FU is a game of action, adventure, and fun! It is a role playing game of grand proportions and stupefying simplicity. FU lets you create exciting stories in any setting imaginable, with a minimum of fuss, or even preparation.
FU is first and foremost an easy game. This book will help you move from the thought "Lets role-play in this setting…" to actually playing within a matter of minutes. Character creation is quick and intuitive, allowing you to play any kind of character you desire, and the game system itself is easy to learn and very simple to use.
FU is universal. Or generic. Or whatever you want to call it. These core rules are not wrapped around a specific background or setting, and make an effort to assume nothing. It is a basic system around which you may create your own settings and stories. With that said, however, FU favors certain kinds of play. FU lends itself to a 'seat of your pants' style, where little preparation is needed. Narrators that enjoy running adventures 'on the fly' will certainly enjoy FU, as will players that are tired of being told what they can't do, instead of what they might achieve.
This book is filled with two types of information. The first are the rules proper — the information that tells you how to play. The rules are laid out like the information on this page, with clear headings and subheadings. FU is pretty straightforward and you aren't likely to need to do much referring to the rule book after your first game, but everything you need to know is presented clearly in this way.
Examples of rules are formatted like this. They are scattered amongst the main text and will help you see the rules in action. You probably won't need to read them either, after your first game.
There are also sidebars at the bottom of many pages. Here you will find explanations of rules, detailed examples, guidelines on using rules in play, and optional rules that you can incorporate into your games. The sidebars are easy to spot as they are separated from the main text by a line, and presented in three columns. Refer to this information if you need to clarify the "how" or "why" of a particular rule.
FU is written with the assumption that at least one player is familiar with roleplaying games and has a vague idea of how they work. If you don't have a clue what an RPG is, then start by finding someone who does!
To play FU you will need to gather a few things. Here is your shopping list;
Dice: Standard six-sided dice are used to resolve action in FU. You will need at least one, but it would be better if players had about three each. Six sided dice are referred to throughout the rules as d6. If a number appears in front (such as 2d6 or 4d6) this indicates you should roll that many dice.
Pencil and Paper: Players will need to record the details of their character, important notes about their mission, and all kinds of other things. The Narrator will also need paper for keeping track of different elements of the story.
Scrap Paper: Narrators will find it useful to keep a supply of paper handy, in order to draw rough diagrams, or keep track of the events of a story. A small white board is also handy for such purposes.
You and your friends are going to work together to tell a dramatic, exciting story. You will establish parts of the setting, and everyone will have a chance to influence that world. Most of the players will create a character who is going to be a major protagonist, one of the cool guys that gets things done. Each character has their own strengths, weaknesses, and goals that will help you role-play them. One player will be the Narrator, who helps everyone along, presents challenges for the characters to overcome and adjudicate the rules when needed.
Play is a kind of conversation, where everyone works together to put the characters in cool and/or entertaining situations. Then you will use the dice to help work out what happens next. Sometimes you will all be working together, throwing ideas around, suggesting things and talking over the top of each other. It is chaos, but hopefully productive, fun chaos. At other times you are going to take it in turns to describe what your character is doing, and seeing how that turns out.
To resolve any action where the outcome is not clear, roll a d6. Your objective is to 'beat the odds' by rolling an even number. The higher the even number, the better the result. If you roll an odd number, the action either failed, or wasn't quite as good as needed or expected. The lower the odd number, the worse the result. When the environment, skills, equipment or abilities make an action easier or harder you will get to roll multiple dice and keep the best or worst result.
Before anything else, you and your friends must decide what type of game you want to play, who the characters are going to be, and where your story takes place. Knowing this will help players create cool characters, and direct the Narrator in the role they will take.
These decisions might already be made, either by the Narrator, or a pre-made setting module. If not, work together to come up with something everyone is excited to play.
Talk before play!Have a conversation about the type of game you will play, so everyone starts in the same "space". Establish tone, theme and/or expectations. It is important to know whether you will be cheered or jeered for outrageous overacting, or bloody acts of violence.
Throw around ideas on setting, imagery, set-pieces, cool clichés and funky scenes. This way everyone gets a clear picture of what the game is going to be about.
This discussion will also clue the Narrator in on what players want (or need) out of the game. It establishes whether players want to feel like epic heroes, down-trodden underdogs, or tragic anti-heroes.
The Insta-Genre-GeneratorFor quick pick-up games, get everyone to write two genres or settings on bits of paper. Stick them all in a hat and pick out two. Now you have "Apocalypse Suburbia", "Medieval Super-heroes", "Kung-Fu High School" or whatever, have a discussion about tone, theme, possible plots and characters. Now play!
In FU a character is your alter-ego. During a story you describe what the character does, how they respond to situations, and react to others.
When you know the kind of setting or premise of the adventures you will be playing you can begin thinking about your character. This is the kernel of who or what the character is, and should be summed up in just a few words or a phrase.
The concept might define the character's background or occupation, such as 'paranormal detective' or 'child prodigy'. Or it might give insight into their personality, such as 'noble knight' or 'nutty professor'.
Of course, the character's concept should fit into the setting, background or types of adventures that you will be playing. A 'street wise cop' may be out of place in medieval England, though a 'worldly sheriff ' might be just right. Use the setting to inspire your character.
Throughout this chapter we will follow Dave and Nina as they create their own characters. With Tim, the Narrator, they have decided to play a game based on the pulp serials of the 1930's, and that it will be fairly whimsical and action-packed. Dave thinks of a couple of his favorite movies and decides that the concept for his character will be 'Daredevil explorer'. Nina wants to play something a little unusual, and after discussing her ideas with Tim and Dave decides her character will be an 'Alien emissary'.
Descriptors are adjectives or very short phrases that identify a character's skills and flaws, the things that make their life easier and harder, and ultimately make them who they are. They indicate the kinds of things that a character is good at, their physical and mental traits, and any abilities or drawbacks they might have. They are both guides for your role-playing and modifiers to 'beat the odds' rolls.
Characters have four Descriptors; Body, Mind, Edge, and Flaw. Choose an adjective or phrase to describe the most distinctive features of your character.
Thinking about his Daredevil explorer and the kinds of things he might have gotten up to during his life, Dave decides on the following Descriptors;
Body: Nimble Mind: Level Headed
Edge: Use bull whip
Flaw: Afraid of heights
Nina, inspired by classic pulp science fiction stories, has decided on the following Descriptors for her character, the Alien emissary;
Body: Fragile Mind: Observant
Edge: Read Minds
Flaw: Alien Perspective
It is totally okay to use clichés when coming up with your concept. Clichés contain a host of ideas and concepts that we are immediately familiar with. When somebody says their character is a barbarian, we automatically picture them as heavily muscled, and uncivilized. Using clichés is a kind of shorthand way to describe your character.
Choosing DescriptorsYou should strive to be imaginative and honest. Consider both your concept and the setting. Giving a character the Flaw 'can't swim' when you know all the stories will take place in the desert is hardly sporting.
Be imaginative, keep your concept in mind, and discuss your ideas with the Narrator. The possibilities are endless.
Descriptors are clearA good Descriptor is understood by everyone at the table. If you or another player think a Descriptor is ambiguous, talk about it. It might need to be re-written, but it might not either. You just want everyone to be on the same page when it comes time to using it.
Descriptors are innateEach Descriptor is an integral and innate part of the character. They cannot normally be taken away, lost or removed (though they might be forgotten or restricted under the right circumstances). Do not make your Descriptors items of equipment.
Descriptors are finiteEach Descriptor should have one or two obvious uses or a specific purpose. It might also be applicable in a range of other unforeseen circumstances, but you will find that out in play. Medicine is better than Doctor, for example, as the latter could be used in a variety of nonmedical situations ("As a Doctor, I am well-educated and quite wealthy…").
What type of Descriptor is this?Some Descriptors could easily fall into more than one category—Good Memory might, for example, be a Mind Descriptor or an edge; Ugly could be a Flaw or a Body Descriptor. That's fine. It is up to you, the Narrator and the other players to make a decision on whether a specific Descriptor is appropriate or not for the stories you are telling.
What makes a good Edge & Flaw?Things that might be called "skills" or "feats" or "stunts" in other games make great edges — stuff like "sword fighting", "breath underwater", and "winning smile" are all good examples.
The best Flaws are personality traits or physical shortcomings. Things like "always smells bad", or "deaf" are better flaws than "can't drive" or "can't speak French." Of course, there are always exceptions. If the characters are British spies during the Napoleonic wars, not speaking French would be a real drawback. Likewise, the Flaw "can't swim" becomes a great feature in a game of pirates and sea battles. Look for ways to challenge your character, add spice to games, and present obstacles to overcome.
Should I specialize?You can focus your Descriptors on a single concept and "specialize". For a really awesome warrior give them Body: Strong, Mind: Tactician, edge: Melee and Flaw: Reckless. It would be very easy to bring most of these descriptors into play whenever you get into a fight. BUT, there isn't a lot of depth there and you are going to be in a bind when in noncombat situations. Instead, you might replace a couple of Descriptors with more versatile options; Body: Tough, Mind: Focused, edge: Melee and Flaw: Reckless.
Describe your character's Body as Huge and their edge as Strong, if you want a wrestler, body builder or angry green superhero! Give your brilliant scientist Mind: Book-Smart and edge: Rocket Science. Just be aware the more you specialize, the harder you will have to work in scenes unrelated to your forte. Some players like this challenge.
Alternative DescriptorsThe four default Descriptors (Body, Mind, edge & Flaw) are not the only way to define your characters. Change or replace them to suit your game, setting, and stories. In a game about giant mecha you might replace Body and Mind with Chassis and Pilot, for example. In a game where everyone plays different types of were-creatures one Descriptor might become Animal Form. In these cases some advice in this sidebar might also need to be adjusted; Animal Form: Jaguar is broader than the Descriptors discussed here, but is totally appropriate to capture the ideas of your game. Use your imagination and modify things as needed!
This is by no means an exhaustive list, just some ideas to get you started. Each of these is described in more detail in the Appendix.
Body: Agile, Ambidextrous, Blonde, Furry, Fake Orange Tan, Handsome, Huge, Overweight, Poor Constitution, Quick, Razor-sharp Claws, Short, Slow, Strong, Tall, Thin, Ugly, Vigor, Weak.
Mind: Absent Minded, Book Smart, Computer-Wiz, Dim-Witted, empathetic, Focused, Lateral Thinker, Mathematician, Observant, Slow, Uneducated, Wise, Witty.
Edge: Acrobatics, Arcane Knowledge, Courage, Driving, Fencing, Good Memory, Hunting, Keen Sight, Linguistics, Magic, Medicine, Nasty Bite, Rich, Wrestling.
Flaw: Blind, Brave, Clumsy, Greedy, In-human Appearance, Missing Leg, Old, Poor, Poor Sight, Primitive, Smelly, Wanted, Young.
Gear is the equipment, gadgets, and weapons that a character will use on their adventures. All characters have the basic clothes or items that are appropriate to their concept. Gear is the important and cool stuff that a character carries.
Like Descriptors, a character's Gear will modify 'beat the odds' rolls. Gear can be anything — guns and knives to fancy clothes, credit cards, a horse, mobile phone, or even a star ship. Like Descriptors, your character's Gear depends on character concept, game setting, and the stories you want to tell. Unlike Descriptors, Gear is always made up of an adjective and noun; Rusting Sword, Long Rope, Fast Horse, Long-ranged Rifle, Dad's Camaro, Heavy Armor.
Your character has two items of Gear. Choose two items for your character.
Dave decides his Daredevil explorer to have a Sturdy Bull Whip, since he is quite skilled with it, and a Worn Leather Jacket to keep out the cold and offer a little protection from scrapes and falls.
Nina thinks about her Alien emissary before deciding on some Official Documents that indicating her political status, and some Exotic Robes, designed to impress and inspire awe.
Items should be "iconic" to your character. Think Batman's Sinister Batsuit, the Ghostbuster's Unstable Proton-packs, James Bond's Reliable Berretta, or Zorro's Flashing Blade.
each piece of Gear should add something to your character's background, personality or goals. It should make a statement about who the character is or what they do.
Gear is equipmentGear is never innate - it can be dropped, lost, broken and stolen. A Cybernetic Arm is not Gear, but an Armoured Power Glove is.
Describing GearWhen describing gear make the adjective tell us something useful and/ or interesting about it. A Long Dagger is okay, a Broken Dagger is better!
Like Descriptors, the description of your Gear should be clear - you don't want to be guessing at the purpose or main feature of an item.
One adjective onlyThe description of your gear should have a single adjective - no less and no more. A Sharp Sabre is okay, as is a Magic Sword, but a Sharp Magic Sabre is not allowed.
Specific nounsChoose specific, descriptive nouns; Sabre is better than Sword, Baseball Cap is better than Hat. You can use more than one noun, but keep the description to as few words as possible.
Talk about your GearDiscuss your Gear. everyone needs to be clear on what you are describing; what the Gear will be useful for, and when it might be a hindrance.
Gear is not innately "good" or "bad". What you do with it and the situations you find yourself in will dictate whether having an item is useful or not.
Good Gear / Bad GearYou can, if you want, dictate that one piece of Gear must have a "good" adjective, and the other a "bad" one. You might have a Warm Jacket and an Old Gun; or a Fast Motorcycle and a Maxed-out Credit Card.
Stuff that isn't GearAny objects, items or equipment that are not listed as Gear are props. Props have no effect on a character's chance of success at an action - they are merely window-dressing. However, you can swap, steal and pick-up another character's Gear and use that!
Like the example Descriptors, this list is not in any way exhaustive. It barely scratches the surface of what your character might possess.
Clothes: Designer Jeans, Slinky Black Dress (let's count "black dress" as the noun), Filthy Underpants, Worn Jacket, State-of-the-art Space Suit, Silk Smoking Jacket, Beat-up Fedora, Tall Powdered Wig.
Weapons: Rusting Saber, Heavy Axe, My Father's Service Revolver, Concealed Dagger, experimental Flamethrower, Fake Revolver, Reliable AK-47, Rubber Mallet.
Transport: Faithful Horse, Beat-up Buick, Bullet-proof Limo, Squeaky Clown Shoes, Tuned up Street Racer, Girls Bicycle, Unreliable Coupe, Rickety Wagon, Fast Motorcycle, Grandma's Runabout.
Other Stuff: Huge Backpack, Miniature Flag, Heavy RPG Books, Faithful Hound, Dented Frying Pan, Water-damaged Notebook, Ancient Spell Book, My Favorite Pet Rock.
By now, you should have a good idea of who your character is. Now it is time to fill in all the other details. This is the bit where you describe the character's appearance and personality, their past, goals, friends, enemies, and any other detail you think important or interesting.
Dave takes a moment to note a few things about the Daredevil explorer;
Tennessee Smith is a mild-mannered professor of history, but in his spare time he travels into the wilderness in search of lost artifacts and treasure. Ruggedly handsome, he always seems to keep his cool, no matter how much danger he is in—and he tends to get into a lot of it!
Nina's description of the Alien emissary is;
Lumina is an important diplomat from the planet Jupiter, which is ruled by the Dread Lord Kang. Like all her kind, she has purple skin, a bald head, and delicate features. Lumina works for the Jupiter Underground, attempting to overthrow Dread Lord Kang.
Every character has a purpose — a goal they are striving to achieve. It may not be world changing (though it can be) but it should be important to that character. Ask the following questions of your character;
What do you want? What is it that you desire, the thing that drives you to action?
What is stopping you? What obstacle or adversary is stopping you from getting what you want?
What will you do? What is the next step to get what you want? What are you willing to do to succeed?
Tennessee Smith is in search of the Idol of Tot, an artefact he has coveted for decades. His rival, Giles Fishburne is also after the idol and always seems to be one step ahead. Tennessee is desperate to succeed this time and will do almost anything to get the idol - though he would never kill for it.
Lumina seeks freedom for all the people of Jupiter. Dread Lord Kang rules the planet with an iron fist, and his agents are always on the look out for renegades. Lumina is willing to put her own life on the line to achieve her vision.
Choose at least one other character that will take part in the story and write a short statement about your relationship with them. This should be clear and add some interesting depth to both characters backgrounds. For example; Old drinking buddies; Dated the same woman; Fought in the war together; Were trained by the same master.
Dave writes; Tennessee Smith and Lumina met at Harvard where Lumina was giving a presentation on the ancient cultures of Jupiter. Nina is happy with this, adding only that both characters were attracted to each other but Lumina is too focused on her mission to have any romantic dalliance.
It's all about roleplaying nowCharacter Creation SummaryYour Description, Drives and Relationships all help develop your character and put them into the "world" of your stories and adventures. The Narrator might occasionally give you a bonus to dice rolls because of the information you reveal here, but that is by no means required.
Use your Drives and Relationships to inform the way you role-play your character, the way they interact with the other player's characters and the world around them.
Long or short term goals?When choosing your Drive you are free to pick long or short term goals. If you are only playing a one-off game, then it is a better idea to pick something that will have an immediate impact on the plot. If you are planning a series of games, then by all means come up with a longer-term goal for your character.
How many Relationships?Two Relationships is a good number to start. Pick two different characters and decide how they know each other. You and another player can work together to decide on a relationship, or you can have separate, unrelated or "opposed" relationships (for example; "In love with"/"Repulsed by").
Don't be antagonisticDon't create Drives or Relationships that will have characters constantly at each others throats. It is okay to have characters that don't see eye-to-eye (in fact, that can be fun!), but don't have them hate each other. You want the characters to function together in order to defeat the antagonist, solve the mystery or complete the mission!
Concept
Who is your character? What is the "High Concept"?
Clichés and archetypes are okay!
Descriptors
Identify the four most important or interesting features of your character, one each for Body, Mind, Edge, and Flaw.
Each Descriptor should be short, punchy, clear, innate and finite.
Gear
What cool, iconic stuff does your character carry?
Choose two items of gear, describing each with an adjective and noun
(e.g., Sharp Saber; Fast Motorcycle).
Description
What does your character look like? What is their name? Where are they from? What makes them interesting and unique?
Drives
What does your character want? What is stopping them? What will they do to get it?
Relationships
How do the characters know each other? What connections do they have?