Dominions Pen and Paper

[Gandalf Parker]

My concept of a Dominion RPG was for something pre-early-era. You would play the pretenders before they decided that they were worthy of becoming gods. Earning the fame and glory that would put them above the average being. Working toward the things they get at the beginning of a dominions game. One province, one castle, one lab, one temple, and some starting troops.

[MaxWilson]

I should mention that I was working on a GURPS tactical combat engine for fun before I discovered Dominions and quit, since it was everything I wanted out of GURPS except different rules for magic.

-Max

[HoneyBadger]

It'd be sweet to combine Dominions with Ars Magica in a pen-and-paper game.

I think it would work as well or better than any other system, since there are definite similarities and plenty of opportunities for crossover (gems translate easily into vis, etc., magic users have the same function and level of importance, the various creatures and races of Dominions would go very well in the Ars Magica campaign setting, since they're based on real-world myths, and Ars Magica is set in actual (magical) midieval Europe.), and what Dominions doesn't do as well as it could, Ars Magica does very well indeed (magic system), without both existing on different planets.

Infact, I'd pay whatever hourly wages Kristoffer is making as a teacher and Johan is making as a programmer just to get them both to sit down and read the last 3 editions of the Ars Magica rulebook and the best of the various suppliments. I'd even buy the books.

I think they'd be a revelation, since Ars Magica is such a polished product and Dominions is so close to Ars Magica in "feel".

Then again, I'm very poor, so perhaps not.

[Arralen]

@HoneyBadger
At first, both know the Ars Magica rule books, maybe not the latest edition, though ... read page 1 of the manual ..

Later editions of A.M. are not necessarily better ones. Are there still secret corridors under Venice where the thieves and bandits silently pass through?
(Gave me a good laugh. About as good as the "diamond fibre/wire reinforced armor" in battle tech ... Hint: diamond = carbon = burns fine )

And I don't think you could "form" Dominions into an Ars Magica Module, fitting it into the Ars Magica background: E.g. the "dominion" concept is very similar to the "reality" concept of TORG, and does not fit the "domain" concept of Ars Magica. Nor does the existance of multiple pretender gods.

What would work is to use the rules themselves, while dropping any background information, including spells (formulas), domains, creatures etc. . You would have to re-create them using the basic rules, very much like you would do using the GURPS rules (unless you would simply throw a extension like "magic" at the problem, what wouldn't work at all, IMNSHO)

@ Gandalf
And don't forget, the most important thing of all: devoted followers! Lots of people could gather some troops, get some peasants to pay them.
But you'll have to convince them that you're the next/real good .. won't be that easy, even for the widespread RPG hero.

[HoneyBadger]

Ok, then, to *re*-read Ars Magica Atleast the magic system. And I agree about the later editions, I didn't find the last one I read to be nearly as enthralling as the one previous.

As far as Venice goes...well, probably not thieves or bandits, unless they're of the mer-variety.

Titanium burns just fine, too.

You wouldn't necessarily use the "domains" the same as are currently implemented in Ars Magica-you'd definitely have to extend and warp the concept, but the underlying idea is there and could be made to fit Dominions.