Newbie question about creating my own module and ruleset

[gwd005]

Hello,

My friends and I use the Masterbook system to play a game that has been going on for years. As life does it gets in the way and now we all live too far away from each other to play fact to face. I would like to try and bring that system onto Fantasy Grounds. I do not plan on distributing it or breaking any laws with this endeavor. Can someone point me in the right direction as to where to get the information or guides that would show me how to recreate the Masterbook system here? I am very new at this so i apologize if this question is unclear. Id appreciate any help, direction or advice you could provide. Thank you.

[vodokar]

What a coincidence. I happen to be doing the same thing right now with Torg (which if you know your history is the daddy of Masterbook, as well as, Savage Worlds).

Programming this type of ruleset would be extremely difficult and time consuming even to someone experienced with making a ruleset; which I am. There are just too many requirements for user input and combat moves and such that need to be accounted for in order to make a clean and easy combat script mechanic. Perhaps it could be done, but it would be a huge headache.

So, instead of doing that, this is what I am doing.

Start with MoreCore. Use the /rollon feature which allows you to link a table into the character sheet and roll on it simply by clicking the entry in the character sheet. Then make tables that duplicate the exploding die capability of the mechanics.

Like this:

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Use other features of FG and MoreCore to help with other aspects of the core mechanics of the game. It won't be fully automated, but it can be handled and played. MoreCore FTW.

[damned]

Welcome gwd005
What are the core mechanics of Masterbook?
Copyright law has this funny thing in that it expressly does not cover mechanics/rules but does cover story/art/names/fluff.
You are perfectly allowed to recreate/port the rule system onto another medium and even distribute it. You cannot however convert the rulebooks themselves without permission.

Have a look at MoreCore its a generic ruleset that allows you to add lots of different rolls to your character sheets.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q8M48Pqb0BM&list=PLsgd1zJLdiKW3HysWZRsX4cqFlcerBvW3&index=1
https://www.fantasygrounds.com/forums/showthread.php?34860-MoreCore-Ruleset
https://www.fantasygrounds.com/forums/showthread.php?35056-MoreCore-Themes

[gwd005]

Thank you so much for the advice. I am more interested in getting the game going as quick as possible than trying to recreate the entire system so your advice seems perfect. Sorry to bother you with more questions but I am very new at this. How do I go about getting MoreCore and installing it? Thanks again for the help.

[vodokar]

My understanding, based on my research and not having played MasterBook yet, is that they have replaced the Torg d20 exploding on 10 and 20 to 2d10 exploding on 10's, however, I think almost everything else is the same. Basically, the intent of MasterBook was to make the Torg mechanics into a House System usable for many genre's of games using the same mechanics.

In order to do the 2d10 exploding mechanics, you would do it very similar to how I built the tables for 1d20 exploding, but you'll have to change the specifics to match the different mechanics.

[gwd005]

Thanks to both of you. I was able to install it and now I will play around with it. Definitely seems like the way to go. Thanks again.

[vodokar]

I am currently setting up for a campaign of Torg. Perhaps you might find that of interest to you. I can let you know when I get things ready, if you like.

[gwd005]

I have never played Torg but always interested in a new system. From what you said it is what Masterbook is based off of so I would definitely be interested. Thank you.

[damned]

/edie 2d10 in your rolls will do the exploding 2d10s but the /followon command only works with the newer format rolls... at some point I will need to update that roller.

[vodokar]

Some basic info on the system:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Torg

and

https://www.ulisses-us.com/games/torg/

Torg was in print from 1990 - 1995 by the original West End Games. Masterbook was a redesign and repurposing of the Torg mechanics in 1994 so that they could make a House System out of it, similar to how Champions was made into Hero System or Chaosium took RuneQuest and made it into BRP etc.

Torg itself is built from the ground up to be a balanced multi-genre game system. The earth has been taken over by several High Lords who bring their own alternate reality of earth with them and try to impose it on the earth; hence different parts of the world are different genre's. In a single adventure, you might be fighting Nazi's pulp fiction Indiana Jones Style and then follow a clue to a different part of the world and fight a gothic horror style vampire and then slay a dragon in the Fantasy part of the world etc. What's more, a typical party is composed of characters from different genre's. So, your party might consist of a Dwarven Fighter, a modern day soldier with an Mk-16, a cyberpunk net runner, a wizard and a space alien with psionics. But, it's all balanced to work together.

[vodokar]

/edie 2d10 in your rolls will do the exploding 2d10s but the /followon command only works with the newer format rolls... at some point I will need to update that roller.

what is the /followon command? hadn't seen that

[damned]

its possible its not in 1.38 but will be in the next release.
you can register a table to always follow a particular roll - eg: /followon damage rollon Location will cause all /damage rolls to also roll on the Location table auto-magically :)
Huzzah!

[gwd005]

Is it possible to use the /following to have a result reference a table. I am not sure if what I am looking for is possible. By using the /rnk#k# dice string I was able to get the results on dice rolls I need. I was wondering if the result of that dice roll can be automatically applied to a table where
It would then give me a different value which is on the table, in this case a bonus value. For example, a total roll equalling 35 would be equal to a +5 bonus on the table.

[vodokar]

I believe what Damned was trying to tell us is: yes, that is what is intended with the /followon command, however, he doesn't have it programmed yet to work with all of the dice roll commands, only some of them. Thus, we'll have to wait till the next update for him to get that feature working fully.

In my case, I had to go the /rollon command linked to a table because the dice roll I needed isn't supported. Torg uses 1d20 exploding on 10 and 20. /edie only explodes on max of the die i.e. 20. Thus, I had to emulate the die roll with some manipulation of tables. It works, but not nearly as straight forward as you'll be able to do.

As I understand it, MB uses 2d10 that explode on 10. So, you can just use /edie 2d10 and you are good. But, if you want to pull the bonus number from a table, you'll have to wait till the /followon command is finished. On the other hand, if you don't want to wait, you can implement it using the same technique that I did with /rollon a table and set up the table to do the roll for you.


On another front. I believe that MB also uses a deck of cards, similar to Torg's Drama Deck. I'm working on mine now. This is what I've come up with so far. If anyone has some better ideas for it, let me know.

18274

Here is how it works:

Download and Install an extension by Trenloe known as "Basic Card Deck Tables" extension.

Copy the card images and put them into your image folder inside your campaign. If the cards have 2 halves, like they do in Torg, then you'll have to bring the card into gimp, rotate it 180 and save a second copy, like I did, version a and b. While you are in gimp, it's a good idea to downsize the resolution to around 32 and reduce the size of the card. I chose 200 x 321, but it might could be downsized even further. This will help with bandwith and memory performance.

Drag the image links into your table. When you roll on the table, it will show both halves of the card right side up in chat. The link in the chat can be clicked on to open the card. It can also be dragged into the player sheet in the images section so that the player can build their hand and card pool.

Don't forget to read the instructions for how the extension works. Trenloe did a good job of explaining the functionality of it.

[vodokar]

Extending that idea.

The cards dropped into the image section of the character sheet are in the players hand.

To play from the players hand into a card pool, if that applies, just drag the card onto the quicklink tray at the bottom of the screen and delete from the image section on the character sheet.

To play the card, drag the card to the chat. Delete from the quicklink tray.

[damned]

/followon will work with all rolls that are in the /scripts directory and will not work with the rolls in the /desktop/scripts
Unfortunately /rnk and /edie are both rollers made before MoreCore (by Ikael) and dont have all the right settings for /followon to work.

the good ianmward was also working on a more advanced card deck which will be very cool... :)

[gwd005]

I hadn't even thought about the cards yet. Thank you so much that is extremely helpful as well.

[vodokar]

I am in the process of making a Torg extension for MoreCore. I have a feeling that much of this will be useful for MasterBook also, as is, or perhaps with some slight adjustments.

This is what I have so far:

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It is a Work Sheet which helps the Game Master perform the calculations necessary for an attack by a character on an npc. This is linked to each individual character sheet and so will be able to remember individually the characters usual numbers for attack skill, damage rating etc. It performs the math and tells the damage result from the attack.

I also intend on making Work Sheets for such things as Skill calculations and perhaps Many on One and One on Many.

I will also link similar Work Sheets to individual npc records that can be pre-filled out for certain information for the npc's to aid speed during play for npc attacks vs characters.

[TiaMaster]

Please, do continue this conversation and update us.

And don't forget the upcoming TORG re-imagination TORG Eternity.

https://www.ulisses-us.com/games/torg/