The Spork BrikwaRPG

Supplement ideas, house rules, homemade stat cards, homebrew weapon types, and other cool variations

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Sir Sporktimus
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The Spork BrikwaRPG

Post by Sir Sporktimus » Wed Oct 24, 2018 4:23 pm

Hi all! I've been brewing a minimalistic RPG system primarily inspired by Stubby's 'In-Game Construction Point Use' section in Chapter 11: Armies. It'll be the basis for the upcoming Crimson Eye BrikwaRPG segment I'm running with my girlfriend and possibly a few other takers. The aim is primarily to use Heroes as they already exist instead of putting them in a weird minifig-to-hero transition, and enjoy the casual style of Brikwars plus a little extra opportunity for social manipulation and shenanigans. It also allows for players purchasing more disposable non-hero units as they gain CP. Enjoy! :studgod:

BrikwaRPG:
Setup.
Determine which player will be the MOB, or Master of Bricks. This player will provide the story, scenarios, and if necessary the physical setting for the campaign. Each other player (and the MOB if they like) will create a Hero and determine their Heroic Cliche. Each character is allowed 5CP worth of weapons, tools and items, and no more than three accessories classified as Random Objects.

Each player should also fill out a Character Sheet. There is no official character sheet; in true Brikwars fashion, they should be a shamble of notebook paper, bloodied with crayons and felt-tip markers, with plenty of space for drawings and notes. Every character sheet, however, should include their Name, Heroic Cliche, Skill Die (1d10), Move (7”), and Armor (2D6). They must also add a three-word Strength and Flaw to their character for personality. Lastly, each player should trace a 3x4 stud space on their sheet (this is the same size as the typical minifigure stand). This represents the hero’s Inventory, and he can fill it with objects up to the confines of that space, and access its contents at any time when he's not in combat. Objects too big for the inventory must be physically carried instead. If the hero dies, the contents of his inventory will be emptied around his body. Holding a physical bag, backpack, or briefcase creates a second box of the same size.

Running the Game.
In general, the BrikwaRPG will proceed much like a normal game of Brikwars, with players participating in turns. Once in the turn order is the MOB, who moves all NPC units and enemies. Character roleplay can occur at any time during the turn order, and the MOB should remind players that Skill Rolls may be used for other actions besides attacking, although this is the most fun. 'Convince the Peasant you are a God', 'Check for Traps', and 'What is a Gazebo?' are all valid examples. A single session consists of one or multiple Scenes, which mark important points in the story, allowing players to bypass boring things like ‘six days of travel’, ‘flying between planets’, or ‘waiting in the line for the bathroom’. Simply walking and talking can be conducted outside of a Scene and without a turn order, but the moment combat or conflict arises, the story should become a Scene.

Construction Points.
Throughout in-game scenarios, players will accumulate CP - treasure rewarded for successful quests from NPCs, treasure contained in enemy camps and dwellings, or even looting the contents of a fallen enemy’s pockets. They have the opportunity to spend this at in-scenario shops and stores, but may also be spent on things between sessions at the MOB’s discretion, based on what might be in the area and what connections the hero has. By the same token, players may purchase other units to be controlled on the same turn as their hero, but these units will not make Dead? rolls if killed.

Determining what shopping opportunities and resources players have access to is largely the MOB’s decision. If a player wants an Assault Hoverbike, they are more likely to find a dealer in a populated sci-fi city than in a fantasy desert. Likewise, if a player wants to call back to their HQ and purchase a squad of bodyguards, they might need access to a communications device. Ideally this drives players to make the most of both their spending opportunities and the utilities already on the map. The MOB should, however, allow any purchases they think are hilarious and/or contribute to the story.

Checkpoints.
When the players pass an important point in the story, overcome a major obstacle, or just do something awesome, the MOB may decide to call it a Checkpoint. The MOB assigns an individual Skill Bonus to each hero for a skill of the MOB’s choice, based on what new ideas the hero exhibited that segment of story. If a Computer Hacking heroic action went particularly well, they may gain a Hacking skill point. If a Hacking Arms Off attack critically succeeded in a memorable fashion, a hero may gain a bonus for future attempts at hacking arms off. The Skill Bonus is a simple +1 bonus to any action the player can convincingly relate to that skill description. Instead of a new skill, the MOB may also add another point to an existing Skill Bonus.

At each Checkpoint, the player may also decide to add +1 to their overall Armor or remove 2 Dead? tally marks. They also add a 1x4-brick area to their original Inventory slot, which is permanently expanded. In addition, important Checkpoints in the story often come with monetary rewards for completed tasks, and are generally good points for the MOB to allow off-table spending of CP towards newly hired units and equipment.

Death.
When a Hero is reduced to 0 health, all items in their inventory are placed on the ground next to them and they are Unconscious. At the start of that player’s next turn, they make a Dead? roll with a D10. On a roll of 10, the hero is Actually Fine and leaps to their feet; they may take their turn as usual. On a roll of 1, the hero is Dead for Real This Time and that player constructs a new one. It is the MOB’s responsibility to explain the new character’s immediate introduction to the story. On any other roll, the hero Cheats Death, and are alive but unconscious until another minifig arrives and spends their action to Stabilize the hero by weeping over their body dramatically. A Dead? tally mark is added to their character sheet, and they deduct this from all future Dead? rolls.

If the damage the hero sustained would surpass their armor level more than once, they take that many tally marks instead.

If the hero was killed in a particularly dramatic fashion, such as beheading or bisection, he may return to life with a convenient plot addition such as Time Travel, an Android Clone, or Robot Legs.
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Texhnophille
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Re: The Spork BrikwaRPG

Post by Texhnophille » Mon Oct 11, 2021 5:39 pm

I really really like the inventory idea and the overall easy learning curve. Any chance you'd host a game based on that system?
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ArchyX74
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Re: The Spork BrikwaRPG

Post by ArchyX74 » Tue Oct 26, 2021 3:16 am

I have got to try this. Definitely sounds like a good mix of brikwars and tabletop rpgs. Also agree with the last guy, the inventory system sounds like fun. Looking forward to after college to try this (might even be able to finally get my brother to play a game that's not on the computer)!

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