Questions For Capes Lite

[LandonSuffered]

I really want to run Capes for some friends that are going to be spending the next couple days with us.  We plan on seeing Iron Man, and I’m sure we’ll be inspired for some wa-hoo superhero action!

I don’t actually own Capes, but have downloaded the Capes Lite rules and have watched the Flash presentation on the web-site.  I think I know enough to get started but I still have some questions about the rules:

1.   Can more than one person stake debt on a particular side of a single conflict? For example, Player A and Player B both want to stake debt on Kill the Hostages, Player C and Player D both want to stake debt to oppose.

2.   Follow-up to question to #1: if more than one player can stake debt, does that mean that a single token can be staked to split a dice?  For example: Player A personally stakes 3 debt to split a 4 into a 2, 1, 1; can Player B stake 1 debt to turn the 2 into a 1, 1 (total value: 1, 1, 1, 1)?

3.   When splitting a die by staking debt can the value ever be less than 1?  For example, a die value is 2…I want to stake 3 Debt to split it into 1, 1, 0, then roll up the 0 (and any roll will do to increase the value).

4.   Can debt be staked at any time, or only during a player’s Action?

5.   Since an ability needs to be equal to or greater than a die to re-roll it, a 6 can only be re-rolled after first splitting it by staking debt, right?

6.   When a second character is added by a player using a story token, when does that character’s Action take place on a page?   At the same time as the original character? After all other player’s Actions are completed?

7.   If Inspiration can only be used to turn a die value UP, then what purpose is it to be awarded an Inspiration of 1?  Is Inspiration a pool? From the Flash example, and the text, it appears that Inspiration needs to be used in the blocks that it is awarded.  But Inspiration can’t be used to turn a die value DOWN, so what good is a block 1???!!!

8.   Can Inspiration only be spent during a character’s Action?  Or can it be spent at any time (like the Story Tokens)?

9.   If a player wins a conflict like “Kill Player B’s Character,” what does the Player B do with her next turn/Action?  Does she immediately create a new character to play?  Is she allowed to create a new character?  Or is she simply “out of the game?”

10.   If an Overdrawn character is KILLED in a scene (assuming the player has at least one more character available, from a Story Token, for example) the debt disappears with the character?

11.   Debt is assigned to characters while Story Tokens and Inspiration are assigned to players?


Finally, I want to make certain I understand the Overdrawn rules; please correct me if any of the following is wrong:

-   Characters are Overdrawn, not Players
-   When reviewing which dice a character is “allied” with it is possible for a character to be allied with multiple conflicts (because he may have acted/reacted in more than one resolved conflict)
-   HOWEVER, only one die (the highest) is re-rolled
-   This check and re-roll happens only once per page and AT THE BEGINNING, before all other actions (including Claiming conflicts)

Thanks for your help folks!!!  I am excited to play!

[JohnUghrin]

Howdy, I won't claim to be the world's most profound Capes expert, but I'll take a crack at answering as I understand the rules.

1.   Can more than one person stake debt on a particular side of a single conflict? For example, Player A and Player B both want to stake debt on Kill the Hostages, Player C and Player D both want to stake debt to oppose.

Yes.

2.   Follow-up to question to #1: if more than one player can stake debt, does that mean that a single token can be staked to split a dice?  For example: Player A personally stakes 3 debt to split a 4 into a 2, 1, 1; can Player B stake 1 debt to turn the 2 into a 1, 1 (total value: 1, 1, 1, 1)?

umm...no? I'm pretty sure that he'd still need to invest two debt to split the 2.

3.   When splitting a die by staking debt can the value ever be less than 1?  For example, a die value is 2…I want to stake 3 Debt to split it into 1, 1, 0, then roll up the 0 (and any roll will do to increase the value).

I don't think so, although that's an interesting concept.

4.   Can debt be staked at any time, or only during a player’s Action?

Only during a Character's Action, although it can be done before and/or after rolling&reactions.

5.   Since an ability needs to be equal to or greater than a die to re-roll it, a 6 can only be re-rolled after first splitting it by staking debt, right?

Correct.

6.   When a second character is added by a player using a story token, when does that character’s Action take place on a page?   At the same time as the original character? After all other player’s Actions are completed?

I just play them in order around the table.

7.   If Inspiration can only be used to turn a die value UP, then what purpose is it to be awarded an Inspiration of 1?  Is Inspiration a pool? From the Flash example, and the text, it appears that Inspiration needs to be used in the blocks that it is awarded.  But Inspiration can’t be used to turn a die value DOWN, so what good is a block 1???!!!

I actually was confused about this too. It turns out that during a character's action, you can narrate that character musing or reminiscing or brooding about an Inspiration to raise it. The character must use an ability that is at least the starting value of the Inspiration. This possibility doesn't get much press in the rules as it isn't all that interesting (mechanically speaking), and I'm not even sure its in Capes Lite.

8.   Can Inspiration only be spent during a character’s Action?  Or can it be spent at any time (like the Story Tokens)?

Only on your turn, and only if you're rolling a Conflict Die. You can't introduce a new conflict and then "Inspire" a side up. You can spend Inspiration before and/or after rolling the die.

9.   If a player wins a conflict like “Kill Player B’s Character,” what does the Player B do with her next turn/Action?  Does she immediately create a new character to play?  Is she allowed to create a new character?  Or is she simply “out of the game?”

Usually, "Killing Character's" is handled by the Comics code. I suppose that, technically, being dead is not particularly restrictive rules-wise, although the narration of a dead character using his/her abilities might be tricky.

10.   If an Overdrawn character is KILLED in a scene (assuming the player has at least one more character available, from a Story Token, for example) the debt disappears with the character?

I wouldn't say "disappears" because that character could return with all that debt later. Debt is "owned" by a character, not a player. Therefore, if the character goes away, then so does the Debt. That's a motivation for creating relatively disposable adversaries for your fellow players.  When Dr. Disposable loses a conflict, he may become overwhelmed with Debt, but YOU get to walk away with any Story Tokens you coaxed out of your fellow players Debt.

11.   Debt is assigned to characters while Story Tokens and Inspiration are assigned to players?

Yup.

Finally, I want to make certain I understand the Overdrawn rules; please correct me if any of the following is wrong:

-   Characters are Overdrawn, not Players
-   When reviewing which dice a character is “allied” with it is possible for a character to be allied with multiple conflicts (because he may have acted/reacted in more than one resolved conflict)
-   HOWEVER, only one die (the highest) is re-rolled
-   This check and re-roll happens only once per page and AT THE BEGINNING, before all other actions (including Claiming conflicts)

Yes.
Yes.
Yes.
umm...Yes although, offhand, I'm not sure it has to happen before claims, etc....

[JohnUghrin]

9.   If a player wins a conflict like “Kill Player B’s Character,” what does the Player B do with her next turn/Action?  Does she immediately create a new character to play?  Is she allowed to create a new character?  Or is she simply “out of the game?”

A better solution just occurred to me, veto the goal and suggest "Player B's Character is mortally wounded." That way he can play on while bleeding, etc.

Although, I'm not sure Vetoes are covered in Capes Lite.

[Uhlrik]

9.   If a player wins a conflict like “Kill Player B’s Character,” what does the Player B do with her next turn/Action?  Does she immediately create a new character to play?  Is she allowed to create a new character?  Or is she simply “out of the game?”

A better solution just occurred to me, veto the goal and suggest "Player B's Character is mortally wounded." That way he can play on while bleeding, etc.

Although, I'm not sure Vetoes are covered in Capes Lite.

IIRC (don't have my PDF to hand), you can't veto goals, just Events.

However, a character being dead does pretty much nothing to stop him from still influencing events in play. F'rex, say the Acid Master iskilled in mid-scene, but he has not used his "Dissolve Anything: 4" power yet. On the next page, his player can use that Power to influence the goal of "Rescue the Fair Maiden" by having some acid he sprayed earlier eat through  the supports of the catwalk that she's tied to, or using his "Menacing: 3" style to say that his mistreatment has left her so traumatised that she's too scared and in too much shock to take the hero's hand when he reaches across the chasm to save her.

Acid Master is dead as a doornail, but as a functional Character he's still in play.

Somewhere earlier in this forum, somebody else described how they brought their dead character into a scene that took place a considerable time after his demise, and used his Powers through remembrances of his former teammates, his traits that had been a good example to them, flashbacks that spurred them on and so on. The character (lower case C) was not physically in the scene, but the Character was.

[Stefan / 1of3]

IIRC (don't have my PDF to hand), you can't veto goals, just Events.

You can veto a goal if and only if it is a goal FOR a character you play. Say you play Capt. Proton and somebody else attempts to introduce: "Goal: Capt. Proton tries to flee". You can veto that, but then Capt. Proton can't flee. (He obviously doesn't want to.)