One additional mechanic that is not in the rule book that we will be using in this game is rewarding tokens, called Never Gems, for doing things that improve the game. Never Gems will be a resource each player may choose to spend for a variety of purposes I will try to describe succinctly. They represent good luck, serendipity, fate, divine intervention, pooled up qi, influence over the plot and just about any other justification you can think of for why people sometimes are unreasonably successful.
Never Gems are also real objects in the world of Karia Vitalus. Known as “Junk Rocks” to Mechifieds, “Silex Vulgaris” to Allskins and Biomade, and “Mother Stones”, “Karian Tears”, “Jewellery of the Land”, “Sky Pills”, “Cloud Crystals, or “Deep Rocks” to the Karians, Never Gems are a variety of extremely common, poor quality crystal. Too soft and rarely clear enough for use in jewellery, and too common to be valuable, these stones are ubiquitous and useless. They can be found jutting out from beneath tree branches or growing alongside Blackrock deposits and they come in three different colours, each with a variety of different shades. Each colour is described below along with the Karian lore about it.
Red – “Fleshstone” these ruddy crystals range from nearly orange to red as blood. They are associated with the Body in Karian traditional medicine, are symbolic of passion, particularly aggression, and are used ritualistically to prepare for combat. Red Never Gems are: adrenaline, bloodlust, effort, athleticism, sexuality, fortitude, violence and more…
Blue – “Thoughtrock” these stones are tinged blue though they can range from almost white to practically black. They are associated with the Mind in Karian traditional medicine, are symbolic of creativity, and are often used as amulets by those who are inventive or crafty. Blue Never Gems are: inspiration, wisdom, skill, utility, analysis, clarity, discernment and more…
Green – “Soulcrystal” these rocks are greenish, ranging from very light to deep forest green. They are associated with the Soul in Karian traditional medicine, are symbolic of the will, and are considered effective talismans of protection. Green Never Gems are: safety, defence, passivity, resistance, spirituality, recovery, peace and more…
Criteria for Gaining Gems:
Never Gems will be rewarded basically at the GM’s discretion and will be somewhat arbitrary, therefore. The GM will endeavour to be fair and welcomes players saying “I think I deserve a Gem for that,” though he may or may not agree with them. The criteria he will be using to award Gems can be summed up as: did the player do something that improved the game experience for everyone? Some specific examples include:
Roleplaying. The more you talk in character including accents, gestures, mannerisms, costumes (why not?) the more often you will get Gems.
Humour. Making the GM laugh is a good way to get a Never Gem. Making everyone laugh is a good way to get several Gems.
Special Effects. Some Anime is driven by cool people using cool powers. These powers and their long development sequences often take up the majority of a given movie or cartoon. Special effects and dramatic flavor text are going to be key to making this campaign something more than just a rules-light fantasy campaign. For this reason I will encourage players to use anime-esque language when describing their character’s actions. Two examples:
Bad: I shoot a ball of fire at my enemy.
Good: The background begins to blur and my hair blows around dramatically as I summon beams of energy to my hands and call out “Super-Solar-Lava-Burst Go!”
Bad: I hit him with my sword.
Good: Sparks fly off the tip of my Katana as I drag it across the ground and bring it slicing across my enemy’s stomach trailing waves of light.
The type of Gem awarded will depend on the situation. Red Gems will be awarded for aggressive actions, actions that rely on the Body or otherwise fit the stone’s theme. Blue Gems will be awarded for creative actions, actions that rely on the Mind or otherwise fit the stone’s theme. Green Gems will be awarded for defensive actions, actions that rely on the Soul or otherwise fit the stone’s theme.
Criteria for Spending Gems:
Never Gems may be hoarded or frittered away as the player chooses. There are several ways in which players may put their Gems to work for them.
The basic way in which a Gem may be spent is to boost any die roll. Red Gems boost aggressive actions or those which are Body based, Blue Gems boost creative actions or those which are Mind based, Green Gems boost defensive actions or those which are Soul based. Each Gem spent adds 1d6 to the roll. As many Gems as the player chooses may be spent on the specific roll (though only gems of the correct type).
During the course of the campaign characters may discover certain artefacts that make use of Never Gems. The particularities of usage will depend on the artefact. Gems may also be used to feed a Kyo Tee Shee. Depending on which colour stones you feed it you may influence its personality toward aggression, creativity or defence.
Perhaps the most important way to spend Never Gems is to power the Kata Kariana – techniques and supernatural powers the characters will develop during the campaign
As with all things, Never Gems will follow one additional rule – they only apply where dramatically appropriate. The GM reserves the right to change the way these abilities work at anytime.
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