Methods for randomly determining Primary Characteristic Values:

Some people pine for the golden days of RPG's when everyone's statistics were randomly determined, and not allocated from a pool of points. These were the days before MiniMaxing, when a characteristic value was detrmined by a flat die roll, and alterations to these were called... CHEATING. Don't misunderstand me. Point allocation has its advantages, especially in the quest for the ideas of "balance" and "fairness" to all the players. However, random generation has its good points, too. First, in life, not all people are inherently equal in their aptitudes. Some b*stards are just gifted at everything: strong, dextrous, smart, charming... I'm sure you've met one or two of these people in your lifetime. Two, it was just so much *FUN* to roll up a batch of stats... With that in mind, here are a few options to add that element of randomness to character generation:

• Method One: Roll Primary Characteristics in Order

Depending upon whether or not one wishes to maintain a consistent D6 usage or not within their game, two sub-methods for this exist.

The first uses a roll of 1D6+1 for each Primary Characteristic. Just go down the list in order, and write down what you rolled. This gives a Characteristic range of 2-7, and averages out to around Heroic (45 points or so) Level, for a 10 Stat system.

The second method is to pull out your pointy old D4's (or the flat or rounded edged ones if you weren't gaming in the late seventies/early eighties...). Roll 2D4 and subtract one, for each Primary Characteristic. This gives a more standard range of 1-7, but averages out to slightly fewer total points.

• Method Two: Roll a list of values, and assign them to your Primary Characteristics

Use the same die rolling options for Method One (1D6+1 or 2D4-1), and roll a series of values (generally one for each primary characteristic). Then assign these according to your whim, concept, or fiendish master plan. You want to be strong, then toss that highest roll into your Strength...

GM's that wish to allow for a slightly higher average may wish to grant one or two extra rolls to their players for Characteristic assignment. For example, if you are using a standard 10 Prim. Characteristic game, then allow 12 rolls instead of 10, and let the player drop the two lowest...(unless he really wants his strong man to be monumentally stupid, and takes the roll of 1).

• Method Three: Roll a total value for a pool to be assigned

This Method also includes several options.

The first one requires that a die roll technique (see Method One) is selected, and rolled once for every Primary Characteristic being used in the game. If your game has 10, then you roll 10 times. Then, add all of these values together to form a pool. If you are using the 1D6+1 technique, then the point range is between 20 and 70. If you are using 2D4-1, then the range is 10 to 70. I generally feel that the range presented in the 1D6+1 technique is better suited for pooling. Once your pool total is determined, assign points from it as you normally would using the standard FUZION system. A point cap is generally set at seven, possibly eight points in any given characteristic.

The second is similar, except that it requires fewer die rolls. Roll once (either 1D6+1 or 2D4-1) for each Characteristic Group (Combat, Physical, Mental, Movement) and multiply the total by the number of Primary Characteristics in the group. So, in a standard FUZION ten-stat game, you would multiply the roll by three for the Combat, Physical, and Mental groups, and by one for the Movement group. Then take this total for each Characteristic group, and divide it among the Characteristics in the particular group. Example: You roll a 5 for your Mental Group. This means you have 15 points (5 x 3 = 15) to spend among Intelligence, Will, and Presence. Again, a point cap is generally set at seven or eight points in any given characteristic.

The Third tends to give a tighter range of values. Take the total number of Primary Characteristics and divide by 2. If there is a remainder, keep this in mind, but round down for now. Multiply this number by five and add to it your Primary Characteristics/2 in D6 rolls. Example: In a ten-characteristic game, 10/2=5. Multiply 5 by 5 to get a base 25 point. Add to that 25 an additional 5D6 (10 characteristics/2 in D6). This furnishes us with a range of 30 to 55 points. Now, in the case of remainders, this works slightly different. You take the Primary Characteristics / 2 (rounded down) and multiply by five for a base point total. Then, you add to this a number of D6 rolls equal to the number of Primary Characteristics / 2 (rounded up). So, in a game with eleven Primary Characteristics, we have: 11 / 2 (rounded down) = 5. 5 x 5 = 25 base points. We add to this, 11 / 2 (rounded up) = 6 D6. This give us a total of 25+6D6, and a range of 31 - 61.

The calculation algorithms for this third technique are ([P] is equal to the formula for determining points]):

• For an even number of characteristics, Total Number of Primary Characteristics / 2 = (x).

(y) = [(x) * 5]

(z) = [(x) * 1D6]

[P] = (y) + (z)

• For an odd number of Primary Characteristics, the total number of characteristics / 2, rounded down = (x1). The total number of characteristics / 2, rounded up = (x2).

(y) = [(x1) * 5]

(z) = [(x2) * 1D6]

[P] = (y) + (z)