I mentioned a while back I had bought BESM3.  I'm tempted to take it for a test spin.  Is anyone else trying to use it for a game?

Incidentally, does anyone know if there's any errata?  As written, Superstrength is worthless in combat unless you have a weapon.

I'm not sure.  To be honest, I've heard a whole lot less about this game than I had supposed  I would.  Is it just me, or did it not seem to make a whole lot of waves.  While we're at it, anyone know the major differences between BESM 2e & 3e?

Quote from: Zachary The FirstI'm not sure.  To be honest, I've heard a whole lot less about this game than I had supposed  I would.  Is it just me, or did it not seem to make a whole lot of waves.  While we're at it, anyone know the major differences between BESM 2e & 3e?

The game seems to have more or less been unceremoniously dumped on the market.  Plus, RPGnet quit being GoO cheerleaders a long time back.  I don't want to pick up the role, but I do feel at the moment that BESM3 is the best RPG product to ever come out of GoO.

More or less, the game keeps the same structure, but the specifics have changed.  Point costs have been drastically adjusted.  Some names of attributes have changed.  A few things have been shuffled around.  BESM has absorbed the PMVs of Tri-Stat dX.  The game engine is now roll high against a difficulty or opposed roll instead of the roll under stuff of before.

Instead of focusing the book on the useless history of anime junk (although there's still a bit of that), there are pages and pages of game useful templates.  The sample setting (Cosmic Web) is even fairly interesting in that throwaway sample RPG setting sort of way.

Dunno how the new rules will work in play, though.  It might have the exact same flaws of the older editions.  Hopefully the increase in the cost of stats compared to attributes and skills as well as the new roll high mechanic will help make the game actually playable instead of an exercise in futility.

I've tested it (not run a game, but had some mock combats and such) and I like it. I like it lots. It's like everything GURPS wanted to be:)

I'm still a tad curious.

Sailor Moon showed great potential in the system, but BESM 2e was an absolute mess.  It's up there with Cartoon Action Hour as a "game I felt suckered into buying".

Pretty much the system has been redone. It's now roll over (yay!) like D&D. Skill rolls are skill + stat + d10. It borrows some great ideas from D20 but runs with them in a totally open direction.

I was impressed with what I saw from a brief readthrough but not enough to buy it.

I stuck with 2eR and I'm happy.  I honestly don't see anything in 3e that I'd want, and I certainly don't want to buy it from White Wolf.  I might've picked it up from GOO as a curiosity purchase, but since they went under...

I used it for eight sessions of a 750 point game involving high end sci-fi/fantasy characters fighting resurrected gods and starships.  While the game itself was fun, the system was a nightmare to work with at that level.  If I were to use it again I'd limit it to 300-400 points, and I suspect it would work much better there.  While the templates help, the book still has zero pre-created NPCs and building your own can be time consuming even if you ignore a lot of the nitty gritty detail - though towards the end of my campaign I could build thousand point gods in just a few minutes (I picked three major abilities and filled in only the important details).

As with Tri-Stat, dealing with differences in damage and armor can be problematic at times.  Some characters in my game dealt so much damage they would one or two shot major NPCs unless I jacked the armor up, but by doing that I made other characters almost useless.

Here's my review, if anyone's interested: http://www.rpg.net/reviews/archive/12/12712.phtml

Im surprised it took 3 attempts to get a game out that is fundamentally simple. Or did I miss something?

Quote from: LawbagIm surprised it took 3 attempts to get a game out that is fundamentally simple. Or did I miss something?

Huh?

All three versions are pretty different from one another, and over time the game has become much, much more complex.

Quote from: KrakaJakSkill rolls are skill + stat + d10.

I could have sworn it was 2d6.  

I'm thinking of revamping my old fantasy world I created in high school, and using this system to run it.  Back then, I created it as a Dragonlance rip off.  Nowadays, I'd rather have more of an anime fantasy/sci-fi feel to it.  Plus, 20 more years of cynicism should give the place a bit more bite.

Quote from: GabrielI could have sworn it was 2d6.  

I'm thinking of revamping my old fantasy world I created in high school, and using this system to run it.  Back then, I created it as a Dragonlance rip off.  Nowadays, I'd rather have more of an anime fantasy/sci-fi feel to it.  Plus, 20 more years of cynicism should give the place a bit more bite.

Oops, my bad, it is 2d6, I just muscle memoried d10

Dang WW games