Wednesday, February 03, 2010

More Rules Xcerpts from Xceptional ...


Ability Scores


These are scores that measure a character's physical and mental aspects. The same three Ability Scores are used to define every character and creature in the game.

Rage (R)


● force, physical energy, power, strength, vigor

● frenzy, passion, fury, blood lust

Rage is the representation of a character's physical power, strength, and lust in battle. It is the key Ability of Brawlers.

Precognition (P)


● forethought, canniness, caution, intellect, perception

● psychic power, clairvoyance, intuition, second sight

Precognition is the representation of a character's mental power, intelligence, and psychic potential. It is the key Ability of Mentalists.

Grace (G)

● agility, nimbleness, dexterity, finesse, suppleness, balance

● allure, beauty, comeliness, elegance, dignity, refinement

Grace is the representation of a character's physical presence and control. It measures coordination and manual dexterity as well as general physical appearance and charisma. Grace is the key Ability of Shooters.

Ability Scores and Skill Ranks

Ability Score / Skill Rank Descriptors

1 – Decent (Basic Skill, Average Ability)

2 – Capable (Skilled, Above Average Ability)

3 – Brilliant (Expert Skill, Excellent Ability)

4 – Amazing
(Highest Skill, Unequaled Ability)

Player Character Ability Scores begin above the average with a score of 2 (Capable) and may increase from there to a maximum score of 4 (Amazing.)

Character Profiles

Character Profiles are composed of 3 Aspects. These Aspects help to define the character's strengths and weaknesses in the game:

Aspect 1: BUILD

Build is a reflection of a character's body type. Player Characters come in one of two Builds:

Quick - the character is more agile than strong;

or

Powerful - the character is more strong than agile.

Aspect 2: PROCESS

Process is a reflection of a character's approach to problem solving. Player Characters come in one of two Processes:

Theory - The character takes a cerebral approach, processing information more internally than externally;

or

Practice - The character takes a hands on approach, processing information more externally than internally.

Aspect 3: TEMPERAMENT

Temperament is a reflection of a character's personality type. Player Characters come in one of two Temperaments:

Bold - the character is more impulsive than careful;

or

Cautious - the character is more careful than impulsive.

PROFILE CREATION

The combination of Temperament, Process and Build forms a Character Profile.

Players can simply choose a value for each of the Aspects in their Profile, or they can roll a d5 to determine the Aspects randomly.

A player's Character Profile grants bonuses that will increase the values of their Ability Scores.

Finding Ability Scores (and Random Profile rolls)

Based on Character Profile find the scores for each of the three Abilities (Rage, Precognition, and Grace.) Every Ability begins with a score of 2 and is increased from there.

BUILD: Quick or Powerful?

[0-2] Quick (+1 to Grace)

[3-5] Powerful (+1 to Rage)


PROCESS: Theory or Practice?


[0-2] Theory (+1 to Precognition)

[3-5] Practice (+1 to Grace)


TEMPERAMENT: Bold or Cautious?


[0-2] Bold (+1 to Rage)

[3-5] Cautious (+1 to Precognition)

After adding the bonuses to the three Ability Scores as indicated by their Character Profiles, characters will have a total of 9 points assigned to Ability Scores with no score smaller than 2 or larger than 4.
___________________________________

And there you have a look at Ability Scores and Profiles and how they are generated.

Next: Combat Ranks and Character Classes

Regards,


Jeff Moore

2 comments:

  1. Love the idea of an Attribute being called 'Grace'. Superb.

    Have you thought about adding a lifepath generator. Cursed Life (I've just reviewed) has a super one that uses random rolls.

    ReplyDelete
  2. You know ... I really like "life path" character generation. I have very fond memories of the life path generation from the old Mekton game, and I am a fan of Traveller (although I wouldn't want anything nearly so complex.) I also really used to love those old "Central Castings" books. No, I had not thought about it, but given what I am doing here it is something to think about. Thanks for the suggestion.

    Regards,


    Jeff

    ReplyDelete