Role Playing Games have changed a lot since I picked up my first copy of Dungeons and Dragons Basic Set (you know, the red box). But there is still an inherent flaw in most science fiction based RPGs: GUNS.
Using an abstract rules system to explain the multitude of possibilities in a fantastical setting is a difficult, and striving for realism, while admirable, makes for a very, very uninteresting gaming session. Compounding that with firearms tends bog down each round of action with superfluous die rolling and chart checking.
When you’ve got guns, or blasters or whatever, you’ve also got rate of fire, ammo consumed and carried, as well as range, damage, damage versus materials (armor, flesh, etc.), special ammo types (exploding, magical, filled with acid or poison), reliability and a whole slew of other problems I’m purposefully neglecting to mention.
I’ve recently begun running a Dark Heresy game (from Fantasy Flight Games), based on Games Workshop’s epically popular Warhammer 40,000 setting. As with any new rules system, it takes some time to learn, sometimes to work through the errata and establish a flow with characters, skills and combat. However, Dark Heresy, an impressive book with a rather high price point, is perhaps one of the most poorly organized books I’ve seen in a long time. The core rules are spread over what feels like dozens of chapters, and the answers to simple questions lead you on a whirlwind of page flipping and index referencing (sorry – but at my age, I refuse to commit anymore RPG rules to memory, after THAC0 and Saves from AD&D 2e, I’ve had enough).
But the game – the game itself is so strong, the setting is so rich and fleshy, the expansion of the typical science fiction genre, the gothic superstition and rampant forces of chaos, the galaxy spanning quests against an invisible evil – it’s a Game Master’s dream. But for the core rules book.
Against my better judgment, I purchased a copy of Rogue Trader, the new Warhammer 40,000 game from Fantasy Flight. The price point on this beast is astounding. As I fork over my sixty kuatloos for my copy of the book, I page through it and see that much of the book is a reprint of rules from Dark Heresy. By now, I’m getting cranky, wondering who their target audience is, where the colony of 15-year olds with disposable income are coming from to purchase these products.
Then, I notice something that lightens my heart; this book is well organized. It’s not only good looking, filled with tasty fluff content, but it’s easier to understand, easier to use. The differences are subtle, but significant. I began to use Rogue Trader as my reference book immediately for my Dark heresy game, considering it the 2nd Edition of the DH core rules. The starship rules are a spectacular addition, the new classes are great and the expanded armory and equipment guides makes players “thank the Golden Throne” for this book.
My only criticism is the republishing of core rules. White Wolf, I think, has really tapped into something with their World of Darkness core rules book. Personally, I’d rather spend the extra cash on expanded materials, and rely on one core rulebook that every player can afford.
Will Fantasy Flight Games release another core rule book for Space Marines? And another for Xenos? Why not just keep the core lean and the materials rich and flowing?
As a writer, you hate to bash another writer’s work. You always want to try to find something positive to say about it. In college, when doing peer readings, hyper-critical as I am, I found myself not saying much. One of my favorite professors said “You’ve a great integrity about you when comment…”
