Plot Deck

At 09:35 PM 11/11/99 -0500, Brian Koppi wrote:
>
>     The Plot Deck would help to inspire new directions for the story 
>a busy GM might not otherwise consider. Has anyone encountered 
>something like this in the market? Does it seem a useful idea?
>
I've seen similar concepts -- ones where the players were given the cards
and allowed to modify the plot that was happening according to their cards
(wasn't it Torg?).

I also have to admit that as I was reading this, my mind was going, oh,
wouldn't that be fun to add just a little bit of random creativity into my
games... which means my IWS players should worry that I'm considering
adding purely random elements.  *giggles*

D.
+-------------------------------------------------+
|    Deb Allen (Atwood?) / D-Singer / Tryslora    |
|     d-singer@albany.net / deb_allen@fac.com     |
|         http://www.albany.net/~d-singer         |
+-------------------------------------------------+
|    The Black Road -- an Amber DRPG Convention   |
|           http://www.theblackroad.org           |
+-------------------------------------------------+
| "You must never run from anything immortal.  It |
|  attracts their attention."                     |
|      - _The_Last_Unicorn_                       |
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Plot Deck

I have, sitting on a shelf right above my computer, a little product from our 
friends at Atlas games entitled " once upon a time ". 

It's a touted as a storytelling card game, designed for several players to 
cooperatively create a story.  The cards consist of a hundred and 12 
storytelling cards, 56 ending cards.  The storytelling cards have simple 
concepts for creating a story; " the king ", " a forest ", " star-crossed 
lovers ", etc..  

They are fairly useful as a crutch when I run up against GM's block.  

On Blue Trolls ' net book web site there is a fairly extensive list of plot 
ideas, which could probably be put onto the deck of playing cards fairly 
simply.  

 

On 11 Nov 99, at 21:35, Brian Koppi wrote:
>      I read somewhere that there are some sort of cards included in 
> the new Star Trek game from Last Unicorn that help the GM direct the plot.
> I have no idea what the truth behind this is or how it works, but it did
> set me thinking.
> 
>      I could see a great benefit to having a deck of 52 plot themes to use
> during the course of an adventure. When I GM I tend to focus on what is
> before the characters and what I have planned for them. I need to to keep
> from losing track of the threads on the table. This isn't necessarily a
> bad thing, as it helps form a coherent adventure. However, constantly
> focusing in one direction limits the potential scope of the story. That's
> where a Plot Deck would be handy.
> 
>      A plot deck might be drawn from once or more per game session, 
> depending on the pace of the action or how much game time has 
> elapsed. Each card in the deck represents a plot device such as the 
> introduction of personal tragedy, new ally, new enemy, unforeseen 
> good fortune, etc. There could be 13 devices (ace through king) and 
> four applications (one for each suit). I'm not familiar with tarot 
> cards, but the purpose seems similar.
> 
>      The Plot Deck would help to inspire new directions for the story a
> busy GM might not otherwise consider. Has anyone encountered something
> like this in the market? Does it seem a useful idea?
> 
> Brian Koppi
> chikoppi@21stcentury.net
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> Tech support questions go to support@phoenyx.net.
> 


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Plot Deck

Hmm, reminds me of that non-CCG "Once Upon A Time." Great game in its own
right and useful as a mind jogger too. As for using cards to influence the
flow of the actual RPG session, I'm intrigued. If anyone can pull it off, it
could be the link between RPGs and CCGs!


Deb Allen wrote:

> At 09:35 PM 11/11/99 -0500, Brian Koppi wrote:
> >
> >     The Plot Deck would help to inspire new directions for the story
> >a busy GM might not otherwise consider. Has anyone encountered
> >something like this in the market? Does it seem a useful idea?
> >
> I've seen similar concepts -- ones where the players were given the cards
> and allowed to modify the plot that was happening according to their cards
> (wasn't it Torg?).
>
> I also have to admit that as I was reading this, my mind was going, oh,
> wouldn't that be fun to add just a little bit of random creativity into my
> games... which means my IWS players should worry that I'm considering
> adding purely random elements.  *giggles*
>
> D.
> +-------------------------------------------------+
> |    Deb Allen (Atwood?) / D-Singer / Tryslora    |
> |     d-singer@albany.net / deb_allen@fac.com     |
> |         http://www.albany.net/~d-singer         |
> +-------------------------------------------------+
> |    The Black Road -- an Amber DRPG Convention   |
> |           http://www.theblackroad.org           |
> +-------------------------------------------------+
> | "You must never run from anything immortal.  It |
> |  attracts their attention."                     |
> |      - _The_Last_Unicorn_                       |
> +-------------------------------------------------+
>
> ----------------------------------------------------------------
> GMAST Home Page:  http://www.phoenyx.net/gmast/
> Tech support questions go to support@phoenyx.net.


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Plot Deck

--- Adrian Martinez 
wrote:
> Hmm, reminds me of that non-CCG "Once Upon A Time."
> Great game in its own
> right and useful as a mind jogger too. As for using
> cards to influence the
> flow of the actual RPG session, I'm intrigued. If
> anyone can pull it off, it
> could be the link between RPGs and CCGs!
> 

There was a product named (IIRC) "Destiny Deck".  I
bought it several years ago and stopped using it when
it got wet and half the cards were damaged.  It was a
great RPG resourse because it had several different
categories.  One was settings, another has events(read
plot devices), a third was specials(read temp
skill/power bonuses), and I can't recall what the 4th
category was.  What you could do was pick out one or
more cards from one or more categories and use these
to build a plot around.  The settings were general in
nature with a list of suggested ideas... for example
one card was "A Place of Worship" and listed in
parentheses was a shrine, a temple, a synagogue, a
hidden cult cell, etc...  (forgive me I'm quoting
these from memory..)

I don't recall who published them or where they can be
found.  I found them on the back shelf of a small
comic-book/gaming shop that has since gone out of
business.  I'll do some web-searching and see if I can
turn up any info on these, if anyone is interested....

-- Chris J. Whitcomb


=====

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Plot Deck

At 09:35 PM 11/11/99 -0500, you wrote:
>  I read somewhere that there are some sort of cards included in
>the new Star Trek game from Last Unicorn that help the GM direct the
>plot. I have no idea what the truth behind this is or how it works,
>but it did set me thinking.

A long time ago I picked up something called "Wimsy Cards" at a con 
distributed by Lion  Rampant.  They are pretty simple things with "error of 
judgment' and "trade places", "personality clash" each with a brief (yet 
broad description.)
This was before the CCG era.  Now I would get some blank CCG cards and fill 
out the back or paste something on with rubber cement.  I know you can get 
blanks for INWO CCG.

At the time I though they were neat to introduce random elements in to a 
game.  I haven't run a game since I bought them so I have no idea how they 
work.
Rolando R. Gomez

shadoe@kscable.com
ICQ#: 11947788
         It is by caffeine alone that I set my mind in motion
         By the beans of java, my thoughts acquire speed
         The hands acquire the shakes, the shakes become a warning
         It is by caffeine alone that I set my mind in motion
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Plot Deck

From: Rolando R. Gomez 
>This was before the CCG era.  Now I would get some blank CCG cards and fill
>out the back or paste something on with rubber cement.  I know you can get
>blanks for INWO CCG.
>
Slightly tangential to the subject, but the last time I brought a printer I
spent an extra hundred bucks and stepped up to the A3 with the flat paper
path (AKA: will print on thin card).  Now I must admit that I'm still trying
to find the time to lay out my cards for printing and my wife would be
hassling me for buying gadgets if we hadn't been able to print our own
iron-on transfers for her niece, BUT the point is (I'm getting there, I
swear) that it's getting much easier to find a printshop that can handle
small runs onto cardstock.  Most of the cost is messing around with the
graphic image formats.

It might cost you more than scissors and glue but you'll get clean,
professional results.

Even just digging around for someone you know with a good printer - I didn't
even realise that my printer handled card until I unpacked it and read the
manual, I was after A3 because I print maps for my work (I've got the HP
Deskjet 1000C, but there are a couple of printers in the same functional
slot)

Chris.

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Plot Deck

Chris Tutty wrote:
> 
> From: Rolando R. Gomez 
> >This was before the CCG era.  Now I would get some blank CCG cards and fill
> >out the back or paste something on with rubber cement.  I know you can get
> >blanks for INWO CCG.
> >
> BUT the point is (I'm getting there, I swear) that it's getting much 
> easier to find a printshop that can handle small runs onto cardstock.
> Most of the cost is messing around with the graphic image formats.

Don't try this when anyone else is around :-) but some office copiers
can handle that sort of material too.  If not, some printers can 
handle sheets of labels, which you could paste onto blank cards or
whatever.  Be careful if you try labels in a copier; I had the devil's
own time pulling the labels off the insides of one at work. :-)

I like the idea of using a deck of Tarot cards you like and
assigning meanings to the cards, or just use appropriately named 
ones.  If all your players are not trustworthy, you can always do a 
'card check' to make sure that card is unique (i.e. you don't have 
it and none of the other players have it).  Of the few decks I've
seen, the Crowley (Thoth) Tarot deck is the most impressive:
http://www.fourthdimension.net/cgi-bin/read/0 (keep incrementing
the number [ http://www.fourthdimension.net/cgi-bin/read/1 ] etc.
and you get to see relatively large images of the cards, which
nonetheless don't do them justice).

Steve
-- 
http://www.stevebarr.com
It was our idea to visualize this view of the new kind of dictator, 
because we grow up in a condition of dictatorship - Lenin, Stalin, etc. 
And when we came to United States, we recognized that another dictator 
here is the so-called majority. -- Vitaly Komar (and Alexander Melamid)
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Plot Deck

At 08:52 PM 11/13/99 -0500, Steve Barr wrote:
>
>I like the idea of using a deck of Tarot cards you like and
>assigning meanings to the cards, or just use appropriately named 
>ones.  If all your players are not trustworthy, you can always do a 
>'card check' to make sure that card is unique (i.e. you don't have 
>it and none of the other players have it).  Of the few decks I've
>seen, the Crowley (Thoth) Tarot deck is the most impressive:
>http://www.fourthdimension.net/cgi-bin/read/0 (keep incrementing
>the number [ http://www.fourthdimension.net/cgi-bin/read/1 ] etc.
>and you get to see relatively large images of the cards, which
>nonetheless don't do them justice).
>
I've used tarot decks for flavor in games often.  One Amber game I run (A
Common Disaster) uses the Robin Wood tarot as the trumps of choice because
I could fit them nicely  to the Amberites.  I've used the Amber Tarot, of
course.  

But my favorite tarot, overall, is the Cosmic Tarot.  Wonderfully readable,
good imagery, and I love the deck in general.  I'd highly recommend giving
that and the Robin Wood (another nicely readable deck) a lookover if you're
thinking of incorporating tarot into the game.

Of course, I might just be saying this because I get really nasty vibes
from the Crowley Thoth deck.  *sighs*

D.
+-------------------------------------------------+
|    Deb Allen (Atwood?) / D-Singer / Tryslora    |
|     d-singer@albany.net / deb_allen@fac.com     |
|         http://www.albany.net/~d-singer         |
+-------------------------------------------------+
|    The Black Road -- an Amber DRPG Convention   |
|           http://www.theblackroad.org           |
+-------------------------------------------------+
| "You must never run from anything immortal.  It |
|  attracts their attention."                     |
|      - _The_Last_Unicorn_                       |
+-------------------------------------------------+

----------------------------------------------------------------
GMAST Home Page:  http://www.phoenyx.net/gmast/
Tech support questions go to support@phoenyx.net.

Plot Deck

On 13 Nov 99, at 19:12, Chris Tutty wrote:
> From: Rolando R. Gomez 
> >This was before the CCG era.  Now I would get some blank CCG cards and
> >fill out the back or paste something on with rubber cement.  I know you
> >can get blanks for INWO CCG.
> >
> Slightly tangential to the subject, but the last time I brought a printer
> I spent an extra hundred bucks and stepped up to the A3 with the flat
> paper path (AKA: will print on thin card).  Now I must admit that I'm
> still trying to find the time to lay out my cards for printing and my wife
> would be hassling me for buying gadgets if we hadn't been able to print
> our own iron-on transfers for her niece, BUT the point is (I'm getting
> there, I swear) that it's getting much easier to find a printshop that can
> handle small runs onto cardstock.  Most of the cost is messing around with
> the graphic image formats.
> 
> It might cost you more than scissors and glue but you'll get clean,
> professional results.
> 
> Even just digging around for someone you know with a good printer - I
> didn't even realise that my printer handled card until I unpacked it and
> read the manual, I was after A3 because I print maps for my work (I've got
> the HP Deskjet 1000C, but there are a couple of printers in the same
> functional slot)
> 
> Chris.

Even more tangental but still in this thread.  I have tried running single 
cards through my Lexmark Z51, and with a little luck and getting all the 
formatting right, you CAN print on already blank cards like INWO blanks.  Your 
printer does have to support paper down to playing-card sized -- my old HP 660C 
would go 4x6 index card and no lower.
================================================================
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"The Internet, billions of electrons with nothing better to do."
----------------------------------------------------------------
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Plot Deck

Hello all.  I can add some info here.  TORG was where i was first
introduced to the "DRAMA DECK".  Masterbook subsequently had a similar
deck.  The deck dtermined initiave- pc's or villains, etc
It was set up for cinematic/dramatic rpg's- Adventures were divided into
acts and scenes, of which some were standard and some were dramatic.
Also, skill resolution depended on the cards as well- you need an "A" on
the card for the round to perform the first part of your action, then a
"B", "C" and "D".  There qwere things like setbacks, mistaken identity,
contacts, etc.
Very cool.  I have since designed my own card system, typed on labels and
stuck onto bristol board.  Right now i am redoing it on my compute; i
can't find CCG size labels, so i bought Avery nametag cardstock to use.
I have also used TAROT cards, but in a different way.  After playing In
Nomine, i adapted their d666 system to my GURPS campaign and added the
Tarot deck.  d666 is essentially 2d6 for your skill and the third is the
degree:
ex: Angelic player - 1 is super success, Demonic player 6 is super
successI had each player draw a tarot card, i used the TAROT
interpretation for mood/fate for that player for that game day, combined
with the d666; actually it really worked well and mostly coincided with
the PC concepts. 

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