[CODA 2.0] Notes

[The Tatterdemalion King]

This thread is where I'm going to post notes on a CODA (provisionally called CODEX) version 2.0, as I write them. These are nowhere near finished.

Discussion thread here.

[The Tatterdemalion King]

INTRODUCTION (version 0.1)

[[BOX TEXT]]
HERE'S ONE CHORD, HERE'S ANOTHER, NOW START A BAND
Pencil and paper RPGs, as they are known, are fundamentally Do It Yourself forms of entertainment. Even if you're using a downloaded adventure with pre-generated characters, you, and your group, are still the people responsible for acting it out, and making decisions during play. The text is a guideline, and outline, and a reference document, not a tape you slide into the VCR. This means three things.

First, that you have to be present and engaged to get something out of it. It's interactive and requires your attention. Even if the focus is on another player at the moment, it's still the responsibility of everyone to listen and think.

Second: The text be it the rules of the game, the adventure notes you've written or read as Narrator, or even the canon of Star Trek, is interpreted according to the needs of the players in the game. You can change it, you can add to or subtract from it, you can discard entire series if you want. You are all creating the story as it happens, not trying to fit into

Three: There is no final authority. While players invest the Narrator with the a lot of the work and responsibility for the game, it's the group as a whole that shares the experience, and it won't work without everyone's cooperation. Some people come with an expectation of an engaging and cohesive story; others want a challenge they can overcome. It's the narrator's job to provide both these things, and also make sure that it all runs smoothly
[[END BOX]]

[The Tatterdemalion King]

PLAYING CODEX (version 0.1)

SITUATIONAL MODIFIERS

GENERAL/PHYSICAL MODIFIERS
bad positioning

INTELLECTUAL

SOCIAL

THEORY OF RELATIVITY
In the CODEX (*cough*) system, there's two places the relative difficulty of a task can be affected: The modifiers a character uses to affect the die roll, and the modifiers to the TN.
As players, not just as player characters, in-play actions affect the total TN. If you can remove or alter the situational modifiers to an action, it's just as effective as gaining a positive modifier to your roll.
Narrators, this is one of the places where thinking on your feet is key. Your players may think of something you never even considered, or (heavens forfend) may point out the glaringly obvious flaw you didn't think of ahead of time. If this happens, you should probably let the players reap the benefits–and remember to patch the hole next time around.

Remember that [...]

Three suggested levels of Test Number modifiers.
+1 - little bit more difficult. While this isn't much of a change on its own, a number of smaller modifiers add up. These kind of modifiers might be hard to notice by someone unfamiliar to
[[EXAMPLES; someone apparoaching]]
+3 - The action is somewhat more difficult.
[[EXAMPLES; awkward positioning for repairs, heavy rain, cold/ice, heat, a fight going on in the next room]]
+5 Much more. At this point, the task has gained another difficulty level. These kinds of changes are (often) obvious to anyone attempting the task.
[[EXAMPLES; wind and rain; total loss/interference of an important sense; someone trying to hit you while you're doing something]]

MODIFIERS
Situational modifiers should apply to the TN. This is, basically, a tidiness issue and not a mechanical one. If only one person absolutely needs to keep calculating all the modifiers without asking a barrage of questions (the Narrator), it speeds up the process.

Modifiers from things "Internal" to the character–skill, natural ability, injury modifiers and the like–apply to the character's roll. These are the kinds of things that appear on a character sheet.

On the fuzzier side, having certain tools (such as a Tricorder) adds to the character's roll, while lacking the proper tools is a situational modifier that affects the TN. The reason for that is, while tools can be given a hard number for the player to reference, lack of tools is relative to the situation at hand and is, therefore, a judgement call.

AWARENESS OF MODIFIERS
Whether or not players can ask for descriptions situational modifiers is up to the group. The default position taken by this game is that while the general conditions a character is in should be known to them, but hard numbers are the realm of specific edges. For example, if the player of a soldier asks if what the muddy ground they're standing on is like, the narrator can provide them information a soldier would normally notice–how slippery it was, whether it was just dirty or gravelly, anything they're likely to step on, or tracks left behind. A geologist would see more about the composition of the dirt. Either character, however, would need the [XX EDGE] to tell that it imposed a -3 modifier on physical tasks.

Some groups may prefer definite numbers be free for the asking, to better facilitate tactical decision-making. In this case, the [[XX EDGE]] feats are redundant, and should be removed.

[[BOX TEXT]]
BUT I HATE MATH
Not everyone is excited at the idea of constant number-juggling, even in regards to basic addition and subtraction. Others find arithmetic in the middle of an exciting scene distracting from the mood of play. Whatever the reason, the alternatives [...]
–Write it down. This starts with the character sheet, but also having some spare foolscap to jot notes on is useful.
–Visual aids. modifiers can be represented by spare change, poker chips, the little RISK army dudes, or point counters for card games. These aids work best if you're a visual person who can easy apprehend numbers of objects.
–Simple calculator. This isn't your grade two arithmetic quiz. Using a calculator can increase the efficiency of even math-friendly individuals. Just make sure there's at least one for the Narrator and one for the players.

For more help, there's a degrees of success chart available on the website (ADDRESS).
[[END BOX]]

[Star Trek Man]

SITUATIONAL MODIFIERS

GENERAL/PHYSICAL MODIFIERS
bad positioning
_____
Hello. For combat modifiers, I like the old Traveller system (Hypnotic suggestion here )

A point blank range multiplier for damage would be a good thing !

Cheers, ST Man.