anyone interested in a small Keys project?

[Paul Czege]

So, a few months ago I ran across the Skyknights RPG. And dang if the game's motivations wouldn't be an interesting fit if converted to TSOY Keys:

http://www.skyknightsrpg.com/Ver2/motivation.htm

Anyway, my plan was to contact the Skyknights author and ask if I could convert the motivations to Keys and post them to the TSOY wiki, along with a nice citation and link to his labor-of-love RPG. Except I haven't done it. I keep back-burnering it.

So I thought I'd toss it out here. Does anyone else think the Skyknights motivations are cool and have an interest in jumping on this?

Paul

[Niko]

I'm the author of that system and given how much I've cribbed from other things I've liked, feel free to appropriate whichever ideas you like.  Especially since I've back-burnered that setting somewhat in favor of my other one.  Knock yourself out.

Glad you thought it was a cool idea!

[Eero Tuovinen]

I figure these are all motivation-type keys. Although the originals seem to include some customization, I'm making these "generic"; you don't specify what you're protecting for the Motivation (Protection), for instance, but rather you find lots of things to protect to score it. The other way to do it would be Protection (X), where the player specifies what the character is protecting, exactly.

The way I did these, they might be a tad overpowered when mixed with the usual assortment of keys. Thus a rules change: when using these keys, there is no other motivation-type keys in the game. The only other possible keys are the 1-2-5 (what I've taken to calling "dramaturgic keys" in the Finnish edition), which are used for specific plot-related stuff that's not a generic motivation like these. Every character should have at least one Motivation key, and new ones cannot be created during the campaign. A character still cannot rebuy a key once lost.

Motivation (Glory)
1xp: Others recognize your glory.
3xp: Gain glory through your own efforts.
Buyoff: Let somebody else have the credit for your actions.

Motivation (Protection)
1xp: You decide to protect something.
3xp: You put yourself in the harm's way to protect another.
Buyoff: Betray your oath of protection.

Motivation (Duty)
1xp: You fulfill your duty.
3xp: You fulfill your duty despite danger or sacrifice.
Buyoff: Abandon your duty.

Motivation (Hedonism)
1xp: You refresh your pools.
3xp: You sacrifice other considerations for your own enjoyment.
Buyoff: Bypass a hedonistic opportunity.

Motivation (Ethics)
1xp: You choose the right thing.
3xp: You take a big risk for the right thing, even if you could walk away.
Buyoff: Choose the wrong thing.

Motivation (Loot!)
1xp: You succeed in your business.
3xp: You double your wealth.
Buyoff: Give away your wealth, and keep only what you can carry.

Motivation (Love)
1xp: Initiate or refresh a romantic relationship.
3xp: Consummate a romantic relationship.
Buyoff: Break off a romantic relationship.

Motivation (Hatred)
1xp: Express your hate.
3xp: Find a new reason for hatred.
Buyoff: Forgive your enemy.

Also, here's a couple of Secrets and abilities to appropriately emphasize the Motivations:

Secret of Motivation
Whenever you act according to any of your Motivation keys, gain a bonus die (cumulative, if you have several relevant Motivations). Whenever you act against any of your Motivation keys, suffer a penalty die (also cumulative).

Secret of Discerning Motivation
On a successful Discern truth check the player gains knowledge of the Motivation keys of the target character. He may also use his own pools as penalty dice (pool according to ability, max 1 per roll) for the target character in question whenever his character uses this knowledge against the target via taunts, kidnappings, or whatever. Cost: 1 Reason.

Secret of Obsession (Motivation)
Choose a Motivation key you have when you pick this secret. The character is obsessed about this motivation, and may brood on it when a suitable opportunity represents itself: in a scene of self-reflection and flashbacks the player rolls a Passion check, which becomes a pool of bonus dice to be used in fulfilling the motivation in some manner later on. The player may never use the key buyoff for this key if the character still has any unused dice from this secret. The secret is lost and an advance regained should the character lose the key in question. Cost: 2 from a pool appropriate for the motivation (Vigor for bodily urges, Reason for intellectual ones, etc.). Requirement: Secret of Motivation, some Motivation key.

Passion (Instinct)
This is the character's ability to act on his motivations, pure and true. It can be used for impressing others with the depth of your passion and sincerity when acting according to the character's established motivation. It can also be used as a support ability in any conflict where a soliloquy on the subject of the motivation is appropriate.