What does that mean? How do you even play this word soup?
More info after the jump.
The answer is clear!
We do not directly emulate the mechanics of those brawling games, for they wouldn't translate 1 to 1 for tabletop gaming.
Rather, we were inspired by them. The soul of those games is what we call 'footsies' (distancing, movement and 'screen control'). Combat scenes in Neo Guanabara are all about controlling the flow and speed of aggression, removing enemy options and knock them out. Of course, there are options for going for the kill earlier, however that might allow for a comeback!
To truly understand what we mean, let's talk rules, shall we?
THE STALKER – Anatomy of An Anarchic Super Hero
The player character in Neo Guanabara is a Stalker. Stalkers can be part of a larger organization (Stalker’s Guild) or a “Stalker equivalent” – A being that is just as powerful as a Stalker and that is somehow caught in the crossfire between the many factions of Neo Guanabara and the Stalker’s Guild. A Stalker is more than a mere mercenary, a guard or a private eye – they are reliable problem solvers and some manage to be pillars of their respective communities. Stalkers are defined by the “Rule of Engagement”. Characterized by their powers and sense of justice, a single Stalker can wreak havoc on legions of gang members. In a world where the system wedges into the people’s collective consciousness, their power is beyond the reach of a regular Neo Guanabaran citizen. Will your Stalker be just another pawn of the Guild? Picking runs like a professional, focusing solely on their payment? Or will they save lives and try to confront a bizarre,oppressive system that abandons those who fuel it’s power?
In any case, here’s what composes these exceptional beings:
-Lineage
Humans, Lizard-People or Androids. Three different people, from very different walks of life, trapped together in this city of chaos. This choice is very important, perhaps one of the most important decisions a player is asked to make, because certain factions and Non-Player Characters (NPCs) will be wary of dealing with certain lineages. Your choice in Lineage, inherently, limits your Class selection. Don’t expect to see Esper powers from an Android or Cybernetic Implants on Lizard-People!
-Class
Cyborg, Esper or Meta-Mage. These classes play very differently from each other. Each class deals with a different Augment type (Implants, Esper powers and Meta-Magic), as well as how they are built into or manifest with the character. As well, each class has a very different aesthetic from one another.
Rule of Engagement – A special, signature power or element of the character that is uber powerful. A constant presence whenever they are around and that is public knowledge. This rule has a level associated with it and is always added in any roll the character makes.
STRUCTURE OF THE GAME – Phases of Mayhem
Neo-Guanabara is a game of high octane action, of Cybernetic superheroes with psychic minds and the power to break the fourth wall, scrambling against the rules of nature. That gained power is then infused into the titular city, Neo-Guanabara. They fight, debate, and investigate their way into success, making factions more powerful in their wake. Each of the said Stalkers should have their own personal goals. Will they remedy the corrupt system of Neo-Guanabara? Will they bring the fight into the Metropole and kickstart the beating heart of a revolution? Or will they happily sell their services to shady criminals? And become crime lords themselves? Possibly even start an urban civil war?
Each “generation” is a campaign composed of a certain number of sessions and “jobs”. By doing said Jobs the player characters’ Stalkers acquire Renown and Fame from the factions they support. And after the climatic ending, they choose how to cash in and change the city of Neo-Guanabara.
The traditional RPG Campaign of Neo-Guanabara is the story of the titular city; players make Stalkers, develop the city to their heart's content and finally, see their developments, as successes or failures, through subsequent generations. As these generations progress, player characters are allowed to keep their Stalker from the previous generation, or simply start anew.
In its essence, Neo-Guanabara is a game defined by two different sections of time, noted as “Scenes” and “Phases”. Scenes are a sequence of Phases and many mechanical effects are tied directly to Scenes. While phases, on the other hand, are where dice pools are made. Phases are composed of three separate classifications, where the goals within the phase are completely different and unique to that phase. These phases are as follows:
Investigation Phases are about acquiring information.
Debate Phases are about acquiring resources.
Combat Phases are about removing, forcefully, those who are in your way.
Alongside these three major Phases, there are auxiliary phases, noted as “Talking Phases” and simple “Downtime Phases”. Hey -- even cybertech superheroes deserve a chance to relax, smell the roses and drink some coffee in between breaking down barriers and beating up bad guys! “Downtime Phases” are important, and core to the experience of a roleplaying game. They allow Stalkers to maintain a sense of humanity in a twisted and confusingly oppressive world.
MAIN MECHANIC – The Dice Pool
The Dice Pool mechanic is used for all elements of the game, be it Checks, Investigations, Debates or Combat! For that, it’s essential to understand these rules, as simple as they are to properly play and narrate a session of Neo-Guanabara.
Before we go into ‘how the dice pool works’, let’s talk about ‘why the dice pool works’. Neo Guanabara is a game about powerful beings. Your character is a legendary mercenary, a genius kid, a mysterious cosmic alien or an Android that has ascended its mundane functions. The dice pool takes in consideration the situation you are in (Physical, Mental or Spiritual) as well the defining trait of your character (Rule of Engagement) then adds your skill level and finally to spice things up, the Augment being used for the action (Which will often trigger a special effect)
This is a bit more involved than your average RPG, sure. But this roll matters more than a regular roll. With a well constructed Dice Pool, and the right Augment for the job, you could in theory end situations in a single blow!
Now let’s delve on ‘How the dice pool works’ shall we?.
The key to a dice pool is to create successful actions and/or reactions. To make a roll, after assembling a Dice Pool and rolling it you set aside any dice showing “1” for they cannot be used in the action/reaction and then select up to 2 dice to generate a “Value” as well one other dice to be used as “Effect Die Level” die for that particular action.
To assemble a dice pool, all you have to do is use a dice associated with your character Pillar (Body, Mind or Spirit), then add it to their Rule of Engagement, then an applicable skill (Or just add a 1d4 if not applicable!) finally you add the Augment that fits the Action/Reaction (Or again, if you cannot do so, add a 1d4 to it) and then roll them bones! In more clear terms:
Dice pools are: Pillar Die + Rule of Engagement Die + Skill Die + Augment Die
After rolling it, all there is left is to check the results. The larger the die, the bigger and more impactful the effect of the action is. If you have no remaining dice for your Effect Die, the default Effect value is Level 1(1d4). In other words:
Roll the Dice Pool, set aside 1s, pick up 2 dice to form a “Value” and pick 1 die to be the “Effect Level” for the action.
These results, then, are compared with the results of the opponent’s own reaction Dice Pool Roll or a static number with an effect to go with it if you are rolling for an interaction against a non-reactive entity (What we call a 'check'). Examples of non-reactive entities include interacting with objects, activating a Skill Set or helping an Ally by using an Augment. If the roll total equals or exceeds the “Value” of your Opponent’s roll/static number, the roll is considered a success and the Effect die is applied as a result of the roll. We call that a ‘Boundary Break’. For example:
Mariko Grace, the Stalker Mistress, is engaged in hunting a Mutated Jaguatirica (A particular breed of Ocelot, common among the forests around Neo-Guanabara) for the Stalker guild. Grace’s player decided to pummel the beast, a capture is worth more Surreais but she doesn’t want to risk it, so she prepares her dice pool for the attack: her rule of engagement provides her with a Level 4 (1d10) die, the Body Pillar who she has at Level 3(1d8), the Skill Set of “Cyber Jiu-Jitsu” in which she being a veteran martial artist has at Level 4 (1d10) and then her augment “Cyborg Arm” that has an Level 3(1d8) associated to it. She rolls, in order: 6, 3, 6, and 4. Wanting to hit the Jaguatirica as hard as possible, Mariko’s player keeps the first 6 and the last 4 as the “Value” for the roll, while keeping her second 6 (which was rolled on a 1d10) as the Effect Level. Meaning that the effect of the roll was Level 4(1d10). To defend itself from Grace’s Cyber Jiu-Jitsu attack coming from her Cyborg Arm, the Narrator rolls a dice pool for the Mutated Jaguatirica: the Jaguatirica is not a stalker-equivalent, so no Rule of Engagement is applicable, the narrator chooses to roll a level 1 (1d4), the, Body Pillar Level 3(1d8), Another level 1(1d4) (for no Skill Set to defend itself) 1d6 for its Augment, Mutated Agility. The Narrator rolls for the Ocelot-like creature, in order: 1 (set aside), 2, 1 (set aside) and 2. The Narrator picks the first 2 dice that remained in the pool for the Value of his roll and sets no value for the effect (which Defaults to a Level 1(1d4). The Jaguatirica gets hit hard by Mariko’s Cyborg Arm by judging the size of the Effect Dice she assigned as damage!
Every Action generates a Reaction when targeting another character, be it human, beast, creature or etc. However when interacting with the environment or an object, you must roll against a set difficulty number who also has an effect dice attribute with it. This is known as a 'check'. For example:
Mariko Grace wants to scale a wall so she can enter a stronghold of the criminal gang “Fifty-Six” without being noticed by the lookouts. The player prepares the pool: her Rule of Engagement must always be used, meaning she gets the level associated with it (Level 4 - 1d10), Body Pillar Level 3(1d8), Athletics Skill Level 2(1d6), her Augment Level 3(1d8) for her “Cyborg Arm”. She rolls in order, 1(set aside) , 3, 5 and 5. Grace’s player decides to keep 5 and 5 making the final Value of the roll to be 10, while keeping the first 1d8 as the effect level die. The difficult Value of climbing a big wall that was created to stop intruders from climbing is 9 with an effect level die of 1d6, so Mariko manages to roll exactly with it needed to climb the wall. Since the level of her Effect die is higher than the Effect associated with the wall, she overcomes it in one go!
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This is but a taste of how Neo Guanabara works. Stick with us and even more rules will be revealed!
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