[Mighty Thews] Sample Characters!

[zakarntson]

I've got one roguelike and two roleplaying games seriously in the works. The roguelike is now displaying borders. Not much to go on there. One of the RPGs is running under the design goal of, "If I could redesign the D&D Red Box that was given to me at Christmas, what would it be?" So far it's a combination of old-school (Strength! Intelligence! 2000XP!) and less-old-school (Solve Rolls! Persuade Rolls! Quests! Deeds!). But not ready for sharing. What Burning Wheel did to Shadowrun is what this does to Basic D&D. Sort of.

The other, Mighty Thews, holds these three design tenets:

• Players roll the dice.
• Players have only three decision points required at any one time.
• An entire game can be run in one evening.

Below, an example of two characters made during the same session.
Cyril the Hand, ex-Scarlet Lion and ne'er do well
City-born, Dog of War, Demonbound
Thews: 4
Guile: 3
Weird: 2
Trait: Scrapper
Key: Gerhart, ex-Scarlet Lion, bastard son of the Patrician Solitius, fighting companion and friend in misdeeds.
Demon: Schemer
Setting:

• Evenkeel, the Righteous City. Murderer's Block, the overlooked district.
• The Scarlet Lions, sword-arm of the Council and occasional defenders against the barbarian tribes of the Westwold (ex-member).
• Lawgiver, spirit-bound sword. Unfortunately pilfered from the Founders' Mausoleum, deep beneath the city streets.

Drives:

• Key: Gerhart lies mortally-wounded, or nearly so, savaged by Westwold beasts. I will find and slay this monster and its cohorts.
• Setting: I must divest myself of this weapon; its need for justice and honor is driving me mad!
• Fate: Lawgiver demands I bring Gerhart's attackers to justice through lawful and honorable means.

Briak, son of Whispering Claws, newly-introduced to the civilized world
Savage-raised, Feral Bastard, Roaming Soul
Thews: 5
Guile: 2
Weird: 2
Trait: Untameable
Key: Whispering Claws in the Wood, Dire Jaguar and adoptive mother.
Circumstance: Unlucky in Love
Setting:

• The dour Kynnerians of the misty Westwold.
• The Shield Gate of Evenkeel, western entrance to the Righteous City.
• Cavhan, the Red River. Flows down from the mountains of the Westwold and through Evenkeel.

Drives:

• Key: Whispering Claws should not have followed me; not only can I take care of myself, but now I must repair the damage she has done.
• Setting: I must stop the Righteous City from expanding its outposts and settlements any further into the Westwold.
• Fate: How am I to convince my new lover, Outpost General Albia, to stop her beast hunt?