The Warrior will be the first class I'm tackling here. Although generally speaking I'm trying to keep things flexible and not box them into a certain category of fighting...but generally speaking the Warrior is still going to be more about dealing out and receiving massive amounts of damage. This may involve dual-wielding, berserk fury, clanking around in heavy armor, what have you. I'm not certain about archery yet...I may make ranged attacks a function of Spades.
The way I figure it each class has a few "core" starting Tricks, and then you can pick one of two Tricks every level. It seems like a good way to promote flexibility. I only have to come up with 20 Tricks for each Class, but that gives 100 different combinations per class. To try and keep each class with a strong theme each Trick will be drawn from a category. Lets see how it works out for the Warrior.
Starting Tricks
*Well-Armed: When attacking with a weapon, the Warrior can add +2 to the damage of a successful attack in a Struggle.
*Courageous: No matter how they choose to fight, a warrior fights with courage. They add +2 to any rolls made to resist intimidation, fear, or poor morale.
Warrior Tricks
Warrior Tricks are divided into two basic categories: Offense (+) or Defense (-). As the Warrior levels up they can choose to focus one or the other or balance the two aspects of battle as they wish.
Level 1:
-Wild Swing: Before making an attack, you can choose to add +3 to the damage if it is successful but the attack becomes Difficult.
or
+Stand Strong: When defending using Clubs, you may add +2 to your Card Value.
Level 2:
-Thwack!: When you make a successful attack using Clubs you may discard a card and add +2 to the Card Value.
or
+Shield Bash: On a successful defense using Hearts you may discard a Clubs card to stun your opponent, making all their rolls Difficult until the start of their next turn.
Level 3:
-War Cry: On your turn you may play a Clubs card. For a number of rounds equal to the Card Value you and your allies may add +1 to the Card Value of any Clubs actions.
or
+Second Wind: You may play a Hearts card and take a number of cards equal to the Card Value from the discard pile and swap them for cards in your hand.
Level 4:
-Keep On Swinging: When you successfully make a Clubs attack you may make an immediate, free attack against a different enemy that you could theoretically attack this round. If the second attack is successful the Warrior can continue chaining attacks until they miss or there are no enemies who they haven't already attacked.
or
+Iron Jaw: On a failed defense using Hearts you can play a Clubs card to reduce the damage by the Card Value.
Level 5:
-Critical Strike: When attacking with Clubs you may play an additional Clubs card and add the card’s value to damage if the attack is successful.
or
+Wall of Steel: Your defense is unbeatable. So long as you discard a card at the start of your turn any attacks against you become Difficult.
Level 6:
-Ferocity: When you draw a card, if it isn't a Clubs card you may immediately discard it and draw a new card. You can keep doing this until you get a Clubs card.
or
+The Best Defense: When you make a Clubs attack you may discard a Hearts card to use the Card Value of the attack to defend against every attack until the start of your next turn. These defenses are not considered Difficult, but you may not play any other defensive cards and have to use your Clubs card for any defense until your turn.
Level 7:
-Rage: You may fly into a blinding rage. While enraged you may add +3 to the value of any Clubs cards you play but any non-Clubs actions become Difficult. Rage lasts until all enemies are slain, but can be ended prematurely by discarding a Diamonds card.
or
+Counterattack: When you play a Hearts defense you may immediately make a free attack using Clubs, but the Card Value cannot exceed the value of the Hearts defense.
Level 8:
-Explosive Attack: When attacking the Warrior may discard a Clubs card to make the attack apply against all targets nearby (In Your Face range).
or
+Inexhaustible Strength: When you defeat an opponent you may switch a card from your hand with one from your discard pile.
Level 9:
-Unstoppable Force: When your opponent is defending with Hearts then you may discard a Clubs card to cut their Card Value in half.
or
+Immovable Object: When your opponent is attacking with Clubs you may discard a card to defend using Clubs without the attempt being Difficult.
Level 10:
-Battle Instinct: When playing a non-Clubs card you may discard a Clubs card to treat it as a Clubs card of the same Card Value.
or
+Unyielding Tower: You now have two Favored Suits: Hearts and Clubs.
Tuesday, June 25, 2013
Saturday, June 22, 2013
CARDS RPG pt 3: One more thing
Okay, before I get to the individual classes there are a few things I guess I forgot. Let me see...
Movement and Range
I didn't really address this in the Struggle rules and I suppose it could use some basic info. First and foremost I should mention that if there's a particular range/movement system you're a fan of then there's not much to stop you from porting it over. Do you want to use a tabletop mini's system? just use the basic Savage Worlds or D&D movement rules. Or if you really like FATE's Zones or what have you then go for it.
For me, I'll stick with something really simple. There are essentially 4 categories of distance:
*In Your Face: This is where most fights take place, within 5-10 feet. Easily enough to duck and weave and punch and swing.
*Close: Anything within 20-30 feet. You can shoot or throw things or cast spells at this distance. Or just run up and get in their face (without taking an action).
*Far Away: 30-150 feet. This is far enough that you can't just run up and sock someone. It's down the street or on top of a roof. You can shoot or cast spells this far but the range makes it Difficult. Movement may involve a Task and will probably involve at least a round or two spent doing nothing but moving.
*Really Far Away: 150+ feet. You can see this far, but generally you can't affect anything directly in most cases. Exceptions are always possible.
---
Character Basics:
Each character is going to have a few specific traits:
*Class:Your class is the profession that you follow. The standard classes are Warrior, Thief, Mage and Priest. These classes can be mixed up a bit to produce different themes or ideas...but for now I'm keeping things simple. Your class allows you to pick from several Tricks. The individual class entries will have more details. Each class has an associated Suit (Warriors =Clubs, Thieves =Spades, Mages =Diamonds, Priests =Hearts).
*Level: Tied very closely with Class, your level is basically how powerful your character is. I think we all know how this works. Your level determines what Tricks you can select and if you get any new Talents. When playing a card that is associated with your class the Card Value is the value on the card or your level, whichever is higher. So a 4th level Warrior who plays a 2 of Clubs may treat it automatically as a 4, but a 7 of clubs would still be a 7 and spades, diamonds and hearts are unaffected.
*Talents: Talents are special abilities or traits that apply a bonus to specific situation. Whenever one of your Talents applies you can increase the Card Value by 1. See below for more info on talents.
----
Talents
The cards in your hand determine general abilities that anyone can pull off. Your Talents represent specific areas where your character is exceptional. Each character starts play with 3 Talents of their choice. Any time you level up you can redefine a Talent that hasn't really gotten much use and every odd level you can pick a new Talent.
Whenever you're playing a card for a situation that would be covered by one of your Talents then you can add +1 to the Card Value. Multiple Talents can cause your bonuses to add up pretty quickly.
Players define their own Talents, within limits. There are 3 basic categories of Talents:
*Specialization: This is a very specific set of actions or skills. For example: Picking Locks, Breaking Things, Dodging, Keen Eyes, etc.
*Tool: A particular object or weapon that your character is uniquely able with. Ex: My Father's Bow, Hitting People With Furniture, My Running Shoes, Sexy Pants.
*Foe/Situation: A particular category or targets or situation where you're exceptionally talented. This must be paired with a type of action. "While Underground" is too broad, "Fighting While Underground" works. Ex: Intimidating Criminals, Fighting While Screaming, Sneaking Through The City, Slaying Orcs.
Races
If you want to play a race other than humans then Talents are the way to go. Any particular traits you feel you should have because of your Race can probably be represented by one of your three starting Talents. Dwarves might have Talents like Fighting With Axes, Battling Goblins, or Resisting Magic, for example.
----
Leveling
Still haven't worked this out yet. probably just a very simple XP system, or a level per X adventures.
Movement and Range
I didn't really address this in the Struggle rules and I suppose it could use some basic info. First and foremost I should mention that if there's a particular range/movement system you're a fan of then there's not much to stop you from porting it over. Do you want to use a tabletop mini's system? just use the basic Savage Worlds or D&D movement rules. Or if you really like FATE's Zones or what have you then go for it.
For me, I'll stick with something really simple. There are essentially 4 categories of distance:
*In Your Face: This is where most fights take place, within 5-10 feet. Easily enough to duck and weave and punch and swing.
*Close: Anything within 20-30 feet. You can shoot or throw things or cast spells at this distance. Or just run up and get in their face (without taking an action).
*Far Away: 30-150 feet. This is far enough that you can't just run up and sock someone. It's down the street or on top of a roof. You can shoot or cast spells this far but the range makes it Difficult. Movement may involve a Task and will probably involve at least a round or two spent doing nothing but moving.
*Really Far Away: 150+ feet. You can see this far, but generally you can't affect anything directly in most cases. Exceptions are always possible.
---
Character Basics:
Each character is going to have a few specific traits:
*Class:Your class is the profession that you follow. The standard classes are Warrior, Thief, Mage and Priest. These classes can be mixed up a bit to produce different themes or ideas...but for now I'm keeping things simple. Your class allows you to pick from several Tricks. The individual class entries will have more details. Each class has an associated Suit (Warriors =Clubs, Thieves =Spades, Mages =Diamonds, Priests =Hearts).
*Level: Tied very closely with Class, your level is basically how powerful your character is. I think we all know how this works. Your level determines what Tricks you can select and if you get any new Talents. When playing a card that is associated with your class the Card Value is the value on the card or your level, whichever is higher. So a 4th level Warrior who plays a 2 of Clubs may treat it automatically as a 4, but a 7 of clubs would still be a 7 and spades, diamonds and hearts are unaffected.
*Talents: Talents are special abilities or traits that apply a bonus to specific situation. Whenever one of your Talents applies you can increase the Card Value by 1. See below for more info on talents.
----
Talents
The cards in your hand determine general abilities that anyone can pull off. Your Talents represent specific areas where your character is exceptional. Each character starts play with 3 Talents of their choice. Any time you level up you can redefine a Talent that hasn't really gotten much use and every odd level you can pick a new Talent.
Whenever you're playing a card for a situation that would be covered by one of your Talents then you can add +1 to the Card Value. Multiple Talents can cause your bonuses to add up pretty quickly.
Players define their own Talents, within limits. There are 3 basic categories of Talents:
*Specialization: This is a very specific set of actions or skills. For example: Picking Locks, Breaking Things, Dodging, Keen Eyes, etc.
*Tool: A particular object or weapon that your character is uniquely able with. Ex: My Father's Bow, Hitting People With Furniture, My Running Shoes, Sexy Pants.
*Foe/Situation: A particular category or targets or situation where you're exceptionally talented. This must be paired with a type of action. "While Underground" is too broad, "Fighting While Underground" works. Ex: Intimidating Criminals, Fighting While Screaming, Sneaking Through The City, Slaying Orcs.
Races
If you want to play a race other than humans then Talents are the way to go. Any particular traits you feel you should have because of your Race can probably be represented by one of your three starting Talents. Dwarves might have Talents like Fighting With Axes, Battling Goblins, or Resisting Magic, for example.
----
Leveling
Still haven't worked this out yet. probably just a very simple XP system, or a level per X adventures.
Tuesday, June 18, 2013
CARDS RPG pt 2
Am I really sticking with this terrible name? Well, I challenge anyone else to come up with a better one (come on, it can't be that hard) and I'll take it.
Anyway, recapping the basics.
*Each player has a full deck of playing cards, jokers included (they're wild cards).
*Each suit has a purpose. Clubs are for brute force, Spades for finesse, Diamonds for intellect, Hearts for fortitude. Using a suit for something other than the intended purpose makes an action Difficult (see below).
*There are two situations where a player might play a card. Tasks involve a simple, unopposed challenge. Struggles are turn-by-turn situations involving other characters and inflicting damage. Tasks involve a set target number, Struggles involve opposed playing cards.
*Difficult actions require you to play two cards of the same suit and both must beat the minimum target number. Only the highest counts for determining the value of the card played.
---
So, lets try and hammer out a few more basic mechanics. As stated before, every PC gets a deck of cards. At the start of the game they each draw a hand of 5. When attempting an action the PC must play one or more cards. Unless a special ability is used only the highest card is counted, determining the Card Value of the action. This must meet or beat the Target Number of a Task or the opponent's Card Value in a Struggle. Ties in a Struggle will go to the PC (or to the defender in PVP).
The GM gets a deck as well, but that's going to work differently. I'll deal with that a bit later.
Anyway, so player's get their deck and their hand. Cards played are discarded and the player immediately draws enough cards to bring themselves back up to 5. Once a player draws their entire deck then they become disabled (unconscious, exhausted, stunned or whatever). If a player is forced to discard every card (deck and hand both) then they're dead.
---
Tasks
So, Tasks are pretty self-explanatory. It's any situation that a player must spend significant effort to try and resolve. Since a Task will consume some of a player's energy and fortitude (by whittling down their deck), there should never be any "easy" or "average" Tasks. Things like lifting a heavy bag or breaking a window are not things you should be expending cards for. Likewise, if a player could just keep trying over and over until they manage to succeed then don't bother making it a Task. Breaking down a door in one kick because you have to get into the room to stop an evil arcane ritual is a Task, battering a door to pieces over several rounds with your axe isn't. Here's some examples of suitable Tasks.
Clubs
*2: Hurl a heavy object (50+ pounds).
*3: Break down a wooden door.
*4: Topple a man-sized boulder.
*5: Break down a reinforced door.
*6: Bring a galloping horse to a stop.
*7: Hurl a large person (250+ lbs) over a chasm.
*8: Break down a stone door.
*9: Topple a stone statue.
*10: Break down an iron door.
*Jack: Topple a giant statue
*Queen: Keep a dragon from flying off by holding it by the tail.
*King: Break down castle gates.
*Ace: Topple a stone tower.
Spades
*2: Cheat at cards
*3: sneak past your average guards.
*4: Climb a smooth stone wall.
*5: Rob a merchant blind.
*6: Pass yourself off as a well known public figure.
*7: Run across a tightrope
*8: Sneak past a pack of guard-dogs.
*9: Steal from the king's vault.
*10: Steal something that someone is currently holding without them noticing.
*Jack: Sneak past a sleeping dragon.
*Queen: Sneak past an alert dragon!
*King: Run safely through a trapped corridor, blindfolded.
*Ace: Impersonate a god.
Diamonds
*2: Recall a useful, obscure fact.
*3: Spot an ambush
*4: Solve a complicated puzzle. Win a riddle contest.
*5: Identify an obscure spell or artifact.
*6: Win a court case.
*7: Interpret ancient runes.
*8: Memorize the contents of a large book.
*9: Outsmart an ancient intellect.
*10: Win a needle-in-a-haystack finding contest.
*Jack: Invent a new concept or device.
*Queen: Mentally reconstruct a situation or environment from it's remnants.
*King: Memorize an entire library of information.
*Ace: With time, invent a world-changing concept or tool.
Hearts
*2: Drink all night and awake bright and alert.
*3: Take a punch without flinching
*4: Consume rotten food and tainted water with no ill effects.
*5: Snort hot chili powder.
*6: Resist the effects of snake venom
*7: Resist torture without breaking.
*8: Touch a red-hot poker without flinching.
*9: Walk all night through a blizzard, naked.
*10: Survive an avalanche.
*Jack: Chug a mug of hemlock.
*Queen: Chug a jug of dwarven moonshine.
*King: Shake off the black plague.
*Ace: Resist the curse of a vengeful god.
---
Struggles
Obviously, most struggles are going to be fights. Battling a horde of orcs, wrestling a minotaur, slaying the Rock-Beast of Blood Mountain, etc. However, it can be used for pretty much any extended contest: a wizard's battle of wills with a summoned demon, a drinking contest, or a spirited debate. But let's be honest...mostly fighting.
In a struggle each character involved takes turns acting. During your character's turn you may take one action that requires playing a card (an attack for instance or a Task) and one action that doesn't (such as running to reach an enemy or closing a door). Of course you can also yell to your comrades, scream a battle cry or what have you at the same time. In most Struggles a turn is just a few seconds long, so any actions have to be something that could be accomplished in that amount of time (so you could break a door or jam a trap but not write a letter). Remember, once you've played your card(s) you need to draw enough to bring yourself back up to 5.
When a character is the target of an action during another character's turn they may play cards in response to the action to attempt to defend against or overcome the action. If the defending character has the highest Card Value then the action has failed and there is no effect. If the acting character has the highest Card Value then the action has succeeded. If the action is an attack of some sort then the defender suffers damage equal to the difference in the CV.
When you suffer damage you must discard cards from your hand or blindly from the top of your deck, one card for each point of damage inflicted. This works a bit differently for NPCs who don't have their own individual decks
Once everyone has had a turn a new round will begin. To determine turn order (assuming it's not obvious in the case of an ambush or sucker punch) everyone plays a card before combat begins. Turn order is based on suit (Spades, then Diamonds, then Clubs and last Hearts) and two or more character's with the same suit will act based on the card value. Ties will be broken by rock-paper-scissors. Keep these initiative cards out while the Struggle is going on so everyone remembers what order they're going in, they'll be discarded at the end of the Struggle. At the start of a new round any character may choose to play a new card to replace their current initiative card, discarding the old one.
That seems to pretty well cover the basic PC rules. Next I think I'll start tackling the classes. Since this is meant to be a simple game I'll stick with the basics: Warrior, Rogue, Mage, Priest.
Anyway, recapping the basics.
*Each player has a full deck of playing cards, jokers included (they're wild cards).
*Each suit has a purpose. Clubs are for brute force, Spades for finesse, Diamonds for intellect, Hearts for fortitude. Using a suit for something other than the intended purpose makes an action Difficult (see below).
*There are two situations where a player might play a card. Tasks involve a simple, unopposed challenge. Struggles are turn-by-turn situations involving other characters and inflicting damage. Tasks involve a set target number, Struggles involve opposed playing cards.
*Difficult actions require you to play two cards of the same suit and both must beat the minimum target number. Only the highest counts for determining the value of the card played.
---
So, lets try and hammer out a few more basic mechanics. As stated before, every PC gets a deck of cards. At the start of the game they each draw a hand of 5. When attempting an action the PC must play one or more cards. Unless a special ability is used only the highest card is counted, determining the Card Value of the action. This must meet or beat the Target Number of a Task or the opponent's Card Value in a Struggle. Ties in a Struggle will go to the PC (or to the defender in PVP).
The GM gets a deck as well, but that's going to work differently. I'll deal with that a bit later.
Anyway, so player's get their deck and their hand. Cards played are discarded and the player immediately draws enough cards to bring themselves back up to 5. Once a player draws their entire deck then they become disabled (unconscious, exhausted, stunned or whatever). If a player is forced to discard every card (deck and hand both) then they're dead.
---
Tasks
So, Tasks are pretty self-explanatory. It's any situation that a player must spend significant effort to try and resolve. Since a Task will consume some of a player's energy and fortitude (by whittling down their deck), there should never be any "easy" or "average" Tasks. Things like lifting a heavy bag or breaking a window are not things you should be expending cards for. Likewise, if a player could just keep trying over and over until they manage to succeed then don't bother making it a Task. Breaking down a door in one kick because you have to get into the room to stop an evil arcane ritual is a Task, battering a door to pieces over several rounds with your axe isn't. Here's some examples of suitable Tasks.
Clubs
*2: Hurl a heavy object (50+ pounds).
*3: Break down a wooden door.
*4: Topple a man-sized boulder.
*5: Break down a reinforced door.
*6: Bring a galloping horse to a stop.
*7: Hurl a large person (250+ lbs) over a chasm.
*8: Break down a stone door.
*9: Topple a stone statue.
*10: Break down an iron door.
*Jack: Topple a giant statue
*Queen: Keep a dragon from flying off by holding it by the tail.
*King: Break down castle gates.
*Ace: Topple a stone tower.
Spades
*2: Cheat at cards
*3: sneak past your average guards.
*4: Climb a smooth stone wall.
*5: Rob a merchant blind.
*6: Pass yourself off as a well known public figure.
*7: Run across a tightrope
*8: Sneak past a pack of guard-dogs.
*9: Steal from the king's vault.
*10: Steal something that someone is currently holding without them noticing.
*Jack: Sneak past a sleeping dragon.
*Queen: Sneak past an alert dragon!
*King: Run safely through a trapped corridor, blindfolded.
*Ace: Impersonate a god.
Diamonds
*2: Recall a useful, obscure fact.
*3: Spot an ambush
*4: Solve a complicated puzzle. Win a riddle contest.
*5: Identify an obscure spell or artifact.
*6: Win a court case.
*7: Interpret ancient runes.
*8: Memorize the contents of a large book.
*9: Outsmart an ancient intellect.
*10: Win a needle-in-a-haystack finding contest.
*Jack: Invent a new concept or device.
*Queen: Mentally reconstruct a situation or environment from it's remnants.
*King: Memorize an entire library of information.
*Ace: With time, invent a world-changing concept or tool.
Hearts
*2: Drink all night and awake bright and alert.
*3: Take a punch without flinching
*4: Consume rotten food and tainted water with no ill effects.
*5: Snort hot chili powder.
*6: Resist the effects of snake venom
*7: Resist torture without breaking.
*8: Touch a red-hot poker without flinching.
*9: Walk all night through a blizzard, naked.
*10: Survive an avalanche.
*Jack: Chug a mug of hemlock.
*Queen: Chug a jug of dwarven moonshine.
*King: Shake off the black plague.
*Ace: Resist the curse of a vengeful god.
---
Struggles
Obviously, most struggles are going to be fights. Battling a horde of orcs, wrestling a minotaur, slaying the Rock-Beast of Blood Mountain, etc. However, it can be used for pretty much any extended contest: a wizard's battle of wills with a summoned demon, a drinking contest, or a spirited debate. But let's be honest...mostly fighting.
In a struggle each character involved takes turns acting. During your character's turn you may take one action that requires playing a card (an attack for instance or a Task) and one action that doesn't (such as running to reach an enemy or closing a door). Of course you can also yell to your comrades, scream a battle cry or what have you at the same time. In most Struggles a turn is just a few seconds long, so any actions have to be something that could be accomplished in that amount of time (so you could break a door or jam a trap but not write a letter). Remember, once you've played your card(s) you need to draw enough to bring yourself back up to 5.
When a character is the target of an action during another character's turn they may play cards in response to the action to attempt to defend against or overcome the action. If the defending character has the highest Card Value then the action has failed and there is no effect. If the acting character has the highest Card Value then the action has succeeded. If the action is an attack of some sort then the defender suffers damage equal to the difference in the CV.
When you suffer damage you must discard cards from your hand or blindly from the top of your deck, one card for each point of damage inflicted. This works a bit differently for NPCs who don't have their own individual decks
Once everyone has had a turn a new round will begin. To determine turn order (assuming it's not obvious in the case of an ambush or sucker punch) everyone plays a card before combat begins. Turn order is based on suit (Spades, then Diamonds, then Clubs and last Hearts) and two or more character's with the same suit will act based on the card value. Ties will be broken by rock-paper-scissors. Keep these initiative cards out while the Struggle is going on so everyone remembers what order they're going in, they'll be discarded at the end of the Struggle. At the start of a new round any character may choose to play a new card to replace their current initiative card, discarding the old one.
That seems to pretty well cover the basic PC rules. Next I think I'll start tackling the classes. Since this is meant to be a simple game I'll stick with the basics: Warrior, Rogue, Mage, Priest.
Saturday, June 15, 2013
The Unnamed Card Based RPG Part 1
TUCBR? Can't be much worse than GURPS or TORG...no, who am I kidding. It's a lot worse. Really need to get better at naming things.
Anyway TUCBR is a...wait. Wait. Wait. I've got it. Cards And Roleplaying Drama System. CARDS. I'm a genius.
So, CARDS is a simplistic, dungeon-crawly style rpg in the beer-n-pretzels style. To start with I'll go for the simple, four-class (warrior, rogue, mage, priest) game. Something you can pull out and play with a group of friends without a big fuss. By the way, I know that sort of thing is a dime-a-dozen (heck I'm already working on a different one myself). This fantasy game isn't a heartbreaker, it's more like one of those one-night stands that you know is a terrible idea but it happens anyway.
-----------------
The Basics
CARDS is meant to be played using a deck of playing cards. At least one deck per player, jokers in. The GM will need at least one deck himself (he may need more, I haven't quite worked it out). The gameplay is inspired a bit by games like Puzzle Quest and 10,000,000. I've always found the combination of RPG elements and puzzle gaming both addictive and intriguing. The "flow" of action produced by the accumulation of themed gems or squares or whatever is interesting, but extremely difficult to replicate outside of the computer environment.
The closest equivalent seems like it would be a set of playing cards. You've got four suits that can be used for thematic "elements" and the mechanics of drawing, holding and discarding card. My first thought was was actual elemental-style effects. Earth (clubs), Air (spades), Fire (diamonds) and Water (hearts). The cards being used for literal (water for a water-breathing spell) or figurative (earth for actions related to endurance, etc) invocations of the element. That's a pretty cool idea but I think I'll try and keep things a bit simpler and divide things by action.
*Clubs: Brute force. This covers inflicting damage, breaking stuff, moving objects, being scary, etc.
*Spades: Finesse. So, this would be evading attacks, sneaking about, disabling traps/locks and general trickery.
*Diamonds: Smarts. Being clever or cunning, noticing stuff, solving puzzles and riddles. Also generally things related to magic.
*Hearts: Fortitude. Resisting damage/poison/disease, courage, faith ,willpower.
So, how are they used. Well, I figure that action can be broken down into two general categories, you've got Tasks, which are challenges that involve a PC attempting to overcome passive or unthinking resistance. That's things like breaking objects, dealing with traps, finding a needle in a haystack, etc. Tasks have a set Target Number (2-10) based on how tough they are to handle and a suit (determining the appropriate card suite to handle the Task). So a lock might be rated 6 (S). To overcome the challenge the player must be able to play a Spade of 6 or higher to overcome the Task. Generally a player is not aware of the TN of a task ahead of time, but examination and description from the GM should usually give them at least a vague sense. Once they've attempted the task once, let them know the TN. Remember, players can always choose to simply fail a task and play nothing.
Then there are Struggles. A Struggle is a battle or contest involving active resistance and possible damage. In this case the opposing forces play cards of the appropriate suits (so the attacker might play a Club to try and harm their opponent, and the opponent may play a Heart or Spade to endure or evade the attack). If the attacker's card is higher they inflict damage equal to the difference in the card value. If the defender wins then obviously nothing happens. The "active" party in a Struggle (ie the attacker) always plays their cards first and the defender is allowed to see them before playing their own.
Now, that's a bit harsh in some ways. After all, out of 54 cards there's only 13 of a given suit and it'd be pretty easy to find yourself completely unable to play anything of the appropriate suit. Well, nothing says that the only way to attack is with brute force...you could always try a clever trick or a swift kick. So, if you're trying to take an action using inappropriate suited cards it's possible but more difficult.
That brings up a new concept: Difficulty. Difficulty is separate from a Task's Target #. A TN is based on the inherent challenge of a Task, while Difficulty is caused by outside factors. Attempting to shoot a small target is a challenging Task no matter the situation, but doing it while blind drunk makes it Difficult. When something becomes Difficult you have to play two cards of the same suit capable of beating the TN. Only the highest card counts for determining the value of the action. If more than one factor is causing the situation to be Difficult then it adds an extra card to the minimum number. However, every complicating factor can only increase Difficulty by one card, no matter how severe.
Example: Bob has a hand full of Clubs: 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9. Great for fighting, but not so good for much else. Bob is trying to get into the Tomb of Domb. The front gates are sealed, but made of rotting wood, a 4 (C) task. Bob decides to play his 7 of Clubs, beating the task's TN and smashing through the door. The room beyond is guarded by a glowing Watch Orb, a giant crystal eye that casts it's gaze back and forth, searching for intruders and ready to alert the tomb's guardians. Sneaking past the eye is a 6 (S) task, but of course bob doesn't know that. He plays his 6 and a 5, but it turns out to be a failure (since both cards did not succeed).
Now, you may be wondering...how can brute force help you be sneaky? Really...it doesn't matter. When using inappropriate suits if you can come up with a good explanation for how it works then that's fine but if not then just go ahead. It's really just a way to get out of an automatic failure or a bad roll.
If you're attempting a Difficult task and you can't produce enough winning Cards, but you don't want to automatically fail (typically when attempting to evade an attack or similar threat) then you treat the highest losing card as the Card Value.
Example: Now alerted the watch orb sprays the room with deadly beams. Bob is trying to dodge out of the way but the cards are still not liking him. The watch orb's attack is a 7, Bob plays a 5 and a 4 of clubs. Both are failures, but since the 5 was the highest failure, it's used for the final card value. If bob had played a 5 and an 8 then the card value would remain the same...the 5 is the highest card that failed to beat the TN.
So, now we've got the barest bones of a system. Next update I'll be thinking about making yourself a character and what you can bring to the table other than a bunch of cards.
Anyway TUCBR is a...wait. Wait. Wait. I've got it. Cards And Roleplaying Drama System. CARDS. I'm a genius.
So, CARDS is a simplistic, dungeon-crawly style rpg in the beer-n-pretzels style. To start with I'll go for the simple, four-class (warrior, rogue, mage, priest) game. Something you can pull out and play with a group of friends without a big fuss. By the way, I know that sort of thing is a dime-a-dozen (heck I'm already working on a different one myself). This fantasy game isn't a heartbreaker, it's more like one of those one-night stands that you know is a terrible idea but it happens anyway.
-----------------
The Basics
CARDS is meant to be played using a deck of playing cards. At least one deck per player, jokers in. The GM will need at least one deck himself (he may need more, I haven't quite worked it out). The gameplay is inspired a bit by games like Puzzle Quest and 10,000,000. I've always found the combination of RPG elements and puzzle gaming both addictive and intriguing. The "flow" of action produced by the accumulation of themed gems or squares or whatever is interesting, but extremely difficult to replicate outside of the computer environment.
The closest equivalent seems like it would be a set of playing cards. You've got four suits that can be used for thematic "elements" and the mechanics of drawing, holding and discarding card. My first thought was was actual elemental-style effects. Earth (clubs), Air (spades), Fire (diamonds) and Water (hearts). The cards being used for literal (water for a water-breathing spell) or figurative (earth for actions related to endurance, etc) invocations of the element. That's a pretty cool idea but I think I'll try and keep things a bit simpler and divide things by action.
*Clubs: Brute force. This covers inflicting damage, breaking stuff, moving objects, being scary, etc.
*Spades: Finesse. So, this would be evading attacks, sneaking about, disabling traps/locks and general trickery.
*Diamonds: Smarts. Being clever or cunning, noticing stuff, solving puzzles and riddles. Also generally things related to magic.
*Hearts: Fortitude. Resisting damage/poison/disease, courage, faith ,willpower.
So, how are they used. Well, I figure that action can be broken down into two general categories, you've got Tasks, which are challenges that involve a PC attempting to overcome passive or unthinking resistance. That's things like breaking objects, dealing with traps, finding a needle in a haystack, etc. Tasks have a set Target Number (2-10) based on how tough they are to handle and a suit (determining the appropriate card suite to handle the Task). So a lock might be rated 6 (S). To overcome the challenge the player must be able to play a Spade of 6 or higher to overcome the Task. Generally a player is not aware of the TN of a task ahead of time, but examination and description from the GM should usually give them at least a vague sense. Once they've attempted the task once, let them know the TN. Remember, players can always choose to simply fail a task and play nothing.
Then there are Struggles. A Struggle is a battle or contest involving active resistance and possible damage. In this case the opposing forces play cards of the appropriate suits (so the attacker might play a Club to try and harm their opponent, and the opponent may play a Heart or Spade to endure or evade the attack). If the attacker's card is higher they inflict damage equal to the difference in the card value. If the defender wins then obviously nothing happens. The "active" party in a Struggle (ie the attacker) always plays their cards first and the defender is allowed to see them before playing their own.
Now, that's a bit harsh in some ways. After all, out of 54 cards there's only 13 of a given suit and it'd be pretty easy to find yourself completely unable to play anything of the appropriate suit. Well, nothing says that the only way to attack is with brute force...you could always try a clever trick or a swift kick. So, if you're trying to take an action using inappropriate suited cards it's possible but more difficult.
That brings up a new concept: Difficulty. Difficulty is separate from a Task's Target #. A TN is based on the inherent challenge of a Task, while Difficulty is caused by outside factors. Attempting to shoot a small target is a challenging Task no matter the situation, but doing it while blind drunk makes it Difficult. When something becomes Difficult you have to play two cards of the same suit capable of beating the TN. Only the highest card counts for determining the value of the action. If more than one factor is causing the situation to be Difficult then it adds an extra card to the minimum number. However, every complicating factor can only increase Difficulty by one card, no matter how severe.
Example: Bob has a hand full of Clubs: 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9. Great for fighting, but not so good for much else. Bob is trying to get into the Tomb of Domb. The front gates are sealed, but made of rotting wood, a 4 (C) task. Bob decides to play his 7 of Clubs, beating the task's TN and smashing through the door. The room beyond is guarded by a glowing Watch Orb, a giant crystal eye that casts it's gaze back and forth, searching for intruders and ready to alert the tomb's guardians. Sneaking past the eye is a 6 (S) task, but of course bob doesn't know that. He plays his 6 and a 5, but it turns out to be a failure (since both cards did not succeed).
Now, you may be wondering...how can brute force help you be sneaky? Really...it doesn't matter. When using inappropriate suits if you can come up with a good explanation for how it works then that's fine but if not then just go ahead. It's really just a way to get out of an automatic failure or a bad roll.
If you're attempting a Difficult task and you can't produce enough winning Cards, but you don't want to automatically fail (typically when attempting to evade an attack or similar threat) then you treat the highest losing card as the Card Value.
Example: Now alerted the watch orb sprays the room with deadly beams. Bob is trying to dodge out of the way but the cards are still not liking him. The watch orb's attack is a 7, Bob plays a 5 and a 4 of clubs. Both are failures, but since the 5 was the highest failure, it's used for the final card value. If bob had played a 5 and an 8 then the card value would remain the same...the 5 is the highest card that failed to beat the TN.
So, now we've got the barest bones of a system. Next update I'll be thinking about making yourself a character and what you can bring to the table other than a bunch of cards.
Monday, June 10, 2013
Look, over there! A distraction!
So, you ever have a ton of stuff that you know you should be doing, stuff that you even really want to get done, but find yourself completely distracted by something new and trivial? Well I'm having that experience today. And I guess I'll go ahead and indulge.
Fortunately I've found a nice place that I'll be living soon, but I won't be moving for a bit less than a month and right now there's not a lot of packing left to do. Everything not currently in a box is something we'll need for the next 25 or so days. So after work I've got a moderate amount of time to myself again.
Now, what I should be doing is working on some updates and editing to Battle Royale. The game is on version 2.5 or three or something like that...adjustments are constantly being made and I'm constantly finding stupid mistakes that need correcting.
However, what has caught my attention is a new idea. A spontaneous burst of fairly random and useless inspiration for a new game system. Yes, another one. I've already got Battle Royale and Olde Skool as well as the half-constructed skeletons of the DICE and DRIVE systems hanging around in my head. Do I really need another micro-project? Apparently, yes.
So, I've decided to put off any new work on Battle Royale or Olde Skool until after I've settled into the new place and had a chance to rest and recover (thank god for new vacation days coming up soon). Partly this is because even if I don't finish these little projects give me new ideas and new ways of thinking about gaming which can be quite valuable for my larger projects. But I've also found that these bursts of inspiration can be sadly short-lived and if you don't jump when you have them then they might never return. So I'm jumping.
However, I'm going to try and make an effort to complete this one, it's small, it's simple and I find it oddly neat so I'd like to try and at least produce a rough facsimile of a game. To that end I'm harnessing the power of social pressure and posting my progress week by week, both to get possible feedback and to provide additional motivation for me to continue.
So, to that end I will begin posting the progress of my new RPG system...NAME COMING SOON...!
No, seriously. I have no idea what to call it. So far I just refer to it as a caRdPG. Because it uses playing cards you see...I'm not good with names.
Anyway. Expect more details to come.
Fortunately I've found a nice place that I'll be living soon, but I won't be moving for a bit less than a month and right now there's not a lot of packing left to do. Everything not currently in a box is something we'll need for the next 25 or so days. So after work I've got a moderate amount of time to myself again.
Now, what I should be doing is working on some updates and editing to Battle Royale. The game is on version 2.5 or three or something like that...adjustments are constantly being made and I'm constantly finding stupid mistakes that need correcting.
However, what has caught my attention is a new idea. A spontaneous burst of fairly random and useless inspiration for a new game system. Yes, another one. I've already got Battle Royale and Olde Skool as well as the half-constructed skeletons of the DICE and DRIVE systems hanging around in my head. Do I really need another micro-project? Apparently, yes.
So, I've decided to put off any new work on Battle Royale or Olde Skool until after I've settled into the new place and had a chance to rest and recover (thank god for new vacation days coming up soon). Partly this is because even if I don't finish these little projects give me new ideas and new ways of thinking about gaming which can be quite valuable for my larger projects. But I've also found that these bursts of inspiration can be sadly short-lived and if you don't jump when you have them then they might never return. So I'm jumping.
However, I'm going to try and make an effort to complete this one, it's small, it's simple and I find it oddly neat so I'd like to try and at least produce a rough facsimile of a game. To that end I'm harnessing the power of social pressure and posting my progress week by week, both to get possible feedback and to provide additional motivation for me to continue.
So, to that end I will begin posting the progress of my new RPG system...NAME COMING SOON...!
No, seriously. I have no idea what to call it. So far I just refer to it as a caRdPG. Because it uses playing cards you see...I'm not good with names.
Anyway. Expect more details to come.
Sunday, May 26, 2013
So much to do, so little time
Haven't had much time to post recently. Just found out that I'll be moving much sooner than originally planned so I'm scrambling to find a good place and get everything packed up (an RPG library is one of the most annoying things to transport).
Beyond that, I've been fairly busy with a few projects:
*Working on an updated version of Battle Royale, going to release a new version of the playtest rules soon and see how they're received.
*A small game called Olde-Skool. Essentially a simple, dungeon-fantasy game for the PDQ system.
*The aforementioned moving (anyone know any good places in the Eugene/Springfield area?)
*Striving for 100% completion of Unlosing Ranger vs. Darkdeath Evilman, I've just passed level 250,000.
I'll try and post a bit more soon in order to keep things going here.
Beyond that, I've been fairly busy with a few projects:
*Working on an updated version of Battle Royale, going to release a new version of the playtest rules soon and see how they're received.
*A small game called Olde-Skool. Essentially a simple, dungeon-fantasy game for the PDQ system.
*The aforementioned moving (anyone know any good places in the Eugene/Springfield area?)
*Striving for 100% completion of Unlosing Ranger vs. Darkdeath Evilman, I've just passed level 250,000.
I'll try and post a bit more soon in order to keep things going here.
Sunday, April 14, 2013
Thoughts on divine spellcasting: we need a miracle
So in most standard fantasy RPGs there's typically two types of spellcasting. The first is of course capital "M" magic, the ability to tap into some vast, powerful force and screw around with the laws of nature. The domain of wizards, sorcerers and magical beings. Whenever you're talking about something being "magical" it probably refers to this first flavor of spellcasting. Then you've got "divine" magic, that is power granted to a human by gods/spirits/cosmic forces. This is the one I wanted to talk about today.
You see, the problem with divine spellcasting is that it rarely feels very different from "standard" magic. The cleric and wizard of dungeons and dragons are an excellent example (although most fantasy games run into the same issue). The two classes themselves are pretty distinct: the wizard is some dude running around with a staff and nightgown while the cleric is an armored warrior-priest. But when it comes to using their actual powers things are pretty darn similar. Both have 9 "levels" of powers, both spend some time preparing their spells ahead of time and have a limited number of spell "slots" that they can use every day.
When it comes to the spells themselves there's some distinction, clerics can heal for instance and get a variety of "thematic" (ie holy/unholy/axiomatic/chaotic) spells that are extra effective against particular enemies. Wizards tend towards the more flashy and dramatic powers. However, when examined closely the differences are fairly slight and both spellcasters will likely have many spells in common (or close enough if you squint). In fact, because the cleric buffer and tougher than the wizard there's often an attempt to make the cleric's spells less directly effective and more focused on enhancing themselves and their friends.
If you think about it this actually makes divine spellcasting fairly...lame. I mean on the one hand you have a human chosen as the personal servant of a diety and granted superhuman capabilities to make their will manifest in the mortal world...and they're often less impressive than the guy who just studied a whole lot. (before I get a flood of comments, yes I'm aware most people consider the cleric/druid to be contenders for most powerful class, I'm speaking more of the perception rather than the fact and I'm talking about more than just D&D here). Shouldn't the guy who can call upon the wrath of Thor himself be pretty darn terrifying? Or at least pretty distinct from the guy whose powers come from reading lots of magic books?
So, in the interest of doing more than just complaining I'm trying to think of a system to do just that. And, as I mentioned a few weeks ago, I've been rewatching episodes of Hercules and Xena and it just so happens that the gods play a pretty hefty role in those shows. In fact, it's pretty common to see the gods granting favors and miracles for mortals but they do it in a very different way than the D&D style cleric. Rather than just turning their chosen mortal into a spellcaster they'll give them some kind of special relic or divine mcguffin which they can use to try and unsuccessfully take down the protagonist. So if the priest of Hera wants to call upon her she doesn't just give him a selection of powers, she'll give him a magic urn containing a demon lizard or a divine weapon. That's an interesting sort of divine intervention right there.
Still using D&D as the standard example the closest to that idea is probably the Warlock, they've got a small selection of specific powers that are effectively indefinite or at-will. And the distinction between the warlock and a cleric of one of the nastier powers is pretty small. So...something like that, but not necessarily that restrictive.
So, just brainstorming as to what this theoretical cleric might look like...say that they can call upon miracles at a place or time that is sacred to their god (by default at a consecrated temple). Most miracles will take the form of blessings, sacred objects and so on...not just spells in a clerics head but blessings or relics. These blessings last indefinitely, essentially permanent until a cleric chooses to swap them out for a new blessing.
So, lets say priests start with two blessings at first level, and this increases by one every odd level. Not that this is in no way attempting to be a useful or balanced system...I'm just throwing thoughts at the wall and seeing which ones are sticky. So you can have one miracle of your highest spell level, double that for the next lowest, four of the next lowest, etc. arranged however you like.
Ex: a third level cleric can have 3 blessings, one 2nd level blessing and two first level. A 12 level cleric has 7 blessings: one 6th level, 2 5th level and 4 4th level.
Of course if the cleric chooses they can have lower-level blessings but I don't imagine there's much point. The idea is a cleric with a small selection of potent powers, not a grab bag of random spells.
So, what is a blessing? Well essentially it's a spell that's effectively indefinite, assuming the spell was not instantaneous. Depends a lot on the spell though...some of the short duration spells would definitely be unbalanced as semi-permanent powers while others (like say summon monster) would work fine.
Ex: Huthbert, cleric of pelor, is preparing for a journey with his companion so he visits the temple. He's 1st level so he gets two blessings. First he lays his mace upon the altar in the beam of sunlight streaming through the window and asks for Pelor's blessing on the weapon. It takes on a slight golden sheen and becomes a +1 weapon (Magic Weapon). He then brings in his companions and saying a prayer annoints each one with holy water from the font (Bless), granting them courage for their journey.
So these blessings stay in effect until the priest decides to ask their god for a new set of blessings. Of course sometimes you just need to smite some infidels, so you could always request one-shot miracles...basically some kind of major, instantaneous spell-like ability that the cleric can call upon once and only once (until they return to a holy site to request new blessings). In general these one-shot powers should be big and more effective than other spellcaster's have access too. So calling down a pillar of holy fire should be more deadly than an equal level wizard spell...these would be the big, deadly powers you use on boss fights or when facing armies. Like normal blessings these should probably still have a physical expression...an orb containing holy fire, a vial of pelor's tears to bring back the dead, etc.
I doubt I'll ever try and actually create a "class" for this with D&D...balance in the system is precarious enough as it is. But it's a way to organize my thoughts. I've been pondering how to handle these sort of rules in some of the game systems I occasionally tr and throw together. So we'll see how it goes.
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