Saturday I was able to pick up a copy of the Burning Wheel and I've been digging the hell out of this little game. It's well written so far and really clever.
Anyone ever play it and have anything to add? I'm really interested in hearing from people who have actually played the system.
Anyone ever play it and have anything to add? I'm really interested in hearing from people who have actually played the system.
I am actually not a fan of the system...exactly.
ReplyDeleteI kind of grok it but find it too overburdened with unnecessary rules and such as you get more into it. Adding the magic and other elements seems to add to the crunch at rate that doesn't fit my style.
That said, I love Mouse Guard, which is basically 'Burning Wheel Lite'. I highly recommend it. It also has a good deal of its own character and is well worth checking out.
I've been debating getting Mouse Guard for about a year now and I never pull the trigger because as great as the comics are, and man are they grand, I worry that my players wouldn't be interested in playing it. And I just can't justify buying yet another system I'll never play at this point. :(
DeleteI like BW fine, except that character creation is way too fiddly and takes way too long. Plus, as Barking Alien says, the rules quickly get out of hand. If I'm wanting complexities like that and front-loaded character creation, I'll play GURPS with the complexity switches on (and GURPS has the advantage that you can easily turn the complexity down, even during a game that started out with more complexity, while BW's combat system is inherently a big PITA from a player's perspective; I have no idea what it's like from the GM's side, as I've never run it).
ReplyDeleteThe main reason I keep BW on my shelf is because of Burning Sands: Jihad. If I still had a copy of Dune: Chronicles of the Imperium, I probably wouldn't even keep it for that.
And I don't mean to be a big downer. I'm just giving you my take on the game, from my experiences of playing it.
ReplyDeleteNo, you aren't being a big downer you're actually telling me the stuff I'm asking for and I appreciate it.
DeleteLet me add some things I like: I like that character improvement is extended beyond mere experience or training to matters that are necessarily more subtle. I like the way that the system can handle elements that are difficult or impossible to simulate in more traditionally-designed games (for instance, the "genetic ancestry" aspects of Burning Sands: Jihad, which have been handled clumsily in other games at best, or the elven despair concept). I like that it's got a fairly "metal" approach to the default aesthetics.
DeleteI have burning wheel and have never had the chance to play or run it , please keep us posted on your experiences. I may try to spring it on our group some day.
ReplyDelete