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05-12-2020, 02:06 PM | #1 |
Join Date: Dec 2012
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[Dungeon Fantasy] Point total for game with more social play
Just wondering:
If you wanted to run a Dungeon Fantasy game with the standard combat power level found in the DF supplements, but with more social interaction and other more serious RPG element, how many points would you add to the DF templates for social and other traits and skills that DF glosses over? I'm thinking 25-50, that way every class could have some decent non-combat skills and abilities, but ones that already have those skills will be even better. Thoughts? |
05-12-2020, 02:20 PM | #2 |
Join Date: Oct 2010
Location: earth....I think.
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Re: [Dungeon Fantasy] Point total for game with more social play
What social traits do you think are lacking from the templates?
Also, If you want to run a more social type of game, with less combat, then players should be going for templates that offer more social traits (Bard and Thief), but in the end, all that is moot if the players are good at role playing their characters. |
05-12-2020, 02:59 PM | #3 |
Join Date: Feb 2009
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Re: [Dungeon Fantasy] Point total for game with more social play
Social skills tend to gravitate toward the high IQ guys, though HT based skills like Carousing and Sex Appeal counter that some
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05-12-2020, 03:16 PM | #4 |
Join Date: Sep 2016
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Re: [Dungeon Fantasy] Point total for game with more social play
The templates all pretty much have the options for social skills built in, barbarian has carousing and intimidation, Druid has diplomacy, and so on. I think the only template that doesn’t have any social skills is scout, and they can use quirk points to add one or two. If you add a point bucket to everyone to use social skills that’s fine, but the classes that already excel at it like Bard, Swashbuckler, and Thief will still be better at it.
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05-12-2020, 10:19 PM | #5 |
Join Date: Dec 2009
Location: Saint Paul, MN
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Re: [Dungeon Fantasy] Point total for game with more social play
I started my current Nordlond campaign at 300 points. I didn't make any firm requirements about how to spend them, but encouraged players to spend the extra points on social and background skills that made sense in terms of the setting. In a series of emails to the players before the campaign began, I sent them examples from the Nordlond corpus of ways that such skills would come in useful, like this example from Citadel at Nordvorn:
In some of the more civilized areas of Norðlond, you're safe from overt violence if you engage in flyting, a ritual exchange of poetic insults. A proper flyting is a demonstration of wit, learning, and verbal audacity. It takes the place of martial combat in situations where engaging in violence is rude or inappropriate.To my delight, the players took this to heart and we've had more than one session that were 100% social (including at least one full-on flyting contest). |
05-13-2020, 08:32 AM | #6 | |
Doctor of GURPS Ballistics
Join Date: Sep 2004
Location: Lakeville, MN
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Re: [Dungeon Fantasy] Point total for game with more social play
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I would also point out the rules for seeking an audience from a high-status noble that got placed on pp. 104-105 of Citadel at Nordvorn as well. Nordvorn is interesting (to me, anyway) because it was written with explicit support for social play outside of Longbru, the only settlement explicitly labeled "Town" with a capital-T. Others can comment (and have) as to whether they also find it interesting. But the Dungeon Fantasy RPG can absolutely be used to support social play, using Advantages, Talents, and other traits to plus-up your ability to win friends and influence people . . . and similar down-sides for things like Social Stigma, poor reputations, getting whupped in a flyting, Cowardice, and the like. It's there. It's just not "take the I talk good skill!" Well, except when it is...Public Speaking and Diplomacy are there, after all; Carousing stands in very well for some things, and if you really want to cozy up to that Boar-Folk barbarian, there's Sex Appeal. I think the emphasis on 'the game lets you get right to the killing and looting' overshadows the fact that while it LETS you do this, there's plenty of support for NOT doing it.
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05-13-2020, 08:42 AM | #7 |
GURPS Line Editor
Join Date: Jul 2004
Location: Montréal, Québec
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Re: [Dungeon Fantasy] Point total for game with more social play
I'd be careful just adding points. "Social guy" is an obvious niche for certain professions – especially the bard and the innkeeper! Also, a mind-game-playing mentalist will end up with Acting, Detect Lies, Diplomacy, Fast-Talk, Intimidation, Public Speaking, etc., while a thief can be "urban" and rather good at Carousing, Fast-Talk, Merchant, and Streetwise. Even some specialist clerics are manipulators. You don't want to go too far in the direction of diluting their importance . . . people choosing to play "faces" might feel a little cheated if everybody can be a "face" but not everybody can be, say, a caster, stealth expert, or warrior.
My advice would be two-pronged: 1. All professions may use the advantage and disadvantage allowances on their templates for Wealth and/or the traits discussed on pp. 4-7 of GURPS Dungeon Fantasy 17: Guilds – Allies, Claim to Hospitality, Clerical Investment, Rank, Reputation, Status, Tenure, etc. – as well as for the usual traits. They don't get extra points for this! Players must decide for themselves what balance of hack 'n' slash ability and social effectiveness they deem important. 2. Everybody must have at least 5 points in skills the GM agrees are "social."* This would require nothing extra of the bard! Heck, a suitably-built knight would sacrifice nothing. For most, this would mean sacrificing a few quirk points . . . but almost nobody would have to give up all 5 points. Even a "crude" barbarian has some social skills. Only the standoffish scout might be strained – which is arguably logical, given the disadvantage profile. Again, this wouldn't involve extra points, just a change in the balance between hack 'n' slash and social capability. * On the standard templates, I'd count Acting, Body Language, Carousing, Detect Lies, Diplomacy, Fast-Talk, Gambling, Gesture, Interrogation, Intimidation, Leadership, Merchant, Panhandling, Propaganda, Psychology, Public Speaking, Savoir-Faire, Sex Appeal, Streetwise, and Teaching.
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Sean "Dr. Kromm" Punch <kromm@sjgames.com> GURPS Line Editor, Steve Jackson Games My DreamWidth [Just GURPS News] |
05-13-2020, 10:18 AM | #8 | |
Join Date: Aug 2014
Location: Snoopy's basement
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Re: [Dungeon Fantasy] Point total for game with more social play
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05-13-2020, 10:28 AM | #9 |
Join Date: Feb 2009
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Re: [Dungeon Fantasy] Point total for game with more social play
DF gives you a good starting point for your basic more Muggle type humanoids with swords and spells so it really works well as a baseline if you want an extremely grounded almost mundane no psychic blueberry muffins fantasy game
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05-13-2020, 10:41 AM | #10 |
GURPS Line Editor
Join Date: Jul 2004
Location: Montréal, Québec
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Re: [Dungeon Fantasy] Point total for game with more social play
To be fair, DF actually supports social play! DF 2 offers many standardized social tasks to perform, DF 7 adds significant social depth to the temple, DF 10 offers a variety of social encounters, DF 15 addresses hiring and firing, DF 17 is all about larger social organizations (including towns), DF Setting: Caverntown is a town and has lots of extra social rules (covering laws, taxes, property ownership, and goods and services), and DF Treasures 1 delves into currency systems and culturally linked artistic traditions. It's just that this stuff is "advanced" – almost exactly as in that game – and thus mostly found in later add-ons . . .
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Sean "Dr. Kromm" Punch <kromm@sjgames.com> GURPS Line Editor, Steve Jackson Games My DreamWidth [Just GURPS News] |
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