Regarding 4e I would like to add:
Why does anybody here think this game is a roleplaying game? Is Advanced Heroquest a role playing game? If you think that AHQ is one then maybe 4e is one for you too. But for all those who are opposed to such a thinking, I can assure you that 4e is farther away to be real roleplaying game than any of the previous editions. And those have already been the antithesis to a good roleplaying ruleset.
The first 4e module "H1 Keep on the Shadowfell" is centered fully around combat. About 10p out of 64 are explaining NPCs and a little village in the borderlands. And on the remaining - 54p - you find 24 detailed combat map setups and 140 monster stat blocks, nothing else. Is this a roleplaying game? If anybody here says "yes this is a rpg", he should immediately make a SAN roll.
But I love 4e. I play it as skirmish game and NOT as roleplaying game. This means I play with plastic miniatures and battlemaps and without acting or portraying much the characters. For us its a funny shining board game with alot of videogame influence, great tactical rules, bashing plastic monsters and leveling up. Deep immersive rpg? no thanks. If I want this, I play BRP.
I am so glad that they went the way in direction mini game. The presentation of this game is so much more honest, than say 3.5 or AD&D. No more idiotic fluff which claims to be "roleplaying". (and is of course none) You have healing surges which every toon can use during combat to get 25% of his HP back. Every toon (not only clerics) can even heal hitpoints between combats up to full, which lasts only 5min. Every 6h you can make an "extended rest" where you go back to start and regenerate ALL damage of the day (regardless how bad you have been hurt) and all daily powers and spells. Its great for bashing monsters and pushing plastic minis around in a tactical fashion.
To the TO. Learning for BRP? What? Nobody can learn anything for his BRP roleplaying game from 4e. But you can safely play it as mini game and have alot of fun.
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