Fatigue and Economy of Effort;

Fatigue is not something for every game table. But to simulations its practically ubiquitous in all strategic decision making. Fatigue affects both mind and body, despite what people may believe (that's the odd thing about science).

Anyone who had to make big decisions, I think would have experienced more regrettable decisions while fatigued than having had rest and refreshed. There is a reason why we let a big decision wait till after a good nights sleep.

I'm sure Fatigue in all its froms: as we exercise, work, study, problem solve, and have fun affects our decision making and should affect the decision making in the RPG. It failing to appear to pose an adequately remove the color of a difficult task.


First thing I tell newbies in Airsoft is Track your Fatigue, its so fundamental that we avoid heat stroke, accidents, and injuries by being self aware about our condition. If you think you should be tired, take a long swig of water; stay in the shade; dont rush the enemy when your out of breath; plan your rest points as you advance to the enemy position.


So I feel pretty disheartened when a system reflects fatigue poorly, gives me very little wiggle room, or ignores it all together. I can Adhoc the rules but adhoc has trade-offs.

Fading Suns Revised edition - mentions fatigue but doesnt give any examples of it as far as i've used the search terms. It basically makes it purely Adhoc, it is a system that has yet to adopt "conditions" or "status effects" like stunned, dazed, fatigued, exhausted, frightened, etc...  Given how the rules work i can "paste"over the D20 conditions.  D20 Fading Suns, surprisingly has Fatigue and conditions since one can argue it draws from DnD 3.0E its base rules. I don't know how it may be odd that in one version of a game, because of a system, players have to deal with fatigue while in a different version the GM may adhoc the ruling which may be inconsistent.

L5R - Fatigue is measured of Days of being awake and Fasting. The penalties are per day of staying awake per stamina. My problem is that I need to argue a character is tired/fatigued. I can clarify what consitutes "days of awake" in equivalency in work hours. Exeeding the days awake or period tired does not necessarily consequence to sleepiness but it is often the case, for others (like me) all my compulsions gets easily triggered and I go zombie mode.

Mongoose Traveller has fatigue rules, which is much more than the previous systems mentioned (found in p74). It can be pretty harsh since its measured in number of melee attacks in a DAY, number of hours awake, and heavy labor hours (wait does that mean an attack is equal to an Hour of heavy labor?).

Song of Ice and Fire RPG has one of the better Fatigue rules of the group found in page 169. It also have overland travelling rules which help in logistical challenges. Unfortunately the character sheet does not have it where it counts - in the front along with wounds, injury, destiny points and damage.

Ugg, to satisfy my Compulsions i need to tweak and align the system's view of the world to how I, the GM, views it. I realize that it goes back to the AC is Damage Reduction argument and Tappy's Argument that System is Flavor. I realize that there are assumptions of reality/or how we understand the world that influence our reasoning several "bounds" away; to rearrange those assumptions tends to muck up our reasoning down the line. The more scientific the assumptions, IMO, the more sturdy they are against all sorts of crap the players throw at me.

example. Economy of Effort (Fatigue Rules), if we don't have any rules then how does this devalue a stat like Endurance or Stamina? Why should I make a build conceptually high-end/sta but I don't spend the points because It will not show up in play (warriors that have "regular" endurance and have no travelling skills -I was asking my bro how people spent their skills. If we drove i can understand having "average" end/sta but if you walked about >10,000 steps a day then you better get the skills or you will be wasting time getting to point A to B (Punctuality and Deadlines) . Are characters "fresh" every day, they are able to maintain optimal attention and awareness?

After learning about warfare, and that 99% of a soldier does is travel and logistics and how travelling (being in the right place in the right time) can mean more than who has a better sword technique game systems or settings that continue the fallacy snap my suspenders of disbelief. This is comparing all the warfare I've read.

Hopefully Future Topics:

If science is true regardless if you believe it or not, whats the point of being scientific or trying to adhere to scientific principle when playing an RPG which is make-believe game? (very very narrow audience: Science Geeks and RPGamers).

Science in RPGs: How and Do scientific Assumptions make for better toolset for a GM?

Rant: I hate tweaking other peoples systems, because I don't get credit and the knowledge created does not go into any database to create any foundation for a better system. I really have to work on my Open RPG system, right now after all that I've learned from the other systems my biggest obstacle is that it will be another 60-80 hour project with very little achievement goals... and no one to try out the game system.

Revisiting Old Systems: fading suns

I realized that I have a good number of game systems and settings under my belt. It helps that we three brothers were very prolific in gaming and love to share in the "cheese" of breaking a system or trying a new game. Looking at these old systems with fresh eyes and better math skills has given me revisiting so much inspiration.

I am actually interested going from first edition to the current edition and what were the problems that the game designers were facing. For me it's like stepping back in time when I look at the old systems and figuring out the values and knowledge the designers had at the time.

I'm right now revisiting fading suns and looking at how it differed through the versions and versus now. Human/Alien and Ego/Faith is not part of the character sheet.

First thing I try to do is make a well rounded build. Already you can get a lot of what the designer was thinking with what he considers well rounded. Often you don't need to build the character, it is enough to look at the sample characters. Although it takes exposure to a number of systems to see the differences in values and focus.

Second is breaking the system, making a character that exploits enough of the weakness that a gm would to busy to house rule delicately. I'm beginning to see some breaks in the systems although fading Suns non-magic rules are pretty solid, can't say the same about their combat rules. Being old, my mind is not that effective in memorizing useless details, I need paper and pen and make a chart of the measurable elements of the system.

One odd bit is that move is vigor based. Taking multiple actions to run is faster than run as a single action. Even at bare score of 3, a character can run 9meters in multiple action but only runs 10m on a single action. At a score of average, like 5 on vigor and 3 Dex, I have a 15m move while running as a significant or major action is 10m with a one in twenty to move in 15m. I think it would be sounder to just base it on vigor anyway the performance variance when people run is very small, not worth a die roll. Simply vigor x3m plus margin of success with no penalty unless critical fail would be ok. Movement should have penalties when they are not simply running forward, strafing or backing up movement should be cut simply to half.

I think the system lacks sample characters and NPCs but that is a personal preference.
What may be preference is the description of economics and relationships given. Exposed to traveller, farming holdings enough to buy technology should be said in the the scale of farming tenant cooperatives or cooperatives (mining, agricultural, utilities). I could detail out the economics of the world which gives sandbox tools in case the PCs would want to go financial or economic strategy.

A different take on fading suns have come to mind if I apply a different set of morals or ethics. Like applying secular humanism, objectivism, vs the medieval virtues given. Objectivism happens to be perfect for the setting, particularly among the nobles, and is the kind of point of view that give a lot of RPing opportunity. What the nobles did with indentured servants despite coming from an advance society fits in well in a total Laissez faire system.

Gurpsifying this all is not an easy feat. It would probably take me another 60-80 hours but what would result is another GURPS lite for fading suns. I would incorporate my traveller ships, economics and with mechs. I would also make a handout about the structure of the setting mapping out political and economic relationships for sandbox GMs to do as they please.

I finished my first system analysis cast for the Crunch inclined for mongoose traveller. Hope to find the time to edit for a version two. Basically me going through breakdown of a system in a process.

Before any Sci Fi Campaign

Sci-Fi Table Top Role-Playing

I'm having a problem with Sci-Fi that is finding its way in my dreams. Basically it is answering the question: “What do I want from the Sci-Fi game I want to play?”. Looking around a lot of people will give many cosmetic reasons why they prefer sci-fi. This generalization calls those differences cosmetic because in an organizational standpoint, they just are.

The reason this is bothering me so much is because any setting more advanced than medieval has far more options to be considered. The capital rule in Medieval and any time before the age of reasoning is Ignorance limits all role-playable options. There are few bodies of knowledge that exist that are extensive and whose fundamentals can fit a few books. Having mastered these fundamentals, I usually have the mental agility to explain the cause and effect of the players actions and the extent of it.

I have mixed feelings about ignorance . It is a powerful force even today. Ignorance affects a character's options. Practical skill, without theory has options limited to the existing experiences (I will explain the difference between practical skills later on). As a GM, ignorance is my ally and a powerful force in the decision making element of the setting. In settings with Vast amount of Ignorance, I am able to come closer to the number of options my players will come up, anticipating about 90% of what they will. It is very much like a chess game at this point, the flow of decisions tends to come to a limited and logical conclusion based on the player dynamics.

Segwaying into Sci-fi again, I have the problem of options. I can at least analyze an example in any past event and narrow down points where options were limited and areas of ignorance. Sci-fi is all together frightening with the advent of Augmented Reality (which was the TED special of the new 6th sense). So to make assumptions of how it will be in the future, any GM who will run it, will run it as though it was modern times but with fantastic dressing.

Let us look at Fading Suns. My favorite part of the setting is that, what if ignorance was and is still a powerful force, even in the far future. Civilization tends to break down over vast distances, what more space? Despotism and Oligarchies can rule well within modern times thanks to the Church (Philippines this is a very real example). These social classes can romanticize themselves as great Houses, the way Dynasties of Pre-modern Philippines would about their Spanish Heritage.

When preparing a Sci-Fi game there are two schools core differences that affect a game: One is Narrative or the story, and the other is Cause and Effect. The GM's job is to provide a mix or the exclusivity of the either one. Some people like the story, some like the CaE. CaE is the core of TTRPGs game aspect. If there were no reasonable consequences then there would be no point in making it a game.

In many instances where there are those who do not provide the cause and effect scenario, instead they are just using RPGs as an excuse to tell a story. In many cases a story that in strongly affected by their own prejudices or the drawing as much attention to themselves as possible. The same truth can be applied to people who play it for the pure thrill of the game. As an RPG, role-playing ignorance, priorities, bias, prejudices and delusions are important in criticizing the decision making process.

Fading suns has dress of Ignorant Feudalism and the most timeless forces that effect human kind: The value of Family and Faith. These two things create a huge ripple affect in much of how technology will develop and how society works. In fact one can draw a web structure of how everything tends to have a role in the whole order. Interestingly the Status Quo is the biggest hand the Universe gives to the GM.

Having analyzed what makes Sci-fi difficult and addressing it's serious problems, the next step would be to define the Great before defining the small. Starting first with the roles of each social class and what keeps everything in their place, then moving progressively down towards the level the Players will be expected to Role-Play. Defining the Checks and Balances of a particular area, the GM can make several

In my own process, I've realized that a Minor House (one that I've defined as uniquely autonomous from the most powerful factions in the setting) in its constant diplomatic efforts to maintain its freedom will be the best place to start. It will be made up of several families (and names) who are both new and old. Some families are married into the House provide valuable skills and resources.

The characters available to be played are the Men-at-arms, highly skilled military retainers with special equipment and supporting their own forces in the defense of the family's holdings. The courtiers, power brokers who are out and about gathering information and probing the more powerful factions for the defense of the House, these courtiers also involve relatives who are part of the church. Other highly skilled retainers are also available, like those trained by the Merchant League.

This set up will also allow for characters with the same level of capability as those who rule the Empire, but with vastly diminished resources. They will also have a sense of “tribe” to look after, so that their goals are homogeneous. This will also allow for the GM to think up or ripp-off scenarios and missions that he can align with the party's objectives.

Although, before any effort should be made in preparing this kind of adventure the GM should have a dialog with the Players and try to meet each other's expectations while following an agreed upon set of parameters. Players negotiate the range of their freedoms and opportunities, while the GM will work out what he can afford to give them with the limitations in time and resources. In this dialog, the GM can even ask if any of the players would volunteer in the preparation and can assign a work breakdown structure to allow for maximum ease and fun in all aspects of the game.