F|nDers Keepers: Progress, and Character Sheet Sneak Peek!

Hi all,

I am excited at where this project has been taking me, in ways seen and "unseen".

The guys who are going to play-test the game in the coming months are meeting at Behindmee (our unofficial headquarters which doubles as a coffee-shop which serves good Western Food) on Saturday to start our brainstorming and play-testing with a short adventure based on the new setting that I will be designing from scratch.

Some of the players will get to know the system for the first time, and I think explaining the rules to them will be insightful too, as it will show the degree of intuitiveness that F|nD possesses, or the lack thereof.

Hopefully, valuable feedback and group-based opinion can be obtained, and I will be able to proceed with more information in my bag, especially with some first-hand experience playing the F|nD System.

"Sometimes at night, all I need is some.. Inspirasi."

During our session, discussion will touch on a few areas of importance.

1. The Combat System (Actions)

• Multiple Actions in a Round.Cumulative Penalty to each Action beyond the first?
• Should Dodging and Blocking be part of Active Actions? Will the Block near the end of the turn, which is effectively the 3rd "Action" in the Turn take a 2D penalty?
• How should multiple Blocks and Dodge be handled?
• Block can be enhanced with a Shield but Dodge cannot. So what are the advantages of Dodge? and if so, what is the difference between Block and Dodge game-wise?
• What other Combat Actions do you want to see? Called Shots? Grappling?

1. Weapons

• Fixed Weapon DV against undefended Targets. Should 2 handed weapons be naturally at 16DV while a Dagger be at 7DV?
• Is the Ranged Weapon Stats balanced among the 3 types of Weapons?

1. Initiative System (Card)

• Is using a deck of cards viable? Does the Joker Rules look fun?

1. Implementation of the Magic/Piety System 

• What do you feel about the Drain System?
• What differences do you forsee between practitioners of Magic (Plane of the Unseen) and Piety?
• Does the Loyalty System of Piety feel too pigeon holed for you? 

1. Skills and Perks

• Any important Skill missed out?
• What other Perks do you want to see?

Just to let you in on some of the work that I have been doing, and what I am actually up to with my spare time these days, here is my latest F|nD Basic Editon Character Sheet, updated after comments by Shane and Pong.

"Are you sure this is Basic Edition, Alfie?"

As you can clearly see, I added colors to the usually bland "Traditional Character Sheet" look, and I think that in this format, the different information can be more easily picked up by the players. For this project, I am throwing out many tried and tested conventions, replacing them with ideas and gimmicks from other Games and Hobbies that I know of.

Currently, I am sprucing up the Core Book (screenshots in the upcoming post) with clearer Tables, editing what should be in the Basic Edition and placing them in the best and most logical way for my players and readers to absorb in the shortest amount of time. It is seventeen pages long for now, and I see this Core-book ending up below thirty pages for the Basic Playtest Sessions. 

Cyall on the flip side!~