I'm curious if there are games folks know of where you can play more than one character as part of a single build as part of the normal rules.  I'm referring to a creature that has full intelligence and skills that can be roleplayed differently to the "main" character as an mostly independent entity and scales/advances equally with the characters level.  I'm not referring to having an animal companion that is basically more like living gear or an NPC "flaw" like a helpless dependent that you mostly need to protect in games that allow them.  Some examples from popular culture and gaming might be Wily Kit and Kat from the Thundercats, the trio of blind witches/hags from the 1981 Clash of the Titans film, or even Merry/Pippin and Frodo/Sam from LOTR.

The closest I've seen personally would be a Pathfinder Summoner with an Eidolon if you choose a humanoid style Eidolon that plays differently from the main character.

In the Twilight Imperium setting of the Gensys game, the Naaz-Rokha are a composite species composed of the Naaz (a tiny, six-limed primate-like thing that is really smart and sociable) and the Rokha (a big, dangerous jaguar-person). They are not physically symbiotic, but they are socially linked into pairs that are effectively inseparable (co-dependency). When a player makes a Naaz-Rokha, they make both characters using the special rules for them. Very weird and more complex than a typical character, but interesting for when someone wants to play something really different.

Someone really ought to build an RPG based on Fire Upon the Deep. Not only does the worldbuilding lend itself to a completely gonzo-yet-comprehensible universe, it has "pack" creatures composed of 4-8 separate entities that are very cool.

To your question, it seems like that's something that could be done with a lot of systems by expanding the concept of "race"  (or the equivalent) to include a combo-being.

Quote from: HappyDaze on February 24, 2025, 11:21:47 PMIn the Twilight Imperium setting of the Gensys game, the Naaz-Rokha are a composite species composed of the Naaz (a tiny, six-limed primate-like thing that is really smart and sociable) and the Rokha (a big, dangerous jaguar-person). They are not physically symbiotic, but they are socially linked into pairs that are effectively inseparable (co-dependency). When a player makes a Naaz-Rokha, they make both characters using the special rules for them. Very weird and more complex than a typical character, but interesting for when someone wants to play something really different.

Thanks and I'll take a look as that does sound like an example of what I'm looking for.   I've played Twilight Imperium a couple times (though not for 10+ years) but only as the board game in a mega-weekend session and am not familiar with the backstory of the universe.  I'm not looking for something that is more powerful (and am totally fine with each sub-character being the D&D equivalent of a couple levels lower than a true character in that same party) but rather something that allows for different roleplaying opportunities.

Another slightly lesser version I though of since posting (another Paizo example) was playing a Starfinder 1e mechanic with a humanoid drone where you purposefully pick different skills/abilities.  In that case though you're basically hobbling your primary character's utility by doing this to an extent as the drone is typically very helpful in your primary role as the spacefantasy fix-it guy or gal.

Quote from: Zalman on February 25, 2025, 08:36:56 AMTo your question, it seems like that's something that could be done with a lot of systems by expanding the concept of "race"  (or the equivalent) to include a combo-being.

I think that definitely works for a scifi setting with some sort of symbiote/parasitic race but I'm also including fantasy settings where you're just interested in playing multiple less powerful beings like playing a litter of a couple of lesser goblin rabble where each sibling has different interests represented by each skill/feat/ability/etc.   Ultimately, as long as the GM is ok with it, you could just roleplay it via the normal rules for a single character and say that they're always milling about next to each other but that's not what I'm referring to.

In the Glog system one of the character classes is a group of lackeys (The Crew, Many Goblins, Many Wizards, The Cult). The combination of weak individuals makes it equal to a regular character. Wouldn't be hard to make a few of this group have personalities.

Characters in the Glog don't survive long so the folks are more willing to pick a wacky character from time to time.

In the Fantasy Flight 40K Imperial Gaurd style rpg, Only War, the low power of the individual characters is offset by giving most PCs (excepting particular specialists like commisars) a "comrade" which is a super basic NPC henchman. This effectively give the PCs an extra pair of hands, althought they don't have their own skill levels or anything, so not quite what you're talking about.

Quote from: Ruprecht on February 25, 2025, 10:09:53 AMIn the Glog system one of the character classes is a group of lackeys (The Crew, Many Goblins, Many Wizards, The Cult). The combination of weak individuals makes it equal to a regular character. Wouldn't be hard to make a few of this group have personalities.

Characters in the Glog don't survive long so the folks are more willing to pick a wacky character from time to time.

I tried looking it up and found a blog with dozens of individual files but it was a bit of a cluttered mess to go through and couldn't find that class (though I found many others).  It is though an interesting idea to base a full class around the idea.

Quote from: Zenoguy3 on February 25, 2025, 02:43:39 PMIn the Fantasy Flight 40K Imperial Gaurd style rpg, Only War, the low power of the individual characters is offset by giving most PCs (excepting particular specialists like commisars) a "comrade" which is a super basic NPC henchman. This effectively give the PCs an extra pair of hands, althought they don't have their own skill levels or anything, so not quite what you're talking about.

I wasn't aware of that though I do recall a talent that gave you an IG squad as a mob under your control.   The lack of skills makes me think of it more like an animal companion as you mentioned rather than what I'm looking for.

Albedo: Platinum Catalyst does this.

Quote from: Zalman on February 25, 2025, 08:36:56 AMSomeone really ought to build an RPG based on Fire Upon the Deep. Not only does the worldbuilding lend itself to a completely gonzo-yet-comprehensible universe, it has "pack" creatures composed of 4-8 separate entities that are very cool.

To your question, it seems like that's something that could be done with a lot of systems by expanding the concept of "race"  (or the equivalent) to include a combo-being.

Wow, I hadn't thought of that book in years.  The communal aliens were very cool, especially the one nomad who kept swapping out parts, essentially becoming a new person every time. 

I think the grogs from Ars Magica would be an example of what the OP is looking for. 

Quote from: Mishihari on February 26, 2025, 02:57:00 AMI think the grogs from Ars Magica would be an example of what the OP is looking for. 

I am unfamiliar with the system and obviously the rules as well but a quick search revealed this:

https://www.redcap.org/page/Character_type

https://www.redcap.org/page/Grog

I don't know how current/accurate it is but the grog does sound like what I'm referring as a supplemental character.   Can you play two grogs or a grog and a magus at the same time as a standard option via some combo of character abilities/upgrades instead of just a single character?

Quote from: RNGm on February 25, 2025, 05:58:50 PM

Quote from: Ruprecht on February 25, 2025, 10:09:53 AMIn the Glog system one of the character classes is a group of lackeys (The Crew, Many Goblins, Many Wizards, The Cult). The combination of weak individuals makes it equal to a regular character. Wouldn't be hard to make a few of this group have personalities.

Characters in the Glog don't survive long so the folks are more willing to pick a wacky character from time to time.

I tried looking it up and found a blog with dozens of individual files but it was a bit of a cluttered mess to go through and couldn't find that class (though I found many others).  It is though an interesting idea to base a full class around the idea.

The Glog in general is a cluttered mess. It was designed as non-commercial license so it attracts people that aren't invested enough to create a complete product but want to share their creativity (and a lot of story gamers). That is why its an almost ran kind of game.

Here is a link to "The Crew" class and a link to "The Extras" class.

Quote from: Ruprecht on February 26, 2025, 09:59:32 AMThe Glog in general is a cluttered mess. It was designed as non-commercial license so it attracts people that aren't invested enough to create a complete product but want to share their creativity (and a lot of story gamers). That is why its an almost ran kind of game.

Here is a link to "The Crew" class and a link to "The Extras" class.

Thanks for the links!  Yeah, the crew sounds like it could work for the type of character idea I'm suggesting if you just assume it's 2-3 people in one or two squares instead of 1d12+6 in a 20ft square.  The Named Character option is a nice touch.

Quote from: RNGm on February 26, 2025, 08:26:40 AM

Quote from: Mishihari on February 26, 2025, 02:57:00 AMI think the grogs from Ars Magica would be an example of what the OP is looking for. 

I am unfamiliar with the system and obviously the rules as well but a quick search revealed this:

https://www.redcap.org/page/Character_type

https://www.redcap.org/page/Grog

I don't know how current/accurate it is but the grog does sound like what I'm referring as a supplemental character.   Can you play two grogs or a grog and a magus at the same time as a standard option via some combo of character abilities/upgrades instead of just a single character?

In an adventure in standard play you have 3 options, 1) bring your mage, 2) play a companion, or 3) control a big group of grogs.  In actual practice, of course, you're free to do whatever you want.  I've only read the game - never had a group that wanted to play it - so my knowledge past that is peripheral at best.