So while GW is very much built on the 4e engine, there are some key mechanical difference that I have spotted and wanted to see if there were others I missed so when I sit down with a bunch of 4e experts I can clearly note what is not there so they do not try to make use of these things.
1 - No action Points
2 - Second Wind is a minor action and heals your Bloodied Value 1/encounter
3 - No healing surges to track
4 - Rests (short or extened) heal all HP
5 - No charging
6 - No Bull Rush/Sunder/Grab/Trip - special attacks in general
Now I can see 5 & 6 being added back in by those who want it, but straight RAW nothing about them in the game.
Anything else?
Additional things that players should know before getting into it:
1. There are no classes.
2. Your race is chosen randomly.
3. Starting gear is non-specific (encourage PCs to describe their gear!)
4. There is a card draw system which adds much randomness.
I've played two GW games so far and I've seen more roleplaying happening in them than I have seen in any standard 4e game. Getting players thinking about how to describe what they are based on the two origins and what their starting armor and weapons are really seem to go a long way towards sparking the imagination and getting everyone into the world.
EDIT: Oh, and when we played we used charges and bull rush. I feel they were only omitted from the rulebook to keep it simple, not with the intention of fully removing them from the game if players are already used to 4e rules.
If you run through the sample adventure in the book, you will go from 1st to 3rd level in 8 encounters.
Couple this with a level-10 maximum, and the whole game just goes a lot faster.
Technically your players don't need any cards, they can take all draws from the DM's deck.
Unless they're interested in playing at game day and other events. Those require the purchase of boosters.
It would be nice if Gamma World got some love from the mini front... Heck, I'd rather pay for them as "collectible minatures" than as cards that should have been sold as a complete set... Unless the PTB plan to do the Magic "planned obsolesce" as the game evolves...
WotC has been saying in podcasts, etc., that characters/monsters can be moved back and forth between GW and 4e, which seems weird given these basic mechanical differences.
Skills, attacks, etc., add your character's level instead of half your level, and as mentioned above, advancement is 10-levels total instead of 30.
WotC has been saying in podcasts, etc., that characters/monsters can be moved back and forth between GW and 4e, which seems weird given these basic mechanical differences.
PCs in 4E have feats, magic items, and various class features which add to their defenses and attack bonuses. But if you look at the monsters or companion characters (DMG2), the formula for those things is the same as GW's PC creation: add the character's level, instead of 1/2 their level, but they don't benefit from feats or magic items.
It's the same scale. It's just simpler and only goes up to 10.
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I've played two GW games so far and I've seen more roleplaying happening in them than I have seen in any standard 4e game. Getting players thinking about how to describe what they are based on the two origins and what their starting armor and weapons are really seem to go a long way towards sparking the imagination and getting everyone into the world.
This is exactly what Ive discovered as well. Since it is way more lethal, the players have been roleplaying through encounters or coming up with ways to overcome an encounter without any combat. Its been really exciting and refreshing for once.
But failure is also fun as well, they love to hear gruesome details of how they die or how a failed science check actually had their character mix the wrong chemicals and cause a huge explosion.
I also love the starting gear of choosing armor, melee, and ranged weapons.
So much I think I want to do more examples for the different weapon categories.
You add your stat mod to the DAMAGE rolls of many attacks.
And you already do that in 4th Edition D&D. Not sure how this is different.
You add your stat mod to the DAMAGE rolls of many attacks.
And you already do that in 4th Edition D&D. Not sure how this is different.
Hmmm...for some reason, my spell check changed "level" to "stat mod."
Pax 2010 had an adventure where players were running through Seattle.
My home game has players running through Disneyland.
I've played Gamma World with both D&D players, & non D&D Players and they've all been able to relate to the locations and feel more connected than in regular 4e.
Just my thoughts.
* Shields only add to AC, not to Reflex
* All damage is typed, and weapons do Physical damage
* You don't get up if you roll a 20 on your death save
More minor things:
* No alignments
* No languages
First and foremost, you add your LEVEL to all rolls, not half your level. This bumps everything right off the bat.
Your skill bonuses are different and limited.
You get +4 to one skill for your origin, +4 to a second one for your second origin.
And then +4 to a random skill (rolled) as well.
All three of those could very well be the same skill.
if both your origins are based on the same stat, you'd have a 20, for +5
Then +12 for all three randoms being the same.
Add level, and you have +18 at level 1.
The main difference, though, is adding level, not half
If you look at, say, the rules for Companion Characters in DMG2, they also add their level instead of half-level to attack rolls and so on. This is because they get no feats and no benefit from any magic items they may carry.
The random skill bonuses are, as you note, a huge factor here. But the level bonus is just simplification and is actually on the same "scale" as other 4E PCs.
Make them role play for information instead of just saying "Can I just use my Interaction skill to see what I learn in the town?" (yes, I've heard that at 4th edition games)
And 3rd edition.
Make them role play for information instead of just saying "Can I just use my Interaction skill to see what I learn in the town?" (yes, I've heard that at 4th edition games)
And 3rd edition.
And 2nd edition.
Make them role play for information instead of just saying "Can I just use my Interaction skill to see what I learn in the town?" (yes, I've heard that at 4th edition games)
And 3rd edition.
And 2nd edition.
And even World of Darkness.
But not 1st?
Nah, almost nobody bothered with reaction rolls back then, even though there were rules for it.
Did you just stab people then instead of talking?
Of course! What else could you possibly do?
(Does the Apocalypse have something against 'blue states' or what?)
The Apocalypse doesn't care about your political affiliation; they hate everybody.
What you need to do is move uphill; avoid the threat of sea-level rising! (Although in my backstory I dropped a dinosaur-killer-sized asteroid on Antarctica to get the rising sea level...)
Creatures (not just Allies) do NOT provide Cover.
WotC has been saying in podcasts, etc., that characters/monsters can be moved back and forth between GW and 4e, which seems weird given these basic mechanical differences.
Huh, hadn't heard about that. Monsters would be pretty portable, as long as you keep an eye on the power scale (since there are no NAD boosters or magic bonuses to AC/Weapons). But characters? Unless they provide some sort of major rules for that, I don't see how that can be doable, given some of the major mechanical differences. GW chars dont fall into the normal point buy range at all, and often can have ability scores that break normal 4E rules. (I had a Yeti with a 3 Int). They don't get feats, sometimes they end up with no at-wills, and they dont have classes. Characters don't gain powers the same way either.
Huh, hadn't heard about that. Monsters would be pretty portable, as long as you keep an eye on the power scale (since there are no NAD boosters or magic bonuses to AC/Weapons). But characters? Unless they provide some sort of major rules for that, I don't see how that can be doable, given some of the major mechanical differences. GW chars dont fall into the normal point buy range at all, and often can have ability scores that break normal 4E rules. (I had a Yeti with a 3 Int). They don't get feats, sometimes they end up with no at-wills, and they dont have classes. Characters don't gain powers the same way either.
Really, though, look at the end result of all those varied mechanics. They have the same "important" scores, the same basic range of defenses and attack bonuses, basic attacks that are comparable in power to classic D&D at-wills, and roughly the same number of available powers.
I'll have some more specific numbers on the comparison soon anyhow.
Found one from an adventure I ran last Friday - No rules in the book on 3D combat (page 206 of the new Essentials Rules Compendium has it), with Arns darting in and out of combat from higher elevations we used those rules, but it would have been nice to have as so many critters can fly now.
And even World of Darkness.
Well, yes. That could be, for example, Wits + Streetwise to find someone with the right information and then Manipulation + Persuasion to convince them to share it. After all, fully one third of the skills in WoD deal with social activities, and although the ideas and roleplay from the players obviously can modify the rolls (like any other circumstances), ultimately those mechanics are what allows you "to see what I learn in the town."
And even World of Darkness.
Well, yes. That could be, for example, Wits + Streetwise to find someone with the right information and then Manipulation + Persuasion to convince them to share it. After all, fully one third of the skills in WoD deal with social activities, and although the ideas and roleplay from the players obviously can modify the rolls (like any other circumstances), ultimately those mechanics are what allows you "to see what I learn in the town."
My point was that roleplay is ultimately independent of edition, game, or mechanics as a whole. Even in one of the most renowned, RP-oriented, mainstream systems, you can end up in the group of players that says "I roll the dice." Note that I am not passing judgment on said players.
Doomed_Prophet was simply showing off his Edition War PTSD.
Doomed_Prophet was simply showing off his Edition War PTSD.