The Witcher

[Pietia]

On the other hand, why not? If players (and GM) are having more fun if they can choose from multiple races then why not? Personally I got an impression that demi-humans were not usually all that welcome to human lands. So I would discourage having multiple races in the party unless there was a good reason. But then again that's just how I run my games and it really might be a good idea to have those races as options for those who like to have a more traditional games.

Or is my take on the world totally wrong on this aspect?

No, your take on the game world is ok. The thing is - the rules provide you with option to play an elf or another demi-human, if you want to. The books had quite a lot demi-human characters, some of them played quite prominent roles. The job of limiting the party to a selection of characters that will make sense is up to the storyteller.

I just remember in fear how daunting the full skill list in Rolemaster (or GURPS) is. In the end I learned the essential skills in RM and after that it was quite easy to pick up the skills. I suppose the same applies here.

Well, more or less. The skills that are important will really depend on the campaign - e.g. opening locks will be useless in a hackfest, but quite useful if you want to play an espionage campaign

Ah, so Witchers can be really bitches in the combat because they can sustain maneuvers and roll enhancing longer than mundane warriors of the same caliber.

Yes, that's where their main strength lies. That and knowledge of the Signs (from the start).

As I really don't know about moving in plate mail I just have to take your word for it

This is related to the weight distribution. In the case of a chain mail, your shoulders are supporting the entire weight of the armor, since it more or less hangs on your shoulders . You're using those muscles for swinging a weapon and supporting the armor at the same time - it gets ugly quite fast .
Full plate may be heavier, but the weight is more evenly distributed. More muscles are supporting its weight. Most of my friends that have enough time for taking part in historical recreations prefer plate to mail (although not all of them can afford it ).

Interesting, especially how wizards got their PPs back.

That's based on the way the wizards get their power in the books - it was explained somewhere (in one of the novels IIRC). Did I mention, that it is easier to cast spells related to the element you were using to get your PPs (and more difficult to cast those related to the opposite element)?

(like Geralt, if you can really call him a hero).

Considering the world he lives in, I think you can. He's a decent guy

 

[SnowDog]

No, your take on the game world is ok. The thing is - the rules provide you with option to play an elf or another demi-human, if you want to. The books had quite a lot demi-human characters, some of them played quite prominent roles. The job of limiting the party to a selection of characters that will make sense is up to the storyteller.

My original response to the races was based on my (correct) take on the world. After your comment to that and now this I must agree that if the players (and GM) want to have multiple races in the party, then more power to them. Personally I like that down and dirty approach but it's good to have options...

Well, more or less. The skills that are important will really depend on the campaign - e.g. opening locks will be useless in a hackfest, but quite useful if you want to play an espionage campaign

I think Rolemaster had around hundred skills, heck there was even rope mastery that was needed to tie the knots effectively In practice every weapon had it's own skill and you could use similar weapons with quite a bit reduced ability. While this might be called realistic, it was too cumbersome.

Are the skills broken down to as small pieces in Witcher RPG as that? But yes, I agree that the choice of skills is (as usual) affected by the campaign. On the other hand you never know which skill can save your skin...

Ah, so Witchers can be really bitches in the combat because they can sustain maneuvers and roll enhancing longer than mundane warriors of the same caliber.

Yes, that's where their main strength lies. That and knowledge of the Signs (from the start).

I see

How the elixirs are handled in the game? Can you get an OD from drinking them? Are they always poisonous to normal humans?

As I really don't know about moving in plate mail I just have to take your word for it

This is related to the weight distribution. In the case of a chain mail, your shoulders are supporting the entire weight of the armor, since it more or less hangs on your shoulders . You're using those muscles for swinging a weapon and supporting the armor at the same time - it gets ugly quite fast .
Full plate may be heavier, but the weight is more evenly distributed. More muscles are supporting its weight. Most of my friends that have enough time for taking part in historical recreations prefer plate to mail (although not all of them can afford it ).

Okay, thanks for the explanation!

That's based on the way the wizards get their power in the books - it was explained somewhere (in one of the novels IIRC). Did I mention, that it is easier to cast spells related to the element you were using to get your PPs (and more difficult to cast those related to the opposite element)?

No, you didn't mention that But does this mean that you have to keep track of where you got the PPs?

(like Geralt, if you can really call him a hero).

Considering the world he lives in, I think you can. He's a decent guy

Well, yes. Considering the world he lives in. All those greedy merchants and nobles accusing him of everything and still they need his services. What a nice character concept

 

[Pietia]

The game describes a few (six) elixirs and mentions that there are more (it's up to GM ). It also mentions, that some of them may be poisonous to non-witchers. Elixirs can't hurt you.

The skills are not broken down that far. There's one skill for armed combat, one for unarmed, one for ranged combat (well, two - if you count throwing). Other skills are quite generic - etiquette, climbing, tracking... There are a few skills that are broken down - knowledge and performing come to mind (you may know a lot about monsters, but very little about poetry for example) - but they are really more related to the character development than life-threatening situations

You have to track where you got the PPs (but not how much - simply "did I get PPs from fire today?") - you'll probably remember that easily. There's an optional rule that allows the storyteller to restrict a wizard to a single source of power each day - if he used power from water in the morning, he won't be able to use anything else for the rest of the day.

 

[SnowDog]

Not too many elixirs, then even though they seem to be pretty important to Witchers.

So the skill list doesn't seem to be all that terrible, after all. After that description it seems to be in the same order as in Cyberpunk 2020, that can be easily handled.

If there are only four classical elements, then it's not that much of a hassle. That optional rule sounds a bit odd, fortunately it's only an optional rule

Thanks for all the answers, Pietia!

I really hope to see a Witcher RPG in some form or another either as a new game or a translation. Actually it would be cool to see a Polish RPG.