Note: More October postings. This one is still a work in progress, but there is enough here for you to go on. I am also putting it here, as opposed to General
Unisystem, since there are some issues here that relate directly to Buffy. Enjoy!
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If you are curious about my BESM 2nd Edition Revised conversions you can find those on the BESM Forum or at UniFans.
BESM 3.0 / Unisystem Conversions
I was eagerly anticipating the release of BESM (Big Eyes, Small Mouth) 3rd Edition. Of course, Guardians of Order had just gone belly up and the rules were now being released by Arthaus/White Wolf, so my anticipation was tinged a little. What had happened to the game I had just recently become fond of and what was going to happen now?
Well I got my book and some fears were allayed, others though took over.
Briefly here my comments on the system and the new book.
The new book is very attractive and one of the most colorful RPGs I have seen in a long time. It reminds me of Mutants and Masterminds in terms of color. It is a thick tome, and now sized to fit well on my shelf. The Niko Geyer artwork is great and really captures the feel of the game well. On the other hand I have seen all this artwork before, maybe not in color, but certainly in other editions of this book. Now I understand that money was very tight at GoO and the art is great, so I am willing to cut them some slack here.
The text though also has the same problems. There is text in here that I am now reading for the 5th time over (BESM 2.0, BESM d20, SAS, SASd20). Some of this text still has the same problems as it always did, but more on that later.
I do like what is new. The analysis of anime, maps of Japan and Tokyo, and the overview of Shjo anime. The section about the anime multiverse is also rather fun and full of ideas that can be used for any game. Especially as a way to run those pesky crossover sessions.
The new game mechanics are now a Roll-over; 2d6 vs. Target Number. Makes it very much in feel with Unisystem. No Success levels as such, but a very loose difficulty class system. It was reading over these rules in fact that help re-tool my dice mechanic for Unisystem that I have come to call The Chicago Way .
But otherwise it is still mostly the same BESM. We still have our 3 Stats, Body, Mind and Soul. Still have attributes, defects and skills. There are different scalings for the game depending how you want to play it.
Like M&M the powers are all effects based. So if you wanted to make a Pyro Girl for example its not a matter of choosing levels in pyrokenesis, but choosing a particular power and have it act like it. This could be Elemental Control (Fire), Power Flux- Fire or something else.
That gets me to a big issue. Magic.
Magic has always been an issue in BESM. There are basically three magical powers. The first is the easiest. Pick a power and call it magical. No big deal really.
The second is Power Flux, which used to be called magic. The idea here is pay for this at 15 points per level and you get 4 points per level to buy any other power temporarily. For that loss of 11 points per level you gain flexibility. So every power in the book then becomes a spell that your magic using character can use. Since its results or effect based then the Invisibility power can come from magic, be a spell cast by Power Flux, or be a cloaking device of a super-science item. Power Flux does not just have to be magic, it can psi powers, super-science, or just about anything else. For people starting out in BESM I say go with Power Flux. This is what I usually do for starting games and my Teen Witch below uses Power Flux.
Then there is Dynamic Powers. Dynamic Power used to be Dynamic Sorcery, but the name change didnt help clear anything up. It is bought like Power Flux (including some of the exact same text copied and pasted in). Now the idea here is to be able to replicate all those kewl powerz you see in anime that the characters just seem to think of and they get. The really weird stuff. The trouble is the power as written is ripe for abuse and it is not very clear. Turning to BESM d20 you can get an idea of what it can do there, but none of that is here. So there is no telling what a person with 3 levels in this can do say differently from what someone with 3 levels in Power Flux do.
The BESM d20 version has Dynamic Sorcery (its equivalent) casting D&D type spells with restrictions on how many, which ones and how often. But nothing like that here. IF I am going to use Dynamic Powers I am going to have to figure out a way to convert over the magic in BESM d20 Advanced Magic for some guidelines.
The designer, Mark MacKinnon, says a lot about this power in and outside of the book. Things like this power is balanced if you know how to use it and It's a mature role-playing tool for mature role-players. If you don't "get it" when you read the description, then it's not for you. Well Mark, you seem like a good guy and I do really like BESM but I am calling BULLSHIT on that one. Mark, I have been playing for 27+ years, writing games and playtesting new games non-stop since the mid 1990s. Players, mature or not, still like guidelines, thats why they are called core rules. Insulting my intelligence is a sure fire way to make sure I dont buy anything else from you.
I do understand it, and frankly, its not really my bag. I have some witches I use it with and others I use Power Flux with. In the end, I am finding I still like my own systems better. I appreciate the desire to tell a good story or to give GMs their freedom, but sometimes even the best GMs need a guide.
Though I should not *have* to do this I am going to take my cues on proper leveling from BESM d20 Advanced Magic. There Dynamic Sorcery goes to 10, to make life easier I am going to limit it to 5 levels in BESM 3.0 (level 6 is the realm of Gods). This will correspond to 1 BESM 3.0 level equaling 2 BESM d20 levels. Not perfect, but it is a guideline. Similarly Ill say 1 BESM 3.0 level of Dynamic Powers is roughly equal to having 2 levels of Magic/Sorcery. Its not perfect, but it works well enough.
Still though, I am unhappy with this power as written. Its a cool idea, but not as it is now. Ill revisit this when I do the BESM d20 conversions.
More Mechanics
The rest is very familiar. The main feature of the system is still the Tri-Stat, or Body, Mind and Soul. All skills, attributes and defects as well combat roles are made with these three in mind. They range up to 12, but cannot go over. A quick and dirty conversion from Unisystem would be to add two Unisystem Attributes to get one Tri-Stat stat, so as an example take Strength + Dexterity to get Body.
Unisystem Tri-Stat
Strength + Dexterity Body
Intelligence + Perception Mind
Constitution + Willpower Soul
Attributes and Skills convert pretty much as is. BESM 3.0s new mechanic is such that the chances of success for a character is about the same as their Unisystem counter-part. Many of the Attributes are nearly the same as Unisystem with minor name differences; Tough vs. Hard to Kill for example.
Skills are now part of Attributes, but otherwise mostly unchanged. Skill Levels range 1 to 6, with 0 as unskilled or unable to use this skill and 5 representing the human maximum in most cases. Unisystem has a lot more Drawbacks for characters than BESM has Defects.
Teen Witch
Here is a way to get a Unisystem-like witch into your BESM game. Use this template to start out your character. It uses Power Flux as I mentioned above and I went with a more anime-feel to it.
You were living a fairly normal crazy teen-age life. Worrying about school, boys, clothes, boys, popularity and boys. That is till one day you discovered your grandmothers Book of Shadows hidden away and since then nothing has ever been the same. You see ghosts, your cat now talks to you (and gives you advice!) and what worse now all these people are after you; rival witches, government agents that cant apparently tell the difference between you and a vampire, oh and not to mention you have a midterm in a couple of weeks!
College? You just want to make it to the prom!
Value Points Stat
+1 +10 Soul Stat or Mind Stat (choose one to work with Magic)
Value Points Attribute
+1 +2 Companion (Familiar, 120 points) OR
Divine Relationship (Spirit)
+1 +2 Energy Bonus (+5 Energy Points)
+1 +1 Features: Attractive (cute)
+1 +18 Item Book of Shadows restriction:
Unwieldy, easily lost, cannot learn new spells without it -2
+2 +26 Power Flux Magic (8 Flux Points)
restriction: Activation (lesser) -1, restriction: Depletes (lesser) -1,
restriction: Spells must be learned (moderate) -2)
+1 +2 Sixth Sense (One Aspect)
+2 +4 Skill: Occult (+6 points in Modern Occult Horror)
+1 +2 Super Senses (Magical) (uses same
Stat chosen above)
+1 +8 Telekinesis (Any)
Points Defect
-1 Marked (witchs mark)
-2 Nemesis (Usually a rival witch or investigator)
-2 Skeleton in the Closet (Magical family/history)
Total: 60 Points
Book of Shadows (40 points worth, 20 CPs, -2)
Common Spells (spells use same stat as chosen above)
Value Points Attribute
+4 +8 Environmental Control
+1 +8 Flight
+2 +6 Force Field
+2 +8 Healing
+4 +8 Illusion
+1 +2 Telepathy (minor)
Notes on the Template
The Teen Witch chooses one Stat, typically Soul or Mind, and uses it as the basis for all of her magical powers. All Spells in her Book of Shadows will use this Stat instead of the Stat listed. Eg, a Teen Witch that uses Soul as her Stat will use Soul and not Mind when using Telepathy as a spell. Her Super Senses also use the same Stat, but Game Masters can rule that Telekinesis can remain as it is.
Paths of Improvement
To advance the Teen Witch can improve her stat of choice, add more points to her Power Flux Magic (to increase her power), her Energy Points, or to her Item Book of Shadows (to represent more spells learned). Other choices are picking up both a Companion Familiar and Divine Relationship Spirit of Grandmother/Mother or increasing her Occult skills.
Previous Post |Next Post
If you are curious about my BESM 2nd Edition Revised conversions you can find those on the BESM Forum or at UniFans.
BESM 3.0 / Unisystem Conversions
I was eagerly anticipating the release of BESM (Big Eyes, Small Mouth) 3rd Edition. Of course, Guardians of Order had just gone belly up and the rules were now being released by Arthaus/White Wolf, so my anticipation was tinged a little. What had happened to the game I had just recently become fond of and what was going to happen now?
Well I got my book and some fears were allayed, others though took over.
Briefly here my comments on the system and the new book.
The new book is very attractive and one of the most colorful RPGs I have seen in a long time. It reminds me of Mutants and Masterminds in terms of color. It is a thick tome, and now sized to fit well on my shelf. The Niko Geyer artwork is great and really captures the feel of the game well. On the other hand I have seen all this artwork before, maybe not in color, but certainly in other editions of this book. Now I understand that money was very tight at GoO and the art is great, so I am willing to cut them some slack here.
The text though also has the same problems. There is text in here that I am now reading for the 5th time over (BESM 2.0, BESM d20, SAS, SASd20). Some of this text still has the same problems as it always did, but more on that later.
I do like what is new. The analysis of anime, maps of Japan and Tokyo, and the overview of Shjo anime. The section about the anime multiverse is also rather fun and full of ideas that can be used for any game. Especially as a way to run those pesky crossover sessions.
The new game mechanics are now a Roll-over; 2d6 vs. Target Number. Makes it very much in feel with Unisystem. No Success levels as such, but a very loose difficulty class system. It was reading over these rules in fact that help re-tool my dice mechanic for Unisystem that I have come to call The Chicago Way .
But otherwise it is still mostly the same BESM. We still have our 3 Stats, Body, Mind and Soul. Still have attributes, defects and skills. There are different scalings for the game depending how you want to play it.
Like M&M the powers are all effects based. So if you wanted to make a Pyro Girl for example its not a matter of choosing levels in pyrokenesis, but choosing a particular power and have it act like it. This could be Elemental Control (Fire), Power Flux- Fire or something else.
That gets me to a big issue. Magic.
Magic has always been an issue in BESM. There are basically three magical powers. The first is the easiest. Pick a power and call it magical. No big deal really.
The second is Power Flux, which used to be called magic. The idea here is pay for this at 15 points per level and you get 4 points per level to buy any other power temporarily. For that loss of 11 points per level you gain flexibility. So every power in the book then becomes a spell that your magic using character can use. Since its results or effect based then the Invisibility power can come from magic, be a spell cast by Power Flux, or be a cloaking device of a super-science item. Power Flux does not just have to be magic, it can psi powers, super-science, or just about anything else. For people starting out in BESM I say go with Power Flux. This is what I usually do for starting games and my Teen Witch below uses Power Flux.
Then there is Dynamic Powers. Dynamic Power used to be Dynamic Sorcery, but the name change didnt help clear anything up. It is bought like Power Flux (including some of the exact same text copied and pasted in). Now the idea here is to be able to replicate all those kewl powerz you see in anime that the characters just seem to think of and they get. The really weird stuff. The trouble is the power as written is ripe for abuse and it is not very clear. Turning to BESM d20 you can get an idea of what it can do there, but none of that is here. So there is no telling what a person with 3 levels in this can do say differently from what someone with 3 levels in Power Flux do.
The BESM d20 version has Dynamic Sorcery (its equivalent) casting D&D type spells with restrictions on how many, which ones and how often. But nothing like that here. IF I am going to use Dynamic Powers I am going to have to figure out a way to convert over the magic in BESM d20 Advanced Magic for some guidelines.
The designer, Mark MacKinnon, says a lot about this power in and outside of the book. Things like this power is balanced if you know how to use it and It's a mature role-playing tool for mature role-players. If you don't "get it" when you read the description, then it's not for you. Well Mark, you seem like a good guy and I do really like BESM but I am calling BULLSHIT on that one. Mark, I have been playing for 27+ years, writing games and playtesting new games non-stop since the mid 1990s. Players, mature or not, still like guidelines, thats why they are called core rules. Insulting my intelligence is a sure fire way to make sure I dont buy anything else from you.
I do understand it, and frankly, its not really my bag. I have some witches I use it with and others I use Power Flux with. In the end, I am finding I still like my own systems better. I appreciate the desire to tell a good story or to give GMs their freedom, but sometimes even the best GMs need a guide.
Though I should not *have* to do this I am going to take my cues on proper leveling from BESM d20 Advanced Magic. There Dynamic Sorcery goes to 10, to make life easier I am going to limit it to 5 levels in BESM 3.0 (level 6 is the realm of Gods). This will correspond to 1 BESM 3.0 level equaling 2 BESM d20 levels. Not perfect, but it is a guideline. Similarly Ill say 1 BESM 3.0 level of Dynamic Powers is roughly equal to having 2 levels of Magic/Sorcery. Its not perfect, but it works well enough.
Still though, I am unhappy with this power as written. Its a cool idea, but not as it is now. Ill revisit this when I do the BESM d20 conversions.
More Mechanics
The rest is very familiar. The main feature of the system is still the Tri-Stat, or Body, Mind and Soul. All skills, attributes and defects as well combat roles are made with these three in mind. They range up to 12, but cannot go over. A quick and dirty conversion from Unisystem would be to add two Unisystem Attributes to get one Tri-Stat stat, so as an example take Strength + Dexterity to get Body.
Unisystem Tri-Stat
Strength + Dexterity Body
Intelligence + Perception Mind
Constitution + Willpower Soul
Attributes and Skills convert pretty much as is. BESM 3.0s new mechanic is such that the chances of success for a character is about the same as their Unisystem counter-part. Many of the Attributes are nearly the same as Unisystem with minor name differences; Tough vs. Hard to Kill for example.
Skills are now part of Attributes, but otherwise mostly unchanged. Skill Levels range 1 to 6, with 0 as unskilled or unable to use this skill and 5 representing the human maximum in most cases. Unisystem has a lot more Drawbacks for characters than BESM has Defects.
Teen Witch
Here is a way to get a Unisystem-like witch into your BESM game. Use this template to start out your character. It uses Power Flux as I mentioned above and I went with a more anime-feel to it.
You were living a fairly normal crazy teen-age life. Worrying about school, boys, clothes, boys, popularity and boys. That is till one day you discovered your grandmothers Book of Shadows hidden away and since then nothing has ever been the same. You see ghosts, your cat now talks to you (and gives you advice!) and what worse now all these people are after you; rival witches, government agents that cant apparently tell the difference between you and a vampire, oh and not to mention you have a midterm in a couple of weeks!
College? You just want to make it to the prom!
Value Points Stat
+1 +10 Soul Stat or Mind Stat (choose one to work with Magic)
Value Points Attribute
+1 +2 Companion (Familiar, 120 points) OR
Divine Relationship (Spirit)
+1 +2 Energy Bonus (+5 Energy Points)
+1 +1 Features: Attractive (cute)
+1 +18 Item Book of Shadows restriction:
Unwieldy, easily lost, cannot learn new spells without it -2
+2 +26 Power Flux Magic (8 Flux Points)
restriction: Activation (lesser) -1, restriction: Depletes (lesser) -1,
restriction: Spells must be learned (moderate) -2)
+1 +2 Sixth Sense (One Aspect)
+2 +4 Skill: Occult (+6 points in Modern Occult Horror)
+1 +2 Super Senses (Magical) (uses same
Stat chosen above)
+1 +8 Telekinesis (Any)
Points Defect
-1 Marked (witchs mark)
-2 Nemesis (Usually a rival witch or investigator)
-2 Skeleton in the Closet (Magical family/history)
Total: 60 Points
Book of Shadows (40 points worth, 20 CPs, -2)
Common Spells (spells use same stat as chosen above)
Value Points Attribute
+4 +8 Environmental Control
+1 +8 Flight
+2 +6 Force Field
+2 +8 Healing
+4 +8 Illusion
+1 +2 Telepathy (minor)
Notes on the Template
The Teen Witch chooses one Stat, typically Soul or Mind, and uses it as the basis for all of her magical powers. All Spells in her Book of Shadows will use this Stat instead of the Stat listed. Eg, a Teen Witch that uses Soul as her Stat will use Soul and not Mind when using Telepathy as a spell. Her Super Senses also use the same Stat, but Game Masters can rule that Telekinesis can remain as it is.
Paths of Improvement
To advance the Teen Witch can improve her stat of choice, add more points to her Power Flux Magic (to increase her power), her Energy Points, or to her Item Book of Shadows (to represent more spells learned). Other choices are picking up both a Companion Familiar and Divine Relationship Spirit of Grandmother/Mother or increasing her Occult skills.
Web Warlock, web.warlock@comcast.net
Ghosts of Albion website and the Ghosts of Albion Discussion Group
Tara: "My whole life has been 'Tara, don't use your magic.' 'Tara, hide your powers.' 'Tara you will scare someone.' But you tried to hurt and then kill Willow. So maybe it is time I showed everyone just how powerful I am."
- The Dragon and the Phoenix, Episode 6: The Burning Times
Ghosts of Albion website and the Ghosts of Albion Discussion Group
Tara: "My whole life has been 'Tara, don't use your magic.' 'Tara, hide your powers.' 'Tara you will scare someone.' But you tried to hurt and then kill Willow. So maybe it is time I showed everyone just how powerful I am."
- The Dragon and the Phoenix, Episode 6: The Burning Times
