Props Overview (Chorus Props, aka GM Resources, 1 of 4)

My design goals for going into Metatopia:

* Balance improv and prep to avoid cognitive load on both sides;* Keep the chorus honest, never just picking up dice, tossing them but just saying what they think is cool;* Better deliver the premise of the game (solving mysteries, revealing the omniverse and meta-lore to the player characters, giving them the opportunity to get involved if they wish).

Design goals I picked up by the time Metatopia was finished, reinforced by the three playtest sessions I played in as well as the S&P sessions I ran:

* Make dice rolls more meaningful (see system channel);* Make teamwork/assisting more interesting/meaningful;* Focus on what matters to the players/PCs (which is kind of handled already but doesn't hurt to remain mindful of)

For those of you who might be new to S&P, some historical context:

• Shadowlight existed prior to 2007, however Personae began then, as a direct answer to the transition of D&D editions from D&D 3.5 to 4th);

• Since then it’s been primarily run by myself and most of my immediate NJ colleagues/S&P collaborators;

• After playing a bunch of 4e, other non-D&D games, and then 5e from 2010-2022, I decided to revisit Personae, take it off the shelf, polish it and make it presentable to the wider global TTRPG community—I’d tried doing that over Google Plus in those years, but I didn’t really embrace it to the degree I have in the last two-ish years;

• So for the last two-ish years, while I’ve been introducing S&P to new folks, I’ve been doing all the running and all the demoing;

• The longest adventure has lasted three sessions (episodes), with a collection of stops and starts with sessions ending mid-way through a story.

[Lovingly inspired by the Fate RPG Bronze Rule (aka the Fate Fractal), in S&P identities can represent specific individuals, characters, persons, but also abstract entities relevant to the narrative.]

(This is all a sketch at the moment, will flesh out as I go)

Adversaries (that Interfere): chorus-controlled characters, opponents of the PCs (player-controlled characters)

• Minor - Pawns

• Medium - Minions

• Major - Nemeses

Self (Reflexive) challenges: player and chorus roll identical dice, apply identical modifiers

Condensed Skills for minor and medium adversaries: reduce list to three: Interact, Power, Attack, corresponding with each of the three types of challenges

Circumstances (that Interpose): conditions, elements/features of environment negative w.r.t. players

• Minor - Hazards

• Medium - Impediments

• Major - Obstacles

Conundrums (that Intertwine): mysteries, puzzles, ciphers

• Minor - Curiosities

• Medium - Perplexities

• Major - Enigmas

Benefits (that Intercede): advantages, elements/features of environment positive w.r.t. players

• Minor - Edges

• Medium - Avenues

• Major - Leverages