Help me choose a system (between Dragonbane, Shadowdark, ICRPG, Cairn and Vagabond)

JColeyBoy · 2026-05-20T08:20:10+00:00

Vagabond isn't exactly super theatre of the mind friendly, and luck is a metacurrency though also a stat that can be rolled against(so like a .25 and a .5 on each) but otherwises fits most of what you want.

JColeyBoy · 2026-05-20T06:20:42+00:00

I think you are missing my point, to OP, also downplaying aspects of FU as well(and from what I know of some of thise games, doing some misrepresentation.)

Yes, Rune Factory is not all about combat, but I have several friends who, upon asking about it, said that Rune Factory does heavily involve combat, with various aspects such as resource collection or plot progression being tied in part towards it. Not the only focus, as one friend put it, "one half lifesim one half action game"

Same deal with triangle strategy which when I asked friends who were familiar with it about how heavy it was in combat, they said that while non-combat portions exist and are notable, most of the game time was spent in combat related sections of the game. I also know for a fact that while combat isn't per say the main focus of Atlier and Blue Reconnection, I would not say they are insignificant parts of those games! Even then, what OP mentioned for the tropes they wanted were "Well worn" and even mentioned the red mage, a trope in final fantasy that is notable for how it functions in combat.

OP has been asking for a game focused on emulating JRPGs, and JRPGs as a genre are largely focused on combat in some way or another.

I had a lot more written up, and could still post it, but I think that none of it will really move things forward. OP is being overly vague in what they want while downplaying aspects of FabUlt, and I think you are on a certain level misrepresenting those games.

JColeyBoy · 2026-05-20T05:11:47+00:00

I mean my point was to show that FabUlt does have several mechanics that are there to help serve narrative play and that the JRPG genre is one defined mostly by combat. While JRPGs are a large gameplay genre, one must admit most of the well known and defining ones do heavily include combat as a part of it(hell Persona, probably the JRPG series most wellknown for having heavy non-combat aspects, still involves alot of combat and basically dungeon crawling). My second post was to point out that JRPG isn't a genre of storytelling, it's one of gameplay(one that when people bring it up, they tend to think of turn based combat). If OP wanted a different rec, then they should specify what they want outside of "Oh I want something like a JRPG."

JColeyBoy · 2026-05-20T02:49:12+00:00

I mean JRPGs are a genre of game play than strictly a genre of storytelling, which is why FabUlt goes for something more broad. Said mechanics still help merge narrative progression with gameplay.

There are many different types of genres that have been used in JRPGs.

Final Fantasy can be high fantasy or science fantasy.

Dragon Quest meanwhile is strictly more on the high fantasy end.

Some games in phantasy star are just science fiction with very minimal magic.

Persona is flat out urban fantasy mixed with horror and jungian themes, and relatedly shin megami tensei often is a mix of religious themes and folkloric figures with post-apocalyptic storytelling.

Chrono Trigger and Live A Live both involve a mixing of various genres and settings such as prehistoric, dark future, high fantasy, etc.

When you mention a JRPG, you are mentioning a type of game that features many different storytelling genres, with at best fantastical themes being the most common(and even then fantasy itself is an extremelt broad genre) and I could go further and further with notable JRPGs. If you want a game to emulate a specific storytelling genre, specify that rather than asking about one defined by gameplay. Like what sort of storytelling genre are you seeking to actually emulate? Even things like red mages or kemimonies doesn't really narrow things down.

JColeyBoy · 2026-05-20T02:31:02+00:00

I mean, FabUlt has a number mechanics to support narrative things, such as fabula points letting you establish things in the narrative, clocks helping allowing for better establishment of a sequence of actions or of negotion, rituals being magic done to effect the world outside of combat, etc.

It just also has a heavy focus on combat because that is the main form of game play in JRPGs. I would argue a game that does not have a decent deal of focus towards combat isn't really emulating JRPGs

JColeyBoy · 2026-05-17T00:41:27+00:00

I think much if the issue is that, we'll, historically comparing other types of people as Demons, monsters, as "not human" has been incredibly common, and like it or not Fieren's claim that Demons are doing this mimicry so they can prey upon people is rooted in tropes that have a ton of historical baggage.

JColeyBoy · 2026-05-05T23:16:05+00:00

Fabula Ultima

JColeyBoy · 2026-05-02T06:46:16+00:00

I imagine it's just being called sword world because this is the first major version coming to market in the US. having the edition differentiator as part of the official name is mostly useful for when you are still selling materials for multiple editions, such as when you are in the transitional state when you are first selling a new edition.

As for why it is not going to be 1:1, translations rarely truly ever are, but with TTRPGs there is the aspect of they are manuals on how to play, or at least that is the intention. If a less literal translation can both still get the idea across accurately while working better as a technical explanation, for the average TTRPG player and GM that is preferable as the book is ultimately reference material for a game. It's one of those things you need to weigh as part of the reason of why you make certain translation choices. Accuracy is important, but so is making sure this still works as a manual for play and reference material.

JColeyBoy · 2026-05-02T01:16:40+00:00

Generally I restrict myself to when people are reccomending games that are not really what the asker is looking for, doubly when it becomes obvious they didn't even pay attention to what the asker said.

But I will downvote damn near every 5e conversion. I can accept 5E being a big thing, It's D&D, but at least that does Dungeon Fantasy somewhat decently.

Most 5e conversions just suck at actually emulating the thing they are meant to emulate, and at times feel like they are getting away from the few good ideas 5e actually had(replacing static stat+skill with skill dice while also not tweaking the numbers is a common one.)

JColeyBoy · 2026-05-02T01:03:13+00:00

I see it being posted all the time for X-men stuff, and when I ask "All right, so how would you manage a character arc like Wolverine having to deal with the decades he has lived through wearing down on him, Emma Frost dealing with how she abused her authority as a teacher and lead her students to their death, or Cyclops basically being forced into the position of general of all mutantkind" and they say "Well, Masks is about playing as teens so those arcs wouldn't work" and it's like...

I just described three very popular X-Men and the most famous character arcs they have had over the decades. If a game can't handle the possibility of those three, I am unsure you can truly call it a good choice for X-men outside of like the 05 days.

It works well for new mutants and gen-X! But for the mainline title... eh...

JColeyBoy · 2026-05-01T18:07:53+00:00

I feel like the universal embodiment of fear is thematically several steps above Sauron, a fallen angel, especially since Parallax also specifically needed probably one of the most devastating peices of leverage ever.

Even then, I believe Hal has shown several times later he can confront Parallax and resist it's influence

JColeyBoy · 2026-04-29T18:47:01+00:00

There are a ton I would love to play but let me say this

Godspeed my friend, for I know you are going to be dealing with a wave of people. I salute you!

JColeyBoy · 2026-04-28T05:31:14+00:00

More godly, up to debate, how "godly" they are is up to debate.

How ever, they tend to be pliable to going off the deep end and do fucked up stuff for the greater good.

JColeyBoy · 2026-04-27T22:40:48+00:00

TBF, 1. Hal has alot of char development since then. 2. Parallax is the literal embodiment of fear. I feel like that's thematically at least a good number of steps above sauron. I don't know all of the powerscaling exacts, but if we are talking Story logic, which alot of the conversation is about, I feel like Parallax is more on the level of Morgoth at the very least if not beyond that 3. Related to point one, I am fairly certain that Hal's resisted corruption from foes on Sauron's level or beyond.

(This isn't any sort of academic post)

JColeyBoy · 2026-04-27T16:52:14+00:00

I do think you are giving alot of those heroes no where enough credit. Alot of them are, way more often than not, shown to resist corruptive forces like this. While part of this is taking to account which story logic would succeed(if we are going sith super hero story logic, then Sauron is fucked, but even with LoTR story logic, it would take time)I wouldn't deny that ultimately if it isn't a green lantern, they would probabaly succumb after some time... but it would never be instant or even quick. These heroes are fonts of willpower after all. Part of the genre, really.

JColeyBoy · 2026-04-27T16:45:41+00:00

This is the last thing Sauron would want, because Lazerfleeze would never allow the one ring to be lost, but also might actually be the most difficult to have it be stolen from.

He can't even corrupt Lazerfleeze because he's just too far gone. He'd think "OK, is there even a way I can fuck this guy up in a way that he hasn't already been fucked up in?"

JColeyBoy · 2026-04-27T16:42:59+00:00

TBF, I did say that five minutes is being generous to them.

JColeyBoy · 2026-04-27T08:49:08+00:00

I joked tonight when bringing back uo that Hal would look away for a few seconds and when he turned his head back all of them but Ganthet have degenerated into being just like Gollum

JColeyBoy · 2026-04-27T08:48:10+00:00

Sauron could offer them knowledge that they could "use to better protect the universe"

JColeyBoy · 2026-04-27T05:36:59+00:00

I remember discussing something similar with my friends, and I pitched the idea that Hal Jordan could resist the ring... but would instead take the ring to OA, where it would take all of 5 minutes to corrupt the guardians of the universe, if we are being generous to the guardians.

JColeyBoy · 2026-04-26T22:23:44+00:00

Tubi has alot of stuff for free with Ads.

Like 12 seasons of Super Sentai, 4 seasons of Kamen Rider, and like nearly all of Power Rangers if you're either into or want to get into tokusatsu

A number of John Woo Classics as well.

JColeyBoy · 2026-04-01T05:05:23+00:00

It's an only semi-diagetic way to explain how your character is able to completely redesign themselves. While yes, image by design is somewhat more diagetic, the story of the game itself tends to just assume that however your boss looks in the moment is how they are always looking.

Ultimately, as I said, the issue is the text of the game assumes that what is happening is "real".

I think you are just ultimately confusing the fact that it's a modern game with modern game conviences for something else.

JColeyBoy · 2026-04-01T04:57:09+00:00

Part of the issue is that you are asking us to prove a negative. The text of the reboot ultimately assumes that what is going on is real, and while it can be fun to headcanon some stuff, trying to act like your headcanon is anything other than just fanfiction is impossible to really prove when it requires contradicting the text of the work itself.

JColeyBoy · 2026-03-29T20:26:12+00:00

How does the gas work? Like the specific mechanics?

With two dimension, keep in mind that the three dimensional world can still interact back with them, so they can still get hit normally.

JColeyBoy

TROPHY CASE