Nola RPG (Big Easy Table Top RPGs - New Orleans Roleplaying D&D D20 GURPS)

Casper ShadowRun B Erinian Dogs of War Top Ten Intelligent_Life Staff oldEsplanade Enlightened JustSayNo Stark player Esplanade Offline You want what??? For how much??? Posts: 645 Seattle Gender:	Infinite Futures Feb 16^th, 2011 at 5:33pm Avalon Hill just release a new D20 Modern/Future product that is based on Pathfinder. It isn't officially compatible because it doesn't require the base book. (That's a real rule about putting the compatibility icon on a book.) I bought a copy and I am reading it so I thought I would post thoughts about it.
Back to top	Don't waste my time. IP Logged

Casper

ShadowRun B
Erinian
Dogs of War
Top Ten
Intelligent_Life
Staff
oldEsplanade
Enlightened
JustSayNo
Stark player
Esplanade

Offline

You want what??? For how
much???

Posts: 645
Seattle
Gender: male

Re: Infinite Futures
Reply #1 - Feb 16^th, 2011 at 5:34pm

The first thing I noticed is there is no magic. There is the psychic class, which is really the psion. The powers are describe as magic which makes me think they wont ever have magic, or if they do, it will be interchangeable with psionics. There are references to a mystic class which I guess is divine and will be in some future book.

Much of the material (equipment) is clearly D20 Modern/Future SRD but progress levels have been removed entirely. The GM can opt to leave out cybernetics or psionics depending on the setting.

There are also clear editing issues but if you can get past that it doesn't look too bad. Everything is in one book so that's nice, and it doesn't have the base vs. advanced class thing. Its just got the 5 or 6 simple classes. In that way its similar to older versions of D&D. Of course, if it gets any attention there will be add on books like everything else.

All in all, I think I like it for the same reasons I like D20 modern but I like it a little more at first glance. The whole thing of having to plan your character early on bugs me.

Back to top

Don't waste my time.

IP Logged

Casper

ShadowRun B
Erinian
Dogs of War
Top Ten
Intelligent_Life
Staff
oldEsplanade
Enlightened
JustSayNo
Stark player
Esplanade

Offline

You want what??? For how
much???

Posts: 645
Seattle
Gender: male

Re: Infinite Futures
Reply #2 - Feb 16^th, 2011 at 5:40pm

So I found something I am not sure how I feel about.

Quote:

DEXTERITY DOES NOT APPLY TO RANGED ATTACKS MADE WITH FIREARMS.

Dexterity Bonus does NOT apply to Firearm Attacks Characters in Infinite Futures do not apply their Dexterity modifiers to attacks with firearms. This is primarily a game balance issue. Guns can inflict so much damage from a safe distance, that they become the only viable means of combat.

Having Dexterity modify both firearm attack rolls and the character's defense score made it the only ability which meant anything in combat.

By not applying the Dexterity bonus to firearms, the other attributes are not completely overshadowed by Dexterity, and characters are encouraged to try more cinematic combat techniques like martial arts or throwing knives. In terms of game world justification: Dexterity does not affect firearm combat because there is very little intuitive about aiming a gun. Hitting the target is more a matter of training and practice than a matter of having a steady hand or sharp eyesight.

As the saying goes:

God made all men; Cornel Colt made them equal.

I'm ignoring the bad spelling. I understand the argument but I don't agree with it. In D20 and Pathfinder Int is already a super stat. So Dex is a super stat in the future, fine. Maybe you want to separate it into two stats but some people are just better with hand-eye coordination. This change makes cross genre stuff not work as well.

Back to top

Don't waste my time.

IP Logged

Gman

Townfolk

Offline

A wandering monster attacked
me.

Posts: 25
Belle Chasse
Gender: male

Re: Infinite Futures
Reply #3 - Feb 18^th, 2011 at 12:59am

Casper wrote on Feb 16^th, 2011 at 5:40pm:

So I found something I am not sure how I feel about.

Quote:

DEXTERITY DOES NOT APPLY TO RANGED ATTACKS MADE WITH FIREARMS.

Dexterity Bonus does NOT apply to Firearm Attacks Characters in Infinite Futures do not apply their Dexterity modifiers to attacks with firearms. This is primarily a game balance issue. Guns can inflict so much damage from a safe distance, that they become the only viable means of combat.

Having Dexterity modify both firearm attack rolls and the character's defense score made it the only ability which meant anything in combat.

By not applying the Dexterity bonus to firearms, the other attributes are not completely overshadowed by Dexterity, and characters are encouraged to try more cinematic combat techniques like martial arts or throwing knives. In terms of game world justification: Dexterity does not affect firearm combat because there is very little intuitive about aiming a gun. Hitting the target is more a matter of training and practice than a matter of having a steady hand or sharp eyesight.

As the saying goes:

God made all men; Cornel Colt made them equal.

I'm ignoring the bad spelling. I understand the argument but I don't agree with it. In D20 and Pathfinder Int is already a super stat. So Dex is a super stat in the future, fine. Maybe you want to separate it into two stats but some people are just better with hand-eye coordination. This change makes cross genre stuff not work as well.

Interesting. I kinda sorta see their point, but think I ultimately am with you. Splitting however, I wouldn't be for.

Good stuff so far, please keep posting your thoughts on it.

Back to top

IP Logged

Casper

ShadowRun B
Erinian
Dogs of War
Top Ten
Intelligent_Life
Staff
oldEsplanade
Enlightened
JustSayNo
Stark player
Esplanade

Offline

You want what??? For how
much???

Posts: 645
Seattle
Gender: male

Re: Infinite Futures
Reply #4 - Mar 25^th, 2011 at 9:48pm

Got behind in my reading but I am at it again.

Two new things.

Like D20 modern each class gets a defense bonus. you also get a defense bonus from armor. In IF you only get the benefit of the higher one which means there is no reason for high level characters to wear armor if/when their class bonus exceeds armor.

I don't like this but I understand it. They don't want players to min/max and multiclass so that you get both and a really gross AC.

Second, IF uses the Rule of 1 and Rule of 20 for skill rolls. A 1 on a skill roll always fails. Also, if you get a 1 on a skill while using technology its a tech glitch and the device fails and has to be fixed. Its a special power of one of the classes to fix these glitches as a full round action.

I think I like this change.

Back to top

Don't waste my time.

IP Logged

			Welcome, Guest. Please Login or Register
			The Event Calendar for YaBB 1.4 was finally released. There is a tab for it below. Check it out.