Spelljammer

[Tolen1]

You'd think I would learn not to put multiple questions in a single thread. It's efficient for me, but never works. 😃

Has anyone taken a stab at converting the old ADnD Spelljammer setting?

[Tolen1]

Ok, so apparently that's a no.

I'll have to put it on my list of things to do, after I'm finished creating my vaesen style game.

[g33k]

Note that there's a general-use "D&D-style" BRP engine, "Classic Fantasy".
It's not Spelljammer-specific, but it'll do a LOT of the heavy lifting for you.

I think it's no longer available for BRP directly; the author has moved to the (extremely-BRP-like) Mythras engine, from The Design Mechanism.  You may be able to pick up the BRP edition on the used market -- it was Monograph #0383.  But I commend TDM's edition!  And it's  eminently back-portable to BRP, if desired.

The simplified & slimmed-down "Classic Fantasy Imperative" rule-set is available as an ORC-licensed product (with printed hardcopy available, complete with lovely production values) from the TDM website.


Googling around, I find that noted Mythras content-creator @inwils seems to have done a Spelljammer session, playing a Spelljammer module AP on YouTube!

[g33k]

1 hour ago, Tolen1 said:

Ok, so apparently that's a no.

...
Dude, you waited 19h (less than a DAY!) for replies.

(FWIW -- I usually figure on a minimum of 3-4 days for specialty/oddity requests like this)

Edited April 24 by g33k

[NickMiddleton]

...I speculated about doing so years (... erm, possibly decades...) ago, and more recently (a few years back) I started noodling away at a Sword & Planet-esque BRP thing with touches of Spelljammer (ships powered by a variant of the Rune magic in Advanced Sorcery / Bronze Grimoire), but that morphed in to its own thing, and switched systems to become AGE powered.

Its odd - I can think of resources for Greyhawk, Dark Sun and Eberron using BRP (or Mythras)  and as g33k says, "generic" D&D, but I don't recall ever seeing a specific Spelljammer  adaptation.

 

[Tolen1]

4 hours ago, g33k said:

...
Dude, you waited 19h (less than a DAY!) for replies.

(FWIW -- I usually figure on a minimum of 3-4 days for specialty/oddity requests like this)

Well, a couple of days ago, I asked this in the same thread as another (and got no answer there either). This being the second time ive asked, and am only just now getting an answer...
Plus, i'm new here. I'm used to more active discussion. I didnt know there was a three or four day wait...

I'm still feeling my way around this forum.

[Tolen1]

4 hours ago, g33k said:

Note that there's a general-use "D&D-style" BRP engine, "Classic Fantasy".
It's not Spelljammer-specific, but it'll do a LOT of the heavy lifting for you.

I think it's no longer available for BRP directly; the author has moved to the (extremely-BRP-like) Mythras engine, from The Design Mechanism.  You may be able to pick up the BRP edition on the used market -- it was Monograph #0383.  But I commend TDM's edition!  And it's  eminently back-portable to BRP, if desired.

The simplified & slimmed-down "Classic Fantasy Imperative" rule-set is available as an ORC-licensed product (with printed hardcopy available, complete with lovely production values) from the TDM website.


Googling around, I find that noted Mythras content-creator @inwils seems to have done a Spelljammer session, playing a Spelljammer module AP on YouTube!

I did a deep read of Mythras, but it was either buy a hardcopy of that, or stick with the hardcopy of BRP I have. I have one of those groups who have an easier time with print books instead of laptops and tablets at the table. I'll check into Classic Fantasy one way or another.

That being said, I don't specifically need a "DnD-clone" version of BRP Spelljammer. In fact, I'd prefer to avoid that. One of the reasons I'm switching to BRP is because I am just so burned out with DnD. Besides, these days I aim for "spelljammer adjacent" anyway. Mostly I want the ships and high adventure without the weird crystal spheres, phlogiston, and helms that drain the spellcasters. I'd be happy if I could land somewhere near "Treasure Planet", but with magic.

I'll tackle it eventually myself. I'm busy bridging CoC and Vaesen (Vaesen is too rules-light for us, and CoC is a familiar place to branch from).

[Tolen1]

4 hours ago, NickMiddleton said:

...I speculated about doing so years (... erm, possibly decades...) ago, and more recently (a few years back) I started noodling away at a Sword & Planet-esque BRP thing with touches of Spelljammer (ships powered by a variant of the Rune magic in Advanced Sorcery / Bronze Grimoire), but that morphed in to its own thing, and switched systems to become AGE powered.

Its odd - I can think of resources for Greyhawk, Dark Sun and Eberron using BRP (or Mythras)  and as g33k says, "generic" D&D, but I don't recall ever seeing a specific Spelljammer  adaptation.

 

That's why I was asking. I've found other DnD worlds converted, thought I would see if there was another. Admittedly, it is a niche, and sometimes I feel like I'm the only nut in that niche...

[g33k]

6 hours ago, Tolen1 said:

I did a deep read of Mythras, but it was either buy a hardcopy of that, or stick with the hardcopy of BRP I have. I have one of those groups who have an easier time with print books instead of laptops and tablets at the table. I'll check into Classic Fantasy one way or another.

That being said, I don't specifically need a "DnD-clone" version of BRP Spelljammer. In fact, I'd prefer to avoid that. One of the reasons I'm switching to BRP is because I am just so burned out with DnD ...

CF is a very-slick re-implementation of D&D with BRP-esque classless/level-less/skill-centric rules.
$30 rulebook -  https://thedesignmechanism.com/classic-fantasy-imperative/
Free PDF - https://thedesignmechanism.com/classic-fantasy-imperative-pdf/

Out of Stock - https://www.nobleknight.com/P/2147433071/Monograph-0383---Classic-Fantasy
(but at least you've got a lead...)

 

But also:

6 hours ago, Tolen1 said:

... Besides, these days I aim for "spelljammer adjacent" anyway. Mostly I want the ships and high adventure without the weird crystal spheres, phlogiston, and helms that drain the spellcasters. I'd be happy if I could land somewhere near "Treasure Planet", but with magic.

A nice solid "setting bible" bit of media like Treasure Planet?  That's awesome!

I'll be honest:
I'd  grab "Magic World"  (which is a fantasy-specific subset of the BRP core) and maybe one of the related seafaring books (a Mythras one from TDM, the RQ one on the JC,  a copy of Blood Tide (sadly OOP), etc).  I'd take some notes as I re-watched my Bible a couple or three times.  I'd sticky-note Magic World where it needs some extra bits ... sticky-note BRP core and/or my seafaring book (places where I'm getting those extra bits)... maybe work-out some details?  But maybe not.
And I'd call that my campaign.

But, as noted:   I'd ALSO go look at @inwils game(s) on YouTube, running an actual Spelljammer module via CF.

(ETA - I  just checked his profile -- he hasn't logged on here for years, and was never very prolific here, so my @Summons likely won't call him)

Edited April 25 by g33k

[g33k]

6 hours ago, Tolen1 said:

... I'm used to more active discussion. I didnt know there was a three or four day wait...

It's not that there's any "formal" wait-time.

Just, as noted, most BRP discussion isn't as well-populated as many D&D ones are.
Then D&D-adaptations are a specific minority of the BRP crowd.
And a specific-world query is going to be a yet-smaller minority of that.

So you need a bit of extra patience for relevant folks to loop back to the forum, read your query, maybe mull for a bit and/or go look up old notes, old links, etc.

My experience is that core topics usually get same-day (sometimes next-day; sometimes same-hour) replies, but it stretches out a LOT for every "interest filter" applied.

[soltakss]

On 4/24/2024 at 2:05 PM, Tolen1 said:

Ok, so apparently that's a no.

I only check websites at the weekends, and even then sometimes I miss a week. Other people might be the same.

On 4/23/2024 at 6:34 PM, Tolen1 said:

Has anyone taken a stab at converting the old ADnD Spelljammer setting?

I don't own any D&D settings books, so haven't converted Spelljammer. However, I did convert a friend's White Palm Oasis for the Oasis Folk section of my last Gloranthan Campaign, and that worked really well.

[Pedro]

"Treasure Planet" is also my favourite take on Spelljammer. No the only one, but the one that I think works best. Together with as little interaction with other settings as possible. Another nice take, for me, is a Star Wars type campaign where some "evil empire" needs to be confronted and the player characters get involved in the "rebellion".

Having said that, I am not aware of any adaption to BRP. I would also be cautious with Mythras classic. While it is similar to BRP and has no levels, it has level-like features (if I remember correctly), using the brotherhoods system (or something like that) to allow player characters progress through what feels like a class system. I have not checked it in a long time so it could be that it is not as marked as I remember it though, but my feeling at the time is that it took much of the freedom that I like from BRP, and made it closer to DnD.

[Tolen1]

Well, as I try to clear my writing and artistic backlog, I percolate on ideas for creating a Treasure Planet style game. It's just going to be a bit before I get around to it.

There are, however a few ideas I like in other RPG's. Both Abney Park's Airship Pirates RPG, and Vaesen assume the PC's are part of a pre-defined group (With Abney Park letting you actually make one up as part of character creation). Vaesen, and other Year Zero Engine games have a 'base building' mechanic where you earn XP for your home base, which can then be spent to upgrade it.

Both are interesting ideas for adaptation and implementation when I get to it.