Rolemaster Core: Creature Law

This is new since we last met, the Creature Law I book is out for Rolemaster. The creatures are designed using the game systems instead of being guesswork (in previous editions), so a lot of different. Some are mixed on the changes, but in general, I like designed creatures that are consistent and the numbers worked through and solid. I get why "guessed at" creatures feel better, since those were massaged with play testing and years of use. So in a way, these are a fresh start.

There have been recent formatting changes with the title too, which caused a few negative reviews. So if you have an earlier edition, please update and see if that fixes the problems some reported.

I still have this game out, it survived the last garage push, and it sits along RM-FRP and HARP on my shelves. I don't have a hardcover for this title yet, since that has not been setup yet, but I am eager to get one once all the issues are ironed out and the updates made.

Rolemaster survives into a new era! And I can't wait for the second volume of this book to be released.

Basic Roleplaying

Basic Roleplaying is every bit of a playable game without the "game design work" some claim this game needs. The most "game design work" you will need to do is deciding what optional rules modules to include. The vast majority of the work will be like any other generic game, in picking a setting and establishing the game lore.

If you want a 3d6 system that covers any time or genre, play GURPS.

If you want a d100 system, play this.

I admit, I am a huge fan of GURPS for these sorts of games, but the Chaosium d100 system is a strong second, and gives me that instant Cthulhu vibe. GURPS also has the advantage of having done a ton of research with its source books, so for historical gaming there is no equal to the 3d6 generic gaming champion.

One place I see this game doing very well in is the Pulp and Noir settings that are Cthulhu-adjacent. Why not use Call of Cthulhu? Well, with this game, there is no pressure to add any of those monsters into the game, as they are not in the book. This game would be excellent for a Gangbusters recreation, World War II spy thrillers, and 1950s detective stories.

Another area this system would do well in is the modern era, serving as a role-playing engine for spy and espionage games from the 1960s to today. BRP could easily for any James Bond or Mission Impossible adventure imaginable from any era of the franchises, and cover the ground that other games in the genre covered, including Mercenaries, Spies, and Private Eyes and the Top Secret game. Since both Top Secret and the 007 RPG were d100-based games, BRP would feel right at home and replace those systems easily.

Another area this game would do very well in is with 1980s and 1990s action movies, Vietnam war stories, adventure TV shows, and commando style movie and TV games and books. Rambo, Commando, The A-Team, Baywatch, Platoon, Airwolf, Blue Thunder, Chips, Full Metal Jacket, Able Team, Mack Bolan, and many other films, movies, books, and other adventure stories are easy to run using BRP, and they retain that d100 feel that fits these games so well.

And d100 characters can be made quickly, by hand, and far easier than GURPS. The toughest part of character creation is picking skills, and that is just allocating a pool of points to different profession skill picks. BRP gets you playing instantly, without needing to mess with advantages, disadvantages, skills based on difficulty, and character designers.

If you are selling a quick idea to a group to play "Something: The Roleplaying Game" and your players are new to BRP and GURPS, like they are coming from 5E, I would choose BRP in a heartbeat. There is a reason Call of Cthulhu is the #2 role-playing game in the world (by a huge margin), and it is because of the ease of which players can pick up d100 mechanics.

BRP is a pure, pencil-and-paper, universal role-playing game with no software required to play.

It is a winner. 

We're Back, Redux, Again

I like my d100 games, and in the latest round of garage reorganizations, I pulled them out and I am working on space to shelve them. I enjoy these games too much to store them away, and I want them back.

The big losers this round are 5E (except for Tales of the Valiant), Shadowrun, Mechwarrior, Pathfinder 2, and a bunch of other games I don't have time for. I may come back to them, or I may not.

The big winners this round are my OSR games, Traveller, Call of Cthulhu, Runequest, my 2d6 games, my d100 games, and a few others. GURPS and Dungeon Crawl Classics are solid and staying on my new display-style shelving.

Specifically, Runequest brought me back, again. This game is not that large, and I was only missing one book to have a complete set. I ordered that and I will be back in these lands and exploring. Runequest has this established lore, and it has not been invaded by the stereotypical nu-fantasy tropes, planar beings, or all these 5E variant lineages. Runequest has a wonderful set of its own, established within lore, each with a wonderful lore and history, and the game isn't constantly porting in new things.

Runequest is diversity, history, homeland, plus culture, and that is the perfect mix.

5E is "bland options galore, all the same" like fruity pastel marshmallows in a breakfast cereal. It is lazy diversity with no world, talent, place, sense of home, culture, history, or effort put into it.

It is good to have Elemental Lords as a race, right? What do I do with them? I dunno. Where is their home? Greyhawk? The Forgotten Realms? I dunno. Did they come here from the planes and are looking for a home? I dunno. Corporate wants them in here. They are in the setting.

Sure, "use your imagination" is how they are intended to be used, but I can buy games that do that work for me and give me a higher-quality experience. I can read about them, learn about them, live in their culture, and think about how it would be to play one of them in the campaign. Runequest did the work. D&D doesn't, and to be fair, many games don't. Even some of my OSR games.

ACKS II is an exception, that game is an amazing OSR game that does put in the work, and it covers a similar bronze-age world like Runequest. There is something about these myth and legend games that is a step above the generic pseudo-Renaissance fantasy slop we get these days.

With all these generic fantasy games coming out, Daggerheart, Draw Steel, Cosmere, D&D 2024, Nimble 5e, and so many others - they all feel like they are treading the same ground. Everyone is doing this cosplay fantasy genre, and one game can't be told apart from the other. The only difference is the type, number, and size of dice you roll. Many of them are Powered by the Apocalypse clones with different dicing and narrative mechanics.

Runequest?

That is its own thing.

That is what makes it special. 

YouTube: How to Run RuneQuest | Chaosium Interview

Today, the Chaosium team has a great video on Runequest. Although it is over a year old, it is still a powerful and helpful video for getting started in the game. One of the best points made is to make the Glorantha setting "your setting" and not be afraid to make the world your version of the world. We did this in 3rd Edition when we had cute 3-foot-tall cat people (like out of Hallmark cards) in our world, and they were primarily tinkerers.

The rules of RuneQuest are intricately intertwined with the unique Glorantha setting. This deliberate connection is a testament to the fact that the setting is not just a backdrop, but a crucial element that enhances the gaming experience. Much like the allure of Traveller and the Imperium setting, or the immersive worlds of Shadowrun and Cyberpunk, the appeal of Runequest lies in the experience of 'being there'.

Some have felt that "everyone having magic" is a negative in the setting. The "spirit magic" is a fascinating power system. It is replicated in most "magic using" D&D classes where they use magic for class abilities, like bards and inspiration, or clerics' minor healing and turning dead. Magic is already in almost every D&D class, so why does this problem exist?

In Runequest, professions are not just job titles but paths that lead to the mastery of 'the spirits.' These professions learn to harness the power of the spirits to enhance their abilities, adding a unique and intriguing dimension to the game.

Most people in the setting? One spell costs the amount of money an average family earns in a year, so magic is not that commonplace. Most devotees give permanent POWs to their church and never have spells. Those NPCs who do may know one spell learned over a lifetime or passed down from elders.

Avoid the "spooky Merlin" and "pointed hat" D&D archetypes in this world when thinking about magic. This is more like a carpenter who can "pray to the spirits" to heal a minor wound gained during work, repair a tool, or increase the force of a hammer blow, and this is how magic is seen and used. If you want the "Western Merlin and Harry Potter magic" tropes, go with BRP. A dancer could use the spirits to make their performance more seductive or flashy. Sorcerous practitioners go much further into this world with Rune Magic.

It is a good video that creates a strong foundation for understanding and enjoying the setting and game.

YouTube: High Adventure Role Playing | Rules Breakdown

This is an older video from about two years ago, but it is highly informative as a rules overview of HARP. If you are trying to get started or have it on your shelf and want to learn the game, this video is a great place to start. Check it out if you are interested, and like and subscribe to the creator.

I often refer to this video as a refresher course on the game, and it communicates the concepts and rules well. HARP is a simplified Rolemaster, and it is a complete game that still works very well.

YouTube: Overview - Spell Law

A great Spell Law video today gives an overview of the magic system for Rolemaster. Give it a watch, and like and subscribe to the creator.

d100 Science Fiction Gaming

There are many science fiction D100 games, including some of the best in gaming. Let's start on the BRP side of the D100 hobby, and we have M Space, a Mythras/Legend-derived sci-fi game that comes in a square book (and has a companion). I love the art in this book; it has a Free League look to it, almost Blade Runner-esque.

From the Open Quest side of the BRP sphere comes Rivers of Heaven, another nice-looking d100 sci-fi game that feels lighter and easier to understand. This one has a Traveller, cyberpunk, Dune, and Event Horizon feel, with an established universe and organizations.

Remember Basic Roleplaying when talking about d100 sci-fi! This is my second favorite d100 sci-fi game on this list, especially when Call of Cthulhu and Runequest's monsters are 100% compatible. Your starship combat rules are less robust than the other entries. Still, the rules are amazingly solid and easy to use, and you can run generic sci-fi, movie sci-fi, cyberpunk, Road Warrior,  Alien, 1950's matinee sci-fi, Buck Rogers, or any other genre of sci-fi with these rules and not have to change game systems. Since Call of Cthulhu is the 2nd most popular RPG in the world, and BRP is the core system for that game, people will know how to play this game without too much work.

You may have to put in a little work to create a setting here, so this is more of a "build a sci-fi game" sort of book than the others, which come with worlds ready to go. If you want a BYO universe and setting, start here; the combination of rules, familiarity, and an open system will take you to the stars.

On the Rolemaster side of the d100-verse, we have the classic (and complicated) Space Master. This is an older game we actually played, and the skill lists for characters could extend pages. Space Master is just like Rolemaster Classic, just as chart-filled, detailed, and crit-table-packed as that game. It does take a lot of time to create characters and figure out the rules, so it is not for those looking for a simple game.

We also have HARP SF, which feels like a lighter-weight Space Master. If you are into HARP, this is an excellent sci-fi game in the same style. It has a set universe, and a Mass Effect meets Blade Runner theme, which is fantastic if you like that vibe.

Saving the best for last, we have the excellent Frontier Space, a throwback tribute game like the original Star Frontiers but far better in terms of rules, characters, and action economy. If you are playing Star Frontiers for the memories, consider upgrading your rules system to Frontier Space and using this as your "modern operating system" for that universe. These rules fix the "skills over 100%" problem with a system integrated into the action economy and defense rolls, and it is a genius rule that encourages pulp adventure and exploration.

Frontier Space is worth your time and is the best in sci-fi gaming now. Forget Starfinder, random 5E sci-fi, and everything else; if you love the original 1980s Star Frontiers vibe, this will give it to you on a rocket thruster and blast you into orbit. As a bonus, this is also very compatible with the monsters and magic from Barebones Fantasy, so you can mix and match things between the DWD Studios systems easily. If you need to, since the FS Referee's Handbook has many tables and monster generators, enough to last you a lifetime.

d100 sci-fi gaming is where the fun is, especially when you consider Frontier Space and Basic Roleplaying as two of the best d100 sci-fi systems out there.

Why We Are Back

It has been a while since I've posted, but I always loved the excellent Barebones Fantasy game, the original game this blog covered. So, this blog sat quiet, and I only had a little to say. I enjoyed the game, played occasionally, and did not update this site.

So, I put 5E to the side for a while. What replaced it was Runequest. I wanted something more of the same old fantasy world, that generic pastel-bubblegum-planar sort of every fantasy that gets boring after the 20th time. Runequest made me put Pathfinder's Golarion into my storage boxes, and the world is just that good. The world feels honest; it has a history so deep they published a pair of coffee-table books on it, and the borders and kingdoms are in flux. There are cultures here to lose yourself in. This is the sort of campaign world D&D dreams it could have.

Then, I started to move other games on the shelf that shared the same d100 mechanics. Basic Roleplaying and Call of Cthulhu were easy to put alongside since they are all Chaosium games and equally as good.

Then I wondered what would happen if I put all my d100 games on the same shelf. Barebones Fantasy, its sister games of Covert Ops, and the outstanding Frontier Space were easy choices.

Runequest's "sister games" of Mythras, Open Quest, and Simple Quest were also easy to put alongside these greats.

Rolemaster is very d100, one of the OG games of the 1980s. Its MERP-like sister game, HARP, was also an easy choice. Another MERP sister game is Against the Darkmaster.

I found a dozen amazing d100 games on that shelf and decided to make a space where I could talk about them. All of them are sort of "d100 dungeon games." Even Frontier Space and Covert Ops, if you remember the original inspiration games of Star Frontiers and Top Secret, were also very "dungeon-like" in their modules, so in a way, they fit in well.

There are really three different lineages of the d100 system here, the TSR one, the Rolemaster one, and the Runequest one. In a way, the games are all different, but in another, they are very similar. The Rolemaster branch is the only roll-high d100 system here, while the others are roll-under. Some are d10-only, while others mix in the standard polyhedral dice.

And I know I am missing M-Space, HARP-SF, and Space Master. Those could be here as well.

So my Barebones Fantasy blog now has some incredible neighbors and games to share this space with, all of which are d100 games. BBF will still get love, but rekindling all my great d100 games will help make this place more random and exciting but with one common theme.

YouTube: HARP - High Adventure Role Playing, is it fun?

Here is a video about HARP that popped up on my YouTube feed, and this was published today. I do not see too many videos about HARP (and I have yet to watch this), so I love sharing and listening to creators discuss some of my favorite games.

Check out the video, like, and subscribe!

Rolemaster

Rolemaster is rebuilding their game, and this one is a classic. Also, it is d100! So, this is in the blog. How could we not? They have the first three hardcovers in PoD: Core Law, Spell Law, and Treasure Law (2024 release; hardcover is out now). I want those two Creature Law books!

This is an all-time classic d100 game, dating back to the early 1980s. Affectionately called Chart Master, it lives up to its name in glorious fashion, and the crit charts here are things of legend that ended many an adventurer's career.

Mythras

I am rooting for Mythras. The original OGL release has a type size that I can't read; it is too small and dense for my eyes. The newer releases under the ORC License are much better. Still, I want a full book (with good readability) that covers everything in the original setting, plus the Classic Fantasy book. I really want to see this game's full, hardcover, new edition.

This is another Runequest 6 and Legend-derived game with significant improvements and mechanics. This is 100% worth checking out if you are a d100 and Runequest fan.

Also, it is added to the blog as another classic d100 game!

HARP

Do we have another d100 fantasy game? This one is a classic game, the MERP-style simplified Rolemaster game, High Adventure Role Playing?

It is d100 dungeon crawling, and you can collect the complete game via PoD! I say it is in.

Welcome, HARP, to the blog!

Open Quest & Simple Quest

There are so many amazing D100 games out there, including D101 Games' Open Quest and Simple Quest games. This is sort of a mix between an RQ6/Legend system and a B/X style game, open-licensed and amazing.

Simple Quest is an even more stripped-down and simple version. Let's add them to the blog. Keep those percentile dice ready!