So here I was looking for "realistic combat systems" in pen and paper games, because I wanted to simulate an MMA fight on the tabletop. I came across a thread on Reddit, and one of the posters recommended Rolemaster:
https://www.reddit.com/r/rpg/comments/13qc6d/realistic_combat_systems/
I felt like a grizzled Jedi Knight saying the words, "Rolemaster, now there is a name I have not heard in a long, long while." My gaming group's history with Rolemaster in one focused more on a lengthy campaign of Spacemaster we ran as a multi-player sage spread across dozens of worlds and starring some of the cool spacefighters and starships out of the Silent Death game.
And then I learned they did a re-edit and re-printing of the classic rules out of the 1980's. So now there are two versions of Rolemaster to try, and a third if you include the semi-related HARP.
https://ironcrown.com/rolemaster/rolemaster-past/
And there were several videos on Youtube saying people loved Rolemaster as a solo game. All right, I knew what I was getting into, and I wanted a solo game desperately now that I am alone - so let's take the plunge. I got everything I wanted, including POD copies, from the incredible DriveThruRPG:
https://www.drivethrurpg.com/browse/pub/461/Iron-Crown-Enterprises
What Version to Try?
Well, hold up - there are quite a few versions of the game to try. Let's break this down, from what I can piece together:
Rolemaster FRP / Rolemaster Standard System: The 1990's version of the game. Hundreds of skills, lots of character customization, very detailed characters I feel are better suited for roleplaying and social encounters. Sort of like the "epic adventure" setting for those who really get into their characters and want a more robust and detailed game. Character creation is the slowest here. The spell systems are split into 3 books, and 6 books total are needed for a complete game. You can play with just the basic book though.
Rolemaster Classic: Sort of like the AD&D version of the game as it was in the 1980's, but this version is edited, cleaned up, and things cleared up. Less skills and a tighter focus on dungeoning. Character creation is still complex, but not as many choices as RMFRP so things move faster. The basic books are more complete, but you need four books for a complete set - and a minimum of three to play. Characters are weak at low levels, like RMFRP.
HARP: A lot of people like HARP, and the system is very similar, so I added this to the discussion since this was one of my choices. This is a stripped-down, easy to play, one book game reminiscent of a D&D retro-clone these days. The mechanics on how things work are a bit different than RMC and RMFRP/SS, but the game's origin is the same. Character creation is lightning fast. The combat tables are aggregated. Magic is more generic. The character options and spell usage are a lot less restrictive, and characters are stronger at low levels. HARP has a sci-fi option too that looks fun.
Wow, Lots of Choices!
Choice paralysis set in. My first instinct was to go HARP, get something simple up and running, and forget the rest. All I wanted was something quick and simple, with lots of options, capable characters, and a fast character creation time. You can go to town and buy five main books for HARP, but I opted for the one PDF you need and printed that out to read.
And then...I started to read people's experiences with Rolemaster Classic. The books full of charts. The one table per weapon type combat. The lower-powered and less-capable heroes, one hit away from certain unlucky doom.
But what sold me on RMC (RMFRP has these too) were the evil spells. The game did not make a moral choice for you like most games do these days. You could play the bad guys. Weak, powerless, conniving, take every advantage they got and stab each other in the back classic AD&D "please ban this game from being played after school" type bad guys. That felt so 1980's to me and familiar I had to take a look. You could be the good guys if you wanted, granted, but the game made no decision for you.
It was a sandbox that you used to craft your own world and game.
And yes, RMC became my Rolemaster. I have a copy of RMFRP in the house in a box somewhere but I can't find it, but seeing a cleaned-up classic throwback retro version of the original game warmed my heart, and I wanted to support that and let people know. My articles here still get hits and reads every month, and I felt strongly about this so I am back.
Solo Play?
Another cool part about the game is solo play. Now, you can solo-play just about anything, but very few games surprise you like this one does - and this applies to RMFRP, RMC, and HARP equally - all of them are excellent for solo play. These crit charts for combat make the magic happen. You are not sitting there rolling to-hit, damage, next combatant, to-hit, damage, and then playing "math and statistics" all the way down zero hit points.
No, you crush collarbones. You stab goblins in the eye. You immolate your enemy with fire spells and all that is left are ashes. Cool stuff happens not only to your opponents, but your character as well. You got stabbed in the foot and are limping along, what now? You going to press farther on into the dungeon with a reduced movement rate and then need to run from something you can't handle - and you can't? You get one-shot killed a lot, and that adds to the danger. Every combat, even against "low level" monsters - is still a threat.
You do have to deal with a lot of charts - less so in HARP which is why so many people like it - but I feel playing solo you are not being pressed for time as much as you are sitting in front of a room full of impatient players looking for a ruling. You can learn a complex system better if it solo plays well.
Plus there is an appeal of creating a character and watching what happens in this fantasy world simulator. One character, alone. Your choices matter. You can be good or bad. Your character may meet an early end, but the story of the footsteps this person took through the world is what you came for.
Horror Gaming
It needs to be said that the tables in these games (more so in RMC and RMFRP, HARP's are condensed and there are not as many results) are like walking through a horror aisle at your local 1980's video rental store. You are not going to get your arm chopped off in D&D, or bleed out from a gaping wound you can't effectively bandage. Again, this is really fun 1980's throwback gaming that would upset parents and teachers - and thus, it is cool. You can imagine a teacher listening in as an goblin gets beheaded by a good ax swing, or the players debate charming the townsfolk against their will to complete a task.
Um, please play another game in the library next time or your after school club's rights will be terminated. It makes me laugh, but few other games are like this, and the tables are a very effective instrument of fear for players - nobody wants this stuff to happen to their characters - so let's play careful - or as careful as we can manage. And you still get bit by a bad roll and suffer a loss when you don't expect it.
This is effective, powerful horror pen-and-paper gaming at its best. It isn't "numbers versus numbers" but actions and consequences, and if I need a reason to wade through all these charts and learn the game, this is it.
It is also worth noting that HARP provides this level of fear as well, though some have said the limited number of character mean you see the same result come up more often. To me, you resolve this by getting enough experience and dropping in house rulings and differing effects for rolls you saw too many of recently.
The Plan
I have HARP, and if RMC galls flat I have that to play. I want to learn RMC and play it effectively, and that is going to take a little time. I also have RMFRP in a box somewhere, but I eliminated that as a choice because I have not experienced the original as much as I would have liked, and the original has a simpler focus and 1980's feel to me. If I find the book, I will read it, otherwise I am not going out of my way to search through boxes.
I will probably keep things updated here as I go with both HARP and RMC, and that will give me another reason to work through the books. Sharing on a timely basis is a good excuse to commit time to read and learn a new game.
Until then, that dark dungeon looks really, really dangerous.
Are you sure we want to go in there?
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