Smash the System!

Archon

New member
Nov 12, 2002
916
0
0
Smash the System!

With a little smashing, your tabletop RPG collection can multiply overnight.

Read Full Article
 

SL33TBL1ND

Elite Member
Nov 9, 2008
6,467
0
41
It's good to see people still know about car wars, I've actually been thinking of running a proper campaign with it instead stand alone battles.
 

Archon

New member
Nov 12, 2002
916
0
0
SL33TBL1ND said:
It's good to see people still know about car wars, I've actually been thinking of running a proper campaign with it instead stand alone battles.
Me too! Hit me up on PM if you want to discuss Car Wars campaigning.
 

Slycne

Tank Ninja
Feb 19, 2006
3,422
0
0
Heh, well Shadowrun smashes really well with Yahtzee, because lord knows you are going digging for those extra d6s for your specialized customized pistol skill modified with combat pool dice.
 

Afterglow

New member
Nov 2, 2009
16
0
0
I once saw a smash-up between Vampire: The Masquerade and Cyberpunk 2020. Seemed quite interesting, especially as I remember the author writing that with the advanced technology of Cyberpunk the Masquerade was basically doomed.
 

KEM10

New member
Oct 22, 2008
725
0
0
Afterglow said:
I once saw a smash-up between Vampire: The Masquerade and Cyberpunk 2020. Seemed quite interesting, especially as I remember the author writing that with the advanced technology of Cyberpunk the Masquerade was basically doomed.
How would that work? Are you sacrificing the morality to get upgraded (can't remember what vamp uses for that stat)? It would be interesting because the lower that stat goes is suppose to show how well you connect with humans, but the flavor text just doesn't work in my mind.
 

Afterglow

New member
Nov 2, 2009
16
0
0
KEM10 said:
How would that work? Are you sacrificing the morality to get upgraded (can't remember what vamp uses for that stat)? It would be interesting because the lower that stat goes is suppose to show how well you connect with humans, but the flavor text just doesn't work in my mind.
Its quite a while since I saw this so I don't remember the exact mechanics but yes, I think as you get more cybernetics your humanity/morality lowers.
 

Afterglow

New member
Nov 2, 2009
16
0
0
I found where I saw this. It is from White Wolf Magazine #36, an article called "The World of Future Darkness"
 

Zykon TheLich

Extra Heretical!
Legacy
Jun 6, 2008
3,495
834
118
Country
UK
KEM10 said:
Afterglow said:
I once saw a smash-up between Vampire: The Masquerade and Cyberpunk 2020. Seemed quite interesting, especially as I remember the author writing that with the advanced technology of Cyberpunk the Masquerade was basically doomed.
How would that work? Are you sacrificing the morality to get upgraded (can't remember what vamp uses for that stat)? It would be interesting because the lower that stat goes is suppose to show how well you connect with humans, but the flavor text just doesn't work in my mind.
There was actually an official version called Nights Edge by Dream Pod 9 (or at least they bought the rights to it). It wasn't actually VtM but it added vampires & werewolves and had a few good splat books and adventures, almost as many as vanilla CP2020. You just used EMP like you did in CP2020 but it also added a PSI stat for psychic powers.

@ Alexander Macris: +1000 points for mentioning Cyberpunk 2020. -1000 for adding magic you got fantasy in my Cyberpunk...RAAAAAGE. *cough*.

I pretty much use CP2020 rules for any modern game and have played TW2K and 2013 with CP2020 while using the TW rules for generating areas and foraging through the ruins etc. D20 modern posta apoc helped with ideas. I'm thinking about doing the same with Dark Heresy as I dislike the system.

Warhammer Fantasy Battle (or Roleplay?) and Superheros? ...*RAAAAAGE*...Actually I know very little about Marvel Superheroes, mixing up the rules might be awesome but the day I mix the settigns is the day something really really unlikely happens.

Afterglow said:
I found where I saw this. It is from White Wolf Magazine #36, an article called "The World of Future Darkness"
I think it's quite readily available online if you search various cyberpunk sites.

EDIT: I've just had a look and it says VtM uses a 1-10 stat system and the VtM equivalent of Empathy is Humanity, so you take cyber induced humanity loss (funnily enough that's what its called in CP2020 as well) off that stat instead.
 

dubious_wolf

Obfuscated Information
Jun 4, 2009
584
0
0
car wars is something I have been interested in playing. And I know where to get a classic travelers book.... hmmmm.
 

aegios187

New member
Jun 17, 2007
90
0
0
Also, R Talsorian games put out Cybergeneration which I think was Cyberpunk with psionics basically. Never really allowed it in my campaigns or played with it. Nights Edge was also a little too strange to taint my CP 2020 games as well.

Finally, the last issue of Interface offered Call of Chtulu conversion rules as I recall.
 

Albino Boo

New member
Jun 14, 2010
4,667
0
0
Call of the Rune: A very easy one, Call of Cthulhu and Runequest. They both have the same d100 system and its easy to just take the San rules and add them into the glorantha setting. See one too many Broos and you end up a loony.


CyberArthur: I played this more years ago than I care to remember, as a one off. It took the pendragon rules, in which the Characters had vice/virtue stats and added human/machine. The Arthur stories set on one planet after the fall of a galactic empire. There is some technology left but not much i.e. Excalibur is a power sword. Knights can have implants that do all the normal cyberpunk stuff but push down the human/machine stats. Imagine Mordred as horse riding cyborg killing machine. The big problem is the pendragon rules themselves are a bit clunky.
 

Liquid Paradox

New member
Jul 19, 2009
303
0
0
Wow, you just got me excited all over again for a mash-up I am currently working on using Dark Heresy and a compendium of Fallout concepts and mechanics.

Hook 1: DH has a hit-location mechanic that includes limb-specific damage. This, of course, is very similar to VATS in FO3 (and also the targeting system of one and two).

Hook 2: Skills feel somewhat similar to me. Well, actually, they are nothing alike, but that's easy to change.

Dark Heresy has a focous on Abilities, such as Strength (called... well, Strength) and charisma (called fellowship, in DH), and all skills depend on one of these abilities. For example, when using carouse, you have to roll a d 100. if you have carouse trained, you have to roll under your fortitude score, which for an average character, is about 30. So, you roll 29, you succeed, but if you roll 31, you fail. There is a bit more to it, naturally, but that is the basic principle. Oh, it should be noted that there are a lot of potential skills in DH.

Meanwhile, Fallout games have a very limited number of generally all-encompassing skills, which determine almost everything a player does, from shooting a gun, to fixing a computer. These skills are represented, generally, by a percentage. As in, a percentage to succeed. As in, success can be determined by a d100, specifically by rolling below the percentage. See where I'm going with this?

Hook 3: C'mon. Spacemarines-brotherhood of steel? las guns-laser riffles? This is just begging for a mash up ;)

The original idea was to create a new Fallout rpg (yes, I know there already is one, and no, I haven't tried it) with a rule system that my group already understands and really enjoys. Admittedly, while I have some rather promising results, I lack the time necessary to work more comprehensively on this project, and have little more then a skeletal framework for the skills and abilities.

However, if someone were willing to work with me on this, I think there could be great gaming potential here. Also, I would be more motivated to keep working on it, which is awesome (my group, unfortunately, lacks the vision and drive to help me with this :( )

What I am getting at is this: if any of you think that this is an idea worth pursuing, and are willing to work with me on this send me a PM and I can e-mail you what I've got so far. I'm not looking for glory, just a fun way to role-play in the setting for fallout.

TL;DR - Dark Heresy and Fallout = great mash-up
 

ZodiacBraves

New member
Jun 26, 2008
189
0
0
Slycne said:
Heh, well Shadowrun smashes really well with Yahtzee, because lord knows you are going digging for those extra d6s for your specialized customized pistol skill modified with combat pool dice.
I'm fairly sure that the Escapist is the only website where I may have to stop and think about what meaning of the word Yahtzee somebody is using.
 

Archon

New member
Nov 12, 2002
916
0
0
scumofsociety said:
@ Alexander Macris: +1000 points for mentioning Cyberpunk 2020. -1000 for adding magic you got fantasy in my Cyberpunk...RAAAAAGE. *cough*.
No, no, you misunderstand :D I didn't get magic in the Cyberpunk. I added Punk to the singing elves/happy halflings games. I'm spreading despair and cyberpsychosis everywhere I roll.
 

Zykon TheLich

Extra Heretical!
Legacy
Jun 6, 2008
3,495
834
118
Country
UK
aegios187 said:
Also, R Talsorian games put out Cybergeneration which I think was Cyberpunk with psionics basically. Never really allowed it in my campaigns or played with it. Nights Edge was also a little too strange to taint my CP 2020 games as well.

Finally, the last issue of Interface offered Call of Chtulu conversion rules as I recall.
Sort of, it was Cyberpunk with "the kids" and nanotech = magic powers. Kinda like V3...

Some of the Nights Edge adventures were actually pretty good for low "level" characters and removing the supernatural element was usually very easy. Somehow they always felt like they'd been written by people who'd play VtM or LARP, some of it quite character driven with little combat.

Archon said:
No, no, you misunderstand :D I didn't get magic in the Cyberpunk. I added Punk to the singing elves/happy halflings games. I'm spreading despair and cyberpsychosis everywhere I roll.
Oh, that's ok then, scratch the 1000 point penalty and have +500 for destroying their very being. Well done. Make sure you spend it on boosterware and black lace.
 

SL33TBL1ND

Elite Member
Nov 9, 2008
6,467
0
41
Archon said:
SL33TBL1ND said:
It's good to see people still know about car wars, I've actually been thinking of running a proper campaign with it instead stand alone battles.
Me too! Hit me up on PM if you want to discuss Car Wars campaigning.
Probably not a good idea, I've already got a Serenity RPG in the works, so writing a Car Wars game would probably distract me too much. But once I'm clear of that system, sure!
 

0over0

New member
Dec 30, 2006
88
0
0
Interesting article, as usual. I have to say, though, I think most "new" rpg systems have always been the result of smash-ups. I think too you can carry it beyond just smashing together different RPGs, which you do touch on a bit, to smashing together totally different games or even games and movies, books, plays, etc.
The world's your quarry, your mind is the sledgehammer.
 

Zaverexus

New member
Jul 5, 2010
934
0
0
Well it may not exactly be a smash-up, but I have my dad's old rulebooks, the very first form of what became Dungeons and Dragons (no, not ChainMail, just little booklets before they published the real official rulebooks) and I have been integrating some of the older rules into my 4th Edition DnD campaign