RPG Encyclopedia: G
0-9
A
B
C
D
E
F
G
H
I
J-K
L
M
N
O
P-Q
R
S
T
U
V
W
X-Z
Index
-
Gaesa
- 1st ed by Jonathan Lavallee (2010) Firestorm Ink
-
A GMless storytelling game about humans plagued by Faeries, with no
defined human setting - ranging from traditonal fairy tales to modern-day
urban fantasy and beyond. Each player creates a human and also a Fae,
and each player's Fae must connect to another player's human. Play
proceeds in scenes, where there is a defined spotlight character whose
success in the scene is determined by bidding dice (d6s). Players spend
dice to get what they want, and get dice by giving control to the Fae
(aka "geis"). Geis are phrased as compulsions and abstentions that the
character must follow. Human character creation is by defining four
Elements (Head, Heart, Life, and Loins), at least 2 Goals, and 6 Supports
(i.e. things important to the character). Fae creation is by answering
three questions: "Who are you?", "What do you want?" and
"What makes you weak?"
-
Gallia
- 1st ed by Ferenc Somlói (1996) self-published
-
A humorous Hungarian-language RPG.
-
Gamers
- 1st ed by Kyle Schuant (2013) Better Mousetrap Games
-
A generic/universal system, drawing on the basic mechanics of the
original Traveller RPG.
Resolution is by rolling 2d6 against a target number, modified by
skill (rated +0 to +6). Character creation is by random-roll
attributes and skills. The six attributes are rated 2-12 (marked
in hexadecimal as in Traveller): Grit, Awareness, Mind, Endurance,
Reflexes, Strength.
-
Gamma World
- 1st ed by James M. Ward, Gary Jaquet (1978) TSR
- 2nd ed by James M. Ward, James Ritchie, Gary Jaquet (1983)
- 3rd ed (1986)
- 4th ed by Bruce Nesmith, James M. Ward (1992)
- D&D ed by Richard Baker, Bruce R. Cordell (2010)
-
A strange post-nuclear-apocalypse sci-fi game where mutants (both
human and animal) and ultra-tech gadgets abound. It uses a
system similar to
AD&D, with 1d20 roll under a chart result for combat,
and percentile rolls against attribute*factor. Character creation
is random-roll attributes and mutations (there are no skills).
The 3rd edition used an unrelated set of mechanics, similar to
Marvel Superheroes,
but this was abandoned for 4th edition. A Gamma World supplement was
later published for the Alternity
system. In 2010, a standalone game was published using the 4th edition
Dungeons & Dragons rules, entitled the "D&D Gamma World
Roleplaying Game."
-
Ganakagok: A Mythopoetic Roleplaying Game
- 1st ed by Bill White (2009) Consensus Games
-
A fantasy RPG inspired by Inuit mythology, where the player characters
are members of a tribe that lives on an island of ice in an eternally
dark world. Play centers on how the tribe deals with the coming of
the first Dawn and the changes it brings. Play involves the use of
a special deck of tarot-like cards to generate situation, prompt
narration, and inspire characters.
-
Gangbusters
- 1st ed by Mark Acres, Rick Krebs, Tom Moldvay (1982) TSR
- 3rd ed by Scott Haring (1990)
-
A police/gangster RPG set in the "Roaring '20s", with characters as
private eyes, city cops, prohibition agents, reporters, or gangsters.
The game encouraged players to pursue their individual goals rather
than operate as a unified party. For example, a gangster character's
goal might be to hold up a bank, while a policeman character would try
to stop him -- and a journalist might tag along with the cop to cover
the story, but wouldn't want to interfere either way. There were
five 32-page adventure modules published from 1982-1984:
"Trouble Brewing" (fictional 'Lakefront City' setting),
"Murder in Harmony" by Mark Acres (a murder whodunnit set at
a high-class party), "Death on the Docks" by Mark Acres
(gang war over control of the Lakefront CIty dockworker's union)
"The Vanishing Investigator" (protecting a witness in a
trial involving organized crime), and "Death in Spades"
by Tracy Raye Hickman (a murder mystery with a random plot and
ending based on draws from a deck of cards).
-
Gangster!
- 1st ed by Nick Marinacci, Pete Petrone (1979) FGU
-
An organized crime RPG covering from 1900 to the present,
which allows both criminal and police PC's. It is co-designed by a
former New York policeman, and includes details on criminals,
forensics, legal issues, etc. The system is skill-based, with
six attributes and lists of various police and criminal skills.
The combat system uses multiple tables.
-
Gardasiyal
- 1st ed by M.A.R. Barker, Neil R. Cauley (1995) TOME
-
A non-traditional fantasy game set on a unique alien world called
"Tekumel", with strong Hindu and Aztec flavor rather than European.
The setting was previously published in two games,
Empire of the Petal Throne (1975) and the imcomplete
Swords & Glory (1983).
In this game, the rules were wholly rewritten by Neil Cauley.
It uses a percentile system where the base chance of success is
70% and the die roll is modified by (+difficulty) and (-skill).
There is also another game set in the same world published by
Guardians of Order in 2005,
Tekumel.
-
Gatecrasher
- 1st ed by Michael W. Lucas, N. Taylor Blanchard (1993) Grey Ghost Press
- 2nd ed (1996)
-
A light-hearted science fantasy RPG, in a world where a
22nd-century prospector discovered an ancient transdimensional
gate on one of Jupiter's moons, and let Magic back into the
world, including dragons, angels, demons, elves, dwarves, etc.
The 1st edition has its own rules, while the 2nd edition uses
FUDGE rules as a base, with considerable world-specific character
creation rules.
-
GateWar: Believable Fantasy Role-Playing in the World of Vinya
- 1st ed by Kenneth Burridge, Robert Finkbeiner, Kevin Nelson, Brian Pettitt (1994) Escape Ventures, Inc.
-
A fantasy-genre RPG set in the world of Vinya, first introduced
in Element Masters. The
genre is traditional fantasy with a myriad of strange monsters, more
light-hearted than "dark". It uses a percentile skill system:
roll under skill times difficulty multiplier on percentile dice.
Results are often table-driven, including specific hitpoint tables
included for each creature type. Character creation is random-roll
attributes and point-bought skills.
-
Gear Krieg RPG
- 1st ed by James Maliszewski, Gene Marcil, Stéphane I. Matis, Marc-Alexandre Vézina (2001) Dream Pod 9
-
A two-fisted pulp action RPG, set in an alternate history's 1941
where weird Nazi science has produced walking tanks and
other oddities. It uses a more pulp-oriented variant of the
"Silhouette" system: a simple dice pool system: roll dice (d6's)
equal to skill and take the best, and add attribute (-3 to +3).
-
Geiger Counter: Cooperative Survival Horror
- Beta ed by Jonathan Walton (2008) Bleeding Play
-
A GMless cooperative survival horror RPG designed to emulate movies in
which most of the main characters eventually die such as Alien or Scream,
and perform well in single-session play. It is recommended for 5-7 players.
It uses a narrative-focused d6 dice pool system, where there is a pool of
dice for all the players and for each character, and one pool associated
with the Menace (i.e. the defined threat central to the movie).
-
Gemini RPG
- 1st ed by Johan Sjoberg (1999) Cell Entertainment
-
A dark fantasy-genre RPG, originally Swedish-language but
also published in English. It is set in a medieval fantasy world
where an ancient darkness threatens the land. The world features
elven, dwarven, and human kingdoms along with an alternate
Church, complete with Knights Templar. cf. the
Gemini intro page.
-
Genesis RPG
- 1st ed by Kevin D. Clarke, Noel W. Clarke (1986) Inkeptum Ultra Visio
- 2nd ed (1990)
-
A space-faring science fiction RPG, from a small Canadian press.
It is set in 2139, and the Earth has discovered and been discovered
by ten alien races, including some with psionic powers. The history
includes megacorps who ruled the Earth, first contact of Earth by
an alien race, and the struggles for establishing a Polysolar
Foundation. The PCs may be any of the ten races, and select an
occupation in addition: including Pirates, Explorers, Investigators,
Traders, etc. The game was published in two books, called the
"Caudex Regulum" (Book of Rules) and "Caudex Centia" (Book of Data).
The rules for most of the systems allow the players to select from
three levels of complexity - ranging from a single die role to damage
system tables calculated logarithmically.
-
Ghostbusters
- 1st ed by Sandy Petersen, Lynn Willis, Greg Stafford (1986) West End Games
- Ghostbusters, International ed by Aaron Allston, Douglas Kaufman (1989)
-
A simple RPG based on the movies, designed to be extremely easy
for beginners. The mechanic is a simple D6 dice pool (the "D6"
system later used in
Star Wars), based on one of four attributes:
Muscle, Brains, Moves, and Cool. Each character can have at
most four skills: one per attribute. Action resolution is to
roll a number of dice equal to attribute (2 to 6), with one die
being a special "ghost die" whose "1" face indicates a fumble.
If the number is greater than difficulty, you succeed. Results
can modified by spending "Brownie Points" to reduce damage or
improve rolls. In the original game, characters get three pieces
of equipment which are detailed on cards. The International
edition has no cards but has a longer list of equipment rated
for size in "hands" (i.e. number of hands to hold). The original
basic set included advice on straightforward ghostbusting adventures,
including a two-page sample adventure about a taxi cab possessed
by the ghost of a gigantic dog.
-
Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai
- 1st ed by David L. Pulver, John R. Phythyon, Jr. (2000) Guardians of Order
-
A modern-day action RPG based on the film by Jim Jarmusch
about a mafia hit man who lives by the ancient samurai code.
The RPG focuses on one-player campaigns. It uses the Tri-Stat
system from Big Eyes, Small
Mouth.
-
Ghostories: Supernatural Mystery Roleplaying
- 1st ed by Brett Bernstein (2008) Precis Intermedia Games
-
A modern-day investigative game, using a variant of genreDiversion system
also used by Coyote Trail.
-
Giallo in Casa Vernaschi
- 1st ed by Maurizio Mancini, Mauro Teragnoli (1997) Qualitygame
-
An Italian-language murder mystery party game, part of the
"I Giochi del 2000" collection of RPGs. The title translates as
"Murder at Vernaschi's Home". It is an investigation one-shot
RPG with no GM, only an organizer who can also play.
-
The Gifted
- 1st ed by David Wood, David Wilson, Michael Fahey (1993) Dark Arts Games
-
A sci-fi RPG of psychic powers in a dark version of the modern world.
The player characters are outcasts in a world that is paranoid of
their psychic gifts. There is no organization for them, and they
are constantly on the run to survive.
-
Il Gioco Di Ruolo Di Dylan Dog
- 1st ed by Fabrizio Biasiolo, Roberto Chiavini, Jacopo Garuglieri, Michele Gianni, Alessandro Ivanoff (1991) DaS Productions
-
An Italian-language modern-day horror RPG, based on the popular
Italian comics character (published by Dark Horse in the U.S.).
Dylan Dog is a demon/ghost hunter. Similar to
Call of Cthulhu. It also
has a sourcebook introducing the world of Martin Mystere --
another popular Italian comics character.
-
Il Gioco Di Ruolo Di Ken Il Guerriero
- 1st ed by Marcello Missiroli, Marcello Manicardi, Beppe Reina, Paolo Poli, Simone Gatti, Simone Peruzzi, Roberto Di Meglio (1995) Nexus Editrice
-
An Italian-language post-nuclear-apocalypse RPG, licensed from the
popular anime series, Hokuto no Ken (Fist of the North Star).
The rule system is based on the French system
Simulacres.
-
Il Gioco di Ruolo Ufficiale dei Manga
- 1st ed (2000) Kappa Edizioni
-
An Italian-language universal manga/anime RPG created to simulate
the world and the action of anime and manga characters.
-
Gioco Libero
- 1st ed by P. Maraziti (1991) Fuori dal Tempo magazine #1
-
An Italian-language universal diceless RPG system, or a sort.
It has no dice, no rules, and possibly no GM.
-
Gli Ultimi Templari
- 1st ed by Maurizio Mancini, Mauro Teragnoli (1995) Qualitygame
-
An Italian-language historical mystery party game, part of
the "I Giochi del 2000" collection. The title translates as
"The Last Templars". It has an emphasis on intrigue and
politics. It is a one-shot RPG with no GM, only an organizer
who can also play.
-
Gloire: Swashbuckling Adventure in the Age of Kings
- 1st ed by Pete Murray (2006) Rattrap Productions
-
A swashbuckling tabletop miniatures game with some role-playing
aspects, based on the
.45 Adventure system.
-
Godlike: Superhero Roleplaying in a World on Fire, 1936-1946
- 1st ed by Dennis Detwiller, Greg Stolze (2002) Hobgoblynn Press
-
A superhero RPG set in the era of World War II. The PC's are Allied
paranormal "Talents" with superhuman abilities who aid in the war
effort. While Talents are definitely superhuman, it is more gritty
than four-color superheroic. The PC's can still die, and they
have little effect on the war as a whole. It uses a dice-pool system,
known as the "One-Roll Engine". Actions are resolved by rolling d10's
equal to stat plus skill. The number of matches (i.e. d10's with the
same value) indicate speed of success, while the number matched
indicates quality of success. Development and supplements to the
system were taken over by
Arc Dream Publishing
in late 2002.
-
Godsend Agenda
- 1st ed by Jerry D. Grayson, Brian Vinson, Kimara Bernard, Matt Drake (2001) Khepera
- D6 Edition ed by Jerry D. Grayson, Paul Tomes, Brian Vinson, Mike Fiegel, Matt B. Carter, Darren Miguez (2005) Khepera
-
A superhero RPG set in an alternate history where superheroes from
another dimension walk among us after accidentally crash-landing on
Earth. Some are government agents, some are costumed vigilantes,
and others were considered gods in bygone days. They fight for and
against many different factions but all have one goal; to stop the
coming apocalypse foretold of many centuries ago. It uses a simple
system, with action resolution based on 2d6 + attribute + skill vs
difficulty. A later edition was published using West End Games'
D6 System.
-
Golden Heroes
- 1st ed by Simon Burley, Peter Hains (1984) Games Workshop
-
A superhero RPG. It uses a fairly simple system. Character
creation is fast, and either custom-design or random-roll
(including random-roll powers). Combat uses a simple
action-point system, where PC's and villians have 4 "frames" (as
in comic-book frames) per round.
-
Gondica
- 1st ed by Anders Blixt (1998) Rävspel
-
A Swedish-language renaissance-inspired fantasy RPG.
192 pages long in hardcover and softcover.
-
GORE - Generic Old-school Role-playing Engine
- 1st ed by Daniel Proctor (2007) Goblinoid Games
-
A generic RPG system book with a horror theme, using rules adapted from
Basic Role-playing and the
Call of Cthulhu game.
These are published based on the related RuneQuest rules released
under the Wizards of the Coast Open Gaming License.
-
Götterdämmerung
- 1st ed by Anders Jacobsson, Magnus Malmberg, Theodore Berqquist (2005) Riotminds
-
A mystery game set in the 18th century, inspired by "The Brotherhood of Wolves", "Vidoqc" and "Sleepy Hollow". There are many secret societies, and dark forces never spoken about. The core game consists of two books: Lex Libris and Codex Persona. It uses a percentile skill-based system based on Chaosium's Basic Role-playing.
-
The Great War of Magellan RPG
- 1st ed by Richard Hatch, Jonathan Bjork (2007) DGA Games
-
A space-faring science fiction RPG based on the comic book series of
the same name. It is set in the Magellan Nebula, where a human
civilization originating in the planet Kyron had established an
interstellar confederation with nine governorships. Humanity was
devastated by civil war and the post-war chaos, and evil alien
spirit guides called the Nephilim that have turned species into
war-mongering horrors including the Kitaan and the Dru-ack.
It uses an original system where you roll 1d20, trying to get
under attribute + skill but over difficulty. A second 1d20
determines special results.
-
Grey Ranks
- 1st ed by Jason Morningstar (2007) Bully Pulpit Games
-
A historical RPG set in Poland in 1944, where the PCs are teenager
soldiers who join the Warsaw Uprising. The game has a pre-determined
scene structure where each scene has a specific date.
-
Grimm: Adventures in a world of twisted fairy tales
- 1st ed by Robert J. Shwalb (2008) Fantasy Flight Games
-
A fantasy RPG system in the genre of fairy tales, specifically the Grimm
brothers tales but also others. It is set in a fantasy world called the
Grimm Lands, where a mysterious entity called Melusine has made their
stories real. This was first published as a setting for use with
Dungeons & Dragons (the D20 system) in 2003, but was released
with its own rules system in 2008.
-
GruntBuggler!
- 1st ed by Mark Kibbe (1995) Basement Games
-
A fantasy-genre RPG system, a predecessor to
Forge: Out of Chaos.
-
Guardians
- 1st ed by James Perham, Gideon (1991) StarChilde
-
A generic superhero RPG, available as the core rulebook or in a boxed
set with one supplement ("Freedom Union") and a few character sheets.
The core rulebook has no background setting but includes a sample
adventure. It uses the same basic rules system as the
Justifiers system.
Resolution is by percentile skill rolls. Character creation
has a random number of points for attributes (with a set minimum),
and randomly determining the number and category of powers.
-
Guardians of Sol
- 1st ed by Joseph Hillmer, George Rahm (1992) Better Games
-
A sci-fi police investigator mini-RPG, published in Space
Gamer magazine, issue #5. It is based on the RPG
Era Ten.
-
Guardian Universe Core Fuzion
- 1st ed by J. Parker, Jason Libby (2005) Dilly Green Bean Games
-
A dark superhero RPG, set in 1999 of the modern world where superheroes
(known as "guardians") have been around for twenty eight years, only
to encounter angels come to Earth to purge the superhuman phenomenon.
It uses a variant of the Fuzion
system originally from R. Talsorian Games. It includes new superpowers
and psionics, character templates, gadgets, and other expansions.
-
Guildes
- 1st ed by [Multisim staff] (1996) Multisim
-
A French-language Renaissance-era fantasy RPG, set in a
world where a mysterious continent has newly appeared a few
hundred miles out to sea, ripe for exploration.
-
Gunslingers & Gamblers
- 1st ed by Jonathan Clarke (2006) FJ Gaming
-
A game set around 1876 in the American wild west. It uses a dice pool
system based on rolling six-sided "poker dice" (marked 9 through ace).
Traits are rated 1 to 5 and 5/1 to 5/5. Resolution is by rolling five
poker dice and attempting to make the best poker hand. You may then
re-roll a number of dice equal to your first trait number. If you have
5/1 to 5/5, you may then re-roll again a number equal to your second
trait number. There are 15 traits (i.e. stats), plus quirks. Quirks
are each combined advantages and disadvantages that balance, with 72
defined in the base game.
-
Gun Tale
- 1st ed by Christos Giannakoulas, Panagiotis Panagiotidis, Panteleimon Pantou, Evangelos Polizoides, Emmanuel Zachariadis-Sourvos, Konstantinos I. Zachopoulos (2007) Psychis ta Lampyrismata
-
A Greek-language game set in the American Old West, using d6 mechanics
for resolution.
-
Gun Thief: a messy game about desperate people and violent situations
- 1st ed by Joe McDonald (2010) Buried Without Ceremony
-
A diceless storytelling game for 3-4 players of modern criminal violence,
intended for one hour of play. There are three defined roles:
the Gun Thief, the Law, and the Jagged Women.
-
GURPS
- 1st ed by Steve Jackson (1986) Steve Jackson Games
- 2nd ed (1987)
- 3rd ed (1988)
- 4th ed (2004)
-
"Generic Universal Role-Playing System" A universal system that
focuses on realism, notable especially for its continuing line
worldbooks and sourcebooks, which now number in the hundreds. It
uses a skill-based system: roll 3d6 under 1 of 4 attributes, or
under skill. Character creation is open point-bought with many
options. The "Basic Set" includes a default magic system and
psionic system.
-
G x B (Girl X Boy)
- 1st ed by Jake Richmond, Heather Aplington (2011) Atarashi Games
Cel*Style
-
A dating sim and role-playing game for 4 players based on the Japanese
shoujo dating genre. It is based around a particular story - a shy
freshman student named Momoko trying to decide between her three
crushes: Ichigo, Takamichi, and Risa. Each player picks one of the
four characters, then the three suitors take turns asking Momoko on
dates. The suitor plans three activity, then the players of the other
suitors help narrate what happens. The player of Momoko passes cards
to other players according to rules to show favor to them.
John H. Kim
<jhkim@darkshire.net>
Last modified: Mon Jul 2 09:15:53 2018