June 28, 2009

I'm thinking of removing the signature traits that act as Disability buffers (Tough, Endurance, and Magic Source) and replacing them with a more generic/universal mechanic. First of all this would remove a few more signature traits, which I've been steadily moving away from as a general character creation mechanic except in cases where the character needs a new ability that isn't expressed in the normal rules, such as flight. Second, this would make these buffers, which seem essential, available to all characters instead of just those who managed to find a signature trait or two.

The current idea is to use the character's Trait Lines as buffers. Each character would have 1 point of buffer for a particular kind of Disability per core trait. So a "Paladin" core trait / theme would act as a buffer against Taint, whereas a "kickboxer" core trait could act as a buffer against Fatigue. Players would simply assign each core trait to a kind of Disability, with each core trait acting as a 1-point buffer. So, a wizard with three trait lines all ties to wizardry would have a 3-point buffer for Drain.

Perhaps the max buffer for any kind of Disability would be the length of the highest trait line. Alternatively, it could be the length of the smallest trait line, and some characters wouldn't use all of their core traits for buffers.

June 16, 2009

I've redesigned Shields to be more interesting than just another piece of armor.

I've also greatly reduced Load, in order to simplify Load and so that I can remove the signature traits that previously were required to reduce the load of armor and shields. Soldiers no longer need signature traits just to function.

June 1, 2009

It's been a long time coming but I have some major updates to the character creation system. This new generation involves creating "Trait Lines". The way that players use traits remains unchanged, but this new trait structure ensures that broad ("core") traits have low Ranks and the specialty traits have higher Ranks. See the Sample Characters for lots of examples.

This new system also virtually eliminates the need for Signature Traits, which will greatly simplify the system. I will be gradually culling out signature traits that are no longer needed.

This solves several system issues that I've been attempting to resolve for years and it's a very exciting development.

March 1, 2008

The new Confidence Dice mechanic removes the need for the previous restriction on having multiple TOUGH signature traits. This is wonderful, as it was one of the quirks off the signature trait system.

February 4, 2008

I've spent some time recently solidifying an epiphany of game theory. Any persistent character ability granted by a magic item or spell should take the form of a Trait or Signature Trait. This is a deceptively simple and powerful concept that is certain to have a large impact on the game design as a whole. The EMPOWER magic art, which grants Traits, thusly becomes a "cornerstone of magic", and the basis for several subclasses/variants such as WARDING.

December, 2007

I've long wanted to find a single-word names for Signature Traits and Legendary Item. "Signet" seems promising, although I'm not decided on which it applies to.

October, 2007

The new Confidence Dice mechanic is working nicely. This fills a long-recognized need to delay the point of diminishing returns when buying Trait Ranks. This also affords a seamless way for players to adjust the level of risk they take in a roll. Gambling is fun.

October 23, 2006

Magic Drain is now called simply "Drain" and has been broadened to include all extraordinary abilities such as EVASION, POISON STRIKE, HIDDEN STRIKE, MARTIAL STRIKE, SHAPESHIFTER, etc. This simple mechanic places a limitation on the frequency that a power can be used and creates a strategic element.

October 15, 2006

The concept of Damage Reduction has been added as a means to offset Deadly Strike. This is an ability of magic armor and mythical beasts.

Reactions are now limited to two Traits, with a third Trait granted at a cost of 1 Fatigue. Should a fourth Trait be available to action at the same cost or should actions follow the same model?

September 18, 2006

I've been ad-libbing various monsters and challenges that the players face as Minor Characters, but a bona fide monster manual would be useful. This is essentially the same challenge as developing a comprehensive list of example legends, such as NPCs, magic items, mythic places, etc.

August 23, 2066

The concept of actions has been broadened to "Actions / Reactions". Previously, "defend" was listed as an action, but is now classified as a reaction. Adding the concept of a "reaction" allows more broadly based rules governing free actions, and removes the need for special rules for armor class--armor is now a Passive Trait.

August 14, 2006

The venerable notion of "weapon damage" has been replaced by Weapon Strike, a measure of total weapon effectiveness due to reach, recovery speed, and damage. Weapon Strike is declared as a Trait, which removes the special rules we previously needed for weapon damage (and also also fixes the non-random weapon damage issues noted two blog entries ago.) Weapon Strike is split into two sub-numbers (1H/2H) which determine how effective a weapon of a certain size is when wielded in one or two hands. The end result is a more historically accurate combat system that rewards use of longer weapons in environments that allow their use, yet, retains the viability of "heroic fantasy" fighters wielding knives or their fists. Halberd-wielding town guards are now far more deadly than before . . .

July 6, 2006

The concept of the Magic Theme is even more freeform now, defined as a collection of traits that describe the character's magic rather than a single MAGIC THEME signature trait. Other signature traits are now available (and required), such as BATTLE MAGIC, FAR MAGIC, WIDE MAGIC, MAINTAINED MAGIC, etc. Signature traits for the creation of magic items are coming next!

June 15, 2006

The AC trio works very well for many reasons. It can be used to simulate layered armor, and it limits the top AC a character might have from multiple sources of protection in a very simple way (unlike some other games.) However, it can allow a character to become a tank, impervious to damage. The Bonus Die can already allow an attack to bypass one piece of AC, but even this is not always enough. Perhaps another option is to cause 1 Fatigue. This would make fatigue play a much more important role, and an armored knight would eventually get battered within his shell.

On a related note, it would also be nice if weapon damage was a little more random. Wyuf deals +10 damage on every hit, so she only needs a single success to cause severe harm, and can't "nick" a foe. Some ideas: - roll weapon damage vs armor (a bad idea except for duelling combat) - convert AC into a Defense Trait (a bad idea because armor should apply to any number of hits) - limit damage by successes unless a Bonus is rolled (!) Thus, Wyuf would just nick a foe unless she either rolled lots of successes or rolled a bonus (i.e. struck a vital location)

June 18, 2006

Every now and then I ponder whether "Signature Traits" is the best choice of name. Today, "Meta Traits" (or "Metatraits") came to mind.

Feb 19, 2006

The latest wave of updates to Legend of Magic are complete. A character's magic now revolves solely around his Magic Theme. The Magic Arts are now treated as example guidelines for magic actions rather than signature traits. This is an important conceptual shift that makes it far easier to stay in character.

Feb 17, 2006

As the core rules near stabilization, I'm thinking about writing a campaign-specific supplement for Ambar.

Jan 4, 2006

I spent a portion of this month looking at other game systems and wrote a comparison of Legends and FUDGE. I also took a look at the gorgeously illustrated Artesia RPG, which uses a conventional attribute/skill system but has made similar (but less freeform) choices for magic, particularly the concept of maintaining spells (which Legends has had since Warband.)

Jan 3, 2006

Substantial updates to Legends of Magic, including consolidation of "art capabilities" into Channels.

Signature Traits are now purchased separately from Traits. This creates a cost for having signature traits and allows players to fine-tune their Ranks. Specializations have also been added, which makes signature trait groups like ARCHETYPE and WEAPON MASTERY unnecessary--they have been removed.

Dec 22, 2005

Playtesting turned up the need for a better way to handle languages. Some characters are taking Traits that provide a broad basis of linguistic talent, while others are taking Traits for specific languages. At what Rank is a character proficient in a language? Do we need a "qualification trait" or "proficiency trait" game mechanic that defines this?

Nov 30, 2004

Legends 3.0 has beeen published online.

April, 2003

Legends RPG 2.0 has entered playtesting.

Jan, 2002

The first early-stage version of the Legends RPG 1.0 now available online.

1994-1997

Warband RPG published online. While this bears little resemblance to Legends, many of the foundations of magic are similar. This is also the beginning of this website!