5 Rules Light RPGs (That I'd Actually Recommend Playing)

Most regular readers know that, given the choice, I will take a rules-heavy RPG over a rules light one any day of the week. I enjoy being able to really tinker with systems, customize characters in meaningful ways, and explore a wide and varied toolkit of options. With that said, I understand there are also players out there who like a game they can pick up and play with minimal learning curve, and who don't need an extensive underlying skeleton to enjoy the game; they just want to get into the action.

If you're one of those players (or you just feel the need to put your complex planning instincts on a shelf for a little while), there's plenty of stuff out there to try. And if you haven't tried the following games, these are a few that I would actually recommend along with what I think makes them a cut above the competition.

#1: Grimm

Get your hands on it if you can.

Sadly it seems like Fantasy Flight's Grimm is out of print at time of writing, though I'd highly recommend checking back from time to time to see if a copy resurfaces... because this game is great!

Originally a complicated offshoot of the D20 Modern line, Fantasy Flight stripped Grimm down to its essentials. Players take on the role of children lost in the horrific realm of the Grimm Lands, and they have to figure out a way to survive and escape using only their wits and imagination! The game takes about 10 minutes to learn, and really takes nothing more than 2d6 to play. It's cut down, super simple, and the world it's set in is strange and bizarre enough that the archetypal nature of the classes sort of fits the theme. While the kids are still characters, they're also very clearly being pressed into broad archetypes of children, and allowed to fill traditional roles in a story.

I gave this one the top slot for a reason.

#2: Feng Shui

Hong Kong action theater, anyone?

Feng Shui was the first time I'd ever played a rules-light game, and it was an engaging experience. Billing itself as a Hong Kong action style game, it's far more concerned with the story beats, cinematic descriptions, and awesome look of a scene, rather than in overly complicated die rolls, precise distances on a map, or the exact radius of the explosion caused by the grenade you threw.

What really makes this game work is that it leans into the cinematic conceit, making it something of a ball for fans of action films who want to let loose their inner John Woo. My two cents, that's the key to enjoyment; if you lose that, "This is supposed to be a movie," feeling then the game is going to start going sour pretty soon.

#3: Savage Worlds

If you're going to get one game, get this one.

Some folks might argue that Savage Worlds doesn't belong on this list because it provides you with a huge variety of options and game genres you can play. However, a rules light game is one with relatively simple mechanics, and in my experience you can teach someone to play this game in about half an hour or so. Most questions they've got will be completely answered within the first hour of a given session, and from that point onward they're good to go.

Where Savage Worlds really excels is in the sheer variety of genres and settings it offers, all using this simple, near-universal system. Whether you want to do Weird West shenanigans in Deadlands Reloaded, or you want to stalk monsters through the London back alleys in Rippers Resurrected, there's something for every taste with this game!

#4: Pie Shop

This is one of the weird ones.

Pie Shop is one of the most bizarre RPGs I have ever played. In case the Sweeney Todd reference didn't give it away, you and all the other players are serial killers. There's no metaphysical happenings, no demons, no vampires... you're all just deeply disturbed individuals who feel a compulsive need to murder other people.

What makes Pie Shop so strange is that in order to create a workable premise for a party (since serial killers so often work alone) you almost have to put together some bizarre, fantastical setup. Whether it's a dark web gladiatorial bout, or a government experiment using murderers as disposable assassins, or some underground convention of crazed killers, it can get ridiculous.

My two cents; embrace the discomfort of the premise as it's delivered. This is a game for adults, and if you feel squirmy playing it don't worry... that just means you're not really a serial killer on the inside.

#5: Dread

Ah... we meet again.

If you haven't heard about Dread, what makes this game infamous is that it has a particularly unique mechanic. In short, it uses a Jenga tower instead of dice, cards, or something else to determine the results of your actions. Even if you're good at moving the pieces in one of these tower games, the very mechanics of Dread means that sooner or later one of your actions is going to fail. And when the tower comes down, that's lights-out for your character.

That said, if you want to give the rest of the table a chance, you can opt to knock the tower over to sacrifice yourself to save the others.

I will add a caveat to this endorsement, however. Because while Dread is a phenomenal system for running one-shot horror games where it's likely that most (if not all) of the characters are going to die horrible deaths before the night is done, the game is not really good for anything beyond that. This makes it an extremely niche activity that's really more use for seasonal one-offs or occasional light fare... you're not going to get a long-running campaign out of this unless you pull a Friday the 13th and the only recurring character is whatever monster the GM keeps killing you all with!

Like, Follow, and Stay in Touch!

That's all for this week's Moon Pope Monday. To stay on top of all my content and releases, make sure you subscribe to my newsletter at the bottom of the page!

Again, for more of my work, check out my Vocal archive, and stop by the YouTube channel Dungeon Keeper Radio. Or if you'd prefer to read some of my books, like my cat noir thriller Marked Territory, my sword and sorcery novel Crier's Knife or my latest short story collection The Rejects, then head over to My Amazon Author Page!

To stay on top of all my latest releases, follow me on Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and now Pinterest as well! To support my work, consider Buying Me a Ko-Fi, or heading to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page to become a regular, monthly patron. That one helps ensure you get more Improved Initiative, and it means you'll get my regular, monthly giveaways as a bonus!

When You Should (And Shouldn't) Rely on Theater of The Mind

A conversation that never seems to lose steam is the argument between representational game masters (those who use a map, minis/tokens, and either marked or 3D terrain), and those who prefer to operate purely in theater of the mind. While participants may often agree to disagree, or make some valid points during the discussion, this can sometimes generate some... less than helpful commentary. What's even worse is that often those who are arguing are actually talking past each other, rather than each discussing the same substance.

So this week I thought I'd share what insights I have on when you should rely on theater of the mind for your games... and when you definitely should not.

It will save you a LOT of frustration.

And, before we go any further, make sure you sign up for my newsletter to get weekly updates on all the fresh stuff I'm putting out!

We Already Use It For a Majority of The Game

The bulk of an RPG is conveyed using theater of the mind. No one puts out a map and makes you track your mini through the town as you talk to NPCs, buy and sell gear, etc. As a rule, game masters don't rigorously draw out portraits of everyone you pass on the street, and keep perfect representational track of everything. They talk, paint a picture of the scene, and you all pass it around narrating your characters' actions and contributions.

In short, theater of the mind works best when you can deal in generalities. If you don't need to specify that the tavern is in a 20' by 30' space, or specifically where the support columns are in the crypt your party is skulking through, then there's no reason to draw it out. As long as everyone at the table has the same, general impression and understanding of a scene, then you're good to go!

The barkeep looks annoyed. Yeah, like that.

This is the mode that we run the bulk of any RPG in, and most of the time no one even suggests that we do otherwise; it would add nothing, and cost a lot of time and energy.

The conversation always seems to shift when it comes to combat, though. Because when it's time for folks to roll initiative, and for strategy to come out, you need to ask exactly how clear the image everyone has to share needs to be in order for the game to remain fair to all persons concerned.

Specifications Exacerbate Confusion

For a perfect example of how specificity creates problems for pure theater of the mind, consider movement speed. If your character can only move 30 feet as a move action, and that movement is hampered by difficult terrain, obstacles, moving diagonally, etc., you need to know whether or not your can reach the enemy in order to attack. Saying, "The enemy rushes in from the shadowed doorway across the crypt!" does no good if in the GM's mind that doorway is 50 feet away, but in the player's mind it should be no more than half a dozen running steps.

This gets more frustrating the more complex a situation is. When players need to know whether they (or the enemy) have the benefit of cover, whether they have line of sight or line of effect, if there's anyone or anything between them and the enemy, etc. Players may even get suspicious if the GM always declares that the enemy has cover, or that they are always just outside of effective range of an ability.

Hence using a map to represent where everyone is, what obstacles are in the way, and ensuring that everyone has an objective representation that is not open to interpretation, or fudging one way or another. It puts everyone immediately on the same page, and players can do their own math regarding distance, sight lines, flanking, etc., etc.

No, Ashley, you don't have cover. What do you mean why not?

The more specific a game is when it comes to measurements and conditions, the more likely it is you will need a map in order to run combat smoothly. Everything from spells that have a specific radius or diameter, to weapons that require specific ranges, to knowing where bright light ends and shadows begin, are all signs of a game that was designed to be run representationally rather than with pure theater of the mind. Simply because communicating exacting measures and specifics can be exhausting when you're trying to make everyone imagine the exact same scenario in detail, rather than in the broad strokes.

It's sort of like keeping a chess game in your mind. Most of us can picture the board at the start, but how many moves in before we forget where the knights, bishops, and pawns have ended up entirely?

The more cinematic combat is supposed to be in your game mechanics, though, the less dependent on maps, minis, or even a basic whiteboard drawing you'll be. Games like Feng Shui 2 are a perfect example, because they're designed for fast-paced, action-movie style flow that's not concerned with ranges and explosion diameters, but more with the feel of a fight scene in general. While not perfect by any stretch of the imagination, it is very specifically designed not to need a map, so adding one won't actually help all that much when it comes time to throw down.

Don't Remove Load-Bearing Beams

I understand the desire lots of game masters have to simplify things, especially in complex systems where it can seem like there's just so much clutter. Not only that, but customization to create a unique experience that suits you and your table is a long tradition in the hobby.

With that said, you don't take a dump truck and try to tear it down to be a race car. There is only so much you can do to customize a game's engine, and if the engine was built for one purpose, then attempting to modify it to do something it wasn't intended for is more likely to cause frustration for you and your players instead of providing an enhanced experience.

Nowhere is this more true, in my experience, than game masters who want to lighten the load and mood of a rules-heavy game, so they do away with the map and minis to make things feel more cinematic.

Can you do it? Absolutely, it's your game, do as you please. But I'm telling you that you'd be better off playing a more rules-light game that's meant to use theater of the mind for its combat in this situation, in much the same way you'd be better off with a Ferrari than a bulldozer come race day.

Like, Follow, and Stay in Touch!

That's all for this week's Moon Pope Monday. To stay on top of all my content and releases, make sure you subscribe to my newsletter at the bottom of the page!

Again, for more of my work, check out my Vocal archive, and stop by the YouTube channel Dungeon Keeper Radio. Or if you'd prefer to read some of my books, like my cat noir thriller Marked Territory, my sword and sorcery novel Crier's Knife or my latest short story collection The Rejects, then head over to My Amazon Author Page!

To stay on top of all my latest releases, follow me on Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and now Pinterest as well! To support my work, consider Buying Me a Ko-Fi, or heading to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page to become a regular, monthly patron. That one helps ensure you get more Improved Initiative, and it means you'll get my regular, monthly giveaways as a bonus!