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11 |
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12 The Impossible Dream |
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13 |
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14 |
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15 #7: Assessing Damage |
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16 |
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17 *by Hunter Logan* |
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18 Jun 19,2003 |
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19 |
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20 |
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21 Last installment, I claimed this installment would be about play |
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22 samples. I changed my mind. I think people who read this column know |
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23 that play samples are scripts of a play session and that play samples |
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24 are good for demonstrating how a game works. Going on about that for a |
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25 whole installment seems like overkill, so let me sum up: Use play |
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26 samples because they're good and helpful. Now, on to something |
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27 infinitely more interesting: Assessing damage in game terms. |
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28 |
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29 Practical Considerations |
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30 A designer has at least four practical considerations that should |
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31 underlie decisions about damage in a game system. |
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32 |
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33 * *Complexity:* The number of steps and the difficulty of completing |
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34 those steps, elements that Brian Gleichman calls /Complexity of |
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35 Implementation/. As a designer, you can make the means for |
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36 handling damage as simple or complex as you like. |
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37 |
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38 * *Lethality:* The amount of punishment a character can take before |
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39 falling out of action. In a very lethal implementation, players |
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40 might actually avoid combat because of the real threat to a |
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41 character's life. In a less lethal implementation, players might |
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42 want to fight a lot, especially if fighting is rewarded. |
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43 |
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44 * *Realism:* The true-to-life aspects of damage in the game. A |
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45 realistic implementation will bring results that approximate what |
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46 would happen in the real world. In that respect, greater realism |
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47 brings increased lethality. Yet, I maintain that producing truly |
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48 realistic results is extremely difficult. The best a designer can |
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49 do is to produce consistent, believable results. |
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50 |
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51 * *Satisfaction:* The player's satisfaction with the methods and |
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52 results for handling damage. Satisfaction is an intangible result |
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53 and not strictly limited to issues of damage assessment. |
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54 |
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55 Damage and Play Flow |
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56 Like any other aspect of an rpg, the rules and mechanical processes for |
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57 handling damage can be expressed through play flow. A lot of this |
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58 overlaps with rules for combat, but I've decided not to approach combat |
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59 as a subset of game rules for two reasons. First, I think most people |
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60 have their own ideas about how combat should run. I don't really know |
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61 what I could add to that. Second, combat is not the only time characters |
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62 give or receive damage. So, I want to concentrate on the ways and means |
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63 for assessing damage. Here is an example: |
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64 |
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65 * *Event:* A character is faced with an otherworldly horror, a |
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66 creature so bizarre and disgusting that no words could express the |
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67 reality of seeing it. |
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68 |
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69 * *Decision:* The player doesn't want his character looking at any |
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70 horrific monstrosities. He declares, "I try to get the hell out of |
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71 there as fast as I can, and without looking at that /thing/!" |
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72 |
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73 * *Resolution:* |
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74 o *Device (unopposed):* The GM has the player roll dice to see |
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75 whether or not the character looked directly at the monster |
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76 while the GM rolls dice to see if the monster looked |
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77 directly at the character. |
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78 o *Evaluation:* The player rolls poorly while the GM rolls |
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79 pretty well. The monster and the character look at each other. |
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80 o *Device (opposed):* Looking into the face of such a monster |
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81 can cause a person to go insane. Thus, the player must roll |
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82 against the monster's effect to avoid psychological damage. |
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83 This is an opposed die roll. |
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84 o *Evaluation:* The player rolls against the GM and the |
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85 monster wins. The GM determines that the character takes 9 |
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86 points of /Horror/ against his /Stability/ attribute. The |
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87 character runs off in a panic, screaming the whole way. |
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88 |
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89 Two Specific Issues |
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90 I want to address two specific issues related to damage: Armor and the |
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91 death spiral. |
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92 |
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93 *Armor:* Designers decide how armor will protect a character. I have |
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94 seen three common methods for treating armor. The methods can be |
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95 combined as desired. |
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96 |
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97 * *Makes the target harder to hit:* This idea causes consternation |
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98 for some people, because good armor is heavy and wearing heavy |
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99 armor should make a person easier to hit. Yet, good armor should |
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100 make it harder for opponents to injure the person wearing it. So, |
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101 making the character harder to hit as a result of wearing armor is |
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102 one way to abstract the entire relationship. The trouble is, a |
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103 miss might not really mean an opponent missed. It might just mean |
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104 an opponent's blow bounced off the character's armor. |
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105 |
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106 * *Reduces the damage inflicted:* This idea seems to make people |
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107 happy. This way, good armor can be heavy. It can even make the |
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108 person wearing the armor an easy target, but the armor will absorb |
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109 some (if not all) incoming damage. |
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110 |
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111 * *Absorbs damage until destroyed:* This idea always struck me as |
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112 being very strange. Armor should be destructible. It's just that |
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113 most designers who treat armor this way fix it so that the armor |
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114 takes /all/ the damage until it's /completely destroyed/. Then, |
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115 its value as protection is completely gone. I think it's better to |
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116 treat the armor as a means for reducing damage; but after so many |
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117 hits, the armor becomes less effective. Eventually, the armor will |
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118 need repair or it will wear away to nothing. |
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119 |
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120 *The Death Spiral:* Each time a character takes damage, the character |
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121 becomes weaker and easier to kill. Death spirals are often enforced with |
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122 loss of character ability and penalties to the die roll. As a designer, |
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123 you have to decide for yourself whether or not a death spiral is |
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124 appropriate for your game. |
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125 |
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126 The Deal with Damage |
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127 Damage is a universal phenomenon in rpgs. Most every game has rules for |
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128 hurting PCs, smashing monsters, and destroying stuff. The means for |
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129 doing that are part of the game's rules. The best way to figure things |
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130 out is to answer questions. |
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131 |
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132 * What sort of damage will the players have to track? |
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133 * How is damage inflicted? |
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134 * How is damage quantified? |
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135 * What effect does damage have on the recipient? |
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136 * How is damage avoided or reduced? |
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137 * How is damage repaired? |
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138 |
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139 Damage Types |
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140 Not all damage is the same. The sword slash that hurts the body is |
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141 different from the bad news that damages the psyche or the blast of |
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142 ghostly energy that pierces the character's very soul. In the end, I |
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143 think designers choose from four types of damage: |
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144 |
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145 * *Physical harm* is simply damage to the character's body. This |
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146 happens when a character is shot, stabbed, smashed with heavy |
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147 objects. This may result in bruises, contusions, broken bones, |
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148 assorted internal injuries and a whole lot of pain. Physical harm |
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149 is by far the most common sort of damage in rpgs. It may affect |
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150 the character's ability to do things. |
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151 |
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152 * *Psychological harm* is damage to the character's psyche. This is |
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153 practically guaranteed to any character in a /Call of Cthulhu/ |
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154 game. This may cause the character to lose his grip on reality or |
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155 just go insane. Psychological harm is less common than physical |
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156 harm, but it shows up in a surprising number of rpgs. |
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157 |
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158 * *Spiritual harm* is damage to the character's very essence, |
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159 spirit, soul, or whatever. This most often happens to characters |
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160 that leave their bodies behind and project themselves into other |
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161 dimensions; but certain monsters in various games are capable of |
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162 bypassing the body to inflict direct spiritual harm. |
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163 |
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164 * *Material loss* is damage to or loss of a character's stuff. This |
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165 happens whenever a weapon breaks, a crash trashes a vehicle, or a |
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166 character loses the use of any piece of equipment. Players like to |
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167 give their characters toys, and sometimes those toys get broken. |
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168 |
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169 Means of Inflicting Damage |
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170 There are plenty of ways to inflict damage, but most of them fit in four |
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171 categories. |
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172 |
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173 * *Weapons* include fists, feet, and any sort of tool or device |
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174 intended to kill people and blow stuff up. These are a primary |
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175 means of inflicting damage in many games. |
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176 |
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177 * *Character Ability* includes cast spells, psionics, or any other |
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178 means a character can use to project or trigger an effect without |
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179 a weapon. |
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180 |
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181 * *Unknown forces* include all the creatures of dream and nightmare |
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182 that may or may not exist in the game world. Even seeing one of |
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183 these things might be enough to harm a character, though it might |
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184 be enough for the unknown forces to see the character. |
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185 |
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186 * *Player decision* includes all the things a player decides to have |
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187 the character do in the game. Certain decisions may damage the |
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188 character, but the player will have the character do these things |
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189 anyway. This is a causal relationship that usually has more to do |
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190 with psychological or spiritual damage than physical damage; but |
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191 anything is possible. A character that uses performance-enhancing |
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192 drugs may develop a dependency; a character with too much |
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193 cyberware may edge toward psychosis; and a character who delves |
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194 too deeply into the Necronomicon will surely go insane. |
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195 |
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196 Quantifying Damage |
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197 Once the means for inflicting damage are decided, a designer needs means |
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198 for quantifying damage. Here are some possibilities. |
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199 |
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200 * *Hit points* express damage as an abstract unit. No one really |
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201 knows how much damage a hit point represents. For a small creature |
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202 with a few hit points, a single hit point of damage is a serious |
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203 wound. For a powerful monster with dozens of hit points, a single |
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204 hit point of damage is a scratch. It doesn't even really matter |
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205 how much damage a hit point represents. All that matters is one |
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206 simple relationship: The more hit points a character has, the more |
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207 punishment he can endure. |
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208 |
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209 * *Attribute reductions* express damage as a direct reduction in the |
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210 recipient's attributes. A light wound might reduce a single |
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211 attribute by a point or two. Serious wounds may cause several |
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212 attributes to drop simultaneously. Of course, this is really just |
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213 a variation on hit points. Instead of subtracting the damage from |
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214 a pool of points, the player subtracts the damage from his |
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215 character's attributes. The big difference here is that an effect |
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216 is immediate. Lowering an attribute reduces the character's |
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217 capabilities. |
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218 |
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219 * *Damage monitors* express damage in levels with descriptors. They |
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220 are represented as a table on the character sheet. A light wound |
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221 might count as a bruise or scratch. Mortal wounds put the |
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222 character near death. |
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223 |
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224 * *Descriptions* express damage verbally. This might well be the |
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225 most explicit way to express damage. It is often used to support |
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226 other methods of damage measurement. |
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227 |
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228 * *Combinations* allow the designer to use more than one method to |
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229 produce a more complex, more complete method of quantifying |
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230 damage. A designer might combine hit points with verbal |
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231 descriptions or damage monitors with attribute reductions, and so on. |
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232 |
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233 Damage Effects |
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234 Once the damage is measured, it usually has some mechanical effect. Here |
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235 are some possibilities. |
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236 |
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237 * *Reduced Resource:* Many games include some sort of |
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238 damage-absorbing resource, such as hit points. Damage causes a |
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239 reduction in the resource. When the resource is completely spent, |
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240 the character falls out of play. |
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241 |
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242 * *Special effect:* The damage produces a specific effect with |
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243 undesirable consequences. Special effects may make a character |
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244 extremely vulnerable using results such as stunning, holding, |
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245 petrification, or loss of limbs. They might also radically affect |
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246 a character's behavior, inspiring fear, confusion, or changes in |
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247 allegiance. |
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248 |
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249 * *Reduced abilities:* As the character takes damage, the character |
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250 suffers a reduction or loss of abilities. This is a real problem. |
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251 As the character's abilities are reduced, his likelihood of |
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252 suffering further damage increases. This results in a death spiral. |
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253 |
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254 * *Increased abilities:* As the character takes damage, the |
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255 character's abilities actually increase. I haven't seen this in |
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256 too many games, but it seems the idea is to make characters more |
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257 determined to succeed, more motivated, and more dangerous as they |
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258 approach the end. |
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259 |
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260 * *Altered player decision:* As the character takes damage, the |
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261 player may have to alter his plans or make decisions about the |
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262 plight of the character. A player has many motivations and the |
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263 situation certainly plays a part, but adding damage to the |
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264 equation may make the player more cautious, more daring, or more |
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265 willing to sacrifice the character. |
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266 |
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267 Avoiding and Reducing Damage |
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268 In game terms, damage is usually best avoided. If a character can't |
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269 avoid taking damage, the player can at least take steps to reduce the |
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270 amount of damage. Of course, a lot of this is up to you as the designer. |
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271 You can provide the means for reducing or avoiding damage as part of |
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272 your game design. Here are some possibilities. |
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273 |
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274 * *Character Ability:* The designer provides abilities that allow |
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275 characters to reduce or avoid damage. A very stealthy or invisible |
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276 character may be able to vanish from enemy view. A very fast |
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277 character may be able to dodge attacks. A heavy, thick-skinned |
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278 character may be able to ignore or absorb attacks. A very skilled |
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279 character may be able to outmaneuver enemies, never giving them |
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280 the opportunity to do any harm. |
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281 |
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282 * *Expendable resources:* The designer provides hero points or other |
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283 expendable resources that allow characters to avoid or reduce the |
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284 damage taken in a situation. |
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285 |
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286 * *Equipment:* The character employs a startling array of equipment |
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287 for reducing damage including personal armor, energy shields, |
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288 magical rings, potions, spells, or advanced technology that allows |
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289 a character to avoid taking damage. All this stuff has the net |
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290 effect of increasing character ability. |
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291 |
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292 * *Player Decisions:* The best way to avoid damage is to stay out of |
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293 situations that result in damage. That includes combat and the |
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294 dark, terrible places in many game worlds. Of course, the GM might |
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295 have something to say about that. If the situation is unavoidable, |
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296 some characters may still choose not to participate. Players can |
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297 always have characters hide, run away, or surrender in order to |
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298 avoid the situation. The designer can't really control player |
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299 decisions, but the decisions a designer makes about damage will |
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300 influence player decisions. If characters can take a lot of damage |
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301 without much trouble, the player might make different decisions |
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302 than he would if character performance really starts to suffer |
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303 after just one or two hits. |
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304 |
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305 Repairing Damage |
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306 Once characters take damage, players will want some way to make repairs. |
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307 This might also extend to pets, vehicles and other important equipment, |
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308 because a player may consider a character's pet, vehicle, or equipment |
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309 as an important aspect of the character. Thus, when any of these take |
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310 damage, the player will want to repair them, as well. |
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311 |
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312 * *Time:* Given time, most wounds heal. Depending on the wound or |
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313 circumstances in the game world, the character may suffer some |
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314 sort of permanent effect as a result of the injury. |
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315 |
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316 * *Expendable Resources:* The player may be able to spend points or |
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317 use disposable items such as healing potions or stim packs to heal |
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318 the character's wounds. |
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319 |
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320 * *Character Ability:* Just as a character may have the ability to |
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321 inflict damage, a character might also have the ability to repair |
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322 damage. Doing this may or may not require parts and equipment. |
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323 |
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324 * *Extraordinary Means:* When the inflicted damage is beyond normal |
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325 means for repair, the player may still have options. The GM may |
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326 thoughtfully provide more extensive healing and/or repair |
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327 facilities for rebuilding characters or vehicles, such as |
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328 hospitals and dry docks. |
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329 |
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330 End Note |
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331 Designers can really tweak game play by choosing appropriate methods of |
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332 assessing damage. This is an important part of an rpg design; and good |
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333 design is a matter of conscious thought, logical choices, and deliberate |
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334 decisions. I can't tell you how you should design your games; that's up |
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335 to you. All I can do is offer a way of thinking about design. I'm |
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336 interested in your opinions about this article; so don't be shy about |
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337 posting. Next time, I'll go one step further and talk about designing |
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338 death into a game. Thanks for reading. |
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339 |
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340 |
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341 What do you think? <http://trio.rpg.net/pf/list.php?f=110> |
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342 |
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343 Go to forum! <http://www.rpg.net/pf/list.php?f=110> |
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344 Go to Top <http://www.rpg.net/pf/list.php?f=110> | New Topic |
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348 |
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349 Topics Author Date Latest Reply |
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350 cooldog cotangent |
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351 <http://www.rpg.net/pf/read.php?f=110&i=98&t=98> (1) new |
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352 cranial_index 01-31-2006 20:46 01-31-2006 20:46 new |
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353 CORONA <http://www.rpg.net/pf/read.php?f=110&i=97&t=97> (1) new |
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354 corn_chamomile 01-31-2006 20:25 01-31-2006 20:25 new |
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355 Fendi Spy Bags WHOLESALE@WizardReplica.com |
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356 <http://www.rpg.net/pf/read.php?f=110&i=95&t=95> (1) new 514 |
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357 12-02-2005 10:55 12-02-2005 10:55 new |
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358 Designer Handbags Wholesale@WWW.WIZARDREPLICA.COM |
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359 <http://www.rpg.net/pf/read.php?f=110&i=94&t=94> (1) new 868 |
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360 11-14-2005 19:41 11-14-2005 19:41 new |
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361 REPLICA HANDBAGS LOUIS VUITTON REPLICA WHOLESALE@ |
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362 <http://www.rpg.net/pf/read.php?f=110&i=93&t=93> (1) new 794 |
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363 10-20-2005 21:37 10-20-2005 21:37 new |
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364 Death/playing style |
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365 <http://www.rpg.net/pf/read.php?f=110&i=92&t=92> (1) new Searcher |
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366 09-22-2003 11:35 09-22-2003 11:35 new |
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367 Death and actual immortality |
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368 <http://www.rpg.net/pf/read.php?f=110&i=89&t=89> (3) new Cpl Ferro |
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369 07-19-2003 08:53 01-13-2006 15:22 new |
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370 Non-death death |
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371 <http://www.rpg.net/pf/read.php?f=110&i=85&t=85> (5) new Sérgio |
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372 Mascarenhas 07-18-2003 03:07 07-23-2003 02:38 new |
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373 Thanks, Hunter |
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374 <http://www.rpg.net/pf/read.php?f=110&i=80&t=80> (4) new Allan |
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375 Sugarbaker 07-16-2003 00:18 07-17-2003 19:34 new |
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376 Realism <http://www.rpg.net/pf/read.php?f=110&i=74&t=74> (3) new |
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377 Robin 06-20-2003 01:23 06-25-2003 02:34 new |
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378 Something you might have mentioned. |
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379 <http://www.rpg.net/pf/read.php?f=110&i=65&t=65> (3) new Yamo |
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380 06-19-2003 16:13 06-19-2003 18:11 new |
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381 BTW, excellent column, Hunter! |
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382 <http://www.rpg.net/pf/read.php?f=110&i=63&t=63> (2) new flyingmice |
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383 06-19-2003 13:11 06-19-2003 18:13 new |
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384 Armor and Damage Thereto |
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385 <http://www.rpg.net/pf/read.php?f=110&i=56&t=56> (2) new The Student |
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386 06-19-2003 08:45 06-19-2003 11:44 new |
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387 Armor <http://www.rpg.net/pf/read.php?f=110&i=54&t=54> (9) new |
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388 flyingmice 06-19-2003 08:29 06-20-2003 06:12 new |
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389 Death spiral and unconsciousness |
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390 <http://www.rpg.net/pf/read.php?f=110&i=53&t=53> (7) new Torben |
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391 Mogensen 06-19-2003 07:31 06-20-2003 06:52 new |
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392 lucky or skilled |
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393 <http://www.rpg.net/pf/read.php?f=110&i=51&t=51> (2) new rhyme |
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394 05-12-2003 18:49 05-13-2003 09:25 new |
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395 Absolute, unopposed and opposed |
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396 <http://www.rpg.net/pf/read.php?f=110&i=48&t=48> (2) new Torben |
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397 Mogensen 04-16-2003 02:19 04-16-2003 09:26 new |
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398 0-9 open ended = brilliant! |
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399 <http://www.rpg.net/pf/read.php?f=110&i=31&t=31> (8) new Vibropod |
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400 03-12-2003 10:41 07-18-2003 01:28 new |
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401 Smooth rerolls |
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402 <http://www.rpg.net/pf/read.php?f=110&i=27&t=27> (10) new Torben |
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403 Mogensen 03-12-2003 00:47 03-16-2003 23:57 new |
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404 Resolution Mechanics |
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405 <http://www.rpg.net/pf/read.php?f=110&i=25&t=25> (8) new Kyle |
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406 Schuant 03-11-2003 22:14 03-29-2003 21:28 new |
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407 |
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408 Go to Top <http://www.rpg.net/pf/list.php?f=110> | New Topic |
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409 <http://www.rpg.net/pf/post.php?f=110> | View Threads |
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410 <http://www.rpg.net/pf/list.php?f=110&collapse=0> | Search |
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411 <http://www.rpg.net/pf/search.php?f=110> |
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412 |
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413 Newer Messages |
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414 <http://www.rpg.net/pf/list.php?f=110&t=98&a=1&> | Older Messages |
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415 <http://www.rpg.net/pf/list.php?f=110&t=25&a=2&> |
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416 |
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417 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ |
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418 |
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419 |
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420 Previous columns |
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421 |
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422 * #8: True Death </news+reviews/columns/dream17jul03.html> by Hunter |
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423 Logan, 17jul03 |
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424 * #7: Assessing Damage </news+reviews/columns/dream19jun03.html> by |
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425 Hunter Logan, 19jun03 |
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426 * #6: Putting Theory to the Test |
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427 </news+reviews/columns/dream12may03.html> by Hunter Logan, 12may03 |
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428 * #5: Resolution Mechanics II |
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429 </news+reviews/columns/dream14apr03.html> by Hunter Logan, 14apr03 |
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430 * Resolution Mechanics I </news+reviews/columns/dream11mar03.html> |
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431 by Hunter Logan, 11mar03 |
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432 * Player Goals </news+reviews/columns/dream10feb03.html> by Hunter |
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433 Logan, 10feb03 |
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434 * Balance of Power </news+reviews/columns/dream20jan03.html> by |
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435 Hunter Logan, 20jan03 |
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436 * Play Flow First </news+reviews/columns/dream01jan03.html> by |
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437 Hunter Logan, 01jan03 |
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438 |
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