Framework for ASOIAF game

[Wildcat]

I'm trying to put some more work into my plans for a "Song of Ice and Fire"-based game. Before I get into specific details like creating statistics for specific characters or even templates for common archetypes, I want to try to work out the framework for such a game. The first step is deciding what all needs to go in such a framework. Off the top of my head, I can think of TL, Rank and Status structures, how to treat supernatural abilities, and the presence or absence of wildcard skills and cinematic traits and skills.

I've already considered TL at length, and my opinion is for the Seven Kingdoms (which will be the baseline for my game) to be TL 3 with a few additions, such as TL 4 plate armor. Other areas might have TL 4 advances in other fields, such as optics (Myr) or fencing weapons (Braavos). Meanwhile, the Wildlings and the clans of the Mountains of the Moon would tend to have lower TL.

Magic and supernatural abilities, such as greensight, skinchanging, and Melisandre's powers, will be handled as advantages, rather than using the standard magic system. Certainly, supernatural abilities will require an Unusual Background. I might be back later with specific examples.

Wildcard skills are out. Cinematic traits and skills are in, except chi- or wuxia-style semi-supernatural abilities will be mostly absent.

I'm still trying to really bring myself up to speed on how to use Rank and Status. I know I want them to be separate but related. But I'm still trying to decide what Rank systems are used where. This is one area I'm especially looking for discussion of how others see it. I'm going to work to educate myself on these in the meantime.

Are there any other big-picture things I'm missing?

[Wildcat]

I did come up with a couple of other things I'll need to take a closer look at: languages and cultural familiarity.

Languages are the easier of the two, at least on the surface. The Seven Kingdoms use the Common Tongue, north of the Wall you see the Old Tongue used some, especially by Giants, and the remaining Children of the Forest speak the True Tongue. High Valyrian is extinct as a living language, but it is used in some ways like Latin was in medieval Europe, it seems, and the languages of the Free Cities and Slaver's Bay are both based on High Valyrian. I think the dialects of the Free Cities would essentially default to one another at one step lower fluency. A native speaker of Myrish Valyrian would be an accented speaker of Tyroshi Valyrian. The same with the dialects of Slaver's Bay. Going from a Free Cities dialect to a Slaver's Bay dialect or the other direction might cost two steps of fluency, from native to broken.

Cultural familiarities are tougher. How much should a single CF cover? Is someone from Sunspear really going to be familiar with the culture of the Ironborn? Martin did a lot of differentiating between different cultural groups. Just in Westeros, there are the Dornish (which could be further subdivided), a mixture of the Rhoynar and Andals; relatively pureblooded Andals of all of the mainland between Dorne and the North; some Valyrian influence, especially around Dragonstone; the clans of the Mountains of the Moon; and the Ironborn. You would think the North would be pretty simple, pretty straightforward. Northmen are pretty well all descended from the First Men, right? For the most part, yes. But the "civilized" northerners of Winterfell, Karhold, and Deepwood Motte are a fair bit different from the Crannogmen of the Neck and the northern Mountain Clans. And what about the folk north of the Wall? Do they all count as a single CF, all the way from Thenn to Hardhome? And it gets even more complicated in Essos.

[fifiste]

I'd make a butt-load of cultural familiarities. At least as much as to make cultural adaptability worth itself, when you have even a bit traveling in your campaign. So your face-men could have more of a niche setting the politicians, con-men, far traveled traders etc. apart from other guys.

I think it shouldn't be hard to crank out at least 10 cf-s.

I think it seems logical for there to be a thing to give defaults to similar or geographically close cultures (which probably have some experience with their neighbors ). Etc. you suffer only -1 for using your Northmen CF with Mainland Westeros -2 for using it in Dorne and full -3 for Slavers Bay.
On the other hand it would make things more uselessly complicated and devalue Cultural adaptability advantage.

[combatmedic]

You could keep it simple:



CF : The Seven Kingdoms

CF: Wildings of the North

CF: Civilized Essos

CF: Nomadic Essos

CF: Summer Islands (and near Sothyros?)


Or perhaps divide it be religion as much as by region.

[Aneirin]

I did come up with a work around for skin changing. Starts off cheap, but uncontrollable, and PC's would be able to spend points to buy off limitations towards it:-

Skin changer (20 points (as maximum reduction is 80%)
Possession - 100 points
Chronic (leaves a back door) +20%
Tele-control +50%
Range (asleep only) +28% (170 total with additions)
No memory access -10%
Allies only - 30%
Animals only – 25%
When asleep only - 30%
Takes extra time 2 - 20%
Unreliable - 20% (I think, can't remember)
Uncontrollable - 10%
Temporary disadvantage bestial -8% (153 points negatives)


Ally – 8
Make ally a puppet – 5 points

This represents someone just starting off. Can't control it, they just fall asleep, and appear start dreaming, and get the bestial urges whilst they do it.

Characters can spend points to buy off limitations, such as uncontrollable so if they use the dreaming skill, they can control it more. It would cost another 30 points to be able to do it whilst awake (although I would be willing to be generous if they could find someone to teach them to do it) though when awake they would need to buy a creature as an ally and touch it to get more than one, and then buy it as a puppet to enter it easily.

Unreliable another 20 points to buy off, but it still comes off as quite expensive for low powered games.

And ofcourse, you would need a 10 point unusual background.

So for this, you are looking at 43 point in total, and in a 100 point limit game (150 with disadvantages) that is a sizeable investment, and if they want to be able to do it in combat, that comes to 83 points.

Unfortunately, aside from using magic...which I don't want to do, there doesn't seem to be a way to make it cost effective for low powered games, even if all you do is let people take over animals.

[Aneirin]

And for cultural familiarity, it may be best to determine, what cultures you need. Will the PC's ever have reason to go to the Mountains of the Moon? If not leave it out, if you put it as an option a PC may buy it and then feel bad when there is no reason to go there and the rest of the party don't see a need to either. (unless you want to bring some people from the Vale down to validate the choice)

I would keep it simple, and have it just put into various regions.

North
Mountains of the Vale
The Reach
Iron Islands
Westerlands
The Reach
The Stormlands
Dorne

And then:-
Free Cities
Dothyaki
Slavers lands
Asshai

May have missed a few off from beyond Westeros, but if you subdivide these groups into religion you will wind up with hundreds. Best to deal with that as important NPC's, such as lord from the Iron Islands having intolerance, those who do not follow the Old Way, or a Northerner, intolerance, First Men. Or perhaps attach a social stigma to those things if it is likely to come up enough. Following the Old Ways probably would if done openly anywhere but the iron islands.

[Icelander]

Originally Posted by fifiste

I think it seems logical for there to be a thing to give defaults to similar or geographically close cultures (which probably have some experience with their neighbors ). Etc. you suffer only -1 for using your Northmen CF with Mainland Westeros -2 for using it in Dorne and full -3 for Slavers Bay.
On the other hand it would make things more uselessly complicated and devalue Cultural adaptability advantage.

I've always thought that Cultural Familiarity ought to be a levelled trait, with each level of it negating -1 of penalties. Some cultures would default to each other at the full -3 while others would have only a -1 or -2 default penalty.

[Wildcat]

I'm working to hammer out cultural familiarities this afternoon and evening. And I remembered another thing I'll need to figure out: control ratings. This seems like something that would vary a lot from region to region, frex, the Dothraki Sea almost certainly has a lower control rating than the Seven Kingdoms. Any thoughts on what societies might have what CR?

[Wildcat]

OK, on the subject of Cultural Familiarity, I think I'm going to make it partially levelled. I'm going to have broad cultures, but within those, there will be more granular subcultures. Familiarity with the culture (costing 1 point) reduces the penalty to -1 when interacting with members of that culture (instead of the -3 default), and that is a prerequisite for familiarity with a subculture of that culture. Familiarity with a specific subculture costs another 1 point, and wipes out the penalty completely. Some cultures have only one subculture, but the cultural familiarity and subcultural familiarity must still be purchased with separate points.

Does that make sense? Here's an unfinished list of how I break it down:

Culture (Subcultures)
Asshai (Asshai)
Beyond the Wall (Free Folk, Giants, Thenn)
Dothraki (Dothraki, Lhazareen)
Free Cities (Braavosi, Lorathi, Lyseni, Myrish, Norvosi, Pentoshi, Qohorik, Tyroshi, Volantene)
Ghiscari (Astapori, Meereenese, New Ghis, Yunkish)
Ibbenese (Ibbenese)
Jogos Nhai (Jogos Nhai)
Qartheen (Qartheen)
Seven Kingdoms (Andals, Crannogmen, Dornishmen, Hill Tribes, Ironborn, Northern Mountain Clans, Northmen, Orphans of the Greenblood, Skagosi)
Summer Isles (Summer Isles)
Yi Ti (Yi Ti)

[Wildcat]

I think I'm going to try to design some Powers and sample abilities tomorrow for stuff like skin-changing, greensight, etc.

Another thought that has come up is Martial Arts styles. I'll definitely want to come up with a style for Water Dancing (or maybe use an existing style to represent it -- it's not like we have a ton of information on what it includes). Probably put together a style for Westerosi Knightly Mounted Combat (or adopt one of the existing styles).

Does anyone have other ideas for styles that would be good to incorporate?