Narrative Control Forums

Here are the rules I used in my Jedi in the Vineyard Game. It worked well for me:

Character Creation:

First Step: Background (pick one)
o Well-Rounded (e.g. raised in the academy)
17d6 Stat Dice; 1d4 4d6 2d8 Trait Dice; 4d6 2d8 Relationship Dice
o Strong History
13d6 Stat Dice; 3d6 4d8 3d10 Trait Dice; 1d4 3d6 2d8 Relationship Dice
o Complicated History (e.g. became a Jedi late in life)
15d6 Stat Dice; 4d4 2d6 2d10 Trait Dice; 5d6 2d8 Relationship Dice
o Strong Community (e.g. member of a galactic senate house)
13d6 Stat Dice; 1d4 3d6 2d8 Trait Dice; 4d6 4d8 3d10 Relationship Dice
o Complicated Community
15d6 Stat Dice; 6d6 2d8 Trait Dice; 4d4 2d6 2d8 2d10 Relationship Dice
Second Step: Stats
Divide your Stat Dice among the four stats: Acuity, Body, Heart, and Will.

Third Step: Traits
Divide your Trait Dice among whatever traits you care to define. i.e. "X-Wing pilot 2d4", "I can't see well without my glasses 2d10", etc. "I'm a Jedi" is a recommended trait.
If you can't think of any Traits to start with, start with "I'm good with the lightsaber"; add one based on where and how your character was trained; then add one unrelated but opposed like "I'm a good cook" or "I'm well-read".

Fourth Step: Relationships
Divide some of your Relationship Dice among other PCs or whatever NPCs you care to define. Don't create very many, and leave most of the dice unassigned.

Fifth Step: Belongings
Freely define whatever belongings you care to define for your character. A Jedi will always have his Lightsaber and his Jedi robes. Other common items are starships and droids. Other possessions may be defined as needed, with dice according to the following:
Normal: 1d6, Big: 1d8, High Quality: 2d6, Big & High Quality: 2d8, Crap: 1d4
Lightsabers: +1d4

Sixth and Final Step: Accomplishment
Define something that you hoped your character accomplished during initiation as a Jedi. This will be played out as the stakes of a conflict.

Rules Changes:

Hierarchy of Something-Is-Wrongness
1a) Someone in the populace begins to fear.
1b) Fear, unchecked, manifests as prejudice, either by or toward the fearful individual.

2a) Prejudice creates opportunities for anger, either from being the object of prejudice or from the prejudiced having a false sense of entitlement.
2b) Anger manifests as injustice, committed by the angry or in outrage against someone else's display of anger.

3a) Injustice creates opportunities for hatred, prompted by the unjust acts of others or by one's own unjust acts against others.
3b) Hatred manifests as acts of violence, perpetrated against objects of one's hate, or in retaliation against other violence. At this level, people may be seduced to the dark side by Dark Jedi already in existence.

4a) Violence, of course, leads to suffering.
4b) Suffering creates opportunities for the Dark Side, tempting one either by the power to cause more suffering or power to make the suffering stop. At this level, Dark Jedi may come into being on their own.

5) The dark side then vies for Dark Dominion, which basically means the Dark Jedi are in control of the community. This control may be very tenuous however (example: beginning of Episode IV)

Dark Jedi may call upon the "how bad things are revealed to be" dice at any time, and get a 4d relationship with the Dark Side for free. Others seduced by the Dark Side must pay for the relationship to the Dark Side normally. Light-side Jedi may also call upon the "how bad" dice - at any time - with consequences that are up to the player. Remember that the easy path is always there.

Ceremony:
Naming your Fear (d8s)
Closing your Eyes (d4s)
Sensing the Force (d4s)
Encouraging Srong Emotion (d6s)
Discouraging Srong Emotion (d6s)
May the Force be With You (d4s)
Master and Apprentice (d8s)

Signs of Office
Coat – Robes
Gun – Lightsabre (base is 2d6+1d4)

Sorcerors and the Possessed
Replace Possessed with Seduced. 'Seduced by the Dark Side'. And, finally, I'd replace Sorcerors with the Dark Jedi.

The Mantra:

One of the key portions of the Code was a four-line mantra. Several versions of the mantra exist, though the older version was:

Emotion, yet peace.
Ignorance, yet knowledge.
Passion, yet serenity.
Chaos, yet harmony.
Death, yet the Force.

The refined version established by Odan-Urr is perhaps the best known:

There is no emotion, there is peace.
There is no ignorance, there is knowledge.
There is no passion, there is serenity.
There is no chaos, there is harmony.
There is no death, there is the Force.
—The Jedi Code (Based on the meditations of Odan-Urr)

There is no emotion, there is peace

Emotions are a natural part of living. As the great sagas have shown us, Jedi are not immune to feeling emotions. Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi and Master Yoda both openly express their sorrow when they discover the death of younglings at the newly-appointed Darth Vader's hand. This tenet is not to say that emotion does not exist but that it ought to be set aside. Emotions must be understood first, and it is a young Jedi's duty to explore his feelings. Unless a Jedi can confront his thoughts and feelings, he will never achieve peace. Emotions, then, are not to be overcome or denied, but rather understood and dealt with. A'Sharad Hett reminds the young Anakin Skywalker of this during their campaigns together during the Clone Wars. Hett points out that Anakin's anger is understandable, but he must face it. This tenet could be modified to read "Emotion cannot take away my peace."

There is no ignorance, there is knowledge

A Jedi must be circumspecting and try to understand the world that is surrounding him. That ignorance does not exist is, of course, a flat-out lie or gross misunderstanding. Ignorance is a part of life but it must not be feared. For more knowledge to light their way, the Jedi Temple Archives contains possibly the single largest source of information in the galaxy, but this tenet also reminds the Knight that knowledge can be taken from the most unusual places. The great Master Yoda demonstrated this to the young Luke Skywalker on Dagobah when he acted like a fool, and when he acted childish in front of younglings. This performance was meant to teach Luke and the younglings the simple fact: even the foolish can be wise. Indeed, while instructing younglings, Master Yoda was often heard to remark that "Truly wonderful the mind of a child is." This tenet is what gives the Jedi his open mind and ability to accept what other beings would tend to see as unacceptable. In other words, this tenet points out that often a Jedi must use not only his rational mind but also his intuitive mind in order to ascertain the truth of a situation. This tenet is embodied by Qui-Gon Jinn's statement to Anakin Skywalker to "feel, don't think." Dexter Jettster would further demonstrate this notion: "I should think you Jedi would have more respect for the difference between knowledge and wisdom."

There is no passion, there is serenity

This tenet is essentially a repetition of the first. But this refers more directly to situations of extreme stress in which a Jedi might be tempted to react strongly. That a Jedi must draw his weapon only in defense is an expression of this tenet. While emotions and intuition must be understood and utilized in a Jedi's daily life, he must never act rashly. Passionate use of power leads to the dark side. A Jedi must always act with a calm hand and an even temper.

There is no chaos, there is harmony

This statement reflects the cosmology of the Jedi Order. Whereas uninitiated beings see the universe as a chaotic and disconnected place, a Jedi realizes that all things are interconnected and, more importantly, interdependent. While an uninitiated being sees sorrow and tragedy in the workings of the universe, through the Force, a Jedi is able to interpret and understand even the most painful of life's events. Without this cosmology, surely the first tenets of the Jedi Code would be meaningless. After all, how could one possibly forsake love and compassion if he did not understand the truth of the universe: there is no chaos, there is harmony. Every event has a purpose. As the great Jedi Master Yoda told Anakin Skywalker once, "Death is a natural part of life." Minor inconveniences such as failure, disappointment, and disagreement are also inevitable and should be taken in stride. Jedi do not deny the fact that tragic and terrible things happen; they merely point out that tragedy is simply another part of life.
Without this tenet, all other tenets of the Jedi Code would be meaningless.

There is no death, there is the Force

A Jedi, like many ancient feudal knights of various empires, must always be ready for death. As a warrior not only in combat but also in day-to-day life, it is easy to fail and fall. As Qui-Gon Jinn pointed out to the young Anakin Skywalker, it is quite possible to kill a Jedi, and it happens often. The sense of loss is often even greater for one who feels it with the Force. Death, however, is not a tragedy and is merely a part of the life cycle. Without death, life could not exist. The Force in us, still lives on after we die. This tenet represents a darker side of the Jedi Order, the side that accepts, indeed embraces, death, rot and corruption of corporeal forms. As such, Jedi do not fear death nor do they mourn it overmuch; a Jedi, after all, must celebrate death if he is to also celebrate life. While sources disagree on this point, it is noteworthy to point out that this tenet does not support vegetarianism among the Jedi but, some scholars argue, it does in fact support omnivorism among Jedi. This could also refer to living forever as a force ghost.

Great stuff here. I have a few questions though.

1. I'm not sure which combination of stats to use for Lightsabers given how much the Force plays a role in things. I would think Will + Acuity for deflecting blaster bolts, but for striking someone I would think would be Will + Body since the character is using their body to swing the weapon instead of a ranged attack.


2. Force Powers? Separate from Ceremony where you invoke the atmosphere of being a Jedi. What do most use for these? Will + Heart since I don't believe it's used for any other conflict rolls, or other combinations based on the circumstance at hand, like Sense, Control, Alter from WEG?

Acutity + Will = Sense Abilities
Body + Will = Control Abilities
Heart + Will = Alter Abilities

Or something completely different?


3. Heart seems like a stat that would degrade or twist for Dark Side characters. How have you handled that stat when corrupted by little bits of evil?

Dave,

I used the core mechanics for all resolution. For instance, if I Jedi want to lift someone up and hold them in the air, that is "physical", but if they are using that same force power to smash them into a wall, it is "fighting", or if they want to use it to crush someone's windpipe it is "gun fighting".

This way the intent (I want to shake him up vs. I want to kill him) is what determines the pool, rather than the method. My take is that the Jedi are very powerful (just like the dogs) so it's not really a matter of "can they do this" but "is it worth doing", and is it worth someone dying for.

Also... it's easier :)

As for the Dark Side. I used the Sorcery rules for the Dark Side (i.e. the worse they said it was, the more dark side dice I got to use) but I always gave them the option of grabbing the Dark Side dice as well, the caveat being that whatever they did, the power came from the dark side, immediate power.

The trick part though, is not being to heavy handed. The way Dogs work isn't exactly like the Star Wars universe does. If a Dog uses sorcery they can claim that the King of Life willed them to and walk away without a scar, less so of a Jedi. My tendency was to encourage players to talk appropriate fallout and to create a relationship with either the Dark Side or with a Sith Master. The more you enforce that kind of morality however, the less Dogs it becomes and the more D&D with lightsabers it is, so I'd tailor it to suit what feels best to you.

Sean

Since I'll be running the Jedi in the Vineyard game at a local convention, I wanted to get feedback on Accomplishments. The game can only run 4 hours. I'll be using pregenerated characters. I'm expecting players who've never tried DitV and this will be my first time out, aside from some playtesting. I see the benefit of playing the Accomplishments through for learning the rules and personalizing characters, but I don't want to steal too much time from the game slot either. Suggestions?

Every time I've played Dogs it’s been a 4 hour slot and we've started from scratch. While I'm usually a fan of pre-gen characters, I think the character creation process in dogs is a) a ton of fun and b) key to getting the players invested in their characters and the story. As they make characters, make sure it's all done out in the open and start drawing connections... "Oh.. you were trained by a Moncal Jedi and this other character is Moncal, maybe his Master is your uncle?" I think this part of the game gets players excited about playing their characters and interacting with the world.

If you skip it though, that's cool to. What your doing I normally refer to as half-baked characters. It allows the players a chance to customize what you've put in front of them. I think accomplishments are a great way to introduce the system in a safe way (characters can't die during this part of the game) and creates some real personal intimacy for each player. Just make sure to keep your game flexible enough that the accomplishments feed into the main story. Someone wants to have revealed a sith infiltrator in the Jedi Academy during their training? Great. Success or failure, now their better be said infiltrator in your game. This way the accomplishments aren't eating up game time, they are part of it.

Sean

Sean,

Thank you again for your feedback and suggestions. The times I've run my game, in playtesting and at cons, it has gone very well. However, we never really get into the whole Dark Side - due to me not pushing for it, but I think the adventure and the use of DitV rules work nicely for Republic-era Jedi.

Here's the booklet with conversion and setting suggestions. By no means a complete take on Mr. Baker's simple masterpiece.

http://gameverse.wikidot.com/local--files/jedi-in-the-vineyard/jedi%20in%20the%20vineyard%20booklet.pdf

More files can be found here: http://gameverse.wikidot.com/jedi-in-the-vineyard and then in the set of links at the bottom of the page (EditTags History Files Print Site tools+ Options), click on Files. It includes pregens and adventure documents.

-David-

Hey David, thanks for posting these links. I remember when I did my hack, a couple years ago now, I looked for some resources like this and and had a sith lord of a time finding them.

Also, great to hear that your games have been rockin. I found the Dark Side rampant in my game because I offered up juicy D10s (none of there was no corruption, up to 4d10 if a sith was on planet) and had a player that wanted to go that way anyway, so it was win-win for him.

You know I think if I would have had murder or other serious issues I think that the pursuit of the Dark Side would have happened or more likely to have had.

The setup I had was a town in crisis due to economic issues. I pressed upon the Players how awful things were as a result of manufacturing changes. Layoffs, bandits, etc. The key to keeping it going seemed to be three-fold.
1. Relationship between a major NPC (uncle and governor) and a PC (nephew/niece).
2. Nearly constant details hitting-home on how worse things are since Republic tech came to the planet (casting blame on the Republic).
3. And this was always the one thing every single Player jumped on ... pissing on the reputation of the Jedi. Pride or ego. This latter one was totally unexpected when I came up with the setup for the town. However, every time I have run this adventure, and I suggest others test this out too -- have a fake Jedi in the town who is taking payment for doing Jedi things. Try it with a character who is and who is not actually able to use the Force to varying degrees, regardless of their good or evil intentions.
The confrontations were fast and relentless. It got into the psyche of the Players who have preconceived notions of what Jedi are, add to that the idea of the Jedi having final say on justice in the DitV manner. The fake Jedi character (who was secretly dating the governor's daughter) was always confronted and was always given a chance to be reformed by being sent back to Coruscant for training, but I can see how some Players would prefer to kill the impostor.