Mankcam

Hmmm I am considering grabbing it. I liked Traveller, and doing it with a BRP system would be even better. From what I have seen, this setting could be pretty good

Has anyone played Mercenary Breed? It looks quite good and reminds me a bit of Traveller RPG, except using LEGEND for core mechanics. I am just wondering what people think of these products

The Thronelands! I love this, its so cheesy heavy metal sword and sorcery old school !!! Go for it!

Yes I kinda like the option of having a big bumper book of generic core rules, and having slimmer drop down supplements for it. A bit like GURPS or Savage Worlds in that respect. It's not for everyone's tastes though, and I can see why some setting lines are self contained. Obviously Lovecraftian Horror is a setting unto itself, so I can see why Call of Cthulhu is self contained. I was initially surprised to see Magic World done this way, as I thought it was going to be an expanded version of the previous MagicWorld rules. However the Stormbringer rules have been pretty popular so I can see why that route was taken, and many people feel that MagicWorld is a good entry to BRP. I personally don't use its core rules, but like many of its bolt on mechanics so I am eager for it to continue. I guess I would be unhappy if BRP did not have some version of the BGB in print; it just seems logical to me that a core rule book should always exist, separate to genre or setting. Perhaps two entry points may be good, a BGB and a BRP Lite (similar to the Quick Start, but a bit more comphrensive, I'm not sure...perhaps a more simple system like what FATE did with FATE Accelerated...I always liked the very early BRP booklets that came with RQ2) Anyway it's going to be interesting to see which path Chaosium takes now. Another crossroad in the company's history, but at least they have what many companies don't, and that is a great bunch of game mechanics perfectly suited to this hobby. These rules appeal to both simulationist and narrative sides of the tabletop RPG camp, and that is a great asset to have. It's all down to promotion now

Personally I never use the Heroic HP option, but if you are going down that route then this rule could work out reasonably well.

I'll try a bit of fan pressure here and there, you never know, he might get the hint :-)

Heh heh

One answer to this: 'Tabletop' hosted by Wil Wheaton, over at the Geek And Sundry channel

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Totally agree! 'All The World's Monsters', as a title, conjures up impressions of a tatty old school cottage house publication, like a typed newsletter; either that or it sounds like an early 80s supplement for D&D, or both. However perhaps thats just my memories of the original product. They may like the nostalgia of called it by this name as a working title, but it really needs something a bit better for modern publication I feel. It could only work if presented as a Victorian Era resource, kinda like a Darwinian catalogue, complete with old British annotations etc, then it will have some flavour. Having the name for a generic fantasy critter book doesn't work for me.

Sandy Petersen was quite positive and pragmatic in that interview, which was good to hear. However I guess I'm still surprised how bad things had gotten for Chaosium, and it was this interview that revealed the most about the situation. Greg's statement which had the tag "I'm getting the band back together", had an entirely different flavour, which was a great spin to put on all this. I guess we all suspected that there was much more to it than a bunch of blokes who decided to get back together and roll out a few books. It was fun to see it that way, even if it felt a bit naive. I guess because Chaosium have been around so long, that it is actually concerning now that there is another question mark over their future. It does indeed sound like steps are being made in the right direction however, and I did like that Sandy was outlining three product lines for business: Call of Cthulhu rpg, BRP rpg, and Cthulhu Fiction. This is nothing new, but it indicates some clarity about what is being produced by Chaosium. So it sounds like there will be a more strategic direction for content release than there has been in recent times, which is quite reassuring from a consumer point of view. Your words are quite encouraging Paolo, and they do have some weight, considering you are an industry insider. I guess all we can do is watch how this rolls out, and support the company with our patronage when possible. Business as usual then. Back to gaming when we can :-)

I posted this over at Yog-Sothoth, but it is relevant to this thread here at BRP Central. Some people here may not have heard the podcast that Sandy Petersen did, which was referred to earlier in this thread. Sandy Petersen is an exceptionally creative fellow, and he was very positive in the podcast, but at the same time he also revealed how grim things really are. That really was a bit unsettling. I am heartened by the fact Greg Stafford is running the show, he is a genius with his creations of Glorantha and Pendragon, and given that he is the founder of Chaosium, it feels very apt that he steps in now at this time when Chaosium is going through crisis. Ben Munroe sounds perfect for his role, brimming with enthusiasm. Keeping Dustin Wright, Mike Mason and the others onboard is a smart move. They have been a presence with customers, and are obviously very important in the day to day operating of the business. But I still do get a sense of worry about how bad things have gotten with Chaosium. I have not been burnt by a Kickstarter before, and it is hard not be unhappy when we were informed that the CoC7E books were at the printer, when it turns out that this is not true. To receive a deceitful message like this is very disheartening. I cannot believe to have received it from Chaosium, a company whose products I have supported since my early teens in the 1980s. So I am appreciative of the change of management, and how open the current communication is now. I think Sandy Petersen will ensure that we receive hard copies of CoC 7E despite any disagreements he may or may not have regarding some of the radical rules changes. Not so sure about other stretch goals, but I think we'll all see the hard copies of the core rule books. Sandy knows his name is forever attached to Call of Cthulhu, and it is clear to see that he does not want his reputation tarnished, even if he isn't the author of the upcoming version. He is probably the single most important person who rebooted the Mythos for a new generation, and his enthusiasm for the genre has obviously not wavered over the years. I have no doubt that he will ensure the publication of CoC7E. I guess the big question is wondering if Chaosium survives once they have fulfilled the kick starter commitments. I really hope so. I do like the fact that Sandy was indicating that Chaosium may take a more strategic approach to publishing the CoC, BRP, and Cthulhu Fiction lines. I just hope they have the funds to move ahead in this direction, as we will all hate to see Chaosium wrap up after CoC7E. No one ever wants to see the end of an era, and I truly hope that we don't have to see this for many years to come. But, on a more positive note, having Greg Stafford in charge of Chaosium again seems to feel right to me. Also, having Ben Munroe show up here on BRP Central quite regularly is a boon regarding ongoing communication with a fan base, a role which may prove to be more pivotal to Chaosium than originally anticipated. This is all happening half a world away from me, but the impact of all this is not lessened for any fan who has followed Chaosium over the past years. I truly wish a bright future ahead for Chaosium

I like the idea of not fixing something if it ain't broke. I don't think the BGB is broke; it's just it is a collection of rules for use as a toolkit, as opposed to being a hard and fast set of generic rules like GURPS or Savage Worlds. MagicWorld fits well as one conceivable build option of these rules. Call of Cthulhu 6E (and earlier) fits well as another build. It's just a bit confusing now that Call of Cthulhu 7E does not. Yes it is BRP, but it's certainly not a build consistent with the BGB, so yes there is a looming question mark over what is going to constitute as core BRP now. Nakana really has a good idea. I really do like the idea of a BRP Companion, expanding the BRP toolkit with heaps more optional rules, some of which are consistent with Call of Cthulhu 7E. This way everyone is happy I think. Obviously it will need more than just toolkit rules to offer something different for those who have CoC 7E, but I see an option like this as a great mediator between the current fan base and new adherents who get into BRP from CoC7E. These days I am probably more partial to RQ6 and OQ, but I would certainly support a BRP Companion which brings CoC 7E into the fold as an example of optional rules. Just as long as there were other rules as well, such as some new SuperPowers; the Stunts from Blood Tide; Pulp cinematic rules; some example settings, possibly even rehashing the old FutureWorld and MagicWorld content (renamed FantasyWorld like Nakana suggested); etc etc. And make it hardcover with a similar yellow cover to sit nicely alongside my hardcover BRP BGB, effectively making it a BRP Volume 2 I think I would definitely support a product like that

I remember that Cities supplement, it was a great idea. I used it a few times to run downtime sessions for part of my old RQ3 campaign, and it was great. I think there may currently be similar indie products like it that you can get from DrivethruRPG that can be used in any system, which kinda covers the same ground. However it would be good to have a reprint of the original Cities book, or even just a pdf version. MagicWorld would be the perfect platform for it

You could just as easily be describing the Light Side and Dark Side of The Force - it is a perfect fit for an Allegiance system like this...

Well I'm sitting on the fence over it, but it's not because of rumour, fear, misinformation, or the ethnicity of the authors. I have the PDFs and I was a little surprised by some of the changes, although it is still recognisably the same system. Rolling the extra D10 instead of having a +\- modifier is my biggest gripe as it just feels out of keeping with the system. I actually like the simplicity of this mechanic, however it just does not feel like it is part of a BRP based game to me. I would of preferred broad numerical modifiers, like OpenQuest, but that's just me. My other issue is the Characteristics are now inconsistent with previous editions to a degree, although it's an easy work around. I also thought it was a little odd changing how successes are measured. I am used to 'Success/ Special/Critical', with BRP's Easy chance or Difficult chance. I just did not see the point renaming these. Everything else looks good to me however, the artwork and look to the books make them a pleasure to read, and I do like the low-pulp flavour. My doubts are whether even these small changes are great for a system which has been viewed as one of the most consistent RPGs over the past 30yrs. It's reassuring to know that a 2E scenario requires no alteration for a 6E game, for instance. However having said that, the amount of conversion necessary to play a 2E scenario with 7E rules would be quite minimal when compared to other RPGs ( this would be a cumbersome task with D&D for instance). It still looks very much like Call of Cthulhu, and I suspect that many players may not care either way; just as long as they are rolling percentile dice then it will feel like BRP to them. I suspect it is GMs who have heavily invested in the current system who will hold the most doubts. I guess the point I was making is that I am wondering if all BRP lines will start to have similar mechanics for the sake of consistency. This certainly makes a lot of sense when attracting new players to the system, as it will allow GMs and players to have one core set of rules, with additional rules according to the setting or genre. It does not make sense for Chaosium to publish two versions of the BRP rules. The only issue is whether or not these changes will alienate the current fan base that has historically supported the BRP system. But you certainly can't fault the layout and overall appearance of this edition, as it just looks beautiful and grand. It will be nice in the bookshelf once it arrives, and will hold its own next to other hardcover rpg core books on the market. But only time will tell if it plays any better at the table, and if it becomes the template for a new edition of the BGB.

It should port over almost seamlessly I would think

Yes that would have been good, considering we are the ones who will be supporting it (or not). I would not want designers overly watching forum posts, but it is unwise to ignore consistent themes that pop up. Public opinion is a big thing. WotC were smart with 5E, considering how their supporters jumped ship with 4E I know the CoC 7E pdf is out (I have it from the Kickstarter), but no sight of the printed books as yet. There is still time to alter content to at least include optional rules that are more consistent with previous volumes I doubt that will happen at this late stage however

I would have to see it myself before I would do it. But if its working well for you then keep going; I can't see too many problems with it. I'm for whatever works :-)

I'm certainly not overly fond of CoC 7E myself. The production standard looks very good, and I do like some of the optional low-cinematic rules such as Luck and Pushing Your Rolls. The char gen allocation of points based on different characteristics for different professions is okay, but no improvement over usual char gen. The Characteristics expressed as a % is ok for game mechanic consistency,but a little out of synch with all the other editions. The extra dice for rolling modifiers is just wrong for BRP, plain and simple. So I agree that many of the changes may not be for the better. But it does make sense for any new products to be consistent, so I am assuming that most new products may fall in line with 7E. Not sure if that will be a good thing though

Would you be making those accumulative -30% attacks within the same DEX SR, or would they occur every 5 SR after your intial DEX SR? The later would work better, I would think. More consistent with other rules about actions during a combat round. I can't see much benefits either way, it could almost be a mute point. By having multiple attacks within the same combat round it means that you will take less actual combat rounds to resolve combat, so it is quicker in game time. However the time taken to resolve such in real time won't change much, as you still will be rolling those attacks within a single combat round or so. It sounds reasonable in theory, but it practice it may not really make much difference to the time taken to resolve combat,and may make working out melee order a little more cumbersome. I think I would only allow it if dual wield fighting However I have approached this slightly differently in my own house rules. In my house rules, I have made Dual Wield a Martial Arts skill. Fighting with two weapons I simply allow an extra free parry without the -30%. However if a character makes a successful attack and also rolls under his Martial Arts (Dual Wield) skill, then I grant an additional damage dice roll, indicating a hit by the second blade (which also forfeits the free parry). This has worked well for me, but it may not suit everyone's tastes

A possibility of a new BRP BGB? Well, not really. Pure speculation. But after having a skim through the pdf of 'Cthulhu Through The Ages' its easy to see that alot of work has been done to bring various genres in line with the new Call of Cthulhu 7E rules, and its an easy stretch of the imagination to see that these could also be used in an upcoming generic ruleset for BRP that is more consistent with the BRP mechanics as presented in Call of Cthulhu 7E. Perhaps something like this on the horizon in the near future?

I wish the Conan game would have been BRP or RQ6...