Conan, which rules system do you play?

[MarkAlexander]

So far we've had Conan games by Mongoose, Modiphius and now Monolith. Which system do you play? Which is best? I've always prefered the Conan style fantasy settings to the high fantasy/Middle Earth/D&D type of settings, although I like those too. Mongoose was certainly the best in terms of quality books with evocative art.

 

[ottarrus]

I love the Hyborian setting, but I gotta say I'm not 100% in love with any of the current mechanics.
I think if I were to do a Conan game, I'd probably have to put the work into adapting Basic Roleplay [aka 'generic Runequest']. That system just makes the most sense to me and the magic system is easily adaptable.

 

[Nialldubh]

When Mongoose first started, I would have wanted RQ rules, but it would have been brutal, a lot of death for PCs. They would need many tricks and dozens of Fate Points to stay alive (which could have work if implemented). Still, even the modern RQ states that we should keep combat to minimum, as the characters will die a lot.

In long term I happy with D20 Conan, though it can get tiring with the many rules, and after 20 years of playing it constantly I still need to go back to refer to the rulebook to make decisions sin-game...

The game Crypts and Things, OSR orientated might be a good ruleset to work from...

I personally will never use any other rules, and keep with Mongoose D20, it is the best yet and adaptable to many other rule systems if one wants to convert a scenario to D20.

As with Monolith, I probably buy the PDF of corerules to see what they will do, but as with Modiphius corerule book, it is used to prop up my mousepad so it high enough for me to use without dislocation my elbow!

 

[MarkAlexander]

When Mongoose first started, I would have wanted RQ rules, but it would have been brutal, a lot of death for PCs. They would need many tricks and dozens of Fate Points to stay alive (which could have work if implemented). Still, even the modern RQ states that we should keep combat to minimum, as the characters will die a lot.

In long term I happy with D20 Conan, though it can get tiring with the many rules, and after 20 years of playing it constantly I still need to go back to refer to the rulebook to make decisions sin-game...

The game Crypts and Things, OSR orientated might be a good ruleset to work from...

I personally will never use any other rules, and keep with Mongoose D20, it is the best yet and adaptable to many other rule systems if one wants to convert a scenario to D20.

As with Monolith, I probably buy the PDF of corerules to see what they will do, but as with Modiphius corerule book, it is used to prop up my mousepad so it high enough for me to use without dislocation my elbow!

You can download the Monolith quick-start rules from their website for free. I couldn't get my head around the modern RQ. I think they should've stuck to the simple, Basic Role Playing rules. Call of Cthulhu 7th edition hasn't strayed far from the original and is still a lovely system.

 

[Nialldubh]

Yes, I got the quick-start weeks back. I completely agree with you about RQ. I played RQ 2E when it first came out and enjoyed it greatly. Now I think modern RQ must have more pages than the bible, and it is more intricate than it also!

I started with CoC 2E, so, I prefer the older version. Still I got 6E and think it remained true to first version. E7 lost me!