Are there any RPGs for, well, isekai games? I guess it's not actually different from standard RPGs, but I can't help but wonder if there's anything specifically aimed at that demographic.
>>98373223D&D Forgotten Realms.D&D Planescape.
>>98373223>I come from a different world and I was reborn into this magical world full of fantasy and adventure after I died>no, this never gets brought up or mentioned nor does it even contribute to the plot, it just makes it easier for Junichiro at home to self insert as meWhy are there any non-japanese Isekai fans at all?
BREAK! does have Human and Human (isekai) as playable species.
>>98373223Well, technically...
>>98373334Is this any good? It always seemed really pretentious to me.
>>98373223Maid>>98373263What are the mechanics like? Anyone have any experience playing this?
>>98373322>>no, this never gets brought up or mentioned nor does it even contribute to the plot, it just makes it easier for Junichiro at home to self insert as meThe reason for this is actually way more cynical than self-insertion purposes. Once isekai took off in a big way, publishers were looking almost exclusively for isekai stuff even if a writer/artist wanted to do a standard fantasy story. So the solution was to label your work as isekai but then speedrun and write out the isekai aspects ASAP so you can tell the story you actually wanted to tell. Depressing I know, but it's not like the west isn't without its own retarded publishing mandates or trends. Remember when Hunger Games took off and suddenly every YA novel was dystopian teen fiction? Or the slew of Harry Potter clones? Or when every single American comic was adding gorillas to it because publishers decided "Gorillas sell"?
>>98373223It's basically Labyrinth the RPG (before the licensed one, even), and you are Sarah and the companions. Or Dorothy and her companions, you get the idea.The "japanese" setting is something like pre-Zero no Tsukaima shoujo isekais, think Fushigi yûgi (in not! heian Kyoto), so more for older kids.
>>98373340I mean, I like it, but it's a game about playing real people working through their psychological problems by being teleported into D&D. "Pretentious" kind of comes with the territory, so if that's a dealbreaker for you then you're probably not getting on with it.
>>98373223Aren't all games ripe for this? I doubt Runequest breaks because you got isekai'd into Glorantha.
>>98373223GURPS Fantasy: Portal Realms (though it doesn't actually use the word, strangely enough)
>>98375313Considering just your usual dnd-adjacted fantasy, which is most probably what you're thinking about, most would make little to no sense.I mean... even the fucking dnd cartoon had quite some (magical) justification for it. You tell me how an average shmuck just tossed into Faerun would have the knowledge to cast fireball or track magical animals.
>>98373340I read the comics for a while. I ended up just giving them to goodwill. They're extremely pretentious and of course one of the characters trooned out. It's basically just every lefty talking point about D&D in a shitty isekai shell.
>>98373223Konosuba RPG
>>98375361You wouldn't, so pick a class that fits or find a narrative reason why you can use magic and make understanding your new powers part of your character's journey.
>>98375367Problem is, no class would fit, execpt maybe the sorcerer.
>>98374233NTA but that's less cynical than I was expecting. The reason I was thinking was that Japanese modern culture was so depressing after high school that getting killed young and entering a new reality without the responsibility trying to reclaim your old life was seen as an upgrade. Maybe there are shades of that, too, but if it's more just publishers aping off of some popular isekai then I'm not as cynical as I used to be. The trend shall pass.
>>98375473If you want to be more cynical, a trend these days is having “slow life” isekai stories where the protagonist explicitly isn’t some chosen hero destined to defeat a dark lord, or a great savior of the world. And their big goal in life is to basically enjoy a retirement in another world, opening up a farm or inn or bakery or whatever. Bonus points if they’re a middle aged office worker and die of overwork in their sleep or at their desk, or from being so tired and out of it they get hit by a truck trying to get home.
>>98375473There is a moralizing failure in people trying to analyze nerd media, quite often, that tries to explain trends in this kind of black-pilled way.Mind you, your idea is probably not totally false either, and modern isekai started out as harem comedies while ending up in shit like shield hero. But then, sword and sorcery quite clearly had a loser escapism (bitches, confidance and muscles that most nerds didn't possess) streak and nobody used it to say that America is all about soulllesss boredom.
>>98373223there's a konosuba RPG
>>98375499I find that moralizing failure to be common in places where people can be as hyperbolic as they want without consequences. Basic pattern recognition that ends up failing because it leaves no room for potential error or the unknown. It just be like that. Japan is somewhat of a depressing place, sometimes,, but I don't think even they or really anyone would be showing something so nihilistic as what I thought to 13-year-olds. It's just a thought that occurred to me when I saw an isekai protagonist decide that his old life on Earth isn't worth thinking about now that he's dead. But I find it more likely to be for the reasons noted here >>98374233. Japanese corporatism is far from immune to trend chasing and other idiotic moves, and Japanese corporate structure is uniquely bullshit among it's upper and mid-upper echelons (see Konami or square enix). >>98375494Honestly, I don't think that's too different from the trendchasing. It's just a slow series about something the author and the audience like. Usually there's an okay amount of research done on the topic to make it seem interesting. If I had a hiking hobby and was invested in its history and world records and stuff, it wouldn't be too bothersome to make it take place in a fantasy world with an isekai protagonist bevause my publisher told me to. That would just be the secondary background to the hiking autism. Pic related would be a different hobby.
>>98373223It's called playing your setting/system of choice but your character is a metagaming faggot who the DM gave an item out of his CR to even further stack the odds.
>>98375444Masque of the Red Death drafts a whole slew of D&D classes for the early industrial age that would be a better fit for a stranded earthling.
>>98373223It's generally more of a setting thing, yeah. I think a supers system would work, maybe something more open-ended like PBTA could work, it depends on what kind of isekai you're going for.>Otome Game ReincarnationMAID, clearly, though in that case the GM would be the reincarnator and the PCs would be capture targets/rivals probably?>Power trip Isekai (Heroic)Supers system like Prowlers and Paragons. Have the players built at a higher tier and limit what powers NPCs can have.>Power trip isekai (Evil)Like that one about the guy who rapes a chick with a fire poker or whatever, fuck that edgeslop, but if you must I'd say SOTDL.>Protagonists use their future/advanced knowledge IsekaiThat's definitely a case for HERO system or GURPS, letting only the players use advanced tech crafting/skills or what have you.>Generic isekaiIf the player characters are in the "I died in our world and was reborn as a baby in this fantasy world" type where their powers aren't super special beyond maybe quick growth, then pick your favorite fantasy system that supports the players being strong, capable, heroic sorts (so no WHFRP or OSR/TSR). In fact, if you DO want to give your players cheat powers - I cannot believe I'm suggesting this - D&D 2024 ACTUALLY has a mechanic for this - Epic Boons. Tell players to replace their Origin Feat with an Epic Boon, and you've got the general concept. Though, if you know a system that does this better? Suggest it. I'm just saying that the theory works out in 2024, not that it's ideal in practice. Again, Supers systems also work, maybe everyone gets a free high-end power at Rank 1 and can buy more ranks normally, something like Prowlers and Paragons could do the trick. And, for specific systems, there have been a couple of suggestions ITT so I'd say look at those (I'm unfamliar).>>98375697Too bad Konosuba is dogshit and all of the characters are horrible people.
>>98375499>But then, sword and sorcery quite clearly had a loser escapism (bitches, confidance and muscles that most nerds didn't possess) streak and nobody used it to say that America is all about soulllesss boredom.To be fair, part of that was because at the time those were popular America gave off an air that it was trying to live by that type of machismo IRL, just transplanted onto the Cold War. To your average outsider, it's like we took our navy SEALs and shoved them into the dark ages to see how they would measure up, and that (you) dear reader, could potentially be that SEAL.
>>98375982>so no WHFRP or OSR/TSROn the contrary, giving a noob a high-stat, capable chassis with some additional starting goodies for good measure in these systems and seeing how they perform with their kit while the rest of the party wrangles them might be the only way to do an Isekai game without it being insufferable.
>>98373340Neither the game nor the comic are any good. Also the artist is a huge faggot and has tried to insist that TTRPGs are a hobby made for trannies, more than anyone else.
>>98375861Yeah, I can be cynical as hell about isekai slop, but most of it isn’t anything deeper than following a trend about writing a story with rpg elements pasted in. And a lot of people get upset about it because they forget Sturgeon’s law exists.
>>98376122It's true. There are some good isekai. I think what sets them apart the best is RPG mechanics. I don't mind some conceits like adventurers guilds or demon lords, but if the entire game world literally runs on video game logic like stats and classes and pause menus, then I start rapidly disliking it. Especially if the video game logic is badly implemented and the mc finds a stupid oversight that lets them become king of the world. Otherwise, being a stranger in a strange land is good storytelling and conducive to adventure. John Carter is isekai and that was cool last I read it.
>>98375313isn't a big part of runequest your relationship with your religion and culture and shit like that? it seems like it's in fact pretty easy to break in this case
>>98375987SS is older tough. Golden age was the fucking thrties, up to maybe the sixties.
>>98375982there unfortunately is an official Konosuba TTRPG......but at least the supplement is getting translated.
>>98375982>Too bad Konosuba is dogshit and all of the characters are horrible people.That's why it's great for your RPG. I mean, it WAS based on dnd sessions.
>>98375361When I played in an isekai campaign (non-magical medievalish world to high-magic world), after we got through a portal at the end of the prologue, there was a timeskip (2 years, I think?) so our characters could learn the local languages and customs and pick our casting multiclasses. Even after all that, we were outsiders (being only humans in the world various fantasy races).Funnily enough, my character was the only one who still wanted to find a way back home.
>>98384887Doable, but quite clearly not the best idea for isekai purposes, the focus of which is about "oh god, I've JUST got there".
>>98384901There was a bit of "where the hell are we, what happened?", the timeskip happened after we ran into friendly locals and got to a safe location.
Now that I think of it, Grimgar kinda tackled the issue at hand, but I don't think the answer would be accepted by the isekai fans.
