Previous Topics
In Universalis

12/5/2006 Zatt: First game's lessons…
Well, I played my first game of Universalis tonight, and was highly entertained to say the least. A couple of things that I learned from the experience: When framing a…
In Universalis
Participants: Zatt, demiurgeastaroth, Mike Holmes, Valamir.

11/13/2006 aedaren: More Complication Questions
Hey guys, I have a couple of questions about complications.  I read the rules (revised) thoroughly, and as far as I can tell, once the complication has started, anyone can…
In Universalis
Participants: aedaren, Mike Holmes, kayl.

10/23/2006 GB Steve: Universalis spotted in Forbidden Planet
I was browsing in Forbidden Planet on Friday night. It's the largest comic book, DVD and genre fiction outlet in London. They have a selection of RPGs, about 3 IKEA…
In Universalis
Participants: GB Steve, Salar, Tony Irwin, Valamir, Mike Holmes, Alex Fradera.

10/20/2006 GreatWolf: New Universalis review...on Boardgamegeek?
Weird but true.  Here is the link.
In Universalis
Participants: GreatWolf.

10/17/2006 aedaren: My First Uni Game + Confusion about complications
Hey everybody, I've been having a good time playing Universalis for the first time with some guys from the indie net gaming group.  We're using a wiki to play, and…
In Universalis
Participants: aedaren, Valamir, Trevis Martin.

10/13/2006 Zamiel: Theoretical Battlestar Galactica Play Example
One of the things I do when I'm trying to get a handle on how a game is played is work up a session / scene, with mechanical notation and…
In Universalis
Participants: Zamiel, Valamir.

10/12/2006 Zamiel: Complications and Stake-Setting
One of the things I've found particularly of interest in the new wave of indie RPG design is the idea of "stake setting," that is, conflicts are entered into with…
In Universalis
Participants: Zamiel, Valamir, Adam Dray, komradebob, Eero Tuovinen, pete_darby, Robotech_Master.

10/3/2006 Sovem: 2 player Universalis?
Is it possible to play Universalis, as written, with only two people? I tried it once, but it seemed that between two people, there just weren't enough coins to get…
In Universalis
Participants: Sovem, Aaron Smith, Valamir, Tony Irwin, Robotech_Master, Mike Holmes.

9/27/2006 REkz: Universalis -- any Rules Gimmicks to "FORCE RPG-like" vs 'story-telling' style?
Uni gamers, I just got my copy of Unversalis.  Exciting! My small group just did a run of Prime Time Adventures, which I really enjoyed, but I heard a regular…
In Universalis
Participants: REkz, Andrew Morris, Zamiel, Valamir, Call Me Curly, demiurgeastaroth, Danny2050.

9/21/2006 Sovem: Confusion with new scenes
If this question has been addressed somewhere else, forgive me. I'm a bit confused as to components and starting new scenes. The book states that when framing a new scene…
In Universalis
Participants: Sovem, Valamir.

9/12/2006 REkz: Re: Comments on Uni as a "storytelling game" vis-a-vis an RPG
[quote="Valamir"]Split from [url=http://www.indie-rpgs.com/forum/index.php?topic=17301.0]this thread[/url][/quote] Arturo, I was waiting to hear you say if you liked UNIVERSALIS or didn't like it after getting open-minded and buying it? My copy just arrived. …
In Universalis
Participants: REkz, Mike Holmes.

9/12/2006 Sovem: Dying to play
I am absolutely dying to try this game out, but I can't get my players to give it a chance for the life of me. To be fair, we're in…
In Universalis
Participants: Sovem, Trevis Martin, Mike Holmes.

8/18/2006 Karasu: Revised Edition?
Please excuse me if this has been answered elsewhere but, what are some of the key differences or clarifcations that would behoove an owner of of the first edition to…
In Universalis
Participants: Karasu, Valamir.

7/21/2006 Valamir: UNIVERSALIS REVISED NOW AVAILABLE !
The long wait is over at last.  The books came in from the printer last week and are now available for purchase. I'm pleased to announce that in addition to…
In Universalis
Participants: Valamir, hix, Nathan P., Aaron Smith, Tony Irwin, pigames, Zamiel, Nev the Deranged, oliof, Zatt, Valvorik.

6/1/2006 Valamir: Tell me about the physical quality
I'm in the process of collecting quotes for the Universalis Revised print job.  So far one of the most competitive quotes is from the same shop that did the last…
In Universalis
Participants: Valamir, Mike Holmes, Ron Edwards, GreatWolf, Aaron Smith, Andrew Morris, Arturo G., tetsujin28.

5/25/2006 Valamir: Universalis Revised Update
The first pass at the layout is back from Matt Snyder.  I think it looks very sharp with some new graphical elements giving it a more updated look. Right now…
In Universalis
Participants: Valamir, Mike Holmes, Tony Irwin, Aaron Smith, tetsujin28.

4/11/2006 matthijs: Ramshead site makes browser implode
I've had this problem in the past, and am having it again now: The Ramshead site causes IE to hang, with just a blank browser window. Wuzzup?
In Universalis
Participants: matthijs, Valamir, Heraldic Game Design, GreatWolf, wburdick, joshua neff.

4/11/2006 Equilibrium: Newbie
Hello I discovered Universalis about 2 years ago, I read the rules and my son and one other friend had a crack at it. We all enjoyed though my son…
In Universalis
Participants: Equilibrium, Mike Holmes, Valamir.

3/26/2006 Tony Irwin: 2nd edition
Hi folks, Any news on a second edition? Thanks, Tony
In Universalis
Participants: Tony Irwin, Valamir, Thunder_God, komradebob, kayl.

3/13/2006 Aaron Smith: Gaming in another system's Setting
Just an idea I had, idly leafing through my copy of Univeralis. Has anyone thought of, or done, a Univeralis game in an already established setting? A soap opera done…
In Universalis
Participants: Aaron Smith, komradebob, Mike Holmes, Sovem, Valamir, Zatt, demiurgeastaroth, Robotech_Master.

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Subsequent Topics
In Universalis

12/19/2006 Zatt: Using pre-made scenes.
One thing that I thought of while I've been readying myself for my upcoming Universalis story arc for our Warhammer 40,000 campaign was the idea of readying scenes. Here's the…
In Universalis
Participants: Zatt, Mike Holmes.

1/8/2007 TheGroog: My First Impression
Hello I first met Universalis about 2 years ago, with the first (?) edition. Myself, son and buddy merely dipped our feet but we had an underwater laugh with dolphins…
In Universalis
Participants: TheGroog, Valamir, Robotech_Master, hix.

1/20/2007 Robotech_Master: Interrupt interrogative
I was reading through the rules on Interrupts and something wasn't quite clear to me. Say there are four players, A, B, C, and D. It is player A's turn,…
In Universalis
Participants: Robotech_Master, Valamir, Mike Holmes.

1/21/2007 Robotech_Master: 2-page Play Aid: Free Dialog?
I was glancing at the 2-Page Play Aid on the Resources page, and happened to notice, under its list of things you could do at any time, it says that…
In Universalis
Participants: Robotech_Master.

1/23/2007 Robotech_Master: Looking to start chatserver game
I'm looking at starting a chatserver game of Universalis, to get better acquainted with the rules in the hope of running some live demos soon. In order to play, you'd…
In Universalis
Participants: Robotech_Master.

1/23/2007 Robotech_Master: Seeing Universalis everywhere I look...
It's funny--I've been so immersing myself in Universalis over the last couple of days that I'm starting to think of movies and TV shows and things in Universalis terms. "Luke…
In Universalis
Participants: Robotech_Master, Mike Holmes.

2/4/2007 Robotech_Master: First game: Slaves of Springfield
My first session of Universalis went pretty well, for all that there were only two players in it. I had arranged to give a "demo" at MetaGames, the local gaming…
In Universalis
Participants: Robotech_Master, Mike Holmes, Valvorik, Valamir.

2/7/2007 Robotech_Master: Ideas for Rules Gimmicks for Chatserver Play
I was just thinking about possible rules gimmicks for chatserver play, made necessary by the lack of visual contact. For instance, a shorthand for making clear how many coins you…
In Universalis
Participants: Robotech_Master, Mike Holmes, David Artman.

2/12/2007 unexpected: Another way to start a Confrontation?
Hello! I'm quite new to Universalis (one session so far), I really like it, but - of course - my gaming group has encountered a situation, were we are not…
In Universalis
Participants: unexpected, hix, Valamir, Mike Holmes.

2/14/2007 Robotech_Master: Unclear on groups
I'm having a little trouble understanding the groups trait. On page 33, in the mini-scene example, it mentions the creation of a "team of Slytheran" and that it's "1 Coin…
In Universalis
Participants: Robotech_Master, Valamir, Mike Holmes.

2/14/2007 Robotech_Master: Mini-scenes vs. interruptions
It says in the rules that a mini-scene only lasts until the end of the turn of the person who created it. What if he's interrupted?
In Universalis
Participants: Robotech_Master, Valamir.

3/4/2007 Thor Olavsrud: [Robots & Rapiers Playtest] A Simple Letter
Hi Ralph, Some thoughts following our first session of Robots & Rapiers: 1. We had a good deal of fun, which is unusual and a pleasant surprise for a playtest.…
In Universalis
Participants: Thor Olavsrud, Valamir, drozdal, Robotech_Master, Iskander, Mike Holmes, jenskot, GreatWolf, mtiru.

3/22/2007 Robotech_Master: Ficlets!
I've recently started writing on ficlets.com. You get to write stories in 64-to-1024-character chunks ("ficlets"), then someone else gets to write a follow-up sequel or prequel chunk. And multiple people…
In Universalis
Participants: Robotech_Master, Mike Holmes.

4/1/2007 Valvorik: Adding traits during complication and elimination costs
If a complication is about eliminating a component (e.g., character), and during the resolution the component is narrated as having additional traits (the controller seeking to give them traits resisting…
In Universalis
Participants: Valvorik, Valamir.

4/2/2007 Thor Olavsrud: [Robots & Rapiers Playtest v2.3] Character Creation
So we held another playtest session on Thursday. I had not had a chance to read through the revised document, and the revisions didn't update the sample characters we'd been…
In Universalis
Participants: Thor Olavsrud, Eero Tuovinen, Valamir, GreatWolf, Mike Holmes, Iskander, mtiru.

4/7/2007 Valamir: ROBOTS & RAPIERS BETA V2.3 NOW AVAILABLE
At long last, Robots & Rapiers is nearing completion of the design stage.  The game has gone through major revisions the last couple of years but is now at a…
In Universalis
Participants: Valamir.

4/22/2007 Robotech_Master: Second Game: Zombies of Orion
This game had four players, at a gaming-group picnic a friend put on. I proposed as the the first tenet, "Orion needs to be rescued." The guy to my left…
In Universalis
Participants: Robotech_Master, Valamir, Mike Holmes.

4/24/2007 LukeSineath: Idea for a Conflict-based historical game
I'm interested in roleplaying in historical periods.  I started to think about a way to run a game based on the fall of the Roman monarchy using Burning Wheel, but…
In Universalis
Participants: LukeSineath, Mike Holmes.

5/14/2007 Thor Olavsrud: [Robots & Rapiers v2.3] Session I
Due to a logistical error, John took the notes for this last session and is now in Hawaii, so I’m just going to touch on some of our major findings…
In Universalis
Participants: Thor Olavsrud, Valamir, Ron Edwards, ( o Y o ), Iskander, mtiru, Matt Wilson.

5/21/2007 epweissengruber: Universalis and IndieRPG Toronto: Against the 13th Reich
The full details of our tenents, etc. can be found here: http://roleplayers.meetup.com/261/messages/boards/view/viewthread?thread=3087998 - feel: Buck Rodgers Raygun Sci-Fi Tenents * Science-fictiony space adventure * Buck Rodgers Rockets and tight 1-piece…
In Universalis
Participants: epweissengruber, Mike Holmes, rycanada, Tony Irwin, Valvorik.

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