#my hunt for the ideal ttrpg system

[sugar-spice-and-everything-dice]

So of the (current) four remaining systems on my "check out" list, here's where we're at:

Genesys - looks cool and I think it would be worth getting even if it's not right for a campaign system switch; found a detailed review that I'm in the process of (re-)reading, but so far I'm intrigued by the mechanics and success/failure thresholds; unfortunately the review also mentions that there aren't many actual tools for making stuff, it's focused more on rules and aesthetic and then goes "the GM can make up the other stuff"

Cypher - haven't found a ton of info on it, and mostly only in the context of Numenéra, but I'm leaning away from it based on what I have found; it seems too simple and maybe I need to watch some actual play for it or something, but I'm not fully on board with it (yet)

Pathfinder 2e - this has been on and off the list a few times; frequently-recommended as better than dnd 5e, but also seems very close in concept and I'm not sure if that's really what I want; I have also heard that it is either less crunchy or more crunchy than dnd so. hm. what's the truth

ICON - saw a post on this a few hours ago and was intrigued; haven't looked into it at all yet but the post was convincing enough (and had a link, thank god); seems like it's still in the playtest stage at this point? it's still fantasy genre, but has a detailed RP system separate from its (also-detailed) combat system, so at the very least it could have some good stuff for a franken-system...

Obviously I am still open to suggestions for a system that fits a long-term, high-magic, low(ish)-combat, science-fantasy homebrew campaign, if anyone's got them.

Sidenote: I feel like (of the ones I've looked into) ttrpg design tends to see "customizable" or "flexible" and goes "oh, then we'll leave it vague and up to the GM to decide what they want" when that's. not really it? I don't want abstraction, I want a toolset. Give me options of things that will fit into this system and let me build from there. I want Legos, not clay.

[sugar-spice-and-everything-dice]

Savage Worlds rulebook skim first impressions! It's a long list of bullet points, so I'm gonna put it under a cut. Most of these are things that stood out to me as favorable differences from DnD 5e, since I'm looking at it through the lens of "would it be worth switching a whole campaign into?" A few of them aren't so much favorable as they are just A Difference.

There's no particular order to these, I was just jotting down notes as I read through. Overall, I think it looks very fun to at least try out. It's mechanics-light without being rules-light, if that makes sense. There are tons of rules, but the actual mechanics involved with those rules are fairly simple and apply in a lot of different contexts. A common opinion is that it runs like a pulpy action movie and I think I like that kind of feel...

seems like it would support more structured roleplay and that the core mechanics of the system aren't built around pushing the group into combat

uses the same types of dice that DnD does, in different ways (and with an extra d6 instead of a d%); each die gets its chance, too - it's not just all d20s and d6s/d8s

initiative with playing cards! this is apparently a turn-off for some people, but it sounds really fun to me

initiative order also changes every round, which seems like a cool way to keep things from getting boring/stale and takes away a little of the planning-ahead aspect in favor of impulsivity

this is technically a classless system, but there are tons of feats and drawbacks to customize the feel of a character along with their mechanics rather than just their mechanics; saw someone say they switched mid-campaign and that the players felt more like their characters were actual people

there are only four derived stats based on other stats

nice lists for customizing races (and vehicles and creatures, etc.) and I'm sure the supplemental books add even more

defined table of social encounter/persuasive reactions; still not a super robust social system, but seems more open to embellishment than 5e

critical failures are not only hard failures that can't be changed, they're also a debuff in some contexts (this is a plus for me because sometimes it feels too easy to get out of a bad roll in 5e)

characters still advance in a way that's basically analogous to levels 1-20 (technically 0-16+), but it's not so much number-based as it is narrative and skill adjustment

movement system is designed with IRL tabletop play in mind, so they measure in inches that translate to yards - just a change of pace from 5e (pun fully intended)

encumberance system is simpler...in a way; there's no worrying about multipliers and there's a reference table that lists carrying capacities

extensive mundane gear lists - the number of pages dedicated to guns alone is wild (some of the armor and weapon weights still look...unrealistic)

vehicle mechanics!! systems for vehicular weapons and combat!!!

the "ace"/"exploding" die mechanic has always seemed fun to play with

"raise" thresholds to gain extra effects on a roll instead of crit successes

"bennies" seem more integrated into the system than inspiration is in 5e - also seem more fun to give out and use

tracking injury is not an HP grind

going down in combat seems potentially more deadly if not handled immediately

"soak" rolls are interesting - basically a chance to shake off some incoming wounds

combat is a little more freeform, you have your action (of which there are many options), your movement, and any free actions that seem realistic to take; multiple actions in a round have their own mechanic and usually come with a penalty

called shot mechanics add variation to combat

relatively simple rules for healing (both magically and naturally)

clear and concise mounted combat rules! at least they look that way at first glance

really specific where it counts and simpler where it should be (rate of fire on weapons vs. movement rules)

interesting modifiers for size and speed in combat

tons of situational modifiers for combat environmental contexts (and non-combat too, I guess)

ally/companion system; allies are controlled by the players, not the GM, since they're not technically NPCs

chase mechanics! pages of them!

dramatic tasks mechanics! also pages of them!

really detailed fear mechanics...

love love love the interlude system - and RP is rewarded mechanically!

mass battle mechanics!

more realistic jumping distances! no calculations required!

table of average travel times per vehicle!

quick encounter rules for stuff you might not want to play out in full tactical mode!

love the optional, modular "flavor" rules for different genres/settings/playstyles

the magic system is notably different from DnD, but the spells themselves seem to function similarly

no more spell components - if you can see your target and you're not Bound, you can cast a spell

no spell slots, but Power Points regenerate

creature creation seems much simpler

much looser focus on balance and numbers vs. fun and narrative opportunities

Final note: some of the terminology will be hard to think of in a new context, especially with the same words, like Incapacitated being an injury state and not a condition.

[sugar-spice-and-everything-dice]

My god. I have looked at so many different rpg systems in the past 36 hours. My eyes are glazing over.

Good news, it's easy to narrow down the list of possibles by taking off the ones that wouldn't be a good fit. Unfortunately, that now leaves my list of "maybe?" with three possibilities and one of them is hard to find information about, mechanically-speaking. Also, it's just so tough to know what's good when you're basing your research off of opinions in forum posts and not actual playing experience.

Anything that's marketed as OSR is generally off the table (no pun intended) since it's geared toward more lethal combat and dungeon-crawl type play rather than narrative. I will still give Worlds/Stars Without Number a skim because I got free versions of the rulebooks and they're generally widely recommended as being good games. Some of the other OSR systems look fun to play, just not a good fit for This Campaign.

I keep waffling on FATE, but decided against picking up the core rules since I saw a recommendation for Genesys, which a lot of people agreed was like "FATE but better." The only thing that makes me hesitant about Genesys (besides not having looked at the rulebook) is that it relies on a set of specifically-designed dice to play.

I've skimmed the rulebook for Savage Worlds a couple times now and I'll have a bullet point list of things I like as a first impression up in a bit. Also found a lot of "savage worlds vs. dnd 5e" threads floating around the internet and wasn't really surprised to see that it was a fairly even split on which one people enjoyed more.

I'd love to run a tiny little test session of Savage Worlds to see if I enjoy it enough (which I probably will) to pick up some of the supplemental genre-specific books.

[sugar-spice-and-everything-dice]

So after some very specific searches, I've picked up the Savage Worlds core rulebook. Seems like it would be fun so far...

I don't know if it's exactly what I want for a campaign system switch, but it's a nice system I'd like to try out sometime regardless. Character creation isn't as crunchy, but it also seems more narrative-driven, which is cool, and still has decent customizability. Might fuck around tonight and build a few MaNL NPCs in this system just to get a feel for it.