Some more freeform systems:
Fate, another great “do all” system
Hillfolk, more like theater impro framework.
Fate is much more my jam when it comes to “rework for everything” systems. It fits narrative elements with mechanics without being constraining.
Whenever I play PBTA I keep bouncing against the limits of the system because most of them are laser focused on emulating some sort of narrative genre, and often I want more from my characters than to just play out a selected arrangement of tropes. And as a GM I occasionally feature quests that pull from entirely different genres.
I haven’t played Thirsty Sword Lesbians but “a selected arrangement of tropes” hits the nail on the head when it comes to Dungeon World and Blades in the Dark. At least The Sprawl (also PbtA) offered multiclass options and enough lateral advancement that playbooks were more a theme than a rigid dichotomy.
Going back to Fate, this system has become my go-to for “I have a story I want to tell with my party and I just want the rules to, basically, function”. Great for those games where the storytelling matters and the rules almost don’t.
Cypher is another good one if you need linear (or at least, level-like) progression, and an emphasis on finding and using cool loot
I really like Fate and hope to one day find a group that clicks with it. It avoids many of the tropes I’m tired of in D&D.
But in my experience it does need players who are going to do more than phone it in. Passive players can really drag it down. “I dunno I hit him with my sword” kind of works in D&D but not very well in Fate.
Having played Monster of the Week, I think I agree with you about PbtA systems. They’re fun, but I tend to get a little bored with them after a few sessions, especially since I like to make characters who don’t really fit into any of the playbooks. The best fit of a playbook at character creation rarely has more than a few plays I would want to spend experience points on.
I will say, though, that I like the experience system in PbtA games. It does a good job of helping players feel like they accomplished something each session.
Don’t forget that whatever situation you can possibly imagine, Pathfinder has a rule for that! No reworking required as long as you don’t mind stopping the game while you ctrl+F and read the results whenever somebody comes up with a new idea you haven’t prepared for because it’s literally a perfect system that accounts for everything.
Savage Worlds - Pulpy Action-oriented system, tons of setting books, has e.g. an official Pathfinder rulebook. Uses exploding dice balanced out by “bennies” and “wild dice”. Lots of fun IMO, I especially liked when my Shadowrun 2e game converted to the Sprawlrunners Savage Worlds rules, combat and hacking went much faster and was a lot more fun to play. My current multiverse based dimension-hopping campaign is using this system and it’s been a barrel of fun. I feel no need to fudge dice since the players can choose to spend a bennie to re-roll when it matters to them. Running out of bennies is basically like the character running out of luck, so it’s very cinematic in that way.
Freeform Universal - totally free system (as in it’s Creative Commons). No GM dice rolls. Players roll dice only when both success and failure are interesting. Has some similarities with Savage Worlds in terms of player agency and a system similar to bennies.
Basic Roleplaying - Percentile-based d100 system. Used for RuneQuest and Call of Cthulhu. Perhaps the best system for a simulationist approach due to all skills being a number from 0-100 that shows the exact percentage of the time the character will succeed. This means there’s very little mathematical crunch and the extremely straightforward stats always tell you at a glance what your odds are going to be in any roll. I haven’t personally played it but I find this design incredibly elegant.
idc what anyone says, Blades in the Dark is not a PbtA game. It has like 2 things in common with PbtA systems
Also PbtA systems are great for a story focused games, but they’re not exactly tactical and characters tend to be a little static. They focus on story pretty much to the exclusion of everything else. If you want story though go for it, they’re great. I prefer more of a balance personally.
Worlds Without Number focuses on sandbox play and strikes a nice balance with story and combat. Stars Without Number is basically the Sci-fi version. Both are free with premium versions that have a bit of nice optional content, like more powerful options for heroic characters and Star Wars style space magic
I hate to be pedantic (this is a lie), but I’m pretty sure Worlds Without Number is actually the fantasy version of Stars Without Number, since Stars came out first. This doesn’t change your point (also I agree with you) and I’m really not sure that this information is helpful in any way, but here we are.
Except BitD is an Apocalypse World hack, albeit a more thorough one. John Harper even calls it a PbtA game. I hate to link to stupid bird site, but he says it himself.
And personally, I can see how BitD contains a huge amout of PbtA DNA.
But I dunno, I guess you said you don’t care what anyone says…
GURPS. It has a little bit of a learning curve and some problems with outdated terminology but it is a great system.
