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2017-11-08, 02:06 PM (ISO 8601)
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- Oct 2009
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- In my library
Re: Are there RPGs where some of the character creation is partly done during play?
Here's an interesting idea I've had, although it would require you to be okay with relatively specialized characters because it's the end result of the syste.
-Players only purchase Ability Scores and Advantages/Disadvantages at character creation, but can put aside as many points as they want for skills (potential rule: at least X points must be reserved).
-During the game when a player succeeds at a skill check they can spend some of the skill points they set aside to raise that skill by one.
-Once a player has spend all their skill points they advance as normal (or XP becomes new skill points).
The main problem I see here is ending up with weird skill combinations (I have three points each in pistol, climb, survival, swimming, and nuclear physics), and the fact that the more points you have in a skill the more chance you'll have to raise it.
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2017-11-08, 02:33 PM (ISO 8601)
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- Jan 2012
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Re: Are there RPGs where some of the character creation is partly done during play?
One wrinkle on Dread is that if you don't succeed, you're going to die. Like Traveler.
Freeform and story-driven tend to work well with this. The trick is that you start getting away from "character creation" beyond what's needed in narrative, and likely not evolve past the story.
I can think of another sort-of example: Munchkin. Race and Class may come (and go) over the course of play. If only there were a way to harness that system for good...
Oh dear I've gone crosseyed.
You only wish your game's title was this long and descriptive.
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2017-11-08, 03:19 PM (ISO 8601)
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- Oct 2017
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Re: Are there RPGs where some of the character creation is partly done during play?
I believe that the CRPG Tyranny kind of goes by that style, at least in the start, because during the "Conquest" part of the game your choices determine which benefits and special powers you get.
DracoqwertyThe non-violent solution is most often the best solution.
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I Am A: Lawful Good Human Wizard (1st Level)
Ability Scores:
Strength-13
Dexterity-14
Constitution-13
Intelligence-19
Wisdom-15
Charisma-15
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2017-11-08, 03:43 PM (ISO 8601)
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- Dec 2007
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- San Antonio, Texas
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Re: Are there RPGs where some of the character creation is partly done during play?
In the old PC game "Dusk of the Gods", character creation was playing out the mortal life of your Einherjar. Did you spend years at the temples of the gods? Did you fight in battles? Did you study? Whatever you did, that determined your stats as an Einherjar.
(For the record: Your best bet was to study like crazy. There were only two stats, Warrior and Sage, plus favor with 4 of the Aesir. There were a lot of easy bonuses to Warrior available, favor with the Aesir wasn't terribly important, but Sage was a rare commodity.)The Cranky Gamer
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2017-11-08, 05:11 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jan 2009
Re: Are there RPGs where some of the character creation is partly done during play?
As an example of this being mentioned as an optional thing.
I've heard of some new World of Darkness games with the idea of this. Something like an opening module where how you handle things shapes what your opening powers/affinities are. Old World of Darkness Hunter also proposed this.
Not my cup of tea, as I prefer more control over the mechanics/powers my character has access to, but I can see the fun of doing a game pre-powers. I was in a D&D 3.5 game where all our class features were sealed until game 2, and it was kinda cool, but we still chose our classes. (This was a real world army team gets teleported to a D&D realm.)
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2017-11-08, 06:33 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Oct 2010
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- Dallas, TX
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Re: Are there RPGs where some of the character creation is partly done during play?
I agree with what I think you mean, I just phrase is differently. 3.x re-defined "class" to be something that has nothing to do with class.
An excellent actual class-based game is Flashing Blades, role-playing in the time and place of the musketeers, 17th century France.
Your class is your actual social class - rogue, soldier, gentleman, or noble.Last edited by Jay R; 2017-11-08 at 06:39 PM.
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2017-11-08, 06:56 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Aug 2005
- Location
- Toronto, Canada
- Gender
Re: Are there RPGs where some of the character creation is partly done during play?
I've played One Last Job! It is a lot of fun, but it is exclusively designed for one-shots. You might be able to extrapolate a lot of its stuff into a long-form character creation process, though.
The basic premise is that you start the game with nothing special on your sheet - just average scores in all of the 'skills' for your game (usually, there are 4-5). You have empty slots for the following things:
* Worst At This Skill - special
* Best At This Skill - special
* Legend - 2 slots
* Scar - 2 slots
* Equipment - 2 slots
Whenever you fail an action, you can write in one of those five things. You can say that you are the worst at that sort of thing, and reduce your skill at it to 1, in which case you get a plot token. If someone else is already the worst at that thing, you can say that you're the best at that thing, boost your skill to 3, and reroll.
Instead, another player can tell a story of a Legend or a Scar - a time in the past when you did something really awesome, or screwed up in a big way, related to the thing you're trying to do. I don't recall the exact rules, but I think being a Legend gives you a bonus in similar situations (instead of with similar skills), and a Scar gives you a plot token and a reroll. Finally, you can reveal a really cool piece of equipment for a reroll. Once all your slots are filled up, you can't get that thing any more.
(One Last Job also has a thing where, if your character would die, you can instead "reveal" that you've been working against the rest of the party the whole time, and become a supporting character helping the GM.)Last edited by Friv; 2017-11-08 at 06:57 PM.
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2017-11-08, 08:13 PM (ISO 8601)
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- Feb 2006
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- NYC
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Re: Are there RPGs where some of the character creation is partly done during play?
I want you to PEACH me as hard as you can.
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2017-11-09, 04:49 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Oct 2009
- Location
- In my library
Re: Are there RPGs where some of the character creation is partly done during play?
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2017-11-09, 07:26 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Nov 2017
Re: Are there RPGs where some of the character creation is partly done during play?
As I know there isn't such RPG
Last edited by maracan; 2019-01-22 at 06:14 AM.
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2017-11-09, 03:25 PM (ISO 8601)
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- Feb 2006
- Location
- NYC
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Re: Are there RPGs where some of the character creation is partly done during play?
I want you to PEACH me as hard as you can.
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2017-11-09, 04:17 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Aug 2008
Re: Are there RPGs where some of the character creation is partly done during play?
The term class has been used for the 3.x style and not just social-class for a very long time in RPGs. That's not to say that it isn't used for both, although generally games try to avoid using the term for both game classes and social classes in the same game too much (which is really easy for most games, as they aren't game class based anyways).
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2017-11-10, 08:23 AM (ISO 8601)
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- Jul 2014
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- UK
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Re: Are there RPGs where some of the character creation is partly done during play?
I have used this for GURPs (in a modern day setting game)
Players buy stats and main advantages / disadvantages and then I gave a generic(ish) set of skill
Players could then chose others as the game progressed and they created more of a back story
The other one we use most of the time is Quirks - we allow 5 points of quirks to be spent at the start of the game but then as you develop you actually specify them
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2017-11-10, 03:55 PM (ISO 8601)
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- Jul 2007
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Re: Are there RPGs where some of the character creation is partly done during play?
Wow, seems like I have a lot of reading to do...
Seems people have a different vision then me for this concept, I thought about it as a way to ease players into a complex game system or world, while the examples seem to be more focused on narrative or adding some "spice". I got this idea due to thoughts about organizing a Nobilis group, and realizing I'll need to explain things like Chancels and Imperators and defining the estate and how abstractly defined abilities work, and I thought about that if a player will misunderstand the feel of the world he'll probably create a very different character then what he would like to play. I guess one day I'll invent a game system / setting with such play-build system and use this thread as reference.Madly In Science, an RPG in which you play mad scientists, you can get it for free.
Spoiler: Some other things.
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2017-11-13, 01:06 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jan 2009
Re: Are there RPGs where some of the character creation is partly done during play?
If you want to introduce players to a game, you could try doing a one-session short game to start off a campaign, not directly related to the campaign and with different PCs. (Though if the players really like the PC they had, you could port it to the real game.)
I've sometimes found that I don't really get how some mechanics will play out when I"m first reading about a game, but then I feel stuck (especially if the mechanic is crucial to my backstory or overall build, something that can't easily be retconned). Having a short game to introduce the mechanics and get a feel for it would be nice, especially if the group expects a long campaign and can meet often enough that one short game outside the main campaign doesn't slow things down too much.
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2017-11-13, 06:26 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jan 2015
Re: Are there RPGs where some of the character creation is partly done during play?
Low Fantasy Gaming RPG - Free PDF at the link: https://lowfantasygaming.com/
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Midlands Low Magic Sandbox Setting - https://lowfantasygaming.com/2017/12...x-setting-pdf/
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2017-11-13, 06:29 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jan 2015
Re: Are there RPGs where some of the character creation is partly done during play?
I'm not sure but I thiink maybe in Beyond the Wall you migit create your PC in the first session of play, not sure. You certianly build you starting village together (I havent played it, not read it, just what ive gleaned from reviews etc)
Low Fantasy Gaming RPG - Free PDF at the link: https://lowfantasygaming.com/
$1 Adventure Frameworks - RPG Mini Adventures: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=645444
Midlands Low Magic Sandbox Setting - https://lowfantasygaming.com/2017/12...x-setting-pdf/
GM Toolkits - Traps, Hirelings, Blackpowder, Mass Battle, 5e Hardmode, Olde World Loot http://www.drivethrurpg.com/browse/p...Fantasy-Gaming
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2017-11-13, 08:25 PM (ISO 8601)
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- Mar 2016
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- The Frozen North
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Re: Are there RPGs where some of the character creation is partly done during play?
What you call declaration is a staple in Theatrix called plot points. You need to get into the palace? One palace guard is an old mercenary buddy of yours, maybe you can persuade him to get you in.
It is great for world building and adding or detracting from a scene and gets the players invested. Some players hate it, some love it.
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2017-11-14, 04:40 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Oct 2009
- Location
- In my library
Re: Are there RPGs where some of the character creation is partly done during play?
In terms of how to introduce a complex game system or world, eh it varies. For game systems I have seen ones go 'if the group is just starting feel free to leave out element X for a session or two and then let players pick during play' (Fate Acclerated recommends this for Stunts). Although I'll note that many game systems these days are more complicated than they need to be if they use levels, giving players at least one new ability to keep track of every time they level up, a 20th level D&D 5e character will generally have somewhere in the realm of ten to fifteen abilities, which have in turn been strengthened by another ten abilities.
In terms of setting, it's all about how you introduce it. You don't have to reveal it all at once, few GMs I know do that.
In first edition a single failed survival roll when you went for another term killed your character, no backsies. Suiciding characters until you got decent stats was easy and common (just take 10+ terms as a Scout). In the current editions is harder, Mongoose Traveller has survival rolls cause a mishap by default.
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2017-11-14, 05:01 AM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Apr 2007
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- England
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Re: Are there RPGs where some of the character creation is partly done during play?
The Old World of Darkness had a mechanic for at least partial character creation during play; specifically in Vampire and Hunter, though you could kinda do it in Wraith, Demon and Werewolf too.
The premise is that you create a baseline human and then in the first couple of sessions that your GM runs you through see you getting Embraced or Erupting in an organic manner, rather than just "the game starts, you're a vampire now", and you pick your Vampiric powers and bloodline through play.
If you DM wants to put in a bit more time and effort into the process, you can play an entire campaign as a generic, barely developed Vampire and the plot is about discovering your true nature - what powers you have, who your Sire is, and how they develop over a period of time until you ultimately end the campaign with a "level 1" character who has an established background.~ CAUTION: May Contain Weasels ~
RPG Characters What I Done Played As (Explained Badly)
17 Things I Learned About 40k By Playing Dark Heresy
Tales of a Role-Play Gamer - Horrible Optimisation
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2017-11-14, 03:18 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Aug 2015
Re: Are there RPGs where some of the character creation is partly done during play?
If it's not been mentioned yet, Mystic Empyrean from Level 99 Games. Powers are all tied to personality attributes, and the party basically "votes" on each others' traits after a session or during a break. So if your party members noticed your character was very boastful, they'll mark you down points in Boastful, which then translates to your character doubling in size and strength. If they mark you down as greedy, you'll gain the power to turn stuff into gold (or something like that).
Basic stats are tied to those traits and powers.
So, you can run the first part of a session--find a good breathing point, and have everybody suss out how each others' characters behaved in the situation. Bam, present their powers. I introduced at least a few players to the game that way, with their characters gaining their powers mid-session.
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2017-11-14, 08:32 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jan 2015
Re: Are there RPGs where some of the character creation is partly done during play?
I think this is excellent and allow it as part of standard play in dnd etc. The PC background is a sentence when we start. During play it gets expanded on, and the history crystallizes. Yes, players will tend to create things that help them at first, but once facts have emerged, later additions will need to be consistent etc - all subject to GM veto
Low Fantasy Gaming RPG - Free PDF at the link: https://lowfantasygaming.com/
$1 Adventure Frameworks - RPG Mini Adventures: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=645444
Midlands Low Magic Sandbox Setting - https://lowfantasygaming.com/2017/12...x-setting-pdf/
GM Toolkits - Traps, Hirelings, Blackpowder, Mass Battle, 5e Hardmode, Olde World Loot http://www.drivethrurpg.com/browse/p...Fantasy-Gaming
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2017-11-14, 10:37 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Mar 2016
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- The Frozen North
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Re: Are there RPGs where some of the character creation is partly done during play?
I use it still in my games even though it's over 20 years since I last played Theatrix
Last session one player used it to start a rumour which kinda had nothing to do with anything. But now the barrel killer is feared through the city. One PC was moving a prisoner during night time with 4 city watchmen, of course he had split from the party. A lone arbalester, which the players have dubbed simply "the sniper", started shooting them down one by one at 100 yards from a sniping position. Nobody except the sniper were able to see in the dark. The poor PC was able to hide in an alley while the arbalester used sniper tactics by wounding the watchmen and when they tried to save a buddies they got shot and killed. In the end the PC dragged couple of the watchmen, who were severly wounded, and stashed them in barrels to hide them. The PC who is rather afraid of the dark decided to leg it and hid in a stable until the morning. When others arrived at the grisly scene they found two dead watchmen, who had bled to death, in barrels and the rumours of the barrel killer started. Another PC who is a face character decided to use the opportunity to use a plot point to spread the rumours of the barrel killer.
"Go to bed or the barrel killer will take you" is now used to get children to bed
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2017-11-14, 10:42 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Dec 2015
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- San Francisco Bay area
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Re: Are there RPGs where some of the character creation is partly done during play?
Heh.
Even though (IIRC) other "Services" often had better skills, I liked "Scout" because if your PC re-enlisted enough (and survived), you could muster out with a starship.
Your own freakin' STARSHIP!
(Okay, so could "Merchant", but it took more years, and besides doesn't "Scout" sound cooler?).
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2017-11-15, 08:35 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Jan 2015
Re: Are there RPGs where some of the character creation is partly done during play?
Low Fantasy Gaming RPG - Free PDF at the link: https://lowfantasygaming.com/
$1 Adventure Frameworks - RPG Mini Adventures: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=645444
Midlands Low Magic Sandbox Setting - https://lowfantasygaming.com/2017/12...x-setting-pdf/
GM Toolkits - Traps, Hirelings, Blackpowder, Mass Battle, 5e Hardmode, Olde World Loot http://www.drivethrurpg.com/browse/p...Fantasy-Gaming
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2017-11-20, 12:11 PM (ISO 8601)
- Join Date
- Aug 2014
Re: Are there RPGs where some of the character creation is partly done during play?
Off of the Traveller thing, one thing I like to do is have a solo session (or small-group session for any players who want a backstory together) before the kickoff of the main game. This occurs one term before their character is "done", and instead of rolling that last term like usual the players and I sit down and decide based on what happened in said session what the finishing touches on their character should be. They get the chance to sharpen their best skills, shore up their newly discovered weaknessess, establish their characters' personalities and backstories, and all that, before the true game starts. And, in the spirit of Traveller, if you die here (I tried to avoid it, but sometimes you just can't weasel out of something), you have in fact died in character creation.