Re: OT: Hard Sci-Fi Role Playing Games...

On Thu, 03 Jun 1999 21:50:45 -0500, "Mark A. Siefert"
<cthulhu@csd.uwm.edu>
wrote:

>Hello:
>	I'm seriously thinking getting back into role-playing,
particularly a
>hard sci-fi RPG.  Does anyone have any suggestions on a good system.  I
>have narrowed it down to a few likely candidates:
>
>	Alternity
>	GURPS (Either Space or Traveller)
>	Marc Miller's Traveller

Well, considering that most of my web site is roleplaying, I HOPE I'm
not too
late to contribute to this discussion... *S*

I haven't tried Alternity. It's TSR, so it's a little pricey to begin
with,
but I've heard some people don't mind it.

GURPS I've played. A lot depends on your players. I didn't mind the
system,
though recently I've found that the combat system is a little too fiddly
for
fast-paced roleplaying. Hexes and such are great if you're using
miniatures,
but I found all the modifiers a bit much for our group. If your players
are
miniatures/wargames players then you shouldn't have too much trouble.

I created a set of what I call EZGURPS. The one problem that GURPS has
is that
there are a plethora of modifiers and stuff... yet they modify a number
essentially drawn from thin air: a skill roll on 3D6, based on a skill
number
typically from 10 to 20. I mean, the skills aren't very finely defined.
They
are coarse numbers. Yet the system has some really fiddly "realistic"
modifiers. From my physics days, a number is only as precise as the
least
precise number... I take this into consideration by abstracting many of
the
modifiers. The result is a fast-paced GURPS combat system... faster than
Basic
GURPS (it was intended for a Supers campaign). 

Traveller... well, I have the original. Aside from adding an experience
system, there isn't much different... and a lot of the stuff wasn't
worth the
money. It's now an orphaned system. But, you can still find it cheap... 

Some other suggestions:

FUDGE: FUDGE is a generic game system. It doesn't have the support of
GURPS,
but there is a lot of stuff for it on the net. In fact, FUDGE itself is
available for free. You can also buy the book... If you're looking for a
cheaper alternative to GURPS with a simpler, cleaner system --
particularly if
you intend to invent your own background -- this is a good choice.

D6: Star Wars and the basic game engine have a huge following. I've
heard that
WEG lost the rights to the Star Wars game, since they are in financial
trouble. I don't know what this means in terms of the game syste, but
there is
a LOT out there for it. I don't know about it's generic ability.

Trinity: This is White Wolf's SF game. Heavily into psionics. The other
games
using the system, "Vampire: The Masquerade", "Werewolf: The Apocalypse",
"Mage: The Ascension" etc., are hugely popular. And there's a (so-so,
from
what I've heard) miniatures game that goes along with it. Not very
generic,
but a lot of good support for the system. As for the game itself...
well, it's
still up in the air. It's not as popular as it was expected to be.

Star Trek: There's a new Trek RPG. I'm not sure what it's like, though.
It is
new, however... You might want to give it a try.

Feng Shui: Okay, not it's not VERY generic! *L* It's a Hong Kong action
movie
game. It has fantasy and SF settings tied into a multi-setting universe.
The
support isn't that extensive. But the system is wonderful. VERY fast
paced
(incredibly so!). Some don't like it as it's very, VERY cinematic, but I
love
it. I've done Superheroes, fantasy, SF, and a "True Lies" scenario in
the
system. The system is out of print (and the company has gone under) but
the
system is SO beautiful, you only need the game book as a start. I have
"Nexus:
The Infinite City" which was the system's precursor, with lots of stuff
like
advantages and disads, that sort of thing. I like this so much, which is
why I
mention it. 

Chaosium's BRP: This is the same system used by RuneQuest, Call of
Cthulhu,
Elric, and Ringworld. It's fairly generic. The problem is that there are
no
weapon stats for the game. If you're running a near future game, this is
a
well supported game system. In fact, I've seen Traveller conversions for
this
game system available on the net. I'm most familiar with this game
system.
It's not very sexy these days, but it's shaken out, it's easy to learn
and
intiuitive, and it works.

CORPS: A smaller game with a lot of fans. It's produced by the same guys
who
do Guns, Guns, Guns. It's a straight forward game system, which has an
emphasis on combat. Guns, Guns, Guns, and More Guns, Guns, Guns are two
books
consisting of design rules for creating weapons and with lists of
weapons for
several systems. This includes SF weapons. The design is based on
physics with
plenty of algorithms. The result is supposed to be reasonably realistic.
They
have a vehicle design system now, too. I understand that there's a new
Space
CORPS game, now. This could be what you're after.

Heavy Gear: in spite of being a Canadian game, I'm loathe to mention it
based
on the fact I'm peeved at what they did with their miniatures. However,
it's a
popular game. Heavy on big robots (though they are smaller than
Battletech)
I've heard a number of people run successful campaigns without Gear. The
game
system does look simple and clean, and should transfer to almost any
background. It's well supported.

Mutant Chronicles: I don't know much about it, except that it's the same
universe as Warzone. I'm not impressed with the author (who once argued
with
me that a table of contents is as good as an index) and the game isn't
as
popular as it's miniatures rules, but it will allow a transfer between
RPG and
minis game. It's definitely in the realm of space fantasy, though...

Battlelords: I don't know much about it, but it's a favourite of space
combat
fans. Lots of heavy duty combat rules, which some have used for wargames
I
believe. One of the less popular games, but the core group of fans is
rabid! 

That's just a few... there are plenty of others. I didn't get into the
Japanimation games, or some of the lesser known games like Millenium's
End,
and the Deadlands SF game. 

One thing, you have to decide what kind of SF game you want. Are the
players
small players who get roped into bigger events? Are they a combat team
that
slip into commando style scenarios? Are they commanders (or crew) of
huge
space fleets? Some games have more or less emphasis on starship combat.
Some
are more cinematic than others. A good starting question: will the
players fly
their own starships on a regular basis, or will they just catch rides.

I hope this helps, Mark...

Allan Goodall		       agoodall@interlog.com
Goodall's Grotto: http://www.interlog.com/~agoodall/

"Surprisingly, when you throw two naked women with sex
toys into a living room full of drunken men, things 
always go bad." - Kyle Baker, "You Are Here"