebrewing means THAT YOU SHOULD BETTER PICK ANOTHER GAME INSTEAD if you don't want this shit.
>>47632119
Warhammer Fantsay RPG
>>47644958
I meant without heavy homebrewing
>>47644550
Because I like cold definitive chances and outcomes in a dark world.
I explain my opinion right afterwards, please dont just stop reading.
>>47644154
That got taken care of with the re-released rulebooks
>>47644579
Bingo Bango Bongo, besides during a typical session only one mage would be in play maybe, you can do entire sessions as companions and grogs no problem.
Also makes maybe very powerful but there is a lot that they can't do or handle on their own. They also need to worry about the fey the church, internals sometimes and even their own order.
>>47643421
im a 2ed GM and i think its just perfect, 3ed introduced the cards to the game, reduced the amount of playable proffessions and also changed spells (buffed them and made them less Warhammer-ish)
>>47635534
Not a book SJG is likely to publish, at least not on purpose.
>>47632119
The one ring, labrynth lord, and game in the OSR.
if I had to make a personal choice, I would say Open d6 and it's offshoots are pretty nice.
>>47644952
The potential for combat to be short and decisive instead of an attrition seesaw is one of the attractions of RQ, yes.
>>47644081
Yes, you are right. Your narrative game requires Pathfinder level powergaming. Thanks for pointing that out.
>>47645766
Stepping in from the sidelines here, but dude, how in the fuck is "I wanna be good in combat, so I should put a lot of points in combat" equivalent to "Pathfinder-level powergaming?"
>>47632119
Basic Roleplaying (RuneQuest, Magic World, Stormbringer/Elric) and their successors like Trudvang, Symbaroum and Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay 2nd Edition. I guess Role Master, One-Roll Engine with Reign, A Song of Ice and Fire Roleplaying, Ars Magica (love the troupe system).
I think Symbaroum should be available in english now?
>>47632119
oh, forgott that the Dragon Age RPG is actually quite nice of a system except for the character progression, the core mechanics are neat though.
>>47644579
The art of being a GM comes pretty much down to making everyone having an interesting experience, making sure all characters get the same amount of story and space to express themselves in. Succeed with that and it don't matter what some one plays as it's not a I can beat you but a I can bring most interest and entertainment for everyone game.
>>47646002
Because in the system to be OK at combat and good at what your concept is (smuggling, negotiating, exploring, etc) you have to minmax your stats, spend your XP incredibly wisely, and know the rules through and through.
On top of that you are much better off with the specialist specific splat book, knowing the equipment through and through, and the obligation mechanic actually draws you into the story so it's a penalty that means the campaign is more tailored to you. Morality and Duty are better though.
>>47643732
basic Roleplay and all its countless step-children are very easy to implement, change and do whatever the fuck you want with as systems. Just do it yourself.
>>47646153
Yes it's a shit system with a very narrow span in dice and values with makes it all kind of messy. It also makes you jump through so many shitty hoops to make an interesting character that aint just a clone of any character of said type that it's almost as bad as Dungeons and Dragons. The Warhammer 40,000 RPGs suffers from all this shit as well but instead of dice pools it has the d00 disease of "congrats you have a 35% base chance and you're suppose to be a professional!" which is all about shitty shitty game design on the WH40K RPGs designers part and not of any fault of the d00.
The Pendragon RPG is a system I like a lot. It's basically Runequest with a number of modifications: for instance, every character has traits, which are opposite "values" with initially 20 points split between them. Traits include things like Chaste/Lustful and Temperate/Indulgent. These can be rolled in the right situations. If your Chaste/Lustful "ratio" is 15/5, your character won't be swayed by a hoor swinging her tits at him, but if at the same time your Temperate/Indulgent is 5/15, he's going to have a hard time to say no when someone asks if he wants to have a few beers.
Furthermore, there are Passions, which are things like Love (Family) and Hate (Saxons). These can be used to modify skill rolls. If you succeed, you can succeed big time, but if you fail, you could, say, fall into depression or go mad.
Combat is brutal and tends to be short. A character does ((STR+SIZ)/6)d6 of damage and there aren't that many hit points to go around. Armour stops a number of damage but doesn't make you harder to hit. This system 1) encourages you to wear armour if you want to fight and 2) makes fighting something you don't enter lightly. If you take damage below your CON, it's a light wound - everything's all right but you'll probably spend some time in bed. However, if you get hit for more than your CON, it's a major wound. This is extraordinarily bad. Two rolls are required to just continue to function, and if you live through it, you can expect to spend weeks in bed.
And those Passions I mentioned? They can be used to modify combat rolls as well. If you're challenged to a duel by a Welsh knight and you have a passion of Hate (Welshmen), you can attempt to invoke this. A normal success means the usual +10 to your skill, a critical means double the skill or +20, whichever's greater.
>>47646091
The generic Fantasy AGE is pretty good, sort of like if pathfinder and GURPS had hate sex and had a baby.
>>47646961
Ok, real question: is it functionally possible to die in this game? I have seen it played and played it a little and it seems like the heroes will never dies without rocks falling.
>>47632119
Magic World (Basic Roleplaying) has an interesting take on alignments. The actions of the character give them allegiance points to either Light, Shadow, or Balance. At a low score it does not do much, but when you accumulate more points you have the option of becoming the champion of that force.
>>47646877
Pendragon is a system I have always wanted to try. Links?
>>47645057
Ya but your explanation doesn't make sense, because the funky dice and outcome tables are not any less definite or uncompromising than the old pass/fail percentile system. Often more so, in fact, because it details specific ways to fuck up a roll instead of saying "you fumble, ask the GM what happens"
>>47645291
>Bingo Bango Bongo, besides during a typical session only one mage would be in play maybe
You've had more success persuading people to play companions than I ever did. And I wouldn't force anyone to play a mundane in Ars Magica because the system is dire for everything except building cool spells and enchantments.
>>47647025
unless your GM really fucking hates you, only bad rolls can get you killed.
It may not be as good, high lethality game as OP wanted. but it's a good detox from Pathfinder.
