Serenity Roleplaying Game Review

POSTED BY: varden
UPDATED: Tuesday, August 23, 2005 13:53
VIEWED: 11213
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VARDEN

Thursday, July 7, 2005 3:40 AM

Link

See pictures from the games, including deckplans, character sheets, handouts and us gamers:

http://www.geocities.com/vardenkenzei/serenityrpg.html

http://diceclub.ws/serenity.html

Intro

Margaret Weis Productions is going to publish the Serenity Roleplaying Game, to be released at GenCon Indy in August. They ran several preview games at the Origins game convention in Columbus, Ohio on July 2. I played in one game and sat in on another.

If you're a gamer and a Browncoat, you'll wanna read this...

Summary

I think we're gonna like this game just fine. The task resolution system is straightforward and pretty simple. The game seems to stress role playing because they've written in rules to reward you for playing your weaknesses and quirks. Also, the scenarios they ran at Origins had a perfect Firefly feel to them.

System

The game mechanic is based on the Sovereign Stone system, which reminded me of the old TSR Alternity system. Basically, the GM gives you a target number to tie or beat, and you throw a bunch of dice at it. The better you are at something, the bigger the dice and the more you get. Characters' six attributes are rated as dice, like d4 or d10, not numbers. They also have a list of skills, also rated as dice.

For example, in my game I had to fix the water purifier. I had an intelligence of d10 and a repair skill of d10. I rolled d10+d10, hoping to roll over the target number the DM gave me. I also had an agility of d6 and a guns skill of d4, so I knew I was gonna run and hide when the bullets started flying! They did.

The shooter rolled an attack with his agility die plus his guns skill die. I made a defense roll (agility + dodge). The shooter beat my roll by one so he just hit me. That point came out of my body points. Those consisted of 18 wound and 18 stun points. The difference between the attack roll and the defense roll is split between wound and stun, the odd point going to stun. On top of that, the shooter rolled a damage die, d10 I think, and that went to my wound points. As those wear down, you take penalties to all your actions, pass out, or just die.

Realstic, deadly, and a bit more complicated than, say, a D20 System attack where there's one die roll to hit, one for damage, one set of hit points, and the defender doesn't have to roll anything. Still, I'm ready to try it because a Firefly-style game has to be deadly.

I didn't get hurt, though, because I spent a couple of plot points to raise my defense roll.

Plot Points

Plot points are those rewards for roleplaying your weaknesses ('complications,' as Serenity RPG calls them) that I mentioned before. You can spend them before or after a roll to raise a die roll or even change the story itself, like buying yourself a convenient coincidence.

My character had the complications of 'Honest to a Fault' and 'Pacifist.' If I had used Honest to a Fault to, say, pay more for a piece of salvage than I had to because I didn't want to cheat to junk dealer, that would have complicated our captain's plan to save money, but it would have earned me a plot point.

'Doing something cool' also earns you a plot point.

In the game we played, instead of shooting at the guys trying to hijack our ship, I caught one in the airlock, vented the air and knocked him out. That's the way a pacifist would deal with someone and that's how I got a plot point.

I saw guys spend five or seven at a time to make sure a shot didn't miss, or to make a piloting roll through an asteroid field.

I loved having that kind of control over my actions. Plus, that'll get the worst min-maxer or hack-n-slasher to at least try some role playing.

Scenarios

Without spoiling the games for the Browncoats at GenCon and DragonCon, I can say that the scenarios we played were smart and fun. They fit Firefly perfectly, and finished up well in their 4-hour blocks.

They were written by gaming demi-god James M. Ward, whose resume goes back to the original “three little books” version of D&D.

Each game had plot elements you

11THHOUR

Thursday, July 7, 2005 6:53 AM

Excellent review! Appreciate the time and care you took to write such a detailed and thoughtful analysis of the Serenity Role Playing Game.

Just wanted to mention though that the black and white character sheets in your photo montage are the old, preliminary pages. The actual "Quick Draw" game is being completely redesigned. The basic info and such stays the same, but the "look" will be extra shiny special.

I'd like to share some pics right now, but I'm not sure if okay to do so yet. But the plans are to have examples of the "Quick Draw" RPG available at ComiCon.

Thanks again for the great review.

11thHour

________________________________________________

"Because teenage pranks are fun when you're about to die!" - Hoban Washburne

RELFEXIVE

Thursday, July 7, 2005 8:09 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by varden:
See pictures from the games, including deckplans, character sheets, handouts and us gamers:
[url] http://www.geocities.com/vardenkenzei/serenityrpg.html

Ai-yah! Interesting things to look at and read... on a site blocked by the gorram net gateway where I work!! AAAAIIIEEE!!!

"My God - you're like a trained ape. Without the training."

DAIKATH

Thursday, July 7, 2005 8:42 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by RelFexive:

Ai-yah! Interesting things to look at and read... on a site blocked by the gorram net gateway where I work!! AAAAIIIEEE!!!

"My God - you're like a trained ape. Without the training."

Maybe they want you to work?

(sorry, sorry, couldt resist).

RELFEXIVE

Thursday, July 7, 2005 8:56 AM

Hah, a likely story!

I just have nothing to do right now... and a look at that stuff would kill some time and be interestamacating too.

BAH! I say again, BAH!!

"My God - you're like a trained ape. Without the training."

SAFFY

Thursday, July 7, 2005 10:46 AM

Argh! This looks amazing!

I wanted to sit in on this demo so bad, but I couldn't get enough time away from my booth. (I was the chick at Mongoose, if you happened by...)

G1223

Thursday, July 7, 2005 1:12 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by Saffy:
Argh! This looks amazing!

I wanted to sit in on this demo so bad, but I couldn't get enough time away from my booth. (I was the chick at Mongoose, if you happened by...)

See you at Gen Con Indy then.

TANSTAAFL

BLEYDDYN

Thursday, July 7, 2005 3:12 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by 11thHour:
But the plans are to have examples of the "Quick Draw" RPG available at ComiCon.

Do you know if there will be any Serenity games being run at Comic-Con? I know there's a panel but haven't read anything about games. I've never actually attended any of the gaming sessions at Comic-Con, but I would definitely make time for Serenity!

I agree it was a great review. The plot points sound a lot like something that was in the James Bond RPG I used to play, many years ago, and they usually ended up being the best parts of the games, largely because they required (and brought out) the most creativity in the players.

--Bleyddyn

JAMIECHAMBERS

Thursday, July 7, 2005 3:18 PM

I'm hoping to at least run one or two tables of Serenity at ComiCon next week. Since we didn't make the "official" scheduling, I'm hoping to work out a location in an open game area or somewhre else and perhaps sign people up right out of our booth. We should hopefully have some shiny items to show people next week as well!

** Jamie

BLEYDDYN

Thursday, July 7, 2005 3:33 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by JamieChambers:
I'm hoping to at least run one or two tables of Serenity at ComiCon next week. Since we didn't make the "official" scheduling, I'm hoping to work out a location in an open game area or somewhre else and perhaps sign people up right out of our booth. We should hopefully have some shiny items to show people next week as well!

** Jamie

Awesome! I'd skip anything but the Serenity panel and the hours I volunteered at the fan table

Speaking of which, the fan tables (spaces A11 and A12) are supposed to have a white board, which might be a good place to advertise once you have a time and location.

--Bleyddyn

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