A downloadable game.
Genuinely my favorite TTRPG. Rich, succinct language is everywhere in this book, as well as a constant assurance that whatever you bring to the table, it will be enough. Some of the quickest character creation I've ever had the pleasure of doing, mission creation is a snap with the Intellegence Matrix (which is good for a new referee like me).
Speaking of being a referee, the sections on asking for intent, on playing fair, on living worlds, on deviating from missions, and on narrative formality have all been IMMENSELY helpful and eye-opening when it comes to refereeing. The Intellegance Matrix is chock full of helpful tables and set-ups, specific shoutouts to the partial success table, the easily reskinnable pre-made Enemies and NPCs, and the collectibles page.
This fails to mention the community. This system (and CLAYMORE) actively reward community. From the pages in the book that encourage modding FIST, to the Zine Jams that run so often, to the entire "Compatable with FIST" collection by CLAYMORE, to the Official Discord which is an excellent springboard for modding, mission creation, and more, to the weekly missions (one of my absolute FAV parts of the FISTcord) each with their own rewards for characters who complete it, to the wide array of Play-By-Post campaigns hosted by community members.
This system is brutal, war is hell, death is cheap, etc, but that's all for the characters. This system is brutal to the characters, but it truly cares about the players, which is what keeps me coming back time and time again.
I was introduced to FIST in September, and since then I've extolled it to friends, roommates, acquaintances, coworkers, family, strangers, genuinely everyone I could grab onto, and it deserves all that praise.
