Brilliant Gameologists Forum

Play Like You Have To! => The Kitchen Sink => : Necrosnoop110 September 03, 2011, 10:44:24 PM

: GURPS (For Fantasy Setting Use)
: Necrosnoop110 September 03, 2011, 10:44:24 PM
What's everyone's thoughts on GURPS (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GURPS)? Especially for use as a system for a game in a D&D-type fantasy setting?

Peace,
Necro
: Re: GURPS (For Fantasy Setting Use)
: veekie September 04, 2011, 03:17:31 AM
GURPS is many things, but easy to use isn't one of them, especially if you're bringing magic into the business. It also depends on the style of game you're playing. Any game with a focus on combat is liable to have widely disparate character competencies, which can be a problem.
: Re: GURPS (For Fantasy Setting Use)
: SneeR September 29, 2011, 05:46:11 AM
Pity only Veekie has commented... I'm really interested in GURPS, but I have yet to try it.

Since it is so complicated, trying it with some friends would take some considerable time investment so they could learn to play...

How about you, Necro? have you played GURPS?
: Re: GURPS (For Fantasy Setting Use)
: Unbeliever September 29, 2011, 02:11:01 PM
I used to play GURPS a lot.  I'm an edition behind, but I don't think the fundamentals have changed all that much.

GURPS, as others have remarked, is almost a lot like a toolbox than a completed game.  It doesn't really play "out of the box" all that well.  You need to decide what options you want to use and so forth.  It also has fundamentally different genre assumptions than D&D does (which are, admittedly, sort of nutty).  D&D has a sort of exponential power curve where a 10th level character can just ignore 20 1st level ones (roughly, you know what I mean).  GURPS isn't like that.  And, if memory serves, it's going to be hard to have like 4 combats a day without some serious magical healing or use of the so-called "cinematic" rules.  So, it's a lot grittier:  more Game of Thrones and Robert E. Howard's Conan than D&D. 

That being said, it is very well thought-out system.  And, it has a very nice internal logic.  For example, Veekie mentioned the magic system, and it's very cool:  essentially it's all skill-based, with each spell being its own skill (so you can be really good at firejet but not so good at fireball if you like) and casting wears you out. 

The only drag I'd say is that it does have a lot of situational modifiers or permutations, which can be a headache, especially when you're getting started.  Like any complicated game (D&D included), it's nice if you start slow and if everyone pitches in.  There was a decent Fantasy Sourcebook, though I didn't like their setting for it (Yrth, iirc).  I did love their Conan sourcebook, though.  And, overall, their sourcebooks are pretty brilliant.

But, overall, it's a system best suited for more skill- and adventure-based games that are grittier than D&D.  It's got a lot of flexibility to it, so you can make it do what you like, but then you're not playing to its strengths.  For example, you could play superheroes in GURPS, they have a whole book for it and everything, but I'd play M&M instead. 
: Re: GURPS (For Fantasy Setting Use)
: SneeR September 29, 2011, 04:30:03 PM
Wow, thanks, Unbeliever!

So, then, is magic balanced with fighters? Because when I checked out the basic set, it looked like weapons might actually get a leg up over magic, since you can use weapons all day, and you have to place points in multiple skills to be an effective mage...

I know its not a fighting game, but my group will probably use it as such since we are used to D&D, at least until we catch on.
: Re: GURPS (For Fantasy Setting Use)
: archangel.arcanis September 29, 2011, 04:39:08 PM
We played a modern setting in GURPS and it was fun, but the complexities and constant rules look ups made it too much. Finally we gave up on it as there was no way to explain why everything wasn't dead in one hit (including the party). It is hard to explain why the bad guys who just took out a tank with RPG-7s didn't use them on the party, or dealing with one person wanting to be a sniper from half a mile away while the rest of the party wanted to be melee, etc...
: Re: GURPS (For Fantasy Setting Use)
: SneeR September 29, 2011, 05:26:53 PM
We played a modern setting in GURPS and it was fun, but the complexities and constant rules look ups made it too much. Finally we gave up on it as there was no way to explain why everything wasn't dead in one hit (including the party). It is hard to explain why the bad guys who just took out a tank with RPG-7s didn't use them on the party, or dealing with one person wanting to be a sniper from half a mile away while the rest of the party wanted to be melee, etc...

That sounds like a party cohesion problem. Fortunately, I just want to play in a Fantasy medieval setting, where combat is local and such things as RPGs and snipers are nonissues.
: Re: GURPS (For Fantasy Setting Use)
: archangel.arcanis September 30, 2011, 12:39:25 PM
We played a modern setting in GURPS and it was fun, but the complexities and constant rules look ups made it too much. Finally we gave up on it as there was no way to explain why everything wasn't dead in one hit (including the party). It is hard to explain why the bad guys who just took out a tank with RPG-7s didn't use them on the party, or dealing with one person wanting to be a sniper from half a mile away while the rest of the party wanted to be melee, etc...

That sounds like a party cohesion problem. Fortunately, I just want to play in a Fantasy medieval setting, where combat is local and such things as RPGs and snipers are nonissues.
Sniper issue comes up because of Longbows. There are plenty of spells and other supernatural abilities that would work the same as the RPG. With it being gritty it and wanting to have actual cool stuff in game it gets tricky. It isn't a game killer but it does make the game require more work.
: Re: GURPS (For Fantasy Setting Use)
: Necrosnoop110 October 05, 2011, 05:53:09 PM
How about you, Necro? have you played GURPS?
Ages ago as a pre-teen but can't really remember it. Was talking to some gamers who raved to the hills about how it is soooooo much better than D&D. I figured I could get some comments on the boards that might give some insight.

Peace,
Necro