One of the lasting legacies of D100 role playing games is consistency.
One of my biggest things to dislike about many games is their blatant embracing of wholesale changes and resulting rules/books/resources redundancy.
I once wanted to do Savage Worlds along side D100 games as a pulp option, but after two edition shifts, most of my books becoming more or less useless, I dropped it as a bad idea.
In contrast, using 4e Call of Cthulhu resources with any later edition and/or even other D100 family related systems is little strain.
D100 games are also easy to teach and learn, their mechanics are logical and consistent.
This has two benefits.
Unlike many games in their latest editions, most D100 games are pretty stable and resemble closely their first or earlier editions. Nothing is is useless, no waste, no time bombs that will make older editions redundant.
Secondly, once you have one game sorted, there are plenty of other games that only need a little more reading and an awareness of the differences to be used as previously learned. Systems like Mythras are so consistent across genre books, most concepts are basically interchangeable between games.
Want some magic in your supers or Sci-Fi game? Import the system desired and modify as you go if needed.
Most criticisms of D100 games stem more from their realistic theming than the system itself.
From the get-go, the roll under D100 system has felt harsh to many, thanks mainly to the desire for a more realistic, dangerous and grounded game (than DnD etc), but the mechanics themselves are only part of the story.
Ironically, almost all can have modified mechanics applied that offer less black-and-white seeming outcomes and these can be almost universally applied. The very dice are full of potential options, many more than other systems, they just need to be embraced and not shunned by reputation.
The vaunted bell curve is often seen as a safety net or mediocrity, but you could argue it is over rated and mostly an illusion anyway. If wanted, it can easily be introduced simply by making the standard test a “choose the configuration” of your 2d10, which can net a 75% chance of rolling under 50% (and the opposite is true).
I have always felt it odd that the extra granularity and expanded, smoother growth range of D100 games is seen as a negative when it is often used by main stream systems with a D20 roll over system. Missing a roll by 1 out of 20 to many seems less extreme than missing by 1 out of 100? Odd really as DnD specifically is basically a D100 roll over system in 5% increments.
The hardness or softness of your D100 games can be modified or interpreted in many ways, many of which are found not in the base mechanic, but in the implementation of the results.
Call of Cthulhu, Mothership or Vikings of Legend are lethal (and all the more fun for it), Troubleshooters or Rivers of London are not (and also fun). Both use the BRP core system, just apply their results differently.
So, lets say you want to have variety in your games, not just in period and theme but execution of play style from lite and bright to dark and moody, but you have limited time and resources and your player base is similarly limited in experience or investment?
You may want to ‘tweak” the system more than a little, drop some that do not add anything, even introduce fully fleshed out concepts at odds with the original
You could do a D20/5e collection, but these are unfortunately quite limited, often only a thematic re-skin of fantasy. Older 3e is better dabbling in modern to bronze age and through it’s open license allowing fr a lot of stuff, but it is all old now and at odds with anything current.
Savage worlds is too light and pulpy for some and suffering from multi edition fatigue (I had a mirror collection at one stage covering most D100 . GURPs is too crunchy for many and again currently AWOL to some extent as is the Hero system. Some systems like D6 are free and cover several genre, but again are pretty light.
It is fair to say that the D100 family of games are the only realistically consistent, deeply supported and above all easy to grasp system group available that genuinely cover most periods and play styles with genuinely dedicated games.
Anyway, rant over, time to look at some games available*.
Let’s look at what I have at hand to start with and see how it fits all the genre’s that may appeal.
Dawn of history, maybe a cavemen vs alien or time traveller or just hunting a big beast of some type. Probably hard, lethal and unforgiving, like the Predator movie “Prey”.
There is a Neanderthal expansion for Legend “Land of Ice and Stone” which would be cool, but this is also a period that could easily be done with just the Basic Role playing or Mythras Imperative books.
Bronze Age classical fantasy with near naked heroes, big bad legendary monsters, gods and perpetual war like The 300 Spartans, Hercules or Achilles sagas.
Bronze Age fantasy, classical sagas etc are handled by a few options. I do not actually have the latest edition of Runequest which would be ideal, apart from the bestiary (because it is still of use), but I do have Mythric Rome, Mythras core and Jackals from Osprey. The big one is Mythic Greece when it is finally released. Any will do, but Jackals based on Open Quest is interesting with some novel ideas based on Openquest.
I resisted this for a while, but it is just good stuff.
Dark Ages fantasy based on the Viking Sagas, lethal, heroic and dark like Beowulf or the “Vikings” TV series, but also covering some fairytales.
Vikings of Legend is perfect. High lethality, plenty of historical and fantasy elements and good compatibility with other resources. BRP’s Mythic Iceland would also work as well (both would mix as needed).
Dark Age, true “Arthurian” in the Bernard Cornwell style. Like above with a late sub-Roman, early Dark Ages theme, Mystical, heroic and again lethal.
Mythic Britain for RQ6/Mythras is custom made, with plenty of support materiel available and even a campaign laid out. Most D100 core systems can handle this, the $1 Legend pdf is enough.
A Conan-esque warrior culture, with superstitions, evil sorcerers, warring empires and heroic maidens.
This one is best handled by either Mythras if you want detailed sword play or BRP with some pulpy elements of you want to reduce the lethality.
Classic Tolkien Fantasy. The low magic, high drama style that DnD cannot do it seems is the sweet spot for D100 fantasy games.
Lyonesse, featuring Vancian magic (the system D&D uses) is a highlight, as is Perce Forest for true classic fantasy/Fantasy Arthurian with knights etc. Mythras and Legend core can handle it, even the RQ6 starter book, but for more depth, using a game like The One Ring and adapting it (no great trouble as they have a similar feel) would add the needed Tolkien flavour.
Anthropomorphic animals can be handled by the excellent Mouse Guard RPG, converted easily to Mythras or BRP (hit locations are desirable). Like The One Ring, it fits well with D100 level realism.
Classic DnD old school dungeon crawl, like you played in high school (if you are over 35) with black and white illustrations, pencils, eraser dust, hand drawn maps and imagination. Impossible you say, because D100 Runequest was made essentially to be the “anti DnD” game?
Mythras gives us Classic Fantasy, that was made to be old school DnD in D100 form (interestingly I also have 13th Age Glorantha, which is d20 meets Runequest). Levels, classes, gelatinous cubes and dungeon crawls complete, it is a love letter to both camps of old school gaming. Open Quest is also a player here, lighter than most D100 fantasy games as well as Bare Bones Fantasy from DwD, but both avoid levels etc. Another worthy of mention is D100 Dungeon, a solo dungeon crawl game.
Dark Age, sinister fantasy maybe with an historical or familiar fantasy lean like The Witcher.
I have Legend’s Deus Vult, which is a lot like any monster hunting game, but set in Medieval times with hunters under the guise of a religious order using weird tech and fighting some legendary monsters. Dark Crusades, a BRP monologue available in pdf or CoC’s Cthulhu Dark Ages are also good supports as are most core books.
High Wuxia oriental fantasy, kung-fu style game, like Monkey or even Great Wall.
Art of Wuxia from DwD studios has produced a flavourful Wuxia-style game ideal for either historical-ish or their bespoke world with their D00 lite system. A slight departure from the usual D100 style, it is however very familiar in play.
Two very different feeling games from a similar core.
Feudal Japan with sword play, mythology and intrigue in socially controlled times.
Samurai of Legend, another re-print f the excellent RG supplement is all you need. Like most things Legend, it is lethal, so sword play should be kept to a minimum, but means something when used (like the source materiel). If foreign influences are sought, there are plenty of useful resources including Pirates of Legend or just winging it with Mythras Imperative.
Mixed genre melting pot.
I have been tempted to use Pirates, Vikings, Samurai and Gladiators of Legend for a “Bermuda triangle” like god-stolen cultures mixing pot game, but also BRP and Luther Arkright are perfect here.
Actually almost the same game, meaning lots of mixable elements.
The Elric books.
There have been I think 5 editions of Storm Bringer/Elric games, all excellent and most available as pdf or second hand.
The Lankmar books.
Like above there is an actual Lankmar D100 game still available in pdf I think. The theme is easy enough to adapt to straight Legend or other traditional fantasy games.
Dark and dirty Renaissance fantasy, with over the top costumes, humanity as it’s own worst enemy, piousness over poverty and plenty of other enemies also.
A treasure trove here. Warhammer Fantasy 1, 2 and 4e, or Zweihander (a WH1e rip-off). Both are Germanic-centric, early Renaissance/high medieval, punk-fantasy troves using slightly different, but otherwise familiar mechanical systems, or could even be used with a more traditional D100 system as resource materiel only. If anything, this genre is over catered to and my “weightiest” investment.
Over 1000 pages in just three books. A well served space.
That covers the swords and sorcery periods as far as I can remember (edits likely).
Next up, gunpowder!
*No chance I will get them all as there as so many, but this is a start.