We labored through a lot with character creation during our first session yesterday. Making your first GURPS player character in a rush isn't favorable conditions, but you all did a great job. Now that you have a week to knock off the rough edges we left, you have some time to flesh out your character and maybe review some rules if you'd like. Below are some suggestions. Homework * Choose a name. We goofed around a lot last night, but when it comes to character names, I prefer ones of a more serious nature. No "Sir Flappy Bottom" please. ;-) * Choose disadvantages. Disadvantages are really where your PC stops being just a jumble of stats and becomes a real character. While they weren't important to our quick introductory adventure, they will be in future sessions. Suggested disadvantages are listed in your character template section in Dungeon Fantasy 1: Adventurers . However, you aren't forced to choose from that list. You may also take a look at the Suitable Disadvantages list beginnng on p. 15. Just note how many points total are alloted for disadvantages, and select up to that many. Not all templates have the -50 total for disadvantages as some took reduced attributes and secondary characteristics. For example, a Knight and Wizard need to take -35 points in disadvantages while a scout needs to take all -50. Note: You may notice a page reference with a 'B' before it (e.g., "See p. B120"). That signifies the referenced page is in the B asic Set, likely Characters . * Finalize equipment. Remember, the campaign's average starting wealth is $1,000. Also, see also the advantage Signature Gear, p. B85. All character templates have it. You may edit what you purchased for the intro if you'd like. In other words, I'm not going to say, "Wait a minute! Didn't you have X equipment?" We can say there's a bank in town. You can borrow money from it. The bank demands a return of three times as much as you borrowed; they are taking a chance on a wandering murder-hobo after all. You must pay off the balance in full after the first dungeon. The bank won't loan more than $250 to first time debtors. * Record your three active defenses—Dodge, Block, and Parry—on your character sheet. Remember, a shield adds its defense bonus rating to all active defenses. The Combat Reflexes advantage adds +1 to all as well. Block is half of Shield Skill, then +3. Parry is half of Weapon Skill, then +3. Quarterstaves get a +1 to parry. Knives are -1 to parry. No need to record a parry for all weapons, just your primary. * Take five "quirks." Rules and a description of quirks begin on page B162. After taking five quirks, you may spend those five points in whatever fashion you see fit, including purchasing equipment. * Spend your five bonus character points gained from play. Do this last of all and you may want to wait to do so together at the start of the next session. If you'd like to prepare, Chapter 9 of the Basic Set, Characters , beginning on page 290, is all about character advancement. Perhaps more importantly, see the rules on spending earned character points in last chapter of Dungeon Fantasy 3: The Next Level , starting on page 42. Also, Dungeon Fantasy 11: Power-Ups is basically all about spending earned character points. Again, if you'd like to wait until next session, by all means do so. In fact, I would recommend waiting. * Characters who attack primarily at range (Scout and Wizard), print out the Size and Speed/Range Table on p. B550. Knowing where it's at in the Basic Set or having a digital file up among the dozen others isn't as fast as having a physical copy right there on the table. You'll thank me. ;-) Review Here are some rule reviews. Combat in GURPS is measured in turns and hexes. Each turn is a second and each hex is a yard (three feet). There are no "rounds." Turn sequence order is set by Basic Speed; the highest goes first. Ties go to the highest DX (we neglected to check that in our first session). Further ties are resolved by dice rolls. Turn order is established at the beginning of combat and doesn't change. There is no roll for "initiative." Each turn, a character must select a maneuver. Archers For characters that attack with a bow at range and who don't have the Heroic Archer advantage, here's how it's done. Assume the character has a bow in hand already, not slung across his back or whatever. Turn 1: Take a Ready maneuver to draw an arrow. The character may move ("step") up to one hex. Turn 2: Take another Ready maneuver to knock arrow to bow string and draw back. The character may move up to one hex. A character who makes a successful Fast-Draw (Arrow) skill roll can skip this step. Turn 3: Either shoot using the Attack or All-Out-Attack maneuver, OR take an Aim maneuver. If Attacking or Aiming, the character may move up to one hex. Turn 4: If following an attack, the process starts over. If following an Aim, the character can either loose gaining the Acc bonus of his bow (+1 for short bow, +3 for longbow), or take another Aim maneuver. Turn 5+: Further Aim maneuvers add +1 to skill to attack. A maximum of +2 can be earned by aiming. For characters using a bow with the Heroic Archer advantage ( DF1 , p. 14): Turn 1: Roll against Fast-Draw (Arrow), then against Bow at -3. If both of these are made, the character can either shoot gaining the Acc bonus of his bow or Aim. Shooting is either an Attack or All-Out Attack maneuver. If attacking, the character can either move one hex and shoot, or shoot then move on hex. If All-Out Attacking, the character can either shoot, then You may move forward up to half his Move score before or after loosing arrow. Turn 2+: If either the Fast-Draw (Arrow) or Bow-3 roll are missed, everything that could have happened on turn 1 is now an option; no further Ready maneuvers are needed as turn 1 became a Ready. Aim maneuvers add +1 to skill to attack. A maximum of +2 can be earned by aiming. Remember, aim is spoiled by taking an active defense. If injured, a Will roll is required to avoid spoiling aim. You must also specify a target when aiming. Bonuses for aiming are non-transferable to other targets. You must be able to see a target to aim at it; if it moves out of sight, all bonuses are lost. Spell Throwers Those using Missile spells should review the rules on p. 12 of GURPS Magic . However, they can be confusing. Let's break it down using Ice Dagger ( Magic , p. 188). I chose Ice Dagger rather than Ice Sphere ( Magic , p. 186) because it does 1d-1 impaling damage per point, which is better than 1d crushing damage. Its only drawback is slightly less range (30 hexes instead of 40). It is otherwise the same. In this early stage of the game, though, don't worry about the various range stats on Missile spells. They will travel across an entire dungeon, let alone even the most cavernous room. The perk I mentioned last night that allows a mage to boost his ability to hit is located only in one, very obscure place, as far as I know. It's called Psychic Guidance and is on p. 29 of Thaumatology: Magical Styles . Record the perk under advantages as "Psychic Guidance (Ice Dagger) [1]". You can spend points gained from quirks to afford it. However, it works a little differently than I described. Here it is: Psychic Guidance You’re capable of controlling a Missile spell with your mind instead of hurling it like a bolt or a grenade. Use your effective skill with the spell instead of the Innate Attack skill to attack as well as to cast. Ranged combat modifiers apply as usual. You must specialize by Missile spell. So, if a mage has Ice Dagger at skill 20 and the Psychic Guidance (Ice Dagger) perk, he rolls against skill 20 to hit. Turn 1: Cast Ice Dagger by taking a Concentrate maneuver. Roll against the spell's skill. A failure means basically nothing other than the turn is wasted. A success means you cast the spell. You may then invest any amount of FP up to your Magery level; each FP invested will do 1d-1 impaling damage. It might sound confusing, but high skill does reduce the cost of the spell for the first turn (and only the first turn). So, with Ice Dagger-20, cost is reduced by 2. That means, on your first turn, with Magery 6, you can invest up to 6 FP—2 FP "for free" and then 4 FP from your FP reserve, power item, or other power stone. It also means you can throw a 2d Ice Dagger "for free." Don't get too bewildered about all this. It will become natural quickly. Turn 2: A number of options are available. You can "charge" (the book calls it "enlarge") the Ice Dagger with up to 6 more FP (no reduction for high skill), or you can Aim with an Aim maneuver. Or, you can throw the spell by taking an Attack or All-Out Attack, just like the archer. Turn 3: The same options as Turn 2. However, this is the third and final time the spell can be charged. If you chose to Aim on Turn 2, you gain the Acc bonus of the Ice Dagger (+3). If you choose to Aim this turn, you gain a further +1 to skill (in addition to Acc gained last turn). Turn 4+: Each further turn spent aiming grants a +1 to skill to a maximum of +2. So, on Turn 4, you can loose an Icy Dagger doing up to 18d-18. It can inflict anywhere from 0 to a massive, devastating, dragon-slaying 180 injury! Remember, impaling damage's wounding modifier is x2, so it's max damage is [(18x6)-18]*2. That's assuming the target has no DR as almost all do. However, the cost of such an icy nuke is a whopping 16 FP! You can act normally while holding a Missile spell. You can defend and move and even attack with the other hand. However, if you're injured while you have a missile "in hand," you must make a Will roll. If you fail, the missile immediately affects you. See Magic , p. 12. Rules Questions We had one question arise during game play. If a character takes an All-Out Attack, can that character move, then attack, then continue to move? Or, must the character move then attack, OR attack then move? First of all, this question is only applicable for All-Out Attack. The "regular" Attack maneuver is clear: the character can attack then move one hex or move one hex then attack. The Move and Attack maneuver also clearly states the attack can come "during or after" movement. So, the attack can come at any time during a Move and Attack maneuver. The description of All-Out Attack is very clear on two points: a character can move up to half his Move score and movement must be "forward." However, when during that time the attack must occur is strangely ambiguous, even when consulting GURPS Martial Arts . I started a thread on the official SJ Games forum. If I don't get a satisfactory answer, I'll write the editor. As it sits now, I would reverse my ruling on All-Out Attack's movement to allow the attack to happen only before or after movement. I would now allow the attack to happen at any time, as long as all movement is always forward. What "forward" means, we'll deal with on a case-by-case basis. When in doubt, use Move and Attack instead. If anyone has any other questions, feel free to ask them here or track me down in the game as I hang out there often. Thanks again for all your hard work, time, and effort! I appreciate your dedication to learning and playing GURPS! —Sharpe