So I just got invited to join two different games now. A NWOD game and a BESM game and I know next to nothing about either. For NWOD, the group has a geist, a vampire, and a beast. I was thinking of playing a mage since werewolf is not permitted. I like the idea of still being a human within all the weird, but touched by the supernatural. They have, as I am to understand, almost purely social and subtle characters and that's fine. So I need advice on what to do here as I am brand spanking new and know nothing about this.
I know literally nothing about BESM at all. Not one thing other than it is an anime style game and this thing will be based in the infinite stratos world but with all the harem and ecchi removed, and somewhat more serious. I don't even know where to begin with this.
BESM is a free-form point-buy game. For those games, the best way for me to make a character is to come up with what I want the character to be like, then spend the points to match. Get someone familiar with the rules to help you spend the points to match your character concept.
Okay, that's good to know but I still need help with the NWOD stuff. I looked at the Mage the Awakening book, which I think is second edition, but don't know how to check and I am lost already.
I really wish people would stop relying on acronyms, not everyone knows what they mean, and the time it takes to explain them overtakes the time saved from typing them. :-)
So, what does BESM and NWOD or whatever stand for, and thanks for answering. :-)
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For BESM, you definitely need a concept first. The beginning of the book has a more structured build process you should at least look at (like x% stats, y% attributes, etc.), and also has a benchmark table to help give yourself some idea of what power levels are appropriate for the points level of your game. On that note, you will need to get the points level from the GM, and in general will have to keep a dialog with the GM regarding your attributes, what levels they are, what your character goals are, etc. It's alot more back-and-forth than most games like PF and DnD.
Can't give you much help with NWOD, sorry.
@captain yesterday
NWOD = new world of darkness (the more plug-n-play version between supplements)
BESM = big eyes, small mouth (though this game is almost exclusively referred to with it's acronym, even on the cover of the rule book)
EDIT: added URL to wikipedia pages
EDIT2: If you want help with sifting through the MASSIVE number of BESM attributes feel free to send me a PM and I'll do what I can. I'll try to keep the "ask your GM" responses to a minimum ;D
I'd expect some guidance from the GM on what's appropriate in a BESM campaign. If this "will be based in the infinite stratos world but with all the harem and ecchi removed, and somewhat more serious" is all you get, then you can draw inspiration from pretty much anywhere in anime. A magical girl. A giant robot pilot. A monster summoner. A gun-toting assassin. A warrior with sword twice his size.
I'd probably stick to adventure style anime, unless the game was set up to focus on a cooking school or something.
The Infinite Stratos setting is specifically set up to be cross genre. I'm not entirely clear how well the genre mixing works.
I don't know a lot about NWOD. From what I've seen and what I remember of OWOD, you'd want to start by looking at the orders of mages, if you want a mage. They're kind of like classes, though generally broader.
I skimmed the Mage the awakening book and I am already annoyed. It says, right off the bat, that I need another book entirely to create a normal human character first, then use this book to make it into a mage. I thought it was like OWOD where if you wanted to play a vampire, you just get the VtM book and so on.
Jaçinto wrote: I skimmed the Mage the awakening book and I am already annoyed. It says, right off the bat, that I need another book entirely to create a normal human character first, then use this book to make it into a mage. I thought it was like OWOD where if you wanted to play a vampire, you just get the VtM book and so on. That was true in the first edition of MtA, but less so in the second. Honestly, the issue is a little muddy as New World of Darkness is entering into its second edition (to which Vampire and Mage have already been updated, to which Geist has yet to be updated and to which Beast exclusively belongs) and I don't think anyone in the thread knows which edition your group is playing. The presence of a Beast implies second edition, but the presence of a Sin-Eater implies the first.
Well for NWOD, is it like pathfinder where I have to worry about "Correct" builds?
Not really. So long as you follow common sense, you're practically guaranteed to make something functional in the direction you're going for. You obviously don't want to make a social character with social attributes tertiary and minimum dots in social skills, just like you wouldn't want to make a combat character with physical attributes or skills tertiary. Granted, Mage is the game that encourages fishing for as many ritual components as possible to get the highest casting dicepool possible, and there are a good number of "must-haves" (like, you want your cabal to have at least one mage with 2 dots in Space. A mage in a mixed game wants to be that mage. Also, mages benefit more than other supernaturals by stockpiling things like Library and Safe Place) but it takes a vested effort to make a truly useless character.
Okay I guess I will look into that. A little over my head, but sure. So if I get a copy of the Mage 2ed, I don't need the core book?
Jaçinto wrote: Okay I guess I will look into that. A little over my head, but sure. So if I get a copy of the Mage 2ed, I don't need the core book? In the same way you don't need the core book to play pathfinder (meaning that if you have the advanced player's guide you could still build an oracle and play that fairly easily).
Life isn't going to be easy on you but it isn't a game stopper.
Abraham spalding wrote: Jaçinto wrote: Okay I guess I will look into that. A little over my head, but sure. So if I get a copy of the Mage 2ed, I don't need the core book? In the same way you don't need the core book to play pathfinder (meaning that if you have the advanced player's guide you could still build an oracle and play that fairly easily).
Life isn't going to be easy on you but it isn't a game stopper. That's something of a misrepresentation. Mage 2ed has all the basic rules in it. The only things the Chronicles of Darkness corebook has that the Mage 2ed book doesn't are the chase combat and investigation rules and a few merits. One may as well not matter and the other is only nominally important for Adamantine Arrow mages.
Abraham spalding wrote: Jaçinto wrote: Okay I guess I will look into that. A little over my head, but sure. So if I get a copy of the Mage 2ed, I don't need the core book? In the same way you don't need the core book to play pathfinder (meaning that if you have the advanced player's guide you could still build an oracle and play that fairly easily).
Life isn't going to be easy on you but it isn't a game stopper. Well, if you really didn't have access to the core book at all (or the SRD), you'd have a lot of trouble playing an oracle with just the APG. Feats, spells, equipment. Hell, you wouldn't even know what the stats do.
From what Neurophage says though, it would be much more practical to play with only the Mage book.
Is there a SRD for NWOD, or Chronicles of Darkness as it is called now? I am NOT calling it CoD.
Jaçinto wrote: Is there a SRD for NWOD, or Chronicles of Darkness as it is called now? I am NOT calling it CoD. Would be a good setup for a Call of Duty Ghosts joke, if Wraith had made the switchover.
I'm pretty sure there isn't an SRD. WoD has never been open games license.
Well the ChroD game ended up never happening. The GM/Storyteller vanished.
BESM is okay but I feel weak compared to the other two players, who are more experienced, though I am having fun. It is BESM Third Edition and we are playing humans heroic level, I think. Teens in senior year through the infinite stratos series, but GM's own universe. I decided to go unarmed, cause why not? And I find I can do really good damage but I can't hit worth a thing. +4 ACV currently. Body 3, Mind 2, Soul 4. 1 rank of attack combat mastery. We just got 12 points and I am trying to decide between enhanced stat for body or one more ACM rank. My mecha is also unarmed and currently has a DM of 90, but the ACV is the same as the pilot, so 4. I went ACM instead of the melee master cause, if I have to do so, I want to be able to grab anything laying around and use it as a weapon if I need to do it.
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