Which RPGs are the easiest for you to run?
In order to answer this question, I think we have to look at the person running the game. When I run a game I'm more of a rules light type of GM. Most of the time when a question pops up about a rule I'm unsure about at the table I'll do one of two things. First would be to make a snap decision. Just make up something on the spot and go back and check it later after the game. The second would be to have the player who asked the question look it up in the book while I move on and keep running the game. This way we don't get bogged down with rules and everyone has fun. With this GM mentality in mind then I can say most RPG's are fairly easy for me to run. As long as the system isn't too crunchy then it should play well enough for me to make snap decisions. Some systems lend themselves more so than others to ease of use. Savage Worlds is one of those systems. I keep coming back to Savage Worlds in my posts not because I'm a fan boy of the system but because it is an easy system to learn, play, and run.
All you have to do is look at how the items and actions are structured within the game and you'll see that most of the time all you really have to do to make something easier or more difficult for the player characters is give them a simple modifier. As an example, I want to make a combat encounter more difficult, so instead of just describing the scene as normal throw in some environmental factors. Lots of games account for these things but in Savage Worlds is as easy as just saying -2 to the roll. Dark outside, -2 to see the bad guy. The room is filling with smoke from the fire your NPC started, -2 to see and make a Vigor roll to not choke on the smoke or take Fatigue.
Let's say you want to make a rare item that your players can find. It's as easy as looking at the equipment tables in the core book and adding a +1 or +2. Yeah, but it's still a Glock 19 with just a modifier added. Well you can describe it as a Glock 19 with target sights and an extended barrel, or you could say it's a high tech phase shifting disruptor which is better than a normal non phase shifting disruptor. I would be very careful about adding additional dice to the weapons though. Usually +1 is good enough and +2 is awesome! Remember that shooting in Savage Worlds usually only requires a 4 to hit.
You can do the same thing with special powers and magic. Just change the descriptor of the spell to make it unique to the setting you're playing and if you want a more powerful spell as the characters gain rank then make an Improved spell. Set the rank requirement to Veteran and add a +2 to the effects. When you look at the way the game works, it'll make sense to you why so many people keep coming back to Savage Worlds once they have played a few games.
Before I forget, make sure to check out The RPG Brewery's Twitch channel tomorrow night. Jamie is starting a test run of Cthulhu type games with two of his friends. They will be starting session 0 of either Trail of Cthulhu or Call of Cthulhu where they will go through character creation. Also, go join the Nerds-International Google+ community. It's a great collection of podcasts, live plays, blogs, and other nerdy stuff. Click the link below.
All you have to do is look at how the items and actions are structured within the game and you'll see that most of the time all you really have to do to make something easier or more difficult for the player characters is give them a simple modifier. As an example, I want to make a combat encounter more difficult, so instead of just describing the scene as normal throw in some environmental factors. Lots of games account for these things but in Savage Worlds is as easy as just saying -2 to the roll. Dark outside, -2 to see the bad guy. The room is filling with smoke from the fire your NPC started, -2 to see and make a Vigor roll to not choke on the smoke or take Fatigue.
Let's say you want to make a rare item that your players can find. It's as easy as looking at the equipment tables in the core book and adding a +1 or +2. Yeah, but it's still a Glock 19 with just a modifier added. Well you can describe it as a Glock 19 with target sights and an extended barrel, or you could say it's a high tech phase shifting disruptor which is better than a normal non phase shifting disruptor. I would be very careful about adding additional dice to the weapons though. Usually +1 is good enough and +2 is awesome! Remember that shooting in Savage Worlds usually only requires a 4 to hit.
You can do the same thing with special powers and magic. Just change the descriptor of the spell to make it unique to the setting you're playing and if you want a more powerful spell as the characters gain rank then make an Improved spell. Set the rank requirement to Veteran and add a +2 to the effects. When you look at the way the game works, it'll make sense to you why so many people keep coming back to Savage Worlds once they have played a few games.
Before I forget, make sure to check out The RPG Brewery's Twitch channel tomorrow night. Jamie is starting a test run of Cthulhu type games with two of his friends. They will be starting session 0 of either Trail of Cthulhu or Call of Cthulhu where they will go through character creation. Also, go join the Nerds-International Google+ community. It's a great collection of podcasts, live plays, blogs, and other nerdy stuff. Click the link below.
No comments:
Post a Comment