Runehammer Hank Ive been playing for 30+ years and your advice has made me enjoy being a GM. I was alway primarily a player and your channel just inspired me to really embrace the creativity in me to run. Thanks for all the hard work amd great useful affordable products. God speed
I rock ICRPG on the regs. Everything Scotty sez about this system is absolutely accurate. There's no going back to the other complicated mainstream stuff.
I recently came across ICRPG and have yet to play it but suspect it’ll become my newest obsession. I love the community, hanks vision behind it, and the game itself. Very cool, and thanks for the video!
If you’re looking for someone whose thinking about table top gaming is incredibly innovative and outside the box, Hankerin is your guy! I have ICRPG myself, and really like his design with it!
I’ve only recently become of aware of this work, and your enthusiasm is infectious, even 3 years later. I even bought the hardcover knowing full well a definitive edition is not far off.
Unfortunately, the flip side is also true. Everyone here is a good guy, BUT when you have a friend reviewing another friends products uncritically and telling people to go buy it, it starts to veer into GamerGate territory. The saving grace here is no one is calling themselves an ethical journalist.
I like the mutual support that the community gives each other. The creators put in huge amounts of time on what they're doing and I have no problem throwing a few ducets their way when I can.
I truly do love this game and run it often...The fact that I am a friend of Hank has nothing to do with it. If I was a making up my own mind I would rather know that the reviewer is a friend of the artist.
I am SO glad I watched this video! There are so many games that have these vague, ill-defined story points or fate points or initiative points mechanics and it's really never clear when you award them or how many to award or when to spend them or how many to spend and all of that. This system of getting a D6 whenever you fail a roll and being able to spend them to add a d6 to another roll is simple, clear, and elegant. I may have to steal that from you! What a brilliant idea!
That's incredibly similar to the index card method our group used to run in Rifts Palladium back in the 90's... We had two stacks we were working with - one stack of index cards was ”Battles" - the other was "Quests" .. Each one of us would write out 2 cards for Both categories , then shuffled them into the respective decks without telling anyone about what we threw into the mix. The GM loved the spontaneity and the rest of us enjoyed the fact that we were all contributing to the story, so we just kept it going.
I got a copy of the first edition from a friend and just bought the second for myself the other day. I have to say I absolutely love this system and the advice it has for the DM! It's one of the most dynamic yet lightweight games I've run, and it just organically builds on itself. Crafting? Easy. Combat? A breeze to run. Encounter building? A notepad and 15 minutes gets you a 6 hour session. I actually have yet to run a single monster from the book in my Warp Shell campaign, but the tips and included statblocks have helped me create balanced and memorable monsters that kept the party on their toes. Making monsters on the fly is super easy, and creating bosses that actually can stand against a full party is easier than other systems I've run in. And the video is spot on with monsters being unique: despite everything using the same heart/attempt/effort system, the way they create abilities makes each monster feel unique. Even the abilities lend to RPing them in interesting ways, setting them apart both mechanically and thematically from the other diverse creatures in the book. As to the loot, the tables are insanely creative. Players love rolling to see what they get, who they want to trade with, and figuring out how to use items. Mine finally attuned to a bunch of loot from last session today and loved that even downtime is packed with attempts and checks to "level up" via gear. The best part is that even with stupidly powerful loot, you can easily keep them wary and challenged, as the system is built with players getting crazy stuff as a core idea. I find 1 roll of loot per 2 hearts overcome during the session is a good balance of reward vs. challenge, which is what the book recommends. You mention the "crunch" is something missing, but I feel 2e addresses this by clarifying that you can improve your gear and weapons (pg. 31). That crunch is something my players all love, so what I have done is clarified the ruling on improving specific abilities for that crunchy bonus. Getting bonuses to effort on specific tasks, training to get +1 to attempts with a favorite sword, enhancing a piece or armor at the smithy for +1 Armor: I set a target number of hearts to succeed, tell them the stat to roll the attempt with, and the party tracks their progress. The players love it, it adds back that crunchy goodness, and it keeps them excited even in down times! For example, the tank in my game wanted an improved greatsword and asked for something laser based. I had him make a STR attempt for 1 heart of effort to make a handle followed by an INT attempt for another 1 heart to make the internal mechanics. He spent his entire downtime forging the blade, but he loves the final product: a hard-light greatsword that functions like a Halo franchise Energy Blade. All he knew was it had different properties than his first sword (added "Intangible" and "Concealed," removed "Heavy" tags), but it dealt the same damage in combat. He absolutely loved it, and that was before he discovered it also did extra damage to non-reflective objects! So basically, I've found the system enables your preferred game style. It encourages creativity from both the DM and players. It practically runs itself, freeing the DM to add, remove, and tweak what they feel needs it without needing to worry about delicate class balance systems. 10/10, I am definitely running and playing this system a lot more!
Excellent product, very clean mechanic, works well with a fast gaming role playing imagination, Not only with index cards but with miniatures and 2D terrain as well. Real good stuff.
Definitely going to check this game out. Been meaning to get a fun group together and get back into gaming. New father here so had to put a bunch of this on the back burner. :D
yeah, having young children can make getting together for games very hard. I am an old fart and my child is an adult so I have plenty of time to game...She also joins me in my games when she can =)
I bought first edition when it came out, both me and my son really like it. Didn't realize that I could download 2nd edition for free til i watched this video. Thanks Scotty (and thanks Hankerin).
Fantastic review my friend! I just received my print of it, I looked over the PDF that I got with my order, but having the book in hand is so much more meaningful to me. I love the familiarity of the words but the author streamlined a lot of mechanics that plagued DnD 5e. I absolutely love it.
This was truly a great review! This is the first video I've seen of this channel and I appreciate how you presented this game. I've seen it front page of DriveThru for years and just never looked deep into it. I'll have add it to the list!
Very nice review Scotty, I'll probably look into getting a copy just based on your review. Hankerin is so great at making us think about our games from different angles, a real master at it. Thanks for doing this review. Cheers!!
I have the first edition and I’m dying to get the second edition hard copy. I’m also looking forward to picking up the worlds supplement as well. I use so many of icrpg mechanics in my 5e campaign. Highly recommend
You should pick it up simply because it is from our favoured game-crunching cyborg from hell! Go Hank! Looking forward to see you again on Minotaur Fitness, by the way, thumbs up!
The phrase you were looking for is "analysis paralysis". I think we've all experienced this at one time or another in our lives, especially playing an RPG.
@@theDMsCraft Love tinkering with ideas I think this is going to be right up my alley. Have you heard of the Hateful Place By D.Mitchell? Think you may enjoy that if you like this. Worth having a gander at. I picked up my copy on lulu.
![Index Card RPG [A TTRPG Review]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/IhM3rV4jAvw/mqdefault.jpg)
![Index Card RPG [A TTRPG Review]](/img/tr.png)
wow my book as a DM Scotty affiliate?! Cool! Thanks Scotty!!!
Runehammer Hank Ive been playing for 30+ years and your advice has made me enjoy being a GM. I was alway primarily a player and your channel just inspired me to really embrace the creativity in me to run. Thanks for all the hard work amd great useful affordable products. God speed
We both win =)....Love your work man...never stop creating and inspiring.
I'm crazy excited for it to get here. Can't wait to read it and use it for my different adventure ideas.
Thanks for the gift you’ve given us sir. Scotty and the professor sent me to your gift and I think it’s what I always wanted but didn’t know I did.
@Runehammer Dude your game is amazing. Just the effort concept alone is one of the most brilliant things I've seen in a d20 game in 40 years.
I rock ICRPG on the regs. Everything Scotty sez about this system is absolutely accurate. There's no going back to the other complicated mainstream stuff.
Glad you liked the review...A wonderful system.
I recently came across ICRPG and have yet to play it but suspect it’ll become my newest obsession. I love the community, hanks vision behind it, and the game itself. Very cool, and thanks for the video!
Very welcome, Hank published my game over at RUNEHAMMER called EZD6...check it out too.
ICRPG and Scotty’s 2D6 system are both solid options vs the super crunchy systems.
If you’re looking for someone whose thinking about table top gaming is incredibly innovative and outside the box, Hankerin is your guy! I have ICRPG myself, and really like his design with it!
ICRPG is my only experience with D&D. I love it. I tried playing 5E afterwards... damn! My head was spinning with so many unnecessaries
I’ve only recently become of aware of this work, and your enthusiasm is infectious, even 3 years later. I even bought the hardcover knowing full well a definitive edition is not far off.
What's really cool about this, is seeing the community support each other like this! Also Hankeran is the man
Unfortunately, the flip side is also true. Everyone here is a good guy, BUT when you have a friend reviewing another friends products uncritically and telling people to go buy it, it starts to veer into GamerGate territory. The saving grace here is no one is calling themselves an ethical journalist.
I like the mutual support that the community gives each other. The creators put in huge amounts of time on what they're doing and I have no problem throwing a few ducets their way when I can.
Hank is a amazing gamer and creator.
I truly do love this game and run it often...The fact that I am a friend of Hank has nothing to do with it. If I was a making up my own mind I would rather know that the reviewer is a friend of the artist.
Never go on one review. always read other reviews.
I am SO glad I watched this video! There are so many games that have these vague, ill-defined story points or fate points or initiative points mechanics and it's really never clear when you award them or how many to award or when to spend them or how many to spend and all of that. This system of getting a D6 whenever you fail a roll and being able to spend them to add a d6 to another roll is simple, clear, and elegant. I may have to steal that from you! What a brilliant idea!
Glad you like the idea. It has worked great in my games.
That's incredibly similar to the index card method our group used to run in Rifts Palladium back in the 90's... We had two stacks we were working with - one stack of index cards was ”Battles" - the other was "Quests" .. Each one of us would write out 2 cards for Both categories , then shuffled them into the respective decks without telling anyone about what we threw into the mix. The GM loved the spontaneity and the rest of us enjoyed the fact that we were all contributing to the story, so we just kept it going.
That sounds awesome =)
I got a copy of the first edition from a friend and just bought the second for myself the other day. I have to say I absolutely love this system and the advice it has for the DM! It's one of the most dynamic yet lightweight games I've run, and it just organically builds on itself. Crafting? Easy. Combat? A breeze to run. Encounter building? A notepad and 15 minutes gets you a 6 hour session.
I actually have yet to run a single monster from the book in my Warp Shell campaign, but the tips and included statblocks have helped me create balanced and memorable monsters that kept the party on their toes. Making monsters on the fly is super easy, and creating bosses that actually can stand against a full party is easier than other systems I've run in. And the video is spot on with monsters being unique: despite everything using the same heart/attempt/effort system, the way they create abilities makes each monster feel unique. Even the abilities lend to RPing them in interesting ways, setting them apart both mechanically and thematically from the other diverse creatures in the book.
As to the loot, the tables are insanely creative. Players love rolling to see what they get, who they want to trade with, and figuring out how to use items. Mine finally attuned to a bunch of loot from last session today and loved that even downtime is packed with attempts and checks to "level up" via gear. The best part is that even with stupidly powerful loot, you can easily keep them wary and challenged, as the system is built with players getting crazy stuff as a core idea. I find 1 roll of loot per 2 hearts overcome during the session is a good balance of reward vs. challenge, which is what the book recommends.
You mention the "crunch" is something missing, but I feel 2e addresses this by clarifying that you can improve your gear and weapons (pg. 31). That crunch is something my players all love, so what I have done is clarified the ruling on improving specific abilities for that crunchy bonus. Getting bonuses to effort on specific tasks, training to get +1 to attempts with a favorite sword, enhancing a piece or armor at the smithy for +1 Armor: I set a target number of hearts to succeed, tell them the stat to roll the attempt with, and the party tracks their progress. The players love it, it adds back that crunchy goodness, and it keeps them excited even in down times!
For example, the tank in my game wanted an improved greatsword and asked for something laser based. I had him make a STR attempt for 1 heart of effort to make a handle followed by an INT attempt for another 1 heart to make the internal mechanics. He spent his entire downtime forging the blade, but he loves the final product: a hard-light greatsword that functions like a Halo franchise Energy Blade. All he knew was it had different properties than his first sword (added "Intangible" and "Concealed," removed "Heavy" tags), but it dealt the same damage in combat. He absolutely loved it, and that was before he discovered it also did extra damage to non-reflective objects!
So basically, I've found the system enables your preferred game style. It encourages creativity from both the DM and players. It practically runs itself, freeing the DM to add, remove, and tweak what they feel needs it without needing to worry about delicate class balance systems. 10/10, I am definitely running and playing this system a lot more!
Thank you for the comment...so many things to love about this system and Hank is a inspiration!
There really is something in this book for every TTRPGer... great review Scotty, excellent work! Love your videos!!
I agree amd thank you.
Excellent product, very clean mechanic, works well with a fast gaming role playing imagination, Not only with index cards but with miniatures and 2D terrain as well. Real good stuff.
Truth
Thanks for putting this on my radar! I'll definitely be checking it out.
You should...you will not be disappointed.
Definitely going to check this game out. Been meaning to get a fun group together and get back into gaming. New father here so had to put a bunch of this on the back burner. :D
yeah, having young children can make getting together for games very hard. I am an old fart and my child is an adult so I have plenty of time to game...She also joins me in my games when she can =)
Never heard of this. Very interesting. I like your energy and excitement on this review.
Great game DnD, without all the excess rules.
I bought first edition when it came out, both me and my son really like it. Didn't realize that I could download 2nd edition for free til i watched this video. Thanks Scotty (and thanks Hankerin).
Oh good....check it out
Great review Scotty! I love your channel and your style - I ordered your luck dice rules and it adds such a cool dimension to any game! Good stuff!
So glad you enjoy my stuff, and thanks for grabbing my rules.
It’s a beautiful book and I’m glad I picked it up!😊
Great game
Fantastic review my friend! I just received my print of it, I looked over the PDF that I got with my order, but having the book in hand is so much more meaningful to me. I love the familiarity of the words but the author streamlined a lot of mechanics that plagued DnD 5e. I absolutely love it.
Agreed
This was truly a great review! This is the first video I've seen of this channel and I appreciate how you presented this game. I've seen it front page of DriveThru for years and just never looked deep into it. I'll have add it to the list!
I love the game, glad you enjoyed my review.
thanks for the review. I ordered the game !
Awesome...nice sleek system
Very nice review Scotty, I'll probably look into getting a copy just based on your review. Hankerin is so great at making us think about our games from different angles, a real master at it. Thanks for doing this review. Cheers!!
Glad you liked it...I really enjoy running the system.
I have the first edition and I’m dying to get the second edition hard copy. I’m also looking forward to picking up the worlds supplement as well. I use so many of icrpg mechanics in my 5e campaign. Highly recommend
So great ideas in this book.
You should pick it up simply because it is from our favoured game-crunching cyborg from hell! Go Hank! Looking forward to see you again on Minotaur Fitness, by the way, thumbs up!
Added to list!
Cool man, I really love running the system.
The phrase you were looking for is "analysis paralysis". I think we've all experienced this at one time or another in our lives, especially playing an RPG.
Truth
Wonderful vid Scotty. I love the index card theme in general. Might have to invest in a copy of this once my current long-term DND campaign is over
There has been some evolution of the system since I posted but the great thing about it is that it is easy to step from DnD to this system.
Sold on this great vid
Love the D6 rule you mentioned that's a great idea.
Thanks, it has worked out great in my games.
@@theDMsCraft
Love tinkering with ideas I think this is going to be right up my alley.
Have you heard of the Hateful Place By D.Mitchell?
Think you may enjoy that if you like this.
Worth having a gander at.
I picked up my copy on lulu.
Cool, I will check it out.
This a whole set? Does it come with the cards and everything you'll need, except dice?
The cards are separate sets.
@@theDMsCraft ok. Thank you so much! Happy crafting!
Great review. Thanks!
Hope you enjoy the game.
Great review of a great system.
Thanks man =)
Awesome ordering now!!
Huh, the EZ D6 was right there all along!
LOL
That's cool. Thanks
Preach!
After I figure out how lol!
you can pick it up at my link in the vid description
Not going to bother with this one. To many other games out there but thank you for reaffirming my desicion to not get it.
Not all games for everyone...at least glad I could help in your decision.