beyondthebreach wrote:So, what input can others give?  Has anyone played in any long-term campaigns that weren't AD&D?  If so, were the rules set up to encompass things well?  Were there serious flaws?   Would you recommend any?

I've played in a ton of campaigns that have survived long periods of time.  Runequest, Vampire, Mage, etc.

I think one key point you're missing is that you're equating "mechanics" with "longevity".  In Vampire, there aren't really magic items, and character progression CAN be slow or fast depending on the Storyteller.  The role-playing is spent ROLE-playing, not ROLL-playing.

This doesn't mean it's superior, only that it achieves its goals in a less numerate form.

Ah. . . but my story is far too sad.  I am well past the point of realizing that it has been over 12 years since I have played an RPG. . .  and it looks increasingly unlikely I ever will again. . .

I buy and sell a lot on eBay. . . not only do I make much needed cash, but large amount of items have passed through my hands in the last couple of years.  Sometimes I siphon off something here and there and keep it on the shelves. . . sometimes I read some "low grade" books (ones I am not in danger of damaging any further).  I don't even have time to create campaigns and modules that I will never get a chance to play. . . I know not one single person (who is not a member of these forums) who plays RPG's and it wouldn't matter if I did.

So, you see, I am left to the truly pathetic recourse of imagining how a particular game might play out.  The barebones mechanics are what strike me most - creative campaign worlds. . . .well, I have always created my own, so I usually envision a game in the context of a setting that I would make.  Unfortunately, this creates quite a gap between how I imagine something would play out and how it actually does.  

The Campaign Setting?  I am just assuming that any long-term game is safely nested in a playable and intriguing world.  What is of particular interest to me is how the mechanics of a game work after years of play?  I know how D&D works. . .  we all know how D&D works. . . but I have very little insight into how Space Opera (for instance) functions after many gaming sessions.

Perhaps someday, when my kids are grown up more, I can entice them into gathering together some friends and DM once more. . . too bad I only have one child right now and she is only 6 months old. . .   that's a lot of years to wait