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Culture War Roundup for the week of September 25, 2023

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It’s a simulationist approach which is largely absent from the modern game.

There's always GURPS. Third Edition Basic Set:

Roll three [six-sided] dice for each of the four basic attributes—ST, DX, IQ, and HT. If you wish, you may discard any one of the four rolls and try again—but you must keep the new roll, whatever it is!

(This rule technically is missing from the Fourth Edition Basic Set, but it obviously works just as well in Fourth Edition.)

GURPS Dungeon Fantasy 16: Wilderness Adventures can be used for hexcrawls. GURPS Boardroom and Curia has rules for creating an organization, such as a troop of bandits seeking to set you up as a new baron. GURPS Low-Tech Companions 2 and 3 have (rough) rules for building fortifications. GURPS Low-Tech Companion 3 and articles in Pyramid vol. 3 issues 33 and 52 have (rough) rules for handling the economics of farming. GURPS Mass Combat has rules for large-scale war. Et cetera.

GURPS has spawned many impressive spin-offs like the incredibly breathtaking Malazan Book of the Fallen epic fantasy series.

Holy shit. I had no idea. I figured he just really liked Black Company.

I mean Erikson has said The Black Company was an inspiration for him as well in his writings, of course. But the world itself is way beyond that series in terms of scope. We owe all that to GURPS.