The most obvious is MERP and Rolemaster, of course.  I have only had a brief look at Decipher's and didn't like it much.  I think it put Boromir's combat ability at much the same as Glofindel's.  Anyone else see a problem with this?  Duh!

Anyway let's talk positively.  MERP and Rolemaster were very cool.  Indeed I ran years and years of campaigns ALL OVER Middle-earth using these systems (mainly Rolemaster), mainly due to the fact that ICE's modules were created with the system in mind.  However, when Chivarly and Sorcery 3rd Edition arrived, I immediately swapped to it.  I have played C&S ever since Edition one (now using Edition Four) and have always thought it was the best and most realistic RPG ever.  Yep it had it failings, as do all RPG's, but it was and is just so realistic.  And that, for me, is what has made me run so much, now, for Middle-earth using the C&S system.  C&S is wonderfully realistic and Middle-earth does its best to do so too.

A word on realism from my perspective, and why I put so much emphasis on it.  The trouble with truely FANTASTIC RPG's like D&D, is that the more fantastic they become, the more difficult they are to imagine, or the more diificult it is to justify saying NO to a player who wants to do something really wacky.  C&S is REAL, and so it is easy to relate to and therefore I believe you get a better quality of game out of it.  Whcih for me is evidence by the fact that my players seem to get so much fun out of the campaigns I run.

C&S has its issues, especially regarding trying to represent the magick of Middle-earth, but I think with it's Fatigue Point cost (read the system, you'll understand), it is already VERY close to Middle-earth's magick (i.e.: Gandalf getting TIRED when using magick).

So what do you all use for your Middle-earth campaigns and WHY?  What makes the system tick for you?  Why use it above others?

Cheers

Padster

My group uses MERP for Middle Earth RPG.

We tried to use D&D 3rd ed, but something about MERP, mainly the crit charts and it was the first system where Herbs played a vital role. We had played AD&D for years, so MERP was a leap for us, and with that leap came a distinct "flavor" we could not duplicate in D&D.

The complexity can be daunting when dealing with numbers of creatures in a battle, but we share the number crunching, so their poor harried GM (me) doesn't have to do it all.

We havent tried any of the other systems yet.

We initially started with MERP, but now we use a somewhat modified version of Rolemaster (RMFRP), to fit with the feeling of Middle Earth. This mainly concerns the use of magic and the power level of the characters.

I feel no need to try any other system, allthough I have no problem using resources that might be based on other systems than RMFRP.

I still use classic MERP 2nd edition, and Rolemaste 2nd Edition (have dabbled with newer RMSS/RMFRP). I've also started running a Decipher LotR campaign.

What I have put the most energy into the last couple of years however is trying to make d20 3.5 better fit a Middle-earth setting (no simple task).

This project is published at http://www.ead20.com

I would LOVE to see you submit your rules (whether polished or just roughly laid out) to the magazine.

I also know that Chris Seeman prefers to use Runequest adapated to Middle-earth as his main system.

I'm also aware of several people using GURPS an Harnmaster adaptations as well.

There are also three "Dedicated systems" in development out there as well:

Ambarquenta, Hither-lands, and Ea RPGS.

Hither-lands _might_ have a table at MerpCon IV to demo their system.

Now word back ever from the Ambarquenta folks.

Ea RPGS is still too underdeveloped so far to use, for now polishing of Ea d20 is where most of that time and energy has gone (for now).

It would be great if all of them would submit their rules to OM for publication (as well as at each MerpCon).

Great thread topic btw!

-Hawke

Hello,

The only campaign I've ever run in Middle-earth was using ICE's Lord of the Rings game, which was very simple.  I bought the 2 extra modules for that system as well.  That was also when I was 12, and I'm 28 now.

I've run other games over the years with various systems and settings.  I have bought some of the ICE MERP books from time to time, but I have never used that system.   I've used or played games with the Rolemaster Standard System, Hero, Nobilis (diceless), D&D 3rd and 3.5, HARP (High Adventure Role Playing by ICE), White Wolf's Hunter: the Reckoning, and a random assortment of Free RPGs I found online.  I enjoyed all of the gaming systems but as time wears on, I find myself liking rules-lite games that focus more on role-playing than the crunch of systems that fill many books.

I've been debating about using a White Wolf World of Darkness D10 fantasy dice pool variant for Middle Earth with no magic system.  I wanted to keep it low magic, and will incorporate magic items if I want the party to have any magic.  I have simplified the game down to it's core ingredients and have thrown a few house rules in there to make it work.

For those that aren't familiar with White Wolf games (such as Vampire), Attributes (Stats) have a number of dots, and Abilities (like skills) have a number of dots.  A GM tells the player to add up the dots for an Attribute, and Ability and they roll that many D10s.  The GM gives a difficulty number and the number of dice that have that number or higher is the number of successes you have.  One success is a very mild success, where more successes mean you performed the task above the call of duty.  If you don't have any successes you fail, and if you have more 1's than successes you Botch, which is downright misfortune.  Six is normally the default number for success, but my house rules will increase that to 7.  White Wolf has come out with newer rules for its World of Darkness setting, and these rules are based on the older games.

I'm torn between the 1st Age or the 4th Age for the best time to run a campaign.  I have narrowed it down to those two ages though.  I would also have to find a group of interested players.

I'm currently in a burned out phase (I run games till I can't do it anymore).  So I've been spending my time on other geek related things, hehe.  But I think my next campaign, when I run one, will be a Middle-earth one, using the D10 system.