#monte-cook-games — Public Fediverse posts
Live and recent posts from across the Fediverse tagged #monte-cook-games, aggregated by home.social.
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Monte Cook on dungeon design, Gygaxian feedback, and shaping the $5 PDF
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We look up at the "Jewel in the Sky," a new megadungeon on BackerKit from Monte Cook Games for the Cypher System that you can play as either a fantasy or sci-fi campaign. https://ttrpgfans.com/monte-cook-jewel-in-the-sky-megadungeon/ #ttrpg #tabletoprpg #rpg #CypherSystem #MonteCook #montecookgames #megadungeon #megadungeonmonth
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Keep up the good work folks! The new #Numenera kickstarter from #MonteCookGames has now passed the original.
https://www.backerkit.com/c/projects/monte-cook-games/numenera/updates/38414?ref=bk-noti-project-update-38414 -
We head back to the Ninth World and take a closer look at the new edition of Numenera coming soon from Monte Cook Games for the Cypher System. https://ttrpgfans.com/numenera-new-cypher-edition/ #Numenera #MonteCook #montecookgames #ninthworld #ttrpg #tabletoprpg #rpg
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Throwback to this gem from the archives! We revisited Heist on Miracle IV, a Cypher System adventure where you're hired to retrieve alien evidence from a synth-filled research station. The AI might have other plans... #ttrpg #cyphersystem #montecookgames #throwbackthursday #archive #classicpost Find the full review here: https://busywyvern.com/2021/05/12/review-heist-on-miracle-iv-cypher-system/
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https://www.backerkit.com/c/projects/monte-cook-games/cypher-system-faster-easier-and-even-better
Monte Cook games has a crowdfunding project up though backerkit for a new edition of Cypher System, with even easier mechanics, key mechanics being made "cooler" just two books to give everyone at the table everything they need, and a lot more. As of this post, it has raised $956,532
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Blast from the past! Take a look back at our review of Godforsaken for the Cypher System. See what we thought of this fantasy supplement. #ttrpg #cyphersystem #montecookgames #rpg #fantasy #classicpost #archive #throwbackthursday https://busywyvern.com/2023/02/05/review-godforsaken-cypher-system/
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Blast from the past! Explore Bright Lunar Night, a short & sweet sci-fi adventure for the Cypher System. A great way to start a campaign! #ttrpg #cyphersystem #sciencefiction #montecookgames #throwback #archive #classicpost https://busywyvern.com/2023/02/23/lets-talk-about-bright-lunar-night-cypher-system/
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Two Cypher books for 2026! Monte Cook Games enhances their toolbox system spanning fantasy to cyberpunk. Choosing a single genre per campaign? We don't like that level of focus 'round these parts. https://l.d20.ninja/574yat2d #MonteCookGames #CypherSystem #TabletopRPG #RPGNews #Crowdfunding #Numenera #TheStrange #OldGodsOfAppalachia #TTRPG #GamingNews #RPGCommunity #IndieRPG #GameDesign #RPGUpdate
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Free Your Game—Run Cypher System
One of my favorite systems to run is Monte Cook Games’ Cypher System. Cypher powers two of my current campaigns, Numenera and Super Heroes. Today I want to share some of the reasons I love running the game, as well as one aspect of the system which I think could be a roadblock for new players. And, while I did receive a small grant to product some content for Monte Cook’s realm over on Moonbeam, I have received nothing from the company to write this post. I just like the system.
What I Love
There is a lot to love about GMing a Cypher System game. And these three are my favorite.
The Levels
Everything in Cypher System has a level, and I mean everything. These range from 0-10 in most cases, and the d20 target number for any check is the level multiplied by three. Astute mathematicians have already figured out the problem with this set up, because levels 7-10 are actually impossible to roll on a d20. How’s this work, then?
It works because before the roll is made the player is able to manipulate the level. If the character has an applicable skill, they can reduce the level by one or two. If they are using a beneficial tool they may lower the level by one, it’s called an asset. If they are attacking with a light weapon they can lower the level by one since they aren’t as difficult to maneuver. If they decide they want to try extra hard at the task they can spend some ability points to put effort into an attempt. Each level of effort applied lowers the level by one, and the amount of effort you may apply is capped by the character’s tier. A character may assist in an action, even if that’s only to hold their flashlight up while someone picks a lock or reads a book, and that’s another asset which lowers the level by one. And characters can use terrain to their advantage to lower the level by grabbing the high ground or taking cover. By manipulating the level in these ways the target number can be dropped into a possible, or even likely, success.
This may sound complicated, but I’ve not found it to be so. Any time I’ve run Cypher System things have worked fast. And they only accelerate the more comfortable people get with the game.
Intrusions
In Cypher System games the GM makes no rolls, which can be a bummer. On the other hand, a game master is able to alter the world by intruding on the narrative. These intrusions can occur out of the blue, or than can be a direct consequence of player actions (characters who throw their muscle around a settlement may encounter a patrol of guards who didn’t exist before that moment, for example). GM intrusions aren’t always by GM fiat, however, any roll that comes up a 1 triggers a GM intrusion which function much like a fumble in other system. When the GM does introduce an intrusion on their own, however, there is a reward to soften the blow. When triggering an intrusion the GM gives out an experience point to the player whose character will be impacted by it, and that player awards a second experience point to another player at the table.
Experience points in Cypher System are a valuable meta-currency which have uses beyond advancing the character. An XP may be spent to refuse a GM intrusion. Experience may also be spent to trigger a re-roll on any roll except a 1. Finally, an experience point can be spent to introduce a player intrusion into the world which offers the party a benefit. This last is up to GM discretion, and can be refused if the proposed intrusion is overpowered or doesn’t make sense, but the option is fun because it makes the players part of the world building.
In one game I ran I had a player action start a fire in an apartment building, which they needed to address. This led to some amazing antics. In another session two of the PCs stood near a standing stone I’d already described as being targeted by lightning. The two players made a poor assumption that the lightning had struck because the group had been messing with something and when I asked a player, “So, who do you want to give an experience point to?” He responded with, “Oops” just before seeing his character launched twenty yards as the next bolt hit.
My players have used intrusions on me, as well. During the fire I mentioned above one player created an “aqueduct” (it was in the lowest part of the city so it was actually grey water management) to help put out the fire. In one of the few fantasy sessions I’ve run using Cypher System one player used an intrusion to establish a prior relationship between their character and a goblin who was trying to get them to pay a toll.
Intrusions take the in-game narrative in all sorts of interesting directions. The guard the group was sneaking past can turn at just the right moment to discover a sneak and sound the alarm. A character can remember a contact they had in a settlement who might be able to provide information. Or a trap might be sprung on an over-cautious party. That’s only the start. Intrusions are a blast.
Reduced Prep Time
Running Cypher System doesn’t require a great deal of time copying out stat blocks or jotting down damage from traps. A dangerous area, or a dungeon crawl, can be as simple as mapping out the general locations out and then populating it with obstacles of specific levels. Level 2 kobolds, for example, may block the entrance to their settlement with level 5 traps.
Dealing with the traps is straightforward. If the players want to detect or disable the trap they will have default target number of 15 before any pre-roll modifications to the level. Since the trap is level 5, it does a base 5 points of damage.
Dealing with the kobolds doesn’t require much more work, and a GM never even needs to look at a stat block. They’ve been given level, so the target number to hit the creatures is 6. They also, by default, have 6 points of health since that’s their target number. They are smaller creatures and probably use their claws or light weapons, which means their attacks are faster, so defending against them is a level 3 check. Light weapons do two points of damage. At that point the kobolds in the crawl are basically done but, because they are communal beings, they tend to attack in packs when their traps fail. So four of the creatures may be combined as a single entity for combat. This gives them a base level of 3, or level 4 when attacking, and their combined attacks do medium weapon damage—4 points. They’ll also get health bonus based of their combined level, yielding 9 health. This is cool because a if a GM decides to throw 20 kobolds at the party, which could become cumbersome, they only show up as 5 distinct groups in the combat. Encounters can feel massive, while remaining mechanically simple.
Once a GM gets used to assigning levels to NPCs, and inventing creatures on the fly, session prep for Cypher System is reduced to creating a compelling hook and a specific goal. More can be built in advance, but it isn’t needed if a GM is comitted to riffing off the player’s actions. Now, I love using pre-existing adversaries for both stock Cypher System and Numenera because they’re designed well and the artwork is terrific, but not using them doesn’t slow me down even a little bit.
Potential Roadblock
As much as I love running Cypher System, and Numenera in particular, the game’s biggest roadblock is positioned at its on-ramp.
Character Creation
Cypher System characters are formed from a sentence, “I am an [adjective] [noun] who [verbs].”
The noun, or “type,” is the simplest of the three aspects—because there are only a few from which to choose. Numenera, which is a separate game powered by the system, has six types when using the two books from the box set, while stock Cypher System has four. These types cover typical archetypes like a mighty warrior, sneaky scout, enigmatic wizard, or charismatic bard. It’s straightforward, but then come the options.
There are fifty adjectives, or “descriptors,” in the Cypher System rulebook. These reveal a bit about the character’s background, and grant a character some one-time benefits. These can boosts to stat pools, skills, or a combination of the two—and sometimes the benefits are offset by personality quirks and hinderances. Numenera has nearly as many descriptors, but they are split over two books, so searching through them to fit an envisioned character takes a bit of work.
The verb, or “focus,” is even more overwhelming. A focus is a guide to what type of actions a character is driven toward, and they grant new benefits each time a character increases their tier. By my hand count there are just over 90 foci in the Cypher System rulebook. GMs are encouraged to whittle down the number of available foci to those which best fit their campaign, but even still the sheer amount of information is a lot. By contrast Numenera has only fifty-eight but, again, these are split between two hefty books.
It’s a lot of data, and as players try to figure out what options they’d like to consider they will find themselves flipping back and forth between many pages. The potential to be paralyzed by the sheer number of options, or become lost while flipping between chapters, is significant. That’s not to say the character creation process is difficult, it is not, it’s just a lot.
Having said all that there is a huge but coming up.
First, Monte Cook Games has addressed the character creation data flood with an excellent character creation tool on their web site. The tool is not a starter option, nor is it pay-walled. It is everything that’s in the core rulebook plus all the options which are added through their “white spine” genre books. And Monte Cook Games does this because the entirety of their game and genre supplements is in the system reference document they make available for free. Creating characters using the creation tool is fast, fun, and clear. There is no page turning and GMs can ensure characters fit their campaign by inviting players to a group and limiting the options which can be used during the build process. But it gets better. After a character is built, players may use the flexible web interface as their character-sheet. Or they can export out their created characters to a PDF. Or they can be exported as a JSON file and imported into FoundryVTT. It’s well-done.
At present you cannot build characters for other Monte Cook Games which use their IP, such as Numenera. Sort of. There is, after all, a great deal of overlap between the types, descriptors, and foci between Numenera and base Cypher System. If you are careful with the options you select you could probably get to a character who is very close to a Numenera equivalent—any differences can be fixed using the web-ui after the standard process is completed. Monte Cook Games is also hoping to bring their separate IPs to the character builder in the future. The additions will be behind a paywall, but the convenience might be worth it. At any rate, check out the Monte Cook Games’ character creation tool, it’s amazing.
Second, Monte Cook Games has announced that they are revising Cypher System in a way which keeps folks’ current books usable but makes character creation easier. Now, people in the Cypher community are a tad anxious about this announcement because MCG fans tend to buy many MCG books for their shelves. For my part, and I have no inside knowledge regarding the upcoming shift1, I’m kinda of excited. I know how dedicated Monte Cook Games is to their community and screwing over their player base just isn’t their MO.
Third, I have enjoyed the in person experience I’ve had helping my Numenera group build their characters. They loved using the prompts to see how their characters were linked, and the fiction they created during the build process has had a huge impact on how our campaign has evolved. So while the creation process is a lot, it’s also fun. And that’s cool.
Conclusion
Cypher System is my second favorite game to run right now, second only to Dragonbane. And, to be honest, the difference between the two is a coin flip. I love how fast it is to create challenges for players, I think intrusions are fantastic, and the level system is fast and intuitive. If you have not checked out Cypher System or Numenera it’s very much worth a look. You can pick it up over at Monte Cook Game’s website. The books aren’t cheap. The Cypher System Rulebook is $76.99 for a book/pdf combo, and the two-book box set for Numenera is $129.99 for the same. But, Monte Cook’s SRD is available for free, and there are some excellent starter kits for both base Cypher and Numenera which are under $30. Check this one out.
- Since writing this, I was given a very small amount of information from Monte Cook Games, since I cover the system. I can’t go into specifics, beyond what has been revealed by MCG already, but I’m even more excited. ↩︎
#DMing #DnD #dungeonsAndDragons #games #gaming #GMing #MonteCookGames #RolePlayingGame #RPG #TTRPG
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We go live in 1-hour!
The Magnus Archives: Miami
Twitch.tv/ZealZaddy#TTRPG #MagnusArchives #MagnusProtocol #MagnusInstitute #Horror #Fear #Entities #Podcast #MonteCookGames #RustyQuill #TheRustyQuill #ZealZaddy
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We go live in 1-hour with “The Magnus Archives: Miami”
Twitch.tv/ZealZaddy#TTRPG #MagnusArchives #MagnusProtocol #MagnusInstitute #Horror #Fear #Entities #Podcast #MonteCookGames #RustyQuill #TheRustyQuill #ZealZaddy
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We go live in 1-hour with
The Magnus Archives: Miami
Twitch.tv/ZealZaddy#TTRPG #MagnusArchives #MagnusProtocol #MagnusInstitute #Horror #Fear #Entities #Podcast #MonteCookGames #RustyQuill #TheRustyQuill #ZealZaddy
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When a company puts out a Humble Bundle but you already have most of it.
https://www.humblebundle.com/books/cypher-system-ttrpg-collection-monte-cook-games-books
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We received #RustAndRedemption from #MonteCookGames this morning, and look how chunky and pretty this book is!
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Be the goodest dog. Fetch souls for the Devil. Get skritches.
A roleplaying game about magic, mystery, teamwork, and the desires that drive us, perfect for the dog lover in your life!
mymcg.info/ddd
#giftidea #devilsdandydogs #gifts #rpg #montecookgames -
One of the best, most flavorful magic items I've ever seen. I've used a picture for text, I'm so impressed. Which is one of the things I try very hard not to do. You really need a copy of this game. It's a self contained rulebook - it's all that you need.
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#CypherSystem
You could treat a prophecy as a subtle artifact. Give it a depletion rate, a fixed effect and a level. The character (or group, for a group prophecy) could invoke it as a subtle cypher (it doesn't count as a subtle cypher). If it depletes, the prophecy is broken - at least as an artifact. Someone powerful enough could break a prophecy without the conditions being fulfilled, destroying it.This ties into the whole "Anything can have a level idea"
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Thank you all for such an AMAZING Gen Con! If you missed us or couldn't make the con, come see us at Gamehole Con this October for more fun and games!
https://www.montecookgames.com/
#gencon #montecookgames #gameholecon -
@GamerMomLuna Working on prepping for an Old Gods of Appalachia game on Foundry VTT. #cyphersystem #montecookgames #TTRPG
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well isn’t that lovely.. #MonteCookGames #ttrpgs #OldGodsOfAppalachia
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I'm starting my Stars are Fire Cypher group with a secret that can - and will - literally destroy empires and the entire known civilized universe.
I'm titling the game "Burning down the house". I am using the "vintage", "retro" song "Burning down the house" by the Talking Heads as the theme song.
#TTRPG #Cyphersystem #Montecookgames -
Okay, Rita O'Toole, who is a risk-taking ex stunt driver who drives like a maniac might have been created for Cypher system, but I want her to be my next Brindlewood Bay character as well. #TTRPG
#Cyphersystem
#BrindlewoodBay
#Montecookgames -
I'm finally getting my space cypher system game started. And the players I've found are creeping me out (in a good way). It's a full four days before session 0 and they are all chatting away in a long ass thread about character concepts, ideas, and what they want to see. This hasn't happened in decades.
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Just arrived from #MonteCookGames, in time to read it before school gets out for the summer. I may get a little resistance from the 8 year old since it's a #TTRPG vs a video game, but I'm hoping the presentation wins him over.