Character March 2025: Runehack RPG

A day special to me for private reasons should be dedicated to making a character of my own for the Runehack RPG. Publishing it was one of my resolutions for 2024, and I did it. At times, I had my doubts, considering publishing just two pillars, then just one, but eventually, the structure came to me. And when the muse kicked me and I started writing, I barely stopped for several months.

My ratings will be done on four scales, each ranging from 1 to 5:

• RPG: How much does this feel like an RPG to me, as opposed to a board game?
• Soup Stone: How little content does the game expect you to add? For this scale, 0 is a complete Soup Stone since I'd like to sum the scores to see the game's total score.
• Would I Play: If I were given a chance to, would I play this game?
• Would I Write: If I were inspired enough and had time/energy for it, would I get back to working on this game?

Runehack RPG

Fitzen Rainstone is a confident goblin who is a professional hoverboarder, participating in competitions to see whose tricks are the best. What might surprise most is that he enjoys writing and storytelling just as much as hoverboarding. What he lacks in strength and smarts, he makes up for with his handiness. He's 30 years old, so he's well aware that his career might be over soon. That's why he's raising a student of his to be just as good at skating as he is, an orc who's got a lot of potential. He hates his human manager since both of them are quite stubborn, and he's got a goblin love interest who's present every time he competes. Things changed when some influential yet hidden people contacted him, asking whether he'd want to join the Acumen. For a personal reason that's a secret to most, he agreed.

Since he's a goblin, his body has adaptive physiology that allows him to shift slightly and become just what he needs in roughly one week, provided he'll adjust his diet for it. Usually, he's an oak goblin, but if it's necessary, he's willing to switch things up. His attributes are as follows:

• Muscle 0
• Agility 2
• Training 3
• Cognition 0
• Hunch 2

His starting Burden is 1, allowing him to carry a single item without being slowed down. He could carry two items concealed on his body in such a way that others couldn't find them. His Masteries are hoverboards, rubber, and wood. He has 2 Guesses that he could spend to find out what's true without evidence. His Max. Energy starts at 10, his default targeting senses are Smell (while he's an oak goblin) and Sight (which is normal to all player characters), he starts with 300 credits and some basic possessions as listed in the rules, as well as a Penthouse. His feature choices for the pillars are as follows:

• Social: Fame is a feature that would give him a starting relationship of +2 with his fans and -2 with his haters, plus they'd know some basic facts about the famous skater. Furthermore, he'd take the Healing Factor feature unique to the goblins that allows him to heal from Wounds faster, literally within a matter of a day. His final feature of choice is a Secret, which increases one of his attributes by 1 (Hunch), but now there's a dark truth about him that very few know: he owes someone awful a great debt. And they are keeping an eye on him, waiting for the prime opportunity.
• Spy: In the Acumen, he found himself at home in the role of a Tinker. With his runecard's apps, he can use some telekinesis to create obstacles in unobstructed routes, and the ability to fall without getting injured (also through telekinesis). The obstacles he's mastered so far are Around and Over, since those felt to him as a hoverboarder quite natural. Being in the Acumen also gives him a Mask that he can wear to cover up his identity, and his runecard informs him whether there's any runetech present in his area, save for the runecard itself. (Note to self: that last part is what I realized just now I should fix in the rules.)
• Tech: When it comes to the more technical side of his secret life, his runecard can't be identified unless he allows it, and he can activate or deactivate runetech devices that are within his line of sight, provided he succeeds on a roll for them. His role is Modder, which allows him to jury rig devices, attaching and detaching components even outside of the Assembly Activity. As a modder, he can also purchase a special component called Hotswap Slot, allowing anyone to attach components to it outside of the Assembly Activity safely.
• Job: Seeker is the perfect job for a public performer such as a pro hoverboarder. His features of choice would be a Costly Talent (which doubles credits earned and lost during a Performance and from the Flourishes), and One More Try (allowing him to take a Perform action once freely if he succeeded on less than two rolls made as part of a Perform or Flourish action in a round).

Ratings

5/5 RPG. The procedures might seem board game-y, but I think overall it feels like a roleplaying game.

4/5 Soup Stone. There's still stuff to improve about it, like adding more Conspiracies and adding more and more options to the game, but I think it's already in a solid place.

5/5 Would I Play. Yes. I'd love to have a local group to play it with, but until then, I'll have to play with an online friend or two.

5/5 Would I Write. I want to add so much more to this game. I just keep getting sidetracked with other projects. I think that's actually a good thing, though! It gives me more space to relax from thinking about writing this game and also more time to try it out myself so I know if there's anything that needs to be changed.

19/20 Total Rating