EDIT:
Not a single taker after 24+ hours? I guess board game based RPs just aren't a thing people are interested in here in Casual.
Nevermind then, consider this idea cancelled.
Dragon's
Keep
Keep
Synopsis:
We've all heard the rumors, haven't we? The tale about that old, abandoned keep that stands alone atop that hill? The place which opens up every morning at the exact same time, but also closes its doors as soon as the clock strikes midnight. How many people have gone inside and tried to poke around, only to never come back out again over the years and decades now? But who can blame them? They say the place is packed fulled of treasure, loot and valuables, all supposedly gathered and hoarded by a greedy dragon over the course of hundreds of years.
So, you have heard the stories, and decided to come anyway? You're actually going to head out and enter that place as soon as the doors open tomorrow? That's some kind of courage you got there friend, or perhaps you're desperate or crazy. Or all three, hah! Tell you what, if you manage to get back out from that death-trap, stop by and show me any of the shiny baubles you picked up, yeah? I'd love to know if it's actually worse risking your life to venture in there.
... Into that damned Dragon's Keep.
-- Drunken Patron at the Plump Pig Tavern
Foreword:
Hello and welcome to Dragon's Keep.
To kick things off, this is more of a board game than an actual roleplay. Or rather, it's primarily a board game with some roleplay elements, since we can't really use cards and dice on a virtual platform.
This is a game based on one of my favorite board game's from back when I was a wee one, long, long ago. Sadly, in my adult years, I never managed to find an intact version of the boxed game, nor anyone who sold a complete (or undamaged) set of the game either. So, I decided to do the next best thing, and recreate the experience and game in a text-format.
Now, there are some differences and I've taken some creative liberties, both with the mechanics and rules and other bits and bobs. But largely, on the whole, this game should hold true to and follow very close to the physical version of the game. So, if you're interested in playing a quick little game of "dungeoneering" where the goal is to go in, get loot and then get back out, within a set time limit, then feel free to sign up!
This RP can at max accomodate 4 players, but I'll be happy to set up the OOC as long as a single person joins in. Remember, this will be a very short game, due to how the mechanics and system works. If you're not in dice rolling and not having complete and total freedom over results, or even your own character, then this is not the game for you.
But, if you want to play a board game with a bit of roleplay, be at the whim of dice and chance, then you might enjoy this.
If, after reading the very unpolished and unstructured rulesets and mechanics below, you still have questions or am confuzzled, just let me know. I'll get back to you with an answer asap.
MAP™:
1. T ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ T
2. ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤
3. ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤
4. ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ $ $ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤
5. ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤
6. ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤
7. T ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ T
#. A b c d E F g h i J
2. ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤
3. ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤
4. ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ $ $ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤
5. ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤
6. ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤
7. T ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ T
#. A b c d E F g h i J
Character Stats:
When making your character, you get 30 Stat Points to distribute freely among all the primary statistics of your hero. There are no increasing costs for putting many points into the same stat - though aside from your HP, a stat can only be increased up to a ma of 10. Also keep in mind that all your stats need to have at least 1 point in them.
The stats are in the hider below.
Whenever you use a stat to determine if you fail or succeed, you will roll a D12. If the result is equal or lower than your stat's value, you succeed. If you go over your stat's value, you fail. So, if you have Dex of 7 and rolled a 7, you would succeed. But anything above a 7 would be a failure.
Map Movement & Turns:
The game starts at 6:00 AM and goes to 00:00 AM. Each 'turn' (post from a player) consumes 1 hour. You're in a cursed keep belonging to a magic dragon, of course time is wonky here! That being said, this isn't always the case and an ironclad rule, there are exceptions, of course. Generally speaking, one can takeeither a "Major Action" or "Minor Action" during their turn.
Major Actions are things like moving to a new, or previously explored, room. Investigating the room you're currently in. Attempting a challenge in the current room you're in. And of course, fighting an enemy in the room you're in.
Minor Actions are things like Picking/Bashing open a locked door or chest. Trying to Disable/Disarm a trap. Drinking a Healing Potion or using any other similar item/consumable. Trading with another player (if they're in the same room). Picking up 1 piece of treasure upon entering a new room.
As for moving about, it's really simple. You can move one "tile" or space on the map per turn. You can also only move in cardinal directions (west, east, north and south), you cannot move diagonally on the board. Also, obviously, you can only move in a direction if there's actually a path or doorway leading that way. Of course, even if you enter a dead end, you can always try and search for a hidden/trap door.
Back to the time thing though. Since you have from 6 in the morning until midnight, you effectively have 18 turns to spend. Note, you have to be standing on, or move onto, one of the four Towers on your last turn. Otherwise, you get locked inside the keep during the night and monsters will eat your face. And not in a good way.
Map Symbols:
T = Tower (Staring/Exit point)
¤ = Room Tile
$ = Treasure Room Tile
Please keep in mind that the treasure room(s) (which is actually just one big room that takes up two spaces on the map) can only be entered via either the north or south sides. It cannot be entered from the left or right. Keep this in mind when planning out your route to get to the center.
Combat & Exploration:
Whenever you enter a "tile", you'll be given a description of the area, along with any important details you may need. Things like what your character sees, if there's anything of note, if there's treasure immediately visible upon entering the place, if there're any enemies and, o course, which ways you can actually proceed onward (if any). All rooms that are explored/visited at least once, we'll be recorded and added to a list in the Character Tab in order to keep track of things - as there's no graphical map.
Note that things like traps are sprung the moment you enter a room/area. Unless you're using a specific item/treasure to avoid them, you'll always have to roll the appropriate stat-check at the start of your turn for results.
Similarily, fights are not conducted post-by-post. All fights are - mechanically - done via PMs in order to determine the outcome. The Player is then responsible for re-telling the fight (as they see fit) in their post. This means you can be as dramatic and gratuitous as you want, or keep it very bare-bones and simple, depending on your prefered style of writing.
How fights acually work though is as such:
All players and all enemies will roll a D20. Their individual Battle Prowess (BP) is then added as a bonus score ontop of whatever the result is. So, if a player has a BP of 8 and an enemy has a BP of 4, and the player rolls a 10 and the enemy a 15, the end results would be; Player 10+8 = 18. Enemy 15+4 = 19. This means that the enemy would "win", and deal damage to the player based on their method of attack.
In the case of a draw, where both player and enemy gets the same Combat Score result (D20+BP), the winner is decided based on the largest stat-variable gap of Strenght and Dexterity. This means you compare the player's Str and Dex to the enemy, and whoever has the bigger differential value, wins. So say, a player has Str 6 and Dex 10, and an enemy has Str 8 but Dex 6. This would mean that in a draw, the player would win, as their Dex is 10 compared to the neemy's 6, which is a 4 point difference, rather than the strength, which is only a 2 point difference.
Players are the only ones who can decide to abandon and try to flee from a fight. Otherwise, every battle is a fight to the death. If you want to try and flee from a fight, you must roll a successful Str or Dex check (whicheve ris your highest stat). If you succeed, you escape to the previous room you came from. If you fail the eny gets a free hit on you and the fight goes on - unless you try to run away again.
Oh, and you can investigate and search a room that's already been explored or investigated/searched by another player. In fact, you can stay in the same room and investigate/search it as many times as you want.
But how do you know if you find anything, or what you'll run into, when entering or interacting with a room? You don't. But I do. 'Cuz I got a handy-dandy sneaky cheat-sheet, or well, table, with a bunch of numbers on it and a custom die, which is rolled whenever you do or go anywhere. Certain hours during the day will also impact the likelihood of some things showing up more often than others. Enjoy the RNG!
Goal:
The goal of the game is to get rich. Richer than all the other explorers to the keep. Of course, being rich only means something if you're alive to actually enjoy it. Thus, you have but two goals in this game:
1. Go into the keep and nab as much treasure as you can, that's worth as much gold as possible.
2. GTFO while you're still breathing.
Your character's motivation for wanting/needing the gold is completely up to you. Maybe you're trying to buy a cure for your sick grandma, or need to pay off some uncool debtors, or just want to buy a fancy mansion in a bustling city? I, as the narrator, don't really care why you came to the Dragon's Keep or why you want/need the money. I'm only curious about if you manage to both get in and out alive.
Of course, the player who escapes the keep with the highest total gold value is technically the winner. But, let's be real here, if you just manage to get out with more gold than you spent on going in, that's a pretty big win no matter if someone else scampered off with more loot than you in the end, right?
How to play:
First you make a character, and then you submit it for approval. Once approved, you can go to the IC and write your intro of how you came to, and entered, the Dragon's Keep. Once everyone participating has done so, the real game starts.
At the top of your post, each time you make one, you should include the following:
Your Character's Name and current HP.
Your current location on the map.
A Hider with your current inventory.
The current time of day (aka, which turn you're on).
Then, you can write as much or little fluff as you want, regarding your character's thoughts, fears, feelings and whatever else you might feel compelled to share and narrate. However, do keep in mind the rules about only being able to take one 'Major Action' per post and that taking one of those eats up an hour of your time (1 turn). Just make sure you clearly indicate and state what action your character is taking/has taken during their turn.
Finish your post by clearly stating their Major Action for that turn. Like, if you want to move onto a new room, write something like:
[Avatar] moved from room A2 to room B2.
Or, if you want to stay and poke around instead, you could go:
[i][Avatar] stayed in room A2 and decided to [b]'search around' in hopes of finding something./b][/i]
If you do things like take Minor Actions, always mention those too, and put them before the Major Action. Your Major Action should always be at the very bottom of your post, as the final piece of it.
And that's really all there is to it. Aside from providing a link to your dice rolls whwnever you do them outside of a PM convo with the GM. This too should be found at the end of your post.
Why do this?
A while back, I decided that - due to my increasingly poor eyesight - I was going to give up on GM'ing big, epic and long-winded roleplay. The amount of time, and the strain and burden it put on my eyes, head and petience - was just getting too heavy and bothersome for me to get any enjoyment out of it. After all, roleplaying - as I often say - is a hobby I want to have fun with and enjoy, and I can't enjoy or have fun with it if it causes me actual, physical pain and disomfort.
However, while I may not be able to create the large-scale, epic and world-spanning RP stories I used to try and run in the past, a small-scaled, highly localized story where I only need to describe and manage a finite space, set and pre-made creatures, and not have to juggle a large number of players with the freedom to take any actions or go anywhere they want, should still hopefully be an option.
This is a large part of why I'm trying to run this game. To see if I can still manage something small and relatively simple. Of course, I also really just wanna play some good old board games with dice and rules. 'Cuz ahm a nerd~
FAQ:
Q: What races can we play?
A: You can play any typical fantasy race from humans, leves, dwarves and so on. Just nothing too outlandish.
Q: How many characters can we have?
A: Because the number of available spots are limmited, each player may only have 1 character.
Q: Is there a turn order?
A: Strictly speaking no, although I would prefer for everyone to try and respect each others' time and attempt to keep everyone roughly on the same turn if possible.
Q: Can you show us the Behind-the-Scenes tables and charts for how things work?
A: Yes. If you want, you can request that and I'll PM it to you.
Q: Can we suggest or add things to the mechanics or gameplay?
A: For the very first run of this, I'd prefer to just use the rules and mechanics I've set up on my own. However, if things go well, we can see about introducing your ideas and concepts into potential future runs.
Q: I liked your idea/concept, is it okay for me to use it in my own RP/game?
A: I'm lattered. Go right ahead! It's not like this thing is my original creation after all.
Q: Can we have a character sheet so we can start drafting up characters right away?
A: I'd prefer to see if anyone's actually interested in this first and foremost. Once someone's shown they wanna participate, then I can release a CS Template for ya'll to tinker with.
