The Role of Roleplaying games.

[Fishi3]

I've been thinking back on all the roleplaying games I've played and it struck me that alot of the rules sets had flaws particular to themselves. D&D for instance never had a realistic fall damage system and still doesn't
Traveller had so many flaws it is infamous. It is however still better than most of the Sci fi games in the genre of Space Opera produced to date which says something as well.

All of this has me thinking. What Roleplaying games do you play now?

My list is as follows.
Pendragon.
Traveller.
D&D 3e
Everquest RPG
LotR
Dune
Star Wars
Starclusters
Misc others that are home brews.

Obviously we don't play more than one at a time but our game master tends to change games ever 2 months. So we flip flop back and forth.

I also roleplay on web sims where you write what your doing and the GM and other players reply and in that format I play

Star Trek.

Theres also a Firefly based game that I haven't gotten into simply because I love Firefly so much that I'm not sure I can stand subjecting it to players who don't understand continuity and the idea that you can only be in one place at one time.
(player in the Star Trek game is in 3 seperate threads that put her in 3 seperate locations during the same time period which I could stand if she wasn't a substandard player who has no clue. But nuff said.)
I have moments in that game that test my personal dedication to being a pacifist. (Thats me rl pacifist. I'm fine roleplaying aggression.)

So what do you play?

Edited to fix typos that I noticed. Typos that remain undetected will be eliminated as they are noticed.

I am the typo queen!!!

[Firia]

So what do you play?

In no order,

D&D 3.5,
Cyberpunk (R. Talsorians' Version 2'ish)
And G.U.R.P.S.

We've accepted that nothing is perfect,
and once you accept that, you're one step closer to everlasting harmoney...
Or at least not freaking out on the delivery guy.

[Otori]

Believe it or not, I still manage some online play with a group in Oklahoma, and found some new fiends in Hawaii playing:

Shadowrun

But that the only one I can seem to find time for.

Not to draw any attention from listening to GSP but these guys have some good smack on "Table RPGs" and they stay pretty up to date:

http://www.darkdungeons.net/

[Ashval]

Having just gotten home at 4am from tabletop gaming, this is a topic close to my heart.

Our sessions we've run recently:

D&D 3.5 (still my favorite)
Vampire the Masquerade
Star Wars
A Game of Thrones
Shadowrun
World of Darkness
Serenity

[Jugsmalone]

Well for me I can only devote my time to ONE game and than I move on I played D&D years ago when my kids were still in high school and they caled it the devils game ,, as any good mom they wanted to play it buy the books ect so I checked it out and loved it my self so I hosted tons of D&D extravaganzas to say the least.. after that stoped over to for a time and played Vampire and went to Ultima Online that addicted me to the computer so I stayed thier for 3 years they changed the game for idiots so I left and went to AO I love AO and cant see me leaveing ever.. I still have a large collection of D&D books and dice ect. as well as tons of figurines and such I am sort of a pack rat and cant seem to get rid of things but now that my house is bulgeing at the seems and I am planing on selling it and moveing some time in the next few years It is time for me to sel give away throw away tons of collected stuff... I love roleplay but no matter what I am into some how a bit of me is always in my characters I just cant be really fake...

[Jassel]

Having just gotten home at 4am from tabletop gaming, this is a topic close to my heart.

Our sessions we've run recently:

D&D 3.5 (still my favorite)
Vampire the Masquerade
Star Wars
A Game of Thrones
Shadowrun
World of Darkness
Serenity

What about AO?

Right now I get into WoW once in a while, and AO... Getting back into it though has been hard since I had not played for so long.

[Negs]

AO and WoW all i've played.

Closest to anything before that, was .. well I used to play Golden Axe back in the day at our local Arcade hehehe

[Tarryk]

Loving this subject, too. I have too much to say, I'll "attempt" to summarize...er...okay post-thought: that didn't work, sorry for the post length of doom!!)

As for MMORPG games, I play:

AO (yes, I do really play it fairly regular, shaddup)

Everquest (okay, I don't actually play it, I just installed it because someone I know has a free server, and I haven't gotten around to even making a character yet...because dude...it's EQ)

Then the MMORPGs I alternate through, buy-and-cancel months in a rotating fashion:

EVE Online (inactive)
WOW (active)
City of Heroes/Villains (inactive)

Then the MMOs I have played but no longer will:

Auto Assault (suckiest game ever to have a badass soundtrack)
Lineage 2 (horrid)
Earth & Beyond (I'd still play this religiously if they hadn't cancelled it, booo!!)
RF Online (bleh)
Matrix Online (awful)
Planetside (used to be fun, expansions ruined what I liked about it)
Star Wars Galaxies (both old and new version were/are awful)
Runescape (bleh)
Vendetta Online (great concept, but 100% PvP killed it for me)
Guild Wars (too generic)
Neocron 2 (pretty, but gameplay was a joke)
Rubies of Eventide (crap)
Second Life (don't get me started on this feed-my-false-ego dramafest)
Ultima Online (really not that bad, just post-dated graphics & I don't like isometric views)
Various MUDs, MUSHes, & MOOs (avatarMUD was my favorite, I poke in there and roll up a character maybe once a year just for the nostalgia)

Then the tabletop games I've played (almost always as the GM) and currently active or not in:

* D&D 2nd Ed: Forgotten Realms (I always argue for this edition, 2nd Ed hits just the right buttons on allowance for fast, cinematic gameplay without any rulemongering, statcrunching or page-flipping, hardly even need the book after the first read) (inactive--because everyone but me hates 2nd Ed haha)

* Shadowrun (inactive, liked it)

* Shadowrun: DMZ (inactive, liked it even better than Shadowrun)

* Cyberpunk (inactive, LOVED it)

* GURPS: Realistic/Cyberpunk (inactive but LOVED more than regular Cyberpunk)

* GURPS: Full List of tried-and-liked: Vampire, Mystery, Fantasy, StarTrek, and a few others I can remember, and a few modern-day campaigns I ran that turned into really messed up X-Files episodes)

* Vampire (inactive, disliked)

* Star Wars (played first ed only, where you had to have a bucket of d6's...I just loved making those roles haha)

* Warhammer Fantasy (inactive, disliked)

* Warhammer 40k Realms of Chaos - Lost and the Damned: Warband Style (jesus long-ass name, those brits get crazy with their warband games; inactive, but one of the best games I've ever ran)

* Robotech (inactive, learned to hate Paladdium rules forever thanks to this game)

* Mechwarrior (inactive, sorta liked it, but only because it resulted in sessions of...)

* Battletech: Citytech - Inner Sphere/Pre-Clan Wars (inactive, but greatest tabletop warband game EVER, clan tech ruined it IMO, so I always played pre-clan...Locust pilots FTW!!)

* Serenity (very active, and I could almost delete all games before this, because this is the best game I've ever played, despite my fandom for the series, the rules are PERFECT for cinematic fast-paced play...and this is the only game I've not GMed...YET...)

[Jugsmalone]

OK TK enlighten me just what type of interaction play is Serenity I adore the series watch it over and over I would love a second Serenity for sure so what is the game like is it anything like the series do you pick and make your characters I dont want to buy and try it unless it seems worth it to me.. and besides I love to read any and all information by YOU on anything and everything Teach ME oh great one

[Innari]

Rubies of Eventide.... oh my god Tarryk, I didn't think anyone else was aware this game existed. Holy mother of god is it utter crap... *cries from remembering the horror*

[Tarryk]

Rubies of Eventide.... oh my god Tarryk, I didn't think anyone else was aware this game existed. Holy mother of god is it utter crap... *cries from remembering the horror*

Yeah, that was certainly a stinker in the wind, hehehe.

OK TK enlighten me just what type of interaction play is Serenity I adore the series watch it over and over I would love a second Serenity for sure so what is the game like is it anything like the series do you pick and make your characters I dont want to buy and try it unless it seems worth it to me..

Fair enough, but it's tough to give a low-down on the interactive play based simply on the book of the RPG, of course. The interactivity and cinematics (as I like to call it) are only as good as the GM and player group that you've got. But the system itself is, in my opinion, one of the best because of it's simplicity. All the stats in the game are based on simple dice that step upward from d2 to d12 (d2, d4, d6, d8, d10, d12), then from d12+d2 up the line to d12+d12. You advance them upwards in the range with xp, and checking anything is as simple as rolling them against either a difficulty number or an opponent's dice.

With that basic rules set, you can easily keep track of every stat you have, and make checks against tasks ("Roll your Perception + Mechanical Engineering vs. a 10 to repair the engine") and enemies ("I shoot at the gorram reaver, so I'll roll my Agility + Pistol Skill vs. the reaver's Agility + Dodge Skill") at the drop of a hat. While there are much more complicated rules you can delve into in the book, sticking to the basics makes gameplay fast and easy, so that the GM and players can focus much more on the story and acting out the drama (or, in many cases, the comedy) rather than flipping through rules or scouring over their character sheet for some particular trait detail.

In my campaign, we play very similar to the series. We're a crew on board an 03 class Firefly, the "Kismet". My character is Magellan "Mage" Kodai, a rather insane dreadlocked neo-wiccan computer hacker with a databook surgically implanted into the base of his skull. He's known for coveting all data he can find, and has a penchant for being a little insane about completing a "righteous hack". He figures it makes him enough of an asset to any crew of a less than reputable boat to keep around and not charge fare, if he can open just about any electronic door and create some pretty snazzy lowtech devices with nothing but scrap metal and a pulse beacon. The skipper doesn't seem to be complainin', anyhow. Werd.

[Jugsmalone]

Ahhhh cool so IN my tiny brain it is like D&D enters Firefly a future D&D game awsome and Thanks lots

[Tarryk]

That's basically it, yeah.

(sorry people, I hope I didn't just kill this thread...back on topic, the lot of you!)

[Mivat]

Here's my not-so-little list...

Tabletop-games:

D&D/AD&D (2nd ed. Inactive)
SLA Industries (Cyberpunk/horror, Loved it, No-one to play with, Inactive)
Dragonlance-series (Inactive)
Battletech, pre-clan (Inactive)
Call of Chtulu (Inactive. Too stereotypical)

Computer-based:

Elder Scrolls-series (Arena, Daggerfall, Morrowind, Oblivion, active)
Eye of the Beholder-series (Probably one of the best D&D/AD&D-games for computers. Active. Abandonware FTW!)
Planescape: Torment (Inactive. Great game)
Neverwinter Nights (Inactive)
Dungeon Siege 1 & 2 (Inactive)
Baldurs Gate/Icewind Dale-series (Inactive)
Might & Magic-series (inactive)

MMO's
Star Wars Galaxies (Active, semi-fun)
World of Warcraft (Active, Semi-fun)
Anarchy Online (Inactive/retired)
Auto Assault (Beta'ed. Inactive)
RF Online (urk...Inactive)
Second Life (Inactive. Don't get me started.)
EVE Online (Inactive. If gamecards was sold here in Norway: Active)
Earth & Beyond (BOO ON EA!!! Would be playing if still around)
Lineage 2 (Beta'ed. Looks great, plays awful. Inactive)
City of Villains/Heroes (Inactive. Mindless but fun for a while)
Hero Online (Beta'ed. Excuse me while I vomit, please)
Guild Wars. (Beta'ed. Shallow, generic game. Inactive)
Horizons (Fun until Tulga got bought by EI. Dragons FTW, inactive)
Final Fantasy XI (WAY too generic. Inactive)
Everquest (inactive)
Dungeons & Dragons Online (Inactive due to lack of solo-content)
Dark Ages of Camelot (Inactive)
Dark & Light (Beta'ed. Inactive)
Battletech 3052 (Beta'ed until EA pulled the plug. Loved it, Inactive)

As a sidenote, I'll add that the biggest issue I have with MMO's these days is that damn close to ALL of them are only variations of DAOC/EQ. Honorable remarks go to Earth & Beyond, EVE Online and AO just for being different. On the topic of SWG...well...They put out a game that was, in itself, a great concept although flawed. They UTTERLY broke it with the CU (Combat Upgrade, or more to the point: Combat F**kup) and the NGE. Post-NGE the game is so-so. Nothing really great, but not all horrible either.

[Nexeus]

Tabletop:

D&D - blah, we've all started somewhere, I actually picked up D&D later on in life, and never really liked its system, it seemed more dice throwing than actual game play
WW Series (includes Vampire: Dark Ages, Vampire: The Masquarade) - granted the system isn't flawless, I like it's emphasis, or the ability to emphasis more on the role play aspects rather than just throw dice around, and the flaw system is pretty damn cool.
Warhammer 40000 - Cool playing with miniatures... which is uncool as well. Never really got into it, but had fun doing it, reminded me of Axis of Power

Computer Games:

Morrowind - never got much into it
Baulders Gate I and II - D&D Done right!
Icewind Dale - Odd setyp, didn't have as much flash as Baulder's Gate did, but was still well done!
Neverwinter Nights - D&D done even better!

MMO's
Gemstone - inactive, and who really likes text based stuff!
Anarchy Online - stared with MMO's here - I feel the system is a bit too complex now, although the point system is cool, for certain things who really uses swimming anyway anymore? Also between AI points, and Lvls, and Shadow Lands points and Perks - things just seem very tiered, and needlessly complicated.
Second Life - although I'm active as hell here, it's not a game, but more of a platform... so I can't judge it against anything else here.
World of Warcraft - hate to say it, MMO's done right, very immersive, interactive, and can be complicated based on simple principles. Leveling/stat system is cool, "customization" (talents, etc) are pretty cool. Really well thought out.

I've dabbled in other worlds through friends accounts and such, but the real heart of the matter for me is that in order to have a successful game, you have to 1) grab me with a story, 2) grab me with the ability to really outfit/do/customize what I want to do within the said parameters given... very few MMO's have learned that lesson or make it way too complex!

[brudus_maximus]

holy crap Tarryk why didn't you tell me you played WoW, we could have been chillin. I feel kinda left out. I love to roleplay but i never was around people at a young age that played D&D and stuff. I'm 25 right now and feel that i've missed out.

My last RPing experience was in WoW. I was in an all Warlock heavy RP guild.

[Chippel]

I play the following MMORPGs:
Anarchy Online
Gaia Online (Just for the hell of it. YAY for Fishing. That's just plain awesome man. GO is just fun/ny. I'm saving tin-cans for a tin-can hat )

I was going to try more, but I can only work up so much money at this point in time, and I use it to fuel my AO addiction, yanno?

In non-MMO style:
Morrowind (WEWTz0r for Morrowind. After I beat it regularly, I played around with god-mode.. You can't survive a god-mode spell reflected back on you no matter how hard you try! -cries-)
Demonstone (A little complicated to cycle the characters at first.. But so much fun. (At least untill the point I get stuck at ))
Harvest Moon: GB. Harvest Moon 2: GBC. Harvest Moon 3: GBC. Harvest Moon: Friends of Mineral Town. Harvest Moon: Another Wonderful Life. (What can I say? It's an addiction... WTB Harvest Moon: N64 though.. It was my favorite!)
The occasional FF2 and FF:Mystic Quest. (SNES, baby.)
Do the Legend of Zelda games count?
And.. The occasional forum RP.

Although I'd love to play DnD, but preferably old skewl style. Stories my dad and 'uncle' tells me.. Sound like soooo much fun.

[Negs]

holy crap Tarryk why didn't you tell me you played WoW, we could have been chillin. I feel kinda left out. I love to roleplay but i never was around people at a young age that played D&D and stuff. I'm 25 right now and feel that i've missed out.

My last RPing experience was in WoW. I was in an all Warlock heavy RP guild.

lotta people are in WoW now.

I think i've logged into AO maybe 2 times totally since FC totally borked up my gameplay with 16.4 both times just to chill at a gsp show (one of which was ours)

[Heevan]

Heheh. I've done a bit of RP in my time...DnD...FF7/8/9/10...
Morrowind....URU (meh, dont really know if it counts as RP...but still all good. ) Just a lot of escapism.
Joined an RP group on Second Life too...and had some...shocking revelations from it.

Quick show of hands: Who thinks cyb0r is okay?

(Not judging - or inviting - anyone here...but I do get the feeling that maybe my view on life might be stuck in the stoneage somewhere...that or I'm crazy...or everyone else is crazy...hmm.)

[Smrtazz]

i tried WoW, but it got very shallow as you progressed. mainly i play AO, and i did give Secondlife a try, but that was short lived due to lag issues, and the furries just creeped me out.