DIE: A ROLE-PLAYING GAME V1.1 MANUAL

KIERON GILLEN ©2019

ART BY STEPHANIE HANS COVER DESIGN BY RIAN HUGHES

(This update with typos corrected December 2020)

Copyright © 2019 Kieron Gillen Ltd & Stéphanie Hans. All rights reserved. DIE, the Die logos, and the likenesses of all characters herein or hereon are trademarks of Kieron Gillen Ltd & Stéphanie Hans. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means (except for short excerpts for journalistic or review purposes) without the express written permission of Kieron Gillen Ltd or Stéphanie Hans. All names, characters, events, and places herein are entirely fictional. Any resemblance to actual persons (living or dead), events, or places is coincidental.

Representation: Law Offices of Harris M. Miller II, P.C. ([email protected])

CONTENTS

1) INTRODUCTION

2) THE WORLD OF DIE

3) PREPARATION

4) THE FIRST SESSION

5) PREPARING FOR THE FIRST SESSION

6) THE SECOND SESSION

7) THE RULES

8) RUNNING THE ARCHETYPES

9) ADVICE FOR GAMESMASTERS

10) OTHER RESOURCES

WELCOME

I have a habit of being a little extra around my comics. I fear this is the most extra thing I’ve ever done. Alongside creating the comic DIE with Stephanie Hans, I developed the role-playing game you hold in your hands. Er… figure of speech. “PDF on your hard drive” doesn’t quite have the same ring.

This RPG creates, in a miniaturized form, your own version of the first arc of DIE. As such, there’s some possible structural spoilers for the comic. I say “possible” because it really is your own version of the comic. The comic is available in a handsome trade edition from all good book and comic shops, whether physical or online. It’s $10, so even reasonable. I’ve justified this whole ludicrous endeavour to myself as “marketing” so popping to your retailer of choice and reading it to get the vibe would be an excellent thing. It looks like this…

I suggest that if you’re not planning on running the game, you stop reading now. Going to the Handouts PDF to have a nose is safe, though I’d only read the player character sheets. They’re the first ones. Reading the Rules section is also safe.

There is a third PDF called Arcana. This is basically supplementary weird material and extra help for new players. There are many references to it in the following. The most prominent one is (no, really, this is a thing) the “Box of Crap”.

I’ve never quite done anything like this. I’ve had amazing support from friends, but it’s VOLUME 1 still a huge thing. This is a Beta, a public FANTASY HEARTBREAKER playtest, so do excuse roughness. I hope you’ll find it interesting. There are at least three funny jokes. If you’ve any thoughts, do write to [email protected]. I’d love to hear what you make of it and what you do with it.

Thanks for reading and/or playing and/or existing. This will be an adventure.

Kieron Gillen London

CHANGELOG V1.1 DECEMBER 2019

First Beta updates Changes throughout including typos. Extra sections added on online play and advice about less hostile antagonists. References to Arcana updated. Playsheets tweaked for clarity, including section on “Class in a sentence”.

Key rules-changes Willpower is now Wisdom + Intelligence, not Wisdom x2. Stressed the Fool’s exploding Special only works in dice pool where the Fool’s dice is included. Tweaks to Fallen. Emotion Knight Emotion Draining lowered difficulty to a standard 1. Godbinder has a max debt taken on in a single roll when casting a miracle. Clarification of how breaking promises leads to God Debt, and how God Debt can be used.

Future Plans This update has primarily been the addition of the Arcana and various bits of balancing and bugs. The new year is going to be working on campaign mode stuff and a bunch of more meaningful changes to the archetypes, including a playable Master. The archetype tweaks in some form will likely be released for playtesting too, at least in a private Beta. Then we need to work out if we’re releasing this, right? Onwards. Thanks for playing.

.

WHAT IS A ROLE-PLAYING GAME? and try to find their way home – or not. Upon arriving in the world, each comes This is a classical question to answer in into possession of one of the six titular an RPG manual. In the modern age, if dice of the comic and is entirely you don’t know, I’d suggest just transformed into a heroic identity. googling something like Critical Role and watching for a few minutes. That. That’s This is the structure of many pieces of a role-playing game. pop entertainment, from the 1980s D&D cartoon to Jumanji. Without the For the majority of the play time, DIE transformational aspect, it’s the mostly operates like a D&D model game. structure that underlies The Wizard of Players state what they want their Oz and The Lion and The Witch and The characters to do. The GM generally says Wardrobe. It also underlies the famously what happens. For character actions brutal 1980s fantasy epic The which are uncertain, the mechanics are Chronicles of Thomas Covenant the used to ascertain the success or failure Unbeliever, so don’t assume those of that action. references mean that it’s fun.

There are some exceptions to the As such, each player generates two above, but we'll hold your hand through characters. The identity of the person in them. We love you. We will not abandon the mundane world, and the identity of you. the person in the fantasy world. Clearly, this can be confusing. For clarity, a INTRODUCTION TO THE DIE RPG BETA Persona is the person in the mundane world, and the Character is an DIE is a role-playing game (not to be individual in the fantasy world. The confused with “the world of Die” where Player controls the Persona who the game is set). Its standard mode of controls a Character. play involves between one and five players (who each play a single So for example, Lucy is sitting down to individual) and a Gamesmaster (who play. She generates Bob the depressed controls the rest of the world, and acts IT guy, who is then transformed into a as a referee). We may shorten towering Barbarian Rage Knight in the “Gamesmaster” to “GM” if we're feeling world of Die. Lucy is the Player. Bob the lazy. depressed IT guy is the Persona. The towering Barbarian Rage Knight is the DIE’s main mode is horror-fantasy. How Character. much it leans towards horror and how much it leans towards fantasy will be It should also be noted that Character for you to decide, if only through your rules apply to all people in the world of perception. One person’s horror is Die, whether they are controlled by another person’s fantasy. players or the GM. If there’s ever a case where we need to separate player- Specifically, DIE is a role-playing game controlled characters and GM-controlled where a group of people find characters, we use the phrase Avatar themselves transported from their to mean player-controlled characters. mundane lives to a fantasy world. In this There’s none in the Beta at the moment. fantasy world, they have adventures

Oh – and we use dice to mean both the it's equally as likely that the players singular and plural of dice. As the will have to fight the Gamemaster's game's called DIE it's going to get persona to go home. It's possible confusing otherwise. that at least some of the players' personas will change their opinions, DIE RPG STRUCTURE possibly multiple times. Drama! Climax! A game takes the following structure. I suggest running it across 2-4 sessions, In other words, this is a core scenario... though include some guidelines for but a very flexible core scenario. It is a running it in a single session or dramatic arc rather than a set series of extending it. events. After a certain point, your game will go in its own radical direction, • Players and Gamesmaster (”GM”) before gathering back together in the gather and each generate a climax. persona. This is a social group in the real world, complete with rivalries, In playtests, we’ve had games which passions and bitterness. Unlike have just ended in a glorious RPG- many role-playing games, the GM typical brawl. In other playtests, we’ve also creates a persona. had players sit down in a circle and • You then roleplay the personas basically have a therapy session. sitting around and about to play a Seeing what happens is absolutely the role-playing game. Each persona fun of the game. then generates a fantasy role- playing character. BETA? WHAT DO YOU MEAN “BETA”? • The personas are magically transported into the fantasy realm, It means it’s not finished. Here’s a list of and (likely) transformed into the some things which you may expect to characters they generated. They find in a full DIE RPG which are simply rapidly discover that this has all not in this Beta release. been part of a scheme by the Gamesmaster’s persona – the • Extensive details on the world of Master. The Master has trapped the Die as described in the comic. As players there. in, monsters, areas, locales, etc • The personas go on an adventure, • Campaign play trying to find their way home. On the • Character advancement way they discover that the only way • Non-player characters of the to go home is for all the personas to core DIE archetypes agree to go home. And dead • A lot of balancing personas don’t get a vote. If a • An acceptable level of decision is not made, everyone will playtesting end up dying. Erk. • A suitably professional time for • The story reaches a conclusion as proofreading the personas come to a consensus • A lack of self-indulgence on whether to go home or not – • Lists that stop when it runs out which includes the Gamemaster's of content persona. While it is possible that a • Really, it’s bad at lists peaceful consensus will be reached, • Oh so bad at lists

At which point you may be mechanics of the game. If you ever feel understandably wondering why this you need to know the actual mechanics, thing is as long as it is. I swear, it’s not feel free to stop and jump to The Rules just because we’re bad at lists. which will explain all of that.

There are a few suggestions for how an (For those who are familiar with RPGs intrepid player may choose to add these and want a brief overview, DIE runs off a things, if they wish, but fundamentally dice-pool system, where you compare this is a work in progress by a the number of successes rolled in a dice determined if enthusiastic amateur. If pool to a target number of successes to folks respond to it, hopefully we’ll determine results. It has a lot of continue to develop it. Either way, it’s elements from narrative RPGs in there, something I hope you like. but it’s got a fairly procedural core. If you’re not familiar with RPGs, don’t HOW TO READ THIS DOCUMENT worry, none of this paragraph should make any sense whatsoever.) Don’t worry. If you’ve reading this sentence, you’re doing it right. The Handouts are to be printed out. They are the character sheets, the There’s three PDFs discussed herein: sheets for the GM, and the cheat sheets which boil the key advice from this • The Manual ludicrous document into a few pages. • The Handouts • The Arcana The Arcana should be available now. It’s available to download on the The Manual is what you’re reading, diecomic.com site. which is the core rules. It takes you step by step through the whole of the game. It’s a PDF of (for want of a better We describe how to run the game before phrase) Weird Shit and the more the specific mechanics of the game, and experimental, less playtested material. only interject the rules section when If this is all a Beta, the Arcana is all pre- you need it. The back end of the PDF is Beta. The stranger or more rules-centric advice for running the specific stuff has been put there to avoid character classes, and generalised GM overwhelming people, as well as all the advice. If you’re not interested in role- alternate play modes – including my playing games at all, I suspect you’ll get thoughts on running DIE as a one-off or a giggle out of some of the GM advice. even trying for a campaign. It also Much of it is just writing about narrative includes lots of worked examples to structure. show the various ways people have played their games. If you read the In short: we describe how to run the manual and still want some more game before we describe the specific advice, the Arcana is where to go.

THE WORLD OF DIE takes seriously. Some are Saruman. Some are Radagast. Their character The personas will be transported to a defines the character of the region – fantasy world. Your fantasy world will and its rules. They also get to redefine be set inside ours, so I’m going to give the rules, assuming they're willing to put you a little of its structure. It's likely your in the effort. players, especially in this Beta, will never know any of this. Above them is the Grandmaster of Die. The Grandmaster gets to meddle with all Die is a planet-sized 20-sided the regions of Die. If you were playing a polyhedron consisting of 20 equal-sized long campaign on Die, it's likely the triangular planes. It tumbles, though Grandmaster would either be the does not move. Despite this, gravity player's primary antagonist or their appears to operate as it would on Earth. ultimate patron. Or perhaps both. It is fun to be a physicist in the world of Die. That’s the world of Die.

Die is suspended inside a sphere that is However inside Die are countless pocket half-dark and half-light. As Die tumbles, dimensions. Some are the size of a we get a day and night cycle – though it dungeon. Some are the size of a is far from as predictable as on Earth. universe. All are controlled and shaped Embedded in the dark half of the sphere by a single Master. The Master in are what appear to be stars, but are in question is the role the GM’s persona fact cities of the Fair, about one takes when they enter the world. hundred miles distant. The Fair are “Elves as designed by William Gibson.” It's also worth noting that a Master's On the light side we have an enormous control is considerable, but also fusion-explosion, looking like a sun. imperfect. A Master's subconscious is There are occasionally secondary fusion often at play, in a way which can be explosions, giving Die multiple suns. instrumental in their self-defeat. In a world where their wishes can create The Fallen are beasts that are generally things, it's possible they have created believed to drop from the sky. enemies who exist to help the players Cybernetic monsters, primarily, but bring them down. There is also the which can appear in many forms. If the nature of the world of Die itself and the Fair are elves as designed by Gibson, indirect meddling of the Grandmaster, the Fallen are orcs auditioning to play a both of which can be messing with a part in Tetsuo: The Iron Man. The Fallen Master’s desires. have an awful secret which the players may or may not discover. Suffice to say: this is in a realm of fantasy and it's fucking with the Master There are kingdoms and empires as much as the Master is fucking with aplenty on Die but, for our purposes, the the players. Our antagonistic Master has real rulers are the Masters. (knowingly or not) made some manner of Faustian pact, and these rarely end Each of the twenty realms has a Master. well. Sometimes they're the actual ruler. Just as often, they're a weird hermit no one

At this point you may be wondering The word “dungeon” is interesting. where in Die all these pocket Dungeons are prisons. They’re designed dimensions are? This is a good question to keep people trapped inside them. Not which I’m not going to answer, which all Masters are aware that this includes may imply that its reveal may be a big them. deal in a future part of the comic. Wait – is this what’s going on with Sol To stress the subtext of the above – in the comic? while there is a solid fictional Do you think I’d spoil the comic a background this is set in, you have handful of pages into a free set of RPG complete freedom to define a sub- rules? I’m the sort of fool who decides reality every time you play DIE. With the writing a 70,000-word RPG ruleset for exception of our character classes, you free is a good idea, not the sort of fool don’t need to use any of the elements of who’d do that. Or maybe this is all a DIE. Each one of these dungeons is its double-bluff. Hobbits aren’t half as own hermetically sealed world. Frankly, sneaksie as writers. that's usually how the Masters prefer it. It's their little dream home, and they may not even notice as their dream home slides into a haunted house.

WHAT YOU WILL REQUIRE I’m playing online – can I play the game? • 1 person willing to be GM (i.e. you). Uh-huh. See the Advice for • 1-5 friends or at least people you can Gamesmasters section for some bear being in the same room for a guides. couple of nights. • A D20, D12, D10, D8 and a D4. I want to play with more than five • One D6 you are okay with doodling players – can I? on with a marker. Oh, look at the popular one with all the • A marker for doodling. friends. We’re not jealous. • A few more D6. At least 6, and the more the merrier. Sure! See the section in Advice for • Tokens for the Master’s Cheat Gamesmasters called “The Highlander Tokens. Coins for the Neo. Variant”. • Pen and paper for everyone is useful. To be honest, I’d suggest not, at least • A printout of the Handouts. for your first game. More players means less spotlight time for everyone, less EXTRA CREDIT chance for each character to be explored, and a lot more work for you, The Box of Old Crap (see Arcana). the trusty GM.

BEFORE THE SESSION What’s this Box of Old Crap for extra

credit? I don’t want to go to the Read these rules, including familiarizing Arcana – it scares me. yourself with all the archetypes' It is the sound of your friend’s, the game character sheets. Invite players and designer’s, heart breaking as he moves arrange times. Good luck. That’s the the rules for them to the supplementary hard part. section as it’s not actually a core part of

the game any more. In short: create a While the urge may be to go for all six box of random mainly RPG-related stuff players, be aware the game asks a lot of which you pretend is the actual game the GM to run all the archetypes. A game Sol made, and then you use its contents with three players and a GM works as a glorified tarot deck to influence the great. I’ve also run it with just one game. It’s a fun thing to do, but really is player. Also be aware that, with a full non-core. cast, to give everyone enough spotlight time, you’ll most likely to want to run it for three sessions rather than two.

PRE-GAME CHAT

When people are ready to play, sit For example, a persona may loathe the everyone down in the play area. I would idea of being a wizard, but someone suggest around a table and perhaps on who hates magic becoming a spell chairs. Making one player stand is caster obviously has a lot of potential generally a bad idea, unless you are a drama. strong proponent of Player ShamingTM. Thirdly, you should discuss about the If you have the Box of Crap, either hide it tone of game they’re going for. DIE or have it suspiciously prominent on the basically has two natural poles – on one table. Discourage anyone from touching side, adventure and on the other, horror. it. Try and build up its odd mystery. How much do they want this to be a game about a character’s emotions Firstly, explain the game’s basic setup. versus their adventures? If this was a DIE involves a group of people gathering movie, what rating would it have? together to play a role-playing game. Discuss how many sessions you plan You’ll generate a social group of real- the game to go for. The rules as written world friends. Stress that the game assume at least two sessions, but there rewards messy flawed people with real are ways to run it in a single session or needs. You will then play those expanding it to as many sessions as personas, sitting down to play an actual you think interesting. This is to make role-playing game. And then they’re sure that everyone is on the same page going to go on an adventure… and, at with the same expectations, and also the end of the session, come to a climax lets you tailor what comes next. where our personas will grow and change by this experience. Or not. Remember: you are also allowed to have Stress that this may eventually involve opinions and preferences too. Your idea inter-party conflict, and even death, but of fun matters as much as anyone death is also a part of our story. else’s in the room.

Secondly, you should ask what sort of Fourthly, talk about some possible things they like to do in a role-playing themes the game may involve. This is to game. As in, what sorts of abilities they make sure people are fine with them want to have. This should be as broad and can delineate their boundaries. If as possible – do they want to fight? Do people have reservations, you can they want to wield spells? Both? tweak the game away from them in play. Neither? Is there a character from With the setup of this Beta, it’ll likely fiction they find appealing? “I'm up for include issues from childhood – any whatever seems good for the personas limits there? The Neo can have themes we generate or the group needs” is also of addiction. The Dictator has themes of a perfectly good answer. Encourage consent. Does anyone have any them to be honest now, because later, boundaries there? Respect people’s when they're playing their personas, choices. Say your own. they may end up answering dishonestly.

Fifthly, introduce the X-card. Put one is X-carding a persona whose name is card (or more) with an “X” drawn on it in identical to that of an ex.). easy reach of all the players. The X-card does not mean someone has fucked up. It means someone is If any player (including the GM) touches uncomfortable, and we should be polite. it, it means they are uncomfortable with the current topic or subject and we The X-card was conceived by John should take a step back and change Stavropoulos, and the original direction. It does not mean asking documentations is here: questions about what the element is, or http://tinyurl.com/x-card-rpg naming it, though some people will say (e.g. “This is too violent for me.”). The X- In the GM’s advice section there are card can be activated for any reason, some more safety suggestions to even minor ones (character names consider, but I consider the X-card a which might connect to a bad memory bare minimum. This is a game that can for one of the players is a good example go to some dark places if the group – the best low-level example I’ve heard wishes.

PERSONA GENERATION

Here we generate the personas – the facts. Encourage players to ask each real-world people whose personalities other questions as they occur to them. drive the game. Essentially, it's a process of fishing for information. First question: this is a group of people. What is this group of people? What The aim of the questions is threefold: connects them? 1. So the players know who their own They are a group of adults who were personas are. friends when they were young, who find 2. So the other players know who each themselves gathered together years persona is. later, and someone suggests they play 3. To provide the GM with the raw a role-playing game. Explain it to the material for generating the players something like this… adventure.

“You are a group of friends who played The first allows a player to make a normal role-playing game at school meaningful decisions about their who, years later, have found yourself persona. The second means that other gathered together to play a game for old players are not confused by another times' sake. We're going to now work out player’s persona. Both are important in who you are, how you know each other, a story-based game. Encourage players and why you’ve got back together.” to ask other players questions about their personas. If they don't, you should. This is broad enough to include lots of different sorts of groups (for example, The third is for you, and shouldn’t be playing 21-year-olds visiting home at explicitly mentioned to the players, and Christmas is a very different game than it is explained at length shortly. See everyone being 55-year-olds back in “Your Purpose For Asking These town for a funeral – and equally Questions”. different from a game where some characters are old and some are young) Further details to the personas can (and while also having characters who've will) be added during play, but once had enough adult experiences (both you've got the basics we’re looking for positively and negatively) to impact the down (as described below), you should game. It also leads to a wide variety of proceed. Generally, a gut feeling that different sorts of groups – the drama “This seems like a fun, developed, group’s D&D game suggests a different messy and believable social group!” is social dynamic to the maths club’s. your tell. Messy is key. Once you get a character to a point of messiness, To stress: the game they played was not asking further questions may actually a magical game in any way. It was just a resolve their issues. That’s counter- normal (probably) teenage game. productive. Facing their issues is what this game is about. Next, proceed to ask leading questions to the players to decide upon the key

I normally spend around an hour on this Punk Band’s Spare Activity stage, if players are enjoying it. If Detention Survivors they’re not, cut it short. Football Team’s Guilty Secret Girl Guides/Boy Scouts/Other Teenage The following are some areas a group Paramilitary Organisation may wish to be prompted to think about. Church Group Some of it is less ‘questions’ and more Hospital Ward ‘lines of thought for them to explore’. It Summer Camp is likely you will bounce between Online Group Who Never Met IRL multiple sections as ideas occur. It's not Just a Typical Bunch of Loveable Geeks a checklist. Actual examples from playtests: a Players should be encouraged to go detention group; a close family who back and edit earlier ideas if they have played RPGs; guests and attendees of a better ones, as long as everyone agrees con; ex-members of a third-rate with where it ends up. It's likely players' mathrock band; work colleagues; a ideas will develop as they progress. Buffy fan forum.

Here’s some examples of types of What was the RPG like? questions. They’re written assuming the You don’t need to ask a lot of these at players knew each other as kids and are this stage, but there’s two you should now getting back together as adults. consider. The first is essential.

How did the personas’ old RPG group What was the name of the world your get together? game was set in? This is likely the first question you’ll What classes did people play? want to know – what is the shared Who GMed? connection? The football team is a different set of inspirations from the Don’t ask too many questions on this. chess club. How do the majority of the For those who don’t know the standard group know each other? way a DIE game works, being too attentive in this section makes people How did you know each other? know it’s related to the plot in a key Was there a shared social activity? way. I spend a maximum of 10% of my Were you all at the same school? persona generation time in this area. What was the school like? Posh? Run- Maximum. down? Rural? Urban? Core Persona This is also a question that can be Presented with a blank page, a group useful to seed by presenting the players can be intimidated to get started. One with a list of options for the social method is to prompt one strong activity that connected the personas. persona, who the others can align For example… themselves around. Once one piece is in place, the rest is easier. School Orchestra Computer Club Now they've grown up, who's the most Family Group successful persona? What do they do? Drama Society

Were any of you particularly famous as Has anyone got an idea of what sort of children? Infamous? What for? kid their persona was? If so, tell us a bit about them. Actual examples from playtests: an What was your best subject? Your extremely famous author at a con; the worst? How smart were you? one member of the band who got big. Were you bullied? Were your parents divorced? The Reason for the Game What did you think you'd be when you The personas are about to sit down and grew up? play an RPG. It's important to work out Did you have any hobbies? Music? why. What did you hate about yourself?

The game is happening because the The Inter-Persona Relationships personas are all together for a reason. This adds meat to feelings between the What's the reason? group. Especially when you're using a strong Core Persona, a lot of the However, by this point it's likely the GM relationships will end up being defined may have ideas of their own for this. In according to that. which case, they may wish to suggest things. These are useful if the players Are you related to any of the personas? need ideas too, of course. Here's a list of Who was your best friend? How did you examples: meet? How did they hurt you? Who were you most jealous of? Everyone's home for Christmas (or any Were you in love with anyone? Lust? other holiday). It's the night before one of the group's The Persona Now wedding. This shows what's changed in a Someone close has died, and this is persona's life since childhood. The gap something people agreed to do at the between what you thought you were wake. and could achieve, and what you A group holiday and someone thinks it's actually did achieve is key to DIE. a good activity for an evening. It's gaming night! They always game! What do you do now? Do you enjoy it? Are you married? Divorced? Multiple Actual examples from playtests: a game divorces? If so, who to? session at a con; the night before a Do you have kids? Did you want kids? wedding with the groom wanting to Have you been seriously ill? finally run a game; an anniversary of the Has anyone you loved died? death of a band’s drummer; a corporate How do you think about your teenage orientation briefing; a playtest of a new years? How do you think about your prototype at a games company. time playing RPGs? Do you keep in contact with any of the The Persona Then friends? If so, who? When we've established the rough If someone makes a movie of this game, shape of the group, we add more meat which actor plays your persona? to individual personas.

Persona vs Persona Who's your favourite author? Band? If a group seems to lack strong internal Film? TV show? conflicts, some Gamesmasters will What's your favourite colour? prefer to try and generate some drama. What's your dream holiday location? Some players will respond very badly to Celebrity crush? Then and now? these aggressive sorts of questions. If you were a character in Friends, who Sometimes only one leading question would you be? What about Game of will be enough to encourage other Thrones? The Good Place? players to start thinking along these lines. The “Core Persona” questions Making Sure the Players Understand actually work a little like this, except by How to Play Their Personas increasing the profile of one persona. If This is all useful stuff for players to one persona is famous, that implies know their motivations and feelings other people will have feelings about (and for you for the actual game), but that, which often are not positive. it’s worth checking in to see if they know how to role-play in their voice. So, you say you're siblings. What made you hate your brother? How do you think you come across to Who do you blame for your parents’ people you meet? divorce? Want to try and be your persona for a sentence? For more on this see “Hardball versus What do people notice about the way Softball questions” later. you speak?

Possible Complexities SPEEDING UP GENERATION If someone is not really seeming into the group setup, maybe they would be The above methodology gives a lot of interested in being an outsider. flexibility, but also asks a lot of both players and GM. There is nothing as Did any of you meet this lot after they intimidating as a blank sheet of paper. left school? If so – who do you know? As such, you may consider explicitly When did you meet? A lover of one of seeding some key elements. If you them? Perhaps even a child? decide the general age of the group, you Were you at the school, but not in the limit things considerably. If you want to social group back then? If not, why not? really limit things, also pre-establish the Did you want to play and they wouldn't sort of person the core persona is. For let you? Or did you despise the group? example, saying one person is a famous Or both? novelist will mean there is a backbone of “Fiction” and “Jealousy/Pride” for both Random Crap players and GM to hang ideas off. The game runs off detritus as well as big emotional stuff. Don't be afraid to ask In short, starting with “21-year-olds ex- trivia. Even if you don't use it, if players gaming group just back from university” are freezing up, this can loosen them up and “70-year-olds at the funeral of a and make it clear that it's actually us famous footballer friend from school” having fun. gives players and GM much more guidance. For the GM, it also lets you

start to think about what sort of game the above includes details from many you want to run earlier. different lines of questions and includes both large and small details. If you really want to shorten generation, narrow it even further. I strongly recommend using a large piece of paper for this. A4 is good. Have YOUR PURPOSE FOR ASKING THESE lots of room to write down anything you QUESTIONS think relevant, on a single sheet, so you can see it all together. Flicking between The players will be thinking this is just multiple sheets of paper is just going to generating someone they get to play. distract you. If you’re like me, it’s likely This is correct. However, for you, you your notes will be a mess – see the are looking for story elements to use in “Example Sheets” section – and you’ll your adventure. likely want to compile these notes into a more accessible format between Now, this is going to have to go into games. some theory of what the game is trying to do, and how to think about what Why are you doing this? These are the you're trying to do. This stuff is usually core details you're going to use to buried in the “GM Advice” section of a personalise the adventure you're about traditional RPG manual, but we need to to generate. To remind you of the basic foreground this so you actually structure of a game of DIE, it basically understand why they're doing all the goes... things I'm asking them to do. • Generate personas. GM writes down What you are doing when they're details. answering questions? You are writing • Personas transported to the world of down all the interesting facts for each Die. character. • A series of encounters in Die which are generated according to various Put this down in a list beneath each methods we present which are character. Think broadly, including personalised by the personas’ details both large and small. details. • A final encounter in Die where they For example, for one player you may confront the person who kidnapped have scribbled down... them, and decide whether to go home or not. Divorced wife, bitter Disappointed by children (two – one boy, See this structure? Now you get why 7; one girl 9) you're looking for details. As you Red Dwarf fan continue into Preparing the Second Keeps on asking for white wine, but not Session you'll see how these elements Sauvignon Blanc you've noted down now will fuel the Accountant adventures. There's more in the Advice Aston Villa Season Holder for Gamesmasters section on how to integrate persona details into your While players are talking stuff up, this is adventure too. what you're looking for. As you can see,

THE BIG THING YOU'RE LOOKING FOR: A never know. Later we'll see that there PERSONA'S CORE DRIVE are character-based reasons as well as persona-based reasons for a party to This is the key thing you should ideally butt heads and create drama. be looking for in every persona. The point of the game of DIE is that it In short: if there is something they are moves between modes gracefully. With lacking in the real world, this is likely people who take it incredibly seriously, something they will be tempted with in the game could climax with a huge the fantasy world. outpouring of emotions between the personas. With players who are in the The questions are all hiding a real mood for something lighter, it becomes question, the one which we will never a pop adventure where you kill the mention in generation, but which is baddie and go home. Either is fine. There implicit in all the answers: what is the is no failure as long as the players are thing which the persona would fuck enjoying themselves. over their peers for? What would they die for? What would they kill for? However, you can alter the sort of game you'll be playing by how you approach Some players will present what you the questions... recognise as a core drive instantly, while others will require more HARDBALL vs SOFTBALL QUESTIONS prompting. Some players will be entirely resistant to it... in which case, don't Left to their own devices, and given worry. It's possible that a desire may open questions, it's possible that the emerge in play. If at least some of the players will create a wholesome and party clearly have a dark unsatisfied well-balanced group. People (especially desire, that's sufficient. You may even new players) tend to be sweet. If so, the only need one player to have one. After game is unlikely to involve much inter- all, the more well-balanced personas party resentment. At this point, you may are going to have to deal with the wish to make the questions harder. melodrama of their fucked-up friends. Ideally, this builds on players' previous suggestions. For example, if a player It's also possible that the whole group says their persona screwed up their will be entirely resistant to any of the exams, you could ask “And who do you above. As such, the game will end up as blame for this? Maybe one of your a simple adventure with some emotional siblings?” They can still answer beats, climaxing in the party facing negatively, but this sharper form of down the “friend” who dragged them questioning may prompt more useful into this nightmare world. schisms and antagonisms.

That's fine. This is a great story arc. If You may wish to go further and your players don't want to play a dark generate complexities. If two personas game of personal temptation, that's say they were dating, you may ask “So cool. The drama will primarily be how the why did you split up?” They say they party interacts with the world rather didn't? “It must have been hard when than how the party interacts with each you realised that one of your friends other. Once again, that's okay, and you was also in love with you though...” If no

player jumps in saying that they're the asking questions akin to “What did your friend who's in love with them, persona do when they left school?” remember the GM has a persona and Your persona is allowed to be a little can seed this stuff too. more mysterious. It's unlikely players will notice or care, as GM personas are It's also possible you will only need to always viewed as less interesting or ask a single sharp question to make the relevant than player ones. Players are group realise that having drama could an amazingly self-centred bunch, bless be fun. 'em.

If you want a more friendly adventure, At some time before the start of the angle towards the soft questions. If scenario, the GM's persona was you're looking for something where contacted by an extra-dimensional internal party emotional strain is key, intelligence (Most would call it a demon. lean more towards the hard questions. In any traditional way, it’s not.) and was You’ll also want to ask more questions offered an opportunity. They took it. If about people’s failings and weaknesses they transport a group of people to the so you can tempt them. realm of Die, they will get a pocket dimension that will fulfil certain THE IN-EMERGENCY-BREAK-GLASS fantasies ... as long as they all stay QUESTION there. It’s likely that the Master doesn’t quite believe it either. Sometimes you can’t be subtle. If you want to get a core drive, you can just If a motivation for your persona does ask the question: not present itself in persona generation, simply grab one of these robust “Why does your persona hate their life?” standards and run with it...

If they decline to give an answer, this is A return to their youth. their Hard No to having a conflicted A chance at enacting revenge upon the character. If not, whatever they say is people who made their childhood a the core drive. misery. To be united with a dead lover. THE GM'S PERSONA Just being really sickeningly rich.

While doing all the above, you should be Essentially almost everything is “a also be developing about your own fantasy of what they lack in reality, if persona. Your persona is the antagonist they are willing to give up reality to to the players, at least initially. Your aim achieve it.” there is to look for a motivation for this persona to drag all their friends into a The level of sympathy you wish to have fantasy world and strand them there. for the antagonist should dictate the choice as well. Early on, you are likely to use yourself as an example to set the tone, To choose “To be united with a dead answering the questions to show how lover” as an example – “It's the only way it's done. As the questions proceed, you I can see the person I loved again” is should step back, especially when likely to be at least a little sympathetic.

“I really wanted to fuck an army of the next session to think on it. You’ll Marilyn Monroe clones” is less so. likely develop the persona’s motivation significantly in that time as you develop Think about the specifics of the deal in the adventure. relation to the group – what is it specifically about this group? Is there Actual examples from playtests: a someone specific in this group that the jealous contemporary of a famous demon wants them to bring and the rest author who never broke through who are just filling up numbers? Or could it wants the famous author’s career; a have been anyone? This all filters into closeted gay groom who wants all his the nature of the antagonistic persona. siblings to come to a better fantasy If they could have brought anyone, and world as he can’t face coming out to his they brought these people specifically, parents; a band’s biggest fan who just it implies a real hatred for them, for wants the other persona’s band to get example. back together; a corporate AI head who is consuming those who are brought to Do not think too much about why these Die to make an AI that can make a people specifically at this point. This will higher form of art; a con runner who kills be discovered in play later. If it's not four con goers ever con to maintain his (and it's more likely not to be discovered life; a werewolf fanfic writer who wants than discovered) that works too. It is a to live in her fanfic universe because horror game, and the gaps in their she can’t risk real emotional intimacy knowledge is where their imagination with her friends. runs wild. PERSONA GENERATION FLOWCHART Also, do not overly worry if you don’t know everything about your persona at If you’re wondering whether to wrap up this point. If you have a solid idea, that’s persona generation and move on, have great. If you know nothing, you can a look at this flowchart… conceal it – and you have the time until

You will be asking further questions Yes, they will be role-playing people during the game. You don’t need to about to play a role-playing game. know everything, just enough. EXAMPLE SHEETS FINISHING PERSONA GENERATION To give a concrete example of note- Write each persona's name and keeping, here’s the notes I have taken in pronouns on a piece of paper and put it two games. in front of each player's seat as a reminder of all their persona’s names. Both are written on an A4 sheet. This is It'll make the next bit much easier. my handwriting. Your handwriting will likely be better. Then encourage the players to leave the room, make a tea, go to the toilet, or The first game is a group of three whatever. Inform them that when they players. This game was played in a return to the table and sit down, single session, so we spent less time everything they say will (unless generating personas. The game was expressly stated otherwise) be in- about four siblings gathering to play the character as their personas. night before the Gamesmaster’s persona – Duncan – got married.

The second example is from a two-game GM. This group highly enjoyed session. This game was based around a developing the history of their band, so band who nearly made it, gathering ten there are considerable notes about their years after the original drummer died in entire history. a car crash. This is four players plus the

Between sessions, these are the notes I drew from there…

Jessica – (MINK) – F "Hunter" (Gareth) – (ADLAI) – M Photographer. Then events, now weddings. Singer. Hot art girl at school. Still noticeably hot. Ex-boyfriend of Jessica. Dated Hunter from school. Dumped when Solo material is uninspiring. "Self- band split. indulgent". Afraid has no ideas. A little bitter over his success (Sk8r boy Huge Ego – imposter syndrome. villain) in the "I could have been there." Played Jules Holland – annoyed by piano. Minor Instagram influencer. Other band on way down when split. Love Aesthetics – interested in visuals. Bowie is his hero. One kid, 5, with Kieron – Phillipa or Bonham? (Accidental kid almost immediately after going out, staying together for kids, not happy)

Amethyst – (SARAH) – F(?) Jem aka Gemma – (ALEX) – F Bassist + lyricist Guitarist (Synth Curious) Grumpy. Negative pessimist. Shy, reserved. Wants to be in Hunter's new band. Does own material on Soundcloud, 3 Months from 30. Achieved nothing. anonymous. Blogs. Python webcoder-HTML. Oscar Wilde is his hero. Hero – Brian Eno/Philip Glass. Works in chain off-licence. Drinks too much. Co-wrote song with Hunter which was one Enthusiasm – manic, driven. Lloyd from of Hunter's first big hits. Quietly resentful Phonogram-y. over it. Selected Elves as a race as they are "Coin-operated Boi" "Immortal".

Skirmish – the band. John – (KIERON) – M Formed at School in 2007, Hastings. Drummer of other local band. Mathrock noise band. "The Hastings' Auditioned to replace Animal but just too Battles". busy, too metal. In 2012, when driving to Reading from P.E. Teacher. Leeds to play there, were involved in car- Arranged event. crash. Drummer "Animal" Dies. Split shortly Boyfriend of Jessica. afterwards. 2013-2017: Hunter joins rival (but slightly "Animal" – dead drummer no details, bar bigger) band as singer, who proceed to go name. Franz-Ferdinand-ish big. 2018 – Hunter working on his solo material. Everyone gets together on anniversary on Animal's death in local metal/indie pub where they drank.

Even for those who can read my from – these are things I found written handwriting, you may be wondering on their character sheets, which hint where some of the other elements came towards their desires. Having a gap

between sessions can help like this, for Jem: Feels life has been a waste. when you’re really nosy. And John is secretly the band’s biggest I have highlighted the ones which I fan and will do anything to hear them consider to be a persona’s core play again. He’s got them back together element… for that.

Jessica: Her life is boring. She feels It’s worth stressing that in practice I she’s missing out. was entirely mistaken about Amethyst’s Hunter: Fears he is a fake. Worse: knows desire, but the three personas were that he is a fake. enough to base it around, and Amethyst Amethyst: Wants to be seen as a genius. had plenty of drama anyway.

CHARACTER GENERATION

BEFORE PEOPLE RETURN TO THE TABLE character classes. Neos tend towards filling rogue-like roles... but they can As people are getting their cups of tea also be a brutal cybernetic warrior. or whatever, you’re making a decision. Namely, what character class each While the GM does distribute the persona will be playing. This is based on character sheets, you needn’t keep the the desires each player expressed in players out entirely. The reason for the pre-game chat, what character their secrecy is to create a magical moment persona seems to suggest and a little when they get given the dice. It’s no sin GM fiat (for example, some classes are to check in on a player and make sure more complicated than others). they’re okay with playing a character when you’re all away from the table, or In this playtest, the Master is reserved to clarify what bits of an archetype for the Gamesmaster. The present rules you’ll want to play up or down. “I was simply don’t work for a player. thinking of giving you the Dictator – are you up for something like that?” or “I’m These are useful guidelines... considering the Neo – if I do, shall I play down the addiction reading?” Dictator/D4 = Lighter warriors. Non- technical rogues. Bards. Diplomats, god There is a lot more about this decision in bless them. Do not give to anyone you the Running the Archetypes section think doesn’t understand the later in the PDF. seriousness of a character who messes with people’s emotions. When you’ve made your decision, get Fool/D6 = Warriors, especially martial back to the table. arts characters, swashbucklers or other relatively lightly armoured sorts. This is STARTING THE GAME arguably the simplest archetype to play, so useful to give to the least As players arrive at the table, they experienced player. should talk in character as their Emotion Knight/D8 = Heavy duty persona. The GM is talking in the voice of warriors, knights, paladins and the persona they've generated. Let berserkers. Any persona who seems to people chat and loosen up, and have a very strong relationship with a encourage conversation. For example, single emotion. ask players about recent life events in Neo/D10 = Thieves, rogues, hackers or their personas’ lives. cybernetic warriors, especially if they like pets. Anyone whose real-life job is The GM's persona should feel free to technical. lead the conversation, based upon the Godbinder/D12 = Cleric archetypes. shared characters developed above. Demonologists. Magic users. Anyone “What happened to that person you who really likes role-playing. were seeing at university?” would be a good example of a line of conversation, However, it should be noted that all or “How are the kids” or any normal archetypes can be twisted into most adult chat. Frankly, “What are you binge

watching?” is a perennial dinner party Let the players chat. When all personas chat fave. have bought in enough to at least sit and play – though, it should be stressed, Be aware that the setting for the the personas may clearly grouse about imaginary game you’ve chosen can doing it – progress to developing their impact it intensely. Role-playing a scene in-game RPG characters. in a corporate board-room creates different expectations than role-playing WHAT IF THEY’RE NOT GAME FOR THE things at a quiet dinner party – and even GAME? more so, if you’re meant to be in a pub after-hours. Some personas will be up for it. Others will show some form of reticence. Others This should be extended as long as folks may reject playing outright, for reasons find entertaining. The first session tends such as taste or superstition. If a to be a shorter session, so you have persona is threatening to leave the time to have fun. Let people get used to room, ask them – out of character – roleplaying their personas – including “Good: but why do you end up staying?” you. When the explanation of rules happens, it becomes a little trickier to A player can think of any reason they maintain their personas, so let everyone wish, or ask players for ideas. The bed in. persona relationships already developed will likely be the source of When everyone is settled in, if you have this, but it's possible a new twist could one, get out the Box of Crap. be added. If the player is stuck, the GM should give suggestions. Here's a few to Dump it on the table, and say the get you started... following – adapted to your characters' voice a little... You're in love with someone and if you leave you may not see them for another “Hey – do you remember that thing back decade. in the 1990s? Those kids who were You don't trust another persona to be playing an RPG and just disappeared. left alone in case they reveal a secret. Mum went up to check on them, and You think another persona is rich they were gone. For two years. enough to lend you the money you need to pay your debts. You must remember! Six went. Two You're an egomaniac and just wanted years later five of the six turned up. the attention to threaten to leave. None of them ever talked about what happened... In practice, in all my playtests, I’ve never had to use this. Well you know what? HANDING OUT THE CHARACTER SHEETS This is the game they were playing. I got it off Ebay. When you've made this decision, pull the dice out of the box. Catch the players’ You guys up for it? It's really neat.” attention. You then distribute the specific dice for each class to the specific player.

Hold out each dice towards each player, Each player goes through their sheet, lock their eyes and intensely recite... selecting their abilities, statistics and customisations from each section in the This is your die. There is no other die like sheet. this in this whole game. This is special. This is yours. The trickiest part is “Stats”. Here, you distribute six scores (4, 4, 3, 3, 2 and 2) And put it in their hand. into the six abilities. Explain to the players what statistics are used for The Fool should be given their dice last, what sort of challenges. For example, with the slightest tweaked line... that Strength is normally used for melee combat, and Dexterity for ranged This is your die. This is exactly the same combat. as every other die in the game. There's nothing special about this die at all. Some players are likely to ask for a more detailed rules explanation, and you can It's likely this will get a laugh, and it will give them the basics – as in, you roll the take a while for the Fool to realise what number of dice equal to whatever the they get to do with their dice (as relevant stat is and each 4+ is a described on their sheets). success. If the number of successes rolled equals or exceeds a difficulty Hold up the D20 with a flourish, and number the GM sets, they succeed. If say… they don't, they fail. In other words, bigger numbers in abilities are good. It's And this one is mine. not worth going in too deep yet, and tell them they'll pick up a bunch as they From this point, encourage people not to play. The basics are also explained on roll their own dice. Be deliberately the sheets. twitchy over it, almost as if you expect them to explode. “They're kind of At this point you should be filling in the antiques” is a good example of the sort Master sheet too. A player may be of excuse you may use. Imagine how surprised the GM gets a character. you may act if you thought the dice Explain that this is just one of the cool were made of plastic explosive. things about this game. If you want, you can decide your Master's abilities before Distribute the character sheet to each the game starts, but you filling in the player. The sheets explain the sheet along with the players gives you a archetypes, but feel free to give them way to demonstrate each step along more information – the section Running with them. the Archetypes includes more on this, including how best to explain them in a When all characters are generated, ask simple, iconic nugget form. the players to pick up their class dice and then close their eyes. Work your way through the sheet. To start with, ask each player to read the Next, tell all the players to lower their flavour text at the start of the first dice to the table, and then – column, ending with the Fool. simultaneously – release them.

Wait a little while. Tell them to open their happens when the adventure is running eyes. in terms of events for the rest of the first session. There’s some mechanics Tell them they are somewhere referenced loosely, but you likely will be completely different. fine without them. If at any point you want to know how the actual rules work, Welcome to DIE. skip on into a main section we have called – after some careful The proper adventure starts, and you consideration – The Rules and then should read the next section, “Into The come back here. Dungeon”, which explains what

INTO THE DUNGEON

Up to this point, things have basically FINAL ENCOUNTER been on rails. Flexible rails, often • The players confront the Master. created by all the players, including the • The players either go home or don't. GM. However, after this point, things can go in many directions. What holds it We’ll break them down as we continue. together is the underlying structure. “WAIT – WHO AM I PLAYING NOW?” Printing out the DIE GM Cheat Sheet to see this structure may be helpful, but In the previous section where you all sat here’s a breakdown of the core events… around the table generating characters, you are playing the Master character. PERSONA GENERATION The second we arrive in Die, you segue Keep a list of each persona’s major to a traditional GM’s role of describing motivations and minor details. the environment, the results of the players’ action, and role-playing anyone CHARACTER GENERATION they meet. The Master is then a The personas generate their characters character you play, like any other using the character sheets. character in the world.

FIRST ENCOUNTER In the GM advice section there’s quite a • The Master brings them to the world bit more about how “who players/GM of DIE. are playing?” can work. In short: some • The Master grabs the D20 and people play as their persona for the teleports away. whole game. Some people don’t. There’s • Encourage each persona to pick up no right answer. Whatever folks feel their magical dice and so transform comfortable with is great. into their character. • A brief combat to introduce mood THE FIRST ENCOUNTER and tone. • A reveal that they are in a fantasy The personas will find themselves, world… dressed exactly like their personas were, carrying whatever they possess, –- END OF SESSION ONE -- in a different world.

BETWEEN SESSIONS The personas are in a room almost Further encounters are generated. identical to the room the personas were Encounters are ideally grown from sitting in to play the game. It's the same personas’ interests and motivations, as room, but awfully wrong, just a little off. presented later. Perhaps the windows are sealed over. Perhaps the colour palettes are off, as if SESSION TWO (AND MORE) a gothic Instagram filter is making The players move through the prepared reality terrible. Perhaps their breath (or improvised) encounters. freezes in the air. Perhaps blood creeps like a snake across the floor. Nightmare imagery. This is not a good place to be.

The only brightly coloured objects in the your Master’s character sheet. Any time room are the dice. They lie where the the Master breaks the rules in an players left them. extreme way, they spend a token.

They are still their personas. They are Now, leave the players for a few just humans in a weird place. Stress seconds looking at the environment. If this. they're having fun role-playing the confusion of panic, do feel free to let it Before anyone has a chance to react, linger. If you want to get a move on, the say that the GM's persona grabs their Fallen arrive. I think of the Fallen as own dice. Hey, it's almost as if they undead cybernetic orcs, as if they’re the knew this was going to happen. offspring of old 1980s TV had sex with a Instantly, they transform into their vat of meat. You can twist them any character. Describe what they look like way you wish. You’ll find statistics for now – extrapolate from whatever you’ve some basic Fallen later. Have one lesser put on your sheet, with the volume up. Fallen for each of the players, and one Use your imagination. This is likely your more powerful sort. So if there's three main antagonist. players, one major fallen and three normal ones. I stress: make sure the players realise that your persona grabbed their dice The Fallen seem hungry. The Fallen want and then transformed. This is the main to kill and eat the players. detail they need to realise. You may need to hint at it later if the players AGAINST THE FALLEN haven’t realised. How the Fallen enter depends on the The Master perhaps says a few words. nature of the room the personas were This is the first time you get to show role-playing in in the real world. Perhaps what kind of antagonist they'll be. If it's they slide in via the wall, or a sink, or the someone who the players will have at lights or… least some sympathy with, you may lean it soft (“I'm sorry, I wish it didn't If the players have not yet grabbed their have to be like this”). If it's someone dice, this will likely encourage them to with a grudge against the players, you do so. Ask everyone what they want to may show that (“This serves you selfish do. This is their one chance to grab their bastards right”). If your game is going to dice before the combat starts. be campy as balls, this is where you will just do an evil cackle (“Muhahahhaha.”) At this point, combat starts, as Honestly, saying absolutely nothing is a described in The Rules. If the players strong choice, especially if you’ve yet to have not grabbed their dice see “Ways decide your Master’s motivation. Players May Be Shits At This Point”.

They then disappear. Take a Cheat WHEN A PLAYER GRABS THEIR DICE Token (as explained on the Master’s sheet) and toss it over the board. If They are instantly transformed into the anyone asks what it is, say it's him character they designed earlier. Their spending some of his resources to do class dice fuses with their body. what he did. Cheating is explained on

Ask the player if they want to describe with their bare hands or many other what they look like. Some players will solutions that have crawled from the leap at this, and others will much prefer players' brains. If players are simply you to give them a fancy description. If a being a bit slow, it may be worth player’s description is a little lowkey, reminding them about the weird magical build upon it. These are not normal glowing dice that are here – you know, people. For example, a player described the ones that changed the GM's persona herself as someone with regality and into a fucking wizard. If they’re also the charm and charisma. I added “she looks brave and noble players who want to like Meryl Streep’s Meryl Streep.” play a character who panics, runs from Describe how physically amazing they magic and generally is a mess? More feel. Anyone with a Strength or Dexterity power to ’em. of 3 basically feels like an Olympic athlete does. A stat of 4 feels like living However, if they haven’t grabbed their CGI. dice, they’ve missed their chance to get the dice for free, so now all If the combat with the Fallen has untransformed players have to survive started, it's likely you'll want to have the a combat round in the melee... with the descriptions be shorter to keep things abilities of a real-world human being. pacy, but lets the players have fun. Personas, before they are transformed, have 2 for all their six statistics and a They can now use the abilities as set defence of 1. If a player is a professional out on their character sheet. athlete or a world-class professor, you may give them a 3 in a stat... but this is WAYS PLAYERS MAY BE SHITS AT THIS unlikely. All humans are kind of average POINT compared to fantasy heroes. Aragorn could beat up everyone's dad. By which I mean “express their agency as players.” Geesh, you people. Combat starts and they are stuck in their natural form until they manage to Basically, there's two main ways a get hold of their dice. While the Fallen player may choose to be awkward here. will not prioritise the untransformed First is by trying to grab another personas to begin with, they also won't person's dice. The second is by simply spare them. If the transformed refusing to pick up the dice at all. characters manage to protect the untransformed and look like they're The first is easy: they simply can't pick defeating the Fallen, you can decide up any dice other than their own. Their how to progress. If you want to force the hands just change direction, as if issue, you can always have more Fallen they're a magnet entering a field with an arrive. However, if the player really opposite charge. doesn’t want to transform, see how it goes. They will have a hard time, but it’s Just not picking up the dice is trickier an interesting role-playing situation. If for them – but also, in a real way, not a it’s possible to return to the room later, problem at all. The personas are in a the player may always transform then. dangerous situation. They may not Alternatively, you can have their dice believe that you will hurt them, or they appear at some dramatically meaningful may try and run off, or fight the Fallen point during the second session to give

them a second chance to grasp their The players should not be able to powers. escape this area until the end of the session. Really though? Untransformed, they'll be lucky if the first hit does not kill them. FIRST ENCOUNTER IN THE ROOM THE If they are not lucky, kill them. Tell the PLAYERS ARE IN player their persona is dead, and move onto the next player's action. The player The above suggests that it's all will likely be surprised, so offer a “wait modelled after the room the personas to see what happens” nod. were in before entering Die, which is the literary thing to do. I would suggest Expect a scramble to pick up the going another way, at least on your first glowing dice if they haven't already. play.

At the end of the combat, something Instead, make the room they arrive in awful happens to the dead persona. appear in to be a dark mirror of the room They re-animate as a new Fallen, aware the players are sitting in. As in, the that their sentience is starting to leak actual real-life room you are presently away (See the section called “Running sitting in. the Fallen” later for details). To become Fallen before a persona transforms is a This approach is accessible to the particularly bad state for them to be in. players. If the players are in the space it They can pick up their dice when they makes it easy to visualise, and easy to return as Fallen, but it does absolutely understand what’s happening (e.g. nothing to them bar attaching to their “Monsters burst in through there...” GM body. points at the door to the room.). The fundamental meta nature of the game If the characters somehow all manage also becomes clear, in terms of messing to get killed, the Fallen eat their bodies a around with reality, and there's little then wander off. After a short something creepy about personas period of time, everyone becomes playing characters who are now Player Fallen. trapped in a dark mirror of the players' reality. Plus, while being meta, it's also a Er... an interesting adventure awaits. way to simplify. As you're already roleplaying a person playing a ROOM PROBLEMS roleplaying game, having something simple to hold onto is not a bad idea in It's possible your room may not be any way whatsoever. suitable, in which case, you can cheat. Expand the room in scale, so it's a much END OF THE FIRST SESSION larger space. Alternatively, make the players tiny, so they're the size of The encounter lasts until the Fallen are figures on the table before them. Or defeated. If you're bored of the fight, or anything between. Board up the you are running out of time, the Fallen windows and doors so they can't see can all turn as if hearing something what's outside, giving you room to make uncanny and run. Or crumble to dust. the rest of the game anything you want. This is an appetizer, and an excuse for

the players to experiment with their Uther” is a stronger ending than a abilities in a relatively safe environment. generalised “It’s your fantasy realm.”

When it’s over, allow the players to try If you know roughly the sort of area they and exit to the outer world. Have them will be appearing in, you can be more pull back the curtain or open the door specific. In practice, the name is and tell them what they see. enough.

It’s the fantasy realm from the game Cut to black, theme tune and post-game their personas played when they were decompression chat. Come back next young, all those years ago. time!

This is why you asked the players its name. “Out there… it’s the Land of

You will pick up the second session from You have a gap between sessions. You where you left off last time. The players can sit down and work out the are in the same space they were, likely encounters you would like the players to surrounded by the corpses of the Fallen, experience. Some GMs may want to having just opened a door to see their make up everything in advance. Others teenage fantasy world out there. will have rough ideas which they will develop in play. Others will not even You will ask them what they want to do, read this section and wing it. These are and lead them through further all valid methods. Love to everyone. encounters which lead to the conclusion. Suffice to say, we're in the difficult middle-section of the game. The opening HOW DO WE GENERATE FURTHER of the scenario is a set point – “people ENCOUNTERS? sit down and play a game and get dragged into a fantasy world”. The We make them up. ending is a set point – “people decide whether to go home or not”. The middle MAKING UP FURTHER ENCOUNTERS is where you game most becomes uniquely yours. It’s the hard bit – but it’s I'll put this up front: what follows tries also the exciting bit. This is much easier hard, but is not a pure cooking recipe. It than it looks. That DIE actually has this is more a cupboard of ingredients with conclusion built into it makes everything some guidelines of how to throw them easier – you will reach a climax. It’s just together. This is designed as a bunch of a question of filling some time ways to make it easier to make stuff up. interestingly between the two. But, really, the answer is "make stuff up". Do not let any of the methodology Honestly, you’re amazing. You’re going below distract you from the purpose of to nail this. it. Like cooking, the point is to make awesome food. At the end of this section, you’ll find a hypothetical example to show how this Equally, if you’re an experienced games- could work in practice. There are other master, do not let this distract you from actual play examples in the Arcana for what I’m saying. I’m saying “prepare the you to browse and see how your fellow adventure”. You’ve done this already, in players have done it. See – the Arcana, other games. These are tactics which not just home of Lovecraftian horror. are useful when preparing a DIE adventure, but are in addition to What follows is a framework to try and everything you already know. Do it your make encounters. It's a framework to way. This is doubly true if you use any of guide your creativity, and to reduce the the weird stuff from the Arcana. feeling of working from a blank page.

(I’m really building up the Arcana as a CREATING YOUR FRAMEWORK source of horror. It was originally “the appendix” but I renamed it to “The Reread your notes on the first session. Arcana”. Beware the Lovecraftian What are the flaws of each persona? Arcana. WoooOOoooOOooo.) What are the personas interested in?

What has the Master character sold backbone of a setting which you can fill people out for? in the gaps of as you play.

Just chew it over. The players have opened the door, and step into the world. The room is sitting Then you’re going to work down this list. there, in the middle of the landscape And sometimes up, but this is a logical (The Dorothy’s House gambit) or that way to progress. the door is a magical portal into the world (the Wardrobe to Narnia gambit). 1) THE LOCALE – where the adventure Either way, you can’t go back. will be set. 2) THE PERSONAS’ TEMPTATIONS – how So – a fantasy world. Think about a the adventure will test the personas generalised fantasy world, and the sorts 3) THE ACTUAL ENCOUNTERS of situations you can drop them into. Archetypes are good. There is no need 1) THE LOCALE to even try to be clever. The cleverness is what we do with the structure. Why is this important? As this is designed for a short number of The players have to go somewhere to sessions, here’s a selection of useful have an adventure. Knowing where it is basic situations to drop people into… makes all the other steps easier. If you have a space where the game take * The world is about to be conquered by places it suggests the sort of things the the Not Sauron, unless they can creep players will end up doing, so lets you into Not Mount Doom and destroy Not think of what may happen. Equally, it The One Ring. sets the boundaries of the world and so * The greatest city of the empire is defines the amount of encounters you under siege by its greatest enemy. will have to make. This is what happens * The Alliance of Lords are about to in “The Personas’ Temptations” and elect an evil person to the highest “The Actual Encounters” sections. This throne. is you defining a place to inspire it. * The land will be destroyed if the Not Holy Grail is not found. I’ve decided to Dismiss Your Wisdom * You’re in a dungeon. How can you get and Not Send Them to The Fantasy out? RPG they Played in As Kids At this point, be thinking about the sorts Go to the Arcana, you fool of a Took. of antagonists and characters they will meet. For example, the evil dark lord, the Making Their Teenage Fantasy World henchpeople, lords, dragons and whatever. This is why at least most of the personas are all connected by that Think broadly. You don’t need to nail teenage experience – it allows you to down specifics yet. If you make a map, create a setting which has meaning for leave spaces to fill in. I regularly just them. Equally, as fantasy RPGs tend to draw a rough shape, and then place work on a fairly robust set of tropes and things as I go along, either in conventions, it means you have a preparation or during play. For example,

I have drawn a rough circle and said, worth noting that he changed sides “This is the city under siege”, had a list again. This axis is one of the more of ideas for encounters but only placed rewarding ones the game can provoke – them on the map during actually running someone turning on their friends and the game. Making a map as you go along then realising it's just not worth it is a can be a lot of fun. real emotional arc.

You don’t need to actually generate a The “offering it to them” in an encounter whole working world – in fact, that’s can be either immediate or postponed likely to get in the way of what we’re until later in the adventure. The more doing in the second session, when likely it is to derail the encounter, the you’re going to be asking questions to better it is to postpone the choice until the players about what their teenage the end. If someone’s long-lost love fantasy world was like and using those appears halfway through the adventure details in the game. A blank map you fill and begs a character to stay with them, with the players’ answers during play is there are two choices – either they stay, a very strong tactic. or they leave. If they stay, the game breaks. If the choice appears at the end, Of course, you’ve already asked the it means that it's part of the climax. The players a bunch of questions in the first “your love is captured by the baddy” is session, right? So… always an option, and Nintendo has managed to stretch decades of Mario 2) THE PERSONA’S TEMPTATIONS (aka games out of that setup. FUCKING WITH THEM) But remember DIE's theme. Emotionally At this point you will have a locale to speaking, the princess is always in explore – you now need to make it work another castle. with the thematic elements you’ve drawn from your personas. Temptations can be crass or subtle. They can be designed to be awful It's likely you'll be thinking of this heartbreakers or easy to reject. Ideally, already, but I want to state it explicitly, conceive them with no idea how the one last time. player will respond. They can happen either at an individual moment in the The dilemma at the end of the game is encounter, or be a running theme whether the players go home or not. As throughout it. such, at least for some characters, you want to create possible temptations for If a character is estranged from their them to stay. parent, it's likely that encounter will involve something which is related to 1) Look at what they lack, based on their parental issues. If a character is that emotional need. really upset that they could never win at 2) Offer it to them. Donkey Kong, it's likely that the encounter is related to that – either It doesn't have to be much, of course. In literally (as in, a monkey at the top of The Lion, The Witch & The Wardrobe, the hill throwing stuff at you) or less Edward fucked over the rest of his literally (the encounter is giving the friends for Turkish Delight. It's also player a chance to have their ability

hailed above all others, as "Being best you can throw in some minor at Donkey Kong" isn't really about obsessions as well, all the better. Make “Being best at Donkey Kong”, is it?) sure that you draw equally from each persona, so each player feels equally It is equally likely that these character listened to. points will play out on the largest level. As in, they’ll form the inspiration for the For example, you’ve decided that this adventure. At the least, the Master’s DIE will be set in a fairly typical fantasy desires will do that. If the Master’s urges realm. The Master is actually just a are somewhat darker, it’s likely they’ll simple villain, who is selling out his take the place of a villain in the world. friends so he can live his fantasy of being basically Sauron. Looking at the For example, if the Master wants to rule personas, Reginald the GM works out a world as absolute Master, the Master elements to use. Theresa is a divorcee will likely be in the place of your story’s who is hugely bitter towards her ex for arch-villain. Sometimes players’ own making her miss her mum’s death. Adam desires can suggest alternatives too. feels he has never been appreciated for his endless work as a teacher. Maria’s If a character has no strong desires, do only hobby is being an ornithologist. include something which comes from the information they gave you. For The GM thinks Theresa’s ex may inspire example, if all you got from a player was a useful lieutenant for the Master, and that they quite like the books of Agatha gives Theresa a chance to confront and Christie, you should definitely consider get closure with him, one way or having Poirot turn up as a character another – he could be a recurring villain, they meet. Possibly a warped version of or a one-off. A chance to speak to Poirot, of course. Or set the whole thing something akin to her dead mum is also as a weird murder mystery and… you a possibility – this could be something see the point. Building upon what people the Master offers her, or a place she have given you is very much what the finds, or anything else. There’s definitely game is. Do not doubt how effective this lots of emotional meat there. can be. When I had David Bowie turn up towards the conclusion of a game, the Adam wants to be hailed for the work? players almost exploded. Adam is a folk hero ala Robin Hood in this world – all the people they meet are In short: use the obsessions of all huge fans of Adam, and hope he’ll save personas, including your own, to both them. This could lead to an encounter inspire and personalise the encounters. where he’s hailed by everyone as this Remember: the Major Needs you’ve grand hero, especially AFTER the Master highlighted are what the players will be is defeated… but it’s also a theme that disappointed about if they don’t come works across the whole scenario. into the game. They’ve thrown you the ball. Don’t drop it. Maria doesn’t seem to be the sort of obsessed ornithologist who would sell Either using the personas’ major out her friends for a look at a fancy obsessions as a backbone for their bird… but you never know. Having birds adventures or as the key inspiration for which only speak to Maria could be an an encounter is a good way to do this. If interesting motif though, so Reginald

makes some notes to make birds be encounter. There’s the back route important throughout. through Cirith Ungol, past Shelob the spider. That could be another encounter. These elements immediately will There’s Mount Doom – like, maybe you suggest things in the locale. You will can’t break into Barad-dur until the ring likely muse it over, before stepping on to has been destroyed? And then there’s three. the confrontation with the Master at Barad-dur itself. 3) THE ACTUAL ENCOUNTERS This mean the basic spine would be… You now have a place for all this action 1) THE GATES. Either get in or get to happen and a vague idea of the sort shown another way. of things you want. Now it’s a case of 2) CIRITH UNGOL – getting past Shelob just arranging the pieces into or the maze or something similar. ENCOUNTERS. The ENCOUNTERS 3) MOUNT DOOM – destroying the ring. populate the locale with interesting 4) CONFRONTATION AT BARAD-DUR. people to meet, punch and have existential crises with. Clearly the “travel between these places” could be another encounter. You do not need to initially plan everything. What you’re trying to do is That you know personal details about create a spine of a structure, which the personas may give you some idea of allows you to know how the adventure how these encounters may be. could be solved, at least in one way. The players will do their own thing, but For example, following from Reginald’s you’ve thought about the space and party, immediately a lot of Tolkien links what could be there. are suggested. The orcs, rather than being villains, could be hailing Adam as First, look at the locale you’ve set the their saviour. If we need a place for game in. Work out the objective – as in, Theresa’s evil ex, Shelob would make a where the players will be trying to get to wonderful thing to play with. Equally the in order to confront the Master. Work fires of Mount Doom could be a good out where you will start the players. place to try and talk to the dead mother Look between the two. What’s to stop (or perhaps that’s offered during the the players from just marching from one final confrontation in Barad-dur). Finally, to the other? Each place where the as Tolkien loves his eagles, the party’s players could be stopped is a place advisors throughout could be Maria’s where you need an encounter. It will birds. also likely suggest something of the nature of the encounter. You can see that juxtaposing the map and the personal details leads to a core For example, we’ve decided to set this idea of fun encounters. game around a thinly-veiled version of Mordor in Middle-earth. The players How many encounters do you need to have to get to Barad-dur to confront the prepare? Master. They start outside. Looking at the map, there’s the big old gate that Generally speaking, in a 2-3 hour stops you getting in. That would be one session you’ll need 3-4. This includes

the climactic faceoff against the Master. Information coming directly from him is A large combat encounter will normally one way to do it. Alternatively, more count as more than one smaller one. liminal, strange magical creatures are useful – I’ve a habit of using high If you’re planning on running the magical creatures who are aware of the scenario indefinitely, clearly, make as dual realities of Die and the “real world”. many as you like. Or as few. You can A dragon rolls its eternal eyes at you always add more later, often in and telling you this stuff has a way of response to players’ decisions. playing to tropes. It also works with Kate Bush. Or a Kate Bush dragon. I’ve said it before, but I’ll say it again – every single piece of RPG scenario SPECIFICS DETAIL OF THE ENCOUNTER design works here. This is 100% “design or improvise an adventure” stuff. Any You now only need to fill in the details of GM advice column in the world is useful what the challenges are in each of for this. these encounters.

THE FINAL ENCOUNTER How much detail do you actually need? As much (or little) detail as required to To stress, working out an interesting be able to play them out. Do this for possible place for the final every encounter, including the climactic confrontation with the Master is worth encounter. Be aware that this is a spine doing. It’s the climax of the adventure, – it’s entirely possible your climax will be and should feel like it. elsewhere. This is your preparation, remember – it’s not definitely going to KEY THINGS THE PLAYERS SHOULD happen. Things not going to plan is the DISCOVER ALONG THE WAY plan.

There’re facts which the adventure For any given encounter, it’s possible should impart to the players, as you will already have an idea for an necessary. You’ll want to let the players encounter based on the personas’ know these – and the first one, as soon temptations or the locale, or both. You as possible. may consider tweaking them in some way, by combining them with part of a 1) If everyone agrees to go home, players’ background. This can be a including the Master, they go home. minor detail or a major one. Meeting That’s it. Grima Wormtongue or Bart Simpson may 2) As far as everyone in the world be a minor detail. Meeting your dead knows, this is the real world. lover is likely a major one. Think about 3) The world is unstable. If they don’t what emotional journey each persona is all either leave or stay, eventually on. the world will end. 4) The world will continue once they’re Be aware, you want to include enough gone (or all decide to stay). material that it resonates with all the players. If the whole game is just about Point 2 is the trickiest one, of course – one persona, it’s unlikely to be the only character who definitely knows satisfying for most players. The all of this is the Master character. exception may be a one-off or a game

with drama-averse players, where the Like a liche. Liches are always good. game ends up being about the Everyone loves liches. antagonist’s obsessions and the personas’ attempts to survive them. If you don’t know what a liche is…

For an encounter, it’s possible you will a) Welcome to this hell of role-playing. need some statistics for the players to I’m impressed you’ve got this far into interact with. It’s worth noting this is not the manual without running away always necessary. It is also possible screaming. you will need to pull a character out of b) A liche is basically “What if Gandalf your posterior during a game. Either from Lord of the Rings was also an way, the following is a useful undead monster.” If you’re methodology for making other people… wondering who Gandalf is, he’s a bit like Dumbledore from Harry Potter. If FRIENDS, ENEMIES, MONSTERS, THE you’re wondering who Dumbledore GENERAL CREATURE OF DIE is, he’s a bit like Alan Moore.

This edition of DIE doesn't exactly go If you wonder why liche has an “e” at into masses of rules and lists of the end, it’s because I was exposed to monsters or creatures. We’ll probably do Warhammer to a toxic degree as a more down the line, and there’s some teenager. examples at the end of the section, but this is the sort of thinking I go about 2) Consider weirding it up when preparing a game and the characters. You may not want to run it straight. Colour it with an element either from the 1) Choose what they are! personas’ histories or an element of the environment they find themselves in. If Here’s some ways to generate a persona is a big Harry Potter fan, someone… perhaps the liche is Undead Dumbledore. Perhaps the liche reminds a) Choosing something logically from them of their dad. Perhaps the liche is the locale. If you’ve got ideas, use their dad. Warning: do NOT make your them. liche Alan Moore. He will use his powers b) If a player's Minor Detail is a movie or on you. piece of fiction, grabbing characters from that is amazing. It's your RPG At the least, consider making them played in the privacy of the house. Fallen – especially if you want to be able You don't need to pay Games to fight them with no moral questions. Or Workshop money if you want to fight rather, relatively few moral questions. Space Marines. Or make out with Fallen are a visual motif in DIE, so will be Space Marines. familiar to anyone who’s read the comic. c) For Arcana users, consider Equally, they are important to the latter something random from The Box of game. If a player meets Fallen regularly Crap. before anyone dies, it’ll mean more. d) Go with something you've just thought of which seems appropriate.

3) If you need stats, choose stats. If note to ask the player for more details in you don’t need stats, don’t bother play. We talk about asking players choosing stats question to tweak the world in The Second Session in a few pages. In DIE is deliberately simple in its use of short: ask what the parent was like in profiles. Standard monster profiles and terms of personality, and then play the example creatures are included at the liche as your interpretation of what they end of The Rules. What follows explains say. the basic process of adding some rules to your ideas. Er... you don't need to have them be a liche. I'm kind of committed to the liche It's also worth stressing that while this as the standard example now. is in the preparation system, you don't need to generate this profile until the It’s likely we will include personality players have to actually use the rules to quirk generators in later editions, but for interact with the monsters. Are the this one, it seems extraneous. Almost players going to attack that dragon with every RPG system has one, and if you the face of their old headmaster? have one in your Box of Crap you can Probably not. If that’s so, you don't need turn to them. If not, there are many to generate it. If a battle actually personality generators online, which happens, it's a case of choosing the can easily be googled. Here’s one I just Epic Monster profile and letting it do have: anything that would be sensible for a https://springhole.net/writing_roleplayin dragon with the face of their old g_randomators/character-quirk.htm. headmaster to do, like set homework, or incinerate them. Generally speaking, don’t be afraid to play characters to the fucking hilt. If you DIE is a generous system. We all have want a really weird character, select busy lives. We don’t need to know the multiple options, but be aware you're random orc’s general knowledge skill. always risking things turning into Monty Most orcs don’t know anything about Python if you go too zany. generals. Of course, for true horror players, 4) Personalities choose entirely emotionless, to the max. Entirely non-responsive. Silent staring. If it's just a monster, or brainless, this Monotone voices. This is also horrific. can be skipped. Or maybe not. Maybe Especially if you do it for more than one this is a Gelatinous Cube that sings the creature the player meets, as it speaks songs of Huey Lewis And The News as to the nature of the horror world in it's devouring you. I'm not even joking. which they find themselves.

It's likely, especially if you're using a Oh, there is one particular kind of detail from a persona’s history to create character which is likely to be of use it, that you know what their personality with this core setting – an encounter is like. If the persona hasn’t actually with the personas’ previous characters defined any details other than a vague (i.e. the characters the personas played “I miss my dead parent” when the dead in their original teenage RPG). While parent appears as a liche, just make a having the world think the players are

actually their old heroes is a logical to dovetail with the personas’ real lives route, you can get more drama from – as in, showing them the road they’re showing where their old characters on. If you meet your teenage hero stuck ended up. Heroic master thieves in a loveless marriage, it can give you begging in an alleyway, bards running a perspective. simple pub and so on. It’s a useful way

SECOND SESSION GENERATION WORKED EXAMPLES

Here’s a hypothetical walkthrough of leave home, and aware that she’s not preparing for an actual scenario, to sure what to do with her life. Long- show all of the above in practice. standing crush on Rupert, but more how Rupert was then than now. She’s been If you want to see how some groups sad and disappointed in him forever. actually did it in their playtests, go look Used to play a Cleric. in the Arcana. Core Drive: stymied creative urge. Secondary Elements: volunteers at the THE HYPOTHETICAL EXAMPLE library. Avid reader of literally any trash fantasy novel. Secretly smokes. I’m going to use the same locale, and Idealises Sylvia Plath. show two completely different ways you could take the material generated by Valentine, a Neo the personas. Here’s a set of personas She’s a nervous, closeted small-town IT in a stripped-down form. It’s likely that specialist consultant. She’s gay, still yours will have more complicated links. afraid of coming out, afraid of her To stress, the GM’s character – Rupert – religious mother, afraid of everything. likely has several bits of this information Younger sister of Rupert. Used to play a hidden from the other players. Rogue. Core Drive: to stop being scared. The players were a D&D group – with the Secondary Elements: huge gamer. Long- exception of Rupert, who is Valentine’s term Blizzard fan, especially cooler older brother. Or at least he was Hearthstone. then. They’re now all in their late 30s. Rupert, a Master Bob, a Rage Knight He was the nerdy king of the school. He Bitter divorcee, who has spent ten years was even generous then – he was in an increasingly loveless marriage friendly with all his sister’s geek friends, only to discover his wife has been even if he teased the game. He was a cheating on him, and has left him. Has literary nerd not a gaming nerd, loving always had a lingering crush on Tolkien. His life didn’t really go Valentine. Used to play a Fighter. anywhere. He works at a bar and has Core Drive: resentment at having never left the town, with a string of wasted 20 years of his life. relationships with women he decides Secondary Elements: amateur historian. “weren’t good enough for him”. Always wanted to move to the big city. Core Drive: his life peaked at high school Football supporter (Arsenal). Catholic. – he wants a chance to be the king he should always have been. His Trudy, a Godbinder expectations are simply too high. Was the GM of their group as teenagers. Secondary Elements: protective of Small-town wife. Two kids, mid-teens. sister, and all too aware she’s gay. Dropped out of her literature degree Football supporter (Tottenham). while pregnant. Now kids are about to

These are British people, btw. To Rupert’s life peaked as a teenager, and translate to American, replace “Arsenal” he thinks he deserves better from life and “Tottenham” with “Yankees” and than he ever got. His core drive is simple “Red Sox”. – he wants to rule a fantasy world of his own. To come here, he had to bring THE LOCALE some people – the other personas. He hopes his sister will join him but, really, It’s their teenage D&D game. It’s a land they’re all just sacrifices for his power. with a high fantasy feel, which is all I need as an aesthetic – high fantasy, all He is in the Evil Lair, and he is the Dark the time. I’m also aware that the fact Lord of the world. He has acquired the they’re traveling to a teenage fantasy Magic Item of Evildom, which means he world gives an excuse for the stuff drives all the forces of evil, evilly. The around the edges being not exactly players get there, and we have the perfectly thought out. It’s a teenage classic epic confrontation at the top of D&D world! his lair. In other words, the encounters are primarily aggressive obstacles The simple setting: the land is about to trying to slow them down. This is mainly be crushed by the forces of Evil, ruled by playing the Dark Lord situation straight. some kind of Dark Lord. They have to travel through the The last free folk have gathered in the dungeon beneath the evil castle. Let’s last stronghold. They can transport a call it the Undercity. The players arrive group of heroes deep within the Dark in the last stronghold of the forces of Lord’s lair, in a last attempt to stop him. good, get briefed, and then transported to the Undercity. I could draw a map to When they step out of the room at the link things together, or have my list of start of the second session, they’ll find places they are likely to discover and as themselves in the stronghold of the the players defeat them they get closer. remaining good folk of the land. I realise I want it to be more than just “Go to the bad guy and kill them”. As Here’s two separate ways someone we’re riffing on a basic fantasy story, may use the above information to having the one weapon that means the develop two adventures. They’re written Dark Lord Can Be Defeated in the castle to show ways your thought processes seems a good thing. may go, including going back and editing. So – this basically creates a list of core encounters for the second session… The first is a pure good and evil structure, the other considerably more 1) The briefing in the last stronghold. complicated. 2) The arrival in the Undercity. 3) Some manner of pursuit when EXAMPLE ONE: RUPERT AS A TOTAL they’re down there??? SHIT/BASIC VERSION 4) Finding the magical artefact. 5) Using it to confront the Master. This is the simple way to do it. The briefing? As this is a pop fantasy take, Trudy’s love of trashy fantasy

seems a useful thing to mine for content religious mother could easily be twisted – as is Valentine’s love of Blizzard into encounters. games. I’d like to include some elements from Trudy’s favourite fantasy books, That Bob’s ex-wife “took” something but I haven’t actually asked her what from him means that she’s an influence her favourites are yet. I don’t need to. I’ll on the lieutenant who’s hunted down just ask her in play, and then just drop the party and has taken the magical the wisest person from that book into artefact she needs. Taking a Nazgul the role of advisor… and can also archetype as a monster and giving her provide the actual nature of the artefact followers gives a fairly creepy visual. to defeat the Dark Lord. Alternatively, There’s also the idea that maybe they the details can be filled in by asking don’t need to fight her – There’s room players questions about their RPG world for Bob making peace with his past here. during the session – “What was the legendary artefact in your game?” is Valentine’s mum as a religious mother, always an easy one. Whatever it is, it as a necromantic cult leader, leading an either allows Rupert to be killed or gives awful dark mass? That’ll be a good thing access to Rupert’s secret lair. to arrive in, as a huge visual, and gives the players a choice to intervene or not So – why is the artefact in the dungeon? in whatever is going on. As it’s Easy option – the personas’ original Valentines’ mum, this seems to be her teenage RPG characters went in there encounter. Her mum’s victims could be with it. The good guys cowering in the some beautiful elves, taken prisoner, last stronghold haven’t heard any with a suggestion that it’s because of contact. This sets for an agreeable they’re not straight. Can Valentine stand tragic encounter when the players up to her mum? Make peace with her? catch up with them. That actually Defeat her? Who knows? As Powered By changes the necessary encounters… Apocalypse World games like to say in their manuals, we play to find out. 1) The briefing in the last stronghold. 2) The arrival in the Undercity. Next – they find their way to as far as 3) Finding the party who went first. the previous party got. All dead – which 4) Finding the artefact we’ll ask the players some questions 5) Using it to confront the Master, about in play to work out why it’s Rupert. particularly sad. I check if I’ve given all the characters an encounter which Now – how about Rupert having some revolves around their obsessions. Well, lieutenants? That gives us some Valentine and Bob already have big antagonists who players can also scenes, but Trudy hasn’t. She needs interact with, who aren’t Rupert. one. If the party is already dead, how do they work out where the artefact has There’s someone who’s killed the gone? Well, Trudy’s a Godbinder – she previous party, and is leading the could bring them back to commune with, resistance against the players – a via a deal with one of the gods. Which is lieutenant figure. Scanning the fun. But… it’s a bit mechanics-based? background – Valentine and Bob both How to make it personal? The Sylvia have domineering figures they’re Plath mention sticks out – having a bard resentful of. The ex-wife and the based on Sylvia Plath as part of the

original party? Whatever challenge they Rupert is married to Galadriel and do to get the clue, they get her dying Arwen, to highlight the shallowness of words, which is a chance for Trudy to his “No woman is good enough for me” talk hero to hero and get inspiration bullshit. from it (perhaps linking to that stymied creative urge?). Some manner of A quick final scan through for minor combat situation, fighting ghosts for a details – I’ll use one of the online chance to speak with her literary hero Hearthstone card banks to randomly certainly works. generate cards to influence encounters, include a few historians in the opening From that, one way or another, we get to council of the wise and have the the confrontation with Bob’s Nazgul ex- banners of Arsenal on the good guys wife (Yes, now’s there a sentence.). One and the Tottenham flag on the bad guys. way or another, we get emotional That sounds fun, and signals that it’s a closure and the artefact. playful game. Work out a few stats for the key monsters – Hero Wizard for the And then onto a final confrontation, at mum and Monster for the ex, perhaps – the most dramatic part of the lair. That, and then we’re good to go. according to the scenario, the world will be falling apart means it’s going to be a EXAMPLE TWO: RUPERT AS MORE deeply dramatic visual background to SYMPATHETIC/COMPLICATED VERSION whatever happens. Any ways to spice it up with the background? So, Rupert is an over-achiever who thinks he deserves better than he got? Hmm. Bob had a lingering crush on Let’s not throw out the affection for his Valentine? With the rules for the Fallen, sister too easily. He actually believes the opportunity to kill her and then have this fantasy world is better for everyone her as Bob’s eternal bride is certainly – their lives are all shit. He’s hoping that something evil Rupert could suggest if being here will make them want to stay. Valentine rejects his demand to stay. It’s certainly a loaded decision, but the The backbone of “Get to the Evil Lair” fact this is meant to be a more fun and seems solid – do we have to throw it games adventure means this feels far out? A simple option – in fact, the too ugly (especially with Valentine’s Council of the Stronghold think Rupert’s sexuality). I keep it as an idea, but find it character is the new lieutenant of the unlikely I’ll go there unless the group is Dark Lord. The players think they’re leaning that dark. going to have to confront them both. However, when they get to the end, the Wait. This adventure is designed to be players discover that Rupert has high adventure – we’re overthinking it. already killed the Dark Lord. The world Let’s work out a bunch of lieutenants in will be at peace now… and haven’t your this final encounter. Rupert liked experiences along the way taught you Tolkien? Having the key LOTR cast as his you’ll be happier here too? petrified servants, and winning the fight sets them free would be a big cool geek This means that the Encounters will be thrill moment – and, if they’re suitably as much about giving players a chance grateful, perhaps giving Bob some to realise what they could be here. As closure on his resentment. Obviously, such, we’ll be looking for at least one

encounter (or one theme running chance to confront the mother analogue throughout the game) for each – so Rupert taking her down has to be character to be tempted by. after Valentine has had a chance to either stand up to her or not. Either way, We keep the same backbone – a magical Rupert turns on the mother (likely using artefact, carried to the base. If Rupert’s the Master’s special abilities) but it sets in charge, and he’s the LOTR master, we the game up for a very different take notes straight from Tolkien. The conclusion. artefact is the one ring. The place it’s got to get to is a big volcano base like Okay – Valentine is done. She doesn’t Mount Doom. Except, in our story, the have a single specific encounter – the Dark Lord has his room in Mount Doom, Dark Mother’s influence should tinge so you don’t get to sneak around. We’ll every encounter. fill in other details from asking players questions about their old fantasy world. How about Bob and Trudy? They’re two very different personas. Bob has a big Er… will we stick with that? Who knows, core drive – his resentment over his but it’s enough to start with. We can bin wasted life. Trudy is more diffuse, with it if the details change. smaller urges. Even her “stymied creative urge” doesn’t seem to align Who is the Dark Lord? It could be with her other elements. Hell, for some generic, but with this game world, let’s reason we haven’t even asked anything make it personal. The character who about the Father and how he fits into all has most connection to the personas? of this? Valentines’ mum – who is also Rupert’s mum, remember. Have the Dark Lord Hmm. inspired by her, and Rupert seemingly her servant… until the reveal. Trudy has always had a crush on Rupert… but younger, ambitious Rupert. If she’s the Dark Lord, and her daughter Meanwhile Rupert is trying to get a girl is afraid of her judgement, her rule must who is “good enough for him”. These be deeply conservative, so implying her seem to somewhat dovetail. Rupert is death would lead to the overthrow of all certainly ambitious now. And Trudy? By these values. As such, we’ll have to actually fighting her way through all filter the story with these ideas of these dungeons, she’ll have proved persecution. Simultaneously, the people she’s an amazing hero. This is their best of the last redoubt could be a bunch of selves! Or at least, that’s how he could lovely sweethearts. Having the players’ see it. That Trudy has kids means it’s old RPG characters be there seems unlikely she could be seduced to stay in logical – rather than tragedy, let’s make the world and abandon her real life… but them be positive meetings, to give the you never know. players something to fight for. That means that the encounters along That’s Valentine’s thread. It’s her road the way should give her a chance to to confront a fantasy analogue of her achieve purpose and show off. But what mother, with the world-view Valentine is to do? Well, a setting does present itself petrified of externalized all around her. – a library is a useful thing. If we’re This means that Valentine needs a dropping into a dungeon to explore, a

huge labyrinth with long walls of books ask for more during play, specifically is a great setting for an encounter. Hell, asking about her worst fears about him. maybe more. This is all feeling exciting but I want to If we’ve got a Library and we’ve got a step back and look at what I’ve planned. Dark Lord who’s hyper-conservative, In terms of antagonists, I’m reminded this segues into… well, book burnings, that the creatures I’ve created may be am I right? That’s the place they’re informed by the ex and the mother, but going – the Holy Library that the Dark they’re not actually the ex and the Lord is trying to destroy. We can use Mother. They are characters in this dark literary figures who are Trudy’s fantasy influenced by the fear. I don’t inspirations (which include Sylvia Plath, think stabbing your ex actually is a and others can be worked out by asking great way to work through emotions… questions) as the holy guardians of this but Bob’s core drive isn’t “Fuck my ex!” place? Bob’s core drive is “My life has been a waste.” That sounds fun. In fact, more fun than fucking Mount Doom analogue with a Hmm. Well, there’s two lines of attack – one-ring analogue. In which case, let’s one, when meeting his old RPG fighter throw away Mount Doom and use “The character, see that that guy had an Dark Queen’s attack against this bastion impact on this world. Perhaps all the of knowledge she doesn’t like” as the good guards they meet all honour that setting, and also throw away the one old fighter? Most importantly, when we ring. She’s in the central area and in a have an encounter we should see an ritual to destroy the book of light, from immediate big impact. This is partially which all that is good flows. That sounds built in (they’re saving the world) but on high fantasy, right? The problem is to the way, their actions should help get there before she does it. people, and we immediately thank Bob hard. We show him this world Let’s skip back to Bob. Now, one of his appreciates him in the way the real minor details kicks in here – “amateur world doesn’t. historian” certainly interlinks with the Library setting. Including the 20 years So – Valentine’s fear, Bob’s wasted life… thing – personal history is also history. while we’ve got a story for Trudy, it Like in the first version, his ex-wife doesn’t actually really touch on what I sounds like a useful flavour to add as an identified as her main issue – as in, a antagonist, but let’s look some more. stymied creative urge. Now, maybe we She left him for someone. Trudy is don’t need this – she already has a lot of worried that now her kids are leaving input into the world, and her character home, she lacks a purpose. Her husband was more diffuse than the other two – leaving too seems like something that but we can give her a creative mission would horrify everyone – but especially along the way? And a reward of being a Trudy, right now. So have two Nazgul- major creative mind here? esque lieutenants, one based on Trudy’s husband, and the other based on Bob’s Okay – we’ve got a lot swimming around ex. Hmm. We don’t have many details here. I work out a rough list of encounter about the husband. I’ll make a note to ideas.

1) Arrival in the world. Perhaps they step 4) Lieutenants have gathered their out of a magic book? The good guys of major forces, and are about to start the fantasy realm explain the situation – executing fictional characters – any the Evil Queen and her lieutenant character who stars in a book which is (Rupert) are storming this library. It’s on a Christian Fundamentalist Ban List chaos out there. The great book of light would be good (which is a lot of books – is in peril and has been cut off from the Harry Potter jumps to mind as a good rest of the library by a grand wall of reference). Navigating this encounter darkness. If they had one of the army’s can be a huge battle (if the Warrior- passes, they could get through? This Librarians from the last encounter were story is trying to seduce – we should recruited) or a personality-based one. I signal that. I write the first note as Trudy have the idea that if one of the (who I suddenly remember I made a note Lieutenants based on real-life people is is a secret smoker) being passed a actually killed, we should actually cigarette. “Don’t worry – it’s a healing lampshade what’s happened. “Did you cigarette. Smoke as many as you like.” really think this was me? Is this really Instantly the idea – this world knows how you see me?” beat before they die, you, and this world will look after you. to make the players question what they’re actually doing. But really, “The 2) Exploring the Library. Encounter with players need to get the key off one of order of gay monks who are being the Lieutenants” is all we need for a dragged away into captivity. First backbone. showing of Dark Queen’s attitude – plus seeing the Dark Queen’s face on the 5) The final encounter – have the final banner, so players know who it’s based confrontation of Valentine with her Dark on. If they rescue the monks, it’s clear Lord mum, before Rupert kills her and their order’s precious knowledge will be makes the pitch. “People like her made hugely important to the world. Thanks, the real world terrible. She’s not here Bob. Plus, Valentine sees her mother’s now. Now this world will be great – let’s threat. stay here.” Then we’ll see if we’ve done enough to tempt folks. 3) A massive book burning with the Head Librarian being burned in the I prepare a selection of useful stats for centre…. Introducing the two evil people they will meet, as well as lieutenants. They will attempt to run, to gathering together a bunch of bring warning. The Head Librarian, atmospheric things to do with books – dying, begs Trudy to learn enough to tell as I live in a house with books, I will be the story of this place (her creative arc). generating random events based on They’ll likely try and make Bob help too – picking a random book off the shelf. he’s an amateur historian, and it will Clearly, we need some charming girls to feed into his “wants to make a flirt with Valentine and likely Bob as well. difference” storyline. Nearby, watching And, once again, I suspect Sylvia Plath in bunkers, are the utterly demoralised will turn up for Trudy to bond with…. Warrior-Librarians (I’ll need to work out Hmm, someone has to be the Head their statistics from the “Monsters” Librarian. Asking Trudy to be successor sections). If they can be motivated to go to Plath certainly feeds into her out and fight, it’ll be easier for the obsessions… players to get around.

QUESTIONS TO ASK YOURSELF • The two above adventures are based on Bob being relatively • I skirt over writing more details on blameless. Drama is usually more characters the players meet and complicated than that. Can you think their statistics. How much would you of ways to make the wife a more have to pre-generate to be happy to sympathetic element? play the game? • The personas’ old teenage RPG • I’m using imaginary locales, without characters are either killed or a firm setting. How would you passively just advisors. Would you integrate an actual map to ground like them to be more active? Or the experience? would you not use them at all?

• Both adventures are simple quest • The second example is meant to try narratives. As an experienced GM and lure the players to at least knows, there’s many sorts of consider staying in the world. Does it narratives. How would you use do enough? How would you make similar techniques to do – say – a the world more appealing? detective story? A siege? A courtly romance? • The latter game goes deep into homophobia in the world setting, • Rupert is a literary nerd and doesn’t with gay characters being actually like RPGs. Any ideas how to imprisoned. I considered going even make this a bigger part of the game? further and having characters face execution, but decided against using • You have the personas’ notes above. it as an example. With some groups I I say that I wish I’d asked Trudy would run that game. With others I more about her husband. What wouldn’t. What are your limits? questions would you ask? Would you not use that kind of overt homophobia as a theme at all? What • Neither example uses Bob’s themes just don’t interest you? Catholicism. How would you use Bob’s religion? Is that interesting to you?

You’ve done your preparation. You’ve Tell them to lower the dice to the table, got the players all back together. Sit then release it. Wait a few seconds. Ask them down, let them relax, and then… them to open their eyes. DO THIS THING! Tell them they’re back in the game, and PREVIOUSLY ON begin.

There's been a gap between the first ENCOUNTERS and second sessions. As such, the players are unlikely to remember You have a series of encounters everything about their persona (or other prepared, or are planning to improvise. people's). That the game’s juice is about Get to it, GM. people recognising elements of their persona coming to haunt them, this is a OPEN-ENDED WORLD GENERATION problem. Oh what to do? You have your plan for the encounters. Go around the group, asking everyone to You know which of the personas’ talk about their persona, and their backgrounds you plan to work into the feelings for the other personas. If they D&D conventions of the world they’re miss things which you're hoping to use exploring. in the second session, mention them. This is the trick which TV shows do – if However, this only mean the players will something is mentioned in a Previously enter a fantasy world. You want to make On, it's really telling you that it's going to it feels like they’re entering their be relevant in what follows. Savvy fantasy world… which you then subvert. players will know it's a tell, but it's better than them not recognising something As such, much as in persona that should be relevant to them. generation, you continue to ask questions during play, of larger or If the player adds things that weren't smaller details, from the players. mentioned in the first session, as long as they don't openly contradict what For example, if you decide the story is they said then or break the relationships set in the capital city of the largest in some way, write them down and Fantasy Empire, you should feel free to consider using them. For many players, turn to the players and ask details as their persona will have solidified in their they arise. For example: mind in the gap between sessions. What’s the symbol of the empire? RESTARTING THE GAME What colour armour do its knights wear? How is the capital protected? A little ritual can help enter the correct How many times has the Dark Lord ever mindspace for play. When everyone’s attacked the capital? got back up to speed ask all the players What was your favourite inn in the city? to pick up their class dice and close Who lived there? their eyes. And so on. It’s worth stressing what the questions above do. As in, they are designed to add to the game world and

give colour. This is decoration over the GM you should try to remind players of structure you have prepared. their persona’s real life even as they're going through the world. Part of this will It is also likely that whatever they give be done solely through the weirdness of you, you will immediately subvert it or the encounters – if they encounter play with it in some way. The symbol of things that hark back to the personas’ the Empire will be on fire. The Capital’s real lives, it grounds things. impassable walls have fallen. The Dark Lord is on the throne. Your inn is on fire The other side of this is to continue to and/or the innkeeper has been brewed ask players questions in game, and then into beer. immediately fold that into the action. In RPGs, as genre fiction, we tend to You can push this technique as far as breeze past things which would be you like. For example, run through a incredibly powerful if experienced for dungeon they played as teenagers, real. By linking it to something the asking a player what’s around each persona experienced, then bringing that corner, and then subvert it. For groups back into the play, it can make it real. that like a lot of player agency, this is a good way to include it. Other groups can It’s worth stressing, this is a key just keep it as an occasional spice. Find moment to try to use the persona name your own way. to make it clear you’re asking for a fictional answer, not a confession of For less gonzo players, they may be some awful thing in a player’s real life. worried about the coherence of the world. They’ll be right. It should be For example... stressed that a certain incoherence may result from these choices. It’s reduced by these being surface GM: As a kid, was your persona ever in additions to your underlying strong hospital? structure, but the key thing is that Player: Yeah. She had an undetected they’re traveling to their teenage appendicitis. She almost died. fantasy world. That the world-building GM: This hurts worse than that. may be a bit broken is not a problem – it is in fact the point. Applying more This is even more true with emotional cynical eyes to the chirpy D&D world is elements of the game. actually a lot of fun. Or horrifying. Or both. The Naomi Neo has met Fair Gold for the first time. The GM needs to convey how In short: ask questions of the personas. much they crave it. Fold those answers into the world. GM: Has Naomi ever had an unrequited Continue. crush? Player: Sure. OPEN-ENDED PERSONA GENERATION GM: Tell me about it. Player: Naomi crushed on Gareth for a Much of the thrill of the game is about year. It was awful and sullen. taking normal people with real emotional GM: You feel about this coin the way you issues and giving them these felt about them. supernatural powers. As such, as the

“Tell me about X thing” “Player tells Have a toilet break halfway through the about X thing” “This is like that” is a time you’ve planned for the game. very DIE story rhythm. During this break, take a moment to take stock. How much of the adventure have This can also be used to gather you got through? How much do the information about the present situation. players seem invested in playing? Are As in, asking the Player about a you actually going to reach the end of persona’s background in their real the game at the current rate? world, and instantly working it into the game. For example… If any of the above suggests that having another session is a good idea, now is GM: Hey, persona, tell me about your the time to float the idea that, rather favourite pet. than trying to get everything into this Player: Oh, Floofy. Floofy was the best session, you expand into a third (or dog. He had enormous hair! more!) session. If people agree, decide a GM: Well, a dog the size of a rhino with useful point to aim for by the end of a hair the size of an elephant has just session, and go for that. As in, think come out of the undergrowth, yapping where the next big cliffhanger is. A excitedly. Or at least, you think it’s cliffhanger to end the session is always excitedly. good.

SESSION TIMING To return to the hypothetical recapitulation of a Tolkien-esque world I say the game tends to work in 2-4 earlier, the adventure was to go from sessions. Players being players, I outside the gates of Mordor, via suspect that will likely be taken as two: Shelob’s Lair and then towards Mount one for character generation, and the Doom. Two hours into the session, the other for the actual adventure. In GM realises they’re never going to reach practice, there are two main problems in mount doom in the hour that’s running the adventure all in a single remaining. The GM suggests another session. session, and the players agree. Looking at the notes, the GM thinks it’s likely 1) each character type gives a bunch of they can get to Shelob’s lair. The GM sophisticated toys for players to mess decides to end the session at the reveal around with. It’s unlikely all players will of Shelob, and paces the adventure to have used even a fraction of their reach there. powers in a single session of adventure. Hell, some of them may have used none (The tricky one is if you have a little of them. more content for a session – like, an hour more than the time you have, but 2) You may have generated much more not enough for a full third session. In content than you can possibly fit. that case, you choose between cramming it in or generating some more If you’re trying to do the whole things to do in the next session. If adventure in a single session, I everyone seems excited to do another recommend the following… session and timing is possible, I’d say the extra work for a third session is normally worthwhile.)

If that is undesirable – either due to real- It can easily be something else. life timing issues or lack of player interest or anything else – you will have THE RITUAL TO GO HOME to work out how to get to the end. This is likely to involve cutting various threads If the surviving personas seem to want from the spine of the adventure. to mostly leave, ask each individually if Remember: you can always bring the they “want to end the game”. Stop the Master to the players for the final second someone says no. encounter. Once all personas (including the GM’s Players may need a reminder that they persona) agree, tell them all to close are working against a time limit and their eyes...and then after a gap, tell should engineer their choices them to open them again. appropriately. Before the final encounter with the Master or an hour before the They've escaped. Move to the “Leaving end of the game (whatever comes first) the Dungeon” section. remind them that they’re finishing shortly, and a player may wish to start However, it’s not likely to be as simple pushing their character’s narratives. It’s as just walking up to the Master and now or never. saying “Hey – wanna blow this joint?”

RUNNING THE FINAL ENCOUNTER THE MASTER’S ALLIES AND ABILITIES

The final encounter is where all this has It could just be the Master by been leading, and the confrontation with themselves, but it's likely that a the Master is going to end the game, one satisfactory encounter may involve way or another. Everyone will have to multiple antagonists. decide whether to go home or not. The Master’s character gives various To remind you, these are the actual abilities to the GM’s persona, with the rules... Cheat Tokens being able to be spent to perform various impossible tasks. This 1. The party can go home at any time includes magically summoning an ally. as long as everyone agrees. This is As such, they can increase the intensity all personas, including the Master. encounter even mid-flow. Equally, they 2. Dead personas (i.e. Fallen) do not get can be used to perform something a vote. If the party votes to leave, extremely miraculous – as in, fulfilling a the Fallen are left behind. persona's unlikely wish, prompting them to them to switch sides (effectively In other words, the final encounter will giving the Master an ally). Most of all, come from the above. At the simplest, it even if you want the Master to stand will be a fight scene. Your heroes gather alone, a Cheat Token can be used to and fight the Master. The second the simply avoid any blow – effectively Master is defeated, they take the vote working to negate the hit. and are transported home, leaving the dead Master behind. This is the game's In the case of the last one, be definitely core “if all else fails” story arc. sure to pass the Cheat Token over to the

player. Seeing the Master is spending IRONIC PROBLEMS their resources is key to selling the moment – as well as describing the This is the conclusion of the impossibility of it. If it’s a killing blow, antagonist’s arc. You could be looking see the killing blow, spend the token, for ways to make their deal seem less and then describe the injury healing. appealing. If they are a pure villain, you See “Running the Master” for more. can push this towards complete reversal of their deal. They have clearly If you're good, you should spend the got what they want, but at a cost which Cheat Tokens so the Master has none makes it pointless. This is the “you have when they die. If you have tokens left, eternal life, but as a statue” gambit. I'd advise the players not seeing they Especially if you have to end the game in have one. You don't have to spend them, a rush, something that direct can be but if you let the Master be defeated useful. Look for the sting in the tail of when you have one, they'll know you're what the Master wanted. playing softball. This can be useful in the next category That said, better to fudge than make a as well. game boring. And equally, you can easily manufacture a peril which burns FLIPPING THE ANTAGONIST through a Master's Cheat Tokens – especially as the Master will spend If what the antagonist wanted is clearly them to protect what they really want or not all they wanted it to be, it may desire. The Master is a character and a become easier to talk them down or character doesn’t necessarily make convince them of the wrongness of their good decisions. If they made good position. The players and the antagonist decisions they wouldn’t be a god in a talking it out like grown-ups is pocket dimension. completely a justified end of the game. If the bad guy agrees to go home, this is a For example, a Master’s desire is to great conclusion. However... create a perfect art work. The final confrontation with the party is in his PLAYERS FLIPPING gallery, with his masterpiece in the centre. The party sets it on fire, and the Some of the players may have been Master immediately spends one of their tempted to stay at this point. This can, tokens to return it to normal and stop it for example, lead to them actively from being flammable. At which point joining the antagonist in a final battle. Or the players slash it to pieces, and they forming their own side, or anything else. spend another one. And so on… Once all the living players agree to stay or go, the game ends. WHAT HAS COME BEFORE It's worth noting that players can flip Before the encounter start, try to fold in back and forth, being tempted and elements from earlier in the adventure. changing their mind. It's also worth If they made allies, have them show up. noting the antagonist can decide to If they made enemies, have them cause leave and the players decide to stay, trouble. Make sure the players feel their and any combination. actions have weight and consequences.

In other words – any or all combinations If they can’t come to a decision one way are good. or another, everyone dies.

FALLEN BECOMING LIVING It’s also worth reiterating that the second they make their decision as a There's a whole section about “Running group, whether it's to stay or go, the the Fallen” in the Running The universe will actually stabilise. Archetypes section, but the conclusion is a good place for Fallen to become That’s the ultimate push to make a call, human again, and so be able to go home but you should increase the dissonance (or at least get a vote on going home or in several steps. For example, in the not). At the least, a Fallen who kills the final combat, start one round saying the Master will live again – as the Master is world is starting to fall apart. Start the a persona. next saying that the world is going to end when the round stops. As the Gamesmaster, you may be looking for a way for Fallen players to It will likely turn to violence. Players become human in the final battle, gonna player. usually with another player making some manner of sacrifice. As said, more Other groups simply won’t – if it's simply on this in “Running the Fallen”. “I'm not going to fight my friend” then look for ways to escalate the situation, IMPASSE AND THE END OF THE WORLD one way or another. The question of most Western drama is "What is this It's possible that you have a situation person's true character?" True where the players cannot agree character is defined by action – what whether or not to go home, and there is someone will or won't do. If they don't no easy resolution. fight, you essentially end up escalating towards it being a question of someone Equally, there is the logical question fighting or dying when the world ends, some players will hit upon – why or compromising. This is interesting. actually make the decision now? Why not stay for another week and then go If it's because one of them is a Fallen home? and they don't want to leave them, you may want to suggest a way to The game is set in a pocket universe. It reanimate someone. Start with “Let is not stable. It will shortly cease to be, someone sacrifice themself and let the killing everyone unless a decision can other character have their life” then go be reached in good time – the to other methods. See the “Running the dissonance between some people Fallen” later for more on this. Or course, wanting to be there and some people you will also be increasing the peril, so not wanting to be there being the it's a question of leaving the Fallen problem. In this final encounter, this behind or dying with them. You meanie. should come to a boil. If the conversation is extending, the GM THAT’S ALL should start showing reality falling You can go to the next section now. apart. Infinite monsters! The sky falling! Whatever!

LEAVING THE DUNGEON

And lo, the game ends. The point here is • Reality is changed in a small, but to swiftly wrap to a denouement. significant way related to a player’s Remember all the rules for maintaining choices. atmosphere. Make the scene short, dramatic, scary, Generally speaking, these are the core and then hard cut to the aftermath. things which happen upon their return. Any or all can be warped depending on Ask them "How has this experience what seems narratively satisfying. changed how you act in the real world? Describe them. What do you do differently?" It's likely you'll want to say something in • They will be back exactly where they response to this. Work around the disappeared from. players, and let them say their piece, • While minor injuries and scrapes will but keep it short. If you have an be healed, any larger injuries additional note to add to the player, say (especially those from a deliberate it after theirs. It should respond to their sacrifice) will remain. For example, if choices and help end their character someone cuts their hand off to arc. impress a god, get a new cyber arm or return a Fallen persona to life, There's talk on what a satisfying arc for they will be missing that appendage. a character is elsewhere, but the core is • Anyone who remained in Die will be whether or not a character overcame missing. their core drive or submitted to it. It is • If you were playing in a public place, likely to be ironic in some way. You are no one will have noticed you were essentially looking for a grace note. It's gone. likely one good idea will strike you, in which case run with it – especially in (You may note that one of these rules terms of the fate of the Master. was not true of the comic of DIE – the characters appeared elsewhere when To give two examples from playtests, in returning to the real world.) one game the Master was simply someone killing groups of players at a Here's some things which could be con to gain eternal life. They returned included in the denouement if they add and his body was desiccated in the to a persona’s arc. circle. This is a simple, gore horror ending. In a later playtest, the Master • Desiccated corpses or skeletons of was an aggrieved writer and peer of similar detritus of those left behind. several of the players – he'd written one • No one else (other than the players) great short story, and then his career remembering the people left behind flatlined while his friend’s took off. One in Die. Interesting elements of their persona was a young writer, who life may be merged with some of the actually did hero worship this one remaining characters existence. story... and her career was taking off now. At the end, he is consumed by Die, and they return to the con... and that

evening the young writer wins a Hugo willingly for the sake of improving the award, for a short story she has no game via drama or because loyalty to memory of writing, going by the same their character’s arc takes them down name as the one by the now-vanished this dark path. As such, if they play the Master. This is a somewhat ornate one. baddies, they are aware they will likely lose, and revel in it. The Night King isn’t In practice, a simple creepy, moving or going to end up on the Iron Throne. atmospheric line adding to the player’s statement is what you want to do. Make There are exceptions to this, of course, their story better, not undercut it. and if a player is seemingly emotionally agitated by the way the game is going, For example… it’s worth pausing the game to check in on them and make sure everyone is fine. Player: Leaving Susan behind in that The section on Bleed in the Advice for weird world has just changed Gamesmasters section has more notes everything for her. She knows she’s got on this. You may think stopping will hurt to change her life. She’s going to write the drama. You will be right. But drama the novel. is not worth someone’s emotional GM: It gets picked up and released. happiness. We are here to have a nice When your first author’s copy arrives, time. there’s a strange typo in it. You ask after it, and it’s the only one in the whole (There’s also an irony there, isn’t there? print-run that’s like it. The printer can’t If you don’t check in with a distressed explain it. The dedication has changed. It person at this point, in a story which reads “I’m so proud of you. Love Susan.” likely says you should choose reality above fantasy, you have chosen NOT LEAVING THE DUNGEON fantasy above reality. That it’s likely done to a persona who is doing likewise In playtests, this has proved to be the is definitely an irony.) less likely choice. The story DIE tells about whether or not to come home to I digress – this is hopefully a fringe case. the real world is culturally loaded – the Real World is something we must come If they choose to say, ask each player to terms with, so in fiction the choice of for a brief image of what their life is like reality over fiction is the norm. in this fantasy world. Then, as above, Especially in a game where your choice respond to it in a way that adds depth. also limits the rest of the group, it becomes a harder thing for a player to If they choose to return to the real do. When designing the dilemma, we world, the formula is if they make it REAL have loaded the question towards going you add an afterthought to make it home. WEIRD. If they make it WEIRD you add an afternote to make it REAL. Players who have their persona choose to stay, despite the choices of the If they stay in the fantasy world, it’s people who want to leave, are – different. It’s already likely weird. What culturally speaking – playing the bad you should be looking for is whether guys. Many will be consciously aware of they make it SAD or not. this, and have stepped into that role

If someone does an upbeat view of their For example, while a player knows it fantasy life, with no showing of a means they will never see their loving downside, it’s likely you will add a SAD partner back in the real world again, beat at least in a more serious game. they choose to stay as their brother There are two tactics – a short sentence suffers chronic pain in the real world which undercuts the triumph in the and is free of it here. Rather than fantasy life or a sentence of something twisting the knife, describe their partner that’s happening in the real world, made waking up from a dream, oddly worse by their absence. Answering the comforted, as if they were held and question “What do your friends miss missed and loved intensely. They can about you in real life?” is always a good move on. question. THE FALLEN PERSONAS LEFT BEHIND For example, for one to add an element of poignancy… Asking the player “how does your absence impact the world?” Is a good Player: I end up becoming the head of way to get closure. Add a SAD or WEIRD the King’s Cavalry, bringing justice to all response to them. the lands of Anathon! Imagine me, riding ever onwards, to the horizon at the Players may want to have an ironic head of a column of soldiers. scene of their Fallen in the world. Who GM: We cut back to Earth, years later. am I to say no? Your mother is in your room, finally tidying away the toy soldiers from the AND THEN… shelf in your childhood bedroom. She does it in a business-like fashion. Heroic, No matter what you do, when everyone in its own way. finishes, applaud everyone and thank them for playing. They were great. The level of sadness is likely going to be in proportion to how sympathetic the You should also practise a little character’s motivation is for aftercare and decompression. abandoning the real world. While even the most sympathetic Masters are guilty Aftercare is a phrase lifted from the of kidnapping the personas, the other S&M community, and is about leaving personas aren't, and can have room to emotionally support people and understandable reasons for not wanting let them recover. I would advise for to return to life. In short, real monsters some time after a game to just unpack are likely to get a more ironic, sour note, with one another, talk about what got to while sympathetic ones get something them and their feelings about what more bittersweet. occurred.

This is equally true when characters This is another good reason to plan so choose to compromise their own your session does not run up to the time happiness to give their friends someone has to run for a train. If something that is entirely essential to someone has already left, check in on them. Consider a beat which leans more them as soon as possible. tender than actively sad, allowing a little closure.

Once you’ve all done that, sweep up as and you can let them, but definitely many of the character sheets as you appear interested in keeping them, can and (if you have one) slide them into especially if they died. If ask, just smile. the Box of Crap, especially if they died. No reason. No reason at all. Some players may want to keep them,

WHAT THE RULES ARE FOR

These rules are the procedural rules. Conversely, trying to pick a lock They are intended to simulate the in the middle of a melee sounds fantasy universe the story is happening like the sort of thing that a dice in. It is designed to be light and based on roll makes sense for. judgement calls, while having a pretence of simulating an objective 3. Try and be consistent in the universe. application of the rules. If you've chosen that a thing should be a Generally speaking... dice roll in one situation, an identical situation should also 1. Anything reasonable to happen require a dice roll. Of course, should just happen. If there's no there's a lot of leeway in terms of chance of it not happening, it "identical". For example, earlier in happens. This is the majority of the adventure a Wisdom roll was things. For example, a character required to find the will to attack walks across the room. No dice a ten-mouthed Katanga beast. roll required. The next time someone tries to do it, they should do the same. 2. The same goes for when the Unless – for example – the GM players are bringing their rules it only happens the first characters' skills to bear in trying time any individual attacks a ten- to achieve a goal and there is a mouthed Katanga beast. no real question whether they'll succeed or not. For example, We go into detail in the following playing a roguish thief, they try to section, and talk around uses of the pick a fairly normal lock. As rules, but you can find a stripped-down there’s no time pressure, this version of the rules on the Cheat Sheets seems entirely within their in the handouts. abilities. They pick the lock.

THE CORE MECHANIC

THE CORE MECHANIC IN A PARAGRAPH It’s worth noting these are the six Dungeons & Dragons statistics, The Master sets a difficulty for whatever generally used for broadly the same a character is trying to do. The person purpose. controlling the character assembles a number of six-sided dice equal to the Each statistic is represented by a relevant statistic. They roll that dice number, representing how good (or pool. Any 4+ counts as a success. If you terrible) they are: match or exceed the difficulty in successes, the character pulls it off. 0 – Incapable 1 – Terrible There’s a bunch of minor things on top 2 – Average of that, in terms of adding more dice for 3 – Elite other reasons and interpreting the 4 – Heroic results, but that’s the core. 5 – Ludicrously Heroic 6 – Seriously, this is getting stupid now THE CORE MECHANIC IN MORE THAN A 7 – Gandalf riding a Balrog playing Guitar PARAGRAPH Hero solos on Expert with his eyes closed All characters inside the fantasy world have six statistics. These are... To stress, everyone you have ever met in your life has a 2 in all their stats. If Strength: how strong you are! How good you’ve met an Olympian, they may have you are at hitting things! General melee a 3. DIE’s heroes are much better than stuff! the greatest people on Earth. Dexterity: how nimble and dextrous you are! How good you are at shooting This is how you work out whether any things! Sneaking! The occasional melee character (whether controlled by a weapon like a rapier! player or the GM) succeeds or fails. Constitution: how healthy you are! Do you get a cold? Do you bleed out on the 1. Decide what the character is floor after getting stabbed by someone trying to do. For example, if with the aforementioned rapier? presented with a closed heavy Intelligence: how much stuff you know! gate of the portcullis style, you Fancy book learnings! Most wizard-type may decide to try and lift it to magic! open it. Wisdom: how much you understand 2. The GM assigns a numeric stuff and how much emotional control challenge difficulty to the task. you have for those sensations! Most Difficultly 1 is the standard. priest type magic! Difficulty 2 is something which is Charisma: your ability to persuade GM- unlikely for a normal human. controlled characters into doing stuff! Difficulty 3 is literally impossible Getting a discount while shopping! Soft for a normal human without human skills! special training, and even then it’s extremely unlikely. Higher

difficulties are even harder. For 9. Compare the number of example, this gate is ludicrously successes rolled to the difficulty heavy. Normal people would find the GM set. If the number is equal lifting it extremely difficult. In to or higher than the difficulty, which case, it's given a difficulty they succeed. For example, the of 2. player rolled three successes, 3. Identify which statistic is and the difficulty was 2. They lift relevant to a task. For example, if the heavy metal gate. Gate a gate needs to be lifted, it's likely defeated! Strength is the relevant stat. 4. Collect the number of six-sided That's the core mechanic. There's a few dice equal to the relevant complications and ways to interpret it statistic. This is the dice pool. for storytelling, but it's all built on top of Unless the game explicitly says that sequence. Gather dice. Roll dice. otherwise, if it says add a dice, it Count successes. Compare to the means add a six-sided dice. For difficulty of the challenge. If you match example, if you have a Strength or beat it, you're sorted. of 4, you would collect four dice. 5. Decide if there’s anything which Almost everything in the game is based makes the task easier. If so, add on the above. If in doubt, you can stick advantages. For every to it and get the game ambling along advantage, add a dice. For well enough. example, if you were a trained weight-lifter, you may add a dice. THE PLAYERS’ CLASS DICE 6. Decide if there’s anything which makes the task harder. If so, add Each of the players has a special dice of disadvantages. For every two their own. Generally speaking, each disadvantages, increase the class’s character sheet will say when difficulty by 1. If there’s an odd you get to add it to the dice pool. Unless number of disadvantages, add the rules state otherwise, it is read like a The Bad Dice to the dice pool. For normal dice. As in, anything 4 or higher example. if you were heavily is a success and anything 6 or higher is injured, the difficulty may be a Special. increased by 1. 7. Roll the dice. Ideally, on a flat ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES surface. If you can roll dice on a vertical surface, YouTube You may note steps 5 and 6 of the core yourself doing this immediately, mechanic mentioned these. people will be impressed. Advantages and Disadvantages are 8. Any dice which rolls 4 or higher triggers when there's other factors than counts as a success. A roll beyond the basic difficulty of a task or a of 6 (or higher) counts as a character's statistics at play. They success, and triggers any presently share a name with relevant Special ability the “Advantage” and “Disadvantage” in character possesses. If the Bad Dungeons & Dragons, but aren’t Dice is included and rolls 4+, then mechanically similar. I mention this, in remove one success. case you’re confused, but I figured they’re best to stick with as any

alternative I thought of was either her Strength, which is four. However, obtuse, gimmicky, made me shudder to Kate has a Strength spell cast upon her say or all three. (which gives an advantage to strength challenges) and she's a trained For each present factor in the situation weightlifter (which gives an advantage which makes a task easier, add an to any test to see if she can lift advantage. something). Unfortunately, she's also drunk, which gives her a disadvantage For each present factor in the situation on all physical tasks. makes a task harder, add a disadvantage. Her final dice pool is four dice for her Strength, two dice for the two Advantages are cumulative. As are advantages and THE BAD DICE for her disadvantages. Neither cancels each single disadvantage. other out. She rolls 4, 5, 3, 1, 4 and 4. THE BAD DICE For every advantage you add a dice to is a 5. She has three successes the dice pool. (actually four, but with one removed as THE BAD DICE was also 4+). She For every two disadvantages you add successfully lifts the gate. one to the difficulty. If there is a spare disadvantage left over, add THE BAD Hypothetically, if Kate had a second DICE to the dice pool. disadvantage – perhaps from being injured as well as drunk – rather than If THE BAD DICE rolls 4+ it removes one adding THE BAD DICE to the dice pool, success from the dice pool. the difficulty would have been increased from 3 to 4. We also may wonder how THE BAD DICE is a D6. THE BAD DICE Kate ended up drunk and hurting should be obviously identifiable – you herself. Pull it together, Kate. You're on may place it on a podium in the middle of an adventure. the table or in the area on the rules Cheat Sheet from the handouts. At the It should be noted that many of the rules start of the sessions the players may that follow are actually just codified wish to discuss which of the dice is THE ways of adding advantages and BAD DICE. Dice which rolled particularly disadvantages to a specific situation. A poorly in a previous session are prime GM should consider them as examples candidates for being punished by taking of things which a GM may decide cause on the shameful mantle of THE BAD DICE. an advantage or disadvantage.

Never use multiple THE BAD DICE, as CRITICAL FAILURES otherwise the ceremonial scapegoating of the dice will prove ineffective. We If the dice pool results in no successes must train the dice to be good dice. We and at least one dice is a 1 then things must believe all dice can be saved. go particularly badly. The GM should ascertain what seems suitable, as Kate The Gatelifter approaches an even derived from the fiction. heavier gate. The GM ascertains it has a difficulty of 3, and that Kate should use

For example, Gatelifter Kate is over- combat, and you’ll find it primarily excited by her successful gate lifting. attached to defensive weapons. She's trying it again. This time she rolls a 3, 2, 2 and 1. Something has gone A special ability can only be activated if terribly wrong. The GM decides that the source of the special ability is she's sprained her back, and will cause relevant to the challenge. a disadvantage to any tasks that involve her back. Nimble Steve is trained with his rapier, which gives him the Special “Increase It is important to relate the level of Guard By 1.” In combat he rolls a 6, and punishment to the exact nature and he activates the ability to increase his difficulty of the task. Guard. Later, Nimble Steve is in a drinking contest, and rolls a 6. He cannot For example, Chatty Cecilia is trying to activate the special ability as his fencing talk a shopkeeper into selling stuff skills are irrelevant when downing cheaply. She rolls a critical failure. The hardcore spirits. GM says that Cecilia explodes. The player asks whether that seems fair. SKILLED OR UNSKILLED? The GM realises they've got all excited, so instead says that Cecilia has In DIE all tasks are related to one of the offended the shopkeeper, and now she statistics. If we say that astrophysics is has a disadvantage on all social based on Intelligence, all players – no interactions with people from the village. matter what their training – would have to roll their intelligence to succeed in For most non-perilous feats, an ongoing any time-based astrophysics dilemma disadvantage resulting from a critical which requires a roll. This would mean a failure is a good guideline. For perilous fantasy cleric with intelligence 4 would feats, an ongoing disadvantage and have the same chance of succeeding as losing a Health (or some other form of an astrophysics professor with physical hurt) is a good guideline. intelligence 4. This may seem silly.

SPECIAL ABILITIES DIE’s skill system works on an ad hoc basis. If it seems likely a character has In addition to counting as a normal no training in a task, the GM should add success, each 6 or higher on a dice roll disadvantages to the task. There are can be used to activate a relevant some character classes which go the Special ability. Special abilities are other way, explicitly adding advantages signified on character sheets with the when performing certain sorts of tasks. word Special with the text of the You can consider this being “expert” in special’s effects after it. For example… a subject.

Special: Increase Guard by one. Conceptually speaking, if one player in the group is clearly defined as a thief, it So any six in the pool could be used to is fair to assume that other characters increase a character’s Guard by one. As who have not explicitly defined per the usual guard rules, it couldn’t themselves as thieves would get increase beyond its maximum. It’s disadvantages when performing thief- essentially a way to recover Guard in related tasks.

As in all things DIE, consistency within scramble up next turn? If he rolled 1 or 2, the game is more important than perhaps he would have landed halfway consistency between games. Ideally, up the cliff, hanging onto a vine and now you want all players to feel special, has to try and work out what on earth to which means their character can do do. things the other characters can’t. In short, failing to hit the full total may INTERPRETING DICE solve the immediate problem, but create a different problem. The core mechanics state that if a player matches or exceeds the difficulty For example, Naomi Neo later is trying to they succeed. That's still true. Don't hack open a door. It’s a difficulty 2. She worry. We're not going to change the rolls a single success. The Master notes rules at this point. the door opens, but a guard is on the other side, attracted to the noise. Naomi However, the number of successes can is through the door, and now has a be a way of ascertaining the degree of different problem to deal with. success. If a player's roll exceeds the difficulty, the GM can rule that they Equally, if you set high difficulties, be achieve it with a greater success. This aware that failure will be more common. can purely be in a manner of style or Consider allowing successes to be result in game advantage or both. cumulative across multiple rounds to match a target. Nimble Steve is attempting to join a dance college. The GM sets the difficulty For example, Naomi Neo is a trained level of 2 to dance to a suitable level. hacker, trying to break into a closed Nimble Steve rolls 5 successes – more system during a combat. The GM sets a than twice what he needed. The GM difficulty of 4. She only rolls one says the dance was by far the best success. The Master says they’re a dance student so far – and he gains an quarter into the system. She keeps advantage when trying to influence the hacking while her friends protect her. clearly starstruck dance students. “Nothing changes” is generally Equally, falling short of the difficulty can speaking an uninteresting result for the be ascertained as a degree of failure. roll. The effect of this depends on the nature of the task. Some tasks could be semi- In situations of life or death you can use completed (for example, climbing a the level of failure to ascertain damage. wall). Other tasks are either succeed or A useful guideline may be the amount of fail – though a GM should have an eye on failure equalling the amount of damage. trying to “fail forward” leading to a more interesting situation than simply Slovenly Suzy is having a walk down a blocking the progress of the adventure. corridor in a dungeon when she steps on a trap. A jet of flame shoots down the Nimble Steve is trying to jump a chasm. corridor. Dodging it is difficulty 3. It's difficulty 4. He rolls 3 successes, and Slovenly Suzy rolls one success, failing the GM says that he's on the far edge of by two. The GM says that the player the cliff, hanging on. Perhaps he can loses two Health. Ouch.

Unless the story has made a situation to sneak into an area. This simulates the dangerous, a partial success should be best character helping out the least a partial success. Conversely, if danger capable characters. is set up, the partial success is the amount of danger you avoid. Nimble Steve, Slovenly Suzy and Average Annie are running from a For example, if you are trying to climb up cohort of orcs. They reach a cliff face. a wall, a partial success would likely be The GM ascertains to climb it is difficulty getting halfway up the wall. If you are 2. Nimble Steve rolls 4 successes. Suzy trying to dodge a flamethrower, how and Annie roll 1 success each. The GM close you get to the difficulty says Nimble Steve's player reaches the determines how much damage you top at double-quick speed – and can take. throw down a rope to assist the other players get up in time. As the group In short: the dice exist to be interpreted would have required 6 successes in in an interesting fashion. More total, this seems fair to the GM. successes equal more cool stuff. The wider the level of failure, the worse Of course, in some cases the character things are. However, it should be noted, may not wish to actually help out their that truly terrible results are best saved fellow characters. for a genuine critical failure. This is one thing which makes players fear critical The GM could have given Steve options, failures. saying that he could instead start to bombard the orcs with rocks. Nimble GROUP TASKS Steve considers the options, and suggests perhaps he can just run and Sometimes a task is one which an entire leave his friends? The GM says yes. group of characters can do Slovenly Suzy and Average Annie, simultaneously and all contribute to halfway up a wall, being bombarded by simultaneously. In this case, set a total orc javelins, are giving Nimble Steve difficulty and pool all the characters’ serious side-eye. successes. ASSISTING ON CHALLENGES Nimble Steve, Slovenly Suzy and Average Annie are in a tug of war Rather than setting a large difficulty to competition against some orcs. The the group, sometimes a task doesn’t Master says that the orcs will provide a work like that. It’s one person really difficulty of four. The players all roll their doing it, and others just helping out. For dice pool, and total their success. If they example, only one person can manage to have four between them, interrogate a target or pick a lock… but they beat the orcs. Go players! Players sometimes they can help advice or give are strong like ox. backup.

This method may be used when players Select one character – advisably the are all simultaneously trying to perform one with the best dice pool – and add a difficult task, to avoid having a one dice for every individual with skills scenario where if one fails, they all fail. assisting. This is most used when a group is trying

Gatelifter Kate has recovered from her SETTING DIFFICULTIES sprained back, and come back to have another go at that gate and found it’s The key takeaway: look at the situation. been replaced by a door. She's brought Try to be consistent. Don’t stress too two friends with her – Brawny Belinda much. and Hefty Herman. While she only has a Dexterity of 2, her friends oddly know a A dice pool system has many strengths, bit about lock picking. Kate has a go at but its main weakness is that it’s hard to picking the lock while her two friends predict the exact odds of someone give advice. Gatelifter Kate rolls four dice succeeding or failing rather than a – the two of her dice pool, and two extra straight D20 or percentage-based dice for the two characters giving her system. Here are some useful things to help. consider when setting difficulty.

The most common use of this rule is for Key point – as long as the game is groups of GM-controlled characters consistent, anything is fine. Consistency assisting each other in combat. Rather (see “Generating Rules” later) is what’s than rolling individually for each important in DIE. If one game has creature, roll once and add one dice for climbing a wall as 3 difficulty and everyone piling onto the individual hero. another has it with 1 difficulty, who cares? Maybe walls are much harder to Gatelifter Kate has opened the gate. climb in this dimension. All DIE games Behind it is an army of orcs. The front literally happen in their own dimension, row rush her, and Kate finds herself after all. attacked by three orcs. All the orcs have a Strength of 2, so a dice pool of 2. As However, it’s worth noting difficulty they're all attacking the same target, increases quickly in DIE’s system. rather than rolling individually they roll a single dice pool of 4. (Two based on their • A difficulty of 1 is what an average Strength, and an extra two for the two person will pull off 75% of the time. assisting orcs.) • A difficulty of 1 with a bad dice (i.e. one disadvantage) is what an You may note that this is just a specific average person will pull off 50% of example of adding advantages to a roll, the time. as described earlier. It's a preferable • A difficulty of 2 is something that an way of handling a situation to just rolling average person will pull off 25% of a lot. the time.

In a combat situation it is most likely to It’s worth noting that all our heroes be used by characters of an identical have a minimum of “average person” in type attacking simultaneously. However all their stats. With their higher stats, a character may delay their action to they will be pulling off things which assist another character’s. normal people simply can’t. A Dexterity Yes, we’ve just mentioned combat. Don’t 4 character can with no training do worry. We get to it soon. acrobatics like the Gold Medal winning Olympian (Dexterity 3 plus advantage for training, so a dice pool of four).

For some math for higher dice pools’ petrified of being executed by their chances… boss, you can add a disadvantage. For fiat it’s just sticking to a rule of For a three-dice pool, a character will thumb. Something that most folks could roll… probably do? 1. If it’s impressive? 2. If it’s Olympian? 3. If it’s cinematic? 4. So Zero successes: 12.50% for a Guard, I’d likely set a difficulty of 2. At least 1 success: 87.5% It’s not something everyone does. If the At least 2 successes: 50% guard doesn’t really care that much, I’d 3 successes: 12.5% set difficulty 1.

For a four-dice pool, a character will If you’re leaning towards setting high roll… difficulties, as we said earlier, definitely be aware of the interpreting dice and Zero successes: 6.25% failing forwards. If you fail to charm the At least 1 success: 93.75% guard completely, the successes should At least 2 successes: 68.75% still mean something. If you nearly get it, At least 3 successes: 31.25% they’ll do it for a bribe or a favour. If you 4 successes: 6.25% get a success, maybe you don’t get past, but they definitely don’t alert That should be enough to let you know anyone you were here. the chances. This is good practise anyway, but In terms of actually setting the level, especially in these cases. here’s two basic philosophies to guide you… It’s also worth noting the other thing to modify difficulty is the approach the 1) One is based on treating the character is using to do it – as DIE’s world as a simulation and just system is based almost completely on following from the your statistics, it will mean that character’s abilities. someone trying to cast some magical ability (likely rolling on their Wisdom to 2) The other is fiat. hit a difficulty level) and someone trying to charm someone (likely rolling on their (There’s a third about examining the Charisma) could have the same analogous approach, but that’s so difficulty. You may want to change the complicated and perverse, I don’t even difficulty level depending on the tactic. want to suggest it, in case you actually go and do it.) For example, a hero trying to climb a rock face may find it a difficulty 3 For an objective approach, to charm a Strength or Dexterity test – but a Neo guard to let you past them you need to with a teleport ability may simply beat their Wisdom stat as a difficulty. teleport up there, with no test required. So, for an average guard, difficulty 2. However, equally, you may add As I said. Look at the situation. Try to be disadvantages depending on the consistent. Don’t stress too much. situation – for example, if the guard is

COMBAT

Combat has the most extensive set of If a combat starts without warning, it's rules, but they're all an extrapolation of possible the GM may rule a character the core principles above. starts with less or even no Guard.

When the GM ascertains that Combat Nimble Steve is on guard, hand on has begun, we generate Guard, sword when the orcs rush the camp. ascertain Initiative order and then Slovenly Suzy is having a nap. She proceed through a series of combat starts awake to find the party attacked rounds until combat ends. by orcs. Nimble Steve has Dexterity 4, so has a Guard of 4. Suzy has a 1) Generate Guard for all characters. Dexterity of 2, so would normally have 2 2) Determine Initiative Order. Guard, but the GM notes that as she's 3) Everyone takes an action in initiative lying on the floor, without a weapon and order. rubbing sleep from her eyes, she's 4) Repeat step 3 until the combat is entirely flat-footed and has zero Guard. over. In borderline cases, you may let the GUARD AND HEALTH players roll their Dexterity as a dice pool and any successes become their Guard. These are what decide whether you are alive or dead. In the above situation, the GM decides to be kind, and says that as she’s • Guard represents your ability to surprised, Slovenly Suzy should roll her generally dodge, stay out of trouble Dexterity pool to see how quickly she’s and your “Guard”. managed to wake up. She rolls two dice • Health is your ability to actually stay (as her Dexterity is 2) and rolls a 3 and a on your feet if you’re hit. 2. With no successes, she’s still got a Guard of zero. Sometimes it doesn’t A player starts the game with Health matter if you’re kind. equal to their Constitution. If their Constitution increases at any point in Let’s put this in bold: the game, their health increases. If it decreases, it does likewise. Health does not regenerate by itself. Guard primarily regenerates whenever Unless otherwise stated, a character the character gets a chance to take a cannot have either Guard or Health break between fights. higher than their Dexterity or Constitution respectively. There are ways for Guard to be generated during a combat, either by At the start of a normal combat, a taking an action to recover your footing character sets their Guard to equal their or a character’s Special abilities. Dexterity. Guard replenishes quickly, while Health requires active healing. When a character has no Health left, they fall unconscious and are at risk of death. (See later.)

INITIATIVE If a player’s character is attacking another player’s character, it happens This determines turn order for all in this turn order. characters. If a character wishes to defer their Each character rolls their Dexterity and action, they can reserve their chance to states their number of successes. The act until later in the round, interjecting GM rolls for each group of combatants between any two combatants. They can they control, noting their number of declare an action triggered by an event successes. All the combatants of the occurring, if they wish (for example, by same sort act at the same time. The saying they will attack anyone who results are then arranged in order, from comes through the door with their axe. most successes to least successes. The moment a character passes This is the initiative order. through the door, they would be attacked.) At the moment, there are no Specials which effect the initiative roll. A combat round simulates a period of roughly five to ten seconds in the Initiative Tiebreakers combat. You can attempt any task you could achieve in that period of time. The If a player’s and a GM-controlled key word is “roughly.” We encourage a character’s number of successes are cinematic understanding of five to ten equal, the player character acts first in seconds. the order. If players roll identically and have equal Dexterity, the order is It is reasonable to move a little and ascertained in clockwise order from the perform an action, such as charging and GM. For ties of the GM-controlled attacking someone or diving through a characters, the GM decides which order door and slamming it behind you. If the GM-controlled characters act in. GM feels a player is trying to perform too much in a round, the disadvantages Nimble Steve, Slovenly Suzy and rules are there, waving at you, trying to Average Annie are fighting some orcs garner your attention. and their boss, Orc-O the Orcward. The players roll their Dexterity and the GM For example, Nimble Steve wants to rolls for the orcs. Steve gets 5 rush over, grab a sword off the floor and successes, Suzy gets 1, Annie gets 3, attack an orc with it. As this is going to Orc-O gets 2 and the orcs (rolling as a involve some fumbling to grab the group) get zero. The initiative order is weapon, the Master says that the task Steve, Annie, Orc-O, Suzy and finally the has a disadvantage. orcs. You can move a short distance as part THE COMBAT ROUND of any action which doesn’t require intense singular concentration. If you In initiative order, each player’s just move and nothing else, you can character declares what they’re doing move further – about twice as far, which and then does it. we call medium distance.

You may note all these are relative rolls four dice. The orc defence is 2, systems. Ranges are melee (as in, meaning the challenge is 2. directly by each other), near (a little way away – near enough you can get to them After a character rolls their dice pool for quickly, far away enough that you can’t an attack, the character causes one hit reach out and just attack them), medium for matching the difficulty level and an (to get to each other, you’d have to leg extra hit for every extra success above it) and far (you’d have to leg it for it. multiple rounds to get to them). In terms of getting to people, I use the following… Violent Trevor rolls four successes. He causes one hit for matching the orc’s Melee: You’re by each other so can defence of 2, and two more hits for the attack in melee. extra successes. Close: You can move and attack in the same round. DAMAGE Medium: You can move close enough to attack next round. Each hit removes one Guard or Health. Far: You’ll have to spend at least one Unless otherwise stated, Guard is turn to move to Medium. removed before health.

If you want to use a map or counters or The orc has 2 Guard, and 2 Health. similar to explain space, you should feel Violent Trevor caused three hits. The orc free. If you’re an experienced player, loses both its Guard and one Health. you likely have preferences. If you’re an inexperienced player, you may have a If a hit removes a Health we call it a preference too. Preferences are great. Wound. This is normally used for special Have fun. abilities which can only activate if a hit is a Wound. ATTACKING For example, a Ghoul has a paralyse Attacks are performed by the core Special ability if it wounds a player. It mechanic. A dice pool is assembled causes two hits to a character with 2 depending on the character's relevant Guard and 2 Health. The character loses abilities and rolled against a challenge 2 Guard, but is not paralysed, as they difficulty. did not lose a Health (i.e. they were not wounded.) Generally speaking, a melee attack normally rolls a dice pool based on a PAIN (AKA THAT REALLY HURTS!) character's Strength. A ranged attack normally rolls a dice pool based on a A character can lose Guard with no character's Dexterity. penalty. However, if a character's Health is less than its maximum, a The standard challenge difficulty is the character may well suffer a target character's defence. disadvantage to their dice pools due to being in enormous pain. Violent Trevor attacks an orc with his fancy sword. His Strength is 4, so he

If a character is at less than their Health, but they will also now be unable maximum Health... to do anything which required that hand.

• While they have 2 Health It is possible that losing a Health in remaining, they suffer a combat will also be accompanied by an disadvantage on all challenges. injury if the narrative demands it. • While they have 1 Health remaining, they suffer two For example, putting your hand beneath disadvantages on all challenges. an executioner’s blade and letting them hit you is a pretty good justification for Hard Harris has 4 Constitution, meaning losing the Health from the attack AND they start with 4 Health. They get hit your hand. through the chest with a spear, losing a Health. They have 3 health. As 3 Health It’s worth noting that recovering Health is more than 2 Health, they have no does not necessarily mean that the disadvantages from pain. Everything is effects of your injury are removed. It fine! They get hit through the chest with depends on the narrative reason of the a spear again. They now have 2 Health, healing. For example, setting a broken so suffer a disadvantage. They're hit arm by medical means would recover through the chest again, going to 1 the Health, but keep the injury Health. Now they suffer two disadvantage. A Godbinder’s miracle to disadvantages. Hard Harris probably heal them? Well, depends on the god, should do something about being hit right? Always ask what is sensible in through the chest with a spear. the narrative.

To stress the implications of the above, Healing is generally limited in this Beta. characters with a low Constitution may There is magical healing, which various skip one or both stages of the above characters have access to. Other effects. entities in the narrative may be able to heal characters. After a combat, a Weedy Waldorf has 2 Constitution, so 2 character may try to perform first aid on Health. 2 Health is his maximum, so he another character. A successful does not suffer a disadvantage for Intelligence test with a difficulty of one being at 2 Health. They are hit, losing a will result in a single wound being Health. As they have 1 Health, they recovered. No more than one wound can suffer two disadvantages. Weedy be recovered like this per combat. Waldord never suffers one disadvantage for being in pain. INCAPACITATION AND DEATH

INJURIES This is a simple but also brutally deadly system. It’s been designed to support Actual Injuries are primarily a narrative- the one-off scenario this Beta is based part of the game, based on the designed for. If you’re looking at a game fiction rather than the process of losing longer than that, this is likely something Health. you may wish to tweak. The Arcana has an alternate, more complicated (and For example, as part of the narrative, a forgiving) system. player has a hand cut off. They may lose

It is likely that if you have GMed more be hit by a huge troll's hammer or forgiving modern games, you will be similar. twitchy about this. There’s more in the actual scenario about how death To recover Guard, roll a Dexterity dice impacts the game. These are just the pool. The standard challenge difficulty pure mechanics. Trust me. would be 1, but it's possible that a GM may set it higher in situations where it's Anyway… hard to recover your defences. If you match the challenge difficulty, and for If a character ever reaches zero Health, each success above it, the character they fall unconscious and will die regains one Guard, up to their maximum. shortly after the end of the combat unless they are healed by another Nimble Steve had 1 Guard left. He elects character taking an action. to recover his Guard. As there's nothing unusual about the combat, the GM If a character would ever have negative keeps the difficulty at 1. As he has 4 Health, they die instantly. The more Dexterity, he rolls four dice. He rolls negative Health a player would have, incredibly well 6, 4, 4 and 5. He has four the messier the player’s death will likely successes. He matches the difficulty be. level and with three excess dice. He would be able to increase his Guard by Ouch. 4, but as his maximum Guard is 4, the fourth success is lost. He now has four It's worth stressing that the general Guard. principle of “If something is reasonable, it should just happen” remains. For It's suggested that a character (like in example, if a character is unchivalrous most other actions) would be able to enough to slit someone's throat, you will move about as much as they would probably skip the dice rolling and just kill when attacking as when recovering the victim. Shooting at someone from Guard. Frankly, backing away while across the room may require a hit roll to trying to avoid being hurt any more is deliver hits – though normally with what you probably should do if you're in advantages due to the immobility of a fight and want to recover your guard. their foe. In this, and all things, the GM should ascertain whether they think DAMAGE OUTSIDE COMBAT something is reasonable or not, and once they have decided it’s reasonable, The above rules are used to manage it remains reasonable (and repeatable) damage in all situations in the game, for the whole game. whether in combat or not. The number of successes is certainly a useful guideline RECOVERING GUARD DURING COMBAT for the amount of damage a player could receive from a hazardous situation. As Guard represents how well a character is defending themselves, it's Normally Guard should not be used possible for a character to take a outside of a combat situation, but it is moment to recover their footing, possible the GM see rare exceptions. It concentrating on getting their balance should be noted that things which may back and ensuring they're not about to

seem to be an exception at first glance For example, for ranged combat: if are actually not. you're at a close range? That seems normal. No changes. A bit further away For example, Nimble Steve is walking at medium range? A disadvantage. A down a corridor, alert for traps. He sets long way? Two disadvantages. one off, and a spear hurtles at him. The Someone's concealed by a bush? A GM makes him roll a Dexterity-based disadvantage. A brick wall? Probably challenge with difficulty 4 to get out the two disadvantages. Someone is in the way. Steve rolls three successes, and middle of a frenetic melee? A the GM says that as he failed by 1, Steve disadvantage – and expect to hit loses on Health. Steve, clearly being someone you weren't aiming at if you fond of Health, suggests that as he was roll a critical failure. alert for danger, he should have generated Guard and lost that instead. You may wish to include such thinking The GM notes that his diving out of the on close combat. If you're in a narrow way had already been simulated when corridor, it's not as easy to swing a he rolled his Dexterity dice pool. Nimble battleaxe. A disadvantage would make Steve agrees, and then begs for sense. Conversely, if you’re armed with forgiveness for being an over-anal rules a spear, you would suffer no problem – lawyer. The GM comforts Nimble Steve, in fact, anyone attacking you who didn’t but tells him not to lay it on too thick. also have a long weapon may suffer a disadvantage. It should be noted that this could be true in combat as well, with hits It’s worth noting, the more a Master circumventing Guard. This would be a uses these kinds of options, the more judgement call of the GM, or based upon the game will focus around tactical the nature of the Special powers. manoeuvring as you are rewarding this Dragon’s Breath that fills an empty room kind of behaviour. This may not be the entirely is not something that may be behaviour you wish to encourage. sensibly parried. It’s rare, but worth mentioning. WEAPONS (AND OTHER FORMS OF HURTAGE) In most cases, heroes diving behind pillars or crouching behind their shields You may note that only character as dragonfire assaults them is what abilities influence the amount of we’re all about, daddio. damage in the above set of rules. This is because weapons often have their own COMBAT ADVANTAGES AND special rules, altering the amount of DISADVANTAGES damage they give in certain situations, adding specific advantages or We could add a list of situations which disadvantages or even giving access to add advantages or disadvantages, but it special abilities. comes down to “Does something that isn't already included in the challenge A selection of weapons can be found in rating or dice pool make a result less the character sheets. It should be noted likely? Add a disadvantage. If something the GM shouldn't feel pressured to use makes it easier? Add an advantage.” these weapon abilities on GM characters – the players are especially

trained heroes with fancy weapons. for the heroes were generated by your Sticking to the basic combat rules for all friend, the game designer. characters will gain advantage of speed, and you can still use advantages GENERATING RULES or disadvantages on them, as the narrative demands. Equally, monsters’ You will have noticed that the last two special abilities essentially act like sections amount to “make up something weapon abilities. reasonable then keep it consistent”. DIE's core mechanic is designed to be For example, the players are attacking a simple and flexible enough to operate mob of orcs armed with spears, at the like this. end of the corridor. The GM isn't using any rules for monster weapons, but Many modern games take this approach spears are longer than any of the to the narrative side of a scenario. players’ weapons. It'll be easier for them Rather than planning everything in to hit the players and harder for the detail, a GM may have some basic players to hit them... at least until they characters available and a concept and can get past the spearheads. The GM then make everything else up, making a decides the players receives a note to remind yourself of it. We do a lot disadvantage on their attacks. of this too.

One player is dumb enough to try this However, DIE also uses this with the with a dagger. You may be tempted to rules. Making a ruling for the situation throw even more disadvantages at their occurs first, and then sticking to it from attacks. However, the player is a Neo then on avoids the need to memorise with a personal short-range teleporter? rules that you don't want to. Your game Ah! The Neo blips close enough to can be as simple or complicated as you attack. Hell, the spear-wielder is more wish. Equally, rules described above likely to get a couple of disadvantages aren't actually in the game until they on their attack, now they have a neo in appear in play. You should feel free to their face. The spear-wielder is facing hack anything as you run the game. the other way and the players creep up behind them? Also no problem. When a rule you've introduced proves sub-optimum you have various options. In short, advantages and disadvantages are applied according to 1) Just roll with it and extrapolate what a reading of the tactical and narrative happens in a world where something situation. deeply counterintuitive is in play. If your rules have made daggers the The same process applies to other best weapon, imagine how that things used for hurting, such as magical would change society. spells. A jet of flame sets someone on 2) Change the rule via a Master or fire? A couple of disadvantages on all Grandmaster. See the section later – rolls until the fire's extinguished sounds this means that someone in the about right. world has literally changed it. This can very much be the start of a It's worth noting that this process is quest. exactly how the effects of the weapons

As this playtest set of DIE rules is mainly need to keep the rules identical in each. for one scenario, we'd say ignoring it is Each is its own world, and the Masters also an entirely viable option. If you run do keep on meddling. multiple one-off DIE games there's no

GM CHARACTER PROFILES

MONSTERS, MATES AND EVERYTHING IN NORMAL BETWEEN Stats: All 2 Defence: 1 The process of creating monsters specifically for DIE was described in the Anyone you meet who is anything at all Preparing the Second Session section like a normal human being at the base, earlier. Below is the pure stats stuff. To should have this profile. You’ll note it repeat the key thing from earlier… means that all their stats are 2. That means they’ll have 2 Health and 2 1) Choose a basic profile. Consider Guard. tweaking it. 2) Consider some Special abilities. Use as a basis for folks like: the village 3) Consider other abilities. guards, better classes of orcs, the noble dwarfs who are trying to help, some That’s it. types of Fallen.

1) BASIC PROFILES ELITE MONSTER Stats: Strength 3 Choose one of these as your core, or Defence: 1 tweak appropriately. Note how few stats you need to have a workable DIE As all other stats are 2, these will have 2 character. Health and 2 Guard, making them twice as resilient as the Cannon Fodder To stress – any stat not listed here is 2. Monster. It’s far less likely they’ll be killed with a single blow. They could also CANNON FODDER MONSTER recover their Guard. Stats: Dexterity 0 Defence: 1 Use as a basis for folks like: the Elite Guards of the bad guy/noble leader, This is useful for the mobs of creatures. knights, most actual adventurers. With a Dexterity of 0, it means it will have a Guard of zero. This means it can HERO FIGHTER only lose Health. With a defence of 1, it Stats: Strength 4, Constitution 3, means two successes will take every Dexterity 3 individual down. Players will be able to Defence: 2 mow through these, and they are likely only able to threaten the players if you These are pretty handy. Guard 3, Health use a lot of them together. 3 and a strong defence. These are basically on par with a party member. Use as a basis for folks like: orcs, Switch Dexterity and Strength for the goblins, those friendly villagers who more light-armour style heroes. want to help but really aren’t up to the challenge. Use as a basis for folks like: Conan, Aragorn, Nazgul, Red Sonja, anyone you

would put on the cover of your fantasy Use as a basis for folks like: Smaug, novel in skimpy clothing. balrogs, anything you really didn’t think the players would be foolish enough to MONSTER actually fight. Stats: Strength 4, Constitution 4 Defence: 2 2) SPECIAL ABILITIES

One of these is basically a good fight for Choose one (or more) to personalise the a player or even two. They have 4 monster into something a little Health and 2 Guard, but also require 2 mechanically different. successes to hit at all. With a standard Willpower of 4 these are still very It’s worth noting what each special vulnerable to emotional control. ability operates is not defined – for example “Close Combat Specialist” may Use as a basis for folks like: that huge be because the monster is trained troll, that guy who’s a head taller than all especially in martial arts – or it could be his soldiers and is wearing the armour because its hands are awesome covered in spikes, the Mountain. stabbing weapons, or anything else you can imagine. HERO WIZARD Stats: Constitution 3, Wisdom 4, To repeat a core DIE concept – all Intelligence 4 elements from the fiction should impact Defence: 2 the fiction where appropriate. This includes how you choose to define your Defence 2 likely simulates magical special abilities. For example, being a defences of the wizard in some way. Close Combat Specialist because the This gives some strong dice pools to monster is a trained fighter will not stop use. If you want to have a less top-class someone opening a door. Being a Close wizard or cleric, reduce Wisdom and Combat Specialist because you have Intelligence to 3. weapons for hands will, because you no longer have the hands to operate Use as a basis for folks like: Gandalf, doorknobs. Saruman, the Wicked Witch of the West, Dumbledore, Voldemort, Alan Moore. Anyway – a short list of options. Define and for yourself. EPIC MONSTER (Only one option currently includes Stats: Strength 6, Constitution 5, these, but more will doubtless follow.) If Wisdom 3, Intelligence 3 not assume they are “all” and “until the Defence: 3 end of the combat”:

A big ol’ monster with a big ol’ brain. This Close Combat Specialist: Advantage on creature will have 5 Health, plus a Guard melee attack rolls. of 2. It requires 7 hits to kill, and 3 Ranged Specialist: Advantage on successes to even land a hit. Note the ranged attack rolls. high Wisdom means that it’s very Berserker: Advantage on melee attack difficult to affect with emotional control. rolls, the character has no Guard. If you want it to be, reduce Wisdom and Flaming attacks: Adds to the Intelligence to 2 or even lower. character’s attacks a Special: if this hit

causes a Wound the target is ignited. you’ve made a special. Well done, you’re They suffer one further Wound every now a game designer. Game designer- round until dead or the fire is high-five! extinguished. When ignited a character suffers a Disadvantage on doing almost 3) OTHER ABILITIES everything. Freezing Attacks: Adds to the Should the character be able to do it? character’s attacks a Special: target is They can do it. chilled, and now suffers a disadvantage to all actions until their next round. If If you want to give a wizard specific already chilled and is chilled again the magical spells, choose miracles from target is now frozen. When Frozen a the Godbinder’s sheet or use the character is immobilised until either Arcana’s Spells and Magical Generation unfrozen or can succeed in a Strength System. But there’s a lot you can just test against a difficulty of the number of make up as you go along… times they’ve been frozen. Paralyzing attacks: Adds to the DIE's system is flexible enough for character’s attack a Special: if the hit almost all abilities to work on the fly, wounds, the target misses their next giving advantages and disadvantages action. depending on context – for example, if Death Attack: When the character dies, the creature is very small, you may they get to do a final attack at whoever choose a disadvantage for a full-size killed them. player hitting it with their large weapon. Cleaving Destructive Claws: Add to the Worth stressing: as in all the attack a Special: if this hit causes a improvisation, once you have mentioned Wound, it causes two Wounds. a rule, it continues throughout the game. No Emotions: Invulnerable to all forms All small things (or at least, small things of emotion manipulation or draining, of this type) should be a disadvantage ether positively or negatively. to hit from that point on. Making the Iron Will: Willpower for this monster is world seem coherent, even if we're one higher than usual. making it up as we go along, is very Homing: Adds Special: advantage on much the point. More on this in the rules, attacks until to all perhaps obviously. ranged tactics. Secret Stealer: Adds Special: the Other major abilities of powerful character must say aloud a secret not creatures are chosen according to known to the majority of the characters narrative appropriateness. A dragon can present. likely breathe fire. A wizard can likely Vampiric: Adds Special: if a melee hit cast spells. A merchant likely can sell removes a Health, gain a Health to your you stuff you want. In combat, maximum. depending on how powerful they are, choose how often they can do This is a very short list. You should feel something extreme. For example an free to use any Special on a character ability they can use every round or sheet as an inspiration, or make your every second round or every third round own. In a real way if you think of or just once a combat. Alternatively, something neat that happens when instead of being predictable, you may they roll a six in a dice pool? Great, want it to be random. For example, a

dragon has a 1 in 3 chance of breathing This would have a dice pool of 3 when fire every round. attacking, but also go down with only 2 hits, due to having no Guard. In other The golden rule: if it makes sense that words, useful cannon-fodder who can this is something this monster should be still have a chance of hurting players. able to do, they should be able to do it. If not, they shouldn’t. Dragons may have a GIANT FALLEN high Dexterity, but their hands are too Stats: Strength 4, Constitution 4 large to pick pockets. Use your noggin’. Dexterity 0 Defence: 2 EXAMPLE MONSTERS Specials: Close Combat Specialist (brutal claws) NON-SENTIENT GOLEM MONSTER Stats: Strength 4, Constitution 4 The above, on steroids. This would have Defence: 2 a 5-dice pool for attacking, and 4 hits to Specials: No Emotions go down – but with defence of 2 making hits much rarer. This would be good in a fight, and invulnerable to mind control. This is WIZARD FALLEN useful to think about, as a creature with Stats: Constitution 2, Wisdom 2, low Wisdom is particularly weak to Intelligence 4 emotional attacks – which is a Dictator’s Defence: 2 ability. Having no emotions means the Specials: Flaming attacks, Raise Other Dictator can’t just take it out. Iron Will Fallen to Life (Difficulty 1). can be used to make it harder, but not impossible, for a dictator. An example of a support character. Sits at the back-firing magic spells (using its BASIC FALLEN Intelligence of 4 for its dice pools). If a Stats: Dexterity 0 Fallen dies, it tries to raise it from the Defence: 1 dead. Specials: Close Combat Specialist (brutal claws)

The core rules of each of the archetypes recommend starting by playing with a are included on their sheets in the smaller group. The core of What You Do handout. All require some special is also included on the GM Cheat Sheet assistance from you, and all have for the classes, which is our attempt to advice on how to make their experience help out. feel unique. You are strong! You are mighty! You’ll be You should read the sheets before fine. reading any of this. You likely will want to have the sheets printed to read DISTRIBUTING THE ARCHETYPES alongside this for reference. It’s worth noting the game is based But to understand the intent here, most upon the GM distributing the classes. If games try (to some degree) to have there’s a class you don’t want to run special abilities varying between (for any reason), you don’t have to give classes, but they're mainly built on an it to someone. And, as said earlier, you underlying structure. There's some of can always check in. this in DIE, because it's an efficient way to teach a game... but each class also The classes that follow are in a rough has something that is radically its own. level of complexity. Each section also In the same way they each have their includes further thoughts on who to own special dice, they have their own distribute each class to. mechanic, which is individual. The other players are unlikely to ever understand It ends with the Fallen, which is the what the other players are up to additional class that may or may not entirely, and this is entirely as planned. turn up in the game. The aim is to make each players' abilities feel somewhat mysterious to FULL VERSUS LIGHT ARCHETYPES one another... and also make each individual feel precious and special. This There are two sets of archetype sheets is mine, and mine alone. available. The Full includes all the rules and choices for each of the classes. In short: it's really about adding magic to While this edition of DIE isn’t as the mechanics. complicated as many games, it will often generate characters who have But each is going to put different more abilities than will be used in a two- demands on you as a GM, hence this session game. This is not necessarily a chapter. problem. However, it certainly does take some more time. The following is a lot of useful stuff, but you will mostly be able to play the game If you’re playing in a less experienced just by reading the character sheets. group or have less time available (so you don’t want to spend so much time I’ll be honest with you here: the variety generating characters) you may wish to of the players’ characters abilities and use the Light characters. Here you use your involvement with them is the thing the first sheet of the full archetype, but which is the largest cognitive load on replace the second sheet with the Light the GM. This is one of the main reasons I version. This strims away many of the

secondary abilities of each class, and The Light characters are a little weaker reduces the number of choices. You are than the Full versions in terms of power. left with a purer take on each character, As such, it’s not advised to mix Light which fulfils the core fantasy the game and Full versions. offers.

RUNNING THE FOOL

WHO TO GIVE THE FOOL TO? similarly devil-may-care). If the player is forced into behaviour that is nearly While the core Fool is a playful fighter, it suicidal to get the bonus, they'll either can be customised to any of the three not do it, or it will frustrate the other core types of fantasy characters – players to the point they'll draw fighters, thieves and wizards. As such, weapons on them. This can be dramatic, no matter what sort of things a player of course, but something which should would like to get up to, they can do them be built towards. as a Fool. I’d suggest that, rather than the above, It’s arguably the easiest class to run, you remove the dice any time the player with the least to worry about for a shows overt concern and care rather player. Most of their abilities are passive than adding the dice if they're (so working with no active need for the particularly careless. Entering battle player to do anything) or simple (the with a grin is enough to get the dice. It's Fool’s lucky dice is powerful, but also only holding back and carefully planning works in an easily understandable way). a methodical ambush which loses it. If there’s a player who is less comfortable with being here, this is a It should also be noted that, when the strong choice. Fool’s dice is in a dice pool, the dice’s Special means that sixes can be used It’s not just a class for beginners. to generate more dice. In raw There’s a lot of impish fun to be had with mechanics, the Fool’s Dice is actually the Fool. They are literal troublemakers. one of the most powerful in the whole An experienced player can get a lot from game. the Fool, and play them basically as whatever class they wish. The If All Else Fails… is the Fool’s most powerful ability. It exists to get the party There is one more note – make sure to (or at least the Fool) to luck their way give it someone who gets the joke and is out of trouble. It’s worth noting the in on it. ability does not allow the Fool to dictate how they get out, or the situation it gets THE FOOL’S DICE them in. Dropping them into a perilous (but less perilous) situation is certainly They can add their D6 to literally any roll reasonable, though certainly should be where they are acting in a foolish or less instantly deadly than the place daring fashion. You get to decide what they were in. It’s not an ability which that actually looks like, though you tends to kill the opposition, unless it’s should be careful to be consistent in particularly amusing. your rulings. What happens next is key. As well as It's worth noting that the higher the the Fool no longer being able to use their threshold for getting that extra dice, the luck abilities, the GM having the Fool’s more the player will be an irritant to the dice is a constant threat. The players rest of the group (unless their attitude is should always be aware that you have

the dice. You should play with it, holding into, they’re being an over-sensible it, making them aware you have this rules-lawyer. Whatever the Fool is, it’s token that could just ruin whatever it is the opposite of that. This is called they’re doing. Pushing Your Luck. Immediately feel free to use the D6 to put them into an As a general rule, the level of disaster even worse situation, and tell them that you drop on someone should be akin to they’re Pushing Their Luck. Stress the the level of disaster that passing you severity of this, in a “Are you sure you the D6 avoided. Equally, the way you want to fall on your sword?” way. If they use the dice should be worse for the use the D6 to avoid the problem again, players than any plan which the Fool even after this warning, let them escape deliberately sabotages. You likely want it, and then use the D6 to hit them with to encourage the Fool to act in a foolish something that kills them instantly. They way. If the Fool does not respond to were warned. This can even be an Anvil your quiet teasing of peril, hitting them from the heavens, if you’re feeling like with something particularly awful and going full Wile-E Coyote. passing them back the dice will certainly encourage the Fool to try and Eventually a gambler pushes it too far, reclaim the dice in a less awful way next and their karmic debts will catch up with time. It will also encourage the other them. In practice, most players realise players to be more accepting of the Fool that this is a bad idea before it happens. occasionally blowing things up – they’ve If someone asks, “What’s to stop me seen the alternative. just using my D6 to get out of trouble?” feel free to just smile and say, “Want to As such, I would suggest being try and find out?” generous to the Fool when they sabotage a plan to get their dice back. The above is if the Fool is enjoying The level of peril a Fool puts the party in themselves, and aware of what they’re to reclaim the dice does not have to be doing (if not the results). If the Fool is of the same level of the peril you used to irritated during the above, it’s more get out of it. For example, if while talking important to pause the game and check to a GM character, a Fool says in about what’s wrong. something that is clearly offensive and blows the attempt to charm them is Also remember: death is part of DIE in a absolutely the sort of behaviour that way in which it’s not in most other could get the D6 back in the Fool’s hand. games. Players dying and becoming Fallen is not intended as a punishment, Ideally, the Fool deliberately messing but an interesting bit of horror. something up should get a laugh. It’s the character shouting “Hey! I think the TRICKSTER WIZARD Guards didn’t see us” beat and not a “Hey – I’ve just stabbed my friend in the While the other two styles are simple, back with my sword” beat. the Trickster Wizard option lets the player select minor magical spells. The There is one exceptional situation to Godbinder sheets includes a big list of warn you of. If a player gets their dice pre-generated magic spells. The Arcana back and immediately uses it to get out includes more, and rules for calculating of the situation they’ve got themselves them. Let them cast anything which is

difficulty one that seems reasonable. SAD CLOWNS You don’t need to tell them what they can do – they ask to do something, and While many Fools will gleefully blunder you tell them. their way through the adventure, there is another more serious route. Fools can A player can use Charisma or find themselves starting to imprint upon Intelligence as their dice pool to cast a the world and start to take themselves spell, according to their preference. A and their friends more seriously. This is Fool using Wisdom seems heretical, a great character arc. It also means right? they lose the vast majority of their abilities. THE BUZZFEED QUIZ Some players actually love this, You may notice the Fool’s sheets especially in the one-off format. If a include a lot more things which have character goes the serious route, they absolutely no use. This is because the likely are aware of this. Fool, more than any class, has less choices to make. As such, they may be However, it should be noted that this left twiddling their fingers while the isn’t the necessary end of the route. The other players make their choices. As Fool gains their dice not if they are light- such, their sheet has a bunch of fun hearted. They gain their dice if they act busy-work for them to play with. light-hearted. A GM character can certainly point this out. An enlightened This is thematic: everyone else does Fool is put in the position where to save homework. The Fool fucks around. their friends they have to bite back the tears, paint on a smile and dive into the Of course, it should be remembered – as fray. It doesn’t matter if they cry all things the players generate, be between encounters. aware of what is on the sheet. It likely will tell you something about the In short: “But Doctor,” said the Fool, “I character, and likely can be worked into am Pagliacci." an encounter.

RUNNING THE EMOTION KNIGHT

WHO TO GIVE THE EMOTION KNIGHT TO? loaded for the Emotion Knight, akin to an elite Samurai finally drawing the sword. The Emotion Knight is the closest DIE Of all the dice in the game, it’s the one has to a straight Fighter class. It’s a role which can be treated with most fear and which is primarily defined inside combat respect. If you act like it’s a big deal the – or at least the threat of starting player has picked it up, it will signal to combat. It can be one of the easiest everyone else that Shit Has Just Got classes to play – you experience an Real. emotion and then use that emotion to defeat your enemies. As such, if the Fool It also isn’t a normal attack. is taken, it’s a good choice to give to the least experienced player. If you guide CREATIVE VIOLENCE them towards an emotion like Rage or Terror that is likely any persona would While the Emotion Knight is a combat- feel when exploring a bleak fantasy leaning character, when a player uses world then you can have a simple, yet the D8 is equivalent to the other powerful, experience. It’s worth noting characters’ most powerful abilities – the that you may consider filling in the Neo’s overcharge, the Godbinder’s emotion on the sheet before handing major miracles, the Fool’s luck and so over, if you want to especially guide on. It is about solving intractable them. narrative-level problems.

However, it’s not just that. While a Rage If you look at the adjectives on the Knight will have an experience akin to a sheet, you will see the scale we’re classical Barbarian or Berserker, talking about. A GM should consider choosing a less immediately obvious scaling encounters for grandeur to give emotion will change their behaviour players a chance to use the higher considerably. What’s does a Loathing levels of their ability. The terms in the Knight do, for example? Equally, for a table are deliberately open to role-player whose persona is clearly interpretation. driven by their relationship to a single emotion, giving them the Emotion Knight For example, Roland Rage Knight and means they are going to explore their friends step out into the light to find the relationship to that feeling in depth. assembled forces of the Dark Lord facing them, stretching towards the THE D8 horizon. Glenda Godbinder is about to talk to a God to let them escape, but Other archetypes get to add their dice Roland stops them. This is an Army, more often to their dice pools. The right? The GM nods. He’s level 3 Rage. Emotion Knight only gets to add the D8 He can handle an army… to their dice pool when activating their most powerful ability, otherwise using it The interpretative aspects are key. The as a simple counter, sliding up and Emotion Knight’s violence can be down the scale. This means that the mystical and even godly. Cut pathways process of actively picking up the D8 is through doors, or – to bastardize

Hendrix – cut down a mountain with the much more philosophical. Note again the side of the blade. Clean the Augean phrasing of the word “defeat” not “kill”. stables of shit in a blizzard of blows. It’s worth stressing it says “defeat” not Get creative with the violence and “kill” on the sheet. This is an Emotion reward lateral thinking. This is where an Knight’s passion solving a single Emotion Knight can get poetic, if they problem. want.

To stress, this ability is almost useless As a general point, sometimes creative for fighting a standard combat or violence will solve a problem… but it is individual. The adjectives are also likely to merely change the deliberately higher than that. The ability problem. to defeat an army is great, but if you’re not facing an army, it doesn’t apply. A KNIGHT CHOOSING WHICH SPECIFIC EMOTION’S NAME For example, Roland has defeated the army, with its leaders there, bewildered. The player is free to choose which of the The party steps forward to fight them, levels of emotions they wish to name starting a normal combat. Even if Roland the Knight. This is to let them express still had rage level 3, he couldn’t use it in themselves, and signal what about that the same way- they are not an army, or emotion is core to them. Every knight any of the other adjectives. draws from the full range on that prong of the emotion wheel. So whether a For simple combat, the Knight has player says they’re a Rage Knight or an plenty of normal abilities to use their Annoyance Knight, they draw from rage for. Picking up the D8 is for Anger, Rage and Annoyance. something truly heroic… If in doubt, guide them towards the word However, dramatically speaking, a on the part of the spoke which they Knight could turn something from an think is coolest. impossible situation to something which works like a normal combat… THE WEAPON’S VOICE

An angry Roland is approached by a Half the archetypes get their own NPCs. tribe of almost as equally angry trolls, all The Neo gets their clinical AI. The baying for his blood. “Hmm? Is this a Godbinder gets a head full of gods, mob?” asks Roland. The GM says it is. whispering ideas. The Emotion Knight Roland reaches for his sword… and a gets their sentient arcane weapon… and minute later, only three trolls are still it’s arguably the most subversive and there, the rest either dead or run. Three least trustworthy of them all. At least trolls aren’t a mob, and this is the the Godbinder knows the gods are trying combat. to barter and manipulate them.

To state the obvious, many of the While the player gets to define the style adjectives are much more of the weapon’s personality, they do not impressionistic. Defeat a religion? A get to define what the weapon wants. god? A belief? That could be just hitting What it wants is to actively push the something, but it could be something

character towards indulging in its risk reading as phallic. You'll likely be emotion. better off with energy fields or similar.

For example, in these rules, we suggest TRACKING THE KNIGHT’S EMOTIONAL running Rage Knights if you’re STATE uncertain. Anger is easy to understand – primarily, a Rage Weapon wants to be You’ll see the Emotional Scale on the right in the heart of anger, which is additional emotional sheet. This should primarily bloodshed. The sword is have the Knight’s major, average and primarily very excited to kill people. How minor emotions written on it, and it expresses it is the thing the player passed to the player. DIE is based on defines – a murderous serial killer sword Robert Plutchik's emotion wheel, which is one thing, a kooky cutsie sword is posits eight primary emotions, set in another. Either way, the weapon would two antagonist poles. It's contemporary be looking for ways to experience rage. theory with 1991 (when DIE rules are meant to have been written) and works The player will notice that the weapon really well for an RPG setting. can sense the emotion which powers it. In the case of a Rage Knight, the Generally speaking, levels 1 to 3 – the weapon will be able to sense nearby ones which we’ve labelled – are the angry enemies. The question is what normal levels of human emotions. Level does the sword tell the persona? If the 3 terror is about the level of terror you persona is trying to avoid combat, it’s would feel if being hunted by someone contrary to the weapon’s desires. If a with a knife around your house. Level 4 Rage weapon wants to be in a fight, and and 5 are a level of intensity which is the player is trying to avoid it, the beyond regular human experience. Most weapon will clearly lie and send their people will faint or run in an master straight into the ambush. It's not uncontrolled panic at level 4 terror. dumb. Level 5 will likely cause a heart attack.

The push and pull between the sword as Above level 6 are an intensity beyond all a friend and ally or an awful enabler is human experience. The Dictator has definitely a key part of the class. more on this section, but even a level 4 Depending on the emotion picked, this experience could render a normal nature will vary. It’s worth taking a few human being unconscious, or even kill seconds to think what exactly an them. Arcane Weapon powered by (for example) Anticipation wants… and then For every stage of emotion an Emotion stick to that characterisation and Knight suffers a disadvantage on doing desire. things which are not relevant to that emotional state. So, if you are at level 5 POWER-UPS rage, you are at FIVE disadvantages on things which are not things you can do Generally speaking, the weapons are when angry. If the emotion would help going to grow more impressive as the an Emotion Knight perform a task, they Knight gains more emotion. You can use gain a single advantage, no matter how various visual effects, but a warning – many levels. growing weapons can seem cool, but

At level 3 or above, the Master may As always, read the scale. Levels one to suggest behaviour which the persona three are normal – higher, and they are wants to do, and if they don’t want to do pushing towards madness and literally it, they have to roll with their Wisdom to impossible experience. To stress the resist. The difficulty should be half the above – a level 4 emotion is enough to level of the emotion, rounding up. So, if a make a normal person (Wisdom 2 and Rage Knight is level 5 rage, the difficulty Intelligence 2, so Willpower 4) pass out to avoid stabbing people when all the or worse. enemies are gone would be a difficulty 3 test. General rule: if a player is not playing or referencing the emotion, they are not Of course, the player doesn’t have to feeling that emotion. It’s entirely fine to resist if they don’t want to. If they go prompt the player to encourage with the flow, and even start selecting expressing how they’re feeling. unwise but appropriate actions themselves, you may wish to give an For Example… advantage on the roll. It’s what they GM: A Monster appears in front of you. really want to do, after all. Player: I draw my sword! GM: It’s really horrible. Are you feeling GAINING EMOTIONS scared? Player: Yes! It’s a monster! I’ve never None of the above really explain what seen anything like it before! should increase a Knight’s emotional GM: Move your die up to level 2 – state. “Fearful.”

Generally: look at all elements of the Here’s some specifics for how each knight’s spoke, plus the adjacent spoke could work. If we move past this compound emotion. Beta, having more emotion-specific powers in the game is the sort of thing For example, for a Terror Knight, you’ll we’ll want to add, which can expand the be looking for the Emotion Knight class further. An Interest Knight playing showing Terror, Fear or Apprehension a Sherlock Holmes-esque role is an from the Terror spoke – plus an eye on obvious one. them showing Submission and Awe. The compound emotions should be coloured Annoyance/Anger/Rage by their primary emotion. An Amazement Level 1: General unhappiness in a Knight’s feeling of Awe would feel situation. “Who are these bastards who different than a Terror Knight’s. The are trying to stab me? FUCKERS!” Amazement Knight is a “Oh god – wow! Level 2: You being attacked and/or hurt. look at that thing! Isn’t it neat” while Level 3: Someone you know and like Terror Knight is “Oh god – look at that being hurt. Possibly you being hurt. thingarggggghhhhhhh!!!!!” Overview: Some classes in combat are It’s worth noting that the wheel does not very easy to get a level 1 emotion. Oddly, include all the possible combinations. If for a class that’s most akin to Viking you want to go that deep, have a nose Berserkers, that’s not true with the Rage at the Wikipedia page. Knight. However, in any combat, especially one which extended, it’s

likely there’ll be something which makes Serenity/Joy/Ecstasy them extremely angry. The longer a Level 1: Whatever sparks serenity! combat goes on, the more that’s likely. Level 2: Whatever sparks joy!!!!! Level 3: Whatever sparks ecstasy!!!!!! Worth noting – someone who is primarily excited by combat is, by definition, not Overview: The Ecstasy Knight is a good annoyed. If you want to play someone example of a class where we realise who really likes combat, you likely are emotions are not neutral things – they’re looking to play a Joy Knight. things provoked by subjects. Clearly, a Joy Knight is powered by happiness… Interest/Anticipation/Vigilance But what makes someone happy? A Level 1: Going and nosing at something kinder Joy Knight will use the compound with gleeful curiosity. Standing watch, emotions of Love and Optimism a lot, and actually trying to do the job. based upon their chipper demeanour Anything that makes the player go “oh – and powerful feelings for other cool.” characters or persona. A harsher one is Level 2: Standing, weapon out, seeing a going to play at best as an emotionally horde charging towards you. unavailable joker akin to the Fool and at Level 3: Arnie being hunted by the worst an active sadist taking joy in the Predator. Discovering something which murder of those who oppose them. It’s changes your understanding of yourself also a character where you may wish to in a fundamental way. The half second think about the effect of drugs to induce before a dragon crashes into your emotion states. army’s line, with you in the front row. In short: The Joy Knight’s easy access Overview: With knights of this family, to power entirely comes from to the you need to be especially aware that individual Knight’s persona. “extreme interest” can count as a higher-level emotion and “minor Acceptance/Trust/Admiration vigilance” can be a low-level emotion. Level 1: Forgiving behaviour which is not Anticipation is equally broad: “waiting exactly like your own. Minor, low level for Christmas” is different from “Waiting trust – as in, going into battle together. for Christ’s actual second coming”. You Level 2: Any time the Knight takes an can’t be too literal. It can also stretch to action which is deeply reliant on “curiosity”. It should be noting that someone, in a life or death matter. “anticipation” does not imply something Level 3: An act of trust which you know that is experienced solely positively. someone is unlikely to actually do, and These Knights tend to start a combat at huge stakes are on the line. When your a high emotional level – “Interesting liking for someone changes your enemies coming at me! I am vigilant!” – behaviour. When you’re vicariously which drops, with few ways to recover proud of someone else’s achievement. energy in a combat. A lot is based on a player’s actions – they tend to be either Overview: The dynamic of the stoic (if interested in being alert) or Admiration Knight is definitely unusual. quirkily energetic (if interested in They’re chill and peppy, and are both interesting things). natural followers (as they gain power by looking up to people) and leaders (they gain power by putting their faith in other

people). More than most, they’re nice doesn’t often align to directly attacking people. They are also unique in being the opposition – as such, you’re likely to able to lose their emotional state easily get disadvantages on standard attacks. – e.g. someone they trust fails their It’s also worth noting that creative trust, someone they admire acts violence is not based on the standard abominably. These should crash the mechanism, so can be used entirely emotional state hard. In some ways, the effectively. Admiration Knight is about using the power before someone lets you down. Catharsis is very key here. The Terror God, that’s a depressing take, right? Knight is likely to generate power and then burn it off as quickly as possible to As a Master, be looking for places to avoid just running away. Moments of offer them a difficult leap of faith and panic, then a basal level of dread. It’s people for them to like. However, for a worth noting that sometimes an attack player more interested in a serious would not suffer disadvantages – if emotional journey, making the persona cornered, and slashing your way out, who is incapable of trusting become a this is acting on your fears… Trust Knight suggests a different character arc – as in, finally trusting Distraction/Surprise/Amazement people and then gaining the physical Level 1: A situation with a lot happening power they need. In short – a player who (for example, a busy melee or a loud trusts easily should be tested. A player environment, or just the player role- who doesn’t trust at all, should be playing a lot of other things to think supported as they build towards that about – like how on Earth are we going moment. Look at their choices. to get home?). Anxiety would certainly fit in here. Don’t be too generous with hitting level Level 2: Sudden change of situation – 3 though. Being impressed by ambushes, being attacked from behind, someone’s stamp collection is not a etc. level 3 emotion Level 3: OH GOD! LOOK AT THE SIZE OF THAT DRAGON! I’VE NEVER SEEN Apprehension/Fear/Terror ANYTHING LIKE THAT BEFORE!!!!! Level 1: ”Oh no – is there a monster?” Level 2:”It’s a monster!” Overview: Amazement Knights tend to Level 3: THE MONSTER IS GOING TO KILL find it easy to get a low level, and get US ALL!!!?!?” occasional boosts to level 3 when something genuinely shocking happens Overview: In a very real way, the Terror the first time. They can be one of the Knight tends to be about facing their lighter knights to play, but the use of the fears. They also get powerful very word “anxiety” may imply there’s other quickly, assuming they are actively ways to take it. terrified. Pensiveness/Sadness/Grief There is a problem with this easy source Level 1: “Ennui” is a good word for this. of power – and it’s the rule that you When a situation looks hopeless, where suffer disadvantages when trying to all is lost, where you doubt your abilities. avoid acting on your emotional state. If Level 2: The moment when life expressly your emotional state is fear, that

doesn’t go the way you want. Most level, Loathing tends to be personal – forms of loss. either at a person who has wronged you Level 3: Someone dying. If it’s someone or acted in a way you cannot bear or you actually really like, or even love, this some enormous unjustness. is one of those natural emotions which may even hit level 4 and 5. Grief is a DRAINING EMOTIONS motherfucker. Key thing to remember – this is an ability Overview: The Grief Knight is the which uses a standard dice pool. It does Emotion Knight in the DIE comic, which not involve the D8. was picked for literary reasons. The Grief Knight, like the Terror Knight, is a If we were a computer game, we would creature of catharsis – by using the be keeping a statistic for everyone else abilities, you momentarily purge it. In in the game, tracking how much they terms of power, it’s easy to get to a level were feeling of all eight of the emotions one, especially if a character leans into at every point, so knowing exactly how the Eeyore-ness of the archetype, but many points could abstractly be drained difficult to get higher. That said, when from everyone else. We’re a pen and things are going badly, the Grief Knight paper RPG, so that sounds like a lot of is at their most powerful. “This is a gift, work. and this is the price” as Florence & the Machine are presently singing, Instead, when an Emotion Knight wants somewhat randomly. to drain emotions, you should make a judgement of how much the target Boredom/Disgust/Loathing character is feeling. The players’ scale Level 1: General dissatisfaction with a can likely help – it should also be noted situation and/or boredom. that 3 is the normal limit of human Level 2: Seeing the insides of people feeling. It’s possible that a character is spill out onto your sword. not feeling it highly enough to rate on Level 3: Being locked in a room with the scale, in which case nothing can be Hitler. drained.

Overview: The Loathing Knight is If an Emotion Knight succeeds in unusual in that its level one is a state draining an emotion, the character that is highly unlikely to happen during should do less of the related behaviour. an adventure. DIE’s world is many things For example, draining Rage from an but “boring” is not usually one of them. opponent mid-fight would make them Conversely, its other emotions are distinctly less interested in murdering relatively easily to hit… go into a you. If the character is player- dungeon covered in gunk? That may controlled, you should inform a player trigger disgust for some personas, on how the character is feeling now. If though unlikely above a level 1. The first they try to act contrary to their state, time you see someone with their guts they may get a disadvantage. sprawling out from a sword attack? That’s likely to hit a level 2. As a Master, It is likely an Emotion Knight may try a player with a Loathing Knight is likely unusual uses for this. Can an Interest signalling “I want to see disgusting Knight drain the curiosity from a guard things and respond to it.” At the highest allowing you to walk straight past them?

Maybe yes, maybe no. They’re not able Dictators are the characters who tend to stop a person gaining the emotion to leave emotional messes in their again after they’ve had an emotion wakes, but Emotion Knights can do it drained, so perhaps not… but it’s too. Can any of the above be certainly enough to stop a guard being permanently reversed? It will likely interested in something, and gaining require either the reality warping of a advantages to sneaking past. Master, a major miracle of a Godbinder Alternatively, you could rule that it is or some other quest inside the world. sufficient – you can drain the emotion of It’s not easy. interest and walk behind him. Generally speaking, Yes is a more interesting It’s worth noting the Light character answer than No. does not have this ability on their sheet, which does not mean you can’t have It should be noted that this is a them use it as a key moment of the Charisma roll. If a player seems game. The Arcane Weapon can always especially interested in this ability, fill them in. Equally, that it is on the Full encourage them to select a higher character’s sheet does not mean they Charisma value. have to use it. This is a loaded ability.

If you look at the emotion wheel, you’ll It’s also worth noting if you don’t want see there are complex emotions to play with this ability, feel free to cross involving two different of the main it out on the character sheet. Your emotions – for example, Love is between game, your rules, Master. Joy and Trust. When draining an emotion, Love can be tapped by Joy and CHARACTER GROWTH Trust Knights, leaving the subject out of love. If it makes sense in a narrative way, based upon a persona's character The Critical Failure on a draining roll growth or direction, it's possible that an actually works as a success, draining all Emotion Knight may change emotion. the relevant emotion – however, it For example, a Fear Knight may get in leaves the target broken. They have had touch with their actual repressed anger the ability to feel that emotion towards and end the game as a Rage Knight. that subject removed forever. An adventurer who was afraid of a dragon This is an element to consider for the will never be afraid of a dragon again. A story, and one which is unlikely to come guard who was looking out for up. When it does come up, it'll likely be mysterious noises will never be obvious that it's an appropriate idea. interested in noises ever again. A lover who was in love with her beloved will never love them ever again.

RUNNING THE NEO

WHO TO GIVE THE NEO TO? money, which has the problem of often not having a heads or tails, but at least What the Neo specialises is in is like is shiny. Using actual coins also works. Angela in the comic – something akin to a classic D&D Thief, Rogue or Assassin. COLLECTING FAIR GOLD They specialise in avoidance and stealth attacks. They are also one of the The Neo's abilities are powered by the rare classes who can specialise in gold of the Fair – Fair Gold, for short. In ranged attacks. the world, this appears every day and disappears in the morning. As such, Earlier we did say that all the classes anyone who needs it is constantly on are flexible. It’s true, but only just. If we the lookout for it. develop these rules further, expect many more tech and cybernetic options The Neo’s basic system – the AI and the to allow the Neo to move into other hacking – is always operational. A Neo roles. The Cybernetic Terminator Thug is requires a single gold to activate each only just about possible with the current of their core abilities. They can also use cybernetic options. gold to activate their Overcharge one- shot special abilities. SAFETY-PROOFING THE NEO As such, you need to ensure there is To state the obvious, the Neo has a Fair Gold available to the Neo player. For need baked into the character concept. example, when a Fallen is killed, they In many games, this can come across can release Fair Gold. As such, giving a as an addiction and the Neo as gold in the opening encounter is pretty necessarily an addict. Certainly other necessary – that initial choice of which characters can treat them as such. This of their main systems to boot up is a is obviously material which some groups thrill of the class. By halfway through may wish to avoid, for lots of reasons, the game, the player should have at all understandable. least got the opportunity to have got enough gold to activate all their abilities, The high-like state can be played down and likely more. and the simple mechanical need played up. This is much more like making rent. If Fair Gold is in short supply, it is often a You’re useless without this stuff. The good motivation to push the Neo into need can be purely practical. It can be behaviour you wish to encourage. If Fair about obsession, like someone losing Gold is in great supply, it is a good tool themselves in their hobby, the one thing for the character to use to get past a they’re good at. challenge – either with their Overdrive abilities, or a simple bribe to a character TOKENS FOR FAIR GOLD they met. Many denizens of Die may like the Fair Gold. You don't even need to While you can just write down notes of explain it. Who wouldn’t want Fair Gold? how many gold the Neo has, tokens are often useful. I personally use chocolate

As such, it's the closest thing to a the cyberpunk character. Don’t be afraid currency in the game – but it's still a of the cool. currency that is only really of primary interest to a single player. Other players The only system that does not start with may want to divide the gold they find. the Neo is the pet. This materialises This is fine. The trick is ensuring the Neo when activated. realises they want the gold. Those who are more mechanically minded will read THE AI the rules and already be hungry for it. Frankly, the second you put a gold on The suit has a built-in AI system, which the table they may be grasping for it. is always active, which you should role- Other players will likely require some play. In a game with a large number of guidance. This is a good chance to use players, this is advised to keep minimal the Question/Answer technique. – the AI is a servitor system, and not as useful for drama as the Godbinder or the For example, upon being confronted by Emotion Knight's Arcane Weapon. In a Fair Gold for the first time. smaller game, especially a solo one, GM: What's the most your persona ever having an AI intelligence for the wanted anything in your life? Tell me characters to talk to can be fun. You can about it. take a page from 2000AD’s Rogue Player: Trooper and give each system its own AI GM: Looking at this gold feels like that. if you really want a lot of things for a player to talk to. It's also true for when someone actively uses the gold. If you’re leaning that way, The AI can provide useful information, a drug metaphor can be useful. If not, a especially about the Neo’s abilities. It euphoria metaphor of your choice (”Like can also use the Fair Field ability to ask you’ve been dancing all night in the best questions about the area, especially club in the world”, “Like you’ve just hit related to Fair-tech. This would include the most satisfying plot twist you’ve locating Fair Gold, if you want to give a ever read”, “Like you’ve just met the desperate player a direction to go to world’s best puppy”) goes a long way. find gold.

ACTIVATING THE SYSTEMS THE D10

The systems all exist (possibly in a The abilities each system gives are Neo’s body) when they transform from deliberately defined broadly. The D10 their persona to their character. The gun should be added to any dice pool which replaces the weapons in the Neo’s it's reasonable for that ability to be used equipment – while a Neo can’t use its in. fancy special abilities instantly, it can be fired as a weapon. In practice, the PET first thing a player tends to do is use that first gold to turn on their weapons. Pets are an adorable and popular ability. Make sure to read the limitations and When each system activates, the AI powers of it – damage transfers from system should make a statement, and the pet to the persona’s character. The there should be a visual effect. This is pet can’t be killed directly. We’re not

monsters. The only time the pet “dies” is Naomi try to lock down as many as she if it powers down on a roll of a 0. If a can. She rolls four successes. This player has a Fair Gold on them, the Neo means three fallen (2 for the first, 1 extra should have a chance to use it to save success for each other one) are their precious animal. Be nice to immobilised. animals, kids. While Fallen have been used as an THE PROBLEM OF DAWN example, this also works on all kinds of systems. Gun turrets and doors are Fair Gold disappears at dawn, and the popular. For non-sentient creatures systems deactivate. While most of the without a Wisdom, a difficulty of half the one-off game will happen inside a single intelligence of their makers would be a day, it’s possible others may stretch out good rule of thumb. In other words, set a to multiple days. In which case, the difficulty of one unless it’s a very fancy character will have to find more gold, door. and you (as the GM) should be thinking of ways to give the opportunity to find it. If a player wishes to actively try to take over an individual rather than just Gold can be used just before dawn to immobilising them, you will need to roll a keep a system active for the next day. Special, which will let a Neo be able to It’s a good way to use their surplus gold make the target perform a single action. at the end of the day. OVERCHARGE Yes, the AI knows the time and will warn the player. Most classes have an ability to try and expend their resources to solve FAIR FIELD HACKING intractable problems. This is the Neo’s, and involves the expenditure of their This is a core ability all Neo possess. It is resources. The ability lists what a one- primarily used for “hacking” the Fallen, coin use should be – minor extensions of but a Gamesmaster should look to the core abilities. The more unlikely the provide other abilities for a clever Neo to effect, the greater the cost. In some use. If a Neo is confronted by any cases you will try to reject it, but you machinery and asks, “Can I hack it?” the likely will want to at least humour it. answer should usually be “Yes” or “You can try” if you’re being cagey. It is not primarily aimed to be used as a combat ability, though certain gung-ho In terms of immobilizing a Fallen characters may wish to try cramming as opponent, the target difficulty would be much gold down their barrel to see what the target Fallen’s Wisdom in happens. For those who wish to try this, successes. If a Neo wishes to lock down here’s the basic rule of thumb for a group, choose the highest wisdom in assigning costs: the group. If you succeed, you immobilize one Fallen. For each success If a player wants to attack multiple above that, you immobile an extra one. people at once, it’s one gold per person. Then roll a dice pool (once, applying the For example, Naomi Neo is confronted result to every target individually). by a group of four Fallen (Wisdom 2).

If instead a player wants to target an SACRIFICE individual, one gold per hit is required. In DIE the comic, when Angela returns to For example, Naomi Neo is facing a earth, she is missing a limb. This is mass of Fallen opponents. She asks if because she had cybernetics in the she can overload her gun to kill them all world of Die. You may be wondering if a in a fully automatic way. There’s 10 player Neo will also be missing limbs Fallen. With ten opponents, the cost is from any cybernetics they choose to an astronomical ten gold. Naomi describe. swallows. No, she doesn’t have nearly that kind of coin… In short: no.

Other effects – like trying to blind the However, if on the adventure, there opposition, bring a roof down on comes a chance to upgrade a Neo with someone’s head or so on are highly new equipment, and they choose to give possible. Things which let the players up a part of their body, that part will be escape from combat and go another missing when they return to Earth. This way are definitely encouraged. The is basically how all in-world sacrifices “automatic kill” is many things, but tend to play out, but is worth boring most of all. Overcharge is meant highlighting especially to the Neo. for player creativity. THE ONE CYBERPUNK IN A FANTASY For example, Naomi Neo is still with the WORLD Fallen. Instead, she asks if she can fire her weapon fully automatic, trying to This is a tonal point to think about. The suppress the Fallen while the group players are being dropped into a escapes. The GM likes this, and sets a Fantasy World. Visually, the Neo can low cost of a single coin to encourage have a different aesthetic. You basically the behaviour. have three main choices…

If the coin flip is a success, the event 1) They are as strange as a magical happens. If the coin flip fails you take cyberpunk would be in a standard narrative control. Simply making it fail is fantasy world. As such, characters the sub-ideal choice – the Neo has spent they meet will act as if they’re their resources, and would be looking genuinely unusual. for something more than a waste. As 2) The magical cybernetics of the Neo such, look for complications and twists are rare, but a known thing in the rather than straight refutations. world. Especially if your Fallen has some elements of techno-magic, it For example, presented by a huge certainly can fit in. metallic door Naomi Neo puts a gun into 3) It’s not even commented upon. No- hyperdrive and tries to cut a hole one comments. Even if asked. through. The coin is flipped, coming up tails. The GM says a hole is cut through All are great. I’ve used all three in the door… but the alarms all go off. different games. Guards are coming. Big guards.

RUNNING THE GODBINDER

WHO TO GIVE THE GODBINDER TO? a player is transformed into a bear, they would get to roll their D12 in any dice The Godbinder is arguably the most pool related to bear activities. flexible and directly powerful of the classes. In terms of traditional D&D THE SECOND GOD SHEET classes, it is most akin to a cleric, but if the player’s choices lean more martial, There’s a second sheet with nine more they can act like a knight. If the choices pre-generated gods on. This will extend lean more academic in style, the the Godbinder’s time selecting their Godbinder can operate in a manner akin abilities considerably, so do not to a warlock or any magic user. necessarily pass it over. It’s likely better If you’re using the Arcana, a Godbinder to keep it and then if they ask to play a who works solely through minor different sort of god, let them fill in the miracles and chooses miracles akin to miracles from the sheet. what a wizard would cast in D&D is functionally identical to a wizard. PLAYING THE GODS

But the Godbinder isn’t primarily for The player gets to define their gods, and those who are looking for crunchy then you play them. The names the mechanics – it is also one where the player selects and the domains are your player gets to interact with a series of cue to their personalities, and you can god characters and explicitly barter for build on that. The gods are big what they want. In other words, it’s the personalities, and I would suggest class whose abilities most involve role- leaning them iconic. If you're a reader of play as a core element. If a player likes the comic DIE, you'll likely have a yapping to GM controlled characters, selection of gods for inspiration. The this is one of the best choices for them. gods, generally speaking, either want the player to owe them, or they want to USING THE D12 cause things related to What They’re The God Of to happen in the world. When The Godbinder is one of the less role-playing the gods – including setting complicated archetypes, in its use of deals – bear this in mind. dice. The dice is used simply as a tool the player brandishes to contact the Time is frozen when speaking to a god, god. Some people use it as a phone. and no one else can hear them. Describe Some people use it as an altar. Just that effect to the Godbinder as you wish. make the players aware of it, and It’s a good idea for a god to pro-actively encourage them to lean into the ritual of speak to the player in the first scene, to it. show it’s an option, and introduce the concept of Major Miracles. A favourable- The D12 is also added to any dice pool deal early Major Miracle is a good idea to which involves a Godbinder’s miracles, encourage tentative Godbinders to play including attacks (and the players’ with the system. The first hit’s free, physical attacks if transformed or after all. enhanced by a spell in some way). So if

I give each of my gods their own voice, These are essentially bartering with a though avoid any accent that could be god for them dealing with a large read as offensive. I lean towards modes problem, in exchange for a service. of speaking more than anything else. I There's no limit to what these can be, would also think of staging – my but the bigger the problem, the bigger personal trick is when playing a god, to what is required for you to do to pay off go and stand behind the Godbinder and the debt (or to complete before the speak into their ear. Clearly, I get miracle is even performed). If the permission for this kind of boundary miracle is big enough to side step a pushing. The effect of the Godbinder not major point of the plot – such as side- being able to see who they’re stepping a major problem – the task summoning and everyone else being required should be as hard as solving able to certainly increases the sense of the actual problem yourself. magic. For example, a Godbinder and party are With up to three gods for the Godbinder, presented with a 100ft giant guarding it's possible that they take over the the door to the lair of the Master. The game if the Godbinder likes roleplaying players don't fancy their chances, and with them. If there's more players, lean contact the God of Ice to ask if they can the gods more taciturn. Of course, this freeze the giant for them. Sure, says the excess of NPCs around the player God of Ice. But first you have to defeat a means the Godbinder is a very good fire demon who is troubling the region to choice for a solo game. the east. The Fire Demon is an enemy about as difficult to defeat as the giant. It’s also worth noting that a Godbinder can call on their gods to just talk to A god can also just say “No, I'm not them. It doesn’t have to be all business. interested in a deal”. Especially if the Gods tend to have strong opinions. players have pissed the god off somehow, or it is something that the MIRACLES god has no interest or ability in (for example, asking the Ice God to heal There are two sorts of miracles. Major someone isn’t exactly their thing). You miracles and Minor miracles. Minor can also offer deals which are clearly miracles operate like spells in a something no sensible player would traditional game. These are primarily are take... but remember, players tend to not those listed on the Godbinder’s sheet be sensible. but can also be individually crafted, as explained below. Conversely, Major For example, a god which sets their cost Miracles are bespoke effects, each as "You need to kill someone in your bartered with by speaking to a god party" is not enough to stop at least character. SOME players from doing it. That said, that also sounds like it could be an MAJOR MIRACLES interesting situation. I would advise against giving an offer that you cannot In short: Major Miracles are primarily for stand the players from saying yes to. interacting with large-scale plot Someone will always call your bluff. problems, or when the players are in deep trouble.

If a player breaks a promise based on a spell which their god could provide Major Miracle, they immediately receive could be attempted. For example, there God Debt in proportion to how big the is no “create light” spell in the God of Major Miracle was. You judge this. If it Light. This type of Minor Miracle can be was something genuinely plot changing, attempted. For something that minor, a give 4 or even 5 God Debt. The god can difficulty of 1 would seem reasonable. save this for future player manipulation or use it instantly to harm the player. For a guideline of difficulties, see the spells of the other gods. Remember – the Gods occasionally do Major Miracles spell could only be accessible if your they really want to do, just for the fun of god’s area would cover similar areas. it, if it's aligned with their nature. This The God of Fire may let you create a light can be especially useful early in the minor miracle, but it wouldn’t let you adventure to show exactly how big a create a water-bolt miracle. miracle can be. Wiping out the initial wave of Fallen is a good way to show Note: you should increase the difficulty how big things can be, for example. by one if the Godbinder does not have that miracle as one of their selected MINOR MIRACLES ones. So if a Godbinder has selected a fireball, you cast it at difficulty 2. If a These are minor abilities, more akin to Godbinder tries and casts a Fireball and the standard spells in a role-playing they haven’t selected it, it’s level 3. game. The player picks them from the sheet. To create the effect, a Godbinder There are full Miracle (and spell) must roll a Wisdom roll against the generation systems in the Arcana, spells level. As in, the spell’s level is its included a bunch of pre-generated difficulty. spells. That they’re in the Arcana rather than here is your tell that you don’t need When these spells have a target, your them. It’s one of the most maths-centric dice pool rolls simultaneously against bits of the design, and there’s more than the spell’s difficulty and the difficulty of enough on the Godbinder sheets. the target’s defences. Miracles From Gods You Have Not For example, a Gareth Godbinder casting Selected a fireball (difficulty 2) at a group of Fallen It's worth noting that a god you do not (defence 1, so difficulty 1). If Gareth rolls have a relationship with means you two successes, they cast the spell and can't do Minor Miracles from their hit the Fallen as the number of domain. However, you can do Major successes matches or is higher than Miracles with them, based on a bespoke both the casting difficulty (2) and the deal. This is likely harder, due to a lack Fallen’s defence (1). If Gareth rolled only of any prior relationship, but certainly one success, they would fail to cast the there. fireball (difficulty 2) so no Fallen are harmed. God Debt If you fail to roll the requisite successes, A player is not limited to the Minor the spell still happens if you are willing Miracles they’ve picked. While you may to accept the debt to the god. For every likely use the Major Miracles, any similar step you fail by, the god will take one

debt point. A Godbinder can owe no Miracle, a god won’t demand something more than five debt points to any god. A akin to Isaac killing a son. It is worth Godbinder can only take as many points noting that this may not be true for a of debt on a single roll as your level in Major Miracle. The bigger the favour, the that specific god. bigger the demand.

For example, Gareth Godbinder has a It is suggested that both GM and player level 1 in the fire god and is trying to cast keep track of the amount of debt owed a wall of fire requiring difficulty 2. He only to each god. rolls one success. He decides he really wants that wall of fire, so gives the fire A god does not need to use all the debt god 1 debt. If he was trying to cast a at once. Fireball (Difficulty 3) and rolled a single success he would not be able to take on Leaving Die In Debt To The Gods debt to cast it – as he only has a level 1 Low-level debt, let it slide, especially if relationship to the god, he can only take it’s just been forgotten. It’s a good thing on a single point of debt, which only to use to put a few weird notes in the leads to 2 successes, and he needs 3. epilogue. If a player’s response to escaping is to act in the world like the A Godbinder can take on debt to add a god would have wished them to, this success when performing miracles. If pays off a lot of debt. they are able to accumulate debt, they can force success. Is there a problem? If it’s deliberately running off without paying a big debt, do feel free to create Calling In God Debt physical injuries to the persona in the There is a problem. At any time, the god real world proportionate to their debt. A may call in any number of these favours. literal pound of flesh is perfectly If the player refuses, they suffer acceptable in some cases. damage equal to the number of debts the god chooses to call in. “How many minor miracles can you cast?” and other D&D-y questions Gareth Godbinder owes the fire god There is no limit on the number of three debt. On the way home, he passes miracles you can cast in these rules, a field of wheat. The fire god wants it to though the specific world the players burn. Gareth is going to refuse, but the arrive in may create some problems. Fire God points out that the Godbinder There is an obvious risk in accumulating only has three health. If they say no, debt. he’ll be reduced to zero health and keel over. Swearing at the hard-bargain- “They’re Cantrips” is a good way to driving-bastard, they reach for their explain Minor Miracles to a D&D player. torch... At which point they may go “Wait – Fireball is my Cantrip?” And then you go The question of what is reasonable is “Uh-huh” and they can go “Whoa.” key. For debt accrued from a Minor

RUNNING THE DICTATOR

WHO TO GIVE THE DICTATOR TO? To state the big obvious one: making someone fall in love with you and then The Dictator is the Bard as a horror having sex with them is rape. You have character. The Bard is someone who removed their consent. It’s rape. sings magical songs that alter people’s Admittedly, this is also true of (say) the emotional states, either positively or Charm spell in D&D. But we’re a game negatively. The Dictator takes that and which is looking at these sorts of things turns it into something intensely awful. seriously. Any player who thinks this is a good idea should not be let near the The Dictator, as said on the sheet, is a Dictator. To be honest, they shouldn’t be character class which is the most let in your house. dangerous, in how they can affect the tone of the game. If given to an SAFETY-PROOFING THE DICTATOR immature player who does not understand the seriousness of its It’s possible to safety-proof the Dictator possibilities, it can easily be upsetting too, to make it less charged. Remember to all the players (including the Dictator that in these sub-realms of Die that the when they realise they’ve overstepped rules can warp. Maybe a Master has social boundaries). warped this world so the Dictator can’t change the emotions of anyone who As well as the core story of DIE, at least came from a realm other than Die (i.e. It one reason why the GM gets to choose won’t work on the players’ characters). character classes is so that you get to Playing with the emotions of the GM’s judge which player is most able to characters is interesting enough, and handle something like the Dictator. considerably reducing the chance of Equally, it’s easy for you to simply not something going horrifically awry. give any player the Dictator. If you’re at all worried about the Dictator, I would If you realise you want to remove the advise not including the Dictator. possibility mid-game, the Master spending one of their Cheat Tokens to ER… WHAT’S ACTUALLY THE PROBLEM? do the same is an entirely viable move. Frankly, it’s the sort of thing a Master The Dictator includes themes of consent may do for entirely in-character reasons and emotional violation. The Dictator’s – the game climaxes with a choice, and challenge to the player is mainly one of the Dictator is the player who can navigating these boundaries and actively make someone do something deciding what is acceptable, and seeing they consciously don’t want to. The how treating other people like tools is a Master will obviously not want the temptation to them. This can go to some Dictator to use the ability on them, dark places, and the reason why you making it a fair tactic. want someone mature enough to play the Dictator is so that they don’t go You can also safety proof the Dictator there unknowingly. by limiting the emotions they can pick. Fear and Anger are “safer” emotions, as their most common uses are for directly

attacking someone rather than EMOTION CONTROL DICE POOL subverting them. If you only allow a player to select joy or trust it means This is an exception to the core system. they will be unable to create the compound emotion Love. Frankly, a As described on the sheet, the D4 is a player can make a real mess with just number of successes, which is then Trust by itself. modified up or down by the number of successes in the rest of the pool. This THE FEEL OF THE DICTATOR’S POWER means that if someone rolls four successes on the D4 and no actual Here’s some things to keep in mind. successes in their dice pool, they are stuck at a level 4 rating – a level higher Everything the Dictator does should be than most humans ever feel. It’s also creepy. worth noting that a critical failure (as in, Both in the effects you describe when it no matter what’s on the D4, no happens, and how people act on it, and successes and at least one 1) leads this how everyone acts towards the Dictator to this being permanent. That 4 is when they do it. enough to actually remove someone with standard stats (Willpower 4) from a Everyone is a little afraid of the Dictator. combat, possibly fatally, should hint at You can signal this with friendly how badly this could go wrong. characters in the world. Make sympathetic people express their fears THE BAD DICE AND THE DICTATOR DICE of the Dictator, having characters make POOL the Dictator promise to not use it on them, threatening them if they do. Do If the dice pool includes a Bad Dice things to give the players reasons to be which makes you remove a success afraid of Dictator themselves. from the results, the successes of the Dictator’s D6s are removed first, and The Dictator should be a little scared of then the ones on the main D4. their own powers. Most character classes have pretty Donna Dictator uses her voice, and rolls tight control of all their abilities. If they a dice pool including a bad dice. She rolls roll well, they don’t have to use all those a 2 on her D4 and 3, 4, 5, 2 and the Bad successes. The Dictator’s abilities are Dice is a 4. As the bad dice is a success, both more likely to succeed, and one of the two successes generated by partially out of their control. There her D6 is removed. Donna has two should be a reluctance to use the successes, plus or minus one success. abilities in some situations. If Donna had rolled no successes on her D6s, the D4’s 2 would have been It’s worth noting that the Dictator can reduced to 1. be extremely persuasive merely with the threat of using their abilities. WILLPOWER Wolverine doesn’t have to stab people with his claws. That people know All characters have Willpower on their Wolverine could stab people is enough. sheets. This is used for various characters, but primarily is for working with the Dictator. Willpower is not like

Health or Guard, in that it is not level you are at. There is no limit to the removed. It is the threshold by which a number of disadvantages you could character can be overpowered by their have. emotions. It’s put on the sheet just to remember. While it could be boosted by Donna the Dictator makes her friend special abilities, it is usually just equal level 3 anger towards some orcs. They to the total of intelligence and wisdom. gain an advantage while attacking them. However, when her friend tries to stop EMOTIONAL LEVELS orc fighting and start picking locks, they suffer three disadvantages. Hard to pick You will note that on the sheet the a lock when you’re murderously angry player is given only the broadest idea of at some orcs. what effects their powers will have. The players are only really given a safety Level 3+ limit (3 is normal, 5 is human maximum, 6+ is supernatural) and a target for As well as above, at level 3 emotion, a what they’d need to do to remove character is being entirely overwhelmed someone for combat (twice Wisdom – so by their feelings, for example, to flee with an average Wisdom, 4). This is one from a combat. Most characters would of the ways the player is encouraged to likely act on that feeling without feel uneasy – they’re not quite sure resisting. If a character wants to resist, what is going to happen. However, there they have to roll with their Wisdom to is also a big DO NOT GO FURTHER THAN resist. The difficulty should be half the THIS sign. Will they push that far? level of the emotion, rounding up. This is identical to the Emotion Knight’s Level 1 and 2 compulsions.

At level 1 and 2, in terms of low-level use Level 4 and 5 of the ability, advantages and Level 4 (i.e. twice the common Wisdom disadvantages may be added to their 2) or 5 is enough to make an average target, related to what the emotion is Wisdom individual remove from combat trying to make them do. One level of permanently. A level 4 fear could make advantage (or disadvantage) per level you pass out. A level 5 could make you of emotion is a good guideline. For have a heart attack. example, using rage powers on a friendly warrior to make them Level 6 aggressive at their opponent could justify an advantage. Increasing the Anything above level 6 and you should amazement (which includes surprise be looking for supernatural effects. The and distraction) of a guard looking for higher, the more extreme. thieves could lead to disadvantages to note someone sneaking past. Hypothetical Example of Emotion Levels In other words – it’s possible to use the Donna Dictator uses their voice to make ability at a low level to support other a monster fear the Dictator. characters in their efforts. You can never have more than one advantage With one or two successes, the monster for an emotional state, no matter what would have either one or two

disadvantages to strike the Dictator. explode outwards, temporarily blinding Frankly, if there was anyone else in the the Dictator. area to fight, they’d likely go over there. If there was no real reason for them to And so on. stay, they’ll likely leave. The negative emotion of fear makes the With three successes, the monster downside obvious, but it should be would have three disadvantages to noted that all the emotions can be used strike the Dictator. The GM decides to in similarly aggressive ways. make a Wisdom roll to see if the monster can resist fleeing. If it fails, the monster For example, Donna Dictator has used runs. admiration and ecstasy emotions to inflict a level 4 love on a monster. That’s It’s worth noting if the Dictator reclaims not enough to make their heart explode the D4 from the GM to use abilities on in sheer joy, but it’s certainly enough for someone else, the monster could return the monster to look at the player sadly, to combat. The control is instantly gone. confused, tears streaming down their The Dictator only gets to use one face going “Why?” when the Dictator manipulation simultaneously.. stabs it through the heart, both literally and metaphorically. Supernatural levels Intensity 4 should make the monster too of interest in the tip of your blade can afraid to continue the combat. They easily lead to someone impaling could run, as above, but if they do it themselves in fascination. And so on. should be in a way that makes it impossible for them to return. They also The Dictator is a horror character. See could fall to the floor in utter terror, what feels right. Which is normally defenceless, allowing the Dictator to kill “what feels wrong?” them instantly in a free action. Passing out is another reasonable response. TARGET CHARACTERS WITH HIGH WILLPOWER Intensity 5 pushes it further. A heart attack. If there’s a nearby cliff, the All of the above is based upon a monster runs off it in its panic. If it fits character with normal human Willpower the tone and limits of your game, suicide control – as in, a character with Wisdom is a possible response at this level. They 2 and Intelligence of 2. One whose are so frightened they’d rather be dead Wisdom was 4 would need six – and than be in the Dictator’s presence whose Intelligence was 4 as well would another second. need eight. A Dictator is extremely unlikely in any normal situation to roll Intensity 6 could see the monster’s eight successes, meaning high heart literally explode in its chest or tear Willpower characters are hard to be their eyes out of their own head. entirely overwhelmed.

Intensity 7 and more are increasingly This does not mean they are not feeling theatrical. At level 7, you may be looking the emotion, however. In fact, if you’re for unexpected side-effects. In this experiencing it at five or higher, it’s case, the heart exploding in a way more than a normal human being could which actually causes their chest to

bear. It’s just that the character is still THE EMOTION KNIGHT AND THE holding onto their faculties. DICTATOR’S SYNERGY

How does this work? You extend the The Emotion Knight’s scale of emotion is results of people with normal Willpower. identical to the Dictator’s. The Dictator You suffer disadvantages for every level can, if successful, move the Emotion of the emotion if doing a task which is Knight up their scale. This is obviously a difficult with the emotion. You gain a useful strategy. single advantage on things directly related to it. At level 3 or above, you gain This is one area where the tone of the compulsions related to the effect, which Dictator is key. As in, it should not just they have to roll Wisdom to resist, at a be viewed as a simple power up by the difficulty of half the emotional level, players. The creepier the Dictator’s rounding up. powers feel, the less likely they’ll be used lightly. Make sure the emotions For example, Arnold Archmage has a impact the fiction, not used casually. Willpower of 8. Donna Dictator hits him with six successes to make him fear MULTIPLE TARGETS Donna. While this would be enough to kill someone with normal Willpower, it is less The sheet doesn’t describe this, but a than Arnold’s Willpower. However, he Dictator can try to use the abilities on suffers six disadvantages due to his multiple people at once. For each person fear of Donna. A “Run away from the in the group, subtract one success from scary Dictator” compulsion seems the pool. reasonable, and to resist Arnold would have to roll their Wisdom dice pool For example, a Dictator is cornered by against a difficulty of three. three Fallen, each with Wisdom 2. They’re going to tear the Dictator apart, It’s also worth noting that if a Dictator so the Dictator tries to use their does manage to match a high Willpower Admiration and Terror emotions to character, you will go straight to a 6 or 8 create the compound emotion level effect, which is supernaturally Submission. The Dictator wants these intense. Fallen all on the floor hailing them. The Dictator rolls their pool, with the D4 in it. The character this is most likely to The D4 is a 3 and they roll two happen to is the Master, who tends to successes. As there are three Fallen have high Wisdom and Intelligence. It is being targeted, three of those definitely the sort of thing a Master will successes are lost, leaving two spend a cheat token to get rid of. successes. All the Fallen are now experiencing level 2 submission. Not enough to make them beg, but still a powerful emotion.

RUNNING THE MASTER

WHO TO GIVE THE MASTER TO? secret passageway opens, and guards rush out of it. You. You are the Master in the playtest. That makes it easier. At least there’s When to use the Cheat Token? one thing you don’t have to worry about. Whenever the Master would, which means the Master needs to “know” They are the D&D Magic user as a about an event to do it. Do not be reality-warper. surprised if you don’t use any tokens until the final encounter. The “survive an CHEATING attack” use of the token significantly extends how long the Master can act in The guidelines on the actual character a stand-up brawl against the players. If sheet show where they should be used. the entire party are united against the It should be noted that these are for Master, without the use of tokens, they when the Master is expressly and will take the Master down quickly. With deliberately fucking with the players. it, it extends into a suitably sized set- piece to climax a game. Not you, the GM. The Master. What to use as a token? Coins should be As the Gamesmaster, you create avoided (as they’re the Neo’s signifier) situations where the party may be but almost anything can work. I have a attacked, as a response of the world. As preference for using dice unlike any a Master, you spend a Cheat Token to do other in the game, but that does risk it in a way which is entirely unfair – and confusion. If you can work out a token to likely magical. They should feel different do with the setting, even better. and be presented differently. A lot is to do with the simple symbolism of passing For example, during a story set at a the token to the players – “This is music festival, I used a flyer for the something that is only happening festival as the masters’ tokens – and because of this.” actually quickly photoshopped a flyer between sessions to use as the prop. For example, for you as a Gamesmaster: The passing of the token is to The Master Malcolm is cornered by the lampshade that what’s happened is party in his throne room. He rings a bell, unfair, and to also show the Master’s and summons the guards the players resources are being used up. were trying to avoid. The guards rush in. Do the tokens do anything for the For example, for you as the Master player? As standard, no. However, that spending a Cheat Token: they are an element in the game means you should consider how they could Master Malcolm is cornered in the party integrate into your adventure. They are in a dead end. There’s no escape. He a free gift that your friend, the Game smiles and clicks his fingers… and a Designer, has left for you to fill with your own mystery.

(Or maybe I haven’t had a good enough Major Rules Tweaks are changes which idea yet? Oh, cynic. Of course, I have a reduce another player’s options and are good idea. I’m just keeping them over of sole advantage to the Master. there, where you can’t see them and also the dog ate my homework.) The former can be treated as spells, akin to a Minor Miracle for the CHEAT TOKENS Godbinder. Use the difficulty of the nearest Godbinder spell (plus one) to get Regenerate at the start of each session. a difficulty, or use one from the Master’s If a player has any, collect them up. own sheet.

CHEATING WITH CHEATING The latter will require a Cheat Token.

Of course, you don’t have to use all the For example, Malcolm the Master wants tokens. If you don’t, and there’s no to tweak the rules of existence so that reason why the Master character for a while daggers gain a special bonus hasn’t, the players may feel that their to hurt people. This is an effect that hard-fought victory has been stolen, could help almost everyone who grabs a assuming they realise how many tokens dagger. This sounds like a Minor Rules the Master has. Tweak, so the Master looks up an equivalent miracle. It sounds identical to THE MASTER’S OTHER MAGICS Bless. Its difficulty is listed as 1, so it counts as 2. During a combat the Master character is involved in, run this like the Godbinder’s Conversely, Malcom Master wants to Minor Miracles, but based off limit Donna Dictator’s voice so she can Intelligence statistic rather than only work on people native to Die (i.e. not Wisdom. A Master cannot accumulate players). This limits the Dictator’s debt to make their abilities cast. abilities, and the Dictator’s alone. This is a Major Rules Tweak. CHANGING THE RULES Major Rules Tweaks are limited to The Master’s normal magics are easier complications and limitations rather to comprehend – the concept of the than entire removals. You could not Master messing with the rules of the remove a Dictators’ ability entirely. It game is one I want to develop in the has to be a reasonable limitation – for future, as the Master works towards example, the Dictator’s voice doesn’t becoming a more robust class for work on this room, or on players, or players to use rather than an when someone else is singing. It cannot antagonist. Until then, stick with the just remove a tool. conceptual rules tweaks below which draws a line between Minor Rules The word “reasonable” is loaded. In Tweaks and Major Rules Tweaks. universe, if a Master tries to cheat too hard, the reality which they’re trapped Minor Rules Tweaks are changes with in will resist and likely kill them. They are limited scope and possible advantages a Master in a world that’s inside a world to everyone, not just the Master. ruled by a Grandmaster, remember, and the Grandmaster is the one who’s really

in charge. Cheat, but show some class. tend to realize that breaking the rules This could be a useful end for a certain too hard ends badly. sort of Master character, but Masters

RUNNING THE FALLEN

WHO TO GIVE THE FALLEN TO? SECOND DEATH

Anyone who dies. With a flourish and a The sheet does not tell the player what smile. dying when already playing as a Fallen means, but hints that it’s bad. It is bad. RUNNING THE FALLEN For each death as a Fallen, the persona If the players have not read DIE, they slips further and further away. They die, will not be aware of the nature of the and resurrect at the end of the Fallen. As such, this will be a surprise to encounter, with one lost statistic point. them. Even if not, be sure to lean into If they die again, they lose two statistic the weirdness and horror of your friend points, then three and so on. This is at lurching to their feet again, awfully the Gamesmaster’s choice. Reduce all changed. The zombie in pop culture is a stats to one before you reduce anything trope so common as to deaden us to it. to zero. If a player reaches zero, they Your aim is to make this feel real and as become a mindless creature. They can unusual as it would be. When describing carry on playing, but they’re really a any player's Fallen activity, be sure to passenger that’s pushed around or highlight it, (as much as the vibe / carried. perceived age rating for your game allows). Assuming the players are If any statistic is one and the player leaning into the horror, describing returns to the real world, they suffer a seeing bones slide beneath gaps in the permanent ailment and impediment, skin is about my personal minimum, for which should be worked into the example. conclusion.

Equally (if not more) important, is If they’re still zero and they’re somehow making the experience a real one for the brought back to the real world (as in, Fallen player themselves. What does resurrected into a living form), their being a Fallen feel like? Make sure the persona will be either physically (if player knows. The technique of Asking Strength, Dexterity or Constitution) or Questions (See Advice for mentally (Wisdom, Intelligence, Gamesmasters) can be extremely Charisma) dead. useful here, in terms of asking a question of what something is like, and Bleak Bleak Bleak. then telling them it’s like something else entirely. “You march through this grove, RECOVERING FALLEN full of fauna. Hey, Fallen Player, tell me about how flowers smell” “” “Well, you can’t smell that of intra-party fratricide, the players may any more. All you can smell is the scents wish to pursue other methods for of your friends, and the pulse in their returning people to life from Fallen. The wrists.” more sessions the game lasts, the more you’ll need to do this. Subvert. Make being dead truly live.

In terms of options inside the party, the and the latter automatically includes the Godbinder’s deities could possibly help – former – the darker the ending will be. but are unlikely to do so without a good There is an exception: in a game with a reason, which means a quest. A Neo pure antagonistic Master, the “Fallen with sufficient gold, perhaps. The murders the Master to return to life” Master’s Cheating ability is also an tends to come across as a just ending. option, if the Master could be Dark, sure, but not abyssal bleak. persuaded. If you want a lighter tone, a GM- The key thing in all of these is that the controlled character (such as a god) Fallen rules are written to demand offering a simpler quest to return them sacrifice – a Fallen kills someone and to life is a good solution. If you want a takes their life, and the victim (willing or darker tone, the quests should be just otherwise) becomes a new Fallen. As as dark as the murder-your-friends such, no matter what mechanic, a method. In fact, possibly identical – a meaningful sacrifice for a player may be god insisting the Master is murdered is a called for. Giving up parts of the body, good one, in that it moves the dilemma parts of their memory and so on. A from the Fallen character to the whole Godbinder is likely to be aware of this. A party. Whether the god reincarnates the Master using a Cheat Token is aware Fallen player before or after the task is that it’s unlikely to be as simple as that – done is a matter of style. the cheats have limitations. Bringing a Fallen back, only for them to become a It perhaps goes without saying that if Fallen again before they leave the the Players try to cheat the gods and dimension, for example. Perhaps being not perform the task, the once-Fallen left behind, as it’s too late. Or the Master character will return to being Fallen as actually becomes Fallen due to making the others leave, trapping them in Die the wish, perhaps also not realising. forever.

It needs a cost. It also needs work. Of course, I say the above makes it dark. For some groups I’m sure the gleeful Equally, powerful GM-controlled inter-party murder is embraced with characters could perform the task – nary a care for the consequences. In something which obviously includes the which case, you should go and buy Godbinder’s gods. They could ask for Paranoia, as your players would love it, player sacrifice, or questionable and your Friend The Computer needs the activities inside the world itself. What money. are you willing to do to get a friend back? Player Fallen can be hacked by a determined Neo to immobilise them. This The relative ease or difficulty of is a useful leash. They can also be returning a Fallen to life through any influenced by Dictators. other method speaks to the tone of the game you wish. The harder it is, the FALLEN SHEETS more likely players will be left behind by their party who choose to return to There’s one sheet in the PDF. You may existence OR a player murders another want to print a couple of them if you player to stop being Fallen. Either way – think it’s going to get messy. In reality,

people can share. Let’s spare mother are too far gone. They’re over the event nature our awful yoke. horizon and can’t find their way back, and are trapped with their terrible NON-PLAYER FALLEN hunger. Talking of a terrible hunger, I’m feeling peckish. Let’s have a snack Nothing gets resurrected if a non-player before the next section. Fallen kills a player. All the other Fallen

This is broad advice for anyone running this game. There’s some more in the Arcana, along with the weirdo rules.

SAFETY TOOLS

This is a game and a nice time. Let’s brakes. DIE has the potential to go keep it that way. anywhere, and that includes bad places. Don’t drive off the cliff. This is a brief overview of various ways to make the game safer. The core basics The X-card is the popular version of this have been included in the text, but are concept, but there’s other more repeated here for ease of access. All sophisticated ones which allow more these are ideas from the RPG nuanced expression. Have a look at the community, none of which are mine – Script Change Toolbox google them up and nose. (https://briebeau.itch.io/script-change) or Safety Flowers THE X-CARD (https://breakoutcon.com/extras/safety -tools/) for more complicated versions As conceived by John Stavropoulos, of the same ideas. this is one (or more) cards with an “X” drawn on it, placed on the table. If any RATINGS AND GENRE player (including the GM) touches it, it means they are uncomfortable with the This is in the opening discussion with current topic or subject and we should the players, and gives broad guidelines change direction. It does not mean for the sort of content which will be asking questions about what the included. It’s a discussion of elements element is, or naming it, though some that may be in the game – inter-group people will say (“This is too violent for conflict, for example – and is also meant me”). X-card can be activated for any to warn players the game may go that reason, even minor ones (characters way, which makes it less possibly with names who have bad connections destabilising when it does. It also allows for a player is a good example – X-card groups who really don’t want to do that does not mean someone has fucked up. to angle away from it. It means someone is bothered.). VEILS AND LINES The original documentation is here: http://tinyurl.com/x-card-rpg A concept I believe introduced by Ron Edwards in Sex & Sorcery, this is You should also be aware as a GM to formalising content that can or cannot watch players. Not all players will be the game. Lines are things which remember the X-card, especially if simply you don’t do. Veils are things stressed. You can also use the X-card, which you include, but cut away from. even if you said it. One of my usual Lines is that I don’t include racial slurs or sexual violence. Don’t play DIE without the X-card any One of my usual Veils is explicit sex more than you would drive a car without

acts. Don’t include the former at all. Cut those new to the form who had no idea to black for the latter. that this could happen – may find it too much for them, at least initially. Being I’ve found doing this live on the table is aware of how emotionally agitated difficult. You may wish to introduce the someone is key – X-cards exist for a concept of Veils and Lines at the end of reason, and you can always suggest (or the first session, and then say you’ll call for) a break. make a shared document, and ask people to add anything they want as a AFTERCARE Line or Veil to it. And clearly, make it anonymous. As mentioned earlier, this is a phrase lifted from the S&M community, and is BLEED about leaving room to emotionally support people and let them recover. I It’s less a tool, and more something you would advise for some time after a need to be aware of. Games exist in a game to just unpack with one another, magic circle – so you are not the talk about what got to them and their persona you play. If I stab and kill you in feelings about what occurred. game, it’s not because of my personal enmity to you – it’s my persona’s This is another good reason to plan so personal enmity to you. “Bleed” (as your session does not run to the time coined by Emily Care Boss) is what someone has to run for a train. If happens when the emotion of one someone has already left, check in on crosses into the other. them as soon as possible.

This is neither a good nor bad thing – As I said – the above safety tools are the some people actively chase bleed to tip of iceberg, but they’ve been put first process, play with or experience intense in this section, even in this form, emotions. However others – especially because they are important.

ALTERNATIVE MODES OF PLAY

Here’s some thoughts on other ways of Then tweak the style of speaking like playing. so…

ONLINE PLAY “Take your DX. It’s a DX like any other. Close your hand. Concentrate. Now, DIE spends a lot of time on the physical open your hand. This DX? It’s the only DX fetishism of objects, especially dice. As in our game. It’s yours.” such, there’s obvious problems in terms of running it online. It may be especially useful to decide who gets what archetype before the Firstly, it’s worth spending some time to game even starts, to make sure they think of ways to tweak the scenario to have the right dice. I’m the sort of fancy suit the fact you’re all distributed all person who may actually mail each over the world. Maybe the group hasn’t character a package, with a “DO NOT actually all got together in real life, but OPEN UNTIL I TELL YOU” sticker on it. are still playing online. You’ll have to That’s me. change the room the personas get transported to, but bar that, there’s few For abilities where the dice is taken changes required. away from a player, encourage each player to have a bag or a cup where (There’s actually a set scenario for an they can put their dice, and symbolically online group over in the Arcana, if you remove it from. For passing to another want some inspiration.) player, place in the bag/cup and then just make a note. In terms of actually running it, there are three things to approach and think For passing players sheets like the about… Fallen, just mail it to them at an apposite moment. The Fallen is not a sheet that 1) real-world dice rolled locally and needs to be printed. everyone trusts everyone to be honest In short: muddle through. 2) computer dice at a shared source 3) do we use online character sheets? 2) Computer Dice Even if you do all the rolling digitally, I 1) Real World Dice would try to give each player access to This is the easiest one to fit directly into a physical version of their class dice, DIE, as it just involves working out even if they never actually roll it. As a alternate approaches. prop for them to interact with it can be useful, and various classes use their Obviously, you can’t pass a dice to the dice in a non-rolling way. player. Instead, you should check they have their own set of dice, and ensure However, with shared dice rooms online they have them to hand. it’s possible to get the dice fetishism even with no physical dice. For example, rollforyourparty.net lets you generate a

room with the dice of your choice area where you can all easily look at present. You share the link, then all them. players can see and interact with the dice in the room. Online RPG community The Gauntlet has a folder of “character keepers”. These So rather than passing the sheet and are Google spreadsheets which have the dice, before you say the “This is been customised to include all the your die. There is no other die like this in character information relevant to each this whole game. This is special. This is game. You copy the empty spreadsheet yours.” – instead you add the relevant to your own Google drive, and then dice to the room, and then encourage share it with your players. Obviously the player to move it to one edge of the make sure it can be edited. screen. There’s one for DIE created by official It’s worth noting on rollforyourparty.net hero of our realm David Morrison you are able to change the colour of the and you can find the Play Aids dice – this lets you identify the Fool’s D6 documentation here: and the Bad Dice. http://bit.ly/GauntletPlayAids

This will result in a play area that looks THE SINGLE SESSION something like this, allowing all players to have “ownership” of their dice while I originally thought this Beta would be still having access to a central pool of for a game that’d happily play in a single dice. evening. Wrong, I was.

That persona creation and character generation can balloon risks leaving no actual time to go on the real adventure. Plus a time gap between the mostly standardized first session and a second session whose encounters are entirely based upon the personas’ quirks mean you have time to sit back and think The main disadvantage of this is that about what may be fun. The the Fool’s dice doesn’t get to be disadvantage to running two sessions is scrawled upon, and they’d have to just that players will have forgotten bits of remember which number they’ve their persona or character between the written on. games but, on the balance, I think at least two sessions sits easier. 3) Do We Use Online Character Sheets? This isn't necessary, however. If you are You can play with local character confident enough to improvise sheets, with everyone having printed off encounters based on the above, you their sheet. can play in one longer session. Go ahead and do it. It's how I did all the first However, there is also an advantage in playtests of the game. having sheets gathered in a central

To trim the content slightly to fit more It's also worth noting that many of the easily into the session, you may above can be used in a two-session consider the following... game, especially suggestion 5.

1. Give more firm guidance to start THE HYPER CURTAILED SESSION Persona Generation. Give a setting, how each player knows each other If you want to, you can really cut this and suggest a key character in the baby short. Persona generation, group. It's easier to improvise ideas character generation, fight against the when given the specific prompt of Fallen and then straight onto the final “you're the old school computer confrontation with the Master. I’ve club” than “you were friends at played it in that format, and it still works school”. either as a big battle or actually sitting down and having a serious conversation 2. Use pre-generated characters. As about family issues that have led to you hand out the dice, hand out a their estrangement and/or being character sheet with the abilities kidnapped to a bleak fantasy world. already chosen. The disadvantage here is that it will reduce the time Over in the Arcana are a couple of pre- with the players playing their generated scenarios which create persona in real life, so give less structures for very quick-start and chance for people to establish (possibly) short-play games. themselves in “reality”. PLAYING WITH MULTIPLES OF THE 3. Use the Light versions of the second SAME CLASS (aka "THE HIGHLANDER sheets. VARIANT")

4. Cut the number of encounters before As standard, each player has a different the conclusion. Two encounters plus dice. There is no more than one Neo, the first confrontation against the Emotion Knight, etc. This is to feed into Fallen is a good number. You can the world, increase the importance of always add another one if it’s the dice fetishization and player running short. individuality. After all, each class can be personalised in radical ways. However... 5. Be very aware of how much time you have to play, and ensure you leave If you want to play with multiple players enough time for the final encounter of each class, simply do so. Do not and the epilogue. I would say that if change the actual ritual when there's an hour left of the session, distributed. Say there is only one of this you should be thinking of moving to dice, despite the fact another player the final encounter. Don't be afraid to clearly has one. bring the final encounter to the players if time is pressing. The See where it goes. Can both be right? Is Master can come and try and finish one wrong? The name of this variant them off. may give a clue to where I suspect the story will end up going.

This variant is really me just thinking of swift player death. You will likely use a party full of Emotion Knights, each other methods to bring people back to with a different emotion, running around life than the basic ‘eating another like a murderous version of Pixar's player’ – or make player death rarer. The Inside Out. easiest way to do that would be to avoid any instant death in any normal combat This is also the solution if you want to situations, and characters only die if not try and play a game with more than the revived by the end of the combat. recommended number of players. (They should die in some obvious “Oh, THE CAMPAIGN no, that person is dead” moment. Like being eaten by a dragon and then “BUT I DON'T WANT TO RUN THIS AS A pooped out the other end.) ONE-OFF!” you say, in capitals. I will mention one mechanic which I’m Hey! While written as a single scenario, playing around with, which is a third it can be run longer. It's not as if I can sort of damage – as well as Guard and stop you. If we develop this from the Health there are Hero points. Guard Beta, clearly this mode of play is regenerates every combat. Health only something we’d want to do. regenerates when a character is healed. Hero points are a resource which In the meantime, here’s some rule-of- includes the increased ability to survive thumb tactics for improvising chaos that True Heroes have. If you add advancement. I’d suggest letting each something like levels, for every level, player choose one new ability from their gain a Hero point. Hero Points are lost sheet for their character for every after Guard but before Health, and only adventure. I would advise against being regenerate between sessions. You able to increase statistics. I would also could try it so that Hero Points are lost consider starting characters with less only when you would lose the last point choices and a lower statline if you really of Health, meaning they extend your want to run a long campaign. Players “nearly dead” period rather than your are already extremely powerful in basic “totally healthy” period. This is entirely DIE. unplaytested, I stress.

For example, you could try starting the Finally, if you wish to run this as a Dictator with one emotion, the campaign, you'll have to bear in mind Godbinder with one god, the Neo with not to bring the character's interactions one piece of equipment, the Emotion to the boil until the final session. If the Knight with a cap on what level of sword party decide to go their separate ways attacks they can use, and the Fool early in the story, the game will without some of the ability to hand over effectively break. In the full edition, we'll their dice to the GM. Start the players have some helpful approaches to make with one four stat and one three stat the game operate even when the too. I say, off the top of my head. characters do go their separate ways. But for now, if you go further than one- Also note that if running a long offs or very short campaigns, you're campaign, the present system basically on your own. deliberately leads towards relatively

Good luck. Do tell me how you get on. For this playtest, I'd strongly suggest keeping to a mundane setting even if MAKING THE PERSONAS NOT OLD you're not old friends, but – hey – it's FRIENDS GETTING BACK TOGETHER your game.

This Beta has a standard scenario of old I would be particularly careful about gaming friends getting together. If your making them all strangers. Personas players seem particularly excited about who don’t know or care about each trying something else, you can try it. In a other will tend to lead towards a flat real way, the possibilities are basically experience. endless. Most importantly, if none of the For example: a playtest in a games personas had a previous fantasy company; a training exercise at work; an gaming experience, the adventure old people's home; a pick-up game at a generation described in this document con; group therapy; astronauts aboard will not work for the group. You’ll have a space station; Mad-Max-style to use some of the alternative world survivors in the ruins of civilization; generation tactics from the Arcana. Roman centurions on Hadrian's Wall circa 100AD. YOUR GAME SUCKS! DON’T WANNA PLAY YOUR GAME! I wouldn't necessarily jump to the idea that a weird situation is in any way There’s a lot of ideas in DIE. If you want better. The more mundane the real- to lift them and run your own game with world setting, the more credible the another system, go knock yourself out. resulting drama in the game will be when you put them in an unusual place. A persona design stage, followed by Playing cave people dealing with a character creation in whatever system modern fantasy world may be an of your choice, followed by being interesting role-playing challenge, but I transformed into those characters? suspect it’s one which is best for people That sounds like a fun time to me. Go who are already familiar with DIE. It’s knock yourself out. Be happy. I won’t also one which is gimmickier and mind. distances us from the reality of the scenario.

ENCOURAGING (AND LISTENING TO) PLAYERS

DIE is a role-playing game which Here’s some ways to make it simpler. presents a difficult role-playing problem. You’re playing a role-playing game Firstly, make it clear that when they are where someone is playing a role-playing transported to Die and are then game. That’s easy to get you confused, transformed into a fantasy warrior, they especially with new players who may be are still their persona. That Susana the having trouble with the whole “pretend” Library Clerk is now an eight-foot thing anyway. barbarian warrior with a sword that’s

telling her to murder doesn’t change the Jumanji” and while all the bleak horror fact that she’s still Susana. She’s just that implies is my personal preferred Susana with a whole lot of different mode of play for DIE, it’s not the only abilities, in a completely different body. one. You can completely run DIE as a comedy game if you want, and make it I have used the “mecha suit” metaphor. all about the comic juxtaposition You are the person you always were. between the people in the real world You’re just in this enormously powerful and their awesome (or limited) new body. forms. But even literal Jumanji could have turned into a heart-breaking thing As such, encourage them to react as if you let players at it. Maybe Geek Boy they think their persona would. Listen to wants to be the Rock so badly that he a player’s decisions, and respond to murders his peers to stay that way? them. Some personas, if threatened by a That’s the DIE way. monster and now have a huge sword, are going to use the sword. That means A regular thing, especially for new they’re going to lean into this heroic players, is to look down at their fantasy character. They probably want character sheet to see what ability to to give a straight-up fight. Other people, use. Try to discourage this. I regularly who are just as powerful abstractly, will ask players to “Look up at the fiction, say “I’m a fucking librarian and they are not down at your sheet.” Listen to the scary monsters. I’m clearly going to run situation the GM and players are away.” That tells you as the GM they describing, and answer honestly what want a different sort of experience, and you think you should do. Always trying you should listen to that too. They to find something clever to do almost always ends up weakening the fiction. probably want a chase sequence, which could either end up with them For example, a monster is about to come embracing their abilities or some other into the room you’re in. You could look manner of escape. Don’t punish a player down on your sheet and work out a for making honest, interesting choices. whole thing about bartering with a god Expect to have a mix – many games to create an ice wall or anything else. have some characters who are virtually And maybe that’s fun. catatonic in shock, while others are treating the whole thing as a literal But the “I shut the fucking door” is the videogame. The interaction between response which rings truest, to me. these two sorts of characters can be golden. Doing the obvious thing makes the world realer, and gives people solid dramatic Seen the recent remake of Jumanji? I situations to build on. describe DIE in interviews as “goth

PLAYERS PLAYING AS PERSONAS

There is a tension in DIE’s design which means they will likely be lying, because is difficult to circumvent. In practice, people lie. your group will find their own way. The problem is the transition from the real The solution is to regularly mine for world to Die. Before that, we move from information, especially when you all players (including the Master) being suspect a persona is acting contrary to in character with everything they do, to their desires. A question structure which the Master taking a more traditional is effective is one which separates the Gamesmaster role, providing narrative. player from the persona. For example, “PLAYER NAME, how is PERSONA NAME Some players instinctively mimic the really feeling right now?” That prompts Master’s choice, and start playing in a the answer you’re looking for. Doing it more traditional way, treating their will also put the idea into players’ character more like a playing piece, heads, and they’ll be more likely to moving between speaking as their signal where their actions differ from character and narrating their character their persona’s actual feelings. from the outside, leaning towards the latter. Others go the other way, and For example, in this group Bertha is carry on playing their persona who is playing Antony. Players are about to controlling their character. enter a cave consisting of spiders with the face of Antony’s teenage bully on. There isn’t a right option here. At least, at the moment, I don’t think there’s a GM: So, everyone want to continue? right option. A group should find its own Everyone else: Hell yeah! rhythm. Bertha: Yeah, okay. I’m with you guys. GM: Bertha – how is Antony actually The only problem with players choosing feeling right now? to stay in persona at all times is Bertha: Utterly terrified. He’s just information flow towards the Master. become an arachnophobe too, but he’s The game is reliant on the Master (and, always been vulnerable to peer in fact, the other players) knowing what pressure so is going along. a persona is really going through, so GM: Great. Onwards. they can tailor their choices towards

PREMISE REJECTION ideas about what to do if someone does. This is a concept I first heard codified by In practice, a player who bails at this Robin D. Laws, specifically in his point is either someone who wants to podcast with Kenneth Hite: Robin and detonate games or an experienced Ken Talk about Stuff. Google and go player who is trying to play with the listen. limitations of the game. For the former, there’s nothing you can do. For the Premise rejection is when a player (or latter, showing you’re open to them the whole group) rejects the reason why seeing how long the leash is is fine. they’re playing the game. Imagine the council in Rivendell in Lord of the Rings However, once the players are actually where everyone’s meeting to decide inside the realm of Die, there’s basically what to do about the ring of Sauron, and very little they can do which counts as the players all come down hard on (at premise rejection. What’s interesting is best) using this evil artefact as a cock that players may believe they are ring and (at worst) just deciding to leave rejecting the premise when in fact the ring here and go back to Hobbiton to premise rejection in many forms is hopefully sexytimes with Rosie. 100% part of the game. The most common one is “This is not real. I will not It’s something all games have the act like it’s real.” possibility of, based upon a lack of what is described as “buy in”. Buy in is The solution comes from the story basically the players not agreeing (or you’ve set up. Follow the rules as set up understanding) why they’re there. If in the world. Players who don’t grab the you’re playing a horror game, and you dice have 2 in all statistics. Players who run away from the scary mansion, you don’t engage with threats are killed, and are rejecting the premise. If you’re become Fallen. Players who die playing a game of heroic adventure and repeatedly become Fallen repeatedly, you run away from the heroic and have their strength and will slip adventure, you’re rejecting the premise. away.

There is a lot about DIE’s design which They key thing is to not make this tries to mitigate this. The stuff at the appear vindictive. It’s neutral. It’s just start where you say broadly what the stuff that’s happening, which is game is? That’s meant to explain to interesting. A player acting like the people what we’re here to do. While universe isn’t real will have to dropping someone into a fantasy world experience the horror of a universe that and let them act however they wish may has no interest in their solipsism. This is seem to be a recipe for players being a really interesting story. How can they awkward, there is actually only one find their way back from that? Well, moment in DIE when player rejection that’s also in the “Running The Fallen” matters. It’s the section in the persona- section, right? playing section where a persona wishes to leave the table. Clearly, someone just However, there’s two ways in which wanting to walk out of the game is a premise rejection happens – either part problem, which is why I floated some of the party or the whole of the party.

If part of the party rejects the premise in ill, and have him send problems at the some way, and the other part goes on heroes (either from in-world situations an adventure, you have part of the or using his powers). This makes it a group who are in some ways “It’s him or us” situation, and if the defenceless. Do a scene with the main players come to the Master, we get the group, and then skip back to the conclusion that way. If not, the Master dissenters. Now, they’re either not doing comes to them, which does the same anything, or not taking the magical (based on the same concepts of abilities we’ve offered them. Die is a escalation as described in the earlier hostile place. Even if the Master is rules – as in, pushing towards a final friendly, the Grandmaster who is above decision from the group). all our bullshit isn’t. All manner of awful stuff can happen, which likely kills them, Equally, there is the core problem of the which likely makes them become Fallen world they’re in – they either all go (with all the descriptions of physical home, or all stay, and if they don’t come horror as part of that) and gives them a to a decision, the world ends. nod. Eventually, if they do nothing, they’re all going to die. Some players who are now cybernetic zombies will likely try to catch up to the (And in the game!) party. They do so, and reenter the main story. If they continue not wanting to be If you really desperately want the anything… well, I’d ask them if they want Master to remain sympathetic, to see how this ends up. If they do, tell remember Die itself is hostile and them to go play videogames and you’ll there’s always the Grandmaster. Die shout at the climax where you can itself wants players dead. Die likes reintegrate them. If not, tell them to go Fallen. home. I’d never invite them to play a game again. In a real way, the world is a closed circuit. Players do things. Reactions Second is absolute premise rejection by happen. See how the players respond to everyone – where the party just refuses the reactions. Onwards. At the absolute to engage with what you’ve thrown worse, all the players will end up as upon them, and head off and do their Fallen and so be trapped in Die forever. own thing. And the story about how a group of This is actually the easier one. The gamers get lost forever in their players are in a world controlled (to fantasies is 100% a story. some degree) by their antagonist. Respond to what they want to do, but be TL; DR: there is no premise rejection aware that your Master is there. You will when all their rejections are part of the likely want to make your Master more a premise. pure antagonist who wishes the party

WORLDBUILDING AND EFFECT ON THE FINAL

DECISION get to rework it, somehow. Even then, To state the obvious: the nature of the their whole experience being in the world you visit highly skews the odds on weird, warped world is not likely to the final decision. tempt them.

The weirder you make the setting, the The more “normal” you make the setting more likely players are to leave. Even if (and the more the Master is clearly the they’re going to rule it now, living in a villain of the world, and the world would hellish dimension full of warped be fine without it) the more likely you elements is not something that’s push someone into wanting to stay. attractive. The exception here is if they

VILLAINS VS. ANTAGONISTS

We’ve touched on this at multiple times sympathetic, and more avenues for in the above document, both in terms of compromise. the persona design and the end-game, but it’s worth highlighting here. For example, I ran a game of siblings who used to play together. The DIE game There are very good reasons why was on the night before the Master’s someone may choose to stay in Die. This wedding. He was gay, in the closet, and is especially important when thinking of incapable of coming out to his parents. your Master. The Master is the person However, while he is trying to hide from who set this story in action – they may their judgement as he thinks they not have believed it would actually wouldn’t understand him, he also thinks work, but they have brought all the his sisters are just as estranged from other personas into this world. reality. He thinks it’s good for everyone to be here. When choosing a Master from a marginalised group, whose reason for The game is set up for a greater wanting to go to Die is related to their potential for compromise with the identity, it is especially important to Master once the Master realises the think through the game’s implications. others want to go home. Or not. If I’d made the scenario that the guy just The above is not to say marginalised wanted to disappear to his gay people can’t be villains – that denies wonderland and to hell with everyone their humanity. But to make them else, it’d have read very differently. entirely one-note villains solely based on the pain connected to their identity is This is a relatively mild example of what something else. If you use that pain as you could go with in terms of a Master’s the motivation for your Master, think desire – a trans character wanting a about ways to make them more way out of severe dysmorphia, a

character wanting to escape chronic of ending. Read the session write-up pain and so on. You likely don’t agree "Girl Group" in the Arcana for an with them choosing to bring other example of how one group navigated a people along, but that does not make connected space. them monstrous. It speaks to desperation. Generally speaking, with a Bar sensitivity, there are also other sympathetic antagonist it’ll be skewing strengths to a more sympathetic the odds towards an ending based on antagonist, especially when you are tied compromise and greater understanding to a party with powerful urges to stay or of the real pain of the Master, which leave. If the antagonist is more passive, likely changes the personas’ actions in it leaves the decision to the players, the real world. which centres the game on them.

Dragging people you love into another The more conflicted the group, the less world is a cry for help. If someone cries, you need an aggressive Master to you always hope someone listens. provoke a meaningful climax.

The worst-case scenario is the Conversely, a simple villain Master complete rejection of that, and can lead streamlines the story. It’s more likely to to an ending which recapitulates be funtimes for everyone with someone societal violence against that group. I you don’t mind stabbing. would be personally uncomfortable with a group who didn't have exceptional You play to find out how a game ends, sensitivity, likely born of personal but you should be aware of how you’re experience, pushing towards that kind stacking the deck with your choices.

TWEAKING THE ENDGAME

There is also the chance that the game up homeless in the real world in the will reach a point where your narrative aftergame, it is still a very different sort seems to want a happier ending than those described by firmly following the of ending, based on a GM deciding the rules. This is a game which actively group would be happiest to dodge the wants to see what a persona will do to Sophie’s Choice of it all. get what they want, which essentially leads to the awful idea of “What would Strictly speaking, at this point they’re this person actually murder for?” It’s not actually playing DIE. That’s fine. I’m possible something that hard would not going to hack into your computer break the atmosphere that has and delete the PDF in a huff. Making the emerged. game your own has always been a key part of RPGs. This is your game now. I’ve heard playtesters turn to devices, Still... there's certainly good reasons to for example turning to Major Godbinder keep it on the table for as long as Miracles to bring loved ones to join them possible. I'd normally advise to at least in DIE, and managing to send a single start the universe collapsing before person home. While that person ended giving them a compromise way out.

It'll raise the stakes and make them relieved when they don't have to go through with it.

THE OBVIOUS THING ABOUT LABYRINTH SOME OF YOU MAY HAVE MISSED

This risks patronising some of you, but while thinking about DIE, or fantasy bear with me. It's a useful example if you generally. Hell, the Goblin King is a pretty know it already. close analogue to the role the Master plays in DIE. It’s about Sarah, a dreamy girl on the edge of young adulthood, rebelling Anyway – the obvious thing. It's relevant against parental authority who for DIE. accidentally gets her kid brother kidnapped by the Goblin King. She All the things Sarah meets during her enters his realm, traverses a labyrinth travels in the labyrinth are the toys in full of weird stuff which forms a series her bedroom. Literally. Everything she of challenges. She eventually meets we see in her bedroom overcomes them, and triumphs, entering beforehand. adulthood while still holding onto the love of all this fantasy. They are cultural detritus which the story transforms into the dressing of DIE is darker than Labyrinth, but the the mythic challenges. They are pop point of the story structure (and many culture turned into whimsical horror set story structures like it) remains the dressing. same. You go to fantasy to discover something about yourself and return In short: look for the toys in the understanding yourself better. Labyrinth persona's bedroom. is definitely one worth rewatching

DIE, NARRATIVE RPGS AND THE MARSHMALLOW MAN RULE

I’ll save most of my worst rambling for childhood. Who are they? Tell me about the Arcana, but let’s sign off with this. them.”

I’d argue the major mode of narrative Clearly, the examples are coarse, and RPGs at the moment involves players even the traddest of RPGs often have influencing the game world’s creation some elements of the player-as-world- directly. As in, rather than the GM generators (How many long character creating the world the player moves bios did we write in the 1980s?) but the through, the players and the GM point is there. Players get to add collaborate in some way to create the important elements to the setting and details of the reality, not just the actions guide the narrative in meaningful and of the players’ characters in an powerful ways. The argument is that if environment. the players have made the world, it means more to them. This operates across a whole world of scales. These games are great. Frankly, most of the games I play are these sorts of For example, in an early minor way games. foreshadowing this, Hong Kong Cinema combat game Feng Shui encouraged DIE doesn’t tend to work like this. At players to invent items to use mid- least, not always. combat. So, if the fight is in the bar, players may say throw someone into a The players have lots of room to create one-armed bandit sending coins flying things at the persona level. They can everywhere. Until the player invented it, create almost everything about there was no one-armed bandit – the themselves and their identity. And, as responsibility is devolved from the GM to we’ve talked about, this will then be the players. It’s a device to add to the interpreted by the GM to create freewheeling action-setpiece of the situations to move or horrify the player. genre it describes. This principle is a useful one to consider More narrative games give the players throughout DIE. The players have given even more power; moments where they the GM something… but they don’t know can get to dictate things. For example, how it will turn out, or what it’s for. This to use a trad RPG setting, if the players is designed to create a level of fear of discover a nest of orcs, in a traditional what could happen, but also mystery. game, the players would assume the GM You simply don’t know what the has a map, and the details of who’s in consequences of some actions will be, there and why. In a game of Dungeon and that is both terrifying, but also a World or similar, there may be a moment delight. when the GM asks “the orcs have captured someone who you know from While the majority of these are based around persona generation, or the open-

ended persona generation above – the And it’s lucky that Ray made that equivalent of “Tell me about your bully choice, as I always thought that their from childhood” “” “Well, this monster doomed. If they think of nothing, I dare that just walked in the room looks like say that it’s not that the world wouldn’t that guy” – it doesn’t have to be just end… it would be that an Evil that. I encourage using the principle Nothingness would consume everyone. widely. And that’s a damn sight harder to fight than a Marshmallow man. Listen to the players. Do something with what they give you. For all the fun and power in being able to make stuff up in a narrative RPG, there For example, to use a playful example, I is a genuine magic to a player saying once asked the players to name a work what they want to do and the GM of art. They named the awesome ‘Truth leaning over and telling them what Climbs Out Of Her Well’. At which point, I happened. There is a verisimilitude to it introduce a Godzilla-sized Truth Climbs being out of your control – which is what Out Of Her Well into the game. most narrative games use the dice for. Being listened to. Being cared for. Point being, the players have huge power – but the response is Because really? The GM as Master isn't unpredictable. They know whatever true. The GM is a servant. They are choice they make, it will be fed into the attentively acting as a player’s senses, game in some way out of their control… and every time they do so, they are But it will certainly impact it. They can’t deeply submissive. Each description is a avoid it. little love letter, written directly to the player. There is a play to each player’s And we think of the Ghostbusters, at the ego here, and even when describing the end of the original movie, told to choose worst things, this is for them. the shape of the destroyer of the planet. They try to avoid thinking of anything, Once again, we return to the Goblin King: but Ray thinks of the Marshmallow Man, “I have done it all for you.” and a hundred tonnes of confectionery is going to fuck up New York. Have fun.

That is a very DIE moment. Kieron Gillen London

GAMEOGRAPHY reasons, but I can’t say I wasn’t tempted. If you’re thinking of questions I played a lot of games in the last few like “How to play responsibly” this slim, years, for the writing of DIE – both the elegant and brilliant tome is just comic and the game. Frankly, all of them wonderful. For the record, if you were to influenced this RPG, indirectly or try and run a WicDiv RPG, this is your directly. At the absolute least, doing it choice. brought a sharp focus on how I play a game, what I like and what I don’t. Alas Vegas A game which, for some reason, I keep But these are ones I can trace specific on thinking is called Alan Vegas. Father elements to. That I can remember. of indie-RPG’s James Wallis’ latest There’s more, and I’ll add ’em as I recall. project, a personal and deeply weird game of Lynch-in-Vegas amnesiac Paranoia horror. The main influence was tonal – in The first RPG I ever played as a teenager that, it’s such a charismatic, which made me realise that game argumentative manual where the writer design, in all its parts, could be art. Also, is rejecting the neutral, service-industry that art includes slapstick. The idea that tone of many indie-RPGs in favour of just intra-party aggression and player coming in big and forwarding itself as an death, if framed correctly to serve a active collaborator in the game. DIE isn’t higher aesthetic purpose, could be a anywhere near that far, but as much as feature not a bug starts here. Paranoia, this was a tonal influence in how the rules could be expressed. Dungeon World/Apocalypse World I think it’s fair to call D. Vincent Baker When the Dark Is Gone and Meguey Baker’s Apocalypse World Not actually an influence on DIE itself, the single most influential RPG of the but working an interesting parallel 10s, creating its own narrative indie sub- evolution. Becky Annison’s game genre. In terms of direct influence Sage (collected in Pelgrane Press’ Seven LaTorra and Adam Koebel’s Dungeon Wonders anthology) has all the players World – a narrative RPG that tries to as a therapy group of adults, looking capture the idea of how D&D feels to back at their time as teenagers who play – is the one you can see most finger went to a fantasy world. If you’re prints on. DIE has little mechanically in interested in the emotional terrain that common with either game, but DIE owes DIE explores, and want to try something a huge amount to its grammar, visual that’s away from traditional D&D, you design and especially how the Powered really should look at this. by Apocalypse games use playbooks. M.E.R.P.S. Monsterhearts 2 The ICE Middle-earth RPG, and the first Talking of Apocalypse World… Avery thing I ever played. Generally speaking, Adler’s Monster Hearts 2 is a game of whenever I made a dumb, instinctive sexy queer teenage angsty monsters, decision when designing DIE it’s harked and a metaphor run gloriously rampant. I back to some formative thing I picked up always say, Ginger Snaps the RPG. DIE from this. I would never play this game doesn’t mechanise relationships like in 2019, but I simultaneously can’t Monsterhearts does for aesthetic escape it. How can I not mention it?

Fiasco The Mountain Witch Jason Morningstar’s seminal narrative Narrative RPG which describes itself as storytelling game is, to use the idiom of Seven Samurai meets Reservoir Dogs, the 1980s games press, a Coen- which gives you an idea of how the brothers-’em-up. I’ve played a lot of inter-party relations end up. As an narrative games since, but Fiasco is example of how a final scene can turn what made me realise I could start a on the party turning on itself (or not), it game like I start DIE. It wouldn’t surprise was something I studied closely. me if a later edition has more mechanised and guided group- PLAYTESTERS generation options either. Mink ette, Abigail Brady, Alex Sarrl, Wil Halo Cornish, Chrissy Williams, Laurie Penny, Invented the “shield and health” dual- Claire Gamble, Pablo Vazquez, Ellis health system in videogames, which is a Saxey, Daniel Nye Griffiths, Alex clear influence on the damage system in Paynter, Marta Maria Casetti, Mark DIE. The mechanic meant that rather Sable, Juliette Capra, Steve than fights either being entirely safe Lauterwasser, Stephanie Hans, Tia (when your health is high) or entirely Vasiliou, Jody Houser, Taliesin Jaffe, deadly (when your health is low) it Sarah Gordon, Adlai McCook, Alex pushed all fights towards that razor Spencer, Alex Hern, Ram V, Dan Watters, edge. Tom Armitage, Sarah Jaffe, Dave Aldhouse, Duncan Thomas, Valeria Blades in the Dark Ragni. Cyrus Nations, Jack Tang- John Harper’s excellent game of magic- Cockerill!, Henry White, Aaron Silverman, punk Peaky Blinders gang warfare. It’s a Cory Hodge, Ben "Books" Schwartz, fascinating game – one of the most Carrie Marx, Jenni Hill, Elizabeth interesting on this list – but the Sandifer, Penn Wiggins, Anna Wiggins, influence is less in the game, and more Nassira Nicola, Emily Stewart, Marieke how it teaches its rules. It’s a hell of a Nijkamp, Francesca Zappia, Rebecca manual, and worth unpacking. Coffindaffer, John Denning, Kevin Grubb, Claire Salant, Wright Rickman, Josh Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay (3rd Kaufman, Rocky, Chad Owen, Buddy Edition) Pollack, Ella Moran, Matthew Lettini, The system which grew into the Tyler Cooke, Michael Rathbone, Anne Genesys started here. I always knew Perry, Jared Shurin, Fleur Clarke, that DIE would run off a dice pool Andrew Griffin. Goose the Cat. Jazzlyn system (not least because dice pools Stone, BenHaMeen, Mark Sable, and were the new hotness in 1991 when Sol everyone out there who’s played this would have abstractly made the game) Beta. but “reading” a pool of dice for more information than just “Success/Not SPECIAL THANKS TO… Success” led to the Special rules in DIE. Mink ette, Jenni Hill, Ray Fawkes, Rian Legend/Lords of Chaos Hughes, Chrissy Williams, Mark Sable Two RPG/strategy games with spell construction systems which are the clear influence for DIE’s magic rules.