02-11-2023, 07:25 AM | #21 | |
Join Date: Jan 2008
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Re: Request: Better Monster Signal:Noise or Information Design
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I would like it if monsters had more info about their habitats and ecology, social organization, goals, number appearing, treasure collecting habits, etc., but I recognize that DF Monsters is already printed and that page constraints were a big concern--it's water under the bridge. And the newer books from Gaming Ballistic such as Serpents of Legend are actually fantastic at this anyway. But sharks should have No Legs because they do. If they didn't I could roll my eyes and say "obviously they do," and it wouldn't hurt the game beyond annoying me, but there's no reason to omit it. If you're worried about page space you should look at how Garden of Evil handles plants: defines a meta-trait called Flora which includes traits like Doesn't Breath and No Blood, etc., and uses it for all the plants. You can do that for Shark and just say it has trait: Fish. Now you've got the best of both worlds: it officially has no legs (see Fish definition on pg. XYZ), and it doesn't offend anyone who likes short stat blocks. |
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02-11-2023, 11:06 AM | #22 | |
GCA Prime
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: Portland, OR
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Re: Request: Better Monster Signal:Noise or Information Design
Quote:
If the details are not there, I can't decide to use them at all. I just have to make something up. And on the spot, my ability to make it up may be limited, especially without some seeds to help get me started. Many people can't just decide to be creative and make something up. Not everyone is good at improvisational creativity. But I agree that the way the traits are organized is often not particularly helpful, and sometimes seems to actively hinder usability. I do quite like your organization, with Senses, Offense, Defense, etc; that seems like a very useful breakdown.
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Armin D. Sykes | Visit my GCA5 blog for updates and previews. | Get GURPS Character Assistant 5 now at Warehouse 23. |
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