Part One,GenEx: Universe 6
Part One,GenEx:
Universe 6
Exploring Genre Expectations: Universe 6
Genre Expectations
What is a Genre Expectation (hereafter GenEx)? Basically, it's what you come to expect from a genre...but that's a little obvious isn't it? Okay, a GenEx is significantly narrower than your ordinary run-of-the-mill genre. Take for example the 'Western;' you've seen them in movies, plays, and books. You know them inside and out, right? But does it sound right for Roy Rogers to stroll up and shoot the gun out of Clint Eastwood's character's hands - the second before vengeance is had for the slain family - and then break into song¹? Probably not. That's because there are a plethora of genres going by the simple name of 'Western.'
In Scattershot, pretty much everything is related to the GenEx; in fact, there isn't much point in having anything significant that isn't. A GenEx is the fuel and 'goal' for most everything that happens. Stray from the GenEx and you won't get much help from the system, play into it, and...oh boy!
So what makes up a GenEx? Lots and lots, very many little pieces, but it organizes pretty easily and believe it or not, you probably already know most of it. That's the real kick, a GenEx is largely something you're already familiar with, hence your interest in using it. Really, a GenEx is way of organizing and narrowing the genre you want to play, making it clear for everyone playing.
There are four primary components to any GenEx: Central Concept, Metaphor, Motif, and Running Gag. The Central Concept is the maxim around which everything else in the game fits. The Metaphor is how all the elements in the game connect to each other and relate the 'big picture' of the Central Concept; this can be a very indirect or mostly symbolic resemblance sometimes, but usually doesn't need to be. The Motif represents the practice of identifying what's relevant to the game with the application of narrowly defined 'style' (or the practice of applying that very same style to everything). A Running Gag is something that 'colors' most things, but doesn't signify the things the way a Motif does.
The group really needs to come up with the GenEx and the rest of the primary components of the game at the same time.
I’ll illustrate a GenEx by describing the one for our Mainstream Comic Book Superhero (hereafter MCBS) game being put together right now called Scattershot presents: Universe 6, the World of the Modern Fantastic. MCBS is one of the genres nearest and dearest to my heart, so let's start with the one I know inside and out.
Central Concept
There's tons of different Central Concepts to choose from for a MCBS game, depending on how you Approach² it. If you're into the whole 'story now' thing, you can examine some of the deeper philosophical concepts like the familiar "Might Makes Right." (There are many interpretations of this, some of the most popularized are "With Great Power Comes Great Responsibility" and "Criminals are a Cowardly and Superstitious Lot.") On the other hand, if your group gets into 'being' dark heroes bent on vengeance, you might pick a looser Central Concept like examining 'what makes you human?' (for those 'inhuman monster' type heroes) or looking at 'what sacrifice is justice?' If you just like beating up the bad guys you could do the traditional 'Good versus Evil' or 'Defenders of Justice;' anything that is built on the most basic of conflicts will do (even a nice, simple version of 'Us vs. Them' every now and then). Furthermore, if you 'just wanna have fun,' the Central Concept can more model the types of comics your game is going to be similar to; for example, 'Secretly Protecting Mankind from Evil Mutants,' 'Defend the Planet Against Extraterrestrial Foes,' and so on.
The Central Concept may or may not be related to deeper more thematic statements. If you feel really Ambitious (the depth of your Approach²) you can make your game more about the statements that the Metaphors (not just the characters) make on the Central Concept. On the other hand you could just pick a good villain for your game and just play 'cat and mouse.' How you want to handle this dictates a lot of your potential choices for your Central Concept. One thing to remember is the Central Concept usually can't be chosen 'in a vacuum.'
For Universe 6, we chose to base the GenEx on a branch of a franchised superhero group located in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Being about a franchise is meant to echo a couple of the longer-lasting comic books from the major comic book publishers as well as allow for more group-based play. Out of all the potential Central Concepts, we decided on somewhat looser choice, 'Keepers of the Flame.' It allows for a slightly wider variety of Approaches²; on the one hand, you can have games questioning the role of superheroes in the world. On another, games about 'up and comers' joining or clashing with the 'old, established group' are also possible. If you want angst, any of the Personae can go through a period caught between duty to the franchise, the dangers of the career, and the needs of the person in the spandex. There is even the potential for games of dealing with intervention, either from the franchise holders or the government. Not to mention the traditional clashes with supervillain groups and world dominators.
That gives an example of the strength of a good Central Concept. As 'Keepers of the Flame,' you give the game a definite perspective. This is important in the choice of direction and tension in the game. 'Being the establishment' automatically gives a footing in most types of games and creates the tension relationship with other characters. When choosing a Central Concept, look for one that quickly gives you a 'feel' for how things are relevant to the game. The police? Look at the long-term, practical working relationship. The public? Ask whether they like their protectors. Aliens? Consider whether the group represents or defends the planet. A Central Concept is 'what you do' or at least a big red arrow that points at 'what is going on;' this simplifies what direction a game might take.
Metaphor
It's the Metaphor that gives a GenEx its overall structure; with it you can determine what matters and what will feel relevant. Metaphor is a method for connecting things in a game somewhat symbolically, but the game won't actually be about the symbols. Look at it this way; all the 'important' things in the game can be represented by symbols (like a superhero can represent a desire for justice). How these symbols relate to each other is the Metaphor. A good Metaphor reflects things the GenEx requires and what cannot be a part of it. The Metaphor helps determine which is what.
The reason a GenEx separates Metaphor from Central Concept has to do with how the Central Concept changes while most Metaphors remain the same game after game. Now if this were literature, these two parts would probably be inseparable; this isn't literature. Between the Central Concept and the Metaphor, you should get a feel for what is relevant or isn't.
In the MCBS genre (like many), there are a significant number of important 'questions you must never ask.' Ideas explicitly avoided are almost as important to a GenEx as those normally thought of. For Universe 6, one of the primary pariahs is the old saw, "Power Corrupts, Absolute Power Corrupts Absolutely." This actually results in a familiar but unusual feature to MCBS, the supervillain.
You see, almost no hero in comics exists without his villain and most villains don't bother with any other superheroes. Why is that? Because (at least as far as Universe 6 goes) the supervillain is just another dimension to the superhero. Generally, we call this a case of binary characterization. (Meaning that when you create your Persona, you must also create their arch-enemy. You don't have to play this rival, but you do need to determine their Proprietor³)
If you have a Persona who engages in 'mad science,' you can bet at least one of their supervillains is either an evil mad scientist or the result of some experiment gone astray (this is also an example of a 'personal Motif'). Many times the 'supervillain aspect' of a Persona represents what crimes one could commit with powers much like those of the 'superhero aspect;' alternatively, the supervillain is either a 'natural response' to the superhero's powers concept or the classic foil of the same. Superheroes who are 'longer in the tooth' will even have supervillains tailored specifically to their particular "Achilles' heel." That's why you never see any 'corruption' amongst superheroes in MCBS; it is expressed as their supervillains.
Another important absence with the MCBS GenEx is death. Certainly characters can literally die, but the effect doesn't seem to be long-lasting. Comic books are legendary for their ability to resurrect the dead, so effectively there is no death. This has some important implications for Universe 6 as well. First of all, all character death in Scattershot only comes at the behest of the character's proprietor³. Now, provided that circumstances (and choice) result in the death of a character, there are two options. First, they get shelved and no one makes use of them (that might be 'true death' in MCBS); ultimately they may be brought back later, but then they must reestablish their Relationships (more on this later) and relevance to the game. Second, the character undergoes a significant redesign; death in MCBS never results in anything other than either of these.
What do supervillains and death have to do with Universe 6's Metaphor? Plenty. Both stem from the natural exaggeration inherent in MCBS. While this colors heavily as a Running Gag in MCBS (I'll explain that in a tick), it actually frames the Metaphor too.
This demonstrates how the Metaphor of the game can be a simple 'way of relating things' to the Central Concept. Attention to this Metaphor need not turn the game into an exercise in thematic analysis of 'the plight of man.' Not even close. What it does tell us in Universe 6 is that we need to 'keep it personal.' (Metaphorically, it's about personal problems, right?) Any kind of game in this GenEx has to always find a way to make it 'intimate' to the heroes. This is why the heroes in the comic books frequently blame themselves for what happens, because the stories are about them 'personally.'
Metaphor is also good direction for inventing stuff 'in a pinch.' Need a Detail? Look to the Personae's makeup, in MCBS you have to 'make it personal' after all, and that's a good place to start. A Metaphor acts as both a guide and a filter, being as deep or as superficial as your Approach². (And let's just say that MCBS isn't terribly deep.) It keeps things on track and offers a recipe of how to increase the feeling of relevance of any item or concept within the game.
Motif
A Motif is the thing that most superficially makes up a GenEx. They're usually pretty simple and get stretched to some far extremes. For example, you'd never expect a problem to be solved by the exaggeration of the MCBS genre. Motifs are almost always evidence of significant occurrences in a game. A good Running Gag gets used everywhere, a Motif only comes up when something 'needs to get done' or it 'matters.'
There are a handful of predominant Motifs in MCBS. The first and most obvious are the superpowers. One way you can tell this is a major Motif is because there really aren't any stories in the MCBS genre where the action isn't related in some way to the powers. Either the powers cause the conflicts, solve them, or serve to complicate the stories. In other words, if it isn't by, of, for, or about powers, it probably isn't important to the game.
Another important Motif is battle. (Even conflicts played out in the theatre of the mind are depicted as physical clashes in MCBS stories.) It almost seems to be a rule of thumb that if a comic book doesn't contain a battle, nothing happened. This sets a difficult agenda and more often than not results in the need for a steady stream of 'disposable' criminal, characters who appear simply to cause a fight. Used carefully, this Motif can make the game exceptionally fun, but there are a couple of things to remember. First, don't have a battle that doesn't have lasting consequences, good or bad (even if it just 'keeps up the pace'). Second, don't let the battles drag on; even though every issue of a MCBS comic book has a battle, those with nothing else likewise have 'nothing happen.'
Third is the idea of secret identities. Different comic books use them for different purposes, but the whole group of genres is almost defined by them. What superhero doesn't have a secret identity? (Or at least suffers from the lack?) One important consideration you have to make when thinking about your Metaphor is which identity is the secret? Is he secretly a superhero or covertly a wealthy millionaire?
I have yet to hear an explanation for them that makes any sense. That's not the point. Whether they raise the superhero identity to the same cultural level as Greek deities or if they serve as totemic representations of their powers, the secret identity of the superhero is the iconic Motif.
For the final Motif, there are the supervillains. You may have noticed that superheroes have a strong tendency towards being two-dimensional. That's because the supervillain is the hero's 'third dimension.' Think about it; no matter how 'deep' a hero isn't, their arch-enemies are always shallower; and yet it is the clashes between them that really defines the hero. That's why the supervillain is an important part of preliminary Persona Development.
Because of the Metaphor (everything is 'personal'), you can see that the hero-villain relationship has to be about opposites. It's pretty simple; if your Persona is based on a spider, which has eight legs, then base the villain on an octopus. Or base it on an animal that eats spiders, or et cetera. If your Persona is an attractive American scientist, the villain will probably be a scarred, eastern-block dictator scientist. If you[r] Persona is the embodiment of the American ideal then their villain must represent something anti-American, like a Nazi, Soviet spy, or Secret Emperor (you might even go with a snake theme to balance the American bald eagle).
Ever wonder why the villains always escape to plague the hero again? That's because no real person could banish their personal demons any more than a superhero their villains. Some comic books go to great contortions to justify what should essentially be another of those 'questions you must never ask;' "Why can't the government keep the supervillains behind bars?"
Merely having a supervillain or three guarantees plenty of 'things to do,' largely because the villains are supposed to be behind it all. (Remember; 'keep it personal.') What does this mean? Well, in more thematically Ambitious² play you recognize that the clashes between good and evil, between superhero and supervillain, apply to the Metaphor for the struggle within one's self between 'doing the right thing' and one's baser urges. More simply, if you make a supervillain, expect them to come up often. Remember, the player may have created their supervillains, but they don't have to be their proprietor³ (however, they can if they like).
Carrying Off the Show
There is one important parallel to the Motif. It's sometimes called a theme or occasionally a premise; however, we just call it the Running Gag. One important difference between Motifs and Running Gags is that few significant things happen as a result of or using a Running Gag.
For example, let's say you have a group of elementary-school-aged superheroines; a good Running Gag would be 'kid issues.' These would be things like making new friends, bullies, dealing with the babysitter, curfews, and stuff like that. Every session (or two) would be built around one of these Running Gags, mostly superficially. This is one simple way to create a feeling of unity without having to resort to a more intrusive Central Concept. However there is nothing that says that 'kid issues' couldn't be the Central Concept, nor is there anything that says you should have a Running Gag, it's just something you might consider.
One of the most common Running Gags associated with the whole superpowers Motif is how it usually carries over into everything. You don't just hide your identity when exercising your powers, you strap on spandex and flashy colors. The places where everything happens aren't just cities, caves, and spaceships, they're metropolises, underground civilizations, and secret space armadas. Everything is as exaggerated as the powers are (and that's an important distinction, lower powered games have likewise less exaggeration). This plays into every aspect of the GenEx and brings us back to the question of what a GenEx is for.
You see, in the MCBS everything is wildly exaggerated, everything. When you consider everything within that Running Gag, a few things become evident and the type of Metaphor begins to show through. The supervillains, being a part of Persona Development, must represent an important aspect of the Metaphor. Not so much what the villains represent individually, but that they are considered as a part of your persona as a concept. This frames the Metaphor as the 'good vs. evil' fight within the symbolic individual. Thus the absence of death relates, Metaphorically, to how the individual's problems never end so simply.
So, How Do You Use Genre Expectations Already?
A good GenEx lists pretty much all the things that you want in the game you're going to play. Sometimes they even list the things that play will want to avoid (remember those 'questions that should not be asked?'). With a good GenEx in hand (or at least in the back of your mind), you play a Scattershot game; it both affects and directs how you play, but it also offers some useful tools towards being able to orchestrate play yourself, whether you're a player or a gamemaster. What many games barely supply as 'color' becomes the linchpin of how you play a Scattershot game.
With the clear and present intentions spelled out in the GenEx, play can concentrate on the Mystique of the singular expression of the genre (a Mystique is an 'unknown' you are interested in pursuing), instead of flailing about not knowing the 'boundaries' to operate within. This benefits consistency and focus and offers a better chance to explore the more interesting Circumstances created within the game.
The GenEx also defines the roles of the players within the game. Participating in the choice of the GenEx builds a special commitment to what is being played; it really sets out the atmosphere that play works in. This way the players aren't just members or supporters of the game, but its 'paid' enforcers as well.
The principal fuel to making a GenEx go is the Experience Dice. By playing according to different parts of the GenEx you rack them up. You can even get them by 'nudging' the play of others back towards the GenEx. What do you use them for? Why, to do anything you really want to. Therefore the more you participate in the GenEx, the more you can affect the rest of the play of the game in any way.
Experience Dice let you affect any die roll that you witness; you can roll them and add or subtract their result from any roll you see. You can also use them to 'force' play to behave as if dice had been rolled (for example, someone describes a character walking down the stairs; you can roll an Experience Dice and declare that they then tripped as badly as the die comes up, without a 'stair-walking' roll). You can also use them to create Plot Devices and Deus Ex Machina. You roll as many as you like and whatever you decide becomes a part of the game. The magnitude of your roll limits the impact of this, but you can always add more. (Don't forget to rationalize these plot contrivances in keeping with the Genre Expectations!)
How the Mechanix 'Run the Show'
In Scattershot, a GenEx works in three ways. First, it gives everyone playing a rock-solid idea of what to expect. Second, it offers direction when all else is chaos. And third, it forms the basis of how and why you get the rewards in the game (that'd be the Experience Dice).
All ya gotta do to learn what to expect in the game is to read the GenEx. It suggests how you start, where you can go, it gives examples, chapter and verse. You use what you like of the examples and are still informed by what you overlook.
Whenever you 'get lost,' misstep, or lose momentum, you can always look at the GenEx to 'find your way.' Taking the Sequences as examples, being able to grab Exemplars or Props on the fly, delving into the relevant Relationships or Circumstances, having everyone present actively interested in the parts, these are the ways that GenEx give you direction when you want it. (More on the 'parts of play' later.)
The GenEx also functions as a list of things players are rewarded for. Unlike the 'old school,' this rarely happens 'between games;' Experience Dice are supposed to be awarded right in the middle of play. Furthermore, players may award Experience Dice to each other (even borrowed ones) in addition to the more traditional 'gamemaster rewards the players' method.
Whoever gives the Experience Dice, the GenEx sets up what should be rewarded, like a schedule. There are 1 die rewards, 2 dice rewards, and so on. The most common way these 'come up' is when the player does something someone thinks is 'really cool' (the more 'in genre' the better). Other ways you can get Experience Dice include playing upon the features listed in your character write-up, exemplifying or 'going along with' the GenEx, fixing 'problems' occurring during play, or by just borrowing a die or two.
Although it is true that many times it is the actions of the Persona that result in these rewards, it is actually the player that keeps them. Even if the player winds up playing another Persona (or none at all), they get to keep their Experience Dice. A player may use them on their own Persona or in any other situation, even when they have no vested interest. When a player uses Experience Dice in a fashion that deserves awards based on the GenEx, they 'get them back' to use later as a kind of payback.
The main purpose for Experience Dice is to have fun. That's why you can use them for whatever you want at any time. The two main ways Experience Dice come into play is when the player uses them to direct the game where they want it to go and to develop their interests in the game (like Persona Write-Up).
The 'Nuts and Bolts' of It
Since Scattershot play and Genre Expectations are all about the ebb and flow of Experience Dice, why don't we talk about the game Mechanix of it.
The first kind of Experience Dice you get with a GenEx are called Keepers. These are instant rewards you get after you do either of two things. First of all, if someone, anyone, thinks you did something really cool they give you a die or two as a reward. If it suits the GenEx then the gamemaster is compelled to replace such a reward. (The gamemaster is encouraged to make these rewards too, but gets nothing back.)
A second type of Keeper you get for 'going with the flow.' Most GenEx follow a group of fairly familiar patterns, kind of like subplots, arch-plots or plot fragments (we call 'em Sequences, I'll explain in a tick). If things turn out as the GenEx suggests, especially when you weren't even trying, the gamemaster gives you Keepers it when it's over.
The next kind of Experience Dice you get are called Gimmes. They are rewards you prompt through the things you do with the game. During initial Development, you may give your Persona Disadvantages; whenever circumstances dictate that the Persona suffers from these, you get Gimmes, even when you contrive it to happen. The 'bigger' the Disadvantage, the more Gimmes you can get; the closer to 'the way it was written' the closer the reward is to the number of points spent on the Disadvantage. If you get into a situation where your Persona suffers from exactly the way a 3-point Disadvantage was written, you get 3 Experience Dice.
The same goes for the GenEx; if your Persona 'ought' to have bad things happen because of the GenEx and it does, you get Gimmes. We also use a special kind of 'personal' GenEx Sequence, like a destiny, that applies to a single Persona but works just the same. The fun part is getting Gimmes for helping someone else with their personal GenEx.
You also get Gimmes whenever you 'catch' the gamemaster or another player making a mistake using the GenEx (and even more as Payback, if you fix it 'in character' using your Experience Dice); this is called 'counting coup.' Remember to be careful not to tell them what to do; if they admit you 'got them' you count coup and they pay for it (if they know what their doing, then there is no reward). Another way you can get Gimmes is when you go out of your way to have your Persona do something that follows the GenEx Sequences. Likewise, if you happen to notice pacing turning into a problem for the group, you can pull an "Anyway..." (in MCBS this is often familiarly called a "Meanwhile"), by 'cutting to the chase.'
Another important kind of Experience Dice you can get is called a Loaner. You can get Loaners anytime you want (but you have to roll them right away); many people tend to get them only when they run out of 'regular' Experience Dice, but you don't have to. They're available at any time. No matter what situation you roll Loaners into, whoever is on the 'other side' (the gamemaster in uncontested rolls) has to keep them and use them in a fashion that 'goes against' your character (this has to happen the same session or they're lost). That's why we call it, 'taking a loan out on your karmic bank account,' it comes back to haunt you.
Freebies are the next kind of Experience Dice you can use. When you get your Persona into a position where they are at an Advantage (as listed in their Persona Write-Up), you get to use Freebies. With Advantages (similarly to Disadvantages), the number of Freebies is based on how closely your Persona's Advantage matches the situation limited by how many points you spent on it. For the Action that the Persona is at an Advantage for, the player may (if they want) roll the Freebies into their roll (just like Loaners without 'owing them'); Freebies may not be kept if they aren't used.
A GenEx yields Freebies the same way. When you're going to do something that 'ought to happen' based on the GenEx, you can roll Freebies into it, if you want. This is often called 'aspiring' to the GenEx. This is often how a character 'catches their second wind' or 'snatches victory from the jaws of defeat.' When doing this with a GenEx the important thing to remember, only the Speaker (that's the person currently talking; it's their show at that instant after all) can choose to do so.
So what happens if you have to spend Experience Dice to get any of the above to happen? If it works, on top of getting the listed rewards, you also get these spent Experience Dice back. This is called Payback. For example, if you use a Plot Device or Deus Ex Machina to get Gimmes, you get the Experience Dice spent on the plot contrivance back with the Gimmes.
You can also get Payback for undoing things that stray outside the GenEx. If someone else puts the game into a position where it asks a 'question that must not be asked' and then you find a way to 'undo it,' you get Payback at the same time you get Gimmes for 'Counting Coup.'
Lastly, you can use the Mechanix of Persona Development to yield a few Experience Dice; this is called Buy Back. All you need to do is contrive some situation (similar to a Plot Device or Deus Ex Machina, but not by spending Experience Dice) where your Persona loses some characteristic from their Write-Up. For every Development Point 'redeemed' when this happens, you get 1 Experience Die. Just remember, those Advantages and Disadvantages will no longer be around to use to get Freebies and Gimmes anymore. Vanquish your arch-enemy and get those 'points back' as Experience Dice. Overcome your phobia and get those 'points back.'
When you contrive a situation that warrants it, you can Burn Experience Dice - even Loaners - to get Development Points to spend on characteristics; you just can't 'hang on' to Development Points, you have to 'spend them' right away. Roll any number of Experience Dice for a total; a total 6 or higher gives you 1 Development Point, 10 gives you 2, 14 gives 3, and so on at increments of 4; if you don't get enough, roll a few more Experience Dice into it.
Let me give some unusual examples for how to apply these Mechanix. When a character causes some permanent, significant change to your Persona, technically, you can refuse it (with proper rationalizations in the game). However, because the GenEx afford them this ability, you are granted however many Freebies it takes to Burn to make the Development. In other words, if someone uses a superpower that gives you new abilities, these are paid for with Freebies because the GenEx says it should happen. Likewise, If someone does damage to your character (remember, a below 'Persona normal' Stat is a Disadvantage and Disadvantages cost points), you receive enough Freebies to buy the Disadvantage of Wounded. (Generally, most people skip rolling the Freebies, because they have to just Burn them right away anyway.)
The important thing implied by these GenEx Mechanix is that at any time, you as a player have a choice between 'doing what is expected' and doing what you want. The GenEx are what's expected and there's nothing that says you have to follow them. Of course, this is the classic carrot and stick approach; you can do anything you want, unless it requires Experience Dice, then you have to follow convention. We tend to call deliberately going after Gimmes to build up enough for some future purpose 'pumping up your Experience Dice.'
Here is where we get to the 'meat' of the GenEx (and explain a lot of the 'see below'). There are a number of elements that make up every Scattershot game you play. A published GenEx presents these by example, but each has basic applications within the concept of Genre Expectations. They are:
Personae
Tune in next installment, same bat-time, same bat-channel, same bat-URL....
Fang Langford
¹ Thanks to Walt Freitag for this example.
² I know I've talked up the Approaches quite a bit here, but I don't have room to elaborate. Approaches deal with what you consider your favorite parts of gaming and offer a glimpse into how to 'work and play well together.' Look for a big article on them next issue. Until then, if you can't wait, go over to The Forge and look in the Scattershot Forum for the designer notes on what we've developed here.
³ Proprietorship is a pretty crucial idea in Scattershot games. If you introduce something to the game, you become its Proprietor (not that you can't make a gift of it to someone else or share it). It's really important to remember what belongs to whom. First and foremost, you get all say in what happens to anything in your Proprietorship.
This means, if something is supposed to injure your Persona, you have a right to say no. By common agreement, you usually don't, but Scattershot affords you a little leeway when things get really bad (like Experience Dice). Major injury, profound Developments, or the death of a Persona are areas where the common agreement is not held to; whenever things like these come up, you make the decision and describe the results; you are the proprietor. You get to choose what happens, just not how bad it is.
Masterfully edited by Ron Edwards.
Genre Expectations
What is a Genre Expectation (hereafter GenEx)? Basically, it's what you come to expect from a genre...but that's a little obvious isn't it? Okay, a GenEx is significantly narrower than your ordinary run-of-the-mill genre. Take for example the 'Western;' you've seen them in movies, plays, and books. You know them inside and out, right? But does it sound right for Roy Rogers to stroll up and shoot the gun out of Clint Eastwood's character's hands - the second before vengeance is had for the slain family - and then break into song¹? Probably not. That's because there are a plethora of genres going by the simple name of 'Western.'
In Scattershot, pretty much everything is related to the GenEx; in fact, there isn't much point in having anything significant that isn't. A GenEx is the fuel and 'goal' for most everything that happens. Stray from the GenEx and you won't get much help from the system, play into it, and...oh boy!
So what makes up a GenEx? Lots and lots, very many little pieces, but it organizes pretty easily and believe it or not, you probably already know most of it. That's the real kick, a GenEx is largely something you're already familiar with, hence your interest in using it. Really, a GenEx is way of organizing and narrowing the genre you want to play, making it clear for everyone playing.
There are four primary components to any GenEx: Central Concept, Metaphor, Motif, and Running Gag. The Central Concept is the maxim around which everything else in the game fits. The Metaphor is how all the elements in the game connect to each other and relate the 'big picture' of the Central Concept; this can be a very indirect or mostly symbolic resemblance sometimes, but usually doesn't need to be. The Motif represents the practice of identifying what's relevant to the game with the application of narrowly defined 'style' (or the practice of applying that very same style to everything). A Running Gag is something that 'colors' most things, but doesn't signify the things the way a Motif does.
The group really needs to come up with the GenEx and the rest of the primary components of the game at the same time.
I’ll illustrate a GenEx by describing the one for our Mainstream Comic Book Superhero (hereafter MCBS) game being put together right now called Scattershot presents: Universe 6, the World of the Modern Fantastic. MCBS is one of the genres nearest and dearest to my heart, so let's start with the one I know inside and out.
Central Concept
There's tons of different Central Concepts to choose from for a MCBS game, depending on how you Approach² it. If you're into the whole 'story now' thing, you can examine some of the deeper philosophical concepts like the familiar "Might Makes Right." (There are many interpretations of this, some of the most popularized are "With Great Power Comes Great Responsibility" and "Criminals are a Cowardly and Superstitious Lot.") On the other hand, if your group gets into 'being' dark heroes bent on vengeance, you might pick a looser Central Concept like examining 'what makes you human?' (for those 'inhuman monster' type heroes) or looking at 'what sacrifice is justice?' If you just like beating up the bad guys you could do the traditional 'Good versus Evil' or 'Defenders of Justice;' anything that is built on the most basic of conflicts will do (even a nice, simple version of 'Us vs. Them' every now and then). Furthermore, if you 'just wanna have fun,' the Central Concept can more model the types of comics your game is going to be similar to; for example, 'Secretly Protecting Mankind from Evil Mutants,' 'Defend the Planet Against Extraterrestrial Foes,' and so on.
The Central Concept may or may not be related to deeper more thematic statements. If you feel really Ambitious (the depth of your Approach²) you can make your game more about the statements that the Metaphors (not just the characters) make on the Central Concept. On the other hand you could just pick a good villain for your game and just play 'cat and mouse.' How you want to handle this dictates a lot of your potential choices for your Central Concept. One thing to remember is the Central Concept usually can't be chosen 'in a vacuum.'
For Universe 6, we chose to base the GenEx on a branch of a franchised superhero group located in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Being about a franchise is meant to echo a couple of the longer-lasting comic books from the major comic book publishers as well as allow for more group-based play. Out of all the potential Central Concepts, we decided on somewhat looser choice, 'Keepers of the Flame.' It allows for a slightly wider variety of Approaches²; on the one hand, you can have games questioning the role of superheroes in the world. On another, games about 'up and comers' joining or clashing with the 'old, established group' are also possible. If you want angst, any of the Personae can go through a period caught between duty to the franchise, the dangers of the career, and the needs of the person in the spandex. There is even the potential for games of dealing with intervention, either from the franchise holders or the government. Not to mention the traditional clashes with supervillain groups and world dominators.
That gives an example of the strength of a good Central Concept. As 'Keepers of the Flame,' you give the game a definite perspective. This is important in the choice of direction and tension in the game. 'Being the establishment' automatically gives a footing in most types of games and creates the tension relationship with other characters. When choosing a Central Concept, look for one that quickly gives you a 'feel' for how things are relevant to the game. The police? Look at the long-term, practical working relationship. The public? Ask whether they like their protectors. Aliens? Consider whether the group represents or defends the planet. A Central Concept is 'what you do' or at least a big red arrow that points at 'what is going on;' this simplifies what direction a game might take.
Metaphor
It's the Metaphor that gives a GenEx its overall structure; with it you can determine what matters and what will feel relevant. Metaphor is a method for connecting things in a game somewhat symbolically, but the game won't actually be about the symbols. Look at it this way; all the 'important' things in the game can be represented by symbols (like a superhero can represent a desire for justice). How these symbols relate to each other is the Metaphor. A good Metaphor reflects things the GenEx requires and what cannot be a part of it. The Metaphor helps determine which is what.
The reason a GenEx separates Metaphor from Central Concept has to do with how the Central Concept changes while most Metaphors remain the same game after game. Now if this were literature, these two parts would probably be inseparable; this isn't literature. Between the Central Concept and the Metaphor, you should get a feel for what is relevant or isn't.
In the MCBS genre (like many), there are a significant number of important 'questions you must never ask.' Ideas explicitly avoided are almost as important to a GenEx as those normally thought of. For Universe 6, one of the primary pariahs is the old saw, "Power Corrupts, Absolute Power Corrupts Absolutely." This actually results in a familiar but unusual feature to MCBS, the supervillain.
You see, almost no hero in comics exists without his villain and most villains don't bother with any other superheroes. Why is that? Because (at least as far as Universe 6 goes) the supervillain is just another dimension to the superhero. Generally, we call this a case of binary characterization. (Meaning that when you create your Persona, you must also create their arch-enemy. You don't have to play this rival, but you do need to determine their Proprietor³)
If you have a Persona who engages in 'mad science,' you can bet at least one of their supervillains is either an evil mad scientist or the result of some experiment gone astray (this is also an example of a 'personal Motif'). Many times the 'supervillain aspect' of a Persona represents what crimes one could commit with powers much like those of the 'superhero aspect;' alternatively, the supervillain is either a 'natural response' to the superhero's powers concept or the classic foil of the same. Superheroes who are 'longer in the tooth' will even have supervillains tailored specifically to their particular "Achilles' heel." That's why you never see any 'corruption' amongst superheroes in MCBS; it is expressed as their supervillains.
Another important absence with the MCBS GenEx is death. Certainly characters can literally die, but the effect doesn't seem to be long-lasting. Comic books are legendary for their ability to resurrect the dead, so effectively there is no death. This has some important implications for Universe 6 as well. First of all, all character death in Scattershot only comes at the behest of the character's proprietor³. Now, provided that circumstances (and choice) result in the death of a character, there are two options. First, they get shelved and no one makes use of them (that might be 'true death' in MCBS); ultimately they may be brought back later, but then they must reestablish their Relationships (more on this later) and relevance to the game. Second, the character undergoes a significant redesign; death in MCBS never results in anything other than either of these.
What do supervillains and death have to do with Universe 6's Metaphor? Plenty. Both stem from the natural exaggeration inherent in MCBS. While this colors heavily as a Running Gag in MCBS (I'll explain that in a tick), it actually frames the Metaphor too.
This demonstrates how the Metaphor of the game can be a simple 'way of relating things' to the Central Concept. Attention to this Metaphor need not turn the game into an exercise in thematic analysis of 'the plight of man.' Not even close. What it does tell us in Universe 6 is that we need to 'keep it personal.' (Metaphorically, it's about personal problems, right?) Any kind of game in this GenEx has to always find a way to make it 'intimate' to the heroes. This is why the heroes in the comic books frequently blame themselves for what happens, because the stories are about them 'personally.'
Metaphor is also good direction for inventing stuff 'in a pinch.' Need a Detail? Look to the Personae's makeup, in MCBS you have to 'make it personal' after all, and that's a good place to start. A Metaphor acts as both a guide and a filter, being as deep or as superficial as your Approach². (And let's just say that MCBS isn't terribly deep.) It keeps things on track and offers a recipe of how to increase the feeling of relevance of any item or concept within the game.
Motif
A Motif is the thing that most superficially makes up a GenEx. They're usually pretty simple and get stretched to some far extremes. For example, you'd never expect a problem to be solved by the exaggeration of the MCBS genre. Motifs are almost always evidence of significant occurrences in a game. A good Running Gag gets used everywhere, a Motif only comes up when something 'needs to get done' or it 'matters.'
There are a handful of predominant Motifs in MCBS. The first and most obvious are the superpowers. One way you can tell this is a major Motif is because there really aren't any stories in the MCBS genre where the action isn't related in some way to the powers. Either the powers cause the conflicts, solve them, or serve to complicate the stories. In other words, if it isn't by, of, for, or about powers, it probably isn't important to the game.
Another important Motif is battle. (Even conflicts played out in the theatre of the mind are depicted as physical clashes in MCBS stories.) It almost seems to be a rule of thumb that if a comic book doesn't contain a battle, nothing happened. This sets a difficult agenda and more often than not results in the need for a steady stream of 'disposable' criminal, characters who appear simply to cause a fight. Used carefully, this Motif can make the game exceptionally fun, but there are a couple of things to remember. First, don't have a battle that doesn't have lasting consequences, good or bad (even if it just 'keeps up the pace'). Second, don't let the battles drag on; even though every issue of a MCBS comic book has a battle, those with nothing else likewise have 'nothing happen.'
Third is the idea of secret identities. Different comic books use them for different purposes, but the whole group of genres is almost defined by them. What superhero doesn't have a secret identity? (Or at least suffers from the lack?) One important consideration you have to make when thinking about your Metaphor is which identity is the secret? Is he secretly a superhero or covertly a wealthy millionaire?
I have yet to hear an explanation for them that makes any sense. That's not the point. Whether they raise the superhero identity to the same cultural level as Greek deities or if they serve as totemic representations of their powers, the secret identity of the superhero is the iconic Motif.
For the final Motif, there are the supervillains. You may have noticed that superheroes have a strong tendency towards being two-dimensional. That's because the supervillain is the hero's 'third dimension.' Think about it; no matter how 'deep' a hero isn't, their arch-enemies are always shallower; and yet it is the clashes between them that really defines the hero. That's why the supervillain is an important part of preliminary Persona Development.
Because of the Metaphor (everything is 'personal'), you can see that the hero-villain relationship has to be about opposites. It's pretty simple; if your Persona is based on a spider, which has eight legs, then base the villain on an octopus. Or base it on an animal that eats spiders, or et cetera. If your Persona is an attractive American scientist, the villain will probably be a scarred, eastern-block dictator scientist. If you[r] Persona is the embodiment of the American ideal then their villain must represent something anti-American, like a Nazi, Soviet spy, or Secret Emperor (you might even go with a snake theme to balance the American bald eagle).
Ever wonder why the villains always escape to plague the hero again? That's because no real person could banish their personal demons any more than a superhero their villains. Some comic books go to great contortions to justify what should essentially be another of those 'questions you must never ask;' "Why can't the government keep the supervillains behind bars?"
Merely having a supervillain or three guarantees plenty of 'things to do,' largely because the villains are supposed to be behind it all. (Remember; 'keep it personal.') What does this mean? Well, in more thematically Ambitious² play you recognize that the clashes between good and evil, between superhero and supervillain, apply to the Metaphor for the struggle within one's self between 'doing the right thing' and one's baser urges. More simply, if you make a supervillain, expect them to come up often. Remember, the player may have created their supervillains, but they don't have to be their proprietor³ (however, they can if they like).
Carrying Off the Show
There is one important parallel to the Motif. It's sometimes called a theme or occasionally a premise; however, we just call it the Running Gag. One important difference between Motifs and Running Gags is that few significant things happen as a result of or using a Running Gag.
For example, let's say you have a group of elementary-school-aged superheroines; a good Running Gag would be 'kid issues.' These would be things like making new friends, bullies, dealing with the babysitter, curfews, and stuff like that. Every session (or two) would be built around one of these Running Gags, mostly superficially. This is one simple way to create a feeling of unity without having to resort to a more intrusive Central Concept. However there is nothing that says that 'kid issues' couldn't be the Central Concept, nor is there anything that says you should have a Running Gag, it's just something you might consider.
One of the most common Running Gags associated with the whole superpowers Motif is how it usually carries over into everything. You don't just hide your identity when exercising your powers, you strap on spandex and flashy colors. The places where everything happens aren't just cities, caves, and spaceships, they're metropolises, underground civilizations, and secret space armadas. Everything is as exaggerated as the powers are (and that's an important distinction, lower powered games have likewise less exaggeration). This plays into every aspect of the GenEx and brings us back to the question of what a GenEx is for.
You see, in the MCBS everything is wildly exaggerated, everything. When you consider everything within that Running Gag, a few things become evident and the type of Metaphor begins to show through. The supervillains, being a part of Persona Development, must represent an important aspect of the Metaphor. Not so much what the villains represent individually, but that they are considered as a part of your persona as a concept. This frames the Metaphor as the 'good vs. evil' fight within the symbolic individual. Thus the absence of death relates, Metaphorically, to how the individual's problems never end so simply.
So, How Do You Use Genre Expectations Already?
A good GenEx lists pretty much all the things that you want in the game you're going to play. Sometimes they even list the things that play will want to avoid (remember those 'questions that should not be asked?'). With a good GenEx in hand (or at least in the back of your mind), you play a Scattershot game; it both affects and directs how you play, but it also offers some useful tools towards being able to orchestrate play yourself, whether you're a player or a gamemaster. What many games barely supply as 'color' becomes the linchpin of how you play a Scattershot game.
With the clear and present intentions spelled out in the GenEx, play can concentrate on the Mystique of the singular expression of the genre (a Mystique is an 'unknown' you are interested in pursuing), instead of flailing about not knowing the 'boundaries' to operate within. This benefits consistency and focus and offers a better chance to explore the more interesting Circumstances created within the game.
The GenEx also defines the roles of the players within the game. Participating in the choice of the GenEx builds a special commitment to what is being played; it really sets out the atmosphere that play works in. This way the players aren't just members or supporters of the game, but its 'paid' enforcers as well.
The principal fuel to making a GenEx go is the Experience Dice. By playing according to different parts of the GenEx you rack them up. You can even get them by 'nudging' the play of others back towards the GenEx. What do you use them for? Why, to do anything you really want to. Therefore the more you participate in the GenEx, the more you can affect the rest of the play of the game in any way.
Experience Dice let you affect any die roll that you witness; you can roll them and add or subtract their result from any roll you see. You can also use them to 'force' play to behave as if dice had been rolled (for example, someone describes a character walking down the stairs; you can roll an Experience Dice and declare that they then tripped as badly as the die comes up, without a 'stair-walking' roll). You can also use them to create Plot Devices and Deus Ex Machina. You roll as many as you like and whatever you decide becomes a part of the game. The magnitude of your roll limits the impact of this, but you can always add more. (Don't forget to rationalize these plot contrivances in keeping with the Genre Expectations!)
How the Mechanix 'Run the Show'
In Scattershot, a GenEx works in three ways. First, it gives everyone playing a rock-solid idea of what to expect. Second, it offers direction when all else is chaos. And third, it forms the basis of how and why you get the rewards in the game (that'd be the Experience Dice).
All ya gotta do to learn what to expect in the game is to read the GenEx. It suggests how you start, where you can go, it gives examples, chapter and verse. You use what you like of the examples and are still informed by what you overlook.
Whenever you 'get lost,' misstep, or lose momentum, you can always look at the GenEx to 'find your way.' Taking the Sequences as examples, being able to grab Exemplars or Props on the fly, delving into the relevant Relationships or Circumstances, having everyone present actively interested in the parts, these are the ways that GenEx give you direction when you want it. (More on the 'parts of play' later.)
The GenEx also functions as a list of things players are rewarded for. Unlike the 'old school,' this rarely happens 'between games;' Experience Dice are supposed to be awarded right in the middle of play. Furthermore, players may award Experience Dice to each other (even borrowed ones) in addition to the more traditional 'gamemaster rewards the players' method.
Whoever gives the Experience Dice, the GenEx sets up what should be rewarded, like a schedule. There are 1 die rewards, 2 dice rewards, and so on. The most common way these 'come up' is when the player does something someone thinks is 'really cool' (the more 'in genre' the better). Other ways you can get Experience Dice include playing upon the features listed in your character write-up, exemplifying or 'going along with' the GenEx, fixing 'problems' occurring during play, or by just borrowing a die or two.
Although it is true that many times it is the actions of the Persona that result in these rewards, it is actually the player that keeps them. Even if the player winds up playing another Persona (or none at all), they get to keep their Experience Dice. A player may use them on their own Persona or in any other situation, even when they have no vested interest. When a player uses Experience Dice in a fashion that deserves awards based on the GenEx, they 'get them back' to use later as a kind of payback.
The main purpose for Experience Dice is to have fun. That's why you can use them for whatever you want at any time. The two main ways Experience Dice come into play is when the player uses them to direct the game where they want it to go and to develop their interests in the game (like Persona Write-Up).
The 'Nuts and Bolts' of It
Since Scattershot play and Genre Expectations are all about the ebb and flow of Experience Dice, why don't we talk about the game Mechanix of it.
The first kind of Experience Dice you get with a GenEx are called Keepers. These are instant rewards you get after you do either of two things. First of all, if someone, anyone, thinks you did something really cool they give you a die or two as a reward. If it suits the GenEx then the gamemaster is compelled to replace such a reward. (The gamemaster is encouraged to make these rewards too, but gets nothing back.)
A second type of Keeper you get for 'going with the flow.' Most GenEx follow a group of fairly familiar patterns, kind of like subplots, arch-plots or plot fragments (we call 'em Sequences, I'll explain in a tick). If things turn out as the GenEx suggests, especially when you weren't even trying, the gamemaster gives you Keepers it when it's over.
The next kind of Experience Dice you get are called Gimmes. They are rewards you prompt through the things you do with the game. During initial Development, you may give your Persona Disadvantages; whenever circumstances dictate that the Persona suffers from these, you get Gimmes, even when you contrive it to happen. The 'bigger' the Disadvantage, the more Gimmes you can get; the closer to 'the way it was written' the closer the reward is to the number of points spent on the Disadvantage. If you get into a situation where your Persona suffers from exactly the way a 3-point Disadvantage was written, you get 3 Experience Dice.
The same goes for the GenEx; if your Persona 'ought' to have bad things happen because of the GenEx and it does, you get Gimmes. We also use a special kind of 'personal' GenEx Sequence, like a destiny, that applies to a single Persona but works just the same. The fun part is getting Gimmes for helping someone else with their personal GenEx.
You also get Gimmes whenever you 'catch' the gamemaster or another player making a mistake using the GenEx (and even more as Payback, if you fix it 'in character' using your Experience Dice); this is called 'counting coup.' Remember to be careful not to tell them what to do; if they admit you 'got them' you count coup and they pay for it (if they know what their doing, then there is no reward). Another way you can get Gimmes is when you go out of your way to have your Persona do something that follows the GenEx Sequences. Likewise, if you happen to notice pacing turning into a problem for the group, you can pull an "Anyway..." (in MCBS this is often familiarly called a "Meanwhile"), by 'cutting to the chase.'
Another important kind of Experience Dice you can get is called a Loaner. You can get Loaners anytime you want (but you have to roll them right away); many people tend to get them only when they run out of 'regular' Experience Dice, but you don't have to. They're available at any time. No matter what situation you roll Loaners into, whoever is on the 'other side' (the gamemaster in uncontested rolls) has to keep them and use them in a fashion that 'goes against' your character (this has to happen the same session or they're lost). That's why we call it, 'taking a loan out on your karmic bank account,' it comes back to haunt you.
Freebies are the next kind of Experience Dice you can use. When you get your Persona into a position where they are at an Advantage (as listed in their Persona Write-Up), you get to use Freebies. With Advantages (similarly to Disadvantages), the number of Freebies is based on how closely your Persona's Advantage matches the situation limited by how many points you spent on it. For the Action that the Persona is at an Advantage for, the player may (if they want) roll the Freebies into their roll (just like Loaners without 'owing them'); Freebies may not be kept if they aren't used.
A GenEx yields Freebies the same way. When you're going to do something that 'ought to happen' based on the GenEx, you can roll Freebies into it, if you want. This is often called 'aspiring' to the GenEx. This is often how a character 'catches their second wind' or 'snatches victory from the jaws of defeat.' When doing this with a GenEx the important thing to remember, only the Speaker (that's the person currently talking; it's their show at that instant after all) can choose to do so.
So what happens if you have to spend Experience Dice to get any of the above to happen? If it works, on top of getting the listed rewards, you also get these spent Experience Dice back. This is called Payback. For example, if you use a Plot Device or Deus Ex Machina to get Gimmes, you get the Experience Dice spent on the plot contrivance back with the Gimmes.
You can also get Payback for undoing things that stray outside the GenEx. If someone else puts the game into a position where it asks a 'question that must not be asked' and then you find a way to 'undo it,' you get Payback at the same time you get Gimmes for 'Counting Coup.'
Lastly, you can use the Mechanix of Persona Development to yield a few Experience Dice; this is called Buy Back. All you need to do is contrive some situation (similar to a Plot Device or Deus Ex Machina, but not by spending Experience Dice) where your Persona loses some characteristic from their Write-Up. For every Development Point 'redeemed' when this happens, you get 1 Experience Die. Just remember, those Advantages and Disadvantages will no longer be around to use to get Freebies and Gimmes anymore. Vanquish your arch-enemy and get those 'points back' as Experience Dice. Overcome your phobia and get those 'points back.'
When you contrive a situation that warrants it, you can Burn Experience Dice - even Loaners - to get Development Points to spend on characteristics; you just can't 'hang on' to Development Points, you have to 'spend them' right away. Roll any number of Experience Dice for a total; a total 6 or higher gives you 1 Development Point, 10 gives you 2, 14 gives 3, and so on at increments of 4; if you don't get enough, roll a few more Experience Dice into it.
Let me give some unusual examples for how to apply these Mechanix. When a character causes some permanent, significant change to your Persona, technically, you can refuse it (with proper rationalizations in the game). However, because the GenEx afford them this ability, you are granted however many Freebies it takes to Burn to make the Development. In other words, if someone uses a superpower that gives you new abilities, these are paid for with Freebies because the GenEx says it should happen. Likewise, If someone does damage to your character (remember, a below 'Persona normal' Stat is a Disadvantage and Disadvantages cost points), you receive enough Freebies to buy the Disadvantage of Wounded. (Generally, most people skip rolling the Freebies, because they have to just Burn them right away anyway.)
The important thing implied by these GenEx Mechanix is that at any time, you as a player have a choice between 'doing what is expected' and doing what you want. The GenEx are what's expected and there's nothing that says you have to follow them. Of course, this is the classic carrot and stick approach; you can do anything you want, unless it requires Experience Dice, then you have to follow convention. We tend to call deliberately going after Gimmes to build up enough for some future purpose 'pumping up your Experience Dice.'
Here is where we get to the 'meat' of the GenEx (and explain a lot of the 'see below'). There are a number of elements that make up every Scattershot game you play. A published GenEx presents these by example, but each has basic applications within the concept of Genre Expectations. They are:
Personae
- These are the characters portrayed by the players. It's important to think beyond 'this is me' sometimes, because there's a small matter of having the other players interested in who your Persona is and what they're up to. Without that, schisms and boredom ensue.
- These are what make the other characters interesting. Characters who aren't Personae and who don't 'connect' to anything else in the game are at best Background or Plot Devices.
- Call 'em arch-plots, subplots, 'plotlets,' or plot fragments, these are vague one-thing-after-another abstract series-of-events descriptions. They don't tell you what to do; they tell you what 'has been done' in similar situations to offer you direction.
- This is the 'what is going on' of the game. It's the orchestration of all the Props, Relationships, Personae, and Background that is the relevant 'playing area' of the game. Play always addresses the Circumstances even if tangentially.
- In many ways the 'setting' of the game, this includes history and characters who have no relevant Relationships (the 'extras').
- These are game-relevant things that offer a character increased ability.
- Anything in 'da rules' that delineates what can be done in the specific Genre Expectation.
Tune in next installment, same bat-time, same bat-channel, same bat-URL....
Fang Langford
¹ Thanks to Walt Freitag for this example.
² I know I've talked up the Approaches quite a bit here, but I don't have room to elaborate. Approaches deal with what you consider your favorite parts of gaming and offer a glimpse into how to 'work and play well together.' Look for a big article on them next issue. Until then, if you can't wait, go over to The Forge and look in the Scattershot Forum for the designer notes on what we've developed here.
³ Proprietorship is a pretty crucial idea in Scattershot games. If you introduce something to the game, you become its Proprietor (not that you can't make a gift of it to someone else or share it). It's really important to remember what belongs to whom. First and foremost, you get all say in what happens to anything in your Proprietorship.
This means, if something is supposed to injure your Persona, you have a right to say no. By common agreement, you usually don't, but Scattershot affords you a little leeway when things get really bad (like Experience Dice). Major injury, profound Developments, or the death of a Persona are areas where the common agreement is not held to; whenever things like these come up, you make the decision and describe the results; you are the proprietor. You get to choose what happens, just not how bad it is.
Masterfully edited by Ron Edwards.
posted by Fang Langford at
1/07/2006 11:46:00 PM
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