Quote Originally Posted by Amaril View Post
MERP is the one I've heard of most often. I've gotten the sense it's pretty complex, but that doesn't necessarily bother me. I'd prefer it over FATE on principle, at least--nothing against FATE, it's a great game, but I generally like to use setting-tailored systems if a decent one is available. No way in hell I'd try to do LotR with D&D, of course.
It's complex compared to some systems, but I wouldn't say that it's necessarily more complex than D&D (1st-to-3rd editions, that is). It is fairly different, using percentile rolls for everything, and it is more table-heavy than most RPGs that have come out recently. I am quite used to it at this point, but I would say that its reputation for complexity is somewhat overstated by many.

I've long thought about reading The Silmarillion, but I've been deterred by how dry I've heard it is. I'll get around to it at some point, really
Opinions vary, of course, but I don't find it dry at all. It goes into much less depth of most individual stories and scenes than The Lord of the Rings does, but nonetheless it's all quite interesting. I can, myself, never quite decide for certain which is my favourite between the two.

Edit: By the way, do you know of anywhere in particular where one could still get a hold of MERP? On an extremely cursory search, it does seem to be a bit tricky.
A quick search on Amazon.com shows that one can currently get a used paperback for $34.40 or a used hardcover for $29.82 (it is a mystery to me why the hardcovers are selling for less right now). The new copies are all outrageously expensive, but used copies are mostly in decent condition and certainly adequate. You only need the one book -- Middle-earth Roleplaying, Second Edition is how it'll usually be titled, more or less. That's how I've acquired additional books ever since they went out of print, but you might be able to find used copies elsewhere, as well.