Is D&D fun? I'm thinking about getting into it.

[Theben]

Better to find AD&D 1st ed. and just change what you want to. It's a lot simpler, but on the bright side, the rules are few.

[Donegeal]

Actually, JM, it was with Vel. We did a few RP with e-mail. It was fun, but short lived as RP via e-mail is too slow, even for RP.

[Jon Miller]

Oh, yeah, I Agree. I tried to DM a couple games and it is too slow for forums. The only one I have seen done sucecssfully was hack and slash (Joncha) and heavily modified (Snowfire).

JM

[Heraclitus]

I'm going to pretend I know what you guys are reffering too...

[Alinestra Covelia]

Originally posted by Koyaanisqatsi
GURPS

I second this. My friend Bing is mad keen on DnD but I always found things a bit too arbitrary in that. 3rd ed straightened out a lot of stuff but some major mechanical WTFs still remained and 4E does not look like it's going to sort them out.

DnD had great writing and ideas back in the day. It's still among the best for "flavor" (i.e. an integrated world building experience) but the rules eventually got in the way of enjoyment.

Bing is now porting the Ravenloft rules over to GURPS as he loves the setting but now hates d20 rules with a passion.

He evidently has way too much time on his hands.

[Alinestra Covelia]

Originally posted by Jon Miller
Most RPers are guys, there are a decent number of (not very attractive generally) chicks. There are a very few (generally messed up) very attractive chicks.

I'm not going to argue with this

[Donegeal]

I prefer a nice round 2d10 system for combat and stats. I just like percentages.

[ZEE]

posting in this thread.

[Omni Rex Draconis]

There are several main components to RPG as represented by D&D.

The most common is that which appeals most to the young players getting started, and the one that translates best into computer RPG (World of Warcraft). This style is all about the numbers, and D&D is good at it. Go out and kill things with a simple combat system, gain treasure, become more powerful, repeat. It is easy to be a GM (Game Master), a lot of fun - and most players get bored of it before long.

The second aspect is problem-solving. A good GM will put a great deal of non-combat obstacles in the player's way. Some of these will still come from the numbers (how far you can jump, how much you can lift) and thus belong to the first group. But others can range from simple logic puzzles to powerful ethical dilemmas. The game system is irrelevant here; you need to find a creative GM who will take the time to craft your games.

The third, and most obvious, piece is role playing itself. Taking on the identity of your favourite hero is what elevated D&D from the sandbox wargames of it's origins. Again, the system you choose does not matter. What does matter is a GM with a flair for acting and storytelling together, combined with a group of players with similar ideas on the importance of roleplaying. Nothing breaks the suspension of disbelief faster than Roger the Ranger flipping off the demon lord and pissing on his altar.

I have found that a combination of all three is the most enjoyable. If you are like me, then you will find the D&D combat system has become too complicated and consumes too much of your playing time. The addition of feats and combat skills in 3rd Ed. D&D, while great for character development, has bogged down melee to an unacceptable level. And, as AC pointed out, the extra detail was all layered onto an inconsistent framework to begin with.

You do have access to all that D&D (and d20) material out there, however.

GURPS is a good system for character development. I never had a chance to run the combat system, but Steven Jackson is a great game developer.

More important than any game system, however, is the people you are playing with. Online games like World of Warcraft cannot compare to getting together with friends, rolling some dice (getting a computer to do it for you just ain't the same), doing some heroic roleplay, and laughing a lot. You did not mention who you were going to play with; I would start there.

[Nostromo]

nm

[Dinner]

2nd Ed was the best ever. I started with 1st Ed and found it fun but not entirely consistent. 2nd Ed cleaned up a lot of rules and made a lot better.

[Bosh]

Spirit of the Century

Free SRD: http://zork.net/~nick/loyhargil/fate3/fate3.html

Fate 2.0

Free full rulesbook:

http://www.faterpg.com/dl/FATE2fe.pdf

The aspect mechanics are wonderful. Its great how they allow you to make things like catch phrases and personal quirks be mechanically meaningful while still having a game that's dead simple. Fate/SotC end up playing a lot more like a gloriously over the top action movie while D&D plays a lot more like a very slow computer game.

Its not that D&D is a bad game, its just that over the years a lot of computer games have gotten pretty good at distilling the D&D experience into something that you can play on a computer. Of course D&D plays better because you have a live GM, but on the other hand its FAR slower than BG etc. Personally I like other RPGs since they do all kinds of fun things that computer RPGs haven't even really attempted to do.

[Nostromo]

Here's to free, dead simple games GURPS, D&D and company look like Rube Goldberg machines in comparison.

[Lorizael]

I honestly cannot understand how people can think that Steve Jackson is a good game developer. He's a prolific one, which means that by dint of random chance some of the games he churns out are going to be good, but I think he has very little sense of game balance.

I also abhor, rather than love, the character creation system in GURPS. No system that allows for radical customization can be anything close to fair.

[Koyaanisqatsi]

Originally posted by Lorizael
I honestly cannot understand how people can think that Steve Jackson is a good game developer. He's a prolific one, which means that by dint of random chance some of the games he churns out are going to be good, but I think he has very little sense of game balance.

I also abhor, rather than love, the character creation system in GURPS. No system that allows for radical customization can be anything close to fair.

Balance is applied by a GM, not rules.