Edge of the Story RPG
Edge of the Story RPG Concept
An attempt at rules light, story heavy gaming
CHARACTER DICE
Characters are defined by 6 attributes as below, and the player has 11 dice to divide among Role, Edge, Goal, Stuff and Style. Dice are not assigned to Tag. Style always has 1 die, which leaves 10 dice for the remaining 4 attributes. Each attribute must have at least 1 die.
Role: What is the character’s role in the group or in the setting? This can be something short and concise like ‘the thug’ or something long and descriptive like ‘the grizzled military veteran home from the war, looking or some peace but finding none.”
Edge: What sets this character apart from the rest of the sharks and jackals? This is a phrase that might be spoken with a tinge of fright or awe by the characters opponents and allies–something like cold as a shark on ice or tough as a solid steel mountain.
Goal: This is what the character wants, what has driven the characters into the back alleys and under the streetlights. Be specific. Greed creates a stereotype not a character. Why is the character greedy? What is the cause of the greed? Is it because he came from a poor family, a family in which his father worked hard but never seemed to get ahead? Then his goal could be ‘to never work for someone else, never pay taxes, and never play society’s game.’
Stuff: Stuff is the rest. It can represent equipment, skills, resources or contacts. Stuff can range from ‘full kit from her days in the Royal Marines’ to ‘too many friends in too many dives on the wrong side of the tracks.”
Style: This is one adjective that encapsulates the character’s style. Cool, composed, furious, dashing, gorgeous or scattered would all work. Style only ever has one die. The Style die is used whenever the character does something that can be described with an adverb based on the character’s Style. It is difficult to play poker gorgeously, but it the player might try it by saying that the character is using the gorgeous style to break the other poker players’ focus. It is certainly possible to play poker coolly, but maybe not cooking. It’s unlikely that a player could massage furiously. If the character’s actions are described with the character’s style, the Style die may be used.
It is important for the Style die to be differentiated from the other Character dice. When dice are rolled, it is important that the Style die be identifiable, so that the results of the Style die in specific are known. This is explained in the Stunning Success section of the Mechanics.
Tag: Tag does not have any dice assigned to it. This is a signature, catchphrase or situation that is unique to your character. It could be ‘always needs his coffee’ or ‘really hates poodles.’ It might be ‘leaping onto opponent’s shoulders and headbutting them’ or ‘triple rotation round-house kick to the head.’ Whenever you work your character’s tag into the story–at the beginning of the meeting, he asks about coffee, or she kicks a poodle on the way down the street–the player gets a free die. That die is presented as a die the player keeps in front of him/herself until it used, and then it is discarded by the player.
SETTING DICE
While the GM controls all the Extras, the GM does not have a character sheet for each Extra. Rather, the GM uses dice based on the setting.
The attributes for the setting are decided upon by the GM and players cooperatively, but the dice are assigned by the GM. The GM has 11 dice to distribute among the attributes. Style always received one die, while the remaining 10 are divided up among the remaining four attributes, with each attribute receiving a minimum of one die. No attribute may have more than four dice.
Genre: This is the general genre of the story. It can be very general, such as mystery, or specific, such as hi-tech werewolf romantic thriller.
Atmosphere: This gives the general tenor of the game. It might be ‘grim and gritty streets of despair’ or ‘fairies and buttercups in the realm of happiness.’
Puppeteer: This is the individual or organization at the centre of the game, the main opponent(s) of the characters. The Puppeteer does not need to pose a mortal threat to the characters, and could in fact be friendly to a degree, but the characters are in competition with the Puppeteer.
Purpose: This is the whole point of the game. It might be ‘rescue the boss’ kidnapped daughter’ or ‘find out who killed Mr. Lucky.’
Style: This is the only attribute that the GM is wholly responsible for. Like the Player/Character attributes, Style is a single adjective that the GM attaches to the game. It could be ‘fast-paced’ or ‘cerebral.’ It might be ‘cinematic’ or ‘violent.’ Like the Player/Character Style attribute, it is a single die that can be used any time the GM can use the Style adjective as an adverb to describe the action.
NOTE: At any time, players can pass the bonus dice gained from using the character’s Tag to the GM for use as Setting dice. Consider this a ‘tip’ for a hard-working GM or even some extra fuel to keep a setting going against characters who may be luckier than Mr. Lucky.
THE MECHANICS
Terms
A Plot Point can be anything that will move the plot along. There might be a newspaper on the street that reveals information about the characters’ employer, enemy or friend. It might be a telephone call or a note left at the office with information or some sort of challenge.
An Extra is a character played by the GM. This could be an ally, friend, opponent or a complete cipher. Extras do not have attributes or dice, and are narrative devices. If necessary, an Extra uses the GM’s setting dice. An Extra may introduce a Plot Point, a Conflict, or may act as a sounding board allowing the GM to give the players and their characters clues or motivation to help propel the game forward.
A Conflict is just that, some kind of challenge that poses a threat of some sort to the characters. It need not be violent. It could be social, such as a rumour about the characters that could give them trouble, or a takeover bid of the billionaire playboy character’s company.
Narrative Control
The GM is the initiator of actions and in general, controls the world in which the characters are acting. However, as each player describes the actions of her character, and therefore players may change the world in which the characters inhabit in any way consistent with the ongoing story.
For the most part, the GM initiates story. This is usually done by introducing the setting, background, and providing the players with the first Plot Point. During the story, either the GM or the players may introduce new Plot Points, Extras or Conflicts.
Actions
When faced with any sort of challenge or scenario in which the characters can or will act, the players decide what kind of action their characters will undertake.
Actions are resolved by each player attaching as many attributes as fit to the action. If they are seeking information, ‘tough as a solid steel mountain’ isn’t going to help, but ‘cold as a shark on ice’ could be used with the explanation that the character’s frighteningly cold demeanour aids in intimidating people into talking. ‘Leaping onto opponent’s shoulders and head-butting them’ would really only count if beating information out of someone is involved.
The dice for all the attributes are added together and rolled. Each five or six is a success. Each one is a failure. Twos to fours are neutral and are removed immediately.
A 6 can be used to remove a failure. If this is done, then both the 6 and the 1 are removed from play. For example, if a player rolled 1, 3, 5, 6, the player could remove the failure by also removing the 6, leaving the player with 3 and 5, and therefore only one success. A failure need not be removed, for example if the player wanted to insure he had the most successes.
The player with the most successes decides whether to go first or last in play. The GM always acts opposite to the player with the highest number of successes, so if that player goes first, the GM goes last, if the player goes last, the GM goes first. Players then act in the order of their successes. If the top player goes first, then the player with the second highest number of successes goes second, the third player third, etc. If the top player goes last, the player with the second highest number of successes goes second to last, the third player goes third from last, etc.
At each player’s turn, that player describes what is happening in the story based on the successes or failures that player rolled. Each action is linked to either a success or a failure. Once the action has been described, the corresponding die is removed from play. This continues in sequence until all dice have been removed from play. This may mean that some players only describe a single action while other players do so multiple times. The described action could take place in a second, a minute, a day, or even a month, depending on how the players wish to fashion the story.
Stunning Successes
Each 6 indicates a stunning success, something really noteworthy and cool. In a fight, the character might have connected with a badguy’s jaw, snapping the badguy’s head back and sending him careening across the room, smacking into the wall. A 5 would just mean that the character may have knocked the badguy out, or even just hit him. A 6 can also be used to create a failure for another character. If the six is held by a player, the player can use it to create a failure for an Extra. If the six is held by the GM, the GM can dictate a failure for any character.
When a player or the GM chooses to dictate a failure, that failure cannot be absolute. Neither the other players nor the GM can dictate a character’s death or unconsciousness, though players can do so for Extras. A dictated failure should have the same impact as the results of a stunning success, such as a knockout or removal from the conflict.
A described stunning success (a 6 on the die) need not involve the player’s character. If the player wants to provide another character or an Extra with a stunning success, the player may do so, describing the actions of the other character or Extra.
However, if the player used the character’s Style die, the character must be involved in the player’s description. If the Style die is identifiable, any stunning success resulting from the Style die must be attributed to the player’s character. If the Style die is not identifiable, all stunning successes must be attributed to the player’s character. Therefore, it is important to be able to differentiate a character’s Style die from the other dice rolled. The player has a veto over the actions of the player’s character, and if a character’s player vetoes an action described by another player through the use of a stunning success, the description is nullified. The describing player still removes the die with the stunning success from play, even though it has not impacted on the story.
The Conclusion
Each player continues from the previous player. The last player/GM with dice describes the conclusion. The conclusion may lead into another Plot Point. If the characters have been trying to get information, at the conclusion, the information is provided. It should continue the story, but continue it however the player describing wishes it to advance. The conclusion may lead to another conflict. If the players have been trying to beat the big boss’ bodyguards, they are finally able to confront the big boss and try to get information out of him.
Of course, if the player describing the conclusion is unsure what to do next, the GM can introduce a new Plot Point, Extra, or Conflict.