Drama Cards

[Antilles]

So, I've been working on a new campaign, and since I'm planning on throwing a lot of reputation their way, I was looking for new options for the players to spend their reputation on. I stumbled across Drama Cards on another forum, and it caught my interest. They were interesting, but since they were made for D&D 4th I did a quick stab at converting them to FantasyCraft. 1st draft here. Not so much written for balance as to making sense when used in FantasyCraft, so they're most likely horribly unbalanced.

In any case, worries about balance aside, I was thinking about printing those out, make a deck of them, and let everyone take one at the start of an adventure. The first one's a freebie, but others can be acquired as prizes, either as adventure rewards or just outright bought. Haven't quite settled on the cost yet, but I've time to work on it.

I'll also likely make it a rule that if a player like the theme of a card, but not the mechanics, I'll let them convert the card into AD for narrative control, 1 per grade.

Any thoughts?

[Krensky]

I'm using Paizo's Gamemastery Plot Twist Cards.

The mechanical effects required a litte adjustment, but nothing that can't be done on the fly. The themes are system neutral, and I'm allowing them as 4 die narrative control relating to the theme, and when appropriate, threat or error activation. If you use the card for narratively control, the party gets a bonus 25XP. If I disallow use of the card, you get a new one and two action dice.

Players get a new one every time they level. I'm debating allowing them to pitch cards to redraw at level up too.

Don't worry so much about balance, most of the effects on my cards are borderline game breaker to better then game breaker, but they only get to do it once.

[Doublebond]

I haven't taken a look at your draft yet, and as such apologize in advance if I'm suggesting a bright idea you already came up with, but it seems to me a quick and efficient way to fit this sort of concept (that being the use of cards with varying effects in the game) into the system would be to use it as a form of narrative control—perhaps every card could be assigned a AD cost, and then you play a card by paying said price.

I suppose it all depends on how you want to handle what happens when a card is played. If you want the player to keep the card than I think the use of AD to activate cards is a good idea, but it's a one time thing then the fact that they loose the card should be cost enough, I think.

If the former, then I suppose another alternative might be to limit these sorts of things like divine spells—limited by combat, by session, by adventure, etc. In which case perhaps only cards usable"at will" would warrant the spending of AD.

Just some thoughts.

[jameswllorimer]

I like! Though I know only a few of the players in our group would. Some of these would be great to use at demo games, or Cons to introduce newer players to less well known or lesser used actions/tricks/concepts of the FC game.

On another note, I did wonder how long it would be until WotC started using the Magic artwork for 4E! Sigh.

[Morgenstern]

Yoink!

There are some excellent little mechanical tidbits in there. I wouldn't use them on cards, but I'll be sifting and digesting them for other uses for days!

[Jake]

Yoink!

Yes, yes, yoink is right. I like this idea but I'm not sure how I'd implement it. Party gains one card when they defeat a special character, lower starting action dice by X to gain a card.....alternate Sage class ability. Hmm. This might fit in BC I've been messing with. Thanks for making these.

Drastic Recovery refers to a "healing surge", is that a refresh action?

[Morgenstern]

Drastic Recovery refers to a "healing surge", is that a refresh action?

They are pretty similar, yes.

[Antilles]

Yeah, some of'em slipped through. As I said, this is the first draft. Many good ideas here, but as I said in the OP, I'll allow players to buy cards with reputation, in addition to giving them out as occasional rewards. Mainly because I'll be giving the players between double and triple the 'normal' amount of reputation, and with occasional ranks of renown as well. Between the options in the book, Morg's distinctions and these cards, there should be enough stuff for them to use their reputation on.