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No Dice Core Book
No Dice Core Book
No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means without the prior
permission in writing of the author, nor be circulated in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without a
similar condition including this condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser.
No Dice
The Core Book
by
Justin's Dedication
For my Mum and Dad for their continual support and encouragement. Without
my father`s artistic genes, none of this would be possible.
And for Damian, Glen, Mark and Simon, my original gaming buddies - the
reason I am still gaming today.
Sue's Dedication
In case you weren't aware the No Dice Core Book is now, and will always be,
available as a freely downloadable PDF. Not only is it freely downloadable it's
freely distributable, freely copyable, freely say-how-cool-it-is-and-recommend-
others-download-it-or-get-a-copy-from-you-able.
We wrote this book because we believe that Role Playing is the best hobby in
the world. It brings people together, it lights up their imagination, it gives them
a little taste of abilities they can't really have, it allows them to succeed in deeds
of heroism people rarely have a chance to perform. We also think that it should
be an affordable hobby.
But we can only live up to our own standards if those people who are interested
in the product and who like the product tell other people about it, involve them,
and get No Dice out there being played in game groups. We want to give you
the tools to play great games and, further, to make your own great games too.
So if you liked the PDF, if you bought the book, please get other people
involved. Even if you know they're going to look at the PDF and no more.
We're going to go on the record and say we don't care about piracy. If you're
that much of a douche that you're going to enjoy our stuff while not actually
rewarding us for our work then go ahead. We're not going to lose sleep over
those people and we don't consider their patronage to be worth much of
anything.
What we do need is for the large majority of our audience who are honest and
support our mission to hear about it and buy our product. Then everyone will be
a winner.
Preface
This core book seeks to cater for people Meet The Author
who may previously have had no (And Some Thank Yous)
interest in Role Playing Games.
Because of this, more experienced If I were you I might *not* be thinking:
gamers may be tempted to skip sections just who the hell are you to be telling
to get to the good stuff (leaving all the me how to Role Play? If you are, wow,
noobs to wonder what counts as "the aggressive! Even if I didn't have anger
good stuff"). management issues, I might wonder
where all this new stuff is coming from.
The problem with this is that the core I've read a bunch of role playing
book isn't just a repository for rules. I'm manuals. I love role playing manuals,
going to try to convey an approach to particularly the ones that describe
gaming that, while it is not new, has worlds and settings and characters;
never really been written down. If we rules-heavy ones not so much, as you
were going to get intellectual about this shall learn. I would rather read such a
I would say that No Dice is an RPG manual than any other type of book.
that is also a philosophy regarding Once I have read and taken in the
RPGs. manuals I tend to file them away,
forget most of the rules and wonder
whether anyone wants to play a game
This isn't meant to be an intellectual with that setting.
burden so we'll leave it at that.
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Not that things were always this way. be able to tell you much. The Monster
Horrorshow used a mechanic called
When I was getting towards nine years "The Absolutely Anything Table"
of age in the early eighties Dungeons & which, well, you can probably guess
Dragons was just starting to show up on what it did.
the radar as a hobby in the UK.
Through various means I got hold of Back then I was desperate to play one
the rule books and the old style of these games but I couldn't find a
polyhedral dice that you had to colour group. Whenever I did find a group all
in with a white crayon. I also looked at they wanted to do was roll dice and
other systems like the old Middle Earth move pieces around on maps. That
Role Playing game, Paranoia and minor wasn't the type of experience I wanted.
paperback role playing games like I wanted to be a participant in a story. I
Maelstrom and Monster Horrorshow. wanted to play a role.
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Introduction
The game is a Role Playing Game (AKA Whereas each player in the game will
RPG) but if you're expecting wizards, be in charge of their character the Host
goblins and trolls then you might be in is in charge of the rest of the game
for a surprise. This game is about world. The Host is there to cater to the
whatever you want it to be about. It expectations the players have for their
doesn't require swathes of free time as a experience. That doesn't mean the
satisfactory No Dice adventure could players will get everything the way
happen over an afternoon or an they want for their characters, rather it
evening. means the players will trust you to be
Each game will consist of a group of impartial. Being the Host is something
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The fact is, if you ask the question I want to be quite plain on one thing,
“what is roleplaying?” then unless you this game is about the story. Many
have blinkers on the number of things similar games are about, well, fighting
that could satisfy the requirement is really and if you like your stories to be
huge. If you then go on to ask who about fighting then those are the games
participates then I would guess roughly for you; actually, this could be the
a third of humanity consciously game for you too, there's no
participates in some form of role prohibition on fighting in a No Dice
playing and the other two thirds... well, game but it's just one of a number of
daydreaming you're a rock star is role No Dice options.
playing of a sort...
If you would like a story that might
So, now that I've thoroughly confused possibly be about something other than
you as to the nature of what I'm about fighting then you're definitely in the
to ask you to do let me clarify. right place. This book will have an air
When I talk about role playing I am of familiarity to the traditional table
talking about a group of people coming top role player but although they'll
together to participate in an act of recognise the places they may not agree
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Where Role Playing Came From Wargamers love accuracy, they love
history, they love statistics, they love...
Table top role playing was born in the well they love wargaming. Dice are
form of one Gary Gygax on July 27 perfect as measurement tools for
1938. Not that anyone knew that role statistics in a wargame because there's
playing had been born at that time in no arguing with the results. You roll
the form of that individual. Not even two ten sided dice and you will get a
Mr Gygax himself was aware of the percentage readout that is exact. Dice
bizarrely world altering destiny that are a number cruncher's paradise.
awaited him.
In the 70s Gygax with a couple of
By the time Gygax was fifteen he had business partners set up Tactical Studies
begun playing miniature based war Rules (Later TSR Inc.) which was the
games. These games are still played company that was to produce the first
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cup of tea, "role playing"... well, "role and lots of wonderful dice is exactly
playing" sounds fun. Sure, it sounds what Role Playing Games are all about,
fun. It sounded fun to me when I was a the more sides, the better.
boy, but wow there were a lot of rules,
and I never liked maths and Conan was Sigh.
not my reading material of choice.
You see, here is the problem at the
You know what I used to love? heart of the current hobby. Some of the
people who were attracted to RPGs by
Fighting Fantasy and Choose Your the use of the phrase "Role Playing"
Own Adventure books. I used to love became somewhat disgruntled with the
the idea that I was, indeed, choosing lack of opportunity to, well, play roles.
my own adventure. These books were a I include myself in this number.
fad, now amply satisfied in the realms
of computer games. But if you chose to I, along with these others were
assume you won all the fights and just unhappy with the idea that "Growth
enjoyed the story they were the and Development" seemed to mean
prototype for No Dice, particularly "Improved ability to slaughter things".
Choose Your Own Adventure. We wanted to go a bit further. We
wanted to actually explore a character,
Weirdly, Fighting Fantasy spawned a with a history, and their own agenda.
D&D style role playing game, why? We wanted to walk a mile in another
Because unlike CYOA Fighting Fantasy man's shoes. We, well, we wanted to
had, well, fighting in it and as everyone play some roles.
has known right up until today table
top roleplaying is about fighting. Oh, When people first began putting the
and let's not forget the dice! Sure just a role into role play they had to contend
few 6 sided ones, not even enough to with a subculture entirely consisting of
make it look like a proper RPG but D&D players. This old guard were
more than Choose Your Own perfectly happy navigating their
Adventure for sure. And of course lots dwarven fighter through the Caverns
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of Thrung to face a final confrontation There are a few, very few, fringe games
with the Death Hydra Lich of Upper that do attempt to do something
Tooting. As D&D spawned in the fields entirely different.
of the wargamer they couldn't see a
reason why a character might be more This genuinely pioneering minority of
than a killing machine or what games are now circulated in a kind of
experience could be used for if it wasn't cellar dweller underground of story-
for defeating the enemy. obsessed gamers. Essentially the core of
the hobby, historically, has been that if
Thus it was that early breakaways used you want to make money then you
words like "diceless" and "story based" have to provide combat, maps,
like bombs to cause an intellectual miniatures all that jazz.
guerilla war on the idea that violence
was all role playing could describe. I have yet to encounter a roleplaying
Systems that dealt with the issue of game that does not give a
basing a game around factors other disproportionate amount of time over
than wholesale slaughter in different to what happens if your player gets
ways with varying degrees of success. involved in some sort of a ruck. The
amount of time spent describing, the
Some just suggested that you, you enemy, the weapons, the personnel is
know, get out of the dungeon and go to always disproportionate to the amount
a few parties and stuff before ladling on of time spent describing, the character,
a heavy dose of the "this is the combat the role, the freedom of expression.
system" which took up a third of the
book. Others suggested that combat be Game designers seem unable to let go
short-handed and that there were of the crutch of combat (a device used
plenty of other military situations by an injured hero to defeat the Giant
which might be explored. In all cases Bacteria of Gularb...).
there is some element of the player vs. So What's The Big Problem?
force x. Actually, this isn't quite true.
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I don't believe that there's no market This is not the case for many role
for a game that favours storytelling players. The traditional model of role
over slaughter. Hell, if you're reading playing sets out that one should role
this you are at least alive to the play with a regular group once a week
possibility that role playing may have and that although you may skip from
more to offer. Many people in the adventure to adventure or even system
world would disagree. So, the question to system you should be doing so for
that's begging to be asked is: Why? the foreseeable, no time off for good
behaviour.
The answer to this is both complicated
and simple. Here's the simple bit, if you
This means that the vast majority of
think about these issues a little then people simply don't have time to role
you'll probably uncover the play even if they wanted to. I only
complicated part about it. discovered this when I tried to set up
my group and everyone was haggling
1) Role playing involves spending your over the fact that Tuesdays were out
free time and Thursdays were optimum. The
notion of taking *gasp* one Saturday
I am a very lucky man. When I started every 4-6 weeks hadn't occurred to
role playing properly I joined a group anyone. As it happens some of the
of people who could be adaptable, who group have gone on to feed the monkey
gamed in big lumps once a month every week in a separate adventure but
instead of small lumps every week and a few still maintain the once a month
could cope with someone not being rule. This is good and provides a variety
able to make the odd session. Hence I for the hardcore addicts.
didn't get guilted into spending time
when I really wanted to be doing 2) You are expected to maintain a
something else instead of role playing consistent alter ego
and, besides, the demands on my time
weren't outrageous to begin with. A lot of role playing rewards play with
character based bonuses that help a
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character evolve over time. These days games that deal with unquantifiable
everyone's quite familiar with the data are fine, but you have to accept
concept of having an alter ego from the that you won't need dice, or a sheet of
world of online social networking but numbers. You might just need you.
for the longest time it's been seen as
something a little bit... dirty. There's Why No Dice Is Different
also the question of what happens if
you only want to take on a role for the I bought a second hand game book not
evening. so long ago that described a game in
which, once we started playing, we
3) Role playing makes copious use of discovered many of the numbers were
dice and some maths just a distraction. After a while the
character sheets were left behind
I can count the number of role playing unused and unloved. People kept track
games I know of that don't use any dice of their characters by being their
(that I didn't invent) on the fingers of characters. We used a simple
one hand. The point is that everyone arbitration device for matters of
feels comfortable when there's some chance, a deck of cards, and we never
concrete arbitration to help mitigate missed either the dice or the sheets.
the tough breaks your character may
experience in a story. The role playing game itself evolved
away from the sourcebook I had
The only problem with this is that the bought and is now a No Dice creation
more dice and numbers are involved in of its own. One day you too may
this process the more "tough break" is experience the wonder of this world,
equivalent to "honkin' great monster". but the core of No Dice is about you
There simply aren't the numbers to and your players and having your own
deal with "your brother just got eaten adventures in your own worlds. In
before you had (quantifiable) time to these worlds you may encounter
do much of anything". Role playing honkin' great monsters or you may
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what the players and the Host should won't tell you how to, er, roll your
expect from the experience. own.
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No Dice Games
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The point is the character sheet and the in your own games.
things that resolved conflict didn't add In the meanwhile the parts of the
to the atmosphere. As they didn't add Hosting guide that deal with rules will
to it, they necessarily obstructed it, concentrate more on getting the Host
hence they subtracted from it. The to design their own. That's the way No
rules actually stopped the game feeling Dice believes it should be.
like the show. The GM was hindered
by the things that were supposed to Playing
help them out.
Although I'm going to describe how to
The problem wasn't that the rules were play the game in more detail in the
complicated, or fussy, or arcane, the Player's Guide, and how to Host in the
problem was that they were boring. Host's Guide I thought it might be
There is a wild west game that has a relevant to set you up for the
horror twist where magic is achieved experience.
by playing a hand of poker against the
GM. Well, if I might just interject, yee- If you have role-played before then a
haw, that's atmosphere. A+ to those lot of what happens in a No Dice game
game designers. It's little individual should feel familiar. A group of people
flourishes that help make a game stand sit together, the Host chairs the story
out like that. and the rest of you contribute your
character's ideas and reactions.
When we talk about specific No Dice Occasionally you may need to make a
games in rules supplements I'm going test using some kind of randomiser
to offer up a whole number of themed (usually a pack of cards) to see whether
rules to help create the atmosphere you your character is capable of a particular
want. But I'm not going to start out action.
with any more than the very basic of
the basics. Because the less rules I fill In the best games I have ever played
your head with, the more things you you become enthralled with the plot,
can think of to increase the atmosphere involved with your character and
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round up a posse of players and make book is divided into two sections. A
sure you have enough finger food in. short section for players and a honking
huge section for Hosts. Then there are
Being Host means you run the show three example scenarios and two
but unfortunately it means you actually supplements. If you are to be Hosting
have to, well, run the show. read all of the above. Players just need
to read whichever bits of the Player's
Never mind all this preamble. Let's get Guide and Player's Supplement are
on with the main event. The rest of the relevant to them.
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Player's Guide
So, you want to play No Dice? So as a player what can you expect
from a No Dice experience? It kinda
Okay, so maybe it's more like you are depends. Are you going along for a one
amenable to playing No Dice and your time hit or have you decided to dip
friend begged you to take part so they your toes in the murky waters of the
could Host (whatever that means) and campaign and you'll see how it goes?
you figured "how bad could it be? after Either way there are certain things you
all they promised it wasn't Dungeons & should expect and this guide aims to
Dragons". Well, good news. This isn't tell you what they are.
Dungeons & Dragons. Bad news, your
friend may still suck at Hosting. Give This introduction to being a No Dice
them a break, they're probably new at player is here to prepare you for what
it. Reading this could give you some should be one of the most fun things
ways of helping them suck less, so pay you've ever taken part in. If it falls
attention. short it's one of the few activities I'd
suggest you try again, if you've played
The fact they handed you this guide is a five No Dice games and still never had
good indication that they're trying the fun I'm willing to concede this game
best that they can to do the job of Host may not be for you, otherwise... well,
properly. If you've been to No Dice prepare for it to invade your life, but in
evenings that sucked in the past and no a good way.
one ever gave you this guide to read,
now you know. You, as the player, are about to step
into a new pair of shoes. You are about
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to become someone else. Other role That's what the Host is for. The Host
playing games promise this but then has taken on a big job. They're learning
deliver the package of someone who about the world your character lives in,
can pull off cool martial arts moves at they're learning about the dangers they
the roll of 6 or better but who is still face and the people who live there.
basically, well, you. No Dice is actually They're learning history and they're
going to try to give you the tools to learning about the present. They're
look at life a different way through a learning how to describe to you the ups
different set of eyes. and downs of your character's journey,
not just your character either but that
Probably there will be cool things of all the people playing this game of
about your character, like they really No Dice.
are great at martial arts or they can The Host has taken on a mighty
shoot laser beams from their eyes, but responsibility. The responsibility of
those are just added bonuses. What's keeping a handful of people engrossed
really different about these people is and entertained in a story that exists
that they have different life only on a few bits of paper and in the
circumstances, tricky problems to group's imagination. You have to do
confront and different things they want your bit to contribute but the Host is
to make them happy. the anchor that should tie the story
world together.
It could be you're only going to play
this person for one time only, and there So it could be that they need a little
are distinct advantages to that set up help. Just remember that as you begin
which I shall describe below. But it your adventure.
could be that you will be expected to
craft a character who will take part in The first good sign that they know how
many adventures and will maybe to Host effectively is that you are
appear to take on a life of their own. reading this introduction. The second
good sign will be if they have let you
Don't worry, you'll have help in this.
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know that the game will take some game will be better if it's run properly.
time to set up. About an hour in a one It might sound dull to sit around
off scenario, about one whole session in talking about the generalities of what
a longer campaign. They may also have you're about to do but in actual fact
handed you a character sheet and a you are having a conversation about a
short guide to some basics about the fun shared activity you should both
game you will be playing. If they have enjoy.
done all of this then the signs are
they're on the right road. So the check Some Hosts will worry that people
list is: don't want to talk in a one on one
situation about their character. Let's be
this guide
clear, you will have made this character
information about the set up in a campaign, let them know you are
extra hand outs specific to the itching to talk about them. In a one off
game the GM will probably have given you a
choice of some available characters in
If they have not handed you the other shorthand, you've plumped for one that
two then ask them why not. There's no sounds fun, and now you just need a
reason to tie them to a chair and shine little five minute clarification to know
a light in their face until they crack what kinds of things are on your mind
under the pressure but there's no harm as the game begins.
in checking out that they've not simply
forgotten. Hosts have a lot to think All this stuff is designed to give you
about. and the Host a flying start to this
adventure. If you don't do it you might
When you arrive at the game the set up find that after a brief period in which
should take place and then the game things seem to be a little slow you will
proper will begin. If the Host seems warm up to it. But sometimes buzz kills
eager to just get on with it ask them like confusion can, well, kill the buzz.
about the set up. Let's be clear, the It will also help if the Host tells you a
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little bit about the kinds of things he Neither of these attitudes is wholly
expects your characters to do in the appropriate but if you're a little
current adventure. An important factor nervous about this then you're
is how physical activity is going to probably doing better. Let me explain
impact your character. If there is magic why.
how does it work? Could you find a
pacifist solution to the game's Role playing is not as easy as many
problems? Or will you be expected to people think. You're not supposed to be
just battle through? If you decide to be an Oscar wining actor but it does take
an ass to people will it likely come back some care and attention to get your
to haunt you? Or is the game relatively part right.
consequence free? If you know all this
going in you are not likely to make a The most important thing to remember
mistake which makes your character is that, whatever the story, you are not
pay through the remainder of the the hero. You are a hero, sure, but it's a
game. team effort. Sure, you probably want to
do your best at portraying your
Maybe your Host has sound reasons for character but you shouldn't be an ass
leaving some of this stuff out. If so they about it.
should fill you in. If not, well, this
might still be okay, but you can't be as Most people over estimate how much
sure as you can with a Host who's they have to do to portray a character's
prepared. character trait. In movies a “character
establishing moment” is just that. You
The Art of Role Playing realise all eyes are on you, you say or
do the thing that defines your
So far you're probably either scared of character, you move on.
looking like an idiot doing this or
you're thinking it's going to be dead I saw a game in which a player
easy and sort of fun. portraying an annoying and
mischievous but brilliant engineer
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Characters
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characters fade away because players convey. Older characters are often
were keen on them for five minutes nuanced and experienced, they can
and then they got bored or frustrated. present problems. Any character
I've also seen people find their between the ages of about 23 and 48
characters extremely difficult to play. falls into a "zone of meh" where their
You have to find that angle that makes age only has a small effect on how
your character playable by you. others perceive them.
NB: This is a completely separate issue The Zone of Meh is where one would
from making them likeable to other place a man or woman between the
people. Completely separate. ages of 23 and 48 who weighs around
nine stone (three or four more if male)
Making A Character Interesting... is about 5'4 (6'0 if male) was brought
up by a mother and father with a
Most players I've ever come across find sibling who was older or younger by
this the easiest thing. After all they about three years, who lived in one
wouldn't have thought of the character place until they were about twenty and
if they didn't find them interesting. then went on to some sort of trade they
Interesting and playable are not the still work in today.
same thing. Hamlet, for example, is all
kinds of interesting, easy to play? Not I'm not suggesting this any kind of an
so much. Similarly King Lear. I know average, I can count the number of
these are characters in plays but the people this tedious that I know without
theory remains the same. running out of fingers. The point is this
kind of person has never had anything
Is your character young or old? Or in interesting happen to them at all. Even
between. A youthful character will this is kind of interesting in itself.
have to live within the confines of their Someone who appears to have this kind
own naivety, if you are new to the of background might be suspected of
game world you may find this easy to covering up the truth, whatever that
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truth may turn out to be. Maybe you've made a sports star, fit,
athletic, beautiful, popular but she lost
The point is if you stick to the Zone of her younger brother in a tragic
Meh but add in a few bits of interest accident when she was twelve and he
like, the individual was extremely was nine. She blames her own lack of
intelligent and became a highly action during the accident and this is
qualified academic at a young age, or what has driven her to become an
the person was brought up by one Olympian. She is protective of the
parent, was an only child, this only weak and those younger than herself,
adds limited interest and the Zone of in addition she has difficulty becoming
Meh continues. emotionally attached to people because
of her fear of losing them.
...And Lovable...
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You should think about what makes can put across. Talk it through with the
your character strong, and therefore Host. If you do your best and you have
interesting first, but then think about fun that's all anyone can ask. Save the
what makes them weak, and therefore tricky role playing for when you've got
lovable. If everyone hates your a bit under your belt.
character you're going to have a
tougher time portraying them every But in all cases you want the
week. Ironically, things you may throw character's strength, what makes them
in imagining they will make the interesting and capable, and their
character likeable may actually make weakness, what makes them lovable
them dangerous, or untrustworthy. and part of the team.
If that's not your personality you might Our Olympian, for example. We've
find it a little tricky to live in those already discussed that she's witty,
shoes. So when you start role playing athletic and fun to be around, she's the
maybe it would be best to stick close to kind of person who you don't mind
home. Find something you think you giving up leadership to. But on the flip
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side she's scared stiff of being alone, character's going to be worried about
she's flippant and sometimes her next. What's on their mind in the
tongue's a little too sharp for her own moment.
good. These are flaws. Playing them
genuinely is what good role play is all A character's passion could be as
about. prosaic as chasing after their next meal
or snack, or it could be as complex as
It's also more than likely that our worrying about their relatives, partner
Olympian is competitive as hell, a sore or children all the time. It could be,
loser but a gracious winner. Playing probably would be, a mixture of these
this straight and sticking to it could survival instincts and the wider
land the team in trouble, or it could concerns.
mean she goes the extra mile just to get
a result. You have to think about your character
on a normal day. What's their usual
In the end it's up to the Host to reward concern. Who are their friends? How
good role playing, but if you did a good many do they have? Do they live with
job it's kind of its own reward. Doing their family? If not, how often do they
some good role playing really gives you see their relatives? What do they do on
a better experience and makes the a work day? What are their hobbies?
hobby worthwhile. How worried are they about food? Do
they have a special diet? Or are they
... With Convincing Passions... just hungry all the time? What about
physical comfort? Is that important to
What we've talked about so far is all them? How do they relate to strangers?
long term stuff, the foundations of a How do they feel in a crowd?
character. That's all good to know and
is going to help with the way the All of these factors, these drives,
character presents themselves to the desires, hungers and passions make the
other players. However, there's a character what they are on a moment
minute to minute problem of what the by moment basis. How do they deal
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with problems? Do they let everyone appropriate. You may not know all
know they're feeling inconvenienced? three for all three levels right away,
If so are they vocal and whiny or are this is a signal you haven't quite got to
they a martyr on certain topics? know your character yet. Go through
the other parts, their history, their
Part of your job as a player is to demeanour, their fears, their flaws and
communicate to everyone else how see if you can add in a little something
your character is. When you start that will fill in the blanks.
playing you aren't there any more, now
your character is taking centre stage. These general topics of conversation
How similar or dissimilar that need to be quite broad-based. You
character is to you is up to you and might make a character and think
what you show the other players. always talking about the weather is a
good idea for people that character
There's a technique to be used here for doesn't know well. This is fine, but it's
making sure you'll always be thinking also quite obvious.
of something for your character to say.
First of all we're going to give the Maybe you could try something even
character three situations, when less specific like "talk about the current
they're around total strangers or people environment", if it makes the character
they don't know that well; when feel comfortable praise it, otherwise
they're around friends and complain. Other good topics include
acquaintances they see and talk to "the character's current pet project",
regularly; and finally when they're "the character's close family", "the
with people they trust with their lives character's concerns about their own
(if any). health" any kind of small talk subject
that doesn't expose too much but at the
For each of those situations we are then same time will tell other players a lot
going to jot down three topics of about your character's demeanour.
conversation the character deems
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Deciding ahead of time that in any One of the things dice fans love is that
given situation your character's you can't argue with a die roll. The
priorities for conversation with arbitration of numbers is absolute. You
strangers are: number one: feeling may feel that faced with the
comfortable in their environment; Unspeakable Horror your character
number two: knowing when they're would swallow their fear and fight on
going to be left to their own devices but a failure to roll well on a
again; and number three: being able to Willpower test will have you running
stay in touch with their partner via for the hills whether you want to or
their mobile phone, in that order, not.
should help you tell people about your
character without dropping out of role. There is a safety blanket aspect to such
tests. If the dice say it then a bum note
...And Sympathetic Fears cannot be struck. I would prefer to
think that if you were really all that
At the other end of the scale your involved with portraying yeller bellied
character has to want to avoid Carl Taylor then when he sees the
something. Everyone is afraid, all that Horror it will be a point of pride that
matters is what they're afraid of and you make him turn and run. That's the
how they deal with it. Some people are character after all.
willing to swallow their fear and press
on. Some will find the urge to run In the end playing your character
overwhelming. Some will just try to shouldn't be a matter of trying to win.
avoid dealing with the things they find You can't win a story, you can only see
unpleasant. Really how your character what happens next. As a character
reacts to their fears and what those player your priority should be to play
fears are is up to you. This is where you the character, irrespective of what you
start to leave the realms of being a yourself would normally do.
player and enter the murky waters of
art.
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challenge for the more experienced losing. Generally speaking the Host
player but taking the road to will be advised to let things ride
redemption, that could be deeply wherever possible. All the randomness
moving. Feeling yourself warp from in a given game will be to enhance
irritant to hero, that could be a mood not to slap wrists or enforce too
rewarding path. It's just a difficult one. many limits.
In the beginning it's probably best to I'm telling the Host to give everyone
make someone generally okay who has greater latitude to do what they want
their moments of not being so okay. with their characters but trust me I'm
You can take on something bigger as giving them enough ways to hose down
time goes by. troublemakers that you probably want
to stay away from getting cute.
Such Stuff As Dreams Are Made On
Contrast Is Good
No Dice is a game where I hope you've
got the impression that playing your Once you've played one character for a
part is the same as winning and few weeks you'll probably start to find
ignoring your character in order to they're too jolly and not cool enough,
indulge a power fantasy or day dream is or too cool and not benevolent enough,
or too benevolent and not smart
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Host's Guide
If you are thinking of Hosting a No job was known as Game Master or GM.
Dice game, congratulations! You have People tried to give it other names, in
taken the first step into a wider world D&D for example you were the
of fun and adventure. If, on the other Dungeon Master, and people still know
hand, you are just hanging around this term as it was the first. It didn't
wondering how you can get invited to stick, the minute a game came along no
a No Dice game Hosted by some one part of which was located inside a
else, well, good luck with that. Dungeon it was toast. Other people
have tried titles as simple as Narrator or
The fact is, you're the one reading the as tortured as Werewizard (seriously)
core book. This means the prime but overall people refer to the person
candidate for Hosting is going to be running the game for the other
that charming, intelligent, enterprising characters as the GM.
person who greets you from every
mirror. So why have I decided to mess with the
established order? Well, the most
You may think you're just not keen important reason is that back in the old
enough on the idea to run your own days the GM saw the game as a two
party but if you're looking at this sided contest with him (usually him)
volume you're keener than all the on one side and the players on the
people who aren't. Sorry, looks like other if the players died the GM won,
you're going to be the Host. otherwise the GM lost. (Don't ask me,
I'm just the messenger.)
In the old world of role playing your
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make yourself into a better Host for characters doesn't provide that.
your players and, in addition, will set
up your players to play a better game. I find I don't really like running a game
for more than 6 players but it kind of
What this entails rather depends on depends on the players. I would say
how much No Dice you're expecting to that usually 3-7 people makes a No
play with your players. If it's just an Dice adventure. You'll find that above
evening's worth then this set up should three players the amount of time you
consume no more than 40-60 minutes will spend playing the adventure will
of your time depending on the number escalate dramatically, for just two, the
of players. If you're going for a longer adventure will fly by. My optimum
session i.e. a short campaign or a long number of players is three for a one off,
saga, you're going to need to spend a bit but again, your mileage may vary.
more time setting things up. How
much longer depends on what kind of When we're addressing the topic of
game you're playing: one the players length I'm going to start with advice
might know all about before they about the simplest kind of No Dice
arrive, or one that you're going to have scenario and work my way up to a saga
to introduce them to. and add in more detail about what's
expected as we go.
On the subject of numbers the
minimum number of people you would The Six Million Dollar Question
probably want in a No Dice role play is
3, a Host and two players. There is a Is, of course, what the hell have I let
practice known as "Lone Wolfing" myself in for? I think the number one
where it's just host and a player but thing that you have to remember is not
these have a very different feel to that you are in charge of creating a
playing any other type of game. Part of universe and populating it with
the experience is to have contrasting detailed people, items, animals etc.
opinions about the best path through
the game and just riffing off the Host's For a start there will, in the fullness of
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time, be expansion packs for No Dice develop skills in thinking on your feet,
that explicitly add to the contents of sure, but this is often in contrast to
this core book. If you're feeling a bit having to consult a stack of notes every
braver you might start to think about a time someone asks a question. Your
"hack" of an existing RPG into notes should be easily understood at a
something a bit less, er, Dice-y, who glance, so you will have to learn to take
knows, you may find that someone has notes in such a way that you can
already done the work for you. consult them quickly.
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Let's be plain about one thing, role either knew what to expect or had to
playing, the actual playing, is a skill. be sold the concept before they'd even
People who have been role playing for sit down. GMs in the past needed to
a while can become better at it. They boil the game down into a handy
sink into the fiction more quickly and phrase or sentence and pitch that. The
play their characters with more problem with these colourful bon mots
confidence. This kind of skill takes time was that they left some room for
to accrue, and introducing a new interpretation on both sides. Even if
system can even set back highly skilled people buy into a game in theory they
players. As Host it will be your may find the Host's interpretation of
responsibility to gauge the experience the phrase and their own differ
of your players and tailor their dramatically let's look at a few
experience accordingly. examples and see if you can spot the
swathes of grey area they expose.
And Beyond...
Dungeons & Dragons - Go into
If you're running anything longer than dungeons and er, slay dragons (among
a one off you're going to want to other things)
introduce a set up session. Even if you Vampire: The Masquerade - Vie for
are playing a No Dice game with a undead power in a web of political
Player's Guide which you can dole out intrigue
to your team before you begin as Host Cyberpunk - Hack dystopia and do it
you are inevitably going to know more wearing mirror shades.
about what you have in mind than the Over The Edge - Question your own
players do. It might be best to run a sanity and that of others as the fruit of
Q&A beforehand so everyone's straight the Western world's freakiest cheese
on what's expected. dreams converge on a single weird
sovereign island.
This is a significant departure from RP Feng Shui - Hong Kong Phooey action
set ups of yore when the audience spectacular with HK cinema tricks,
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enough to penetrate the barrier. have been discovered and the galaxy is
Charlie: Isn't that from Dune? 50% mapped.
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The Lone Wolf and ask the player how they reacted to
it. And ask them how their life went
"Lone Wolfing" is a practice in which a after that incident.
single Host and a single player role
play. The practice has a totally different Example: One player I was lone
feel to group role play and introduces wolfing said that his life changed when
an individual crafting dynamic that he miraculously escaped poisoning
should help a player get to grips with from the arrow of a hostile race whilst
their character before bringing them he was caught up in an attack on a
out in a group game. harbour near his home. A poisonous
spider bite, usually fatal, was the
I usually start the player's lone wolf by antidote to the poison on the arrow
describing the average life of a person head of the invaders. His character had
who lives in the character's cultural always been strong, a fighter, now he
surroundings. This should take no more believed he had been blessed by the
than five minutes. Once I have given a gods and had been given his unusually
broad overview of this average I ask the strong constitution to fight his people's
player at what point their character's mysterious invaders.
life diverged from that average.
He chose a background thereafter
The answer could be that it didn't where his people, a race of warriors,
particularly. If the player is insistent held him in high esteem. I said to him,
that at the outset of the game they have then, that before he left home, whilst
not had one day different from all the he was growing to an age where he
other people they know and live with would be allowed to leave on his quest
then let them run with that. Otherwise to fight his enemy he would be a
ask them to describe what happened favoured son in the town. This would
when their life changed. make the circumstances of his life
easier and attract a lot of female
This life changing event should be role attention.
played very lightly. Fix on a key point
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The next key point was how his was the strongest male fighter in the
character dealt with that female village, and exchange for her gift of
interaction. The player was a little non- care she wanted him to fight her, in
plussed. Although the result was secret to see who was better.
natural given his character's macho and
high societal status he said his character She was fast and she was agile so she
didn't really know what to do about won the sparring match easily, leaving
women. the poor fellow dumbfounded and
confused. Again I wanted to see how
At this point I decided to let fate take a events would turn for him and again he
hand, he made a draw. As it happened was unfortunate. Knowing that her
he got a fairly ill-starred draw for people would never accept a fighting
matters of emotion so I said that woman this girl stowed away on a
although there was no one woman he cargo vessel and left him behind.
really liked there were two he had a Although his character heard of her
fondness for. One was the alpha female leaving he never got a chance to talk to
of the village who was smart and pretty her properly after the fight.
and seemed to like him because he was
important. The other was a tomboy she So that was when his character decided
warrior type, frowned upon by the to make the move and go on a voyage
people but when he fell under the to find the enemy, maybe hoping,
poison arrow she had cared for him somewhere in his heart, that he would
when it seemed he might die. find out what happened to the only
girl, the only warrior, who could best
He chose the warrior woman and we him in single combat.
supposed that his character thereafter
ignored all the other women but As you can see from that one Lone
flirted, cautiously with this fighting Wolf the Player's character found not
woman. Eventually her agenda became one, but two personal arcs that I as
clear. She had saved his life because he Host could bring into the role play. His
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stage in the adventure. Even if it's the know what level of participation
beginning of the adventure they should they're expecting you can spend an
have lone wolfed to a particular point appropriate amount of time working
so they should always have something with each player.
to say, besides it's not an opportunity
for a huge cathartic monologue it's just This also allows the players to know
a sentence or two. You, as Host, should how everyone else is approaching this
be monitoring the “temperature” of this episode. Sometimes a player who's
response. Is Dave really enthusiastic trying to be unobtrusive can find
and clear about his character themselves “helped” into the limelight
objectives? Or is he very vague? Does by a well meaning fellow player. This is
Bob sound well up for a session tonight frustrating for everyone. At least if
or is he sounding a bit tired? everyone knows Steve wants to keep
his head down this week when he
Taking the temperature this way is a offers to guard the spaceship no one
good start but then you're going to will helpfully suggest that he comes
move on to get more specific. along to help them trade with the tribe
of Space Amazons.
2) As a player do they feel they want to
be challenged and forced to play a main 3) Finally ask each player how they feel
role this session or would they like to about being involved in inter-character
sit back and just drink in the aggro this week. Getting involved in a
atmosphere, taking more of a back seat fight with a Host controlled story
role? This performs two jobs for you. It character is to be expected but
helps you identify people who may get sometimes players like to have issues
restless if you're not giving them big between each other. It's great drama
moments every twenty minutes and and it actually can make the story
also those people who are quite happy better. But people can take such
to be left alone to observe. As a Host arguments and incidents to heart.
it's always a concern that someone
might be bored or feel neglected, if you If a player complains that it's just “not
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realistic” to have them forced to not be well then players will experience the
combative with another player's adventure as a smooth ride. It is
character just remind them that the something you will grow into the more
game is meant to be fun for everyone you Host.
and if Paul's Chinese martial artist rail
worker doesn't want to have continual Basically it works like this:
mudslinging matches with Gail's hard
as nails gunslinger then he shouldn't You describe an event that
have to. occurs within the sight of one or
several of the players.
This little moment at the beginning of You ask them how their
the session provides information for character would react to this
you as the Host as to what's going on event.
and what kinds of things you should be
striving to provide this session. They You role play the results of the
allow players to understand what other event.
players want out of the session and You tell them when the event's
they also help everyone focus on the effects have started to die down.
story for this week's adventure. Once
You move on to the next event.
everyone's got their game head on it's
time to actually do some role-playing.
Of course there are subtle variations in
exactly how this happens and that's
The Role Play
what we'll look at next.
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incredibly dumb and obvious but until There's a concept in Role Playing that
very recently the issue of what to do is inviolate and also it is a pretty good
when players run out of story mid- idea. So good that it comes to No Dice
session has been a thorny one indeed. untainted by any change or addition. I
When I first encountered it the idea of present it here so any host can send any
the bridging sentence didn't occur to niggly player here to see it in black and
me and before you know it the players white and thus it shall ever be.
were up to their necks in ravenous
tigers, embarrassing as the game was set The Rule of Host Fiat
in France.
In any dispute the Host's opinion is the
The secret of the bridging sentence is only one that matters, their
that you really have to sell it. If you adjudication is final.
sound like you know what you're about
95% of player niggles will melt like This is because as Host you have no
snow in a furnace. Whether or not you interest in whether players get their
actually are as confident as you appear, way or not you are just running the
another issue altogether. game. Right?
So having dealt with the 95% of niggle You see, any problem I've ever
that may arise let us turn our attention encountered with this idea of Host Fiat
to that tricky 5% of times when is when the Host thinks they are the
confusion is not abated with the evil spirit of mean and tries to punish
application of a confident attitude. the characters for having the blad faced
cheek to exist.
The Fiat Feature
fiat noun 1 an official command; a You, as Host, are there to arbitrate. I
decree. 2 a formal authorization for always like to take the position that I
some procedure. am generally for the players, if they
Chambers English Dictionary feel good, I feel good. but if they fail I
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will enforce it. Because if I didn't, who So what is to be done about Jim Bob?
would? The man who wants the super strong,
mega handsome, invulnerable and sexy
That's the whole triumph and tragedy superhero character about whom no
of being the Host, and that's why you one can say anything ill? (This is not
get the fiat. something people generally cook up in
such an obvious form but basically if it
'Nuff said. looks like they're trying to break the
game by making their character all
How To Hose types of wonderful for no cost be
wary.) Well, there are a number of
Even after all that though, you will approaches to this scenario but if Jim
sometimes come across someone who Bob wants this what I say... well, what
just doesn't get it. You've handed them I say is...
the Player's Guide, you've been
through the introduction to your Give it to him. Give it to him all he
world, you've done all you can and still wants and just a little more. Give it to
all they want to do with their character him until he says he's had enough and
is rule the world with the power of then give him a whole extra helping. If
awesome. he leaves it on his plate put it in the
fridge and serve it up to him from the
Let's get this straight. You should be microwave tomorrow morning.
playing this game in a group, you
should be trying to play this as a team, Do not try to argue the point. Do not
even the Host is a special kind of team tell Jim Bob to play nice. Do not pick
member. This isn't the Jim Bob the holes. Do not criticise. Listen to what
Awesome's Ego Massage Society. he says he wants and just give it to him.
Exactly what he wants. No more. Don't
Jim Bob may not have got the memo, twist it out of shape. Be impartial. For
however. one last time of telling: Give him what
he requested with no bells and
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whistles. If you try and mess with it he flood or an earthquake well, hell, he's
will know and he will complain and just a cad and a bounder. Who would
whine and bring everyone down. So use their awesome so selectively?
just give the man what he asked for.
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Awesome Guy is, the fact is there are but you need to make sure your bases
down sides to every situation. are covered. The bases in question
include:
All you need to do is accept what Jim
Bob wants and then work out what the Know your players
down sides are.
Have you done the thing where you
Heck he may whinge about it assess their expectations of your
afterwards but at that point it's really scenario before you go in? Have you
no longer your problem. asked them what kinds of thing they'd
like to do before you even wrote your
Getting The Design Right own? Have you played with any of
these players before? Will you be able
As a Host you're going to have to get to to rely on them to fill in for gaps in
know people quite well. You have to your own knowledge? Have you got
design your scenarios and run your character sheets for the players? Are
scenarios for your party. This isn't a they clear or will you have to explain
deep process, people are often quite anything?
willing to express what will entertain
them. Your job is to make sure you Know your scenario
deliver. After that it's just down to
degrees of talent and that's always less Do you know not only who the non
important than the sweat of doing the player characters you'll have to play are
groundwork. but what they'll know about what's
Make sure you have planned your going on, what will they tell to whom?
scenario (or acquainted yourself with What will the characters in your
it) to an appropriate degree for your scenario respond well to? What will
party. Make sure that if you can't they respond badly to? What about the
prepare one aspect you have doubly places you've created? Do you know
prepared others to make up for it. No what's in those places? Do you know
one can, or needs to, get it 100% right what problems and complications
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Like everything else in this book the and 10. Where does this number come
system presented here is a suggestion. from? The Host makes it up.
The first thing you'll probably notice is
that it includes no reference to stats on Gauging Difficulty
a character sheet. This is because, in its
most basic form a No Dice character is It seems like a simple thing but often
a verbal construction. Numeric scores when the question of a conflicted
may be suggested for specific games but action comes up you, as Host, may be a
the vanilla system does not take this bit stumped as to what difficulty score
into account. to set for the conflicted action. So
here's a check list of actions to take to
So here it is. mentally set the difficulty before the
draw.
The System
The basic conflict in nature is of
Take a pack of cards and introduce one something a person either will manage
joker. Shuffle the cards. Whenever a or they won't this is equivalent to
conflict is in need of resolution the flipping a coin and getting heads. The
player draws a single card. chances of heads or tails coming up are
more or less equal.
So what is the player testing against?
Well it's a difficulty score that, To simulate a coin toss in No Dice with
generally speaking would be between 1 a card draw you could, therefore set the
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degrees of success. When Marco is and the pack is shuffled. The test then
trying to shoulder barge a door he will continues as the player draws the top
either bust the door off its hinges or he card from the freshly shuffled deck.
will not. There's no degrees of success
here. The end.
Card draws are a storytelling aid, not No muss, no fuss. If you feel that the
an administration process. They give revelation of these rules was something
clues to you as the Host how to pitch of an anti-climax don't worry, the game
someone's success or failure given all is meant to be the exciting part. If you
the information you have to hand. feel the rules are the exciting part this
may not be the game system for you.
Evaluating a Draw
On a more serious note this vanilla
Aces are low, 10s are high, Jacks are system is serviceable and will certainly
knaves and thus signify an automatic work in "Traveller's Rest" the first
failure of the tests, Queens represent example game included in this book.
lady luck and therefore indicate an The intention of the vanilla system is
immediate success on the test. Kings that it forms a core into which further
are kept by the player and traded for rules can be added for flavour as setting
redraws on future tests. When a king is and atmosphere dictates. I didn't want
drawn it is placed into the possession of the rules from games to infect one
the player who drew it and the test another and I also wanted the stripped
continues with a redraw. down option for any No Dice game to
be rapidly understood and always
After any card that is not a King has available.
been drawn and evaluated it is placed
into a discard pile. When the Joker is As a Host, you may never pick up on
drawn the discards and Joker are the extra rules included in future
immediately placed back into the pack games, I don't think any No Dice
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Stats
A NOTE ABOUT THE FOLLOWING SECTIONS
It is possible that you are just scared witless at the prospect of coming up with
your own home grown RPG in which case you may want to skip forward to the
scenarios section. If you're looking to run one of the included scenarios then
they contain any further rules you need right there. These sections are purely
for those who want to go "deeper" into the No Dice System Creation and want a
few suggestions.
As you were.
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What you really have to decide is what the spiritual: Charisma, Willpower,
can't you do without and I'll show you Fellowship. The overlaps are not
how whilst I run through examples of limited to Physical/Spiritual as
other "hard" stats. Physical/Mental stats like
Perceptiveness will attest. In the realm
Most RP systems flesh out Life and of the mind we have stats like
Luck with descriptions of the Intelligence, Analysis, Focus. In Spirit
character's make up in three main we might have some concept of
areas, Body, Mind and Spirit. Many spiritual purity or natural aptitude at
focus on physical attributes for obvious magic or propensity for madness (AKA
reasons. And in this we can see the Sanity).
inherent problem here.
The question becomes not only how do
Thinking just about the aspects of you describe a character but also how
someone's physical appearance we do you stop describing them? The
could talk about their health, their problem is, the more you give to the
physical strength, their physical fitness, god of detail the more you take away
their suppleness, their reaction time, from the god of fun and simplicity. The
their constitution, their relative beauty more you give to the god of simplicity
within their society. the more situations have no hard and
fast solutions.
All of these are described in stats like
Strength, Dexterity, Constitution, Stats are a balancing act. Hence the
Speed, Vitality, Sinew, Attractiveness, question of whether you can do
Deftness. Even this leaves out some without them. It depends on the game,
things like being fiddle fingered, or of course, but the more you can do
having unusually large lung capacity or away with, I tend to find, the better.
other things that are usually relegated
to the rank of "skills". A brief word about bonuses
Some stats overlap the physical with Sometimes you can hide horrendous
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hard stat stacks by having a simplified with in the section of randomisers. I'd
"uber" score like "Body" with "sub stats" say that if you make it any more
that add advantages in certain complex than that, you're asking for
situations called "Bonuses". Just trouble.
remember, drilling down this way
more than two layers is likely to make Points
complexity and complexity is the
enemy of good times. Any game needs some way of keeping
score. Are the players winning or
losing? RP is different in some ways in
that there can be a number of scores
which allow the character to feel they
are winning in different ways but the
basic situation is the same. Let's
examine some ways that we are
keeping score in an RP game.
Life
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games the only reason to accumulate achieve an end and employ a method of
money is to then spend it on weapons. acquiring more later on (counselling, a
Even so, the cash value of a player's stay in an asylum?).
arsenal will indicate how much money
they have previously spent on The scoring mechanics won't really
acquisition. bother you unless you're creating a
long-term adventure. Over time
Experience characters will seek improvement to
their skills. Players regard this as their
The more experience a character has "reward" for good, consistent role play.
the more wonderful that character's Often the increments to a character's
portfolio of skills and abilities will be. hard stats and "Skills" are purchased in
Experience totals are accumulative but the mythical currency of "experience".
all "purchased" upgrades need to
aggregate to less than the experience In D&D you needed gold and XP
total at all times (or you can just (Experience Points) to make an
"spend" points like money thus your awesome killing machine. There's
experience is like a bank account with nothing essentially wrong with
which you buy stuff and then the expressing progress as an advance in
figure goes down). both experience and currency, the fact
that the things you could buy with
Sanity experience were generally more useful
than those you could buy with the cash
The only other major scoring was also nice. I see no reason to change
mechanism I can think of is when a this dynamic in a long term game.
player tries to keep a Sanity score. This
tends to be a bit of a weird way to keep Sometimes, particularly when it is
score as it goes up and down. Generally knowledge and social bargaining that
(although not always) the saner you are are at stake in a game, you don't need
the better, but you might, if you are an actual "experience" stat at all, you
particularly sane "burn" sanity to just need to keep playing to become
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section for player notes. If the players To illustrate let's take the adventures of
don't need it there's an even chance Jim the Fugitive Vet. Jim has just
your scenario is dull. escaped from the ever vigilant gaze of
Special Agent McMisinformed and
So we've essentially gutted the old way stumbled into a farmhouse he thought
of doing things. We've tossed out most deserted. Unfortunately the farmhouse
of the stats and left acres of note space has two occupants. A farmer and his
on a character sheet that has four or guard dog. Jim meets the dog first and
five numbers and a couple of kicks it hard, injuring the dog. Only
paragraphs of text upon it. Now, if then is he confronted by the farmer,
you're a regular gamer, you're holding his hunting rifle up to the
wondering what happens when there's hapless vet's chest.
some kind of a conflict? How do we
decide stuff. Well, we're about to get The fact the farmer is now very angry
into a whole section on randomisers at Jim and may turn him over to the
but before that let's talk about how No law is a complication, the fact that the
Dice views the nature of "conflict". reason for this is Jim's hasty action in
kicking the dog is conflict. Ironically,
Conflicts Or Complications? had Jim not kicked the dog he would
have no angry farmer but he would also
Let's start this bit by clearing have no way to ingratiate himself with
something up. In a story conflict and said farmer. Looks like Jim had better
complication are two very different get to fixing the dog then. Only when
things. Conflict is a dramatic construct it comes to Jim's using his vet abilities
of personal dilemma that pulls people can we understand what role players
into the story, complication is mean by conflict (as opposed to
inconvenience for the main characters "fighting").
in a story that acts like a seasoning
upon the story, too much and the story In role playing terms a "conflict" is a
will drag, too little and the heroes seem very simple thing. The player wants
to have too easy a ride. their character to do something, it's not
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an easy thing to do, so there is a the tens and one for the units. Jim does
conflict between the character's desires this and gets 68. It's over his score and
and their abilities that needs resolving. so he fails to treat the dog.
In many role play systems until you get There are a few problems with this
into the minutiae of combat the process scenario. What, exactly, for example,
for resolving non-combative conflicts does the test mean? Is it about Jim's
tends towards being so light some GMs actual skill? The condition of the dog?
tend to ignore it. Unfortunately some And if he can do nothing does this
GMs don't. Lets return to our example mean he doesn't even have a clue
of Jim the vet. Jim knows animal what's wrong with the dog?
medicine and has a percentage skill in
this of 63%. During the course of his The fact is the test is not realistic. The
adventure Jim injures a dog belonging animal care skill, it could be argued,
to a farmer who could help Jim out or would only need testing if Jim is caring
leave him to swing in the wind. Jim for animals on a strict time limit or
reasons if he helps the farmer's dog under unusual stress. The rest of the
then the farmer will be grateful enough time merely having the skill should
to be forgiving. suffice.
To see if Jim can fix the dog the GM in Then of course we wouldn't need any
a regular RP has two choices. One is dice... oh.
that Jim, being a vet, and having no
particular time pressure upon him, will Stat heavy RPGs tend to concentrate on
know how to diagnose and treat a sick physical combat on the basis that we
dog, or at least advise on treatment. can simulate the actions of a highly
The other is that Jim's years at vet skilled kung fu master using some
school will be subject to an animal care numbers and a set of dice far more
test. This test will usually consist of accurately than we can express the
rolling two ten sided dice (D10) one for nuance of advanced medical skill. Who
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knows whether this is, in fact, the good. If Bonzo's a dog but Jim's got to
truth. save him in the next fifteen minutes or
Bonzo will die; if Bonzo's a gryphon; if
As GMs we might be up at night people are shooting at Jim whilst he
worrying about this sort of thing. As treats Bonzo, then we might need to
Hosts we don't care. resolve a conflict referring to some
kind of stat, but otherwise let it fly.
Let's not forget, the point of a No Dice
game is fun. Worrying about whether Just Play
Jim's medical skill is realistic given the
percentage rating of his animal care If it's at all an option I would heartily
skill is about as much fun as breaking a recommend just not having any
limb. numbers at all in your player materials.
It is possible, and your players will
thank you for the convenience. Or at
least they won't curse you for turning
your session into number jugglers
united.
If Jim's a vet and Bonzo's a dog not a If Jim the vet tries to play a Piano
gryphon then his skills are probably Concerto without any piano lessons
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and rolls a 2 on his 3% natural musical designers messing with the concept of
skill does that make his victory any "Diceless" have said, if you're not going
more convincing? Jim's just not a to be rolling 80% of the time then
pianist, he's a vet and no statistical maybe everything should be down to
anomaly is going to change that. People that fiat thing we talked about at the
can smell someone getting away with head of the Host section. The problem
murder worse than bottom gas in a lift. with this is that not having any
challenge where it's needed begins to
If what someone wants to do doesn't introduce the feeling that this is all
interfere with the story it is your job as arbitrary.
a Host to accommodate that. Then you
only have to start randomising when Arbitrary results are no fun. They're
even you can't tell if someone would be even less fun than randomising too
able to do something or not. often. So with heavy heart we have to
concede that sometimes our
Making Randomisation Interesting complications need resolution by lady
luck, with that in mind we turn, at last
Like it or not, these situations will to the business of randomisers.
occasionally occur. Some RPG
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Randomisers
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sides your platonic solid has a 5 is just a messing around with d20s you are lost
5. In a deck of cards 5 could be of two to the dark side forever. Actually I just
colours (red or black) or four suits made that last part up but I'm sure
(spades, clubs, hearts, diamonds). You there should be an old saying about
can just use the 5 as a five but the that.
colour or suit could also indicate
something about the particular 5 that 4) Dice need tables, cards only need
has been drawn. hands - Let's not forget, dice need a
surface to bounce off so that they can
2) Playing cards also come with court reveal their secrets. A player can sit on
cards - These could be wild effects, a couch in a room with no table and
having augmentation properties or pull cards from a deck he is holding in
indicating automatic successes or his hands and it's all good. With dice
failures. People who have been using he'd have to be forever hunching down
dice for the past 25 years are so to roll them on the floor.
desperate for something like this
they've even started inventing funny Basically, I am recommending a card
dice to account for these effects. I'm based system over a dice based one but,
not joking. whatever floats your boat. The essential
point of your conflict resolution
3) Playing cards come with a greater method is that it should be pretty
number of interpretations out of the intuitive. To which end here are some
box - I mean come on there's 10 intuitive ways of measuring.
numerics and three courts per suit. And
jokers. To simulate even half of the Numbers
functionality here with dice you'd have
to start messing with the dark arts of The unavoidable thing here is that your
d10s and from there it's a polyhedral random chance will be expressed as a
slippery slope. There's an old saying in number. When you test you will do
role playing that the moment you start some light mathematics and end up
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also possesses a suit and suit could have irrelevant, but you might make red and
significant. A six of diamonds could be black cards mean different things.
very different from a six of clubs.
Whenever I think about card suits, Court Cards
because I have some knowledge of the
Tarot, I always think of the suits' TarotThis is where cards really start to take
associations i.e.: off into a whole different stratosphere
when compared to dice. No other
Spades - Intellect randomiser has extra elements built in
the way a pack of cards does. Here you
Hearts - Emotion
have three cards per suit that
Clubs - Spiritual Growth essentially have no numeric value.
Diamonds - Wealth They are "special" cards. They could
mean something or nothing. You can
even remove them if you feel they're
These interpretions are approximate to unnecessary.
a scholar of the Tarot, but we're
hosting a game not a Tarot evening. What About Aces?
You may note that the four categories
decribed here present all sorts of In the dice days 1 was either great (on
possibilities for bonuses and plot testing systems that went low) or
effects. Anything that will give you, as disastrous (on the other hand). Cards
the Host, a break in interpreting what a have tended to indicate there is
result means has to be a good thing. something special about one. It's called
the Ace. Ace is always good, isn't it? It's
Suits could have also denote effects on rarely a presage of disaster.
plot, characters, world events (e.g.
weather) or treasures. While we're on One of the distinct problems of dice
the topic don't forget that cards come based systems is that once they're used
in two colours the actual suit might be to the system anyone can tell from a
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roll what kind of result they've couple of things. The most basic of
achieved. Cards allow for more these is that you have one really big
flexibility in this case. deck of cards. To think of a more
exciting example, you could buy two
Jokers packs of cards which are of different
brands. Then you have two different
Just when you thought a single decks. You could use one for straight
randomiser couldn't get any more cool numeric randomising and the other as a
along comes a card without a numeric kind of chance deck.
value or a suit. A card that essentially
represents a kind of "all bets are off"I'm sure the possibilities for multi-deck
concept. games don't stop there but I'm going to
finish up extolling the virtues of the
The power and versatility of the joker playing card now and move on.
card is exemplified by how the card I hope that this section has so far
itself has stepped out of the deck and opened your eyes up to the power of
into unrelated games like quizzes. The card decks as a randomiser in role
Joker symbolises that some playing. I'm going to round out the
extraordinary game event has been chapter by going really nuts and
introduced. Whether you harness this discussing further paraphernalia that
power for your own adventures is up to you could use to enhance mood and
you. make randomisation interesting in your
games.
Multiple Decks
Resource Counters
If you take the humble die, add a
further die what do you have? Well, One thing that has been fun on
two dice essentially. occasion is to use counters or beads to
represent some resource such as sanity
Take a pack of cards and add a second or experience. The practice of actually
deck of cards and you could have a having a pile and spending the pile
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Other Randomisers
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operate. Dice are certainly not innocent shooting a steely Hosting glare at one
of this as the process of shaking, of the players and commanding "Do me
hunching and rolling the dice is a draw", where they pull one straight
distracting enough, let alone when one out of a pack in their hand is as
pings off a drinks glass and shoots instantaneous as you can get.
under the sofa. I know this is turning into a treatise on
what's so great about card decks but let
I've experimented with various means me assure you the testing elves have
of randomisation and none are utterly gone so nuts for this stuff that they've
unintrusive but the least intrusive? begun hacking other systems to use
Well, you've probably guessed what cards with them instead of dice.
I'm going to advocate by now. he fact is
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Plots
If you're doing it right then there videogame design can give us a good
should be no such thing as a "typical" analog here. The sandbox is a game
No Dice evening. However just because design structure that says the designer
there is no one thing that could be said is there to provide an open world of
to typify the No Dice experience does possibility for the player. Sandbox
not mean that there aren't some tried games started out as things like Sim
and tested recipes for giving players an City and The Sims where there was no
interesting role play session. actual plot per se players filled empty
worlds with bespoke creations and
The first thing I want to get right away developed their own internal worlds.
from is the idea that what we are doing
is making a plot that involves the Fast forward a few years and a
players being given a "mission" which company called Rockstar produced a
they will then fulfil by going through a game called Grand Theft Auto III. No
number of steps you have laid out for one really knew what to expect from
them in order. Even if your game is this when it first arrived but it quickly
mission based there is nothing that set down a design paradigm that has
turns a player off more than feeling come to dominate video game design.
that they are "on rails". In GTA III the player was set down in a
3D world called Liberty City and
The Sandbox allowed to wander around either
following the plot or, essentially,
Thankfully the wonderful world of playing around with the world
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wish to engineer a huge saga or whole thing through from end to end.
chronicle that you split it down into After a while players will be hungering
"seasons" of six to eight episodes for resolution, even if it is just the
because variety is the spice of life and conclusion to an act.
someone else always has their eye on
the Hosting chair. You may have a very clear idea of what
will happen in your saga, or just the
Six to Eight Episodes vague impressions of the beginning
situation and where the story will end
This section only applies to multi- up. You don't have to know everything
episodic No Dice adventures. One right away. Just plan out six to eight
timers may move along. episodes and then relax, run something
else, give the players a break. In the
An average No Dice session can last end they'll thank you for endless
between three and eight hours. That's variety and stimulation even if, when
the equivalent of five or six episodes of they think back on the saga that too
any given dramatic television series was rich and rewarding.
without advertisements. At their
longest "seasons" of television dramas Plot Construction
last about twenty four episodes. In four
sessions your players will have been What you should find, particularly
playing as long as it would take to when designing something episodic in
watch an entire season of a television nature like a No Dice scenario, is that
drama. plots become something like boxes. All
stories have one plot, but within that
Also you, as Host, are going to have to one plot there are usually smaller plots
come up with a series of entertaining which revolve around the central plot
episodes for your players to play and comment upon it, adding depth to
through. Even if you are planning a the characters and themes.
role play saga to rival War and Peace
you will not be able to just play the So, and I don't ask this question in the
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As you can see four out of the seven are Both deal with the thirty six dramatic
enormously popular and easily situations described by French author
referenced. The others range from hard Georges Polti. One Appendix is for
to define (although wouldn't a comedic players but should also be read by
RPG plot be fun given the definition?) Hosts, the other one is further notes for
to overly difficult to imagine as an the Host. there's more explanation in
RPG. Maybe someone would want to the relevant appendix.
play a tragic figure in an RPG but I
doubt it would be many player's first For now let's move along. Once you
choice, not least because it would be have decided the overarching plot du
extremely difficult. As for "Rebirth", jour is, for example, a “defeating the
that's all very well but as the hub of the monster” with a side helping of
story is the evolution of a person's very “situation 36” you will want to get out
soul unless you can guarantee this for of the abstract end of the pool and head
the players I think it will have to be for the most excellent water slides of
relegated to the status of unexpected genre.
by-product.
Genre
So we're left with five basic plots that
are do-able. You might be depressed to In case you don't know, a good
note that three of those five are working definition of genre would be
repeated over and over again in RPGs. the sections in a fiction library, movie
Don't worry. At this stage we are just hire shop or book store. So broadly
trying to resolve options. The actual speaking "Crime", "SF", "Horror",
business of playing an RPG doesn't "Fantasy", "Thriller", "Romance" etc.
revolve around the events of a plot.
There is a certain school of thought
The core of any RPG is the playing out that says that all genre settings are just
of dramatic situations. To this end two set dressing, the mechanisms of drama
Appendices are included in this guide. remain the same irrespective. To a
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certain degree this is true. You can are particularly apt for particular
rescue the princess for real in High themes. If you set your adventures in
Fantasy. Don't think that just because the wrong place and time they may get
she's an Industrialist's Daughter and muddled or go off in directions that
you get to the Evil Corporation's Moon you don't like.
Base in your Dread Cruiser doesn't
mean you're still not rescuing the same So in this summary of popular genres I
princess. shall highlight what kinds of theme
those genres are associated with and
further themes or modifications
introduced by the sub-genres of that
main genre. The list is not exhaustive,
nor is it intended to be; like everything
else in this section it is intended as a
source book to guide and suggest. There
are exceptions to every rule and your
killer idea is more important than my
rule of thumb.
The Examples
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same high themes but it seeks to but the player has taken on a new role
subvert our views about them. Just read in that world and that is the subject of
some of Terry Pratchett's Discworld the game.
and you'll get the idea. You'd be wrong When a game blends the things of High
to think this wasn't like "serious" Fantasy and the things of modern life,
fantasy though it is just the opposite of therefore, it is in an attempt to get us to
it. Comic fantasy takes a cynical view re-examine our world. The mainstays
of concepts like "Ultimate Good", of High Fantasy are high concepts and
"Ultimate Evil", "Kindly Spirits" and putting them in a modern world makes
"Evil Demons". us think about how high concept
blends with the mundane.
Contemporary Fantasy
Contemporary fantasy can be funny,
Anything set in the here and now is but it can also be spiritual, it's one of
likely to be reflective. When you're my favourite genres and I think
playing a game set in the far future or deservedly so because the point of role
in a fantasy realm you have to look playing is to bring the real world into a
outwards because the world is new to new focus and make it strange again
you. Space and future games are about like it was when we were young.
the totally unfamiliar, games set in a
past, or past-like world force you to Spiritual Fantasy
look beyond yourself because they have
different rules to the world you inhabit This is the highest of high fantasy a lot
but you can read about the past and the of the stuff about the nature of heroism
things to expect from it in history either doesn't apply here or heroism
books. and virtue are examined in relation to
one another. Spiritual Fantasy
If your game is set in a world similar to presumes some religious context is the
our own then you can expect the literal truth, in the Western world that
individual will be important. The could mean that God, His choirs of
world is just the world as we know it angels, Satan and his horde of demons
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(amongst other factors) is that his story It is always important to examine each
exemplifies what a good super hero player's character description and
story should be. The story is not about history in a game involving time travel,
having sweet powers with which one alternative realities, other dimensions
can mush super villains' faces into the or associated weirdness. What you are
concrete, that's a by-product. A super looking for are hooks upon which you
hero story is about how someone can introduce personal weirdness for
mundane and bland copes with the each character. Dead parents,
responsibility of gaining unusual childhood enemies, any trauma
powers that allow them to help others basically, will give you ideas for strange
or to harm them. characters who are, or appear to be,
people from a character's memories.
Weird Even if you never name them as such
and they look like gigantic blue giraffes
Alternative dimensions, time travel, you can make these non-player
cloning, SF has a branch called characters fulfil a role that will make
speculative fiction that asks questions the player question their own identity
about the very nature of reality itself. and that is the core of such stories.
When things start to get really strange
in a piece of fiction the accent subtly Horror
shifts once more to the hero engaged
upon these bizarre adventures. Horror is a great genre for role playing
as exemplified by the fact that telling
The point of such stories is inevitably ghost stories verbally over a campfire is
to examine the strangest parts of a still a recognised activity, ghost walks
character's internal landscape. The in older towns and cities in the UK are
stories tend to be quite intellectual, also popular.
when reality is suspect you only have
your own conscious mind to fall back Horror is a genre that asks the
on. audience, by way of the characters, to
contemplate death itself. How this
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depressing and terrible it actually starts them of the weight of past events. Until
to become fun. The secret to giving the past is put right the future cannot
people a fine baroque horror be allowed to continue. These stories
experience is to ladle it on, if you pull can be cathartic but in their execution
back too far you risk disturbing and they are perhaps the most disturbingly
unsettling people. This is the rule of resonant of all, they make a person
thumb, if players are really looking to question the world even as they
have something get under their skin provide thrilling drama.
pull back and go for "creeping horror"
if you want it all to be a bit of a laugh Action
have people go insane and rip their
own eyes out every ten minutes. Action is not so much a genre as a grab
bag of elements that can be added to a
Supernatural scenario to give it flavour. Whereas
previously the setting actually tells you
By which I mean vampires, werewolves something about the type of story and
and spirits who are not the remnants of how it should be executed the action
past tragedy (for which see "Ghost settings are concerned with a character
Stories"). These take the fear of the in a setting.
other present in Slasher stories and
blend in a spiritual aspect. These stories The same rules apply in terms of time,
focus on depravity, corruption, curses if the setting is the past there is both
and the nature of evil. As with weird familiarity and a degree of comfort, if
SF comb through the player character the present focus on the individual, if
histories for clues. the future the setting is likely to
alienate. One thing's for certain, stick
Ghost Stories to the tropes of these genres if you pick
them or else the game risks losing
Ghosts, as in the psychic remnants of atmosphere.
past tragedy, are there to remind the
protagonist in a story that features
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What gives the Act II fight real power idea is that the good may be lawless
is that the same fight almost happened and the lawful can be evil. Bear this in
in Act I but didn't. mind when approaching the
Swashbuckling swashbuckler genre.
From Musketeers to Monte Cristo, It is worth noting that if you move the
from Pirates to Pimpernels swashbuckling genre away from its
swashbuckling stories are really setting it ceases to be thought of as
political fantasies that dare to ask the swashbuckling. Many modern action
question "What if the only choice movies employ the same ideas but
available to a good man was to break without swords, panache and a period
the law"? Not that every swashbuckler setting it seems to lose the feel of the
is a good person but the concept of swashbuckler.
lawlessness is essential to
swashbuckling. Mix It Up!
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There's absolutely nothing wrong with you invite the players to address a set
this, if everyone's having a good time number of situations in the game or in
it's rather to be applauded. each episode of the game.
Event Driven
Look At Possibilities
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asked are few when setting up the with a vast number of people probably
overall plot: falling into some neutral ground where
they haven't picked a side.
Is there a villain?
Do they have access to enough The really interesting people fall into
resources to make them an two categories. Those people who are
enemy with employee forces of near the middle and those people who
some kind? appear to be the opposite of what they
If they're so villainous, why so? actually are. Both give scope for
i.e. what are they doing that's dramatic conflict and bring up issues of
evil? persuasion and trust. Some people will,
If they're not technically evil obviously, have to be what they say
they could still be an opponent they are.
to the player's goals.
Is there a prize to be won? A handy thought here is the traditional
Why is the prize so valuable? Greek meaning of the term "Comedy".
These days a comedy is a drama that
Once you have settled these aspects in will attempt to raise a smile. In the
your mind you should go on to Greek sense comedy is a drama in
consider who has a stake in the prize, which the identities of the participants
or who will be your allies and enemies are not certain or have not been
in defeating a villain. resolved yet. The comedy is the
sequence of events which leads to the
Interested Parties true identities of the characters being
revealed.
This is where you fall back on your
situations. All your other non-player This definition should apply to almost
characters will fall on a scale of every adventure you run in some way.
whether they are broadly speaking If your adventure is about how Jack
"goodies" or whether they are "baddies" Awesome and the League of Splendid
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Similarly their role in the story may be From the other three things you should
"Wandering Peasant" but the peasant have some idea of a top three topics of
maybe a farmer, a beggar, a poor conversation these characters like to
craftsman or a monk. All of these will dwell upon with strangers. Make a
suggest things for point three so give quick decision about how chatty they
everyone a role in life and then, if they are on a scale of 1-10 and there you go
are there for some specific reason in the limitless numbers of random cast
story upgrade them. members.
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have that will contribute to the overall characters up to the point where they
story. Characters with particularly vital enter your campaign you should have
pieces of information should be your had a few ideas for NPCs that are, in
next priority. The chances are that your some way, personal to them.
players will, at least, be able to reason
out who the most important characters Don't forget to jot down some notes for
in the story are and they'll be spending these characters and maybe even go
a lot of their time talking to those back through and insert them into your
characters. episode notes. Characters who arise as a
result of these sessions may have an
You want to decide things like, how impact on NPCs you've already
bribable are they? Do they respond written.
better to honey or vinegar? What are
their opinions of the general situation For example, you may have imagined a
outlined in the adventure? character who was part of an army the
players are pitted against who deserted
Anything aside from this and you can and started trying to undermine the
fall back on your basic notes for army he used to serve with guerilla
winging it. If the character is really tactics. Then it turns out that one of
important you might want to start your characters had this unhappy love
thinking about their upbringing and affair where the girl disappeared
life history but these are more the around the world to "find herself"
kinds of things that are important to when the affair ended. A way to
players. Remember you're not there to introduce some tension into the
present a detailed epic you're there to dynamic between the rebel leader and
give the convincing illusion of a the party is to have them first run into
detailed epic. the player character's ex and have her
reveal that she is now in a relationship
Back To The Players with the rebel.
Once you've Lone Wolfed your player's Without this tension your rebel leader
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could just be tossed into the "good moral crusader needs to be tempted.
bloke" box and the scenario rolls on. The man of peace needs to be pushed
But the fact that he is involved with into war. You haven't got time to way
one of the other character's ex- lay the romantic fool with a pointless
girlfriends instantly makes things quest for turnips that has nothing to do
complicated, in a good way. with anything. Unless, of course, that's
the whole point.
Always try to make everything fit
together. In real life, despite the A Final Note
reputed six degrees of separation,
everyone does not tend to know Many of the very oldest RPGs
everyone else. In a story it works the described enemies, even major ones, in
other way around as it's a great way to terms of how able they were to kill
ramp up the dramatic tension. you. They described non-enemies in
terms of what service they could be to
This is a very important point. The you. They described allies in terms of
major NPCs, in fact all the people your what they could do to help you and
players encounter should, in fact, be what they would ask in return.
there to tell the player characters
something about themselves. This As time went by RPGs started to
sounds absurd and egotistical, like the include more detailed notes on
whole world of the game is just some characters. To date I have never seen
sort of bizarre “Truman Show”. one that actually compacted characters
into a thumbnail that would allow a
In actual fact, if you think about it, GM to freestyle just about any
what else are the players supposed to conversation the players might like to
do with their time? Life's too short for have off the top of their head. I hope
supporting characters who tell the this chapter has helped you to move
players nothing about their own role. ahead with this.
The hothead needs to be needled. The
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Not that it is an easy thing to achieve, it the brew. You might even end up
will take some work on your part to engineering such encounters to lighten
pull off a convincing NPC every time the mood and, of course, to deepen the
but the key to the small talk is to never atmosphere.
run out. If you feel someone's going to
have to be around for a while with a Examples of NPC profiles can be found
chatty NPC you just need to make a list in the example campaigns. I think that
of reasonable small talk subjects for you will, by this time, have taken as
that NPC and make sure that much talking to as a person can take so
character's got a solid opinion on all of now it is time to interact. Browse the
them. notes, call some friends, make some
character sheets and while you're
Of course some NPCs just don't like to shuffling the deck you can try to
talk at all, some are business like, some remember exactly where it is you left
are just nervous around people, some your dice bag anyway.
maintain stubborn silence. In the end a
chatty NPC is just more seasoning to Have fun!
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Scenarios
The example scenarios in this section are designed to give you a few hints as to
how to construct your own No Dice adventures. Each scenario broadly speaking
goes in the following order:
Introduction
Additional Rules
List of Playable Characters
Set Up Notes for the Players
Character Overview
Annotated Map
Running The Game
Any Resources are presented full page for ease of producing hard copies. If a
map is included it is purely intended to give the Host an idea of major locations.
This is the wrong place for scale models and lead figures. Sometimes maps can be
given out as props but they're never intended as game boards.
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Traveller's Rest
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Rupert James "Jamie" Clifford-Jones
Known to everyone but the prof as Jamie, Rupert knows that this whole thing is a con job. Well, it must
be, mustn't it? The Professor has provided paper after paper proving that the very idea of a ghost is
ridiculous. The ancient fraudster running this operation may have the others fooled but that senility
schtick is a crock.
While the kids are busy playing "Ghostbusters" Rupert and the prof will get to the bottom of this and
find out where the last party disappered off to. This whole incident has, at least, allowed Rupert to get
some brownie points with the Prof, which should come in handy when it came to getting his thesis
approved. Not that there was much of a problem in that department anyway. Now if only he could
explain to the prof that he prefers to be called "Jamie" then that would make Rupert's life about perfect.
Advantages
Disadvantages
Haughty
Narrow Minded
Self Obsessed
Authoritarian
Possessions
Mobile Phone, Wallet, Money, Keys for the Mini Bus, Some items of expensive bling (proper Rolex
watch, two white gold signet rings and a white gold neck chain carrying a Celtic Knot charm.)
Catherine "Cat" Martin
Cat is really beginning to wish she'd never taken this place at Pimston. Professor Denton is the most closed-minded
and fusty idiot she's ever met in her life. Not that Cat would be much different if it weren't for the fact that she can
sense the dead. She'd like to think that she'd be a bit more open-minded though.
The fact that she cannot know whether she would or not is the only thing that's keeping her on this course at the
moment. Carrying salt to purify everything and a small book of spells that use common household goods isn't so
dippy when you've used them to clear cancerous psychic energies. Once you've felt the atmosphere lift like fog
being burned by the sun you don't so much believe in this stuff as rely upon it.
Of course, one cannot forget that all this experience is personal, some people seem to be completely immune to the
energies beyond. Cat just didn't realise that some of these people would find jobs in University Parapsychology
Departments.
Advantages
Psychically Sensitive
Knowledge of Herbalism and basic Witchcraft
Independent
Observant
Trustworthy
Disadvantages
Possessions
Mobile Phone, Wallet, Money, Keys, Bag of Salt, Various items of silver jewellery all designed to carry
basic warding ability, packet of cigarettes, zippo lighter, spell journal, bag of crystals.
Crystal Guide
Ronnie is happy to be involved in this kind of field work. It's more exciting than a lot of other things he
could be doing with his time. Ronnie has always felt that there is more to the world than what you could
apprehend with the five senses and a slide rule. He's fascinated with the problem of how things that are
inherently hard to be known could be known or understood.
He is a little dismayed to note that the course he worked so hard to enrol on seems to spend so much
energy debunking claims of psychic phenomena and not enough, in his opinion, understanding why
these phenomena exist at all.
Advantages
Learned
Quick Study
Excellent Research Skills
Some experience with monitoring equipment
Open Minded
Mild Psychic Sensitivity
Disadvantages
Quiet
Weak
Hates conflict
Possessions
Mobile Phone, Keys, Money, Wallet, Leatherman "Multi-Tool" Key Ring, Three occult study books.
Conrad White
Conrad has a bag packed with ghost simulation gear. He only came onto this course because he thought it
would be fun to laugh at the ghost busters and weirdos. He's actually been quite pleased that the course
seems to be erring on the side of disproving all this ghosts nonsense.
He sees this as an ideal opportunity to have a laugh, he has a roll of fishing twine, a couple of noise boxes
and some awesome rubber party masks in his bag. If his oddball compatriots want a night in the
spookhouse Conrad is more than happy to oblige.
The key character note here is that Conrad's come away for the night with 40 cigarettes, a lighter and a
can of deodorant. This is what he considers to be "overnight supplies".
Advantages
Athletic
Popular
Handsome
Strong
Smarter than he looks
Disadvantages
No psychic ability
Brash
Rude
Lazy
Selfish
Loves himself way too much
Possessions
Keys, Wallet, Money, Mobile Phone, Three Noise Boxes, Two Novelty rubber masks, roll of fishing
twine, two packets of cigarettes, Skull and Crossbones zippo lighter, can of deodorant.
Jana Denton
How inconsiderate is it of a dad to program this kind of snoozefest on the weekend his
daughter's coming to visit? He's promised pizza, and a telly with DVDs, and that
Conrad boy's quite cute actually. Still a cute university boy is no competition for a
night with a bottle of cheap wine from Claire's mum's wine cupboard (as they're both
fifteen) and a make-over session, is it?
Jana is determined to have as bad a time as it is possible to have on this jaunt. She could
care less about ghosts and stuff, she wants her pizza, a film starring Matthew
McConnaughey and she wants Conrad to pay her a compliment of some kind. Then she
wants to be left alone with her mobile and an open line to Claire.
Advantages
Psychically Bulletproof
Pretty
Disadvantages
Stupid
Selfish
Lazy
Petulant
Possessions
2)The back yard is a short space of grass contents as a chocolate cake. This cake
leading to the entrance to the woods. may be removed, eaten, enjoyed and
Anyone exploring the woods will be the fridge may still produce another.
assailed by the succubi (see "Running When the fridge is not in "cake mode"
The Game") and then rescued by it just contains the usual things you'd
Viktor. Whether they get bitten by the expect to find in a fridge. Whether the
succubi is up to you as the Host. fridge is in cake mode or not is at the
whim of the Host.
Lower Floor
Upper Floor
1)The lounge is a huge room fitted out
with antique furniture, dusty knick 1)The Guest bedroom. This is a plain
knacks and home to a roaring fire. The and unremarkable twin guest bedroom.
team will set up their base station here. Where Professor Denton has set up
camp. The room still contains his
2) The hall leads to the kitchen, dining personal effects. The professor's effects
room and lounge, it also offers access to include a mobile phone which has
the upper floor under the stairs is about six minutes charge for talking left
basement access for which Mavis has in it.
the key. When night falls Viktor uses
magic to seal everyone inside the 2) The bathroom. This is an
house. When it is not night the front unremarkable bathroom. There are a
door leads out to the front garden. few first aid supplies in the cabinet
over the sink. The mirror has a trace of
3) The dining room contains a large psychic energy in it. A skilled psychic
dining table where Mavis and Albert can pick up the repeated phrase: "I
serve the guests their evening meal of came back, my love, but oh, but oh, the
soup followed by a spaghetti bolognese. darkness followed". Mildly psychic
people will think that the person they
The kitchen has one unusual feature. are looking at in the mirror doesn't
The fridge will occasionally reveal its look like them.
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3) Mavis' Bedroom. This room is lousy houses the remains of a human corpse
with bad energy, particularly flowing under a thin sheet. This is the earthly
from the back room. Mavis has the key remains of Albert, who is in fact a
to the back room. There is nothing of bizarre shadow-ghost whose spirit now
particular interest in the bedroom. Its haunts Traveller's Rest.
décor is a pink and talc-scented
domestic nightmare. It is possible, although incredibly
difficult, for someone with access to
4) The Back Room. It has some features occult texts to find out that this space is
that suggest it may have been a child's supposed to be for the purposes of
nursery furnished some time in the mid resurrection. If whoever has the texts
eighties. Only half the walls are also has Viktor's diary the two may be
papered with alphabet block and teddy cross-referenced to make the
bear wallpaper, there is no cot or any decipherment task easier.
other furniture in the room. There is a
ladder up to the attic space here. The Attic
Anyone with a psychic talent will be
unable to cross the room its energy is so A gigantic window looks out on the
rotten. The demon's portal is here. back yard. There are a few effects here
that indicate that the attic room has an
The Basement occupant: an easy chair angled to look
out over the woods, a desk and chair, a
1) Ante room - This is a utility room small cot bed. There is no indication
under the stairs. It has a variety of tools anyone eats here, this may be noticed
and utility stuff in it to the Host's only if someone asks the question. The
whim. The locked door leads to the desk contains Viktor's Diary. After sun
other cellar room. Albert has the key. set Viktor will have left his nest to
2) The basement room - This room is protect Mavis.
completely empty except for a ritual
space defined between the floor and
the ceiling. Oh yes, and a slab, which
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Finally, before Mavis was mad she was never be able to say what.
a wicked good practitioner of the
occult and a top-notch herbalist. She Viktor
maintains her herb garden and abilities
to make remedies for just about Viktor is a huge, gnarly, brutal
everything from pure muscle memory. Dhampir. To protect the occupants of
She will not discuss occult practice the house from the Children of the
even though, or perhaps because, she Night in the woods he seals the house
knows it so well. with powerful magick.
Albert
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Eventually it might be time to tempt help them. The demon is charming, can
Conrad out the back to see how he dominate all the players and will
copes with succubi, then, if things eventually twist everyone's minds to
appear to be dragging, introduce Greg. feed its own soul. The demon is
basically bad news.
Greg gives everyone a few moments to
fuss over his neck wound, refuses a The Backstory
truly rancid combination of poultice
and tea from Mavis (which would have Okay, so by now you're probably
effectively cleansed the succubic wondering what's going on in this
infection from his system) and sinks madhouse. Here is the full story in neat
rapidly through delirium into a state chronological order:
where he suddenly awakes, refreshed,
and possessed by the house demon. Mavis and Albert move into Traveller's
Rest. They plan to run a guest house
At this stage he will herd players facility to supplement Albert's income
through the house to his portal and and have a child together.
away from the basement. The demon
cannot actually harm the players but he 2) In short order three succubi, pursued
can make them think they will be by the Dhampir Viktor arrive at
harmed. If the players get sucked Traveller's Rest and kill Albert before
through the portal they will end up in Viktor arrives. Viktor saves Mavis but
the demon's insanity dimension. Here Albert dies. The Succubi escape into
the demon will offer the hapless the woods. Viktor vows to kill the
travellers a bargain, kill Mavis and go succubi before he moves on, he hides in
free. the Traveller's Rest attic. Mavis is
afraid of him and does not know he is
The demon really has no intention of there.
setting the players free and unless they
weaken the demon using the 3) As time goes by several guests at
prescribed route Viktor is powerless to Traveller's Rest are consumed by the
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1) The really bad ending - Players are Proper disposal releases the Albert in
suckered into the demon deal. The the mirror and also the doppelganger.
demon traps everyone including Mavis This also cuts the demon off from its
in a dimension of lunacy defeats Viktor portal power source, it will manifest as
and destroys the world. a big scary monster. Viktor then kills it,
and goes off to mop up the succubi.
2) The slightly bad ending - Players Mavis becomes lucid accepting her
refuse the demon deal but are trapped husband has gone and everyone lives in
in a lunacy dimension where they a metaphorical land of sunshine and
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Revelation Point
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player at a rate of a +1 advantage for the game (as in within the roleplay, say
every five adrenaline slots filled. BUT it they hole up in a building and spend
also makes them more stupid and less some time patching themselves up, use
aware of further damage when your Hostly discretion) they will "heal"
controlled by the Host which manifests moving a wound across into a recovery
as a -1 to checks for every five slots space and emptying the wound space.
filled.
If they lose all five head wound spaces
In terms of damage to individual parts within half an hour then they will have
of the body the fourth and fifth points to wait one full hour before the
of damage are where the character recovery kicks in. If they have used
really starts to flag. two recovery spaces when they receive
the fifth head wound they will miss
A character with four points of damage being in a coma but will be out for
on an area loses use of that area and several hours. most likely till after the
will need medical attention to make a events of the game have concluded.
full recovery. A character with five The chances of them waking up dead
points of damage on an area is are high.
effectively maimed in that area and
will never fully recover. Using Advantages and Disadvantages
The most important area to guard is the If possible the Host should keep a crib
head. Four hits to the head renders a sheet of each character's advantages
character unconscious, five will put and disadvantages. When a character
them in a coma. The head, however, makes a test look to see if they have an
can recover a little over time, giving it advantage or disadvantage in the area
an extra three points of damage, where they're making a test. If they
represented by the recovery spaces next have an advantage make it easier,
to the head on the character sheet. If a Otherwise make it harder.
character receives a head wound then
after about half an hour has passed in Example: Penny needs to make a test of
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Pete's ability to tell a lie, the Host looks beat up old RV back to NYC and had
at Pete's advantages and disadvantages already got a couple to chip in for gas
and sees he is charming, so he lowers on a trip back to NYC: Chad and Didi.
the expected difficulty by one.
The bonus for Greg was that Chad
Playable Characters (5-10) promised to pay double if there was a
ride home for his little brother, Flea,
Make sure you stick to these character who'd been visiting as well. The RV
pairings as these combinations have was so big that he still had a place left
been designed to not have incompatible
back story information. even after Scout had persuaded her
boyfriend Pete to join them all. So
Chad Morgan - Didi's boyfriend / Greg Jamie hopped in the bus and away they
McAuliffe - Scout's older brother. all went.
Pete Baker - Scout's boyfriend / Didi
Lamont - Chad's girlfriend Greg was very proud that he
Scout McAuliffe - Pete's girlfriends / maintained the RV himself and knew
Flea Morgan - Chad's younger brother every nut and bolt. So when it broke
Officer Kinney - A police officer / in the middle of nowhere that came as
Jamie Peltzer - Scout's friend a complete surprise. Never mind, hey.
Veronica Kaye - A nurse / Pip There must be a garage around here
Gunnarson - A lost teenage girl somewhere, right?
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Greg Mcauliffe
Greg doesn't really know anyone on the bus except for his sister and Chad. When it comes to Chad he only knows
that the guy's an MIT man like himself, they've never really spoken.
Greg's very proud of his bus and is particularly glad to have an opportunity to make it work. He's always been
interested in motor vehicles and motors in general. He's always tinkering with a number of personal projects.
He's glad that Scout followed him up to Cambridge to attend Harvard because it means it's easier for him to look out
for her. He was more anxious while he was doing his first couple of years at MIT and Scout was still working her
way through high school.
He is a little suspicious of Pete and is not sure that the guy is right for his sister.
He's secretly quite glad that Scout got Jamie onto the bus because he thinks she's cute.
Advantages
Good Mechanic
Scientific (Engineering)
Quick Study
Pretty Athletic
Not Easily Horrified
Disadvantages
Shy
Geeky
Wound Chart
Scout's always been grateful that she had an older brother blazing a trail for her in the outside world. It's
not that she's exactly meek or scared but Greg's always been there for her and she's kind of got used to it.
When she first moved to Cambridge she didn't know if the connection the pair of them had growing up
would still be there but just recently Greg's been taking part in a lot more joint activities with her and
her friends.
She's concerned, actually that Greg doesn't seem to have many friends of his own. She hopes that he will
find a chance on this trip to bond a little with Chad. Scout's noticed recently that Pete's been a little off
and she's not sure why. Just last night they ended up in a massive argument about the fact that she'd
invited Jamie to take the last place in the bus. Pete seems to have some kind of a problem with Jamie but
she's not sure what.
Advantages
Excellent Student
Friendly
Good Saleswoman
Athletic
Disadvantages
Wound Chart
If Jamie had known when she asked Scout that the lift she would be offered would be one in a bus with Scout's older
brother and Pete Baker she probably wouldn't have bothered. Not that she cares that much about Greg, he seems
kind of nice, nerdy like her. But Pete's a real problem.
A couple of months ago when Scout was in bed with a cold Jamie ran into Pete out and about trying it on with
anything in a skirt. She decided to keep out of it but then he saw her. He had threatened her and then tried it on
with her as well. He'd always seemed a nice guy before but the problem seems to be when he's hanging around with
his swim team cronies and drinking too much cheap beer he turns into a chauvinist caricature.
Jamie still hates herself for not telling Scout all about the incident at the time but as it recedes into the past it
somehow seems less important. She still hates Pete though, but she tries to keep it civil for Scout's sake. When she
arrived first thing before they set out on this trip she noticed Flea poking about the bus looking shifty.
Advantages
Disadvantages
Geeky
Awkward
Not the most athletic
Short sighted
Wound Chart
Head [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] Recoveries [][][]
Nose [][][][][]
Mouth [][][][][]
Chest [][][][][]
Stomach [][][][][]
Groin [][][][][]
Left Right
Ears [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [][][][][]
Eyes [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [][][][][]
Shoulder [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [][][][][]
Arm [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [][][][][]
Hand [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [][][][][]
Thigh [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [][][][][]
Leg [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [][][][][]
Foot [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [][][][][]
Pete was actually looking forward to this road trip until Scout dropped the bomb that bitch Jamie was going to be on
board with them. Jamie's had it in for Pete since forever and is determined to spoil things between Scout and Pete.
Just because Pete likes to party, apparently.
Okay so sometimes he gets a little familiar with the ladies but it's all in fun, Scout is a grown woman and she knows
that a man like Pete can't be restricted. At the first opportunity Pete would get Scout to scrape off Jamie exactly the
same way Jamie's trying to get rid of him. Of course, there's also the factor that Jamie could very well be hot for Pete
and he wouldn't blame her. Pete's got no illusions, he's a catch.
That's why it burns him up when eggheads like Greg and Chad look down their nose at him. Not that he'd be the
first to pick a fight with his girlfriend's brother of course, but that kid, Chad's brother, he looks like a loser, if he gets
the opportunity maybe he'll rag on the kid a bit. Pete's longing for a situation where he can take charge and prove
his awesomeness to all the gathered masses.
Advantages
Confident
Highly athletic (Boxer)
Charming
Popular
Disadvantages
Brash
Arrogant
Impetuous
Short tempered
Wound Chart
Chad couldn't be more grateful to have a place for Didi and himself on Greg's NYC bus if he tried. He's so
broke that it was getting embarrassing and he hasn't quite got round to sharing his misfortune with Didi
yet. Thing is his Poker system really sould have worked out a lot better than it did and it's ended up with
Chad almost penniless.
This is probably not the news that Didi wants to hear, especially as they're supposed to be saving for their
wedding. Instead of which he's stumping up gas money, mooching off his weedhead little brother and
trying to put on like he's got the money. Who knows how he's going to sort this all out.
Advantages
Maths Brain
Pretty Athletic
Resourceful
Good Talker
Radiates Trustworthiness
Disadvantages
Impulsive
Lacks Risk Assessment Skills
Secretive
Highly Strung
Wound Chart
Head [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] Recoveries [][][]
Nose [][][][][]
Mouth [][][][][]
Chest [][][][][]
Stomach [][][][][]
Groin [][][][][]
Left Right
Ears [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [][][][][]
Eyes [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [][][][][]
Shoulder [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [][][][][]
Arm [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [][][][][]
Hand [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [][][][][]
Thigh [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [][][][][]
Leg [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [][][][][]
Foot [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [][][][][]
Didi really admires Chad for his prudence. She knows he's been working hard at his maths course and
saving so diligently so that they can get married and for this she absolutely hero worships him. In any
troublesome situation she turns to Chad, her hero. She doesn't share the feelings for Flea, which is
probably a good thing. But actually she doesn't even see how that scrawny criminal could even be related
to her precious man.
He's kind of creepy actually, she saw him hanging around the back of Greg's van before they all came
out. Probably looking to deal weed in the shade of the back of the bus. She likes Scout, thinks Jamie's a
geek and Pete's a jock asshole... oh, did I mention Didi's rather judgemental.
Advantages
Extremely Friendly
Well Liked
Good Student
Resourceful
Fighter
Disadvantages
Wound Chart
Dude, Massachusetts is such a shit hole. That's Flea's abiding opinion after a fortnight staying on his brother's
couch. The big nerd seems to have become three or four times more uptight just by being here. The place is,
however, filled with rich kids away from home who want to get high in a Cypress Hill stylee and that suits Flea
real good. He's made a tidy bundle in the last fortnight Chad seems to have zeroed in on that too.
Making Flea spend loads of money like it's some kind of punishment. Still he really likes that Jamie girl, she's got
full on geek hip and it's a look he digs. She's already proven herself to him by turning down a doobie. Flea
doesn't smoke that shit, it's for selling and she seems sensible too.
Unlike this Greg chump who's driving the bus. Flea can tell by the smell of the underside of the van and the
slight tick in the motor that this thing's going to clap out soon, maybe even before they get back to NY. Still
anything that lets him avoid seeing the old man is a good thing. And he'd love a chance to show his true colours
to Jamie.
Advantages
Super cunning
Gift of the gab
Savant with motors
Athletic and clean living
Disadvantages
Unprepossessing
Uncharismatic
Scrawny
Shy
Wound Chart
Revelation Point is a creepy place, although he prefers it to Lincoln Falls which may as well be called
Stepford. He's followed Pip Gunnarson's trail this far and he's not stopping now. There's all sorts of
stories about people disappearing up here and those are just the clean stories about the woodsmen of
Revelation Point.
Stories are just stories but still country folk are touchy and not used to outsiders. Tom Kinney's going to
have to be extra specially nice to anyone he sees up here.
Advantages
Commands Respect
Decent Marksman
Unflappable
Strong
Disadvantages
Wound Chart
Sister Ronnie curses the fact that she's always been a soft touch. She never suspected a nice old lady like
that would have tricked her but here she is, caught in a cell who knows where, hurting, scared,
exhausted and she's sure that somewhere in the darkness outside her box she can hear two sounds; the
breathing of someone watching and the crying of someone as deep in despair as she is.
Advantages
Strong
Cunning
Medically Trained
Fast Runner
Not Squeamish
Disadvantages
Prone to depression
Cold manner
Somewhat gullible
Wound Chart
She wasn't going back to that bitch stepmother of hers. That had been Pip's only thought as she ran and
ran.
There'd been a cop on her tail and she'd been prepared to do just about anything to lose him, even get
this lost herself. Out in the woods she'd been sure someone was following her and she'd known she was
right when she seemed to blink and then from hiking along the road she was in a small dirty metal box.
Pip had been caught by someone or something and the stories she'd always heard about Revelation Point
were true.
Advantages
Survivor
Able to size up situations quickly
Excellent judge of character
Easily inspires sympathy
Disadvantages
Pathologically Suspicious
Poor liar
Run down
Wound Chart
Papa Hardesty
Wound Chart
relating to the following overview for they're there and 9 to see something
Hosts only and an unnumbered version tangible.
for photocopying and issuing to the
players should they find one of the The elementary school is open but
copies placed at various locations derelict. Towards the rear of the single
throughout the town. Part of the storey building is a canteen and an
atmosphere of the game is the feeling industrial kitchen with a lockable door.
of being lost. So the map should not The players can buy some time here
just be doled out. It's dark and none of but after about forty minutes the
the players have ever been here before. wendigos will set fire to the building to
Unless they find a map no point of smoke them out. The kitchen has a
reference should be given. drainage cover leading to a small drain
that anyone scoring less than four on a
Notes draw will be too claustrophobic to
enter.
1) The RV breaks down outside Neal
Elementary at sundown. The characters There is a fire axe on the kitchen wall.
in the RV have 5-10 minutes to decide When the team open the kitchen door
on a plan before Pip (or some other three wendigos will attack with sickles.
random scruffy NPC if all parts are If an NPC opens the kitchen door they
taken) comes running up the road will receive a significant wound in the
dirty, beaten and scratched. She will first strike. Once the fire axe is used the
try to tell the RV gang to get the hell wendigos will scatter, running out of
out, which they can't do, obviously the front.
before legging it on the road out of
town. There are more wendigos in the front
yard. In fact by the time the party
After she has gone the first wendigo manage to escape the wendigos should
children gather in the shadows. Players be making their presence felt
will have to make a draw of 6 to know everywhere. See "Running The Game"
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so there will only be two or three trapped in the rat runs around the
around at any time inside. The psyche residential areas in town.
ward is towards the rear on the top
floor. There's a door with rooftop 6) The Sheriff's Office gives access to
access next to the isolation ward. All the map (complete with hand written
the nurse's stations and the pharmacy guides), there's also two pump actions,
have painkillers and bandages available. 24 cartridges a police issue automatic
and 50 rounds for it. Police files relate
If the party do venture onto the roof the arrest of Papa Hardesty in 1973,
then about twenty wendigos will be after that all records mysteriously
straight on them. There's a water tank cease.
and a generator full of fuel up there.
7) The Town Hall has little of value
4) Hardesty Park is a major wendigo except some history of how the town
hangout. They love the nature, the was founded by the Hardesty Mining
trees, the dark, the smell of scared dynasty, a dog-eared local history
teenagers. This place is a really bad paperback describes how the
place to go. Lots of running should Owackwee Indians who lived in the
follow some initial cat and mouse. mountains believed the woods to be
home to wendigos, bestial superhumans
If you want to be really horrible lead who feed on the flesh of regular people.
the players to a shallow grave where
the bodies of the wendigos mothers are 8) The Garage contains a slightly
left, half chewed to rot away. Giving broken but serviceable truck that one
birth to a wendigo child sours the meat of the mechanically able lads could
and kills the mother in labour. probably fix in short order. The main
doors won't work so busting loose is
5) The town square is big and open. the only option.
Late at night it's a bad place to go
although slightly better than being General Notes: Willie Shempman is the
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wendigo's handy man, a despicable Obviously the cop, Pip and Sister
human being old Pa Hardesty keeps Ronnie don't start with the main party.
him around to put off cop style visitors. If someone decides to play Officer
Attempts to go anywhere except Kinney up front have him run into
Liberty Falls get fatal extremely Shempman, to dial up the tension with
quickly. If anyone does manage to run a creepy but non combative encounter.
hell for leather to Liberty Falls hospital For Pip and Ronnie escape should be a
staff will quietly drug them and then priority and it would be good to give
arrange to have them dumped back in one of them a means of picking the
Revelation Point; play up the creepy in lock on their cell or whatever. Maybe
such an encounter. all party members will meet up down
the road, maybe they won't each
Running the Game storyline should be personal and keep
tension to a maximum.
Timings
At the point the main party escape
The set up for the game should be from the school it's usually good to
played as described in the Map Notes 1 stage an abduction attempt on a female
at the school. From there on in it's character. See how that works out.
really up to the players, as it should be. Remember the Wendigos a) don't like
Rather than stepping from shadowy the interior of buildings and b) like to
presences straight up to a full siege, mess with the minds of their prey. So
ramp up the possible numbers of when the team get indoors give them
Wendigos as the game progresses. At some time to plan. Good rooftop access
first make it seem like there might only is to be had for a cost at the Hospital
be six or seven. By the time they've and the Town Hall. The wendigos don't
escaped the school and are looking for a like interiors but heights don't bother
new haven imply it's more like twenty them.
or thirty.
Hopefully as the game reaches its third
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or fourth hour the players should have be mown down with impunity. All
tooled up some (been injured some) Wendigos hate light and cramped
and be thinking about a last stand to spaces. They're all able to climb but
get to the garage. (How they find out they're individually fairly weak. I
about the garage is up to you but pictured them as being humanoid with
having the police officer find the map blue-black hair covering their body
either with or without a player (although they wear clothing and often
controlling him is a good option.) base ball caps). They have eyes a solid
Remember this is a slasher movie, so brown-black and wet looking, like
make descriptions of encounters blood clots, and sharp white teeth.
graphic and bloody. They mostly carry sickles which they
like to attack people's limbs with.
If the players could knock off Papa
Hardesty that would be super. Note Papa Hardesty eschews weaponry in
Papa Hardesty's injuries on his injury favour of ripping people apart with his
chart. He's eight foot tall, hairy, mean hands. He's also tougher than the
and tough. Assess the party's efforts to others. He lumbers forward and will
do him damage accordingly. soak up gunfire. Flames upset him.
Chainsaws... well, now you're talking. I
Wendigos made him big so make him fall hard, in
both senses, hard to topple but once he
The only Wendigo to really worry goes he should basically fall apart.
about is Papa Hardesty, the others can
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Jews, the Romans and the Teutons. Cleopatra was lost among the
When the fall of Egypt came it was thousands of islands of Lemuria. The
swift, brutal and bloody. legend of the Caesar's Treasure passed
among seafaring folk. One such man, a
In those days much of Lemuria was still Captain Abner Frobishire, formerly of
unexplored. Mark Antony, in a move the East Africa & Indias Trading
typical of his hubris, packed a fleet of Company, acquired a map that showed
ships and took to the seas from East the way to Cleopatra. He left the
Africa. Eventually he settled on a large employ of the Company, stealing a
island and build his miniature empire, ship, and set about assembling a party
Antonius Rex sat upon the throne of to move the treasure onto the ships.
his island state, which he named Further curses would be analysed
Cleopatra after his lost love. There he thereafter. Frobishire is certainly
lived out the rest of his days in insane but he is ever cautious.
moribund decadence, eventually
retreating into a massive underground So it is that twelve strangers are bound
tomb to die. and caged within the bowels of
Frobishire's vessel, the Wayfarer. They
It is said that upon the expiration of his will be forced to fight for their survival
life Mark Antony pronounced a curse and then the victors will be forced on
upon his treasures, that any man to Cleopatra to lift the treasure. The
involved in removing it from Cleopatra effect of the curse will be well noted
would be cursed to sicken and die and Frobishire has decided that any
within five years. The worst curse was further thought to the effect of the
reserved for those who actually curse will be reserved until then.
handled the treasure on the way off the
island. It was said they would never
feel the sea upon their skin again
before they died.
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Only named NPCs have fight styles like Degraded Unmodified Enhanced
the players do, goons are unmodified,
Kick(♣) -2 1 2
hence a court card for a goon fight has
a flat value of 10. Punch(♠) -1 1 2
Throw(♥) -3 2 3
Fighting Styles
Reflex(♦) -4 3 5
Players and named NPCs have fighting
styles that operate on the same four
The cycle for suit downgrades/
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the opponent. If the player is faced kick and a punch. They may use
down by more than one opponent the reflexes to strike back at all
Host pulls one card for each opponent simultaneously attacking opponents,
and looks at the card(s) in secret. maybe making the attacks work against
each other. A player may move in
3) The Host uses the suit to determine against a single opponent attempting a
what move(s) the opponent(s) are body move or throw which may topple
looking to pull. The Host describes other opponents temporarily, or they
these moves to the player, the scores may attempt a defensive leap or roll to
indicate how effective the opponent(s) put themselves in a position to fight
moves are going to be. If it is clear the one at a time. Any reasonable story
moves are particularly weak or strong description of the move is allowed to
the Host may colour their description happen.
of the opponent(s) threat appropriately.
5) The Host reveals the card(s) for the
4) If the player has to choose one (or opponent(s).
more) opponents to hit they do so.
They state how they're going to 6) The player pulls a single card for
counter the move. If it's a single each move in the order described. In
opponent they may say something like: the example in four the player is
"I will break past his defences and looking for a Club to enhance their
attempt to punch him in the chest". If kick, a second club and then a diamond
it is multiple opponents he may say: "I to enhance the reflex manoeuvre. If
will spin round and jump kick (Kick) they succeed in the hit by more than
the one on the left. Land and sweep three each additional point is added to
(Kick) the middle one and then try to their next move. If they succeed but do
react (Reflexes) to whatever the last not break defence then no modifier is
one is trying to do to injure me". applied. If they fail each point by
which they fail subtracts from their
A player may attempt to combine a next move.
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and Roundhouse rolls away. The Host "Sucks to be you," she tells the
draws a seven of clubs for Punchy and unconscious pile of goon bodies.
three of diamonds for Roundhouse. He
describes it thus: Healing
"Punchy came off better he's sprung up
and lifted his leg. He's looking set to In this game all but one HP are restored
kick you while you're down and at the end of combat. Restoratives may
hurting, Roundhouse is slower, he's be applied during any spare hour which
come away looking a little uncertain will heal characters back to full health.
about what to do." The scenario notes will relate when
restoratives are available.
Rachel decides it's reflexes time. She's
going to grab Punchy's ankle, lock it Playable Characters
and attempt to throw him at
Roundhouse. A high diamond would go Casablanca - An escaped slave
across well. Followed by a good spade. (Kipura/Capoeira)
The eight of diamonds comes out for Old Man Fong - An Old Man
her and her enhanced move now has a seeking a lost relative (Wu Shu)
score of eleven. Punchy's kick is turned Ryu Masake - A Japanese
into a devastating throw that upends Traveller (Karate)
him and a following 10 of clubs Tcheky Marenovic - A Russian
(unenhanced, but hey) takes out Bodyguard (Arctura/Krav Maga)
Roundhouse who just hasn't got the Brother Yip - A Monk (Shaolin
chops to avoid his former partner flying Kung Fu)
through the air to take them both Davey Collins - A Delinquent
down at once. Drifter (Newberry)
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start the game unconscious and caged that have been derived from the
on board Captain Abner Frobishire's supposed roots of their modern names
vessel "Wayfarer". The characters in because the adventure is historical. The
the caged area are: Casablanca, Old martial art of Newberry is fictional and
Man Fong, Ryu Masake, Tcheky first appeared in the 90s comic strip
Marenovic, Brother Yip, Davey Collins, "Accident Man".
Kyoto, Richard Duchamps, Reggie
Stanford, Maui, Matuku and Drona. No Maps?
If you do not have six players you can This isn't a map based game. I made
remove characters as you see fit. Act I maps the first time I ran it and they
relies upon there being one Non Player were all but pointless. If you want to
fighter for every Player fighter, make them yourself you should be able
although you can do something with to freestyle them. A prop map of the
the concept of having extra fighters treasure island might be nice but
involved who become NPCs when you players won't use it for anything and
get to Acts II and III. It's really up to besides Frobishire's probably not gong
you, read the act notes and decide how to let whatever bogus map he has out of
you want to run it. his sight.
Make sure you explain to the character So here are some guides to the general
that the area of islands known to the layout of the Wayfarer and some notes
world at large is referred to by about the island Frobishire believes to
Europeans as Lemuria. Cibola refers to be “Cleopatra”.
an unknown island group hidden in the
vast Pacific filled with brutal, The Wayfarer – Guide
bloodthirsty warriors who take no
prisoners and cannot be reasoned with. Lower Deck
Some of the martial arts have names Rooms on the lower deck include:
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Casablanca - African - Kipura Fighter
Casablanca has been a slave for a two years. He was originally kidnapped by seven men from his
village in West Africa and taken North to Casablanca where he was sold to East Coast traders who
started working him on the spice route from India across Lemuria to Peru.
Recently whilst Casablanca was in the Avaiki Islands Casablanca was stolen. Casablanca has never
considered what he would do if he were freed. The tribe who originally enslaved him slaughtered his
family but he knows they, in turn, were slaughtered in another pointless battle with a neighbouring
tribe.
Fighting Style
Capoeira is a fluid dance like fighting style that uses a lot of swinging kicks and emphasises fluidity of
movement in a confined space. It looks spectacular and once the fighter is in a rhythm it is almost
unstoppable. Capoeira fighters can find themselves in trouble if they face someone with good aerial
moves.
Capoeira
Degraded Enhanced
Feet(♣) -1 2 4
Hands(♠) -3 1 2
Body(♥) 0 1 2
Reflex(♦) 2 3 5
Finishing Move – Hand Spin Kick
Q (♠ ) 0 1 2
Old Man Fong - Chinese - Wu Shu Fighter
Fong loves his granddaughter Mei Mei. That's the only reason he left Szechuan on this foolhardy
quest. His son was dead, so was his daughter in law, like most of the people in their village. He had
thought, upon finding the village aflame that he would walk into the fire and allow himself to be
consumed.
When he saw the child, Baker Chan's son, bleeding in the snow, he had known it was not his time to
die. This destruction was the herald of Old Man Fong's last great adventure. The boy was weak, he
died after three days but he did manage to tell Fong that the raiders had taken the children. Possibly
they intended to sell them as slaves. Fong didn't know, all he cared about was that somewhere his
eight year old granddaughter was still alive. So, as the winter turned to spring, he had set out from the
Xieyang Village of Szechuan to retrieve his granddaughter. Woe betide the man who would stand in
his path, Fong was too near to death to fear it on his own account or upon the account of others.
Fighting Style
Wu Shu is an umbrella term for a whole family of Chinese Martial arts. Wu Shu emphasises a fluidity
of movement and the correct direction of chi. It is less acrobatic than more general Kung Fu and is a
solid fighting style using a lot of kicks, punches and blocks. A Wu Shu fighter will have a problem
with heavily offensive fighting styles that devastate upon breaking defense.
Wu Shu
Degraded Enhanced
Feet(♣) 1 2 3
Hands(♠) -1 2 2
Body(♥) 0 2 2
Reflex(♦) 2 2 4
Finishing Move – Defence Break
J (♦) 0 1 2
Ryu Masake - Japanese - Karate Fighter
To Ryu Hakuro this place was much the same as every other place he had found himself in the last ten
seasons. When they had accused him of murdering Akemi's father he had known that he could not
defend himself. Tetsuo Watanabe had refused Ryu when he had asked for Akemi's hand in marriage.
Never mind that Tetsuo's business partner was rumoured to have been plotting some traitorous action
for years; Kyo Masaru was a respected man in the community. In the end blaming Ryu had been the
easier option. So Ryu fled.
He had met master Nobuyuki in Burma. The master had trained Ryu in exchange for help running his
small farm. In the end Ryu had decided it was time to move on. He had got as far as the port before
some men had drugged him. Now he was here. Caged. Furious. As soon as he saw his chance these
men would know Ryu Hakuro's rage.
Fighting Style
Karate is the name of a number of styles of martial art that originate from the Ryukyu Islands of Japan.
In addition to being a self-defence style karate (properly karate-do) is also viewed as a sport and
physical practice. A karate master can easily break a weak or confused mixed style.
Karate
Degraded Enhanced
Feet(♣) 1 2 4
Hands(♠) 2 2 2
Body(♥) -1 1 1
Reflex(♦) -1 3 4
Finishing Move – Aerial Roundhouse
K (♥) 0 1 2
Tcheky Marenovic - Russian – Krav Maga Fighter
This is just an inconvenience to Tcheky Marenovic. Let them drug him, let them lock him up.
They have to keep him caged because Tchecky Marenovic has the destructive power of the great,
black bear. At some point they have to let him out of this cage and then they will see.
All Tcheky wants is a sturdy wife and a sturdy house in a sheltered valley by a stream. It doesn't
matter how many inconveniences he has to destroy along the way.
Fighting Style
Krav Maga is a brutal style that emphasises taking an opponent out in short order. While Arctura is
instantly devastating if it comes up against a nimble style emphasising evasion over blocking it can
run into trouble.
Krav Maga
Degraded Enhanced
Feet(♣) 0 3 4
Hands(♠) 1 1 2
Body(♥) -1 1 2
Reflex(♦) 1 3 4
Finishing Move – Face Strike
J (♦) 0 1 2
Brother Yip - Chinese - Shaolin Kung Fu Fighter
Brother Yip finds this all fascinating. Ever since the monastery had accepted a visit from the Crazy
Wisdom Master Brother Yip had found himself compelled to find out more about the circumstances of
one's life in the flow of everyday interaction. In the end he had chosen to leave the monastery to test
his resolve in keeping his devotions in the flow of life. The world, he has found, is filled with raw
experience, but he is not afraid. There are many people who do not understand Brother Yip's way of
life or temperament, but he is not afraid.
Even though men have drugged his body and caged it, even though they have brought him onto this
ship and set sail for points unknown, he is not afraid. Brother Yip knows life is an illusion and
experience a dream. He is just eager to see what happens next.
Fighting Style
Shaolin Kung Fu is an acrobatic style originating from the monastic devotions of Shaolin Monks. It is
not exclusively a combat style but the form in fighting emphasises acrobatic moves that are difficult to
pull off by someone with little training. Kung Fu runs into trouble against brutal martial arts and
fighting styles that can block and counter quickly, Shaolin holds the advantage in stamina battles
however.
Shaolin Kung Fu
Degraded Enhanced
Feet(♣) 1 3 4
Hands(♠) 0 1 1
Body(♥) 0 1 2
Reflex(♦) 1 3 4
Finishing Move – Aerial Kick
Q (♣ ) 0 1 2
Davey Collins - British - Newberry Fighter
Last Davey remembered he'd been in Indonesia enjoying the local facilities and the life of a young
man seeing the glorious Lemuria that seemed like a land of dreams from the cold and dirty streets of
London. Next thing he knows he's waking up in a cage on a boat with a bunch of other strangers.
He had thought at the time that there were a couple of guys watching his last cage match with an
unhealthy interest. The real question now was what did they want with an unattached globe-trotting
Newberry fighter? None of the possible answers to that question seem good.
Fighting Style
Newberry is a style that mixes a traditional boxing style with elements of kung fu. It emphasises a
ground based approach using ducks, sways and feints to avoid being hit, the offensive moves are
exclusively executed with the fists, forearms and elbows. Newberry fighters run into trouble with
sweeping moves and leg attacks, although a highly skilled Newberry fighter has learned how to jump
out of the way of such attacks.
Newberry
Degraded Enhanced
Feet(♣) -2 1 2
Hands(♠) 2 3 4
Body(♥) -1 1 2
Reflex(♦) 1 3 4
Finishing Move – Hook
Q (♦) 0 1 2
♣ Pure Role Playing ♥
Kyoto is a haughty fellow who will not talk to the other combatants save to
assert his own authority.
Karate is the name of a number of styles of martial art that originate from the
Ryukyu Islands of Japan. In addition to being a self-defence style karate
(properly karate-do) is also viewed as a sport and physical practice. Its system of
kata make this a highly formalised style and the style can be weak against more
improvisational styles that can adapt during the course of the fight. Having said
this a karate master can easily break a weak or confused mixed style.
Underneath the rigidity of kata is an almost infinite range of subtlety.
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Duchamps fancies himself a bit and seems not to realise the danger he is in, he is
happy to fight anyone to fuel his own ego.
Savate is a style that emphasises the use of kicks and open handed slaps. In a way
it is a style with a great deal of purity and simplicity but it presents problems
when fighting, low, close in and some acrobatic moves.
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General Prak is six foot seven, broad built and terrifying. He wears heavy
Cibolan armour and the high ranking Cibolan skull helmet. He speaks Cibolan
and is incredibly business like.
Ganga is the style of the Cibolans. It favours grapples, pushes, trips and low
kicks. It is vulnerable to aerial attacks and avoidance defensive moves. It can
break most blocks.
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Quivira is more lightly armoured than Prak. He doesn't speak much and seems
to have efficiently trained his men.
Ganga is the style of the Cibolans. It favours grapples, pushes, trips and low
kicks. It is vulnerable to aerial attacks and avoidance defensive moves. It can
break most blocks.
Masaka is a Cibolan traitor. He wishes to make peace with the Lemurian races
and has turned on his own people. He is a deposed Cibolan prince whose throne
was taken but he will not reveal this. He can speak fluent Franca.
Ganga is the style of the Cibolans. It favours grapples, pushes, trips and low
kicks. It is vulnerable to aerial attacks and avoidance defensive moves. It can
break most blocks.
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Reggie is a complete git. He's racist, sexist, narcissitic; all this and ugly with it.
His real advantage is that he can take a lot of punishment. He will taunt and
belittle opponents in a fight and hope to anger them so he is more likely to get
in a few dirty shots.
Newberry is a style that mixes a traditional boxing style with elements of kung
fu. It emphasises a ground based approach using ducks, sways and feints to avoid
being hit, the offensive moves are exclusively executed with the fists, forearms
and elbows. Newberry fighters run into trouble with sweeping moves and leg
attacks, although a highly skilled Newberry fighter has learned how to jump out
of the way of such attacks.
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Silent, brooding and intense Matuku does not speak, Matuku acts.
The Sawaiki Silat is an island fighting style that combines knee and elbow moves
with wrestling grapples. Large practitioners use a grounded style that use hard
palm techniques and shoulder barges to keep an opponent down. If someone has
faced a large Sawaiki Silat opponent and gotten used to constant pummelling
originating from the ground upwards meeting a lighter opponent who seems to
fly through the air raining persistent powerful blows downwards can be
something of a surprise. Both find low moves a trouble as their power comes
either from down upwards or from upwards trying to direct falling into power
moves.
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Maui has learned a wide Francan vocabulary, at least in one-liners and insults.
He will mock every move an opponent makes in a lighthearted and bantering
fashion, hoping that the opponent will concentrate more on his verbosity than
his fighting style. Outside of the ring Maui is sly as a fox and about as
trustworthy, yet you just can't help liking the guy he's so damn companionable.
Maki Tinku is a nimble style that uses clever footwork and moves that look like
breakdancing to grip, lock and disable foes. There are very few kicks involved,
feet are usually used as a method of executing acrobatic moves, but if you
happen to be bracing off someone's chest... So yes, a lot of opportunity for
jumping around like an eight year old having sucked down too many sweeties
here. This style is weak against more aggressive long reaching styles like Savate
and certain forms of Kung Fu.
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Drona is an ascetic, which is like being a monk but without the calm. His body
is scarred from regular mortification practices. His flexibility is unnatural and he
can also withstand a lot of pain. Players would do well to batter him in the head.
The minute escape is presented as an option Drona will leap into the sea and
swim away, confident he will neither starve nor drown. Did I mention he's odd?
Kalari Payattu has been heralded as the mother and father of all martial arts. A
formal Indian style it does indeed imitate aspects of Wu Shu, Silat and Karate.
This distillation can make it hard for practitioners of other styles to adjust, Wu
Shu fighters expect more fluidity, Karate masters expect more rigidity, Silat
fighters expect more close up moves. Unfortunately once any one of these
martial artists has the measure of a Kalari Payattu fighter the style is somewhat
weak.
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Queensberry learned Zui Quan from someone, probably not a master. His
balance is essentially weak and he gets a lot of moves wrong. He likes the
Drunken more than the boxing and is like a really sleazy English gentleman
gone badly to seed. He stands by Captain Frobishire but will surrender if it
seems his Captain is doomed. He will then instantly set about drinking himself
into oblivion. A great fighter he isn't relying on sleeping drugs and hired muscle
to get the real work done.
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salvoes at the Cibolan Raider. If anyone safe containing the treasure map and 25
complains about a sizable vessel only gold dubloons in here. Otherwise it's a
having 12 cannon balls point out the fairly tatty bedroom and office with
ship was renegade and poor. nothing very interesting in it.
4) Galley and kitchen. Rank smelling, Things you will need to know about
dirty, diseased. Low ceiling as it runs the island are:
under the Captain's Quarters.
1) Where Jeriah's Clipper is moored.
Deck Make the description of the boat as
specific as you like. The Clipper is slim,
1) Outside area - Access provided to the sleek and deadly looking. It houses 18
sails, crows nest, aft deck, foredeck, small cannons. It could be hidden in a
Captain's quarters, down to the galley cove not visible from the sea.
and of course the sea by way of a
gangplank and a sword (Arrr!). 2) Where the Cibolan Raider is
moored. This thing is massive. 24 heavy
2) Captain's Quarters - There's a small cannons, deck mounted harpoon guns
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Captain has come up with a cunning fighters vast wealth if they just get on
plan to reduce the numbers by half and to the island.
ensure some level of quality among the
remaining combatants. Frobishire Act II - Cibolans!
would like to pair up the prisoners and
have them fight to the death. After the contest give the players an
hour or so to patch themselves back up
It may be that the players can to normal, as soon as they're ready, or
communicate among themselves well not quite ready the cry goes up from
enough to incite mutiny at this stage. the crow's nest. "Land Ho!" Allow them
Queensberry is accompanied by 24 enough time to debate what to do
guards all armed with muskets. So it about the island and immediately
could be that they just agree to the follow with a cry of: "Cibolaaaaaaans!"
contest. Either way a fight will ensue Everyone should crap themselves. If
and some people are going to end up they don't you haven't made it plain
the worse for it. Losers to every round how nasty the Cibolans are. There are
are taken away by Frobishire's men and two large Cibolan warships following a
dumped into the sea to fend for smaller Cibolan clipper. One of the
themselves. warships breaks off and approaches the
Wayfarer. At this point feel free to
If a mutiny is instigated then the crew allow everyone still standing to man
are going to be somewhat surprised the cannons and indulge in a colourful
(and mostly disadvantaged). After the piratey sea battle description.
sailors have fired their rifles it will take
about a minute and a half to reload The Wayfarer is not a warship and only
them, by which time they should be has enough cannonballs for two salvos.
unconscious. Once all of the caged If the Wayfarer fails to make contact
fighters have taken over the ship they with the Cibolan Warship then six
should be able to view land. Frobishire Cibolans will board for every player
will beg for mercy and promise the (and more besides to add to the general
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The idea of this supplement is to give they're going to take part in.
you, as a player, some ideas about the
general kinds of stories that exist for a Over the many years I've been studying
character so that you can take part in storytelling one misapprehension has
those situations during the role play for always governed many people's view of
your entertainment. Usually making how they're criticising a particular
your own character to this level will story. That misapprehension is this:
only take place in a campaign setting.
You don't know what's going to
Let's get one thing straight: it's not happen in a story before you start to
necessary to have a full on dramatic hear it.
situation arcing over your character's
life, these situations can have their The context of a story tells you a bunch
volume turned down as well as up. So about what it's going to be about.
consider carefully what kind of life the Dumber than the thought that people
character you have an idea for has had can't tell what to expect out of a
thus far. storytelling experience from cues they
receive beforehand is the thought that
If you've role played in the past you you can no longer judge a book by its
may, at this point, be wondering what cover.
all this is about. Most role playing
games don't give the players such That proverb was dating from a time
specific chances to pick what story when all book covers were blank. You
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had a title, an author's name and a thought about it. When you consider
publisher's mark and that was all. that you will engage personally with
These days you are positively that character for many hours and it
encouraged to judge books, movies, will seem less so. You wouldn't want to
video games and all other media by spend those hours with a lingering
their covers. We live in a society of feeling of disappointment now, would
covers. you?
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definitely book some time to talk the want to find yourself in, or just ask the
character over with your Host. Host not to spring any plot surprises on
you.
Negotiating Your Role
The Situations
The successful portrayal of any of these
roles rests between you and your Host. Each situation contains four parts. A
You, obviously, will have to do most of title, the names of the roles of people
the work bringing your character's involved in that situation and some
position into play. The Host, however, notes about how difficult it will be to
has to create the rest of your play through that role in a role playing
experience. Although it provides the situation and finally a difficulty rating
setting for your character to be out of five for a player to portray that
involved in a role has a different set of role effectively with one being the
challenges from portraying a character easiest and five being the hardest.
sometimes a plot will just be very
difficult to stage manage effectively. If I - Matters of Law and Negotiation
your Host does not feel confident in
being able to provide you with an Supplication
adequate experience it might be best to
find another way round. A Persecutor - As this person is in
charge of persecuting the supplicant it
With an experienced Host you may would be an odd choice of role to play.
find that they will offer to attempt to However persecution has many forms,
engineer roles or situations that require if, for example you are the owner of a
your character to not know something slave then, however kind you are, that
which, were you to choose that is still persecution. (4/5)
situation, you would necessarily have
to know. In these instances it is best to A Supplicant - Being the victim, on the
tell the Host what situations you don't other hand, is much easier, particularly
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if judgement is pending, but you have (unless the game is satirical in nature).
chosen to take your liberty into your
own hands. (1/5) Factor into your character portrayal
that according to at least one societal
A Power in authority, whose decision structure you are a criminal who must
is doubtful - Although, technically, be pursued by an officer of the law.
quite easy to portray, as being in a While this is a tricky thing to factor in
position of power outside the it's not impossible and could even be
supplication core dynamic is quite an quite appealing. Make sure your Host
important role but not one that and you have the same idea of what
requires much effort, this is actually kind of criminal you will be though.
difficult to make anything of. I would (2/5)
recommend against it but I would
imagine most people are not that keen An Avenger - If you read the notes
to play someone whose central arc is to about the "criminal" you will see the
make a detached decision. (4/5) hidden feature of this role. You may be
an agent of the law that has determined
Crime Pursued By Vengeance that the person playing the opposite
role is indeed an outlaw. If so, you, as a
A Criminal - In order for this situation person, may not agree with the law you
to play correctly the criminal must have to enforce, or you may support it
actually be guilty of the crime wholeheartedly.
committed so if you want to play this
part you will have to remember you are There's also a possibility that although
a criminal. the person you seek is a criminal you
are no more than a vigilante. In this
Of course, laws can be stupid but case your own relation to the law is
whatever your crime in this role there questionable. You have to provide a
will be an "avenger" following you so motivation in these cases why you
it's probably worse than dropping litter would be pursuing such a criminal in
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man on a quest to prove his worth to from the fact that you are necessarily
the father of his true love is attempting supposed to be neutral in that situation.
to obtain permission to marry. (2/5) Unless you can think of something
amazing to make this work I would
An Adversary who is refusing: There avoid. (5/5)
are some tricky aspects to this role. If
you come at it from the obvious Opposing Parties: Obviously you can't
direction it is essentially, rather dull or be both parties but you could be one of
covered by being in the role of the them. You have to decide what it is you
adversary from the "Daring Enterprise" are in a dispute over. (2/5)
situation on a smaller scale.
Self-sacrifice For An Ideal
If, on the other hand, you are the
keeper of some knowledge and A Hero - Again the nature of role
someone wants to obtain it from you playing speaks against this, you may
then it gives you a little more scope; not necessarily be able to choose to be a
but look at the extraordinary lengths character who sacrifices of themselves
Farscape went to to make Scorpius's for an ideal. However, there is nothing
solicitation of wormhole knowledge to say that you aren't a character who
from Crichton play out as drama on a did sacrifice something for an ideal and
long arc. Basically unless you have this has formed their character. If so
some amazing gimmick for making this you should decide what it was that you
a good role I would avoid it. (3/5) sacrificed and make it suitably
dramatic. Once you've done that you
-or- should be good to go. (1/5)
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- You could also play someone who was or you will be expected to assume this
"sacrificed" by someone else for a role in the course of the game. It's a
higher ideal, or at least higher to them. pretty standard heroic arc to be
However much we pretend this kind of someone's rescuer so I'm going to
thing doesn't matter in the end it really recommend it as an easy play. (1/5)
does. Where is the person who
"sacrificed" you and what are they Daring Enterprise
doing now? What would you say to
them if you met them again? (1/5) A Bold Leader - This situation is a
classic role play arc. To be the bold
II - Missions and Rescues leader of a personal daring enterprise
would mean you have the enterprise in
Deliverance mind and you would have to recruit
partners to put the enterprise into
An Unfortunate - As this is a rather operation.
passive role I can't see why any one
should particularly want to play it. The This is a somewhat bizarre role to take
main challenge here would be to role within another arc such as the Host
play it long term. I would avoid. (5/5) will be providing. You may find
yourself given the role of a bold
A Threatener - This is a traditionally colleague in a group undertaking a
villainous role. See my notes on “being daring enterprise without plotting a
evil” in the Player's Guide for some second one into your backstory.
reasons why assuming a role like this Approach with caution. (3/5)
may be a bad idea. (4/5)
An Object - In many role playing
A Rescuer - When you take on this role gamessomething of value to the people
as a player your character will either involved in the enterprise. It is not
know about their role, in which case generally a role to be played, unless
you will start the game with a mission, you have some other idea. (4/5)
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strong angle on this role because, as fun being sought out. (6/5)
as it would be to play, the riddle of
your existence needs to be strong not III - Family Matters
lame. Discuss with your Host. (3/5)
Vengeance Taken For Kin Upon Kin
A Seeker - There's a question you have
to answer to portray this role. Why the Guilty Kinsman - In this role it is
hell have you devoted your life to presumed by your family (in the
studying an enigma? Intellectual broadest sense of that term) that you
problems are all great and everything have committed some kind of betrayal
but for it to be something you have of another family member. The precise
devoted your life to investigating... details of this incident are between you
well, that's going to need some and your Host.
explaining. If you can explain it,
properly, and with passion, go ahead If you are, in fact, guilty of this act then
and play it. (2/5) your motives will be important, if you
are not guilty then you are accepting
Recovery Of A Lost One the role of someone who has one crazy
family to say the least. Something to
A Seeker - Something or someone has consider in the case of both roles is,
been lost. You will not rest until they how does the rest of the family feel
or it have been found. Be clear on the about this situation? Has it split them?
situation and away you go. (1/5) Do they all hate you? Do they all hate
the other guy? This is a complex
The One Found - This is really tricky. situation to play out and a tricky role to
Did you know you were lost? See play from either perspective. (3/5)
"Pursuit" if you know you're lost you're
a fugitive. Otherwise, well, you can't be An Avenging Kinsman - See the notes
someone who knows they're playing about the guilty kinsman. An issue
someone who doesn't know they're particular to this role is that you have
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taken upon your shoulders the family or at least one member of your
responsibility of dishing out a family's family. When you talk this over with
internal brand of justice (or was it your Host focus on exactly how you are
placed upon you by other family involved in this intra-familial strife and
members?). the motivations and reasons behind it.
(1/5)
Presumably you are in the act of
pursuing the guilty kinsman (or else A Hatred or a reciprocally-hating
this will be a pretty short arc) once you Kinsman - This role is just the opposite
catch them what are you going to do? of the other role. If you are the hated
(3/5) one then the rest of your family hate
you too, if on the other hand you hate a
Remembrance of the Victim, a relative kinsman but your family love you then
of both - As a passive role this is not your character becomes an agent of
something to be taken at face value. that hatred. So as far as being a player
Obviously you have a perspective on goes you are involved in some strong
the past misdemeanour of the guilty familial turbulence and the role is
kinsman maybe over time your mind really described above. (1/5)
has been changed. Maybe you have to
find the avenging kinsman to halt his Rivalry Of Kin
quest before it's too late. In order to
make this part playable you will have The Preferred Kinsman - This is really
to inject an active component into it. a mild form of the "Enmity of kin"
It's doable but it's even harder than the situation but with a clearer object being
other two roles. (4/5) the motive for some dislike or rivalry.
A role that assumes such a back story is
Enmity Of Kin approachable as long as you have
worked out the details. As the
A Malevolent Kinsman - Essentially preferred kinsman you may feel lucky
this role means you either hate your and you may wish to make amends
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with your rival. Just remember it's being a player who knows what story
easier to let bygones be when you're they're in and the character not being
the winner. (1/5) such renders this a rather impotent and
therefore unrecommended role. (5/5)
The Rejected Kinsman - The reverse of
the role of preferred kinsman. Consider An Unrecognized Victim - This means
what remedy may be won for your you are dead. If this is appropriate to
unfortunate situation and pursue it. the game you are playing it could be
(1/5) your phantasmal manifestation could
be due to the fact the kinsman must be
The Object of Rivalry - Of course you made to realise his crime. Obviously
may be a character who is between two this option is only available to you in
rivals. This situation necessarily an appropriate setting, discuss with
demands that the rivals are related but your host. (1/5) if possible.
the same rules apply whether the rivals
are kin or not. You have to work out Self-sacrifice For Kin
how you feel about being an object of
rivalry, are you going to make a choice, A Hero - See notes on Self-Sacrifice For
or are you not keen on either rival? Just An Ideal except now you are sacrificing
because one kinsman is preferred does for your family. Did your family ask for
not mean that you are the one doing this sacrifice? Or was it to make
the preferring. This will be slightly amends for some other ill? There are
harder to convey than either of the more people involved here and so it
other two roles so make sure you could get messier. The previous notes
clarify the situation with your Host. for this role still apply. (1/5)
(2/5)
A Kinsman - Maybe a relative
Slaying Of Kin Unrecognized sacrificed something huge for you. In
which case how has this impacted your
The Slayer - Due to the problem of you life? Maybe you have a new set of
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priorities in life because of this. Maybe to you for "the greater good" whatever
the kinsman is getting to milk it a little. that means. The issue of what to do
For this to be relevant to your role it when a relative "sacrificed" you for the
has to be manifest in your day to day greater good is tricky but not
life somehow. Think about how you insurmountable. You will need a good
can make it so. (2/5) angle to pull this off. (3/5)
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This role is unusual in role playing messenger you might want to discuss
terms as, traditionally, players always with the Host what you picture as your
begin the game virtually powerless and message. If, on the other hand, you are
always grow in power as a consequence the victorious power itself this
of their role play. To "recover" powers presumes you are starting the game
may require modification to some with some newly acquired advantage or
additional rules systems so discuss this resources.
aspect particularly with your Host.
(3/5) If this is the case then you must discuss
with your Host how this will play out
A Victorious Enemy or a Messenger - If in practice. Starting the game with
you are, indeed, the enemy mentioned power will be a responsibility if the
it presumes you have acquired some power is presumed to be great and
power that previously belonged to would present a significant role play
someone else. If this is control of a challenge. (2/5) if the power is
Kingdom then this is largely a positive individual or if a messenger. (4/5) if the
development, but think of the story of power is great.
Spiderman's nemesis Venom to
understand how that power might have Revolt
come with its own price.
A Tyrant - The only real way you could
If, on the other hand, you are a satisfactorily commence an adventure
"Messenger" of that victorious enemy it in this role is if you are fleeing for your
means you are in the enemy's employ. life from the agents of the conspiracy.
You have been tasked with finding the As the role is very definitely labelled
vanquished power and delivering a "tyrant" and not "misunderstood
message, is that just a euphemism? beneficent monarch" the presumption
is that you would have to be venal and
In either case some discussion with corrupt. See the notes on “being evil” in
your Host is important. If you are a the Player's Guide. I would avoid this
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unless you have an amazing concept for Not that affairs of the heart are the
how it could work out. (5/5) only place one can have rivals. The fact
is that although in this role it could be
A Conspirator - You are a rebel soldier. easily noted out that you are the
This is always a breeze to portray as "superior" rival that is a relative term.
being an agent of serious political You will have to go some way to
change is an intellectual role that has preserving your superiority because
obvious objectives. Questions to ask although you may be superior the other
concern whether you doubt your own person may well just be flat out better.
masters, if you are one of the leaders of Discuss your concept with your Host.
the revolution do you doubt your own (1/5)
motives? How fanatical are you?
Although being a rebel is something An Inferior Rival - The exact reverse of
most people can, bizarrely, role play the other role in this situation. You
quite easily it could be fun to try to may well want to examine your rival's
take the role a bit further than just superiority and explore ways to
trying to be Che Guevara (1/5) undermine it. Just because you're in last
place doesn't mean you can't come
Rivalry Of Superior vs. Inferior from behind. As above discuss an idea
you might have for this with your Host.
A Superior Rival - The question of (1/5)
superiority here is always going to be
subjective. Given a setting in the past, The Object of Rivalry - If this is a love
the race between a father's favoured contest, or a contest for a promotion
suitor and another rival for his you have to give or for an object you
daughter's heart the former will always own but will bestow on a worthy
be "superior" in that they are the successor, then you could, effectively,
father's chosen. But how the daughter be the object of rivalry. This is a much
feels about this is entirely another tougher call than the others to play but
matter. it will really depend on what idea you
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confirm these details carefully with Unless you have some incredible idea
your Host. (3/5) for the execution of this role avoid.
(5/5)
V - Matters of Fortune
Madness
Falling Prey To Cruelty/Misfortune
A Madman - I know what you're
An Unfortunate - In this case you have thinking and no it isn't. Playing a
either fallen into the clutches of an lunatic is fun for about twenty minutes
adversary and are somehow within until you realise all the ways you have
their power, or you have suffered some limited your opportunities to engage
misfortune, a curse or disastrous stroke with the other players and the larger
of fortune and have had to recover story.
from this.
Now, I'm not talking about mildly
Ask yourself, when did this situation barking, charmingly eccentric or
start to evolve for your character. How deluded but still capable of meaningful
much power would your character interaction here. I'm talking so crazy
have to recover. A character who, that there has to be some sort of a
whilst suffering a serious misfortune victim of you to make the situation
has some ability to recover would be a work. Unless you can really sell this to
reasonably easy role to play. If chances your Host I wouldn't approach this role
of recovery are slim it becomes if I were you. (4/5)
somewhat harder. (1/5) or (3/5) see
notes. A Victim - Being the victim of a
madman, on the other hand, is a fine
A Master or A Misfortune - Obviously role to explore. Did the lunatic kill
you cannot in and of yourself play a your wife? Take a finger? Lose all your
misfortune, and playing the master of money for you? And as we are
someone else's strongly suggests malice. presuming that the person who
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wronged you is actually mentally ill is the imprudent character and is now
it appropriate for you to pursue them in disgusted with that character because
the spirit of righteous vengeance? of said imprudence. This implies you
Clarify with Host, be prepared to play will have some character dripping
the story but by all means go for it. around behind you begging for
(1/5) forgiveness. It's not an impossible role
to take on but ensure you are ready for
Fatal Imprudence a challenge. (2/5)
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questions they must answer if they are to portray a love affair between
ever to have peace. If this is your role, yourself and either a Non Player
why? Is it your job? Are you doing it to Character or another Player that is
help the culprit? Or are you an agent of illicit you might want to avoid this like
punishment. The clarity needed in the the plague. Not to say it couldn't be
other two roles is paramount here. If done, but it's never really been done
possible avoid trying to take this one with any great success. (4/5)
on, it's going to be very hard except in
unusual circumstances. (5/5) A Betrayed Spouse - Now, this is a
tricky one. Although the adulterers
VI -Matters of Love could be murderous so could the
betrayed spouse. Maybe you fancy
Murderous Adultery being a cuckolded spouse pursuing
their partner as they flee with their
Two Adulterers - This is the ideal partner in crime. It's a very personal
opportunity to mention that games mission and hard to understand why
about this sort of thing have had a you, as the betrayed spouse, might
history of turning silly. Of course, become diverted into taking part in
games of yore related character to group quests along the path. If you're
"description of physical characteristics". really sure then talk it over with your
Also, adultery supposes marriage which Host, but this is a demanding role to
given the time this list was compiled is play. (3/5)
now anachronistic. Could be just a love
affair in which trust has been betrayed. Involuntary Crimes Of Love
In any event the use of the word
"murderous" indicates that your A Lover - See the situation Murderous
character is plotting to off someone's Adultery thing above for notes about
spouse (or partner who has a large life playing a character involved in any
insurance policy) for some reason. kind of love affair in-game. In this case
Unless you are very confident you want the role calls for your character to be
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person who owns the supposed object A Cause or an Author of the Mistake -
of jealousy. Of course, in Othello, In Othello a villain named Iago
Desdemona loves Othello, not Michael deliberately inflames Othello's jealousy,
Cassio, Cassio is unaware of his seemingly for no more reason than to
supposed possession of Desdemona's have something to do. This nihilistic
affections. Like the role of the object outlook was unusual at the time
above you must be unaware of the Shakespeare wrote his play outlining
growing poison in the jealous one's Othello's story. Nowadays such
heart. Again it could be a past for you behaviour is understood to exist. This is
but you cannot choose to play the role a tricky personal outlook to portray. I
in its entirety in an explicit fashion. would steer clear unless you have a
(4/5) specific and killer idea in which case
talk it though with your Host. (4/5)
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One of the things Role Playing Games Conflict, when you're writing an
have famously generated as pure by- adventure, is that which causes the
product is drama. Yet it is one of the drama that helps the characters to
things many gamers love to experience engage with your story. It is a tricky
and to discuss later. This lead me to the personal dilemma that the characters
question of how to introduce dramatic need to resolve. The story, for all
situation deliberately. I've managed it intents and purposes is about the
with some success and some failure. It's conflict.
all come together in this core book.
Thankfully we have tools to help us
The first thing you're going to want to think of conflicts. The first one I want
tie down as a Host is what is the to introduce was compiled by a French
dramatic situation emerging in your writer called Georges Polti. These are
adventure? Remember a while back in The Thirty Six Dramatic Situations. By
the chapter about “Stats”) we talked playing about with these you should be
about conflict in role playing terms as able to find a resonance with the story
being the gap between a player's desire or setting you want to use. Put various
and their possible skill? player and non player characters in the
roles described in the situations and
Well, now you have your adventure imagine how the story could evolve.
writer's cap on. I want you to reframe.
I've annotated the situations to give
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to have a story twist and not need it introduce into role play.
than need one and not have it.
Although a player may have a really
If you have noted all this stuff down in clear agenda when approaching a
your plan then you should feel a bit particular role you have to consider
more confident about running your how comfortable you are providing the
campaign. If it seems a bit light, don't other roles for the character to riff
worry, all the stuff you haven't tied against. If you are not confident it
down is opportunity for the players. might be time to renegotiate.
Now let's take a look at your Some of the situations require player
opportunities as a Host for playing with characters, and hence players, to be
the thirty six situations. unaware of the evolving situation. If
you are confident you and the player
The Situations can have a crack at one of these
situations offer the player a choice to
Each situation contains four parts. A have one of the situations laid on them
title. the names of the roles of the out of the clear blue sky, make sure you
people involved in that situation, notes gauge your player's ability well.
which cover the situations suitability
for an arc, and how to help a player There are notes explaining particular
who wants to be involved in that features of each role and whether you
situation. Finally there is a difficulty may need to negotiate "surprises" for
rating for the use of that situation in a the player to implement that situation,
role playing context. or whether a particular role is best
avoided by the player. Reading the
The rating is from one to five with one Player's version of this supplement may
being an excellent situation to involve also be a help.
in role play and five being a very
difficult and complex situation to I - Matters of Law And Negotiation
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A Persecutor - This is most likely the A Criminal - Be clear on this, this is not
villain of the piece. The persecutor “The Fugitive”, such scenarios are
persecutes the supplicant. Therefore described elsewhere. Here the criminal
probably not a player. Would make a is indeed the guilty party. If a player
good villain though. Bear in mind that wants to assume this role there is every
the supplicant has the power to ask chance that some authority wishes to
authority to intercede to bring an end track them down and bring them to
to the persecution. justice. However the Avenger, need not
be an agent of that authority giving
A Supplicant - This could be a player or ample opportunity for the situation to
someone whom the players should become complex.
choose to help. This person is
persecuted by the persecutor and can An Avenger - The avenger could well
only be released from this situation by be a party member, or a third party
the hand of the power. known to the players. Although the
roles here are clear cut the rights or
A Power in authority, whose decision wrongs of the criminal and avenger
is doubtful - if the power decides to roles may be more complex. In the case
help the supplicant then the of Bruce Wayne wanting to avenge his
persecution may end, if not then the parent's murder at the hands of Joe
supplicant is doomed or must find Chill Bruce Wayne was an avenger and
another authority to petition. It could Joe Chill certainly guilty of the crime
be that after losing a court case the but would that make Wayne's actions
supplicant turns to the players to help right? This is a central question in this
them in less legal ways, perhaps in scenario.
exchange for money.
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An Ideal - Which should, really, be plain not as good as you are. If you
virtuous and worthy of sacrifice. (Evil make the rival nice too that's a bonus.
people don't believe in self-sacrifice by The story of the man who tried not to
definition.) It could be, however that whale on his opponent too bad could
the NPC who is the heroic sacrificer even be kind of funny, or kind of
might believe strongly in something tragic...
which the players do not. This could
present a problem if the Hero's An Inferior Rival - Although clearly
continued vitality is a problem of the the obvious way to go on this is to
quest they are engaged in. make the players an inferior rival to
someone who appears to have all the
A Creditor or a Person/Thing sacrificed aces (so to speak) and then have them
- Of course it could be that this is what come up with an endearingly
the players are interested in. For idiosyncratic solution to the scenario.
example if a brilliant physicist has
decided to sacrifice his notes on a The Object of Rivalry - Again
particularly juicy invention for the whenever you consider the prize you
good of humanity, sanity and reality it must make it worthwhile.
may be the players really need the
invention for some task and have to Ambition (3/5)
talk him out of it.
An Ambitious Person - This is a great
Rivalry Of Superior vs. Inferior (2/5) role for a player as is the role of
adversary. It all depends on what the
A Superior Rival - Now although you thing coveted is. If the thing is
may think of hare tortoise here with worthwhile a player can probably get
the players or a sympathetic NPC as behind this. If not then a player can try
tortoise imagine the burden of knowing to dissuade someone from an illusory
that in some contest you're going to desire that will bring them no
have to annihilate someone who's just happiness.
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The Abducted - Could be the abducted 4400" which made some great
but could also be one or more of the revelations and was overall a satisfying
players. exploration of the issues surrounding
its central premise. Approach this
A Guardian - Could be a force for the scenario with caution.
players to defeat on a liberation quest,
or it could be the players themselves An Interrogator - Think the murderer.
guarding unusual and possibly illegal The interrogator is an agent of the
cargo. This situation is best suited to enigma so when the enigma is "what
single session play. Missions of a more lies beyond the veil of death" the
general nature can form the basis for a interrogator represents the resistance of
campaign, this would be a very special death to sharing its secrets. In the case
one off or a campaign or season finale. of a murder mystery the murderer may
be a mute interrogator or may be one of
The Enigma (3/5) those murderers who taunts the
detective, like Hannibal Lecter.
A Problem - Think "the identity of x's
murderer". Thinking more broadly A Seeker - Think the detective.
imagine the whole issue of UFOs and
alien abduction. The problem with Recovery Of A Lost One (1/5)
huge life riddles is that, unless you
have something really relevant and A Seeker - This is a classic and well
wise to say they tend to fall apart in the worn Role Playing plot. The players are
last five minutes. Look at the 60s series asked to find person x. There's not even
"The Prisoner" for clues as to just how much I need to say about it, except that
lost and confused this situation can like any easy winner it can be just as
become if you have no really profound easily overused. Try to do something
answers to hand out. For the reverse to else first but if you need it you need it.
see it well handled look at the
American serial of the early 2000s "The The One Found - Just about every
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variation on this is well documented. could be tricky. They may well want to
The most popular of course being the stay out of a family affair. Handle this
unexpected object. You rescued the situation with some care.
princess but the minute you stop in
town on the way back to daddy's house Remembrance of the Victim, a relative
she's out drinking and looking to party. of both - If this is a non player
You rescued the genius but he keep character they can be villain, they can
tinkering with your gear and things be innocent bystander or ignored
you own have strange new rescuer. The point of this role is to
functionality. This is a hilarious way to throw a perspective on the feud.
generate a fun experience for Players Whether it is oil on water or petrol on
but like I say, overuse is no one's a fire is up to you as the Host.
friend.
Enmity Of Kin (2/5)
III - Family Matters
A Malevolent Kinsman - Could be a
Vengeance Taken For Kin Upon Kin problem the players observe or a
(2/5) problem for one of the player's
characters.
Guilty Kinsman - Is this a player?
Vengeance does not presuppose justice. A Hatred or a reciprocally-hating
Maybe one of the players is pursued by Kinsman - This would tend towards a
his kin in error. Maybe the players see non-player character in most games.
this situation played out in an episode
and later discover the injustice.
Rivalry Of Kin (2/5)
An Avenging Kinsman - This too could
be a player. Matters of family feud are The Preferred Kinsman - Any of these
rarely clear cut. As such, embroiling characters could be one of the players.
the players in some family business
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The Rejected Kinsman - See above take place in time travel games.
The Object of Rivalry - See above with Self-sacrifice for Kin (3/5)
the proviso that to be the object of a
rivalry is kind of hard to role play. For A Hero - This is as Self-sacrifice For An
this reason I add a difficulty point to Ideal except it involves family.
the ease of introducing this plot line. If
the two kinsmen are princes, however, A Kinsman - This will be the person
and the object a kingdom, well, then who has demanded, or requires, the
it's an easy situation to exploit. sacrifice. Maybe the players do not
view this sacrifice as a necessity to the
Slaying Of Kin Unrecognised (4/5) level that the kinsmen do.
The Slayer - The problem with this one A Creditor or a Person/Thing sacrificed
is that the pay off is some way down - See the same item in the Self-sacrifice
the line from the event regardless of for an Ideal.
the situation. This story will either play
out in two stages, the slaying and the Necessity Of Sacrificing Loved Ones
discovery, or if it is a situation external (5/5)
to the players, the slaying, the
discovery and then the consequence as A Hero - This is a tough one. You could
the players decide what to do to let the make it particularly tough if the players
kinsman know of his crime. know what's happening and will
intercede (perhaps to save the victim)
An Unrecognised Victim - Obviously, but they know that by doing so they
not a player. Unless you are playing a are somehow dooming the people the
post life game, of course. In which case hero wishes to save. Unless people
you could actually reverse this and properly sign up for this it's probably a
have the victim know who he is but situation to avoid.
not recognise his killer. This can also
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A Mistaken One: This is actually quite The Guilty One: See Author of the
common in role playing as the Mistake. Of course if you make the
mistaken protagonist is a key initial employer good in intention but
ingredient in a lazy plot twist that GMs having been duped by a bigger villain
of yore love. The reason for this is that this does introduce a less well-
you can put in a whole quest carried rehearsed plot in which your former
out under poor judgement that later employer may become beholden to the
turns out to have screwed things up players as subcontractors as he, in turn,
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flees from his former employer. as Host are portraying the remorse
properly then things might go a little
Remorse (4/5) off the rails. This particular situation is
dramatic but it's hard to do properly.
A Culprit: Don't put inexperienced Unless you're absolutely sure of how to
players in this position. Even execute this one I would avoid it.
competent ones have a problem with VI - Matters of Love
being wrong. To a certain extent I can
understand why this might be. Role Murderous Adultery (4/5)
Players of yore have not wanted to
engage in what is, in essence, an Two Adulterers - In the Player's
entertainment with a dash of wish- supplement I mention that games
fulfilment to suddenly discover that involving affairs of the heart have a
even their fantasy creation is in the tendency to get silly even when the
wrong. Maybe it's just a matter of affair is happening between two Non
mental preparation but certainly with Player characters. There are exceptions
new players I wouldn't hit them with to this, police procedural games can
this role up front. easily have cases that revolve around
murderous spouses. As long as the
A Victim or the Sin: Again having a players are sufficiently removed from
culprit relate to their victim thinking about imaginary people
remorsefully is a pretty intense deal, if having nookie the situation is viable.
the experience is to be meaningful. If The chances of a player becoming
the experience is not meaningful then involved in such a situation are slim to
it's hollow. A sin, on the other hand, none.
asks no questions.
A Betrayed Spouse - Likely, as this is
An Interrogator: Although players may "murderous" this will be a non player
relish the idea of becoming the character, unless you can trust a player
punisher of a remorseful culprit if you to play the scenario to the hilt.
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A Revealer - If you put the players in An Object of fatal Passion - Note that
the position of knowing that someone Mr. Polti does not assume that the
is about to commit an unknowing object of passion is a person...
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The Person/Thing sacrificed - Self- as to the nature of the crime and the
sacrifice for an Ideal although on more reason for the secrecy. This means that
spurious grounds. the Lover, in this case, is hiding
something about the nature of the
Adultery (5/5) relationship from their partner.
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Further Help
Just because the Core Book's over doesn't mean we're sending you out into the
unforgiving wilderness to fend for yourself. There are a wealth of FREE supports
for your Hosting efforts available on the world wide web. All of them can be
reached via the No Dice Website at:
The site has news, links to the podcast and forums, details of our up coming
publications and FREE adventure downloads for you to run or adapt.
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month you can download an hour's worth of chat about all the issues that crop
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The No Dice Node is the official forums of the No Dice roleplaying system.
Discuss your ideas with other No Dicers in a forum dedicated to keeping you in
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