I'd like to run a one-shot (maybe leading into some ongoing adventures) along the lines of Aliens/Predator (or even maybe something a little more "tech-heavy"). Basically, I'm looking for a system that supports a "squad" of soldiers/elite operatives. Ideally it would support a variety of gunplay (pistols, carbines, machine guns, etc) and not be TOO complicated (I'd like to avoid having to use a precise map with minis if at all possible).
Anyone have any good suggestions for systems that I might look into?
Savage worlds might be what you are looking for.
Deathwatch would be an easy one. Just use the tyranid Lictors for stealthy alien beasties...
If you're looking for a more squishy group (the Space Marines in Deathwatch are relatively tough) Dark Heresy or Only War would also work. They're all pretty easy to play, and are based around the same system.
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D&D. I created a Colony World where the PCs are Clones and they are programmed with basic data. It is Primitive and Alien not just because that is the nature of the world - but because the Colonization program never kicked off. Humans (and mutants thanks to errors in the Clone Templates) vs Non Human Aliens.
Missions involve going out through Alien Wilderness and salvaging Remote Station Packages.
The PCs Die? Hell they turn up later as Nanomachine activated Zombies...
Shadowrun 3rd edition would be my choice. Probably a touch to complicated to learn for one game though.
Silhouette (the system from Heavy Gear) would work fairly well, and that setting has some nice guns and gear done up.
d20 modern (with the SciFi book) has a setting for a bug hunt.
Cyberpunk 2020
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Traveller.
Trinity (storyteller or d20)
Twilight 2000
GURPS
Cyberpunk 2020
Shadowrun.
I don't think anyone's mentioned it yet, so may I suggest looking into Cortex. It's the basis for the Serenity RPG, and if I recall correctly, also used for the Battlestar Galactica one.
Rubbish for fantasy style stuff, but it does sci-fi combat etc very well. Just be aware that it's one of the games where taking a wound can be a very big deal. Always have a medic on hand (I was the medic for my group, and I spent quite a bit of time trying to patch up players from severe injuries).
Star Wars Saga Edition but without the Jedi and The Force.
Traveller.Traveller 2300, for something more lower tech and more military focused.
Original Traveler with the Mercenary supplement and the Striker miniature rules. Military from tech 0+. Mercenary deals with detailed character generation, mercenary units, equipment and adventures / "tickets" (mercenary missions). Striker adds an incredible level of detail to the combat. Later iterations of Traveller have fairly similar options. And if you want to design all the equipment your players are using their is Fire Fusion and Steel. There are several versions of this book for different editions that allow you to build anything for the game from the ground up.
Traveller 2300 is an outgrowth of the old Twilight 2000 rules. It would cover current / near future equipment and action well.
These are older RPGs but are still available on CD-Rom, E-book and dead tree reprint (depending on ther exact item) at the Far Future Enterprises website along with Traveller 5 (the new edition of the game).
http://www.farfuture.net/
Couple years back, I had adapted Necromunda (a Games Workshop war game similar to Warhammer 40K, but with each players having a gang of fighters with individual skills rather than whole units of super-human marines) to a pen&paper (& miniature) RPG.
We had lots of rules about fighters helping each others (when one fighter's nerves would break, or when his gun would jam/run out of ammo, or when he would get pinned under enemy fire etc).
It started as a one-shot, and then ended-up as a whole campaign.
Cyberpunk 2020. Loose the cyberwear, or even better, don't.
A really simple system. You compound ability and skill and roll a d10. Almost all damage is rolled with d6s. Dying is really really easy though.
Use cover! ;)
Mech Warrior is a wonderful sci fi system.
I've used GURPS (Third Edition, Revised) for "hard" sci-fi games, and for modern-day espionage games.
I haven't played Fourth Edition GURPS, but some of my friends speak very highly of it.
2300AD or Traveller are games for a gearhead. Possibly TSRs old Bughunters game, from the Amazing Engine system, which seems to have been heavily inspired by Aliens. D20 Modern/Future for heavy duty character building. Machinations of the Space PRincess or Stars without Number for a retro feel. Ashen Stars or CthulhuTech for horror. Macho Women with Guns if you feel a bit silly.
Traveller is for gearheads -- if you design your own starships, vehicles and equipment. Other than that it's probably simpler than Pathfinder / D&D. Traveller has the gearhead label on it because you can bury yourself in the technical stuff. But that is optional. The basic gameplay mechanics are straightforward.
It also had epic kudos as the only game system that could kill your character while generating it.
It made character generation a game in itself. Will you live to retire? What age should you get out and "start" the game? Should you push for more skills and another chance for that "starship" benefit or will aging hurt the character? What other game offered this type of risk / reward before you even start playing? It was fun :)
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I second Savage Worlds
and look around the home brew forum
there also the d6 space - that the old star wars system by West End Games. it's free at www.drivethrustuff.com.
if playing longer the 40k rpgs are popular or you can try fate's nova star[url]
or [url=http://paizo.com/products/btpy84wh?CthulhuTech-RPG]CthulhuTech RPG
Lots of excellent suggestions so far - thanks to everyone for chiming in. As a follow-up question, how would you guys rank these in terms of both complexity and ease of access (i.e. cost/pdf availability?)
d20 Modern SRD is free and based on the same system that D&D 3.5 and PF are, so if you know those game systems you will already be familiar with d20 Modern.
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CP2020
I use scales from 1 to 10, 1 being worst 10 being best
Complexity : 9 (it is really easy to learn, and once you go through combat two or three times is as natural as breathing)
Ease of access : 6 (The core book is very haphazardly written, many important rules are addressed by a single paragraph of text, and although they don't need more, they are not in any way emphasized so they may be difficult to find)
Cost: dunno, theyv'e actually started reprinting the 2020 rules, i think you can find them on amazon. But if you want them for free, try interlock unlimited for the free rules.
While it's true that the Gearhead label is usually applied to the design sequences, and I'm a proud owner and user of both versions of Fire, Fusion and Steel )and have taken part in TCS tournaments), I'm using Gearhead in the sense that there's a large emphasis on equipment in the rules. Especially 2300AD, but it's also true of TRaveller. Am I using a 7mm or 9mm ACR? What type of ammunition is it firing, slug or DS or HE? That sort of thing makes a difference in Traveller/2300AD, in a way that some of the other games I suggest don't care so much about.
Very true, but if you are running a military / mercenary type game I think a bit of this goes with the territory. I think the relative complexity of combat is compensated for by a fairly simple skill system and the lack of character advancement. It's pretty much all about the toys you can afford and how you deploy them.
At the scale the OP is talking about, a single squad, that's pretty true. For larger units, I am less convinced, although I accept that a large difference in Tech Level (to use the Traveller term) will be significant. Without that large difference, I think equipment is a relatively trivial factor compared to doctrine, training, morale, leadership, logistics, and tactics - and that's just the things which are in the control of the people who create the unit, with environmental factors and the opposition being outside their control.
Not only that, but focused in around the fire team level you're going to be more interested in the complexity of individual pieces of equipment at the game level. Once you reach the platoon level all you're typically going to see are overall effectiveness stats and the interest in what equipment they're carrying tends to drift off in favor of tactical movement (not to mention how difficult it would be to start tracking individual weapons loads at that point.) "Equipment level" just becomes a boring old number at that point :)
