Anyone use D&D for Malifaux roleplay?

[dsmiles]

I'm interested in running a Malifaux campaign for my D&D group, but am having trouble with the magic system. I really want to use a Soulstone-based system,and was wondering what other people have used in the past?

The setting itself seems easy enough, and there's plenty of monsters that can pass for Neverborn. Guns are also easy, being a long-time Iron Kingdoms player/GM, but I'm having trouble with magic and spellcasting classes.

Thanks.

[Ratty]

Are you using 3.5 or 4. I only ask as 3.5 had a much better mix of spells, where as 4 they are much more rigid in their remit (and much more boring)

[fritz the cat]

I think you should use the dominion ruleset. Its made by the guy who made the unearthed arcana book among others.

[dsmiles]

Are you using 3.5 or 4. I only ask as 3.5 had a much better mix of spells, where as 4 they are much more rigid in their remit (and much more boring)

3.5e/some PF/some IK is the base system I'm using. The PF/IK is entirely for the guns and mechanika.

I think you should use the dominion ruleset. Its made by the guy who made the unearthed arcana book among others.

I'll go look that up.

[TheOneWhoFell]

Hey dsmiles,

not to throw a huge wrench in it, but have you considered a different system? I could see Cortex working really well (it's highly adaptable), or Saveage Worlds (Deadlands even ). I think they might fit the Malifaux mold a little better...

As far as D&D goes, I think I'd use 3/3.5 and pick up unearthed arcana... or one of the other spell books. I'm sure you can find things to model the correct spells off of.

Good luck!

[dsmiles]

Hey dsmiles,

not to throw a huge wrench in it, but have you considered a different system? I could see Cortex working really well (it's highly adaptable), or Saveage Worlds (Deadlands even ). I think they might fit the Malifaux mold a little better...

As far as D&D goes, I think I'd use 3/3.5 and pick up unearthed arcana... or one of the other spell books. I'm sure you can find things to model the correct spells off of.

Good luck!

I was considering Burning Wheel, but my group is stuck on D&D. I've tried to get them into other systems, but it only lasts about two sessions (at best).

[TheOneWhoFell]

LAME!

What about using one of the Modules from Deadlands? Get through a single adventure in... about... 12 hours (yes, my gaming group SAT for that long and ran through the whole module... 0_0)

[nilus]

Since you are stuck with D&D I think 3.5/Pathfinder should be okay. The IK stuff can help but I was never a fan of how it translated the setting. It fell like a lot of D20 setting that were basically crammed into the D20 rule set despite not being anything like D&D. For this reason I would suggest stearing very clearly away from the Deadlands D20 stuff. It was all pretty horrible.

[Mawdrigen]

Savage Worlds,

Seriously it can easily do everything that you need to do

[SoulG]

I would feel so icky about any system for Malifaux that didn't use cards. On principle. XD

The issue you're going to run into isn't the magic system itself. It's that the classes won't give the right feel. You'll wind up running a D&D game in the setting of Malifaux, not a Malifaux RP. Note that this is not necessarily a bad thing! Malifaux is a great setting.

How you might want to homebrew it is to either create a custom class that everyone is, or create a custom "Soulstone-User" class and have everyone Gestalt it. You may or may not want to remove certain classes--primarily the full casting classes.

[dsmiles]

How you might want to homebrew it is to either create a custom class that everyone is, or create a custom "Soulstone-User" class and have everyone Gestalt it. You may or may not want to remove certain classes--primarily the full casting classes.

I was considering this path, except absolutely no Gestalt. If they want to use magic they'll just have to multiclass.

A Soulstone User class wouldn't be that hard. I think I can re-work the Shadow Mage into a Soulstone User with little problem. (Huh. Just now thought of that.)

Thanks everyone, I think my problem is (for the most part) solved (for now).

[BlueStar86]

I'd use something like Champions (also known as hero system) or Pathfinder. The big problem with Champions is it doesn't do low-tier well, the problem with Pathfinder is it doesn't have all the options you need to properly show the abilities of a master or even a henchman for that matter.

I suppose if you could figure out a way to make low-tier Champions make sense, you could get it to work properly. Mostly it's the lack of small bonuses in the game, each die is a doubling, and sometimes you just need something to be slightly better than whatever is below it, and sometimes a +1 doesn't really cover it well enough.

I honestly think Soulstone-user wouldn't be a class as much as it would be a template.

Edited December 13, 2011 by BlueStar86

[Keltheos]

Savage Worlds,

Seriously it can easily do everything that you need to do

This.

The problem with D&D is that it's tied too closely to classes. For me class systems pigeonhole characters too much. So you're in for a challenge out of the gate with D&D because of it.

you could get away with it using Pathfinder and bastardized 'gunslinging' types like Gun Mages and the pistoleer or whatever it is in that Ultimate Combat book Pathfinder put out. Look at how IK tries to shape d20 to work within its setting and draw from that. It's about the only thing you can do. I'd avoid making overt classes like "Death Marshal" and instead have the DMs as fighter types with some feats to tie them into their background. The coffin's a magic item with an Exotic WP and may have other magical requirements such as indoctrination into the DM to use properly.

As for Soulstone magic. Most spellcasters in Malifaux don't use Soulstones. They are attuned to the flow of the aether and can manipulate it in any number of ways (many very minor, like the bread they bake is especially tasty). It's more about the method by which they interact with the energies than anything else. It shapes itself to their needs based on how they've been taught to reach it. So a learned mystical scholar's going to work magic differently than a wild talent whose magical skills manifested once through the Breach (since Earth's aether is so low).

Soulstones as the material component to magic should be fairly rare.

[SoulG]

Template or Bloodline would probably work better than Gestalt, then.

Mutants and Masterminds or GURPS could both do Malifaux well. M&M is more D&D Like. But I digress...

Let us know what you cook up!

[Mawdrigen]

I should point out that the reason I suggested Savage worlds was two fold.

One: It uses cards (and at the moment I use my Fate Decks for running my WW2)

Two: I've already started work on it.

Savage worlds lends itself better to the varied abilities of the characters in Malifaux. You want a Nicodem style ressurectionis, you buy magical ability and give them the Zombie and Blight powers. You want Ramos? Mechanical powers and summon familiar and Bolt.

Make "Soulstone use" an Edge and allow people to use them like bennies (giving rerolls and allowing them to soak damage... you know pretty much how they work in malifaux).

Finally, the system provides plenty of edges for the non-magical types to keep up, so you can build Nino, or Francisco for example.

[dsmiles]

Savage Worlds

And therein lies my problem. I've been playing RPGs for 28 years, and understand that there are systems that model certain things better than other systems. My group, for the most part, is very young in the hobby, and is having a hard enough time keeping up with one system and one skirmish game (Malifaux, of course).

Sometimes, you have to work with what you've got.

EDIT: I'm working on Soulstone User as a Bloodline, rather than a template or class, and things like Death Marshal, Gunslinger, and Witchling Handler I'll work up as PrCs.

Edited December 13, 2011 by dsmiles

[Mawdrigen]

Having run D&D a lot it will struggle to properly emulate the sheer plethora of abilities that characters in malifaux manifest. Tied to classes (even with Prestige classes etc) your character gets locked into a certain path, and I personally found the combat began to bog down as people gained more options.

Now 4th ed may be different, but somehow I doubt it.

Savage Worlds however is an incredibly easy system to get. Roll your skill and a d6 try and get over 4 on either die with the largest number on the die causing a reroll to add on is not that hard to grasp, far easier in fact than say the Attack of Opportunity rules for 3.5 (bane of my life....)

Do you not think you'd be able to run maybe a single session under SW with pregens to see if they'd be up for it? I ask mainly because if they ARE you will save yourself a vast amount of work making up PRC's etc, and make running the thing far easier on yourself as creating npc's will not require you to first create an appropriate PrC.

If you could get them going on a one off, you could even handle the majority of the "system" stuff for them with SW, basically asking them for their actions then sorting out what they need to roll.

Sorry to bang on and all I just hate to hear stories of GM's putting themselves to unneccessary work and stress to try and make the players fave systems work for something it's unsuitable for, when if the players were willing to try something it'd be plain sailing...

Because usually I'm that GM

Edited December 13, 2011 by Mawdrigen

[tadaka]

Side thought on this. I would so love to see some sort of scavenger outcast in malifaux who has looted a coffin from a DM. Or just a rogue DM or stalker. Lol the coffin magic item got my brain a thinking.

[Wolfgar]

Really a basic RPG system seems extractable from the skirmish game.

[SoulG]

It was, actually. D&D Started because Gygax and friends were playing a miniatures game and wanted a champion-focused campaign, where people played 1 character instead of a whole army.

I considered editing Malifaux's rules into an RPG actually compatible with Malifaux's minis/stats. The issues I'm coming up with are character creation, character advancement, and the emphasis on being a "Master with minions." As anyone who plays RPGs knows, minions slow -everything- down.

I really considered ignoring the minion-emphasis except in a few special cases.

The other issue is being compatible with the fluff. I.E. Can anyone else -really- have spirit summoning?

[BlueStar86]

The other issue is being compatible with the fluff. I.E. Can anyone else -really- have spirit summoning?

Sure, why not? Characters get summoning in D&D, M&M, and Hero System.

[Mawdrigen]

The other thing to remember is that the Wargame deals with the "Celebrities" of malifaux, so the masters who were picked out by the tyrants and other things to "Avatar up"

For every Seamus there is a serial killer who the newspapers haven't cottoned on to (Does anyone remember the Torso killer? No? he was Jack the rippers contemporary)

For Every Kirai, there is a witch who can summon the spirits of dead children to help her.

For Every Perdita, there is an Ortega cousin who can do amazing things with a pistol.