Tue, 2009-05-19 15:31
Again, bringing this over from the old boards - FYI
Topic: What is Untold? (Read 29 times)
Ashy and I were chatting about this awhile ago.
What is Untold? Is it a card game or is it a RPG? What should I be expecting for the playtest?
JonShade
Playtest (GM)
Newbie
Great question, Jon!
Untold is, at its core, an RPG - no doubt about it. We're not making another Magic, Pokemon, or Yu-Gi-Oh here. It just happens to be an RPG which uses cards to represent all the core components of the RPG. So, instead of the Players having character sheets, and the GM having a monster manual filled with basically monster character sheets, and then having to keep up with a list of notes for all a character's items, feats, spells, skills, with Untold each of these things becomes either a card, or a group of cards.
What does this do for the Player, or the GM? We feel that the way Untold is designed, it brings a whole new realm and wealth of quickness - adding a new Path (our name for Classes), or a new item/feat/ability/spell/etc (which we call Powers) is as simple as paying the cost (which we call UP) and adding that card to your character (which we call a Character Deck). Also, it brings whole new worlds of flexibility - you can tweak your character down to the smallest level and do this easily and quickly. You can change your character completely in the course of the adventure - say you begin the night's session as an Erudite (our name for Magic-using classes) and want to change mid-stream to a Combatant (our name for fighter-type classes); so long as you can come up with an acceptable story and role-play it in-character, then you can do it! (And it doesn't take all night to change your character).
Anywho, I digress... To answer the question - Untold is an RPG, but it uses cards. So really, it's a whole new beast - one that we hope folks will really enjoy and like. Smiley Oh, and I was wrong before, Jon - Untold is more like 95% RPG and 5% card game... Wink
Oh, and did the Primer help any? The reason I ask is that it's from the Primer and if it's not doing a good job of explaining Untold, then I need to rehash some work. Tongue
What can you expect from the Playtest? A rocking good time, I hope. I know our Alpha Playtesters had fun! Basically, a whole bunch of cards that Nathan and I have printed and cut by hand, along with an adventure that should span 3-4 sessions. As well as an opportunity to play the "Battle" version of our game - which is basically like a combat-style TCG where characters or monsters fight one another.
Ashy
Untold Co-Creator, Fun Stuff
Wandering Man
Untold Master
I agree, a good question - and something Ashy and I have been pondering ourselves when we began shaping Untold. First and foremost we are roleplayers, thus the game was primarily crafted with roleplaying in mind.
We wanted to streamline the mechanics and game play and make it fast and fun for everyone involved. We thought the card style was perfect for that - everything is laid out in front of you. No searching through books, no trying to decipher your soda smeared notes, all you need to do is read, add, and subtract.
So yes, there are cards involved, but they go into building characters to interact in a RPG fashion. We don't have any cards that give you amazing tracts of land or represent summoned hordes of monsters (there are "summoning cards," but in they are Power Cards that give your character the ability to cast a summon monster spell).
Ashy mentions Battle and yes, it has some similarity to a TCG like, but honestly it is more kin to RPG combat. You still build characters comprised of multiple cards, but instead of interacting you simply go at it, gladiator style. All the rules are 95% RPG rules.
We're working on cards called Minion Cards (they're like a character rolled into one card), initially we designed them to help out the GM, but they'll also be fun to use in Battle. All you need to do is keep track of 1 card instead of 5 or 6 to make a simple character. With Minions and the characters you design you'll be able to create small troops or bands to Battle.
So, stay tuned for more fun Untold goodness.
Nathan
Co-creator, Mr. Mechanics
Wandering Man
Untold Master