Monday, May 10, 2010

Stormbringer

Stormbringer is an RPG based on the stories of Elric of Melnibone, the dark fantasy character created by Michael Moorcock. It was made by Chaosium, and the edition I have was printed in 2001, so it could conceivably still be in print. In Stormbringer, you play a character set in the world of Elric, amidst the Young Kingdoms; you aspire to become a champion of the primal forces of Law, Chaos, or Balance. Perhaps you could even aspire to becoming the current incarnation of the Eternal Champion. You discover the secrets and prophecies that criss-cross the Young Kingdoms, the Unknown Lands, and the gods of Law and Chaos - if, that is, you manage to keep yourself alive.

It uses the same system as other Chaosium games, like Call of Cthulhu, so the skills are percentile-based. There are seven principle attributes: Strength (STR), Constitution (CON), Size (SIZ), Intelligence (INT), Power (POW), Dexterity (DEX), and Appearance (APP). You determine those by rolling 2d6+6 for each. Then you determine the derived statistics Idea (INTx5), Luck (POWx5), Dexterity (DEXx5), and Charisma (APPx5). Since I won't be making a magic-user, I don't need to raise my Power, the attribute that governs magic. I determine my Damage Bonus in combat by adding STR + SIZ, and determine hit points by adding CON + SIZ and dividing by 2. My magic points, useless though they will be to me, are equal to my POW score. I can then choose 13 skills, and add 20 skill points to each. Then I choose an occupation for my character; since I generally tend to play fighters, I can go with Mercenary or Soldier, and I think I'll go with Mercenary. This means I can divide 250 points among the skills Brawl, Dodge, Ride, Throw, 3 weapon skills, and a personal specialty skill, as well as 200 bronzes. I then roll for a distinctive feature, and roll 1d6, add that to 17, and find my age. Since I'm not taking magic, I'll go for Law, and add 20 skill points to between 1 and 3 skills, adding 1 point to my Law allegiance for each skill. I then get my equipment, including 600 bronzes, a horse and tack, and something that shows my character's relationship with his family. So, putting that all together:

Sayem Osrode
Age: 20
STR: 15
CON: 14
SIZ: 15
INT: 11 Idea: 55
POW: 9 Luck: 45
DEX: 13 Dexterity: 65
APP: 12 Charisma: 60
Distinguishing Feature: facial tattoo

Law: 3
Damage Bonus: +1d4
Hit Points: 15
Skills
Brawl: 75%
Broadsword: 50%
Climb: 60%
Dodge: 71%
Hide: 40%
Jump: 45%
Listen: 45%
Maul: 50%
Move Quietly: 60%
Ride: 60%
Sailing: 35%
Scent/Taste: 35%
Search: 60%
Throw: 70%
Throwing Axe: 50%
Track: 55%
Trap: 25%
Young Kingdoms: 55%

Equipment
Horse w/tack, broadsword, maul, throwing axe, half-plate, backpack, rope, sandals, shirt, laborer's clothes, family ring

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