In generator news: Added several more effects. It's up to 300 now!
In RTD news, here's an RTD I've been cooking up for some time. It's basically an RTD about criminals who have either become involved with magic or have gained magical powers. It's meant to be a cross between GTA and World of Darkness. Here's the mechanics.
There are two meters you should look out for in this game: Luck and Heat.
Luck means how lucky your character is. It's like a health meter, with a few differences. Luck is what stops you from being killed or arrested; that can mean barely avoiding getting a bullet to the head, or managing to make a quick escape over a fence when running from the cops. However, with every lucky escape, you lose a luck point. When it runs out, you're killed or arrested: and you're out of the game. To recharge them, you should lay low and try not to do anything too crazy. You can increase the recharge rate of luck by buying a luck charm like a rabbit's foot.
Heat means how much the cops don't like you. Since you're automatically a criminal, they don't like you at the start, but the majority of the time they can't/won't arrest you. However, if you do something criminal in front of witnesses or god forbid an actual cop, then your Heat meter will raise. At the lower levels, they might send a beat cop or a squad car over to you to arrest you without violence. At the higher levels, they'll send SWAT teams after you and helicopter sniper teams. This is a bad thing. To lower it, you can lay low in a secure position and/or wear a disguise. You can increase the lowering rate of Heat by giving a sufficient donation (Say, five grand) to the more corrupt side of the police force.
Criminals are not one unified group. It's all divided up into little groups of gangs and various types of criminal. Here is the most general depiction of criminals you can find. You must select which class you are and what specialization you want to pick in the class. That is what you start out with.
Hackers are criminals who specialize in hacking computers and other electronic devices. If you choose this, you can specialize in Long-Distance Hacking (Hacking into websites and other online things), Short-Distance Hacking (Hacking into electronic devices like traffic lights and phones), or Information (Gathering information about things like passwords, bank account details, and such by tricking people into giving them to you/finding info about them on the side)
"I can hack your car, the traffic lights, the ATM, from a thousand miles away. I can get the cops on you in a minute with nothing more then a keyboard. In five minutes, I can make your life hell and do it without even looking at your face. Every technology can be used for criminality: I am simply exploiting this rule for my benefit. Don't get in my way: I can fuck you up without needing to lay a finger on you."
Con-men are criminals who specialize in tricking people. If you choose this, you can specialize in Intimidation (Making you seem much more threatening then you actually are), Persuasion (Making people trust you and willing do things for you), or Lying (Tricking people into believing bullshit).
"You don't need a lead pipe or a computer to get people to give you their money. People are always willing to give you their money if you just tell them the right things. Prove that one of your statements is truth, and they'll fall in line to buy whatever lie you're selling this week. You don't need a gun to do crime... though it is handy to have one on hand if things go south."
Thugs are the most straightforward of criminals: they just beat people up and steal their money. If you choose this, you can specialize in Unarmed (Beating people up with your bare hands), Melee Weapons (Slicing their necks open with knives and beating them with lead pipes), or Firearms (Shooting at people)
"When you're at the door of a crackhouse, ready to kill everyone inside, you gotta ask yourself this one question. Not 'Is this morally right?' or 'Maybe I should stop the violence?', that's the wrong question. You ask yourself, 'Am I going to go loud or quiet?'. Don't dismiss either approach: they're good in context. There's nothing like burning down a house knowing that no-one inside never even saw you when you killed them, and the cops won't come after you... but going loud is simpler and faster, so go for that if you don't feel like making a point."
Robbers are criminals who are stealthy and rob places. If you choose this, you can specialize in Lockpicking (Breaking open mechanical and electronic locks of doors/safes), Stealth (Staying quiet and unseen), or Disguise (Keeping a low profile and pretending to be someone you're not).
"I am in a standoff with the cops in a bank robbery gone tits up. Hostages and fellow robbers are screaming in my ear, and you know how I feel? I am as calm as a fucking leaf. Because I am ready for this. You know why? Because I planned this out. I activate the explosives outside blowing the police sky-high. I walk out the back with my teammates while they're scrambling to tell what just happened. I escape in the getaway car with my friends in the back and the hostages in the boot. A week later I sell them for ransom. Profit: 500 grand. I earned that because I planned."
Drivers are criminals who rush in, get the stuff, then rush out. If you choose this, you can specialize in On-Foot (Fleeing on foot), Cars (Driving away in all kinds of cars), or Unusual (Piloting helicopters, tanks, and other weird stuff).
"I don't execute people in back alleys, I don't rob convenience stores, I don't scam people for pennies. You know who I am? I'm the driver. When you need me, I'm there. When the cops arrive, guess where you are thanks to me? Far away. I may not be the flashiest: but you can't get into the big leagues without me."
Dealers are criminals who make connections, back-room businesses, and loads of money. If you choose this, you can specialize in Racketeering (Threatening/coercing business owners to give you a cut of the cash), Negotiating (Setting up deals with other criminals/suppliers), or Supply (Setting up connections to get items and objects).
"The best way to be a criminal is to be the one the cops can't get. With those other jobs, you put yourself in the line of danger. Me, I put others in the line of danger. Bankers don't starve when the economy goes, and I don't get arrested when the cops put on a sting. You wanna know how much I have in my swiss bank account? You really don't. It'd depress you."
Powers (Supernatural Powers)
Spell: Spells are randomly generated, specific effects you can trigger. They do not run out of power, but you only get a limited selection at the start and must search for more.
Ritual: Rituals are general, customizable effects you make yourself. You can do anything with them, but you operate off a power supply and to refurbish it you must do a specific ritual that uses up time and effort.
Feats (Non-Supernatural Abilities)
Fluke: Fluke allows you, when you get a 20, to get another dice to roll. This will be for another action you wish to do, or get you another chance if you're in a contest. If you roll a 20 on the extra dice, then you get another dice. And another if you roll another 20. And another if you roll another 20, etc. However, it's just as likely that you will get a 1 if your luck runs out
Resolve: Resolve allows you to survive past your luck hitting zero. Every turn you are in this near death state, however, you must roll a dice. If you fail the roll, you die.
Jobs are your day work: what you do when you aren't a criminal. Stuff like being a bartender, a convenience store worker, a stripper. They're unreliable, they don't pay well, but they're better then nothing. You don't have to go into work every day, and you don't get a penalty for staying at home because your job is ultimately pointless in the grand scheme of things. You might get promoted to get slightly more money, but at the start you will not get anything at all.
Lifestyle is the way you live. At the start, you live in a rathole apartment, maybe even a squat if you so choose. The rent is low, but the niceness is zilch. You can stay there if you wish, but you'll be missing out on impressing your fellow criminals (People tend to think you're a scumbag if you live in a rathole), getting more storage space (Can't fit much in a rathole apartment), or having the ability to upgrade your pad (Can't fit an armory and a supercomputer in a one room total apartment). However, the higher you go, the more the expenses.
Burdens is the stuff you just can't let go. You can choose between two types of burden, like...
Relatives are your friends and family who need a certain amount of care and attention. They can be your daughter, your husband, your best buddy who has to crash at your place, your drug dealer, etc. At the start when your lifestyle is low, they won't give you any money and will be just parasites sucking off you. However, as your lifestyle gets better, they will give you rewards of special items, advantages, or skill bonuses.
Needs are the things that drive you, that you must complete. They'll be a long and costly journey, but you may get a reward at the end. Then again, you might not. In character creation, you choose your type of need then specify what you need.These are of four classes of needs and the examples of what sort of stuff you'd put at the end.
To be... at the top, rich, respected.
To get out... of this city, of this debt, of this crappy job.
To get revenge... on everyone who ever doubted you, on the police who put you in jail, on the scumbag who ratted you out.
To find out... where exactly your powers come from, who really killed her, who put you in jail.
You have relationships with other players. You are stuck with them, for better or worse, with two players. One player you have a rivalry with, the other you have a friendship with. Maybe you two have a history together, maybe your personalities click or clash in a certain way, or perhaps circumstances either pushed you together or pushed you apart. Either way, you will be randomly bond to two other players. Don't worry: I'll have an explanation prepared as to why you know those two bozos.
And now the weather.
Author
Topic: Roller's Block (RTD Brainstorming Thread) (HAPPY LATE BIRTHDAY) (Derm is 5k) (Read 745262 times)