Over the years I have bought a fair amount of Chaosium products, mostly Cthulhu, but also some Stormbringer, Runequest and Superworld, but despite having acquired some sizable stacks, I never really, except for a few sessions of Superworld way back when, run or even played a game using the BRP rules, though I’ve often meant to, instead I’ve used the books as source material for other game engines.
Having recently purchased the new BRP book, I find myself liking much of what I’ve read, the rules seem simple, direct and the spell system really appeals to me, especially when augmented with Stormbringer and the Bronze Grimoire which I already own.
So after all these years I find myself finally deciding to run something using these rules. To this end I’ve begun to put together some ideas for a fantasy based campaign. My main concern is the apparent deadliness of the game. I’m not one to shy away from character deaths, but too many deaths just tend to bog things down and my games do have their share of violence.
I’m wondering if any here have used the Str + Con as hit points option and how it has worked out. I want sturdy adventurers but I don’t want supermen.
As an alternative I’m also considering the Fate Points system. Truthfully as a GM I’ve always had some reservations about Fate Points, it sometimes leads to situations where players are cocky when they have some at hand but cautious when they don’t, even if the latter threat is a lesser one than the one they were previously more cocky about. That said, I haven’t completely ruled this option out and players do seem to like them. Has anyone used the Fate Point system and have any feedback? One other question here, if Fate Points run off Pow does that mean a spell caster draws from the same pool that they cast from?
Lastly since all of you have more experience than me, am I overly worrying over the deadliness? Those of you that have run strait out BRP games, have you found the amount of death a problem?