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Zarmonic · 10-01-2016, 12:16 PM

I had a very odd and unexpected success running GURPS at a convention this year.

I'm a big fan of Ritual Path Magic and, being frustrated by the fact that no one in my group seemed willing to learn it, I planed a game specifically designed to teach it. In it the PC's are all students of magic and the first half of the session takes place in class where they are all assigned tasks to accomplish with improvised spells. The second half is the adventure they where they get to try using their skills. The idea was to have it open for people who already played GURPS since RPM is kind of considered an advanced optional system for the game.

To my surprise, no one who signed up for the game played GURPS at all, but these were people who go to conventions looking to learn new things. They seemed to be attracted to my game for the novelty of the concept. And they were indeed really fast learners. People got into the characters and story and delved into the challenge of making their own spells! Everyone had a good time.

My takeaway: I think it's kind of a mistake to try to design introductory GURPS games by stripping it down to only basic elements. A major strength of the system is it's ability to accommodate unique environments and situations. Try to come up with an adventure idea that showcases this.

I don't know if this helps, but I thought I'd share. Good luck!

10-01-2016, 12:16 PM	#43
Zarmonic Join Date: Dec 2013 Location: Seattle, WA	Re: GURPS as a convention game I had a very odd and unexpected success running GURPS at a convention this year. I'm a big fan of Ritual Path Magic and, being frustrated by the fact that no one in my group seemed willing to learn it, I planed a game specifically designed to teach it. In it the PC's are all students of magic and the first half of the session takes place in class where they are all assigned tasks to accomplish with improvised spells. The second half is the adventure they where they get to try using their skills. The idea was to have it open for people who already played GURPS since RPM is kind of considered an advanced optional system for the game. To my surprise, no one who signed up for the game played GURPS at all, but these were people who go to conventions looking to learn new things. They seemed to be attracted to my game for the novelty of the concept. And they were indeed really fast learners. People got into the characters and story and delved into the challenge of making their own spells! Everyone had a good time. My takeaway: I think it's kind of a mistake to try to design introductory GURPS games by stripping it down to only basic elements. A major strength of the system is it's ability to accommodate unique environments and situations. Try to come up with an adventure idea that showcases this. I don't know if this helps, but I thought I'd share. Good luck!