"But you can already do that...!"

[ghoyle1]

Many Risus players like to play around with the rules. Nothing wrong with that, in the "There's no wrong way to play" spirit of the game. They have a right to do so, and anyone who feels differently should keep it civil or keep it to themselves.

However... there's another type of Risus player who feels that the rules are fine as they are, and they feel compelled to point out that "there's already a way to do whatever you are trying to do." And they have a point: Risus is a small, tight, extremely well-tested set of rules. It already has a lot of flexibility built into the system, which a lot of people miss. It is a very different kind of RPG than a lot of people are used to, and a lot of people seem to miss the subtleties.

The latter group (myself, alas, included) needs to respect the views of the homebrewers. We sometimes keep insisting that "There's already a rule for that!" way beyond the welcome point, which only hurts the fanbase. If that's the way they want to play, they have that right.

I have a suggestion that might help avoid flamewars befpre they begin. Those of us who like the rules as they are might be more understanding if you explained _why_ you are changing the rules. I've certainly tinkered with the rules myself, before I really understood the subtleties of the game. I'm sure a lot of the Risus purists have done the same thing.

If you've read the rules, understand them, and still want to change them, then it still wouldn't hurt to explain why you feel the need to change them when presenting them. Maybe you can help those of us who prefer our Risus straight break out of the box.

Just my two dice worth,

Guy

[Brent Wolke]

It's a fair expectation of civil debate, but whether it's Risus or Pathfinder, you will find people who want to tweak the rules a little or a lot, purely for preference and may not have an explanation beyond, "I like it this way".

[DJ Suptic]

Most of my settings have at least 1 significant rules tweak, and the reason is usually to help a serious campaign setting retain longevity. Risus-as-is is awesome for one shots and spur of the moment gaming, but for a long lasting and more serious campaign, a tweak here and there can help maintain interesting and aid in customization of characters past their cliche list.

[risusmonkey]

My rules hacks are almost entirely on the combat side, as I have developed an approach to running combats that feels right to me. It's entirely compatible with standard (and advance option) characters, so I consider it just another tool in a GM's toolbox for dealing with conflict (similar to Deadly Combat or Last Man Standing).

My reasons:
1. I like Ad Hoc teams because they feel less "gamey" and more natural
2. I typically run more "serious" games where the Inappropriate Cliche rules feel inappropriate. But I still like to allow for unusual tactics using normally inappropriate cliches.
3. I developed this approach over many years of play and it seems the most natural way (for me) to play. it also runs well when I teach it to other people at cons.

Details of my approach: www.velvet-edge.com/silverlode_1908.html#Combat