The Forge Archives

I posted here months ago looking for ideas about a game my daughter and I were playing using Lego minifigures. That game never developed a fixed form, but we have a lot of fun.

Since then, we have read Bone together, an epic cartoon fantasy comic by Jeff Smith. We got the entire collection in one telephone book tagged as "the complete cartoon epic in one volume." It is a great story with lots of humor, and she likes it a lot (it's over 1332 pages and we have read it twice; she likes to read the sound effects and the larger text). We have begun to informally roleplay in the car using Bone characters and setting, but she is interested in expanding the story, and so I've put together this onesheet.

Bone is a story about three little bald white cartoon characters (called Bones, I guess, because their heads are shaped like stylized femurs?) who inadvertently wander into a hidden valley after getting run out of Boneville. They immediately get involved in some of the Valley's mythic history and ancient power struggle, and their presence triggers a series of increasingly apocalyptic events. More information about the story (http://boneville.com/whatisbone/) and characters (http://boneville.com/whatisbone/bonecharacters.shtml) can be found at Boneville.com. This onesheet is submitted for feedback from those who are familiar with the comic, its characters, and setting. I hope that there is someone out there! Perhaps this will inspire others to read this beautiful comic that combines the wit of Pogo with the adventure of LOTR.


Bone onesheet

Humanity

Humanity in Bone represents a character's connection to others through love, trust, and humor. Characters can gain humanity through trials in which self-sacrifice is chosen to uphold these bonds. Characters risk loosing humanity when they cave in to self-love, betrayal, or fear (including cowardice and fear-mongering). Dealing with the Forces is always a betrayal of human bonds.

At Humanity 0, characters can be consumed by Ghost Circles, become pawns of the Locust, go feral, or become drawn into the Dreaming, leaving their bodies catatonic. Characters who die with a prodigious level of humanity may become Ancestor Muses to those with whom they shared profound bonds.

The Forces

In Bone , there are a number of inhuman powers that seek a new world order, in which human bonds do not play a decisive role. Many of these are willing to endow humans with their power in order to attain the opportunity to influence events in the human sphere.

• Woodland Critters
  The forests and groves are filled with small animals and insects willing to contribute their senses and mischievous abilities to those who honor their domain.


• Dragons
  Living in the earth hidden from human eyes, the Dragons seem stoic and aloof, but they find humor in the ironies of human life, and they are never far from those who know how to call upon them.


• Hairy Men
  Living in the hills and banned from the Valley by a treaty, the rat creatures are humped-up large carnivores that travel in packs looking for small mammals to devour.


• The Locust
  A spirit of the Void, the Locust is powered directly by panic, uncertainty, mistrust, and terror. It manifests in the form of locust swarms or in the form of Ghost Circles, cold fields of emptiness from which there is little hope of escape.


• The Dreaming
  A place of visions and images in which this world is mingled with the world beyond.

Descriptors

Stamina

• Small Mammal:
  Small, nimble, and stealthy. (Fone Bone, the Possum kids)


• Lean:
  Long appendages, quick reflexes. (Smiley, Thorn, Disciples of Venu)


• Bulldozer:
  Bulldozers are nearly unstoppable engines of brute force. (Rose, Lucius)


• Hairy Man:
  Slobbering jaws, claws, bounding, climbing, and clumsy

Will

• Common Sense:
  Being able to see the truth and state it plainly – and not get confused by manipulators or conjurors. (Lucius)


• Strategic Command:
  The mind and charisma of a Captain. (Rose, Tarsil)


• Puzzler:
  Your scalp tingles when you're on the right track. A solver of riddles. (Phoney Bone)


• Group Thinker:
  Follow the leader. Moral strength is derived from united collective resolve. (Smiley, Wendell, Hairy Men)


• Code of Honor:
  The code gives a bonus to acts of bravery and self-sacrifice, and resistance of temptation. (Fone Bone, Disciples of Venu, Bartleby)


• Manipulator:
  You can get people to believe things they don't understand. (Phony Bone)

Lore
Some of the Lore descriptors in this setting include specific narrative abilities. Characters in the book may have more of these than would be possible – this is due to their binding Forces that gives them additional descriptors as Covers.

• Voices in the Earth:
  Lore 1+ connected to Dragons.


• Voices of the Wood:
  Lore 1+ connected to woodland critters.


• Ancestor Muse:
  Lore 1+ a family member was a great dreaming master and still watches over you.


• Kingdok's musk:
  Lore 1+ connected to Hairy men.


• Eye of Venu:
  Lore 3+ can see into dreams.


• Eye of the Locust:
  Lore 3+ can see into Ghost Circles.


• Dragonwalker:
  Lore 5+ can project images into dreams.


• Piece of the Locust:
  Lore 5+ can move through Ghost Circles unharmed.


• Dreaming Master:
  Lore 6+ can project dreaming visions into the waking world.

Rituals & Lore

Rituals include rhymes and dramatic pauses in which characters observe the breath of the Dreaming and let it breath through them. Ritual concentration can be supported using a "stick-eater" hood over the face, prayer stones; planning and detail may contribute significant bonuses to ritual activity, especially when the moon phase, setting, and sacrifice align with the purpose of the ritual and the lore being called upon.

(http://boneville.com/library/excerpts/bone4_p87.gif)

(http://boneville.com/library/excerpts/bone1_p39.gif)

This is really great! I haven't even read Bone and I love it! Have you guys tried playing this yet?

Hello John,

I'm a Bone fan, and like the one-sheet draft. However, I have some questions.

1) What is sorcery in the game? Have you defined Sorcerous Thinking?

2) How do you map your "Forces" to Sorcerer Demon types? It would also be cool to list some sample Desires and Needs relevant to the different Forces.

3) I would also like to see the Rituals defined more clearly. What is Contacting, Summoning, Bind, Punish, Banish, and Contain in Bone? Command also warrants touching upon. I'm guessing that human sacrifice isn't part of the bonus scheme in Bone?

4) What about Covers?

5) What is the Premise? I think this is essential, as I have a hard time applying a standard "How far will you go to get what you want?" to Bone.

Finally, there might actually be better fits than Sorcerer for a game of Bone. If you're willing to do some tweaking (adding narration rules and conflict resolution, etc.) I think FATE would fit the bill. Primetime Adventures could also work, oh, and Trollbabe.

TTFN,

Yoki

P.S. Brave of you to post images, I think that's the first I've seen of 'em on the Forge...

I was thinking that Trollbabe would be a more solid fit with Bone, having read a bunch of the comic and really enjoyed it.

Thanks for sharing the Sorcerer stuff, John.  If you play it, please post how it goes.

Thanks for the advice!

I had never investigated Trollbabe before, but looking over the reviews, I think you're right. I ordered a copy, and now I'm waiting for the download. How long does that usually take?

From what I can tell from the reviews, Trollbabe is simpler in mechanics than Sorcerer, and seems to be a great fit for my daughter, who is five.

And if we do go with Trollbabe, the Bone onesheet will hardly be a waste – I think it will still be a good resource.