Character Creation: Cryptomancer

Got a lovely cup of Earl Grey, let's do this.

The Game: Cryptomancer
The Publisher: Land of NOP LLC
Degree of Familiarity: None
Books Required: Just the one

I don't know how to feel about this one. I think it might be a fantasy heartbreaker, actually. It's a very D&D-ish kind of setting (they keep saying "Tolkeinesque" but I think it's more "bland fantasy that's shaped by Tolkein", if that makes sense), but the central point of the game is cryptomancy - kind of magic communication that's designed for security. The game goes into a lot of detail about the different kinds of communication, and really twists itself into knots to make instant, secure-but-hackable communication work in a fantasy setting. 

And actually, that part of the game I found really cool. I don't love the writing; it's very chatty and not terribly interesting. The system looks...erh. You roll d10s equal to your Attribute, and then add d6s until you've got 5 dice (so you're always rolling 5 dice). Target number goes up the harder the task, except 1s cancel successes (boo), only 6s on the d6s count as successes (Booo) and 1s and 2s on the d6s cancel successes (BOOOO). I know from long experience with OWoD games that when 1s hurt you, more dice = more chances to fuck up. I'm not well-versed enough in probability to figure out the percentages involved here, so I'm just gonna make a character and be done with it.

There are a couple more steps, but a) they involve equipment and b) if you can't be fucked to arrange your layout so that all of the bullet-pointed steps of chargen are on one page, I don't know what to tell ya.

OK, so, I need to start off with the namesy stuff. Let's play a human, why not. Betcha they're "adaptable."

Called it!

Anyway, humans live in city-states, and they come off as, well, humans. Anyway, assuming I'm making an "adventurer" or whatever, let's say my character is in his 20s. Don't know how names work in this setting, probably just generic fantasy. Let's call him Raimond. He needs a "true" name, too. In-setting, a true name is a perfectly unique name that all sentient beings get at birth (ssh, it's magic). Let's say his true name is "Ferrowd", I don't know. 

Moving on, appearance traits! There's a helpful big ol' list of these. I wish it were a random table, but whatever, let's just be impulsive. 

Build: Sinewy
Eyes: Bulging
Hair: Messy
Skin: Burned

And then on to personality traits.

Desires: Power
Fears: Burning
Tends to: Overthink (common problem in PCs anyway)
Used to: Be a baker (new episode of GBBO today)

And now some mechanical stuff. Ugh, they don't have all the chargen stuff in one plaaaaaaaace, whyyyyyy. Ahem.

OK, so I've got four core stats, and they get ranked trivial, challenging, or tough. They all start challenging, and if I want one to be tough I have to downgrade another to trivial. Do I wish to do so? Nah, I'll leave them all challenging. That means they all get 6 points that I can then split betwixt the two associated traits. 

Power: I'll put 2 in Strength and 4 in Endurance. Speed: 2 in Agility and 4 in Dexterity. Wits: 3 Knowledge, 3 Cunning. Resolve: 3 Presence, 3 Willpower.

No choosing Skills, everyone has all of them. I get Endurance + 5 HP (9), and Willpower + 5 Mana (8). 

Talents! I get 10 points to spend. I think these are basically advantages/merits/whatevers. I'll spend three and take Bottled Magic, so my guy can make potions. Fuck me, that means I need to figure out how magic works. Oh, this isn't hard; I spend 1 Talent to buy Cantrips, 2 to buy Basic Spells, 3 for Greater Spells. So I'm pretty limited in what I can buy at chargen. I've got 7 points left. Although, only a few spells are actually available to bottle, so that narrows things. I'll buy Astral Eyes, Shadow Cache (it's not a spell I can bottle, it's just fuckin' dope), and Glamour. That's 8 of my 10 Talent points. For the last 2, I shall buy...ooh, Pusher, so I can make drugs (that's 1 point) and Smuggler (I can hide a small object from any search). 

Last couple of things would be trademark outfit and weapon, but eh. I need to go pick up my son and I think I'm about done with this.

Raimond was a baker, and he wasn't bad at it, but he's learned to apply the science of baking to mixing up more...interesting substances. His sister Meria is a skilled magus, much better than he'll ever be, but she taught him a few spells and he's learned to mix them into potions or bake them into bread. Raimond isn't sure of his path to power, but he knows that's what he wants - something that doesn't require him to sweat in a damn oven all the time. Someplace that lets him sit on smooth, cool marble and sleep between light, slinky silk. 

That'll do it!