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View Full Version : Original System BESM 3 Traits for "High School" or "Harem Comedy" games



steelsmiter
2014-12-17, 02:40 AM
Premise:I've done a considerable amount of work on adding Derived Stats, attributes, defects, and so forth to my own games, which admittedly have gotten less testing than I'd like, but nonetheless, it seems like BESM could easily be tweaked to allow for the social tit for tat that goes on at a typical secondary education facility.

BESM Social Combat
Uuuuuughhhh! School is hard! You gotta juggle homework, mid terms, finals, sports, clubs, boyfriends, girlfriends, and nerds. Uuuuuughhhh!

New Derived Stats
Popularity: Mind and Soul x 5
Social Shock Value: Derived the same way as shock value, but relative to Popularity rather than HP.

If a character suffers more damage from a single attack than his or her Social Shock Value, he or she must make an average (Target Number 12) Soul Stat roll. If the damage exceeds twice the target’s social shock value, he or she must make a challenging (Target Number 18 )Soul Stat roll.

If the character fails,they are stunned, embarrassed. It takes a general action to recover from being stunned. Until the character takes a general action to recover, he or she can do nothing except defend. If the character fails by a margin greater than his or her Soul Stat, the character faints. Without intervention, the character will remain unconscious for a number of rounds equal to the character’s Body Stat(minimum of 1 round).

SAV and SDV: In addition to standard combat values, characters would have Social Attack and Defense values as well. They are derived from the character's highest level skill. (usually equal to skill level, but not always. See below)

Special Rules for Social Skills
Administration: Corporal Punishment! A teacher or administrator may deal popularity damage based on the control they have over the students. This may or may not also deal physical damage.
Area of Expertise: Pop Quiz! Whenever a teacher uses the skill representing their field (such as science, math, language, domestic arts, performance, etc) to attempt to deal popularity damage it is opposed by the student's skill level in the skill h(is/er) class teaches. If the student wins, s/he may regain the lesser of half the popularity she'd otherwise afflict according to her 'Weapon Level' or whatever it takes to put their popularity to maximum.
Ettiquette: This skill is the ability to not cause offense. As a result, SDV is Skill+1 while SAV is Skill-1.
Interrogation/Intimidation: The skills are similar, but it's generally frowned upon for teachers to outright use scare tactics, so they use Interrogation, while students are free to use Intimidation. In either case, SAV is Skill +1 while SDV is Skill-1.
Seduction: A student may attempt to restore Popularity to a student whose popularity is currently lower than theirs, by an amount equal to their SAV on a successful roll for an attempt at a public display of affection. This particular use doesn't take 'Weapon Levels'. That's not to say they aren't appropriate however. Attempting PDA on a faculty member may be a weaponized use of the skill, as might seducing a nerd into kissing a mop in a dark closet.

Other skills such as the Drama or Comedy specializations of Perforning Arts might be useful at the GM's option. They don't currently have special rules though.(Side Note: Billy Madison provides a perfect example of Comedy being used to restore Popularity much as Seduction might)

New Attributes
Healing: It's possible that Healing might be used on Popularity, but probably only a level or 2 as the only real way I could see it happening is by a member of the Student Council (or those in charge of morning announcements) running an anti-bullying campaign or something. Organizational Ties might provide a good guideline for maximum levels.
Not so/Popular: Popular and Not So Popular work the same way as their Toughness counterparts with the exception of the fact that they apply to (suprise, suprise) Popularity. They cost the same as their toughness counterparts.
Regeneration: Variable Intensity Regeneration (of Popularity) fits going into the bathroom between classes to 'freshen up' reapplying makeup, slicking back hair, ad so forth. If you have another manifestation of popularity regeneration, this should be hashed out with the GM beforehand.
Weapon: A Nerd might be "Intellectually Demeaning", a cheerleader might be a "Mean Girl", and a class clown might have "Rapier Wit". In any case, Social Weapons probably don't have an area or range exceeding 10 yards, unless they're boosted with a (mega/micro)phone, in which case 100 yards is sufficient. In any case, a weapon that is purely social is a 0 point modifier, and a weapon that is both social and physically damaging is a 1 point variable



Characters can never die unless they are purposely “retired” by the player or the GM(Which should be used very sparingly)—they simply fall unconscious any time their Health Point totals fall below zero. They will likely be saved by a teacher who won't do anything worse than expelling anyone who isn't being an infighting little snot.

Note to Players: NPCs will also be knocked unconscious except in incidents where a player specifically uses the Execution rules (p. 158, Short Resolution). Try not to do this though, because it tends to cause expulsion.

New Defects
Incompetence
Category: -3/-6/-9
Cost: Varies (see description)
You are inept at something, taking a significant (-3) penalty on all rolls associated with it. For the purpose of these rules, it would most likely be some academic skill, but outside them, it could be any skill, and the cost varies depending on how integral the skill is to the campaign. Table 6-1 shows the cost for a level of skill, so it can be used as a reference.

Naive
Category: Lesser
Cost: -1/level
At the -1 point level, the character sometimes misunderstands sayings and misjudges situations or intents that should be obvious. At -2, the character does not understand sarcasm, innuendo or most jokes. Badly misjudges situations and intents. At -3, the character does not understand common behavior or attitudes of regular inhabitants, even when they explain.

Shy
Category: Lesser
Cost: -1 or -2. Though shyness gets worse, that probably isn't really playable in this sort of game.
At the -1 point level, the character can still talk to people they don't know, but doing so will cause stuttering, blushing, or similar. It gets worse at -2. If a character is that shy, he or she may seek to avoid strangers whenever possible, and never associate with those they are uncomfortable with. Shy characters often have Not So Popular.

ADHD
Basically to simulate ADHD, you should take Easily Distracted (Everything).

Things to work on


GPA (probably being based on Skill level where 1 point is a D, 2 points a C, 3 points a B, 4 an A, and 5 an A in an AP class. As with regular skill, GPA for all classes is totalled together and divided by 4)
How GPA affects Popularity (Maybe certain groups require a minimum or maximum?)
What value of Exclusive goes on "weapons" that only attack specific social groups. (I'm thinking -2, but if it applies to that particular social group's members from another school, it might only be -1)
By extension: does belonging to a certain social group qualify you for Marked?
does having a certain GPA qualify you for Marked?

steelsmiter
2014-12-26, 09:15 AM
If anyone has any thoughts on them they are welcome! :D

Illven
2014-12-30, 02:24 AM
What schools do you go to where executions are just expulsion :smalltongue:

steelsmiter
2014-12-30, 11:23 AM
What schools do you go to where executions are just expulsion :smalltongue:

From the game. Sorry for not clarifying that. Admittedly it was rather tongue in cheek.

steelsmiter
2015-01-12, 04:15 AM
Oh hey, I considered the possibility that for some settings, it might be more appropriate to use Body and Soul to calculate Popularity. Like a high school. It seemed a lot of people in school were more into the air-heads with great bodies than those that were reasonably intelligent but didn't have perfect bodies. Maybe not so much for something like a university. What do you guys

steelsmiter
2015-02-16, 01:38 AM
Changelog: Added Incompetence and changed how Administration works.

steelsmiter
2015-02-20, 02:35 PM
Changelog: reworked how Incompetence works in order to better fit with Significant Penalties.