The Glade 4.0

Ok, I have 11 year old daughter who's got an interest in roleplaying games of the computer variety but has asked me to run a RPG on a tabletop. (i'm so proud, its like she said she got into MIT ;->) and my thirty-something girlfriend's response was "YES PLEASE" ....

Ok, so that leaves me with having to create a game (normally idea comes first then I get people, this will be new) basically from scratch.

I need to find/create a world that will draw both of their interest.
Both enjoy Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and while I know the universe quite well, I don't know the RPG, which would leave me trying to GM (and teach) a system I dont know the first thing about OR shoehorn some other system into the Buffyverse, though my daughter obviously gets a heavily edited version of the show she's allowed to watch at all.

I am.... "ok" when it comes to D&D 3.5 and I at least know the FR campaign setting reasonably well, however neither of them are even the slightest bit familiar with FR, and my GF has played D&D but doesn't remember what version (likely 2-3.5 but Its not clear) There is the question too on drawing in my 11 year old into a fantasy universe that she's never seen.

I haven't touched Shadowrun in nearly 20 years but the setting is a little more familiar (or at least accessible) to my tech-savvy daughter. But again, its a system I've forgotten most of, and no one else but me actually knows the setting.

I know Star Wars intimately, both the universe and the WEG version (and passing familiar with the Saga version) and my daughter is very familiar with the universe and my GF has at least seen the movies. (I like this option the best, but my GF is giving a little pushback so this may not be the best solution) I also have the most experience running SW. I think it also lends itself more to a 2 person campaign.

Other systems at my disposal but not really in consideration:
Vampire (too mature for the 11 year old)
Star Trek (no interest from anyone)
Battlestar Galactica (no interest/too mature)
Babylon 5 (No interest)
Firefly (Too mature)

Currently thoughts.
I COULD Keep this simple and just basic 3.5 D&D and your run of the mill low level adventures until something strikes my fancy.
I COULD use 3.5 D&D and go the "magic starts working & tech all fails" from the year 2011. That saves me world building (at first) and might be more accessible to my (very bright) 11 year old.
Take a Avatar the Last Airbender, and use D&D 3.5 --make all characters Sorcerer/Monk types and split off only spells by element.

knowing my child, she'll do better if I can use either a pre-existing universe she's seen before and identifies with, such as (Avatar:TLA, Warriors, Star Wars, Buffy) than a homebrew or setting she's never seen (Forgotten Realms, Shadowrun, Firefly, etc)


Any ideas are welcome.

Honestly, I don't see what the problem would be with running a FR game for your daughter. Hell, I was eleven when I started reading some of my brother's books. Just get a prepackaged module, have her create a level 1 character, and stick her in a dungeon. Use the sample adventure in the back of the Player's Handbook, that's what it's there for.

The Buffy system is pretty crappy. You're not missing much. Other than having to keep the books away from her, there's actually nothing wrong with using the rules for Vampire. You can run a PG Vampire game, just let her run around beating up vampires.

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Buckle your pants or they might fall down.

You may want to consider Savage Worlds. It's a free (libre) system like d20 so has easily found amounts of supporting material online. It has the advantage of being more rules-lite than d20, and is more easily re-skinnable for any setting type. D20 is a fine system, but for learning it, I would stick with a basic fantasy setting. It requires a large amount of expertise both on the part of the DM and the players to use it in settings removed from its main focus.

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Have you looked at Gamma World? It's D&D 4 rules, but you can be a pyromancer yeti. Or an android furry.

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"...the line dividing good and evil cuts through the heart of every human being. And who is willing to destroy a piece of his own heart?" -Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn

you familiar with 2e?

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Darksiege
Traveller, Calé, Whisperer
Lead me not into temptation; for I know a shortcut

GURPS is easy to learn and well with any kind of setting. You can GURPS lite for free, but the character generation options offered in it are fairly simplistic. You won't have the advantages you need to build vampiric opponents, but you might be able to wing it.

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I prefer to think of them as "Fighting evil in another dimension"

Slight necropost, but since its the same campaign, I'm not really sure where to go with this from here.

Settled on a Forgotten Realms 3.5e game.

Synopsis so far:
Bard (my 11 year old daughter) was touring Ten-Towns area and had artistic differences with her troupe and stormed off into the tundra at night.
She was accosted by wolves who were driven off by the Druid. (my fiance)
The two made camp for the night but were surprised by an injured gnome (who didn't speak common, and they didn't speak gnomish, which made our charades game hilarious )
The gnome managed to communicate that it was attacked by orcs and had a large gem he was carrying given to him by his king, and that he was a courier.
They helped retrieve the gem, but the gnome was killed in the fight.
They decided to take up the gnomes mission and wandered down under one of the lakes, fought their way through a dungeon until they encountered a Ancient white dragon busy bashing his head into wall. The dragon was cursed with an amulet that only it can hear, and that the dragon cannot remove or destroy-- and then imprisoned.

In a rather fool hearty but predictable action they delivered the gem to the dragon who agreed not to eat them if they would willingly take on his curse. Thus the bard now wears a homebrew amulet that never shuts up and just constantly berates the bard telepathically. The dragon escaped and they fled, having, in an act of compassion, freed another great evil into the world..

The characters are 9th level, and fairly high-end for their level (38 pt buy, with several flaws, so a decent number of feats, and fairly well optimized (though not perfect))

Looking for ideas of where to go with them, as far as story line.

Assembling a force to take out the dragon might be an idea. But only works if the players are motivated to do so. Chaotic Good, Neutral Good pair isn't huge on the responsibility list.

I'm suffering from a bit of writers block and need to come up with something before Friday.