Anyway, the ideas expressed and storytelling in Death-note is great material for my GURPS modern fantasy game. Particularly a focus on Mages, Mafias, Mega-Corporations, and Ministries. The Planning need not be overly complex, I plan to use a GURPsified version of Wilderness of Mirrors game effects and resolution (basically Yes&/But method)
The idea is that in a 3 hour session of 5-6 players I have a budget of 30 minutes per player or 10 minutes of 3 scenes each (or 2 hours of 4 players). The scenes follow the following format:
- The Planners/Command characters rolls with his margin of success determining the pieces he moves and how much he allocates. The commander who has the largest margin of success goes first with the GM yes&/but.
- Each character tasked, including the leader, have a set up scene - Player will make up shit telling the GM how he is implementing the plan or his action with what skills and resources at his disposal. The GM yes&/buts based on the skill level and the skills employed by the character. This is a 10 minute scene at MOST. Ideally the GM cycles quickly to give everyone less waiting time and more things to do. More than one Player can be in this scene.
- The GM is like, "ok what is your objective and how do you plan to achieve it given your abilities go!"
- Player is like "Dan will do X and Y, and will try to achieve...". Player can ask and go back and forth with the GM doing this. The GM takes note and writes down his response.
- The GM' with his yes&/but consume the NPC's margin of success like the PC, as he allocates an asset against that maneuvering pc or NPC asset. Since the GM is taking notes, he is mostly on the Listening and recieving end giving the players more opportunities for air-time. Players should feel free to use it as efficiently as possible to enthusiastically describe their actions. Give the GM the chance to make things more interesting by giving him a lot of material.
- The GM ok, "so Dan is doing X and..." He narrates how the plan goes, and since it is a "LAW" that no plan survives first contact he ends this player's scene a cliff hanger switching to the NEXT Player. the GM marks resources expended by the opposing NPC group/or opposing PC group. No Rolls yet, but the player should put in the Chat Log what skills and multi-tasking he plans to use.
- This continues as the GM cycles, by 1/3 the time everyone should have had a decent intro and their plan gets interesting. By the second round, the players are at exchanges with the GM with yes&/but depending on how much they are multi-tasking and their skill level. Gm and Player takes turn resolving each skill and part of the plan. Let the player narrate and capture his mindset, mood, and the feel of the scene.
- Player: "Dan does this, and he is etc... he is paranoid about the risks but..." GM goes, Dan is right to be concerned, etc... happens and X&Y are staring down at Dan with tendrils of magic coursing down the barrel of the gun. Roll A at ...
- The Gm basically uses the build up and cliff hanger from the Intro to build up tension and to create a problem for the character that he has no time to make a solution for. it is together with the Player they navigate the problem. GM errs on the drama and emotion.
- The GM devotes more of the Encounters resources from this point on until the Problem is resolved by the next 2/3rds of the game. He balances the challenges for every scene, weighing more time in a scene with more players (ideally). How much resources the GM puts into the encounter is noted and will be reaped by the end of the session.
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