|
I like your style, Green Intern! Anywho, I might as well carry on... Part Four: The Dragon's Eye, or The Origin of Cap'n Bingo Pretty much every corebook has a sample adventure, and Meddling Kids is no exception. It mentions that there are character sheets available on their website, but you should ask permission before going online (if that doesn't date this book, I don't know what does – do kids even ask permission for stuff like that these days?). It also mentions that people who've already played RPGs will know not to read a sample adventure if they're not running the game, because metagaming is for buttfaces. That said, if the GM is going to make his own setting and adventures, then go right ahead. It then lists everything you'll need; dice, notebooks, character sheets, etc. Before the session begins, the GM must write the word "HOPE" on a small piece of paper and fold it up twice.  The adventure takes place in Port Juliet, a quaint (if kinda touristy) little town along the coast of Rhode Island, surrounded by islands and inlets. Its main attractions are the lighthouse on the far side of town, and the statue of the town's founder Juliet... at least, that's what the local legend says. To be more precise, the adventure mostly takes place at Port Juliet Museum, where the Clique are going for a field trip (they're all sophomores at Patrick Henry High, the local high school, so they know most of the locals already). The GM is supposed to read some flavour text: Meddling Kids posted:“The Port Juliet museum is a small, one-story building, built with a red brick exterior and tall columns. A real iron anchor is mounted in the middle of the walkway on a sturdy pedestal in front of the building. A great bronze seal of Rhode Island, which is an anchor with the word “Hope” floating above it on a banner, is above the grand entrance.” Hey, we're learning stuff about Rhode Island!  When the Clique go inside, more flavour text abounds:Meddling Kids posted:“The museum’s atrium is well-lit from the three skylights above. To your left is a permanent display of the pre-history of Port Juliet, Wait, I thought Rachel was just some local fakelore or something?  After all the  the GM shows the players the map of the museum (which I'm not posting because it's not that interesting) noting where all the olde-timey stuff is with a pencil. The Clique are allowed to go where they want (their teacher Mr. Kepner is a pretty cool guy, so he's giving them an hour before they all have to meet up at the entrance) but they've already seen all this stuff a bazillion times, so it's total snoresville. Good job there's a new diamond exhibit in the main exhibition hall!The Clique won't be allowed into the new exhibit without a stamped ticket (there's a guard outside the door, making sure nobody sneaks in) but they can get one from the ticket booth. The booth is staffed by Holly Bennett, the museum intern who's fresh out of college, who'll stamp all their tickets. She'll be cheery at first, but her boss Professor Dorchester (who she refers to "Professor Dorkster") is around, so she can't slack off and talk to kids. After explaining this to the Clique, she will then ignore them and concentrate on paperwork. Rude! Hey, who wants some more flavour text? Meddling Kids posted:“Once you have your ticket stamped, the guard will let you into the main exhibit hall. As you step in, you are momentarily blinded by bright, dazzling light. As your eyes adjust, you notice that around the room are ten big, glittering diamonds that have a spotlight aimed directly on them. Each has a plaque next to it explaining its history. Also, a few interactive kiosks are interspersed between the diamonds; they show the different uses of diamonds, how diamonds are mined, and other interesting things about gemstones. In the center of the room in a glass case is a huge, pale pink diamond resting on red velvet. Two armed guards stand on either side of the diamond, and a plaque is attached to the front of the case. This is the Dragon’s Eye Diamond.” According to the plaque, The Dragon's Eye was recovered from an old wreck just off the coast by divers, who donated it to the Museum. Experts say it was probably owned by the King of Korea, who had kept it safe in the Temple of Yong Wang, Dragon King of the Seas, until pirates stole it. The other parts of the exhibit aren't covered in the book, and it's suggested that the GM just make something up, or do some research on diamonds.  Some art to break up the walls of text. Already in the exhibit hall are Mr. Kepner, who is talking to Professor Dorchester, who they all know already, and a woman they've never seen before. If somebody goes up to Mr. Kepner, he'll introduce the lady as Nora Cochran, the Touring Exhibits Specialist to the MegaCity Museum. All the players will then have to roll Smarts; if anyone gets over 14, they'll notice Nora's badge doesn't have the official MegaCity Museum seal on it. If they point that out to her, then she'll immediately go look for it - it must've fallen off somewhere! If they stick around and haven't asked the question already, Mr. Kepner asks Dorchester if a diamond this valuable is safe in such a small building. Dorchester laughs, saying he's had high-tech security installed, and only he knows how to work it. If a player beats a TN 17 on a Smarts roll, they can overhear him whispering to Kepner that only he knows when it switches itself on every night, patting his jacket. Wanna take a closer look at The Dragon's Eye? You get surprised by Crazy Walt, the weird janitor! Fortunately for you, you know Walt well, so you're almost inured to him sneaking up on you. Almost. He'll start ramblng on about how the diamond has a curse put on it by one of the temple priests - "May your life never be the same". That's why the divers gave it to the museum. If you question him further, he'll mutter something about "nosy kids" and slope off. Yeah, Walt's an rear end in a top hat. He's also Holly's uncle. He's worked at the museum for 20 years and knows more about the museum and its contents than anyone else, and was offered directorship of the museum... but he prefers "informing" visitors in his own inimitable style. Holly wishes he'd accepted; suffice to say, she's kinda peeved about the whole situation. If some PCs want to have a look round and make a TN 15 Smarts roll, they'll spot a shady guy talking into his shoulder. If they want to eavesdrop, they have to make a TN 22 Moves roll to sneak up on him, then another TN 15 Smarts roll to not get caught. If they make it, they'll hear him mutter in a French accent "Yes, yes, everything is going as planned. Meet me in the back at 10:30 tonight". It's then that he spots them, mutters something about "nosy children" and stalks off like he just smelt an ungodly fart. If you try and tell an adult about this, then they'll laugh it off and tell you that you have an overactive imagination.  (l-r) Dorchester, Cochran and shady French guy Remember that note I mentioned earlier? The Clique have to roll Smarts, and whoever gets the highest roll "finds" the note in-game. They then decide whether or not they show the note to the other players. Whether they do or they don't, the field trip is over and everybody has to get back on the bus - Mr. Kepner's going to take everyone for lunch at Super Clucker's! The scene then shifts to early evening, at Gigi's, the pizza place just opposite the museum where the Clique go to hang out every Friday night. Joining them for the evening is Bingo, an old ex-lab chimp whom Andrea (the pre-genned Brain found at the back of the book) rescued from her parents, who work as animal behaviourists. He's stronger than he looks, but he's very gentle and pretty smart; he knows a few words of ASL (No, the other kind). He's there because Andrea's parents told her that she has to take Bingo with her when she goes out with her friends. If Andrea isn't being played, then a PC is taking care of Bingo as a favour to Andrea. The Clique has to make a TN 19 Smarts roll. If they make it, they see the suspicious French guy sneaking round to behind the museum. If they try to tell anybody, even the police, the grownups will laugh it off and tell you that you have an overactive imagination. Any PC with the Nosey Ability will want to investigate, no roll needed. Whether they go to the front or back doors, every door will be open and the keypad next to the door will have a red LED readout saying "Auto Activate at 10:00 cancelled" and there's a green light on the keypad lit up. Inside, the museum is dark, but not impenetrably so, and there doesn't appear to be anybody around. If everybody decides to sneak in, then the entire Clique has to make a TN 21 Moves roll to not tread on a squeaky floorboard. If somebody doesn't make it, then the entire building becomes quiet and a huge white dragon with an orange crest bursts out of the main exhibit hall and yells "Who dares approach Yong Wang, the Dragon King of the Seas?”. If they do make the roll, then they manage to sneak into the main exhibit hall and interrupt Yong Wang, who turns around and asks them the same question as if they'd flubbed the roll.  This art was at the very start of the adventure, but I really needed to break up the text. Everybody now has to roll TN 28 Smarts to avoid fleeing in terror. If they don't, then it's time for a Chase Scene! When that's over, the Clique and Yong Wang are all trapped inside the museum. The Clique now have to set a trap for Yong Wang. If it works, then the dragon will laugh, gesticulate wildly and say: Yong Wang posted:“Foolish little humans! I am the Dragon King of the Seas, and if you know what’s good for you, you’ll leave now, before I have you for dinner! I am here to get what is rightfully mine - The Dragon’s Eye Diamond. It was stolen from me, and now I shall take it back!” Everybody now has to roll Smarts and beat TN 24 - if they manage it, they'll notice that as Yong Wang is waving his arms around, there's a small hole under his armpit, like when a rip in a t-shirt... Whether the trap worked or not, Bingo will now launch himself at Yong Wang, knocking the dragon into the displays. This makes the diamond roll onto the floor, distracting Bingo. When he picks it up, The Dragon's Eye will glow red and give off a big flare of light. When the light fades away, Bingo will be dressed like a 17th century pirate, and will also ask the Clique "What be ye starin' at?". As for "Yong Wang", it's very obvious that the "dragon" is just somebody in an elaborate costume. The head's still jammed on, though, so nobody can tell who it really is. Just then, the doors open... Next time: The conclusion of The Dragon's Eye, and we finally get to Abilities! In the meantime, who do you think Yong Wang really is? Also, pitch ideas for Wild Cards, and I'll have a go at making them in future posts.
|
#
?
Jun 21, 2014 02:03
|
|
|
|
| # ? Apr 17, 2024 00:39 |
|
|
Alien Rope Burn posted:Tough Love: We're now submitted to both, I'll let you know when they're approved or what have you. Had to reinstall photoshop to kludge this ugly thing together:  Edit: Also I noticed we lost like 35 people overnight from the RSS sub list. If it happened to any of you guys, it's because we had to turn on the explicit tag for submission rules. theironjef fucked around with this message at 02:22 on Jun 23, 2014 |
|
#
?
Jun 22, 2014 09:08
|
|
|
Huh. Well while that all happened, System Mastery received iTunes approval. You can download or subscribe at this link: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/system-mastery-podcasts/id892140531
|
|
#
?
Jun 26, 2014 03:11
|
|
|
Great! I missed the last chunk of the last podcast because when trying to unpause it, I hit the background image and instead it loaded that and I lost my place and ennnnnh  Nobilis is a game I've love to play but it's like Unknown Armies or Wraith in that it sounds immensely difficult to run because it has no central focus for adventuring. So I've never heard of anybody running it, I'm sure some people have, but it's like a friend of an uncle of a cousin sort of thing. It could just me wanting to do something ridiculous like the Marquis of Waffles, tho. I mean, who doesn't want to help out with spreading the idea of waffles? Crazy monsters, that's who.
|
|
#
?
Jun 26, 2014 14:55
|
|
|
We talked about that a lot, that the players are gonna basically be like the Duke of Penis, the Earl of Schadenfreude, and the Baron of Tacos. It sounds like it'd be terrible, but what would actually happen is that you'd rarely use the noun associated with your Domain, you'd just use the emotions it instills. So like if you were the Baron of Tacos, you'd spend all your time causing people to experience the contentment and indolence that follows a meal of tacos, or bringing about such a great lust for tacos that your opponents cannot continue their fight and must run for the border.
|
|
#
?
Jun 26, 2014 15:09
|
|
|
theironjef posted:We talked about that a lot, that the players are gonna basically be like the Duke of Penis, the Earl of Schadenfreude, and the Baron of Tacos. It sounds like it'd be terrible, but what would actually happen is that you'd rarely use the noun associated with your Domain, you'd just use the emotions it instills. So like if you were the Baron of Tacos, you'd spend all your time causing people to experience the contentment and indolence that follows a meal of tacos, or bringing about such a great lust for tacos that your opponents cannot continue their fight and must run for the border. In the third edition Domain got split into Domain and Persona, with Persona working more or less the way you describe—it manipulates taconess rather than tacos themselves.
|
|
#
?
Jun 26, 2014 15:44
|
|
|
That makes sense. I had figured before actually getting to a page of rules that was the province of Realm, but of course that just controlled your personal power over your Imperator's whimsical magic homeland. Looks like third edition switched from Realm and Spirit to Persona and Treasure. Okay then. On the wiki it says Treasure defines the strength of the powers, things, or ideas that represent the Noble. So does that mean if you're the Voice and Grace of Waterparks with a Treasure of 5 that waterpark employees and slides are more powerful throughout the world because of your investment? Edit: Also drat, I just realized that the book was credited to R. Sean Borgstrom. Like I know this person because I have Fair Folk and the internet, but I had no idea they credited the book like that because they were afraid people wouldn't buy an RPG from a woman. While that's a fascinating (and sad) bit of trivia, they really should have credited it to Rebecca "Gets to the Point" Borgstrom if they were worried about overcoming an accurate prejudice. theironjef fucked around with this message at 16:18 on Jun 26, 2014 |
|
#
?
Jun 26, 2014 16:15
|
|
|
theironjef posted:Looks like third edition switched from Realm and Spirit to Persona and Treasure. Okay then. On the wiki it says Treasure defines the strength of the powers, things, or ideas that represent the Noble. So does that mean if you're the Voice and Grace of Waterparks with a Treasure of 5 that waterpark employees and slides are more powerful throughout the world because of your investment?
|
|
#
?
Jun 26, 2014 16:23
|
|
|
Oh good. Glad to hear it. One of the things I totally hated and didn't think was actually awesome about 2nd edition was that magic junk was mostly just conceptual, and you could basically call up a magic dealy by describing it. Glad they took that part out. I hope one of the things they put in was an explanation of that Treachery guy's claw. I wanted to figure out how he built that as a gift so bad. It had to be expensive as gently caress, because he used it for some ludicrous shenanigans (cutting the ocean in twain in particular).
|
|
#
?
Jun 26, 2014 16:30
|
|
|
theironjef posted:Oh good. Glad to hear it. One of the things I totally hated and didn't think was actually awesome about 2nd edition was that magic junk was mostly just conceptual, and you could basically call up a magic dealy by describing it. Glad they took that part out. I hope one of the things they put in was an explanation of that Treachery guy's claw. I wanted to figure out how he built that as a gift so bad. It had to be expensive as gently caress, because he used it for some ludicrous shenanigans (cutting the ocean in twain in particular). It's listed in the 2e Example of Play somewhere: it's a level 7 Aspect Gift that he can use as a simple miracle. Characters with huge defining Gifts are fun! Treasure is basically centered around your mystic panoply and the objects and people that are symbols of you. Some people find it a bit confusing because it has a weird progression, but I find it allows for a lot of fun. (Nobilis 3e provides some of the distinction between attributes based on what parts of your intention they give miraculous force to. Aspect gives force to "I do this perfectly" but not to "and this is the result," so that "I run at light speed" doesn't necessarily mean you get to add "and win the race" except insofar as winning races is the probably result of running at the speed of light. Domain and Persona let you do more to state the result of your miracle—"I fill him with rage to make him attack me"—but are limited to singular, fairly simple actions. Treasure kind of splits the difference and lets you pronounce miracles that give you a bit more fine control over what's going on.
|
|
#
?
Jun 26, 2014 18:40
|
|
|
Dude wasn't playing his claw to full effect. He should have cut terminal velocity in half to slow his falling speed to 57 mph, then cut gravity in half to further slow his descent, and finally cut the surface tension of the water in half so that it was like he was just diving in a pool, instead of falling further at the same speed into a chasm. Then again he wasn't the Marquis of Nerds. Also that list you're providing makes Aspect sound worthless except insofar as you can use it to freak out humans. Like you could have a guy with Aspect 5 say "I run at lightspeed towards the finish line" and the guy with Domain 2 would say "I win the race by invoking the Domain of Technicalities." poo poo, dibs on the Duke of Technicalities. That's the best character I ever wanted to play. theironjef fucked around with this message at 18:49 on Jun 26, 2014 |
|
#
?
Jun 26, 2014 18:47
|
|
|
theironjef posted:Also that list you're providing makes Aspect sound worthless except insofar as you can use it to freak out humans. Like you could have a guy with Aspect 5 say "I run at lightspeed towards the finish line" and the guy with Domain 2 would say "I win the race by invoking the Domain of Technicalities." Nobilis is a cool game for good ol' fashioned Funhaving, basically.
|
|
#
?
Jun 26, 2014 18:57
|
|
|
I did enjoy making the example characters for Nobilis when I reviewed it. That you get to define exactly what your dominion allows two people to play a similar but wildly different concept or take something that would be nebulous in definition or alien and make it fit.
|
|
#
?
Jun 26, 2014 23:32
|
|
|
Nobilis is awesome because one of the most important and powerful Nobles is canonically the Power of Blankets. As in bedsheets. Because they're omnipresent, are with you in your most intimate moments and can easily strangle a bitch, the Power of Blankets has become one of the most useful tactical assets in the war on Earth. He does espionage and assassinations of troublesome mortals and low-Aspect Nobles both. Sure, you can play the Power of Explosions or whatever if you're into that sort of thing, but you can do that anywhere. Being the god of bobbleheads and making a competely serious career out of that is what really makes the game for me.
|
|
#
?
Jun 26, 2014 23:39
|
|
|
It's funny but when you guys started talking about the Duke of Torture or whatever, I kept thinking that it's personification should be a TV set playing Jack Bauer on 24.
|
|
#
?
Jun 26, 2014 23:42
|
|
|
I would personally far prefer the gods of concepts over the gods of stuff. I decidedly want a party now with the Duchess of Self-Evidency, the Earl of Pedantry, and the Marquis of Technicalities. Try accomplishing anything around that combo. Call their Imperator the Stuffy rear end in a top hat of the World. They live in a chancel where nothing ever happens because someone will just point out that it can't.
|
|
#
?
Jun 27, 2014 00:00
|
|
|
Well, not to keep harping on about the podcast, but we just got Stitcher approval too. Here's that link: http://www.stitcher.com/s?fid=50578&refid=stpr By all means go rate and review it there, since it apparently needs five ratings before it goes into their system and starts getting promoted and junk.
|
|
#
?
Jun 27, 2014 18:33
|
|
|
Having now listened to your Nobilis episode. (Thanks for harping on about the podcast, I'd forgotten about it.  ) I kinda wanna play it, I almost ended up getting a second hand copy when I was working in a charity shop a few years back, but the pages upon pages of flowery language put me off. Would anyone actually recommend playing it? I sounds easy to break and without much push for the players beyond 'dick over people for points'
|
|
#
?
Jun 27, 2014 21:59
|
|
|
Arashiofordo3 posted:Having now listened to your Nobilis episode. (Thanks for harping on about the podcast, I'd forgotten about it. I play it all the time and have loads of fun. I honestly don't find it very "breakable" because players being able to do ridiculous things is kind of a ground assumption. If somebody cracks the Earth you just build a new one, ya know; or accustom yourself to taking your tea on the moon. Anyway, the Nobilis 2e PDF should be out in a couple of weeks, and the 3e PDF (less lovely, but more mechanically robust) is on DTRPG now.
|
|
#
?
Jun 27, 2014 22:10
|
|
|
Arashiofordo3 posted:Having now listened to your Nobilis episode. (Thanks for harping on about the podcast, I'd forgotten about it. It's only breakable in the same vein that little kids playing pretend Superman is breakable. You could have a guy who's the Power of Invincibility declare himself invincible, and the enemy would win because the nature of the competetion was to embarass him somehow, or damage the concept of invincibility while he was over there flexin'. Like I could see the Excrucians scoring a win over that guy by successfully engineering the Death of Superman comic book arc. About the only thing I could see really breaking the game would also make it unfun for everybody including that player, which would basically be playing as the Power of Denial. Just "The enemy enters the room, guns blaz..." "No they don't." "Okay, well then they bomb the room from orbit and" "Nope. That didn't happen." theironjef fucked around with this message at 22:35 on Jun 27, 2014 |
|
#
?
Jun 27, 2014 22:29
|
|
|
And then some clever-rear end Shard would come up with a way to engineer a situation where a denial made something come true and gently caress you over. Nobilis is just not a game that lends itself to competition or powergaming, because it basically relies on everybody in the group agreeing that yeah, what just happened made sense, with a minimum amount of fuss and mechanics. It's the anti-Paranoia that way.
|
|
#
?
Jun 27, 2014 23:13
|
|
|
theironjef posted:Dude wasn't playing his claw to full effect. He should have cut terminal velocity in half to slow his falling speed to 57 mph, then cut gravity in half to further slow his descent, and finally cut the surface tension of the water in half so that it was like he was just diving in a pool, instead of falling further at the same speed into a chasm. Then again he wasn't the Marquis of Nerds. Also I think Aspect Guy would still win the race because your miracle was a level 5 and the duke of Technicalities was level 2. theironjef posted:I would personally far prefer the gods of concepts over the gods of stuff. I decidedly want a party now with the Duchess of Self-Evidency, the Earl of Pedantry, and the Marquis of Technicalities. Try accomplishing anything around that combo. Call their Imperator the Stuffy rear end in a top hat of the World. They live in a chancel where nothing ever happens because someone will just point out that it can't.
|
|
#
?
Jun 28, 2014 03:05
|
|
|
Cardiovorax posted:And then some clever-rear end Shard would come up with a way to engineer a situation where a denial made something come true and gently caress you over. Nobilis is just not a game that lends itself to competition or powergaming, because it basically relies on everybody in the group agreeing that yeah, what just happened made sense, with a minimum amount of fuss and mechanics. It's the anti-Paranoia that way. Or even that others get pissed at Mr. Denial working on their aspects/territory, not including times they cant deny something because the relevant nobilis is more powerful than them.
|
|
#
?
Jun 28, 2014 03:07
|
|
|
Not relevant to the thread but I set up a Nobilis game here for all you Nobilis guys.
|
|
#
?
Jun 28, 2014 04:05
|
|
|
Zereth posted:I don' think you can do abstract concepts like that with Aspect unless you go to the spirit world and find the spirit of Terminal Velocity and beat them up until they do what you say. It's more "Okay I pick up that mountain and eat it" poo poo. Though I am probably moving this conversation over to the other thread, I think my new favorite concept is the power of Narrative Convention. That way I can phrase all my miracles with stuff like "Meanwhile..." and "Little did he know..."
|
|
#
?
Jun 28, 2014 05:25
|
|
|
After the recent forums downtime ended, I build a little Python app to scrape the F&F threads into a database. I now have a 172 MB sqlite database containing the raw HTML of 578 pages, and then the processed HTML of all 23081 posts in the threads. (If anyone's interested in keeping score, Mors Rattus leads the board at 1140, with Alien Rope Burn at 925 and PurpleXVI at 857 respectively.) I intend to use Syrg's indexes from the wiki to automate maintaining a F&F post archive along the same vein as lparchive.org. (Syrg, if you're interested, we can talk about any ways I might be able to use the database to make your life easier.) I saw in the last thread (which I'm close to finishing reading) that someone else started an archive but only got a few writeups in. I hope that by making it automated I can avoid this problem.
|
|
#
?
Jun 28, 2014 21:31
|
|
|
Part Five: Conclusion to The Dragon's Eye, and Abilities ... and in rushes the police, along with a worried Professor Dorchester and the shady French guy, who warns the police not to arrest the Clique. Instead, they cuff Yong Wang, who is revealed to be none other than Nora Cochran... or rather, international jewel theif Georgianna Fortuna! Her dragon costume is made of white silk, orange feathers and glow sticks, and the big booming voice was thanks to her jacking into the p/a system with a special microphone.  Professor Cochran is pretty embarassed at having been taken in by such a world-renowned criminal, not to mention having his pocket picked and getting his note stolen (the word "HOPE" on the note refers to the security passcode; 4673, the numbers which the letters H-O-P-E correspond to on a standard keypad. If a PC returns the note, that PC will receive one extra experience point for being so honest). The shady French guy is in fact Detective Joseph Vendredi of Interpol. He apologises to the kids for being so rude, but he was simply trying to catch Fortuna in the act – she hates the Association of Gemologists (she was their Director, but was fired for being greedy) and a valuable diamond with hints of having an extraordinary history was too much to resist. Just then, Bingo walks up to Georgianna and gives her what for: Cap'n Bingo posted:“Missy, ye ain’t no dragon, an’ ye certainly ain’t no pirate! Yer a common, thievin’ wench, an’ iffn ye were on my ship, I’d make ye walk the plank!” Vendredi sees a cute chimp poking Fortuna on the nose, and will joke about her stealing Bingo's banana. If any of the Clique points out that Bingo's wearing a pirate outfit and can talk, both Dorchester and Vendredi will tell you that you have an overactive imagination. Georgianna is the only grown-up who sees Bingo for who he truly is, as she was also present when The Dragon's Eye worked its magic. However, she's not saying anything because holy poo poo a talking chimp dressed up like a pirate what the hell. When Georgianna's been taken away, the Clique can ask Bingo any questions they want. He's been possessed by the last owner of The Dragon's Eye; a privateer from the American Revolutionary Navy, who was captain of Juliet the Beautiful (named after a woman who he had a major crush on... but didn't even know who he was) until the ship crashed off the coast of Massachusetts - now Rhode Island - and that's all he remembers. As he can't even remember his name, he suggests on henceforth being called Cap'n Bingo. Meddling Kids posted:Now, after such a harrowing adventure, Cap’n Bingo suggests that they go out to find a tavern where he can get a big banana split! The book concludes the adventure with a brief section explaining that the adventure doesn't have to end there. After all, real life involves new adventures and seeing new places, so why shouldn't the game? Alright, now we can get to Abilities  . I'd have skipped ahead to them earlier, but I wanted to point out the only real flaw of Meddling Kids - the downright weird layout that makes you flip back and forth for no reason. It's bad enough with a rulebook like Savage Worlds', but this isn't even 100 pages long!Animal Friend 3 points, Sma+2: You can befriend any animal, even the meanest junkyard dog or the wildest coyote. Best Friend 6 points (Sidekick gets it for free), Hea+1d6: Anybody you meet will like you. Bookworm 7 points (Brain gets it for free), Sma+1d6: You can remember something you read a while back, or you happen to find that one vital clue when doing research in the library. This doesn't apply when you Google something. Bottomless Stomach 1 point, Hea+1: Name says it all - you can stuff your face and not get ill. Bug-Free 2 points, Hea+4: Sadly, this doesn't allow you to produce an anti-insect forcefield - it just means you don't catch that cold that's been going round.  Clown 5 points (Goof gets it for free), Hea+2: You're so funny, you can even make monsters laugh. Computer Guru 8 points, Sma+4: You're as good with computers as everyone's parents assume thir child is. Connected 1 point, Sma+2: You can always find out information from somebody. That doesn't necessarily mean it's true, though. Diplomat 3 points, Sma+3: You can stop people bickering over pointless poo poo. Disguise 4 points, Hea+4: You can resemble somebody visually - clothes and face. ⤷Actor 8 points, Hea+1d6: It's not just looks, now you can imitate somebody's voice and mannerisms. Dodge 5 points, Mov+1d6: You can dodge stuff whe it's thrown at you. Double-Jointed 5 points, Mov+3: Again, clue's in the name. Drive 6 points, Mov+4: You can drive anything from a semi truck to a forklift. Fast Talk 8 points, Hea+1d6: You become the Micro Machines guy and make everyone go Fearless 6 points, Sma+1d6: If you're feeling scared, then this Ability will let you shake it off and carry on. Flirt 2 points (Fluff gets it for free), hea+1: You can get the attention of somebody who's the opposite gender. ⤷Ultra Cute 6 points, Hea+4: Pour on the charm, and you can get somebody of the opposite gender to do whatever you ask of them. ⤷Total Hottie 11 points, Hea+1d6: Pour on even more charm, and you can make your intended target forget what they were doing, or just stop entirely. And yes, I know this Ability subset is kinda weird, but given that this game is aimed at children, it's pretty innocuous. Geek 4 points, Sma+2: Sort of like Bookworm, only with specifics fandoms and fiction genres. Good Eats 2 points, Sma+3: You can cook well. Gross-Out 1 point, Hea+1: You can make somebody grossed out just by doing something.. well, gross. Hard-Headed 5 points, no roll required: When you're Bonked, half the time you'd normally be Bonked. Hip 3 points, Sma+2: You're always up-to-date with the newest trends. Immovable 5 points, Hea+3: NOTHING MOVES THE BLOB! No, really, you can't get knocked down if somebody charges at you. Intimidate 7 points, Str+3: Roll high enough, and even a monster will think twice about messing with you. Intuition 8 points, Sma+1d6: This pretty much gives you Spidey-Sense. Leadership 5 points, Hea+3: You can inspire other people to follow your lead. Level-headed 3 points (cannot be taken by The Temper), Hea+3: You never go  Lucky 15 points, +1d6 to the stat of your choice: Botched a roll? You can reroll and add 1d6, even if you had other d6's, thanks to other Abilities. Just one catch – you can only do this once per session, so tough poo poo if you rolled bad again. Magician 2 points, Mov+2: You can do little sleight-of-hand tricks. I guess it'd be useful for palming clues without grown-ups noticing. Mechanic 6 points, Sma+6: You can fix up or build any gadget or doohickey. ⤷Jury-Rig 8 points, +1d6 to your Trap Roll: You can cobble together something that could be part of a Trap. Monster Mind 6 points, Sma+3: No, it doesn't make you the bad guy in Jayce & The Wheeled Warriors – it just means you're familiar enough with a monster's habits that you know what it'll do next. Musician 4 points, Sma+1d6: You can play any instrument you like. Nature Buff 3 points, Sma+3: Like Bookworm, but for flora and fauna. Nimble 3 points, Mov+2: If somebody's trying to bull rush you, you can get out of the way. Nosey 2 points, Sma+2: It's basically a Will save to see if you actually want to continue with the investigation. I have no idea why this would be in an investigation-based RPG. Outdoorsman 4 points, Sma+3: You're good at camping. Pack Rat 5 spoints, Sma+1: You can bring out any object you like out of your purse/handbag... provided it's small enough to fit in there – no Mary Poppins shenanigans for PCs. Perfect 1 point, Hea+2: You never get your clothes dirty, even if you step in a muddy puddle. Popular 8 points, Hea+2: Everybody in town and your school likes you, and may give you a lead on account of you being so great. ⤷Famous 13 points, Hea+5: You're a national star (athlete, pop star, etc.) and you get recognised in the street. Rich 7 points, Hea+3: You can buy that cool new bike ⤷Really Rich 10 points, Hea+6: You can buy that cool new electric moped. ⤷Rich Beyond Belief 14 points, no roll needed: You can buy anything... or anyone. Singer 4 points, Hea+1d6: Ablilities That Pretty Much Explain Themselves In The Name - 3 Slam 3 points, Sma+1: You always have a snappy reply to anybody being a jerk to you. ⤷Super-Slam 7 points, Sma+3: Your reply is so snappy, it makes the would-be jerk shut their stupid mouth. Sleuth 4 points, Sma+3: Ablilities That Pretty Much Explain Themselves In The Name - 4 Sneak 4 points, Mov+3: Ablilities That Pretty Much Explain Themselves In The Name - 5 Sprint 4 points, Mov+4: Ablilities That Pretty Much Explain Themselves In The Name - 6 Sporty 4 points (Jock gets it for free), Str+3: You can be an all-round sportsperson. ⤷Super-Sporty 1 point, Str+6: This gives you a specific skill, like riding a horse or swimming in rough water. And yes, I'm pretty sure the point cost for this skill is a typo. Stir The Pot 6 points (Temper gets it for free), Sma+3: If you think one person is misleading somebody else, then you can make the second person believe that. Steel Memory 3 points, Sma+3: if this was called Photographic Memory, my ATPMETITN counter would be at 7. Strong-Willed 7 points, Hea+5: It's pretty much a Will save to see if you cave in to a bully. If you pass, you can either laugh it off or act like you don't know what they meant. Suspicion 6 points, Sma+4: It's pretty much this system's answer to Sense Motive. The Whiz 4 points, Sma+3: You know in D&D you could put "Knowledge (____)"? Well, this is pretty much the same thing, only for school subjects. ⤷Mega Whiz 9 points, Sma+1d6: You're so good at this subject, you're in an Honors Program. Wallflower 2 points, Hea+2: You can slip into your surroundings unnoticed – the bigger the crowd, the better. Webworm 7 points, Sma+1d6: Like Bookworm, only for online searches. Weirdness Magnet 3 points, no roll needed: ATPMETITN – 7. The book suggests somebody with this Ability would make good bait for your Trap. Winning Smile 1 point, Hea+1: When you smile, you put somebody at ease. I'm pretty sure this is the crappiest Ability. Xtreme Sporty 5 points, Mov+3: You're great at using a skateboard, BMX bike or snow/surfboard. Well, that's all the PC Abilities done.  Let's move onto Wild Card Abilities!Bag O' Tricks 4 points, Mov+4: Remember how Captain Caveman could pull anything he wanted out of his hair? Well, it's sort of like that, only the Wild Card can pull items out of anything you want. Of course, if you don't meet the TN, then you just pull something useless out. Brawler 7 points, Str+6: ATPMETITN - 8. It does mention that you can literally fight tooth and claw, if you want to. ⤷Martial Artist 9 points, Str/Mov(whichever's highest)+8: ATPMETITN - 9. This only counts for one particular school of martial arts. Call To All 2 points, Hea+2: This pretty much lets you go "To me, my X-Men!". Fade 5 points, Hea+3: You can slowly disappear from sight. Fish Out Of Water 5 points, Hea+1d6: You can adapt to any situation, even if you're, say, a mermaid on dry land. Fly 4 points, Mov+3: ATPMETITN - 10. You do need a special object to fly, like a magic carpet or a jet pack. Ken 2 poins, no roll needed: The Clique can understand you... but nobody else can. Mechanized 16 points, Str/Sma/Hea+1d6: The extra dice is added to any of the stats... although the book doesn't say if you can swap it around. It also states you can be a robot or a cyborg! Melee 7 points, Str+6: You gain proficiency with a certain type of weapon i.e. swords or knives. You have to buy this several times for each weapon type. Perfect Direction 3 points, Sma+3: You never get lost Skit 6 points, Sma+5: You remember those chase scenes where Scooby and Shaggy would pretend to be barbers and give the moster a haircut? Well, this Ability lets you do that... but you have to say what the Skit is. Speak 2 points, no roll needed: Everyone can understand you. Not sure why this has the same cost as Ken, but whatever. Spectre 16 points, no roll needed: You're a ghost, able to detect and converse with your fellow spirits. You also get Super Fly, Transform and Fade for free. Strong 5 points, Str+4: You can lift your own weight. ⤷Super Strong 9 points, Str+8: You can lift more than twice your own weight. Super Fast 8 points, Mov+7: You can move quicker than the human eye. ⤷Exit Stage Left 9 points, Mov+10: You can grab a PC and hightail it out of there before anybody can figure out what just happened. Super Fly 8 points, Mov+5: You can fly by yourself. Telekinetic 8 points, Sma/Str+7 (add to whatever's highest): ATPMETITN - 11. Telepathy 6 points, Sma+6: ATPMETITN - 12. The only catch is you can only be telepathic with one character you pick at the start. Transform Object 8 points, Sma+4: You can turn something into anything else, as long as it's the same size. Transform Self 8 points, Mov+6: You can turn yourself into anything else, as long as it's the same size. Wild Whiz 6 points, Sma+6: Like Whiz, only you can pick any subject you like. I'm not even sure why this exists, when Geek is already an ability. And that's all the Abilities; sorry for the lack of art, but there wasn't much and I didn't want to make this post even longer. I'll finish things up tomorrow with the statblocks for all the sample PCs and an overview of my thoughts on the game and what could've happened with it. In the meantime, why not throw a few idea for Wild Cards at me, and I'll see if I can make them! Eldad Assarach fucked around with this message at 23:03 on Jun 29, 2014 |
|
#
?
Jun 29, 2014 00:59
|
|
|
Wild Cards? An super-smart Archaeopteryx that someone created out of amber-extracted DNA as a fad pet - it can talk like a parrot and likes tricking people.
|
|
#
?
Jun 29, 2014 01:54
|
|
|
A Harlem Globetrotter but for Euro-Football instead of Basketball.
|
|
#
?
Jun 29, 2014 01:57
|
|
|
A talking car, no wait, a talking shark, agh, poo poo. A goofy American Revolution-era ghost! drat it!
|
|
#
?
Jun 29, 2014 02:18
|
|
|
A very special guest appearance from Mister Guy Fieri.Green Intern posted:A goofy American Revolution-era ghost! This one! This one! Kellsterik fucked around with this message at 02:30 on Jun 29, 2014 |
|
#
?
Jun 29, 2014 02:27
|
|
|
Kellsterik posted:A very special guest appearance from Mister Guy Fieri. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ofO69wHdmcQ
|
|
#
?
Jun 29, 2014 02:54
|
|
|
A super-spy and master of disguise who doesn't actually accompany the players but is always hiding somewhere nearby when they need help.
|
|
#
?
Jun 29, 2014 04:59
|
|
|
Your older cousin Tim who's kind of a gruff jerk to the others and makes extra pocket money selling home-made cherry bombs and firecrackers but when push comes to shove he'll stand up for you and your buddies. He likes to pretend he doesn't believe in ghosts because it's dumb kid stuff, but he scares easily. He also drives you guys around because you're not old enough to drive yet.
Vox Valentine fucked around with this message at 05:38 on Jun 29, 2014 |
|
#
?
Jun 29, 2014 05:33
|
|
|
10 ducks operating a trenchcoat in tandem to look convincingly like a guy.
|
|
#
?
Jun 29, 2014 06:37
|
|
|
A perfectly normal father of one of your friends who certainly isn't an octopus at all.
|
|
#
?
Jun 29, 2014 06:46
|
|
|
Vincent loving Price.
|
|
#
?
Jun 29, 2014 07:44
|
|
|
He's a chicken, I tell you! A giant chicken! (And Vincent Price was the best drat thing to happen to Scooby Doo. Other than maybe Don Knotts. Maybe.) Bieeanshee fucked around with this message at 17:44 on Jun 29, 2014 |
|
#
?
Jun 29, 2014 17:32
|
|
|
The fusion of Vincent Price and Don Knotts after a freak teleporter accident.
|
|
#
?
Jun 29, 2014 20:31
|
|
|
|
| # ? Apr 17, 2024 00:39 |
|
|
Part Six: Sample PCs, Wild Card chargen and summing up Remember those kids way back in Part 1? Well, I said I'd go into them a little more deeply, so here we go! Weldon "Clutch" Sellers, Jock 
Abilities: Sporty, Immovable, Nosey, Fearless, Outdoorsman, Intuition, Bottomless Stomach Clutch is the school football team's nose tackle, and a Nature Scout (the uniform's always too small for him). His parents are loving (even if they did name him Weldon); his mother's a housewife and his dad is a college football hero turned used-car dealer. He rescued Andrea (more on her in a bit) from bullies back in 6th grade, and he still crushes on her pretty hard. He's a pretty easy-going guy, especially to people Andrea is friends with, but don't make him angry. You won't like him when he's angry. Andrea Davis, Brain 
Abilities: Bookworm, Dodge, Leadership, Steel Memory, Wallflower, Whiz - Math, Whiz -Science, Level-Headed Andrea's your typical shy nerd; her parents love her, but they're usually too focused on their work (researchers for AmeriGen Labs) so Cap'n Bingo is usually her only companion. She was picked on a lot before Clutch scared the little shits away, but she socialises well in her own little circles - Math Club, Science Club, the school library - and she's willing to help people with their homework (usually Clutch, that's only because Smarts is his dump stat). Sadly, she seems to be oblivious to Clutch's true feelings towards her, crushing hard on... Brian "Thrasher" Carson, Goof  I'm not a violent man, but I want to smack this kid in the face.
Abilities: Clown, Bottomless Stomach, Computer Guru, Gross Out, Mechanic, Weirdness Magnet, Xtreme Sporty Thrasher's not as douchey as he looks - he's a pretty chill guy who cares a lot about the environment and loves skating, figuring out how stuff works (his mother really wishes he'd stop taking the kitchen appliances apart) and video games. Speaking of his mother, she's the only parent in his life - he doesn't know who his dad is, and his mother works day shifts at Super Clucker's and goes to night school to get a hair stylist's license. He goes to Science Club (but thinks everyone except Andrea is an uptight lamewad) and loves Drama Club... when he remembers to show up. He's trying to turn Cap'n Bingo into the next Captain Dan which Cap'n Bingo finds... interesting, to say the least. Oh, and he's always hungry. Always. Roshandra Ngyen, Fluff 
Abilities: Flirt, Fast-Talker, Hip, Singer, Rich, Perfect, Nimble Roshandra's kind of a brat - she's head of the Drama Club, is the school paper's Fashion Editor and has several boys fawning over her at any one time. However, it's all for show; her parents (Dad's an investment broker for a Korean bank and Mom's a civil rights activist trying to get into politics) are never around so they shower her with money and gifts, which makes her very envious of Clutch's family. She just wants to be liked - not that she'd ever admit it - and always wants to give everyone a makeover (except Cap'n Bingo - she digs the pirate look). Siddhartha "Sid" Johnson, Innocent 
Abilities: Strong-Willed, Best Friend, Bug-Free, Double-Jointed, Good Eats, Nature Buff, Musician - Strings, Weirdness Magnet His family (Dad and Grandma) moved to Rhode Island from San Fran to open a health food store called It's All Good; Sid's a vegan, but he's not a dick about it because hey, it's a free country. Sid loves Mother Nature so much he's started a school recycling program, and he's always trying to get Roshandra and Thrasher to start a band. Grown-ups tend to think he's a moron, but his friends know better and usually ask his advice on any problems they've got. Daniel "Spike" Spikelson, Temper 
Abilities: Stir The Pot, Slam, Drive, Geek, Intimidate, Monster Mind Like Thrasher, Spike isn't as douchey as you'd think; he just doesn't suffer fools gladly, and will prank them in order to teach them a lesson. Thrasher is Spike's best friend in The Clique (he lets Thrasher monkey around with his car) but he likes them all and will stick up for them no matter what... usually in a way that could lead to a ruckus. This attitude of his leads to some of The Clique getting annoyed with him (Cap'n Bingo loves his shirt, for obvious reasons). He's got a job at the local punk boutique (yes, really) and he keeps Roshandra up to date on the latest fashions, because he's got a crush on her. Jeff Younger, Sidekick 
Abilities: Best Friend, Animal Friend, Level-Headed, Lucky, Wallflower, Winning Smile, Magician Even the book admits Jeff is pretty boring, but that's mostly because he wants everyone to get along. He and Clutch are second cousins (Jeff's mom is Clutch's dad's secretary). He hikes, reads mystery novels, watches David Blaine and collects... coins. The book was right - he is boring. Okay, let's get onto something more interesting - statting up Wild Cards! Robindaybird posted:An super-smart Archaeopteryx that someone created out of amber-extracted DNA as a fad pet - it can talk like a parrot and likes tricking people. Archie T. Ryx
Abilities: Call To All, Speak, Skit, Super Fly, Nosey, Nimble Quirk: Loves pulling pranks. Mr. Maltose posted:A Harlem Globetrotter but for Euro-Football instead of Basketball. Lian S. Mann
Abilities: Clown, Skit, Nimble, Sporty, Speak Quirk: Must play keepy uppy with anything round. Kellsterik posted:A very special guest appearance from Mister Guy Fieri. Guy Ferry
Abilities: Bottomless Stomach, Good Eats, Speak, Famous, Geek - Cookery Quirk: Brings an element of rowdy, mass-market culture to American food television. Selachian posted:A super-spy and master of disguise who doesn't actually accompany the players but is always hiding somewhere nearby when they need help. Agent 003.14
Abilities: Connected, Actor, Sleuth, Sneak, Speak Quirk: Never seen in full. pkfan2004 posted:Your older cousin Tim who's kind of a gruff jerk to the others and makes extra pocket money selling home-made cherry bombs and firecrackers but when push comes to shove he'll stand up for you and your buddies. He likes to pretend he doesn't believe in ghosts because it's dumb kid stuff, but he scares easily. He also drives you guys around because you're not old enough to drive yet. Tim
Abilities: Drive, Sprint, Stong-Willed, Speak, Steel Memory Quirk: Kind of a douchebag. theironjef posted:10 ducks operating a trenchcoat in tandem to look convincingly like a guy. Quack Quaaaaaack
Abilities: Actor, Nature Buff, Super Fast Quirk: Voice sounds a lot like... quacking. Mr. Maltose posted:A perfectly normal father of one of your friends who certainly isn't an octopus at all. Octodad
Abilities: Ken, Actor, Mechanic, Magician Quirk: Walks funny. Tasoth posted:Vincent loving Price. Vincent Leonard Price, Jr
Abilities: Speak, Actor, Good Eats, Singer, Bottomless Stomach Quirk: Creepy laugh. PoptartsNinja posted:The fusion of Vincent Price and Don Knotts after a freak teleporter accident. Doncent Knoice
Abilities: Speak, Actor, Good Eats, Singer, Bottomless Stomach Quirk: Godless abomination. Green Intern posted:A talking car, no wait, a talking shark, agh, poo poo. A goofy American Revolution-era ghost! drat it! Speed Buggy
Abilities: Speak, Strong, Mechanized Quirk: Weird speech impediment. Jabberjaw
Abilities: Musician - Percussion, Exit Stage Left, Speak Quirk: Has a thing for bratty tambourine players way outside his league/species. Jonathan Wellington "Mudsy" Muddlemore
Abilities: Spectre, Speak, Super Fast Quirk: Talks like Snagglepuss. As you can see, choosing some specific Abilities can really take a chunk out of your starting Character Points, especially if you're following a particular concept. It doesn't help that Wild Cards have to buy regular PC Abilities at a point higher than a PC, with an extra +1 to the roll to balance things out. Well, that's Meddling Kids. It certainly isn't a bad game, just a badly-edited one (the editor is Brett Brooks, husband of Allyson Brooks... the writer of Meddling Kids) and it has a lot of fun ideas. That, and it's about six bucks on DTRPG, which seems a pretty good price to me. Sadly, this was the only book in the series; I believe two supplements were planned, but something happened to make the idea no more than that. Pandahead Productions are now devoted more to graphic design and commercial photography. All I've got left to say for this post is this: keep your feet on the ground, and keep reaching for the stars. Eldad Assarach fucked around with this message at 21:14 on Jun 30, 2014 |
|
#
?
Jun 30, 2014 02:14
|
|