Space RPGs compared

[Nightwind1]

I've been wracking my brain trying to remember the name of a game (must have been around 78-79 or so). It was very small press, digest sized like CT, and we used it as an adjuct to CT. It had characters with interface to the ships for various positions-

Pilots who called go-riggers

Gunners were gun-riggers

Etc.

Does anyone else remember this, and moreover, remember the name of the game?

Gary

 

[sabredog]

I've been wracking my brain trying to remember the name of a game (must have been around 78-79 or so). It was very small press, digest sized like CT, and we used it as an adjuct to CT. It had characters with interface to the ships for various positions-

Pilots who called go-riggers

Gunners were gun-riggers

Etc.

Does anyone else remember this, and moreover, remember the name of the game?

Gary

Was it Space Quest? I vaguely remember that game - it came out in 77-78 and had a slightly different system for characters and a more "scientific" way of determining star systems. At least it was supposed to be.

It was a single book about the same size and quality as one of the original D&D rulebooks.

 

[Zowy]

I managed to get my D&D group to play SpellJammer for a few months once. Does that count as a Space RPG?

 

[the angle]

It was indeed Space Quest, from Tyr Gamemakers. Designed by Paul Hume and George Nyhen, who may have continued on with FGU after Tyr disappeared. I bought a copy (2nd edition -- I have no idea what the 1st was like) in 1979, and I consider it one of my gaming treasures.

Some flaws in SQ's character design rules make the game as written rather non-functional, but it's crammed from cover to cover with terrific ideas. Of all the games I've bought strictly as idea mines, this one's the richest. I've lifted hundreds of things from it for other games and settings. It has some of the best starship design, starship combat, and star system creation rules I've seen. The default background is interesting, too, being centered on a re-emerging culture that is rediscovering and exploring the ruins of a fallen galactic empire while other, similar remnants -- including the aliens who caused the collapse in the first place -- are also picking the bones clean. There's a heavy space opera tone to it all.

If you can find a copy, which is a big if, it's well worth grabbing.

Steve

 

[ShapeShifter]

It was indeed Space Quest, from Tyr Gamemakers. Designed by Paul Hume and George Nyhen, who may have continued on with FGU after Tyr disappeared. I bought a copy (2nd edition -- I have no idea what the 1st was like) in 1979, and I consider it one of my gaming treasures.

Some flaws in SQ's character design rules make the game as written rather non-functional, but it's crammed from cover to cover with terrific ideas. Of all the games I've bought strictly as idea mines, this one's the richest. I've lifted hundreds of things from it for other games and settings. It has some of the best starship design, starship combat, and star system creation rules I've seen. The default background is interesting, too, being centered on a re-emerging culture that is rediscovering and exploring the ruins of a fallen galactic empire while other, similar remnants -- including the aliens who caused the collapse in the first place -- are also picking the bones clean. There's a heavy space opera tone to it all.

If you can find a copy, which is a big if, it's well worth grabbing.

Steve

I just read a description of it recently in a Canadian blogger's post. It's a shame it's so blasted hard to find now. It sounds like a hoot and a half.

 

[sabredog]

I remember it was a lot of fun. Characters were fast to make, and the game was easy to run on the fly. I regret having lost my copy long ago, but nobody wanted to play it - Traveller won out.

 

[skyth]

Skyth, can you define 'static'?

Everyone, what's the best combat system you've found?

Static...As in the skill levels of the character doesn't change much, if at all throughout a campaign.

Best combat system...Hero system (aka Champions) followed closely by the Rolemaster/Spacemaster systems. I'm a big fan of the old ICE games.

Worst combat system in a game I would go with the old Marvel Super Heros game...

 

[sabredog]

Best combat system was in Runequest/Call of Cthulhu; now it's the Basic Roleplaying System. Runequest for hand-to-hand mechanics w/ hit location and effects...CoC/BRS for firearms w/ no hit location.

Both had injury effects amplified by special success (upper 10% of skill level yielding impale/crush/slash result with different effect depending on the weapon used). Impale ignored armor, crush did double the damage bonus for strength, and slash did double damage with armor reducing it. In addition, if hit locations were used the results might cause extra disability to the wounded character. I also liked the way armor was used up because of damage getting through it and how dodge vs. parry was used. And all of it was very intuitive and simple to run.

I know they aren't strictly sci-fi games, but ,I once converted Traveller to it for a while, including percentile skill levels and experience handled the same way as in RQ/CoC. If you used a skill successfully then at the end of the session you could roll against the percentile between the current skill level and 100. If you made it you got a couple points. The best thing about that was how it got harder to "learn new things" as you became more proficient in a skill.

 

[Jame]

I managed to get my D&D group to play SpellJammer for a few months once. Does that count as a Space RPG?

No, but you get your grade raised by 5 points for trying. :smirk:

 

[Garyius2003]

Universe had a very Third Imperium feel, only with the option of one shot jump drives and jump lifeboats.

 

[Allensh]

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by T. Foster:
Metamorphosis Alpha: The first SFRPG? D&D-on-a-spaceship interesting for a couple-three sessions, but not a lot of room for expansion.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

I don't think so I belive that RPG history runs D&D first published, Traveller Second, Empire of the Petal Throne third. EPT may have been created before D&D I am not sure. Fun to play though.
Peter V.

Metamorphosis Alpha predates Traveller, as does Starfaring by Flying Buffalo. EPT's original system basically WAS D&D with revisions.

Allen

 

[Allensh]

Yes, we had it back in College (78-82) and played it a couple of times during beer and pretzel sessions. Nice and fun, but not Traveller. I wonder if you can still get a copy somewhere? Is Zocchi still in business?

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Emperor Cleon:
Here's one you likely don't remember...
Star Patrol, by Gamescience (1980). It was an obvious knock-off of Traveller, but with a more Space Opera feel. I've had alot of fun with this game, and still use it occasionally today.
<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Originally descended from a game released in 1977 called Space Patrol. Designed by Michael Scott Kurtick (Michael J. Scott was a pseudonym, apparently). Same basic system as Heritage Model's Star Trek game and saw its final version (to date) in Terra Games' Starfleet Voyages from 1982 (I recently got a copy of this)

Allen

 

[aramis]

Space Patrol's lineage predates Traveller. Not by much, but it's pure parallelism for what few similarities exist.

 

[the angle]

Did anyone actually play Universe? We tried to generate characters and found the process so onerous that it devolved into two hours of dramatic readings from the worst parts of the rulebook. It never saw the light of day again.

We did like the tie-in boardgame from Ares magazine, though -- Star Trader.

Steve

 

[sabredog]

The Ares game Vector was pretty good, too, didn't it also spin off from Universe? I used it a few times as an alternate space combat system for Traveller back in the days when I was constantly tinkering in my quest for the most perfectly realistic and gritty game.

 

[beowulf2044]

Universe had it's space combat game called Delta V. Good rules, as I recall, but as a RPG Universe was pretty eccentric.

 

[sabredog]

Delta V! That was the name...I sill have that one. It's not bad, but I never read Brilliant Lances so the only thing I can compare it to would be Mayday. Mayday is cleaner and less wargamey, but the whole Universe game always seemed more wargame than RPG. No doubt due to the SPI rules that read like all the wargames I had stacked in my closet.

 

[Murph]

Any other games out there?

 

[Shonner]

Did Chaosium have something in the '70s? FutureWorld, SuperWorld, and Spaceworld? These were 1.0 versions.

There's Stars Without Number. I've seen the 2D6 version of the game. I hear there is a D20 version.

There's Eclipse Phase.

FFG's Warhammer 40K Rogue Trader.

Hulks and Horrors

Star Hero (Hero Games).

Transhuman Space (GURPS).

Chthonian Stars (for Mongoose Traveller).

The Void (stand-alone game, minus the cool stuff Chthonian Stars has in it).

Orbital (for Mongoose Traveller).

Prime Directive for Mongoose Traveller soon to be completed.

Serenity.

Cosmic Patrol.

Honestly though, 95% of sci-fi RPGs are crap. If you have Mongoose Traveller you already have the best sci-fi RPG already. You can buy RPGs that use the Mongoose Traveller mechanic as well, if you need more sci-fi. Serenity is a close second, if you can find it.

 

[thalassogen]

Farscape D20-based (sadly on D&D and not D20 Modern). Some time ago, I did a conversion to GURPS (at least for races and characters: http://www.tanelorn.net/index.php/topic,52969.0.html).

Nova Praxis FATE-based transhuman setting with interstellar travel.

Bulldogs! FATE-based light-hearted Traveller/Star Wars-Mix.

Dawning Star formerly D20 and currently KSing a FATE-based version.

Diaspora FATE-based dry treatment of Traveller (but I like the skirmish-level combat support).