September 19th, Twin Realms: Star-crossed

[Ex-ST]

You're dead. That's right. A pair of lovers and their good friend (or some unfortunate soul that was around them at the time) have died and gone to... an afterlife.

Where? Why? What happened to your partner? You'll have to find out, while trying to figure out other mysteries and avoid being destroyed or thwarted in your efforts to reunite with your love.

In this game everyone will be either one of a pair of deceased lovers or their good friend (yes, there will be several groups of three characters to choose from). And, there will be a twist that you will find out at game (something that all Twin Realms games will have in common in the future).

This game will be as serious or lighthearted as each player wishes to make it. There will be elements of romance, tragic romance, jealousy, treason, love, passion, confusion, loss, frustration, comedy, tragedy, drama and all those other things that make love and death so much fun.

As far as system goes, it will have a rock-paper-scissors base with a couple of minor twists and modifiers. This will be a new system and will have less random factors than I usually try to have in my games. The system is made to be simple, but that could make it seem very unfair. Then again, life is unfair, so why not afterlife?

Keep an eye here for more updates. The system should have updates posted soon, as it is fairly simplified. The characters have been posted and more will be posted as more people RSVP and PM me to let me know what they're interested in.

To RSVP for this game, please go to the entry on the calendar here
_________________
"Everyone's here to have fun. If you're being an a**hole, then someone's not going to have fun. So, don't be an a**hole."
Michael
Archangel of Game Balance and the Level Fields of Fair Play
Ex-ST of Crucible Chronicle

[Ex-ST]

Many of the character names will be very familiar, as they are taken from several fictionally famous couples and friends (and not so much friends...) of that couple. They are not actually those people, but will be based very loosely on them.

Here's the first list. Just the bare bones for now, but enough to get you interested, I hope. The list of characters will be in groups of threes, the guy, the gal and the friend. The couple's names will be listed, but not the friend, for now. The friend will have a description, like the couple, but no name will be listed (there's a reason, don't worry). I will need someone to play all three of the characters in each group for that trio to be in the game. But don't worry about that, yet. That'll come later in the planning and who's-playing-who stage.

Note: there is a good chance that not all of the trios of characters will be played. It all depends on how many people wind up playing and who they pick and who they are able to get to play the rest of their trio.

Taken by RevNecifer, Warr, and needing a friend (hoping for MisterX)
1. Boris, Natasha, Rocky
Boris: considers himself an evil mastermind
Natasha: a temptress of exceptional intelligence
friend: energetic, helpful, heroic, but gets easily distracted

Taken by demihappycow, Nyha, and Muffin
2. Jack, Jill, Peter
Jack: well meaning, but bungling would-be hero
Jill: loyal and lovely, she is the symbol of honor and love
friend: greedy, gluttonous and lazy

Taken by DrJ, Lokie, and Luken64
3. Clyde, Bonnie, Sonny
Clyde: suave, charming and all kinds of no good
Bonnie: cunning, persuasive and deadly
friend: unlawful, conniving, tough and also all kinds of no good

Taken by MisterX, Hikaru has been switch to Dottie and still needing the friend (Tnarg?)
4. Clark, Lois, friend
Clark: sweet, kind and gentle. A heart of gold, but kind of a nerd
Lois: smart, brave, energetic and somewhat selfish
friend: energetic, loyal, friendly and just brave enough to get the job done

*** Trio #5 has been removed.

Taken by Kent, Boatswain, and Lionheart01
6. Percy, Mary, Gordon
Percy: decadent, sexual and artistic. A man of little to no morals
Mary: intelligent, creative and active. Ever-so-slightly decadent
friend: intelligent, decadent, creative and somewhat egotistical

Taken by Killroy, Wyqued and Di (first trio filled. Yes, they will get something special for being the first)
7. Will, Elizabeth, Jack
Will: brash, confident and confused. Heroic to a fault
Elizabeth: brave, cunning, stubborn... and surprisingly heroic
friend: sly, slovenly, seductive and easily distracted, yet somehow amazingly heroic and dashing

Taken by DoctorWhy, Hikaru, and docjudas
8. Norman, Dottie, Jimmy
Norman: competent and organized. A mother hen and would-be stage/screen star
Dottie: innocent, naive and pretty. A girl with stars in her eyes, even though she's not too bright
friend: popular, cool, attractive, but dumb as a stump

I picked a character. Why isn't it listed yet?
So, in this particular set up, I won't be listing who has picked which character until after each trio is filled up. I have been sending PMs to people after they choose, but not posting here. The reason for that is which character you are going to wind up playing could change drastically if your trio doesn't get filled (and I have been telling people in PMs that they have to try to get folk to play the rest of their trio if they really want to play that character).

So far, these trios have people in them:

***Will, Elizabeth, friend (filled! Yay! We have our first trio!)
***Jack, Jill, Friend (filled! Yay! We have our second trio!)
***Percy, Mary, friend (filled! We have our third trio!)
***Clyde, Bonnie, friend (filled! Our fourth trio)
***Boris, Natasha, and needing friend (see above) (filled! We have our fifth trio!)
***Norman, Dottie, friend (filled! We have our sixth trio!)
(This trio will probably be dropped... see most recent posts)Clark, Lois, friend (Clark has been spoken for, but he still needs Lois and their friend)

That's all I can tell you about who is who, since it could change. Feel free to post here and volunteer to help fill up a trio or to try to recruit for your trio. Have fun with it!

Also, once your trio is filled up, it will be time to get together (by PM, more than likely) with them and decide what you want to do for costuming/era/style. The characters don't have to be just like their namesakes. Boris and Natasha and friend could have a style like they were out of the Matrix, or could be wearing togas. Clyde, Bonnie and friend could be from the old West, or a space station. You guys get to choose. The only real rule is that all three players have to agree and that the trio all have the same style/genre/era/etc. Have fun!

As soon as trios are filled, I will post the players for that trio here. Actual character stuff will be sent out sometime after September 6th.
_________________
"Everyone's here to have fun. If you're being an a**hole, then someone's not going to have fun. So, don't be an a**hole."
Michael
Archangel of Game Balance and the Level Fields of Fair Play
Ex-ST of Crucible Chronicle

[Ex-ST]

(originally posted: Wed Aug 12, 2009 4:11 am)

And keep an eye out here for rules, system info and all of that stuff.

The basics:
Each character will have five stats (Brawn, Mobility, Smarts, Shine and Life) and up to 6 things they Can Do.

~Brawn: strength, health, general toughness (think Strength+Constitution)
~Mobility: dexterity, agility, nimbleness, speed, etc.
~Smarts: all the mental stuff, memory, intelligence, remembering things, etc.
~Shine: charisma, guile, wit, charm, social skills, etc.
~Life: hit points, health (you run out, you die... again)

~Can Do: these are your skills, abilities, etc. A Can Do might be Seduction or Brawl or Dance or any number of things that the character is good at.

So that you know if your Stats are good and just what the number after your Can Do means compared to everyone else, here are the ranges for the Stat and Can Do numbers:

Stat:
Poor: 1-3
Average: 4-6
Good: 7-9
Amazing: 10-12
Godly: 13+

Can Do:
Unskilled: 0
Familiar: 1-3
Experienced: 4-6
Expert: 7-9
Master: 10-12
Unbelievable: 13+

Conflict resolution:
When a conflict arises that cannot be resolved with good old fashioned roleplaying, it comes down to conflict resolution. This could be used to see who lands a punch or who dodges, or it could be used to figure out if someone was able to convince/seduce another character into doing something, or any number of things that are beyond the player’s ability to make happen (special powers, throwing someone into someone else, lie effectively, etc.).

For the Twin Realms system, it boils down to basic Rock-Paper-Scissors (you can do this with the standard hand signs or some sort of tokens). Winner gets to do what they were trying to do and loser… does not. Simple. Now the part where your Stat and your Can Do come into it and make it more complicated. If there is a tie, whoever has the highest number (which is applicable Stat plus applicable Can Do) wins. At this point (as there are no retests), either opponent may choose to spend one of the Life points to negate one of their opponent’s numbers (either Stat or Can Do), in hopes of winning. This doesn’t always work (see examples below), but increases your odds drastically. The opponent may, in turn, also spend one of their Life points to do the same thing back. At this point, only the player whose character has the higher applicable skill (yes, even if that was the number negated) may spend another Life point to negate the other players remaining number (either Stat or Can Do). The player with the higher Can Do may spend up to two Life points, even if their opponent hasn’t spent any yet (see example below for why/how that would happen).

Examples:
Jason and Tom have done all of their roleplaying best, but have come to a point where Tom just cannot convince Jason’s character to go and pick a fight with Ryan’s character. Tom’s character has a high Shine Stat and a high Convince Can Do, so he thinks his character should be able to do this. Tom and Jason enter into conflict resolution. They do Rock-Paper-Scissors (RPS) and it’s a tie. They compare numbers. Tom has a 7 Shine and a 8 Convince, for a total of 15. Jason has an 8 Smarts (which the players decided was applicable, since all Jason was trying to do was resist Tom’s con job) and a 5 Resist Temptation, for a total of 13. Jason’s number is less, so he would lose the test and have to play his character as convinced to go pick a fight with Ryan’s character, for whatever reason Tom’s character had said. Now, Jason knows that his character is not physical at all and Ryan’s character is an old veteran zombie hunter that could really hurt him, so he decides to spend a Life point to resist this, by taking a chance and negating Tom’s Can Do number. That brings Tom’s number down to 7 and Jason is now the winner. Tom could choose to let it slide and try something else, or he could spend a Life point to negate one of Jason’s numbers. He does so, and takes away Jason’s Stat, leaving Jason with 5 to Tom’s 7. Now Tom wins. Jason would like to spend another Life point (knowing he could lose a lot more fighting with Ryan’s character), but his applicable Can Do is lower than Tom’s (Tom has 8, Jason has 5), so he cannot.

Another quick one. Ryan has decided that his character needs to throw Tom’s character across the room into Jason’s character. Ryan and Tom do RPS. Another tie (amazing how that happens so often when you’re doing examples!). Ryan has 10 (!!!) Brawn and a Brawl of 3, for a total of 13. Tom has a 3 Brawn and a 4 Brawl for a total of 7. Ryan would win. Tom doesn’t want his character thrown into Jason’s character, so he spends a Life point and negates Ryan’s Brawl. Oops. Bad gamble. Ryan still has 10 to Tom’s 7. Ryan still wins. But, Tom has the higher applicable Can Do (4 to Ryan’s 3), so he can spend another Life point to negate Ryan’s Stat, as well. Now it’s Ryan’s zero to Tom’s 7. Even if Ryan chose to spend a Life point at this time, he couldn’t win.

At a quick glance, yes, you will note that anyone with a higher applicable Can Do may just spend 2 Life points to automatically win any test. Fair? No. But, Life points don’t come back easily in this game, so you want to really think hard about just casually spending them. Also, once you are down to 2 Life points, you may no longer spend them on anything except special powers and such. So you will want to be very careful about what you decide to spend those Life points on.

Now, your Stat and your Can Do are generally the only numbers that get added in during conflict resolution, but sometimes there are others. If your character has some sort of special bonus (+3 in all unarmed combat, +2 in social conflict with the opposite sex, etc.) or special power (get +5 to all tests for the next five minutes, +3 to all tests with those of the same gender, etc.), then those numbers are added in as well, and those numbers do not get taken away with Life point expenditures.

Let’s go back to Ryan’s throwing Tom’s character. Let’s say Ryan had a special power that he could activate by spending a Life point that gave him +5 in one physical conflict. Ryan spends a Life point to activate this and another Life point to negate Tom’s Can Do. Now Tom’s total is 3 and Ryan’s total is 5 and Ryan wins. Yay, special powers and bonuses. Of course, had Tom’s character had a Brawn of 6 or more, he would have still won.

So, what happens if after everyone who can spend Life spends and it’s still a tie? Or the opponents both have the same number for their applicable Can Do? In the case of ultimate ties, both parties spend one Life and then just keep doing RPS until someone wins (just ignore ties and keep going until someone wins).

Damage

Well now, it wouldn't make much sense to have Life points if there wasn't some way to get damaged, huh?
Damage is very simple. Most every attack and other thing that may damage you will do one Life point in damage.
Some exceptions:
For characters (or traps, items, monsters, etc. rated with Stats) it is one point of damage if their Brawn is 7 or lower. If it is 8 to 12, they do 2 points. 13 or higher, 3 points.
Certain Special Powers or Special Bonuses may do more than one point of damage.
Certain Magical Powers or traps may do more than one point of damage.

Can Do descriptions

Basically, I tried to make these really simple, so each Can Do is basically called what you can do with it.

Here's the list (in no particular order), with the Stat usually associated with it and a quick description of what it is:

Seduce (Shine): bend someone to your will, using your sexual and flirtatious nature. Often used to get someone to do stuff for (or to) you.
***If you have "Seduce (involuntary)", then you must do a Social conflict with every person of the opposite sex that you meet, talk to or encounter in any way (for these purposes both GM and Monitor are not included). Those with the Special Bonus of Stubborn or Loyal are immune to this effect and do not need to do the conflict (they are not immune to normal Seduction, just the effects of Seduction (involuntary).

Lie (Shine): stretch the truth or bend it or break it. Use this when you need the facts to be believed the way you[/i] want them to be believed.

Convince (Shine): get someone to do something for you without using your sexual or flirtatious nature (although there is sometimes flirting involved, it's usually of the harmless type).

Dodge (Mobility): get out of the way and keep from getting hit. Use this when in a physical conflict and you do not wish to attack back, but merely keep from getting hit yourself.

Unarmed Fighting (Brawn): punching, kicking, etc. Attacking someone without the use of weapons, in an effort to hurt them.

Wrestle (Brawn): grappling, holding, etc. Use this when you want to hold onto someone and keep them from going anywhere or fighting back. You do not do any damage on the initial attack. After you are successful, you may do another normal physical conflict to do a point of damage (you opponent may use Wrestle, also, or may use Get Away). An opponent may still use Unarmed Fighting and Armed Fighting (if you haven’t specified the limb they are holding the weapon in), but are at a -2 to their Can Do.

Armed Fighting (Mobility): attacking with weapons. Use this when you have a melee weapon (bat, sword, knife, etc.) in hand and want to hurt someone with it.

Throwing (Mobility): throwing something at someone or at a target of some sort. Use this when you want to throw something at something/someone else. This is used for weapons, balls, paper airplanes, stuffed animals, etc.

Disarm (Mobility or Brawn): taking a weapon from an opponent’s use. Use this to knock a weapon from someone’s hand, break the weapon, snatch the weapon, etc. Generally this will just knock the weapon out of your opponent’s hand. If you do really well, then you may choose to break the weapon (either in their hand or away from them), and if you do amazingly well, then you may choose to just plain grab the weapon out of their hand. If you use Mobility for this, you do this in a fancy, skillful way. If you use Brawn, you just smack the weapon hard with pure, brute force.

Get Away (Mobility): get out of holds, bonds, etc. Akin to Dodge, but used more for when Dodge has failed. Use this to get out of a Wrestle hold or any such impediment on your movement (sticky floors, webs, etc.).

Notice Things (Smarts): see stuff that others may miss. Use this when you think there might be something that you, the player, are missing, that you think the character might notice. Use for random “Do I notice anything in this room?” checks, or sometimes when the GM walks up to you randomly and has you do a check. Use to defend in a conflict against Pick Pocket.

Detect Lies (Smarts): know when someone is lying. Use any time you think someone might not be telling the whole truth (or any time someone uses Lie in a conflict with you)

Resist Temptation (Smarts): don’t press the red button, don’t stick your finger in the icing, don’t peek, don’t give in to the long lashes and pretty smile, etc. Use this when presented with something that you may want or someone is making you want (whenever someone tries to get you to do something, feel a certain way, etc.). Use to defend in a conflict when someone is using Seduction or Convince.

Pick Pocket (Mobility): get something from a pocket (or other such area) without being noticed. Use this any time you want to get some small item from someone or from somewhere that you can reach, without anyone seeing you do it. You cannot use it to get something that someone is holding (try Disarm, instead) or something you cannot physically reach (if you can’t reach the feather in his hat, you cannot take it). May also be used to place objects without anyone noticing.

Intimidate (Shine): scare someone a bit, make them back down. Use this when you want to let someone know just what a badass you are, without having to resort to violence. A good hard glare/stare/snarl is all it takes. You must, of course, be threatening in some manner to use this Can Do (you can’t be sitting, smiling and laughing when you use it, unless that somehow really works for the character and situation… but if you suddenly stop laughing and glare…)

*Tumble (Mobility): move about in such an odd, erratic, unpredictable way that opponents find it hard to lay a hand on you and sometimes fall prey to their own attacks. This is a special Can Do. Very few people will ever have it (only two in this One-Shot do). Use Tumble in any physical conflict where you opponent is trying to hit, grab or touch you in any way. If you win the conflict your opponent takes any damage they were going to do to you and you may choose to affect them as they were going to affect you (if they were grabbing your arm, you have theirs; if they were disarming you, they are disarmed; if they were throwing you into someone, they go sailing into that person, etc.).

Special Bonuses:
Every character has at least one Special Bonus. These things enhance your character and/or give them bonuses in certain situations. Most of them merely involve a bonus, while some of them may involve a quick simple test of Rock-Paper-Scissors or even a quick conflict test.

Tough (add your Brawn to your Life point number after Life number has been calculated) *for this game, this has already been calculated for all of the characters that have this Special Bonus.

Suave (+2 in all social conflicts, when you are the aggressor/initiator.)

Stubborn (+2 in all social conflicts when you are the defender. Also, during any social or mental conflicts, you may spend 2 Life points to negate numbers, even if you do not have the higher applicable Can Do)

Lucky (no bonus, but if someone spends Life points to negate both your Can Do and your Stat during a conflict, you are still considered to have 4 points)

Sneaky (+2 during any conflict that you use Dodge or Pick Pocket)

Sweet (before any social conflict, do a simple RPS test. If you win or tie, your opponent may not spend Life points to negate your Shine for that conflict)

Honorable (during any conflict that would make you lie, cheat or steal in any way, you may automatically spend up to 2 Life points, even if you do not have an applicable Can Do or the highest applicable Can Do)

Cocky (+2 in any social conflict if you know your opponent has less Shine than you do)

Sly (+2 during any social conflicts that you use Lie or Convince)

Amazing (+3 during all physical combat conflicts)

Loyal (in any conflict that would make you act against [named character] in any way, you may double either your Stat or your applicable Can Do)

Energetic (if you have spent more than 1 Life point, you may ask the GM to get one back. Do simple RPS test with GM. If you win or tie, you get it back. You may only do this three times during a game )

Smarty (+2 in all mental conflicts)

Charming (+2 in all social conflicts versus members of the opposite sex)

Dashing (+3 in all social conflicts with the opposite sex, if your opponent has just witnessed you win a physical challenge)

Foolish (+3 in any social conflict when your opponent is trying to trick you. You just don’t get it. It must be a joke.)

Diabolical (+5 in any social conflict where you are trying to get someone to kill someone else or themselves)

Scary (+3 in any conflict that involves Intimidate, regardless of whether or not you have the Can Do or if you are using it)

Flexible (can use any Can Do you have of less than 4 to be an applicable Can Do for any conflict, even if it’s not)


(*keep checking; there will be more)
_________________
"Everyone's here to have fun. If you're being an a**hole, then someone's not going to have fun. So, don't be an a**hole."
Michael
Archangel of Game Balance and the Level Fields of Fair Play
Ex-ST of Crucible Chronicle

[Ex-ST]

A little less than two weeks away an here's what we've got so far:

***Jack, Jill, Friend (filled! demihappycow, Nyha and Muffin)

***Will, Elizabeth, friend (filled! Killroy, Wyqued, and Di)

***Percy, Mary, friend (filled! Kent, Boatswain, LionHeart01)

***Boris, Natasha, friend (filled! RevNecifer, Warr and Nora)

***Clyde, Bonnie, friend (filled! Dr_J, Lokie and Luken64)

***Norman, Dottie and friend (filled! DoctorWhy, MysticAngel and docjudas)

Clark, Lois and friend (MisterX, Hikaru and still need a friend)


There are two people who have characters, but haven't RSVPed, yet (in case you're looking for them on the RSVPs): Killroy and MysticAngel

Boomslang is on the RSVP list, but is assisting in running the game and playing an NPC type part.
_________________
"Everyone's here to have fun. If you're being an a**hole, then someone's not going to have fun. So, don't be an a**hole."
Michael
Archangel of Game Balance and the Level Fields of Fair Play
Ex-ST of Crucible Chronicle

[Kent]

What time did you want people to show-up for the game?
_________________

I can't see the forest, all the trees are in the way.

[Ex-ST]

[Lisa]

Where is this? Sorry, but I'm new to SHAG.... And LARPing.

Thanks!

-Lisa

[Ex-ST]

[Ex-ST]

Just a quick note. Posted the Special Bonuses for the characters (not all of which will be used this game... or maybe they will).

I should be sending out character info this weekend for those who have their trios complete.
_________________
"Everyone's here to have fun. If you're being an a**hole, then someone's not going to have fun. So, don't be an a**hole."
Michael
Archangel of Game Balance and the Level Fields of Fair Play
Ex-ST of Crucible Chronicle

[Ex-ST]

Another quick note. Remember the part about costuming that's mentioned up above. Once you get your trio complete, make sure to contact the rest of your trio and decide what sort of costuming/era/genre/style you guys are going to do.

Also, it seems this time around I may not be invaded by people needing costumes, as no one has sent me any PMs, etc. Yay!
If you do need stuff, please make sure to PM me, as I am in the middle of major reorganizing of props and costumes and many are being put away in hard to get to spots.
_________________
"Everyone's here to have fun. If you're being an a**hole, then someone's not going to have fun. So, don't be an a**hole."
Michael
Archangel of Game Balance and the Level Fields of Fair Play
Ex-ST of Crucible Chronicle

[Ex-ST]

So, anyone that hasn't chosen a character, yet (including people who RSVP, etc. after this), we really need someone to play these parts (in order of need):

Clark and Lois' friend
_________________
"Everyone's here to have fun. If you're being an a**hole, then someone's not going to have fun. So, don't be an a**hole."
Michael
Archangel of Game Balance and the Level Fields of Fair Play
Ex-ST of Crucible Chronicle

[Ex-ST]

Another quick note.
Due to the nature of this game, it is really important that everyone arrive early. It is important for everyone to be here no later than 4:30pm, because that's when explanations and such will start. The actual game play will start at 5pm, so all prep stuff (game rules, introductions, etc.) needs to be done by then.
Please, please, please don't show up late (or right at 5pm!).
Thank you, thank you, thank you!
_________________
"Everyone's here to have fun. If you're being an a**hole, then someone's not going to have fun. So, don't be an a**hole."
Michael
Archangel of Game Balance and the Level Fields of Fair Play
Ex-ST of Crucible Chronicle

[Nora]

I'm not one to be late, but I do have a terrible knack for arriving too early.

How early is too early for you, if I may?

[Muffin]

Thursday.

[Ex-ST]