[PNP RPG] Opinions on GURPS

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baelthazar
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[PNP RPG] Opinions on GURPS

Post by baelthazar »

I posted this on another forum, but I respect your opinions and would love to hear your thoughts.

I've been trying to set up a short one-shot RPG session with some old friends who are RPG veterans and a new friend who has never played a PnP RPG. Normally I just go the Call of Cthulhu route and write up a horror adventure, but I'm not sure the friend who is new to PnP roleplaying would dig the genre (and Cthulhu requires a bit of "back-knowledge" gained from reading the books). On the other hand he is a Skyrim fiend and likes more fantasy themed stuff.

So I was thinking, perhaps GURPS "has it all" and will be open enough for me to create something both "adventurey" and horror at the same time - akin to playing a Van Helsing monster hunt or something.

Have any of you used or played GURPS? What is your opinion? For reasons unknown, I have the GURPS 4thE Horror sourcebook but I do not have the Core manuals. Before spending money on them, I though I would see general and respected opinion. Is GURPS worth a look?

I also happen to have Trail of Cthulhu and I think it had some potential to be a lot of fun. Call of Cthulhu holds a lot of nostalgic value for me, but that may be something to ease the new friend into.

Any thoughts?
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Re: [PNP RPG] Opinions on GURPS

Post by Blackhawk »

GURPS is a great game, however it isn't for everyone. GURPS is very simulation-y.

It is a very heavy game. There are lots of rules, and some of them are very complex (I have heard horror stories about the shotgun rules.)

Characters in GURPS tend to be very fragile. It's great for highly realistic games, but don't expect combat to be taken lightly.

If you're looking for something similar that is also very setting-neutral, but is light enough to introduce to new players, I highly recommend Savage Worlds. It even has a Victorian monster hunting setting already written. Where as GURPS feels like a simulation of real life, Savage Worlds is designed to give a high adventure feel to a game.
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Re: [PNP RPG] Opinions on GURPS

Post by hentzau »

If it's a one shot, and it's some new players, what about the Star Wars Edge of the Empire beginner box? It's a simple system, very cinematic, you can start playing right out of the box, and it's Star Wars!!!
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Re: [PNP RPG] Opinions on GURPS

Post by Zarathud »

I haven't played GURPs for 20 years when we ran a post-apocalyptic Car Wars co-op home brew universe. I do remember it being a versatile system.

You could set up a Call of Cthulhu RPG in a detective horror without going heavily into the Mythos. Every few years, I play Call of Cthulhu RPG at Origins and the better games never really delved into the rules.

For a one-shot fantasy, I would probably dig up the Kobolds Ate My Baby! Then again, I usually run Paranoia. I have since given up on rules-heavy RPG systems for a more freewheeling style. A few people have suggested Fiasco as an alternative.
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baelthazar
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Re: [PNP RPG] Opinions on GURPS

Post by baelthazar »

I just saw Fiasco, and remember Will Wheaton playing it. Worth a look. I like the idea of a Star Wars RPG, my RPG newbie was wearing a shirt saying "Vadar was Framed," so the theme fits all of us.

Thanks for the GURPs rundown. I think I like the books for all the "crunchy" rules and options, but it does seem overly complex for a light day. I will also look at Savage Worlds, which I have heard good things about.
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Re: [PNP RPG] Opinions on GURPS

Post by hepcat »

I used to play GURPS. It's a decent system. My go to systems were always the Hero system and Call of Cthulhu.

I don't play RPG's anymore, but I'm tempted to pick up the latest edition of Call of Cthulhu because of the very cool looking Cthulhu by Gaslight and Acthung Cthulhu when it comes out. Just to read, though.

I've heard good things about Savage Worlds.
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Re: [PNP RPG] Opinions on GURPS

Post by hentzau »

I would be somewhat hesitant about bringing a group of folks that have had little to no role playing experience into an extremely player driven game like Fiasco. I would say get them into a structured game, run by a game master first, and then break out the oddballs like The Adventures of Baron Munchausen.
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Re: [PNP RPG] Opinions on GURPS

Post by hentzau »

I would be somewhat hesitant about bringing a group of folks that have had little to no role playing experience into an extremely player driven game like Fiasco. I would say get them into a structured game, run by a game master first, and then break out the oddballs like The Adventures of Baron Munchausen.
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Re: [PNP RPG] Opinions on GURPS

Post by baelthazar »

DAMN THIS OO EFFECT! :lol:

So I looked up Edge of the Empire and Savage Worlds and both look downright excellent! Problem is, I can only really afford one thing, either the Savage Empire book and a few sourcebooks (horror and superpowers), Edge of the Empire Beginners set, or the Edge of the Empire Core book and some dice (I think we could handle the deep end, it sounds like an easy system to learn).

Does anyone know where I can "preview" the Savage Empire rules? It claims to be easy, fast, and furious, but I really would love to see it. I like that the books are fairly inexpensive (compared to D&D and GURPS) and all-inclusive. Same with Edge of the Empire. I would rather pay $44 for a GM + Players book combined than $25 + $25 for two books.

Hep, I am a backer for the KS project for the new Call of Cthulhu edition coming out in October. That is mostly for nostalgic and personal purposes than gameplay purposes (I'll be honest, I love reading RPG rules). But if this beginners RPG session goes well, I plan on busting out the new CoC rules and getting the guys back together.

Decisions... Decisions.
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Re: [PNP RPG] Opinions on GURPS

Post by hentzau »

baelthazar wrote:DAMN THIS OO EFFECT! :lol:

So I looked up Edge of the Empire and Savage Worlds and both look downright excellent! Problem is, I can only really afford one thing, either the Savage Empire book and a few sourcebooks (horror and superpowers), Edge of the Empire Beginners set, or the Edge of the Empire Core book and some dice (I think we could handle the deep end, it sounds like an easy system to learn).

Does anyone know where I can "preview" the Savage Empire rules? It claims to be easy, fast, and furious, but I really would love to see it. I like that the books are fairly inexpensive (compared to D&D and GURPS) and all-inclusive. Same with Edge of the Empire. I would rather pay $44 for a GM + Players book combined than $25 + $25 for two books.

Hep, I am a backer for the KS project for the new Call of Cthulhu edition coming out in October. That is mostly for nostalgic and personal purposes than gameplay purposes (I'll be honest, I love reading RPG rules). But if this beginners RPG session goes well, I plan on busting out the new CoC rules and getting the guys back together.

Decisions... Decisions.
Savage Worlds Test Drive - The Wild Hunt

Oh, here's just the ruleswithout the Wild Hunt stuff.

And I love the Edge of the Empire ruleset. I've been slowly reading through the main book, and am really excited to get a game going.
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Re: [PNP RPG] Opinions on GURPS

Post by IceBear »

There's also a star wars dice app for android and iPhone from fantasy flight that I got for rolling the dice for edge of empire. It also apparently has a mode for the xwing mini game
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Re: [PNP RPG] Opinions on GURPS

Post by hepcat »

baelthazar wrote:
Hep, I am a backer for the KS project for the new Call of Cthulhu edition coming out in October. That is mostly for nostalgic and personal purposes than gameplay purposes (I'll be honest, I love reading RPG rules). But if this beginners RPG session goes well, I plan on busting out the new CoC rules and getting the guys back together.

Decisions... Decisions.
unfortunately i just found out about the 7th edition kickstarter the other day...AFTER it was funded/finished. I would've jumped in had I known.

Ah well, I'll grab a copy retail when it becomes available.
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Re: [PNP RPG] Opinions on GURPS

Post by Blackhawk »

hentzau wrote: Savage Worlds Test Drive - The Wild Hunt

Oh, here's just the ruleswithout the Wild Hunt stuff.
Savage Worlds does, by the way, have a full Cthulu supplement.

Also, if you follow hentzau's link backwards, there are tons of free official Savage Worlds downloads, plus there are tons of high quality - Pinnacle supports the idea of full-fledged fan supplements.
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Re: [PNP RPG] Opinions on GURPS

Post by Anonymous Bosch »

Another option worthy of consideration that won't break the bank (and should work extremely well with someone new to PnP RPGs):
Fate of Cthulhu

I've been a fan of the Chaosium RPG "Call of Cthulhu" for years. But of late, I've fallen in love with RPGs that fit more into the story-telling genre. One of these is the generic system called FATE, by Fred Hicks and Rob Donoghue. The FATE system is a free PDF download ( link in the document below ) so it's worth taking a look!

So I've combined the two and written a short document on how to switch your play from Call of Cthulhu to FATE. So if you're looking to inject a little horror and madness into your FATE/Fudge gaming check this out.
As mentioned above, the newest versions of the Fate Core System and Fate Accelerated Edition are freely available here.
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Re: [PNP RPG] Opinions on GURPS

Post by baelthazar »

Blackhawk wrote:
hentzau wrote: Savage Worlds Test Drive - The Wild Hunt

Oh, here's just the ruleswithout the Wild Hunt stuff.
Savage Worlds does, by the way, have a full Cthulu supplement.

Also, if you follow hentzau's link backwards, there are tons of free official Savage Worlds downloads, plus there are tons of high quality - Pinnacle supports the idea of full-fledged fan supplements.
You magnificent bastard...

That may be the ticket!

I'll check out Fate as well, since it is free!

I actually put this up to my players to decide. If they lean toward Star Wars, then that might be it. If they lean toward other stuff, well that would be good too!
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Re: [PNP RPG] Opinions on GURPS

Post by Blackhawk »

I've heard really, really good things about Fate, and it is on my list to try, but I have heard that it is very player-dependent for the storytelling, which could be an issue with new RPGers.
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Re: [PNP RPG] Opinions on GURPS

Post by hepcat »

Big Savage Worlds sale on rpg.drivethrustuff.com this week. I guess it's the publisher's 10th anniversary.
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Re: [PNP RPG] Opinions on GURPS

Post by IceBear »

Yeah I saw that yesterday so I picked up the core book. I then made the mistake of looking at the best sellers and saw the Shadowrun 5th edition book so I bought that too
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Re: [PNP RPG] Opinions on GURPS

Post by baelthazar »

Given the core book is only $8 on Amazon, I jumped in on Savage Worlds. But I also went whole hog into Edge of the Empire. Even if I never play it, it is a 400+ page Star Wars sourcebook... So it should be great reading!
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Re: [PNP RPG] Opinions on GURPS

Post by Chaosraven »

GURPS was awesome when we wanted to do cross genre games or jump into another game, as we already knew the rules (having been with it from Melee, Wizard, TFTrip, and Man-To-Man).

But for a first time? Yikes.
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Re: [PNP RPG] Opinions on GURPS

Post by Markstrink »

I played GURPs years ago while in high school and loved the system.it can be a bit bulky at first. But they do so much cross genre stuff with the same essential skill and abilities and rules that it makes crossover so easy once you know what you are doing. A friend and I would essentially see how powerful a character we could make with the least amount of points and usually the most allowed flaws to maximize more points.

We one day both decided to create predator type characters for a full on castle seige. Each of us had one "predator" and we took turns with the insane amount of guards we put inside the castle. Neither of us tried to really off each other. We both really tried to stop both "predators" as best we could. Was fun and intense at times. But I believe both the "predators" won.

Even later on when I ran vampire and werewolf I still incorporated some of the GURPs stuff.
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Re: [PNP RPG] Opinions on GURPS

Post by baelthazar »

The buy-in for Savage Worlds was very low and with a nice look at the rules I can tell that it will work perfectly for what I want to do. In fact, I think I am going to try my hand at writing up a campaign setting for the post-Avatar Britannia of Ultima. My friends were big Ultima fans, so that would resonate well and there is tons of source material from which to draw. As it is a fantasy game, I won't have to bend over backwards to incorporate magic and powers, like I would with Cthulhu.

I'm also tempted to buy-in to Achtung! Cthulhu. So tempting.
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Re: [PNP RPG] Opinions on GURPS

Post by Blackhawk »

baelthazar wrote:In fact, I think I am going to try my hand at writing up a campaign setting for the post-Avatar Britannia of Ultima. My friends were big Ultima fans, so that would resonate well and there is tons of source material from which to draw. As it is a fantasy game, I won't have to bend over backwards to incorporate magic and powers, like I would with Cthulhu.
Suggestion: Buy yourself a tarot deck to use for initiative. It'll fit right in to Ultima.

Since I started running Savage Worlds I've found myself collecting card decks. I've picked up a sci-fi deck, a fantasy deck, a western/post-apocalyptic deck, and an everything else deck.

I probably shouldn't mention that there is a Cthul-ish deck, if you can find it for sale.
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