Birthright and other games.

[The Swordgaunt]

The reason for why we all read and post in this forum is rather obvious: we enjoy the Birthright setting. This also means that we play roleplaying games. As a matter of curiosity, I would very much like to hear what other games you play.

I'm a sucker for the statesman-adventurer theme of the BRCS, and the mythical, low-magic aspects are part of the selling point. The mix of intrigue, personal heroism, lingering fear of things dark and evil, and the elements of straregy are what appeals to me. I tend to go for some or all of these elements in my other games as well.

I would have to divide my list in two, one for the games I GM, and one for those I play.

As a Game Master:
I really like historical settings, sometimes with a touch of magic or the occult, thus White Wolf's Storytelling system will rank highest on the list.

Continuing on the same line, Mage: the Ascencion (especially Technocracy), and Vampire: the Dark Ages tends to return again and again.

What's cooler than starships and lightsabres? Star Wars is a long time favourite, and even if the canon opens up a lot of storylines, the expanded universe is the real carrot. You can play almost any scenario and genre in a single campaign.

Sometimes you just need machineguns and high-speed pursuits. Although the setting is more than a little dated, with a little bit of work, Cyberpunk can really spice up the day! Of course, the Storyteling system can give you this, but imo it's a weak combat system.

Call of Cthulhu would be the favourite for horror and the macabre. I've recently started a Carnivale-inspired game running on the d20 sytem... So far, it looks like it'll work fine.

There are a few older games I must mention, even if I haven't played them in a long while. The Vietnam War game 'Nam and the expansion RECON has served for a briliant ear and a half of good gaming. Another golden oldie is Twilight 2000, it's dated but nukes of fun. I'll add a final game, The Aliens roleplaying game, and even if I haven't managed to get more than a few scenarios out of it, these were worth remembering.

As a player:
Vampire; the Victorian Age would be my current favourite. A friend of mine runs a game, and she's a brilliant Storyteller.

Star Wars is probably the game I've played the most, and it's bombad fun!

I'm mostly GM'ing, and it's been a while, but Ars Magica really let you play the powerful magician.