A Variant on SAs

[Holt]

With all the talk about Spiritual Attributes, I've been thinking about them a lot.

While thinking, I thought of a different way that SAa could work...please keep in mind that this is just off the top of my head, with no actual playtesting or feedback (which is why I'm posting it...to get feedback) :)

In the variant, a character's SAs do not have a value. Instead, the players only get dice when they do something towards that SA...they then get to use those dice for the thing that they are attempting to do. Once the scene is over, the dice convert to experience which can then be spent at the end of the session, perhaps with the amount of dice that get converted being altered by the Seneschal for good roleplaying, etc.

The amount of dice gained is determined by the Seneschal according to how important the action is to the player's character, up to a max of five dice.

e.g. A knight with a Passion (Lady love) overhears unkind remarks about his love while feasting at his lord's table. The player appeals to the Seneschal for extra dice to use in an attempt at Ridicule, to belittle the man speaking so that his love's blushes would be spared. The Seneschal decides that deserves a single die, because the knight cannot possibly sit their and do nothing, but it is not life threatening or momentous. The knight rolls and turns the tables on the man, making him the laughing stock of the table. The player then claims the die that was awarded as experience.
However, the man that the knight ridiculed, gets angry and challenges the knight to a duel. The man leaps up from the table and reveals himself to be the killer of the knight's father (cue dramatic music). The man proclaims to all present that he will kill the knight and then go to bed his woman. This time the player appeals to the Seneschal for extra dice for both his Passion (Lady love) and his Drive (avenge Father's murder). The Seneschal decides that the player can get 5 dice for both, because it's serious and/or momentous and the situation is life threatening.

One area where I can see a problem is that this would probably end up with character's gaining too much experience each session. So, perhaps they only gain half or a quarter of the total bonus dice earned as actual experience.

An exception would be Luck, which people either have, or not. Perhaps Luck could be earned through the whim of the Seneschal, for making the group laugh, or a particularly good idea (luck is fickle after all)...or if more structure was required, Luck could be earned through experience...for instance, one point of Luck for every ten points of experience (or something similar). Of course, Luck would then have to be 'used up' once the scene that it is used in is over...otherwise it would build up too much.

This variation, would avoid the situation where a player has spent many of his SAs for improving his character and then finds himself facing his Father's killer...etc, with no dice to use.

I'm not trying to say that the current way of using SAs is wrong...I'm just putting an idea out into the forum to see what it stirs up.

Regards

-Holt

[Ron Edwards]

Hi Holt,

Are you familiar with the Obsession rules in Unknown Armies? They work this way, to a large extent. A character has an "obsession" written out (goal, ideology, what-have-you) and actions taken in accord with it, or use of one of your skills which is designated your "obsession" skill, have a significant bonus. In fact, doing one of these two things is the only way to get a chance of success over 55%.

UA also includes three linear diagrams called Madness Meters which designate how flipped-out (at one end) and how hardened/callous (at the other) that the character is becoming. These are also factored into skill-rolling on occasion.

Best,
Ron

[Holt]

Hi Ron,

No, I've never read UA. I've seen it in my local store, but I've never picked it up. Maybe I'll give it a look the next time I'm there.  

Regards

-Holt