Favorite RPG Reads

[Tod]

Do people read RPG books just for the fun of reading them? Well, maybe not deliberately - most of us read rules with an eye toward running them one day - but then again, many of us have also read rules we know we'll never run. Some have read lots of then, and some more than once! What RPG rules or supplements have you most enjoyed reading, and why?

[AJ]

I'm thinking about going back and reading some of my old D&D and AD&D modules just for nostalgia since I don't know anyone who plays or pick up copies of those I still haven't read. Otherwise for shear reading I've got some those old Endless Quest books under my belt although very limited in role play options that's for sure.

[catty_big]

Yes, definitely! I also write my game books to be read as books in themselves, partly bc I'm a writer and not just a game designer, but also bc I feel that the people buying them should get more from them than just a bunch of rules. Game books aren't just washing machine manuals.

[Tod]

I have maybe 300 RPGs on my hard disk, only a dozen or two of which I ever intend to actually play. When I download a new game and read it, one of my intentions is usually to discover whether or not *this* book is going to end up in that latter group (most don't - which isn't necessarily a comment on the quality of the game itself). But I'm more often reading as a designer, and looking for new and unusual mechanical ideas. Finally, and only in some few cases, I am struck by the quality of the writing itself.

[catty_big]

I think a lot of people do that. Most GMs I know are cultured, educated people who enjoy reading for pleasure. I do worry however that if I spend at least as much time on the text as the rules, then I should maybe consider myself a writer rather than a game designer. And since no-one's ever going to play my games, whereas I have a _reasonable_ chance of people reading my putative books, perhaps I should stop wasting my time designing games and transfer my energies (such as they are) to writing? I'm being perfectly serious here. There's no point beating your head against the wall trying to be a duck when you're actually a swan.

[Tod]

No reason you can't do both, Catty!

[catty_big]

Well, we'll see. I'm still deriving pleasure from both, so.

[AJ]

I say go for it, seems the logical next step for me too as managing a campaign is more work than I have time or energy for right now whereas I already have everything written I can now go back and edit at my leisure, scrap or revise and publish just as everyone else seems to be doing these days.

[catty_big]

Right!

[AJ]

Just something that popped into my head while I was reading reviews on some of those old Endless Quest books. I wonder if there's still any market for converting my stories into "choose your own adventure books"?

[Tod]

Interesting question, especially given today's propensity for short fiction delivered electronically. But we're getting off topic so I'm gonna play threadmom here and ask for this question to be made into another thread. Anyone can start a new thread, so let's do it y'all!