pukunui
Legend
Hi there,
I'm trying to convert the SWSE rules for use with the fantasy genre, and one thing I'm really struggling with is the races. There aren't any guidelines on building your own races in the SWSE rules, and it's hard to judge what would be balanced by looking at the official races (just compare the klatooinian to the wookiee, for instance).
I'm hoping maybe somebody here will be able to help me out.
I'm going to outline some of my notes for the various races I want to convert to Saga rules and hopefully people who know more about game design will be able to help me flesh them out mechanically.
FYI: I'm getting many of my ideas from the crpg Arcanum and D&D (both 3.5 and 4e).
Humans
- Easy to convert as I won't be changing anything from the SWSE human.
- I may give them some more options in a racial talent tree, though.
Halflings
- I want to amp up WotC's conception of halflings as gypsies -- that is, I want to put more emphasis on the idea that they travel around in extended family caravans and form dance troupes and put on carnivals and do fortune-telling and all that stuff. I also want there to be an option for "city" halflings (street urchins but also just more settled halflings). Perhaps two subraces or something?
- They are clever, capable, courageous, and charming
- They are naturally acrobatic and have a kender-esque penchant for "good-natured kleptomania"
- Because they are clannish and travel around a lot, they a) have a wide support network and b) pick up bits and pieces of knowledge and languages
Some actual mechanical ideas I've thought of:
Elves
- "High elves" (learned, skilled with magic, live close to nature but not in a primitive way)
- They are attractive, arrogant, aloof
- I'm thinking they'll have a somewhat communist government structure that runs a brooding "superpower" empire based loosely on Soviet Russia (so any elven PCs will probably be "defectors" of a sort).
Some mechanical ideas:
Dwarves
- There are two subsets of dwarves: those who live in the dwarven homelands and those who live in cosmopolitan areas. Mostly they'll share the same stats and abilities, but they are slightly different (see below). I don't know whether to make them two separate subraces or not.
- They are stout, strong, stoic, stubborn (pretty much anything starting with "st-"). They are also conservative, prudent, loyal.
- "Homeland" dwarves are fiercely traditionalist. They are primarily miners and craftsmen (weapons, armor, tools mostly)
- "Cosmopolitan" dwarves are more open-minded though still very conservative compared to other races. They are primarily bankers, businessmen, and politicians.
- They crave wealth and power, though not necessarily for themselves - most dwarves are altruistic and desire only to help out their families and clans, though there are some dwarves who succumb to greed and avarice
- They are strong-willed and principled and not easily swayed
Some mechanical ideas:
Gnomes
- Gnomes are craftsmen, artisans, inventors and tinkers (but without the cheesy Dragonlance comic relief aspect)
- They are the leading technologists of the world
- They are innovative and intelligent
- They don't have any connection to nature and can't use illusions or anything like that (though I'm thinking they might be resistant to illusions)
Some mechanical ideas:
Orcs
- Savage, tribal creatures in the wild; brooding underclass in urban areas - mostly found doing menial labor like working in factories and live in ghettos etc
- Strong but stupid, brutish
Mechanical ideas:
Half-elves
- This is my favorite race conceptually but I dislike WotC's "natural diplomat / everybody loves half-elves" take ... I prefer my half-elves a bit edgier and more like Tanis (sure, Tanis was the leader and the diplomat, but he was reluctantly so - not because he was born that way but because his difficult upbringing, in which he never really felt like he belonged anywhere, forced him to become adaptable, wise, tolerant and the like). I'm not entirely sure what to do about them mechanically yet.
Half-orcs
- Standard big, ugly race with unpleasant birth connotations. Disliked by civilized people but tolerated to same degree as their full-blooded relations (eg. so long as they do the stuff no one else wants to do and keep out of sight and out of trouble, they're OK). The odd half-orc has proven himself or herself and is accepted into society to a certain degree. They are viewed in the completely opposite way among "free" orc tribes -- most rise to become tribal champions and chieftains.
Half-ogres
- These guys are a playable race in Arcanum. They're some sort of breeding experiment in the game. It's part of the plot. They're basically bigger and dumber versions of half-orcs. I'm not sure yet whether or not I want to have them in my game.
Others
- I'll probably throw in some other races as well - I'm considering adding changelings, for instance - but I want to get the basics down first.
If anyone can help me flesh these out or even just give me some game design tips, I'd be most appreciative.
Thanks in advance!
Regards,
Jonny
p.s. On a somewhat unrelated note, how does one become a game designer? Are there courses you can take or something?
I'm trying to convert the SWSE rules for use with the fantasy genre, and one thing I'm really struggling with is the races. There aren't any guidelines on building your own races in the SWSE rules, and it's hard to judge what would be balanced by looking at the official races (just compare the klatooinian to the wookiee, for instance).
I'm hoping maybe somebody here will be able to help me out.
I'm going to outline some of my notes for the various races I want to convert to Saga rules and hopefully people who know more about game design will be able to help me flesh them out mechanically.
FYI: I'm getting many of my ideas from the crpg Arcanum and D&D (both 3.5 and 4e).
Humans
- Easy to convert as I won't be changing anything from the SWSE human.
- I may give them some more options in a racial talent tree, though.
Halflings
- I want to amp up WotC's conception of halflings as gypsies -- that is, I want to put more emphasis on the idea that they travel around in extended family caravans and form dance troupes and put on carnivals and do fortune-telling and all that stuff. I also want there to be an option for "city" halflings (street urchins but also just more settled halflings). Perhaps two subraces or something?
- They are clever, capable, courageous, and charming
- They are naturally acrobatic and have a kender-esque penchant for "good-natured kleptomania"
- Because they are clannish and travel around a lot, they a) have a wide support network and b) pick up bits and pieces of knowledge and languages
Some actual mechanical ideas I've thought of:
- -2 Str, +2 Dex (and possibly +2 Cha)
- "Nimble": can reroll Acrobatics checks, keeping second result and/or can take 10 on Acrobatics checks even when distracted or threatened and/or can always consider Acrobatics as a class skill
- Fearless: +5 to Will vs fear effects
- Conditional Bonus Feat: If trained in Thievery, get Skill Focus (Thievery)
- Streetwise: Can reroll Gather Info checks (perhaps only for certain uses, like verifying rumors)
Elves
- "High elves" (learned, skilled with magic, live close to nature but not in a primitive way)
- They are attractive, arrogant, aloof
- I'm thinking they'll have a somewhat communist government structure that runs a brooding "superpower" empire based loosely on Soviet Russia (so any elven PCs will probably be "defectors" of a sort).
Some mechanical ideas:
- +2 Dex, +2 Cha, -2 Con
- Heightened Awareness: Reroll Perception checks, keep second result
- Meditation: Can use the Trance application of the Use Magic skill untrained (possibly +5 to the check as well or let them take 10 or something?)
Dwarves
- There are two subsets of dwarves: those who live in the dwarven homelands and those who live in cosmopolitan areas. Mostly they'll share the same stats and abilities, but they are slightly different (see below). I don't know whether to make them two separate subraces or not.
- They are stout, strong, stoic, stubborn (pretty much anything starting with "st-"). They are also conservative, prudent, loyal.
- "Homeland" dwarves are fiercely traditionalist. They are primarily miners and craftsmen (weapons, armor, tools mostly)
- "Cosmopolitan" dwarves are more open-minded though still very conservative compared to other races. They are primarily bankers, businessmen, and politicians.
- They crave wealth and power, though not necessarily for themselves - most dwarves are altruistic and desire only to help out their families and clans, though there are some dwarves who succumb to greed and avarice
- They are strong-willed and principled and not easily swayed
Some mechanical ideas:
- +2 Con, -2 Cha (and maybe +2 Wis)
- Steadfast: +5 to Will vs mind-affecting effects
- Speed: 5 with no penalty to movement for encumbrance
- Hardy: heal additional 5 + 1/2 level hit points with second wind and/or Extra Second Wind as bonus feat
- Conditional Bonus Feat: trained in Endurance, get Skill Focus (Endurance) as bonus feat
Gnomes
- Gnomes are craftsmen, artisans, inventors and tinkers (but without the cheesy Dragonlance comic relief aspect)
- They are the leading technologists of the world
- They are innovative and intelligent
- They don't have any connection to nature and can't use illusions or anything like that (though I'm thinking they might be resistant to illusions)
Some mechanical ideas:
- Flash of Genius: once per encounter, add +5 to any knowledge or craft [mechanics] check (possibly some other skill
as well?)
[*]Conditional Bonus Feat: If trained in craft [mechanics], get Skill Focus (Craft) as bonus feat
Orcs
- Savage, tribal creatures in the wild; brooding underclass in urban areas - mostly found doing menial labor like working in factories and live in ghettos etc
- Strong but stupid, brutish
Mechanical ideas:
- +2 Str, +2 Con, -2 Int, -2 Cha
- Great Fortitude: +2 Fort
- Bonus Feat: Imp Damage Threshold and/or Toughness and/or Extra Second Wind
- Extraordinary Recuperation: heal at double normal rate and/or Surge: after second wind, gain 5 hp every round until kill, encounter ends, or at half hp.
- Rage?
Half-elves
- This is my favorite race conceptually but I dislike WotC's "natural diplomat / everybody loves half-elves" take ... I prefer my half-elves a bit edgier and more like Tanis (sure, Tanis was the leader and the diplomat, but he was reluctantly so - not because he was born that way but because his difficult upbringing, in which he never really felt like he belonged anywhere, forced him to become adaptable, wise, tolerant and the like). I'm not entirely sure what to do about them mechanically yet.
Half-orcs
- Standard big, ugly race with unpleasant birth connotations. Disliked by civilized people but tolerated to same degree as their full-blooded relations (eg. so long as they do the stuff no one else wants to do and keep out of sight and out of trouble, they're OK). The odd half-orc has proven himself or herself and is accepted into society to a certain degree. They are viewed in the completely opposite way among "free" orc tribes -- most rise to become tribal champions and chieftains.
Half-ogres
- These guys are a playable race in Arcanum. They're some sort of breeding experiment in the game. It's part of the plot. They're basically bigger and dumber versions of half-orcs. I'm not sure yet whether or not I want to have them in my game.
Others
- I'll probably throw in some other races as well - I'm considering adding changelings, for instance - but I want to get the basics down first.
If anyone can help me flesh these out or even just give me some game design tips, I'd be most appreciative.
Thanks in advance!
Regards,
Jonny
p.s. On a somewhat unrelated note, how does one become a game designer? Are there courses you can take or something?
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