Re: (TFT) Random thoughts on rpg combat systems.

["Ty Beard" <tbeard@tyler.net>]

----- Original Message -----
From: <srydzews@ix.netcom.com>
To: <tft@brainiac.com>


> On Fri, 31 May 2002 04:44:32 -0700 rsmith <rsmith@lightspeed.ca> wrote:
>
> [many interesting things]
>
> Okay, here's some random thoughts of my own in response.  I do have a
nice, concise thought on the longbow situation, but I'll put that in another
post, so it doesn't get lost in these musings:
>
> Regarding what TFT is and should be, I'd like to say that TFT is many
things to many people.
> Me, I'm a wargamer at heart.  My players tend that way too.  To me, the
storytelling is
> secondary.  It's not trivial, but it's secondary.  The genius of TFT is
that it has tactical
> richness (compared to most RPG's) but with reasonable speed--which is why
I prefer
> it to GURPS.  GURPS adds a lot of complexity, which may or may not mean
added 'realism'
> or interesting game choices, but often doesn't.  (Speaking in general, not
at GURPS specifically.)

I agree with you. I like TFT for 2 reasons. First, the tactical combat
system outshines any other RPG -- despite its sometimes annoying flaws. In
my games, the battles are a significant part of the story. I find that
"roleplaying" is often overrated myself. After a long week at the office, I
just want to kill something. I have plenty of sophisticated "richness" in my
daily life. I like RPGs to give me an escape, just like a good Bruce or
Arnold action flick. TFT does that admirably well.

Second, TFT is a fast game to start. A player can create a reasonably
well-defined character in about 5 minutes. No other RPG that's worth playing
can do this.

These two features offset the myriad of flaws in TFT in my opinion.

--Ty Beard
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