A Questing Newbie With Questions (And Exposition)

[OddjobXL]

I'm trying to decide what game I want to run. For the first time ever. Yeah, I'm a old school roleplayer but I've been relegated to "magpie" book collector for the last couple, say, decades. All my roleplaying's been online because that's all I had time for (MMO and MUSH). Now, I reenter the tabletop community.

Everyone around these parts seems to be into some AD&D variant. 3.5, 4e and Pathfinder seem particularly popular. This really isn't my thing but when in Rome. Still, I'm thinking I can maybe run a game that's more interesting to me while still appealing to D20ish sensibilities.

My first thought, and still a lingering one, was using Green Ronin's Freeport setting with Pathfinder and elements of Skull &Bones along with quite a bit of Conan's Pirate Isles (ship/piracy systems). But the whole over-the-top high fantasy thing isn't really to my tastes. Also the complexity and, while not as bad as 4e, dependence on miniatures and battlemats is putting me off.

My next thought was going with True20, d20 friendly but a more narrative than tactical crunch dependent system, instead of Pathfinder but I'm still stuck with the generic high fantasy stuff.

That brings me to Conan.

I've already bought many of the, non-adventure, books as broad source material as well as the latest edition of the RPG itself. I love the mix of character classes that encourage politics/roleplaying, a darker brand of sorcery, as well as adventuring both in Man vs. Man and Man vs. Nature contexts.

Obviously, Pirate Isles was going to factor in in any case. I could cherry pick from Freeport and other citybooks (Harn Cities/Son of Cities and perhaps even select nuggets of the Citystate of the Invincible Overlord and, of course, Cities of Hyboria along with elements of Messantia) to create my own vibrant take on Tortage as a base of operations.

This brings me to the questions.

Is Conan simple enough for a beginning GM to use? It's D20 which the players will know, with modifications, and it reads in a far more comprehensible way than Pathfinder. However, one goal is really to get a system I can become comfortable enough with to improvise, focus on the roleplaying of combats, rather than feeling compelled to open books in the middle of every combat and double check rules and technical minutiae all the time.

Is Conan playable without minis and battlemaps? If so, how have you done it in the past and do you have any tips? Being old school, though not so old school to wax nostalgic about Chainmail, I'd like to get players in the habit of visualizing combats as dramatic events rather than focusing on squares, figures, and mechanical quirks of the system.

How well would Conan work in a more traditional campaign context? I like the episodic, almost random, continuity of the system and it meshes perfectly with how Howard presents Conan in his stories. However, I know as a player I enjoy a sense of control over my character's destiny. Being able to make plans or pursue particular goals over a longer term, acquire and retain resources, and so on. This is probably how I'd run a Conan campaign if I decide this is the way to go.

Thanks for reading. Please let me know what you think. I'd really rather not try and create a homebrew RPG or campaign from scratch. So it's looking like either Freeport with True 20 or Conan RPG (with a custom Tortage) for me.

 

[Supplement Four]

I'm trying to decide what game I want to run.

Lots of 'em out there, both old and new.

Now, I reenter the tabletop community.

Welcome back!

Everyone around these parts seems to be into some AD&D variant. 3.5, 4e and Pathfinder seem particularly popular. This really isn't my thing but when in Rome.

1E and 2E AD&D are still quite alive, if that is your preference. Niche companies are even producing new materials--mostly adventures--for both games. Check out this busy forum to find like minded folk: http://www.dragonsfoot.org/forums/

Also, don't forget that Mongoose publishes the new Rune Quest, if you want to stay away from D&D but still want to play a fantasy based game. Plus, of course, there are tons of ealier editions and what not that can be had out there.

If "d20" isn't your thing, my suggestion is to play something that really interests you. This is a hobby that's supposed to be fun, remember? Maximize your enjoyment.

Still, I'm thinking I can maybe run a game that's more interesting to me while still appealing to D20ish sensibilities.

Absolutely, if this is what you want to do. With any RPG, the limit is the limit of your own creativity.

That brings me to Conan.

It's a fantastic game, both in setting and in mechanics. I think it's the d20 adaptation that I've seen.

Is Conan simple enough for a beginning GM to use?

My answer to this is, "No."

It's a complicated game system. I'm teaching my players, who are used to AD&D 2E, the game system slowly, in parts. And, I'm doing this in-game as part of the story (see my development thread).

I thought this would be a better alternative to laying all this stuff on my players in day before the first game.

It's D20 which the players will know, with modifications, and it reads in a far more comprehensible way than Pathfinder. However, one goal is really to get a system I can become comfortable enough with to improvise, focus on the roleplaying of combats, rather than feeling compelled to open books in the middle of every combat and double check rules and technical minutiae all the time.

You can become familiar with any game system through study and practice. I'm new to GMing Conan as well, so the take-it-slow game sessions are good for me, too.

I suggest that you get a friend and run some combats (or do it by yourself) with generic NPC s just to get a flow of it. Look up any questions you might have.

There's so much to learn: Special Rules and Combat Maneuvers; Finesse fighting; Armor piercing; Armor value; Parry or Dodge choices, a ton of Feats, etc.

It's not an easy game to learn because there are so many pieces.

Is Conan playable without minis and battlemaps?

Absolutlely. Read the chapter on descriptive combat in the Core rule book. And, the mass combat systems have narrative options.

If so, how have you done it in the past and do you have any tips?

Your players have to trust you. If you say it's 30 feet to a doorway and it takes a round to get there, then they need to accept that.

Being old school, though not so old school to wax nostalgic about Chainmail, I'd like to get players in the habit of visualizing combats as dramatic events rather than focusing on squares, figures, and mechanical quirks of the system.

Conan will work fine without being played on a map.

How well would Conan work in a more traditional campaign context?

Again, it works great. My campaign is not episodic. I've created an old school sandbox for my players to explore and live in. See my development thread.

 

[Jacek]

Read the chapter on descriptive combat in the Core rule book. And, the mass combat systems have narrative options.

Where would that be, exactly? I've skimmed through the book but found nothing.

I like the episodic, almost random, continuity of the system and it meshes perfectly with how Howard presents Conan in his stories. However, I know as a player I enjoy a sense of control over my character's destiny. Being able to make plans or pursue particular goals over a longer term, acquire and retain resources, and so on. This is probably how I'd run a Conan campaign if I decide this is the way to go.

Now how could those two styles be merged together? You know of anyone having found a method?

 

[Supplement Four]

Where would that be, exactly?

Campaigns Chapter speaks of describing combat vividly. Narrative Mass Combat is covered in...IIRC, Free Companies.

I've skimmed through the book but found nothing.

 

[OddjobXL]

I found that. It's more a few paragraphs than a chapter.

Y'know, it's just all that fuddiness about opportunity attacks and all the grid dependent feats and things like that. I'm thinking I agree with Supplement Four that it's not a good game for a beginning GM. In honesty, neither is True20 but it at least tones down some of the crunch. It also is easier to adapt other d20 content to compared to, say, Savage Worlds.

Maybe I should resign myself to doing a little homebrew on a minor scale. Adapt Mongoose's Conan to True20. Not everything at once. Just a little bit at a time as I need it. I'll lose some of the flavor I really like and be making extra work for myself but I'm more likely to be able to wrap my head around the results.

 

[VincentDarlage]

I play without a grid and without miniatures. The attacks of opportunity and so on don't present me with a problem.

 

[OddjobXL]

Keeping in mind I'm new to GMing and long out of the tabletop scene, I just feel a bit intimidated by all the...stuff. And time is an issue. There's a reason I've mainly played online games. Prep time and learning curve look potentially hairy here to me, again, as a newbie GM.

 

[Supplement Four]

Keeping in mind I'm new to GMing and long out of the tabletop scene, I just feel a bit intimidated by all the...stuff. And time is an issue.

That's the problem. You can easily learn the game, but it does take time. If you don't want to, or don't have tome to, work at it, you may want to try a non d20 based game.

If Conan is in your heart, there are some conversions out there. There's a conversion for Savage Swords. Personally, though, I think conversions are even harder for a new GM to manage because he's got to have a handle on both systems in order to convert.

If Conan is it, then just spend some time learning the systems. Do it systematically. That's what I'm doing. I'm learning attack and defense. Then add in some combat maneuvers. Then add in Feats. Then add in Attacks of Opportunity. Etc.

Takes time. But, it won't take that much time. And, if you're planning on playing any d20 game, you might as well play Conan.

There's a reason I've mainly played online games. Prep time and learning curve look potentially hairy here to me, again, as a newbie GM.

Yep. Prep time's a beech. That's one of the reasons I've been snatching all the pre-made NPCs I can find from this forum. Creating d20 characters takes a long time.

But, as a fellow new GM to Conan, I can tell you that a problem with be the Feats. Each character has a few of these "special abilities", and it turns out to be a lot to learn and get comfortable with.

After a while, I'm sure we'll see some "usual suspects" showing up over and over, and we'll get to learn the Feats like veterans.

 

[OddjobXL]

Got to talking to an experienced GM friend of mine and we sorted out what I think I'll be doing. True20 with the Freeport setting and True20 companion book. It'll be like a D20 primer for me and no homebrew necessary. If that works out, and we're having fun, I'll either port Conan into True20 or just make the full blown jump into the Conan RPG.

I love the Hyborian setting too much to run a fantasy game that's not set there eventually.

If it doesn't work out, well, there's Traveller perhaps. The basics are quite simple and straightforward. Lots of in-game mechanics to create gameplay on the fly as well. But the groups around here tend towards d20ish fantasy so I should probably start with that to create some common ground.

 

[Supplement Four]

I love the Hyborian setting too much to run a fantasy game that's not set there eventually.

If that's the case, I'd skip the True20 and go straight to the Conan RPG. You'll spend as much time learning one as you would the other. True20 is, indeed, stripped down a bit, but you're not talking about that much more learning time to learn the Conan RPG. The 2E rulebook is written very plainly with good examples.

Instead of True20, consider one of the Conan adventure scenarios, maybe a sourcebook for the area, and the Core rule book. Add other books later--don't complicate the process.

Also consider outlawing Feats and/or combat maneuvers until everyone has a good feel for the game. Then, allow feats in the game. Then combat maneuvers.

In other words, just keep the game simple unti you master the parts you're using, then add in the others.

I think you'll find that you're adding in stuff faster than you originally thought you would.

 

[strategos14]

i love the conan rules and atmosphere. when i used to DM D&D, i always ran a low magic, realistic (as much as possible) world. conan and it's D20ish rules are what you make them. roleplaying alot or a little. rolling too much or not. using grids or not. it is what you make it and see little wrong with the system, to be honest

 

[Supplement Four]

I agree with strategos. I play my game much differently that someone like kintire does. Even with Vincent, he plays his more like AD&D 2E, where the GM describes a lot of what is going on, and the players don't have a plot to look at.

In my game, just about every combat encounter is played out on a graph grid.

Someone on this forum (I've forgotten who) thinks that I can't play a simulation game with the d20 Conan rules, yet, I do.

You can mold the rules into what you want them to be.