Cerberus: The Game of Three-Headed Underworld Guardians

[Elazair]

Hi all. This is my first post here at the Forge.

This is also my first RPG. I know the system is a little wonky at the moment. Any feedback and criticism would be most welcome. I wrote it the other day and posted it to RPGnet, and well, they seemed to think I should post it here, so here it is :)





CERBERUS
The Game of Three-Headed Underworld Guardians


Cerberus, cruel monster, fierce and strange,
Through his wide threefold throat barks as a dog
Over the multitude immers'd beneath.
His eyes glare crimson, black his unctuous beard,
His belly large, and claw'd the hands, with which
He tears the spirits, flays them, and their limbs
Piecemeal disparts.

-Dante Alighieri, The Divine Comedy

Lovable, cuddly, soul-devouring: all words that could be used to describe Cerberus, the Hound of Hades, the giant three-headed dog who guards the gates of the ancient Greek Underworld.

The terrible offspring of Echidna and Typhon, Cerby is one of mythology's best-loved monsters. What most people don't know is, Cerberus is more than just a watchdog. He also acts as the Underworld's unofficial sheriff and enforcer, keeping the souls in line and upholding the rule of his master Hades.

Now, players have the chance to take on the role of one of Cerberus' three heads. Together, they'll keep the afterlife running smoothly... if they can just agree with each other.


Character Generation

In order to play Cerberus, you will need exactly four people: one player for each of the three heads, and one person to act as GM (which stands for 'Greek Muse'). You will also need pencils, paper and a bunch of d10s.

First, each player must choose which head he wishes to portray. The three heads are Ena, Dio and Tria, and each of them possess a different special power: Ena breathes scorching fire; Dio can take on a terrifying aspect; and Tria perceives lies and judges souls.

Each head has two 'mental attributes' associated with it: Psyche, which indicates how cunning and willful the head is, and is used for activating its special powers; and Ego, which indicates how powerful the head is. All three heads start with both of these attributes at 3.

The body of Cerberus (common to all three players) possesses two 'body attributes': Dynamic, a measure of strength and physical power; and Stamina, which tracks physical well-being and health. Each player writes these attributes down as 5. Whenever these two attributes change, they are altered on all three players' sheets.

Finally, each player should consider how they wish to portray their chosen head's personality. As a guideline, Ena is fiery and hot-headed; Dio is cruel, strange and mysterious; and Tria is wise, honest and calm.


Tasks

Cerberus has many opportunities for conflict in his monstrous life, whether he is chasing down a renegade human soul or wrestling with his nemesis Heracles.

Whenever Cerberus wishes to accomplish an action, his heads must choose which one of them is in charge. This head then becomes the 'active head'. In order to overcome an obstacle, the player of the active head rolls a number of d10s equal to his heads Psyche. If any of them come up equal to or less than the body attribute in question (usually Dynamic), these dice are successes. Usually, only one success will be needed to accomplish a certain task, but sometimes the GM may ask for more.

Example: Dio is chosen by the heads to control Cerberus as he attempts to leap across the River Acheron. Dio currently has a Psyche of 4. The GM rules that the leap requires physical strength, and so the appropriate body attribute is Dynamic, currently at 5. Dio's player therefore rolls 4 d10s for a result of 10, 6, 9, 3. One of the dice rolled is below 5, so Dio has rolled 1 success, enough to complete the leap.
If, however, the players had attempted to leap onto Charon's ferry in the middle of the River Acheron, the GM might have decided that this more difficult feat required 2 successes. If this had been the case, Dio's result would not have been enough to succeed at the attempt.

In determining which body attribute applies to a certain situation, Dynamic is usually used for all physical conflict or feats of strength or agility, while Stamina is used when resisting extreme temperatures, poison, drowning, etc.

If the active head succeeds at a task, it gains 1 point of either Ego or Psyche. If, however, it fails at a task, it loses 1 point of Ego or Psyche. In both cases, the attribute gained or lost is chosen by the player of the active head. No mental attribute may ever fall below 1.


Opposed Tasks

When engaged in a struggle against an opponent of any kind, the system is exactly the same: choose active head, roll a number of dice equal to Psyche, compare the result to the Dynamic attribute. The difference is, the opponent does the same thing. The one with the highest number of successes wins the combat round. If a draw is rolled, both combatants roll again until a victor is decided.

If Cerberus wins or loses the round, the primary head gains or loses Ego or Psyche as normal. Also, the loser of the round loses 1 point of Stamina. Any creature reduced to zero Stamina is defeated, otherwise the combat continues. A new active head may be chosen each round of combat. If Cerberus is reduced to zero Stamina he is defeated; however, Hades will restore him within a day, and most likely punish whoever harmed him.

Example: Cerberus is locked in combat with an angry Hecatonchire, one of the hundred-armed giants that guard the entrance to the depths of Tartarus. The Hecatonchire is immensely strong but fragile and a little dim. He has attribute scores of Psyche 2, Dynamic 7, and Stamina 2. In the first combat round, Tria is selected as the active head; he currently has Psyche 5, and Cerberus still has Dynamic 5. Tria's player rolls 5 dice, while the GM rolls 2 for the Hecatonchire. The Hecatonchire rolls 8 and 2: 1 success. Tria rolls 9, 7, 7, 2 and 2: a total of 2 successes. Cerberus wins this round of combat, the Hecatonchire is reduced to 1 remaining Stamina and Tria's player selects either Psyche or Ego in which to gain a point.

When attempting to resist the mental effects of an assailant, for example the music of Orpheus' lyre, the head with the highest Psyche automatically becomes the active head (if this is even, players decide). Both assailant and Cerberus make Psyche rolls with a success target of 4 or lower; if Cerberus has more successes, he is unaffected and the player of the active head is rewarded as normal.


The Heads – Struggle for Dominance

The three heads of Cerberus do not always agree over the best direction for his body to take. Whenever trying to determine whether Cerberus goes somewhere, talks to someone, or performs any other simple task, the players must all agree or it simply does not occur.

In the case of more advanced tasks like the ones described in the previous section, for example, climbing a sheer cliff face in Acherusia or battling with one of the Furies, an individual head may attempt to gain control over the others. Instead of simply deciding who gets to be the active head, the player of a head with an Ego attribute of 5 or more may try to Dominate, i.e. automatically become the active head for the task in question.

A player with 5 Ego or more simply announces his desire to Dominate whenever an active head would normally need to be decided. All heads then roll their Ego with a success target of 4 or lower. If the head attempting to Dominate has the most successes, it becomes the active head for the task, accepting all the usual rewards for success and penalties for failure. If, however, another head rolls more successes than the one attempting to Dominate, the Dominating head loses 1 Ego. In addition, the head attempting to Dominate loses 1 point of Ego for each 10 that comes up on its Ego roll, whether or not it wins the roll.


The Heads - Powers

The three heads of the Hound of Hades are not identical. Each of them has a special supernatural power that they can choose to activate at the cost of 1 point of Psyche.

Ena's flame and Dio's fright powers may be used during combat, instead of a normal opposed Dynamic roll. In order to use their powers, they must be the active head. If they are not the active head, a Dominate roll must be made as usual in order to become the active head.

All three heads, however, may use their powers outside of normal combat and tasks – Ena to burn inanimate objects, Dio to frighten non-combatants, and Tria to read lies and spot evil during conversations. If a head wishes to use its powers like this, an active head must be chosen as if a task was occurring; this means that if another player disagress, it may be necessary for a head to Dominate before it can even use its powers. When the powers are used, the active head receives a bonus or penalty depending on whether or not the powers worked, exactly as if a normal task or combat round had occurred. The three powers are as follows:

Ena – Breathes flame from its mouth. Against inanimate objects, this usually ignites all but the most inflammable things. Against enemies in combat, this ability grants 3 additional dice for the round, exactly as if Ena had 3 more Psyche than its current score. This attack may also be used to fight multiple enemies at once, for example a field full of angry lost souls.

Dio – Takes on a terrifying form that causes men's hearts to freeze from horror. This works just like the rules for mental attacks above: Dio and the enemy both roll their Psyche in dice, with a success target of 4 or lower. Dio gains 2 extra Psyche dice for the purposes of this attack only. If the enemy succeeds, there is no effect. If Dio succeeds, the enemy flees in abject terror or cowers in a gibbering mass on the ground. This ability works against large groups of enemies – anyone who can see Cerberus is affected. Against mighty enemies (Gods, Titans, Underworld monsters, etc.) this ability may only cow or persuade them, or it may not work at all (GM's discretion).

Tria – Sees through the veil of lies, into the truth of a man's soul. Against mortals or mortal souls, this ability never needs to be rolled for – it always works. It allows Tria to instantly tell if a person is lying, if they are naturally good or evil in nature, if they harbour any ill will towards Cerberus or his master Hades, or if they are keeping secrets of any kind. Against greater beings, opposing Psyche dice are rolled, exactly as for Dio above (including the 2 bonus dice).


Adventures

The Underworld is a vast place, even for a dog as big as Cerberus. There are always problems with mortal souls trying to get out, or meddlesome heroes trying to get in. But the denizens of the Underworld know that Cerberus is Hades' loyal enforcer, and they know that crossing him means crossing Hades.

Adventures in the Underworld could take many forms. Perhaps someone has defied the laws of Hades by bringing food to Tantalus, or by shattering the rock of Sisyphus; now Cerberus must interrogate the other souls to figure out who or what it was, and bring them to justice.

It could be that Cerberus is required to venture deep into the lowest leves of Tartarus on a mission to speak with the dead monster Typhon, who happens to be Cerberus' father. Such a journey would require crossing Phlegeston the river of boiling blood, outwitting the Furies and the Hecatonchire who guard the triple citadel walls, and finally battling the black-mawed hydra that lies beyond the gates of adamant. Then there's Typhon himself...

Maybe Cerberus has even been granted special leave to venture forth from the Underworld into the real world, there to search for Heracles, the only man who has ever beaten him in mortal combat. When Cerberus finds that Heracles is now a God in his own right, he may have to concoct a plan to lure him down from Mount Olympus for one last showdown.

Whatever adventures you undertake in the Underworld, players should remember a few tips:

1.   The game works better when you take turns in control. That way, Cerberus as a whole is strengthened.
2.   Do what Master says. There are times when you may resent Hades' rule and his orders, but the Lord of the Underworld is a dangerous God to cross.
3.   Beware of things that look like they could put you to sleep. The big dog has only been defeated once in combat, and that was by Heracles. The other times, he was lulled to sleep by music, drugged honeycakes and water from the river Lethe. So if someone tries to offer you some honeycakes, just say no.


Conclusion

There are other ways Cerberus could be adapted. For example, if you only have two players and one GM, consider playing the role of Orthrus. Orthrus was Cerberus' brother, a monstrous two-headed dog who guarded the giant Geryon's herd of cattle on the island of Erytheia.
Or you could write some totally new rules and play as the Chimera (another brother of Cerberus) with one player for each of the heads: dragon, goat and lion!

Above all, enjoy.

[Elazair]

Lots of views and no replies...

So does this mean it's unspeakably bad? Or just really average?

Seriously, any kind of criticism or feedback would be great. Don't hesitate to tell me what sucks about it :)

[dalek_of_god]

I haven't looked at this in enough detail to know what parts will or will not work, mechanics wise. I can, however, tell you what I find most interesting - the heads' struggle for dominance.

Having multiple players vying for control of what is essentially a single character is not something I've seen before. (Although, maybe I don't get out much.) It would seem to me that this is the "something different" that you should focus on. Especially given the fact that most of Echidna's children had multiple heads. I mean, she was the mother of the Hydra! Plus the GM would never have to worry about the party splitting up.

The rules for dominating other heads had me wondering what would happen if conceding dominance wasn't possible. For example, if you are trying to decide whether to trust some upstart Hero you really want Tria making the decisions. But what if the players had to struggle for control anyway? If the third head was weak, then a less able one may end up making the (bad) decisions. That may not be where you want the game to go, but it's something to think about. With the right focus this game could turn a traditional source of stress (group decision making/choosing a leader) into the main object of play.

[Elazair]

I haven't looked at this in enough detail to know what parts will or will not work, mechanics wise. I can, however, tell you what I find most interesting - the heads' struggle for dominance.

Having multiple players vying for control of what is essentially a single character is not something I've seen before. (Although, maybe I don't get out much.) It would seem to me that this is the "something different" that you should focus on. Especially given the fact that most of Echidna's children had multiple heads. I mean, she was the mother of the Hydra! Plus the GM would never have to worry about the party splitting up.

The rules for dominating other heads had me wondering what would happen if conceding dominance wasn't possible. For example, if you are trying to decide whether to trust some upstart Hero you really want Tria making the decisions. But what if the players had to struggle for control anyway? If the third head was weak, then a less able one may end up making the (bad) decisions. That may not be where you want the game to go, but it's something to think about. With the right focus this game could turn a traditional source of stress (group decision making/choosing a leader) into the main object of play.

That's very interesting. I can see how that would make it a very differently-focussed game. I might have to uproot and redo a lot of the mechanics for that though, and i'm not quite sure how :)
But i agree with you that that aspect is probably the major 'something different' that it has going for it.

[b_bankhead]

You know ,reading this makes me think you should knock the end out of the entire condept. How about a game from the point of view of the monsters of Greek mythology? Hydra,Python, the whole bit. After 3000 years it's about time we got to hear their side of the story.

[Eero Tuovinen]

As an alternative to mr. Bankhead's proposition, tighten the game up; it'll make a good minigame! Foremost, consider adding a clear campaign structure that controls what the play is about and tells when to stop. Like MLwM or WGP, for example. For a one-idea game these are a good idea, because you can't really expect the players to come up with infinite variations of such a tight premise.

I can't readily name a suitable campaign arc, but it might simply be a tour-de-force of Greek myth, without overt theme. Or it could be about the relationship of the dog and his master, and the eventual choice between submission and freedom. Cerberos is a very static figure, as behits Greek myth, so there's no obvious viewpoint here.

In any case, the premise is hilarious, made my day. The rules don't carry out so well, necessarily: for instance, you'd really need the option of cooperation between the heads, to support the idea that Cerberos is at his most dangerous when the heads all agree. This should of course be balanced with the idea that only one can take charge at a time. Perhaps let all heads bid power in a challenge (towards different goals if desired, of course), but double the value of the leader's bid?

The more I consider it, the more this seems like a good candidate for a no-GM game of boadgame proportions rather than pure roleplaying game. It's tight enough for that, and we are slowly gaining the tools to build true hybrids between the forms.

[Elazair]

As an alternative to mr. Bankhead's proposition, tighten the game up; it'll make a good minigame! Foremost, consider adding a clear campaign structure that controls what the play is about and tells when to stop. Like MLwM or WGP, for example. For a one-idea game these are a good idea, because you can't really expect the players to come up with infinite variations of such a tight premise.

I can't readily name a suitable campaign arc, but it might simply be a tour-de-force of Greek myth, without overt theme. Or it could be about the relationship of the dog and his master, and the eventual choice between submission and freedom. Cerberos is a very static figure, as behits Greek myth, so there's no obvious viewpoint here.

In any case, the premise is hilarious, made my day. The rules don't carry out so well, necessarily: for instance, you'd really need the option of cooperation between the heads, to support the idea that Cerberos is at his most dangerous when the heads all agree. This should of course be balanced with the idea that only one can take charge at a time. Perhaps let all heads bid power in a challenge (towards different goals if desired, of course), but double the value of the leader's bid?

The more I consider it, the more this seems like a good candidate for a no-GM game of boadgame proportions rather than pure roleplaying game. It's tight enough for that, and we are slowly gaining the tools to build true hybrids between the forms.

Thanks for the comments.

I love the bidding for power idea. GM-less i'm not so sure about. Would the heads bid to see who narrates the scenes? Or would there be a fixed story-book and map with keyed events in areas?

That's certainly a game i'd play, but kinda different from what i'd envisaged for this. The idea of 'hybrid' games is intriguing though. Like i said, i'm new here on the Forge. Can you point me to any good threads on these hybrid game forms?

Again, thanks for the comments and advice everyone.

[Eero Tuovinen]

I love the bidding for power idea. GM-less i'm not so sure about. Would the heads bid to see who narrates the scenes? Or would there be a fixed story-book and map with keyed events in areas?

The fixed story book is certainly one option, although a very different one. Check out games like Universalis, Polaris and PTA for examples of designs that hardly need a GM. Consider the possibility of the GM really being a redundant part of design, and sometimes he'll just go away. Some times you'll still need him, but don't include him just because that's how it's usually done.

A simple option would be to let the current dominant head narrate the scene, but that could easily become a too solitary pursuit. Consider letting the losing head narrate, or defining areas of narration, so that one head narrates violence, another narrates NPC social reactions, and so on.

The real problem in going with shared GM is in plotting, though: the narration takes care of itself, but somehow you'd have to offer rules to drive the game towards something. What that something is, you will have to decide yourself.

That's certainly a game i'd play, but kinda different from what i'd envisaged for this. The idea of 'hybrid' games is intriguing though. Like i said, i'm new here on the Forge. Can you point me to any good threads on these hybrid game forms?

The idea is still emerging, but the best introduction is probably reading through the last Iron Game Chef thread; the games in that suggest some directions very strongly. An easy access point is the IGC Index.

[daMoose_Neo]

Agreed- GM-less games aren't all that difficult to design for or play.
My Imp Game uses a "Dungeon Master" for one part- the introduction. In this, he lays out the goal for the session, and thats pretty much it. The characters are such that they're recieving orders, so its understood that not going about that means trouble for them (Players are Imps following the orders of their Master). The system itself uses a die mechanic set up so the DM doesn't need to do anything- the players and dice do it all themselves.
One major plus to these is that there is rarely an incredible need for preperation. You already have quite a bit built into the game, the players being Cerebrus following Hades' directives, so I'd say you now need some way to formally introduce elements (Okay, we're going to the surface today!) and allow all players to do so (possibly putting a challenge up to one of Cerebrus' other heads nets you something you can use for some spotlight time as well)

[Sydney Freedberg]

If we're thinking GM-less hybrid games, why not write up a deck full of cards each with a different mission or situation on it? That handles Nate's "today, we go to the surface!" idea, or "here comes that Hercules guy again," or "Cerebus has worms," or whatever. Heck, you could even put any relevant game statistics for the opposition on the card. Who needs a GM?

[daMoose_Neo]

This could work as even a little card/RPG hybred.
Each head has Influance which they can use to introduce cards?