Courts of Conflict is a system written by Oneiros and is a work-in-progress to develop a diceless RP system where the focus is on interpersonal relationships and how people and groups work together (or against each other) in order to accomplish their goals.
Ideally this system can be used with a variety of settings from fantasy to modern day; one such setting will be Kingdom of Kayellin.
The mechanics have been tweaked from a variety of sources (not least concepts from Exalted, Amber and GURPS) in order to produce a relatively simplified basis to work from. However, this simplification does mean that the ST may have to make more judgement calls than is usual in an game like Exalted or D&D where is almost always a rule for what is desired. The ST should feel free to rule on “dramatic/narrative necessity & interplay” or just fiat, basically whatever they see fit to justify the ruling.
A fundamental precept of this system is that it should be social – the character’s stats are there to inform the roleplay experience and not necessarily dictate it. Therefore, a lot rests on the player’s ability to convey the nuances of their character rather than rely on numbers to push things through. The numbers help but they won’t always get the job done.
The second fundamental of this system is that Status brings advantages. Your status ranking is a key modifier on many of the checks made, particularly when dealing with other characters. This system makes no qualms about such being an important quality or for the simplification of it to a five point scale or that this generates an inherent inequality. It is evident throughout societies from ancient times to modern day that status (or class, authority, or however you wish to spin it) plays a significant part in how people deal with other, both on a practical and a perceived basis. This system tries to build some of that into the mechanics.
This system uses a standard points buying mechanism to create your character with a scaling system so that higher values are more costly to acquire. This is the standard system for creating characters in Courts of Conflict but it is not the only one that could be used.
1. ST should set the Status level of the game. See later for possible balances to a mixed-Status game.
2. Detail your character’s concept and background and discuss with the ST how best to achieve this vision.
3. Assign (12 + Status) points amongst the three Facilities each of which starts at 1; you may purchase upto value 4 on a 1-for-1 basis, each successive level costs double points (e.g. 2pts for 5, 4pts for 6 and 8pts for 7). NOTE: For a “lower power” game, the ST may choose to impose a cap on Facility values and/or reduce the points to (10 + Status); for a “higher power” game, perhaps increase available points to (14 + Status) or reduce the purchase costs for values above 4.
4. Assign 6 points to Abilities on a 1-for-1 basis but no Ability may be higher than 2 without appropriate background justification and ST approval. Purchasing level 3 of an Ability at character creation costs 2pts (i.e. 4pts to go from 0 to 3).
5. Assign (Status ×3) points to Resources (Equipment, Commodities and/or Allies); the ST will be the final arbiter on what is realistic for your character to be starting with. NOTE: You may not start with an Enemy unless your ST allows it; if so they will tell you whether or not you receive any bonus or refunded points for doing so.
6. Select 3 Talents from the agreed/available list for your setting; your ST may decide that some Talents are worth two or more points and should be purchased accordingly.
Once you have done these, you can calculate your Defences and Wealth as well as any other scores that may derive from these.
As an alternative, the ST may decide that they will determine what Abilities, Resources and Talents your character will have based upon the description and background you provide. Naturally this puts a lot more onus and work on the ST but one advantage is that they can know well in advance what the group is like and ensure they are balanced (or not) as appropriate for the game. It thus behooves the player to ensure they present the ST with a well thought out character concept which covers all the bases for how they would like to be presented.
The diceless mechanic means that (barring a certain exception, to be described subsequently) there is no random determination of outcomes as in other games. Resolution should take place in one of two ways:
Difficulty is the value of the check as set either by the ST or by an opposing character’s check or statistic (e.g. Resolve). In order to win a check, you must exceed the set difficulty. Scoring lower or equal to the difficulty results in failure. The ST may rule that the margin of success or failure has a bearing on the outcome of the check.
At its simplest, a check involves comparing the value of a Facility against the difficulty. However, the Facility value may be modified (up or down) by various other attributes and abilities that a character may have, including Status, Resources, Abilities and Talents.
STATISTICS
At the most basic level, a character is a set of numbers that is supposed to outline their personality and abilities. Naturally a playable character is much more than the sum of their numbers but these statistics give a player something helpful to work with when it comes to dealing with their environment and the situations their character is in.
The three core statistics are known as Facilities. These represent the fundamental capabilities of a character’s mind and body and various other statistics are based on these. Each Facility is rated on a scale of 0 to 7 and has a semi-exponential nature to represent the degree of separation between each value.
1. Co-ordination represents the physical and sensory functions of the body and is used to determine combat, environmental awareness and similar capabilities. High Co-ordination usually indicates a significant degree of training and honing of the physical modalities.
2. Intellect represents the wisdom and higher reasoning functions of the body and is used to determine resolve, skills and similar capabilities. High Intellect usually indicates a significant degree of education and honing of the mental modalities.
3. Persuasion represents the social and charismatic functions of the body and is used to determine interpersonal relationships, bargaining and similar capabilities. High Persuasion usually indicates a significant degree of charisma and honing of the social modalities.
The next key statistic is Status which is a value from 0 to 5 that illustrates your standing in the society. The actual values depend on the prevailing nature attitudes of the society in the campaign and in a large political setting, different sets of Status may actually operate but more on that later. The ST is the final arbiter of where on the scale any given character falls.
As a general outline, the various values correspond to the following ranks/positions:
0 = Vagrant; homeless; refugee
1 = Peasant, serf; manual labourer; servant
2 = Semi-skilled worker; squire; soldier; guard
3 = Professional worker; knight; expert; middle manager; officer
4 = Aristocracy; large landowner or businessman; company director; government minister
5 = Royalty; CEO / MD; Head of State / Government
Important! Due to the general style of gameplay advocated by this system, it is not expected that PCs will start a game with Status less than 3. In fact, due to the way in which characters improve and the benefits that accrue due to Status, a PC may find themselves quite disadvantaged in a mixed-Status game – though that in itself could be the source of roleplaying challenge in trying to make one’s character more upwardly mobile.
To accompany the three Facilities, every character has three Defences which indicate how resilient they are.
1. Fortitude represents the primary physical defence and is an indicator of how well you can avoid or withstand actual bodily force from a fall or sword strike. Your basic score is calculated as Coordination + 4. Other modifiers may apply such as from a weapon (to indicate a capacity to parry a blow) or talent.
2. Resolve represents your mental defences and is an indicator of how well you can avoid or withstand attempts to persuade or sway you from an intended course. Your basic score is calculated as Intellect + Status + 3. Status is included to represent the improved degree of self-belief and importance that comes with higher status. Other modifiers may apply such as from a talent or a mystical talisman.
3. Wound Points (WP) represent the character’s actual health and capacity for taking damage. Your basic score is calculated as Status + 3 (on the basis that higher status generally means a better/healthier lifestyle and better access to healthcare). Other modifiers may apply such as from a talent or armour (but this is a special case, see later).
Other modifiers to the various checks come in the form of Abilities. An Ability represents a field of expertise or knowledge that the character is proficient in and can help when conducting operations or negotiations in that area. Combat is one such Ability as are things like Agriculture, Economics, History or Medicine. Some Abilities are likely to be more common than others to be taken but the ST is the final arbiter on whether any particular skill is a valid option for their game.
Abilities generally run on an exponential scale from 0 to 3. However, certain situations or Talents can cause you to have a negative value which then applies as a penalty to a relevant check. Characters cannot start with a negative value in an Ability unless with ST permission or acquisition of a Talent that permits it.
The general scale for Abilities is:
-1 = spectacularly bad or incompetent for some reason.
0 = average level of the general populace, possibly basic understanding for non-scholastic areas depending on society norms.
1 = skilled / competent above average levels, represents some training (not necessarily formal) or aptitude, or the character has taken a particular interest in it. Also, probably the character’s profession or primary means of survival.
2 = expert or highly skilled, probably applies to a teacher of such as well.
3 = professor or grandmaster, one of the foremost practitioners of the ability or foremost minds on the subject.
These demonstrate what a character has to call upon when conducting their affairs. Usually (though not always), Resources are a physical asset that can be demonstrated as the source of a character’s wealth, a product or raw material (or access to thereof), or equipment of some kind. Like Abilities, Resources generally work on a 3 point scale though a negative value can indicate a debt or a serious deleterious effect/catastrophe has befallen the character.
A starting character’s level of Resources is equal to Status ×3 (to reflect that generally people with a higher status have the materials that allow them to enjoy the trappings of their level). Resources can be acquired during gameplay and further added to during character creation as directed by the ST.
A character’s Wealth is equal to the sum of all their Resources (barring Allies & Enemies)
The general scale for Resources (commodities/wealth generating) is:
-1 = a catastrophe or debt has rendered your Resource ineligible for use.
0 = you do not possess any of this resource beyond average levels (or are temporarily out if you usually have such).
1 = you have a reasonable, one-off stock or a small but regular supply of this resource.
2 = you possess a staggering amount of this resource (one-off) or have a medium regular supply of the resource (e.g. a salt mine, a large sheep pasture).
3 = you have plundered a dragon’s hoard or a kingdom’s treasury (one-off) or have a large regular supply of the resource (e.g. a bountiful gem mine, several vegetable farms).
As ever, the ST has final say on what resource level any given commodity or item is.
During gameplay, characters may use their resources to help modify pertinent checks. The most likely arena for doing so is when trying to bargain with other characters where your Resources can act as bargaining chips and modifiers. Doing so represents some form of inducement, be it a bribe, fee/payment, incentive or even salary – whatever spin the character wishes to put on the deal or the situation demands.
In order to do so, add a modifier equal to or less than the value of the Resource being offered. The character should describe (or the ST should adjudicate) how this will affect the character’s short term resource flow and act accordingly. If you want to stretch yourself in order to make a deal, you may add a modifier equal to Resource +1 to represent this. However, if you do so and are successful in the check, your Resource is temporarily reduced by 1 until the ST adjudicates that is has been restored to its former value. Remember, this will have an effect on your Wealth score as well.
Equipment is a special kind of resource. The resource value of any given piece is dependent on its quality or rarity value, as determined by the ST. Equipment (or items, artefacts, etc) can be used as Resource modifiers to a check, but will usually be expended in doing so (unless it is a specifically negotiated loan, or similar).
The general scale for Equipment is:
-1 = the item has been so damaged or destroyed or stolen so as to cause a serious impact on your Wealth level.
0 = the item is an average representative of its type providing no additional value beyond its basic qualities.
1 = the item is a fine representative of its type with value beyond its basic abilities in some way (e.g. made of silver, a well-crafted ring, a keen sword) or has some particular quality that makes it valuable (e.g. a minor family heirloom).
2 = the item is an excellent representative of its type with value far beyond its basic abilities in some way (e.g. made of platinum, a minor artefact of mystical potency, a custom commissioned firearm) or has some particular quality that makes it very valuable (e.g. a major family heirloom, a painting from a renowned artist).
3 = the item is an awesome representative of its type with value way in excess of its basic abilities in some way and is probably an item of significant renown or legend and you are probably recognised as being its owner.
Allies are another special kind of resource but unlike other types, Allies do not count to increasing your Wealth (unless in special circumstances as determined by the ST). Instead, they can help modify many Persuasion checks, particularly in diplomatic scenarios, where you may add the Ally’s value to your check if you have some demonstrable means of showing or pledging their support (or you are trying to bluff that you have their support which could have repercussions if they find out you were bluffing).
It is entirely feasible that over the course of the campaign you will pick up many Allies and the ST should decide in advance how he wishes to deal with their acquisition. In addition, failing to abide by your agreements with Allies or betraying them can lead to reductions in their value. Mistreating existing Allies or antagonising new folk can definitely lead to negative values being obtained and, unsurprisingly, an Ally with a negative value is considered an Enemy. Likewise, you can always seek to overcome existing enmities and work towards more positive relations to increase the value of an Ally.
This does not necessarily always act in a negative sense. When dealing with any Ally (or Enemy) you may add their value to your check (subtracting in the event of an Enemy) as a positive ally is more inclined to deal with you favourably. However, if you are dealing with a character who shares an Enemy or other antagonism, you may add the value of the Enemy as a positive modifier to your Persuasion roll. If you are unfortunate enough to have to deal with someone who has an Ally of someone who is your Enemy (or vice versa) then you will probably have to find some way of overcoming that obstacle or take a penalty to your check equal to the Ally/Enemy rating.
The general scale for Allies & Enemies is:
-3 = this character is your mortal enemy; realistically (short of death or you saving their life) very little is going to change the nature of your relationship.
-2 = this character is a serious enemy.
-1 = this character is a minor enemy or someone you have managed to seriously annoy and harbours a grudge.
0 = you have no issues with this character, they may be your friend or acquaintance or someone you have not seen since college. Naturally this is the default for most people you encounter.
1 = this character is a very good friend, someone who usually agrees with you, or someone who has pledged minor support to your cause (e.g. money). All close family members (unless there is good reason, e.g. estranged wife) are automatically considered to be at this level without needing to be recorded.
2 = this character is a close ally, someone who invariably agrees with you, or someone who has pledged significant support to your cause (e.g. large donation, valuable item or service, a squad of troops).
3 = this character is an awesome friend who will put their life on the line for you, someone who almost always agrees with you, or someone who has pledged major support to your cause (e.g. full financial backing, an army, governmental backing).
The next set of modifiers derives from what are known as Talents. These are innate traits or facets to help round out what your character can do or how they act as well as giving a slight mechanical benefit whilst doing so. Some of them trade drawbacks in certain areas for increased competence in others. Others are representative of professions for your character.
Feel free to discuss with your ST various Talents that you feel would be appropriate for your character. A sample of Talents are provided here…
Ambassador
You are sensitive to variations in culture or status that exists between peoples and/or nations. You do not suffer the usual -1 Status penalty for interacting with cultures with a different basis for Status.
Officer's Commission
You hold an official rank in your nation's military system, indicative of the formalised military training you have undergone. You may add your Status to any check involving the Combat Ability.
The basics of combat follow this simple turn based resolution system:
1. Calculate Turn Values and determine Turn Order
2. Calculate Combat Pool
3. First combatant declares attack
4. Defender applies relevant Defence
5. Determine damage
6. Move to second combatant
1. Combat turn order is determined in a strict hierarchy of descending Turn Value. Turn Value is calculated as Co-ordination – Status + Misc where Misc are any miscellaneous modifiers that apply from Talents, Abilities, Resources or just plain ST fiat. The character with the highest Turn Value acts first, second highest goes next and so on until the lowest Turn Value is reached. In the event of a tie, compare statistics in the following order:
1. highest Co-ordination;
2. highest Combat value;
3. lowest Status.
In the event that all of these are still equal, the ST should rule who goes first.
2. To represent the fact that combat is not always one-sided (though usually the better equipped and higher Status character should win), every character involved in combat gains a Combat Pool which provides a limited degree of variance. This Combat Pool is equal to (Co-ordination + Intellect) divided by 2 (rounded down). By subtracting a number from this pool, you can add a similar value to any check you have to make during combat. You may split the pool however you like but once the Combat Pool equals zero, that’s it. Combat Pools do not refresh until the next combat.
3. The first character to act should then declare what they are doing and the ST will determine if it is appropriate and how that action is to be resolved. Usually, this will be an attack declared against another character in which case the appropriate check is Co-ordination + [Combat ability] + Misc where the ability used is usually the catch-all Combat but may vary depending on your setting and the decisions of the ST.
4. Defence in combat is usually Fortitude + [Combat ability] + Misc and the attacker must beat this score in order to score a successful hit. If the hit is successful then move to the Strike Resolution phase, otherwise, proceed to resolving the actions of the next combatant.
5. Strike resolution will usually involve damage being meted out by the attacker. If no armour is worn then the weapon’s damage (if any) should be subtracted directly from the defender’s Wound Points total. If armour is being worn then subtract the damage from the armour’s Wound Points total with any extra or any overflow damage being applied to the defender. Damage is fixed by weapon type but you also add a modifier for strength that is equal to Co-ordination / 3 (rounded down).
Note! Depending on the setting and the wishes of the ST, the margin of success or failure may have repercussions on strike resolution but these should be discussed between the group before play commences.