What's new

Build a Better Mousetrap - Janna's PbP Design Thread


OP
Janna

Janna

Lurker
Joined
Dec 14, 2008
Messages
625
Reputation score
13
Re: Build a Better Mousetrap - Janna's PbP Design Thread

To put it another way, you think that saying you have a Physical stat of 2 means you can play a tough guy, based on this
You could definitely play him that way. He wouldn't be able to back it up mechanically if someone actually decided to call him on it and take a swing but you absoultely could play Joe Pesci from Goodfellas or something.

Describe your guy as a slab of beef with rippling pecs and 44-inch biceps if you'd like. Just understand that mechanically you're going to have to RP and explanation for why he can't seem to lift that couch; maybe his massively muscled fingers can't get a good grip.

... Are you serious? You mean to say, I can't make a character that's an asshole? That's naturally, thinking he's a badass, is confrontational? For god's sakes, why didn't you say that was the case? I would have immediately sided with host! Now I really feel like an idiot, my apologies. I thought I'd have more options for characters than that, and it was ignorant of me.
I should have broken that statement down a bit more. You're welcome to be confronational with NPCs, enemies and even other PCs so long as it isn't disruptive to anybody else's enjoyment of the game. If you can play an asshole that makes the game more fun then more power to you; if you want to plot the murder of other PCs or start randomly raping everyone that you come across... not interested, sorry.

Confrontational was meant more in the OOC sense and again, was pretty much based on some things from AWMBI that I don't think I need to keep going back to.
 
OP
Janna

Janna

Lurker
Joined
Dec 14, 2008
Messages
625
Reputation score
13
Re: Build a Better Mousetrap - Janna's PbP Design Thread

To put it another way, you think that saying you have a Physical stat of 2 means you can play a tough guy, based on this,
It took me a little while to find the real-life example I was thinking of:

Player: My character is an undefeated badass martial artist!
GM: Well... you only have a Physical of 2...
Player: Nobody he's ever fought can stand up against him. He teaches at his own dojo and everything.
GM: Um... okay...

*GAME BEGINS*

Player: I'm gonna kick that guy's ass with my Kiai power!
GM:
:p
 

thetwo

Lurker
RP Moderator
Joined
May 25, 2009
Messages
3,777
Reputation score
129
Re: Build a Better Mousetrap - Janna's PbP Design Thread

This feels to me like trying to force a square peg through a round hole. Yes, it's possible. It just seems like you ought to find a square hole or a round peg. I mean, there are other templates out there, if one fits better, use that instead. If none fit better, you're probably better off shaving the corners off your peg or finding a new peg then pretending the current hole is square and pushing as hard as you can.

A complete redundancy, but without the metaphor: find a template that matches the character, or a character that matches the template. Don't pick a template you like and a character you like and try to force them to match up.

Maybe one of the 'specialist' ones fits better? Maybe you have another character who matches this template more accurately. Maybe you can make up a new character? It seems to me that all these options are better then trying to pretend your character matches the template, even if it works.

I mean, lets say I want a new character in AWMBI who's an olympic runner on a merit scholarship at an ivy league college. That'll be a "5" in dexterity, constitution, and intelligence, please. What, I can't do that? The best I can do is a 4 in intelligence, and a 3 in constitution and dexterity, and that leaves me with a 1 in willpower, strength, and perception? But my character must have some pretty serious will to do all that stuff too, and can hardly be weak! Well, I can either pretend all those things are true even though I won't actually be getting the benefits of them or I can make a new character that fits into the rules.
 
OP
Janna

Janna

Lurker
Joined
Dec 14, 2008
Messages
625
Reputation score
13
Re: Build a Better Mousetrap - Janna's PbP Design Thread

This feels to me like trying to force a square peg through a round hole. Yes, it's possible. It just seems like you ought to find a square hole or a round peg. I mean, there are other templates out there, if one fits better, use that instead. If none fit better, you're probably better off shaving the corners off your peg or finding a new peg then pretending the current hole is square and pushing as hard as you can.
I completely agree with you and I wouldn't encourage anybody to pick a mismatched set of stats for how they wanted to play the character. It might make for an interesting game as an intellectual exercise, but I don't know that it would necessarily be any fun. But if someone really really really wanted to play Rain Man or something (the dumb guy who somehow manages to solve all the Intelligence puzzles) it's not like it would end the world. It would just be an odd choice.
 

ToxicShock

(And Reputation Manager)
Staff member
Administrator
H-Section Moderator
Joined
Nov 10, 2008
Messages
11,239
Reputation score
1,016
Re: Build a Better Mousetrap - Janna's PbP Design Thread

This is just a preliminary and in no way suggests that I'm ready to GM soon, but I wanted to take like a quick survey type of thing.

If I had come out and said I was going to run a game, and the system was entirely GM-controlled, no rolls or anything. You are to post and I will react and post whatever I feel would be appropriate/interesting. How many of you would that turn away immediately? Or would you be up for that?
 

Keylo

Lurker
Joined
Nov 9, 2008
Messages
3,701
Reputation score
67
Re: Build a Better Mousetrap - Janna's PbP Design Thread

This is just a preliminary and in no way suggests that I'm ready to GM soon, but I wanted to take like a quick survey type of thing.

If I had come out and said I was going to run a game, and the system was entirely GM-controlled, no rolls or anything. You are to post and I will react and post whatever I feel would be appropriate/interesting. How many of you would that turn away immediately? Or would you be up for that?
Isn't that basically plain roleplaying?... I wouldn't join it as a 'play by post' game, but I would as a straightforward roleplay.
 

ToxicShock

(And Reputation Manager)
Staff member
Administrator
H-Section Moderator
Joined
Nov 10, 2008
Messages
11,239
Reputation score
1,016
Re: Build a Better Mousetrap - Janna's PbP Design Thread

I'm confused, I'm pretty sure other gm's use like systems to do shit, not just post whatever the hell they want. It'd be a game, I'd control npc's but on my side, there wouldn't be a character, so I'd be doing something different, and you'd still all be trying to achieve something.
 
Top