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.

That Old School Dungeon Fantasy

The esteemed Berin Kinsman (Risus Domnio), Vincent Diakuw (Dungeonautica), and Lord Zamiel (Fantastic Fantasy Adventures in Risusland via the Risusiverse) are only three prominent members of our community who have discussed using Risus to play classic Dungeon Fantasy in the spirit of Old School D&D. Given the popularity of the genre, I'm sure most Risus GM's have dabbled in Dungeon Fantasy at one time or another. My own Dragonspire drew heavily on the genre and I have run face-to-face and solo (via Mythic) Dungeon Fantasy games as well.

It is my experiments with Mythic that led me to the conclusion that I wanted a consistent conversion from any version of D&D/D20 to Risus. It is easy enough to do conversions on an ad hoc basis... An orc? No problem, he's an Orc Warrior (3). But for a long-running game that truly captures the "level" progression/power curve of the old school D&D experience, some guidelines to maintain a reasonable level of internal consistency seemed neccessary.

CHARACTERS
D&D/D20 characters are amazingly easy to translate to Risus once a suitable level-to-cliché dice conversion factor can be agreed upon. Coming up with that conversions factor is largely a matter of interpreting how the Putz->Professional->Master level descriptors map to D&D levels. Personally, I interpret them as follows:

D&D/D20 Class Level to Risus Cliché Dice
Level 0 = 1 die
Level 1-2 = 2 dice
Level 3-5 = 3 dice
Level 6-8 = 4 dice
Level 9-11 = 5 dice
Level 12-14 = 6 dice
Level 15-17 = 7 dice (NPC) or 5d8
level 18-20 = 8 dice (NPC) or 6d8

This is because I assume that a level 0 character is an apprentice, a level 1-2 character is a journeyman, and a level 3-5 character is really just hitting their stride in their class. "Masters" (5 dice) would be those characters who used to attract followers and go off to build fortresses. Anything higher and you're talking legendary capability and thus Funky Dice are totally justified.

So, according to the above table, a 5th level Fighter has a Fighter (3) cliché or something similar (I'm all in favor of sexing up cliché names). A character with multiple classes simply has multiple cliches.

Now, given that standard Risus characters begin with 10 dice (with no cliché having more than 4 dice), you can see a little disconnect. Most characters will have too few dice and high level characters will exceed the 4 dice limit for single clichés.

It's all good, though. These clichés that are arrived upon by converting classes do not have to completely define a character. They are the character's "adventuring" clichés; the clichés that are typically used in "fantasy combat". Even "low-level" characters are likely to have a bunch of non-adventuring clichés that can be derived from the character's background. In later versions of D&D/D20, a character's Feats or Skills may give clues to what these other clichés might be.

Also, there is nothing to say that a given class can't be translated into a double-pumped cliché (very appropriate for Vancian spell-casters) or split into similar clichés (of the same level) to produce more combat endurance. Thus, that 5th-Level Fighter might have Knight (3) and Mercenary Captain (3). A 7th-level wizard could be a Wizard [4].

Higher-level characters are little more problematic. Either the 4-dice cap needs to be waived or the character can take a roughly equivalent number of Funky Dice for a given class: a 10th level Thief might become a Thief (4d8).

Race is easy. Simply append a racial (and/or cultural) descriptor to one of the character's clichés. That cliché can then be used for "racial stuff" (like a dwarf's resistance to poison or an elf's ability to notice secret doors).

Ability scores almost don't matter. If a character has unusually high or low ability scores for their class, then these can be noted with an appropriate descriptor on the cliché. If an ability is sufficiently exceptional, it can worked into its own cliché that does not map to the character's class clichés (i.e. Hulking Brute (4) for a character with 18/00 strength). A terrible ability score can even be a Hook.

Spells are handled abstractly but the source material (typically D&D spell lists) should be referred to when describing effects. As a rule of thumb, a character is still limited to spells of a spell level appropriate to their cliché dice (as translated back to D&D). Target Numbers can be set according to the rules for Dramatic Effects in magic (as described in the Risus Companion) or simply defined as 3 plus the D&D spell-level multiplied by 3. A failed roll to cast a spell typically means the spell was not prepared and cannot be attempted again until the character has time to rest and study or pray.

Gear is typically just tools of the trade. Experienced D&D characters most likely have magical items, though. These can be built using the rules for Sidekicks & Shieldmates (for items that team with the character), Questing Dice (for charged items), or a Bonus Die items (trading 1 die for 1 bonus die directly). My rule of thumb is that a +1 in D20/D&D translates to a +1pip bonus dice item (or 1 die cliché for teaming). A +3 item grants a full bonus die (or a 3 dice cliché for teaming). Other items must be converted on an ad hoc basis.

Followers, as individuals or grunt squads, can be purchased using the rules for Sidekicks & Shieldmates.

MONSTERS
Monsters convert much as characters, though earlier editions of D&D and AD&D use Hit Dice rather than levels. Hit Dice don't precisely map to character level when evaluating the threat their pose to player characters. Thus, a slightly revised conversion table is used:

D&D Hit Dice to Risus Cliché Dice
Up to 1-1 = 1 die
1-1 to 1 = 1 to 2 dice (8 to 10 Funky Dice)
1+1 to 2 = 2 dice (12 Funky Dice)
2+1 to 3 = 2 dice (14 Funky Dice)
3+1 to 4 = 2-3 dice (16 Funky Dice)
4+1 to 5 = 3 dice (18 Funky Dice)
etc...

Most monsters have a single cliché . Thus a 4HD Ogre could be an Ogre (2d8). Additional clichés can be added to improve combat endurance and make the encounter more challenging.

For grunt squads, my rule of thumb is that 3 creatures add +=1 dice, 10 creatures add +2 dice, 30 creatures add +3, etc. This can vary tremendously with the situation.


Note: The above conversions guidelines differ from my Risus to D20 conversion that I posted back in 2006. The needs of the conversion work differently when going in the other direction and I've had a lot time to evolve my thinking on the matter.

Converting to D20 (part 3)

Continuing from this post...

I'm going to step back for a second and stress that my goal in the conversion process is only to produce enough information to actually use the character in a D20 game. I do not intend to create complete characters. With that in mind, the very nature of Risus affords us with a handy shorthand.

STEP # 3 - Skills
The most time consuming aspect of creating D20 characters is assigning their skills. I could post suggestions on how to translate cliché values into ranks for the standard list of D20 skills. But this doesn't take advantage of the power of the cliché system. Instead, why not keep the character's clichés and translate the cliché level into a D20 bonus? The cliché "Social Butterfly with a Natural Sense for Fashion and Culture (4)" implies proficiency in Appraise, Bluff, Diplomacy, Gather Information, and Knowledge (various). Thus, the cliché becomes a shorthand for all those skills.

So when using the cliché in D20, what should the bonus be? One approach would be to convert the cliché dice to D20 rank. One suggested conversion: cliché (1) = 1 rank, cliché (2) = 2-3 ranks, cliché (3) = 4-8 ranks, cliché (4) = 9-13 ranks, cliché (5) = 14-18 ranks, and cliché (6) = 19+ ranks. This is a relatively precise way to go, and has the advantage(?) of closely mirroring the original cliché values.

But an even easier way to handle it would be to discard the D20 rank entirely. We've already derived the character's level from the her cliché ranks. That means we could simple list the clichés with no level (which might be called "backgrounds" instead). Any task that relates to a cliché would be given ranks based on the character's total level. If, in the example above, the character with the "Social Butterfly" background is a 4th-level character then she might be assumed to have 7 ranks [level+3] in skills that relate directly to that background, perhaps 4 ranks [(level+3)/2] in skills of secondary importance, and 2 ranks in tertiary abilities [(level+3)/4].

This approach has the benefit of producing really abbreviated npc cards.

STEP # 4 - Feats
Simply select whatever feats seem appropriate. The important thing to remember is that these are significant feats - feats that let the character do cool stuff. Feats that simply give bonuses should not usually be specified, as bonuses are usually factored in elsewhere (and bonuses are boring).

As a rough rule of thumb, I select up to one feat for each die of any cliche (and try to pick feats that work for that cliché). Don't worry if you violate D20 standard here... these are NPCs, after all.

Converting to D20 (part 2)

Continuing from this post...

STEP # 2 - Class & Level
The difficulty in converting Risus cliché levels to D20 class levels is that D20 class levels do not fall neatly into the "putz->professional->master" progression. Any conversion to D20 will involve making assumptions about the meaning of a class level. This assumption will vary from campaign to campaign, even for the same GM.

For an upcoming D20 version of Dragonspire, a fairly typical heroic fantasy game, I am making the assumption that a 1st level character represents professional competency (assuming 4 ranks in the relevant professional skills). This makes designing a conversion formula a bit tricky, given that only 4 cliché levels need to be spread among 20 class levels. Since I'd like a fairly linear progression, I arrive at 5 class levels for each cliché level from 3 to 6. A Cliché (1) would convert to a 0-level character, while a Cliché (2) would be 1st-level character with fewer than 4 skill ranks in their chosen profession.

Once a cliché level to class level formula is defined (and there are many more possibiltiies than the one I suggested for Dragonspire), the next step is actually converting characters.

Begin with a character's most important (and usually highest) cliché. Convert the cliché dice to a number of class levels (usually at the low end of a range of possible levels). Then assign these levels to one or more classes that seem appropriate for the cliché. Pay special attention to the things the character can actually do, increasing levels in certain classes to make sure the character still retains those abilities.

A character with more than one cliché can then add additional class levels, but generally not enough to put the character outside of the range of levels available to their primary cliché. Once again, pay attention to the abilities granted by the secondary clichés.

An alternative approach would be to convert all clichés equally with a less generous formula... perhaps one cliché level to one class level. Superficially, this would seem like a better approach. However, it fails to account for the stacking multi-classing mechanics of D20.

Next Up: Feats & Skills

Converting to D20

I apologize in advance to all you D20-phobes out there in the Risusverse, but I'm going to start to tackle the issue using Risus as a short-hand for D20 characters. As mentioned in this post, I typically generate a large number of NPCs for the local area of my campaign setting. Doing this in Risus is a snap, where a character can be represented in as few as 2 phrases (plus cliché level):

Name: Cliché (level).

A more complicated character might include additional clichés, a physical description, a Hook, some Lucky Shots, notes about Tools of the Trade, and role-playing hints. But even the most complicated of characters will only take a few moments to imagine and document. There is no need to consult a rulebook or worry about a bunch of inter-dependent statistics.

A Risus character is usually sufficient for most NPCs. But if a character is expected to see combat in a D20 game, more concrete statistics will be needed. Deriving those statistics is what I plan to address.

Before I get there, though, I need to mention my philosophy of character conversions. While I try to stay true to the numbers, the most important thing in a successful conversion is to remain true to the character concept and preserve the things that the character can actually do. The actual probabilities of doing things are a secondary concern.

STEP # 1 - Ability Scores
Deriving D20 ability scores from a set of Risus clichés is not as hard at it would seem. In a sense, any single cliché implies a set of ability scores. At their most obvious, clichés may explicitly state a connection to an attribute: a Charismatic Socialite (4) or Brawny Lass with Heroic Potential (4), for example. They may also state a connection in the cliché description: "being tough" or "being clever". In these cases, one simply needs to convert the cliché dice to the attribute bonus [i.e. D20 ability score = 10 + 2*cliché dice]. Funky Dice give proportionally higher ability scores [i.e. Supernaturally Strong Son of a Demigod (3d12) should give a Strength of 22].

When an ability score is not listed directly in the name of the cliché or in the cliché description, one must determine if the given ability score is a secondary or tertiary ability of the cliché. Strength might be a secondary ability of Dwarven Hardcase (4), while Constitution might be considered a tertiary ability of Successful Warrior Adventurer (4). Secondary abilities convert at half the level of primary abilities, while tertiary abilities convert at one quarter. When deciding if an ability score is primary, secondary, or tertiary to a cliché (and if it is an ability at all), I tend to ask myself "how much better at the attribute is a character with one more die in the cliché ".

What about substandard ability scores? There are two ways to get them. The first is through a Hook. The second is through a negative cliché descriptor, such as in Dumb Jock (3) or Sickly Wizard (5). In either case, assign the relevant ability score a value of 8 or less.
If the character has more than one cliché that covers the same attribute, use only the cliché that provides the ability score that best suits the character concept.

Up next: Class & Level