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2. Steve Jackson Games and GURPS2.1 What is GURPS?GURPS stands for Generic Universal Role Playing System. The game system is published by Steve Jackson Games and the Third Edition core rules, contained in the GURPS Basic Set, were written by Steve Jackson. The first GURPS Basic Set was released in 1986. The current line editor is Dr. Kromm. GURPS is a 3d6 skill-based system. It uses a point-based character creation system, and represents characters using four basic stats (Strength, Dexterity, IQ, and Health) along with advantages, disadvantages, quirks and skills. GURPS is designed to allow role-playing in any genre. The same game mechanics are used regardless of the genre. GURPS Basic Set, Third Edition was published in 1988. GURPS Basic Set, Third Edition (Revised) was published in 1994 and features an appendix of 18 pages of generic rules reprinted from other GURPS books. This appendix replaces the "Caravan from Ein Arris" adventure. 2.2 What GURPS books are available?The SJ Games website includes a complete list of all GURPS products and their availability, as well as a list of new and planned future releases. 2.3 What is required to play GURPS?The only book required to play GURPS is Basic Set (or GURPS Lite,for the minimalist), although Compendium I and II are now regarded as being part of the core rules as well. Otherwise, GURPS books come in two primary "flavors" - rulebooks and rules-light worldbooks. None of the worldbooks are strictly required, but if you're setting a campaign in, for instance, medieval Russia, Russiawill obviously be of use to you. [Maintainer's Note: There is a book on the European Middle Ages (primarily in England) called Middles Ages 1. In spite of what the title implies, there is no "Middle Ages 2".] The rulebooks generally expand on what's presented in Basic Set, although some add completely new systems. If you expect your campaign or play style will require more detailed rules (or just more stuff), consider getting the following: Character Types and Species:Aliens; Fantasy Folk; Undead; Spirits The species creation rules in Aliens and Fantasy Folk have been reprinted (and in most cases, re-written) in Compendium I. The species themselves are still useful, but will require lots of work with an errata sheet and white-out to make the numbers add up. Undead and Spirits are more recent, so the numbers work out right. Undead treats the various flavors of undead as separate species, in the same manner as the above two. It contains some historical Earth beliefs about death/undeath and also includes rules for undead ("haunted") plants, animals, and vehicles. Spirits is its equivalent for spirits and ghosts, and also includes a more generic approach to the Ritual Magic system introduced in GURPS Voodoo. Contain "templates" for rapid creation of common character types with room for customization - very helpful to new players who don't have time to go over all the skills, advantages, and disadvantages. Combat:Covers both armed and unarmed martial arts. Provides advanced maneuvers for the basic combat skills like Judo, Boxing, and Fencing, separated into realistic and cinematic categories. Includes a list of skills and maneuvers appropriate to many real-world martial arts and some speculative fantasy (smasha, the Orc martial art) and futuristic (force-swordsmanship, zero-g kung fu) styles. Includes a realistic and a cinematic version of each. In addition to historical background, the third edition contains greatly expanded rules for duels and swordfights. Super-Human Powers:A massive expansion of the standard GURPS magic system. Also includes variant magic systems such as inherent magic, rune casting, divine magic, and alchemy. Has a small bestiary of magically-created creatures - skeletons, golems, demons, etc. More of the above. Includes two new colleges - Gate magic and Tech magic. Expands on the psionics rules found in GURPS Basic Set, with a definite emphasis on modern-day and future tech. Includes many technological drugs and gizmos to improve (or defend against) psi powers. A survey of common themes and symbols of real-world religions, with guides to creating your own pantheon of fantasy gods or lone religious cults. Includes several variant rules for divine magic and shamanism. Rules to build heroes from merely above-average to four-color comic book level. Includes rules to combine powers into something new, or create your own. These powers can be used as a flashy replacement for magic or psi, and even for sufficiently-advanced technology. Although mostly a worldbook, it also includes a completely new magic system based on ritual. Spells under this system are typically long and involved to cast, but have far-reaching effects. It also works well as a fantasy divine magic system, or for horror games. Technology:Covers weapons, armors, vehicles and equipment from the Stone Age (TL0) through the Middle Ages (TL3). Also discusses the science and civilization of those different time periods. Covers invention of gunpowder (TL4) to present (TL7), with a heavy emphasis on guns. Also includes rules for explosives and really big guns - missiles, howitzers, and the like. Note that rules for computers are not in this book - see Ultra-Tech, below, for that. Covers late TL7 and early TL8 weapons, ammunition, accessories, body armor, and more. Covers near future (TL8) onward. Contains rules for computers, power cells, and improvements in the cost/mass/efficiency of equipment at higher tech levels. Also contains cybernetic body modifications and plenty of guns. Same period as above, with slightly more emphasis on nanotechnology, brain modifications, and personal equipment. It includes useful variations to adjust technology to match your campaign style - cyberpunk, nanotech, golden-age sci-fi (swords and blasters), hard sci-fi, etc. Covers organic manipulations of both humans and animals, both surgical procedures and genetic engineering. Also includes drugs and controlled viruses, and bioweapons. Covers the creation of a space campaign, including solar system creation, and starship construction. Also has rules for variable gravity, alien atmospheres, and other hazards of space travel. There's also a very useful section to work out how physics and technology work in your campaign, and what are the ramifications of combining FTL travel, communications, anti-gravity, force fields, etc. A very detailed construction system for vehicles of all tech levels. Also includes rules for construction of vehicular weaponry, which work nearly as well for designing hand-held guns and even medieval siege weapons. Rules also cover vehicular combat and maneuvers. See the Vehicles section for more detail. A stripped-down version of the Vehicle construction system aimed primarily at modern-day vehicles. Uses a variation on the GURPS Vehicles system. Includes Ultra-Tech-compatible computer rules for robot brains and operating systems and character point totals to use robots as PCs. Compatible with GURPS Robots and GURPS Vehicles. Includes rules for giant-robot sized melee weapons and transforming robots. Creatures:A book full of real world animals, with a few mythological beasts thrown in. Complete character templates are given for a selection of common beasts. It also has a section for creating were-beasts as characters, although this may be moved to some other book after the third edition. Fantasy Bestiary; Space Bestiary; Creatures of the Night; Blood Types; Monsters Compendia of creatures. Fantasy Bestiary includes several "real" mythical beasts as well as completely new creatures. Space Bestiary covers both exotic alien biospheres and hard vacuum dwelling critters. Creatures of the Night is full of monsters for horror games. Blood Types covers the different types of vampire in legend and history. Monsters describes a plethora of new monsters and discusses the creation and dramatic use of intelligent monsters in different genres and settings. 2.4 What's new in GURPS Basic Set, 3rd Edition (Revised)?GURPS Basic Set, 3rd Edition (Revised) differs form the previous edition (GURPS Basic Set, 3rd Edition) by the addition of an appendix of 18 pages of fairly generic rules which were previously printed in various other GURPS books. The appendix replaces the "Caravan from Ein Arris" adventure. Items in the new appendix include new advantages, disadvantages, skills and other rules. New advantages include Ally Group, Blessed, Contacts, Dark Vision, Destiny, Multimillionaire (used in conjunction with Filthy Rich), Perfect Balance, Unfazeable and several others. New disadvantages include Destiny, Duty (Involuntary), Secret, Amnesia, Weirdness Magnet, Compulsive Behavior (Generosity), Glory Hound, Manic-Depressive, No Sense of Humor, Trademark and a few others. The new skills include Video Production, Flight (used by flying creatures), Boxing, Forward Observer, Intimidation and a few more. This new material has been reproduced in GURPS Compendium I. Other rules included in this revision are rules for power cells, attacks to vital organs and other body parts (groin, jaw, throat, kidneys, nose), enhanced strength tables for damage and throwing, and society Control Ratings (how restrictive governments are). The Revised edition also includes metric conversion charts, updates information on GURPS product support and changes some text and art in a largely cosmetic fashion. 2.5 Does Steve Jackson games publish a magazine for GURPS?The SJ Games magazine, Pyramid, covers a wide variety of games, including GURPS. Pyramid is an online (as opposed to printed-on-paper) magazine which covers RPGs, board games, electronic games and collectible trading card games. Although Pyramid is a general gaming magazine, GURPS is covered extensively. Pyramid used to be a bimonthly 80-page paper magazine. The last issue published physically was #30, in May of 1998. Information regarding Pyramid (including general information, writers' guidelines and other links) may be found at the Pyramid page. Roleplayer was the SJ Games GURPS magazine. Issues were published approximately bimonthly and varied in length (most of the later issues were 32 pages in length). No advertising was included, except for Steve Jackson Games products - mostly GURPS. The last Roleplayer was issue #30. Roleplayer material is now archived here. 2.6 Can submissions be made to Pyramid electronically?Yes. For writing guidelines, or go here. 2.7 Where can I get GURPS errata, SJ Games catalogs, and other GURPS information?GURPS errata may be obtained online at the GURPS Errata Page. You can place an order for GURPS products from Warehouse 23, or acquire various adventures, game aids, and out-of-print supplements in PDF format from Warehouse 23. General GURPS information can be found here. 2.8 Where can I submit errata?If you think you've spotted an error in a GURPS book, email the errata co-ordinator. (NOTE: This is not the address for rules questions. They go to the FAQ maintainer.) 2.9 Does Steve Jackson games have a BBS? What's Illuminati Online?Steve Jackson Games' official bulletin board system (BBS) was known as the Illuminati BBS. It no longer exists. Illuminati Online (IO) is a full-featured Internet service provider (ISP) that is owned in part by Steve Jackson, and which took its name from the Illuminati BBS, but it is not part of SJ Games and is not a gaming BBS. For information on how to subscribe to IO, check their home page or send email to info@io.com. An automated reply will be sent containing information about IO. You can also subscribe online. To do so, telnet to Pyramid magazine provides subscribers-only NNTP-based newsgroups that provide some of the same functionality as the old BBS. 2.10 Is there a GURPS electronic mailing list?Yes, there is a GURPS mailing list. You can receive it on a by-message basis or in digest form. Go to the GURPSnet website to subscribe. 2.11 Are there any newsgroup dedicated to GURPS?The GURPS newsgroup on the internet is rec.games.frp.gurps. Other popular places are the pyramid boards. They can also be accessed as normal newsgroups using an NNTP reader. This is where all the playtesting for SJG products takes place. Only Pyramid subscribers can use these boards. You can also find discussion about GURPS at the official Steve Jackson Games Forums, which are open to the public. 2.12 Where can I find fan-authored GURPS material?There are several individual Web pages and FTP sites. Check out our list of Unofficial GURPS Pages. 2.13 My new GURPS book is falling apart! I just bought it!Anyone who has a book that's in ill repair for no good reason (as compared to worn out through your usage), can email orders@sjgames.com to arrange a replacement. In the case of something out of print, we might not be able to replace it, but you should call to see what we can do to make things right. 2.14 Are these answers "official"?Version 4.0 of this FAQ was overhauled from an earlier version by Sean "Dr. Kromm" Punch, who is the GURPS Line Editor and an SJ Games employee. Most of the new questions since then were answered by him, but a lot of the previous text was written long before he took over, and is fan-authored. It is safe to assume these answers are pretty darn accurate - but this FAQ is not an SJ Games house organ and SJ Games is not bound by anything set down in this FAQ. The current maintainer,Stephane Theriault (v5.3+), is not an employee of Steve Jackson Games, but he promises he will do his best. 2.15 What's this GURPS Lite?GURPS Lite is a slimmed-down, 32-page version of GURPS. It is designed primarily to help experienced players introduce new players to GURPS without the combined mass of the Basic Set, Compendiums, and assorted worldbooks frightening them away. It was first included in GURPS Discworld, and is available as a free download in PDF format about 1.3 megabytes in size. You can also order a printed copy of GURPS Lite. If you order it along with something else, it's free; if you order it by itself, there's a charge for shipping. 2.16 What does Powered By GURPS means?A description can be found at here. 2.17 What is GURPS 4th Edition?GURPS 4th Edition is the first major revision of GURPS since 1986. Revised by GURPS experts Sean "Dr. Kromm" Punch and David Pulver, it was released in August 2004 at GenCon. All the information available on GURPS 4th Edition can be found on the GURPS 4th Edition FAQ page. 2.18 What is e23?e23 is a project from Steve Jackson Games to publish old, out-of-print material as well as new adventures, mini-sourcebooks, and other books with low market appeal. GURPS books will feature prominently in this offering. For further information, go to the e23 webpage. 2.19 What is GURPS Online?GURPS Online was an online GURPS game in development, which has since been canceled.
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