LC's List, v2.0

[Lmns Crn]

Remember when I did this before? Yeah, me either. This is a way-too-long list of games I'd like to run when I get some time, or just things that have caught my attention more than usual.

In no particular order, my Top 20: including some glimpses into the nature of future projects.

SOME GAMES
These are probably the ones most likely to be run online, though I might run them in person instead possibly who even knows???

Jade FATE - I tried to get this started up a few months ago as a casual, "drop in, drop out" sort of game, but it didn't take off. Timing, I guess. I'll get it going eventually. The idea is to have each week's session connected to the others by place, not necessarily by a shared party of characters. So we'll tune in like: "Hey, I wonder what's going on in the city this week?" That'll keep me on my toes, I'm sure.

Asura - oh my god I have so many ideas for this game it's not even funny. In some ways it feels like southeast Asian mythology, in some ways it feels like petty cosmic demigods at play, in some ways it feels like a crazy space opera, like Flash Gordon, or like Star Wars (before Star Wars turned to crap). There's really no way to argue with these ingredients.

Amber Diceless - If you love sortakinda statless games about trans-multiversal intrigue, betrayal, and conspiracy, you'll probably enjoy this game. This game is big on the kind of scale you simply don't often see. You're a quasi-immortal descendant of an ancient dysfunctional family, wielding the fundamental forces of reality as you jaunt across an infinity of possible worlds born of your imagination, while a primal war between order and chaos rages in the background. Keep your secrets, cultivate trickery.

Scion - I don't even want to write a blurb for this one. I already write about it all the time anyway!

Dresden Files - There's a pretty good deal of FATE on this list, and this is the most polished iteration I've got my eye on. Secret magic in the modern-day city is a thing the hip kids are into these days, right?

OTHER GAMES
These are probably going to be reserved for local in-person gaming, for one reason or another.

D&D with TEACCH - This may not end up being D&D specifically, but if I end up running this casual, campy game for local kids on the spectrum, I'm going to go with whatever's popular with the group. Currently on hold awaiting more contact from TEACCH about coordinating the setup.

Lady Blackbird - I want to steal every element of this game. Even if you never play it, you should look at it; it's a very clever etude in game design at least.

Burning Wheel - Oh man I seriously want to try this out you guys, you have no idea.

MORE OTHER GAMES

Lords of Meta-Realm - The gods don't play chess with mortal pawns. It's actually a way weirder game than that.

In A Wicked Age - Have you folks read about this? Heard about this? It is damned cool! I bought it from the lumpley.com sale a few months back, and it is awesome. Remind me to make a thread about it sometime or something.

Avatar: FATE - I've always thought the setting here was charming, and it'd make a pretty easy transition to FATE.

Dogs in the Vineyard - So I'm starting to notice a pattern in the types of games that appeal to me. In general, I adore games where "should I do this?" is a more important question than "can I do this?" Sometimes this means we spend time examining moral choices; other times this means I give players plenty of rope with which to hang themselves. It's often fun to do both of those things. It's a pattern I'm noticing.

GAMES THAT INTRIGUE ME THAT I HAVEN'T READ YET

Don't Rest Your Head - This is the creepiest, awesomest game. Stay awake, or else;

Polaris - I am intrigued by the high-wrought, decadent, doomed tone of this game, and by the GM-less system and the way NPCs are farmed out to other players in a very systematic way. So neat!

GAMES WOT HASN'T BEEN WRITTEN YET
Many of these titles are provisional titles. They are all relatively small games I might find a system for, but might write from scratch.

Race to the Top - Social maneuvering game of politics, schmoozing, slander, and possibly a little bit of discreet poisoning. Essentially a thought experiment or a proof-of-concept for a game with a rich, intricate social system (and little else).

Galactic Kung-Fu in the Magic Kingdom - Light-hearted, action-packed wire-fu space opera about astral projection, hyperspace travel, and the ultimate triumph of courage over evil. Maybe run with Wushu?

DJs vs. Aliens - You're a megastar in the golden era of hip-hop: rebelling against authority, fighting off alien invaders, and making hit records about it.

Secret Project #1 - This one is going to be unique.

Secret Project #2 - This one is going to be adorable.

[Weave]

Remember when I did this before? Yeah, me either. This is a way-too-long list of games I'd like to run when I get some time, or just things that have caught my attention more than usual.

In no particular order, my Top 20: including some glimpses into the nature of future projects.

SOME GAMES
These are probably the ones most likely to be run online, though I might run them in person instead possibly who even knows???

Jade FATE - I tried to get this started up a few months ago as a casual, "drop in, drop out" sort of game, but it didn't take off. Timing, I guess. I'll get it going eventually. The idea is to have each week's session connected to the others by place, not necessarily by a shared party of characters. So we'll tune in like: "Hey, I wonder what's going on in the city this week?" That'll keep me on my toes, I'm sure.

You know I'd kill to play this. It's possibly number 1 on my most desired lists of settings to play in. I don't need to say anything else.

Asura - oh my god I have so many ideas for this game it's not even funny. In some ways it feels like southeast Asian mythology, in some ways it feels like petty cosmic demigods at play, in some ways it feels like a crazy space opera, like Flash Gordon, or like Star Wars (before Star Wars turned to crap). There's really no way to argue with these ingredients.

Asura is awesome. Even the test games I played in were awesome (albeit short and combat focused). This needs to happen, and I've wanted it to happen for a long time.

Amber Diceless - If you love sortakinda statless games about trans-multiversal intrigue, betrayal, and conspiracy, you'll probably enjoy this game. This game is big on the kind of scale you simply don't often see. You're a quasi-immortal descendant of an ancient dysfunctional family, wielding the fundamental forces of reality as you jaunt across an infinity of possible worlds born of your imagination, while a primal war between order and chaos rages in the background. Keep your secrets, cultivate trickery.

Scion - I don't even want to write a blurb for this one. I already write about it all the time anyway!

Being a game system virgin, I have little to no experience with these, but they sound really cool. I've literally only heard of the titles before; I have no idea what the games are like. Interested in learning more...

Dresden Files - There's a pretty good deal of FATE on this list, and this is the most polished iteration I've got my eye on. Secret magic in the modern-day city is a thing the hip kids are into these days, right?

I'd definitely be down for playing this! I have the books and would love to finally get a feel for FATE.

OTHER GAMES
These are probably going to be reserved for local in-person gaming, for one reason or another.

D&D with TEACCH - This may not end up being D&D specifically, but if I end up running this casual, campy game for local kids on the spectrum, I'm going to go with whatever's popular with the group. Currently on hold awaiting more contact from TEACCH about coordinating the setup.

Lady Blackbird - I want to steal every element of this game. Even if you never play it, you should look at it; it's a very clever etude in game design at least.

Burning Wheel - Oh man I seriously want to try this out you guys, you have no idea.

Again, little experience with any of these, but highly interested in learning more.

MORE OTHER GAMES

Lords of Meta-Realm - The gods don't play chess with mortal pawns. It's actually a way weirder game than that.

In A Wicked Age - Have you folks read about this? Heard about this? It is damned cool! I bought it from the lumpley.com sale a few months back, and it is awesome. Remind me to make a thread about it sometime or something.

Avatar: FATE - I've always thought the setting here was charming, and it'd make a pretty easy transition to FATE.

Dogs in the Vineyard - So I'm starting to notice a pattern in the types of games that appeal to me. In general, I adore games where "should I do this?" is a more important question than "can I do this?" Sometimes this means we spend time examining moral choices; other times this means I give players plenty of rope with which to hang themselves. It's often fun to do both of those things. It's a pattern I'm noticing.

GAMES THAT INTRIGUE ME THAT I HAVEN'T READ YET

Don't Rest Your Head - This is the creepiest, awesomest game. Stay awake, or else;

Polaris - I am intrigued by the high-wrought, decadent, doomed tone of this game, and by the GM-less system and the way NPCs are farmed out to other players in a very systematic way. So neat!

GAMES WOT HASN'T BEEN WRITTEN YET
Many of these titles are provisional titles. They are all relatively small games I might find a system for, but might write from scratch.

Race to the Top - Social maneuvering game of politics, schmoozing, slander, and possibly a little bit of discreet poisoning. Essentially a thought experiment or a proof-of-concept for a game with a rich, intricate social system (and little else).

Galactic Kung-Fu in the Magic Kingdom - Light-hearted, action-packed wire-fu space opera about astral projection, hyperspace travel, and the ultimate triumph of courage over evil. Maybe run with Wushu?

DJs vs. Aliens - You're a megastar in the golden era of hip-hop: rebelling against authority, fighting off alien invaders, and making hit records about it.

Secret Project #1 - This one is going to be unique.

Secret Project #2 - This one is going to be adorable.

These are pretty cool. Don't Rest Your Head sounds like it'd be great for a one-shot Halloween IRC, along the same vein as Steerpike's All Hallow's IRC games. Race to the Top piques my interest...

[Xathan]

Love pretty much everything on this list, but want to note this one in particular:

Dresden Files - There's a pretty good deal of FATE on this list, and this is the most polished iteration I've got my eye on. Secret magic in the modern-day city is a thing the hip kids are into these days, right?

I've really gotten into this system (and, you'll be happy to hear, fallen in love with FATE in the process). A friend of mine and I are putting together a Dresden Files RPG we're going to do "Pass the Ball" DMing on (more about that in a different thread), and I've been having a blast creating characters and monsters and foes. I do recommend reading the Dresden series for anyone that's interested in this system, half because it's a great book series and half because it gives you a much better understanding of the world of Dresden...and provides so much inspiration for new things to add to the universe.

[Superfluous Crow]

Wow, Lady Blackbird looks pretty sweet!
Good, smooth system. Would work well for low-stats games. (Like ours!)
Reminds me a lot of Retribution Falls by Chris Wooding, which is largely a good thing. (oh, and firefly of course. Just with sky squids.)

I have a few of these lying around (Dogs, Wicked Age, Burning Wheel and Don't Rest Your Head) as well as some others. I might see if I can write up an unofficial addendum to this list at some point. I have a tendency to collect systems even if I rarely get to actually play them.

[Ninja D!]

I didn't realize the Jade FATE game had started. I must have gotten busy and lost track. I think it just faded away like 80% of the games anyone talks about starting here.

DJs Vs Aliens sounds like everything I want from life.

[Weave]

I didn't realize the Jade FATE game had started. I must have gotten busy and lost track. I think it just faded away like 80% of the games anyone talks about starting here.

DJs Vs Aliens sounds like everything I want from life.

The Jade FATE game had started?

[Lmns Crn]

I didn't realize the Jade FATE game had started.

It had not started. I think we had some summertime-related availability issues, and then I got busy. Things happen!

But I haven't forgotten about that project, and it may be revived at some point.

DJs Vs Aliens sounds like everything I want from life.

Isn't it great? I have some more words to say about DJs vs. Aliens, but probably I will wait and say them later.

Wow, Lady Blackbird looks pretty sweet!
Good, smooth system. Would work well for low-stats games. (Like ours!)

Lady Blackbird is excellent, it's free, and it's only like ten pages long. Anybody who hasn't read it is cheating themselves.

A friend of mine and I are putting together a Dresden Files RPG we're going to do "Pass the Ball" DMing on (more about that in a different thread), and I've been having a blast creating characters and monsters and foes.

This sounds like the sort of game where round-robin DMing would be super fun. The source material is already pretty episodic; each person could DM one "case" or "book" or whatever, then pass it along.

Don't Rest Your Head sounds like it'd be great for a one-shot Halloween IRC

Hadn't thought of it myself, but you're totally right. The game is creepy in tone, and the mechanics are set up in such a way that it's really hard to have a character get out of the Mad City without something dreadful happening to them. It's a game you'll really love if you're a bit of a character masochist!

Being a game system virgin, I have little to no experience with [Amber Diceless and Scion], but they sound really cool. I've literally only heard of the titles before; I have no idea what the games are like. Interested in learning more...

It's funny that you single these out together. They're both similar in that they're about fairly godlike characters, whose players are given leeway to do some pretty insane worldshaping things, but the two games approach that idea in some remarkably different ways. It's one of those things where the big picture is similar, but just about everything else is as opposite as it could possibly be. Fascinating.

Asura is awesome. Even the test games I played in were awesome (albeit short and combat focused). This needs to happen, and I've wanted it to happen for a long time.

I am jealous that Asura test games happened and I was not present for them.

I noticed the other day that Sparkletwist has been very active on the Asura wiki lately. I should ensure that my little premade Asuras are still up to code.

I might see if I can write up an unofficial addendum to this list at some point. I have a tendency to collect system even if I rarely get to actually play them.

Go for it. I certainly don't claim to be the only person around here who can make a list of cool stuff.

[Ninja D!]

When those things are to be said about DJs Vs Aliens, if I don't quickly make an appearance, you should PM me. I would help in any way possible. My knowledge of thhe music industry and the reality of life as a touring musician could be of some use. I'd even contribute to a soundtrack!

I really didn't realize that a date had been set for Jade FATE. Damn. I get myself busy for days at a time too often.

[Superfluous Crow]

How is action resolution handled in Amber Diceless? can't track down much preview information about it, but the Wiki implies that it is simply "highest stat wins". I am sure there is more to it than that, though?

EDIT: do you have the link to Lords of Meta-realm? I'm just trying to track down everything you've mentioned :p

[Lmns Crn]

How is action resolution handled in Amber Diceless? can't track down much preview information about it, but the Wiki implies that it is simply "highest stat wins". I am sure there is more to it than that, though?

It is basically "highest stat wins" with a giant asterisk after.

There are a ton of extenuating circumstances that could cause an upset, so in practice, you generally win either by having an overwhelming stat advantage or (more often) by doing a better job of being a cheating bastard. There's an amusing example in the rulebook based on the hypothetical that you the reader, presumably not a chess grandmaster, have to play the world's top-ranked chess champion in a life-or-death match. There are then three or four paragraphs about ways you could cheat in the game (from psychological warfare and general harassment, to having a hidden earpiece through which other chess grandmasters are advising you, to dosing your opponent with LSD so he won't notice you're making illegal moves), with the idea that perhaps all of these cheats together may or may not even the score.

There's also a general attitude of secrecy-- you may know another character is dangerous by reputation, but you never know their actual stats (and in many cases you don't really know your own stats, either). And everybody typically keeps as many secrets as possible about their own powers, magic, resources, allies, and so forth (and in many cases you don't know who your hidden benefactors may be), because as long as they're secret, your enemies can't do much about them. There are so many unknowns that most people are pretty cautious about throwing down unless that's the only option, which is nice because it encourages a sort of nervous diplomacy which is often quite fun.

EDIT: do you have the link to Lords of Meta-realm? I'm just trying to track down everything you've mentioned :p

I don't have the link, and I'm not sure it exists on the web anymore. I had a brief, ugly page for it up, back before the wiki when the CBG was doing webhosting for settings instead, and I haven't bothered rehosting that information anywhere. Maybe there's a thread for it, I dunno. Possibly there's a google archive of the old site. I'm sure I have some notes around here somewhere.

[Superfluous Crow]

No thread, but the front page (of LotMR) shows up using google search! It even says your name. Sadly, I can only see the cached version and none of the links work, so I can't access more than the introduction.

[Steerpike]

There's this , but I get the feeling it's an older/incomplete version.

[Xathan]

This sounds like the sort of game where round-robin DMing would be super fun. The source material is already pretty episodic; each person could DM one "case" or "book" or whatever, then pass it along.

Yeah, it's one of the best systems for that, especially since the level of involvement all players/potential DMs have in setting creation along with each others character creation means everyone has a much more detailed knowledge than is typically seen with games. And, as you pointed out, the source material is fairly episodic (well, up until the last 2 books), so it lends itself very well to that kind of game.