Target Numbers and the Single Slayer

This past weekend's Slaying Solomon premier was snowed out in the storm of the century (I can say that because 1996 was so last century). Still, I have been thinking more about using Risus as a tool to help run Buffy: The Vampire Slayer RPG. Specifically, I have thinking about magic.

Now, Buffy actually comes with a really simple magic system. In a nutshell, magic spells are rated on a scale of 1-6+. There are a few handy charts that translate what types of effects are appropriate for a given power level. The Magic Box supplement expands these tables and there are a small handful of modifiers based on tweaking out the spell definition.

I haven't found too much need to simplify that.

However, there have been times when the flow of the game is such that I don't want to break stride to consult the Buffy tables to define a new spell. In some cases, I can wing it by comparing the new spell to an old standard (we make heavy use of a Power Level 3 seeker spell). In other cases, I use Risus.

The Risus Companion describes a pretty nifty magic system in the section called "Target Numbers and the Single Showoff". This system is so simple and elegant that I borrowed it wholesale for Silverlode and Dragonspire. The gist is that the difficulty of casting a spell is tied to the dramatic impact of the spell and how generous it is to other players (easy) and how much it steals their limelight (hard). I use this system so much that I've internalized the chart and can mentally translate the Target Numbers to other systems. In the case of BtVS:RPG, I translate them as follows:

Simple (TN5)	Power Level 1: Any effect up to and including that which helps the party achieve something as a whole, or that acts as a tool to facilitate another activity.
Ordinary (TN10)	Power Level 2: A standard effect that is meant to overcome a single obstacle that faces the character, or handle the character's share of an obstacle that faces the party.
Complex (TN15)	Power Level 3: The effect would hog the scene a bit.
Difficult (TN20)	Power Level 4: The effect would entirely upstage the other players, turning the other characters into bystanders for the rest of the scene and then some.
Dangerous (TN25)	Power Level 5: The effect would shortcut (or instantly rewrite) the whole scenario.
Impossible (TN30)	Power Level 6: The effect would utterly wreck the campaign world or campaign plot line.

I should add that it is easier for a Buffy character to succeed at a Power Level 5 or Power Level 6 spell than it is for a Risus character to succeed at a Dangerous or Impossible spell. Therefore, I'd almost certainly adjust the Power Level upwards, make spell component prohibitive, and introduce severe consequences for failure. 

Finally, I should say that I do like the Buffy system when I actually have the small amount of extra time needed to define spell effects. I would love to go the other way and use the Buffy system in certain Risus games. That will have to be another post for another day.

Buffy On The Brain

My Game Master Brain is currently focused on writing the Slaying Solomon season (six) premier. We use Eden's BtVS:RPG, so not a lot of Risus relevance here... except...

I should mention that even when running something as simple as the Unisystem, Risus can be a handy GM tool. I've discussed this at length for D20, but it also applies to Buffy. A fully-functional Risus character can be described in just a few short words. This beats even the extreme shorthand that Eden proposed for their NPCs in BtVS:RPG. I don't always use Risus in this way, but occasionally it does come up. I guess it's because I naturally think in terms of the Risus-scale. For Buffy, I still need to keep tabs in the book (even after years and years of running it... go figure).

So how would I use a Risus character in Buffy? Let's take an hypothetical example:

Ada Godfrey: The Coolest Watcher You Ever Met (4), Coffee Shop Concert Promoter (3)

In game, this is all that I typically need. If I need to make a roll for Ada, I can easily translate the Risus dice to an attribute or skill. Assuming a perfectly applicable cliche, the total bonus to the skill roll* is equal to double the cliche dice. Tangentially-related cliches get knocked down 1 or more dice before conversion, while cliches that actually call out or strongly imply noteworthy attributes get small bump instead.

Thus, if Ada had to make a double Will roll, I'd translate that to a +10 on the fly (2x4 + 2 because strong mental attributes are strongly implied). A research roll would be similar (not counting for occult library bonuses). For shooting a crossbow, she gets a straight 8 (double her cliche dice).

The advantage to this system is that it goes beyond the Muscle/Combat/Knowledge of the BtVS:RPG shorthand. You can use it like a Risus cliche to make rolls to book a new rock band at her coffee shop (2xConcert Promoter=+6) or to charm an impressionable young student with her coolness (2xWatcher=+8).

There are a few more stats that come up if the NPC gets into combat. For Life Points, I use 10 times the most appropriate cliche (+/-10 as needed). The number of Actions and Initiative are figured by converting the most appropriate cliche directly to Dexterity. For Ada, that means I'd probably give her 40 Life Points and base her Initiative and number of Actions on a DEX of 4. If she were less physically competent, I'd use 30 LP and a DEX of 3 instead.

* Game Master in Buffy are encouraged to not even bother rolling for minor NPCs. An average roll of 6 is assumed. The above formula does not add this number because I often like to roll for my NPCs.