Game Shopping

[ralphmelton]

I returned Game Mastering Secrets to Phantom of the Attic a while ago, because I didn't find anything novel or surprising in it. (Compare this to Robin's Laws, which was fantastically useful.)

So now I have some credit with Phantom. But I'm having trouble thinking of things I want to buy. The candidates I can think of:

- Nobilis.
Pros: I've heard lots of good things about it. I like the idea of a Sandmanesque RPG, and I like the discussion of pre-negotiating game contracts.
Cons: It's fairly expensive. I suspect that I'd be fairly challenged to play it, and that GMing it is beyond my current abilities. I'm not sure who I would play it with.

- The Buffy: the Vampire Slayer RPG.
Pros: I've heard lots of good things about it. It's claimed to be good at representing Buffy, and good at handling the differences in power levels between different characters.
Cons: I've only watched two episodes of Buffy; it's plausible that the RPG might not be the best way to get into the show. I'm not sure I would ever get to play.

- Monster Manual II
Pros: A much better chance that I'd actually find something useful for my current games.
Cons: I haven't heard much buzz about it, and I'm not sure it's likely to really thrill me.

I'd really like to buy good adventures. But it's hard to find adventures that look decent and fit well with my plot plans. At least I have a few months of adventures for the moment--hopefully I'll generate my own adventures in the meantime.

I'm not quite sure what I do want for gaming, but I'm having trouble finding it.

Comments

[fadethecat.livejournal.com]

I'd recommend Nobilis and BtVS, myself. (Yes, I shill for games I like. Heh. Pay no attention to the bias!) The first is mind-warping cool, and well worth the price; I've also been told that it's not as difficult to run as one might believe, at first. The game does encourage the players to do a lot of the work, as it were, and vast portions of the beautiful, complex setting can be ignored altogether if they're not useful for your game. If you ran it (online), I'd play; heck, if I had the time, I'd try to run it myself. Check out the sample chapters at Hogshead's site; they have a great example of play, among other things, which shows it off nicely.

As for the BtVS game, it's an excellent adaptation of the show. If you like the show, you should like the game, and the reverse will also hold true. If you've seen even a few episodes of the show, and liked it, that'll probably be enough; there's a nicely detailed, but not overwhelming, summary of the first few seasons, and lots of advice for the GM and players on how to work with the 'feel' of the show, such as an entire section on how the people on the show play with language. It's also quite cheerful about giving advice on how to mangle canon, and contains lots of nice itty bitty NPC summaries, as well as a completely integrated (but easily used seperately) package of PCs for a game that's very much like, but not the same as, the show.

...I'll stop shilling now. But two cool games. Get 'em!

[ralphmelton.livejournal.com]

Well, your commentary adds to the good buzz that I've heard for Nobilis and BtVS. And I've read the example of play, and it was indeed a wonderful example of play.

My big concerns about not getting to play are these:
- I already am running one campaign and playing in another (plus a third occasional campaign), and I'm quite sure that I shouldn't GM more than one campaign at a time.
- The campaigns I've been involved in around here are very tactically oriented. I'd like to participate in a very story-oriented campaign with lots of roleplaying, but I'm not sure how to make that happen around me. (That's another argument for an online game--I find it much easier to play up a role online.)

[fadethecat.livejournal.com]

Oh, I agree; it's much easier to play a role online, when die rolling is boring but everyone's dialogue is easily heard. That's why I prefer it, really; tactical stuff isn't so much my cup of tea, especially since I'm not particularly good at it.

GMing more than one campaign at a time....is probably a bad idea, much as I'd like to pressure you into running a game in either of those. I tried it briefly, and quickly realized it Just Wouldn't Work. Maybe we can hunt down someone on the PyraMOO willing to GM one of those?