[TML] Character Improvement [was Levelling]

[Richard Aiken]

On Feb 13, 2008 8:04 PM, Michael Taylor <michaeltaylor1329 at hotmail.com> wrote:
> Fate/Luck type mechanics are a nice bonus to experience points. They can be used to reward good play. Whether as a percentage of experience points that can be used as Luck or a bonus for well done missions, or whatever, it is a reward, not something that is innate to every sentient being in the universe.

As I've said before, I like how Serenity (now called the Cortex
System) does it.  Plot Points (PPs) are what you earn for roleplaying
your character's Complications (called that because they "complicate"
your PC's life . . . and those of his companions), usually one or
maybe two per occurence.  They're also awarded like traditional
experience points; one or two for achieving particular Important
Thingies in each session and a few more for successfully completing
each adventure.

You can have a maximum of twelve PPs at any one time during play.  But
since you can use PPs in about a zillion different ways (particularly
if you have Assets which get more effective when you spend PPs on
them), having too many is rarely a problem.  Hoarding is also
discouraged because its so relatively easy to get more.

At the end of a session, you can elect to keep up to six points in
your PP pool for the beginning of the next session.  Anything over six
get converted into Advancement (e.g. Experience) Points.

> If you make it a core mechanic like a stat, you make it dominate the game. The pursuit of luck *replaces* good play.

Possibly.  But if - as in Serenity - you make gaining Luck something
that only accrues when you correctly roleplay  disadvantages, then
it'd be a "problem" that solved itself.  Obviously, you'd have to
prevent munchkins from designing one-eyed, one-armed, one-horned
flying purple people eaters just to have more disadvantages to play in
order to generate Luck.

Or, then again, you might not want to prevent such, either.  Watching
these lurching monstrosities trying to function in anything except
combat can be rather entertaining for the rest of the group!

-- 
Richard Aiken

"Never insult anyone by accident."  Robert A. Heinlein