Mankcam

I am inclined to think that if it is a game using the MRQ line then OQ is the way to go, purely because it is so simple and easy to port to other BRP settings. Plus you just import the bits of the OQ SRD that you need directly into the BRP Space rules and that's that. Otherwise I would be inclined to wait longer to see what direction BRP Essientials is going in.

I always thought Orlanth was a pretty cool dude, full of ballsy bravado Also you can't get much more cunning than Yinkin

Even if I end up playing Glorantha with CRQ4, I still want to get my hands on a copy of RQ6:AiG, it sounds pretty cool!

It probably has a different meaning in Glorantha, heh heh

Well I'm not sure which meaning Jeff was referring to, but this has certainly been educational for me - like MOB says, down here a 'Whiff Factor' is like saying something has a 'Bullsh*t Factor', its derogatory and almost fighting words heh heh

As an aside, Revolution also sounds cool, but I think the release may be some time away yet, so it won't help your current situation. However there are some really neat game mechanics being developed there.

Yes I think everyone wants to know what system BRP Essentials is going to be built off. It's unlikely to be the BGB, otherwise it can just remain in print as is. It's not going to be in any MRQ SRD direction either, which brings it down to a trimmed down version of the two contemporary BRP lines: CRQ4 or CoC 7E. For a generic system it may make more sense to be built of CoC 7E, but how much will be kept and how much will be altered? For example, it could easily use the CoC 7E skill difficulties and bonus/penalty dice, yet keep the Characteristics at their original BRP score level (not %) to remain in keeping with the traditional stat blocks. But who knows? Yes a vague direction would be handy for authors, and also to GMs who are tinkering with their own settings and want players to have a consistent system. In some ways I think I may have wished BRP Essentials to be the next release after CoC 7E, then followed up with CRQ4. An announcement regarding the direction of BRP Essentials would be good I think.

I quite like this idea for Skill Category Modifiers. It's a pity that it was rejected. l also think the RQ2 calculation for Skill Mods are just as easy, but the actual modifier needs to be much more significant (ie: +10%, +20%, +30%, etc)

You may be right - US slang can be quite different to Australian slang at times - I never considered that it could mean 'hit and miss', I have heard of 'striking out' (US baseball slang) to mean such, but never 'whiffing'. Thanks for pointing that out

I'm not totally against Char + Char ( that's fine, but it can be left in the MRQ line of games), however having Skill Mods as base chances is more simple I think, although the scores need to be larger to be more meaningful, otherwise the impact of Characteristics is also minimal. Looking at some of my old RQ3 and CoC characters, and there is a big disconnect between their Characteristics and their Skills, with Characteristics having little role beyond being an indication for a narrative descripton of the character (other than HP and MP calculation, etc). In a 'crunchy' game like RQ, the Characteristics need to have more direct impact on game play, otherwise they are almost near-useless artifacts from an earlier system. In that case we might as well not even have Characteristics listed at all - just keep everything skill based with some skills perhaps receiving bonus or penalty modifiers for non-numerical narrative character descriptors like 'large, 'strong','weak', 'small', 'clumsy', 'cunning', 'smart', etc That works reasonably well, although it flys in the face of the classic BRP stat block. For the sake of consistency the stat block should remain the same as it always has, which means that Characteristics are listed as numerical values. It's only logical that these numerical values have a bigger impact on game play. That's the thing with a classic rpg like RQ - people have played the system for such a long time and many can see what mechanics could possibly be improved and what mechanics should perhaps be left untouched. The impact of Characteristics is just one of those things that keeps coming up throughout various BRP discussion threads over the years, so I think it is an area some many would like to see get a little more attention at times.

I understand not adding two Characteristics for base skill chances like the MRQ line. I'm guessing that is the 'whiff'notion referred to (as in it 'stinks' and it is a 'left-over' from a different development line). However I agree that it's not in keeping with classic BRP games, and I don't think it should be done like that in the next edition of RQ if it goes against the design thread. My suggestion is not to follow the MRQ line, but more about streamlining the original RQ/BRP approach - It's just that I'ld prefer having no individual skill bases anymore, as they feel too fiddlly and cumbersome these days. I think the same result could be more easily achieved by just having Skill Category Modifiers as the base chance for ALL skills within that particular category. It may not be quite as granular, but it certainly feels cleaner and simpler. However to be useful the Skill Cat Modifiers would need to be double (or possibly triple ?) the modifier scores from RQ2/RQ3. Anyway it's just an idea, although it is probably not original and it's likely that the design team may have already thought of something like this.

Well I never thought QLD Australia would be ahead of any deliveries in the USA... Back in the 1980s I bought RQ2 brand new only to realise that a more recent edition (RQ3) was available in the USA (thanks to an ad in a fanzine for informing me!). Different times we are living in...:-)

That's really bizarre that your books have not turned up I have had the book delivered two weeks ago, and I live in the state of Queensland (Australia). You would think if you live in Minnesota USA you would be among the first to receive the books. I would be making some enquiries

Initally I hated the notion of replacing numerical modifiers with a bonus/penalty dice. It just seemed wrong for BRP, a rule imported from another system. However I have really grown to like it now, as it is so simple and it covers the same ground in purpose. Its also quite a fun bit of gamism at the table, so I finally see it as an improvement to how I run the game.

Yeah RQ2 was not organised the best. The RES Table showed up in the Basic Magic chapter in regards to casting Battle Magic, yet had other applications such as POT resist for poison, STR resist for grappling, etc. It should have been in a General Mechanics chapter. The same goes for some skills, such as many of the Perception, Agility, and Stealth skills which I remember show up under the trainable Thievery Skills section, rather than in a general chapter. I guess that is the charm of the age of the book, and organisation with BRP rule books was much better from RQ3 onwards.

I think that's a good option for Skill Check gains, the PCs having a choice of a +1D6% random roll or a flat +3% gain. I used to play RQ3 and CoC that way and it worked good in practice. I think having Communication and Magic Cat Mods is a good move. I also prefer the way Skill Cat mods are calculated as flat bonuses in RQ2, its just more simple, more 'clean' in char gen. I know that it may be far too late in design development to suggest to increase the importance of Characteristics from their standard RQ2/RQ3 roles, but this is one area where the MRQ line did do reasonably well. However instead of doing it like MRQ, it could easily be done by just ditching the individual Skill Base chances altogether, and calculate double ( or ? triple) the standard RQ2 Skill Cat Mods. In my experience it would just play better for untrained skills, and it makes the core Characteristics more meaningful. I also think perhaps that Characteristics also could have a role in the number of beginning skill points for different occupational backgrounds, just like in CoC 7E. It's just another way of increasing the importance of those core Characteristic scores. Anyway, just just random ideas here (although they do come from 30 years or so of playing the system). It's just how I would of tweaked it. Pretty much everything else I have read is pretty agreeable to me however, so there's certainly no complaints from me in how RQ is shaping up

LOL

Yeah I was just spitballing that a CoC Classic may be a cool kickstarter at some stage, just as cool and as popular as RQ Classic has been. Perhaps it is something to consider a few years from now perhaps. Keeping some of the CoC back catalog alive in print makes sense though. The wealth of resources there is certainly an asset. But I would hate to see too much effort spent in just rolling out back catalog at the expense of new material. I enjoy nostalgia, but don't want to wallow in it, and I would much rather Chaosium keeps looking ahead rather than back

I saw a pdf copy of RQ Slayers many years after the fact. It was in no way anything to do with RQ except in name. As Mugen says, there were no D100% mechanics, no Glorantha setting, it was an entirely different game which just used the RQ brand name. Might as well reference D&D or FATE if it is included heh heh

If you have time to wait, then you might find BRP Essientials or Revolution to be ideal systems. If you want to move on this now, then either OpenQuest or a simplified Mythras sounds like the way to go

I think its clear that what Chaosium refers to their project internally probably won't be what we refer to it, and that is unlikely to change. I'll go with CRQ4 or RQ7, whichever is more prevalent among fans so we know what we are referencing. However if I'm discussing anything directly with Chaosium staff I'll probably just refer to it as 'the current edition of RQ' or something like that. That way there's no confusion as to what edition I'm talking about, As long as it says 'RuneQuest' on the cover then it's all good I reckon

I think it's best for all concerned if everyone keeps forgetting RQ Slayers, heh heh

I am interested but the time zone is but one of many limitations preventing me from committing at this stage unfortunately. Despite such I will keep an eye on this with great interest, as I have liked the majority of the things you have posted with Revolution, and it really shows alot of thought is going into revising this variant of the BRP rules. Also the premise you set up for 'The Zone' is fascinating, it will be quite the page turner Good luck with it all

I liked the RES Table, but I think it probably should stay in the RQ/BRP Classic line, and the more recent line use Opposed Rolls instead. CoC 7E does it this way, so I think it's only logical that RQ does as well. My gut instinct tells me that there will be Total HP and Limb HP in this edition of RQ, it's pretty tactile and would be in keeping with the RQ2 stat blocks (which Jeff said will be very similar to the new RQ stat blocks). I don't mind having Skill Cat Mods, but I felt that they were too weak in RQ2/RQ3. I would much prefer having no individual Skill Base chances at all, and just have a Skill Cat Mod for various categories, one which is almost double the current mods. That way it is much more useful for untrained skills and such.

This all sounds really cool Paolo I am looking forward to seeing how Revolution runs