作者 主题: Before you start using GURPS . . .  (阅读 9779 次)

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Before you start using GURPS . . .
« 于: 2013-10-03, 周四 09:56:29 »
作者:
vicky_molokh
GURPS FAQ Keeper
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Kyïv, Ukraine


引用
Greetings, all!

This should help clear some of the confusion, as well as help newbies understand what to expect, how to use the system. It is probably the only part of the FAQs intended for people who haven't even read GURPS Lite yet (though those who read the two Basic books and are now wondering what to do with them might find some useful info too).

GURPS is a toolkit
AKA Some assembly required

GURPS isn't intended to be used exactly 'as is' out of the box, unless you're using specific optimized packs such as Action, Dungeon Fantasy, Monster Hunters or some of the genrebooks and setting books. It is expected that you'll use the tools you need, and leave alone those you don't. For instance, choosing which (if any!) cinematic rules you use can create very different types of campaign - from realistic to silly; likewise, using optional detailed bleeding rules (or the even more optional bleeding and crippling rules from Martial Arts) can achieve a very gritty feel during games. The same thing applies to Advantages, Skills, Equipment etc. - you don't need supernatural Advantages in a historically accurate WWII game, nor do you need the Piloting and Driving skills in a generic fantasy world.

GURPS is flexible
Being a point-buy system with no separation between trait types (i.e. Character Points, 'CPs' are a universal 'currency' with which you can 'buy' any of: attributes, skills, advantages etc.), GURPS is very flexible. You can make almost any character in GURPS that you can imagine. But please be aware that many fictional characters (such as those from comic books and movies) are often portrayed inconsistently, and translating them into GURPS requires resolving these inconsistencies (just how strong is The Hulk? What can a Vulcan Mind Meld achieve, and what it can't?).
Also, always remember that you are limited by the GM's character-point budget allotment and list of allowed traits. ("No, you still can't play an ancient vampire in my gritty/realistic WWII game!" is an appropriate, if somewhat silly, quote.)

GURPS is modular
Yes, you can theoretically GM any campaign with just the Basic Set (some manage to run complex campaigns using only Lite, but that seems like too much work). However, the many supplements can be 'plugged in' to improve the experience, as well as to make GMing (and often playing) easier. They can be roughtly split into: genre books (how to GM in a given genre), crunchbooks (books full of new rules for a certain topic), techbooks (AKA gearbooks, dealing with the technology in a given field or era), settings, and ready-to-play packages (a collection of genre, tech, and crunchy information).
Notable examples:
Bio-Tech helps those who want detailed medicine and other biotechnologies, especially in science fiction.
Ultra-Tech is a crunchbook/techbook/gearbook, primarily concerning itself with the gear found in science fiction settings. But remember about the toolkit principle - as a GM, be sure to choose what gear can and what can't be found in your setting/world.
Space and Fantasy are genrebooks which assist worldbuilding - they contain hints (and some crunch) for GMs who want to create fantasy and science fiction worlds.
Powers and Martial Arts are crunchbooks dedicated to GMs who want to have detailed 'supernatural powers' (in very broad terms) and detailed combat. These books are intended to be read by both the GM and the players.
Dungeon Fantasy, Action and Monster Hunters are special products dedicated to GMing (and playing) in very specific styles - those of oldskool fantasy, hollywood action-movies, and monster hunts.

Just because it is listed in an official book doesn't mean you'll get it!
Players: don't expect to be allowed to use whatever you want, especially if it's unreasonable.
GMs: only allow stuff that is appropriate for your game's style, genre and setting.

Don't port over characters just because you can. Think of the consequences.
You can't expect to take a 250-point realistic/gritty Navy SEAL and put her into a campaign intended for 100-pt cinematic/silly Merry Men. The great flexibility of GURPS comes at the price of having to specify what traits a character should posses before participating in a campaign.
And this is for two reasons:
The simpler reason is that difference between high-power/low-power characters (which is probably well-known to most roleplayers anyway).
The more complicated one is the genre/style/setting dissonance: a character can be highly out of place due to different abilities, problems, or approach to life. A clairvoyant can 'break' many superspy games, while a callous soldier will 'break' a social high school politics game. Sure, sometimes mixing stuff can lead to fun - when done right. But often (especially when done carelessly) it just ruins the fun for everyone.
(But do note that rules-related portability is rather high, as long as the GM knows some finer nuances of the two campaigns - like female gender being a serious Disadvantage (Social Stigma [-10]) in some feudal settings and not an issue in modern West etc. Just be sure you know what you're doing.)

GURPS front-loads calculations
GURPS chargen (the process of generating a character) can be intimidating, but this 'front-loading' is done to speed up the game after the character-generating process. For instance, Basic Lift - calculated as (ST²)×0.2, is a number that is used in many things - such as lifting and carrying stuff (including figuring cargo space in vehicles), digging holes, and even generating electric current (for electricity-manipulating superhumans).

Character point totals don't necessarily indicate combat power . . .
A 25-point gritty soldier will probably slaughter a 150-point dedicated librarian. Since GURPS doesn't have a direct link between point value and combat value (though point value mostly sets the upper limit for combat value), it is to be expected. Instead of judging by point values, try to compare skill levels, damage output, armor etc.
This doesn't concern only combat - the idea is portable to other activities as well.

. . . And so, NPCs don't necessarily need point values.
Since very often NPCs only show their most important sides (important for the plot/players), their true point value can be irrelevant for a game. Also, regarding balancing combat encounters: since a GM should learn to estimate combat value by effects alone, the point cost of an NPC's combat abilities can also be ignored as long as it is balanced for the intended purpose (remember, not all NPCs are created equal; some might be defeatable, some might be better avoided).

GM supervision required.
AKA GURPS is not a wargame!

Unlike its granddaddy (the system called Man to Man, for those interested in history), GURPS Fourth Edition isn't intended to be a wargame. You can certainly use GURPS' game engine and reassemble it into a wargame engine, similar to man-to-man, by defining which optinal rules are used and which aren't, creating strict limits in character generation etc. However, as of the time of writing this FAQ, no official supplement exists that would do it for you.
As a consequence, it is expected that a GM should revise all characters before the game starts to make sure there are no unwanted elements that would ruin the mood/setting/balance/etc. Same applies to spending earned character points.

Thoughts? Additions?
Thanks in advance!
« 上次编辑: 2013-10-05, 周六 12:14:29 由 ACID67 »

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Re: Before you start using GURPS . . .
« 回帖 #1 于: 2013-10-05, 周六 15:19:21 »
作者:vicky_molokh,GURPS FAQ 管理者

在你開始玩泛用系統之前...

這篇文章的目的是消除一些疑惑,及幫助新手理解泛統是甚麼,能如何用。這可能是唯一一篇針對全新手的常見問題集,不過也可能幫到讀過兩本基礎規則書而處於困惑的人。

泛用無界角色扮演系統 是一套工具
- 也就是說,需要組裝

泛統不是為“即開即用”而設的,除非你用上特定的套裝包例如 動作、地城奇幻、魔物獵人,或其他類似的流派書或設定書。泛統假設你會用你需要的部分,然後丟開其餘不需要的東西。例如說,選用不同的戲劇規則(或者完全不用!)可以大大地影響戰役的風格 - 由擬真到無稽都有可能。同樣地,使用可選的失血規則(或者更可選的武術書裡的失血及創傷規則)可以營做出一個非常血淋淋的團。這情況也適用於優勢、技能、裝備等部分 - 一個第二次世界大戰的歷史團不會用得上超能力優勢,而普通的奇幻世界也不會用得上航天駕駛或者載具駕駛。

泛用無界角色扮演系統 是富具彈性的

泛統的的點購系統並沒有劃分風格(也就是說,角色點可以用來購買能力值也可以買技能、優勢等,而不受限於一個範圍),因此非常有彈性。你幾乎能做出任何你能夠想像的角色。但請注意,有很多動漫角色是不一致的,要將他們轉成泛統的話要先解決這些問題。例如說刀劍神域的戰鬥恢復實際上能恢復多少?續作妖精之舞裡桐人用過的各種影魔法能做些甚麼,有甚麼限制?

另外,也請記著你也受限於主持人的角色點預算和可用特性。(例:你不能在我的二戰團裡扮演遠古吸血鬼。就是不可以!)

泛用無界角色扮演系統 是模組性的

是的,理論上你可以用基礎規則主持任何團(甚至有人可以用簡易規則跑複雜戰役,可是那樣太麻煩了)。但有很多擴展可以被引入以提升遊戲體驗,令到主持人和玩家都輕鬆。它們大致分為 流派書(類似電影或小說流派)、規則書(富含新規則)、技術書(又稱器材書,載有特定領域的科技)、設定集、及 即食包。

主要例子:
Bio-Tech 生化科技 可以助你引入仔細的醫藥和其他科幻生化技術。
Ultra-Tech 超科技 是一本規則書、技術書、器材書,主要關於科幻世界裡的裝備。不過別忘記它只是一套工具 - 主持人切記要篩選甚麼適合你的世界,甚麼不能用。
Space 太空、Fantasy 奇幻 是協助建立世界的流派書,能協助主持人建立科幻世界和奇幻世界。
Powers 超能力、Martial Arts 武術 是有詳細的超自然能力和精細的戰鬥的規則書,同時適合主持人和玩家閱讀。
Dungeon Fantasy 地城奇幻、Action 動作、Monster Hunters 魔物獵人 都是某種非常特定的團的專用書。

即使官方書目列出了一本書,也不意味著你必需要入手!

玩家:別指望想用甚麼就能用甚麼,特別是不合理的事。
主持人:請只允許使用適合團風、團設、團世的東西。

別隨便將角色轉來轉去。一名 250 點的寫實系龍威特種兵去到 100 點的喜劇團會有甚麼結果?泛統很有彈性,但也因此你需要為每一團設定一個合理的天賦範圍。這樣做是為了兩個原因:

簡單的原因是因為強力角色和弱渣角色之間的相距。
比較複雜的原因是跟派系、風格、設定的不協調性:角色可以因他的能力,問題,或甚至處世方式顯得格格不入。一名靈媒可以搞砸各種間諜遊戲,橫衝直撞的戰士也同樣搞砸高校政治團。有時混合元素是有趣的 - 假若適得其所。但更多時候這只會令到大家都不高興。

泛用無界角色扮演系統 將演算預先處理

創作泛統角色的過程可能很嚇人,不過這程序其實是預先處理好角色,讓遊戲進行得更順暢。例如說基礎舉重 - 算法為 (ST 二次方)x0.2 - 是一個在很多事上都用得著的數值,包括舉重、挖坑、承載(包含載具的貨倉大小),甚至產生電流(假若你是一位操縱電力的超能人)。

角色點不一定是戰力的指標。

一名 25 點的士兵大概能虐殺一名 150 點的圖書館管理員,因為角色點跟戰力沒直接關係(頂多是個戰力上限)。與其比較點數,你可以試著比較技能等級、傷害輸出、護甲等。
也不只有戰鬥是這樣,其他的各種活動也一樣。

. . . 因此,NPC 們不一定需要角色點。

因為很少 NPC 會向劇情或玩家展露自己的重大能力,他們實際上有多少角色點在很多時其實完全不重要。同理,由於戰力應該由效果決定而不是由點數決定,NPC 的戰力只要足夠平衡就不需要執著於點數。何況 NPC 本來就不是平等的,戰力可高可低。

需要主持人監管(泛用無界角色扮演系統 _不_是戰棋)

跟生父不同,四版泛統不是一套戰棋。你可以用它的規則做出一套戰棋,包括篩選可選規則和限制角色選擇等,不過目前為止都沒有一套現成的指引。
也因此主持人需要在遊戲開始之前檢查一次所有角色,確保不會有破壞感覺、設定、平衡的元素。往後花費角色點的時候也如此。
(10:23:05 PM) 欧剃: 咩的笑话一般不仅冷,而且是黑漆漆的阴冷?
(10:23:11 PM) 布布: 这只是,对别人来说是掉SAN值的腹黑,对咩来说仅仅是笑话而已
(10:23:45 PM) ***Sheepy 聳肩, 一笑置之
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Re: Before you start using GURPS . . .
« 回帖 #2 于: 2013-10-06, 周日 12:11:36 »
引用
即使官方書目列出了一本書,也不意味著你必需要入手!
引用
Just because it is listed in an official book doesn't mean you'll get it!

从这个题目下面的解释来看,我觉得这是强调“一本官方书里的资源不是写了就能用”的意思



引用
跟生父不同
引用
(the system called Man to Man, for those interested in history)

这里指的是SJGAMES的最早期产品,也有叫melee的。GURPS是从这个点数构筑的战棋发展来的。

引用
泛統的的點購系統並沒有劃分風格(也就是說,角色點可以用來購買能力值也可以買技能、優勢等,而不受限於一個範圍)

这里的trait types 是人物属性、优势、劣势、技能的统称,attributes目前是翻译成属性


引用
Dungeon Fantasy 地城奇幻、Action 動作、Monster Hunters 魔物獵人 都是某種非常特定的團的專用書。

直接说“分别是适用DND式的老式TRPG、好莱坞动作片、猎杀魔物这三种的即食包”会不会好些?

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Re: Before you start using GURPS . . .
« 回帖 #3 于: 2013-10-06, 周日 14:49:51 »
嗯嗯,請隨便引用改。改完我把我的修改或刪掉都可以。
« 上次编辑: 2013-10-06, 周日 15:40:17 由 Sheepy »
(10:23:05 PM) 欧剃: 咩的笑话一般不仅冷,而且是黑漆漆的阴冷?
(10:23:11 PM) 布布: 这只是,对别人来说是掉SAN值的腹黑,对咩来说仅仅是笑话而已
(10:23:45 PM) ***Sheepy 聳肩, 一笑置之
(10:24:17 PM) ***布布 死了
  D&D 4e 歿土英豪 頭兩章試譯