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Old 05-28-2009, 11:35 AM   #121
Johnny Angel
 
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Default Re: New to GURPs; not sure where to start

I'm a little confused about adding limitations and other modifiers to abilities.

I understand the concept that they modify the cost of the ability, but how does it work if I apply multiple limitations and modifiers to an ability? Is the percentage of the cost based on the original price or is it based on the current price?

For example: Let's say an ability cost is 100 points. I take a limitation which reduces the cost by 50%; this now makes the ability cost 50 points. If I place a second limitation on the ability which also reduces the cost by 50%, is the second reduction based on the original price (which would be 50 points) or is the second reduction based on the new price (which would be 25 points...50/2)? I'm assuming that it is the latter because that seems to make more sense, but I'm not sure.
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Old 05-28-2009, 11:41 AM   #122
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Default Re: New to GURPs; not sure where to start

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Originally Posted by Johnny Angel View Post
For example: Let's say an ability cost is 100 points. I take a limitation which reduces the cost by 50%; this now makes the ability cost 50 points. If I place a second limitation on the ability which also reduces the cost by 50%, is the second reduction based on the original price (which would be 50 points) or is the second reduction based on the new price (which would be 25 points...50/2)?
Add all modifiers together for a single final modifier. Frex, say I've got an advantage which costs 10 points. I chose a limitation which is worth -50%, another which is worth -5%, and an enhancement which is worth +25%. The total modifier is (-50% + -5% + 25%) = -30%, for a total of 7 points.
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Old 05-28-2009, 12:23 PM   #123
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Default Re: New to GURPs; not sure where to start

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Originally Posted by Turhan's Bey Company View Post
Add all modifiers together for a single final modifier. Frex, say I've got an advantage which costs 10 points. I chose a limitation which is worth -50%, another which is worth -5%, and an enhancement which is worth +25%. The total modifier is (-50% + -5% + 25%) = -30%, for a total of 7 points.
In addition, the total modifier can't be less than -80%. So if you add two -50% it woudl only reduce the price with -80%, but you would still suffer the fulll limitations. In such cases one shoudl look for alternate limitations or just add some enhancers to the mix. For instance, a +20% enhancement would effectively be "free".


Note: there is an optional rule for calculating as you first though. where the new modifiers are added to the new, modified cost. You have to take the most expensive first though and it gives very different results. I have no experience at all with it. I find the normal system works fine.
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Old 05-28-2009, 01:16 PM   #124
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Default Re: New to GURPs; not sure where to start

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Originally Posted by Johnny Angel View Post
I'm a little confused about adding limitations and other modifiers to abilities.
I fully do agree with the two posts above, but I just want to add this...

You are not obliged to use limitations. GURPS is not only a universal game, it is a generic one, which means that almost every rule is optional. For the character creation, for instance, no advantage, disadvantage, quirk or perk is a mandatory. You can play with the basic attributes and the skills only!

So, her is my hint: don't talk about limitations to your players. Let them choose their advantages and disadvantages as written in the rules and, if one of them tell you: "Doesn't this advantage exist in a form that would only work during night?", or something like that, glance with him at the pages about limitations...

I do even worse now! I don't give any list of skills, advantages or disadvantages to my players anymore. They have to tell me what they want and, then, I find the good ability or flaw in the book for them. This way, I enforce my players to create an interesting and consistent character - the character they really want to become - rather than just collecting abilities. But this method has two drawbacks.

- I have to know the rules very well, to find the precise advantage or disadvantage they desire. And this sometimes lead to huge discussion.
- I can't assess a precise starting point total, because they don't choose their stats while taking into account the point costs. I still say from time to time: "No, you can't have all these skills and advantages, you have to make a choice." But it is not sufficient to end with a very precise point total. So, when I want 100 point characters, I usualy get 80-120 point characters.

Furthermore this method is just a manner of playing, of course. My players like it, because they like to imagine their characters rather than optimizing them. Some players prefer optimization.

GURPS is done to let you play the way you want.

Last edited by Gollum; 05-28-2009 at 01:23 PM.
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Old 05-28-2009, 06:48 PM   #125
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Default Re: New to GURPs; not sure where to start

I'm new to GURPS as well and feel the same way about it as the original poster and this thread has been a big help. I'll check in from time to time and update my first few sessions with the system.

(former DnD player that feels the same way about it as the original poster)
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Old 05-29-2009, 06:41 PM   #126
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Default Re: New to GURPs; not sure where to start

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I'm new to GURPS as well and feel the same way about it as the original poster and this thread has been a big help. I'll check in from time to time and update my first few sessions with the system.

(former DnD player that feels the same way about it as the original poster)
Welcome...

My advice is the same as what many people told me: download GURPS Lite. I was very intimidated by the size of GURPS, but I think I'm starting to get the hang of things fairly quickly. Once you get the basics down, the rest of it starts to come together. I still struggle with a few of the rules, but I honestly do feel that I understand the majority of the game.

For me, the main obstacle was the change in terminology. "Ready" in D&D means something totally different than what it means in GURPS. If I'm reading the rules correctly, if you wanted to "Ready" as per the D&D term in GURPS you would use the "Wait" manuever in GURPS.

I'm the one who started the thread, but I don't mind if you want to ask some of your own questions here. I've found the community here to be very helpful and knowledgable about the system.
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Old 05-29-2009, 06:59 PM   #127
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Default Re: New to GURPs; not sure where to start

Ok. Lets see. I wanted to give you guys a heads up on my plans for my first GURPS series of adventures. Reading through this thread I've decided that I would run a few 'practice' sessions in the vain and style by which I intend to ultimately run the game. My 'setting' is a sort of 'what-if' world where the Civil War happened, but there was magic and mystical happenings in and around the frontier. Giants, gnolls, kobolds, and all types of dark denizens exsist in the deep places of the world. Since much of the country we now know as U.S.A. was still largely uncharted I figured I'd have a little room to sort of make up a lot of the world. Now, much of the historical characters in this time in our history (Robert E. Lee, Abe Lincoln, etc.) exsist on the sidelines of my story and much of the events of the Civil War will take place as-is (famous battles and victories and what not. Some of which the PCs will be envolved in).

But that's not where it will end. Magic WILL be a part of the setting. Nothing like what you'd imagine being in a typical fantasy setting where any Joe Shmoe can throw a fireball. But there are 'battle mages' in the setting, but there might be all of three at the height of the Civil War conflict and they were only garrisoned with THE top Generals. The PCs will have the option to gain magical abilities as they gain more experience throughout their adventures but I'm restricting them to simple Magery to start if they so wish to go that route.

I'd decided this cause many of the players I play with are interested in the wild frontier time of our countries history, wild west included. We all have a fetish as well for high adventure and fantasy. I wanted to create a gritty human based story of war, love, and sacrifice that had JUST enough historical merit that the PCs on off nights can look up a famous battle in the Civil War timeline and see where the overall story arch of our campaign happens to be at the moment. Granted I'll take certain 'liberties' with history and I don't want to be 'straight-jacketed' into following historical events to a T.

I want to be clear that this campaign is first and formost a human story. Most of the PCs will be human and that most other races like the Highbourne humans (which are my 'elves', but NOT Elves, since I HATE elves) are very zenophobic and uppity to a fault. There are 'dwarves' but they are more in line with the dwarves we know today as simply midgets but with a more, heh, mystical flare I plan to toss in there. The bottomline being its a more low fantasy, high drama setting that I hope plays out well.

Any tips on seeing this through I'd appreciate it.
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Old 05-29-2009, 08:18 PM   #128
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Default Re: New to GURPs; not sure where to start

If you have the cash, I'd check out Thaumatology. It is a really neat book and has lots and lots and lots of different takes on the magic system. You might find a neat magic flavor that gives you exactly what you want even better than the basic magic system.

Other advice? I run a lot of gritty sorts of games. And GURPS can sometimes be quite deadly...but there are ways to mitigate that and still keep that gritty feel. Encourage your players to have HT of 12+.

You want human emotion? Encourage your players to have ties to their community. Dependents, Allies, Contacts, Enemies, Patrons. GURPS has got a great rules set to make social things matter, encourage them to use it.

Lastly, whswhs has us do this for his Transhuman Space game, and it was amazing. He had us all make our PCs together. I generally tend to do a one on one character creation session...it allows me to help the players create their characters and teach them gurps at the same time. But the communal brainstorming really allowed us all to make really interconnected PCs...and that really made a difference. Maybe you can split the difference. Have a movie night or something where everyone comes up with character concepts together...but then you can have the one on one character creation sessions afterward.

Even though I don't have lots and lots of combat in my games, I like to start off the game with a combat if I have players new to GURPS so they can get a feel for it. But I like for the combat to not have great consequences since they are still new to the system. So...sometimes there is a bar brawl (where no deadly weapons will be used by the NPCs)...one time it was a shared prophetic nightmare vision of the future.

Just some advice!
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Old 05-30-2009, 01:03 AM   #129
Johnny Angel
 
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Default Re: New to GURPs; not sure where to start

Quote:
Originally Posted by Widowlander View Post
Ok. Lets see. I wanted to give you guys a heads up on my plans for my first GURPS series of adventures. Reading through this thread I've decided that I would run a few 'practice' sessions in the vain and style by which I intend to ultimately run the game. My 'setting' is a sort of 'what-if' world where the Civil War happened, but there was magic and mystical happenings in and around the frontier. Giants, gnolls, kobolds, and all types of dark denizens exsist in the deep places of the world. Since much of the country we now know as U.S.A. was still largely uncharted I figured I'd have a little room to sort of make up a lot of the world. Now, much of the historical characters in this time in our history (Robert E. Lee, Abe Lincoln, etc.) exsist on the sidelines of my story and much of the events of the Civil War will take place as-is (famous battles and victories and what not. Some of which the PCs will be envolved in).

But that's not where it will end. Magic WILL be a part of the setting. Nothing like what you'd imagine being in a typical fantasy setting where any Joe Shmoe can throw a fireball. But there are 'battle mages' in the setting, but there might be all of three at the height of the Civil War conflict and they were only garrisoned with THE top Generals. The PCs will have the option to gain magical abilities as they gain more experience throughout their adventures but I'm restricting them to simple Magery to start if they so wish to go that route.

I'd decided this cause many of the players I play with are interested in the wild frontier time of our countries history, wild west included. We all have a fetish as well for high adventure and fantasy. I wanted to create a gritty human based story of war, love, and sacrifice that had JUST enough historical merit that the PCs on off nights can look up a famous battle in the Civil War timeline and see where the overall story arch of our campaign happens to be at the moment. Granted I'll take certain 'liberties' with history and I don't want to be 'straight-jacketed' into following historical events to a T.

I want to be clear that this campaign is first and formost a human story. Most of the PCs will be human and that most other races like the Highbourne humans (which are my 'elves', but NOT Elves, since I HATE elves) are very zenophobic and uppity to a fault. There are 'dwarves' but they are more in line with the dwarves we know today as simply midgets but with a more, heh, mystical flare I plan to toss in there. The bottomline being its a more low fantasy, high drama setting that I hope plays out well.

Any tips on seeing this through I'd appreciate it.
This sounds cool.

Since you are adding some magic to the world, how mystical do you plan to make some of the Native America traditions? This could be a way to sneak werewolves into the setting...if you wanted to do so. Gnolls would probably have some interesting interactions with certain tribes.

I'm curious about the slavery aspect of the Civil War with other races added. How does the South view the new races? I could almost see the highbourne humans joining the South and supporting the idea of slavery.

After you have a good grasp on the rules, one of the things to do is make a few racial templates and figure out what defines some of the fantasy races in your game. This isn't a must, but it does make the job of the GM easier to have some templates available, and it also gives a little bit of character building practice. There are also some great tools available for free. Two of the ones that I highly suggest are the combat cards, and the GURPS skill category list.
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Old 05-30-2009, 02:51 AM   #130
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Default Re: New to GURPs; not sure where to start

is there any way to do a spoiler box on this site?
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