10-06-2019, 09:56 AM | #11 | |
Join Date: Oct 2007
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Re: [Basic] Disadvantage of the Week: Obsession
Quote:
In this case, the Obsession essentially says "This character will not spend effort on doing anything that isn't related to getting better at martial arts", and points represent effort in improving oneself. A martial artist who has Obsession (Master Kung Fu) should always need to do a lot of explaining as to why they want to spend points on anything that isn't a skill or advantage directly related to improving their style. If the other disadvantages the character has don't degrade their performance as a martial artist, the character lacks motivation to do anything about them (even if the player might want them gone). Most social advantages should be passed by, except when they can help the character gain access to more training. Skills that aren't part of their martial art will not be picked up. This is obviously not much of a disadvantage in a Dungeon Fantasy style campaign, especially if the party has another caharacter as their Face. But DF is all about maximizing your gains while minimizing your losses, so picking a disadvantage that doesn't do much is well within the spirit of DF. Even so, a DF character with that obsession is still limited, at least if the GM allows players to multi-class, as they shouldn't be allowed to pick a second class. The martial artist is also very likely to not want to take part in a non-action investigative session, same with a social gathering if it's unlikely there will be other dedicated martial artists present to talk to. If the player just goes along with those things anyway, that could certainly carry a "bad roleplaying" penality (or at the very least counteract any "good roleplaying" bonuses). As a non-mechanical disadvantage the GM has to be actively aware of it, both when planning each session (to make sure the obsessed character can find justification to participate) and during each session if the rest of the party decides to do something that would conflict with the disadvantage. |
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10-06-2019, 01:09 PM | #12 |
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: Gothenburg, Sweden
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Re: [Basic] Disadvantage of the Week: Obsession
I think that's carrying it too far. I see Obsession more as something Inigo Montoya from Princess' Bride has. What he does has the greater purpose of avenging his father... but he's capable of doing other things to survive while he's waiting for his revenge.
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10-06-2019, 01:37 PM | #13 |
Join Date: Oct 2007
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Re: [Basic] Disadvantage of the Week: Obsession
And if he didn't survive he wouldn't be able to fulfill his Obsession. Most Obsessions will always allow for survival, but that does not mean the character will put in more than the minimally required effort (without other mental traits).
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10-06-2019, 05:26 PM | #14 |
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Join Date: Jul 2006
Location: 100 hurricane swamp
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Re: [Basic] Disadvantage of the Week: Obsession
And remember that Inigo didn't handle things well after his first taste of failure.
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10-06-2019, 08:12 PM | #15 |
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Join Date: Oct 2007
Location: Indianapolis, IN
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Re: [Basic] Disadvantage of the Week: Obsession
Obsession as a racial or cultural trait - anyone have experience with that? Are there less severe options available?
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Joseph Paul |
10-07-2019, 05:50 AM | #16 |
Join Date: Jan 2006
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Re: [Basic] Disadvantage of the Week: Obsession
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10-07-2019, 12:14 PM | #17 |
Custom User Title
Join Date: Oct 2007
Location: Indianapolis, IN
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Re: [Basic] Disadvantage of the Week: Obsession
i remember an SF story where some alien member of a mostly human crew is learning to play Monopoly and just enjoying the socializing that takes place until he learns that it is all a proxy for land ownership. He immediately reads the rules and then insists that they use the rules as written and starts cleaning up. Seems that his people look at land acquisition as the determining factor in getting wives. Even as a proxy he would be obsessed with doing that.
How would you represent a cultural need to go someplace/do something? A biological need? Salmon-people swim upstream to spawn. Ponfar for Vulcans? Is Duty or Sense of Duty a better choice? Vow?
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Joseph Paul |
10-07-2019, 01:25 PM | #18 | ||
Join Date: Nov 2016
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Re: [Basic] Disadvantage of the Week: Obsession
Quote:
What you describe sounds like a “bad habit”, something like “cultural background interferes with daily activities” or “obsessive compulsive about personal cultural background” (which is different from the “plain-obsession” disadvantage, IMO). Quote:
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10-07-2019, 01:36 PM | #19 | |
Join Date: Dec 2007
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Re: [Basic] Disadvantage of the Week: Obsession
Quote:
House elves from Harry Potter. They're obsessed with serving their masters. It's actually a better model for willing slaves than Slave Mentality. |
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