Basic mechanics: Roll 10-sided dice (d10) equal to attribute / 2, rounded down. Target number based on skill. No training is 9 and 10, 1 point is 8+, 2 is 7+, 3 is 7+, with a reroll on 10. Each target number is 1 success.
Alright, here's how it goes down.
First things first, think of a concept: What are you going to do with your character? What is the frame of the person-shaped house you wish to build?
Example: Dan wants to play in his game. He hears that the other players are making a mage, a diplomat, and an alien soldier. Dan sees that most of these characters are government-employed, and, following his natural deviation from the norm, decides to make an independent character. He thinks up a concept, and goes with "old fashioned cowboy".
Got it? Alright. Now choose your race.
You can choose from 8 races: 4 human, 4 non-human. These are:
Humans: Allied with NATO or the USSR, or Independent.
- Earth Humans: The basic human, from Earth.
- Lunar Humans: Humans born and raised on the moon, dull but hard workers. +1 Stm, -1 Int
- Martian Humans: Humans raised on Mars, physically atrophied, but trained in the arcane from birth. +1 Int, -1 Str.
- Astral Colonist: Huamns born deep in space. Analytical and perceptive, but somewhat insane. +1 Wit, -1 Prs
Non-Humans: Allied with NATO or Independent.
- Automatons: Magically animate robots. Can be built to any specifications.
- Graali: Insectoid humanoid, living on Titan. Strong but dim-witted. +1 Str, -1 Int
- Qines: Cephalopodic manipulative creatures from beneath Jupiter. Sharp-witted but weak. +1 Int, -1 Stm.
- Plutonians: Small furry simians from Pluto. Graceful, with undeveloped brains. +1 Agy, -1 Int.
Example: Dan then chooses his race. He looks over the list, and decides he wants to play something unique, but not contrived. Most humans wouldn't properly replicate a cowboy, and aliens aren't familiar with the style. Keeping this in mind, Dan decides to play an automaton. He makes a note of this on his sheet. Since automatons, like Earth Humans, do not have racially defined bonuses and penalties, he makes no changes to his sheet.
After choosing a race, one then must assign attribute points. There are 6 attributes: Strength, Agility, Stamina, Presence, Wits, and Lore. Each attribute starts at 6, and one gets 3 extra points to distribute among them. Every race, except for Earth humans and automatons, has one predetermined attribute at 5, and one at 7. Earth humans & automatons may choose which attributes recieve a bonus and a penalty, giving them 4 points to distribute, and one penalty.
Example: Dan then goes about assigning attribute points. He decides that his Automaton will focus on mostly the 'gunslinger' aspect of cowboys. He assigns 2 of his 4 dots to Agility, giving it a rating of 8. He assigns his third point to Presence for a total of 7, ruling that his cowboy will be honorable and chivalrous. His last point he puts in Wits, because a cowboy needs to quick on the uptake as well as on the draw. His penalty he assigns to Intelligence, ruling that his automaton wasn't programmed to be a calculator, it was programmed to be a cowboy.
The 4th step is to choose your skills.
Selecting skills is very simple. Choose an action or object that your character might be competent at doing or proficient with. If you attempt something like it, there is an increased chance of success. The more specialized the skill is, the more points it costs, and the bigger the benefit. The 'Guns' skill might cost one point and give the character a slight advantage when using guns, but 'Assault rifles shot from a space-ship' might cost three dots and convey a tremendous advantage to that specific situation. You get 10 skill points to start with.
Example: Dan then chooses his skills. He first assigns one point to 'Guns', as he wants his automaton to be somewhat proficient with all firearms. He then assigns two more skill points into 'Revolvers', giving him an advantage with the somewhat dated weapons. He has 2 skills, and has spent 3 points. He spends 1 point on Stealth, 2 on Motorcylces, 1 on Diplomacy. He spends 2 skill points on Creating Distractions, and his final skill point goes into Hand-to-hand Combat. Dan has decked out his automaton.
The 5th step is to assign magic points.
If you took 'Magic' as a 1-point skill, then you recieve 5 magic points. If you took a specific school of magic (Fire, Matter, Spirit, etc) as a 2-point skill, they you recieve 10 magic points. If you took a specific spell type (Scrying, Damage-dealing, Divination, etc) as a 3-point skill, you recieve 15 magic points. Magic skills work like any other skill, to a certain degree. One uses magic by declaring the effect their spell has, checking with the GM about power levels, and the rolling dice.
A spell works on a result of 6, regardless of skill level. By spending magic points, however, one can change that. Each magic point spent reduces the target number by 1. By spending 5 magic points, a spell automatically succeeds. Magic points regenerate after a significant rest period (check with your GM). Note that one may still cast spells when one runs out of magic points, but these spells can only suceed on a 6.
Example: Dan is playing an automaton, who is not a mage. Therefore, he is not entitled to take the Magic skill.
The penultimate step: Select equipment.
A character has 7 points to spend on equipment. Each point spent on a specific piece of gear adds one die to a roll. 1-point equipment is very multipurpose, or of poor quality, while 3-point skills are of high quality or highly specialized. Some equipment, such as armor, does not add to your dice pool, but subtracts from another's.
Example: Dan now must choose his gear. He decides right off to buy a 2-point revolver, adding 2 dice to his revolver rolls. He then buys a leather duster, with Jovian Steel studs. This counts as armor, subtracting 2 dice from attacks made against him. He spends a point on an old Moto-speed hover-cycle, a point on some knuckle-dusters for Hand-to-hand, and a 1-point flashbomb for creating distractions. He is done purchasing equipment.
Lastly, one must apply finishing touches, and choose a name.
If you haven't already, create a backstory for your character. Decide on what they look like, and then draw it or write it down. These thing help your roleplaying, and are just important things to have.
Finally, everyone has a name. What's yours?
Example: Dan decides that his automaton was created mere months ago. His creator, an insane man obsessed with the not-so-complicated past, decided to create a robot to help him live out his fantasies of the Wild West. The robot was the perfect cowboy, cattle-rustler, and all around ranch dude. Then one day, at high noon, his creator challenged him to a duel. The human didn't stand a chance. After his death, the automaton struck out on the road, helping folk who needed it, and bringing hell to those who deserved it. About a month ago, he entered the professional exploration/treasure-hunting trade to help combat the realization that he wasn't real.
Dan imagines his robot as being thin, with an egg-shaped head and big glass eyes, crafted of fine chrome lovingly welded and bolted together. On the back of his torso is a circuit-board, which is mostly for show. He keeps his revolver tucked by his side. His duster hangs on his frame, and despite his eyes not being influenced by shade, he wears a cowboy hat all the time.
His name, Dan decides, it Colt.
So hopefully that was a little informative. I'll be adding more to this blog if I don't forget to do that.
Hope you like it. Feed back would be nice. Tweet me @fetfet50. Email is fetfet50@gmail.com.
Bye!
