How do I determine what a "dangerous task" is in "A Familiar Problem"?
In the RPG "A Familiar Problem" published by Darrington Press (with the basic rules available as a PDF), the rules state:
When you fail a dangerous task, mark 1 Stress. When you roll a die to resolve an action, if you ever roll equal to or under your Stress, you lose it; ignore the mission and act as outlined in your BREAK.
"A Familiar Problem", Darrington Press
How should I determine what a "dangerous task" is? The term isn't defined in the rules, so I'm assuming it's up to the GM and the players to decide what qualifies. I'm wondering, though, if there are any guidelines for what type of task is generally considered "dangerous".
I assume this includes anything that could result in bodily harm to the familiar, but what about other types of danger? Is waking up a sleeping baby "dangerous"? Is splotching ink across a library book "dangerous"?
How should I go about determining what a "dangerous task" is when running "A Familiar Problem"?
1 answer
After taking the time for a careful reading of the full ruleset, my impression is that it's intended to represent tasks where there are significant negative consequences for failure. In other words, what if you fail? It's "dangerous" if, upon failing:
- You would die
- You're a wimp and would get hurt a little (ie. scratch)
- You're very loyal and your master would be displeased
- It would embarrass you, and you're very arrogant
- The adventure would fail or be impeded
This is a bit like the old take-10 rule from DnD. That one was disallowed for both dangerous and one-time attempts. In this case, not being repeatable shouldn't count as dangerous, unless your character has a very fragile self-image.
Is waking up a sleeping baby "dangerous"?
- Yes if you are terrified by noises. (many cats, although in this RPG it seems like cats become megalomaniacs rather than rocketing under the nearest furniture when startled)
- Yes if the baby would/could wake up some dangerous monster.
- Yes if the noise would, for example, cause your sneaking master to be discovered and ruin his cunning plan.
- No if it's just a sleeping baby.
Is splotching ink across a library book "dangerous"?
- Yes if you are terrified of messes.
- Yes if the book is an ancient tome and you greatly respect knowledge.
- Yes if the book is magical and spill could release magic or anger the book itself.
- No if it's just a mundane book, mundane ink, and nothing particularly important is defaced by the splotch.
The consequence of failing dangerous tasks too often is to lose it. It stands to reason that if you keep screwing up and upleasant things happen to you, that you would lose it even if they're not that dangerous per se. For example, cold water being dumped on a cat: Hardly deadly, but I can see how the cat would lose it.
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