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Numenera: First Look

Yeah, I was a backer of Numenera and just received the core book and player's book PDFs.  Like all games, the first read is a bit overwhelming.  That being said, I think I really want to run this game.

The last year or so I've been leaning more and more towards rules light systems or Pathfinder.  Shadowrun has been frustrating me for a while now with two big flaws:  extremely complex rules and ever more powerful add-on books.  I am very hopeful that Numenera is not going to suffer from either of these things.

In many ways, Numenera is what d20 should become in a rules light world.  It simplifies the stats down to three, adds a little flavor, simplifies leveling up, and puts the focus back into the story.  It fixes an age old problem of who rolls the dice.  Even in Pathfinder, which is widely played, it isn't always clear who should roll the dice.

I also like how Numenera can be played with two dice -- a d20 and a d6.  There are other dice used, but they can be derived from the d20 and how to do that is explained.

I like the formula:  I am an adjective noun that verbs.  Take a look at the character creation stuff here if you are interested.

Three classes, limited races, very few item types, very simple mechanics.  The real challenge is going to be getting the group into the Numenera way of roleplaying -- focusing on story and discovery rather than mechanics and battles.

I have a lot more to read and learn, but I think its going to be a game I run soon.  A $2.99 character builder app is going to hurt the game at all either.

I need to go find out what more is going on for this game at gencon.  I'd love to play.
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