So, - I'll admit: I was a fan of GI Joe as a kid... and as an adult. And now. So, I'll admit my bias.If you're an OSR-bro, then you probably won't like it. God bless you guys, I love you- but this isn't up your alley. Alternatively- if you're a big 5e fan and you're under the impression that this is "D&D 5e with Camo Pants", you will be disappointed and you probably won't like it.Additionally, if you're looking for a 'Tactical Ultra-Modern Military RPG' system, this isn't going to scratch that itch. Hell, GI Joe was pretty damned wild just after the mid-80's.What it is: Your dudes are popping force fields, doing ninja bullshit, and all kinds of other crazy shit. A lot of the wilder stuff is 'baked in' to the game, but if you really wanted to reskin it to be more 'realistic'- you probably could, but you'd probably be better off with another game. This falls into some weird 3-way overlap of 'military + superheroes + sci-fi'. I'd be lying if I said that I didn't enjoy stuff like that when I was a kid, and I think it can be fun. Is it a perfect game? Not at all. Is it 'the best' way to do a GI Joe RPG? I'm sure you could probably say something else does it better if you reskin the game. It has a lot of abstractions, and some things can seem a bit over-the-top or weird if you're locked into the D&D mindset. However- I got this, because it seemed fun... and so far? Well...It is fun. Just imperfect.I'll follow with two posts- the cons first, then the pros.
The stuff I dislike:>The developers clearly don't understand how firearms work. In short: If a character attacks with 'ballistic' weapon with the 'reload' rule (which is 'all of them'), they must spend a 'move action' (you only get one) to reload the weapon before firing again. This results in combat being: Move into position, shoot. Next turn, reload and shoot. Next turn, reload and shoot. Repeat ad nauseam. The biggest problem with that is that a *lot* of character actions are a 'move' action- and it severely limits you. Bottom line: Ignore this rule. I assure you- it won't break the game.>A GM that thinks like a D&D GM is going to be frustrated and the game will suck.Remember that 'cover and concealment' are a thing, and there's a reason why *firearms* are the primary weapons of military forces. A GM will have to account for these things- and if you try and play like 'D&D' with a bunch of dudes standing in the open and shooting at each other? Well, that's retarded and it's going to feel retarded. I strongly advise leaning into miniatures, tokens, or standees and making combat scenarios with plenty of obstructions and positions for cover. .>The 'Requisition' system is weird, but not terribleWhether you're a Joe, a Cobra, or whatever- you're basically getting issued equipment and requisitioning gear from the armory/supply. If you're *qualified* with equipment, you can simply take it any time (as long as you can carry it)- it's effectively yours. If you're *trained*, you have to requisition it- which is basically like a skill check. If you fail, you don't get to take it- but there's always 'standard issue' gear that you can take. Once you start tinkering with weapon/armor/gear enhancements- this is where the game actually starts to get interesting. Fantasy RPG players will take issue with this... but it's also something you can work around.
The Stuff I like:Well, everything else. But I'll be more specific.>The Classes/Subclasses (called 'Role' and 'Focus' respectively) are actually interesting. There's some ridiculous ideas, to say the least. Like... a subclass that lets you have a motorcycle that also turns into armor you can wear, one that basically screams 'pro wrestler', and a flamethrower specialist that becomes immune to fire. A lot of them are very blatant references to GI Joe and Cobra characters/troops. Oh, and there's a 'Ranger' class that isn't worthless, it's actually pretty damned good.>Enough supplemental material for a variety of encounters, simple enough to homebrew new ones.I think that explains it all- but one of the major hooks for the GI Joe RPG is that it can cross over with Transformers, Power Rangers, and... yeah, My Little Pony. Look, if the latter appeals to you... go nuts. Yeah, Transformers are much more powerful- but calling in support squads, air strikes, dense environments evens the odds. Overall- the tools are there and it's treated the same as 'Infantry fighting a vehicle that moves like a person'.>The game doesn't bog you down with bullet-counting, it still allows for stuff that isn't 'shooting guns at each other'.The abstraction kinda weirds people out (you can actually hurt someone's feelings with an attack and take them out), but if you think of things less like a D&D game's 'hit points' as 'physical vitality' and more like 'a combination of physical and psychological fortitude', some of the weirder things make more sense (or they're just hilarious). It actually takes a pretty creative GM to make it all work nicely, and I think that's exactly what they expected. Overall- is it worth a buy? Well- if you know someone who has it, and they're interested in a running a game... I highly advise giving it a try. I've been having a blast with this, in two groups, and I'm currently writing my own Campaign for it.
>>97945579>If you're an OSR-bro, then you probably won't like it. God bless you guys, I love you- but this isn't up your alley.>Alternatively- if you're a big 5e fan and you're under the impression that this is "D&D 5e with Camo Pants", you will be disappointed and you probably won't like it.Good, d20 is awful at depicting modern combat.
>>97945579>Additionally, if you're looking for a 'Tactical Ultra-Modern Military RPG' system, this isn't going to scratch that itch. Hell, GI Joe was pretty damned wild just after the mid-80's.If you were to cut out all the wacky spy gadgets, could you still make a compelling first few sessions? I was thinking of making a scenario where everything starts out mostly-grounded a-la Tiberium Dawn, with the sci-fi slowly ramping up over the course of the campaign?>Additionally, if you're looking for a 'Tactical Ultra-Modern Military RPG' system, this isn't going to scratch that itch. Hell, GI Joe was pretty damned wild just after the mid-80's.Yeah that is definitely a mechanic that came from the MLP RPG they left in here for cross-compatibility.
>>97945579How easy is it to port an arbitrary military vehicle into in-game stats?
>>97945957Yeah, you could. In a lot of ways you can kinda reskin a lot of things, too. To be clear- in a campaign I'm in, my character is an Alley-Viper. I'm at level 6. I'm still using an assault rifle, a standard sidearm, and a ballistic shield, composite body armor, etc.- all stuff that fits into a modern setting. No lasers, etc.The closest to 'wild' it gets- my shield doubles as a melee weapon and I can use my 'force field' (a part of the Vanguard Class ability) to instead apply an elemental effect on my shield (like EMP)>Vanguard's "personal shield" is described as a force field, but you could write it off as just assuming a defensive postureYou can still keep it kinda grounded. In one of my campaigns, we're shying away from ridiculous super-tech... but let's be honest, unless you're a Tom Clancy fanboy and your GM is really good at that sort of thing.. it'll get boring really quickly.At the point where you start trying to make GI Joe into a realistic military thing, you've basically got to ignore everything from ~1985 forward. It's doable, but you'd have to be creative. One of those "[insert game] does it better" things.
>>97946005Fairly easily. We barely use any of the actual vehicles in the game- and they're generally pretty abstract. Something like an Abrams tank is just going to be a 'tank'. But the system is simple enough that if you wanted to add any special features to it, that's entirely possible. For example- I remade the Cobra Rage/Fury into a more practical urban assault vehicle in about 5 minutes.
>>97946011How does the system handle the difference between vehicles in the same class? Using Flames of War (which I know has often been maligned as a parking lot simulator that gets things wrong like the relative armor values of certain modern machines, but stick with me) as an example, here's the Mauler Tank['s direct inspiration] being used as a Rosetta Stone of sorts...
>>97946011>>97946046And here's an Abrams; a good bit beefier, with beefier weapons to boot. How would the Joe RPG represent the difference between the two statistically?
>>97946046Well, it's hard to say- "Class?"Eh... okay, think of it like this:Vehicles are big creatures with guns you can control, and their 'skill' depends on who/what is controlling that function (gunner, driver/pilot, etc.)Now in simple terms? Assuming similarly-skilled crew/operators in the vehicle...A HISS is going to absolutely shred an AWE-Striker (generally speaking, initiative, the weapon systems and their upgrades get a big vote here). But a Mauler tank would obliterate a HISS. I can look in a bit and pull actual details if you want.As far as the two comparisons you showed me?Well, let's put it this way, and I'm *kind of* oversimplifying it->You start with a 'tank' template>You can add enhancements to that tank to make it reflect the Abrams- increased armor plating, variable ammo with increased damage, etc.A lot of the mechanics are more abstract- another example:>I have a KRISS Vector>You have a MP5, man of culture>Dicksucker Dave has a FN P90We all have 'Submachine Gun'. Simple as that.>I have a tactical tomahawk>You have a machete>Dicksucker Dave has a katanaWe all have a 'sharp close combat weapon'The thing is, if we want to further define those- we can put *enhancements* on them... and some of those can get really fucking insane.
>>97946051One thing to consider- and I'm saying this based on what I've been *told*, and nothing that I can actually *confirm*... if you wanted to get more specific with vehicles and kind of have a degree of customization... using the Transformers RPG is pretty good for that, though be advised- they work on kind of a different 'energy management' system.
>>97946073Obviously, the Joe RPG is going to be less granular dealing with vehicles when the focus is meant to be on your s̶p̶i̶e̶s̶ commandos who happen to do a lot of espionage, but the Mauler's existence allows theoretically any tank that's showed up in FoW to be ported over to this system if we can figure out the nitty-gritty mechanics, which potentially allows for scenarios like the Joes going back in time and having to survive a WWI battlefield (and isn't half the point of this system mashing your action figures together to begin with?)So, going backwards, how would the system represent a tank significantly worse than the Mauler, like the A7V?>>97946094On an aside, I'm playing a game in a different system that necessitates contemporary military vehicles squaring away against Transformers, and having a baseline on how many Leopard 1s a Photon Disruptor can smoke in a turn would be really useful to know when things start heating up.
>>97946133>which potentially allows for scenarios like the Joes going back in time and having to survive a WWI battlefieldFunny you should mention that, the Quartermaster's Guide apparently talks about playing in different time periods- WW2, at the very least. But it also includes things like cyberpunk, etc. I was kinda thinking about some kind of 'post-apocalyptic' setting, too.If you're looking for 'specifics' on how a vehicle works, they're kinda like weapons: Very general categories- "Rifle", "Assault Rifle", "Pistol", etc. Where you'd have to distinguish them from one another would be in your upgrades.So in a way, think of it as vehicles, armor, weapons, etc. being just a general 'template' and you can customize them. I'll tip my hand a bit- I spent 20 years in the US Military- Marines, then Army. I'm also a bit of a gun nerd IRL.But I can honestly say that when some games get very specific about exact real-world weapons, a good chunk of time can be spent with som people bickering about why one general arbitrary feature of a weapon should give it X, Y, or Z. Or why their specific rifle should have more than a certain number of rounds in the mags because some obscure company makes a variant magazine, etc. This makes it so you can say: "Okay if you want to use [insert weapon], and you think it should do [certain thing], then select the upgrade that best reflects that advantage". If you know, you know: Think "Star Wars D20 table bickering".
>>97945579>ninjaThis is where the comics started sucking really, really badly. It went from>G. I. Joe (big)>A Real American Hero (small)to>G. I. Joe (tiny)>starring>Snake-Eyes (huge)>and Ninja Forceor>and The Transfomers Gen 2not Gen 1 who had been in an apparently non-canon limited series with G.I. Joe years earlier. Pirates are no use, it takes a race of giant fighty robots to conquer a race of ninja.It had already gone ninja way before the cover reflected the change. Everyone was a fucking ninja afterwards though.Snake-Eyes and Stormshadow, of course ninjaFirefly, secretly a ninjaZartan, a very important secret ninjaJinx, a girl ninja who wears red but wasn't a Red NinjaRed ninja, a whole entire clan of ninjaSlice and Dice, two ninjaT'Jbang, fuck the name, he's still a ninjaBushido, fuck the name twice over, he's supposed to be a samurai, but then he's a ninjaDojo, Banzai, both ninjaScarlett, she's a ninja tooNight Creepers, a whole entire corps of Cobra techno ninjaBilly, Cobra Commander's son, magically gains ninja skills after being touched by a ninjaEven a year before cover change there was "Ninja Wars" followed by "Secret of the Sludge" which is a TMNT reference if ever you heard one. It totally fucked over the years of good story telling Hama had done with ninja and without.But I think Hama, to his credit like how he had everyone forget Ghostrider's name, left out of the comics>T'Gin-zuYes, Hasbo named a ninja after an infomercial.
>>97945579>Additionally, if you're looking for a 'Tactical Ultra-Modern Military RPG' system, this isn't going to scratch that itchto be fair, i dont think fans of GI JOE are going to be milsim fanseveryone knows GI JOE is about whacky military vehicles
>>97946203Do you allow different crayon colours to give different buffs when eaten, or do you just abstract it to a single bonus regardless of colour for simplicity?
