fu (tabletop rpg)

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Introduction 3Using this book 3

he Basics 4What you need 4

What you do 4

How you do it 4

Before play 4

alk beore play! 4

Te Insta-Genre-Generator 4

Characters 5Concept 5

Descriptors 5

Example Descriptors 5

Clichs are your riend! 6

Choosing Descriptors 6

Descriptors are clear 6

Descriptors are innate 6

Descriptors are nite 6

What type o

Descriptor is this? 6

What makes a good

Edge & Flaw? 6

Should I specialise? 6

Alternative Descriptors 6

Gear 7

Example Gear 7

Choosing Gear 7

Gear is equipment 7

Describing Gear 7One adjective only 7

Specic nouns 7

alk about your Gear 7

Good Gear / Bad Gear 7

Stu that isnt Gear 7

Description 8

Drives 8

Relationships 8

Its all about roleplaying now 8

Long or short term goals? 8

How many Relationships? 8Dont be antagonistic 8

Character

Creation Summary 9

Action 10Scenes & Turns 10

Who sets the scene? 10

How do you set a scene? 10

What is an objective? 10

Do scenes have to be in order?10

Do I have to use turns? 10

Beating the Odds 11

Closed Questions 11

Alternative Questions 11

Alternative Dice Rolls 11

Success & Failure 1

Modifiers 13

Example o Modiers 13

Other types o rolls? 13

How do opposed

actions work? 13

Dialing in on Your action 13

Option: Matching Dice 13

FU Points 14

Starting FU Points? 14

Can I give / share FU Points? 14Do Narrators get FU points? 14

Other ways to earn FU 14

Other ways to use FU 14

FU as Health 14

Re-Roll Everything 14

Flip a Pip 14

Use a Prop 14

Stunts and Powers 14

aking a Hit 14

Action Summary 15

Narrator 16Talking is good 1

Listening is good 1

When playing 1

3 Questions to

rame your game 16

What will characters do? 16

How do players want to eel? 16

What is the Narrators role? 16

Recovery 17

Rewards 17

Characters & Obstacles 17

Te Bowl 17

Advancement 17

racking obstacles 17

What do I share with players? 17

RAC to theml o 8Before you begin 18

Scenes 18

Challenges 18

Characters 19

Appendix:Descriptors 21Body Descriptors 1

Mind Descriptors 1Edge Descriptors

Flaw Descriptors

Character Sheet 23

coNteNts

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the Basics

Talk beore play!

Have a conversation about the typeo game you will play, so everyonestarts in the same space. Establishtone, theme and/or expectations. It isimportant to know whether you will becheered or jeered or outrageous over-acting, or bloody acts o violence.

Trow around ideas on setting, im-agery, set-pieces, cool clichs and unky

scenes. Tis way everyone gets a clearpicture o what the game is going to beabout.

Tis discussion will also clue theNarrator in on what players want (orneed) out o the game. It establisheswhether players want to eel like epicheroes, down-trodden underdogs, ortragic anti-heroes.

The Insta-Genre-Generator

For quick pick-up games, get every-one to write two genres or settings onbits o paper. Stick them all in a hat and

pick out two. Now you have ApocalypseSuburbia, Medieval Super-heroes,Kung-Fu High School or whatever,have a discussion about tone, theme,

possible plots and characters. Now play!

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ConceptW w v w . T w w , j w w .

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Troughout this chapter we will ollow Daveand Nina as they create their own characters.With im, the Narrator, they have decided to playa game based on the pulp serials o the 1930s, andthat it will be airly whimsical and action-packed.Dave thinks o a couple o his avourite movies

and decides that the concept or his character willbe Daredevil Explorer. Nina wants to play some-thing a little unusual, and aer discussing herideas with im and Dave decides her characterwill be an Alien Emissary.

DescriptorsD jv v

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Tinking about his Daredevil Explorer and thekinds o things he might have gotten up to duringhis lie, Dave decides on the ollowing Descriptors;

B: NimbleM: Level HeadedE: Use bull whipF: Araid o heights

Nina, inspired by classic pulp science ctionstories, has decided on the ollowing Descriptorsor her character, the Alien Emissary;

B: FragileM: Observant

E: Read MindsF: Alien Perspective

xape DescriptorsT v , j

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Body: Agile, Ambidextrous, Blonde, Furry,Fake Orange an, Handsome, Huge, Overweight,Poor Constitution, Quick, Razor-sharp Claws,

Short, Slow, Strong, all, Tin, Ugly, Vigour, Weak.

Mind: Absent Minded, Book Smart, Comput-er-Wiz, Dim-Witted, Empathetic, Focused, Lat-eral Tinker, Mathematician, Observant, Slow,Uneducated, Wise, Witty.

Edge: Acrobatics, Arcane Knowledge, Cour-age, Driving, Fencing, Good Memory, Hunting,Keen Sight, Linguistics, Magic, Medicine, NastyBite, Rich, Wrestling.

Flaw: Blind, Brave, Clumsy, Greedy, In-hu-man Appearance, Missing Leg, Old, Poor, PoorSight, Primitive, Smelly, Wanted, Young.

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Clichs are your riend!

It is totally okay to use clichs whencoming up with your concept. Clichscontain a host o ideas and conceptsthat we are immediately amiliar with.When somebody says their character is

a barbarian, we automatically picturethem as heavily muscled, and uncivi-lised. Using clichs is a kind o a short-hand way to describe your character.

Choosing Descriptors

You should strive to be imaginativeand honest. Consider both your conceptand the setting. Giving a character theFlaw when you know allthe stories will take place in the desert ishardly sporting.

Be imaginative, keep your concept inmind, and discuss your ideas with theNarrator. Te possibilities are endless.

Descriptors are clear

A good Descriptor is understood byeveryone at the table. I you or another

player think a Descriptor is ambiguous,talk about it. It might need to be re-written, but it might not either. You justwant everyone to be on the same page

when it comes time to using it.Descriptors are innate

Each Descriptor is an integral andinnate part o the character. Tey can-not normally be taken away, lost orremoved (though they might be orgot-ten or restricted under the right circum-stances). Do not make your Descriptorsitems o equipment.

Descriptors are inite

Each Descriptor should have one ortwo obvious uses or a specic purpose.It might also be applicable in a rangeo other unoreseen circumstances, but

you will nd that out in play.Mis better than D, or example, asthe latter could be used in a variety onon-medical situations (As a Doctor, Iam well educated and quite wealthy...).

What type o Descriptor is this?

Some Descriptors could easily allinto more than one categoryG

Mmight, or example, be a MindDescriptor or an Edge; Ucould be aFlaw or a Body Descriptor. Tats ne. It

is up to you, the Narrator and the otherplayers to make a decision on whether aspecic Descriptor is appropriate or not

or the stories you are telling.

What makes a good Edge & Flaw?

Tings that might be called skills oreats or stunts in other games make

great Edges - stu like , , and are all good examples.

Te best Flaws are personality traitsor physical shortcomings. Tings like , or are better

aws than or F. O course, there are alwaysexceptions. I the characters are Britishspies during the Napoleonic wars, notspeaking French would be a real draw-back. Likewise, the Flaw becomes a great eature in a game o

pirates and sea battles. Look or waysto challenge your character, add spice

to games, and present obstacles to over-come.

Should I specialise?

You can ocus your Descriptors ona single concept and specialise. Fora really awesome warrior give themBody: S, Mind: T, Edge:

M and Flaw: R. It would bevery easy to bring most o these descrip-tors into play whenever you get intoa ght. BU, there isnt a lot o depth

there and you are going to be in a bindwhen in noncombat situations. Instead,

you might replace a couple o Descrip-tors with more versatile options; Body:T, Mind: F, Edge: Mand Flaw: R.

Describe your characters Body asH and their Edge as S, i you

want a wrestler, body builder or angrygreen super hero! Give your brilliantscientist Mind: B-Sand Edge:R S. Just be aware the more

you specialise, the harder you will haveto work in scenes unrelated to your

orte. Some players like this challenge.

Alternative Descriptors

Te our deault Descriptors (Body,Mind, Edge & Flaw) are not the onlyway to dene your characters. Changeor replace them to suit your game, set-ting and stories. In a game about giantmecha you might replace Body and

Mind with Chassis and Pilot, or ex-ample. In a game where everyone playsdierent types o were-creatures one

Descriptor might become Animal Form.In these cases some o the advice in thissidebar might also need to be adjusted;

Animal Form: J is broader thanthe Descriptors discussed here, but is to-tally appropriate to capture the ideas o

your game. Use your imagination andmodiy things as needed!

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Dave decides his Daredevil Explorer to have aS B W, since he is quite skilled with it,and a W L J to keep out the coldand oer a little protection rom scrapes and alls.

Nina thinks about her Alien Emissary beoredeciding on some Of D that indi-cating her political status, and some E R,designed to impress and inspire awe.

xape Gearl D,

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Clothes: Designer Jeans, Slinky Black Dress(lets count black dress as the noun), Filthy Un-derpants, Worn Jacket, State-o-the-art SpaceSuit, Silk Smoking Jacket, Beat-up Fedora, allPowdered Wig.

Weapons: Rusting Sabre, Heavy Axe, MyFathers Service Revolver, Concealed Dagger, Ex-perimental Flamethrower, Fake Revolver, ReliableAK-47, Rubber Mallet.

T: Faithul Horse, Beat-up Buick,Bullet-proo Limo, Squeaky Clown Shoes, uned-up Street Racer, Girls Bicycle, Unreliable Coupe,

Rickety Wagon, Fast Motorcycle, Grandmas Run-about.

Other Stu: Huge Backpack, MiniatureFlag, Heavy RPG Books, Faithul Hound, DentedFrying Pan, Water-damaged Notebook, AncientSpell Book, My Favourite Pet Rock.

Choosing GearItems should be iconic to your

character. Tink Batmans SB, the Ghostbusters UP-, James Bonds RB, or Zorros F B.

Each piece o Gear should add some-thing to your characters background,

personality or goals. It should make astatement about who the character is orwhat they do.

Gear is equipment

Gear is never innate - it can bedropped, lost, broken and stolen. A C- A is not Gear, but an A- P G is.

Describing Gear

When describing gear make the ad-jective tell us something useul and/orinteresting about it. A Long Dagger isokay, a Broken Dagger is better!

Like Descriptors, the description oyour Gear should be clear - you dontwant to be guessing at the purpose ormain eature o an item.

One adjective only

Te description o your gear shouldhave a single adjective - no less and nomore. A Sharp Sabre is okay, as is a

Magic Sword, but a Sharp Magic Sabreis not allowed.

Speciic nouns

Choose specic, descriptive nouns;Sabre is better than Sword, BaseballCap is better than Hat. You can usemore than one noun, but keep the de-scription to as ew words as possible.

Talk about your Gear

Discuss your Gear. Everyone needsto be clear on what you are describing;what the Gear will be useul or, andwhen it might be a hindrance.

Gear is not innately good or bad.What you do with it and the situationsyou nd yoursel in will dictate whetherhaving an item is useul or not.

Good Gear / Bad Gear

You can, i you want, dictate thatone piece o Gear must have a goodadjective, and the other a bad one.You might have a Warm Jacket and anOld Gun; or a Fast Motorcycle and a

Maxed-out Credit Card.

Stu that isnt Gear

Any objects, items or equipment thatare not listed as Gear are props. Propshave no eect on a characters chanceo success at an action - they are merelywindow-dressing. However, you canswap, steal and pick-up another charac-ters Gear and use that!

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DescriptionB w, v w

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Dave takes a moment to note a ew thingsabout the Daredevil Explorer;

ennessee Smith is a mild-mannered proessoro history, but in his spare time he travels into thewilderness in search o lost arteacts and treasure.Ruggedly handsome, he always seems to keep hiscool, no matter how much danger he is inandhe tends to get into a lot o it!

Ninas description o the Alien Emissary is;

Lumina is an important diplomat rom theplanet Jupiter, which is ruled by the Dread LordKang. Like all her kind, she has purple skin, a baldhead, and delicate eatures. Lumina works or theJupiter Underground, attempting to overthrowDread Lord Kang.

Driesv - v-

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What will you do? W w w? W w ?

ennessee Smith is in search o the Idol o ot,an arteact he has coveted or decades. His rival,Giles Fishburne is also aer the idol and always

seems to be one step ahead. ennessee is desperateto succeed this time and will do almost anythingto get the idol - though he would never kill or it.

Lumina seeks reedom or all the people o Jupi-ter. Dread Lord Kang rules the planet with an ironst, and his agents are always on the look out orrenegades. Lumina is willing to put her own lie onthe line to achieve her vision.

ReationshipsC w w w . T -. F ; ; D w; F w ; W .

Dave writes; ennessee Smith and Lumina metat Harvard where Lumina was giving a presen-tation on the ancient cultures o Jupiter. Nina is

happy with this, adding only that both characterswere attracted to each other but Lumina is too o-cussed on her mission to have any romantic dal-liance.

Its all about roleplaying now

Your Description, Drives and Re-lationships all help develop your char-acter and put them into the world o

your stories and adventures. Te Narra-tor might occasionally give you a bonusto dice rolls because o the inormation

you reveal here, but that is by no meansrequired.

Use your Drives and Relationshipsto inorm the way you roleplay yourcharacter, the way they interact with theother players characters and the worldaround them.

Long or short term goals?

When choosing your Drive you areree to pick long or short term goals. Iyou are only playing a one-o game,

then it is a better idea to pick somethingthat will have an immediate impact onthe plot. I you are planning a series o

games, then by all means come up witha longer-term goal or your character.

How many Relationships?

wo is a good number o Relation-ships to begin with. Pick two dierentcharacters and decide how they knoweach other. You and another player can

work together to decide on a relation-ship, or you can have separate, unre-lated or opposed relationships (orexample; In love with/Repulsed by).

Dont be antagonistic

Dont create Drives or Relationshipsthat will have characters constantly ateach others throats. It is okay to havecharacters that dont see eye-to-eye (in

act, that can be un!), but dont havethem hate each other. You want thecharacters to unction together in orderto deeat the antagonist, solve the mys-tery or complete the mission!

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Who sets the scene?Players might suggest scenes they

would like to see or be involved in, butmost o the time the Narrator decideswhat scenes occur and in what orderthey happen. Discussion might occurabout the order events occur in, whatis happening, where it is happening andwho is involved beore the Narratormakes a nal call on all these matters.

Some groups like to give everyone a

turn at setting a scene, and that is to-tally cool, too.

How do you set a scene?

Setting a scene is a matter o den-ing where and when the action takes

place, who is there, and what has justhappened or what is about to happen.Location, Characters, Event, or Where,When, Who & What.

When describing the scene draw on

all the senses; point out interesting orimportant details o the location; andall the characters involved. Consider theobjective o the scene as you create it.

What is an objective?

An objective can be anything thata player or character wants. Characterobjectives might include nding a pieceo inormation, deeating an enemy,talking to someone, travelling a small or

great distance, preparing or battle, con-

ning a mark, or stealing an object. Play-er objectives could include seeing theircharacter in a cool ght, solving themystery, revealing a secret about theircharacter, or interacting with a speciccharacter or player. Oen, player andcharacter goals overlap.

Do scenes have to be in order?

You can use all the techniques o sto-ries, novels and movies, which means

ashbacks and ash orwards, parallel

story lines and even montages can beplayed out in scenes. While most o thetime your scenes will occur in a chrono-logical order, you do not have to be re-stricted by this.

Do I have to use turns?

urns are an optional measuremento time, useul or when a variety o stuis being attempted by several charac-ters. Use them to organise the action asneeded. Some scenes will naturally all

into turns, while others will be resolvedwithout ever considering them.

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Beating the ddsW w

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We are going to ollow the trials and tribula-tions o two characters rom two dierent settingsin this chapter;

Sir Camden is riding aer the evil Lord Kane.He sees Lord Kane leap a tall hedgerow, disappear-ing into the orest beyond. Sir Camden now triesto leap the hedge, so you roll a d6, scoring 2. SirCamdens horse clears the hedge, Sir Camdenis jostled about in the saddle and is momentarilyconused.

Captain Vance ducks as another hail o bulletspeppers the wall he is hiding behind. Grabbing adamaged radio, he icks some switches and triesto call HQ or back-up. You roll a d6 and score a 1.Vance ails to nd the right requencya straybullet hits the radio, destroying it.

Roll Do you get what you want

6 Y, ... Y w w, .

Y... Y w w.

2 Y, ... Y w w, .

N, ... Y w w, .

N... Y w w f.

N, ... Y w w, w.

Closed Questions

FU uses a closed question ormat tohelp resolve actions. A closed questioncan only be answered with a yes orno statement. When you reach a situ-ation that needs to be resolved by dice,

propose a closed question; Do I leapthe chasm?; Do I punch that jerk inthe nose?; Does the tavern wench all

or my easy charm and winning smile?.Te roll o the die will answer the ques-tion and guide your response.

A lot o the time you wont need toask the question explicitly - it will be ob-vious rom the action you attempt; youtake a run up and leap rom the edge othe chasm. Roll.

Alternative Questions

You can pose dierent questionsi you want, though you will have tochange the result chart. An obviousquestion is How well do I succeed?Tis might garner the ollowing results;

R H ?

l

C

j

F

C

,

Feel ree to come up with your ownquestions and answers, as suits theneeds o your group, game and story.

Alternative Dice Rolls

Some players are not ans o theeven/odd results. Many preer a 1-3Bad, 4-6 Good result. In that case theresult chart would look like this;

R D ?

Y, ...

Y...

Y, ...

N, ...

N...

N, ...

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Success & FaiureW

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Conditions: T , w v . C an-gry, conused, tired unconscious. T v FU , w w.

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Examples o Success & Failure

Going back to an earlier example,lets see what might have happenedwhen we apply each possible answer tothe question

Does Sir Camden leap the hedge?

Y, he catches up with LordKane. Tis is a Detail that changes thescene.

Y, he leaps the hedge. Tere is noand/but qualier so no Condition orDetail is added.

Y, Sir Camden is disorientedand momentarily . Tis is aCondition applied to the character.

N, he spots a gap in the hedgeurther along. Tis Detail gives the char-acter another way to continue the chase.

N, the horse shies away rom thejump. Tere is no and/but qualier sono Condition or Detail is added.

N, his horse rears up, throwinghim to the ground, causing an .Tis is a Condition.

Who chooses Conditions &Details?

Anyone can suggest a Condition orDetail that they eel is appropriate tothe action taken and result achieved.Usually the player that rolled the diceand the Narrator will work together tocome up with a suitably dramatic eect.But really, anyone at the table shouldthrow in whatever cool idea they have.

Te Narrator always has nal sayover what Condition or Detail is ap-

plied to a result.

When should I use Conditions?

Like all qualiers, it depends onsituation. In the examples above Con-ditions are applied to the acting playerwhen things dont quite go right orthem (Y, /N, ). Te Condi-tions make lie a bit more difcult or

the character because o the minimalsuccess or outright ailure.

You can also apply Conditions tothe target o an action, when things are

going right or your character. I youare debating with a bureaucrat and geta Y, result you might apply theCondition to the target. I youattempt to outrun an enemy and get the

N, result they might catch up with

you, but have the Condition. Ap-plying Conditions in this way will likelygive player characters an advantagelater in the scene.

When should I use Details?

Apply Details when the action is like-ly to change the scene or environment insome way. Tis might be a change in the

power dynamic o the scene (Y, he

leaps the hedge he catches up withLord Kane.); or a change in the physicalenvironment (N, he spots a gap inthe hedge.).

Details are oen applied when theacting character gains some advantage(Y, /N, ). Tey can be usedto great eect, however, to make situa-tions more entertaining and / or dan-

gerous;

Do you swing across the room on

the chandelier? Y, candles allloose and set re to the tavern.

Details can provide instant or on-going eects, depending on the circum-stances. A gap in the hedge can be usedimmediately to continue the chase; aburning tavern will continue to be ahazard until someone puts the re out!

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modiiersS , q w

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Making Things Easier: R D, G, C D- v v

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In the woods, Sir Camden tries to track LordKane. You point out that the knight is a , so you get an extra d6. Rolling 2d6, youscore a 5 and a 4. Keeping the 4 it is decided thataer a brie search Sir Camden nds Lord Kanestracks and ollows them to a sinister citadel...

Making Things Harder: R D, G, C D

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Captain Vance decides to run to a near-by jeep.Te Narrator points out there is betweenVances hiding spot and the vehicle. Does Vanceget to the jeep uninjured? You roll 2d6, scoringa 3 and a 5. You must accept the 3 and CaptainVance is as he reaches the jeep...

Cancelling Out:

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Later in his quest, Sir Camden must scale a (-) cli. Te knight is (+) and hasa (+). Overall, this means a single bonus tothe action (the sheer cli and the knights strengthcancel each other out, just leaving the rope). Youroll 2d6, scoring a 3 and 6.

Example o Modiiers

Captain Vance hurtles along in thejeep, when a guard tries to drag himout through the window. Will Vanceshake the guard o? It is (+) todrag Vance out the window, but he is(-) and(-), and the

attacker is (-). In total youmust roll 2 penalty dice. You roll 3d6scoring a 2, 4 and 3, and must take theworst result, the 3. Te guard wrestlesVance out o the jeep.

Other types o rolls?

FU has no such thing as opposedrolls or contested actions, damagerolls and rolling to hit. Te beat theodds roll is the only kind o roll usedin FU, whether you are trying to drive

a car through a crowded mall, armwrestle a giant, or shrug o the damagecaused by a stray bullet.

How do opposed actions work?

For a start, only players ever rolldice. You begin by actoring in all thebonuses (+) and penalties (-) that applyto your character. Ten you take stocko all the actors that would apply tothe opponent, and apply those into your

roll too. Is the opponent weak? You geta bonus die. Is the opponent a worldchampion arm wrestler? You actor ina penalty die. And so on, until every-thing is actored in. When you knowhow many bonus and/or penalty dice

you have, roll. I the result is an even

number, you win the contest; i the nalresult is an odd number, your opponenthas the advantage.

Dialing in on Your action

Sword ghts, political debates, spaceraces, international wars, argumentsand gun battles are all resolved usingthe beat the odds roll. Te key is to dialin or out o the action through the kindo questions you attempt to resolve. Youcan ght a dramatic sword ght and ex-

change a series o blows by asking DoI hit the Count De Montie?. But youcould also resolve the entire ght witha single roll by asking Do I deeat theCount De Montie in a duel?. Or, takeit to the next level and ask Do my men-at-arms storm the Count De Montiescastle? Adjust the dial as necessary!

Option: Matching Dice

Rolling doubles, triples or quadru-ples can make a success much better ora ailure ar worse. I your result die hasa match the eects will be much moredramatic. You may add one and...statement or each matching die. I the

action is ailed this statement shouldmake the situation worse. I the actionis a success the additional statement(s)should make the situation even better.

For example, Sir Camden aces LordKanes henchmen. Will Sir Camden de-

eat the henchmen? He is injured andoutnumbered so you will roll 2 penaltydice. You roll and score 3, 3, and 2. Youmust take the worst result - the double3! Normally this would be a N... re-

sult, but the matching 3 turns it into aN, .... I you had rolled triple 3the result would have been N, ...,...!

order #4917299


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FU ointsFU v

. T w w;

Bonus Die: S FU . T w . Y

v FU , .

Re-roll: S FU f - . T - - -. Y - v FU , , -.

Y FU v, . I w FU

, FU - fw.

Back at HQ, Captain Vance tries to convinceGeneral Wallace to deploy the Rocket roops un-der his command. Vance doesnt have much goingor him in this situation, in terms o Descriptors,so you decide to spend 2 FU Points on the roll. You

roll the basic die, plus the two bonus dice, gettinga 1, 1 and 3. Not happy with this, you spends yourlast FU Point on a re-roll. You pick up one o the1s and throw the die again...

Earning FU Points: FU -. Wv v Ww!, , v w, FU .

Starting FU Points?

Te number o FU Points you begina game with should be discussed beore

play begins. Te more FU Points play-ers begin with, the more easily they willachieve successes. I playing games ohigh adventure or over-the-top action,it would be reasonable to begin with 2FU Points. Super-powered heroes mightbegin with as many as 3 FU Points. For

grittier games each player might onlybegin with 1 FU Point, or even none.

Can I give / share FU Points?

Tat is up to you and your group.Te deault is no, but...

Do Narrators get FU points?

Usually, no, but they might allow apowerul villain or monster to have one,two or three.

Other ways to earn FU

You might like to change the way youearn FU Points. You might earn them

or dealing the killing blow to monsters,achieving your characters goal, or roll-ing multiple 1s or 6s.

Tis is a really good way to changethe tone or style o the game. Want to

play a dungeon crawl? Reward FU orkilling monsters. A gritty dystopian

game? Reward FU when the characters

lose out to Te Man. Decide i these arethe only ways to earn FU, or i they arein addition to the normal roleplayingrewards. Tis decision will also have adramatic eect on the tone o play. Seewhat you can do with it.

Other ways to use FU

Play around with FU Points. Experi-ment, or adjust the ways you use them

to suit your gaming group or the typeo story you are playing. Here are somesuggestions;

FU as Health

Rather than having a varying andchangeable number o FU points, everycharacter begins with 3. Tey can bespent as normal, but can also be lostwhen the character suers physical ormental stress (injuries, atigue, ear,etc). FU in this instance can be rereshed

(brought back up to 3) by roleplayingout a (non-dice rolling) scene with an-other character that reveals somethingabout your relationship.

Re-Roll Everything

Spend a FU point to re-roll all yourdice. Tis is an all-or-nothing thing, so

you cant keep a couple o good resultsand roll the rest. Use this variant in-stead o the normal re-roll rule.

Flip a Pip

Spend a FU Point to adjust a singledie up or down by one pip. Spend mul-tiple FU points to adjust a die multiple

pips. Tis option is more reliable thana re-roll as you will always be able toturn a no into a yes. I you used thisvariant the normal re-roll rule shouldnot be used.

Use a PropSpend a FU point to turn a prop into

an item o Gear or the duration o thescene.

Stunts and Powers

Give characters special abilities,skills or powers that can only be used byspending a FU Point. Tese should bemore powerul than Descriptors - makethem break the rules or give a superhu-man knack, like the ability to y or read

minds, teleport, or whatever.

Taking a Hit

Instead o rolling, declare you aretaking a hit. All the dice you shouldhave rolled are treated as i they rolled1s (yes, i you are holding 5 dice, theycount as ve 1s!). In return or your su-

ering you earn a FU Point.

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actioN

sUmmaRy

set the sceNeW ? W ? W w? D w ?

actR w . w jv.

ask a QUestioNW v q (.. D I ?)

FactoR iN modiFieRs+ v D, G, D, C

.+ v D, G, D, C .

RollR . T ( ) w ( ).

descRiBe ResUltU w . A

C D .

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16/2316

Fw , w v N. I - , .

aking is goodS w v.

w w , w w, w v. T v w v v . A v w . , v ( w w G , ).

. v , jv . I , .

listening is goodI -

. l , v w w . D D

w , w .

When payingW

. T , w C D. H v j

.Keep things simple: D j

- v w.T w v

w v .

You are not the enemy: v, w . Y , v. Y v w . S w v-, v . w , , , .

Say Yes: q- w . T v . q. T w - w .

Make rolls meaningful: v , N mAR H RSUl. D

v , w .

NaRRatoR

3 Questions to rame your game

When you begin a game talk withthe players about their expectations. ryto answer the ollowing three questions;

What will characters do

Do players want to kick in doors,kill monsters and take home piles otreasure? Do they want to eel like epicheroes? Or the underdogs, strugglingagainst ridiculous odds?

How do players want to feel

Do the players want to eel like theyare changing the world? Like their char-acter is gaining in wealth, prestige or

power? Or do they want to eel like theirbacks are against the wall and their livesconstantly at risk?

What is the Narrators role

What kinds o challenges, encoun-ters and situations are you going to pre-

sent the characters in order to achievethe above? Do you need to ensure everychallenge is accompanied by a generousreward? Are you going to make every

ght hard but air? Will you be relent-less in the pursuit o the antagonists

goals?

Answer these questions and every-one at the table will be clear on theirrole in the coming adventure.

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RecoeryD j, -

, C. C wv / -. T w , v . A

C v/v w, w .

ReardsRw v

v FU . Y w v , - ( ). FU v , w. Y

v w,. A w , w, -w FU .

How much, how often? B w w, v FU w , v, . A, w w , - FU -

w .

Characters & bstacesA , , , v,

, w . Y - w , .

The Bowl

One technique or rewarding FUPoints is to place a bowl o beads, chitsor tokens in the centre o the table. Eachbead is a FU Point. Te Narrator cantell players to take one rom the bowl,and other players can reach in when it isappropriate to reward a player, by pass-ing a bead rom the bowl. Tis requirestrust between players and Narrator, butmakes the running o the game verysmooth as no-one has to stop and ask;Does that deserve a FU Point?

Advancement

FU is not a game about levellingup. While characters might have avariety o experiences and learn romthem, the real advancement comes romthe changing story and/or world.

I appropriate, players can changeone Descriptor between game sessions.Tis alteration should relate in someway to the experiences and story theircharacter just participated in. Gear canbe changed between sessions at the Nar-rators discretion.

Goals might also change rom gamesession to game session. Give playerstime to consider their goals at the starto each session and let them adjust orchange them as necessary.

Tracking obstacles

Use sticky-notes or index cards torecord details about your characters,monsters and obstacles. Write downDescriptors, Gear and other ino. Asthey suer Conditions, record those onthe card.

Use index cards to record importantterrain eatures, too. Write down anyDescriptor(s) pertaining to the eature

so players can take them into accountas they plan their actions.

What do I share with players?

Some groups play open, making nosecret o the Descriptors and details ocreatures and monsters. Other groups(and/or Narrators) keep this inorma-tion hidden rom players. Both options

provide or dierent styles o play.

Playing an open table means eve-ryone is clear about what is going on,what opportunities exist or cool scenesand actions. Players can see what Gear,Conditions and Descriptors are in

play and incorporate them into scenes.

Keeping the details o villains, trapsand other obstacles rom the playerswill push them to test their enemies, ex-

plore the environment, and try dierentthings. Tey can manoeuvre themselvesand situations in directions they thinkwill be advantageous. It is always satis-

ying to be rewarded with bonus dice oraccurately guessing an enemys Descrip-tors.

order #4917299


18/2318

ennessee Smith, amed explorer, has nallygot a solid lead on the whereabouts o the ancientIdol o ot, an object o reported supernaturalpower. Unortunately, Smiths arch enemy Giles

Fishburne is also on the trail o the Idol, and hasthrown his lot in with the Nazis!

T v w q. I w w v, v . U - v. Race to the emple o ot - , . R w w

v !

Beore you beginB v q

. T - - v , v . m v - w (IndianaJones, Te Mummy, Te Rocketeer) w

j.R v v ( )

v w w v. N w - w w, w , !

ScenesT v

w D .T j-v. .

ChaengesT v v

w v D, C- N. T v . Y w w w !

scape the Buak marketScene: C A -

B - m. - w w ww

; , w, w .

Descriptors: Cw , .

Te characters have just acquired a map to theemple o ot. Unortunately, Nazi goons have ar-rived and want the map, too. Tere are a lot ogoons, and while the characters could ght them,it might be easier to ee. Do the characters escape?

NAz GOONS

Descriptors: l , B A,N

Gear: N S-

Conditions: C,,Sw, A

Notes: T q q .

What can go wrong T -; T .

ransating the mapScene: A , ,w B. T .

Descriptors: v.

ennessee Smith and his companions have themap but must now translate it, puzzling out thestrange symbols and markings. Do they translatethe map?

TRANSLATNG THE MAP

Descriptors: A , B Conditions: ,R,S,

B

What can go wrong T ; T ; T .

Race tothetemple of tot

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he Gou Zou GorgeScene: T j G Z G,

w .W Kw m .

Descriptors: , I G.

Te characters ollow the map to Gou ZouGorge, by car or horse back. Giles Fishburne is ap-proaching ast, aboard the German dirigible DerVogel. Do the characters cross the bridge saely?Do they keep their lead on the Germans?

NAz BRD TRUPPEN

Descriptors: T F!, A

Gear: D F H, DS G

Conditions: C,G,

Sw, ANotes: T B q .

GOU zOU BRDGE

Descriptors: W w

Conditions: R,Bw

Notes: Y w - , ?

What can go wrong T ;

T ; .

he epeScene: A

. G w. D v v.T .

Descriptors: D, S.

Te characters must penetrate the heart o thetemple, but the map warned o nearious traps

and terrible guardians. Do they get past the trapsand guardians?

NEFAROUS TRAPS

Descriptors: H, D

Gear: D, R S

Conditions: D,S-,Rv

Notes: C w w . , w, w !

STONE STATUE GUARDAN

Descriptors: B, Hv, Sw, R

Gear: Hv S W

Conditions: D, ,Sw, A

Notes: T S G v w

. T , v w .

What can go wrong C ; j .

he Ido ChaberScene: A

. T I - - v- - .

Descriptors: l z .

Te characters enter the chamber o the idol,only to nd that Giles Fishburne and his Nazigoons are here too! Do they deeat Giles and es-cape with the Idol?

GLES FSHBURNE

Descriptors: S, A, Sw

Gear: S

Conditions: C,Ij,Sw, A

Notes: G , v, . I w , / - w. H Nz!

CharactersF -

. T - . w j N , , D w, w

G. B w , w w . A q w v w w f.

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TENNESSEE SMTH, DAREDEL EPLORER

Descriptors: N, lv H, U BW, A H

Gear: B W, W l J

Drives: F I

Conditions: A,S,,

,

B,

H,Dz,Ij,D

ennessee Smith is a mild-mannered proes-sor o history, but in his spare time he travelsinto the wilderness in search o lost arteacts andtreasure. Ruggedly handsome, he always seemsto keep his cool, no matter how much danger heis inand he tends to get into a lot o it.

Relationships:

Notes:

HAREY REED, RETRED BOER

Descriptors: S, T---F, B,U S

Gear: R q, Drives: l S

Conditions: A,S,,,B,H,Dz,Ij,D

Harvey Reed is a recently retired championboxer. Finding the sedentary lie a little too bor-ing he has joined his old riend ennessee insearch o adventure.

Relationships:

Notes:

JMMY SWEET, PLUCKY KD

Descriptors: Q, S-,U, Y

Gear: N F, D BC

Drives: S 7 w w

Conditions:

A,

S,

,,B,H,Dz,Ij,D

Jimmy Sweet is a happy-go-lucky kid who hasnever had anyone to rely on but himsel. He iswiry, tough and quick, with a cheeky attitudethat requently gets him into trouble. Jimmystowed away on a tramp steamer with the inten-tion o seeing the world and making his ortune.

Relationships:

Notes:

OCTOBER JONES, GRL REPORTER

Descriptors: B, W, G m,C

Gear: C, T NDrives: G -

S

Conditions: A,S,,,B,H,Dz,Ij,D

October Jones is a reporter and adventurer,aorded a great deal o reedom by her athersimmense wealth. Beautiul, intelligent and spoiltshe is a woman used to getting what she wants.

Relationships:

Notes:

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21/2321

T v, . D v ,w

N.

Body DescriptorsAgile: w , , -

, w .Ambidextrous: w w

, -- .Blonde:

, .Fake Orange Tan:

, w .

Furry: w, v w.

Handsome: , , .V., , .

Huge: , , , .

Overweight: w w .

Poor Constitution: w -

, , , .Quick: ,

--, q .

Raor-sharp Claws: -, v .

Short: , - w w j w.

Slow: w , , -

.Strong: f, ,

w . W v .

Tall: , , v .

Thin: qz , , w.

Ugly: w , .V.

igour: , , .

W: w f, , w .

Webbed Feet: w, w .

mind DescriptorsAbsent-Minded: ,

w w f , j .

Book-Smart: w , w , , lw Hv.

Computer-Wi: ,

C v. A -w.Dim-Witted: w j,

z , - .

Empathetic: , v, w w .

Focused: , -, .

Lateral Thinker: v,

w w.Mathematician: , vq .

Observant: , - , --w, .

Orator: , vw.

Slow: w , w .

Tactician: , -

q .Uneducated: w , ,

- .

Wise: v, v v, , , I .

Witty: , / , w w .

appeNdix - descRiptoRs

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dge DescriptorsAcrobatics: j ,

w , v .Arcane Knowledge: -

, z v , .

Courage: w ,

w v, - .

Driving: , , - v .

Fencing: w v-z .

Good Memory: , v , .

Hunting: w , - , w w .

Keen Sight: w v .

Linguistics: ( ) w.

Magic: w , , .

Medicine: , - , .

Nasty Bite:

, w w , w .Rich: ,

v v , .Wrestling: ,

.

Fa DescriptorsBlind: w q

, , v , .

Brave: , - , .

Clumsy: w v v,

v q , - .

Greedy: w , , w w.

n-Human Appearance: w - , v , j .

Missing Leg: w , , v vv v-, w w .

Old: w , , , v .

Poor: w w , v .

Poor Sight: w z , v , v.

Primitive: w ,, , w v-z .

Smelly: w -

, w .Wanted: w -, .

Young: w , , v , v .

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Name coNcept

BodymiNd

edGe

Flaw

descRiptioN

ROLL RESULT

Y, ...

Y...

Y, ...

N, ...

N...

N, ...

Angry rapped Daed

Scared Binded Inured

ired Hungry Dying

dRiveswhat do yoU waNt?

what is stoppiNG yoU?

what will yoU do?

RelatioNships

coNditioNs

FU

poiNts

theodds

Notes

GeaR

FU

fu (tabletop rpg)

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