Xia: Game Systems

Xia: Main Page -> Xia: Game Systems

This page describes the game systems for playing the game.

Conflict Resolution

The core of the Xia game is Conflict. Our hero warriors battle the world around them, perhaps because they seek to change it, or perhaps because they need to defend themselves against it!
There are three sorts of conflicts in the game:

• Physical conflicts are usually violent encounters, where the goal is to beat the enemy into submission, or to murder them!
• Social conflicts are battles of words where conflicting agendas come crashing against each other, and the most charismatic man wins!
• Mental conflicts involve the matching of wits and the clashing of intellects. This isn't just games of chess and scholarly one upmanship either - two generals directing opposing armies are engaging in mental conflict, as are two sorcerers seeking to undo each others magic.

The type of conflict sets which Trait is at the core of the conflict. For example, a physical conflict uses the physical trait.

Initiative

Acting first and fastest is very important in conflicts!

• Your Initiative Rating = Active Trait + Thunder Trigram.

For example, if the Xia warrior Moon Shadow has a Physical Trait of 3, and a Thunder Trigram of 4, then in physical conflicts her initiative rating is 7!

The highest Initiative Rating always goes first in a round, and can take a single action. You then move down the Initiative Order, with each character acting in turn.

In the case of equal Initiative Ratings, player characters act before non player characters. The players get to decide who acts first amongst player characters of equal initiative to each other. The GM gets to decide who acts first amongst non-player characters of equal initiative to each other.

If the players can't agree amongst themselves (as might happen in PVP combats), then the oldest player goes first! It is only polite to respect your elders!

Attacks

An attack takes your action. When you attack, you need to know three things:

• Dice Pool: This is how many D6 (six-sided dice) you roll. By default, this is equal to the attacker's active Trait.
• Accuracy: This is the number you need to roll equal or under to score a hit. By default, this is equal to the attacker's active Trait.
• Power: This is how much damage each "hit" does. By default, this is equal to the attacker's active Trait.

So, for example, in a Physical Conflict, Moon Shadow (who you will recall has a Physical Trait of 3) would by default roll 3 six sided dice, score a hit on a 3 or less, and deal 3 physical damage on each hit.

The above, however, assumes that the target is standing there like a fool, refusing to defend himself...

Defence

You can defend whenever you are attacked. This does not take an action. When you defend, you get three modifiers:

• Evasion: This defence is deducted from the attacker's Dice Pool. By default, Evasion is equal to the defender's active Trait. Evasion cannot reduce dice pool to less than 1.
• Interference: This defence is deducted from the attacker's Accuracy. By default, Interference is equal to the defender's active Trait. Interference cannot reduce Accuracy to less than 1.
• Absorption: This defence is deducted from your attacker's Power. By default, your Absorption is equal to the defender's active Trait. Absorption cannot reduce Power to less than 1.

So, for example, in a Physical Conflict, let us assume that Moon Shadow is attacking an ordinary guardsman, who has Physical 1. This gives the hapless guardsman Evasion 1, Interference 1 and Absorption 1.

Now, Moon Shadow only gets to roll 2 dice, score a hit on a 2 or less, and deals 2 physical damage on each hit.

Injury

Damage is applied to the relevant health type. For example, physical damage is applied to the targets Physical Health.
If a target's health is reduced to zero, he is defeated.

• With a Physical Health of zero a Xia hero is incapacitated. He is so beaten and bloodied that he can't even crawl about anymore, and is helpless to act in any way. Though not necessarily dead, he is open to a coup de grace from anyone who might choose to finish him off.
• With a Social Health of zero a Xia hero is discredited. His arguments are defeated, his position is untenable and his opponents are proven right. He will roll over to intimidation, surrender to seduction and be convinced by persuasion.
• With a Mental Health of zero a Xia hero is shattered. He has no will to oppose any more, and will abandon whatever task he set out to do. His plans fall to pieces - if he is playing a game it is lost, if he is commanding an army there is a rout, and if matching arcane power then his spells collapse and fade.

NPCs have different effects on defeat - normally more severe. For example, an ordinary soldier who is reduced to zero Physical Health will be killed outright, while a poor human peasant who loses his Social Health will be cowering, whimpering and subservient. On the other hand, powerful NPCs (especially major villains) might suffer smaller setbacks at the GM's discretion. A physical defeat for the main kung fu demonic nemesis of the story might only be enough to drive him off, for example.

Implicit to this system is the idea that no character suffers permanent defeats without their player's consent. A player's Xia hero may be beaten in combat, but he will not die - or be maimed or disabled - unless the player says that it is ok for that to happen.

Using Chi in Conflicts

As the astute of you will already have noticed, the above conflict rules will often boil down to each combatant making single dice attacks, hitting on a 1, and only dealing a single point of damage! Combats of this sort would likely be little more than drawn out battles of attrition... not very Kung Fu!

Conflicts aren't like that though, and the reason is Chi.

There are two ways to use Chi in conflicts: Channelling Trigrams and Kung Fu secrets.

Channelling Trigrams in Attack

There are four Trigrams you can channel in attack: Heaven, Wind, Fire and Thunder. You can channel each of the four Trigrams only once on each attack, though you can activate multiple different Trigrams on the same attack.

For example, you could choose to activate Heaven and Wind on the same attack, but you couldn't choose to activate Heaven twice on the same attack.

• Channelling 'Wind - aka "Chi Motion"

When you channel Wind, spend 1 Yang Chi and add your Wind Trigram to the Dice Pool of that attack.

• Channelling 'Heaven aka "Chi Accuracy"

When you channel Heaven, spend 1 Yang Chi and add your Heaven Trigram to the Accuracy of that attack.

• Channelling 'Fire aka "Chi Power"

When you channel Fire, spend 1 Yang Chi and add your Fire Trigram to the Power of that attack.

• Channelling 'Thunder aka "Chi Celerity"

When you channel Thunder, spend 1 Yang Chi. If your attack Defeats your target (i.e. reduces him to 0 Resilience) then you can immediately make another attack against a new target. This new attack does not benefit from any of the chi effects or powers that affected the previous attack. You can only Channel Thunder a number of times per round equal to your Thunder Trigram.

Channelling Trigrams in Defence

There are four Trigrams you can channel in defence: Earth, Mist, Water and Mountain. You can channel each of the four Trigrams only once on each defence, though you can activate multiple different Trigrams on the same defence.

For example, you could choose to activate Earth and Wind on the same defence, but you couldn't choose to activate Earth twice on the same defence.

• Channelling 'Mist - aka "Chi Evasion"

When you channel Mist, spend 1 Yin Chi and deduct your Mist Trigram from the Dice Pool of that attack.

• Channelling 'Earth aka "Chi Interference"

When you channel Earth, spend 1 Yin Chi and deduct your Earth Trigram from the Accuracy of that attack.

• Channelling 'Water aka "Chi Absorption"

When you channel Water, spend 1 Yin Chi and deduct your Mist Trigram from the Power of that attack.

• Channelling 'Mountain aka "Chi Breaker"

When you channel Mountain, spend 1 Yin Chi. If the attack fails to do any damage to you, you inflict a "Stop" on the attacker. That attacker cannot make any additional attacks this round, against you or any other target.

Players might perceive "Chi Breaker" as being quite a weak power at the start of the game, but it is one that grows in utility as they and their enemies advance, as there are many sources of extra attacks available to a skilled Xia.

Timing: Note that Defence is always declared after Attack, so the active player must finish declaring all his active effects before the defender declares any defence effects.

Kung Fu Secrets

The effects of various Kung Fu secrets are described on their respective Lore Sheets. However, unless stated otherwise:

• Kung Fu Secrets that cost Yang Chi are deemed Active Effects and are declared at the same time as

Regaining Chi: Regain all at end of a conflict. Style Chi Bonuses: - Gain +1 Chi for a decent description. - Gain +2 Chi for an excellent stunt that uses your environment in some way. - Gain +3 Chi for exceptionally cool stunt. - You gain Chi of the type of your action. That is, an active or attacking stunt gains Yang Chi, while a passive or defensive stunt gains Yin Chi.

Weapons: Weapons add to certain traits, in turn for losing other traits. Most weapons net bonus and penalty of +0. For example, a Giant Stone Maul gives +2 to Power, but -1 to Defence and -1 to Initiative. These bonuses would only apply in physical combat, of course. Edges: Edges are like weapons, but relate to certain mental and social conflicts. For example, the title of Bureaucrat of the Jade Protectorate gives you +1 to Power as your edicts have more weight, but -1 to Evasion as you are more socially visible with your public persona. EXPERIENCE

You gain 1-3 XP per session. (1 XP for turning up, 1 XP for style, 1 XP for success).

Buying a new Advantage costs 1 XP. Increasing a Trigram costs XP equal to your current level (e.g. 45 costs 4 XP). This also adds +1 to Yang Chi or Yin Chi as relevant.

Buying an advantage requires you have to access to that advantage somehow – i.e. either a tutor or some source of learning.

Unopposed Tasks

Mostly, this game centres around conflict, be it mental, social or physical.

Credits

This page created by Asklepios.