I have a good job, a great marriage and awesome kids. I have been playing RPGs (Role Playing Games) since the late 1970's. I really enjoy the escapism aspect of being someone else in some other place on some other world in some other time. In the early days I played nearly all the old TSR games: Dungeons & Dragons, Top Secret, Traveler, Gama World. They were each good games with their own strengths and weaknesses.
Along came Dungeons and Dragons Version 3 which was a completely revised rules set. In short I hated it. It was too different, indeed it was a whole new game. I respected what they tried to do with making the mechanics of the game consistent. However they kept many of the complexities with respect to classes and race restrictions and so in total I did not use the new system. A short time later Dungeons and Dragons Version 3.5 came about as a major revision. It is a vast improvement and I liked it so much that I started to use it.
Around this I first encountered the D20 system. D20 System is effectively the open source equivalent of Dungeons and Dragons. However the creators are brilliant. They built D20 as a universal game system, not specifically tied to the fantasy (Tolkien) genre. D20 has many modules and variants that let you play in the far future, the wild west or as 007 to name a few. The genius of this concept is clear. Learn 1 system, apply it to your favorite genre and game game game!
When I was younger, with no mortgage, no family and few if any real responsibilities; I didn't have much trouble transitioning between different game rules on the fly. I'm much older now, have far less time and my memory is not what it used to be. Switching between game systems is not really and option anymore. I do not want to always play the Tolkien Fantasy of Dungeons and Dragons either, some times I'd rather be James Bond or Han Solo. D20 universal role playing system attracted me instantly.
The D20 glow wore off quickly. At the same time I decided to switch to D20, I was starting to teach my kids and their friends how to play. What I came to understand was that I had a tremendous legacy of knowledge about RPG systems. This knowledge base meant that I already had an understanding of the concepts common to all rules systems. For me it was a matter of applying new mechanics to already well understood concepts. For my kids who had no such knowledge base, it was a struggle. Kids being kids, they questioned everything. Then one day about a year ago I realized that most all their beefs were fair and well reasoned.
I went to my friends and discussed the D20 issues. It was an even split. Half rejected the very thought of new ideas and half became curious as to how the mechanics could be altered. The ideas bubbled around in a various discussions for several weeks and then we started to construct some rules!
What has surprised me most about the journey this far is how very hard it is to create a Role Playing Game. I will post more next weekend!
"It has always been easier to destroy then to create." - Mr. Spock
D100
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