When you enter the world of RPGs the first approach is almost always the same: create unforgettable characters and adventures. From the fearless warrior to the ruthless killer, from the wise wizard to the bard who conquers all present at the inn, we always try to create an alter ego capable of guiding us to the discovery of a fantastic and dangerous world. The genre of the adventure may change, but the intent remains the same. In several manuals there is a chapter containing ideas for the characterization of adventurers and for a worldbuilding able to convince players. To these chapters is also added a real one guide, capable of satisfying the desire to create something unique. It is talking about Cypher system.
From the pen of Mount cook - a kind of legend in the world of role-playing games, creator of such pearls Dungeons & Dragons and author of Numenera e The Strange: The Anomaly - comes thanks to Wyrd Editions a manual designed to offer endless ideas for your campaigns. Primarily this guide is for those who love the aforementioned Mount Cook titles, addressing both the Game Master than to the most curious players. The content is organized very clearly and flows smoothly for understanding of the guide. But let's try to do a bit of order and see what these 380 pages of tips offer regarding GMs, players, monsters and character sheets.
The Cypher System
As you read on the first pages of this manual, the regulation is simple enough. The success of actions is determined by the roll of a 20-sided die, the classic d20 for friends. The result must be greater than the degree of difficulty established by the Game Master. Each character will also have a series of ability which can lower the level of difficulty presented by the challenge. This mechanic comes into play for any type of action, from a simple climb to a melee attack. In short, we are facing a linear system where the saying "dice make up the texture”Has a certain weight. The skills of your character - which we will deepen later -, the armor worn and the strength of the weapon held offer a certain dynamism in the combat phase, increasing the pool of dice used. Unlike other titles, players will make all the dice rolls required by the master, with the latter doing it will never pull (So is that time when the party is hurt, finally?). Despite that, nothing new for the role players who have grown up with slashing and D&D.
Duty mention for i Crypto, defined as "single use capacity". Depending on the setting in which your campaign takes place, these resources will have different forms and manifestations. Potions and scrolls in a fantasy world, ancient alien artifacts in a sci-fi adventure or catalysts for your superpower if you play superhero scenarios. Crypto can therefore be considered gods treasures, which return several times throughout the game, a mechanic that could make players appreciate the thoughtful use of certain resources.
How to "create the character"
The second chapter of the manual is dedicated to creation of your own character. This phase is quite schematic, it does not require a long preparation. Each character is described with a simple sentence such as: “I am a [noun - Type] [adjective - descriptor] that [verb - Focus] "(From the manual, ed). Let's try? I am an unscrupulous magician who wants to conquer the world. It is easy to identify some elements that often recur in more "classic" role-playing games:
- Type: in short, a sort of class which immediately grants some specific skills and traits. The Cypher System identifies four of them: fighters, adepts, Esploratori, speakers. They are macro-categories that adapt to any genre and setting. Consulting the master is highly recommended.
- descriptor: the opening words of the first real one individual adventure. It is precisely what describes him that launches the character in the first steps of an epic journey, as well as providing him with several initial modifiers. Here the modus operandi of his hero is described, a trait that characterizes him throughout the course of the adventure.
- Focus: a unique quality, his workhorse. He is known in the wastes or colonies on the edge of space because of his exceptional abilities. Obviously we must try to make sure that these talents are in line with the proposed setting. Being skilled with lightsabers will make little sense in a world of castles and dragons.
To these are added a whole other series of items that complete the character sheet, giving greater depth to your hero. The manual devotes ample space to Type, Descriptor and Focus, perhaps going into too much detail. We immediately grasp an important aspect related to these titles and also mentioned in the manual: at the center of it all is history. Through a description of your hero - however brief it may be - you immediately immerse yourself in spirit of the game. For those who like to delve into the history, the peculiarities of their playing alter ego, Cypher System could be a lot of help.
Set up an adventure
Like any self-respecting manual, the chapter dedicated to settings and adventure genres. Do we already know them? The answer is simple: yes. More experienced players will have read this information hundreds of times, in different forms. And yet, sometimes there is a need to repeat and give something more. Although Cypher System is a generic system, the author is keen to provide a series of detailed and precise indications to the point that at certain moments it is almost all too exhaustive. The genres described in the manual are: fantasy, contemporary, science fiction, horror, superhero. A broad explanation is dedicated to each of these, providing useful elements for the setting of your adventure. In addition to these guidelines, a series of Focus are indicated that players could entrust to their own character. The chapters dedicated to the different genres end with a list of pngs and objects that our heroes may someday possess. And, of course, there is a little missing bestiary.
There would still be a lot to write. Summarizing a nearly 400-page manual into one article is not that easy, especially if the pages are like this full of information and very useful elements for an adventure. In addition to the section for the players there is also one for the Game Master, on the conduct of the game, the use of crypto and a list of creatures to be proposed as obstacles. And even in this section, we get very specific. In short, we understood that it is a manual quite verbose.
Cypher System effortlessly adapts to one-shot and to real campaigns. Unlike other games, where everything is already defined - from the setting to the adventure - in this manual there are all the elements to create scratch one world, one story. The master must prepare for a not indifferent work and the table must do the same. Reading it, one gets the impression that an adventure created with this system only works if the whole party is cohesive and shares the intention to venture into a specific genre. The sheer amount of information can discourage newcomers who are getting used to leaner and more immediate regulations. We repeat, nothing new for the experts, but the novices will be able to discover new interesting inputs.
