[UA] UA Bitterness (long and mean)

[Doug Stalker]

> -----Original Message-----
> From: ua-admin at lists.uchicago.edu [mailto:ua-admin at lists.uchicago.edu]On
>
> So, the question is this:
>
> What's cool about UA and what isn't? Nothing's perfect
> and there's going to be a new version of the system in
> a short period of time anyway.  What would you use to
> sell the game and what do you think would turn people
> off?  What kind of caveats would you give?
>


What I like:  (and some of this might be IMUAC stuff)


Setting stuff:

The focus on humans as an instigater of conflict. Bad things happen because
of bad people, not because of ancient powers or evil ghosts or vampires or
whatever.  Sure, all those things may exist, but they are nothing compared
to the evil of a serial murderer or a peadophile.

The villians are real, no over-the-top dark evil apperances*, no faceless
minions dressed in black, no villians exposition.  If Alex Abel captures you
and wants you dead, don't expect an overly elaborate death machine; expect a
bullet to the head.

(* You know how in a movie, you can usually pick the hero and villian just
by looking at pictures of them? Thats the sort of thing I'm talking about
here.)

Magic comes with a price.  You don't get anything for nothing.  Sure, it
gives you an edge today... but what price will you pay tomorrow?  This fits
very well with my personal beliefs on magic, which is why I like it so much.


Non-Setting stuff:

I love the system. It's beatiful and elegent, and helps promote focus on the
characters and stories instead of the numbers and dice.

I don't feel I have to buy lots of extra sourcebooks to run the game -
unlike other products, notibly White Wolf.  I just read the Wraith rulebook,
and I feel that it's just a collection of rules and a bunch of teasers for
the rest of the product line.
Of course, I buy every UA book anyway.  Even though I have far more material
than I will ever use, I can't help myself.  They're just too good.

The support for the game on this list is exceptional.

I really get the feeling that all of the published material is just there to
offer suggestions to me, and It's all open to interpret how I see fit.  I
know this should apply to any RPG, but somehow things like D&D or WoD seem
much more set in stone.


Stuff I don't like:

Charging off proxies... but this is a known problem, and easily fixed.

Initiative is slightly clunky, but with most (ie: all) fights I've ran being
over in a max of 3 rounds, this isn;t an issue.  Plus I'm not too strict in
following the initiative rules.

Mak attack seems a bit silly to me, and I don't like Cliomancy - so I don't
use either of these.

 - Doug











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