Themes, Tags, and Paths

#1

I stumbled onto a RPG called Tavern Tales RPG. This post isn’t about the RPG per se. However, Tavern Tales is classless: instead, players create characters by picking 3 traits from any of its Themes. They don’t have to be all from the same one. Just pick three.

I like this general idea of Themes and wonder (A) if I could port something like this to ICRPG and (B) what is the best way to approach it for ICRPG.

It seems like it would be fairly easy to take the idea of Themes for ICRPG. Classes already get semi-thematic abilities, but Themes are “classless.” Tags seem like they could be easily grouped into Themes. Paths are Thematic, but they are tiered, which is not necessarily an approach that I am opposed to considering. But that also leaves the issue of spells and spell lists. In Tavern Tales, spells and traits are the same thing. Would they count as Tags or even Powers as well?

I’m really looking to brainstorm, and this seems like a good group of people to brainstorm with.

#2

I recently made a post in which I listed out all the type-based abilities and loot to facilitate playing through just choosing an ability, one special piece of loot, and starting equipment. Would that be in the vein of what you are talking about? You can see the post here:

#3

Thanks. Decoupling them from Types makes it easier for me to put them into Themes.

One reason why I like Themes is because players often have broadly thematic ideas about what sort of character they want to play, which may not fit into Types. Themes are good at drawing players to keyword ideas, features, traits, and abilities for building their characte.r

#4

If your plan is for themes to replace type and bioform, then you could write it out as each theme having a stat bonus, a piece of loot, and an ability. A player could choose all three from one theme, or mix and match to fit their idea.

#5

I thought about something like this but for ancestries, like “how to play a Dryad/Leshi in ICRPG” and I thought about a “SOUL inventory system”, it’s like items (you can get them, have them be destroyed or altered), but with differents rules for breaking and equiping them. Something like

“Dryad SOUL : The wearer is part nature, and can blend with it at will (EASY roll). Their properties and resistance change depending on the nature they blend with (wood is weak to fire, rock is heavier so a rock dryad is slower…)”

The idea would be to define the pros and cons the first time it’s used, and evolve the rule depending on use.

Where it differs from classic LOOT is that it’s harder to break, fix, get and so on, since it’s linked to narrative reasons. The fun part is that you can trade SOULS or even sell yours or buy one.
I thought about having up to 3 SOULS at the same type, so (what would be) either 2 ancestry and a class or 2 classes and an ancestry.
Another fun part is that you can BECOME a dwarf, an elf or anything else. And since it’s not everyone will be ready to buy a SOUL, you can be doomed to turn into a “insert ancestry here” for quite a long time.

Just a brainstorm thing as well, only got to playtest it a little up until now but nothing enough to talk home about.

#6

Here is an incomplete draft of my progress. I have taken some preexisting ones and renamed them, either to reshuffle them or to bring them in line with other starting abilities naming conventions that are more role, profession, or class like. I would like to have three starting abilities for each, and I’m still trying to figure out either what would work or what might work well. There are also some placeholder names for possible starting abilities.

I will likely also have about roughly 8-9 spell traditions, though this will follow CORE for simplicity sake rather than MAGIC.

Intelligence Magic
• Arcane
• Death
• Elemental

Wisdom Magic
• Psychic
• Nature

Charisma Magic
• Holy
• Occultism
• Song

Alchemy : brewing alchemical potions and elixirs

Starting Abilities

Apothecary:
Brewmaster:

Arcane : the cosmic magic of mana, space, and time

Starting Abilities

WIZARD: If you find a written SPELL, gain an extra SPELL

Artifice : inventing gadgets and gizmos

Starting Abilities

ARTIFICER: Crafting BASIC LOOT is EASY
DEMOLITIONIST: double all damage against vehicles, objects, or structures
MECHANIC: Any roll involving repair is always EASY

Command : coordinate allies and raise morale

Starting Abilities

MARSHAL: Spend your action to add your CHA and applicable EFFORT bonus to an ally’s next action
TACTICIAN: On your turn, you can sacrifice your ACTION to grant another player who is within CLOSE range an extra ACTION or CLOSE MOVE
STRATEGOS: At the start of every round, you can switch turn or initiative order of any two willing players including yourself

Death : the necromantic magic of the Dark

Starting Abilities

BLOOD MAGE: Sacrifice any amount of HP, HP providing loot/food, or bound victim’s HP to boost any 1 roll
NECROMANCER: Death magic is never HARD to cast
REAPER: Once per round, you can heal BASIC when a living creature dies within CLOSE range

Elements : the primal magic of the Elemental Chaos

Starting Abilities

GEOMANCER: Earth and Fire magic is always EASY to cast
STORMBRINGER: Air and Water magic is always EASY to cast
WILDER: Any time you roll the max on a die, roll it an additional time

Holy : the angelic magic of the Celestial Light

Starting Abilities

HEALER: Any healing magic you cast does ULTIMATE EFFORT
TEMPLAR: On a critical hit, heal NEAR allies equal to the damage dealt

Lore : knowledge is power

Starting Abilities

Oracle:
Sage:

Marksmanship : shooting guns and bows

Starting Abilities

MARKSMAN: On a ranged attack roll of modified 15+, fire again
SNIPER: Use one TURN to aim. Your next successful hit deals max damage

Martial Arts : achieve spiritual and physical harmony

Starting Abilities

DRAGONFIST: Your unarmed attacks deal GUN damage
GRAPPLER: Grappling an opponent counts as EASY for you
MONK: Use your WIS STAT when making unarmed attacks

Nature : the natural magic of the Green

Starting Abilities

BEASTMASTER: You can to communicate with BEASTS in their own language and use CHA rolls to persuade BEASTS
ECOMANCER: Nature magic is always EAST to cast
Warden:

Occultism : esoteric powers and otherworldly pacts

Starting Abilities

Cultist
Diabolist
Ritualist
Warlock

Psychic : the inner magic of the mind and spirit

Starting Abilities

Mystic:
Empath:
Far Seer:

Savagery : barbaric brutality!

Starting Abilities

BERSERKER: You can sacrifice 1d4 HP for an extra ATTACK
JUGGERNAUT: You can ignore up to BASIC damage from one hit per round
RAIDER: If attacking an enemy you have already harmed, do ULTIMATE damage

Song : the power of musical melodies and dance

Starting Abilities

Bard:
CHANTER: Provide a war chant with a CHA roll, reduce allies’ TARGET by 2
Dancer:

Thievery : cloak and dagger shenanigans

Starting Abilities

ASSASSIN: If your target doesn’t know you’re there, your first attack cannot miss and it does ULTIMATE
SHADOW: Your stealth rolls are always EASY
THIEF: Any time you roll for LOOT, roll TWICE

Tracking : hunting and tracking prey

Starting Abilities

SCOUT: When using WIS to seek out details or hidden truths, roll EASY
TRACKER: ATTEMPTS to pursue BEASTS or HUMANOIDS are EASY
TRAPPER: Your traps damage all victims NEAR the trap when tripped

Warfare : strength in armed combat

Starting Abilities

SWASHBUCKLER: Hurl insults at any 1 enemy, they cannot resist dueling you

#7

Just a little balancing question about the “always EASY”, wouldn’t it be better to be “always one/two rank easier” or something ? Because there’s some condition where it wouldn’t make sense for the cast to be EASY

#8

There are a number of Starting Abilities in the ICRPG Master Edition that make some things “always EASY.” I renamed the Thief as the Shadow, and the ICRPG Thief ability grants the same thing. Elementalist for the Priest class makes casting all Nature and Elemental spells EASY. There are a number of similar ones, so I was following those sort of starting abilities.

#9

I think I understand what you’re saying. Perhaps use the term EASY-er. Normal rolls become Easy and Hard rolls become normal. (Impossible rolls become Hard??) Would that work?

#10

That’s the idea indeed OldBen. I guess it would work and allow for IMPOSSIBLE or HARD rolls not to be trivialised