>From: bethexton_at_...
>
>I promise I'll talk about secrets in a moment.
>In other words, quest challenges will seldom jump up your rating in
>an ability. `Side benefits' of quests are hard to put limits on, but
>I would think at the least that they wouldn't do things that quest
>challenge couldn't, so that again, they won't add to your ability.
>Therefore, unlike HW, it is probably that you will have to pay for
>every increased point of ability with hero points.
I take it that you mention this to rule it out as a method for learning abilities quickly? I think that there are other methods of increasing Abilities quickly that you might see in some groups. One is that the GM can just bump up Ability ratings whenever he wants to. Or at least I think that's implied. Basically it seems to me that the text suggests something like the "directed HP expenditures" from HW, without the silliness of awarding the HP, and then taking them away in order to give the relevant ability right away. Essentially, it seems to me that the GM has the authority to accellerate things when appropriate. Not much guidance on when that is, true, but the GM can just make the process as short as he likes, it seems to me.
Further, as I intend to play it, the "requirements" for secrets are going to be indicative of resistances of tests. That is, I want players to be able to attempt these things before they get to that level, if they want their character's to risk substantial failure. As such, the resistances will be pretty high 5W3? But the player will be able to use appropriate augments. Including bonus items - another source of ability that will allow a character to win the contest.
Basically my intent is to create a situation where attempting to obtain the secret will be plot driven, and not driven by acuisition of HP. But that's my own hack. You can still get to secrets quickly using the rules as written...
>Or to put it another way, you
>shouldn't give too many cool toys to NPCs if the players don't have
>good odds of getting their hands equally shiny toys.
Instead of making NPCs with the cool stuff rarer, I'd rather make the PCs more interesting. So, if that takes "accellerating" the game so that players can get to these things, then cool. Another way to achieve this is to use the saga system, and have the PCs take a few years off to do training and whatnot, during which time their relevant Keywords will go up, which effectively raises all of the relevant Abilities at once by as many points as levels. Take five years off, raise the Keyword by 5, and suddenly you've cut the sessions to gain a secret in half, even by the normal method.
In fact, I think that this is very important. What it avoids is the situation where PC X narrated as just having become an Initiate of some cult over the course of just 10 sessions representing 3 weeks of in-game time, becomes adept enough to learn the secret of his animist tradition. I mean, if we want to do that, it's fine. But the saga thing allows for it too all gain a veneer of plausibility based on the character becoming truely steeped (and in many less sessions) - think Skywalker between Empire and Jedi. After a substantial bit of plot is complete, have the PCs "advance".
Last but not least, start characters higher. Advanced Experience is your friend. If you don't want to play aprentices and punks just getting their feet, but instead somebody who's heading for learning a cult secret, start them just five sessions shy or whatever you think the pace should be.
Mike
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