Tuesday 1 March 2011

Fundamental laws of a fictional universe (7)

Two more fictional universe cards for gaming, these inspired by the last triffle and the exchange with Paul's Bods on spiralling craziness. These still don't go quite far enough for my liking so the 'Getting out of the boat' series will hopefully find space for more.

This time too, see if you can identify the sources of the quotes in the titles.





If you like the idea, some of the previous cards in the series are just as weird or weirder. There are 12 more - two here, two more here, one here, four here, one here and two here. I'm claiming no copyright on any of them. 

All of the supplementary information then, copied, pasted and updated from the last, but also reorganised and expanded with a suggested procedure, after meandmythinkingcap asked about this in the comments to the last.


If you missed the earlier parts, the idea is to allow the big events of fiction into games, to break down the barriers in how we define game types, to identify recurring tropes as the first step to moving beyond them, possibly by making them so familiar we've had all we can take, and even to recognise both us in the game and the scope of fiction.

The aim is to have them useable in both wargames, skirmish games and roleplaying games, and ideally any game type. They're unlikely to be anywhere close to balanced, and could have effects dramatically different across systems, but that's part of the fun.

The suggestion is simply that all players are dealt a hand of the cards, with the number dealt depending on group preference. To keep the wackiness to a minimum this number could be as low as one, but dealing a number related to the relative size of the game would probably work best. A dice could even be rolled for both players together, or for each individually for even less balance. Again, it's an inexact science also because of the range of games they could be used with and the variation in rulesets.

At any rate, once the players have their hand they can play each card at the time given on the card. When a card has been used it's removed from the hand and cannot be used again, unless a card being played overrules either of these two points, and some do. 

The definitions are in the first instalment, along with the initial thinking.

5 comments:

The Angry Lurker said...

Well the first has to be morale based especially for poor Charlton Heston, a player or characters morale goes south after this and he has to be gotten off table before he is killed or succumbs to further mental damage, in the game we played on Sunday there were two figures who represented Ray from Don't throw a 1 fame and his wife and if she had been killed he would have had to roll for this sort of effect or go the opposite and become enraged and gain attacks/attributes.

The second one I don't know how to play other than confusion or doubt to the rank and file or being stubborn until you get what you want, is it from Braveheart?

Game Master Rob Adams said...

Eventually I think putting these all together in one place would be very helpful. Maybe as a PDF download?

??? said...

I think that "It's people!" would fit the first card equally well without even changing the voice in which the quote is said.
That's a card fit for Cthulhu if I ever saw one. I may actually need it on Saturday.

Paul´s Bods said...

The second card gives me a feeling of apocalypse now..but it could also be braveheart. Giving up his responsibility (in a way) and ...oh no!!...it´s the bit where he pulls the bruces helmet off :-D
The first one...planet of the apes ...the bit where he sees the statue of liberty or??
Cheers
Paul

Porky said...

Angry was spot on with the first comment - Planet of the Apes and Braveheart. How does he do that? And all the ideas too? These I like. A good guy to have around - stick close in the zombie apocalypse.

@ ArmChairGeneral - I've been wondering how long I can put it off. They do make quite an impressive set lined up. I'd no idea it would go to so many.

@ Jedediah - I think you're right. It's all yours if you want to - they all are. I'd be very interested in how it worked and I imagine NetherWerks would be too as they mentioned using them at events.

@ Paul's Bods - You're right it was the bit right at the end of Apes - one of the great moments. Good spot - it does fit Apocalypse brilliantly too, in concept and effect. Sharp.