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Old 12-15-2012, 05:52 PM   #20
kirbwarrior
 
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Join Date: Jun 2010
Location: Dreamland
Default Re: Designing How Divination Works

Since Divination is an information-gathering skill, why not just do the same thing you do with those skills? Figure out what the skill is allowed to help you find out, and tell the players the results.

As for messing with the future, do note that, when you allow Divination to your PCs;

1) The future is immutable, and there is nothing the PCs can do about it.
2) You just gave PCs a way to mess with time.

Let them know which one is true (or at least assumed) ahead of time. That will modify the reason they take Divination. And if 2 is true, then npcs will also have it, and everyone who can affect the future will be trying to, regardless of how unreliable it is.

One campaign I had 1 was true, but it gave the players a chance to deal with it when it came (The prince will die for instance). It even let them plan ahead so as to minimize the consequences (Tell the prince he will die and by who, Prince goes and brings army against killer, killing every minion of them. Evil loses, even though Prince dies). It was very neat.

And yes, no matter what, I know that knowing of the future requires a mindful gm with good memory (and note taking!).

Quick side note: Affecting the past is far more annoying as a GM than affecting the future.
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While I do not think that GURPS is perfect I do think that it is more balanced than what I am likely to create by GM fiat.
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