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Message: <blockquote data-quote="SteveC" data-source="post: 6361680" data-attributes="member: 9053">Like many people, I'm working on a game in my spare time. Mine is called "Sword of Virtues", and It's finally starting to come together, and I'm writing a lot of the material to fill in the rules. One thing I don't like about many projects like this is that the author never comes out and tells you what the game is actually about, so I've written this. Your comments are appreciated! (Yes, it's a bit long, so if you get through it, I'll give you a virtual cookie <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile    :)"  data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" /> ).Edit: I made a thread over at rpg.net in their game design forum and got some great feedback. Huge changes. Again, if you have a sec, tell me what you think.What are the game’s key features?•    Tone: The game is intended to be a fast-paced, drama and magic heavy dark fantasy, with an emphasis on action and story.•    Mechanics: Dice, of the normal six-sided variety, resolve issues that are uncertain, have consequences, and we care about. Task Checks have you roll three dice against a Target, to tell whether or not you succeed, and the quality of the results.•    Style: Traditional role playing style with a Game Master who creates the campaign that everyone else explores.•    Characters: Create characters quickly by selecting a template, or in design them with a point-buy system.•    Power: Characters at very different power levels can play in a game together without the more experienced one’s dominating play.•    Fiction: The players to work with the GM to create and shape game sessions.o    The Truth of the World: players help to create the game’s people, places and things. o    Hero Points: a resource that let’s players affect the fiction. o    Shticks: players select the abilities they are the very best at, and the world reacts accordingly. o    Virtues: Traits give real power behind characters’ beliefs.What Kind of Stories Will we Tell?What exactly are you getting yourself into with this game? In short, you’re going to tell stories centered about your characters and their struggles. Both the characters and their challenges are big and loud. Sword of Virtues has a veritable mountain of inspiration from both classic and popular culture. Take a look at the Inspiration Sources chapter to find out about the books, movies, music, anime, video games, tv shows and even a few comic books that inspired the authors. The Biggest Influences<ul> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Pacing and action: Hong Kong fantasy action cinema (A Chinese Ghost Story, The Killer).</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Character drama and interaction: character oriented TV shows like Babylon 5 or Firefly.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Scope of action: Lord of the Rings and other epic tales.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Story elements: classical poetry and literature. Yeats, Coleridge, Tennyson.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">General Strangeness: classic JRPGS such as Final Fantasy.</li> </ul>So if you were wondering whether or not Malcolm Reynolds could dispose of the ring while riding a giant chicken through a mirror darkly, yes, we can do that.The Tone at the Heart of the WorldThe world of Sword of Virtues is in trouble. The foundations of civil society are coming apart, and darkness is rising. Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold;Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world,The blood-dimmed tide is loosed, and everywhereThe ceremony of innocence is drowned;The best lack all conviction, while the worstAre full of passionate intensity.--W.B. Yeats The Second ComingIn a world like that that, heroes are needed, and that where you come in. What are you going to do about it? With apologies to Yeats, you’re going to punch that Rough Beast in the mouth, that’s what!Sword of Virtues KeywordsThe game centers on action. It better, as it actually has the word sword in its name! Even social interactions are active and dramatic. Problems are solved by taking action: punching things in the face first and foremost. Evil is on the march and nothing good comes from standing still. The Hong Kong film, A Chinese Ghost Story, is an example of a story where the characters take incredible actions to solve their problems without a second thought, including an attack on hell itself to rescue a lost soul.The game is character based. No matter what power level the characters are at, the game is about them and their actions, they are not supporting cast for some other story. Firefly is a great example of a character based drama: how Mal’s crew interact with each other is just as interesting as the adventures they find themselves in, and the conflicts they have internally drive the story just as much as threats from the outside. Play sessions are intended to be intense. A good game session has a lot of laughs, mixed in with tension, horror and even a little pathos, all with a helping of cheese on top. The “virtues” (also in the name of the game!) let you speak to the world about what’s important to you and have it actually listen. The films by Stephen Chow: such as Kung Fu Hustle and Shaolin Soccer are good examples of films which blend these elements (action, drama, cheese) particularly well.The game is inherently magical. Characters commonly come in contact with magical forces and powers, and can control these effects themselves. Magic flows through the heart of the world itself, and is not something rare or seldom seen. Harry Potter is a great example where where magic is a constant part of the characters’ everyday lives.The scale of play is epic. Even if the characters begin the campaign as sewer rat-catchers, the scope of the world is adventure on a grand scale. A rat-catcher game will end up going to the edge of the world and beyond to find some exceptionally sized rats. The Lord of the Rings is the quintessential example of an epic tale, and has a central theme that the actions of even the smallest person can affect the fate of the world. A dilatant and his gardener save the world.That’s a LotLooking at all of these ideas together might make you think that playing a game of Sword of Virtues is like juggling a torch, chainsaw, some raw eggs and a rare vase together. Yes, it can be like that.Can is the operative word. We present you a lot of ideas, but in the end it’s for you to take what you like and leave the rest, kind of like a salad bar. You can make a healthy, well balanced meal out of it, or just have ice cream. We’ll give you the ingredients, how you put it together is all up to you.</blockquote>

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