Quote:
Originally Posted by Rick_Smith
Hi Jim, everyone.
Jim, if you look at George Dew's TFT knock off "Legends of the Ancient World", you will find he does do this. If you play it, you will see the strengths and disadvantages of this idea.
I think it works pretty well, but any talent that does not have a logical way to say, "each level of this gives a +1 bonus", is awkward in his system.
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As for it being 'better' that ST 0 = Totally Dead, I disagree. In the real world it is easier to be knocked out rather than killed. In the real world it is easier to be mortally wounded rather than killed outright.
So some rules which blurs the line between the quick and the dead are A) more realistic, B) more dramatic, and C) more fun. Almost all other rpg agree with this. I don't know of ANY which make it so easy to die and so hard to fall unconscious as TFT.
The main advantage of ST 0 = Totally Dead, is that it is easy to write in a 24 page, micro game rule booklet. However, in a full sized rpg, I hardly think that easy death is a goal to aim for.
Warm regards, Rick.
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Well, I've read Legends of the Ancient World and I enjoyed it a great deal. I am reminded of Chaosium's RuneQuest design requirement for Characters; If it doesn't fit on a single page, it is probably too complicated to play.
While I like the deadliness, I've evolved over time and I suggest that a "Roll the body," rule really works. If you get knocked to zero, you can be revived by someone else (6 dice versus IQ), saved by a Physicker (5 dice versus IQ) or Master Physicker (4 dice versus IQ) by a good roll. You can even tailor the exact roll required to the desired mortality level of your game and any permanent penalties that might result.
I also had some ideas to improve survival by tweaking the Warrior and Veteran talents (reducing ST prerequisite) and by creating an Armor talent (reducing penalties for high ST characters.)
I tend to prefer my changes to incremental and as small as possible. Has anyone actually tried and liked or disliked the results of House rules like these?