Hello Rpolers,

I've been toying with a couple of fantasy settings and would like to gauge people interest.

All games will be run 3xS - Sandbox, Solo, Semi black-box.

Sandbox : the games are open to travel, I use a smart random mechanism to generate adventures, locations, cultures and NPCs.

Solo : all game are player (not party) centric and each PC has their own thread. Each player in not dependent on other players posting rate or appearance. It is possible to meet and team up with other PCs but this is strictly optional and will be done in game during play.

Semi black-box: I will be using a certain RP system for calculating outcomes of actions. The players use the system during in character generation and when advancing their PC but every other aspect of the system, dice rolling, hp, combat, exp etc is done by me and the players are blind the mechanics.

The two games I was thinking about are as follow:

The Portal
Synopsis:  PCs are from a non-magical, human only medieval world. For some reason (sacrifice, exploration, quest or something else) they are cross over the portal to a magical world. The game would involve investigating this new land, learning its secrets and whatever else each PC desire.

PC: PCs start as a normal humans, with little training or means. As they explore the new world they may gain special powers, magical skills or focus on the mundane.

Legends Wars
Synopsis: The shadow threatened the land for over a millennia. The PCs are recruited by a powerful entity to be their agents in the fight against the shadow. The game would involve running mission for the PC patron, learning more about the shadows and the real history of the world and gaining more power and followers.

PC: PCs start as legendary heroes of their land, they are still young but are way above the normal. PC may have special powers, magical items or anything else that would set them apart. There are several factions with several groups within each faction and many fantasy races to chose from.

---

System/s:

I've been considering several systems to use:

HARP Fantasy - would fit best for the Portal, it has many options for development but it is
a bit crunchy.

Tunnels and Trolls Deluxe edition - has the right mix of lite and crunch there are some adjustment but I can see it working with either concepts.

Icons- a superhero game that would fit (with some modification) for Legend Wars, it has the broad powerful scope I am aiming for in that game and an open lax attitude toward powers that would make it ideal for such game.

I would be happy to hear feedback and thoughts about setting and/or systems.

Thanks

I find the Portal option more appealing. In terms of system, if it's black box it doesn't matter if it's mechanically crunchy because you'll be handling it and know what you feel like dealing with.

Question about the Portal story: Why 'medieval' world to magical one? Why not modern-to-magical, or another time period? Did you have something specific in mind for that?

Agreed - a modern-to-medieval fantasy transition would perhaps be more compelling... unless you specifically were looking for characters with zero grounding in heroic fantasy tropes. That might be interesting too, seeing how superstitious peasants engaged with a world without having had a lifetime of pop culture reference... though pretty hard to roleplay, maybe.

Good question,

I had a couple of reasons which are subjective,

First, IMO it expand the choices of starting characters. I have hard time imagining contemporary characters being sacrificed to a mystical portal or other story beside wandering by mistake. It also allows each PC to invent their own village culture etc and not be limited by our own world.

Last, it simplified things, contemporary characters have a tendency go toward those who know everything about fantasy cause they played D&D/video game etc or the ex-SAS/Delta Force. I know you can do the same in a medieval setting but village militia IMO is far cry from ex special forces.

Having said that, I am totally flexible about the time period and can have PC from every time period.

Oh that'd be cool - PCs from different eras and places. A roaring-20s hardboiled detective, Sengoku era samurai, and 90s punk musician all meet in a tavern...

I mean... portal fantasy is my favorite genre of fiction. I've even tried posting here in the proposals threads in the recent past, checking interest in the genre, but never got much of a response. So I'm definitely interested, even if it isn't a more traditional 'modern-to-fantasy' portal.
This message was last edited by the user at 16:25, Thu 23 Sept 2021.

I'm very familiar with Deluxe T&T and I like the story idea of the Legend scenario (more so than it's a mega-tough character, but I'm fine with that, too).

So color me interested. Can you keep up with a player that posts 3-4 times per day?

I am aiming at a steady 1/day post.

The reason for that is that if we will take an average of six players that is six posts a day which is very draining. In my games  PCs start solo and learn about other PC IC so it might be a few months before meeting other PCs.

I am planning this is as a long haul game and to keep my reserves I am limiting my posting rate.

Note that this is flexible at times, three players would be at one place and so there would be less to not all players post 1/day so this might also lower the rate. On the hand RL work tend to creep up and at times lower my post for once in a couple of days.

In short it is flexible and changeable by many factors but I aim at 1/post/day rate.

 Interesting opening. I enjoy Role Master rpg so i would lean towards Harp as something i am basic at. The other systems i have never played.

 I have played other portal type games but the other players would edge their chars to
 'try skills or abilities their human (Modern) chars would not know of, Most common excuse was that they had played D&d so had some idea what to have their char to try,attempting to find out what class/race etc they.

 I am guessing it is hard to run a game without players using their own knowledge to edge their chars knowledge.

 Anyway though i would toss my 2 cents into the conversation and see what happens.

 Peace.

I hope this still has a chance of being a thing. I really love the concept of people from different historical eras coming together and gaining bizarre powers in a strange magical world!

I am working on it but the idea was to have normal regular people (historical era or not was less the issue).

In reply to csroy (msg # 12):

Okay. I'm happy with the concept either way :)

cool, I hope to have something ready early October.

Thank everyone for their feedback,

You can find the game here: link to another game

Please close this thread.