Romance
A romance follows the ebb and flow of your intimate relationships. Romances take place during deliberation, and usually extend out across many sessions of game play. Once you start a romance create a romance sheet for it. You may start play with up to two romances with denizens half your power level or other player characters. A romance with a denizen your own power level is an asset. The referee controls those denizens during play, and all the details for the romances are set during the first game session. Just because you started the romance doesn't mean it will last, or that the denizen won't pursue romances with other characters or rivals.
New Romance
Starting a new romance can be done at any time during play by spending wits. You give the romance a name from of each participant, and optionally a name made of components of the participant's names. So if it was Bob and Jenny in the kiss the resulting romance might be called Bob/Jenny (Benny) or Jenny/Bob (Job). If Doug was included too the romance might be named Bob/Doug/Jenny (Bugny), and so on. The romance sheet then has a space to list the participants, and the introduction is a brief description of how the participants first met one another. Then there is space for successful kisses and obstacles.
Obstacles
A romance starts with three obstacles chosen by the other players. Participants can make a case for specific obstacles, but the majority of players decide which ones to use based on what seems most entertaining (love is cruel). You aren't limited to this list, but may select from it or roll randomly if you aren't sure. Faults may add extra obstacles, and even more obstacles may be added during play as a result of tragedies. Each obstacle must have a two condition that must be met by one or more of the participants. Once met the obstacle is removed and the romance gains 1 dedication.
- Cheating heart: Cleared after you eliminate another romance and reject 3 other kisses.
- Contrary promise: Cleared when you achieve or deactivate a specific goal.
- Different world: Cleared when you gain a specific tier 2 asset (usually a membership) and remove a fault.
- Jealous lover: Cleared when your rival (equal points) attacks a participant and is defeated by a different participant.
- Overlooked prospect: Cleared when you assist a participant with a goal and accept an invitation to a different romance.
- Suspicious past: Cleared when you change your career and sacrifice a tier 2 asset.
Kiss
Romances happen across a series of interludes that may end with a kiss. You must be in the same location as those you intend to kiss, and spend 1 wits per individual you invite. Accepting a kiss is optional and costs 1 wits (horde simply make a wits check). If anyone invited declines, then no kiss happens. If everyone accepts note the circumstances of the kiss on the romance sheet and roll an excite check against your heart score. Pick one participant in the kiss (you may pick yourself), and if you succeed that participant gains 1 wits. If any participant fails the kiss suffers an interruption. If interference is involved all participants gain interference and a tragedy occurs in place of an interruption. If all participants succeed then the romance sheet gains 1 passion. The participant with the highest margin is in control of the kiss and chooses which participant holds the romance sheet.
Interruption
If one or more checks fail (but don't fumble) the kiss is interrupted. The referee may select an appropriate interruption, roll randomly,or create a unique interruption as desired. Consequences for the failure margin depend on the interruption. If you fail you must suffer at least half the consequence (rounding up) on your own, but if you are in control of the kiss you may choose to take up to half of someone else's consequences (rounding down).
- Embarrassing situation: You lose wits equal to the failure margin.
- Mistimed arrival: Disapproving personalities equal to the margin find out and now have a negative reaction toward you.
- Mood shift: Participate in other kisses equal to the failure margin before a kiss from this romance can be accepted again.
- Mysterious issue: Find pointers equal to half the failure margin (round up) before you can kiss in this romance again.
- Sudden danger: Lose hits equal to the failure margin.
- Troubling realization: Suffer a penalty to heart checks for days equal to the failure margin.
Tragedy
Horrible events occur, and somehow the romance is the cause of it. A tragedy is always public, so it will alert any other partners that you attempted a kiss without them. In addition to the normal consequences for an interruption, a tragedy adds a new obstacle to the romance. Other players are encouraged to suggest unique complications and effects. The optional table below may be used either directly or for inspiration:
- Apathetic Attitude: A participant ends the romance. Cleared when another tragedy occurs to the quitter in another romance.
- Bitter betrayal: You eliminate all other participant's wits and do something terrible. Cleared when all participants have been betrayed.
- Falling fortune: Participants are strapped and lose all assets. Allies are also strapped from being caught in the crossfire. Cleared once you regain equal value worth of assets.
- Inconvenient illness: All participants contract a dangerous disease. Cleared when all participants have received the cure.
- Influential rival: A new or existing enemy's prime motivation becomes disrupting the romance. Cleared when rival dies, but not by the hand of any participant in the romance.
- Senseless death: A personality is killed or commits suicide. You will reject all kisses until after a respite. Cleared when you achieve one of the victim's goals (including resolving their death if it is mystery).
Union
Once you have cleared your third obstacle a romance may become a union. After the next kiss whoever is in control may invite the participants into a union, and if all accept then all participants gain a Lasting Union asset and a Legacy. A lasting union only allows kisses within the union, but participants in the union may share focus with each other. Any other romances the participants were in are destroyed. A union asset may be lost, most often when a participant dies. If a union is lost you may start new romances normally. Note that even if the union is lost the legacy remains. If anyone declines the union a tragedy occurs instead.
Ending a Romance
Not every romance will last. After any kiss where you have control you may quit without cost. You may also lose wits to quit a romance without a kiss or control. Once you quit you hand over the romance sheet to any remaining participant, who has the option of either taking it or quitting too. If all participants quit the romance is destroyed without further effect. However if a participant holds on to the sheet the romance continues without your participation. The remaining participants gain a bonus on any check they initiate against you, but also a penalty on any check you initiate against them. If you flirt with anyone else where the holder of this romance could interrupt then the holder may destroy a cleared obstacle to reduce your success level by one. If there are no cleared obstacles left to lose the romance sheet is destroyed. If you rejoin the romance these effects end.
See Also
Relevant Abilities and Faults
Version 2.5.1
©2014 Frameworks Games
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