Feng Shui

[42]

So does Feng Shui force players to use stunts? From what I'm understanding that is a major selling point of the system. It sort of seems to me that designing a system for stunts makes them rather contrived.
Stunts in RPGs are all in your head, not another bunch of statistics.

[Mad Dr Jeffe]

Stunts are not stats in feng shui, and no the game doesn't force anyone to use em... but the hefty bonus they can give you if they are original can be really useful...

[42]

Sure whatever...
So can the game be played without stunts? Like could one of my friends use it for her Jane Austin RPG.

[Mad Dr Jeffe]

easily  

[Lieutenant Kije]

Jane Austin with stunts would be excellent!  But the stunts would be more like, "I gracefully take a glass of champagne from the servant, provide a biting and witty reply to the thinly-veiled insult given me by a former suitor, and subtly wink at the charming and handsome stranger who has just arrived from Yorkshire and purchased land next to my father's estate.  Simultaneously."

[The Holy Saint, Grand High Poobah, Master of Monkeys, Ehlers]

I really like FS, but comparing it to d20 (and by that it appears we MOSTLY mean D&D, since CoC is mostly treated separately here), it unrealistic, since they're doing completely different things. If I don't want the feel of FS, it's kind of ridiculous to use its rules.

Mostly I think I agree with Entropy here. D&D does have stunts. And it may not encourage the NARRATION of stunts like FS, but that's because it has a very different approach. And not one that's bad. One that's geered to long battles. If you don't like that, that's fine, the answer is to play something else.

But I also want to note that FS DISCOURAGES the player creation of new schticks, while the PHB ENCOURAGES the creation of new feats. I think the problem is a player one. Players are only limited in their ideas for new feats.

[Mad Dr Jeffe]

and since all I was saying is that D20 GM's could benefit from better fights and since they can customise the game how they wanted I suggested they take a look at FS. Let the record show that I never said it was the PERFECT system.

I did say I think d20 fights are usually boring. Slow and generally uninteresting.

But I dont see  why you couldn't FS Jane Austin well since the mechanics are loose enough in FS to handle any genre.

[Entsuropi]

For the record, i would have thought that Nobilis, with its already defined rules and systems for social interaction of a noble variety would be a better choice. After all, that kind of thing is a very large part of your normal Nobilis game, dealing with other demi gods and the like.

[Mad Dr Jeffe]

Im not sure where your getting demi-gods out of this...
and dont really understand what your talking about..
are you referring to COC, FS, D20 or some other game that we dont know about.

Unless you mean Jane Austin,... in which case it still doesnt make sense since the question "what system would be best to run a Jane Austin RPG?" never came up.
I was asked if FS could be used to play Jane Austin not if it would be great for it.

Very non sequitor

[The Holy Saint, Grand High Poobah, Master of Monkeys, Ehlers]

You narrarate your stunts and then get bonuses and game effects.

And despite what Jeff says, using FS for Jane Austen would lend it a completely different feel. Seriously. There is *no* character development in FS. It's action.

[Mad Dr Jeffe]

I disagree, because with very little tweaking of the stunt system and the patented Back for Seconds book that has rule for Witty Reparte Stunts you could indeed play FS Jane Austin

[Entsuropi]

Like i said ElJeffe, i was noting that Nobilis, which you own, is a better choice than FS.

[Mad Dr Jeffe]

First of all I agree with you about the suitability of nobilis for Jane Austin the rpg.
But that question never came up. So it seemed a little out of place...
Think of it like someone asking if "you can put cheese on your burger?" And then have someone respond " Buns are tasty"

[The Holy Saint, Grand High Poobah, Master of Monkeys, Ehlers]

It was slightly more germain than your example, and considerably more helpful.

I suppose I'll have to eventually get a copy of Nobilis and read it now.

[Mad Dr Jeffe]

To the question of Can you use Feng Shui to play Jane Austin the RPG, no it isn't.

Let me show you
Q   Can you use Feng Shui to play Jane Austin the RPG?
A   Nobilis would be better for that!

Now I'll rework my hamburger example.

Q. Can you put chedder cheese on your burger?
A. Blue Cheese would be better!

Its not that I even disagree with his statement, it just didnt make much sense at first. I wasnt trying to say FS was the best at doing it, where as Entropy's Nobilis statement  was.

Oh and if you want to see nobilis You could just borrow mine.... since I know you dont have almost 60 dollars to spare on a game book.
Im also absolutely posative you'll hate it.
But I'll loan it to you.