Systemless
While redoing Terra Mutant, I realized
the structure of Risus helped define certain concepts I want to see
in-world that otherwise would not have even been addressed in a
systemless setting. Something similar with The Devil Is and Sins and
Paths occurred to me.
I do now realize the structure is in fact needed. Nothing prevents
the worlds use with another game system, but something is missing for
me in the world if it is systemless, perhaps because they were not originally systemless.
I think it might be that
some concepts that are integral to a game world are nothing more than
a suggestion, or an essay on a theme (such as Sins), when it has no
mechanical reinforcement. As John Wick said to me once, "if it's a
thing, have a game mechanic for it". In review of Terra Mutant, I
started to feel it in the technology section, but it came home in the
mutation section. In this case, almost a reverse of the Sin issue.
In this case, it was a situation where I was outlining very
specific things that occur in this game world - specific mutations -
but any Post Apocalyptic game setting that has mutants, will already
have lists of mutations, and specifics of how they are used, so this
isn't actually useful. It's a lot of insinuation of game mechanics, without the
actual mechanics, for a specific style of play. It in fact, makes
Terra Mutant useless as a systemless game world.
So...I guess
I'm back to Risus, if only because it provides the very lightest of
frame works to hang a setting on.
That being said, as I 'up'
the production value, I will re-release the settings (all 17, yikes!)
one at a time.
Apologies for the inconvenience.
