Card Captor Cabal

[xiombarg]

Hey, all. While my fiancee is away in Texas for her bridal shower, she asked me to write a little RPG based on her favorite anime, CardCaptors, aka Card Captor Sakura to the purists.

Here's a peek. Note that there are still a lot of "placeholders" at the moment. It's very much a rough draft.

http://ivanhoeunbound.com/ccc.html

Ignoring the subject matter, this is what I'm aiming for:

* To make it more "adult" than the source material
* To create a situation where the characters work closely together and can support each other well, while still having little rivalries here and there
* Introduce a variety of narration control techniques into a game that otherwise has traditional tight GM control (a lot of this is implemented in the Major Arcana section, which isn't written yet -- the Major Arcana are gonna work like the old Whimsy cards)

Now, I know it's highly fragmentary, but I'd like to know if people think I'm on the right track or not, in terms of mechanics. I'm particularly proud of the "support suit" idea...

[xiombarg]

Since I know from IRC that at least one of you is interested, I updated Card Captors Cabal, adding the Major Arcana mechanics, the "Other Stuff" rules. I welcome comments on those mechanics as well, in terms of my goals above.

[Shreyas Sampat]

First of all, some comments on the text:

The division between Water and Wind magic seems hazy, based on the social/mental identification you gave them earlier.  What I would suggest:

Water: Summoning & Binding, Name magic, Telepathy, Necromancy, sex magics, control over all sort of beings and mystical interaction between them; harnessing those interactions.
Wind: High Ritual, Astral Projection, Clairvoyance/audience, Divination, powers of perception and supernatural acuity; crafting mystical objects, potions, paper magic, etc, pop voodoo.

A lot of those don't fit into the source milieu as well as I'd like them to, but there you are.

The distinction between advantages and traits is buried a little bit... I'd like it if it  were highlighted more clearly.

You don't list a Clow Point cost for Versatile powers.

The Hierophant: Can this be reworded so that it can be used to create a Tuxedo Mask sort of character, a recurring but unknowable ally?

The Star: Does this create an Advantage when it is used?  How is the effect resolved, mechanically?

Second:
As I've said before, I really like your usage of the suit of Pentacles as a hardcoded relationship mechanic.  It's really comfortable-looking.  I'll look forward to playtesting this thing.  Kudos to you!

[xiombarg]

Water: Summoning & Binding, Name magic, Telepathy, Necromancy, sex magics, control over all sort of beings and mystical interaction between them; harnessing those interactions.
Wind: High Ritual, Astral Projection, Clairvoyance/audience, Divination, powers of perception and supernatural acuity; crafting mystical objects, potions, paper magic, etc, pop voodoo.

Okay, I don't understand why you would divide things up like this at all. It makes absolutely no sense to me. What's the rationale? My categories are based on traditional elemental attributions.

I've revised the section on attributes, and the Other Stuff section, so that it's perhaps clearer why I put things where I did. Let me know.

A lot of those don't fit into the source milieu as well as I'd like them to, but there you are.

In the source material, Sakura has magickal Talent, but isn't trained. In Season 2, there is a character who IS trained in magick, and he very much has "Summoning and Binding". Since the PCs in CCC are all trained in using their Talent, they're closer to that character than they are to Sakura.

I want people to be able to do more than capture and use cards.

The distinction between advantages and traits is buried a little bit... I'd like it if it  were highlighted more clearly.

I put the relevant passages in bold. It's sort of blurry on purpose -- the idea is to give maximum flebility to make the character you want. Some people will think in terms of Traits, some in terms of Advantages.

You don't list a Clow Point cost for Versatile powers.

Fixed.

The Hierophant: Can this be reworded so that it can be used to create a Tuxedo Mask sort of character, a recurring but unknowable ally?

The Star: Does this create an Advantage when it is used?  How is the effect resolved, mechanically?

These are the sort of questions that will be answered in Appendix 1, which hasn't been written yet.

But to answer the questions quickly, and in turn: Yes, it can do that as well, and yes, and if the person gaining the ability is a PC, they will have to pay Clow Points for it -- they gain the ability "on credit" as it were. I'll probably put a cap on how powerful a PC's new power can be.

Second:
As I've said before, I really like your usage of the suit of Pentacles as a hardcoded relationship mechanic.  It's really comfortable-looking.  I'll look forward to playtesting this thing.  Kudos to you!

Thanks! I've added the Court Cards section, and added some more examples. Let me know what you think!

[Shreyas Sampat]

Okay, I don't understand why you would divide things up like this at all. It makes absolutely no sense to me. What's the rationale? My categories are based on traditional elemental attributions.

I've revised the section on attributes, and the Other Stuff section, so that it's perhaps clearer why I put things where I did. Let me know.

It helps, yes.  My divisions were based on extending the ideas you set out in the Attributes section, where you state that Water is a social ability and Air is mental.  I understand now that you weren't heading that route, and I think that makes sense if you're trying to differentiate magical and mundane action mechanically, by attaching different sets of associations to them.  Have you looked at traditional Tarot imagery in the appropriate elements?  It strikes me that that would be a good source of additional ideas for spheres of magical influence - one that has a mnemonic conveniently built in.

In the source material, Sakura has magickal Talent, but isn't trained. In Season 2, there is a character who IS trained in magick, and he very much has "Summoning and Binding". Since the PCs in CCC are all trained in using their Talent, they're closer to that character than they are to Sakura.

I see.  I wasn't aware of that fact (wait, was that character the boy who wore the green robe?  I remember him vaguely, and I do seem to recall him being adept at things that Sakura wasn't trained to do, even though the show made it clear that she was the more powerful magician...)

These are the sort of questions that will be answered in Appendix 1, which hasn't been written yet.

But to answer the questions quickly, and in turn: Yes, it can do that as well, and yes, and if the person gaining the ability is a PC, they will have to pay Clow Points for it -- they gain the ability "on credit" as it were. I'll probably put a cap on how powerful a PC's new power can be.

I like that.  Sounds like a lot of fun.  I particularly like the widespread mechanics for GMC manipulation; they're intriguing and provide a formal way to do what I've been encouraging my players to do for all too long.  It's great to see a game that explicitly supports that kind of activity.

Thanks! I've added the Court Cards section, and added some more examples. Let me know what you think!

Again, I strongly like the use of Pentacles as a support suit - though I might suggest implementing a Trollbabe mechanic too, where if you have the appropriate Court Card, you can insert yourself into a scene where you are not yet present.

[xiombarg]

Again, I strongly like the use of Pentacles as a support suit - though I might suggest implementing a Trollbabe mechanic too, where if you have the appropriate Court Card, you can insert yourself into a scene where you are not yet present.

Good point -- the Pentacles are intended to be capable of doing that. I'll add a footnote to that effect.

I've also added a section on using and capturing Clow Cards, which is keyed to character advancement. Again, I'm curious to hear what you think.

Other people are welcome to comment as well. ;-D

P.S. Yeah, the character I'm referring to is the boy in the robes.

[xiombarg]

Okay, I've finished the game. It probably needs editing, and I need to thow some pictures in to relieve the text, but there you go.

http://ivanhoeunbound.com/ccc.html

If anyone has seen the show, I'm curious what they think of the Clow Cards mechanics.

Regardless, I'd love any comments on any aspect of the game, particularly game-mechanically speaking.

[roleplyr4ever]

I love your game. It has all the detail, and all the simpilism I needed, since my friends were wanting an easy, fast, and fun (but still has a challenge). We have to play at lunch time, CCC is perfecto! We can all print one off and play! ( I dont use the actual clow deck, but I do use a mystick deck for tarot).

                          Thank you!

P.S. If you do add pictures, make sure you still have a text copy. and, if you could, make some tables, and an official character sheet, that would be SO cool!

[xiombarg]

Excellent, I'm glad you enjoyed it.

I'll be sure to have a "clean text" version if I get around to making it more spiffy.

[roleplyr4ever]

O, and if it wouldn't be that much trouble, could you come up with a system that used dice instead of tarot cards? I mean, I love your tarot system and all, but its hard to lug that much stuff to lunch everyday. It would be easier to use dice as a "portable" version.

         I know I am asking alot, but if you do this I am sure me and my friends will continue to play for a long time!

P.S. I made a character sheet. If you want to, email me your email, and I will send you a copy!  

mnduelist@yahoo.com
THANK YOU AHEAD OF TIME!

[xiombarg]

If I have time today I'm going to do an edit of the game. I'm not sure how I would adapt it to using dice -- the mechanic, particularly the Major Arcana mechanic, would be hard to simulate using dice.

Most bookstores, and certainly most occult stores, have miniature Tarot decks that fit easily in the pocket and can be used for the game. If everyone having their own deck is awkward, I think that you could have everyone draw from the same deck, without changing the dynamic TOO much...

I don't see cards as a problem for lunchtime play, considering the number of Magic: the Gathering games I used to play during lunch breaks...

My email is available here on my profile here on the Forge, but here it is: mailto:xiombarg@io.com">xiombarg@io.com

[Shreyas Sampat]

Fir the Minor Arcana, you can use four different colours of dice, all of the same size.  Pull them randomly out of a bag and roll them to replenish your hand.  Unfortunately this doesn't account for faces; ideally you use d16s, and a fifth colour represents the court cards, and is proportionally rarer than the number cards.

You still have to have a way to get Major Arcana, though, and that's what sucks.

[Lxndr]

There are 78 different cards in the Tarot deck, between the minor and major arcana.  (14 minor arcana in each of four suits, 22 major arcana who are suitless)  I'm playing with some numbers here, so sue me.

Simultaneously roll 1d20 and 1d4.  If the 1d20 comes up between 1 and 14, then it's a minor arcana.  The d4 roll determines the suit.

On the other hand, if the 1d20 roll is between 15 and 20, then it's one of the major arcana.  That's 6 numbers (15,16,17,18,19,20) times four possibilities on the 4 sider (1,2,3,4), or 24 combinations total.  There's only 22 major arcana, so you need to fill in the other 2 positions with something else.  

No dice scheme will replace the dynamic of a real deck, because your first draw is from 78 cards, but your 2nd draw is from 77 cards, and so on.  Your two additional values should somehow replace that dynamic with something as interesting, but I don't know what.

[Shreyas Sampat]

The last two possibilities, of course, are sneaky metagame things that you have to do RIGHT NOW, like, say "take a card from another player and roll a new card for them" or "discard a card in your hand and roll two new cards".  Unfortunately both of those have rerolls in them, which are ugly.