Sunday, June 5, 2011

"GNAR CIRCLE"



A game played by the Nomads and Hunters of the Crimson Desert, usually accompanied by heavy wagering.

Needed to Play:
- Two teams of players, equal in number, max. of six per side
- One Club (optionally torch, same difference) per player
- A flask of Oil
- Several Blue Scorpions (AC 4; HD average 3; Dam 1 HP, + Save vs Unconsciousness for 3d10rnds, Size approx 1ft long) These ugly buggers are normally quite passive, and only attack (stinger only; not with pincers) when provoked, as when set ablaze. By all accounts, they ARE NOT fans of the game!
- a certain degree of moral... flexibility

Object: Win by Scoring the most Points, or by "Default" if none of the opposing team remains conscious!

Prior to Play: Number of players per team and number of Scorpions to be used are agreed upon. Three Scorpions ("innings") per game is the usual convention, but that depends on how much real time the Players and DM want to spend on this folly!

To Begin: The players form a circle, alternating players so that no teammates stand beside any others (this may change as players are rendered unconscious or dead). A coin is tossed, and a member of the losing team steps into the center of the circle, carefully removes the docile Scorpion from a sack by grasping it by the tail, annoints it with a small amount of oil, and lights it on fire, doing 1d4 dam (this maneuver is considered automatically successful so as not to over-complicate things). He then tosses it to the ground and runs back to his position in the circle.

Gameplay: The flaming Scorpion goes berserk, charging a random character in order to flee the circle. Initiative is rolled. If the PC/NPC wins and scores a hit, his team scores a Point, the Scorpion takes damage and is assumed to be knocked back toward the center of the circle, and rushes another randomly determined PC/NPC. If the Scorpion wins initiative, it attempts to sting the PC/NPC, and if successful, that team loses a point, and the victim takes 1 HP of damage and must make a Save vs Posion or be rendered unconscious. If the victim remains conscious, he may still keep the Scorpion "in play" by successfully hitting it. If this counter-attack misses, or if the victim has been rendered unconscious, the Scorpion attempts to flee the circle through the gap now created, unless prevented by the PC/NPCs which are on either side of the victim, who then rush together to close the gap allowed by the guy who was stung. At this point, initiative is again rolled, by the Scorpion, and by BOTH of the PC/NPCs which occupy the spots to the left and right of the previously mentioned guy-who-got-stung. If the Scorpion beats both parties, it escapes the circle and gets the hell out of there, meaning that the team of the guy-who-got-stung loses a second Point (the first for being stung, the second for allowing the Scorpion to escape), and the game moves into the next inning and must be started again with a fresh Scorpion. However, if either PC/NPC (or both of them) wins initiative, there is still a chance to keep the Scorpion "in play", by scoring a hit & gaining a point for their team. If BOTH miss, the Scorpion has escaped the circle. If the Scorpion escapes, the person who missed the final chance To Hit loses a Point for their team. Play continues until the predetermined number of Scorpions are killed, or escape.
In summary...

Scoring Points: 1 Point is scored by a successful hit on the Scorpion, which automatically drives the hapless creature back into the circle (known as a "Single"). A killing blow, or "Double" awards 2 Points. (OPTIONAL: A hit of a "natural" 20 automatically crushes the exoskeleton of the Scorpion irregardless of its remaining HP. This is a "Triple" and awards 3 Points.)

Losing Points: 1 Point is lost if a PC/NPC is hit by the Scorpion. (additional Points are not lost if the victim fails to Save, although this of course makes it more difficult for the victim's team to win. This is known as the "adding insult to injury" clause!) 1 Point is lost if the Scorpion escapes, applied to the team of the person who had the final opportunity to keep the Scorpion in play, but missed in their attack (the "escape" clause). Points lost cannot result in negative Point totals; "Zero" is the minimum number of Points possible.

Keep Track of: Current Point totals for both Teams, the remaining HP of any Scorpion in play, and the position of each PC/NPC in the circle, relative to the other players remaining in the game.

Wagering: Bets can be placed on any number of variables; which team wins (of course), but also on how many men are left standing, who may of may not score a Double or Triple, how many rnds each inning may take, whether or not somebody dies, etc.

Much thanks to Blair at Planet Algol for the inspiration for this sick and weird game-within-the game, based on an idea he, in turn, got from the master, Jack Vance!

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