Game Dates:

27 March, 2004
1 May, 2004
24 July, 2004
11 September, 2004
30 October, 2004
20 November, 2004

University of Southern Maine, Luther Bonney Hall
Portland, Maine - click here for directions

Game time: 3pm-11pm, with pre-game registration from 2pm-3pm

Rules? We don't need no stinkin' rules...!
(Yeah, nice try. You know who created this site!)

The game of Mind's Eye Theatre, at the start of the rules chapter in every core rule book, instructs us that the mechanics enter into play only when the players cannot otherwise resolve the conflict through roleplay alone. The staff expects players to respect this request. While combat or other reasons to employ the mechanics will occur, we hope that the players will make every attempt to resolve their scenes through roleplay first. Note: we are not anti-mechanics. They serve a place and are quite valuable in specific scenes. However, we are trying to create a particular atmosphere; one where calling out Traits or asking for a rock, paper, and scissors game at every little whim is not the focus.

RULEBOOKS : The game of Entrustment will be using the current, "Third Edition" Mind's Eye Theatre core books. For most of you, this will be Laws of (the) Hunt Revised. For the few who stray, we will be using the core White Wolf books for those genres, but not without some massaging to make your character fit into this game-world a bit better.

AGE: The game of Entrustment is open to all University of Southern Maine students, regardless of age. For non-students, you must be 18 years of age or older to play. Yes, Doogie Howser the 13 year old USM pre-med student is allowed to play but the 17 year old pimply-faced typical high school student is not. That's part of USM policy, folks.

DEADLINES: Deadlines for new character submissions and write-ups are as follows:

• New Character Submissions: One week before the game in which the character will be played. This includes both the initial concept and detailed character background.
• Write-ups: To receive experience for a write-up, we must receive it no later than one week before the following game.

In both cases, the deadline will be midnight on Saturday (unless noted otherwise).

EXPERIENCE: Experience for game play will be dispensed as follows:

• Automatic: One point per game session attended.
• Automatic: One point for submitting a write-up of any kind.
• Storyteller's Option: One point for exceptional roleplay or contributing to the atmosphere of the game (e.g., setting up rooms).

Willpower is replenished by roleplaying your character's Nature. The best way to demonstrate this is to submit a write-up that includes details of your interaction with other players -- especially in scenes where no Storyteller was present, as well as your character's thoughts and motivations during these scenes. Submitting a detailed write-up doesn't guarantee your character's Willpower will be replenished between games, but it's often the best way to demonstrate that you have roleplayed your character's Nature.

Even though no extra experience is granted for exceptional write-ups, there can be considerable benefit in replenishing Willpower. While it's often hard to find enough time to create more detailed write-ups, try submitting an overall synopsis first, followed by short, supplemental write-ups that describe your more important scenes.

ALTERATIONS

Prohibited Traits : Merit: Arcane and Ability: Awareness are prohibited for Player Characters.

Flaw: Addiction : (1-3 Points, depending on the legality of the substance.) Use the version found in Laws of Ascension Companion, pages 68-69. Essentially, if you do not get your “fix,” you are two Traits down on all challenges. While under the influence of your addiction you will suffer from a Negative Trait that the Storytellers will pre-assign.

Fair Escape : This rule was not reprinted in every core Mind's Eye Theatre book. Consider the Fair Escape rule from Laws of the Night Revised to be in effect for all critter types. Additionally, there is a five minute moratorium in which the person who successfully declared Fair Escape cannot be discovered by the original pursuers.

Challenge Moratorium : There is a five minute moratorium on all failed power-related Social or Mental Challenges. For mundane Trait-based challenges, you may use a second "Intimidation" immediately if you have a second "Intimidation" Trait to use, for example... just remember that you'll be using up Traits faster this way.

Maximum Bonus Traits : We are using the rule on page 95 of Laws of the Night Revised for all characters. This rule states, “…you can never claim more than twice your maximum Traits even with bonuses.” So, if your maximum Trait limit is ten, you cannot bid more than twenty Traits in a challenge regardless of the source(s) for those bonus Traits.

Retest Cancellation (“Blocking”) : Similar to the rule in Dark Epics. You can block a retest by matching the conditions, usually by expending your own Ability. (Yes, EXPEND.) Abilities block Abilities, powers block powers, and Merits block Merits. Willpower-fueled retests cannot be blocked. Overbids are not technically retests and are outside the scope of this discussion.

Default Damage : Unless you have an item card or verifiable power/effect that allows additional damage or effects, all improvised weaponry defaults to one Bashing or Lethal, depending on the weapon.

• If you have a cutting or stabbing item, it's one Lethal.

• Blunt objects deal one Bashing level of damage.

Additionally, the improvised weapon provides exactly two extra Traits; and because they are constructed from items that are not designed to be used as weapons, they gain the Negative Trait of Clumsy . No other special effects are granted without securing a specific signed item card from a staff member.

Yes, this means that the sharpened table leg your character has cleverly carved on the fly only deals one Lethal level if jabbing, one Bashing level if swung like a club... with no "staking" effects. You'll need an item card to have those additional benefits. No item card, no "staking" or other extended effects.

If you are attempting to fashion anything more complicated than a blunt object (thrown or swung) or a cutting/stabbing item, you'll need to get an approved item card from one of the Storytellers.

Trait Replenishing : Traits that can be replenished will do so as follows:

• All Physical, Social and Mental Traits will replenish between each game session/episode.
• Starting Blood Traits will depend on a challenge at the beginning of the game per Laws of the Night Revised or by Storyteller decree, depending on the plot.
• Willpower Traits are replenished at the rate of one Willpower Trait per game session (IE: per episode); however, roleplaying your Nature may grant you a one-Trait on the spot replenishment, depending on the kindness of the Storytellers. Our assessment of whether you've roleplayed your Nature will also be based on information gathered from write-ups, so the Storytellers won't necessarily have to be present; the only difference is the timing of when you receive the Trait.
• Quintessence, Rage and Gnosis will automatically replenish at the start of each game session/episode. See us regarding any other supernatural "fuel."

CLARIFICATIONS

Mage Options : We are allowing Conjunctional Effects if purchased with XP, written up before a game and approved by the Storytellers. Fast Casting and Dynamic Magic are specifically NOT allowed at this time. To use Conjunctional effects, you will have to buy conjunctional rotes.  The rote cost is one XP per Sphere level used in the rote; so, for example, a rote that is Life 1, Entropy 1 would cost 2 XP.  However, if you buy a new level of a Sphere you gain a rote automatically, and if you choose to buy a conjunctional rote at that time the XP cost is that of the Sphere level plus the levels in the conjunctional Spheres.

Challenges : Probably the most contentious argument in the Southern Maine LARPing community…. Page 243, Laws of (the) Hunt (among other rulebooks) defines the initial bid as one player bidding a Trait and declaring the action and outcome of the challenge, with the other player either immediately relenting or bidding one of her own Traits in response. Nowhere is it defined in basic challenges that the response must be defensive and then followed up with a new “action” and Trait in her own “turn” to the first player's “action.” The example given on page 243 of Laws of (the) Hunt demonstrates a fight where one character responds with a counter attack – no “your turn, my turn” in effect. Looking at the rules for Surprise (page 255), we find that being surprised means you can not respond in a way that harms the attacker. Typically, this means you may only respond defensively. There is still no “your turn, my turn” in effect – the defender still gets her turn, but her action is limited. This is further evidence that the MET challenge is intended to be an all-in-one test. You may choose to defend an attack without countering it, but that choice does not reserve your own attack “action” for use after resolving the initial challenge. “But… what of more complicated challenges with multiple challenges?” Keep reading.

Order of Challenges : Looking through the MET rules, we can infer three major types of challenges are effectively defined: the one-on-one (or Basic Challenge), the many-on-one (or one-on-many) commonly called the Mob Scene or Mob Challenge, and the many-on-many challenge we call a Mass Challenge or “cluster fuck.” In the first two situations, the rules are mind-numbingly simple – it's one challenge. While retests may offer multiple tests within the challenge, there is but one action (or outcome) from the challenge sequence. A Mob Challenge may find the target retesting multiple times against individual players involved in the attack, but the end result is effectively the same. Note that things like initiative play no part in the resolution of Basic or Mob Challenges, as all parties are acting simultaneously insofar as the game is concerned. Mass Challenges are where things get tricky. Per the rules (page 247), “multiple challenges will inevitably occur simultaneously.” This is the Mass Challenge, where Bob tries to shoot Doug, who is trying to shoot Alice , who is trying to shoot Sam, who in turn just wants to run away. Since there is no clear mob attacking one person, the Storytellers have the option to perform the necessary triage and break the scene down into more manageable chunks, based on things like who has the most Traits and such. The Storytellers, if present, will segregate Basic Challenges and Mob Challenges apart from the Mass Challenges. As Basic and Mob are effectively single challenges, the players are expected to know how to perform a single test, even if there are five characters shooting at one target. The more detailed rules involving initiative are only to be used in the Mass Challenge. The staff will trust the players to know when it is appropriate to invoke the initiative sequence on their own; use it for Mass Challenge situations as defined here, not for Basic Challenges and not for Mob Challenges.

Mob Challenges : There shall be a limit of five attackers per single target or one attacker per five targets (if applicable). If you have five shooters aiming for two targets, this becomes two Mob Challenges as three aims for one target and the remaining two are gunning for the second, for example. In this case, break the two groups apart from the whole. The staff assumes that the players are all adult enough to understand this basic divisioning of tasks without trying to make a Mass Challenge out of two Mob Challenges.

Mixed Category Challenges : Page 243 in Laws of (the) Hunt, among the other core MET books, explains that challenges are usually single category affairs. For example, if you call a Physical Challenge the opponent must respond with a Physical Trait. However, experienced players are allowed to offer each other a certain latitude in this regard. The staff of Entrustment expects the majority of our players to be experienced enough to afford one another this accord when it makes sense. IE: Responding to a Brutal punch with a highly Intimidating Dread Gaze is appropriate as long as the target was not surprised by the punch. This is, of course, still one challenge.

Bottom line - the phrase "multiple challenges" does not refer to two players wanting to achieve different goals with different Trait category declarations, nor does it apply to a group attacking one character even if that character wants to respond with a different Trait category. It's still one challenge, albeit a mixed category challenge. "Multiple challenges" are what happen only when you are in a Mass Challenge situation.

Appropriate Traits : If a power or skill requires a “related” action (strength-related, charisma-related, etc.) in order to activate, use the lists found at the start of each Trait category on pages 108-113 from Laws of (the) Hunt. If you do not bid a Trait from that list, you do not get to claim the special power or ability in that challenge. This is specifically for powers that require that kind of action declaration; using a Celerity follow-up action does not require such a declaration, whereas trying to get the Fleetness “win all ties” effect does require a challenge that is specifically speed-based. The Trait you bid is important.

Obfuscate (and similar effects) : In the words of the Right Honorable Scott A. Boothby: “R.T.F.M.” Please read pages 160-161 in Laws of the Night Revised. For those who need further clarification, pay attention: The power allows one to walk without detection. The power allows one to reek like a sewer without detection. The other players are expected to ignore the Obfuscated character and ignore the importance of things like a seemingly empty chair. Make up a reason to ignore such things in-game, if you must. The user of the power must deliberately interact with her environment in order to risk detection, so laying down some shag carpet to see footprints will not break Obfuscate until after the Obfuscated character has left the scene. Beaded curtains will likewise have no affect. In the words of the Right Honorable James A. Hussiere, “Don't be a fucking twink – ignore the crossed arms and continue the scene, even if it means spilling your plans to kill someone right in front of their player.” Auspex users, read page 137 in Laws of the Night Revised closely; you must have Heightened Senses already active to make the attempt to detect Obfuscate. Pay particular attention to the Trait modifiers found on this page when resolving such challenges.

Celerity (and similar effects) : The first power, Alacrity (page 141, Laws of the Night Revised) specifies that you can use Alacrity to be prepared to return fire back at someone who's declared a shot on you. This power does not allow you to “go first” mechanically no matter what the flavor text might indicate. Instead, Alacrity allows you to effectively change your situation in the declared challenge. If you were unarmed, you can now quickly draw your weapon such that you can return fire in the declared challenge, but you do not get to initiate your own challenge. If someone is attacking a friend, you may leap in the way to counter attack instead of the original target. However, you do not get to perform a feat that is a full challenge in and of itself.

Defenders of follow-up attacks may defend themselves with non-dexterity related Traits; without his own speed-enhancing ability or other funky weirdness, the defender may not respond in a way that harms the Celerity user during the Celerity follow-up actions.

Potence (and similar effects) : As stated earlier, to gain the advantage of many powers within this Discipline you must bid an appropriate Trait. Example: if you bid Quick in a challenge, you cannot ask for a Might retest. It does not matter what Trait the opponent bid, but what you have declared. This does prevent the stacking of effects – users with both Celerity and Potence special effects cannot get both Might and Fleetness benefits since the initially bid Trait cannot accommodate both powers. (This rule applies to other combinations of powers not expressly stated in this rules addendum.)

Merit Stacking : Similar to the rule in Laws of the Reckoning. You only get the highest single trait bonus from your Merits; they do not add up to one massive bonus. Flaws, however, do stack.