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Systems for M:TG-esque games

   
Systems for M:TG-esque games

So, in my neverending personal quest of finding systems for various campaign concepts I'll never play, I was wondering about the higher scale and levels of power, mostly because I've also been reading some bits on Magic: the Gathering lore. About the Planeswalkers and such. Which naturally led me to think about what kind of systems would one use to play a game about Planeswalkers, people who travel through not just a world, but through all worlds, doing whatever it is they do.

Yep, it's time for another "Actana is looking for a system for this very specific concept" thread.

I guess the first thing to settle here is that I'm not looking for 100% Planeswalker replicas. It's not the mechanics of M:TG I'm interested in, but the feel and power level of the characters in the game: multiverse spanning characters who have tremendous powers in their chosen fields (mostly magical, but definitely in other ways as well), influencing worlds, furthering their power base and battling threats befit their status, be they planet eating eldritch abominations, planar empires bent on conquest or simply other Planeswalkers.


Of course, epic level D&D is an obvious choice. However, I'd like to look away from that particular bag of mixed receptions and undercooked mechanics, looking more into systems specifically made for this style of play. Exalted also came to mind almost immediately, but I feel as if that one is a bit too tied to that particular setting to work well.

As always, systems like GURPS, Fate, HERO, Mutants & Masterminds, etc, generic games made to technically suit every level of power are a bit of a cop-out of an answer. What I'd be looking for is a system (or heck, at least a supplement for an existing game if nothing else) specifically made for this kind of game. Which isn't to say that those systems aren't suited for the game, they're just not what I'm really looking for.

So, in essense: anyone happen to know of any good systems that evoke the feeling of Planeswalkers?

And, for extra discussion because I enjoy hearing about these things, has anyone tried running games like this? Where the PCs are among the most powerful beings in the multiverse, fighting other immensely powerful creatures and expanding their influence for their own proactive purposes.

I know this doesn't quite jive with the more modern MTG fluff, but I've always thought that RPing as planeswalkers should be more like a mass combat/empire-management system - mana is a resource gathered from "attuning" local geography (so not unlike taxing the peasantry for gp and using that to build up a military or infrastructure), summoning entire units at once (eg, back in the day when whole squads of creatures were only 1/1), etc.

Oh, and mana burn has to be a thing.

In any theoretical game about Planeswalkers I could conceive myself as running, having a powerbase of a sort, expanding and then using it would certainly be a part of what the game would be about, but personally I've always been a bit more interested in the more character-based approach of epic magic and traveling through worlds. Where the PCs would gain that power would be up for further discussion, but tapping into planes and geographical leyline mumbo-jumbo is certainly on the table as one interesting choice.

Quick answer would probably be: Lord of Gossamer and Shadows but not sure if you want to go that route since it's diceless.

Plane shift: Zendikar actually mixes the world of MtG with D&D 5th edition, I think.

It's not quite what the OP is looking for - it's more like a setting guide for adventures in Zendikar than a straight-up conversion (eg, it equates the Zendikari and Eldrazi creatures with things that are already in the Bestiary, rather than new stat blocks), with no mechanics, new spells, etc. to emulate MTG.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Bobcloclimar View Post
It's not quite what the OP is looking for - it's more like a setting guide for adventures in Zendikar than a straight-up conversion (eg, it equates the Zendikari and Eldrazi creatures with things that are already in the Bestiary, rather than new stat blocks), with no mechanics, new spells, etc. to emulate MTG.
Indeed, it's not really a single MTG setting I'm looking for, but a framework for an entire multiverse and extremely high power level. That said...

Quote:
Originally Posted by Rogers View Post
Quick answer would probably be: Lord of Gossamer and Shadows but not sure if you want to go that route since it's diceless.
Looking into this game... It seems to fit the concept down to a t. While I'm sure there are certainly things that I wouldn't want and the game wants, it is more or less the concept I'm looking for. I've got no particular reservations about diceless games, so that's not a problem either.

Certainly a game to look into if I'm ever lacking other systems to tackle. Haha, like that'll ever happen.

This turned out to be surprisingly a painless and fast process. Thanks!

Quote:
Originally Posted by Actana View Post
As always, systems like GURPS, Fate, HERO, Mutants & Masterminds, etc, generic games made to technically suit every level of power are a bit of a cop-out of an answer.
I saw this thread and was so excited to spread the Gospel of GURPS, only to read this. Womp womp.

A friend of mine did run a M:tG game in GURPS, however. It didn't take that much work, but then, his concept of what being a Planeswalker necessitated was more in line with post Mending planeswalkers than with say, Urza, or even Serra. No pocket dimensions, and spells weren't necessarily a given, but summons were. It worked out pretty well, and was a really enjoyable experience.





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