Setting Books

Part of me would like Monte Cook Games to standardize on the Cypher System as the core rules for all the setting books, stripping out the rules from those games and leaving them as pure setting guides. We would receive more information on the settings, as well as setting-specific character creation details, and we would not need to reiterate the core rules of the game repeatedly.

The Strange is strong enough a setting to stand on its own. So is Numenera. In fact, these are more compelling as stand-alone books and pure setting guides.

While I like the idea of a fantasy-inspired version of the Cypher System, we have the Diamond Throne, which is a setting plus a game, and the Godforsaken book, which is a genre guide. I would love for this to be the core Cypher rulebook, a genre guide, and then a setting book, with no repeated information.

With character creation centralized on the Monte Cook Games site, it makes sense to consolidate everything and use that single tool for all settings. Perhaps they will create a "campaign flavor" option to "name things as the game you are playing names them," but I don't see that as a strong approach to this.

When I play any of these games, I will reach for my Cypher System core rulebook and use that. I understand "having each being a standalone," but they are all 90% similar in terms of rules and character options. This is sort of the GURPS argument and game structure, where you have a core rulebook that is any game, and then genre and setting specific sourcebooks where the main rules are not repeated.