I never got 1st ed (apart from the core lent by a friend). 2e seems to be the standard “WW lets reissue after a couple of years with some tweaksâ€

NP, Coyotekin (how should we abbreviate your name?).

I agree with you on indie systems, Moonsiver. Despite of the setting being great, if the system is poor, the gameplay can be heavily affected. 'Cus let's face it: I doubt that most of us in this forum likes d20, but the system itself is... effective. It's not completely unrealistic, it's simple, and best of all, it's fast. I've never knows GURPS, but all in all I like the d20 system. I don't like Wizards and I don't like the d20 supplements, but I find unlikely that anyone will easily create a game system for an indie RPG that is as effective as d20.

That said, I don't think that's exactly what you are looking for, but I recently had great time with Ninja Burger.

Edit: sorry, this text is kind of messy...

Arthur: As for abbreviating my name I suppose one of many ways. I have seen Coy, Coyo, Kin, CK, or just Coyote ( a respectable honorific noentheless) I leave it to you. Thanks for asking.

I can't stand Ninja Burger, and yet I like the Munchkin series quite a bit.

As for Exalted and other games I have to admit that d20 is very effective and I like that I can use it for justa bout anything, and I am a BIG fan of templates.

Yet I also know that over time Exalted has trumped even my fanatical love for the Mage series from WW. That has been my game since 1st edition. And as time has gone by Exalted has offered many opprotunities for different epic adventures.

My major beed though with Exalted is the HUGE power difference between the Exalted types. And most players want to play a Solar just because they do not want to have fewer points or stats than another. And yet I am left to try to keep some balance, and keep things interesting, while somehow explaining to others how each Exalted has advantages in the game as a whole to equal things out.

I was looking around and saw the Exalted Modernis and thought they were some really interesting ideas to try out. Truth be told I would be very happy to try new things and get to be a player for a time. Hell, I would be happy if I could have a campaign that last a whole year, consistantly. One of the downside of the military I suppose.

You and I must have played different d20 systems....

Or maybe (and more likely) we had different DMs...

Well, I suppose I can tell you a little bit about good indie systems, but you'll have to take it with a grain of salt, as these are only my favourites and tastes can vary. Furthermore, I do like mechanics which emphasize the mood and setting of the game. Like for example the exalted virtue and great curse mechanic (which is done poorly, but its the kind of mechanic I like). That means I will always prefer a specialized game over a toolbox game, because toolboxes frankly suck at specialized mechanics.

So, that being out of the way, let's start with my favourite game. It is called spirits of the century and it is being done by the gentlemen of evil hat games ( http://www.evilhat.com/home/?page_id=103 ). It is the emulation of the good 1920s pulp, we are speaking of an alternate history in which the century club supports extraordinary individuals (centurions) in their battles against evil foes. If you like movies like shadow, indiana jones, the mummy or even league of extraordinary gentlemen, then you will feel right at home here. The system is not as rules heavy as exalted but it definitely has enough meat to satisfy your average crunch lover. The core mechanic is not very difficult, throw a couple of dice, add skill, compare to target number -> succeed if you at least meet, fail if not. The system operates without hitpoints or other surrogates (*cough* motes *cough*) and gives the players a couple of nice ways to influence the story in a meaningful way. Everything is written with great care and you will have a guaranteed "why didn't anyone think of that earlier, this is so awesome" moment every 3 pages (or more). If you are into pulp, then check it out. (for those who like harry dresden, the guys at evil hat are doing the dresden files rpg right now).

Next one is reign, you can find the game at www.gregstolze.com and yes, we are talking about THE greg stolze right now. The same guy who did unknown armies, a good chunk of the excellent vampire the requiem books and other pearls. He wrote a fantasy game, but it is fantasy done right. The rules are fast, generate complex results and that without being complicated. The setting is fun and lovingly written. It is not as full of half gods as exalted though, it is more on par with all those kitchen sink fantasy series ("swords of..." for example). The author has a ton of free material on his homepage, too and is REALLY helpful.

These are my favourites, but there are many more which I adore, like for example "cold city" (mulitnational groups of agents hunt nazi experiments in cold war berlin).

Sweet!

Some other indie games: some of the stuff done by Memento Mori Theatrics are fairly interesting, particularly octaNe. Another interesting concept is the GM-less method employed by Capes!, from Muse of Fire. Neither of these is really conducive to long campaigns, but good for a one-shot or two.

ocaNe just made me have a little less faith on humanity, and I stopped on the first pages of the sample chapter. Some things should remain unpublished...

If you want to go gamemasterless then I suggest trying polaris http://www.indiepressrevolution.com/xcart/product.php?productid=16160&cat=0&page=1 (yeah, I'm liking IPR now, I am lazy ^^ ). It is a game about an atlantis like civilization which is doomed to be destroyed. So, in every scene one guy plays a protagonist and the others play different roles at the table depending on their relation to the protagonist in the seating order, for example, the guy across the table is always the antagonist. This sounds crazy and it is, but in a good way. The setting is really surreal... really. But then, it is from the guy who did bliss stage... (bliss stage is a game about teenage mecha pilots who have to go into the conscious dream of humanity to fight evil stuff that made everyone above the age of 16 or so fall asleep. Did I mention that the quality of their mecha depends on the relationships they have with their friends... so "If I go with my boyfriend all the way tonight I might be able to better defend the world tomorrow" is a valid tactic ^^).

Like I said above, there are so many games and the only real way to know is to try them out. Luckily most of them are cheap in pdf.

OK next time anyone has a reticent gf, just tell her that sleeping with you will pimp her car. Bound to work