I've been thinking of Risus quite a bit lately. There is one thing I am having troubling grokking and that are cliches rated at a 1. These types of cliches are usually a defect in the character but I am not sure how to use it in a game.

For example, here is a Risus version of my Mage character, Lu-Phen:
  Master Martial Artist Bad A-- (4)
  In Demand Stunt Man (3)
  Neophyte Disciple of Do (2)
  Acts Before Thinking (1)

When would I use my Acts Before Thinking cliche (1)?

Thanks!

Eric

Quote from: enelsonWhen would I use my Acts Before Thinking cliche (1)?

Good question. I'm a closet RISUS fan (I just played a one-shot last weekend that was some of the most satisfyng real roleplaying I had done in months), and I can not tell you. The only thing I can think of is "bring it up in a conflict to give you a cheap attack on the enemy once you lower their other Cliche dice a bit: If you lose it and damage that die, it doesn't hurt. But don't use it too much on actual rolls."

On the other hand, lately I've been fond of 80-point "supers style" RISUS characters, using d6-d10s. The game I played the other day, I think one character had a 1d in a cliche, but it was a 1d8: Kinda, barely useful.

I think most folks tend to put 2d in their lowest cliche.

But, I'd love to hear someone else's answer, so I'll just click on "subscribe" and wait for someone smarter to reply. :-)

80-point super style Risus? That sounds intriguing. Would you post comments and an example character(s)?

Thanks!

Eric

Quote from: enelsonI've been thinking of Risus quite a bit lately. There is one thing I am having troubling grokking and that are cliches rated at a 1. These types of cliches are usually a defect in the character but I am not sure how to use it in a game.

Do you have the Risus Companion?  It is a fantastic resource on cliches, explaining how to get the best value out of them.  As I see it, there are no good or bad cliches.  There are appropriate and inappropriate cliches.  For an unopposed action, the more inappropriate a cliche, the higher the difficulty number.  If the party comes across a chasm, the Track and Field Star might have a difficulty of only 5 to successfully jump across.  The Wheel Chair Bound Cripple might have a difficulty of 30.
 
The interesting thing is that you might be a Track and Field Star (1) and even a fairly lowly difficultly of 2-3 might see you plummet to your death.  Whereas the Wheel Chair Bound Cripple (7) might be able to haul himself (and chair) across the chasm despite the difficulty of 30.  That's just the way Risus works... it's a comedy game, afterall.  
 
The important thing is to ignore the number of dice in the cliche, and instead focus on the cliche itself.  And remember that a cliche that might be inappropriate in one situation might be decidely appropriate in another.  Our two intrepid heroes are fleeing a monster, so the GM sets a difficult of 10 for the Track and Field Star to escape in time, but gives the Wheel Chair Bound Cripple a difficulty of 20.  But add a sharp incline to the equation and the difficulties might be reversed, as "Wheels" wizzes by.
 

QuoteFor example, here is a Risus version of my Mage character, Lu-Phen:
Master Martial Artist Bad A-- (4)
In Demand Stunt Man (3)
Neophyte Disciple of Do (2)
Acts Before Thinking (1)
 
When would I use my Acts Before Thinking cliche (1)?

Well, I'm not an expert on Risus characters, but firstly I'd condense two of your cliches into Impulsive Neophyte Disciple of Do (3).  This sets you apart from other Disciples of Do, while still retaining the same style of character.  As to when it might come into play?  I can think of a few situations...
 
... as you wander down the dark corridor, you hear a firm "click".  A trap, obviously.  The rest of the party dive for cover, but what about your Impulsive Neophyte?  "Don't I get a chance to detect the trap" you wail?  Of course you do.  But it's such a shame you're impulsive, the difficulty is going to be very high.  Mwah hah hah....

That's good stuff to know Funk, especially since it matches what I thought cliches were for.

I think it's important, considering the light style of Risus to consider all cliches as positive values. Like in Funk's trap situation, if you play your cliche out and walk right through the trap you should get to roll Acts without Thinking to survive the trap, i.e. the trap delays for a split moment, allowing you to pass through the danger zone unharmed.

Quote from: enelson80-point super style Risus? That sounds intriguing. Would you post comments and an example character(s)?

Actually, I happen to have the characters here with me at work (stuffed in my work bag, it was an impromptu meetup that led to impromptu roleplaying).

The setting: RUSSIA meets VAMPIRE HUNTER D. Far-future post-apoc setting where creatures of the night lord over small communities of human cattle, and dedicated demon hunters beat them down. It was interesting, since no one in the gaming group watched Vampire Hunter D (the new one, that is: Bloodlust; a few saw the old one Long Ago). But they got with the program pretty easily.

The characters:
OLEG CHERNOV : Urban Shaman
Diviner 4d8
Healer 2d8
Nomad 2d8 (bow)
Shaman 2d8

ALEXANDER BASOVSKY : The Far Seer
Hunter 4d8 (rifle)
Herbalist 2d8
Remote Viewer 4d8 (Russians were big into astral travel)

IVAN THE SIMPLE : Village Idiot Posessed by Vengeful Demon
Idiot/Clown 3d6
Strongman 4d6
Posessed by Demon 3d10
Archer 1d8

VLADIMIR : Speaker of the Old Ways
(unfortunately, this was made by the French guy in my group, and it is very hard to read his writing: All his abilities were d10s, but I can not tell his 2s aparT from his 4s. They appear to all be "2d10" which with 4 abilities makes sense)

Leader 2d10
Tinkerer 2d10
Ancient Lore 2d10
Traveller 2d10

Note how in the above, only one person ended up taking a 1d in something (and it was a 1d8): He only used it once in combat, and failed, but the loss of it wasn't a big hit for him; he just "rode the demon" and let it do the fighting for him.

Also, the "boss" of the adventure was:

Massha the Cold
Lord of the 12 Spikes 3d10
Succubus 3d12
Ancient One 3d6

I used Succubus for all the combat stuff: She would use it to make supernaturally strong attacks, and then turn into a flock (?) of bats to avoid getting hit, rematerializing somewhere else. Alexander took her down some with rifle shots, then Ivan's demon grabbed her and sent her screaming to Hell.

It wasn't comedic at all, but pretty dark and action-y, like an Anime. The system worked out totally fine.

-Andy

That's way cool on how you did the supers Risus. I gotta think more on this.

Thanks for the advice on the cliches. I like how you combined my Impulsive Cliche with Neophyte of Do. Makes more sense.  I was trying to go the 4/3/2/1 route I have seen for some other Risus characters.

Thanks!

Eric