Stratton Speaks: Surprise Yourself
By Jay Stratton, Lead Designer at Pantheon Press

 Thirty years ago, when I started as a gamemaster, I was really a dungeon master. There’s a hallway with three doors - there’s an encounter behind each door. Since the goal was to explore the dungeon, it didn’t matter what the characters did; it was just a question of order.

 But when the adventures came out of the dungeon things necessarily became more complicated. There was an infinite number of ‘doors’ and no way to control where the players went. My early failures included putting the crucial magic item in a certain building and having no clue what to do when the PCs didn’t GO there.

 Next step: clues! I started introducing hints and signs to guide the players toward the necessary information. Like a border collie, I would herd them along the storyline. Of course, this could be agonizing. My players understandably wanted choice and freewill. I can remember hearing one of my players say, “Oh, good… We found the adventure.”

Somewhere along the way, like any good GM, I realized that I had to put the adventure in front of the players. Didn’t matter where they went, that’s where the adventure happened. This worked pretty well, for a long time. I would prepare maybe three ‘scenes’ and the party would ‘discover’ these scenes almost regardless of their choices. I would even vary the order or shape of the scenes depending on PC action. I’ve heard this called ‘the illusion of choice’. This is SOP for a lot of GMs and it ain’t bad.

 But I am a hard core GM with hard core players and eventually we needed more. The ‘illusion’ wasn’t enough. My players needed real freedom. Like Jonathan Livingston Seagull, my GMing style was forced to evolve to the next level. Gradually I learned to let the players truly surprise me. I stopped preparing moments and instead became more generically prepared - for anything.

So my admonition for the Gamemaster:
Let the players surprise you. Surprise them right back. Hell, surprise yourself.

 Put the camera on the PCs and make sure that they are truly the focus of the story, not your prep work. If they do something unexpected – avoid a fight or scene or story moment – go with it and see what happens! When that safety net disappears and you have to rely solely on communal storytelling, it’s thrilling.

Of course, this requires a very different kind of prep. You have to have a bigger sense of the campaign and your world, and you have to think quite fast on your feet. You also have to foster real player investment. They can’t just be ‘on an adventure’ they have to be fighting for their lives!

Stratton Speaks: We Can’t All be Wolverine

May, 2011

I have a favorite quote from the movie, Reservoir Dogs:

MR. PINK: Why can't we pick out our own colors?

JOE: I tried that once, it don't work. You get four guys fighting over who's gonna be Mr. Black.

 From Heathcliff in Wuthering Heights, to Gotham City’s Batman, to almost every character ever played by Clint Eastwood, the antihero is an attractive and compelling icon. I mean, who doesn’t want to be this guy? Surly, lethal, and (best of all), misunderstood?

The problem is, the antihero is only fun when he works alone or when he is surrounded by people who care about his angst. He doesn’t work when he’s teamed up with a bunch of other antiheroes! Can you imagine if the Justice League was all Batmen? They’d sit around glowering at each other all day, trying to think up terse exit lines!

 As gamers we’ve all been in that party, right?

 Jeff:     I’m ‘Derth Darkblade’. I have no family, no love, just my sword. While others take prisoners, I take lives.

 Carl:    Well, Derth, let me introduce ‘Gloomsmith Joybane.’ He had a family, but they were killed before his eyes. Now he lives to seek vengeance against-

 Steve: Not so fast there Gloomy. Allow me to introduce myself. I am Killer McKillerkill. I can’t even SPELL the word ‘prisoner’. My life means nothing to me, so why should anyone else’s?

 GM:     Ummm… Okay, well you guys meet in a bar and…

 BORING!!!

For every Wolverine, you need at least one Cyclops. You need that personality that represents the moral compass - someone who will say, “No! If we kill him, then we’d be just as bad as him!”

Corny? Not if you go for it! A character that stands up for compassion? optimism? love? It takes courage, but if you commit to it, it will NOT be corny. And remember, ‘Good’ does not mean ‘Weak’. Your character will be even more memorable if they back up their beliefs with decisiveness and action.

 And here’s the fun fact. Because so many players are attracted to the antihero, your legitimate hero will actually be the unique one.

Go ahead and check it out now!

The children are our future. I just made that up, right now.

"The Premonition and Hunch Fate Twists include the text “Keep this information to yourself.” Now that my gaming group is half a dozen sessions into an FF campaign, I have no idea why I wrote that!! I mean, Fate Twists are supposed to be totally meta! And what a stupid personal challenge it puts on the player who now knows about the cards and can’t say anything, but can grunt, moan, hint, or whatever. In my game, I am house-ruling this away, and if it serves you, I encourage you to do likewise. After a Hunch or Premonition, the players should feel free to reveal what they saw!"

And special thanks to Mark, who wrote this lovely review!

Order of the Sister

Cavaliers who join the order of the Sister respect the role death plays in life. They are dedicated to balance and bring mercy to those in need of death’s release. This may take the form of deposing mad kings who hold on to the last shreds of power at the cost of the lives of their subjects, combating vampires, liches, and other undead, or protecting a caravan of healers.

Edicts: The cavalier must worship Eun the Sister. The cavalier must maintain a balanced life and not indulge in excesses. The cavalier must assist those who are imperiled by corrupt masters. The cavalier must put a swift and merciful end to any being great or small who cannot be saved from undeath.

Challenge: Whenever an order of the Sister cavalier issues a challenge, he receives a +1 morale bonus on all Will saving throws as long as he is threatening the target of his challenge. This bonus increases by +1 for every three levels the cavalier possesses.

Skills: An order of the Sister cavalier adds Heal (Wis) and Knowledge (religion) (Int) to his list of class skills. An order of the Sister cavalier can make Knowledge (religion) skill checks untrained. If he or she has ranks in the skill, he receives a bonus on the check equal to ½ his cavalier level (minimum +1) as long as the check involves the undead.

Order Abilities: An order of the sister cavalier gains the following abilities as he increases in level.

Undeath’s Nemesis (Ex): At 2nd level, the cavalier can invoke the name of Eun the Sister as a swift action, filling him with divine energies, which imbues one of his weapons with the undead bane weapon special ability (+2 to hit and +2d6 damage). This ability only functions while the cavalier wields the weapon. If dropped or taken, the weapon resumes granting this ability if it is returned to the cavalier before the duration expires. This ability lasts for a number of rounds per day equal to ½ his cavalier level (minimum 1). These rounds do not need to be consecutive.

Blessing of the Sister (Ex): At 8th level, the cavalier can call upon Eun the Sister to bolster himself and his allies in combat. As a free action, the cavalier can call out to Eun The Sister, granting him a morale bonus on attack rolls equal to his cavalier level for 1 round. In addition, any allies within 30 feet that share his faith also receive half this bonus. The cavalier can use this ability once per day, plus one additional time per day at 12th level and every four levels thereafter.

Death’s Mercy (Ex): At 15th level, the cavalier can unravel the magics holding an undead creature to this world. One per day, as a standard action, the cavalier can strike the ground with his weapon and cause all undead creatures within a 40’ radius burst around him to be effected as the spell undeath to death. The Will save DC for this spell is 16 plus the cavalier’s Charisma modifier. The cavalier’s weapon then gains the broken quality. A broken weapon cannot be used to activate this ability.

Order of the Burning Sands

Cavaliers who join the order of the burning sands are exclusively Goreshi warriors who protect their land fiercely. They are usually of noble birth, but there are those knights who have risen through the ranks from a common background due to their unwavering commitment and battle prowess. Many serve in a military capacity during times of war as commanders and generals but many also travel to the lands outside of the Desert Kingdoms to seek out potential threats to their homelands and weed out evil at its source.

Edicts: The order of the burning sands cavalier must help any citizen in need, especially a Goreshi one. They must always strive to protect those who are downtrodden or oppressed. They must shun the use of Simplecraft, but if they travel with those who do (outside of the borders of Goresh) they are not banned from travelling with them.

Challenge: Whenever an order of the burning sands cavalier issues a challenge, it is fierce and often very overwhelming. He receives a +1 morale bonus on all Intimidation checks as long as the cavalier is engaged with the target of his challenge. This bonus increases by +1 for every three levels the cavalier possesses. In addition, the cavalier adds ½ his level (minimum 1) to any attempt to demoralize the target of his challenge.

Skills: An order of the burning sands cavalier adds Survival (Wis) and Knowledge (History) (Int) to his list of class skills. An order of the burning sands cavalier can make Knowledge (history) skill checks untrained. If he or she has ranks in the skill, he receives a bonus on the check equal to ½ his cavalier level (minimum +1) as long as the check involves Goresh or its peoples.

Order Abilities: An order of the burning sands cavalier gains the following abilities as he increases in level.

Swift Assault (Ex): At 2nd level, the cavalier can spur his mount as a swift action, causing it to become faster and more sure of foot. The mount can move an extra 20 feet during a single charge attack and is not affected by difficult terrain caused by shifting sand, dirt, stones or even ice or snow. He can use this ability a number of times per day equal to ½ his cavalier level (minimum 1).

Sands of Vengeance (Ex): At 8th level, the cavalier can, as a standard action, call upon the fallen of his order to stir up the winds and sands of the desert (regardless of the cavalier’s current geographic location), causing his foes to be affected as if caught in a sandstorm. All enemies in a 40 ft. radius burst from the cavalier suffer from 15’ reduced movement and a -4 on their attack rolls and Perception checks for a number of rounds equal to ½ the cavalier’s level. In addition, the cavalier and any allies in the radius of this effect are not affected by this storm and can attack, move, and see normally. The cavalier can use this ability once per day, plus one additional time per day at 12th level and every four levels thereafter.

Army of the Storm (Ex): At 15th level, the cavalier can inflame the spirit of the warrior within anyone who fights alongside him to heroic levels. Once per day, as a swift action, a cavalier of the burning sands can cause all allies who can hear his inspirational words to gain bonuses and speed increases as if they were under the effects of the haste spell. This effect lasts a number of rounds equal to the cavalier’s level.

EDIT: Of course, the day after we post this blog, House of Tarot seems to have dropped its affiliate program. Well, the site still has lots of cool options for Tarot decks if you really need one!

The "Pinocchio" PDF can be downloaded here for free.

Enjoy!

In Fortune’s Fool, players will normally use their skills, spells, and combat abilities against NPCs. When they attack an enemy, they make a draw based on their Hand or Ranged Attack score. If an enemy attacks them, they draw based on their Dodge or Parry. However, sometimes players will have occasion to work against each other or even attack each other directly. If a player attempts an action opposed by another player, the following simple set of rules apply.

The player that is the aggressor on each action makes the draw according to that player’s character’s skills and Fate structure. For example, a player would make a Hand Attack draw to hit another player with a sword. The other player would not draw based on their Dodge. If the attack is a success and is a Fortune Smiles for the attacking character, it deals damage as a Fortune Smiles regardless of what the card is for the character being attacked. If fate is twisted, the Fate Twists are resolved in the order in which they were declared.

This does not, however, mean that the abilities of the character being attacked are not a factor. Compare the stat the defending character would normally draw if being attacked by an NPC to the attacking character’s stat (Dodge vs. Hand Attack, for instance). If it is equal or lower, the attacking character makes a standard draw. If it is higher, the attacking character has a -2 penalty to the draw. If it is double or more, the attacking character must make a black double draw.

For example, suppose Rob’s character Ismara tries to sneak up on a fellow player character. Ismara has a Stealth of 6. If his target has a Perception of 6 or less, Rob makes a straight Stealth draw. If his target’s Perception is 7 through 11, Rob’s Stealth draw suffers a -2 penalty. If his target’s Perception is 12 or greater (unlikely!), Rob would black double draw at 6.

Fortune's Fool

Of course, our biggest news is that Fortune's Fool is on sale! We are immensely proud of how the game turned out, from the mechanics to the physical book itself. We couldn't be happier with the final product (with one or two minor exceptions; that's what errata are for). If you don't already have your copy, head on over to the Marketplace to get one. And if you do have a copy, why not tell your friends!

Pinocchio

Which leads to the fact that our Fortune's Fool introductory adventure is almost ready to go live. It'll be a PDF only product that will come free with your purchase of any Fortune's Fool book. (Don't worry, if you've already bought a book, we'll get you a copy.) It will also be available by itself for a few bucks if you really want to see Jay Stratton's twisted take on the beloved tale.

New Website Design

We'd like to thank Sandy and the rest of the good people over at Shiny Machine for all their hard work in giving this site a coat of spit and polish. Mostly polish. You're looking at it now, so you can see just how damn good it looks.

Game With Us at the Strat

On Saturday, October 2, we'll be running a few short games of Fortune's Fool at the Compleat Strategist in New York City. We'll be there all afternoon, so stop on by and see if we have a spot for you!

Now, as you may have seen on Facebook the other week, we're working on an introductory adventure for Fortune's Fool. It's a fun re-telling of the Pinocchio tale, and it'll be a nice fancy version of what we ran at GenCon, with everything you'll need to play. Everything except for a copy of the game itself, that is.

While that's currently cooking in the oven, take a look at some of the art our very own Chris Kimball sketched out for us for this project. Again, Chris has delivered on the goods!

Distraught father Gepetto

Olga, the witch who brings Pinocchio to life

Of course, no game would be complete without a character sheet. We've also got a worksheet that makes character generation a breeze.

Finally, the official Fortune's Fool errata PDF should correct all the rules problems and omissions that slipped by us. All PDF version of Fortune's Fool from this point on include these errata, and if you've already bought a copy, you'll be getting an e-mail with a link to the new error-free version of the PDF.

Get it all, and more, at the Pantheon Press Freespot!