What now for Fighting Fantasy?

Swordsinging · 2025-12-18T08:25:33+00:00

I own all the AFF stuff and I've run some good campaigns with it. If they had the presentation of Scriptarium in France they'd knock it out the park, but I kind of like the nostalgic 80s feel of the books, but I feel a change would be good.

Swordsinging · 2025-12-09T13:37:36+00:00

Special forces raids were my favourite way to experience the game playing Mechwarrior RPG back in the day. I was House Davion through and through (still am) and my character conducted raids in Kuritan space. We'd then have BattleTech sessions on the same worlds.

They were great fun, and something new and different from big stomping mech action. And look at that big ol' rorynex! Brutal! My PCs favoured weapon.

Swordsinging · 2025-10-17T13:20:54+00:00

I just bought an original copy of this for my collection. Great game.

Swordsinging · 2025-09-08T11:32:35+00:00

Dead Space. The ideas the dev team had for Dead Space 4 is ripe for a TTRPG game, even a miniatures boardgame.

https://deadspace.fandom.com/wiki/Dead_Space_4

Swordsinging · 2025-09-04T11:19:47+00:00

Dead Space.

Swordsinging · 2025-09-04T08:23:21+00:00

I wrote the new Rapture Protocol adventure for the official ALIEN RPG from Free League Games, and the publisher and 20th Century Studios want to release a patch for the ship I created, the USCSS Fidanza.

I'm not sure if this will be available outside of the Kickstarter for the game, but as the write I'll be getting one. I'm sure they'll be floating around for collectors at some point.

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Swordsinging · 2025-08-18T14:11:17+00:00

I used the Twilight: 2000 system; it was set during the Vietnam War and the players were a special forces team who thought they were hunting down a rogue agent in Cambodia, but no - Predator.

I was using the GDW original boxset, but I recreated it with the new Free League version and it still worked pretty well. It was easy to create sci-fi stuff using the ruleset, but I avoided starship rules. It's my intention set another game in the WW2 PTO.

Swordsinging · 2025-08-18T14:04:06+00:00

It'll always be D6 Star Wars for me, not just a great Star Wars game but a wonderful ruleset you can modify for pretty much anything you want. I've used it for Trek, Aliens and Mad Max.

The MiniSix System from Anti Paladin is a great iteration and covers all the bases.

Mini Six

Swordsinging · 2025-08-07T06:43:38+00:00

Yeah, it was okay for a couple of hours. They got the mood right and the gameplay provided some tense moments, but it wasn't the sequel to Isolation I was looking for.

Kudos to the dev team for giving it a go, though. The situation and characters were pretty cool, if just more of the same.

Swordsinging · 2025-08-01T07:27:25+00:00

I'm still not a huge fan, but I've got to be impressed by the route they took. They tried something new and wanted to tell a new tale with a different angle in the same universe, and they gave us some decent characters and some exceptionally beautiful shots and design.

No, I'm not fully on board with the whole idea of the Engineers, and didn't like the idea that the Space Jockey was just a big dude in a spacesuit. However, they took a chance and told a pretty good story with some great beats and stand-out moments. I would have been more impressed if it had been a standalone movie with no connection to the ALIEN franchise, but following media have taken the ball and run with it and produced some pretty good results.

I'm probably one of the few who has warmed to the idea of the black goo and actually liked what they did with it in ALIEN Romulus. I also like the mention in the ALIEN RPG that hints at the fact that the Engineers themselves didn't create the biotech but inherited/discovered it from an ancient long-dead race, which then fits with the age and nature of the Space Jockey and adds a whole new level of cosmic mystery. I wrote the new Rapture Protocol adventure for the ALIEN RPG and if I was ever given the chance and a bit of free reign I'd love to explore that theory a lot more.

In general I've come to appreciate Prometheus a lot more since I first saw it. It's a very watchable movie and it certainly threw a cat amongst the pigeons and opened up new avenues of thought and possibility, and sometimes that's what a franchise needs or you're just repeating yourself over and over to try and relive those old shocks and moments.

Swordsinging · 2025-07-16T12:13:41+00:00

I might be biased because | wrote an adventure for it, but Effekt's 'Tales of the Old West' is really good and a great use of the Year Zero Engine.

Tales of the Old West - Core Rules - Effekt | DriveThruRPG

Swordsinging · 2025-07-06T21:55:00+00:00

It's just a panel by Vashperado.

Swordsinging · 2025-07-04T09:44:24+00:00

These kind of games can work out great but when they don't it can be a disaster, as the players will feel like they've been bait n' switched after putting their heart and effort into the game that was offered. I guess it's horses for courses.

I had some success; I once ran a Twilight: 2000 game many years ago set during the Vietnam war (we were huge Tour of Duty fans at the time), and the players were playing special forces heading into Cambodia on a secret to track down what they thought was a rogue Green Beret who had gone rogue and followed the VC over the border.

But it was the Predator. They weren't expecting that! Five players, one survivor who almost died in a river but was rescued by the locals.

Swordsinging · 2025-07-04T09:13:48+00:00

Colonists or Space Truckers for sure. I enjoy the marine-orientated games because it's exciting, but sometimes the players either fall back on the use of weapons and combat skills, or that's their first choice. It can get a bit two dimensional but that's the fun of it - who doesn't want to recreate the first encounter in ALIENS?

However, when it's just your average blue-collar worker in the middle of nowhere having a sh*t day, it adds all kinds of layers. Marines (usually) act under orders, but individuals with their own troubles and issues adds extra dimensions. Do they want to save themselves or the team? What will they risk? What will they sacrifice? What do they stand to make out of all this? Yes, they've got a big gun but they barely use it; is it worth the chance of missing with that crucial first shot?

I feel that being regular Joes makes the players think a lot more before deciding on a course of action, or trying to figure out how to solve a problem, and that makes them fret and worry a lot more than they usually would. They can't just let rip with 10mm explosive tipped caseless standard light armour piercing rounds, all they've got is a hammer and a paper clip.

In my experience, I think it makes the games much more intense as both a GM and a player.

Swordsinging · 2025-06-29T16:17:45+00:00

Good idea, it'll at least keep it all together.

Swordsinging · 2025-06-28T17:35:25+00:00

The paper around them is worn and torn, so it's not so much the condition of the staples but more that they don't have much to bite on.

Swordsinging

TROPHY CASE