4 ms·

Smallworld is a great Risk alternative. It polishes all the best points while avoiding the pitfalls. DnD 5E is like the Risk of tabletop RPGs. Just sort of lon

Smallworld is a great Risk alternative. It polishes all the best points while avoiding the pitfalls. DnD 5E is like the Risk of tabletop RPGs. Just sort of long and meandering without much going on. Shadow of the Demon Lord, Torchbearer, and Mythras Classic Fantasy are better alternatives depending on what level of crunch you enjoy.

dragonwriter 5y ago
> DnD 5E is like the Risk of tabletop RPGs. Just sort of long and meandering without much going on. That's...highly table dependent, even assuming the same set of rules options are in place. And I’m not just saying that whether it feels that way is a matter of subjective taste (which is also true), but that the objective qualities of play depend very much on the particular group at the table. That's true of TRPGs in general, but its true of some TRPGs more tha others, and D&D5E is relatively unopinionated (though not so much as, say, GURPS) while some more focussed games zero-in on a more-specific playstyle.
simonh 5y ago
Dungeon World scratches the itch for me, if I'm going to play anything that looks at all like D&D. There's been a huge renaissance in TTRPGs for over a decade now though, powered by cheap DTP and PDF publishing.
- qznc 5y ago
  The creator of Dungeon World is a big fan of Burning Wheel. He has a video where he explains why it is great: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E79DDGdX62I https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E79DDGdX62I His point is that game mechanics reveal what a game is really about. Using this classification: DnD is about fighting monsters. Dungeon World is about worldbuilding. Burning Wheel is about character development. Since people are different, this might help to find the right one.
meristohm 5y ago
Luke Crane helped make The Burning Wheel, Torchbearer, and Mouse Guard, in descending order of complexity. The latter uses David Petersen’s (Peterson’s?) comix-IP as setting and focuses on “what do you fight for?” Despite that phrasing it doesn’t hinge on bloodshed, since challenges are weather, nature, other mice, and ? (it’s been awhile), and can be a game for young kids as well as teens and adults.

dragonwriter 5y ago

> DnD 5E is like the Risk of tabletop RPGs. Just sort of long and meandering without much going on. That's...highly table dependent, even assuming the same set of rules options are in place. And I’m not just saying that whether it feels that way is a matter of subjective taste (which is also true), but that the objective qualities of play depend very much on the particular group at the table. That's true of TRPGs in general, but its true of some TRPGs more tha others, and D&D5E is relatively unopinionated (though not so much as, say, GURPS) while some more focussed games zero-in on a more-specific playstyle.

simonh 5y ago

Dungeon World scratches the itch for me, if I'm going to play anything that looks at all like D&D. There's been a huge renaissance in TTRPGs for over a decade now though, powered by cheap DTP and PDF publishing.

qznc 5y ago
The creator of Dungeon World is a big fan of Burning Wheel. He has a video where he explains why it is great: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E79DDGdX62I https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E79DDGdX62I His point is that game mechanics reveal what a game is really about. Using this classification: DnD is about fighting monsters. Dungeon World is about worldbuilding. Burning Wheel is about character development. Since people are different, this might help to find the right one.

meristohm 5y ago

Luke Crane helped make The Burning Wheel, Torchbearer, and Mouse Guard, in descending order of complexity. The latter uses David Petersen’s (Peterson’s?) comix-IP as setting and focuses on “what do you fight for?” Despite that phrasing it doesn’t hinge on bloodshed, since challenges are weather, nature, other mice, and ? (it’s been awhile), and can be a game for young kids as well as teens and adults.