This is a site for discussing roleplaying games. Have fun doing so, but there is one major rule: do not discuss political issues that aren't directly and uniquely related to the subject of the thread and about gaming. While this site is dedicated to free speech, the following will not be tolerated: devolving a thread into unrelated political discussion, sockpuppeting (using multiple and/or bogus accounts), disrupting topics without contributing to them, and posting images that could get someone fired in the workplace (an external link is OK, but clearly mark it as Not Safe For Work, or NSFW). If you receive a warning, please take it seriously and either move on to another topic or steer the discussion back to its original RPG-related theme.

Author Topic: Favorite System to Play vs. GM  (Read 570 times)

Persimmon

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 727
Favorite System to Play vs. GM
« on: November 06, 2022, 06:48:13 PM »
So, after going about two months without actually playing, we were able to squeeze a couple sessions of OSE in this weekend.  As usual, I was the DM.  Went great; lots of fun and, surprisingly, no dead PCs.  But it got me thinking about different preferences in playing vs. GMing games and what my personal preferences are.  These days, my favorite system as a player is Castles & Crusades.  Fast and streamlined, but still plenty of options with classes, races, spells, etc.  But as a DM/GM I prefer B/X or OSE.  Fewer options in some ways for the players, but less to keep track of.  My players prefer it as well, because we don't play that much so they prefer simplicity.  Plus, I know the system so well, it requires almost no effort. 

Therefore, when designing my own stuff, B/X is also probably my favorite, though AD&D and its clones are right there.

As far as reading the adventures, DCC probably wins.  Generally creative and different with some cool twists.  But my players and I find it a bit clunky at the table.  A few too many charts and rolling, though that's part of its charm as well.

So what about you?  Any games/systems you prefer to play versus GMing or vice-versa? 

Omega

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • O
  • Posts: 17093
Re: Favorite System to Play vs. GM
« Reply #1 on: November 07, 2022, 12:30:54 AM »
I usually buy games that I like to both DM and play.

Some games I like to DM a little more than play, and others the exact opposite.

Metamorphosis Alpha I had more fun as a player. Gamma World I lean ever so slightly to DM. BX is about 50/50.
Werewolf and Orpheus I way more liked as a player than DM. While Aberrant I preferred being the DM more.

tenbones

  • Poobah of the D.O.N.G.
  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 6164
Re: Favorite System to Play vs. GM
« Reply #2 on: November 08, 2022, 03:43:48 PM »
I don't GM anything I don't want to play.

Right now Savage Worlds is ruling my table. I'm currently playing. When I GM - I use the system for the setting I think will squeeze the most out. I'm inclined to go with a native system, but lately Savage Worlds has been proving largely up to the task of handling most settings I'm interested in. But I'm not exclusive to it.

Svenhelgrim

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 508
Re: Favorite System to Play vs. GM
« Reply #3 on: November 08, 2022, 03:52:59 PM »
I am usually in the GM seat, so I don’t get to play anything as a player.  So when I do get the chance to play a game, I am grateful for whatever experience I can get.

As a GM, I always try to make my game, one I would want to be a player in.
« Last Edit: November 08, 2022, 03:54:50 PM by Svenhelgrim »

Steven Mitchell

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • S
  • Posts: 3770
Re: Favorite System to Play vs. GM
« Reply #4 on: November 08, 2022, 04:34:37 PM »
I can put up with almost any system as a player, even ones that I wouldn't run if you paid me.  Maybe if I played one like that long enough, I'd change my mind.  I don't know. 

A big part of what makes a system work for me or not as a GM is how it works away from the table.  I quite like, for example, running most versions of D&D, RQ, Hero System, GURPs, and so on.  I don't enjoy prep in many of them.  Naturally, take out the need for me to do GM prep, and my tolerance goes way up.

ForgottenF

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 638
Re: Favorite System to Play vs. GM
« Reply #5 on: November 09, 2022, 03:49:39 PM »
I've had a very similar thought. As a player I like a game with a lot of character customization, either classless, or with a lot of class options and a consistent feed of new skills and abilities as PCs level up, but not something too prone to min-maxing or munchkinism. WFRP strikes me as a good example of that balance. Modiphius' 2d20 system might also be if it was better written. I also like a pretty robust skill system, where I know that whatever I want my character to do, there's an appropriate roll I can make for it. Whereas with my DM hat on, I'm likely to gravitate to whatever game seems easiest to DM, often the exact opposite of what I like as a player.

These days, I try to over-rule my DM laziness, and choose games to run based on what I'd like to play. Lamentations of the Flame Princess is a good example. It was the first OSR game I picked up and read, and I remember being blown away by the prospect of how easy it would be to run. I talked about it with my players at the time, and realized they'd just end up being frustrated by how limited the PCs are in that game, so I moved on to pastures new.