**Come here and talk about anything!**

This post will stay stickied for (at least) the week-end. Please enjoy this space where you can talk about anything: your last game, your current project, your patreon, etc. You can even talk about video games, ask for a group, or post a survey or share a new meme you've just found. This is the place for small talk on r/rpg.

The off-topic rules may not apply here, but the other rules still do. This is less the Wild West and more the Mild West. Don't be a jerk.

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I (22m) mentioned to my girlfriend (22f) that I was thinking of playing a mother who's only child recently died for an upcoming Stonetop campaign. (For those who aren't familiar, Stonetop is a PBtA game set in a fantasy world's Iron Age focused on the community of a small village). She said she thinks it would be inappropriate since I am a man, and that I should play a father instead.

I don't know how to feel about this. On one hand, I think TTRPGs are and should be a safe space to explore many different emotional realities, as long as nobody is falling into harmful stereotypes or making anyone at the table unwelcome or uncomfortable. On the other, I am not as compelled by the idea of playing the father version of the character, and its worth interrogating that impulse.

I guess I just want some extra perspective on this. How would you feel if a man brought this character to your table?

I also want to clarify that I am not at all asking for relationship advice. We had a normal, healthy discussion about it, but reddit can be weird about that sometimes so I thought I'd nip that in the bud.

Tonight I ran my first game of Eat the Reich, the game by Grant Howitt. The game gathered quite a lot of interest, even by people who didn't actually want to play it (“it sounds to violent for me” which is fair enough, that's why I tried to be very clear about the game was).

It was a truckload of fun. We played a 3 hours long one-shot, and we laughed all along. We went through 3 locations: the Hostel in sector 3, the metro station in sector 2, and the Eiffel Tower/Zeppelin in sector 1.

I was really very fun, but at the same time I can't really say it's a good game. You need to have everyone being enthusiastic about gore description of Nazis being killed in various ways because that's the beginning and the end of what's fun in the game.

The system is really quite awkward. You have 6 or 7 stats, but you'll basically only use one, maybe two. You could use a lower stat to trigger an item extra bonus, but that basically means rolling one fewer dice for your stat to get one extra dice from your item… not really exciting.
I've had to really revamp the reinforcement rules on the fly (which I don't like to do) because the more powerful the opposition the more the optimal choice is to put all your successes into advancing the objective rather than killing Nazis, which makes the game less fun.

The flashbacks were very cool. We loved playing these extra scenes. We had 7 of these and the players were always happy to roll 2 successes or fewer just so they could reroll for a flashback.

I added a rule that another PC could check one of their items to add a die to one of their ally's roll to add an element of teamwork, it was simple but worked fine.

It was a very entertaining and fun one-shot. I can't imagine running this game over 3 to 4 sessions like the author intend it. It would get old by the second session imo.

So my take-home message is: It's a very fun game for a one-shot. Have your players go through 3 to 4 locations, keep the pace as high as possible. And prepare 2-3 extra flashback options.

I'm looking for a TTRPG that would work well for a campaign set in the world of Netflix's Arcane.

And I know Arcane is based on League of Legends, but I've never played LoL and don't really plan to. I'm specifically interested in capturing what I love about the show, which is the character drama, complicated relationships, political/social conflict, dangerous/cool/cinematic action and choices that have real consequences.

I'm completely open to setting-agnostic or genreless systems or even reskinning a system designed for something else if it fits.

What I don't want: - D&D 5e/PF2e/Daggerheart/Draw Steel/GURPS - Combat focused systems in general - Anything particularly crunchy - Outgunned

I'm much more interested in something narrative/story focused where the characters, their relationships, and the conflicts around them can drive the game.

What system would you use for this?

Hey team,

I’m a forever GM of 5(.5)e and have been slowly branching out as a player, however my list of other games that I now own and have not yet played grows ever longer.

The two campaigns I was GMing have both recently finished at the same time, and after a short break and playing at a few drop-in tables in various systems, I want to find a solution to my backlog.

So, I want to start a TTRPG “book club” of sorts with some folks I know who are familiar with TTRPGs and want to try out some new systems.

My idea as it currently stands is that as a group, we select a system to try out and I run a 4-6 session arc, and then vote on the next one to try.

Would that sound appealing to you fine folks? If you were to participate, how would you ideally like it to be structured? What would you want the GM to keep in mind? Other players? (Ie character creation together or separately before coming together, etc)

The biggest drawback I see, naturally, would be not being able to get a full sense of character progression for many games. But also, given that the objective is to try different systems, that’s kind of the nature of it.

Something I thought of (after recently reading Cloud Atlas lol) would be to try and somehow link up an overarching story between the systems that I want to try. It would be more work for me as the GM but could be cool. In this case it would be the group selecting 5-6 out of my longer list right at the beginning so I know how to link them up. How does that sound to you? Would you prefer to just “start fresh” for each game?

For those curious, here is the list of games I have thusfar - inevitably there are tons others that would fit the list but I’m not looking for game recs in this thread as with just this list, playing 4-6 biweekly sessions each would take about 3 years already. Out of them I have only been a player in Public Access, Troika!, and Numenera, and never GMed anything other than D&D.

- Broken Tales
- Legend in the Mist
- Root: The Roleplaying Game
- Public Access
- Numenera
- Shiver
- Valraven
- Troika!
- Daggerheart
- Stillfleet
- Blades in the Dark
- Cyperpunk RED
- Ultraviolet Grasslands
- Mork Borg

Just to be up front: this is not a post looking for advice, or validation, or anything of the sort. This is stream of consciousness venting that might resonate with others.

So, I think about this hobby every day. I currently carry around two different journals for writing down thoughts, system ideas, and world building stuff in my daily bag. I write in both of them most days. I also spend a lot of time reading new rulesets, constantly hunting for "perfect" game. This is part of my problem.

The other part of my problem is that I haven't actually played in years, since 2022 or 2023.

Some context: the last time I played a TTRPG I was the DM in a 5e campaign that ran about 6 months, a session every other week. It was a complete story, going from level 1 to 20 (with decently quick milestone leveling), and I'm proud of what me and my group made in that campaign, but it had issues. Most notably, one player constantly made jokes about about my partner's character that made her uncomfortable. I'd talk to him, he'd stop for a few sessions, do it again, I'd talk to him again, etc. etc. The good news is that she still ended up having a lot of fun despite him, but it was a major contributor to us moving away from those friends after the end of the campaign.

Around the same time the game ended, I started back at university and I knew I just wouldn't have time to consistently dedicate to play. So, sans group and time, that was the last time I played.

At the same time, my frustrations with 5e were coming to a head. The game had enough options and kitchen sink fantasy flavor that I could make plenty of exciting characters and story ideas, but the real sticking point was combat. Why should we spend 4 hours in combat if combat is the worst part of the experience? So I started hunting.

I have ravenously consumed rules from dozens of games. I have an absurd library of PDFs for games I'll never play thay I paid for. I could tell probably, from memory, tell you many of the core rules from a dozen different games.

For a time I thought Shadow of the Demon Lord was the perfect game, then for a longer while I thought Dragonbane was perfect (I still do, actually, it's not fresh and new to me anymore), right now Mythic Bastionland is my jam.

I've also made a bunch of games. I have two games published on itch, one is a solo space exploration game, and the other was for a 36 word game jam. I've also got a neat little Kingdom Hearts hack for Lasers and Feelings. I'm like 80% done with a pastoral fantasy game based on Troika! I've also started brainstorming a novel d6 dice pool game that I'm just calling "Kitchen Sink Fantasy" right now.

I love making things. I love thinking and reading about this hobby. I miss playing though.

I talk about getting a game going all the time, but it never comes to furition. At this point I'm in a master's program, I'm a TA, and I'm teaching gened composition. There are other things as well, but you don't need my whole life story.

At this point, things are coming to a head. I've spent years trying to pin down the perfect game for all my little sensibilities, making things on my own, and never actually playing. At this point I'm tired and frustrated, mostly with myself. It feels like I've spent so much time facing perfection that it's gotten in the way of the actual doing of the thing.

Usually this would be the part where I resolve to think less, play more, and get over myself. Unfortunately, I can't do that. I still don't particularly have a lot of time to play. Worse still, even though I'm fully aware that my search for the perfect game will never bare true fruit, I can still feel the brain-itch saying "Just one more system. Just read on more."

I have tried some solo rpgs. I played a decent amount of d100 dungeon, and I threw a few characters in the meat grinder of tunnels and trolls solo adventures. I've found that I don't love oracles/gm emulators. I enjoy playing solo, but it's closer to the joy I get from building a model than roleplaying. It's medatative, but not exhilarating.

I think that's the end, for now. If you bothered to read this an something resonated with you, let me know.

Looking for a system(s) to look into for my table. They're very creative and exploratory with their characters so something not too restrictive there. Looking for something more narrative based than hard numbers/stats. I have two brand new players that are easily overwhelmed by the complex rules of DND and one more experienced player who likes to game the system and leave the other two feeling like background characters. We play in person and I'm lazy when it comes to maps so keep that in mind please.

I feel like a new system is the way to proceed. I'm open to many ideas. Thanks!

My players have been asking for a wild West game, ever since one of them finally finished red dead 2. So I'm trying to do some research on what systems would work best for that type of game.

I saw that people usually suggest Deadlands. But from my cursory glance, it seems a bit more fantastical than they're looking for. I'm sure I could make it work, but I'd have to change a fair bit, since my players have asked for a more grounded, and realistic campaign setting. But they still want the ability to do absurd shit. Like a dead eye.

So what would y'all suggest?

I understand that this request is contradictory, and that Deadlands will likely be the best choice. But I still wanted to make the request, in case y'all know something better. <3

Welcome one and all to a post where we can freely discuss the games that we have released or the games that we are making. Stop on by and maybe you'll find your new favourite RPG!

A bunch of us make cool shit, but the Indie RPG space is crowded and it can often be difficult to get the word out about why people should try out your game. That's why every week we try to focus on a different mechanic or setting to see how new RPGs can solve decades old problems or put new spins on old greivances!

Knights and wizards are cool and all, but what about the rest of the world? There is such a rich cultural history in every part of the globe to draw from! Whether it translates myths one for one into game or just takes inspiration from unusal places, come tell us how your game (or just any game you really like) tackles Non-Western (Fantasy) Settings!

Thank you... me, for the suggestion!

As per mod approval, comments here do not count against rule 7 - comment as much as you want, answer as many questions as you need and discuss to your hearts content!

All that I would ask is that anyone who comments about their own system takes the time to look at the minimum at one other game in the comments and ask a question or provide feedback. Lively discussions are what get people interested and what keep people engaged!

Last week was "Dice Manipulation" and we got some pretty interesting discussions going!

If you want to suggest a topic for future weeks, be sure to include "suggestion" in your comment so I can easily find it!

I'm rewatching the Netflix and Disney Daredevil shows and that has sent med looking for a rpg system that can handle that sort of campaign.

I'd like a game that can handle street level supers that have a life outside of their night time escapades.

I think my ideal game would be a forged in the dark superhero game, where I could maybe dial back some of the narrative elements?

Crunch and narrative

I dont want too much crunch, but if its only at character creation, I can handle it. I consider M&M to be a little too crunchy.

I've never really gotten the handle on narrative games. I like the idea, but I have a hard time figuring out how they should be played, and most of my group feels the same.

Systems I've read or played

I have M&M 3rd edition, but it feels cumbersome.

I have Marvel Multiverse rpg but it seems better suited to higher powerlevels.

I have otherscape, but I'm struggling to understand it.

I've played savage worlds, but I dont like how it handles supers or the card driven initiative system.

I've read Titanic Triump (2D20) and I while can overlook the large breasted anime furries on the cover, the game feels incomplete and not really aimed at street level.

Systems I've been reading about

I've been reading about Prowlers and Paragons, and it seems to be have some narrative elements that I think I can work with, but apparently one of the designers on the latest version was a sex offender - not sure I'm comfortable with that.

Monoliths Batman game looks interesting but its very expensive. Any experiences with it?

Deviant the Renegades keeps coming up in my searches. As we played Vampire back in the day, it might be good fit. I'm not sure how much homebrewing/converting/reskinning is needed to weed out most of the horror and supernatural (but not super heroic) elements.

I know I'm picky with my "neither too crunchy or too narrative", but any suggestions?

I really just love mundane worldbuilding, and want a TTRPG that lets my players build an empire and get embroiled in political disputes.

I'd ideally want a flexible system that lets me cater it to the setting I like, as opposed to one with a single setting.

Hey everyone,

​I've been looking into Tricube Tales lately and was wondering if anyone here has tried running a sandbox campaign with dungeon and hex crawling using this system—specifically leaning into an OSR (Old School Renaissance) playstyle.

​On paper, the light, flexible rules seem like they would support fast-paced, player-driven exploration. However, I’m bumping into a few potential friction points regarding traditional OSR mechanics:

​- Resource Management: You could theoretically track things like torches, rations, and adventuring gear abstractly using Supply Tokens (or Karma/Perks/Drawbacks), but I'm curious how smoothly that plays out in practice compared to strict inventory slots.

​- Loot & Treasure: OSR games heavily rely on gold, magic items, and treasure as primary motivators and progression metrics (like XP for Gold). Since Tricube Tales lacks detailed equipment lists and granular currency, how do you handle wealth, loot, and rewarding players without making treasure feel meaningless or purely abstract?

​Has anyone adapted Tricube Tales for this style of play? Did the rules-light nature enhance the emerging narrative, or did the lack of detailed crunch and inventory mechanics make the dungeon/hex crawling feel flat?

​Would love to hear your experiences, homebrew tweaks, or advice!