Conan with other RPGs

[Barbarossa Rotbart]

I think about using Midgard (Germany's oldest RPG9 for Conan, but then I have the problem which culture allows which class.
The classes a divided in two groups:
Fighters:
- Warrior (honorable)
- Mercenary
- Nordic Barbarian
- Steppes Barbarian
- Woodland Barbarian
- Ranger (mountains and forests are favourite terrains)
- Scout (similiar to Ranger but with steppes and deserts as favourite terrains)
- Adventurer (a kind of rogue, with better fighting skills)
- Rogue
- Assassin
- Investigator (a Rogue using his skills for solving crimes)
- Merchant
- Mariner
- Bard (can cast spells)
Spellcasters:
- Magician
- Thaumaturge (creates magical objects)
- Witch (& Warlock) (have a patron, which is either a god, an elemental power or some evil power)
- Conjurer (conjures elementals or demons)
- Druid
- Healer (kind of druid)
- Shaman
- Beast Master (kind of solitary shaman with animal companions)
- Priests (8 different kinds: fertility & earth, trade, dominion, war & storm, sea, death & winter, wisdom & magic, chaos & darkness; a deity can have priest of more than one kind)
- Holy Warrior

In Midgrad every one can learn everything, but the class determines how easily you can learn new skills (but only spellcasters can learn spells).

 

[Finarvyn]

I find the d20 version fine. i have a good familiarity with the rules that means i rarely need to look at the rulebook during a game and find it really easy to ad lib rules when we run into one of the blindspots that occur in all games.

I think that this is a big advantage for me as well. I've played OD&D since the 1970's and the general sequence and scope of rules (OD&D, AD&D, C&C, d20, whatever ... same core idea) just feels more natural to me than if I tried to adapt to other rules systems like RQ or Savage Worlds.

What I wish, however, was that Mongoose would simplify the rules ala Castles & Crusades or similar. I'm not a big fan of prestige classes and feats and would rather keep the setting but simplify the rules.

I "house rule" it all the time, but would certainly pay for a printed C&C Conan rulebook.

 

[rabindranath72]

I am working on porting Basic Fantasy RPG to a "Sword & Sorcery" feel. The "races" will be cultural backgrounds (barbarian, civilised and nomadic). The "classes" will be Fighter, Noble, Thief and Sorcerer. The spells and monsters will be those of d20 Conan (with all Conan IP references removed, however).
As soon as the text is ready (two or three weeks, perhaps), I will send it out for playtesting. Hopefully, I would like to put it on Lulu or something like that.

 

[Caz]

I use the Riddle of Steel rules, and I can never go back. Most people seem to be very vocal about shooting down this system without really knowing it or giving it a go. Maybe it fits a certain taste, but I really can't find anything I like more. It's certainly not a Gamist system.

It defines "gritty" and solidifies the character's motivations, and the combat is wonderfully brutal and Conanesque. And it makes the characters pick their battles.

 

[Style]

I use the Riddle of Steel rules, and I can never go back.

I'd never even heard of it, so I did a search and read this review: http://www.indie-rpgs.com/reviews/4/

Sounds pretty interesting. I'm guessing you don't get nearly the complaints about sorcerers being too weak that Conan D20 GMs get (as well as SW Kane GMs like me).

 

[Malcadon]

If you like Savage Worlds, then you would find lots of good resources to work with. A lot of people balk at rule-lite systems, but this one works vary well.

 

[Caz]

Caz wrote:
I use the Riddle of Steel rules, and I can never go back.


I'd never even heard of it, so I did a search and read this review: http://www.indie-rpgs.com/reviews/4/

Sounds pretty interesting. I'm guessing you don't get nearly the complaints about sorcerers being too weak that Conan D20 GMs get (as well as SW Kane GMs like me)

Unfortunately, the Riddle of Steel is about as indie as it gets, and the company has all but given up the ghost. On the upside, there's a fan site at this link which has all of the books available as relatively inexpensive PDF.

http://72.29.89.43/~trosfans/forum/index.php?sid=d838e20ef21c54ad5e1172be77d6481d

The sorcery is complained about most often, but not for being weak. I like it a lot, but it's particular, so it doesn't fit every setting. But the fans also have alternate versions of sorcery available, and I myself have altered it slightly to use the corruption point system in the Mongoose books when I do the Conan thing. The entire system is very adaptable though. There's also a free rules lite version on the main website for download with a decent amount of support there.

Oh, and the setting that comes with the MRB sucks IMO. But I use the rules for everything.

 

[rabindranath72]

I played twice TROS, and I was not the least impressed. Too complex IMO for what you get. And reading the review, I agree on its strong points. But almost all of them can be found, e.g., in Pendragon, with a way lighter system.

 

[Caz]

It's certainly not for everybody. It's just what I was looking for, and simpler than what I was used to. I'd say it's simpler than d20 personally.

 

[Style]

I played twice TROS, and I was not the least impressed. Too complex IMO for what you get. And reading the review, I agree on its strong points. But almost all of them can be found, e.g., in Pendragon, with a way lighter system.

Right, I knew when I read how rules heavy it was that it was not for me. (I'm a rules light, Savage worlds, Fast, Furious, Fun type of guy.) However, it did sound interesting. If it wasn't for the fact it's suppose to have such a high learning curve, I'd probably even be interested in playing in a one shot or two just for fun.

I found this little bit in particular to be interesting:

Attack and defense are handled simultaneously, through allocating dice to each from one's "Combat Pool," for both combatants. Under most circumstances, attacking someone means they may well be, automatically, "attacking you back."

Thus combat is resolved through a series of clashes rather than a series of isolated actions; the point is to avoid that "freeze-frame" effect in which one character, when that player's turn comes around, gets to act in a world of statues, and then the turn moves to the next player or to the GM, etc. (This feature, which is touted as "real time combat" in the rules and also as "unique" in role-playing, is already familiar to most of us who've played a variety of the newer designs out there, particularly Zero and Sorcerer.)

I've always hated the "fighting among statues" feel of initiative based combat.

Caz, neither of those links or working. I'd love to see the free rules light rules.

Edit: OK, I'm glancing at the (free) quick start rules, and they're 41 pages!!! **gulp** SW's quick start is 10 pages with lots of art and 2 pages of ads!

 

[thelevitator]

FUDGE also has Simultaneous Rounds, and it makes combat feel much more "real". It also uses Combat Stances, which really makes tactical combat much more fun but also very easy mechanically to handle.

The stances are:

Berserker: +2 to Offense / -2 to Defense
Aggressive: +1 to Offense / -1 to Defense
Normal: +/- 0
Cautious: -1 to Defense / +1 to Offense
Defensive: -2 to Defense / -1 to Offense

FUDGE is a granular system, so a +2 or -2 is a huge bonus/penalty in the game. The fun thing is that the combat stances are chosen secretly and then simultaneously revealed.

What I love most about FUDGE combat is that a combatant's Offense, Defense, Damage, and Protection is all derived from a single opposed roll. It makes for very fast, but tactically deep combat.

It's also a very easy game for players to come with their own combat maneuvers right in-game, so I think it encourages more than the toe-to-toe, "statuesque" combats.

I'm told that most guys who like SW also like FUDGE and vice-versa, so I picked up the SW pdf on RPGNow.

 

[Style]

I'm told that most guys who like SW also like FUDGE and vice-versa, so I picked up the SW pdf on RPGNow.

Welcome my brother. Perhaps we're kindred spirits after all.

I've downloaded your cinepic files, just haven't had a chance to read them yet.

 

[thelevitator]

Great! Just remember 2 things: it isn't even close to completed yet, and I'm not a professional game designer. I'm just a guy using the FUDGE mechanics to make a game that suits my playing style.

I've made a lot of progress on the magic system and will be doing an update on Mondayish.

Thanks, BTW for taking an interest in my game. I would love to get your feedback as it progresses!

 

[rabindranath72]

I found this little bit in particular to be interesting:

Attack and defense are handled simultaneously, through allocating dice to each from one's "Combat Pool," for both combatants. Under most circumstances, attacking someone means they may well be, automatically, "attacking you back."

Thus combat is resolved through a series of clashes rather than a series of isolated actions; the point is to avoid that "freeze-frame" effect in which one character, when that player's turn comes around, gets to act in a world of statues, and then the turn moves to the next player or to the GM, etc. (This feature, which is touted as "real time combat" in the rules and also as "unique" in role-playing, is already familiar to most of us who've played a variety of the newer designs out there, particularly Zero and Sorcerer.)

I've always hated the "fighting among statues" feel of initiative based combat.

You will love Pendragon, then 8)

 

[Caz]

Interesting. The Fudge "stances" sound almost identical to the RoS stances.

The SW quickstart? Wow. That's pretty short. I guess you would hate GURPS too hehe. It's all about the feel you want though. SW, for example, will use the same mechanic for a hundred combat and skill based actions, thus it's simple and short.
RoS isn't complex, but you have a lot of different mechanics at your disposal for defining more specific combat actions.

I have SW, but wasn't the least impressed with it. But it's not bad and very simple. A very casual game. I got it as sort of a pick up and play thing. No gritty feel in it in the least; definitely designed to have the PC's seperate from the masses. Hard to die. But it's not as gamist as the complex d20, which is nice.

It's all in what you want from a game though. Different systems suit what different individuals want out of a game. I try not to knock them, even if I hate aspects of them. Like D20. I hate the unrealistic and gamist system, but it's one of the most popular so it obviously fills a lot of people's needs.

 

[Style]

No gritty feel in it in the least; definitely designed to have the PC's seperate from the masses. Hard to die.

I actually like that the PCs are separate from the masses. I think that's very appropriate in a Conan game, considering the protagonist who inspired the game.

Also, it's actually very easy to die in SW if you're low on bennies. It's pretty common for one blow to take you from full health to rolling for your life on the incapacitation table. (This happens to a PC in my game every 2 or 3 combats.) Since all rolls on the incapacitation table are at -3 for your wounds, it's a very dicey situation. If you have a lot of bennies, you should be ok, but that's a big if.

Keep in mind that one blow can easily put you on the incapacitation table if you're a great hero or a wet behind the ears novice. This isn't d20 where you accumulate a bunch of hit points. It doesn't matter who you are, four wounds and you're rolling on the incapacitation table. That doesn't change with advancement. Four wounds is relatively easy to get in one blow. (I've seen 5 and 6 wounds from one blow many times already, in a short SW gaming career.)

Even if one blow doesn't take you all the way to incapacitation, the fact that wounds make you less effective at everything help to make combat deadly. Unlike D20, where you're just as effective at 1 hit point as you are at full. Combat becomes a slippery slope.

It's also fairly easy to accumulate permanent injuries. Oh, and let's not forget a heal check takes 10 minutes, not a standard action, so there is no stabilizing a dying character.

It may not be as deadly as TROS, but it's tremendously more deadly than d20. My players, D&D vets, fear for their PC lives in EVERY combat. And they hate using their last benny. They know that with out bennies, they're quite easily one blow away from death.

 

[thelevitator]

One of the things that persuaded me to take a look at SW was that I was told by a few people that SW can be played as a pretty brutal game.

After running a few combats with FUDGE combat and the Non-Linear Wound system, I'm now worried that it might be a little TOO brutal. The way it is set up does not make one person "tougher" than another. Weapons basically do the same amount of damage to everyone. A high Health rating can buy you more time, but any creature can be dropped with a single blow.

I've really enjoyed reading this thread, because I prefer running grim and gritty games, and there is a lot of good information here about other systems. And I give the opinions here a lot of credibility, as you are all Conan fans!

 

[quigs]

Savage Worlds feels like it is basically a Conan RPG in and of itself. They fit so seamlessly together that it's hard to tell they were ever seperate systems.

But now that I am actually working on a conversion, there are a few things I liked in the d20 rules that I will be converting over to SW.

Combat manouevres are great, and I'll be including those in SW wherever possible as additional options for combat.

All the human races will be converted, and balanced using the SW racial construction guidelines. Things like the blood frenzy only being available to certain races will also be incorporated, as will akbitanan weapons

Classes will be converted to professional edges where needed. Usually only if the class has a unique ability not already present in SW. The gladiator class from S&P is one I am looking at in this regard for sure.

Spells are not a huge concern for me as none of my PC's are making spellcasters, so I can reserve those nasty bits of forbidden lore and power for my villains, using the SW powers with some Conan trappings added for flavour.

 

[Malcadon]

Savage Worlds feels like it is basically a Conan RPG in and of itself. They fit so seamlessly together that it's hard to tell they were ever seperate systems.
But now that I am actually working on a conversion, there are a few things I liked in the d20 rules that I will be converting over to SW.

I listed a site on page 2 of this thread with lots of resources for SW, which has some Conan material there. The Savage Sword of Conan file is worth looking into. The guy who made it also made a character sheet for it.

 

[quigs]

Thanks, I actually saw that conversion already, and I may actually grab some of his ideas in the end such as his language rules, and the random encounter tables.

My friends that I play with wanted something a little more in line with the 2nd edition books though, as this guy's conversion is based off of something older.

Cheers