Be social
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Combining GURPs and other systems
Hi tbone,
my posting frequency more less conveys my approach to gaming - quite casual :)
The article on heroic dice rolling is good, but it misses on point that is important IMHO. The moment when a players receives a boon (in BW's case - "Artha") for roleplaying (e.g. based on said Beliefs) and how this boon can be used to boost his chances in a roll. In GURPS, character points are the boon, but granting them has little potential for a story. Give a player something which he can use only when rolling (which assumes a conflict, challenge or risk) and you create opportunities for these elements in your story. That's why I like the underlying mechanic of BW - it revolves around Artha (the boon), Beliefs and Instincts (roleplaying ways to get the boon) and the test-based advancement.
Now, I'd rather keep Beliefs and Instincts as cheap Perks, but reward role-playing them with a said boon (a bonus to a roll). BW has three levels of Artha - the more your roleplaying sets you back, the more powerful boon you receive.
I like social conflict subsystems because - in a casual group - it helps everyone in shaping interesting and often funny dialogues. It's like a brainstorming tool to help you generate ideas. And since it gets similarly detailed as combat, it shifts the emphasis of the game. Now interesting conflicts that require players to plan their approach and make decisions can be found in social situations - not only in combat. Focus on combat in most systems can get boring.
Regarding developing such a thing, I'd be happiest if I could see a relatively direct port of BW's 'duel of wits' to GURPS. The scripting mechanic there, where you choose your next rhetorical action without knowing what action your opponent chooses, leads to many funny dialogues. I think this subsystem is available for free from the Burning Wheel page, if anyone's interested.
Regarding combat, there is a nice amalgam of combat rules from BW and the Riddle of Steel... unfortunately I cannot find it at the moment.
PS. I'm sorry, but I couldn't get paragraphs to work... <p> tags are there in my html :-/ Using Firefox.