2d6 Supplement guide.

The 2d6 Supplement guide is well underway.

This supplement guide is meant to be used along side with the “2d6 Game System Manual”.  This book is by no means necessary to play any kind of 2d6 game.  It does however provide suggestions on rules that you may or may not wish to use.  We have provided a few basic genres and popular role-playing worlds for you to look at.  Just because an ability is placed in one section of this book does not mean it cannot be used in a different genre, assuming there is a good reason.  For example, if you wanted to create an alien race in a Star Trek world that was capable of turning invisible, by all means use the rules provided for invisibility in the Traditional Fantasy section.  However some abilities may be more or less useful in different worlds, and their point cost may vary at the GM’s discretion.

Next to abilities there is a number in parentheses.  This number represents the suggested point cost for that ability.  There are also some abilities that have different levels.  For example Illusions have three levels: Lesser illusion, illusion and greater illusion.  Each level in a set has its own point cost; however, you may upgrade to a higher level in a set by only paying the difference.  If my character started with lesser illusion, and then gained one experience point, I then could spend that one point to buy Illusion, even though it costs 2 because I already have the lesser illusion ability.  (btw...the points I'm talking about are the experience points you earn, you get 1 point of each 'chapter' of the story.  You may also start with a couple of points to play around with as well.) 

Take a look at the traditional fantasy abilities and let me know what you think!

Area heal (2, prerequisite Buff 2) This ability allows you to heal your allies within a 5’ radius.

Cleave (1) If you kill someone using the aggressive combat style, you can make a second melee attack against an adjacent creature.

Piercing shot (1) If you deal a heavy wound to an enemy using a ranged weapon, you may make a secondary attack against an enemy behind the primary target with -1 Damage

Dispel Magic (2) End a single magical effect by having both the caster and the dispeller roll 2d6 adding their respective magical ability attribute (typically Intelligence or Wisdom).

Elements (1) You gain the ability to cast spells with one new element type.  Suggestion elements are: fire, ice, acid, wind, electricity, poison. Spellcasters start with one element type for free.

Feather fall (1) When this spell is cast, the target can fall slowly like a feather, landing on its feet without taking damage.

Flight (2, this ability may cost more in worlds where flight is extra useful) You gain the ability to fly at your normal speed but not hover.  Any attacks made while in flight take a -3 to attack.

Superior Flight (4): You gain the ability to fly, including hovering.  You take no penalty to attacks while flying.

Lesser illusion (1) Create an illusion that fools one sense and cannot move (ex. make a sound, or visual illusion you can pass your hand through)

Illusion (2) Create an illusion that fools all 5 senses, but still cannot move or interact with its environment (ex a person that you can touch and smell and speaks, but does not move). 

Greater Illusion (4) Create an illusion that fools all 5 senses and can move and have simple interactions with its environment (ex the illusory person can open a door or speak when spoken to, but it cannot hold a conversation). 

For someone to detect an illusion, they may make an Intelligence and Logic or Wisdom and Perception versus a DL of 9 for minor illusion, 12 for illusion, and 15 for greater illusion.  Other relevant skills may be used to detect the illusion at GM discretion.

   

Invisibility (2) You become invisible.  If you touch or manipulate an object or attack something you become visible. 

Greater Invisibility (4) You become invisible.  You may touch and manipulate objects but cannot make attacks without becoming visible.

In combat, becoming invisible takes all your actions for the round.  You can still be detected by sound and smell while invisible.

Mind Reading (4) To read an unwilling person’s mind, you and the target roll each roll 2d6 and add its wisdom.  If your total is higher, you are able to learn one fact that is in that person’s mind.  If your roll is lower, then you are not able read that thought, and you cannot make another attempt for that specific thought.  In the event of a tie, you succeed.  The moment you start attempting to read a person’s mind, they are aware of it, even if they do not understand it.  You cannot read the mind of someone who is unconscious.  If the target is willing in your attempt to read them, there is no roll.

Shapeshift (1/shape) You gain the ability to turn into a different form of your size or smaller (ex a different humanoid, an animal, a potted plant).  For a second point, you gain the abilities of whatever you form you chose (if you turn into a bird you can fly, a fish can breathe underwater, etc.). 

Polymorph (3) You gain the ability to take any humanoid form, including looking like a specific individual you have seen.

Greater Polymorph (4) You gain the ability to take any form of your size or smaller.  For an additional 2 points, you gain the abilities of whatever form you take. 

The GM may limit your choices or abilities at his discretion.

Quick healing (1) You heal 1 heavy wound per day, instead of one light wound.

Regeneration (2) You heal 1 light wound per hour.

Greater Regeneration (4) You heal 1 light wound per minute, can regrow lost limbs, and cannot be killed without extraordinary measures (ex incineration, dismembered and buried in separate boxes, etc.)

Resistant to element (1/element) Choose 1 element: damage dealt to you of that type is reduced by 1 light wound. 

Immune to Element (2/element) Choose 1 element: you take no damage of that type.

Smite Evil (2) Once per day when you have scored a hit against an evil target, you may treat that hit as a critical hit.

Sneak Attack (1) When you hit a target that is unaware of your attack (ex you are hidden or the target does not expect you to attack), you gain a +2 bonus to damage with that attack.

Speed (1) Double the speed at which you run, swim and fly, or triple the speed at which you do one of those things (decide when you buy it).

Lessor Summon (1) You summon a small creature (ex cat, bird, snake) with 1 point in all attributes and 1 light wound.  You can command the creature to perform simple actions (ex attack, climb a wall, go over there).

Summon (4) You summon a medium creature (ex wolf, boar, ape) with 3 attribute points in each category (physical, mental, social) that you can allot as you choose and 1 health point.  You can command the creature to perform slightly more complicated actions, like open a door (if it has hands), guard a location, or avoid being seen.

Greater Summon (8) You summon a large creature (ex bear, horse, small dragon, demon) with 5 physical attribute points, 4 mental attribute points, and 3 social attribute points, and 1 combat style that you can allot as you choose.  The creature has 2 health points.  You can command the creature to perform any action that it is capable of carrying out.

Summoning a creature in combat takes up all your actions for the round, and you can only have one creature summoned at a time.

Telekinesis (2) You can manipulate objects you can see from up to 20’ away with the same dexterity as if you used your hands.  Your telekinetic powers can apply up to 20 lbs. of force.

Greater Telekinesis (4) As telekinesis, but you can apply up to 100 lbs. of force.  This allows a character to make magical attacks according to the normal rules.

Telepathy (1) This allows you to send messages to individuals within 30 feet.  The recipient of the message is unable to respond unless he is also telepathic or you have the mind reading ability.

Teleport (2) You are able to teleport up to 20 feet to a place that you can see.  You may not teleport anyone other than yourself.   

Turn Undead (1) Once per day, for each undead creature within 20 feet- roll 2d6 and add your Presence, and the creature rolls 2d6 and adds their wisdom.  If your total is equal or higher the creature cannot come closer to you

Unarmed Master (2) You may treat unarmed attacks as light medium or heavy weapons (you must choose before each attack roll).

Wall/ceiling climb (1) You gain the ability climb up a vertical surface or a ceiling.  You must have at least one free hand (you can’t be using a two-handed weapon or have a weapon and a shiled)

Water breathe (1) You can breathe underwater.  This power may cost more in certain worlds

Water walk (1) You can walk on water.  This power may cost more in certain worlds.

Free for all experiment.

I know I haven't given much attention to the 2d6 project lately, with school and starting other projects 2d6 got left behind.  But like a faithful friend, it sat and waited patiently for the day my attention would return.

I've come up with an idea, it might completely fail, or it might be awesome, or somewhere in between.

It starts with very few limitations.  Genre: Modern Fantasy (modern times with magic and beasties).

Each player will be given a handful of questions about the world.  Some or very open questions, while some or more specific.  Each player will of course also make a character, anything they want, and must include 2 things in character development 1) What makes your character special/unique?  What is his/her talent that no one, or not many have.  and 2) A secret that the character has.  Players will not know each other's secrets unless it gets revealed in game.  At the beginning only the player and the GM will know their secret.

And once all that is done, the GM takes all that information and runs with it.  I also plan on throwing my cute little story cubes and tarot cards into the mix.

I honestly have no clue how successful this will be, but I'm hoping for the best.

Here is the list of worldbuilding questions I have so far.  Please suggest more :)

Basic government structure

A popularly sold product

A famous person

A legend (a story everyone knows, but all think is just a story)

What is the income distribution like?  (ie. Mostly poor with a handful of extremely rich people, everyone is well off, huge middle class, etc)

A religion

The most common cause of death is….

A noteworthy historical event

Where do people go to have fun?

What was the top story on the news last night?

The most common mode of travel is…

Organics-The End

The conclusion to this campaignlet is being done through email.  I will be posting everyone's responses here on the blog.  PC responses will be in bold.  

You and 2 dozen others spent the cold night huddled together in a hunting lodge in the forest that separates the city from the suburbs.  It was a tense night, and very few of you got any sleep.  People diligently took turns patrolling, and keeping an eye on that lost little alien cube.  Dr. Biaochi learned much from that cube, he talked about his home planet and how it has become devoid of metallic substances, how he found aluminum foil to be delicious, and if his extensive knowledge of quantum physics.  He spoke of his parental unit, and hoped she would return for he found your kind to be strange and frighting.

The morning slowly came, and many were relieved to have survived the night.  People went to work, setting up the basement as a make-shift hospital and laboratory, a small group went into to town to look for any other survivors and collect any useful salvage. While another group went hunting for game.  Zebbi tried to calm the group, by singing her songs and distracting them from the recent events.  

Around noon, the earth started to shake and there was a loud humming noise.  Most ran and hid in the basement, while the more brave ventured outside to see what was going on.  Your little cube friend started humming excitedly and urged you to go out and look.

A floating cube, much larger than any you had seen or heard about approached.  This entity was the size of a small house, and it glimmered in the noon sunlight.  5 figures stood proudly on top waving enthusiastically to the onlookers below, the baby cube zoomed up and appeared to great the larger cube and started darting about the larger cube.  One of the figures on top gracefully floated down to the ground to greet you, followed by the other four who landed directly behind him.

When he landed, you instantly recognized him as your country's president.  Although he was altered slightly, around his head hovered 3 green leaves, and his skin almost seemed to glow in the noon light.

"Greetings, my citizens.  I am pleased to have found you.  Come, join us, and be frightened no more."  Your president reaches out his arms as if to embrace you all.

I (Zebbi) say to the President "Hi Honey!  What's up with the new hair style?"

The president smiles, "There are plants on our new home that even our most brilliant scientists could not have convinced."  He pulls from his pocket a green leaf with a purple sheen, "Try this, for example.  And you will be able to see beyond the narrow spectrum we have been limited to."

Session summaries

Since I didn't do a recap of the last game (of the one before that, I think), I'll combine them into hopefully a short summary...

You met a large shiny cube.  It said to leave the city and game you some hypo sprays.  You didn't trust them, but left the city anyway (After 'saving' all the pastries in the nearby starbucks from certain disaster).  As the group trudged their way to the suburbs, they came across a small, unpaved road.  With blueEye technology George, being a shoot first, ask questions later kind of guy, decided it was best to kill the random dude by the side of the road.  Which had belonged to a group of 5, and had until recently been the only survivor.  All of them wore civillian clothes, but as Dr. Biaochii went through the dead peoples' wallets, found that they all were affiliated with the military.

Finally, the group made it to relative safety- A diner, owned, managed and waitressed by Petunia.  She made the travelers a late lunch, and was paid with and extra PhaseRifle.  She didn't want to leave her diner, someone might steal her pie.

Then three hooligans decided to loot the diner, and break Petunia's historic store front window.  One of said hooligans turned out to be one of Bianca's exes.  Damon was more important to Bianca than she let on, and she was glad to see him alive but upset to see him still being stupid.

Zebbi wanted to go to a mall.  So they went to the mall, and made some friends.  With the group now expanded, everyone set up camp in a hunting lodge on the edge of town.

But of course they couldn't escape the craziness, and found a cute miniature cube that ate George's precious tin foil hat.

NPC Bio: Bianca

Bianca Signen was an orphan, something of a rarity in these times.  The origins of this status were unclear at best, however her adoptive parents loved her, and she didn't think much on her mysterious beginnings.  Her adoptive family was quite large, she had 3 sisters (all of which were adopted), and a plethora of aunts uncles and cousins.  Her parents, and much of her family worked for Stein Labs all over the country.  Her father worked on improving and updating the BluEyes, while her mother was a receptionist.

Since about the age of 12 boys have liked Bianca.  She liked the attention, and would hop from guy to guy leaving them heartbroken and unsatisfied.  She never really found a boyfriend that she could stay with for more than a few months tops, they were all imperfect, and she always found a fault in every single one (which her therapist said was a fault of her own, not the boys).

Bianca graduated in the top 5% of her high school class, and was accepted to II.  But after one semester, she dropped out, and through her strong family ties with Stein Labs got a job as a lab assistant.  She was relatively happy there, she washed beakers, held test tubes filled with god-knows what, calibrated various machines.  When they discovered that Bianca was in fact quite intelligent, they allowed her more interesting responsibilities and even a couple hours a week to work on her own experiments that usually didn't go anywhere.

A week before 'the emergency' Bianca got news that her favorite aunt had passed away.  When Bianca arrived at the funeral, she learned that her Aunt Beatrice had left Bianca everything, including her beloved cat, Mr. Sniffles.  What Bianca didn't know, was that attached to Mr. Sniffles' collar there was a crystal memory chip with a very important message.  dun-dun-DUN! 
                                            

Shakespeare mash-up

I would be surprised if this was an original idea, however since I hadn't heard of it, it's original to me :)

I often find myself lacking in story ideas, and this method is meant to be the foundation of a story arc as well as a fun exercise people can do as a group and then maybe end up roleplaying it along the way.

So this is what you do: Find yourself a copy of the complete works of Shakespeare (my house has at least 3 copies, so that wasn't very hard).  Then turn to a random page.  You could either pick a line randomly, or find a line on the page that you like (after the first one, I think it's better to pick one off the page).  Copy down or bookmark that line, and then pick another random page and find another line.  Do this as many times as you see fit.  Now that you have a bunch of lines together, turn them into a script of sorts which becomes the basis of your story.  Each line can be said by different characters, or it can be a conversation between 2 or more, or even a monologue, if it works.

This is what I came up with on my second try:

Male Character 1:  "The fairest hand I ever toucht! O beauty, Till now I never knew thee!" ( King Henry The Eight I.iv)
Female Character 2: "Worthy sir, thou bleed'st; Thy exercise hath been too violent For a second course of fight." (Coriolanus I.vi)
Male Character 1: "Go, you wild bedfellow, you cannot soothsay." (Antony and Cleopatra I.ii)
Female Character 2: "Follow me; thou shalt serve me: if I like thee no worse after dinner, I will not part from thee yet." (King Lear I.iii)

Two strong-willed and rather aggressive soon to be lovers (maybe soldiers of some kind) have gotten into a fist fight.  As the woman is dutifully kicking the ass of the man, he blurts out that he loves her more than anything.  The woman stops fighting for a second and realizes two things 1. the man is pretty beat up and 2. she in fact loves him too, but does not want to admit it.  She comments on his injuries and suggests that he give up.  The man knows this to be true, but takes it as an insult none the less, calls her a whore and tells her to leave before he catches his breath. The woman, not wanting to leave his company, but not wanting to say so directly tells him that if he takes her out to an expensive restaurant and he behaves, she might forgive him for whatever it was that started the fight.

Barely Success

So Tim and I have been looking through the Doctor Who RPG (which also uses a 2d6 mechanic) and they had an interesting concept about degrees of success.  A lot of points below the DC means uber failure, a few points below is a normal failure, and a tiny bit below is a sort of failure (ie you convince the guards not to kill you on site, but they will throw you in the dungeon).  And similarly for successes (sort of success, normal, and super awesome success)

We've decided to add a new optional rule that says when you get exactly the Difficulty level, it counts as a barely success.  A few examples: John's character is trying to jump from rooftop to rooftop, John's roll plus his strength plus athletics is a 12, which is what the DL is.  The GM could say, "You make it to the other roof, but only barely, and you're hanging on by your fingertips."

Another example is if you're trying to pick a lock and you roll exactly the DL; it takes the character longer to pick the lock and therefore has a higher chance of getting caught.  Or, you pick the lock, but your pick breaks in the lock, leaving you without your pick and unable to relock the door.