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Games that have a "small fish in a big pond" feel?
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There are games that have a "big fish in a big pond" feel - e.g. sandbox D&D games, or a "big fish in a small pond" feel, e.g. games with contained campaigns/missions. There are also games that do a "small fish in a small pond" feel really well, e.g. Fiasco. Are there any games that do a "small fish in a big pond" feel well? e.g. games where the players are not outstanding heros, and where the world feels big - not only spatially, but also socially and politically?
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Check out Blades in the Dark and Spire the City must fall. I'm blades you pay an upcoming gang of criminals in a haunted Victorian steampunk city where every inch is owned/claimed by another gang so everything you do either pleases or upsets somebody. Definitely has the struggle to survive in a hostile world feel. Blades is one of my favourite game systems to run. It's soo easy for the GM I basically never needed to prep. In Spire you play a group of rebel or terrorist dark elves fighting against the oppressive high elf regimen. The world building is really detailed maybe a bit too much in some places. I really enjoyed running it though.
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There are games that have a "big fish in a big pond" feel - e.g. sandbox D&D games, or a "big fish in a small pond" feel, e.g. games with contained campaigns/missions. There are also games that do a "small fish in a small pond" feel really well, e.g. Fiasco. Are there any games that do a "small fish in a big pond" feel well? e.g. games where the players are not outstanding heros, and where the world feels big - not only spatially, but also socially and politically?The world of darkness games can run like this. If you play new vampires, there's going to be a whole political landscape that is at best neutral to you. Same with Mage. The other types probably also, but I don't know them as well. It does have a paradoxical element in that your character will be a big fish as far as the mundane world is considered. A freshly statted vampire or mage is far more powerful than a mundane person. It does have paths for players to become big fish, too
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There are games that have a "big fish in a big pond" feel - e.g. sandbox D&D games, or a "big fish in a small pond" feel, e.g. games with contained campaigns/missions. There are also games that do a "small fish in a small pond" feel really well, e.g. Fiasco. Are there any games that do a "small fish in a big pond" feel well? e.g. games where the players are not outstanding heros, and where the world feels big - not only spatially, but also socially and politically?
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There are games that have a "big fish in a big pond" feel - e.g. sandbox D&D games, or a "big fish in a small pond" feel, e.g. games with contained campaigns/missions. There are also games that do a "small fish in a small pond" feel really well, e.g. Fiasco. Are there any games that do a "small fish in a big pond" feel well? e.g. games where the players are not outstanding heros, and where the world feels big - not only spatially, but also socially and politically?tbh, any system can accommodate this. It's on you as a DM to create/use the various larger factions/entities. You can really make a world feel alive by writing up a few basic opposing factions and having the results of their conflict intertwine with whatever your group is doing. Wanna run a Shadowrun game? Focus on the megacorps going at each other, have the party work some of those jobs, but maybe have another group of NPC runners crash a job. Wanna do D&D? Well, they added factions like the Harpers so that you can have some big players pushing pieces behind the scenes, and have your players stumble onto a wider conspiracy. I think the biggest thing is that you can't be afraid to give your party a challenge you know they have no hope of defeating. If they're small fish in a big pond, they have to encounter a big fish and learn their place in the hierarchy. If your group is smart, you can give a lot of hints that they need to flee and escape the bigger fish. If they're dumb, have em get wiped out in combat and barely survive.
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old d&d editions or OSR-Systems can offer that feel as player characters tend to be weaker than their 5e counterparts. the world of darkness games might also be an option, but i've only watched/listened to some actual plays and there the player characters seemed like pretty small fish until they established themself as a politcal force through luck and schemes.Old school DND and OSR clones would do great with their high chance of dying. If you really need to stay with 5e you could cap player levels at 6 and scale the world. But that might not be worth it
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Mount and Blade warband is the dated but classic sandbox. You don't matter unless you make it. Kingdom come deliverance is more recent, but it's definitely got a learning curve and some players can't get the groove right. Subnautica is a more literal interpretation. Which would I recommend? Honestly all of them.TTRPG = TableTop RolePlaying Games. This is not c/games lol
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There are games that have a "big fish in a big pond" feel - e.g. sandbox D&D games, or a "big fish in a small pond" feel, e.g. games with contained campaigns/missions. There are also games that do a "small fish in a small pond" feel really well, e.g. Fiasco. Are there any games that do a "small fish in a big pond" feel well? e.g. games where the players are not outstanding heros, and where the world feels big - not only spatially, but also socially and politically?
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One of my friends is a big fan of Blades.. Will give it a go at some point. Is the ease of prep to do with preexisting material, or mechanics that make it easy for players to contribute to the world-feel, or something else?Blades is far and away my favourite game system so far. It does a bit of everything you mentioned. So the set up included in the book is good, basically: Here's a few factions and you are on a job for one of them to steal something from the other (change based on your players crew, ie kill someone or purchase drugs). After they finish the job you do a couple steps for: Heat - how much fallout they get from the law. Has consequences like allies getting locked up or interrogated. Or the popo kicking down the door to your hideout. Downtime - where players pursue goals and recover. Leads to crazy projects like making flamethrowers or summoning demons. Faction - decide as GM which factions are affected and adjust relations with the crew appropriately. Leads to reactions from factions, favours and retribution. Job offers or threats. As every action the players take is working against at least 1 faction and likely benefits at least 1 more the game really easily writes itself. With like 5-15 minutes of thinking pre session about likely next steps and a few random names I could improv everything I needed. The GM advice included is great and the world building is fab, the steampunk haunted setting is awesome. I've also said far too much without mentioning the flashback mechanic - you skip the whole prep stage of jobs and go straight into the opening scene, then at any point the players can spend stress to flashback and set up a cool move: hide some useful gear, arrange the servant to leave the window open, Etc. The possibilities are endless and it keeps the game moving really well.
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tbh, any system can accommodate this. It's on you as a DM to create/use the various larger factions/entities. You can really make a world feel alive by writing up a few basic opposing factions and having the results of their conflict intertwine with whatever your group is doing. Wanna run a Shadowrun game? Focus on the megacorps going at each other, have the party work some of those jobs, but maybe have another group of NPC runners crash a job. Wanna do D&D? Well, they added factions like the Harpers so that you can have some big players pushing pieces behind the scenes, and have your players stumble onto a wider conspiracy. I think the biggest thing is that you can't be afraid to give your party a challenge you know they have no hope of defeating. If they're small fish in a big pond, they have to encounter a big fish and learn their place in the hierarchy. If your group is smart, you can give a lot of hints that they need to flee and escape the bigger fish. If they're dumb, have em get wiped out in combat and barely survive.
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Blades is far and away my favourite game system so far. It does a bit of everything you mentioned. So the set up included in the book is good, basically: Here's a few factions and you are on a job for one of them to steal something from the other (change based on your players crew, ie kill someone or purchase drugs). After they finish the job you do a couple steps for: Heat - how much fallout they get from the law. Has consequences like allies getting locked up or interrogated. Or the popo kicking down the door to your hideout. Downtime - where players pursue goals and recover. Leads to crazy projects like making flamethrowers or summoning demons. Faction - decide as GM which factions are affected and adjust relations with the crew appropriately. Leads to reactions from factions, favours and retribution. Job offers or threats. As every action the players take is working against at least 1 faction and likely benefits at least 1 more the game really easily writes itself. With like 5-15 minutes of thinking pre session about likely next steps and a few random names I could improv everything I needed. The GM advice included is great and the world building is fab, the steampunk haunted setting is awesome. I've also said far too much without mentioning the flashback mechanic - you skip the whole prep stage of jobs and go straight into the opening scene, then at any point the players can spend stress to flashback and set up a cool move: hide some useful gear, arrange the servant to leave the window open, Etc. The possibilities are endless and it keeps the game moving really well.
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I think what gives GUN the feeling is that it takes place in the wild west (which is dying), and that the mechanics regarding guns, characters, and encounters are something to behold once you get into them. It's a non-D&D system that primarily uses d10's if I'm not mistaken (I hadn't played it, but only seen gameplay of it).
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There are games that have a "big fish in a big pond" feel - e.g. sandbox D&D games, or a "big fish in a small pond" feel, e.g. games with contained campaigns/missions. There are also games that do a "small fish in a small pond" feel really well, e.g. Fiasco. Are there any games that do a "small fish in a big pond" feel well? e.g. games where the players are not outstanding heros, and where the world feels big - not only spatially, but also socially and politically?The WildSea. Post apocalyptic fantasy where the world has become overgrown by magical trees and creatures. You play a crew of sailors who sail the canopy of trees via chainsaw ship. Lots of things to explore and discover if you've got a good group to play with
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There are games that have a "big fish in a big pond" feel - e.g. sandbox D&D games, or a "big fish in a small pond" feel, e.g. games with contained campaigns/missions. There are also games that do a "small fish in a small pond" feel really well, e.g. Fiasco. Are there any games that do a "small fish in a big pond" feel well? e.g. games where the players are not outstanding heros, and where the world feels big - not only spatially, but also socially and politically?
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