M:COTEC - State Of The Game & More Trait Design

[RobMuadib]

Greetings starfighters

For our new viewers, I'd thought I'd provide a state of the game address
defining the basic outline of the game as it stands, which will hopefully
provide some context within which to understand what I am asking about,
and hopefully elicit better feedback from those of you willing and
interested in offering some comments. So, without further ado -



Megamyrian:Chronicles Of The Eternal Cycle
- State Of The Game -


The focus of Megamyrian is creating worlds collaboratively. That is, it
instructs the players to collaborate to create the worlds upon which they
stage their narratives. They do this by creating, in detail, the various
peoples and nations, meta-abilities and special effects, weapons, vehicles
and equipment that give the world its particular rich look, flavor and
distinctive feel. This is accomplished using one of Design Architectures,
which currently consist of the Trait Design Architecture and the Narrative
Environment Design Architecture.

In essence it is a toolkit. But it is not generic, it is best-suited to the
design of rich imaginative worlds with a focus upon panoramic, epic,
speculative, and mythic elements. The tools are designed to make
engaging, enthralling worlds that capture the imagination and interest of
the players. In short, getting to whats cool about a gameworld, focus on
that, define it in game terms, and have some fun romping around in your
new sand box. At least that is the concept and thrust I have for it. Anime's
style of vast action, epic visuals, and BIG climaxes has also played a part
in the shaping of my vision of the game. Cool, engaging, lush "visuals"
that draw you in and make you say whoa, are a lot of my focus in
creating the design tools But with a touch more than Verisimilitude,
allowing time to stop and smell the roses and obsess like a fan-boy on all
the cool stuff you have created.


The creating worlds collaboratively focus is built upon the ideas presented
in Aria: Canticle Of The Monomyth, Ars Magica, and the design oriented
modules of several games, such as Traveller, GURPS, HERO System,
EABA and CORPS.

This creation is grounded in a rich substrate of rules and mechanics. A
strong design process and mechanics base that provide
concrete, "exportable, extensible" game detail that can be shared among
different players and play groups. That is, it provides a detailed,
concrete "gearhead" rules base from which they players can create the
cool toys and great special effects of the game worlds they imagine. Think
of all the crunchiness of D20's feat chains and prestige classess, but you
create them instead of coughing up for a splatbook.


To capitalize upon this rules base, the game is designed to reward and
encourage the players to use the creation systems in designing the
elements of any particular world in which they may be playing. This is
done by moving beyond the typical RPG play style of one GM, and
several players, where the majority of the design elements, and the
control "mechanics" are reserved to the GM. In Megamyrian: Chronicles
Of The Eternal Cycle, each player is empowered to create elements of the
game world, and is rewarded for doing so in terms of "Nomenar", the
super-meta currency of the game. This creation is accomplished by
means of the Trait Design Architecture, for desiging entities, and the
Narrative Environment Design Architecture, for designing the larger world
elements, the societies, races, cultures, etc of the world.

The Nomenar allow the players with the means to introduce created
elements and entities into the game narrative/situation. To
exercise "Narrative" control over events of a particular production, and
otherwise shape and drive the game towards the scenes/set-pieces that
interest them, through the mechanism of Scripts. Scripts fall into five
types, casting, agent, narration, direction, and storyboard, which differ
based on the type of control they provide over the narrative and narrative
environment. Production scripts are the sixth type of scripts, but differ in
that they offer creative control over the whole of the production, rather
individual elements of the narrative or narrative environment.

This power has checks and balances among all the players, through the
use of the Rewrites mechanic, in which you can call for a rewrite of a
Script you don't like, proposing changes that you find appealing.


This "Design Economy" is further supported by the games background
setting, it's "universe", The Megamyrian. The game is posited
to take place against a single vast universe of an infinite number
of worlds, each related among this dynamic persistent universe. This is
supported by the universes mythos, which provides for a commonality
of travel and a codification of "reality" among these different worlds,
as well as an explanation of the constant creation and destruction of
new worlds, the Eternal Cycle mentioned in the games title. It also
allows for a "meta-plot" elements of eternal characters and universe
spanning entities and situations.

To summarize, the game system provides a rules system for creating
worlds collaborative and collaborating to stage narratives within them. By
using the "Design Architectures" provided the players collaborate to stage
a "Production". Creating a particular world cooperatively, deciding upon
and designing, and detailing through the mechanics the particular
elements of that world, it's peoples/nations, magic and mysteries, and
technologies. By taking part in this design process, each player is
rewarded with "Nomenar" which grants him points to spend to influence
the ongoing production. The players are also rewarded for facillitating
other peoples play through acting in a Guide capacity, as well as helping
along play.

Thus, I believe Megamyrian:Chronicles Of The Eternal Cycle will stake out
an interesting niche in the new generation of "shared creation/control"
games, as evidence by Universalis and my own game. One based more in
an interest in "gearhead" details and "simulation" with an ongoing
showcase for the players cool toys and great special effects ideas,
created in collaboration and explored in cooperation.

[RobMuadib]

To those viewers still with us,

Hey, with the preamble of what my vision for the game out of the way,
providing some context, I am looking for feedback on my Trait Design
Architecture concept. (link to
80 page PDF with
new and improved introduction for people wanting extra credit.)

In a nutshell the trait design architecture is a system by which you are
able to design the individual traits of game entities. Each trait provides the
entity with one, or more, abilities, capacities, capabilities, or in the case of
disadvantage traits, disabilities. Currently, each trait is designed by
picking an Effect Template, which defines the mechanical effects of the
ability provided by the trait. Effect templates include things like Generic
Act Effect Template, Damage Effect Template, Modify Trait Effect
Template, Movement Effect Template, Summon Effect Template, Contact
Effect Template, Knowledge Effect Template, Talent Effect Template, etc.


In addition to the effect template, you define six other ability
characteristics of the trait, being the Meta-type, Detectability, The ability
characteristics (and their abbreviations) are Meta-Type (META),
detectability (DET), target (TGT), range (RNG), time (TIME), duration
(DTN), and the effects template (EFX). The meta-type (META) ability
characteristic defines the area of being that an ability derives from, be it
physical, mental, or empathic, social, technological, etc. The detectability
(DET) ability characteristic defines by what means the use of the ability is
detectable. The target (TGT) ability characteristic defines what the target
of ability can be, be it the entity's self, an object or individual, etc. The
range (RNG) ability characteristic defines the distance the target can be
from the entity using the ability provided by the trait. The time (TIME)
ability characteristic defines how much game time the entity using the
ability must spend at using the ability for it take effect. The duration
(DTN) ability characteristic defines how long the effects of the ability last
within the game.


Now, the way you design an Trait is by modifying the default ability
profile, shown below. Taking the default value for an ability characteristic,
that is the value defined in the default ability profile, has a +0 Cost Factor
modifier. Taking a different value is either a + cost factor mod if it
enhances ability, or a negative if it limits the ability. You then add up all
the Cost factor mods to get the final cost factor which determines the cost
per point of the trait score (corresponds to triangular progression x 1 +/-
.1 /cost factor mod.) In addition, there ability enhancements and ability
limitations, that can be applied to particular effects, adding another cost
factor modifier.


Perform (meta-type) [META] Act that has (Standard) [Detectability (DET)]
on a (single Obj/Ind) [Target (TGT)] at (Reach/No Range) [Range (RNG)]
by taking (1 second) [Time (TIME)] to cause a (general action ) [Effects
(EFX)], with an (instant) [Duration (DTN)].

Allright, so given this outline, I am wondering if anyone has any ideas on
a better way to structure these "pieces" into a system. Would I be better
off doing something similar to attributes in tri-stat DX, defining my
generic effect templates, allowing different abilities to be constructed that
way. With the effect template determining if there are additional ability
characteristics and their defaults, or some other arrangement?. Also, any
comments on elements of the working draft of the TDA.

Thanks for your interest. *cough*mike*cough*

[Mike Holmes]

LoL. Give me a bit, OK? :-)

Meanwhile, if anyone else is interested....Help!

Mike