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summeryclept
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
[SIZE=+3]SUBJECTS NOW IN TRANSPORT. SEE FOLLOWING POST FOR DETAILS.
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They took your past.
You got away.
They want you back.
RUN.
~ + + + ~
THE ELEVATOR PITCH
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19.21.2.10.5.3.20.19 / 12.5.22.5.12 / 23.9.14.5
They took your past.
You got away.
They want you back.
RUN.
~ + + + ~
THE ELEVATOR PITCH
Psi.Run is an indie game that's been floating around for a while. It's lurking somewhere around "soon to be officially released" status, but there's a few playtest documents out there. The game's solid, though, and has very simple rules.
Here's the jist: You're a Runner, somebody with special powers that some kind of organization - for now, we'll call them Chasers - abducted. You have amnesia. You have no idea what they did to you or why, or who they are. What you do know is that you've just escaped, and you have to run. Right now.
You're a "Runner" because, of course, you're running away. They're "Chasers", you can probably figure out why.
Throughout the game, you'll move throughout a major city trying to evade capture. As you go, you'll slowly start to fill in your past and figure out the details, and hopefully escape the Chasers for good. You start play with a blank slate of a character, then flesh them and their memories out more and more.
The game can work with a GM and a single Runner, or even up to fifteen Runners. I'd personally like to try just three to see how it goes, so we'll start there.
Setting and information: it's a major city, but a fictional one so we can have creative freedom. Let's call it Ocean City, how about. Information about the Chasers will be revealed during play, since you guys have amnesia anyway.
~ + + + ~
CREATING A RUNNER
CREATING A RUNNER
First, some facts:
- Someone captured all of you.
- You don't remember anything.
- You were being transported in a vehicle, but it crashed. You escaped.
- Now they're after you, trying to get you back.
The game starts immediately after the vehicle crashes.
1. Describe your Runner's appearance. If they look in the mirror, what do they see?
2. Think of a few questions. At least two, but no more than six. These questions should seek information about your Runner's personal history. Don't answer them yet. These serve as the keys to figuring out your Runner's past.
Think of what your Runner is like or what they have on them when they escape, and use that for inspiration. And don't overthink it!
Divide your questions so that you refer to each of these categories:
- some questions about your powers ("Why don't I bleed?")
- some questions about your skills, talents, quirks, etc. ("Why don't I like to be touched?")
- and some about your immediate past or current circumstances ("Where is my family?")
You have to have at least one question about your power. And, again, you need to have at least two questions, and no more than six. Even if you think of a really, really good seventh question - you can only have six!
Also, it's totally cool if you can't think of any - if this is the case, ask another player to bounce an idea off of you. But remember, no thinking of answers!
About your power - think of what you can do, not what caused it. "I can read minds" is fine, but don't explain HOW or WHY you can read minds. Leave that as a mystery to be figured out! If you're dying of curiosity, make it one of your questions. As far as power level goes, keep it interesting, supernatural, and useful - so useful the Chasers want you back - but not so overbearingly strong that you're invulnerable or can walk over anything. You should be thinking along the lines of Firestarter, if you haven't already.
Other than that, it doesn't matter what your power is, exactly! Have fun with that. But just to be clear - if it goes haywire, it can cause problems (although if you pick something subtle and defensive, I'll take care of the monkey wrench for you) and if it can hurt people, the Chasers probably have an (exploitable) defense against it.
And that's it!
- Someone captured all of you.
- You don't remember anything.
- You were being transported in a vehicle, but it crashed. You escaped.
- Now they're after you, trying to get you back.
The game starts immediately after the vehicle crashes.
1. Describe your Runner's appearance. If they look in the mirror, what do they see?
2. Think of a few questions. At least two, but no more than six. These questions should seek information about your Runner's personal history. Don't answer them yet. These serve as the keys to figuring out your Runner's past.
Think of what your Runner is like or what they have on them when they escape, and use that for inspiration. And don't overthink it!
Divide your questions so that you refer to each of these categories:
- some questions about your powers ("Why don't I bleed?")
- some questions about your skills, talents, quirks, etc. ("Why don't I like to be touched?")
- and some about your immediate past or current circumstances ("Where is my family?")
You have to have at least one question about your power. And, again, you need to have at least two questions, and no more than six. Even if you think of a really, really good seventh question - you can only have six!
Also, it's totally cool if you can't think of any - if this is the case, ask another player to bounce an idea off of you. But remember, no thinking of answers!
About your power - think of what you can do, not what caused it. "I can read minds" is fine, but don't explain HOW or WHY you can read minds. Leave that as a mystery to be figured out! If you're dying of curiosity, make it one of your questions. As far as power level goes, keep it interesting, supernatural, and useful - so useful the Chasers want you back - but not so overbearingly strong that you're invulnerable or can walk over anything. You should be thinking along the lines of Firestarter, if you haven't already.
Other than that, it doesn't matter what your power is, exactly! Have fun with that. But just to be clear - if it goes haywire, it can cause problems (although if you pick something subtle and defensive, I'll take care of the monkey wrench for you) and if it can hurt people, the Chasers probably have an (exploitable) defense against it.
And that's it!
~ + + + ~
THE TRAIL
THE TRAIL
We make a note of each scene where the Runners have been. For example, the very first scene is going to be: "CRASH". If the Runners went to a hospital for their next scene, we'd add "HOSPITAL" up there after Crash:
CRASH - HOSPITAL
and so on, and so on, until we have:
CRASH - HOSPITAL - ON THE BUS - BEACH - CITY HALL - DREAMSPACE - HIGHWAY
This is the trail. It'll be up in one of the first posts for everyone to see. Remember how you're being chased? The Runners will be somewhere in this trail, and the Chasers will be up there too. Whenever you roll dice (see below) and make the Chasers move, I'll move them along the trail to symbolize how they're finding you. If they move into the scene you're in, the Chasers are there, right now, trying to catch you.
The trail can branch off if the Runners split up. In the above example, some might to from ON THE BUS to the BEACH, while others instead choose to go to THE TRAIN STATION. All it means is you're split up and we've got a branched-off trail. The Chasers, unfortunately, don't thin out - each branch of the trail gets their own set of Chasers, so you always remain in danger, even split up.
CRASH - HOSPITAL
and so on, and so on, until we have:
CRASH - HOSPITAL - ON THE BUS - BEACH - CITY HALL - DREAMSPACE - HIGHWAY
This is the trail. It'll be up in one of the first posts for everyone to see. Remember how you're being chased? The Runners will be somewhere in this trail, and the Chasers will be up there too. Whenever you roll dice (see below) and make the Chasers move, I'll move them along the trail to symbolize how they're finding you. If they move into the scene you're in, the Chasers are there, right now, trying to catch you.
The trail can branch off if the Runners split up. In the above example, some might to from ON THE BUS to the BEACH, while others instead choose to go to THE TRAIN STATION. All it means is you're split up and we've got a branched-off trail. The Chasers, unfortunately, don't thin out - each branch of the trail gets their own set of Chasers, so you always remain in danger, even split up.
DICE
Whenever a Runner does something important or the GM says something important happens, we use dice. I'll pretty much let you know when to roll.
1. Say what you want your Runner to do. "I want to hide," for example. Keep active, make it about your Runner. "I don't want them to notice me," is too weak, passive, doesn't work - instead, phrase it as: I want..., I do..., I try..., etc.
Don't get too ambitious. "I go through the back door and disable all the security alarms and knock out the guard." Instead, let's do it just one step at a time, starting with the alarms.
2. The Runner gets 3 dice to start with - 1 for doing something important, 1 for maybe getting caught, and 1 for maybe triggering a memory.
- If you risk being injured (mentally, emotionally, or physically), add 1 die.
- If you use one of your Psi Powers, it might get out of control and hurt those around you, so add 1 die.
- If you're not hurt right now, add 1 die.
3. Roll the dice, obviously.
4. Arrange dice as you see fit. You'll now match the dice up as you like with the categories below. If you have extra dice, discard any you don't use.
"First say" means that person gets to describe the initial outcome, then pass it on for someone else - the player who rolled or the GM - to finalize it.
GOAL - Relating to whether or not you succeed at what you wanted to do.
- on a 4-6, you achieve your goal. GM gets first say.
- on a 1-3, you fail your goal. Player gets first say.
HARM - Put a die here if there's a risk of injury.
- on a 5-6, you are unharmed! Player gets first say.
- on a 4, you're hurt for the rest of the scene. Player gets first say.
- on a 3, you're hurt for the rest of the session (in this case, for about three or four scenes). GM gets first say.
- on a 2, you're permanently hurt. GM gets first say.
- on a 1, you're dying. Player gets first say.
Decide if your action would harm you or others.
If you're injured, another player can try to heal you by naming that as their goal and rolling the dice.
If you're dying, another player can attempt to save you by naming that as their goal and rolling the dice.
If the harm is mental or emotional, a 1 will probably mean just permanent injury as well.
REVEAL - This decides if you trigger a memory flashback.
- on a 6, you have a memory that answers one of your questions. Player has first say.
- on a 4-5, you have a memory that answers one of your questions. Other players have first say.
- on a 1-3, you gain no memory.
If the other players get first say, they get to pick one of your questions for you and suggest an answer which you then finalize. Instead, however, they can give you a new question, to a maximum of six total questions.
PSI - Put a die here if you're using a Psi Power.
- on a 5-6, your power causes no trouble. Player gets first say.
- on a 3-4, the power goes wild. People are injured, things break. It would make the local news. GM has first say.
- on a 1-2, Brainstorm. People are dead, things are destroyed. It would make the national news. GM has first say.
CHASE - Whether or not the Chasers get closer to you.
- on a 5-6, they make no progress towards you.
- on a 3-4, they move one scene closer towards you.
- on a 1-2, they move two scenes closer towards you.
GM always gets first say here.
===============================
If the Chasers are in the scene with you due to movement on the trail, we take the CHASE category out and replace it with CAPTURE until the Runners flee to a different scene (to do this, you have to make a roll with your goal being, "I escape" or "I get far, far away" or something like that).
CAPTURE
- on a 4-6, no one gets captured. GM gets first say.
- on a 2-3, somebody gets caught. GM gets first say.
- on a 1, everybody gets caught. Other players have first say.
That's not all. If you get captured, we then - just for you - take CAPTURE off the table and replace it with DISAPPEARING FOREVER.
DISAPPEARING FOREVER
- on a 4-6, you don't disappear. Player has first say.
- on a 1-3, you disappear forever. GM has first say.
In order to escape, you've probably guessed it - roll the dice and make escape your goal. We then take DISAPPEARING FOREVER off the table and replace it with CHASE, and you start 1 scene ahead of the Chasers.
And, yes, you can try to rescue a captured runner. Same as above, make it a goal. However, if a Runner disappears forever, that's it. The end for their character.
1. Say what you want your Runner to do. "I want to hide," for example. Keep active, make it about your Runner. "I don't want them to notice me," is too weak, passive, doesn't work - instead, phrase it as: I want..., I do..., I try..., etc.
Don't get too ambitious. "I go through the back door and disable all the security alarms and knock out the guard." Instead, let's do it just one step at a time, starting with the alarms.
2. The Runner gets 3 dice to start with - 1 for doing something important, 1 for maybe getting caught, and 1 for maybe triggering a memory.
- If you risk being injured (mentally, emotionally, or physically), add 1 die.
- If you use one of your Psi Powers, it might get out of control and hurt those around you, so add 1 die.
- If you're not hurt right now, add 1 die.
3. Roll the dice, obviously.
4. Arrange dice as you see fit. You'll now match the dice up as you like with the categories below. If you have extra dice, discard any you don't use.
"First say" means that person gets to describe the initial outcome, then pass it on for someone else - the player who rolled or the GM - to finalize it.
GOAL - Relating to whether or not you succeed at what you wanted to do.
- on a 4-6, you achieve your goal. GM gets first say.
- on a 1-3, you fail your goal. Player gets first say.
HARM - Put a die here if there's a risk of injury.
- on a 5-6, you are unharmed! Player gets first say.
- on a 4, you're hurt for the rest of the scene. Player gets first say.
- on a 3, you're hurt for the rest of the session (in this case, for about three or four scenes). GM gets first say.
- on a 2, you're permanently hurt. GM gets first say.
- on a 1, you're dying. Player gets first say.
Decide if your action would harm you or others.
If you're injured, another player can try to heal you by naming that as their goal and rolling the dice.
If you're dying, another player can attempt to save you by naming that as their goal and rolling the dice.
If the harm is mental or emotional, a 1 will probably mean just permanent injury as well.
REVEAL - This decides if you trigger a memory flashback.
- on a 6, you have a memory that answers one of your questions. Player has first say.
- on a 4-5, you have a memory that answers one of your questions. Other players have first say.
- on a 1-3, you gain no memory.
If the other players get first say, they get to pick one of your questions for you and suggest an answer which you then finalize. Instead, however, they can give you a new question, to a maximum of six total questions.
PSI - Put a die here if you're using a Psi Power.
- on a 5-6, your power causes no trouble. Player gets first say.
- on a 3-4, the power goes wild. People are injured, things break. It would make the local news. GM has first say.
- on a 1-2, Brainstorm. People are dead, things are destroyed. It would make the national news. GM has first say.
CHASE - Whether or not the Chasers get closer to you.
- on a 5-6, they make no progress towards you.
- on a 3-4, they move one scene closer towards you.
- on a 1-2, they move two scenes closer towards you.
GM always gets first say here.
===============================
If the Chasers are in the scene with you due to movement on the trail, we take the CHASE category out and replace it with CAPTURE until the Runners flee to a different scene (to do this, you have to make a roll with your goal being, "I escape" or "I get far, far away" or something like that).
CAPTURE
- on a 4-6, no one gets captured. GM gets first say.
- on a 2-3, somebody gets caught. GM gets first say.
- on a 1, everybody gets caught. Other players have first say.
That's not all. If you get captured, we then - just for you - take CAPTURE off the table and replace it with DISAPPEARING FOREVER.
DISAPPEARING FOREVER
- on a 4-6, you don't disappear. Player has first say.
- on a 1-3, you disappear forever. GM has first say.
In order to escape, you've probably guessed it - roll the dice and make escape your goal. We then take DISAPPEARING FOREVER off the table and replace it with CHASE, and you start 1 scene ahead of the Chasers.
And, yes, you can try to rescue a captured runner. Same as above, make it a goal. However, if a Runner disappears forever, that's it. The end for their character.
~ + + + ~
THE ENDGAME
THE ENDGAME
If your Runner dies or you Disappear Forever, you get to craft your character's epilogue, and if you still want to play, you get to be a co-GM! You get to play some NPCs, make some special GM choices, etc.
Otherwise, this is how the game ends: when one player, it only takes one, answers all of their questions. When that happens, everyone plays out the scene they're in, and we advance to the Crossroads.
THE CROSSROADS
These are special scenes where no one rolls dice, and you're no longer running.
First, everyone answer this question:
(my character) is no longer running because he or she is:
- home
- turning the tables
- on a quest
- hidden
- trapped
- lost
- making a discovery
If you're the one who ended the game by answering all your questions, you get to answer this first. Pick any ending you want! Then, go in order from most answers to fewest. On your turn, eliminate as many endings from the above list as you have answers, and then the other players get to pick what happens to you based on what's left. Then you write your own epilogue.
Otherwise, this is how the game ends: when one player, it only takes one, answers all of their questions. When that happens, everyone plays out the scene they're in, and we advance to the Crossroads.
THE CROSSROADS
These are special scenes where no one rolls dice, and you're no longer running.
First, everyone answer this question:
(my character) is no longer running because he or she is:
- home
- turning the tables
- on a quest
- hidden
- trapped
- lost
- making a discovery
If you're the one who ended the game by answering all your questions, you get to answer this first. Pick any ending you want! Then, go in order from most answers to fewest. On your turn, eliminate as many endings from the above list as you have answers, and then the other players get to pick what happens to you based on what's left. Then you write your own epilogue.
~ + + + ~
So, if you're interested, I'm looking for at least a post a day - just to keep things moving - and as many as you'd like. !sign up in something bold and colorful if you're interested, and go ahead and submit your Runner to me via PM, if you don't mind. We'll start the game with three people, although I don't mind adding a fourth, fifth max if the interest is there. Inactive players or players who need to drop out for any reason, we'll assume their Runner got caught by the Chasers.
summeryclept on
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Go for it! PM me your Runner.
They tried to bury us. They didn't know that we were seeds. 2018 Midterms. Get your shit together.
Sure thing, but five is my max! If this takes off well, the game can play for tons more, but I want to see how it runs first with what we have. Send me your Runner!
Thank you kindly and I'll do it right now!
Yup. Pun factory. Right here. The time is now. 8-)
I'll keep my stupid jokes to myself...
ah, apparently the IC thread is here
Also, this whole "narrate other people's revelations" thing is kind of cool so far.
It is! It's fun to give over liberty of your character and see what people come up with.
Remember everyone, the game is about not getting noticed by powerful authority figures.
It's the perfect cover
(Please don't kill me)
Fun note: between your last roll and mine, we rolled a combined 17 on 8d6. That is barely above 2 a die. We are the best! High-five!
I think that Alfred should maybe just run before our bad luck entangles him too. How do you feel about me trying to break us free once 01's reveal is done? What's my plan? Mayhem. People may die.
Best case, I can load my Escape and Harm scores up so that I flee and don't get hurt. Worst case scenario, me, our Tracker buddies, and their flying Choppermobiles all go to Runner hell together.
It makes RP sense for my shell-shocked, multiple perspective talking character to freak out about now. And it makes meta game sense in that we don't risk you getting captured and ending the game. However, Summery, if that plan isn't in the spirit of the game, let me know and I'll think of something else.
EDIT: Also, I totally need to roll to escape again don't I? Since I rolled to get to the car and now the car is back in the woods?
Also, I obviously suck at reading comprehension and have edited my input for Alfred's reveal appropriately.
Oh, and HELL YEAH, BLOW SOME SHIT UP YO!
If you never got in the car, and you just made it back to the car, then you're clean.