The Risus Experiment

[FickleGM]

Okay, I am here at Cheiromancer's request (sorry Cheiro, just placing the blame in case my writing is atrocious - call it a disclaimer, if you will ). I was chatting with Cheiro on Easter and mentioned that I was going to be starting a new campaign that day using the Risus system. Cheiro said that some people may be interested in how Risus plays. I agreed to post a story hour/game recap thing (I'll also add recaps of my one-on-one campaign with my wife).

I am going to format the rest of this post as follows:

• Table of Contents - Links to entries (I may recap multiple campaigns, so I'll try and organize things here for easy navigation)
• Goals - What I am trying to accomplish here
• Rules - A brief list of some Risusisms
• Notes - Just some thoughts regarding this experiment

Table of Contents

• Daughter of a Hero - Introduction, Session I, Session II
• The Mod Squad - Introduction, Session I, Session II

Goals

• Recap my game sessions (this will help me keep track of stuff in the game).
• Develop a storytelling style (this will help me determine if I have it in me to write).
• Share my experiences with Risus (my assumption is that the game will read like any roleplaying game, so I will try to highlight how I used Risus when I feel it's needed).

Rules

• A free download of the basic Risus rules can be found at the official Risus site.
• Characters are built using Cliches, which are basically traits that help define the characters' abilities (race, occupation, "class", hobbies, etc.).
• Characters have 10 dice to add to the Cliches, but no Cliche may start at more than 4 (this is one step above professional).
• Characters may earn an additional die by adding a "Hook", which is basically a plot device for the GM to harrass the character (AWOL gambler, drug addicted womanizer, hunted by father).
• Characters may earn one last die by adding a "Tale", which is basically a background story.
• When a character attempts and action that is not "automatic", he must roll against a difficulty number using the appropriate Cliche (player chooses when multiple Cliches are appropriate).
• There are three basic types of action, an unopposed action (rolled against a GM assigned difficulty), an opposed action (rolled against another character's Cliche) and a combat action (rolled against another character's Cliche with the loser having to remove 1 die from that Cliche until "healed" - combat actions aren't always physical combat)

***I'll add more information as needed, but these are the basics***

Notes

• Without going too much into reasons/excuses/justification for choosing this system, I will just say that I wanted a change and I'm fickle.
• Risus isn't everyone's system (especially when attempting to play a continuous, serious campaign), so I have no idea how long my players will participate in this experiment.
• As I said above, I am fickle, so I have no idea how long I will stick with this system.
• I am using a homebrew world, so I apologize for any misunderstandings that this may cause (I'll try to explain things where needed).
• I don't have the best memory and when I wait too long to recap, the post will suffer from condensitis.
• My updates may be sporadic and low-quality until I find my groove (assuming I have a groove).

[FickleGM]

This is my one-on-one campaign that I just started with my wife. The protagonist is the daughter of one of my wife's prior characters. She is on the run from enemies of her parents, while they are on a wild goose chase far across the sea.

Characters

• Jiroda - the elven daughter of a half-dusk/half-dawn elf mother and a dawn elf father
• Taelis - the young Tollashian soldier who is inadvertantly caught up in Jiroda's escape from Misthaven

Notes

• Dusk elves - known as the Alder (from the Alderwood) and are basically surface dwelling drow elves.
• Dawn elves - known as the Arthani (from the forest kingdom of Arthandor) and are basically high elves.
• Tollashians - humans whose bloodlines are predominantly that of the natives of the Island of Tollash. Their culture is based on ancient Greek/Roman, while those who make up the kingdoms of the Arythian mainland are closer to standard Arthurian fantasy.
• Misthaven - coastal city on the edge of the Mist Marsh, the Uthvar river empties into the Gulf of Callithar. Known as a seedy place, the city was recently liberated from a tyrant and his mercenary army (said tyrant has vanished and Jiroda's parents are chasing him)

[FickleGM]

This is my campaign that I just started with two of my brothers and one of my brothers-in-law. The "protagonists" are shady individuals who are being blackmailed by the Therosian government to take on a dangerous quest in order to gain their freedom. They are travelling north into dangerous territory, chasing an artifact that means little to them, but could spell disaster for the kingdoms to the south.

Characters

• Louigi - a Tollashian soldier from the kingdom of Aboraxia who has a gambling problem that may have caught up with him. He is currently AWOL and seeking sanctuary in Therosia.
• Myyrhad - an Ithican pirate who also has a taste for opium and women. He is currently trying to avoid a contraban and pirating sentence (possible death).
• ??? - an Alder assassin/spy who was forced to flee his paranoid father (son has been too successful and father wants to eliminate a possible threat). He is trying to avoid being executed for simply being an Alder.
• Theogrim - a Dolnari warrior sent with the three to ensure their cooperation.

Notes

• Unknown Character Names - yes, I somehow allowed two characters to begin without names, or I somehow forgot their names .
• Alder - dark elves hailing from the Alderwood. They are basically surface dwelling drow elves.
• Tollashians - humans whose bloodlines are predominantly that of the natives of the Island of Tollash. Their culture is based on ancient Greek/Roman, while those who make up the kingdoms of the Arythian mainland are closer to standard Arthurian fantasy.
• Ithican - humans whose bloodlines are predominantly that of the natives of the Shattered Isles of Ithicus, far to the south. They are a pseudo-arabic, fantasy sinbadish, seafaring race.
• Dolnari - humans whose bloodlines are predominantly that of the natives of the Islands of Dolnar to the north. They are a hardy, barbaric race based on stereotypical, fantasy norsemen.
• Therosia - a young kingdom of mixed population, bordered to the north by the hostile barbarians of the Northlands, to the south by the elven forest kingdom of Arthandor, to the west/southwest by the Magicracy of Ilson and the great kingdom of Aboraxia and to the east by the Great Sea.
• Aboraxia - one of the most powerful kingdoms on the Arythian continent. It is a basic Arthurian-style kingdom.

[FickleGM]

It's been a while, so this will be short and sweet. I'll try to do better in the future.

Escape From Misthaven

Jiroda, a member of the Mistwalkers (Misthaven's Thieves' Guild), has agreed to steal something important off a ship that is due to dock in the middle of the night. Along with two other Mistwalkers, she is able to approach the docks unseen, locate the ship and sneak aboard(1). Once below decks, Jiroda discovers that she has fallen for a trap and has to fight for her life to get off the ship. Creating darkness(2), she is able to evade her would-be captors and get back on the deck of the ship.

On the docks, Jiroda notices that one of her "partners" is actually in on the trap. The traitor slays the other Mistwalker in cold blood and moves to intercept Jiroda. Amidst the fighting, a patrol of the city guard finally arrives and begins to do battle with the sailors(3). The added assistance provides the elf an opening to get off the ship, which she quickly takes advantage of.

As Jiroda surfaces and climbs onto the docks, she notices that a wielder of magic(4) has joined the sailors on the ship. Bolts of lightning make short work of two of the city guard, while the sailors finish off all but one. This one guard realizes that his only hope of survival is to flee...and quickly. He takes the grey-skinned elf by the arm and runs for both of their lives.

Luck and street-savvy help them lose their pursuers and escape the city. Now, confused and in the swamp, the pair prepares for the next leg of a journey toward an unknown destination.

***THIS IS WHERE THE FIRST SESSION OF THIS CAMPAIGN ENDED***

Footnotes

1. In order to keep the pace moving, I am not going to require a lot of rolls to accomplish tasks. I asked for one roll against Jiroda's "Mistwalker" Cliche to maneuvar across he docks, board the ship and get below decks (similar to the Burning Wheel concept, "Let It Ride", I suppose). If she had failed, the point of failure would have depended on how much she missed by (totally arbitrary, like many judgements in this game, but we're okay with that for now).
2. All characters are required to take their race as a Cliche, and the Alder are able to create darkness (as well as part-blooded Alder - similar to drow elves). I required a "Alder" Cliche roll to create the darkness, but the difficulty was only a 5 due to its simplicity (Jiroda had 2 dice in Alder).
3. The different groups were generally treated as "Grunt Squads", which allowed me to assign dice to a group of individuals and roll for them all at once. Only major characters were handled outside the "Grunt Squad" mechanic.
4. The Magic Cliche, or any version thereof, is a generic trait that allows for almost anything. The difficulty is based on a combination of what is being attempted (some uses of magic are obviously more difficult than others), how much spotlight the character is taking and how much the character is trying to circumvent the scenario. I judge NPCs based on how I would judge a PC doing the same thing, when determining difficulty. In this case, lightning as a fairly powerful weapon (but not too much) so I gave it a 10 difficulty. The spellcaster, who has 2 dice in magic, made the first two and missed the third. A missed spellcasting roll costs the character 1 die in the magic cliche (like damage to any cliche) until the character rests (0 dice in a Cliche = unconscious or dead).

[Eighth Deadly Sin]

I'll be watching this thread. I'm currently playing in a Risus campaign on chat with some friends who no longer live close enough to play face to face with anymore. Great, easy to learn system, and easy to drop the "comedy" aspect and get a serious game out of it.

Check out the following website for Risus resources, it's by my friend Ethernaut/Risus Monkey. Make sure to check out the links for more info and ideas:
http://www.velvet-edge.com/risusmonkey.html

Also, the website for the game I am playing in:
http://www.velvet-edge.com/dragonspire.html

[FickleGM]

Originally Posted by Eighth Deadly Sin

I'll be watching this thread. I'm currently playing in a Risus campaign on chat with some friends who no longer live close enough to play face to face with anymore. Great, easy to learn system, and easy to drop the "comedy" aspect and get a serious game out of it.

Check out the following website for Risus resources, it's by my friend Ethernaut/Risus Monkey. Make sure to check out the links for more info and ideas:
http://www.velvet-edge.com/risusmonkey.html

Also, the website for the game I am playing in:
http://www.velvet-edge.com/dragonspire.html

Yes, I did see a post by Risus Monkey at the Risus Yahoo group (as a new member of that particular group, I have a lot of catching up to do - and may never actually catch up) promoting his site, but I have only briefly looked at the site. In fact, it brought a smile to my face when I saw him post here as Risus Monkey (but somebody, not naming names, had to complain about his name change ).

I'm still rather new to the game, but have been looking for resources. This one escaped my notice (when I first saw the site, I didn't bookmark it and then I forgot about it ). Thank you for pointing it out.

I am also considering running a Risus game at GenCon (if not Risus, it will more than likely be True20 or D&D, depending on which is my "game of choice" when I start preparing).

Anyway, thank you again for the link and any insight that you or Ethernaut/Risus Monkey can give me would be greatly appreciated (if you see a need to give it).

[FickleGM]

I'm tired, so I'll post this one later. It will probably be short and sweet as well, considering how loosy-goosy we played the game.

Okay, so I will admit that we are definately "hobbyist gamers", so there was not a lot of in depth roleplay. Perhaps that will get better if I can provide a consistant game (the players need to be able to

My Freedom For A...Tooth?

Upon being given the choice between prison/extradition/execution or retrieval of a stolen artifact (the Tooth of Unroch), the party chooses the latter. They are told that a warrior, named Sigurd, was sent by Olaf, a Northlander king, to attend the funeral of a Therosian duke(1). Sigurd, is apparently responsible for the theft of the Tooth and is believed to be taking to his king. The group is to find the trail of Sigurd and attempt to catch him before he gives the Tooth to his king. Failing that, they are to find a way to get the tooth from King Olaf. They are accompanied on their quest by Theogrim, a Therosian soldier of Dolnari descent, in order to help ensure compliance.

The group travels north, encountering nothing of significance as the approach the kingdom's border. Just shy of the border, the party sees smoke rising from a farmhouse. Approaching the farmhouse as stealthily as possible, the group sees blood smeared near the doorframe (the door has been destroyed). The sounds of objects being tossed around and broken can be heard eminating from the house. The dark elf is volunteered to sneak into the house and see who or what is making the noise.

The elf notices a disemboweled farmer lying outside the house. Once inside, he finds a group of brigands looting the place, as well as the slaughtered bodies of a woman and a child(2). Not long after entering the house, another brigand is spotted walking around from the back of the house by the remaining characters. As the elf backstabs a brigand inside the house, the other characters loose their ranged weapons on the lone brigand. A quick battle ensues, as the surviving brigand from inside the house is chased out and the brigands are quickly finished off(3).

After getting very little information from the bandits (the inhabitants were already dead when the brigands arrived), the dark elf attempts to use magic to talk to the dead farmer. He is unable to rouse the farmer's spirit(4), but is able to find tracks made by northlander boots. The group decides to tie the brigands to a tree and continue on their journey north, following the tracks.

In the Northlands, the group is attacked by a berserker patrol. They dispatch the frenzied attackers and flee from the area before more barbarians arrive. The party avoids other Northlanders as they approach Olaf's land, but are not able to avoid a small pack of dire wolves. They do get to higher ground and are able to drive the wolves away with only minor injuries. The four hunters finally reach Olaf's kingdom(5).

In the kingdom of Olaf, the group find that their quarry is indiscriminately slaughtering his own people. They also learn that he not only failed to deliver the tooth to King Olaf, be also appears to have left the kingdom heading west. Theogrim is able to arrange a meeting with Olaf, who is quite upset at his envoy killing his people. Olaf proposes a treaty with Therosia, if the group bring Sigurd back (dead or alive). In return for Olaf's allegiance, the kingdom of Therosia will agree to overlook Olaf's involvement in the theft of the Tooth. Theogrim, realizing that this treaty is the best hope for the group to continue their quest, agrees to the terms(6).

Theogrim decides that it is time to come clean with his charges, regarding the Tooth. He relates to them the tale of Gunther's battle against the dragon-avatar of Unroch, the Beast. How, upon slaying the Beast, Gunther's life also expires. He tells the group that a single tooth from the dragon, lost during the battle, is retrieved from the field and taken to Theros (the capital city of Therosia). In the newly built castle of Therosia, the Tooth of Unroch is put on display as the Kingdom's first artifact. It is this tooth, explains Theogrim, that was stolen and must be returned. The most important reason, however, is that the Tooth is thought to still contain some of Unroch's spirit. While the tooth is in the possession of Therosians, Unroch is not powerful enough to possess another Avatar. He reminds the group that to the west of the Northlands, lies the Beastlands. Infested with Ori'Kai and Grr'Kahn, the inhabitants of that land worship the Beast and would surely take the Tooth to his realm(7).

With fresh horses, the group heads west in search of Sigurd. A few nights out of Olaf's kingdom, the group is attacked by three Grr'Kahn, but are able to defeat them without any casualties. The group then comes across a large number of Ori'Kai, who are traveling east. They are able to defeat the advance scouting party, but realize that they are not powerful enough to take on the advancing battalion. Knowing that they will not be able to hide their horses from such a force, the group sets the horses into the Ori'Kai horde and uses the slight confusion to hide themselves. The party overhears the orc leaders and learns that they are searching for tooth, as well. They are not concerned with the wellbeing of Sigurd (in fact, they are ordered to return with the tooth and the head of the one who has it).

***THIS IS WHERE THE FIRST SESSION OF THIS CAMPAIGN ENDED***

Footnotes

1. This particularly duke happened to be of Dolnari descent, which gave some of the Northlander nobles (who are also of Dolnari descent) reason to send envoys to Therosia for the funeral.
2. I only required on roll against the dark elf's Assassin Cliche in order to sneak unseen into the house. As I in my other campaign, I am keeping the number of rolls to a minimum.
3. As three individual, low-powered NPCs, the brigands didn't stand much of a chance against a larger number (four) of more skilled combatants.
4. This use of magic, I determined, would have helped give the party confirmation that Sigurd had killed the farmers. Since it wouldn't have stolen the spotlight or circumvented the adventure, I only assessed a difficulty of 10. Unfortunately, the elf missed his roll and learned nothing (although his subsequent tracking attempt was successful).
5. Both encounters were treated as grunt squads, which made the battles fairly easy. The Alder (dark elf) was able to utilize his ability to create darkness in order to avoid having to face the wolf-pack alone.
6. During the investigation of Sigurd's whereabouts, each member of the party made a roll against one of his Cliches to learn a clue. The Alder used his Assassin Cliche to deal with the underbelly of the small kingdom. The Ithican visited some of the few places of ill-repute (drugged whores provide more than just pleasure). Louigi, the Tollashian soldier, was able to get himself in some games of chance (where money, booze and words flowed freely). Theogrim met with the kingdoms officials and set up the meeting with Olaf. All of these efforts gave the party enough information to learn where Sigurd was going and to negotiate with Olaf.
7. Ori'Kai are also known as orcs (yes, I am sure that the Uruk'Hai were somewhere in my subconscious when I came up with this name - oh well). Deities are treated as powerful spirits who inhabit a region within the world. Within their realms, these spirits are able to control various aspects of the region. All spirits are able to communicate with any being in its realm through dreams. They can also possess the bodies of their worshippers (the worshipper is then under the control of the spirit and is called an Avatar). Finally, they can exert their will over certain aspects of the region (perhaps the weather or plants or earth itself). A spirit may only leave its realm while possessing the body of a worshipper (an Avatar).

[FickleGM]

Originally Posted by Eighth Deadly Sin

I'll be watching this thread. I'm currently playing in a Risus campaign on chat with some friends who no longer live close enough to play face to face with anymore. Great, easy to learn system, and easy to drop the "comedy" aspect and get a serious game out of it.

Check out the following website for Risus resources, it's by my friend Ethernaut/Risus Monkey. Make sure to check out the links for more info and ideas:
http://www.velvet-edge.com/risusmonkey.html

Also, the website for the game I am playing in:
http://www.velvet-edge.com/dragonspire.html

After reading through some of the stuff in Risus Monkey's site, I have had more ideas hit me. Mainly regarding Risus Options that I may want to utilize and house rules that I may want to implement. There is some good stuff on the site (kudos to you Ethernaut).

I am currently using the following options:

• Hook & Tale
• Pumping
• Lucky Shots (but not Questing Points)
• Sidekicks & Shieldmates (also allowing this to be used for items or companions)
• Eye of the Tiger
• Boxcars and Breakthroughs

I am against using the following options:

• Inappropriate Cliches (not really an "Option", per se, but a rule that I will not be using)
• Strip Risus (well, maybe with my wife )
• Rescaled Risus (no need to)
• Deadly Combat (no need to)
• Last Man Standing (interesting, but not for my game at this time)

I am undecided on the following options (not yet in use, but I may)

• Double-Pumps
• Funky Dice

I am also considering using a different method of advancement (perhaps similar to the method that Risus Monkey uses). The "roll Cliche dice used during the session and if they are all even you advance" method from the rules doesn't seem very suitable.

I will be happy to discuss anything from the base rules or house rules, but I do not want to get into specifics regarding stuff from the Risus Companion, since that is a pay product. I have denoted such items by placing them in italics.

[Dave Stebbins]

My first exposure to Risus was yesterday when Ethernaut ran a Weird West Risus game at NC Game Day X. It was indeed a pretty easy system to pick up, and pretty flexible too. I think everyone at the table had a blast.

-Dave

[FickleGM]

Originally Posted by Dave Stebbins

My first exposure to Risus was yesterday when Ethernaut ran a Weird West Risus game at NC Game Day X. It was indeed a pretty easy system to pick up, and pretty flexible too. I think everyone at the table had a blast.

-Dave

Well, if he runs this at GenCon, I would certainly welcome an opportunity to play.

[nakiacus]

Originally Posted by Dave Stebbins

My first exposure to Risus was yesterday when Ethernaut ran a Weird West Risus game at NC Game Day X. It was indeed a pretty easy system to pick up, and pretty flexible too. I think everyone at the table had a blast.

-Dave

I certainly had a great time. It was my third time playing Risus with Tim/Ethernaut/Risus Monkey and the more I play it, the more I like the system. It's good to see that Fickle is adapting it to a "straight" fantasy game. I've been kicking around the idea of using Risus as the system for my hombrew setting, mainly because it is easy to GM and easy to teach to novice gamers. I'm tired of spending hours making NPC's, dammit!

I just had a thought. Maybe one could treat magic spells as a sidekick/shieldmate. So putting one character die into "magic" would get you three magic dice to play with. Making those dice doubel pumped would then simulate the "spell drain", so the magic would always go down everytime you used it. Just a random idea that I've given all of 30 seconds to.

Thanks for starting a Risus thread, Fickle. I'll be following it!

[Rel]

As another Risus fan, I'll also be watching this thread with interest. I ran a Risus Superheroes game at the last NC Game Day and I'll be bringing that same game to GenCon.

[FickleGM]

Wow, I hadn't realized that Risus was such a popular game (in fact, aside from the official Risus site and the Risus Yahoo! Group, the most recent mention of Risus was its inclusion in an unflattering post by "He Who Can't Avoid Being Banned" over at the new NKL - deriding those who propose that "rules lite" games - like Risus - are what teenagers need, not the game itself).

Anyway, it would seem that there are plenty of people here who I can bounce ideas off of, if necessary. I hope that this thread provides some entertainment and/or usefulness.

[FickleGM]

Originally Posted by nakiacus

I just had a thought. Maybe one could treat magic spells as a sidekick/shieldmate. So putting one character die into "magic" would get you three magic dice to play with. Making those dice doubel pumped would then simulate the "spell drain", so the magic would always go down everytime you used it. Just a random idea that I've given all of 30 seconds to.

It's certainly food for thought. I'll chew on it for a while and let you know how it tastes.

[Dave Stebbins]

Originally Posted by nakiacus

I certainly had a great time.

This comes from the man who had the quote of the weekend, "Exploding midget vampire clowns killed my character!"



-Dave
(who is seriously in danger of becomming an NC Game Day addict...)

[FickleGM]

Originally Posted by nakiacus

I just had a thought. Maybe one could treat magic spells as a sidekick/shieldmate. So putting one character die into "magic" would get you three magic dice to play with. Making those dice doubel pumped would then simulate the "spell drain", so the magic would always go down everytime you used it. Just a random idea that I've given all of 30 seconds to.

I have chewed on this and I think that I have an idea that I like (not that anyone else will like it, of course ). I don't have time to post it right now, but I will try to post it sometime tonight...

[FickleGM]

Originally Posted by FickleGM

I have chewed on this and I think that I have an idea that I like (not that anyone else will like it, of course ). I don't have time to post it right now, but I will try to post it sometime tonight...

Well, I didn't get to it last night (yes, I was in chat again...no, I wasn't discussing gaming in chat), so I'll see what I can do now.

[FickleGM]

Originally Posted by nakiacus

I just had a thought. Maybe one could treat magic spells as a sidekick/shieldmate. So putting one character die into "magic" would get you three magic dice to play with. Making those dice doubel pumped would then simulate the "spell drain", so the magic would always go down everytime you used it. Just a random idea that I've given all of 30 seconds to.

Here is what I came up with for this:

• Magic is a force from beyond the "veil of dreams" (or from the far realm, a parallel cosmos or a dimension of magic).
• Magic is a sentient force.
• Magic cannot survive long in this realm without a host (it becomes a powerful flash of magical force and dies).
• Magic enjoys being released to manifest itself for short periods (its "seed" remains in the host, like a root).
• Magic cannot control its host, but can urge or beg its host.
• Magic has a personality, related to its type (I am starting with the eight schools of magic from D&D as types - Abjuration, Alteration, Conjuration, Divination, Enchantment, Evocation, Illusion, Necromancy).
• Magic is shaped and released by the host, but will do so in a manner befitting its personality.
• More than one type of magic may inhabit a host at one time.
• A host must perform a specific ritual/ceremony/task in order to attain magic and magic may not inhabit an unwilling host.
• Magic can be Pumped (since I am not currently using Double-Pumps), but if it is ever reduced to zero dice, it dies and the host no longer holds that magic.
• In order to influence and shape the magic, the host may "team up" his/her magic-knowledge-type cliche with the magic(this means that the host may not pump this cliche when casting spells).

Okay, I haven't actually used it and it took me a while to actually get this post finished, so this may not be worth refining and testing. I am considering it, since it doesn't look like I will be playing for another week or so (which will give me some time to impliment or run some small tests with it).

Anyway, feel free to let me know if you think that this idea has any potential.

[FickleGM]

Okay, I am looking at a couple different things:

1. Use Ethernaut's idea (plus many others) of using a character's race (or bloodline/nationality) as an adjective for the primary Cliche, instead of as a Cliche of its own.

2. Try out the schizophrenic magic system that I detailed above and see how it works out.

3. Add Double-Pumps and Funky Dice (still not sold on the necessity of this, but I'll see how it works out).

4. Start using a character point system to control character advancement.


I am also going to start a new pseudo-campaign with my 12 year old daughter, 8 year old daughter, 11 year old nephew and 7 year old nephew. They were recently playing a Lord of the Rings game on the X-box, so I told them that we would play a fantasy style game like that (they are somewhat familiar with the game, as we played a mock-Star Wars type adventure a few weeks ago).

Anyway, I'm off to roll some dice...

[Ethernaut]

Man oh man, I need to spend more time over here at CM. I was completely oblivious that someone had started a Risus thread. Sweet!

Anyway, I *do* hope to run a game at GenCon. But it depends on a) schedules and b) if I can decide on which game I want to run. Right now, I'm leaning towards the next installment of Silverlode. But I may also go off in a different direction.

[Ethernaut]

Question: Do you have the Risus Companion yet? If not, I *highly* recommend that you pick it up. It's loaded with Risusy goodness (and much of that goodness would apply to non-Risus games).

[Ethernaut]

Originally Posted by FickleGM

All characters are required to take their race as a Cliche, and the Alder are able to create darkness (as well as part-blooded Alder - similar to drow elves). I required a "Alder" Cliche roll to create the darkness, but the difficulty was only a 5 due to its simplicity (Jiroda had 2 dice in Alder).

Might I gently suggest using Race as a descriptor for a cliche, rather than a cliche itself? For an excellent resource on cliche building, see this Anatomy of a Cliche excerpt.

Originally Posted by FickleGM

The different groups were generally treated as "Grunt Squads", which allowed me to assign dice to a group of individuals and roll for them all at once. Only major characters were handled outside the "Grunt Squad" mechanic.

I whole-heartedly approve of this approach.

Originally Posted by FickleGM

The Magic Cliche, or any version thereof, is a generic trait that allows for almost anything. The difficulty is based on a combination of what is being attempted (some uses of magic are obviously more difficult than others), how much spotlight the character is taking and how much the character is trying to circumvent the scenario.

I love this apporach to magic and use it myself. For additional flavor, I rely on cliche descriptions to narrow the focus of what can be accomplished with a given cliche.

[Ethernaut]

Originally Posted by FickleGM

Yes, I did see a post by Risus Monkey at the Risus Yahoo group (as a new member of that particular group, I have a lot of catching up to do - and may never actually catch up) promoting his site, but I have only briefly looked at the site.

By Risus Yahoo, I assume you mean Risus Talk? The plain Risus group is primarily for S John's announcements. Anyway, what's your member name over there? I also come up as "darntjonax" (depending on if I post from email or the webpage).

[Ethernaut]

Originally Posted by Ethernaut

Question: Do you have the Risus Companion yet? If not, I *highly* recommend that you pick it up. It's loaded with Risusy goodness (and much of that goodness would apply to non-Risus games).

Actually, from the options that you are aware of (like Strip Risus), it appears that you already have it (or have access to it).

[Ethernaut]

Originally Posted by FickleGM

There is some good stuff on the site (kudos to you Ethernaut).

Well thanks! That is the idea.

Originally Posted by FickleGM

Eye of the Tiger

Please let me know if this ever gets used. I'm interested to see how it pans out in actual play. My players in the Silverlode game have never made use of the rule. I took the option off the table in Dragonspire.

I am against using the following options:

Originally Posted by FickleGM

• Double-Pumps
• Funky Dice

These options work really well for certain cliches and character types, which may or may not exist in your game. I like Double-Pumps for magic cliches and Funky Dice for powerful supernatural "races" like vampires and giants and such.

Interesting asside: while playing Dragonspire the other night, my players freaked out when I brought out d8's and d10's for the yeti that they fought.

[Ethernaut]

Originally Posted by nakiacus

I just had a thought. Maybe one could treat magic spells as a sidekick/shieldmate. So putting one character die into "magic" would get you three magic dice to play with. Making those dice doubel pumped would then simulate the "spell drain", so the magic would always go down everytime you used it. Just a random idea that I've given all of 30 seconds to.

An interesting thought for a game where spells a little more defined. So, hypothetically, you could trade 1 die for 3 dice of magic spells. Maybe it's one big-ass powerful spell? Or maybe it's three little 1-die cantrips? Interesting. It would work well for a game where spellcasters have a limited number of specific spells.

[Ethernaut]

Originally Posted by Ethernaut

Might I gently suggest using Race as a descriptor for a cliche, rather than a cliche itself? For an excellent resource on cliche building, see this Anatomy of a Cliche excerpt

Again, I got ahead of myself and replied before I read to the end of the thread. Bad RisusMonkey... no banana!

[FickleGM]

Okay, for an update (since I haven't in a while):

Originally Posted by FickleGM

Okay, I am looking at a couple different things:

1. Use Ethernaut's idea (plus many others) of using a character's race (or bloodline/nationality) as an adjective for the primary Cliche, instead of as a Cliche of its own.

2. Try out the schizophrenic magic system that I detailed above and see how it works out.

3. Add Double-Pumps and Funky Dice (still not sold on the necessity of this, but I'll see how it works out).

4. Start using a character point system to control character advancement.


I am also going to start a new pseudo-campaign with my 12 year old daughter, 8 year old daughter, 11 year old nephew and 7 year old nephew. They were recently playing a Lord of the Rings game on the X-box, so I told them that we would play a fantasy style game like that (they are somewhat familiar with the game, as we played a mock-Star Wars type adventure a few weeks ago).

Anyway, I'm off to roll some dice...

1. As Ethernaut advised in a prior post, I am now going to be using race as a descriptor to the character's primary cliche (although, in my view, race can apply to all cliches).

2. Hated it...I'm definately going to stick with my original "generic magic trait". How the magic "looks", "feels" or "accomplishes the task" would depend on whatever descriptor (psionic cliches may be accompanied by intense concentration and glowing eyes, wizards by tomes and staves, clerics by holy symbols, necromancers by decay and darkness, etc.).

3. Funky dice are going to be treated as natural or unnatural talent/ability. Examples of this include - Werewolf (3d10), Troll Warlord (4d10), God Given Strength (4d12), The Natural - Robert Redford (5d8) at baseball related activities. This would work for monsters, unnatural enhancements (demonspawn), natural talent (child prodigy), etc.

As far as the Double Pumps go, I will probably restrict them to magic. I am not going to implement any special "drain" rules, as I figure that combat and pumping will work sufficiently to drain a magic-user's powers.

4. I haven't used this idea yet, but in order to maintain simplicity, I am thinking about the costs that are defined in the Funky Dice Option in the Risus rules. I think that Current "Rank" x Die Type Cost to increase to the next die in a Cliche. I'll give this one more thought...

[FickleGM]

Originally Posted by Ethernaut

By Risus Yahoo, I assume you mean Risus Talk? The plain Risus group is primarily for S John's announcements. Anyway, what's your member name over there? I also come up as "darntjonax" (depending on if I post from email or the webpage).

No, it was the plain Risus group (but that does explain the lack of traffic). I did recently join both the RisusTalk group and the Risus-Ezine-Editors group. My yahoo is - gabrielwhitehead

Originally Posted by Ethernaut

Actually, from the options that you are aware of (like Strip Risus), it appears that you already have it (or have access to it).

Yes, I purchased this book and really like it.

Originally Posted by Ethernaut

Again, I got ahead of myself and replied before I read to the end of the thread. Bad RisusMonkey... no banana!

Yes, I am going to go with this...(meaning race as a descriptor to the primary cliche)

[FickleGM]

I am scheduled to run my next session of The Mod Squad on Sunday, May 21st, so I am excited about that. Cindy graduates from college soon (getting her degree in Computer Programming), so I will be able to resume our campaign - Daughter of a Hero.

The kids' campaign (Fun with Furries...just kidding, what kind of sicko do you take me for - a Minotaur [nephew] and a dog person [daughter], with the younger two wanting to play an imp [nephew] and a faerie [daughter], but bowing out before play started) went all right, a couple encounters, but nothing major (a trapped door, animated statues and undead cat people were the highlights). They are in a jungle on the feral continent of Andros, southeast of the core campaign region. I'll see if I can't keep that one going, as well.

The oldest daughter (the 16 year old) also wants to play (but refuses to play with her sisters - I think she wants to start as a one-on-one and try to get me to allow some of her friends to join). She's into anime/japan and goth, so I may have to set this in the southwest swamps, which have an oriental flavoring and the neighboring islands have a "sinbad" flavor.

Anyway, this will put me at four campaigns and one GenCon Scenario (which I hope to convince more than one of my groups to try out - including my D&D group who decided to switch to board games rather than Risus).

I feel that I have a good handle on the mechanics (Risus Options) that I want to use, even though a couple have not come up in play, yet. I think that I am set on how I want to handle racial descriptors and magic. What I still need to do is actually document my racial descriptors and common cliches, so that characters can be more easily constructed.

Well, I should probably get some work done before I have to leave for the day...