As somewhat mentioned by gardenponds, in some games, there is a attribute/quirk system... where attributes, anything positive to a character, would be a plus value and quirks, anything negative to a character, would be of a negative value and you would get so many points to spend. You could add more points to your spending by taking more quirks to your character. For example, let us say you had 2 points to spend; I could spend it by getting an attribute worth 2 points, this list would be bonus things that are not normal to your character, you could pick wealth and start off with more gold or pick a feat or something like that. If you wanted to pick more than one attribute you could pick a quirk and that might be -2 points so it adds 2 points to your total spending pool. So you might choose to have a wealthy, darkvision character who has a bad left arm.

I am sure you could come up with a different name if you are trying to be original but it is just an idea.

I don''t think that would be a good system. Im all for having inherited attributes that are negative, and think that a character should have a few talents and a few weaknesses, but at no time during the game should the player be called upon to assign a shortcoming to his character or "downgrade" a skill in order to bring balance.

If such a system must exist, I would prefer the (horribly unpopular, and rightly so) "atrophy" system seen in games like Final Fantasy II (not FFIV). Disused skills will decrease minutely after a battle sequence, and used skills will improve minutely. Rather than raising levels and seeing "SPD UP! STR UP! LUK UP! AGI UP!" cycle across the screen, each battle ended with a report of what went up or down. This applied to weapon skills, attributes, magical abilities, etc. This is a more feasible implementation, and it serves the dual purpose of preventing universal mastery of all disciplines and keeping the game interesting for more experienced players. If anyone''s had a chance to play Wonder Project J, you''ll remember that different skills and attributes were needed for different situations, and some abilities actually had to be "unlearned" in order to progress through the game. With this system, a character can be reinvented time and time again.

However, I propose a combination of the two. I think that a character who was a high-level knight for a few months, then laid down the sword to study magic, should retain an elevated measure of knightly skills and attributes. Let the old shopkeeper who once was a great archer dust off his bow to defend against the increasing numbers of highwaymen, and by God let him still outshoot those young bandits. I''ve always been enamored of the "oldschool" concept, and I''d like to see it recognized in a long-term game.

But all of this is academic. In conclusion, I''d rather not see "acquired disadvantages" or "assigned shortcomings" on the list, although I confess that to be complete, it should at least include them as bad ideas. Okay, forget me. Put them in.

I think Inmate does make an important point in that a lot of that stuff he mentions is terribly cliche. I understand what Nefar is trying to do though and it sounds useful.

Anyone know where I can learn more about the game involving blue-footed boobies?

I never said it was a good idea/bad idea to have quirks. Personally I don''t like it either, but it should at least be included in the brain storming as to trigger ideas, hence the point of brain storming.

Think outside the box!

The most common ''category'' of any RPG:

GOALS - What the player/character will attempt to accomplish in the game world, which can be a combination of an infinite number of different things. If more people thought this out first, RPGs just might be even more satisfying to their players!

Goals-------Personal, Team, Assisted, Mutual, Long Term, etc.

Another to consider - EVENTS

Events------Time, Current, Past, Present, Future, Triggered, etc.

Oh yeah, don''t forget - LIMITATIONS

Limitations-Limit, Stalemate, Full, Used, Completed, End, etc.

Go deeper!!!!!

- Christopher Dapo

To the list I added, all still in brainstorm phase.

Beliefs
Faults
Guilds
Education
Emotions
Tolerance
Sickness
Sanity
Buisness/Commerce
Fate/Destiny
Social/Clout
Ideas
Family/Society
Love
+ any previous comments from replys (great ideas, all of you)

The whole research process will take some time, since the english language is pretty large(dictionary combing is very tedious), but I will see what I can do about sharing the finished project.

-thanks nefar