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[Andres]

Has anyone tried making a You Are King IV? If not, why?

[WillowLuman]

Had an idea kicking around my head for a game where the players form a bond with a spirit/daemon. The pairs work together as a team, and the spirits/daemons have the ability to go into their host's bodies to greatly enhance both their abilities, but only temporarily, since they'll both burn up if they do it for too long at a time. Beyond that, though, I dunno. The idea needs a lot more development before it can be used.

Made a lore thread so this can eventually be fleshed out enough to make a game with: http://www.bay12forums.com/smf/index.php?topic=148998.0

[Digital Hellhound]

Has anyone tried making a You Are King IV? If not, why?

Yeah - the latest YaKs haven't lasted long, but there's always people ready to play. I recommend heading to #yak4 on freenode webchat if you want to talk with the regulars about it. If you want to GM a new one, I say go for it.

@Gladiators: Seems like a good, well-thought out system to me. Only thing that worries me is the amount of work for you. Looking forward to seeing it in action, anyway.

[Andres]

Yeah - the latest YaKs haven't lasted long, but there's always people ready to play. I recommend heading to #yak4 on freenode webchat if you want to talk with the regulars about it.

How do you actually write stuff on it?

[Digital Hellhound]

Huh? Once you've entered the chat by writing in a channel, a name and a Captcha, there should be an empty bar at the bottom of the screen for you to write in. Is it not showing up?

[Andres]

I didn't see it before.

[Kadzar]

Would anyone be interested in trying out Talislanta? The entire library of Talislanta material, all 5 editions, has been released for free on PDFs by its creator.

I'm thinking of running a 2nd edition game. I've heard it was one of the better editions, and, looking through it, it seems to be a pretty well-made game for its time (and even in general. Aside from a few egregious examples, like there being two different skills for pickpocketing and swiping things, it seems very well made; it's a rather unified system). And though I haven't looked through the book in absolute detail, I've looked at the base mechanics in enough depth to see that it should play well; I won't run into the situation I had with deadEarth where I agreed to play a fundamentally flawed mess of a game. It's possible there are some things in there that are super over-powered, but I can deal with that.

So, anyway, who would be interested in something like this?

[kj1225]

Could you describe the setting for the people who may not be able to look over the PDFs at the moment?

[Kadzar]

Setting was the thing I didn't look into in detail, but it features dozens of non-Tolkien fantasy races (their tagline at one point was apparently "No Elves!") and things like duneships (which are ships which ski over dunes and are propelled by air) and skyships. Magic users are able to cast a few spells from memory per day, but they can also cast as many times as they want from books at a much slower rate and at the risk of destroying the spell page (its also risky to cast from memory). There are also a few named combat skills native to various races.

It sort of seems like the kind of thing were the people making it came up with names for things, then decided what they were from the names. Or they doodled out the various drawings in the book and came up with ideas from those. Drugs were probably also involved.

Mostly I just intend to jump right into the setting with whatever characters players pick, and then go from there. There's a random background generator in the GM's section that I'm eager to use, which will determine your parents, siblings, mentor (everyone has their own mentor!), and at least three other former associates, such as lovers and rivals.

[BlitzDungeoneer]

The most important questions regarding whether or not I'd be interested are: PBP or IRC? and what time zone are you in?

[Kadzar]

I was mostly thinking of PbP, though I could do irc if it doesn't conflict with work and such. I'm in Central Time Zone.

[BlitzDungeoneer]

Gonna have a read of the PDFs soon, then.

[IronyOwl]

I had a Gladiator game some time ago... I've changed several things and I think I want to run it again. here's what I got so far. Any thoughts?

Looks interesting, but probably excessively complicated. Combat in particular was a pain to read, possibly because it was given in the form of examples rather than proper definitions.

[Nerjin]

Okay so the battle stuff had too many examples and the details of each gladiator were a bit hard to read in a abbr tag... Is this better formatting?

Gladiators of Nevendaar – Gladiatorial Management Game

Intro Intro Intro
So you want to run a gladiator school in a managerial position? It is quite simple. First familiarize yourself with the rules regarding: Schools, Gladiators, Turns, and Battle. After that simply fill out the sheet you acquired at the Registrar’s and submit it to the Registrar. Then, you will be the proud owner of one of the many gladiator schools in the region.

Spoiler: School Stats (click to show/hide)

School Name – This is the name of the gladiatorial school you manage.

Money – This is simply the amount of gold that you can dedicate towards your school. You can gain gold through tournaments, gambling, and simply winning battles. Every school starts with 500 gold. If your school has 0 gold at the Start of a turn they are bankrupt and disbanded.You can mouse over this figure to see the rate of Upkeep you are dealing with.

Upkeep – This is the amount of gold that you must pay each week to keep your school running. Upkeep is determined by your gladiators. Each gladiator receives 1/10 their original purchase price each week in upkeep. This means that more powerful gladiators require far more upkeep. It is important to note that 1gp per turn is the minimum amount of upkeep.

Let’s take a look at an example school:

School Name: The Example School for Exempler Examples
Money: 350gp
Roster: [2/2]

Spoiler: Roster (2/2) (click to show/hide)

Spoiler: Gladiator stats (click to show/hide)

Gladiator Name – The Name and Class of the Gladiator. You may change the Gladiator’s name at any time.

HP – If a gladiator reaches 0 HP they are in critical condition and taken out of the fight. Furthermore they cannot take part in another fight until they are ‘revived’. Gladiators in critical condition are treated like a normal gladiator in every other respect however. Most gladiators receive 5% of their max health back every week if not in critical condition.

Armor - Armor designates the amount of damage that a Gladiator ignores from every attack.

Immune – This Gladiator will take no damage from sources they are immune to. [*This stat is only shown if applicable]

Ward – This Gladiator takes 50% damage from attacks with this source. Damage from this source outside of combat never affects this Gladiator. If the attack has a status affects (Such a Paralysis) the ward negates it entirely. [*This stat is only shown if applicable]

Weakness – Gladiators take 150% damage from attacks with this source. [*This stat is only shown if applicable]

Revive Cost – This is the price you must pay to take a Gladiator from 0hp to 1hp. [*This stat is only shown if the Gladiator is in critical condition, during purchase, or during level up.]

XP – This is the amount of XP this Gladiator needs to Class Change.
   Xp Killed – This is the amount of Experience an enemy gains when this unit is killed. This number is divided evenly between all gladiators on the opposing team.

Initiative – The higher this number is the more likely your gladiator is to go first in battle.

Attack[1/2] [Damage / Targets / Chance /Source] – The name of the attack the gladiator uses in combat. If the Gladiator has two attacks both attacks will target the same Gladiators.
   Damage: The amount of damage the attack will do if it is successful.
   Chance: The chance that an attack will hit.
   Source – The source of the attack’s damage. [Weapon, Earth, Fire, Wind, Water, Mind, Death, or Life]

Chance – The chance that an attack has to hit.
Targets: This determines who your gladiator can hit with their attack.
   All – Every enemy is hurt by the attack or every ally gains the benefit from it.
   Any – A single enemy can be hit by the attack or a single ally can gain the benefit regardless of where they are.
   Adjacent – Only enemies next to your gladiator can be hit.

Levels Into: These are the classes a Gladiator can change into when they hit experience cap. Before you are able to level up your Gladiator you will be shown the stats of each gladiator.

Traits/Flaw: Traits are personality facets that assist your Gladiator in their job. Flaws are the opposite in that they harm your gladiator. Every gladiator has at least 2 traits and 1 flaw. Some gladiators start with predesignated traits that don’t count towards this limit.

Endorsement: If your School is spectacular enough they might get an endorsement from a high-ranking organization. These function like traits except that you may change them whenever there is a better offer. Each endorsement has three levels [Bronze, Silver, and Gold] that increases the effect. You must, however, work your way up from Bronze to Gold over time.

Spoiler: The Turn (click to show/hide)

The Turn can be divided into 5 Parts. Start, Preparation, Battle, Wrap Up, End.
Start
The start of the turn has a few portions. This is the part of the turn where you earn money from last week’s matches, pay upkeep, and when your gladiators regenerate health. It leads directly into Preparation.
 Preparation
This is the busiest part of the turn. This is where you pick whether or not your school will participate in battles as well as what the positioning for your gladiators are. The battle plan is gone into in more detail in the Battle section of this post.

Thus begins Phase 2 when each of the Matches are announced as well as the predicted odds of the teams winning. Each School may place a bet on ONE other school. This is when the managers set up their battle plan.

Then the Battle portion occurs.
 Battle

This is the meat and potatoes of a gladiator’s life. Unfortunately you’re but a manager so it’s not something you take part in too much. All matches that you and your fellow Gladiator Schools took place in are recorded [in a sense] and posted in the…
Wrap Up

This is when the battles are talked about, recordings posted, and gambling results announced [payout occurs during the next weeks Start but you do see how much you’ll be getting from gambling]. Furthermore you can revive Critical Condition gladiators or heal ones who were injured in the fights.

This is also when gladiators will offer their services to you. You may purchase them if you want.

Lastly, endorsement offers will come in at this time which you can accept or decline at your leisure.
 The End
The end of the turn is rightfully boring. As the stadiums empty and patrons go home you are left with little other option than to go home yourself until next week when the games renew.

Spoiler: Services (click to show/hide)

The following is a list of services you can use for your school, as well as what times you can invoke them.

You can spend money to give your Gladiator experience during the Preperation phase. While you cannot level your gladiator this way it can certainly speed up the process. However higher level units require more money to train. Per each point of experience you want to gain it will cost:

1gp for Level 1 and 2
2gp for Level 3
5gp for Level 4
10gp for Level 5
15gp for Level 6
20gp for Level 7+

It is important to note that you cannot actually level up your gladiator through this training. The final experience point MUST be earned in a battle. Training is powerful, but nothing beats practical experience.

Each week a small amount of items are available for purchase. This can range from Potions to Artifacts to Banners and more. The available items are announced at each turns start. You can only have 8 items in your inventory at any time so it is best to be careful with what you purchase. You can also sell items you no longer need at 50% market price.

There are several types of items:
Artifacts: Are items that affect only a single gladiator throughout the battle. Their effects are varied and potent thought they are incredibly expensive. Each gladiator can only have one artifact equipped at a time.
Banners: These items are permanent team-wide bonuses. You can only possess one banner at any time. They have a wide variety of affects but are generally less useful than artifacts.
Potions: Potions affect a single unit with a wide range of effects; anything from healing, to revival, and even some rare potions which permanently increase your gladiator’s stats. A potion can only affect a single gladiator before it is used up forever.
 

There are some items that aren't exactly 'allowed' by the Arena. Thankfully these fine gentlemen will help you out regardless. However using their services are risky. You can get rare and exotic items, as well as mundane items, at discount.

However, if the Arena finds out about this [1/10 chance] there is a hefty fine. Specifically you will pay 150% of the item’s market price and will not receive the item.

The Black Market has an eternally changing inventory, so be sure to check back often... If you're willing to take the risk.

The gladiatorial business is a competitive one with businesses appearing and disappearing rapidly. If there's a good or service you want you can always ask around. Who knows, you just might find one.

Spoiler: Battle (click to show/hide)

As a manager you may have some questions about how combat works. First, though, we will show you what the Battle-grid looks like.



As you can see, each team can have up to six Gladiators on their side of the field at once. Who stands where is up to the manager.
How does Adjacent work? Any? All?
Gladiators who must attack adjacent can only attack Gladiators who are adjacent to them.

If there are no valid targets adjacent to a gladiator with the adjacent tag they can, instead, attack any enemy in the front row.
If all units in the front row are defeated than the back row units are moved to the front row.
 But how does combat work?

Combat is entirely out of your hands… You’re a manager remember? Still, you have some control. First off, you get to choose who competes in each fight your school is a part of. If you have twelve Gladiators in your school you can have them join in any number of fights so long as there is at least ONE gladiator participating and you meet the requirements for every fight. After that you can choose which gladiator participates in the fight and where they stand on the battle grid [which we showed earlier].

Your declaration of position can be made public knowledge or secretly sent to the commissioner of the fight.

After that you make a battle plan. This essentially says who you want your Gladiators to focus on the most. You can be as detailed or as vague with your battle plan as you wish.
What happens after the battle?

After the battle phase, the results are reported during the Wrap-up.

Spoiler: League Types (click to show/hide)

Leagues are tournaments Gladiators take part in for fame and glory. Thankfully, victorious schools, as well as runners up, will earn money and fame as well as a title for their victory. There are three types of Leagues:

Round Robin: Every School will compete against every other school a single time. At the end of the Round Robin the number of wins is counted and the victor decided. If there is a tie between an equal number of schools the schools will partake in a single elimination tournament until only one remains. If there is a draw between an odd number of schools then all schools will split the prize. Various rules can apply to this sort of League.

Tourney: Every school competes in a single elimination tournament with the winner of each match facing the winner of another match until only one school remains undefeated. Various rules can apply to this sort of League.

Scramble: Similar to the Tourney this is a single elimination tournament, however after the teams are picked the two teams are randomly scrambled. This means your Fighter can be replaced for the opposing teams Paladin, or vice versa. This leads to more entertaining matches. Do not worry, you will receive your gladiator back at the end of the match regardless of outcome.

Unique Rules
Some leagues have unique rules that are posted before sign-ups. Some examples of this are:

Death Matches: Leagues that have these do not allow Gladiators to leave until their opposition is dead. This is highly exciting for the crowd and often has high rewards. Unfortunately if your gladiator falls in a Death Match you cannot revive them, and they are lost forever. The risk is offset by the fact that the payout for Death Matches are far higher than normal matches.

Restricted: Restricted leagues will force you to follow certain rules such as “No Adjacents” or “Only Undead”. They are often higher paying than normal matches but harder to get invited to as you must have valid gladiators.

Tiered: Leagues that have this tag do not allow Gladiators above and/or below a certain level to participate. This is usually done to allow weaker gladiators a chance to get their bearings.

As well as many more.
 

After reading the manual several times you decide that, Yes, you do want to start a gladiator school. IN FACT, you just can’t wait to get started. So you quickly glance over the form before filling it out.

Lord Name: Your Name here
School Name: School Name Here
School History: Please fill out...
Personal History: Please fill out...

[kj1225]

I still think it's interesting.