Post by The Director on Jan 17, 2007 13:52:10 GMT
While most crunchy game mechanic stuff is left up to The Director to fiddle about with behind the scenes, Drama Points are 100% in the players' hands.
Quoted from the Quickstart Rules: Drama Points are the great equalizers between the Slayer and the Slayerettes. They are what keep Xander’s insides inside after some of the pummeling he’s taken over the years, and what allows Buffy’s mom to knock down Spike with one blow from an axe. Which is not to say Heroes don’t need them; nothing beats a Drama Point or two when you need to dust a half-dozen vamps in time to save the world.
Drama Points can be used in several ways:
Heroic Feat
By spending a Drama Point, the character gets a +10 bonus on some value. This can be an attack or defense roll, or any use of a skill, or even for a Fear or Survival Test. The Heroic Feat can also make things hurt more; the +10 bonus is added to the base damage in addition to any Success Level bonuses (then armour, damage type and other modifiers are applied). Also, only one Heroic Feat may be performed in a Turn.
I Think I’m OK
For a mere Drama Point, half the Life Point damage (round down) the character has taken up to that point is healed up. I Think I’m Okay can be used only once per Turn, but it can be used several Turns in a row, each use halving whatever damage remains. If the character had suffered enough damage to be incapacitated or unconscious, however, healing does not necessarily awaken her. You decide if the time is right for the character to revive and join the action.
Plot Twist
Once per game session, each character can spend a Drama Point and get a "break." This is not a Get Out of Jail Free Card. If the heroine stupidly walked into a vampires’ lair and she is surrounded by a horde of bloodsuckers, a Plot Twist won’t allow her to escape unscathed. If you decide that a Plot Twist is not possible, the player gets back the Drama Point.
Righteous Fury
By spending two Drama Points, the character gets a +5 bonus to all attack actions, including magical attacks, for the duration of the fight. These benefits are cumulative with Heroic Feats, above. Problem is, an appropriate provocation is necessary to invoke the Righteous Fury rule. A player can’t decide her character is pissed about the existence of vampires, or global warming, or even the mystery meatloaf they served at school that morning. She needs to be truly provoked.
When you think it might be necessary to use a Drama Point try to write it in your reply in a "dramatic" way. (e.g." I dodge out the way of the hail of bullets with a half-mumbled 'I think I'm okay' ... chalk up another lucky escape for the nosey reporter!")
Final note on Drama Points. Once spent they are gone ... for good. Although you can earn new ones through good roleplaying, great quotes and ideas, adopting a sucky sub-plot or a bad plot twist that puts you in a difficult position but makes for a great story etc
Basically, you can:
(a) Improve your chances of achieving something that would normally be a longshot (e.g. defusing the bomb in time, landing that crucial punch etc)
(b) Survive wounds that would take out a normal person.
(c) Engineer a lucky break for yourself (and the plot).
(d) Get really, really angry and pump yourself up for inflicting 'righteous' pain (without turning into The Incredible Hulk).
Drama Points can also be used to bring back characters from apparent death. This is pop culture TV! So make sure you hold onto a decent amount if you are going into a life or death situation ... (just to keep "life" as an option!)
Quoted from the Quickstart Rules: Drama Points are the great equalizers between the Slayer and the Slayerettes. They are what keep Xander’s insides inside after some of the pummeling he’s taken over the years, and what allows Buffy’s mom to knock down Spike with one blow from an axe. Which is not to say Heroes don’t need them; nothing beats a Drama Point or two when you need to dust a half-dozen vamps in time to save the world.
Drama Points can be used in several ways:
Heroic Feat
By spending a Drama Point, the character gets a +10 bonus on some value. This can be an attack or defense roll, or any use of a skill, or even for a Fear or Survival Test. The Heroic Feat can also make things hurt more; the +10 bonus is added to the base damage in addition to any Success Level bonuses (then armour, damage type and other modifiers are applied). Also, only one Heroic Feat may be performed in a Turn.
I Think I’m OK
For a mere Drama Point, half the Life Point damage (round down) the character has taken up to that point is healed up. I Think I’m Okay can be used only once per Turn, but it can be used several Turns in a row, each use halving whatever damage remains. If the character had suffered enough damage to be incapacitated or unconscious, however, healing does not necessarily awaken her. You decide if the time is right for the character to revive and join the action.
Plot Twist
Once per game session, each character can spend a Drama Point and get a "break." This is not a Get Out of Jail Free Card. If the heroine stupidly walked into a vampires’ lair and she is surrounded by a horde of bloodsuckers, a Plot Twist won’t allow her to escape unscathed. If you decide that a Plot Twist is not possible, the player gets back the Drama Point.
Righteous Fury
By spending two Drama Points, the character gets a +5 bonus to all attack actions, including magical attacks, for the duration of the fight. These benefits are cumulative with Heroic Feats, above. Problem is, an appropriate provocation is necessary to invoke the Righteous Fury rule. A player can’t decide her character is pissed about the existence of vampires, or global warming, or even the mystery meatloaf they served at school that morning. She needs to be truly provoked.
When you think it might be necessary to use a Drama Point try to write it in your reply in a "dramatic" way. (e.g." I dodge out the way of the hail of bullets with a half-mumbled 'I think I'm okay' ... chalk up another lucky escape for the nosey reporter!")
Final note on Drama Points. Once spent they are gone ... for good. Although you can earn new ones through good roleplaying, great quotes and ideas, adopting a sucky sub-plot or a bad plot twist that puts you in a difficult position but makes for a great story etc
Basically, you can:
(a) Improve your chances of achieving something that would normally be a longshot (e.g. defusing the bomb in time, landing that crucial punch etc)
(b) Survive wounds that would take out a normal person.
(c) Engineer a lucky break for yourself (and the plot).
(d) Get really, really angry and pump yourself up for inflicting 'righteous' pain (without turning into The Incredible Hulk).
Drama Points can also be used to bring back characters from apparent death. This is pop culture TV! So make sure you hold onto a decent amount if you are going into a life or death situation ... (just to keep "life" as an option!)