[TML] Character Improvement [was Levelling]

[Richard Aiken]

On Feb 19, 2008 2:24 AM, Jerry W Barrington <jerry.barrington at gmail.com> wrote:
> On 2/19/08 2:09 AM, "Richard Aiken" <raikenclw at gmail.com> wrote:
> Err...  Even speed junkies know there are times to slow down.  This is going
> to lead to people "playing their complication" at totally inappropriate
> times.  Like when they *would* know to behave a certain way, or when the
> complication is irrelevant.

Exactly.  The guy with Crude has been told to behave at the cotillion.
 And he (the character) is trying, he really, really is.  But nobody
told him it's unmannerly to hawk a loogie and start sharpening his
favorite knife over in the corner . . .

> I like to have fun.  There are times I push my shopping cart, jump on, and
> ride it for a while.  Many people never do that.  But when I'm working, I
> know the standards for behavior, and observe them.  Your Complications make
> everybody sound like addicts of one sort or another.

Not everybody.  Only those with Complications - which isn't everyone.
The absolute maximum "disad" point total you can get (if you take all
of your five allowed Complications as Major) are 20.  A Veteran PC
(the default level) starts with 96.  So the most Complicated person is
going to be only 20% better than an average starting PC who takes no
Complications at all.

Complications are supposed to be significant.  Even the Minor ones
have noticeable effects on play.  They're a mechanism for creating
drama, after all.

> And why should having run over a cat then make him better at escaping?

It doesn't.  It actually has the potential to Complicate his escape
because . . .

> it
> should give him trouble maintaining control.

Precisely!  This is WHY it's a Complication!  So the PP he just gained
may get immediately spent to keep control of his bike . . . but if
he's confident he can handle it without this, he can save it for
later.

>  See, this system has no
> logical connection between the points and what that would do to your
> actions.

There doesn't need to be a logical connection.  All there needs to be
is the possibility of Complicating the plot . . . so a Complication
which isn't a Complication in the particular instance will fail to
generate any Plot Points.

-- 
Richard Aiken

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